#they like a superficial version of me if that makes sense

[numinously-yours]

Choose a bird: How to be the best version of YOU

Thank you to those of you who messaged. I appreciate both your ideas AND your patience. I really thought things were settled down when I asked for your thoughts and then they ramped right back up. But here I am!

Choose a bird from above for a free reading. Today's topic: how to be the best version of yourself. I asked the cards three questions:

What does the best version of yourself look like (to you)?

What steps can you take on your journey to your best self?

How can you avoid getting caught up in others' perspectives?

Your choices are below! Like, reply, or reblog if it resonates, and tag your group if you feel inclined :)

Group 1: Aibo Tarot

What does the best version of you look like? Three of Wands

The best version of you is someone confident standing on their own. You may be dependent on other people for your happiness but you want so badly to be happy on your own. There is a fear that if you start your own journey that you won’t find other/more people that make you feel comfortable and safe.  I have a sense that the people you surround yourself with are simply fine, but they also don’t make you feel empowered to do your own thing or speak your differences. There is a lot of keeping the peace because that’s easier than being alone. It doesn’t mean these people are bad friends or negative influences necessarily, but you know there could be something more. You are longing to find that. You are longing to find yourself, too.

What steps can you take in the process? The Tower & The King of Pentacles

It’s time to create your own tower moment. It may sound counterintuitive since the Tower represents upheaval and chaos. Typically, it’s not something someone is excited to bring upon themselves. But, I think in your case, it’s going to be more beneficial than detrimental. You have to burn some bridges. You have to have some falling outs. Yes, moving forward from your comfort zone is going to feel weird as hell. It’s going to feel scary. You may be worried that ending friendships or setting boundaries was a bad idea, but it is all for the sake of becoming the best version of you. Trust me.  The reversed King in particular is asking you to “give yourself permission to break free and do something different.” Just as a phoenix, your tower will rise again from the ashes even stronger than before.

How can you avoid getting caught up in other’s perceptions? Moonlight, Four of Cups, The Magician

The visual for this pull is below because it was kind of a fun way for the cards to drop 😊 I asked this question and the first card fell: Moonlight in reverse. This moonlight card is specific to this deck, so it doesn’t necessarily have the same meaning as The Moon does in tarot. The first phrase that came to me when I was looking at the card was “turn that frown upside down”. Because the card doesn’t have a traditional meaning, I wanted to shuffle one more time for cards that DO have trad. meanings. These are the two that came out – in this order! THE FROWN IS TURNED UPSIDE DOWN! What does this mean in execution, though?

Recognize the power you have in creating your own life and stop dimming your light. I know that it takes work to feel confident in spaces where you feel small but it is worth the practice! The more you execute your power, say yes to yourself, and make yourself heard the easier it will get. Not only easier in doing it but easier in believing it, too.

Group 2: Delos Tarot

What does the best version of you look like? Two of Cups

For you, I think to feel like the best version of yourself, you are wanting to be in a space where you can create and maintain meaningful relationships. It’s not that you lack relationships, but they feel a little surface level or superficial. You want to feel that SOMETHING, and you want to bring that something to others. You may have your own personal goals when it comes to relationships – wanting a work bestie, wanting a romantic relationship, wanting a strong relationship with a sibling, etc. But overall, the ability to form these relationships as a whole is really what you long for.

What steps can you take in the process? The Devil reversed

My first thought “quit thinking you’re the devil!” lol When in relationships, you focus on your negative qualities. You are always thinking of how you can bring more to the table rather than focusing on what you already DO bring to the table. You tend to psych yourself out when you get close to forming the bond that you crave. An actionable step you should look into taking is working on your shadow self. There are a lot of websites with lists of shadow work questions that get to the root of these types of fears. Shadow work makes you think of things in a different perspective. It could help you determine WHY you shut yourself off at certain times. It helps identify triggers in relationships so you can sense them when they appear and know how to deal with them. Then, I know this is easier said than done, but you gotta push through the discomfort, too. Perhaps your relationships fade when you’re right on the brink of vulnerability. Instead of ebbing backward, take that leap into the unknown. It’s the only way you’re going to get passed that piece.

How can you avoid getting caught up in other’s perceptions? King of Swords rev. and Strength

I know it’s way easier to say online but finding the courage to just be yourself is honestly going to be the best thing you can do for yourself. I feel that you may preemptively get caught in what you THINK others’ perceptions are of you before you know their true perceptions. I know you KNOW what your inner truth is, but you deserve to understand WHY it’s your truth. You have a lot to contribute to relationships and having this better relationship with yourself can also contribute to gaining courage to just be yourself. Doing that shadow work can be really good for you in that growth, too Each time you seem caught up in someone else’s perception, ask yourself why you’re caught up in it. Is it actually an accurate depiction of who you are? Are you trying to protect yourself before anything scary actually happens? Find the strength to be rational because it’s gonna change your mind set a LOT. 

Group 3: Everyday Tarot

What does the best version of you look like? Ace of Swords

The best version of yourself, group 3, is someone who is continually growing. You want to be open to expansion, ideas, spontaneity, and adventure. You may feel a little stuck right now. I definitely think you have the excitement and adrenaline inside you, and you’re ready to let it out. You’re not longing for motivation or inspiration, you’re longing for an outlet for the motivation and inspiration already inside of you.  You may wonder, “how do I explore new opportunities if I don’t know where to start?” “How can I continue growing when people and places around me aren’t growing?” Let’s find out!

What steps can you take in the process? The Devil reversed & The Queen of Pentacles

Let go of unhealthy attachments and nurture yourself if/when you feel guilty for doing so. Part of what keeps you feeling a bit stuck is not wanting to leave anyone behind. You care a lot about a lot of people and want them to experience this growth with you. They’re not quite ready though. YOU being ready doesn’t make you better than them, it just means you’re in a different place. Accepting the unknown that lies ahead is also important for you, group 3. No matter how ready you are, moving forward (likely on a solo journey) is scary! It’s like jumping off the high dive. You just…gotta do it. Lastly, as you move forward onto fun adventures, remember to keep some sense of practicality – this means being aware of what might be TOO much right now, but also knowing that you can do hard things.  

How can you avoid getting caught up in other’s perceptions? King of Wands reversed

Stop setting unrealistic expectations for yourself! I think this really speaks from that last bit of steps you can take. Being practical also means believing in yourself and your amazingness. I feel this extends to knowing you’re capable of being in these people’s lives while still going out and expanding your boundaries. It doesn’t have to be either/or, it can be both. The perceptions you’re caught up in currently might be self-created. People around you might not have even considered the thoughts you think they have. Stop yourself in your tracks if you find you’re going down a road of worry. These people are proud of you and WANT you to succeed. They also think it’s pretty neat that they’re friend is so cool 😉<3

[svbhuman]

still in hoem country

[justalittlebluetiefling]

I remember a long time ago you mentioned you hadn't really had any ships in campaign 3, which was a little odd for you. I'm wondering if you ever found any relationships romantic or otherwise that you've liked or feel yourself coming around to liking?

I'm still pretty neutral on everything! Most of the dynamics I like aren't really romantic. I am a fan of most of the relationship dynamics from a non-romantic lens for the most part, but when it comes down to romance, there's still stuff missing for me to really feel connected to it. Which is still kind of shocking to me but that's where we are!

[the-tarot-witch22]

Your Next Glow Up! - Pick a pile

Pile 1/ Pile 2/ Pile 3

My Paid Readings | My insta | My year goal post | Giveaway

Liked my blog or readings? Tip me!

Hello everyone ! This is my another pick a pile or pac reading so please be kind and leave comment or reblog, and let me know if it resonated with you!

Note : This is a general reading or collective reading. It may or may not resonate with you. Please take what resonates and leave what doesn't. And it's totally okay if our energies aren't aligned!

How to pick : Take a deep breath and choose a pile which you feel most connected to! You can choose more than one pile, it just means both pile have messages for you!

I worked really hard on this pile please show some love by leaving comments, likes and reblogs!

Pile 1:

(The cards I got for you - 3 of cups, 7 of wands, and page of cups)

Okay so the very first thing i feel and heard is celebration and wedding/engagement or just something celebratory, that's when you will get a glow up, I also feel when the glow up happens, you will be so happy and content with in your life, for some of you it could be graduation too, I also feel as much as you had like to glow up physically for you guys i see emotional glow up, physically yes, but the way you will glow up "mentally and emotionally" is just amazing, I also feel some of you could be recovering from working very hard, which has left you certainly drained and very much crushed, but i see it getting better, I feel you will get a chance to relax, and not be productive and being in your own energy, so I had say you will know so take that chance, I also feel there might be a new crush/love interest which will help you glow up, you know when you are in love you just glow naturally that type of thing, and i also see you putting effort not only in your appearance, but inner conflicts too, it won't be at all superficial but much more deeper, and it will stay with you, and i see this glow up happening in upcoming years like 2025, you might turn age of 24, 20's or in your 30's, it will be very natural, and i see lots of self pampering and giggles, which is just amazing, I also feel in this time you will recover from your trauma or past. I also see your personality being much more confident, and less anxiety which is a bonus, all i feel is you guys will be doing good, everything you have suffered it will get better~ Not only that i see academic or professional glow up, like you manifesting and getting good grades , you wanting the job and getting it, which goes with i heard celebrations.

That's all pile 1, I love that all i see and feel is growth here, couldn't be more happier for you, you deserve it~

Pile 2:

(The cards I got for you - 5 of cups, 2 of swords and 2 of cups)

Okay so the very first thing I feel and heard is when you glow up next, you would be going through something a transformation or an awakening. I feel that will be really hard on you, and you will just ask universe, or question it, like what have we done to deserve this?. I feel it won't be easy, like the timing, but the way i see it, it will be a blessing for you because the way you will be becoming your best version and glowing up, is just amazing! alright let's dive deeper, what i feel here is when you glow up next is you will be going through a breakup of friendship/relationship/ or a loss of something might be you would be leaving behind things, which will be hard for you because i sense this pile might like to stay in their comfort zone, I also feel the next glow up will come with challenges, i see you getting through them, but i see you become hot ass version of your own self, like yes I freaking know my worth I also feel. It will bring you a sense of balance in your life with some peace, you will be able to have clear thoughts, without not feeling everything is a burden. I also feel there will be a period of darkness for you which will turn into something beautiful later. I also see you making some decisions, cutting people which are not serving you, or bringing you down. Which will naturally lead to peaceful situation and you feeling better about it. I also feel you guys are just not good at decision making lmao, like you don't know you cant trust yourselves, and this is for some of you not everyone! I also feel, there will be choice you would have to make for your own mental peace, and i see you being confused, but in the end you will have to go with your gut, because only that way i see you having a beautiful future. trust yourself is really a theme here, I feel you guys might have Capricorn/ Aquarius and Gemini/Libra as your sun/ moon / rising! I also feel you will have someone a friend/partner/or your parent especially mom, to help you guide right way, and you working on their advise and them bringing out best in you! You will definitely have big glow up in your mindset and physical self~ I also feel some of you might join gym/yoga or do it at home, or get in habit of it, thought i should mention what i was getting!

