#this is extremely surface level btw

[compressedrage]

Okay I can't not talk about this anymore– I've got a headcanon/canon-compliant au/interpretation of the Life Series events (as I'm sure many of us do) and the most recent season is working so well I just have to talk about it somewhere

sticking it under a cut, bc I just know im gonna go off and make a long post :P

(I haven't been in this fandom very long, so this is probably not very original, but I don't care! I'm having fun! anyway–)

The Life Series is a time loop. And Grian is the one who's keeping it going.

It was just meant to be a fun game, but then the Watchers found him. They warped Grian's game into their own twisted tournament, with the intent to take the winner as their champion.

They're about to take Grian again, when he reaches out with the power he'd kept locked away, and he resets the world.

Every time the bloodshed stops and the Watchers are about to reap their champion, Grian wrenches them back into the void and forces a world reset.

Except... with every reset, the world cracks a bit more. First, it was the boogey man. Is it the Watchers trying to push their influence on the players? Or is it something else? Grian isn't sure.

It goes until Secret Life. And then Grian is absolutely sure, because the world has shifted enough for the Watchers to slip their claws into it. They've gotten impatient. They want their champion. Grian tries, but there is only so much he can do with the weight of the tasks on his back. His own power is beginning to slip through too– he even manages to bring Jimmy back for a time, even if it's only a ghostly projection.

And then it's over. Grian is dead, drifting in the void.

(I have a scene in my head where he speaks with Mumbo while waiting for the end of the session. he basically tells Mumbo that he's been doing this and he doesn't know how to stop it, because he has to save them all)

And then Scar wins. And it nearly breaks him. Grian hovers over him, prepared to grab him and reset the world, when the Watchers yank Grian back into the void. It's a harsh, eldritch conflict in the void, and it's all Grian can do to hold onto his sanity, and throw his friends into the next loop.

But in it all, he momentarily forgets Scar. Still in the previous loop. He goes back to get him, but it's been an entire year for Scar. He's weary, and barely registers that Grian is real.

This new loop is the most broken yet. But Grian is still holding it all together as best he can. If it weren't for him, every weird aspect of this world would descend on his friends all at once and they would instantly die and Grian would lose track and then he would lose them–

So he holds things back, trying to keep things straight and monitor how his friends are doing. But he's starting to slip.

Mumbo knows what he's doing, and it doesn't sit right with him.

Scar is a victor. And his lonely year has given him plenty of time to regain lost memories.

Ren doesn't quite understand everything, but he knows Grian knows way more than he should.

Grian's not going to be able to hold it all together for much longer.

[theultimatekamehamehavoc]

One thing I've noticed about Makoto is that like, he never really mentions having any other friends. For instance, in the killing game in the first trial, his motive video has his family which makes sense. However, this would also imply that he never really had a bigger connection with anyone else or as much as his family. Hence, did he have any friends before Hopes Peak or were they just not close enough to even remotely mention? Also, doesn't this, in a way, contradict his "average" status and how he sees himself? Not saying that it's wrong for him to not have any friends, just that it's one of those things that's a typical thing to occur. Plus, the fact that he claims how "average" he is only to have several traits that don't fit into that makes him more interesting such as his boundless hope or the fact that he was wetting the bed until 5th grade. (will never get over that cus like, was he okay?? hope he was okay u_u) Back to the friend thing though, literally the only person he mentions knowing in school is Sayaka. It's the fact that he has no other connections with others kids his age in the past aside from her and it's not like they were very close besties then, anyway just that he knew her then. It kinda gives him a level of connection with some of the more loner characters in the first game honestly. Cus he's got no close friends that are close enough to be abducted! Reminds me of how Byakuya had his butler, Celeste had her cat, Toko had her little stink bug, and how honestly none of the class (or hell, any danganronpa character tbh) have both family AND friends held captive. It's just one or the other or someone/something miscellaneous like a pet or butler or just one parent being in their motive like Yasuhiro and his mom, Chihiro and his dad, or Taka with his dad. I also feel this adds a bit more to the tragedy of the first game with Hopes Peak, the more that I think about it. Like, some of them had their very first friends they ever got, probably the first ever real connection with someone their age who also wasn't connected with their talent specifically. Think Mondo and his gang or Sayaka and her girl group. Not saying those don't mean anything but still. So, it's interesting to think that they all have that level of connection with them, even "average Makoto". Just a thought though! Edit: Is Sakura the only one btw? Cus she has a boyfriend I think and it also mentioned that like, her whole dojo was being threatened by the mastermind? Which like, includes her family in there. So is Sakura the only one who doesn't have some trauma or baggage with a parent? Though crap. Nevermind. She got called ogre a lot so yeah. These bastards are fucked hahaha!!

[criminal-sen]

20+ years of foodservice, one of two things happen. 1) you achieve god-tier levels of patience for bullshit, you don't even feel your chronic pain from all your repetitive motion injuries bc you have Ascended 2) you turn into the meanest, shittiest person on the entire planet, the grinch's black heart would be an improvement

or secret third option: you somehow reach neither of these things and instead just become a guy who is so very tired (it me<3)

[autistickaitovocaloid]

Enough songs about Meiko being sad about the past she should get one where she goes on some sort of fantasy dungeon crawling quest maybe.

[zzencat]

Your Best Qualities - Current ⏳

From left to right. Breathe and choose.

