#they can't defend themselves they can't impact that plot

[natjennie]

media about people who aren't there. shows where the most important part of the story has passed. the idea that we persist after we're gone, we impact people we've never met in ways we can't fathom, so much so that we become the main character in a story we aren't around to hear. media that creates characters with intrigue, with connections, with relationships, with goals, with dreams, with life. and then they disappear. they are phantoms, projections, idols without agency in a tale about them. you know what I mean?

[haven-of-dusk]

I was rewatching RotS the other day, because I'm guilty of it being probably my favorite Star Wars movie, and one scene in particular struck me in a way I hadn't really thought about before.

Order 66 is already an incredibly tragic scene, with a fantastic score, that never fails to give me chills, but in this case I was particularly hit by the short sequence where Zett Jukassa is killed by the clones right in front of Bail Organa.

At first glance, it's just a fun way to do a cameo by George Lucas' son, and that's likely all it was intended as, without an additional thematic meaning. But the structure of the moment does say something about the Jedi that I think is important.

When Zett appears, he's clearly making a break for Bail's speeder, seeing it as a means of escaping the massacre and inferno inside the temple. Given his youth, it's entirely possible the lightsaber he's holding isn't even his, it might've been his master's, or just one he grabbed from a fallen Jedi to defend himself as he fled. But with the brutal efficiency of Order 66, he's probably seen a lot of people he knows and cares about slaughtered by the clones already, and is more than likely aware of the risks involved in engaging any clones in a fight.

Yet despite all of that, when the clones open fire, Zett's first instinct isn't to duck and hide in the speeder or get himself out of danger, it's to plant himself between Bail and the hail of gunfire and try to protect Bail. It's entirely possible Zett has no idea who Bail is, and at most he probably just knows him as a Senator and occassional visitor to the Temple, but it doesn't matter. When faced with danger his first instinct isn't to protect himself, it's the selfless instinct to protect others. And it cost him his life.

(I had a paragraph here talking about the plot of 'Padawan Lost' and its relation to this moment, but this post is long enough already so I might make a separate post about that).

The reason I find this moment so impactful is that it represents the type of 'light' Palpatine wanted to eradicate. Selfless good, protecting others and putting them before yourself, self-sacrifice, they're all values the Jedi represent, and they're all values Palpatine needs the galaxy to lose hold of if he wants his grip on power to remain.

It's a running theme throughout the OT, Andor, the Clone Wars, and more, that fighting FOR others gives people a strength they wouldn't otherwise have. Han chose to come back and help the rebels in A New Hope, Luke and Anakin defeated Palpatine because they were fighting for each other instead of for themselves, etc. Tyrants like Palpatine thrive when people distrust each other, when they're driven to look out solely for their own interests, because it keeps the people separated, oppressed, and severely lacking in morale.

Palpatine didn't just kill the Jedi, he symbolically slaughtered the galaxy's hope and selflessness, setting the perfect stage for his own power. And to take it even farther, he framed the Jedi as dangerous traitors. The symbols of good were, if one believed his words, revealed to be crafty villains who had fooled the Republic into trusting them just so they could gain power. He framed the Jedi as doing the very thing he did, so that he could be the galaxy's hope, putting a stop to the 'threat' and protecting the Republic. But if you can't trust the Jedi, who can you trust? Your neighbors? Your friends? Your senators? It's terrifying how Palpatine successfully generated the environment of fear and paranoia that would keep him in power while exterminating the organization representing everything that would ideologically undermine him.

And it's even more terrifying that some viewers of Star Wars have essentially bought Palpatine's lies and uncritically act as though the Jedi were some ultra-corrupt, morally reprehensible organization.

[weemssapphic]

Hi author! How are you? I hope you are doing well! I read your answers on our comments on the autumn paragraph with Larissa and I wondered, if by a happy coincidence ( You see where I'm going with this, huh? For example, in a well-known story that we all love here... which currently has 25 chapters 😉 Jokes aside, I'll continue 😅) on a beautiful snowy day, in front of Nevermore, outside (it's Better outside than inside believe me😅) Our dear y/n could not resist the temptation to have a snowball fight with some students, in front of the main gate of Nevermore, Larissa just happened to cross this famous gate at Most inopportune moment, and gets hit by the snow projectile that y/n had reserved for a student (choose the one you want 😁)What will happen in the first 3 seconds after impact? After the initial shock of everyone on site and before the students had time to flee (yes it's obvious they will let y/n fend for themselves 😂)Y/n will assure this? Accuse the first student who comes along?Will run away?I will defend myself with the argument: you came into my path, like the fault is bad luck 😅So my questions: Larissa's reaction to a snowball falling on her

And what will be t/p's reaction/excuse?

And what will be the reaction of the students involved in this affair?

Bonus question: what punishment for y/n,😈 obviously Larisa won't let that go 😂

Bye author! Take care! (The option larissa joins the snowball party is available)

Oh my god I might actually need to write this out in great detail because this is adorable. Larissa would be reeling with shock, and y/n would look like a deer caught in headlights, so shocked that they can't even come up with an excuse (and, as the students flee in fear, is plotting their revenge on the students for leaving them to fend for themselves) (of course it's Larissa's fault for walking into the path of the snowball but you can't tell her that). In my highly factual and correct opinion, Larissa would (after being frozen in shock) retaliate by throwing a snowball at y/n. And of course perfectly land the hit, which would shock y/n, who would then recover and they would have the most epic snowball fight and then have to curl up together in Larissa's office in front of the fire to recover (and Larissa would hold it over y/n's head jokingly for a long time). The punishment is a massive snowball to the face of course 😂

[an-au-blog]

hello! a different anon interested in the unclenapped au here! (and other aus where buggy is with the strawhats i guess)

not to bring PLOT into a mostly character-focused au, but with extra strawhat crew aus i'm always curious where the author would have kuma send the new guy(s) post-sabaody. basically, where would you send your au buggy to learn & grow over the time skip? is he learning new skills somewhere, or landing on the red force (or wherever luffy & rayleigh ended up) and learning about his past?

thanks!

Hello other anon! Can I call you Difan (get it? because different anon (I'm so funny ik))

And no, no, no, don't worry, I LOVE plot! And I was actually recently thinking about the whole Kuma situation. Because he sent each one either to a friend/somewhere to make connections with the revolution, or to help them train/help with personal growth.

At first I thought maybe I should make up an island that would fit this version of him. Something that would maybe make him conquer his fear of being trapped and claustrophobia, or maybe something to better help him use his powers.