Okay so pile 2, that's all i got for you~, honestly as it may seem hard at first, with time, i see t getting easier and better for you!

Pile 3:

(The cards got for you - The magician, the sun and the king of cups)

Okay so pile 3, the very first thing i feel and hear for your pile is your next glow up will be mind-blowing, like you won't be recognizing yourself anymore such growth, in every way possible. I also feel this pile might be a overthinker or a creative mind, just random messages i have been getting, anyhow let's dive deeper! I feel your next glow up will be you finding your potential, in career way, or even you might tap into your divine feminine energy, i see this pile is very feminine yet you might also be trying to balance your masculine side of yourself which is just beautiful! I also feel, you guys would be making the best of what you have like not dwelling in future anymore, or trying to live in a moment, this glow up will bring you much needed life changes, you guys can check pile 1, i feel there might be messages for you there, I also feel you guys will glow up financially like the situation will be improving, things will be much easier, the rocky situation has passed, I also feel and heard "no more challenges, if there are it will be easier for you", I also feel you will be improving the way you communicate with others~ , not only this but i see infinite happiness, and so much growth and prosperity for you, I also feel the self growth and realization will go crazy~ (in a good way) I also feel some of you guys could seem very innocent , but you aren't your guides were like add that part, they are being funny rn hehe, Okay so I also feel this group might not show their emotions very effectively so i feel it will get better too! The zodiac signs for you guys are Sagittarius/taurus/Pisces/Scorpio in big 3 or 6!

Alright! Pile 3 that's all i got for you, i love how many positive messages i got for you and you deserve that! you got this my babies~

Thank you for stopping by! Take care and remember you are loved <3

[theemissuniverse]

WHO IS YOUR MORTAL KOMBAT 1 BAE BASED ON YOUR PERSONALITY TYPE [MALE MK CHARACTERS]

INTP VERSION

LOGICIAN

A/N : Before y’all try to correct me - got this information from the personality database app so if you wanna tell me I’m wrong then blame the app. Also don’t take it THAT seriously. It’s just for fun. I will do a female version after this. Also please LIKE THIS TF UP. THIS TOOK ME WAY TOO LONG AND I DID CHARACTERS I HATE/DONT CARE ABOUT SO IT COULD BE FAIR PLEASE DONT DO THIS TO ME. Also, also do not say I picked favorites because unfortunately this is my personality and the characters that I wanted when I ran it through the system DID NOT match close to 100% so yeah

WARNINGS : none I think

First, what is an INTP individual?

INTP’s are logical and analytical "Logician" who prioritize knowledge and understanding. They are known for their interest in stripping away superficial details to get to the underlying principles of a system or idea. They may be seen as absent-minded professors who are highly intelligent and enjoy developing and organizing their subjective understandings into consistent systems. They are flexible and tolerant, but may become rigid when their beliefs are challenged.

Your compalability/relationship with all the MK 1 Characters

Baraka [ ENFJ - protagonist ]

Chemistry : 92%

Relationship Type : Playmate

Shared Value : Abstract

Communication Style : Educational

In a relationship, Baraka will give you anything you desire. He is always willing to do anything you ask for to please you. He wants you to be well taken care of. He wants to see you at your best even though most days he feels at his lowest. Baraka does fear that one day you might leave him for someone he feels as though is more worthy. So, he’ll always try to give you everything you have ever wanted. Your communication is always an understanding between the two of you. The two of you get each other.

Baraka is actually playful with you despite how serious he can be. He feels comfortable with you. Like he can be himself. He doesn’t have to hide who he is when he is with you. Everything just feels right. Sometimes the two of you don’t share the same goals but that’s okay. You two are different and Baraka understands that.

Bi-Han [ ENTJ - commander ]

Chemistry : 99%

Relationship Type : Soulmate

Shared Value : Intellectual

Communication Style : Rational

In a relationship, Bi-Han will try his best to be gentle with you despite his nature. You are his peace. The coldness to his ice. There is no better person to calm him down other than you. He is grumpy with everyone. It’s always him versus the world. That’s not the case with you. It’s always you and him. Together. Bi-Han feels like he can trust you and trust is an absolute big thing with him. If he cannot trust you then he mind as well treat you like everyone else. His communication is always calm considering how cold he can be. He is willing to talk through whatever problem the two of you face. Even though some days he doesn’t feel like it.

Bi-Han has a sense of obsessiveness over you. He feels like he needs you twenty four seven but he will never show it. He’s still a little hasty on showing affection but trust that he feels it. He wants to show you but sometimes it’s hard given how he is as a person. It has nothing to do with you, it’s him. Bi-Han will always try with you. Sometimes he can get a little pissy with you but you know how to handle him so it never gets blown out of proportion. The two of you are the best when you are together.

General Shao [ ESTP - entrepreneur ]

Chemistry : 83%

Relationship Type : Supervisor

Shared Value : Pragmatic

Communication Style : Inductive

In a relationship, Shao will lead, guide, and protect. He will make sure you are alright. Make sure that no obstacles stand in your way. He will always make sure you are making the right decisions. He wants what’s best for you. He will protect you with his life. Nobody will dare threaten his queen. Nobody. Shao feels that you are his very weakness. (And to him this man has no weaknesses.) Sometimes he hates it. He hates the way you make him feel.

Shao will make people bow to you. Will make people worship the ground you walk on. He will not stand for anyone to treat you horribly. Unfortunately, the communication in your relationship is undoubtedly horrid. Shao does not know how to speak to you or confess his feelings which leads into fights. At the end of the day, Shao will always make sure you are safe.

Geras [ ISTJ - logistician ]

Chemistry : 82%

Relationship Type : Eye opening

Shared Value : Systematic

Communication Style : Reductive

In a relationship, Geras will show you nothing but kindness and compassion. You are not kind to yourself. He knows this. He will show you how to treat yourself. He will show you what you truly deserve. He will not back down even when it gets hard. He will stand by your side and help you experience the feeling.

It is not just yourself but to other people you have a hard time expressing your compassion to. Not to worry, Geras will help you. He will show you how to be kind, gentle, and caring to others. When you do, it makes you feel better about yourself. Geras will always be there for everything. Even if your communication can be a little off, he will still show you the way.

Johnny Cage [ ESTP - entrepreneur ]

Chemistry : 83%

Relationship Type : Supervisor

Shared Value : Pragmatic

Communication Style : Inductive

In a relationship, Johnny’s ultimate goal is to make you laugh. He doesn’t care what the situation is. If you’re upset or if you’re happy as can be. He will always try to make you feel better. He can’t stand when you’re sad. He can’t stand when something bothers you so he likes to take away everything that makes you feel bad about yourself with laughter.

Unfortunately, sometimes Johnny claims you are too serious for him and you claim he is too childish for you. Sometimes the communication isn’t really there but Johnny is willing to put aside all that because he loves you. Johnny loves showering you with gifts and telling you how “hot” you are. You’re perfect to him. His little movie star.

Havik [ ISFP - adventurer ]

Chemistry : 92%

Relationship Type : Consigliere

Shared Value : Pragmatic

Communication Style : Analytical

In a relationship, Havik’s more chaotic nature ceases when he is with you. It is always an interesting experience being with him but you don’t mind it. He gets to show you his way and you will show him yours. Two different worlds colliding may be overwhelming but Havik will be grateful for the experience.

Havik wants to show you what life is all about. He wants to show you adventure. He wants you to experience his world and his thinking. He wants you to understand him because he feels like nobody really does. As long as you let him, he will love you like he’s never loved anybody before.

Kenshi Takahashi [ INTJ - architect ]

Chemistry : 98%

Relationship Type : Twinflame

Shared Value : Intellectual

Communication Style : Speculative

In a relationship, Kenshi will always be there for you no matter what. Kenshi will be the one that will never go away. Even if you are at your lowest. Even when everything feels pointless. Even if you two fight. There is no driving Kenshi away. The two of you will figure it out. He’s determined on that. He will die on the hill every time. The two of you are so similar that you click every time you are around.

Every time he kisses you, it’s like fireworks. You are more to him than a girlfriend. You are his best friend. Someone that is deeply sewed into his soul. He will never run away from the feeling he has when he’s with you. Never will back down. He accepts who you are completely. With all your faults and all your hardships. You are a hard person to love but not to Kenshi. To Kenshi, you are the only one he can love.

Kuai Liang [ ISTJ - logistician ]

Chemistry : 82%

Relationship Type : Eye opening

Shared Value : Systematic

Communication Style : Reductive

In a relationship, Kuai Liang always wants the best for you. He will do anything if it means it is for your best interest. Protecting you is something he does not take lightly. With everything in his being, Kuai Liang will protect you. He will make sure you are fine emotionally and physically.

It will always be you. Nobody else. Some people may find this rather annoying by Kuai Liang but he doesn’t care. Protecting you is all that matters to him. He can’t stand when he sees you upset. He’ll break down with you when he sees this. He’ll always try to comfort you as best as he can.

Kung Lao [ ENFP - campaigner ]

Chemistry : 82%

Relationship Type : Coach

Shared Value : Abstract

Communication Style : Impassionate

In a relationship, Kung Lao wants nothing more than to make you feel good about yourself. He knows it’s hard for you. You are not in tune with yourself but he will help with that. Kung Lao makes you feel beautiful every time he’s with you. He makes you feel special. He will make you feel like you are the only one that matters to him. Like you are the only one that is important.

The communication you two have is always filled with passion and great emotion. Kung Lao will never talk bad about you. Even if he is mad at you. He knows you. He knows you cannot handle the harsh words because he knows you believe all the negative things you think of yourself or other people have said about you. He will not stand for it.

Liu Kang [ ISFJ - defender ]

Chemistry : 81%

Relationship Type : Analyst

Shared Value : Systematic

Communication Style : Reductive

In a relationship, Liu Kang will try to protect your peace. You are an over thinker and tend to always believe that everything will turn to worse. He’ll always try to take away any stress that is on your shoulders. One thing he does hate is your guy’s communication. Sometimes you are not comfortable with talking about your feelings and Liu Kang absolutely cannot stand it. He understands giving you your space but not speaking to him when you feel down or something is wrong drives him crazy. Liu Kang’s wit always charms you and makes you laugh because he’s not over the top with it.

Liu Kang is always patient with you. Especially with your strong emotions. You are emotionally reactive with everything but it is something he can handle. Sometimes when it become far too much, he’ll hold you in his arms and whisper how much he loves you. He’ll make you feel like you’re the only woman in the world. He truly wants you to feel loved with every fiber in his being. Because you don’t like to talk about your feelings, he is always analyzing your body language and your speech to see if you are alright. If he deems you are not, expect a long talk of how much he loves you.