Some of your best qualities in 5 bullet points! Decided we’d get a post to remind you of your best qualities, in case any of you guys are feelin’ down or going thru some tough weather. Let’s bring it back and focus on the good :)

To enhance accuracy before choosing: Clear your mind. Time is now patient and still. Close your eyes, inhale deeply, fill your chest up to the fullest, feel the soft air brush up against the ridges of your nose. Breathe out.

—————————

Pile 1. Feels like family…

• you’re definitely capable of bringing peace to others or keeping harmony within your own relationships, whether they be platonic or romantic — mediator skills or a person with good judgment

• you think twice before making moves or saying things — able to find balance between being the listener and being the speaker

• your resilience is unmatched!!!! — emotionally stable and can manage finances well

• loyal and uncaring of what others think — you stick to your crew and keep good people around you

• you’re super creative and your sense of timing is impeccable — you grab opportunities like it’s nothing. it’s like you always know what to say to make others feel good, reassured, comforted, confident

Points of Interest: good natured person or has good intentions in general; balanced af; leadership skills; a good head on your shoulders; extrovert-ambivert/very healthy introvert; entrepreneurial skills; ceo/vice president/secretary vibes; the type that listens to both sides of the story before acting; calm and peaceful; bounces back easily; thoughtful; considerate; family oriented; cares for others as well as oneself; clear minded; good work-life balance; open-minded; cautious in decision making; “confident” - justin bieber; good self esteem; good attitude; faith in your abilities; optimistic; creative; cares a lot for animals; people like being around you; possible mbti: healthy exxj, enxp, ixxj

—————————————

Pile 2. I got your back.

• intimidating and classified as a loner, but in the best way possible — you either have an expanse of knowledge OR do a great deal of self-reflection — very intuitive person (EXTREMELY)

• BIG, BIIIIIIG defender energy. when it comes to defending yourself or those you love, no one can do it better than you (have you ever considered being a lawyer btw?) — potential to be materially abundant and wealthy

• you empathize and feel for others easily, even when nobody else sees it or thinks that you do (but I’ll tell ya rn, most of the time you’re the most empathetic person in the room) — in a world full of evil, you’d make villains cry and can actually help them turn a new leaf — your level of empathy and understanding is on a totally different level

• independent and mature — if people come to anyone for advice or counseling, or just a good ear, it’s you

• you are very deep and insanely caring under the surface — you might approach things logically first and try to see things from all points of view before making a decision or advising other people — you really do have the biggest heart and only those who are close can see it

Points of Interest: introvert; very smart; spends a lot of time alone; VERY LOYAL !!!!!! (almost to the point of possessiveness); may need to work on control issues and rebalancing social life; communicates differently from others; sees things from a different perspective; offers good advice; good listeners; prone to pushing people away bc you start caring too much; knows who to trust and who not to; selective; secretly creative; very nurturing but kinda doesn’t want to show it; humble/modest/doesn’t want to be seen; wants to help people but doesn’t want to be put in the spotlight for it; you’ve felt more hurt/seen more trauma than those around you; defending like their lives depend on it; perfectionists; behind the scenes, extremely intuitive; possible mbti: inxj, healthy exxj

————————-

Pile 3. Life of The Party

• confident, outgoing, charismatic, funny as hell — there’s a lot of charm to you — you carry the energy fam, no you ARE the energy — you laugh/smile easily or cause others to

• highly ambitious and have the will to fight for what you want — you’d prob be the last one standing in a mr. beast challenge

• you light up the room !! (i keep hearing “baby, you light up my world like nobody else by 1D 😂😂😂) — potential for fame/someone in the public eye/someone in a position of power

• mischievous and fun to be around/has the most jokes — always up for a challenge or touching grass activities lmfaooo you’re always down to hang out — you don’t care if you look like an idiot as long as you’re having fun or are out with friends/family

• you don’t give up easily and take opportunities as they come — persistent, stubborn and strong-willed — you’ve achieved many things or definitely will in no time

Points of Interest: A-Class comedian; daredevil; extroverted or highly energetic; prominent fire energy, possible zodiac signs that are prominent in your natal chart (sun, moon, or rising): aries, leo, sagittarius; mistakenly seen as the leader of a group; impulsive; instigator; jumps on opportunities immediately; wearing what you want; impatient/bored easily; fast-paced; has the most friends/wants to have the most friends; easily sociable; questionable decision making, but has the most experience; likes to experiment; has seen a lot in life/plans to see a lot in life; probably a fan of fast and scary rollercoasters; among leaders, you’re the “fun” leader; confident with self-image

——————————

Teddy note: what is guuuuuuud guys!!?!?! I’m feelin pretty nice today so I thought I’d put this out for you all as a reminder of your good qualities 😊👍 we’ve all been working pretty hard lately!! Whether that’s on your physical, mental, emotional health—it’s all very draining to do SO I hope this reminds you of things you should remember to be proud of!! It’s a checkpoint! I hope it resonates with you and if not, leave it. Thank you v much guys 😎😎

Feedback through likes, comments, and feedback and very much supported!!