Maybe something like an island where everything is small and all the inhabitants live in dark holes in the walls (picture something like the kindergarten from Steven Universe). And Buggy is freaking out because he can't live in the whole in the wall, he just can't! Not again! Not to mention the food, there's so little food for the small people there, what would he eat - as someone probably two times their size?

He just wasn't ready to go back to not having anything. So he starts helping them grow their farms and defend themselves from wild beasts and in return they help him reach inner peace and face his trauma. Maybe he'd even have a Sanji moment where he finds out that the people can teach him fighting skills he didn't know they had?

idk...

But I also started looking into places or different arcs and two specific ones actually seem pretty fitting. (can you tell I've actually given this quite a bit of thought hahaha ':))

The first place I thought of was Impel down. It would also cross with the canon timeline and events. Think about it: he'll get over his fear of imprisonment, make connections with the revolutionaries living in the walls. It would be just like in canon for the exception that Buggy is willingly helping Luffy and he's been in there for a shorter time.

Not to mention that on the ship when they tell everyone that he used to sail with Roger, he would be finding out something new about himself. Maybe even remember something.

(And here I go pushing my shuggy agenda again) And that way Shanks's return would be have more weight as well. It would impact both of them so much because 1. Shanks not only lost Ace but now he finally found Buggy and 2. Buggy went through so much trauma and then some greasy redhead claims to know him??? And what's more, he doesn't have this spike of anxiety upon meeting him?? (but maybe I'll make a separate post about that specifically)

Although I don't know if after that I'd want him to go back to Amazon Lily with Luffy and meet Rayleigh (because again: revealing past and all that fun stuff), or if i want him to be taken in by Shanks and his crew instead of Law (and he'd still have the reveal of the past but differently that with Silver...)(idk just food for thought)

Anyway though,

The second place I thought of is a bit of a stretch. I thought of Arabasta. It's a bit of a stretch because, why would he be there?

Well they're alleys of the straw hats and had recently gotten out from under Crocodile. Also if I'm not mistaken the revolution army had it's foot in there as well right? Also I'd absolutely love seeing Vivi and Buggy interactions. I feel like she could teach him a lot in just general. Also he'd love the sun so much.

I'm also thinking maybe he could train and learn quite a bit history there. But I hadn't had that much time to think about this option to be honest...

[3416]

i feel really similarly re: your answer to the ask about leafs fans. one thing that genuinely annoys me to no end is how people don’t seem to realize that a lot of the hate/negativity that surrounds the leafs is literally a direct byproduct of other fanbases seeing how awful “fans” of the leafs themselves talk about the team and its players 😭 like uncles will complain about all the disrespect the leafs get but if supposed fans of the team constantly broadcast themselves ripping into players then why wouldn’t fans of other teams think they have a free pass to repeat the same talking points lol. steve dangle making an entire career off exactly that and still being popular within the fan base speaks for itself. it’s just irritating that every single widely held (obviously baseless) criticism about the players like about mitch and his character or jt not being captain material or the core not caring etc etc etc literally began from fans themselves like that’s so sad to me lol

that's extremely well put and 100000% the case, lol. i totally agree. and it's why the divide in fans annoys me so fucking bad. all the neutral people who are like 'you can't tell people how to be a fan and ultimately we all want the same thing' are also obnoxious bc like. these people who are actually hateful and constantly negative use the length of their 'fandom' to explain why they're fed up and it DOES contribute to the way other teams fans view us and makes it hard to be a fan out loud and it EVEN impacts how players perceive toronto as a market (elliotte on a show last night admitting that the marner debacle has made players be like... ehh not there! abt toronto is so funny). anyway it's like........ once again, i fully believe engaging in sports and hobbies in general is a choice, whether it was something shown to you as a child or you discovered it yourself later. plenty of people who have been fans for the same lengths of time have managed not to become ugly and over the top about it so lol. i know some people manage to detach themselves from players but ultimately.... you're here to root for players as much as the team. you buy jerseys with their names on it and you spout facts about their individual play to other teams fans to defend your own. athletes are human beings, and i think that's a much more interesting and grounding way to interact with sports than the barbaric and annoying ass way so many men do. nothing's going to change about it, but i think toronto media in general needs more neutral to positive voices (fuck you steve dangle fr.) bc they get accused of having homer broadcasts and yet. every time i listen to either the american or the canadian ones during leaf games, the leafs are never getting the benefit of the doubt and they can never do anything right, lmfao. and maybe that's been shaped by their playoff failures of late but i don't care. we're here to have fun, and i want to be able to be positive and believe in this team and its core players (who are going to end up the best to ever do it in blue and white regardless of the playoffs btw) every offseason in a place without 49023492 idiotic comments telling me they can't win a certain way. like. you've lost the plot if part of your thing as a sports fan isn't blind belief. that is quite literally what it is... every year 31 teams lose and still have a fanbase at the end of it, lmfao.

i'm aware of how celeb culture and parasocial relationships impacts all of that too. i feel it in myself, the weird urge to be defensive over some of these guys i know that i don't know, but on the other hand, i fully think that the people who are overtly negative have their own little parasocial thing going on where they make up their own narratives and personalities for these guys they don't know either. i've fully seen a couple twitter users insinuate bc they, a toronto/ontario native themselves, have never heard about a positive interaction with mitch marner first hand that must mean he is actually the devil (they never say they've heard negative things either LMFAO.. like they don't know him or know people who know people who know him and say he's decent so he must be rotten bc hockey circles are small and blah blah blah). it's just so................ it's all bc toronto's a huge market and hockey is the thing to talk about 24/7.

[draiochteve]

a vent

I need people to start fucking grasping that you can't always take people's word. That someone being popular or publicly liked isn't the same as them being a good person. That some people will weaponize important concepts, issues, and identity as something to beat others and shield themselves. I need people to be more critical about large claims and sweeping statements. I need people to understand they likely do not know the whole story. That they may be being spoonfed a very specific narrative with the goal of personal vendettas. I need people to pay closer attention to language used and how it's being used. Are buzzwords being tossed around? Are identities being erased to paint a differing picture? No one learned shit from Emily. And that's a lot of what I'm seeing. I wish I spoke up more sooner. The cultish obsession with this one person. The insistence they cared. This fixation on their POV. I will not say there isn't value, ofc there is, but the problem lies with the extreme elevation of importance at the suffering of others. The silencing of discomfort and concerning things shared in this persistence of "he is a supporter of us all" I thought I was the problem. Vibes didn't match and my gut feeling just some paranoia or misunderstanding. A mismatch even. But here I am with hurt friends, people betrayed, and exhaustion knowing I was right at least to some extent. I can speak for other claims, but I can say something isn't setting right and a lot seems too convenient. If that makes me a villain, so be it. My roots have long since lost the will to care. If it get screenshot, sure, whatever. I'm just a dumbass typing on my computer. Truly, I don't matter. I've said it before, but I'm at a limit. I've been thinking hard about what staying in this fandom means for me. The comments I have seen defending this person have crossed lines just as much as the threats to them has crossed lines. The plot? Lost. The impact? Downplayed. For years I didn't know why I felt so pushed out and isolated, who was spinning these incredibly uncomfortable and questionable commentary. I am in full belief they were emboldened all the same whether people want to admit it or not. I made this username my everything. I had full intent originally if I hopped somewhere else, this name would follow. I am saddened to say that has not and will not be the case as I have settled. I have become firm in my shedding to start anew with new eyes and a deep breath.

