#toh edge of the world

[juliettedunn]

Thinking again about Luz getting called his big sister in this exact same episode. A big sibling, supposed to look out for him, she always just wanted to protect him. And here there is literally nothing she can do. What could she even say?

He’s clinging to her for some form of comfort but she’s just as helpless, and still hasn’t processed her own trauma that happened the day before. She can’t even care for herself and here he just went through unimaginable trauma there’s no way she could make better. Right after both calling her his sister and his confession over how much the thought of her leaving terrifies him.

But all they can do is go home, to a parental figure who is just as lost and helpless as them, even though Eda tries so hard to conceal it in OTWAT. All they want is to protect their family but they’re grappling with things so far beyond their control hitting them one after another, sometimes all they can do is just stand like this.

King was almost stabbed to death and skinned. Luz just saw the dismembered bodies of his siblings as a trophy display. She makes King breakfast. She gives him a hug. What else can she do? Insane episode.

[icy-watch]

...Cypher?

[idkwidatp]

I was looking at pictures of the collector both to figure out how to draw their hair WHERE TF DOES THIS VERSION OF THE COLLECTOR COME FROM?????????

[jamgrlsart]

Playing with value

Screen cap redraws from Season 2, Episode 17, Edge of the World

I had to draw this because just look at Eda in this moment; I’m obsessed with this pose. And Luz!!! 😭

[redg5]

I’ve been left alone again so it’s time for “random thoughts that seem to have taken over my brain” TM:

Why is there two Collector Mirrors? There is the one Belos had, but there is also the Trappers’ mirror, which by the time we see it is already broken. What was the point of there being two mirrors? Who made the mirrors? And why was one broken but the Collector still trapped?

Ok, so we know that the Trappers’ mirror is broken by the time we see it. We also know that the Collector’s mirror that Belos had breaks when King frees them. When King, I guess, astral projects himself into the In Between we see what looks like shards, of which look similar to the mirrors, floating around the Collector’s prison.

I kinda have to ideas of what this could mean. I think no matter what, the mirrors we see are meant to be a communication device. Either between Archivists, or whatever you wanna call the Collector’s species, themselves or between them and the Trappers.

If it’s between the Archivists and the Trappers then they’d only need two mirrors. This would allow the Trappers to contact the Archivists when they found another Titan, and allow the Archivists to give the Trappers orders. Of course this is under the assumption that the Archivists formed the Trappers, not the Collector, which I think makes more sense anyways when it comes to the Collector as a character. Sure, you could say they made the Trappers and somewhere along the line there was a disconnect in communication which lead them to hunting Titans but there is still that picture in the Archive House.

So the disconnect could get you the “even when those trapper jerks started acting weird” but it doesn’t explain this photo which implies the Archivists themselves started the Trappers. So with the assumption that the Archivists created the Trappers, the mirror could have been used to give/receive orders.

However this doesn’t really explain how there are shards around the Collector’s prison. So, if the mirrors are used to talk between Archivists, well there are at least four older Archivists.

Maybe they each had their own mirror to talk to one another. If that’s the case, then the Collector is probably too young to have one himself. That means there could be upwards to four mirrors and maybe if one of them breaks it’s no longer able to communicate but is still somehow connected to the other mirrors. This could explain why we hear the Collector’s laugh in Edge of the World when the Trappers are about to sacrifice King. Then the main question would be how did the Collector bring them into the In Between when he was trapped and how did the mirror shatter?

I’m less confident in the four mirrors honestly but oh well. It still gets me to how the Trappers’ mirror broke. Maybe their mirror was used to trap the Collector and that’s how it broke. We already know they break when set free, what’s to say the same can’t happen when reversed? Not to mention we aren’t really given a clear answer on how the Collector was trapped anyways. I don’t think one of their siblings could have been trapped as well because both the Collector and Papa Titan make it seem like they were the only ones left at that point.

Idk. This is all just speculation that I felt should be typed down somewhere. I don’t even know if this is coherent anymore. Or if it ever was.

[wishingeel]

Rewatching more TOH episodes at random and found this detail I missed: Flora was the author of the book Bill was reading.

Kinda makes me wonder if Flora meant to imply that “The Last Titan” was a live one like the trappers believed, but the book being subtitled “A Study of the Boiling Isles” probably means she was referring to Papa Titan. However, what would make her believe the BI was the last titan? We know that he was the last titan at one point (the Collector confirmed that), but why would she know that? (Perhaps she has traveled around the world and dated the titan corpses??)

The whole thing is just making me wonder how much Belos actually knew about the titans, and how much the Collector told him about them. Since, y’know, he did seem completely caught off guard when he found out that King was a titan the whole time.

[adreamthatsworthkeeping]

Oh. My. GOD!!

OHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGOD.

A TITAN!!!!!!!

[squenble]

titan trapper island is fucking horrifying if you think about it. imagine thinking you FINALLY found your family, only to discover its actually just a bunch of cultists wearing the skulls & skin of your siblings and cousins. And they also want to hunt your species to extinction!

[lil-dragon-rawr]

Hear Me Out: TOH x DC

(or: this crossover needs more attention and sometimes you gotta be the snake oil you want to see in the world)

Part Two, Part Three, Part Four

Masterlist

(Luz, Amity, Cass, and Steph are stuck in Riddler's latest Escape Room Of Death (Or At Least Very Threatening Special Effects))

Steph: *starts whisper-arguing with Cass about whether or not to get involved as civilians*

Amity, unaware and moving towards the door with Intent To Slime: want me to-

Luz: don't worry I got this!

Luz, pulling a snake (???) out of her shirt: go, little power noodle, go!

Stringbean: *snakeshifts their tail into a key and unlocks the door*

Cass, slowly putting her lockpicks away: 0_o

Steph, to Cass: was that a snake? That was a snake, right?

(Luz, being Luz, ends up face-to-face with Black Mask in the absolute worst part of town)

Black Mask, one vaguely sarcastic comment away from murdering the random teen that just wandered into his high-profile drug deal: you have one chance to explain who you work for and how you got here, or I carve the answer out of you with a knife.

Luz, squinting at him:

Luz "Belos Was Turning Me To Stone And My First Instinct Was To Sass His Terrible Fashion Choices" Noceda: well aren't you just a ball of sunshine

Red Hood, interrupting the deal with Black Mask and coming face-to-face with a teen who was alarmingly unfazed by the whole event: do you have a death wish?

Luz: no, but it loses its edge after the first time

Luz: I mean, been there done that amirite?

Red Hood, processing:

Red Hood, hoping he wildly misread the context clues: you've died before?

Luz: well yeah

Luz, seeing an opportunity to cause chaos: but I came back thanks to the power of god and anime

Red Hood: ???

Poison Ivy: *minding her own business on the balcony of her suite*

Willow, thorn vaulting her way into the balcony: hi there! Huge fan :D

Ivy, trying to have a peaceful afternoon: wHOMST-

Willow: wanna compare notes on carnivorous plants?

Ivy:

Ivy: ...yes, do you have live examples by chance?

Willow, knowing she can essentially spawn plants at will: :D

(Robin, incredibly suspicious of the group that just moved into one of the worst (but cheap) apartment complexes in Gotham, has a stakeout at their apartments)

Hunter, moving around his apartment with Waffle on his shoulder: ^w^

Robin, immediately switching gears: I wonder if I could liberate the bird and convince Father to keep it since it's rescued from potential rogues.

Oracle, who heard him over comms: you're not allowed to steal pets anymore and you know it

Amity: *gets a job at Barbara's library*

Barbara, trying to keep an eye on her since she's kinda sus: hey, you're new here right? Want to grab coffee sometime?

Amity, just trying to do a good job: sure! :)

Barbara, suddenly acquiring a new sister: [task failed successfully]

King "Technically A Teenager But Really Short So Everyone Thinks He's A Child" Clawthorne: *gets kidnapped*

Kidnapper, calling the number King gave him to ask for ransom: we have your child-

Eda, unamused: oh yeah, which one?

Kidnapper: uhh short, yellow eyes, keeps asking if we have any ice cream?

Eda, annoyed: you have King???

Kidnapper, thinking they're getting somewhere: yes, and if you ever want to see him again, you'll bring $100k to the warehouse on the corner of 5th

Eda, knowing full well King could escape if he decided to use 2% of his power: *pinching the bridge of her nose* I'll be right over

Signal, about to rescue the small child some guy kidnapped: *waiting for an opening*

Eda, strutting into the warehouse on a mission: so you're the guy who kidnapped my son?

Signal, doing a double take because this lady with a hook for an arm has an aura that's oozing black and gray (and it looks like she has two auras for the price of one???): uhh Oracle?

Kidnapper, pointing a gun at Eda: slide the money over or I shoot!

Eda, still unamused: oh I'm sure you will, you spineless snaggleback.

Eda, letting the Owl Beast take over completely: *screeching, swallowing the kidnapper whole*

Eda, reverting back to normal: *burps*

Signal, panicking: Oracle? Hello?

Eda, moving on: so, King, did you have fun?

King, dropping the ropes he burned through with a glyph an hour ago: I had a blast!

Signal, finally getting a good look at the kid and realizing his aura is stronger than the demon lady's: Oracle, please respond

Signal, about to finish patrol: *sees the kidnapper from earlier passed out in a pile of nasty goo (Eda pelleted him up lol)*

Signal, incredibly concerned: ???