[markus209]

y’know i’ve seen a lot of fawcett being scary to people from other places cause they can’t understand the magic side to things there (which is very dangerous) and while i do like that (who am i kidding, i love it) i’ve always liked the idea of fawcett being a dangerous city for another reason

btw this is applying to a fawcett that isn’t some sort of magic hub (as in the vast majority of citizens are humans who can’t use magic and don’t understand it) but still naturally experienced our beloved time freeze (i can’t remember its name lol)

i imagine fawcett to be scary because people only see what they want to see, but to a much more extreme degree than to how people usually do

like, as a homeless kid billy is just ignored by the general and not given any real help

when he works at whiz as a radio host and reporter no one questions the child labour (or dangers of the job as a reporter)

when he gets his own house no one questions that (if anyone even notices)

i imagine it as being a very mind your own business society which makes you think of gotham but i think of it as being in a different way to gotham

see, the thing that i think is really scary about fawcett is the surface level kindness. how they still act very polite and cordial. there’s just this indifference to anything they don’t feel affects them. ‘not my circus, not my monkeys’

theres more to my thoughts on this but most of them are still subconsciously lingering and idk how to put them into words, also i already wrote a lot so yippee contribution to our community. hope you enjoy my badly worded take on fawcett

[howgalling]

idk if I mentioned but I got to speak to JRO after the con at tfnation; specifically about the first aid plot line he didn’t end up getting to include in the mtmte comics!!

I missed the panel where he was talking about it, but one of my friends mentioned it, so I had to ask for more information!!!!!. First Aid essentially loses the plot for a while trying to find a way to bring ambulon back. it’s briefly mentioned as an off comment by (maybe ratchet?) that first aid has been isolating himself for months with ambulon’s dead body in the comics. Which is crazy btw lol anyway

first aid spends all that time between the plot failing to find ways to bring ambulon back to life. He fully repairs ambulons body, every fragment of him is visually perfect, /technically/ functional. He even repaints ambulon, touching up the patchy paint job Ambulon was known for.

But ambulon is truly dead. What made ambulon who he was, his memories, his personality, his knowledge, his friendship- was obliterated in the bisecting, as was his spark. It was a complete brain-death by cybertronian standards.

As far as I’m aware, the spark is just a power source, relative to the memory banks portion of their processors and whatnot, specifically the sections that store the bots actual personality and memories. Though it’s always worded differently. JRO didn’t give an exact time range (understandable lol) for how long they were on Delphi, but the general thought is that First Aid and Ambulon were on Delphi together for a decent chunk of years, relative to the timeline.

:((( first aid and ambulon really endured Delphi together and bonded throughout that, and to see him murdered so abruptly, (by their ex-boss who they watched descend into madness- no less!!!) was extremely traumatising, as much as it’s played as a joke by the fandom lolol. ambulon suffered what was essentially complete brain death at the moment of injury, non-recoverable.

The dynamic between ratchet, Pharma and first aid/ambulon is really interesting, other people can word it better than me but it ties massively into the feedback loop first aid gets lost in from that point. Watching his closest friend die in a hysterical power play between his two superiors would be helpless agony. And it hurts more because we know first aids temperament :(( he’s still soft, despite it all, and he’s the type of character that you just want to shield from the nastiness of it all. 😭😭

First aid goes as far tracking down the mechs that were involved in the faulty combiner experiment Ambulon was forced into. Looking for maybe even an echo or an imprint, faint traces in the data+code of the mech’s that might have had /anything/ of his friend left in it. Pieces he could put together to make him whole again. But there’s nothing, just surface level memories from a bond that never succeeded. MAN

Anyway, I’m going to try and draw something for it, please give me focus

[rockwgooglyeyes]

rock's thoughts on ivantill (nsfw edition)

trigger/content warning: open and uncensored discussion of nsfw content (smut specifically) I'm not tagging this as mature and leaving it up to the reader's discretion whether or not they're able to handle this. I'm not incredibly explicit but I am talking about something inherently nsfw.

the thing about nsfw is that, when it comes to fandom, it often is based less on the characters themselves and more on whatever the fans want to see. I say this about fandom in general, btw, not ALNST in particular- in my experience with nsfw (fanfic anyways) in fandom, is that a lot of it comes down to writer preference rather than the actual characters themselves. It's literally playing with dolls and this isn't necessarily a bad thing! It's pretty much what fan content is for, right? It's just something that doesn't sit super well with me and it's something I don't really understand- if you want to make a specific dynamic, why not just make ocs that can similar or the same personalities as the characters that you enjoy and yet their dynamic fits with what you want.

Like overall when it comes to my opinions (and these are opinions, preferences if you will), I might as well be up front- when it comes to the ships that are common in the ALNST fandom, I think that while mizisua and hyunamizi definitely switch, out of mizisua? Sua is the top imo. on the other hand, I think that it would be a lot more interesting if either hyunamizi were switch-centric or Mizi topped, just because of what that would say about her relationship growth as well as her character growth. With hyunaluka (which is not a ship that I enjoy but I respect those that do obviously) I think Hyuna tops mostly. With ivantill, I see Ivan as a bottom and Till as the top. Sometimes they switch, no one is exclusively one or the other- and I am fully in support of them being switches because I believe most relationships are fluid and have the inherent capacity for switching, top/bottom is about preference but I do think it's rare. I don't know, smut can be part of the relationship to me and the dynamic when it comes to sexual encounters is important to me with a couple.