Raiden [ INFJ - advocate ]

Chemistry : 91%

Relationship Type : Advisor

Shared Value : Abstract

Communication Style : Speculative

In a relationship, Raiden will try and be the man you want him to be. He’ll be the man you always thought of in your head. He’ll make your dream man a reality. Raiden will always try to guide you to the right choices in life. He wants you to succeed. Your communication is always interesting. It is neither bad or good. Your goals are a little ways from each other but Raiden will always support you. No matter what.

When you feel like a mess, Raiden is there whispering in your ear how much he loves you. How important you are. He will make you feel like you are the most important person in the world. He wants you to see yourself how he sees you. He looks to you like you are his prize possession. Like you are his world. There’s no amount of anything that can change the way Raiden feels about you. Nothing in the world.

Rain [ INFP - mediator ]

Chemistry : 82%

Relationship Type : Supporter

Shared Value : Abstract

Communication Style : Analytical

In a relationship, Rain shows you nothing but respect and support. He is your number one support system. In everything, he will help you succeed. Respect is another thing he does not take lightly. You are his goddess, his queen. He will treat you like he needs to worship the ground you walk on.

He’ll always support your ideas and beliefs. Even though most of the time he does not agree with them. In the slightest. He knows that supporting you is more important than him trying to push his ideas and or beliefs onto you. Your needs matter and he understands this. Rain will also allow you to call him by his first name. You are one of the only people to have this privilege so know that Rain means well.

Reiko [ ISTJ - logistician ]

Chemistry : 82%

Relationship Type : Eye opening

Shared Value : Systematic

Communication Style : Reductive

In a relationship, Reiko sees that there is more to life than himself when he is with you. He is a very selfish individual. Not when it comes to you though. He’s learning to put his significant other before him. He has to in order for the relationship to work. Otherwise the relationship is doomed as you can also be quite a selfish individual.

Reiko will try to give you gifts because he is not familiar with any other way of showing his affection. The two of you will have to teach each other how to love one another. It’s a rocky start but Reiko will get the hang of it. The relationship means so much more to him than you could ever realize.

Shang Tsung [ ENTP - debater ]

Chemistry : 81%

Relationship Type : Preceptor

Shared Value : Intellectual

Communication Style : Impassionate

In a relationship, Shang Tsung will put your needs above all. This is strange for the sorcerer as he is used to being selfish. It is not something he is familiar with but he can’t help himself. The more you’re around him the more he has this sense of urgency to try and give you the world.

Shang Tsung will always make sure you are well taken care of before going off doing his business. One thing about him is you will need to support his plans. Whatever they be, he needs someone by his side. Your goals usually align with each other and are smart. Your conversations are usually filled with great emotion and it’s something he can’t pull away from.

Syzoth [ ISFP - adventurer ]

Chemistry : 92%

Relationship Type : Consigliere

Shared Value : Pragmatic

Communication Style : Analytical

In a relationship, Syzoth wants you to feel like he is your home. He knows how it feels to be unwanted. He wants to shield you from that feeling. Nothing in the world matters more to him than you feeling safe. He cannot have you feeling down or feeling unsure. You need to be indefinitely secured.

He does not play any games. Syzoth will always try to advise you on what to do but will make it very clear that he is not trying to control the shape of your destiny. Whatever you desire, he is pleased with. He just doesn’t want you to regret anything or live in the past. Syzoth will make sure you feel safe in the beauty that is you.

Tomas [ ISFJ - defender ]

Chemistry : 81%

Relationship Type : Analyst

Shared Value : Systematic

Communication Style : Reductive

In a relationship, Tomas will always be there when you break. He will always be there when you cry. He will always be there when you can’t find it in yourself to stand on your two feet. He is the glue to your soul. Tomas believes you are capable of doing anything but he knows that’s just something that’s hard for you to believe.

He’ll try to comfort you. To hold you. To kiss you. Sometimes it may not be something that’s physical that you need. Maybe it’s something that’s mental and Tomas will try his best to help you in that department. Seeing you break makes him break and he cannot live with himself knowing that if he didn’t try to help you, you would get worse.

if you’re an INTP then your soulmate is ENTJ

That means your perfect match for a soulmate is

BI-HAN / SUB-ZERO

Your perfect match for a best friend is

KENSHI TAKAHASHI

Here are runner ups that you could end up with (romantically)

(in order of best all the way down)

SYZOTH, BARAKA, HAVIK, RAIDEN, JOHNNY CAGE

FUN THINGS ABOUT INTP TO HELP YOU CONNECT MORE

INTPs are typically non smokers.

INTPs typically use dark humor.

INTPs usually are atheists.

INTPs are usually emotionally reactive people.

INTPs typically don’t consider themselves smart.

INTPs typically wear glasses.

INTPs usually don’t fear death.

INTPs usually watch horror movies.

INTPs typically have low self-worth.

INTPs are usually short tempered.

[perseidlion]

I'm new to the KAOS fandom, and I honestly love the way the show is riffing off myth.

I've seen some rumblings of some people thinking they're changing too much. But, uhhh, the show definitely never promised they'd be sticking close to myth by its whole *gestures broadly* deal. Also like...WHICH version of the myths? There are so many and they changed, sometimes drastically over time. KAOS is just really continuing the tradition of remixing these characters and the stories.

I feel like the people who are saying this takes it too far probably have a superficial understanding of Greek and Roman mythology. Cause if you really dig into it, these stories are weird, contradictory, raunchy, violent and tragic.

I was a Classics major for two years (before I decided I couldn't learn Latin or Greek which was required to study primary sources, so I switched majors.) And let me tell you, KAOS is VERY accurate to certain portrayals of the gods. Not all, of course, but many.

Zeus is absolutely a horndog dick who sleeps with all sorts of people and spreads his seed everywhere. I mean, he straight-up disguised himself as other people to have sex with their partners. Animals, too!

Hera is incredibly petty and vindictive and transforms people into all sorts of things as punishment. She was especially hard on any of Zeus' lovers she caught, or his kids from different mothers.

Everyone was doing adultery all the time.

Hades wasn't a meek corporate type, but he also wasn't a devil analogue as he often gets interpreted as in pop culture. He's definitely a big ole grump and doesn't seem to have a soft side, but he's not often portrayed as evil. Zeus is not God and Hades is not Satan. That's really applying a Judeo-Christian framework to Greek mythology.

The myth of Orpheus and Eurydice was always more about grief and not being able to let go than about the power of true love.

The gods gained obedience and worship through fear. They absolutely punished people who didn't worship they way they wanted them to.

The gods were a giant, powerful, highly dysfunctional family with lots of petty grievances and grudges.

The Greeks had no concept of gay or straight. They conceptualized sex and sexuality as acts, not an identity. They were more concerned about who was the passive person in a sexual encounter (for reasons of class and manliness) rather than what gender their partner was. So it makes sense that this modern retelling would have a similiarly open an undefined concept of sex and sexuality.

Greek myth is full of people who change genders or who swap back and forth through magic or prayer, or were both male and female at the same time. Caeneus in the show, is based on a real myth of someone AFAB who wished to become a man.

(sidenote: Misia Butler is so damned charming and handsome.)

It's also important to remember that the religion of the ancient Greeks lasted a very long time and changed over that time. There was also this really interesting dichotomy between the gods of plays and myths and the gods they worshipped in a religious context. That was one thing that is really hard to wrap your head around when you're studying Greek and Roman myth, especially when you're studying it alongside plays and epic poetry.

The gods of the stories who were being vengeful and petty and the gods they sacrificed to and worshipped were not the same - and they were. Sort of imagine it like Christian peoples' perceptions of Jesus vs Jesus in pop culture. Like, if you studied Dogma or Good Omens or something alongside the Bible and didn't distinguish between religion and pop culture, you'd definitely be confused.

So there are all these competing stores, some benevolent and holy, some raucous and scandalous. KAOS very ably continues in that tradition by remixing and recontextualizing the source material for a new audience.

They do some reaaalll weird thing with timelines, though! They squish together myth and pick and choose different versions and inspiration. But honestly that doesn't bother me because it's all done deliberately and not out of ignorance. They're changing what they've changed to serve the story.

Plus it's great fun. It's one of the most creative shows I've seen in ages. Go and watch it! As a bonus, it's also hella queer.

[corviiids]

i loved your answer to the ooc question... penny for your thoughts on the Core of ren and goro? 👉👈🥺

rubbing my little bug hands together i dunno that i can capture all my whole... mental Akeshu Bible... in one post... but here are some notes on what i'd consider one of the most key points for each.

basically the way this works for me is ill have like a central piece of understanding sitting at the core of how i work with a character, and then let instinct guide their dialogue/behaviour from there.

i wrote a thesis again. two in fact. jesus christ

goro - sincerity is mystifying, dangerous, and impossible, but alluring.

can i talk about light yagami for a second. are we all going to be okay with it if i do that. that's going to make this easier for me to explain

i think light yagami and goro akechi have almost nothing in common once we get past the most obvious similarities - the cynicism borne of shattered once-upon-a-time idealism, the willingness to turn to radical action, the bad hair. anyway the difference i want to point out arises from another key similarity which i think only exists on the surface - the "evil underside true self" counterpart to the "pleasant preppy perfect boy" persona. looks the same. but the difference is that light never struggles with that falsehood, and akechi clearly does.

what i mean by that is i think to light, his perfect persona is nothing more than a simple disguise, albeit one he's been wearing a while without knowing why. he doesn't really have a fractured sense of self, because it's clear that the light yagami who is kira is the True self. the light yagami who is just a nice young man is mostly a falsehood to the point light sees him as a character to be played. (ok this is also an oversimplification but go with me for now. okay. that's the basic of it. just accept this for the sake of argument. this aint about him)

goro is very different. i think in the lead-up to the interrogation room, goro understands himself in a similar way, but after the interrogation room that perception is called into question. okay, i think about the interrogation room scene a lot, because i really didn't like goro's behaviour in that scene when i first played it, i thought it was a very cheap and superficial way to reveal his identity as the traitor by making him act as cartoonishly villainous as possible. and tbh i dont want to give atlus too much credit for creating a super nuanced scene there so what im about to propose is probably unintentional. but anyway, i eventually came around to it because i decided that that cartoonish villanousness must be a choice to goro. at that point in time, goro's perception of himself is akin to light's understanding of kira: black mask/shido's assassin/evil motherfucker is "the true goro", and pleasant boy detective prince is nothing but a mask.

and here i would like to bring up a complicating factor which makes light and goro very, very different. light wants to live. he refuses the shinigami eyes because he wants to exist in his new world to rule over it indefinitely. goro's plan on the other hand has a fixed timeline. goro is aware, and tells us in the engine room, that once his public reputation is shattered, he has nothing. goro's plan involves outing shido by outing himself. ergo, goro's plan is to take shido to the top and then torpedo them together, leaving them both with nothing.