My tether to here is fraying more and more by the day. And I'm fucking devastated recalling what got me here. I keep thinking of my friends, my hopes, my aspirations, all I planned to do after I moved and got myself situated. Unfortunately, everything has become more tainted and more painful to try to be by. There's so much more important shit going on in the world. And I refuse to succumb to someone living out infighting, self destructive and superiority complex dreams in fucking fandom.

[myimaginarywonderland]

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and thoughts and it's a good thing to have both people praising and critiquing the show! As a fan it's also interesting to see the different perspectives.

With that said (no hate), the arguments by some of the people defending the show are just not it?

1. "Rick helped with it, he knows what he is doing." How many times have we seen authors royally screw up somethings? How many times have authors sucked when it came to adapting their own books? How many times have authors misunderstood the fans? How many times have authors done something 80-90% of the fandom wasn't happy with? Just because an author is working on it doesn't mean he can't make fault just like we can find faults in his books!

2. "It's a kids show!" So? Kids shows can be complex, brutal etc. There are levels of everything that you can show or adapt to your demographic without taking it away like violence. You can show kids violence but you just have to take into consideration your audience. You can hint it in extreme cases even. Kids aren't clueless and can also pick up on things. Adding to that, kids aren't dumb. They can figure things out without you spelling it out word by word. Some kids shows are so beautifully made that they are considered some of the best shows in general because their characterization and messages carry through generations. Not to mention that I don't think anyone below the age of 12 year old is watching this and that is borderline teen!

3. "It's an adaptation!" Right. And we all understand that certain things might be skipped or changed. However to change the complete plot point (having the quest date pass and essentially failing the quest) is a huge deal. And even smaller changes are allowed to be critized. If you are adapting a book that is 10+ years old your main focus should be on getting the story to screen, making the characters themselves alive but in a modern world while still having them be true to themselves! Changes are good if they add something to the story and not just for the point of mixing things up. Changes should benefit the story, should expand on the universe, explore the characters more, strengthen relationship. They shouldn't be added if they seemingly have no impact or change a fundamental part of the story.

There is a difference between critiquing and defending something and excusing every single thing with non-existent points.

[thetruearchmagos]

So-

@theprissythumbelina do you remember that intelligence analyst 'category' of character I mentioned a long while back?

Well, for some reason it came to mind the other day, and I've been thinking more about the sorts of characters I'd hope to use as POVs in my WIPs, and I've made a small change in a certain character from Swift Seas And Whirlwinds which I thought might really add to the perspective they offer.

The character in question is Lance Corporal Piki Ngata, UC Marine Corps, and since I've got a character intro for him in the works I'll save the details for later. Basically, though he's semi active pre-War (AKA the 'first' book) where he offers us a look into life on the soon to be invaded island of Paeroa, Ngata really comes into his own once war breaks, where he'll appear in the fight to defend his homeland and birthplace from the invaders. Theoretically not too convoluted, though I have some spanners in mind to be thrown into things...

But that's not the point! Of this post, that is.

You see, Ngata actually began life as the product of one of those "Wouldn't it be cool if..." sorts of daydreams that spawn half the shit I write. The Scene that he firsts appeared in has him as one of the crew of a 'coastal missile battery', waiting for a chance to strike at the invasion fleet offshore, before a mass air raid wipes out most of the batteries and their 'radar' sites.

Now, that's all well and good for a one-off brainflash, but as I've been fleshing out his relationships with his fellow locals, his colleagues, and his superiors, I realised that the role I've given him was frankly a bit of a limiting one. For Plot Reasons Too Long To Explain Here, the coastal missiles don't really play much of a role past this very early scene, and even there they don't really have much of an impact on events since they're just getting shot at without any chance of fighting back. I reasoned that if I'm going to give Ngata the honour of being a proper Perspective character in SSAW then I'd better make it an interesting one with serious potential for development.

So, I put him in Air Defence!

... which I can assure you is a lot more of a change than that little quip might suggest.

You see, while I've been thinking about all this, I've also spared a few side thoughts for how the air war for Paeroa goes, which made me quickly realise that putting Ngata here leaves him straight up relevant for a lot longer. The idea of UC coastal missile batteries was always an iffy one for me for Worldbuilding reasons (because I am incapable of considering any others apparently), but air defence is very much something I felt I could do more with.

The idea for this change also brings up some opportunities for what I considered 'interesting emotional developments', AKA Shit He'll Seek Therapy Over. As part of the fragile and utterly outmatched air defence grid protecting Paeroa, Ngata will at least get to shoot back at his attackers, but every lost battery or shot down friendly fighter is a gruesome loss he knows they can't afford to take, while Nouvoloian warbirds come in day and night and seem to crash upon his comrades no matter how badly he wounds their numbers.

At the same time, his duties leave him physically separated from the worst of the fighting on the ground, where two companies of marines fight for every hill and patch of jungle against a full Nouvoloian brigade. Casualties streaming through to the rear hammer in how comparatively privileged his circumstances are to the boots, and he knows every aircraft or missile that slips through his watch means another body on a stretcher or in a bag. For this marine, it makes for a strange kind of guilt.

And... that's about that. Considering how much weight I put on a fair number of characters to tell their stories through their own unique perspectives on events greater than themselves, you'd think I'd be more thoughtful about how I handed out POV Character status. Then again, I think turning a daydream into a chance to tell a distinct and unique narrative isn't a bad way to go about writing. Now that I've mentally straightened out my thoughts on Ngata, I'll see if I can rationalise and ground the Perspectives of some other folks...

After I'm done with his Intro!