I don't know, maybe it's because I'm one of those people where my headcanons have to be related to the text somehow (and I don't say this in a way that's derogatory to people who don't have that- honestly I kind of admire you guys, it seems freeing. I'm just extremely autistic about this) but idk the way people intrepret Ivan in the ALNST fandom is super interesting. This is mainly going to be talking about ivantill because to be perfectly honest, I think people are weirder about mlm ships than they are about wlw ships, when it comes to their characterization? But I haven't read as much wlw nsfw so I can't fully speak to this. But when it comes to Ivantill, I have found some people who's opinions I love. Some people I agree with even if I don't agree with everything. But then there are some folks that are so out there like I wanna study you guys underneath a microscope y'all are so peculiar. yeah yeah he's King Yaoi the Third, he's tall dark and handsome, whatever. he's a little freak, I want to put him in a jar and shake him up, I understand, but at the same time sometimes the reading comprehension with people seems not so bueno.

In the fandom overall, (not just on tumblr dot com) people like him as top and I think that, to a degree, that is supported by the text. At least, some of the additional art from Vivinos/Qmeng, that’s supported

(^ the amount of horny comments on this image *sighs*)

But for me? I don’t like that as much (even though I’ve read some fanfic with it that I liked just fine.)

This is because of the way that this interpretation of their relationship feeds into that surface level analysis of both Ivan and Till's character? Ivan is the violently jealous lover, the one who watches from afar and seethes with envy, he’s the unfeeling pretty boy who only loves one person, he’s willing to do whatever it takes to keep that person. Till is the tsundere, the person who plays at strength but weakens at the first touch of someone stronger, easily flustered and even easier to cow into submission- but the thing is? We know that's not true for either of them, it's not supported by their backgrounds, their other actions, the context of their trauma. which makes that characterization super funny (to me) when this series is kind of about peeling back the edges of outward perception, with Mizi, Ivan, Luka and Hyuna especially.

While top/bottom isn't necessarily a power dynamic, when in the context of certain relationships, it can definitely take on the connotations of power. In Ivan and Till's relationship, the person who has the power is Till.

Out of the two of them, Ivan is not the person with the power and that's honestly the main issue that I have with the way that people portray him. In the top Ivan fics that I actually like, he's not the one with the power, he is only where he is because Till wanted them to get this far, he is at Till's mercy and he's loving it. The issue I take with those who portray him as domineering and controlling is that he doesn't try to control Till in canon. He might have concocted the incident with the wagyein and Mizi but after that? Ivan isn't trying to force Till into anything, he isn't controlling the situation, he isn't even trying to get Till to do anything but react. Ivan would do anything that Till wanted him to, no questions asked. For those who take the possessive angle with Ivan, the problem I have is that Ivan has no desire to own Till. He's obsessed with Till, yeah, but it's in the way that you love your favorite band- you love them to bits, you listen to all of their songs, you go to a concert, you have their merch- but you would still respect their choices, right? You would be disappointed if they decided to break up but you wouldn't force them to get back together. That's the difference between Ivan's obsession and Luka's- Luka thinks that he deserves Hyuna's affection in exchange for loving her (it's transactional), whereas Ivan is under no illusion that he is entitled to Till's affections.

On the flipside, when Till is portrayed as the tsundere who cares but refuses to show it because of his pride, well, that one's a little tougher because the main problem is execution. Till does really care about people but his affection isn't shown out of a matter of pride- he shows his affection for Mizi quite freely, after all, if he was really worried about vulnerability, I feel like he might be a little more conservative with his adoration. Often times, he doesn't show his care for people clearly because he doesn't really know how, defaulting to blushing and stuttering, gifts and acts of service to get his point across. He's not a super verbal-affection oriented guy and I think this is actually portrayed pretty well in the gen fics but not so much in smut because it's not as applicable lmao (comes with the territory ig). When Till is written as really timid, fumbling, innocent (@bluemoonscape called it woobifying), I hate that with a passion because he might fumble and he might get shy sometimes but he is not a pushover. He is not meek and if he doesn't like something, he'll voice his complaints, he'll let you know. I mean why else would he yell at Ivan in their version of My Clematis when Ivan gets too close? Admittedly, Ivan doesn't listen, lost in his monologue, and Till kind of just accepts it- but I am certain that if they were even intimate with each other, that Till would object were he uncomfortable and Ivan would listen. Like, whether Ivan was top or bottom, if Till's not having a good time? Ivan is no longer having a good time. Ivan's pleasure is very much contingent on Till's pleasure, at least, in my mind.

That's all the characterization centered stuff and kind of the reason why I think their relationship just works better with this dynamic *but* one of the biggest reasons it's a preference for me that Ivan bottoms is because of the inherent nature of that dynamic- it's a lot harder to end up fucking someone unwillingly than it is to get fucked by someone. There's a far greater likelihood of reciprocated feelings or at least, consent, when it comes to this version of their relationship and that's what I prefer because I really do think that they love each other.

(tagging @atrophiedemotion because I asked him if he wanted to be and he said yes! Blue is already tagged above too so all of the known interested parties have been notified :D love you guys)

[candyskiez]

Thinks about how genius it was to have Mogami arc and Separation arc happen right next to each other btw. This will be incoherent because I am sleepy.

It sets up how unfair it was to isolate Mob because we just saw how painful the isolation was for him. We also see how hard it is for him to step up and say no or defend himself at all.

Establishes "people need other people" right before Reigen loses the one person he has, realizes he has no friends, and has to realize people noticing him is what he really wanted. He needs people and no amount of fame or surface level shit is going to fill the void. He needs to let himself be known.