what does this mean? light yagami's mask protects kira - light's true self and a man who wants to live. goro akechi's mask serves the black-masked assassin, but the black-masked assassin serves shido, a role which is just as deceptive as the detective prince. which means goro akechi's disguise protects a self that isn't real, either. it feels disingenuous to say that the version of akechi who exists to be shido's attack dog is his true self. so that goofy villainous smile in the interrogation room is, to me, goro convincing himself that that evil face is who he really is, not realising it's another facade he's playing up - but while the prince's audience is the public, the assassin's audience is goro himself. after that whole thing goes down, i think it becomes clearer that that evil face was goro pretending to himself that he's just a straight up villain who doesn't care about anything because that's easier than conceding that you might feel some complicated way about the self-loathing and bitterness you've been nurturing since childhood.

but wait, there's definitely also truth to the black mask. there's no way to deny that the akechi who attacks them in the engine room had a ton of truth to him that the detective prince lacked. but, wait. goro doesn't perfectly keep up the facade with the detective prince, either, because there are definitely times where he's being honest even when he's being the pleasant boy.

okay, where does that leave us? light has one layer of falsehood (light protects kira), but goro has at least two (detective prince protects black mask protects ???) so what the hell is goro hiding? where's the true self? is the version of akechi who showed up in the interrogation room the black mask, or is it shido's assassin? are those two different guys who overlap? does this mean everything the detective prince said is suspect? we don't know which one is true, but we know they're both lying.

okay. why? what's wrong with him? i should get to my actual fucking point maybe?

this is the central thesis of his shadows in palacefic btw. rather than being divided into a relatively clean true/false like light, goro's true self is split between his personae. every time you talk to any version of goro akechi, you're getting some lies but you're also getting some sincerity. i think goro doesnt know who he is because he doesn't see any particular use for having a real self at the end of the day, only masks he can use to achieve his ends.

except you can't actually kill your true self. it sticks around. so the most he can do is fragment it. but the consequence is the shards get stuck in his masks. every time he tries to put on a mask, a shred of truth peeks out. i think goro wants to not exist and not be known, but inside every mask he wears is a true part of him that desperately DOES want to be known, but can't allow it, but wants it, but is scared of it, but wants it, but hates it, but will die if it happens, but wants it.

what you end up with is a really self-contradictory guy where every time he talks, the things he's saying are simultaneously true and false. it's the worst with ren, because he's really interested in ren, but allowing ren to know him is suicide. light's really good at playing the part because he has no investment in the part, it's purely fake, and all his investment is in his true self. but goro is invested in each of his masks, because each of his masks contains part of him for real and there's no unified self to return to at the end of the day. so he struggles way more with the act than light does, because there's a part of him, however small, that really wants to drop the mask. but he can't, because there's nothing behind it, so there's nothing he can do

anyway when i write goro's dialogue and behaviour, it's not just writing a guy lying and playing a part because he needs the cover, it's goro injecting himself into mould after mould after mould and trying to keep a balance of how much he can reveal vs how much he needs to keep close to his chest. this is why he talks so fucking much, it's why his speech mannerisms aren't always perfectly polished, it's why the mask slips so often, it's why he's so cartoonishly evil at times, and it's why while light yagami is a popular guy who has everyone around him perfectly fooled, goro akechi is really only able to appeal to the subset of fans who are keen on his particular celebrity style while other people find him kind of annoying and disingenuous. when im writing akechi in xyz situation, it's a process of working out which mask he's wearing, what he wants to achieve, what he's hiding, how much he can or would slip, and what that slip might look like. i think this is heightened because of his circumstances, but i also think goro would be incredibly guarded and paranoid no matter what his circumstances were (although the murder might decrease a little).

tl;dr: goro akechi tries to do away with his sense of self but only succeeds in splitting it into a hundred million pieces covered in lies, each of which is desperate to be known but shies away with equal desperation

ren - in a distant relationship with the sense of self

idk that thats the right word but basically i think in true persona protag fashion, and as alluded to by beneath the mask / the power of the wild card / etc the relationship between ren's personae and his 'true self' is more complicated and detached than most of the other characters. i dont agree that the protags are true "blank slate" protagonists in the meta sense but i do think ren is a "blank slate" person in-text in that simultaneously he has extremely strong core values and beliefs which are absolutely immovable, and traits which shine through even in his limited speech, but the manifestation of his personality is a lot more malleable than say ryuji's is. ren is very flexible and wears a different mask depending on who he's talking to. i think that requires a level of detachment which manifests as basically centering his companion's character + needs in a given interaction over his own. this doesnt just come through in his dialogue but also in the way he internally reflects on what's happening.

the way this manifests most obviously in how i write him is that my ren (in texts especially but also in dialogue) has a tendency to omit his personal pronoun (in subject position).

that gives him kind of a laid-back vibe. he has a habit of omitting the first part of a sentence entirely.

he adds it back in when he's talking about something more serious, very alert, feeling uncomfortable, etc. it happens a lot when he talks to akechi because he needs to be very switched on during those conversations to keep up.

idk i know that for some people the joy of having a protagonist character is being able to make them into whoever you want them to be - so your ren might be extra flirty for example which i think is a really popular characterisation of him because it's fun and it has some basis in his dialogue, and it's a choice i went with for a while before i started shifting away from it. recently i've been way more interested in trying to reconcile this really strong-willed guy with a clearly rich and rebellious inner life with the quiet slouched character who says like 3 words every conversation and who really never reveals anything about himself. like, imagine he's a real person and not just a blank slate protagonist i can push and pull - how do i make his little mousy 8< self work with the fact that he's an international criminal without adding something on top that isn't already there in him? i think there's a way to do it and i think the way to do that is to have him internalise as much as possible. for everything he says, there are a billion things he doesn't say. that makes it really fucking difficult to actually portray him sometimes because his rich inner life can really only come through if we have access to his inner monologue, and if he's not the pov character we don't, but you know, i love a stupid fucking self imposed challenge. ren amamiya is like laying breadcrumb clues in his dumb ass 3 word dialogue options that im crawling over like weevils with a magnifying glass

but he DOES leave clues! so many of his dialogue options are sarcastic and dry or straight up goofy. so he's funny, he's deadpan, he can be impatient. but if you take that too far in dialogue, it gets overplayed, and he loses his taciturn charm, so you have to pull it back, because he's restrained, not overt. he's quippy, he's not wordy. he's a show-off, but in a self-assured way. he will never indicate in any way that he wants you to look at him. he'll just make sure he's so impressive that you can't look away. if he winks, it's like he's keeping a secret between you, not like he's putting on a show. he delivers one-liners only, not full jokes, and the setup and knockdown has to be in the same breath. if his thoughts can't be condensed into one sentence, two or three max, he doesn't say them, he keeps it to himself. whether his emotions show on his face depend on how well you can read him, and it depends who he's with, it depends how recently he's been joker, it depends if there's some extenuating factor in there that's going to make him crack. ren's more likely to crack if he's standing up for someone else.

his inner monologue is just as interesting to grapple with because my ren is pretty repressed. the more upset he is, the more he distances himself from how he's actually feeling. he's very good at deflecting people and he's also very good at deflecting himself - focus on someone else, focus on the environment around him, focus on some physical sensation, don't get too far into his own head, or else

tl;dr: ren handles himself with a mix of internalising and externalising by swallowing down everything he might want to say out loud but outsourcing and distancing from his sense of self to keep himself steady

[faithandfairies]

So, I'm re-watching Rizzoli & Isles and here's what I got. Maura is bisexual, Jane is a repressed lesbian and Maura fully realized that she was in love with Jane when Jane got shot in season 1. She's been treating Jane completely like her wife since then.

I also genuinely believe Maura only stayed with the surgeon as long as she did to make sure Jane got the best medical care possible. Especially after what happened with Frankie. There is no way I think she would have been able to tolerate that insufferable man that long otherwise. She literally left him the moment she realized Jane would be just fine and whatever pain Jane was still experiencing was psychosomatic.

Maura also likes sex. And the only reason she's going after Giovanni is for sex as she's said because as she said herself she loves Italians. The truth is she loves Jane and the only thing she's not getting from their relationship is sex.

It's very interesting because in season 1 Maura was looking for meaningful connections with men. For a man to have it all. Now she either only really pursues superficial connections with men or if they're more meaningful the guy is a male version of Jane.

And something else is hitting me now. I wondered before why they didn't have Jane just get with Dean because I thought they were believable as a couple. With the compulsive heterosexuality Jane was at least somewhat into him.

But they had her get with the soldier and get pregnant by him instead. They had no chemistry and I thought that was the reason. To drive home that she was a lesbian. But she liked him and was pretty comfortable in his presence and I realized just now that he looked like a male version of Maura.

And that now makes me think that the only reason she was with him as long as she was was because of the long distance thing, as in it's easier to maintain a romantic relationship you're not that into from a distance, and because he looked like a male version of Maura.

It's also interesting that he gets introduced in an episode where nothing is what it seems. The homicide victim gets linked to that one guy in the military. There's photographic evidence of their relationship just lying around. And it isn't until the end of the episode that we find out the victim was actually in love with another soldier and the only evidence of it is that they were wearing each other's dog tags. Literally, that's how they deduced those two were in a romantic relationship and they were right. And we don't even get their story from them because by the time the relationship comes to light both parties are dead.

Jane is also very into Maura, truly loves her. She allows from Maura what she doesn't from anyone else, including that Maura bosses her around. She has very butch mannerisms even with her completely feminine physique. And with that she's jealous and protective when it comes to Maura in the way guys often are when they believe a woman is theirs. But she's just completely in denial. Which given what we learn about her upbringing and what her mom is like makes complete sense.

[yannaryartside]

the payoff for this love triangle shit better be good

a Sydcarmy vs Claircarmy rant

So, to ramble here, I am starting to wonder what place romance has in the overall plot of The Bear as a show and, by that, what function it will execute. I am going to write about some alternatives that I can predict.

The overall purpose of the show is to heal Carmy, or to put Carmy on a path when self-healing is the only option. He is a sinking ship that has been treating his holes with tape instead of acknowledging the "bear" trauma. At the present of the show, the bear is still in a cage.

So, what paths of healing romance could offer Carmy? Love and loving others is essential to learning to be better versions of ourselves and achieve happiness.

Option one: ClaireCarmy

Yeah, we are here again. Stick with me after the next paragraph so I can dispute what I am about to write.