Also, for the character lore, Tagging @athenswrites @caxycreations @hessdalen-globe

[euarchontoglires]

would've posted this on my twitter priv but i don't wanna feel stifled by the character limit so here it goes

i am fully aware of the controversy behind some of the amphibia staff being pr0\shitters. however i'm not letting that impact my enjoyment of the show because as an asian-american, the joy of seeing asian representation in a large-scale cartoon far outweighs the discomfort i feel about those who worked on it

that being said, i definitely believe you need to be wary about separating art from artist. but that entails actually thinking critically about which aspects specifically can't be separated, instead of just going "this whole thing is automatically Bad because a Bad person made it." in amphibia's case, it's the fact that so little attention gets called to how marcy and sasha, Literal Actual Children, are holding such high rankings in amphibian society. and ESPECIALLY sasha being employed as a literal child soldier.

to be clear, i do not think it is a bad approach. many children's cartoons have kids in empowered positions, and i think it's interesting how the calamity trio are being seen differently from actual frog children due to being physically bigger than even most adult amphibians. however, combined with the context of some of the staff's views, it makes me raise an eyebrow. amphibia isn't some magical fantasyland where kids can live out their dreams of being a watered-down TV-Y version of a knight or a king. it's a proper country with very fleshed-out worldbuilding, with its own share of heavy societal issues that parallel our world's, and the show is definitely not one to shy away from heavier topics

which is why the implications of 13-year olds being in the military and government almost never being brought up is so surprising to me. sasha didn't HAVE to be written as the co-leader of the toad military. marcy didn't HAVE to be written as the king's advisor.

but here's the thing. a lot of pr0\shitters don't see children's show protagonists as children, but rather people with personalities of vague maturity that can play any role and theoretically anyone can self-insert themselves into. usually with only slightly less maturity than the adults at the least. and in most cases, that's fine—protagonists like that can resonate with a wider audience than just little humans of a similar age. usually them doing adult things is all cool and good, and in the cases where they're doing something a child Really Should Not Be Doing there's commentary on it (ex. animorphs). but when it comes to particularly sensitive topics that regularly get defended by people in power in real life—i.e. age gap relationships and sexual abuse—it's hard to ignore the optics of putting a child character in such a situation, even if they're a collection of lines that acts simultaneously like an adult and a kid. and this is where the trope of putting kids and adults on relatively the same status level starts to break down. sasha being a child soldier just ever so slightly toes the line between "eh it's just a cartoon" and "what the fuck why is no one concerned about this", and that's why i think her being written as such is a direct reflection of Those staff members' attitude towards fiction.

additionally, the general vibe of the show just kinda. feels like a cartoon made by and for weirdo adults who complained that children's cartoons didn't cater to them enough. as much as i enjoy the internet/nerd humor, it's hard for me to not feel cynical about it. or about some of the more risqué jokes/scenes. or about marcy getting impaled in the chest at the end of s2. i'm sure it's just because disney's censorship toned down every other intense scene, while they couldn't with marcy's scene because it was both leaked beforehand and Plot Important, but it feels to me like it was included for pure "oh my god this show is so DARK and ADULT!!!" shock value. i'm glad i don't interact with the fandom because i'm sure if i took a drink for every person using those jokes and scenes to "prove" that the show was "really" made for older folks, i'd die from liver disease

also that one line of sprig saying "i can't believe we tried to kill each other over a piece of fiction!!! :)" in the ship war episode genuinely made me consider dropping the show

[lovely-oh-so-lovelyyui]

I feel like we, in the DL fandom, do not talk about how the Church organization people who send in the brides, are fucking trash as well to make a deal with Karlheinz, send in young girls who have faith in them to a bunch of sadistic 100+ year brats who torment them for sport, all for the “greater good” of humanity (ofc young women have to be sacrificed 🙄). Like, THEY should be risking themselves (they’re vampire hunters, like Seiji) for the sake of humanity, not these clueless, young girls.

Yes! I totally agree with you as much as I like portraying Yui’s childhood as something idyllic and much happier than her current state. It's undeniable the church is at partial fault for the atrocities and tragedies committed by the boys.

Now as controversial as it sounds the boys are not wrong to feed or hunt humans for blood, it makes sense for their father to set up a feeding system so there would be less disarray. 

I mean it makes sense, according to the Diabolik lovers wiki page all of the demon clans can feed on blood however vampires are the only ones who gain nutrients from it. 

This makes them natural predators of humans, as a race you can't expect them to starve so being sent to humans only seem as natural as humans slaughtering livestock. They are royal too, obviously, their blood supply would be of fine quality, so “pure blood” I'm assuming is healthy girls who don't eat junk food, haven’t smoked or drank or even touched drugs which is why a church is such a perfect cover. Also, I think the whole virgin thing doesn't play a part, it's probably an old wives’ vampire tale but knowing someone's dick hasn't been in your lunch probably makes it much more appetising.

Now, this under no circumstances means I'm defending the boys, I am looking at it from your average vampire’s viewpoint discarding human morality of well putting “an innocent lamb” for slaughter mentality.

But it's very apparent because both vampires and humans are intelligent creatures with free will. The silver line between a food source and an inferior race is very blurred. I will extend the difference on this another day but I'll focus on the actual church feeding system from what I've gathered; I just wanted to portray it from a different point of view for all those who rightly disagree with the sacrificial bride system.

Now don’t get me wrong if used correctly I think the sacrificial bride system is pretty great if you tweak some areas if you have a voluntary group of individuals who get paid to let the boys feed from them with full knowledge and consent of what’s going on as well as full insurance on their safety it is far more practical then no feeding system at all. What makes this feeding system even better is that it’s backed by both the vampire nobility and human hunters. Both are sides that have been at war for who knows how long and have had tremendous impacts on both sides, whether they be socio-political, or financial and physical.

See how on paper this looks like the perfect theoretical solution, but the show hints to us that there’s a lot more corruption involved.

I didn’t plan for this to become headcanons but here we go I guess:

I'm assuming Yui is not the only church girl who is kept unaware of the vampire's existence but one of the only girls who hold any relation to a vampire hunter probably plot armour.

Vampires and humans dislike each other. This is not new, they've probably been at war for centuries and whilst humans are extremely adaptable but the only reason they could reach a truce with the vampires is probably that they became a nuisance to the vampires and this would be the lesser of two evils for the church.

The funding comes from the vampires, each hunter gets as much money as the girls they send, and the girls that are sent must be of the highest quality.

Docile, sweet, easy on the eyes and most importantly with good-tasting blood.

However the war is over, and there are truces and pacts. The original hunters are replaced and hand their titles down to their eldest son and the training to prepare continues, but traditions and principles become lax, and discipline is lost.

