#they view her as the queen of queens

[secretly-a-catamount]

Anakin Skywalker and the Naboo Royal Handmaids don’t hate each other. How could they?

Aren’t they all her blades and blaster bolts and lightsabers? Aren’t they all her shadows and phantoms and reflections? Aren’t they all her attack dogs? Aren’t they all hers?

Weren’t they all born to die for Padmé Amidala?

[mrmeepsmadmind]

i love when ppl draw bumblebee like the happy little creachure he is but also i love when people draw bumblebee like he's had 500 beers in the last 1 hour and still the pain won't even ebb

[gingermintpepper]

Okay, let's finally talk about EPIC's Apollo

I feel very compelled to say, first of all, that I do not dislike Epic. In fact, I am very fond of Epic and have been following its production and status very eagerly! I attend all the launch streams, I watch all of Herrans' update videos; I am, at the end of the day, a fan and I want it to be known that my words are spoken out of love and passion as much as they are spoken from a place of critique.

So really, what my problem with Epic's Apollo?

In the briefest possible terms; the choice to have Apollo be defined by his musical aspect in God Games is thematically strange. And not in the 'oh well in the Odyssey, Apollo was important to Odysseus and his family so it's weird that that wasn't kept in Epic' strange, strange in the sense that Odysseus' character arc since My Goodbye has been getting more and more obviously Apollonian and so it is positively bizarre that when we get to meet Apollo, the god seems entirely disinterested in him and his affairs. So much so that he is not even defined by any station that would indicate that he has been watching over and protecting Odysseus and his family.

What do I mean by 'Odysseus has been following an Apollonian arc'? I'm so glad you asked!

Remember Them is the last song in which Odysseus explicitly uses his sword until Mutiny where he must use it to defend himself against Eurylochus' blade. He uses it to help enact the plan to conquer Polyphemus and, due to Polites dying in that battle, Polites who wished for Odysseus to put the blade down entirely and embrace a post-war life, Odysseus also retires his sword. This is an action that symbolically separates him from Athena - and the image of Odysseus as a traditional warrior set for him in Horse and Infant - as much as My Goodbye physically separates him from the goddess and her war-ways - from this point onwards, Odysseus will no longer be leaning on Athena's wisdom or methods to solve his problems. Likewise, he will no longer be able to rely on her protection.

Odysseus thusly solves most of his upcoming problems through diplomacy and avoidance. He approaches Aeolus - a strange and ambiguous god (both in gender and in motivation) and appeals to them for help. Circe too, he approaches not with wishes to conquer or for revenge, but for the safe returning of his men and an alternate way forward. In all of these scenarios, there is some Apollonian element which is subtly interweaved alongside the influence of other gods; it is with a bow and arrows that Polyphemus' sheep is slain (and thus it is this Apollonian element which is at the root of Odysseus' spat with Poseidon), it is a vision of Penelope that warns Odysseus that his men are about to open Aeolus' wind-bag, Circe's peace offering to Odysseus is to refer him to a prophet of Apollo who has since died.

In this way, Apollo is walking alongside Odysseus for all of his journey after Athena departs - even in the Underworld, he is guiding him. It is Tiresias' proclamation that is the last straw for Odysseus, it is by the power of a mouthpiece of Apollo that Odysseus decides to embrace his ruthlessness. It is with the bow and arrow that Odysseus subdues the siren who sought to trick him, likewise, Odysseus does not attempt to undermine or escape the fate of paying Scylla's passage price - he knows of the doom about to befall the six men and quite unlike the rest of the journey until this point, he does not fight against it. This all comes to a head on Thrinacia where it is a blade which sacrifices the sun god's cow and brings destruction upon the crew once more.

My point with all of this is that when I heard the teasers for God Games years ago, it made perfect sense to me that Apollo would be Round One - he is not Odysseus' adversary and has no reason to oppose Athena's wish to free him. From other teasers about what will happen in the climax of Epic, Apollo will still be walking alongside Odysseus - it is Apollo's bow that Penelope will give the suitors to string. Likewise, it is Apollo's bow that will prove Odysseus' legitimacy and identity. That bow will be the power by which Odysseus hunts his adversaries and cleans out his palace - it is Apollo who is the avatar of Odysseus' ruthlessness, not Athena.

So tell me, truly, what was the point of having Apollo raise a non-argument in God Games? Why have him appear unconcerned, aloof and slightly oblivious? Why have him appear in his capacity as the Lord of Music at all?? And if the intention was never to make Apollo an active player in Odysseus' life like he was in the Odyssey, why keep Odysseus as a primary archer?