Has Mob realize sometimes people are just...awful, genuinely. But nobody is worthless. No one, no matter how bad, is worthless. Other people can be awful and still deserve to be saved. People can suck so fucking hard and it's not just spirits or something supernatural. Sometimes people are awful, even good people. This sets up him being able to go "No. How he's treating me is fucked up. He's treating me like shit. I'm not dealing with this." While also being able to accept that he wants to change.

Mob forms his own conclusions and opinions. Mob is making his own decisions now and is his own person.

The themes of change and how isolation and extreme trauma changes a person.

"I truly am blessed to have the people in my life" (paraphrasing) right before Reigen is a dick about his friends.

Mob comes out stronger than he's ever been and more convicted than ever. Reigens still Reigen. Contributes to Reigens realization *he's the one that never grew up.*

We see Mob grow and be able to accept that sometimes people suck and people also can change and be good, and also the themes align SO well (loneliness, how people change when they're in a terrible situation and what can bring out the worst in someone, people reaching rock bottom and reflecting on what led them there, realizing what they hadn't realized they'd been lucky to have until it was gone, community is what really matters) it's just. Do you get me. Do I make any sense. Guys. Gu

[four-unwell-lesbians]

new favourite character dynamic btw. Groups of four where each character is a stress response fighting for control.... if u even care

My examples are dungeon meshi, mean girls, heathers, rwby, pitch perfect, doki doki literature club. I'm gonna focus on fight/flight characters. I'll do freeze/fawn in another post because those two get DEEP into character psyche

So here's my summary of this character dynamic

They parallel each other as a subplot.

Fight is the most proactive, flight is the most avoidant.

Fight wants to lead but struggles to keep control, while flight is the 'morally pure'/superior one

Fight has anger issues, flight is the group's secret keeper.

Freeze balances them out and disconnects from the plot. Fawn romanticises the narrative's dangers to involve the preoccupied characters in the plot.

So much proof this is like a formula (flight on left, fight on right):

Also notice all of these duos are imo the ones to talk shit in the background. They're all gossip buddies I swear.

Bulleted explanations below the cut:

DUNGEON MESH (Marcille and Chilchuk):

Protecting themselves from dungeon food/change/indivuality (dungeon meshi is about embracing this). eg Marcille wants them to live as long as elves (ambrosia) and Chilchuck is TRYING to die young

Protests and refuses vs implied to secretly skip meals

Tries to call the shots (usually wrong) vs activist. union man.

Explosive emotions (literal) vs living a double life. also he ran from his wife, actual flight response moment

awful quality gif for you i dotn think it works

MEAN GIRLS:

Constant arguments/simultaneous somewhat codependent mental breakdowns are subplots for Cady's advantage

Immediate disproportionate revenge vs 'please don't tell Regina'

Loses her power in like a week vs repeated 'I'm such a good friend!'

Screaming for like two straight minutes vs hair full of secrets

aouughhh save me winona ryder..............

HEATHERS (Heather Duke and Veronica):

Power struggle friendship matches the plot's fight for control of the school. Only two left, only two who didn't attempt suicide

Only one who wants leadership vs refuses to acknowledge abuse

Tries to be a leader but didn't have Chandler's finesse vs EXTREMELY pretentious with 0 accountability

More sadistic than angry (point is she copes with petty revenge) vs themed around a diary and covering up murders

HALF WAY THROUGH! Let me remind you of the summary:

They parallel each other as a subplot.

Fight is the most proactive, flight is the most avoidant.

Fight wants to lead but struggles to keep control, while flight is the 'morally pure' one

Fight has anger issues, flight is the group's secret keeper.

RWBY:

Daughters of good institutions made corrupt by their abusers on opposite sides of the war. Their conflict IS the human vs faunus conflict

Wants to reform her company vs ran away to forget her company

Bosses the group around at first vs literally flees constantly

Canonically described as 'nice but a little bit bitchy' vs mysterious backstory

DDLC (Natsuki and Yuri)

Both have regressive/closed minded views on literature and learn to see past surface level assumptions like the player has to

Pushes for change in the group vs embarassed by everything

Demands control over others vs once again EXTREMELY pretentious

Panicked defensive attacks vs by far the most unhinged but covers it up to an insane degree

Pitch Perfect (Aubrey and Beca)

Pitch Perfect is about empowerment and individuality, they've found different ways to deal with too much pressure

Forces the group to be extremely uniform vs 'rebel with a voice'

Can't cope with leader responsibilities vs reluctant to be a Bella

'Blows under pressure' vs mysterious Beca with hidden talents

So. Yeah i have even more examples of this but I limited myself to 6. this was too muhc

[gl1tchr]

loved your riddler rant, you should do more. for the most part i agree but i wanna ramble too and see what you think

my thing with Dano Riddler is that i think it maybe started with selfless genuine intentions, at least as selfless as any riddler character could manage to be. but because he kept digging and digging and uncovering more, without anyone listening to him in the process mind you, that’s when all the already fragile trust for literally anyone shattered completely, and his delusional mind saw everyone as a threat and corrupted. the whole city needed a reboot, a fresh start

and the ones he still saw as innocent he probably just believed in his twisted mind that he would be doing them a favor, risking their death, but death would be a mercy compared to being in this godforsaken city

yes most was selfish revenge, but i still think there’s a small part of him that seriously believed he was doing “good” and was thinking of other kids. we see that written in his journal too, which wasn’t for public it was purely him to himself, so i think that was some genuine intentions there.