I must admit, if I take the most superficial parts of the show's structure so far, Claircarmy seems to be the clear endgame. What we are seeing with them could be categorized in one of the most used tropes in romance: the "I am not good enough to receive love" trope, in which a character is afraid of being loved, so they push away the romantic interest until they heal their wound, they make a love confession, and they get back together. I know a movie/show came to mind. We have seen it a dozen times. Even what Claire told Tiff "If something good happens to him, he would blame me." We see Carmy thinking about her and missing the relationship they had. He even declares her as his peace. It would make sense that this is a story about a girl who wanted to love a boy and a boy who was too wounded to accept that love. It would make a clean ending for Carmy to go to therapy, learn to accept love, and reconcile with Claire, who has all the attributes of someone who would fall in love with a broken person.

The grenades are in the way.

NOW, the show has been planting grenades for option one to feel like "the right one" even if our protagonist seems to think it is the case. There are Claire's obvious red flags of course, behavior that looks naive but has some manipulative undertones. The fact that she is written like a woman with no personality, or at least no personality outside helping people in pain (Carmy included). She still talks about her patients as subjects, and there is a theory in the sydcarmy fandom that she may feel powerful or valued only in a position of taking care of people who cannot fend for themselves. There is also the fact that she is not a good doctor (she almost killed a patient over a very preventable mistake). Her comments of setting things on fire being cool while Carmy is afraid of setting himself on fire is still, for me, the biggest red flag.

My theory is that Storer just didn't want to show people with depression to accept love but to be wary of the love we accept while we are still stuck in our old ways of thinking. It is true that even at your worst, you may find yourself in relationships that keep you that way, but the relationships may feel good, so we have a hard time moving away from them. If that is the case, Storer, I promise to never commit blasphemy on your church.

The SydCarmy option.

I am not going to repeat myself. They read each other's minds. They can actually give each other real advice and support (While Carmy kissed Claire after she admitted malpractice). They make each other better, while Claire keeps Carmy as broken as he is (never apologize, you can pretend to be someone else at a party).

Sydney brings him actual peace and self-understanding. It is actually very important to me that they made Sydney say she has difficulty keeping with Carmy at his worst because she is not a mind reader. But at this point, there is no doubt in my mind that she has feelings for Carmy, or that she at least has felt the sparkles of what it would be love in the future.

The payoff.

I swear to god, the next season better provide clarity on all of this because, at this point, it is too much. There is no way you give so many clues in the background for one ship and pursue the other in the front.

My worst fear, which is actually really possible, is that the show wants to concentrate on the "being stuck in the past" narrative so that all the elements for the future are there, but we won't act on them until the end of it. So Carmy can kill all his bad habits, the self-isolation, aggressiveness, depression, self-harming tendencies (fire), and Claire, and THEN, he can open his heart to Sydney. It is obviously not what many of us want to see; maybe this was never a love story, but an "unstuck yourself from the mud" story.

I wish the progress of the love story you actually want to tell (Sydcarmy) would progress with the show's actual plot (Carmy's mental health) a little more. Otherwise, the payoff is never going to feel quite like one. You may have done too much of a good job misguiding your audience, and then it will feel like a change of direction, like a plot twist at the end of a mystery novel, but that rarely works in romance subplots.

I know the clues were there, but your narrative seems to ignore them so far, making it feel more like gaslighting.

Anyhow, thank you for hearing me ramble.

[physalian]

8 Signs your Sequel Needs Work

Sequels, and followup seasons to TV shows, can be very tricky to get right. Most of the time, especially with the onslaught of sequels, remakes, and remake-quels over the past… 15 years? There’s a few stand-outs for sure. I hear Dune Part 2 stuck the landing. Everyone who likes John Wick also likes those sequels. Spiderverse 2 also stuck the landing.

These are less tips and more fundamental pieces of your story that may or may not factor in because every work is different, and this is coming from an audience’s perspective. Maybe some of these will be the flaws you just couldn’t put your finger on before. And, of course, these are all my opinions, for sequels and later seasons that just didn’t work for me.

1. Your vague lore becomes a gimmick

The Force, this mysterious entity that needs no further explanation… is now quantifiable with midichlorians.

In The 100, the little chip that contains the “reincarnation” of the Commanders is now the central plot to their season 6 “invasion of the bodysnatchers” villains.

In The Vampire Diaries, the existence of the “emotion switch” is explicitly disputed as even existing in the earlier seasons, then becomes a very real and physical plot point one can toggle on and off.

I love hard magic systems. I love soft magic systems, too. These two are not evolutions of each other and doing so will ruin your magic system. People fell in love with the hard magic because they liked the rules, the rules made sense, and everything you wrote fit within those rules. Don’t get wacky and suddenly start inventing new rules that break your old ones.

People fell in love with the soft magic because it needed no rules, the magic made sense without overtaking the story or creating plot holes for why it didn’t just save the day. Don’t give your audience everything they never needed to know and impose limitations that didn’t need to be there.

Solving the mystery will never be as satisfying as whatever the reader came up with in their mind. Satisfaction is the death of desire.

2. The established theme becomes un-established

I talked about this point already in this post about theme so the abridged version here: If your story has major themes you’ve set out to explore, like “the dichotomy of good and evil” and you abandon that theme either for a contradictory one, or no theme at all, your sequel will feel less polished and meaningful than its predecessor, because the new story doesn’t have as much (if anything) to say, while the original did.

Jurassic Park is a fantastic, stellar example. First movie is about the folly of human arrogance and the inherent disaster and hubris in thinking one can control forces of nature for superficial gains. The sequels, and then sequel series, never returns to this theme (and also stops remembering that dinosaurs are animals, not generic movie monsters). JP wasn’t just scary because ahhh big scary reptiles. JP was scary because the story is an easily preventable tragedy, and yes the dinosaurs are eating people, but the people only have other people to blame. Dinosaurs are just hungry, frightened animals.

Or, the most obvious example in Pixar’s history: Cars to Cars 2.

3. You focus on the wrong elements based on ‘fan feedback’

We love fans. Fans make us money. Fans do not know what they want out of a sequel. Fans will never know what they want out of a sequel, nor will studios know how to interpret those wants. Ask Star Wars. Heck, ask the last 8 books out of the Percy Jackson universe.

Going back to Cars 2 (and why I loathe the concept of comedic relief characters, truly), Disney saw dollar signs with how popular Mater was, so, logically, they gave fans more Mater. They gave us more car gimmicks, they expanded the lore that no one asked for. They did try to give us new pretty racing venues and new cool characters. The writers really did try, but some random Suit decided a car spy thriller was better and this is what we got.

The elements your sequel focuses on could be points 1 or 2, based on reception. If your audience universally hates a character for legitimate reasons, maybe listen, but if your audience is at war with itself over superficial BS like whether or not she’s a female character, or POC, ignore them and write the character you set out to write. Maybe their arc wasn’t finished yet, and they had a really cool story that never got told.

This could be side-characters, or a specific location/pocket of worldbuilding that really resonated, a romantic subplot, whatever. Point is, careening off your plan without considering the consequences doesn’t usually end well.

4. You don’t focus on the ‘right’ elements

I don’t think anyone out there will happily sit down and enjoy the entirety of Thor: The Dark World.  The only reasons I would watch that movie now are because a couple of the jokes are funny, and the whole bit in the middle with Thor and Loki. Why wasn’t this the whole movie? No one cares about the lore, but people really loved Loki, especially when there wasn’t much about him in the MCU at the time, and taking a villain fresh off his big hit with the first Avengers and throwing him in a reluctant “enemy of my enemy” plot for this entire movie would have been amazing.

Loki also refuses to stay dead because he’s too popular, thus we get a cyclical and frustrating arc where he only has development when the producers demand so they can make maximum profit off his character, but back then, in phase 2 world, the mystery around Loki was what made him so compelling and the drama around those two on screen was really good! They bounced so well off each other, they both had very different strengths and perspectives, both had real grievances to air, and in that movie, they *both* lost their mother. It’s not even that it’s a bad sequel, it’s just a plain bad movie.

The movie exists to keep establishing the Infinity Stones with the red one and I can’t remember what the red one does at this point, but it could have so easily done both. The powers that be should have known their strongest elements were Thor and Loki and their relationship, and run with it.

This isn’t “give into the demands of fans who want more Loki” it’s being smart enough to look at your own work and suss out what you think the most intriguing elements are and which have the most room and potential to grow (and also test audiences and beta readers to tell you the ugly truth). Sequels should feel more like natural continuations of the original story, not shameless cash grabs.

5. You walk back character development for ~drama~

As in, characters who got together at the end of book 1 suddenly start fighting because the “will they/won’t they” was the juiciest dynamic of their relationship and you don’t know how to write a compelling, happy couple. Or a character who overcame their snobbery, cowardice, grizzled nature, or phobia suddenly has it again because, again, that was the most compelling part of their character and you don’t know who they are without it.

To be honest, yeah, the buildup of a relationship does tend to be more entertaining in media, but that’s also because solid, respectful, healthy relationships in media are a rarity. Season 1 of Outlander remains the best, in part because of the rapid growth of the main love interest’s relationship. Every season after, they’re already married, already together, and occasionally dealing with baby shenanigans, and it’s them against the world and, yeah, I got bored.

There’s just so much you can do with a freshly established relationship: Those two are a *team* now. The drama and intrigue no longer comes from them against each other, it’s them together against a new antagonist and their different approaches to solving a problem. They can and should still have distinct personalities and perspectives on whatever story you throw them into.

6. It’s the same exact story, just Bigger

I have been sitting on a “how to scale power” post for months now because I’m still not sure on reception but here’s a little bit on what I mean.

Original: Oh no, the big bad guy wants to destroy New York

Sequel: Oh no, the big bad guy wants to destroy the planet

Threequel: Oh no, the big bad guy wants to destroy the galaxy

You knew it wasn’t going to happen the first time, you absolutely know it won’t happen on a bigger scale. Usually, when this happens, plot holes abound. You end up deleting or forgetting about characters’ convenient powers and abilities, deleting or forgetting about established relationships and new ground gained with side characters and entities, and deleting or forgetting about stakes, themes, and actually growing your characters like this isn’t the exact same story, just Bigger.

How many Bond movies are there? Thirty-something? I know some are very, very good and some are not at all good. They’re all Bond movies. People keep watching them because they’re formulaic, but there’s also been seven Bond actors and the movies aren’t one long, continuous, self-referential story about this poor, poor man who has the worst luck in the universe. These sequels aren’t “this but bigger” it’s usually “this, but different”, which is almost always better.

“This, but different now” will demand a different skillset from your hero, different rules to play by, different expectations, and different stakes. It does not just demand your hero learn to punch harder.

Example: Lord Shen from Kung Fu Panda 2 does have more influence than Tai Lung, yes. He’s got a whole city and his backstory is further-reaching, but he’s objectively worse in close combat—so he doesn’t fistfight Po. He has cannons, very dangerous cannons, cannons designed to be so strong that kung fu doesn’t matter. Thus, he’s not necessarily “bigger” he’s just “different” and his whole story demands new perspective.