 Nepotism and corruption don’t take long to consume the system, the men bid the girls in between themselves selecting which church sends the most girls for funding.

Many smaller factions soon join under the powerful ones, you would think the church that doesn't sell as many girls would be happier no?

No.

The funding is taken away and the church is forced to give up and sell its girls to the bigger factions.

The girls are monitored closely, indoctrinates with weak morals, and made as vulnerable and trusting as possible, the not as pretty girls are given into the red light streets for spare change, and some are promoted to nuns only to take care of the new batch of girls or giving birth to them.

And the rest is history, the cycle continues. the vampires long predicted this as human nature repeats itself often.

[studentofetherium]

cops are a really glaring issue with detective fiction, but i really appreciate how Nisioisin has totally sidestepped the issue in his writing, and in fact, even sometimes puts cops in a negative light

in Zaregoto, Ii doesn't work with cops. he's not even a detective, just a guy with bad luck, but despite being constantly surrounded by death and murder, he rarely deals with authority to any degree. whenever cops appear, it's briefly, and they have a negligible effect on the plot

in Boukyaku Tantei, Kyouko is a more traditional private detective, and in fiction, those nearly always find themselves involved with cops, yet every one of her cases that we see is brought to her by Yasusuke. cops exist in her cases, but once again, they have little effect on the story itself

Bishounen Tanteidan is especially interesting for this, tho, because here, authority is positioned explicitly as in the negative. there is a grand conspiracy surrounding the cast, and to whatever degree that authority, or adults, which the series sees as hand in hand, they are defending that nebulous whatever

but i think the work that's most fascinating for Nisioisin's view of cops isn't any of his detective works, but Monogatari. both of the parents in the Araragi household are cops, and we can clearly see the impact that has had on the family. all three kids developed a sense of justice from their parents, one that told them they should do right. Koyomi had this sense of justice shattered, but Karen and Tsukihi supposedly still stand strongly by them

but that's not totally the case, either. first of all, Karen and Tsukihi act as vigilantes, and they specifically mention that they don't work with cops. this could just be an act of childish rebellion, considering their parents, but they still seem to admire them, so that's not entirely it. but Tsukihi's sense of justice is frivolous, much like everything else about her, while Karen's justice is a lie. it feels unlikely that either of them would ever go on to become cops like their parents

the Araragi parents rarely get involved in story. their mom appears in Tsubasa Tiger, but her choice of career is irrelevant to her role there. the one time it's relevant is with Sodachi, and that feels most damning. they can't save her from her abusive life. they should be the saviors in her life, that's literally what cops are supposed to do, but police are ineffective as a solution to abuse. they intervene and despite that, nothing changes. her life only continues to get worse until she's turned over to the state, who continue to fail her on every level

Imperfect Girl ends with U being turned over to the police, which transitions to the epilogue, and when we see her next, she's turned her life around, which in theory seems like a reverse of what happened with Sodachi. U has become a child of the state, she's been turned over to authority, and she turned out fine, but in this case, it doesn't feel like the cops mean anything here other than that they exist. the narrator was the important one in turning her life around. even in a case where cops did an objective good, it's a minor note, and it's ultimately ineffective compared to

i can't claim to know Nisioisin's politics just from his writing, especially when his series vary so wildly in tone and direction, but from looking at all of this, i get the sense that he's hesitant to portray cops as a universal good. this all makes for a noticeable trend in his writing which i really appreciate

[anarmorofwords]

Hi! You're probably not going to like this ask, but before getting into it I'd just like to say that this isn't meant as Kamala hate or anything, and I don't really want to offend.

Having said that, wouldn't it make sense that we get to see how Kamala treated Anna after she came out? It's in all likelihood one of the things that's weighing on Anna the most.

Obviously Kamala had her valid reasons: her parents aren't as liberal as the Lightwoods, she believes (knows?) their love is conditional as she's adopted, she's not white and not being heterosexual could further any treatment she's suffered from being different... Her reasons have already been listed multiple times by multiple people. Kamala has the right to stay in the closet and fear coming out. And while that shouldn't be villianised, we can't forget that closeted people can harm those around them.

If Kamala had kept treating Anna like a good friend, rumour would've sparked, and even if it was denied, she'd have been harmed by merely associating with Anna. Especially with the life Anna began leading; she could have been labelled as one of Anna's 'conquests' by the Clave. That, as we've established, is detrimental for her safety.

But at the same time, it would create a breach between Anna and Kamala. And Anna had the right to be hurt by it and weary of it when Kamala said she wanted a relationship.

If we look at it from that perspective, Anna's actions (though inexcusable in how they treated Kamala --who was also at fault for not accepting a negative for four months) make sense. Kamala wasn't only a fling of a week*, but also the girl she lost her virginity with, who asked her to be her secret (until she married Charles, after which Anna's affections would be discarded), who hid her sexuality for two years and sat back while Anna suffered from homophobic commentary, and who now wants a relationship hidden from most of the people that know her.

Kamala shouldn't be forced to come out; but the harm that can do to the women she may engage with is reflective of what happens nowadays. I can mostly think of examples with gay men, so my apologies in advance. But how many women have seen their marriages ruined by their husband having affairs with men?

Creating characters that reflect a toxic part of the 'hidden' LGBT community shouldn't be seen as hating or villinifying. Thomas isn't out and he isn't labelled a villain by the narrative --because his actions don't harm anyone. The hate Alastair gets in-universe is because of his past as a bully, not because he's gay. Matthew's not fully out and he isn't villianised --like Thomas, because the decisions he makes to keep his sexuality hidden don't impact anyone negatively.

I'll even go as far as saying that not even the narrative villianises characters like Kamala and Charles. If it were, they'd be seen more like Grace in Chain of Gold. We'd see how Kamala's actions are affecting Anna's in more ways than anger (that in itself put the fandom against Anna), and the characters would note so. We wouldn't see scenes were Cordelia empathised with Charles, nor Matthew said he loved him.

Be it as it may, Kamala and Charles represent ugly parts of being closeted that can naturally occur when someone is in their position. LGBT people are human. Humans, when put into very difficult situations (and Charles risks his career; Kamala her safety), can make decisions that harm those around them. Consequently, the people they're harming have a right to feel, well, harmed in whatever range of ways --this goes mostly for Alastair, and very partly for Anna, whose treatment of Kamala was horrible.

Readers need to understand what is pushing these 'villianised' characters to harm (again, mostly for Alastair) the more prominent characters and go beyond how they are instantly depicted. Because these are complex characters based on complex real people influenced by very ugly realities we will move on from someday, but sadly not yet.