The answer of course is that Apollo is inextricable from the fabric of the Odyssey - his influence and favour exudes from Odysseus just as much as Athena's. In Athena's ten year sulk, it would have been Apollo who kept Telemachus and Penelope safe. It would have been Apollo protecting Odysseus from Poseidon's gaze as he travelled the seas (according to the Odyssey anyway)

Forgive me for not being excited about something that I thought was being purposefully set up. I was extremely ecstatic about all of the little Apollonian details that litter the sagas because I know where this story ends up (loosely) but all God Games did was reveal that maybe those Apollonian details were not intentional at all, but merely the ghost of the Apollo who persistently haunts those he favours, even if he cannot explicitly come to their aide in an adaptation.

[ipostmysimpingstuffanonymously]

can uwu pls draw shoko comforting gojo the morning after the night parade of 100 demons and after he killed geto ? 🥺

IM SORRY I FUCKED UP. I did the morning after the KFC Breakup CUZ I CANT READ AAAAAA Hope that's okay too 👉 👈

[drakaripykiros130ac]

Green stans logic:

Rhaenyra should be hated for not helping advance women’s positions throughout the Realm (even though it was a hardship to get stability for herself as the first reigning Queen of the Seven Kingdoms).

Meanwhile, Aegon Hightower should be applauded for taking away a woman’s legitimate right to the throne at a time when a couple of women were found in positions of power throughout the Realm (Lady Jeyne Arryn of the Vale being the most notable example).

Seriously…try harder.

[jerreeeeeee]

i don’t know if i’m ever gonna write the fic but i’ve been thinking abt like. the eternal stockade. the implications. lup, a lich who was trapped in a dark featureless cell for a decade completely isolated with nothing to keep her sanity but her own mind. she has to put people in the eternal stockade. how many liches does she see herself in. how many liches started out just like her. how many liches are truly too far gone. and the only liches we ever see other than her and barry are edward and lydia. they’re certainly evil, but mad? they seem pretty sane. they’re not, like, tattered echoes of souls, they’re definitely still people. even as much of a grudge as lup surely has against them, wouldn’t they remind her incredibly strongly of herself? do they deserve to be trapped just like she was? for eternity? isn’t eternity what turned john to existential despair in the first place?

[beifong-brainrot]

Yeah, the main theme of the Chase isn't Katara being an overbearing mom friend vs Toph being a spoilt brat.

It's actually about Katara's collectivism vs Toph's individualism and I'm surprised it took me my 3rd rewatch to realise this I'm dissapointment in myself.

[sukibenders]

Bridgerton in s1, s2, and the spinoff essentially: LW has done nothing helpful, she only adds harm to society's reputations, especially that of women and young girls who have little means of ways to protect themselves. It's why so many are scared that their every move is being watched. It's very evident that, whoever she is, has nothing better to do and probably wouldn't be accepted or forgiven by the Ton if their identity was revealed.

Bridgerton s3, for some reason: Oh LW is amazing (because it's Penelope) and is a true testament to how someone can overcome such harsh trials and come out on top (because, of course, being "ignored" gives you the right to weaponize your power and privileges to harm others, even those who you've never spoken too, just because you want to be seen, even though you hide behind an anonymous gossip sheet). Some people should even be jealous of the feats she's overcome (because, yes, it perfectly makes sense for a feminist character to be jealous of someone who's only used their power to hurt women and young girls for some cash and entertainment, totally makes sense).

[shimmerluna]

To be honest, a big part of why I dislike the fact that YR doesn’t explicitly address ableism is because I think this fandom in particular would benefit a lot from the sort of discussions a show that takes so much care with these topics could produce.

With the way people talk about Sara’s auDHD, Micke’s addiction, Kristina’s breakdown, and even August’s ED/addiction, it’s clear a lot of you view mental illnesses/disabilities as a choice someone makes or a punishment they can deserve/earn. There’s a difference between one’s disability being used as an excuse and it being a valid reason/explanation for actions the person still has to take responsibility for that few of you seem to recognize or care about, and treating these characters’ disabilities and mental illnesses like something they earned/deserved bc of something they did implies very harmful beliefs about real disabled people. 

On top of those implications, the only disabled/mentally ill character people treat with nuance and care is Wille, the main character who gets all the excuses/explanations. To a disabled person (i.e. me), it appears that some of you refuse to care about/empathize with disabled people on your own. Instead, you view us as morally bad and alien at the first sign of symptoms, and you only change your mind when an explanation you deem satisfactory makes us palatable or relatable to you. Since it's currently Disability Awareness/Pride Month, it's a good time for some of you to learn how to see both us as people and our disability without lengthy justification or respectability politics.

[adm-starblitzsteel-4305]

Me after watching the second trailer of GxK:

HOLD MY BEER GUYS CUZ......

SHE'S HERE!!!!!!!!!!

I KNEW IT!!!!!!!! IT'S MOTHRA!!!!!!!!!!!! LET'S FUCKING GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!