The differences between Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi are numerous, but the latter relies on “but bigger” and the former went in a whole new direction, while still staying faithful to the themes of the original.

7. It undermines the original by awakening a new problem too soon

I’ve already complained about the mere existence of Heroes of Olympus elsewhere because everything Luke fought and died for only bought that world about a month of peace before the gods came and ripped it all away for More Story.

I’ve also complained that the Star Wars Sequels were always going to spit in the face of a character’s six-movie legacy to bring balance to the Force by just going… nah. Ancient prophecy? Only bought us about 30 years of peace.

Whether it’s too soon, or it’s too closely related to the original, your audience is going to feel a little put-off when they realize how inconsequential this sequel makes the original, particularly in TV shows that run too many seasons and can’t keep upping the ante, like Supernatural.

Kung Fu Panda once again because these two movies are amazing. Shen is completely unrelated to Tai Lung. He’s not threatening the Valley of Peace or Shifu or Oogway or anything the heroes fought for in the original. He’s brand new.

My yearning to see these two on screen together to just watch them verbally spat over both being bratty children disappointed by their parents is unquantifiable. This movie is a damn near perfect sequel. Somebody write me fanfic with these two throwing hands over their drastically different perspectives on kung fu.

8. It’s so divorced from the original that it can barely even be called a sequel

Otherwise known as seasons 5 and 6 of Lost. Otherwise known as: This show was on a sci-fi trajectory and something catastrophic happened to cause a dramatic hairpin turn off that path and into pseudo-biblical territory. Why did it all end in a church? I’m not joking, they did actually abandon The Plan while in a mach 1 nosedive.

I also have a post I’ve been sitting on about how to handle faith in fiction, so I’ll say this: The premise of Lost was the trials and escapades of a group of 48 strangers trying to survive and find rescue off a mysterious island with some creepy, sciency shenanigans going on once they discover that the island isn’t actually uninhabited.

Season 6 is about finding “candidates” to replace the island’s Discount Jesus who serves as the ambassador-protector of the island, who is also immortal until he’s not, and the island becomes a kind of purgatory where they all actually did die in the crash and were just waiting to… die again and go to heaven. Spoiler Alert.

This is also otherwise known as: Oh sh*t, Warner Bros wants more Supernatural? But we wrapped it up so nicely with Sam and Adam in the box with Lucifer. I tried to watch one of those YouTube compilations of Cas’ funny moments because I haven’t seen every episode, and the misery on these actors’ faces as the compilation advanced through the seasons, all the joy and wit sucked from their performances, was just tragic.

I get it. Writers can’t control when the Powers That Be demand More Story so they can run their workhorse into the ground until it stops bleeding money, but if you aren’t controlled by said powers, either take it all back to basics, like Cars 3, or just stop.

—

Sometimes taking your established characters and throwing them into a completely unrecognizable story works, but those unrecongizable stories work that much harder to at least keep the characters' development and progression satisfying and familiar. See this post about timeskips that take generational gaps between the original and the sequel, and still deliver on a satisfying continuation.

TLDR: Sequels are hard and it’s never just one detail that makes them difficult to pull off. They will always be compared to their predecessors, always with the expectations to be as good as or surpass the original, when the original had no such competition. There’s also audience expectations for how they think the story, lore, and relationships should progress. Most faults of sequels, in my opinion, lie in straying too far from the fundamentals of the original without understanding why those fundamentals were so important to the original’s success.

[zen17hdee]

You know, I feel like most of the sinners songs have a Mili original counterpart

In fact, the only one I can’t think of a counterpart for would be Between Two Worlds

But the other three sinner songs feel like they’re thematically and musically similar in some way to another Mili song

Fly, My Wings is similar to Let The Maggots Sing

Compass is similar to Bathtub Mermaid

And Through Patches of Violet is similar to Ga1ahad and Scientific Witchery

It could just be a coincidence

But it got me wondering if the Mili song for Canto 7 will follow this pattern

Here are some Mili songs I feel the canto 7 song could take inspiration from

RTRT -

This one’s a bit more superficial, since it’s a song about a Jiangshi, which is, from what I heard, kind of like the Chinese version of a Vampire. The Jiangshi encounters a cook who considers herself to be a “mad scientist” and slowly the Jiangshi goes from being kind of a feral creature to a friendly assistant, only to be shot and killed in the end, with the mad scientist desperately trying to bring him back, but to no avail. And while it doesn’t bode well for Don if we compare her to the Jiangshi, I feel like the process of befriending the mad scientist could compare to Don becoming part of LCB.

Mushrooms -

I initially dismissed this one but the more I think about it, the more sense it makes. The song, taken at face value, is about a bird who believes it’s her duty to attack this witch. The bird ends up falling and wallowing in her sorrow at failing to take down this witch. Comparing herself to the mushrooms around her, pride-less things that get trampled underfoot, she allows the mushrooms to consume her, yet in a way it seems liberating, considering the line, “Your spores cling onto my skin, powdery snow clears up my sins.” Don can be likened to the bird, fiercely attacking those she sees as “evil” in the name of justice. Perhaps during her canto, she’ll become consumed by her Bloodfiend side just as the bird was consumed by mushrooms.

Sideshow Duckling -

Purely self indulgent pick since I would love to see a Don song with similar vibes to sideshow duckling

[recurring-polynya]

I have been thinking about Minazuki lately for a variety of reasons. One interesting fact about Minazuki is that, while that's the name of both their shikai and bankai, it's spelled differently. Shikai Minazuki is 肉雫唼 (Flesh-Drops' Gorge, per the Bleach Wiki). The Bankai version is 皆尽, All Things' End. (For more translation notes, see this excellent Name Games post from @littleeyesofpallas). However, there is another homonym for Minazuki: 水無月, month of water, aka the old-fashioned name for June. Additionally, there is a wagashi called minazuki wagashi, a triangular rice cake topped with red bean. It is traditionally eaten in June, and according to this Kyoto regional cuisine website, it is used in a Shinto ritual at the end of June "to purify the 'sins and impurities' of the six months from January to June."

What makes this interesting to me is that in Bleach, shinigami are a mixed bag insofar as how open they are about the names and abilities of their zanpakutou, but I think that Unohana's would be among the more commonly known since it's used for healing. But is the spelling common knowledge? It's not like she's going to stand in front of the blackboard on the first day of class and spell it for everyone. (I assume this is how Aizen's obligatory shikai-reveal goes).

Furthermore, the assumption that her zanpakutou uses a slightly archaic/poetic name for a late spring month goes right along with Unohana's whole paragon-of-traditional-womanhood deal. It also would be yet another example of Kubo's love of hiding things in plain sight.

I want to get back to the wagashi, tho! For starters, the idea of "wiping away sins from the first part of the year" to me goes along with both the whole idea of Unohana "turning over a new leaf", so to speak, and maybe also with some of the morning vs. night shift change stuff mentioned in the Name Games post above. Maybe I'm going out on a limb here, but Minazuki's shikai even bears a superficial resemblance to a minazuki, in the sense that Minazuki is a) vaguely triangular, and b) darker colored on top and lighter on the bottom. (This recipe post suggests you can dust your minazuki with matcha powder, if you wanted to make it green).

Unohana already has some associations with tea ceremony, and she publishes a guide to sweet shops in the Seireitei Communication. I guess I just think it would be really funny if everyone thought her zanpakutou was named after a dessert--like if you met some nice, mild-mannered lady with a cute little purse dog named "Cookie", but then, several years later, you find that "Cookie" is short for "Cook My Enemies in the Scorching Hot Oil of Vengeance."

[sandyferal]

Admitting that Tootie and Timmy are the only version of the “girl is obsessed with boy and he doesn’t like her back but they end up together eventually” that I’ve seen done right was painful. I mean I think it’s the truth for the most part but it’s hard to give credit to FOP for writing anything well because they ruin basically all of that in the later seasons. Like they demolish it.

They literally just brought in a random weirdly designed pretty perfect new girl for Timmy to actually successfully woo… when it feels like the whole fucking point was that him disliking Tootie and being attracted to pretty perfect girls without considering their character was a symptom of his immaturity and superficial view of relationships. Also in general what was it with the fucking later seasons only letting girls be perfect or evil. (Except Wanda and Timmy’s mom. Who are literally just “nagging wife” and “mother.” Not much better.)

It’s incredibly funny to me too because I feel like they got so close to making Chloe from the later seasons an actually decent character (outside of her first ep.) Like she was kinda unhinged and flawed and it would’ve been so so easy to reveal that her outward “perfection” was the result of her holding herself to ridiculous standards that actually made her miserable. Crazy that even her saying “no one wants to be friends with me” when that was obviously false could’ve been good writing. Showing her perception was so warped that she thought her not being fully perfect meant she was an awful person and everyone secretly knew and hated her for it. They could’ve still portrayed her parents as good loving people who accidentally implied that they only loved Chloe because they didn’t see her flaws. But like no. The reason she’s “miserable” is just stupid, and she’s not a good enough character that the audience can overlook that.

That’s not even mentioning Trixie. Don’t get me started on Trixie. This show did a lot of character flip flopping even during the good seasons, but Trixie was just. Something else. Like the show really felt like it was actually trying to set up that she was a genuinely nice girl with good values that got buried when she was under the scrutiny of her popular friends, but then it did a turn and decided she was just shallow and/or crazy. And they continued to flip flop on whether Timmy pursuing her was even a good idea. Like man none of the characters actually GOT lasting character arcs but she specifically felt like she was in a position where it would’ve made the most sense to have one.

Insanely grateful character arcs are allowed to exist in A New Wish. I’ll admit, the girls still haven’t particularly benefited from them as much, but at the very least we have Dev. And at least Hazel is a likable character and not just slotted into one of the old “girl” stereotypes. Hell I’m glad ANY character is good. Like just. I cannot believe how bad the last seasons of FOP got. It was that serious man and the girls got it so bad. They really refused, like straight up didn’t try to bring back Trixie or Tootie for a love interest episode when that was Trixie’s entire purpose in the fucking show. But I guess they wanted to give him a win for once. Man.

And importantly, Wanda and Cosmo not only have a better relationship in New Wish, but Wanda is NOT a punching bag. Like it may be a slight exaggeration to call her that, but fuck man, some of the later season eps thought it was so fun to beat her up for literally no reason.

[lilybecca1]

Hi...if you don't mind, can I ask something from BNHA? What do you think are Midoriya and Bakugou’s greatest personality strengths and weaknesses? Why? What do you love about their dynamic? Since what moment that you start shipping them? Sorry if you've answered these questions before.....

(Okay so I kinda realized at the end that this actually turned into a complete BKDK personality analysis and dynamic breakdown, so sorry in advance lmao)

Hi, of course! I actually love analysis so I don't mind talking about their characters and dynamic. Though I do have to say that if I wanted to make a full on analysis, it would probably take me hours, if not days 😂 when I say their characters and dynamic are literally the deepest and most complex out there, I mean it.