By the way, Charles and Kamala's situations aren't that similar beyond the closeted thing, but I crammed them together because of a post I saw you reblog.

Please understand I'm not justifying Charles's actions; that I understand the pain he's put Alastair through, and know that he shouldn't ever be near Alastair. Nor am I trying to justify Anna's actions nor hate on Kamala.

I'll just finish my pointless rant by adding that I do think cc has sensitivity readers. I think she asked a gay man to go through tec (I don't know if he still revised her other books, though), and know she asked POC's input when writing someone for their culture. I don't know much beyond that, but I doubt who revises her stuff is up to her. Wouldn't that be something the publisher is responsible for (honest question)?

*I've also noticed people using the argument that they didn't know each other long enough for Anna to harbour such ugly emotions towards Kamala, but Kamala also remembered Anna pretty deeply and is 'in love' with her. I just wanted to say that considering cc writes (fantastical) romance where someone can ask a woman they met two months ago marriage, stressing over time spaces doesn't make much sense. Just my take.

hi!!

alright, where do I start? probably would be best with stating that while I can analyse Kamala's situation with what I know/see/read about racism and discrimination and reasonably apply things I've read/heard from PoC to the discussion, as well as try to be as sensitive about it as possible, I'm still a white woman, so not a person that's best qualified to talk about this.

that being said - if someone wants to add something to this conversation, you're obviously more than welcome to, and if there's something in my answer that you don't agree with or find in some way insensitive or offensive - please don't hesitate to call me out on that.

back to your points though: (this turned into a whole ass essay, so under the cut)

I don't think Anna shouldn't be able to reminiscent on Kamala's behaviour/reaction to her coming out, or be hurt by it. what bothers me is the way CC talks about it - I can't remember the exact phrasing, but the post where she mentioned this suggested something along the lines of "you'll see how Kamala sided with the Clave and didn't defend Anna after her coming out", therefore putting the blame on Kamala and completely disregarding the fact that Kamala wasn't in position to do much at all. It suggest that their situation was "poor Anna being mistreated by Kamala". therefore I'm afraid Kamanna's main problem/conflict will remain to be portrayed as "Anna having to allow themselves to love again and forgive Kamala", while Anna's shortcomings - and Kamala's vulnerable position - are never discussed. I think it would be possible to acknowledge both Kamala's difficult situation and the possible hurt her behaviour caused Anna without being insensitive towards Kamala's character, but it would take a really skilled - and caring - author to do both of the perspectives justice. CC would have to find a balance between being aware of the racism/prejudice Kamala faced/ writing her with lots of awareness and empathy, and still allowing her to make mistakes and acknowledging them. As it is however, I'm under impression that she's just treating it as a plot device, a relationship drama.

I'd say no one expects characters of color to be written as flawless or never making mistakes, it's mostly the way these mistakes are written and what things these characters are judged/shamed/

And that's - at least in my understanding and opinion - where the problem is. it's that the narrative never even addresses Anna's faults, and portrays Kamala as the one that caused all - or most of - the pain, without ever even acknowledging her problems and background.

White characters in TLH make mistakes and fuck up - because they're human and they're absolutely allowed to - but the thing is, non-white characters aren't afforded that privilege. Anna's behaviour is never questioned - none of it, shaming Kamala for not being able to come out, dismissing her desire to be a mother, or any of the questionable things she did in ChoI. Same with Matthew, James, Thomas. Alastair and Kamala however? they're constantly viewed through their past mistakes, and forced to apologize for them over and over, forced to almost beg for forgiveness. Moreover, those past mistakes are used as a justification of all and any shitty behaviour the other characters exhibit towards them now, which is simply unfair and cruel. They're held to a much higher standard.

So I'd like to say that yes, Kamala was in the wrong to keep nagging Anna after numerous rejections, and she was in the wrong to not inform Anna about Charles prior to them having sex - but that doesn't give Anna a free pass to constantly mistreat Kamala. And let's be real, Anna isn't stupid - while at 17 she could be naive and uninformed, I can't imagine how after years of hanging out with the Downworlders and numerous affairs and being out and judged by the Clave she's still so ignorant about Kamala's situation. I definitely think she's allowed to be hurt, but to still not understand why Kamala did what she did? Anna isn't blaming her for not telling her about Charles earlier - which would be fair - but instead for refusing to engage in an outright romance with her. She's being ignorant - and consciously so, I think.

Overall, I think you're definitely right about how coming out - or staying closeted - can be messy and hurt people in the process, especially in unaccepting environments/time periods, and I've seen enough discourse online to know there will never be a verdict/stance on this that will satisfy everyone. I, for one, would really like to refrain from putting all the blame on a single person - but, at least the way I see it, CC is pointing fingers. maybe not directly, but she is. Kamala, Alastair and Charles have no friends or support systems, and the only people in the narrative that defend them are themselves (ok, Cordelia does defend Alastair from Charles, but not from shitty takes about him and his "sins"). Also, sorry, but I don't like how you say "hid her sexuality for two years and sat back while Anna experienced homophobic comments" - it sounds very much judgemental. Kamala had every right to do that? The fact that she slept with Anna doesn't means she owed her something, and certainly not coming out and most probably destroying her life, or even defending her at the - again - expense of her own reputation, or more possibly safety.

As for Charles - it's a different issue here, at least imo - I fear that it'll be implied that his refusing to come out will is his main "sin", and therefore not something he can be judged for, which ironically, will be villainizing, but mostly will mean his actual sins are dismissed. This is where the scene with Cordelia feeling a pang of sympathy for him comes into play, and it worries me. I've never hated Charles for not wanting to come out, but rather for, let's see - grooming Alastair, disregarding Alastair's needs and feelings, disrespecting his mother, being a sexist prick, being low-key far-right coded "make Shadowhunters great again" etc.

As for sensitivity readers - I'm no expert, so I don't think my input is worth much. From what I've gathered from multiple threads/discussions on twitter, tho it is probably consulted/approved by the publisher, many authors push for that - and authors less famous and "powerful" than her. I'm not a hater, but seeing fandoms' opinions on much of her rep, I think she could do better. Because if she does have sensitivity readers, then they don't seem to be doing a great job - maybe they're friends who don't wanna hurt her feelings? Or maybe she thinks a gay guy's feedback will be enough for any queer content - which, judging by the opinions I've seen from the fans, doesn't seem to be true.

Again, these are mostly my thoughts and I'm more than open to reading other opinions, because *sigh* I really don't know how to handle this.

Bottom line - I really really don't want to be hating on the characters in general, playing God in regards to judging the struggles of minorities, or even criticising the characters too harshly for being human, flawed etc. What my main issue is is how CC handles those complex and heavy topics.