Oracle, tracking down all the information she can find on the Clawthornes: so it looks like that lady Signal saw got married in Vegas, stole her husband's car six hours later, and paid for a latte in Connecticut with a live racoon

Spoiler: what a legend. Move over Florida Man, there's a new queen in town

Red Robin: she turned into a monster and literally ate a guy yesterday

Spoiler: exactly, she's iconic

Red Robin:

Spoiler, rolling her eyes: god forbid women do anything

Red Robin, staking out the Clawthorne apartments after The Incident™: *listening in on conversations via the bugs he planted*

Gus, appearing next to him out of nowhere: hi there! Got a minute?

Red Robin: *screeching*

Gus, taking this as a yes: can I bug you with a few questions?

Red Robin, realizing a civilian snuck up on him and his siblings will never let him live this down: ...uhh

Gus, fangirling on the inside because this is a real human hero right in front of him: so what's it like being a human hero?

Red Robin, desperately trying to figure out what on earth these people are: you're not human?

Gus: *bursts out laughing and never answers the question*

(Luz, Vee, Hunter, and King, hopelessly lost in Black Mask's territory while trying to find their way to a restaurant)

Red Hood, recognizing Luz "I Have The Power Of God And Anime On My Side" Noceda: hey are you actively trying to get killed by Black Mask, or are you just lost?

Luz: oh hi again! Guys, this is the vigilante I was talking about!

Vee: *leans forward and sniffs Red Hood before freezing and remembering that's not something humans do* uhh. Ehe.

Red Hood: did you just sniff me?

Vee: uhhhh

Luz, squinting at Red Hood because Vee obviously smelled magic on him: haha, so silly, you wouldn't happen to be magic, would you?

Red Hood:

Red Hood: okay, back up. You can smell magic?

Vee, understanding there's no way out of this conversation: ...yes?

Red Hood, to Luz: and you died?

Luz: that's been established. The real question is how are you magic?

Red Hood: probably cause I died and got dunked in a necromancer's key lime smoothie extravaganza

Luz: cool

(the Batfamily sets up a meeting with Clawthornes & Co, C&C agrees cause they wanna see how the most paranoid member of the JL reacts to Demon Realm shenanigans)

Batman, seeing C&C and immediately clocking them as a bunch of child soldiers trauma bonded for life: .....

Eda, seeing the Batfam and also immediately clocking them as a bunch of child soldiers: ........

Eda, about Robin: why is there a twelve-year-old fighting crime?

Batman, about King: why is there an eight-year-old with more power than most high-level magicians?

Robin and King, at the same time: I'm fourteen!!

Robin and King: *squinting at each other*

Signal, off to the side, seeing the auras of the rest of C&C for the first time: oh my God. Oh my God

Spoiler: come on it can't be that bad

Signal: oh my God if B picks a fight we're all going to actually die

Batman, about Luz: why has your kid died?

Eda, about Red Hood: why has your kid died?

Red Hood, a self-proclaimed unbiased participant: oooooOOOOOOO she got you there *high fives Luz*

Batman, dragging Signal into the conversation because he's the only one who can see their auras: Signal. Ask your questions.

Signal, desperately trying to not get obliterated in a magic mushroom of energy: I plead the fifth

Eda: [Eda was amused]

Signal: so, you have two auras. Is there an explanation for that or...?

Eda: eh, I guess I have my sister to thank for that

Signal: ...can you elaborate?

Eda, sighing: it's a chronic condition. But at least my inner demon is paying rent now.

Signal, wildly confused:

Signal: so, um. You're the kid who got kidnapped a little bit ago, how are you holding up?

King: you call that a kidnapping? At best that was a half-baked attempt at a babysitting extortion scheme

Signal: ...do you know what kidnapping is?

King: yeah?

Signal: and you were unfazed by the whole ordeal?

King: I mean yeah, this was nothing compared to the time I was almost sacrificed by that cult

Batfam, collectively: ?????

Batman: [Batman will remember that]

Signal, to Luz: okay. So, you're the one who died - your aura also has this demon thing protecting it?

Luz and King: !!!!

Eda: hot dang, kid! The Titan's still hanging around!

Red Robin, thinking it's Greek myths coming into play: I'm sorry did you say titan?

Luz, making an attempt at explanation: yeah the Titan gave me the last bit of his power when I died

Luz, with jazz hands: and voila! Not dead anymore!

Spoiler, whispering to Red Robin: so is she...technically a god now?

Signal, increasingly desensitized to the power level of C&C: *pointing to Willow* you're basically Poison Ivy on crack

Willow, who just had her weekly meeting with Ivy: aww, thank you!