But to answer your first question:

Let's talk about Bakugo first.

I think throughout the entire manga, his character has literally been laid bare in front of the whole world to see. His character development was one of the most important aspects in the entire manga, and we have a ton of resources to analyze his character on. If I were to answer what his greatest strengths and weaknesses are on a superficial level, I'd say this: his weakness is that he hides his true feelings behind a mask of anger, and he's so intent on dealing with his problems alone that he ends up pushing people away. His greatest strength is his ability to never give up on winning, his determination to succeed and become his best, and strongest self.

But that is not entirely true. In reality, his weakness comes from his insecurities, his fear of showing vulnerability to others. Throughout his whole life, everyone praised him for his quirk and told him he'd be the best hero out there, and because of this, he has developed an unhealthy superiority/inferiority complex. He's afraid that he'll fail, because in his mind, his whole persona, his whole self worth is developed around the strength of his quirk and the desire to become the number one hero. He's too afraid to accept his "human" side and human emotions. Thus, he feels like he always has to maintain this image of perfection, being on top of the food chain so that no one sees past his façade and sees just how insecure and sensitive he really is inside.

And his greatest strength? It's not about winning or never giving up. His greatest strength is how sensitive, how fiercely loyal he is at his core. His trust is very hard to earn, but once someone does earn his trust and respect, he will devote his entire LIFE to that person. Initially, it's very hard to break down his walls, and on the outside he seems like someone that only cares about himself and his own goals, but that's so far from the truth.

Just look at his relationship with Deku over time. Bakugo wanted to ignore him and push him away at first, because he triggered Bakugo's deepest insecurities, he saw right through him, he saw the person he was past that anger. And over the manga, Deku has broken down his walls little by little, earned his understanding, his trust, his respect. He broke his walls down until there was nothing left to hide for Bakugo anymore. And once that happened, Bakugo gave Izuku his all, his 100%. His care, his life, his devotion. Because once you look deeper, you'll see that Bakugo's biggest strength lies in his selflessness, and how he'll put the people that mean the most to him above everything, even his own self.

So now, what about Midoriya? Well, in all honestly, I still have absolutely no idea. It irks me to this day when I read fanfictions that simplify Midoriya's character so much that he ends up just being this crybaby version of himself who puts everyone above himself and is too kind of a soul for this world. That might be true in a sense, but that's also far from what his true character really is about. It's like when you see him first, you see this simple version of him that he shows to the whole world, but as you get to know him, the outer layer starts to peel off and you start to see the inner layers of him. Except, when you thought that you finally got to know all the sides to him, you suddenly find yourself face to face with yet another layer.

It's very hard to pin down his character, which is generally true for most INFJs. He wears his heart on his sleeve, and he completely stays true to his character, his core essence is rock-solid and immutable, yet for some reason, it's impossible to understand him, because he probably doesn't understand himself either.

So in short: his weakness is that he always puts everyone above himself and doesn't care about his own well-being, and his greatest strength is that he always follows his dream and his desire to save others, even when life throws all odds against him.

Long answer (buckle up): through his entire childhood, he has been bullied for being quirkless, for simply being who he is. He had to learn from a very young age that he has no worth, that his existence is meaningless, and his life is absolutely worthless (which has been even more solidified after Bakugo told him to take a swan dive). It has been practically beaten into his brain and mindset that he, as a person, doesn't mean anything. In his mind, he doesn't have a sense of self. His core essence, his raw character has been built around his dream of being a hero, his desire to save others. His sense of self is built upon a base of a desire, a dream. Not his personality, not his character, not who he truly is as a person inside. Nor he, nor anyone else has cared to learn more about him, about who he is as a person.

So, to put it simply, his core character is versatile, unpredictable, and unknown, even to himself. His weakness is that he is constantly misunderstood, and that no one will ever be able to understand who he really is inside. The fact is that he and Bakugo are two sides of the same coin. On the outside, it would seem like Bakugo is the one who's misunderstood, who hides himself behind a mask, and Deku is the one that wears his heart on his sleeve, and is open with his emotions.

In reality, Bakugo is the one that is true to his own character, meanwhile Midoriya is the person whose real personality hides behind his mask of cheerfulness, hope, optimism and determination, whether he knows it or not. He never once stopped to think about himself, so he wears this mask completely subconsciously, and even if he wanted to, he probably wouldn't know how to NOT be like this. So, basically his weakness is that he hides and bottles up his real emotions, and most of the time even he doesn't know it. Like y'all thought Bakugo was the repressed one? News flash, Deku is the true repressed MF, he is the one that pushes down his "unwanted" emotions and desires.

Just a couple of examples: when his desire to win surpasses his desire to save and he starts to imitate Bakugo. Why? Because his whole persona is built around the desire to save, yet when these "unwanted", supressed emotions surface, he copies the image of what that emotion is supposed to look like. AKA, copies Bakugo, because the image of desiring to win is the image of Bakugo inside of his head, so he mirrors Bakugo's personality during those moments.

Another example? He literally gave up on winning during the Sports Tournament and hurt himself over and over again just to prove his point. He's not as innocent and sweet as people think he is, he purposefully riled up Todoroki just to prove his point. He's stubborn, reckless, and spiteful to the point he did THAT just to win an argument.

And the Control your heart moment? That was literally THE biggest weakness that Shigaraki even exploited and used against him, because he saw the side that Deku tried so hard to suppress, and he knew that hurting Bakugo was the one thing that could get that side out of him. But I'll talk more about that later.

So, with that out of the way, what about his strengths? Well, in the short answer, I said that it was his ability to keep pushing forward and chase his dreams even when life throws all odds against him. Which isn't false, because that is indeed probably his biggest strength. Since he's kind of a "chameleon", he's able to adapt and devote his own self to the one cause and desire that he built it upon. Which is his dream to save others and become a hero. But that's not all there is to his character. His strength is the ability to devote his entire character, his sense of self, his energy, his everything to one specific goal that he sets his mind to. That what makes him Midoriya Izuku. It's that inner strength to be able to devote his 100% to his beliefs and what he wants. And when he does, it's impossible to stop him. What does he believe in? Saving others and helping them, no matter what. What does he want? Well, most of the time, it's to become a hero and do exactly that, save others. Some other times, it's to win. Other times, he simply wants Bakugo, which is a raw possessiveness that even he cannot control sometimes(which I'll also explain in a bit). We'll never understand what he's fully capable of, because we'll never understand every side and emotion there is to him deep down. Only one thing is for sure, that he is someone who pushes forward to reach his dream and follow his beliefs with all his heart, no matter how many times he's pushed down. Is it unhealthy? Probably. Safe to say that Midoriya still has a lot to learn and figure out, even more so than Bakugo did.

Okay, that did actually end up pretty long, but anywayyy

Onto next question:

What do I love about their dynamic? Well, more like what do I NOT love 😂 I mean if people thought their characters were deep, they're in for even more of a surprise. Because if there is one thing deeper and more complex than anything in the world, then it's their relationship and dynamic.

I mean, you mix two characters together that literally steal every single trope there is, enemies to lovers, rivals to friends, childhood friends, forced proximity, twin flames, soulmates, literally EVERYTHING

What do you get? A whole lot of complicated shit, that's what

First, let's see what Bakugo's perspective is in the whole relationship. The School Briefs Snowy Mountain Camping chapter basically gave us a complete explanation on Bakugo's perspective of Midoriya and the reason he behaved the way he did with him. There was always something that irked him, something that creeped him out about Midoriya, and that something is Midoriya's habit of meddling with other people's problems and caring about them, even when he doesn't need to. Young Katsuki realized that this is exactly what being a hero is about, and he knew deep down that Izuku's core essence was much closer to the ideal of being a hero than himself was. And that triggered his insecurities, because he thought that Deku was better than him, he thought that Deku was much closer to achieving that dream of being a hero than he was.

So, Bakugo developed a superiority complex and disguised that deep-seated fear as rage, and settled for denial for years. That is until they entered UA, and he started to understand and accept the fact that Deku didn't look down on him, but actually cared for him. His anger subdued, but for a long while, there was still something that frustrated him and pissed him off to no end about Midoriya.

His own anger came from inability to explain what was the thing that still irritated him. He was essentially angry at himself for being in denial for so long, and then for not being able to explain what it was that angered him about Deku, even when he knew he wasn't looking down on him. But then, he realized what caused his irritation. To quote him, "Deku never took his own needs into account, always giving 100% of himself to whatever cause had his attention". He feared that Deku's pure, genuine spirit would collapse under its own weight some day, bringing it all crashing down. In other words, he was afraid for him, because he saw how amazing of a person he was inside, and he knew Izuku would rather bear the weight of the whole world on his shoulders than to share the pain with anyone else. This is when he realized he cared for him.

Everyone else cared about Izuku too, but Bakugo was the only one who saw this, and who saw who Izuku was at his core. Unlike everyone else, he wasn't surprised when Izuku left UA during his Vigilante Arc, because deep down he knew this was bound to happen some day. And he took it upon himself to apologize to Izuku, lay himself and his own weakness bare in front of him, in the rain. Which is something that goes against who he was before that. But he showed Izuku that he had his complete trust in him, and told him to share that responsibility of OFA with him. At this point, Bakugo has long threw away what held him back from accepting his connection with Izuku. It wasn't even about the desire to surpass him anymore. He knew that was futile because in his eyes, Izuku was such an amazing person that he knew he'd never be able to surpass him. "Hey, Izuku...Can I still catch up to you?"

He accepted the defeat, that he wasn't a better person, that he wasn't the best. Because time and time again Izuku showed him how amazing he was. So Deku isn't the only one who views Katsuki as amazing. Katsuki just needed time to come to terms with it. But once he did, he completely devoted himself to Izuku, he died for him, he devoted 8 years to him after the war just so he can become a hero again. He doesn't care about him being quirkless anymore, none of that means anything to him anymore. All that's left inside him is the pure, genuine desire to have Izuku by his side for the rest of his life. Izuku will always remain more special to him than anyone else.

His love for Izuku goes much deeper than platonic or romantic, and that's the beauty in it. Izuku has earned every kind of love that Bakugos could give him. And it couldn't have been anyone else, because in order for Bakugo to have this deep of a connection, they needed to have a mutual background, they needed to have history. Bakugo needed that person to see him for who he is at his rawest, he needed someone to accept his feelings and understand who he truly is, and how he became who he is, what made him into who he is today. And that person could have only been Izuku. Because Izuku has been there since the very beginning, Izuku showed a mirror to Bakugo and made him face his own flaws. Izuku made Bakugo accept his own flaws and realize that he isn't perfect, just like everyone else. Without Izuku, he would have never realized what it meant to be a true hero, and that he needs to accept the other side of the coin too.