I hope I make sense and this answer satisfies you somehow - I also hope someone better equipped to answer might wanna join this conversation.

* I desperately need a reread of TLH before I engage in any more conversations like this, but I didn't wanna leave you hanging. So yeah, I might be remembering things wrong. Again, let me know, I'm very much open to being corrected as well as to further discussion.

* I use she/her pronouns for Anna because that's what she uses in canon

[thenon-fictiondays]

ok.

you want ships, i'll give you ships

starting with something basic - asoryuu

*kisses u platonically* fuck yeah lets goooo

(spoilers for both games)

when I started shipping it if I did: oh boy probably literally from like. the very beginning. As in, the first time I watched case 1 way back in 2016 (whew has it really been 5 years :') )

my thoughts: I have spent the past 5 years having thoughts about them but in summary: hehe they touched swords

my thoughts (srs): bless Nuri Kazuya for drawing an excessive amount of official art of the two of them 🙏

What makes me happy about them: I'm such a sucker for friends to lovers, they just have such warm energy, honestly even without romantic context you can just feel the love and trust and respect they have for each other and its beautiful ;A; it blows my mind that they've only known each other for like a year before canon bc they are such an important part of each others' lives and like. Even after not seeing him for almost a year, even though he seems to be a completely different person and Ryuu has no idea wtf is going on, he still calls Kazuma his best friend in the world 😭 They carry a piece of each others' heart, they're so special to each other and it makes me so emotional 🥺💖

What makes me sad about them: Well, obviously, the fact that they end up on opposite ends of the world, for one :( also, I was so upset about how little they actually got to talk to each other in DGS2. The last case was ofc super emotionally impactful for both of them and I wanted so much for them to talk more about it one on one but they just didn't. I wrote more about this in a post that I can't find on my blog (thanks tumblr) but Kazuma brought Ryuu to England because he trusted him, and because he relied on him. Because he was about to go through the hardest thing he was ever going to have to face, and he wanted him by his side while he did it. And unfortunately, the way things played out, Ryuu had to go through a lot of traumatic and emotionally stressful stuff as well, but he kept his head held high and fought til the end for the truth just like Kazuma taught him. And idk I felt like they both just kind of...didn't acknowledge it that much? I still don't really know how to put it into words...but I'll stop for now bc this became an essay 😅

things done in fanfic that annoys me: TBH I haven't read all that much fic for them bc I just can't read anymore idk. I guess my biggest qualm is when writers make Ryuu completely clueless and act like Kazuma's the suave one that takes the lead in the relationship when in fact Kazuma actually sucks at dealing with emotions and Ryuu is probably the more emotionally intelligent one out of the two of them (and let's not forget, he's also quite witty/sarcastic and does roast Kazuma in canon)

things I look for in fanfic: same as with any other ships or fandoms, good writing, solid characterization, interesting plot, etc!

Who I’d be comfortable them ending up with, if not each other: Tbh...nobody. I know that seems prude-ish but there weren't any other characters that I felt had any kind of romantic connection with either of them :/

My happily ever after for them: I want them to end up in Japan together reforming the legal system (and making trips to London to visit the squad lol)

who is the big spoon/little spoon: This is the only thing I don't have an immediate answer to lol probs switch

what is their favorite non-sexual activity: all evidence points to helping each other defend themselves in the supreme court of Japan (but other than that? probs making hotpot and bantering)

[simonalkenmayer]

(Scalemail System)

Unfortunately, we do not actually know which part of the brain "chooses" the alters, though perhaps another system who reads your blog does? We'd love to know, ourselves.

As for how it could be handled... Hm, that's a bit tricky, to hold the values and perspectives of both parties in equilibrium. I can see how this is a tough situation, as I can't tell you to simply not defend your own reality, but at the same time it could also be seen as impolite to disrespect another's reality... I suppose as long as one isn't insisting either party must stop being themselves, that's the best that can be done.

I'm aware this likely isn't the most satisfactory answer for you, but it's the best I can do while holding both parties as equal individuals. Neither must agree the other is right, so long as they do not go out of the way to insist the other is false.

An important point about DID is that "derealization" is a common symptom - feeling as though you, your surroundings, or even the world at large are not real. This, to our current understanding, is the illness trying to hide itself because the host is not supposed to be aware, lest they also be aware of the trauma, which the brain has decided would not be survivable if it had actually happened. This is why the splits occur in the first place, to our current knowledge - as a way to section off and "quarantine" those traumatic memories so that the main personality is not typically aware of them and continue to live "normally."

Thus, treating any alter as invalid or unreal can be considered a serious faux-pas, as it can trigger an episode of derealization, causing stress and anxiety and even panic attacks in serious cases.

We hope this helps.

It’s informative, but no it doesn’t help.

I am truthfully trying to understand how I’m meant to interact with such people without offending them and all the rabid internet trolls who look for any slight approximation of rudeness they can use as fodder.

I hope you do know I’m being honest in my questions.

Forgive me, and maybe you and others can educate me out of this feeling, as I’d very much like to lose the thoughts I am having, but...sometimes it feels as if these newer diagnoses are merely...well this is going to sound harsh and I know it’s wrong headed which is why I ask for help, but...they just seem...false? Or rather like a name to a game someone is playing. I hate that I even think that, because I know it is a real dagnosis, but I don’t know how else to feel at times. Now that could be because I am so often confronted with the diagnosis by someone saying either “One of my alters is one of you, please now interact with me as you would your own kind” which...you do not want so long as you inhabit a human body, or they become upset with me for refusing UNIFORMALY, to allow their personal self contained reality to become a focus on this blog, the way the role players do when they come here and try to “impact the plot”. I simply can’t allow delusions. Because it interferes with how my information is taken and assimilated. As jealous as I am of my territory, I must be of the experiment’s territory.

So again...I am not trying to be insensitive. I actually want the education and to stop being so skeptical of what I have been informed is a mental illness. I simply have no information as to the subject.

[kali-writes-meta]

I May Fall and What Comes Next in Volume 8

Jeff Williams has done wonderful work writing the songs for RWBY. He has access to the Show Bible, which has character profiles as well as the main arc outline, and has used it to sprinkle his songs with deeper character insights and foreshadowing of both plot developments and lore drops. This makes his incredible music even more loved and valued.