also eh…ahh the trauma part a little rocky, like I understand what you mean there’s absolutely guys like that (😪), but this edward’s self loathing comes from a genuine place of trauma and mental illness it’s not just the attention seeking aspect of “oh woe is me i suuuuck boo hoo” it’s actual implied bpd, ocd, intrusive thoughts whatever else.

not at all saying the trauma + mental illness list cancels his self-centeredness or anything out btw, yes he’s still very much selfish and wants attention and it’s especially heightened once the riddler persona comes out to play. it just felt like you were undermining it slightly, when depth+trauma was an explicitly stated focal point of his character (imo if that’s what they were going for, which again it was, the movie itself could’ve done better to show this. cuz yeah oof i understand casual viewers seeing the surface level “oh, he’s just another dumb villain who’s crazy purely for the sake of crazy 😐” but at least Paul Dano made a great comic. anyway slightly different tangent lol)

idk i might be wrong. that’s just my brief, summed up-ish interpretation. again though love and respect your take, would love to hear more.

Oh nono all of this can be extremely true in tandem with everything I said as well! That's the complex part of mentally ill characters that people love to muddy so badly is the line between the deliberate and the subconscious. Edward is DEEPLY troubled, I would argue the Most out of any Riddler save for maybe one or two other interpretations and he is a victim of the system before anything else, and many of his intentions to him and generally absolutely may have been good ones at the start. But as with any Riddler, he can only be "fixed" [in his eyes] by being validated, being seen. And this is what tells us the things Edward does because he's hurting inside versus the things he does because he actually has some more selfish and ill-intentioned motives. HE'S SO DEEPLY LAYERED AND RICH AND I LOVE HIM JUST AS MUCH AS HIS PREDECESSORS

[miraculouslbcnreactions]

I definitely agree with the opinion that ML’s writers seriously flubbed the Chinese Miracle Box both in the show’s lore and in real-life cultural connotations, especially now that I know about all the extremely delicate history that they either straight-up missed or completely ignored from that post you made. That’s why I’ve taken the stance of many others playing in this shabbily put-together sandbox of a show who aren’t Chinese and therefore like to make up new Miracle Box set-ups that are either as divorced from OR inclusive of as many human cultures as possible, which personally makes more sense to me anyway since the Miraculous from the canon Box (the Ladybug for certain at the very least) have supposedly been used around the world. What do you think about that last point of conflicting canon lore btw?

(Post that spawned this ask.)

I take the same stance that you do. On the most surface level possible, the box is Chinese, but the lore that was used for the powers is very much not! Or, at least, it's not all Chinese. Lucky ladybugs and unlucky black cats are European. Tricky foxes come from all over the place. Longg is an eastern dragon in design and powers, giving him ties to several Asian cultures. Fluff is British. The list goes on with many of the Kwamis seeming totally random with no clear tie to any culture.

As such, the easiest fix is to just remove the explicit tie to any single culture and instead go with the classic-for-a-reason setup that the Kwamis picked their forms based on their own wants and those forms ended up inspiring legends that got tied to the animals that they based their forms on. After all, that makes so much more sense! The Kwamis kind of have to be billions of years old even if they weren't tied to the miraculous until much more recently, meaning that they should predate all cultures. It makes way more sense for them to inspire us and not the other way around or whatever canon is trying to do by creating a tie between the Kwamis forms and existing legends/myths/fables/etc.

[grimgiggles]

Sigh.

I dislike jumping into discourses as contentious and subjective and BIG as the discourse over Ludinus' conversation with BH in the last episode, but there is a point that I haven't seen anyone making (idk, maybe people have been making it and I just haven't seen it) about his side of the argument, and I think it's worth consideration.

Ludinus values being right over being good.

Most people are thinking one of two things right now:

1. Yes, obviously, so?

2. What's the difference?

Let me put it another way: Ludinus values being correct over being kind. To him, Truth is more important than Compassion. He is the kind of person for whom a hard, blunt truth is a greater expression of love than any expression of softness or gentleness that is not 100% true. I hope that clarifies it.

At this point I want to make it clear that nothing that follows is a justification of Ludinus' actions, or an attempt to make him more sympathetic or anything. This is all exposition and analysis, on my part.

So, when I listened to his conversation with BH, I did not hear him trying to justify his own actions while condemning the gods' very same actions, and I didn't hear him trying to deflect blame for the wrongs he has done or that others have done for him. He admitted that he had done much wrong in pursuit of his goal. He knows the (many different) kinds of people he works with. He knows that there are parallels between him and his enemies (the gods), he KNOWS that he isn't the Good Guy (none of this matters to him). Every time it sounded (because that's what people expected to hear) like he was defending himself, what I heard was factual correction. He wants people to get their details straight. Because that's Truth.

But he believes, he KNOWS (and we don't know if he's right or wrong) that if he accomplishes his goals, everyone in the world will be, on balance, better off for it. For him, this is a labor of love (and sure, it's also motivated by hatred for the gods born from trauma, the two things aren't mutually exclusive). It's a very non-personal, universal - you could even say clinical - kind of love, but it is love.