[thelilylav]

The true Girl, so Confusing duo of Ever After High. Somebody please talk to me about these two their dynamic has been rotting my brain for weeks.

[officersnickers]

Maybe I'm overthinking things, but Ido you think there's a narrative purpose in the fact that Asmodeus adopted her demon form (the one with the gruesome heads and tail) after being separated from Sarah? If she can regenerate and shapeshift, then why choose to look like this?

Because it looks fucking awesome! Next question please!

No, seriously, I suspect after parting ways with Sarah Asmodeus somewhat had to rely on her demon form? After all, part of her were cut off by the archangel Raphael and she had to replace it with a different body.

Now we learned the Demon Lords loose already enough of their powers if just one part is cut off, like with Belzebub‘s finger.

Imagine how much influence and power Asmodeus did loose with the lower part of her body? Surely she either couldn‘t transform to a different looking body most of the time due to her limitations, or she didn‘t want to (fair, I‘d say) since she takes great pride in herself and her influence, even after loosing once or twice. Her true demon form is what she is and knowing her and the sin she represents, she‘s not ashamed, neither of her lust nor her apperance.

Also, I could see Asmodeus not turning back to her former self being some sort of „farewell“ to Sarah; her humanized form with wings, reminding the girl of an actual but not fallen angel, belongs to Sarah and Sarah alone. She‘s not around anymore, not Asmodeus‘ anymore, so there‘s no reason to still be this version of herself. The Demon Lord with a monstrous upper body is who she is now, and that's how everyone should see her, now there's no Sarah anymore seeing anything but a monster in Asmodeus.

[hanzajesthanza]

geralt is also a most real depiction of good quality fatherhood and great girldad representation because EVEN THOUGH witchers don’t even experience aging at the same rate as non-GMO humans, EVEN THOUGH it would be “biologically impossible,”

geralt having had been raising a pre-teen girl for maybe a few months to a year already “gave the impression of having aged,” his “face slashed by wrinkles.” the emotional toll on this man from raising she-devil ciri

and this is only the very beginning of the saga. BEFORE everything goes to shit. the wrinkles have set in

[meganechan05]

Someone reminded me about Himeno's reaction to Yanma chugging the "rainbow jururia" to leave Ishabana ASAP

COMPARED TO HOW SHE REACTS TO RITA CHUGGING THEIR TEA TO LEAVE THE TEA PARTY ASAP

IF THAT'S NOT BUG YURI, I DON'T KNOW WHAT IS!!!! щ(゜▽゜щ)

[austin-friars]

It just occurred to me that we've not had an in depth portrayal of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour since the Tudors. Or just, Jane Seymour in general. So I am really curious to see how Mirror and the Light/Wolf Hall is going to handle them.

We get to know about her family, we'll learn about Elizabeth Seymour as well, and how important she is.

[wonder-worker]

"[Matilda of Boulogne's office as Queen of England], initiated and broadly defined by the coronation ordo, gave her royal power and authority to share in governance. Her obligations and activities were shaped by custom established by previous queens and the ad hoc needs of king and realm. [...] [Matilda's] thorough integration into the governance of the realm was not repeated in [Eleanor of Aquitaine’s] years as queen of England. Eleanor's coronation followed a new model that emphasized the queen as progenitor of royal heirs and subordinate to the king rather than as sharer of royal power. Though Eleanor acted as regent in England between 1156 and 1158 and in Poitou on several occasions from 1165 on, her writs suggest delegated rather than shared royal authority. In England, her power was limited by the lack of lands assigned to her use and by the elaboration of financial and judicial administration. Whereas [Matilda of Boulogne's] inheritance allowed her to play an integral role in politics by securing the Londoners' loyalty and a steady supply of mercenaries, Eleanor's inheritance provided her with more extensive power in Poitou and Aquitaine than in England. Until 1163, Eleanor withdrew funds from the Exchequer by her own writ, but unlike her Anglo-Norman predecessors, she was not a member of its council nor did she issue judgments from the royal court. Eleanor's counsel and diplomatic activities, in contrast to Matilda's, are rarely mentioned. She did, however, encourage the 1159 Toulouse campaign and supported Henry in the Becket affair and the coronation of young Henry. Eleanor was not a prominent curialis; she rarely witnessed Henry's charters or interceded to secure the king's mercy. She did follow in Matilda's footsteps in her promotion of her sons, cultivation of dynastic goals through the Fontevraudian tombs, and patronage that reflected her family's traditions. For Matilda, to be queen encompassed a variety of functions-curialis, diplomat, judge, intercessor, and "regent." Through a combination of factors, Eleanor's role as queen was much more restricted."

-Heather J. Tanner, "Queenship: Office, Custom or Ad Hoc", Eleanor of Aquitaine: Lord and Lady (Edited by Bonnie Wheeler and John Carmi Parsons)