But amongst all his RWBY songs, one of them really stands out. I May Fall was included in the V1 soundtrack and end credits, and used again in one of the V3 final battles. But unlike all his other songs (with the exception of Bmblb) I May Fall doesn't refer to contemporary or past events. It's a song about an event that even as of V3 was still set in the future, that Jeff had read about in the Show Bible while working on V1, and that he found so exciting he had to go on and write a song about it right then, even though the event itself was still years in the future.

What could the event be? I think we may have seen the start of it. The events described in the first half of the song look a lot like events that happened during the V7 finale. If that is the case, then the second half of the song may contain clues about events that will happen in V8.

First let's look at the lines in the song which seem to correspond with recent events.

There's a day when our hearts will be broken

When a shadow will cast out the light

(That thing's got to cast a whale of a shadow.)

And our eyes cry a million tears

Help won't arrive

There's a day when our courage collapses

And our friends turn and leave us behind

I may fall

But not like this -it won't be by your hand

I may fall

Not this place, not today

I may fall

Bring it all-it's not enough to take me down

I may fall

(I moved a line and a verse back because I think they refer to future events. I don't now whose artistic liscence is at work, but Rooster Teeth had rearranged outlined events for greater impact before, and the story is the better for it.)

The rest of the song seems to be talking about two upcoming battles. The first one is a defeat.

Creatures of darkness will triumph

The sun won't rise

"The sun won't rise" is easy to predict. It's dawn, the sun is coming up, but the shadow of all those Grimm are going to blot out the light in Mantle, so it'll seem as if the sun was gone.

When we've lost all hope

And succumb to fear

As the skies rain blood

And the end draws near

Things are going bad, not just for our heroes but for everyone. The line I'm curious about is "the skies rain blood". There's two possibilities. One, Salem drops some substance on Mantle that looks like blood. It's a valid attack. We don't know yet if she's riding the Gothic pinnacle of pimped-out Cadillac Convertibles or if Monstro has offensive capabilities, but I'd bet on the latter.

The other option is the literal interpretation, that actual blood is falling from the sky. Salem's ground forces have Mantle well in hand, with the defenders retreating even before Salem's conference call. She focuses her air force on a brutal attack on Atlas, catching the entire kingdom in a classic pincer manuever, giving her the upper hand over Ironwood and forcing the Atlasian government to submit to her terms. If I were a ruthless force of destruction who played a mean game of chess, it's what I would do.

There's a place where we'll stand outnumbered

Where the wolves and the soul-less will rise

In the time of our final moments

Every dream dies

There's a place where our shields will lay shattered

And the fears all that's left in our hearts

Strength and our courage have run out

We fall apart

Our heroes gets in over their heads and gets their asses whooped. Interestingly, one of these lines was foreshadowed in V7. "There's a place where our shields will lay shattered". Remember this bit?

Your new weapons and armor should be as requested, but I also took the liberty of reviewing your combat footage from the Vytal Festival Tournament. There’s some additional enhancements I’d like to suggest. Oh, but for now, these should serve you well enough.

Pietro already has the plans for their pro upgrades, but the opportunity for them never arose. Some people thought that was bad writing, but it looked like foreshadowing to me. If their shields are shattered in V8, he's got them covered.

When we lose our faith

And forsake our friends

When the moon is gone

And we reach our end

This defeat is our team's darkest hour so far, even darker than Beacon. They question everything, starting with themselves.

I may fall

There's a moment that changes a life when

We do something that no one else can

And the path that we've taken will lead us

One final stand

There's a moment we make a decision

Not to cower and crash to the ground

The moment we face our worst demons

Our courage found

When we stand with friends

And we won't retreat

As we stare down death

Then the taste is sweet

I may fall

But not like this -it won't be by your hand

I may fall

Not this place, not today

I may fall

Bring it all-it's not enough to take me down

I may fall

I may fall

I may fall

I may

I may fall

But they regroup, make a better plan, and win the second battle. "Then the taste is sweet."

At this point we can't say how much time passes between the two battles. They could both happen in V8 or the second one could happen in V9. Certainly enough time has to pass for us to appreciate the pain our protagonists are going through. But it all points to V8 being the most intense season of RWBY so far.

[chippa-thoughts]

"Feast" theory

credit to @ladybugscenes for the graphic

If Marinette and Adrien are prepared to protect Fu even "without their powers" the first thing I imagine is them going out to fight the sentimonster in their civillian forms.

But how would Marinette and Adrien fight side by side without being suspicious of each other's identities? Let alone be "willing to defend" master Fu?

Can you imagine: their Miraculous have been taken away and suddenly here's Adrien and Mari resuming their roles to save the day and are acting very similarly to their heroic counterparts?

Maybe they'll dismiss it like "typical Marinette/Adrien trying to be as helpful as possible."

This would be a great opportunity for Adrien to see more of 'the side' to Marinette that's not rambling, nervous, klutzy and flustered when he's around - he'll see her when she's focused, using her creative wits and letting her intelligence shine. I spy more Adrinette content.

OR

Maybe they'll fight it individually from two different fronts - unaware that the other is also trying to defeat the sentimonster on the other side somehow. Maybe we as an audience will get to see more moments of them working effectively as a couple but they don't even realise it.

OR

It's the typical "civillian" episode where they each get all their friends to help defeat the monster, and 'people power' and friendship and all that. Perhaps it's an opportunity to explore how much LB and CN have impacted the people of Paris and inspired them to fight for themselves again (like in Mayura). Maybe on the flipside, it'll be an opportunity to explore how the people of Paris have become a bit too dependent on LB and CN and they have to learn how to take initiative once again.

Ultimately though, this may be an episode that will test Marinette and Adrien if they can be heroes even without the mask. There are multiple episodes that already do touch on this idea though: (off the top of my head are) Oblivio, Princess Fragrance (Helmet Marinette) - and I'm sure there's more I just can't remember them right now.

What if they're being sneaky...

It's a bit of a stretch but

OR

What if "without their powers" is a play on words? So as to say: without "THEIR" powers i.e. the LADYBUG and CAT powers? What if this is the introduction of Aspik? What if they take on new miraculouses in the meantime?

It IS a bit of a stretch considering Master Fu is taking their miraculous in the first place to PROTECT them. So it wouldn't make sense that he'll replace it with two different Miraculous.

OR

Perhaps the Adrien and Marinette story is the B-plot of the episode. What if this episode is really Fu-ccentric and heavy on his backstory and miraculous and Kwami lore? Then every so often we cut to the present to see Adrien and Marinette thinking of ways to defeat the sentimonster with the help of their friends.

If anything:

- I hope we at least get to see more of Marianne

- I wonder where the title "Feast" comes from

- Fu Backstory!

Let me know your thoughts on this episode too! If you disagree/agree