But (and I know this from experience) it is SO difficult to convey earnest conviction and humility at the same time. It is almost impossible to say "I know I've hurt people and I know that's bad but I swear I swear I SWEAR I am doing this FOR you please LISTEN to me" without coming across exactly the way that Ludinus does: as a villain trying to justify himself. And he knows this, so he doesn't bother trying to make himself look like the Good Guy (again, he doesn't care about being Good, he cares about being Right), even while he DOES try to present his case in a way that he hopes will be understood.

He IS a villain, to be clear.

He has fallen into the classic INTJ villain trap (whaaaat meyers-briggs? In my meta? BTW this is a legitimate mbti stereotype, it's kind of messed up), which goes:

1. The INTJ experiences grief.

2. The INTJ identifies the cause of their suffering as a universal cause of suffering.

3. The INTJ processes their grief by intellectualizing it and devising a way to eliminate the cause of suffering completely, forever. They see this as not only personally cathartic but an act of service to everyone.

4. The INTJ gets tunnel vision about their goals.

5. The INTJ's methods hurt people, which forms an opposition to their goals.

6. Attempts at peaceful resolution fail because the INTJ is usually quite bad at connecting to people and making themselves understood on an emotional level (despite usually being very good at understanding, at least on a surface level, the motivations of others), and most other people simply don't even realize that they are not understanding.

7. One party or the other succeeds, usually with disastrous fallout for both sides. The only way to prevent this is to make a strong personal emotional connection with the INTJ - which is extremely difficult because the grief back in step 1 caused them to retreat WAY behind walls of Intellect, Pragmatism, and Cynicism - and through that connection remind them that actually the ends don't justify the means.

The other thing that makes Ludinus a villain is that he wants to commit genocide (technically he wants to enable genocide). He wants to eliminate an entire population of entities who are, he even conceded himself, basically just people. And he's okay with that, because it will, in his mind, be a net benefit for everyone else, and because in a truly wild subversion, he sees the gods as less than people. His hatred of the gods has morphed in his mind into a weird doctrine of mortal supremacism. He may or may not (personally I'm leaning toward probably not) be Correct about what will happen if he succeeds, but he is Wrong either way.

I digress. I veered a little off my point there, just to make it absolutely clear that I do not agree with Ludinus. He is a Bad Guy who must be Stopped.

We just saw step 6 fail, predictably, because BH and Ludinus spent the whole time talking at cross-purposes. Imogen probably got closest to actually communicating meaningfully with him, with her line of questioning on Predathos, but she didn't get very far because he has no reason to trust her with everything he knows. They were just fishing for more information, and he was just fishing for angles to hook a vessel.

My point is this: that conversation in Aeor was nothing. BH did not score any points, and neither did Ludinus (although he came pretty close with his little trick with Delilah, and he got away with the orb). Neither party came any closer to actually understanding the other or making themselves understood.

All these posts going around celebrating how BH "got him" or whatever are completely.

Misunderstanding.

Ludinus.

And so is BH.

[hwnglx]

Jungkook’s likes and dislikes of his future partner ?

i don't really feel comfortable looking into his dislikes about them, but thought i'd look into some potential green and red flags in their relationship. haven't read for them in months.

jungkook's future relationship - green + red flags

based on tarot. i do not know these idols personally. energies are always changing. what i say is NOT straight fact. pls take it with a grain of salt!

queofw, kingofw&queofsw, knofc, fool&moon

+ an incredibly well balanced relationship. they will complete and compliment each other beautifully, also bond over their similarities. especially when it comes to their ambitions, their fiery and creative sides. jungkook will gain a lot of confidence from his fs' existence and vice versa. i can see him feeling very inspired by his fs' existence creatively. maybe expect some love songs in the future.. he'll be good at writing about his love for them, i think. also his fs in particular, will benefit a lot from jungkook's warmth and vibrance. they might've been through a fair share of disappointment already, which turned them a little closed off at first. jk will be very good at breaking down those walls and opening up their heart, gaining their trust.

they will also just be very lovey dovey and cute with each other, a lot of romance. kinda like this long-lasting couple that everyone is jealous of, since everyday they seem to be just as in love with each other as when they first met. the romantic air will not die down for years it seems.. jungkook is a libra venus, so he'll probably find a lot of fulfilment in sweeping his fs off their feet. i can see him putting a lot of effort into planning the most beautiful dates.

there will also once again, be a great balance between lighthearted and carefree times, but also moments where they'll engage in deeper conversations. they'll truly enjoy each others company and have a lot of fun together, but connect to each other beyond the surface, on an emotional level as well. take away each others fears, light the way in times of darkness. the fact i only got court cards and major arcana really gives me this impression that their relationship will be extremely important for the both of them, it will definitely play a big role in their lives. they'll have a meaningful and longlasting impact on each other.

aceofsw, 7ofc, 9ofw&6ofc, 8ofw&magic

- the main problem i see here, is jungkook's fs struggling to deal with his incredible amount of fame. their partner being in the public eye and having so much going on, will overwhelm them for sure. as i stated before, his fs seems to have dealt with some past bad experiences already, which might've caused them some trust issues. a lot of overthinking. "i trust you, but i'm worried i'll get hurt again." is what i keep hearing. tbh, i do not see jungkook engaging in any infidelity. i actually see him remaining pretty loyal, his fs will just be in their head a lot. they're aware he's a very charismatic guy many people swoon over, so there's this sense of insecurity und worry when he's away. they basically don't like the thought of people looking at him a little too much, if that makes sense lol? maybe some of you know that feeling, i definitely do. "that girl smiled at you for a little too long, don't ya think?" kinda vibes lmao, or they'll feel all weird over jungkook just being his usual charming self with others, maybe confront him over it. they probably have some possessive tendencies and need to work on their ability to fully trust.