And for Izuku, he always saw Kacchan as amazing, ever since Day 1, and he viewed him as his image of victory. I mentioned before how he built his core personality around the dream of becoming a hero, but that was not all. There is another pillar that holds his life, holds his dream together, and that is Katsuki. He had this ideal that came from All Might, but like Izuku said, Kacchan was the one in his life. Izuku's body only moved on it's own once he realized it was Katsuki in danger. In Izuku's mind, Katsuki is the image of what victory is supposed to look like. Or, to sum it up, Katsuki is the reason Izuku was able to achieve his dream of becoming a hero(which I also explained in one of my other analysis).

Why is this important? It's because Izuku can't imagine a world without Katsuki in it.

There is a reason why it's always "Kacchan and the others". It's not simply because Kacchan is his closest friend. It's because Bakugo means more than anything to him. Bakugo is the one pillar in Deku's life that's always there, that he can always rely on. If you take that away, his entire core would collapse, because there would be nothing holding it together anymore. Like in that new Blue Encount MV that came out, and how it was Kacchan's hand that held together his shattered dream.

Because Katsuki is the one who he shares that dream with. Both of their dreams were born at the same moment, their literal core is tied together with eachother. This is why Izuku told Bakugo the secret of OFA so easily. The two of them together were the ones that held that responsibility, that knowledge that came with OFA. And to prove it to you, let me talk about his Vigilante Arc, and when the whole class came to convince him to come back.

Right at the last moment when Izuku was at his breaking point, this is what the second user said:

“If there’s anything that could bolster Midoriya Izuku right now, it would be…”

And who did the next panel show? Bakugo.

Bakugo said he wanted to talk with Izuku, and Izuku knew that if he heard him out, he wouldn't be able to resist, he wouldn't be able to hold it together anymore. That's why he ran away without talking to him, but it didn't work out. And when Bakugo apologized to him, it was over. The one person that meant more to him than the whole world, apologized for everything he has done, and showed him that he WANTED to be there by Deku's side, which is what Izuku has wanted ever since they were children, yet he gave up the hope of ever being able to talk normally with Kacchan again. And now here he was, doing just that, and it broke something in him. He wasn't able to hold himself together anymore, to keep up his façade of wanting to bear the responsibility on his shoulders only. It was Katsuki's words that made him give in and share the burden, accepting that he doesn't have to do it all alone.

It was always Kacchan, and it was always the others.

And why was it that he always lost control of his heart when Bakugo was in danger and threatened to be taken away from him? Like when he was kidnapped. It's because Katsuki isn't just simply a really close friend. It's because Katsuki is literally his ideal, his image of victory. If he was taken away from him, that would rock Midoriya's entire mindset, his entire world. Katsuki is something that his childlike self desperately needs to hold onto, because without him, Izuku would be lost. The one thing would be gone that was always in his life, that gave him the meaning of being a hero. Take Kacchan away from him, and you literally rip half of his heart out. Without Kacchan, he's incomplete. So when he screamed "Give me MY Kacchan back!", it was because he literally felt so threatened that it awakened a raw possessiveness inside of him.

Just like when Monoma insulted Kacchan. Midoriya didn't lose control simply because he talked badly about Bakugo. It was because to him, it felt like a personal attack to the core essence of who HE is. It felt like it was a direct attack on Midoriya's beliefs, like someone just insulted his entire mindset that he has believed in ever since childhood. It's literally true, an attack on Bakugo is a personal attack towards Izuku as well.

So now we understand why he went crazy when he lost Katsuki. His entire inner world was shaken up, threatening to collapse in on itself. If we think about it, it isn't so surprising that he went feral over Bakugo's death. He lost control of his heart, because Katsuki is the one in his heart. Who Izuku is today has been directly influenced by Kacchan in his life. Losing Kacchan means losing a part of himself.

And this is exactly why I absolutely love their dynamic. They mean so much to each other, and their love for each other grows so much deeper than just romantic or platonic. They mean the world to each other. They are soulmates, they are twin flames, their entire life and persona is so tied together with each other that it's impossible to say where one of them ends and the other begins. Because they are two halves of a whole, and their love and connection is something that we are unable to comprehend. It goes way beyond simply loving each other.

And to answer your last question,

well I technically started shipping them since Deku vs Kacchan 2, but I kind of already were shipping them in a way ever since Episode 1. Not in a romantic sense, but I immediately saw that there was much more to their connection than with anyone else. But Deku vs Kacchan 2 fight scene definitely took the cake 😂 nothing will ever top the tension they had during that episode...like okay, before I would have accepted that there wasn't anything romantic between them, but after that? KISS GODDAMNIT

Okay so this has kind of turned into a veeery long analysis, sorry, I talk too much 🤣 I hope I answered all your questions 💚

[nalyra-dreaming]

i dont know if this is already asked, if so just ignore the ask! I love both Lestats from show and books. But I feel they have quite different personalities. Many times it feels like a very different character. Maybe its just me? I know in the books there is a big shift between the first book and the rest in that regard, but I think show Lestat doesnt match IWTV book nor the rest in terms of his personality.

I know a big part of it its because S01 and S02 is a distorted tale. And real Lestat will be different S03 forward. Thats not my concern. The question is, do you think Lestat personality will match book Lestat from now on? Will he feel like its the same impulsive funny naive child-like full of love brat prince ? Or are they creating another version of Lestat that is different from the books and also different from S01 and S02? ( In the sense, the POV will change sure, but it still not /quite/ like the books? )

I think Sam will make very sure we will get the ... let's say "correct" Lestat as soon as we get the real Lestat.

Remember, at SDCC 2024 he said that we had NOT seen the real Lestat yet.

But... nonny, forgive me, but Lestat isn't "funny naive child-like full of love" throughout the chronicles??

He battles severe depression and body dysmorphia, fights for his agency, often, reframes the abuse he experiences as love. He tries to convince himself he's evil because his existence just does not make sense, the guilt is eating him alive, he hides his pain behind a deliberately superficial behavior pattern at times. He is impulsive, yes, but naive? Hardly. He loves, deeply, defiantly, but he has PTSD from his turning up to the last books. Throughout the chronicles he fights what happened to him, namely that he was

"Chosen for his looks, raped into darkness, abandoned right after, forever and desperately trying to get past that superficial and harrowing judgement."

I'm putting this into quotation marks, because I said this before, 1,5 years ago. He was chosen for his looks, and the event he himself calls the "cosmic error".

I don't know which books you've read, or which circles of mutuals you are in.

I know the fandom likes to joke about how dumb Lestat acts at times, or his (supposed) illiteracy... As someone who was kept from knowledge myself and had to fight to get to it I find that hardly funny, especially since Lestat is actually highly clever and reads a lot, and can also speak a lot of languages. Oh, and of course he is the author of most of the VC 💀 And I don't find his wildly flailing depression-fueled actions dumb either.

But I guess that is a matter of taste and interpretation.

(I'm not saying that you think that, I'm just saying I do not.)

Lestat is a brat (at times, and I mean, that title was given by Marius, right), and he is capricious, and full of love, yes. He is also full of pain, and guilt, and battling it constantly. And hiding it constantly, too.

That is why I keep saying that I am thankful for Anne for writing those last three books.

Because at the end, in Blood Communion - they (not only Lestat) do find some peace and acceptance. And themselves.

As for the show, as said at the start - I trust Sam to deliver Lestat, even more than I trust Rolin etc to write him. See the monologue in episode 6, for example, where he made sure of it being clear he was forced. Etc.

He will give us "Lestat".

I'm not sure it will be the one you will be expecting?^^

But that will remain to be seen/shown.

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Writing Notes: Literary & Character Tropes

The word trope comes from the Greek word tropos, meaning a turn or change of direction.

Tropes

Figures involving substitutions of predictable words with terms that deliver nuanced meanings serving an argument.

Now used in cultural studies in a much broader sense as a recurring cultural signifier.

Traditionally the four ‘master tropes’ are regarded as being: metaphor, metonymy, synecdoche, and irony.

Modern Definition: Themes, motifs, plot devices, plot points, and storylines that have become familiar genre conventions.

PURPOSE: All writers manipulate language to create certain effects. At the level of individual phrases and sentences, the skillful use of tropes is key to creating writing that’s fresh, memorable, and persuasive. Poets might spend hours trying to find just the right metaphor (i.e., a figure of speech in which a word or phrase literally denoting one kind of object or idea is used in place of another to suggest a likeness or analogy between them, as in "drowning in money") to capture a mood or sensation, while marketers might use antanaclasis (i.e., the repetition of a word within a phrase or sentence in which the second occurrence utilizes a different and sometimes contrary meaning from the first; often found in slogans) to create a punchy catchphrase for a new product.

5 Examples of Literary/Character Tropes

1. all lowercase letters - a stylistic choice in which all text is in lowercase letters. it can be thought of as the opposite of writing in all caps when emphasizing a point, in which case it can be used to give a melancholic feel to whatever you're writing. it is not generally thought of as orthographically correct, giving it (if only in the eyes of advertisers) a casual, hip feel, as if to say you can't be bothered to use the shift key. also used in a visual narrative sense to indicate childishness or, in some cases, idiocy. on a darker note, however, this trope also has a tendency to show up in many an apocalyptic log where it usually is used to denote the point where the unfortunate author has gone insane or otherwise given up all hope.

2. Anti-hero - A character who lacks a handful of the traditional attributes of a hero but is ultimately heroic. They may be bewildered, ineffectual, deluded, or merely apathetic. More often an anti-hero is just an amoral misfit. While heroes are typically conventional, anti-heroes, depending on the circumstances, may be preconventional (in a "good" society), postconventional (if the government is "evil") or even unconventional. Tony Soprano, Walter White, Don Draper, and the grittier versions of Batman are all prime examples of modern antiheroes.

3. Byronic Hero - A character notable for being sullen, withdrawn, hard to like and hard to know, but usually possessing a rich inner life and a softer side accessible only to a special few.

4. Chekhov's Gun - Anton Chekhov, master of the short story, gave this advice: If it's not essential, don't include it in the story. The term has come to mean an insignificant object that later turns out to be important.

5. Unreliable Narrator - In most narratives, there's an element of trust that the person telling you the story is telling the truth, at least as far as they know it. This trope occurs when that convention is discarded. The narrator's facts contradict each other. If you ask them to go back a bit and retell it, the events come out a little differently. Example: Franz Kafka. Due to his famous style, he's able to directly contradict himself within the same sentence, AND make it so subtle that a casual or superficial reader will scarcely notice. The Metamorphosis and The Judgment stand out in this respect.

Sources: 1 2 3 4

If these writing notes helped with your poem/story, please tag me. Or leave a link in the replies. I'd love to read them!

More: Literary & Character Tropes