btw, i see this pattern for a lot of bangtan's future spouses, which is interesting. it seems they're aware of the set of unique difficulties dating a member comes with. many of them are worried over the members getting seduced by the fame and popularity, which is kinda inevitable with a bg as big as bts, i guess. however so far, most of them seem keen on staying faithful once they settle down 👏🏻

[galedekarios]

Something something "Gale is a character who believes the world would be better with him dead and the player can show him that's not true" as a persistent theme of his character arc. *glares at Larian*

Honestly it feels like the Leads fell for the surface level part of Gale's arc. Like, all of them have that shallow impression that the characters themselves are trying to make you believe: Astarion wants you to think he's cruel and suave, Shadowheart is fine with the facade that she's a pawn of her lady of darkness, Lae'zel is brash and rude and initially intolerant of istik society, Wyll plays off the confident persona who has no regrets, Karlach is happy about everything all the time. And Gale's facade is that he's full of himself while simultaneously not being worth the effort.

The game ENCOURAGES you to break that illusion. Astarion's not a seductive wretch, he's scared and securing himself. Shaowheart's whole arc is about retaking her independence. Lae'zel comes to understand the beauty of the world outside what her queen wants. Wyll believes himself to be a perfect sacrifice for others' safety. Karlach is angry, REALLY angry, and terrified. And Gale is desperate to prove himself worthy of everyone's expectations of him, and to hide the mortal side of him he'd been told wasn't worth indulging in.

I feel like that's where the problem is. Gale's writer worked those flaws into Gale's character, with enough moments to show a player who's invested at all in him what the REAL reason is behind his actions, but the other writers didn't bother to invest anything into cracking that open. They took the persona he's trying to push at face value (that and probably not wanting to get on the bad side of the fans who think Gale's annoying due to *checks notes* Larian-side bugs).

Gale killing himself isn't the "right" ending where he "gives back to the world" - but that's what Gale THINKS the "right" ending is, before you prove him otherwise. The dryad test outright says that's what his greatest fear is.

Of COURSE Gale's going to think sacrificing himself for the greater good is the best option if you don't tell him you're willing to fight for him. It's literally the one insecurity that's been consuming his whole being since he got the Orb. Man's been planning his death for over a year. Thanks for not reading past the first page, lead writers.

Sorry for the rant, had to get this off my chest and you've had the most presence in the "why would you tell Gale to kill himself" discussion.

again, don't feel sorry for venting in my inbox! 🖤 i agree with a lot of what you said.

i've seen a lot of speculation as to why the devs said what they said. there is a deluge of posts trying to explain for a variety of reasons and coming up with their own scenarios: gale is supposedly comedic relief (hard disagree btw), they were maybe talking about ea gale, they were just talking about powerful messages, whathaveyou, and i have to say that at the end of the day it doesn't really matter why.

because even if that all was true, it means either one or a combination of the following things:

either they didn't care enough to delve deeper than the extreme surface level & current iteration of their own writing & character

or they parrot the worst reddit & twitter & tunglr talking points to be like how do you do fellow kids with their assumed fanbase

or they have some sort of internal bias

nevermind that the message they sent (intentionally or not) to people identifying with the character for his struggles still very much remains.

[marimoluver]

ZS vs LU dynamic

(This is not a ship post btw I’m just using the initials to simplify.)

I was thinking about the East Blue 5 dynamic and how the Oda went about Luffy and Usopp’s friendship and Zoro and Sanji’s rivalry. It’s clear from of their designs they were always meant to be a duo.

Zoro and Sanji on the surface level are complete opposites. Sanji is interested in woman and his takes care of his appearance while Zoro is more interested in goals and isn’t the most hygienic guy around. If you look deeper you’ll realize they are two sides of the same coin. I think because of their similarities they clash more.

ZS are both the main care takers of the crew, they both have this cool guy persona but are softies on the inside, both are very sacrificial, and had a violent upbringing with a lot of isolation which lead to them maturing faster and becoming stronger than other people their age. I can go on and on but you get the gist of it. It’s not a coincidence they share essentially share the same role. I do love the hc of first mate Zoro but I think Zoro and Sanji being refer to as the wings is more accurate. Zoro and Sanji are equals. They understand each other on a deeper level because their mindset is similar.

I think the true opposites are Luffy and Usopp. On the surface they are very similar with their more childish nature and same interest in bugs but their way of thinking is the exact opposite.

Luffy doesn’t think at all. He just does things. Luffy is famous for rarely using thought bubbles and is extremely confident in his abilities. He believes he can get anything done if he put his mind to it. He doesn’t let his fears hold him back.

Usopp all the other hand is an overthinker and has very little self confidence. He’s also a more realistic person and his fears prevent him from reaching his true potential.

Despite the differences I think Luffy and Usopp are in very similar positions. Luffy might be the captain of the Strawhat pirates but Usopp has more influence on the grand fleet over all. Also the two of them are the only two characters that are deified. Ofc Luffy is on a bigger scale but the two have alot of influence over the people they meet. It’s not a coincidence that Usopp keeps getting the same bounties as Luffy.

I think it’s a genius spin on things to have the two rivals be two people who have similar mindset compared to the two opposites be best friends.