Signal, turning to Amity: I don't even know what happened to you.

Amity: oh is my aura all goopy?

Signal, slowly: that's...one way of putting it

Amity: okay it's all good! Probably just abomination slime :)

Batman: ...abomination slime?

Amity: yeah, like this!

Amity: *conjures abominations on the ground beneath the vigilantes*

Batkids: *screaming, cursing*

Luz, kissing Amity on the cheek: ooh another one for vigilante bingo! Nice job, sweet potato!

Signal, squinting at Hunter: uhh you're like, made out of bark and oozing a vaguely concerning substance? Also there's a bird imprinted on your chest

Hunter, tearing up: oh. What kind of bird

Signal: small and red, idk maybe a cardinal?

Hunter, full-on sobbing: I'm fine I just have some dirt in my eye. Stupid dirt

Batfam, putting two and two together about the group's matching bird tattoos: ohhh. Oh. Oh.

Spoiler: kay but why is your aura wood?

Hunter: oh I'm part palistrom wood

Hunter, counting off ingredients on his fingers: and part Titan blood, which probably explains the oozing

Hunter: I have a Galdorstone,

Spoiler, horrified whispering: is that like a kidney stone?

Hunter, still listing ingredients: Stonesleeper lungs, Selkidomus scales, a bone from my former uncle's deceased brother-

Red Robin: is there a reason you treat body parts like they're customizable options in the menu of an RPG?

Hunter, missing the joke completely: I'm a Grimwalker. This is what I'm made out of

Red Robin: ...you lost me.

Robin: but what about the blue jay you had on your shoulder?

Hunter: oh you mean Waffle! :D

Hunter: *pulls Waffle out of his shirt* say hi, Waffle!

Waffle: *un-petrifies himself and chirps*

Robin: 🤯

Spoiler, to Blackbat: it was a snake!

(hard cut to Robin being swarmed by palisman)

Robin, thinking: on one hand, it is foolish to show such obvious weakness in front of potential enemies. On the other hand, their familiars are all very cute.

Robin:

Robin, making a decision: *continues playing with the palisman*

Signal, pointing to Gus and Vee: I don't understand you.

Gus, comfortingly: don't worry, greatness is difficult to comprehend :)

Vee, actually trying to help Signal: ohh it's because he's all smoke and mirrors and I'm not even a witch!

Spoiler, who thought these were all just metas after Eda "It's A Chronic Condition" Clawthorne: you're not even a what now

(Clawthorne & Co, trying to start from the beginning)

Amity: so we're all witches-

Luz: well,

Vee: *laughs*

Hunter, raising his hand: I'm only half a witch on a good day

Batman:

Amity, amending: only three of us are biological witches who use traditional witch spells,

Luz: there you go!

Amity: those three witches are Willow, Gus, and myself

Amity: and Luz is the first human witch!

Spoiler, whispering to Blackbat: witches and humans are different species??

Blackbat: *shrugs*

Eda: and I used to be the most powerful witch on the Isles, but my curse corrupted my magic. Now I'm a harpy because I convinced the demon in my head to pay rent

Batman: curse?

Eda, waving her hand: yeah, long story

Luz: and like we established earlier, Hunter's a Grimwalker that used a human template, so he's not biologically a witch either. But Flapjack gives him magic!

Hunter, nodding solemnly: the power of friendship

Spoiler, whispering to Blackbat: oh my god friendship is magic My Little Pony was right-

Blackbat: *snickers*

Red Hood: and the weird kid who smells magic isn't magic?

Vee, defensively: magic is yummy!

Red Hood:

Vee "My First Instinct Upon Entering The Human World Was To Tell A Human 'Skin's Sure Weird' To Their Face" Noceda: ...yum yum!

Batfam:

Vee:

Batfam:

Vee: okay okay I'm a basilisk, basilisks eat magic!

Batfam: ...

Vee: ...nevermind.

Batman: that just leaves King. Is he also a pseudo witch?

King: oh yeah what did you call me a couple weeks ago Luz?

Luz, barely keeping a straight face: he's Jesus.

Batman: ...come again?

Vee and Luz: *start wheezing with laughter*

King, after a couple minutes of running with the bit: okay okay I'll explain

King: ...I'm the son of the Titan

Signal, looking between Luz and King's auras rapidly: you...he...oh. Oh

Spoiler: oh my god he's actually Jesus

[juliettedunn]

Hollow Mind, Edge of the World, and O Titan Where Art Thou are a trilogy about the owl family facing the fact that all the love and support in the world can’t save each other, and they are forced to watch helplessly as everything is upended for them.

Eda scrambling to make some kind of comfort for her kids, some illusion of safety, but she’s just as lost as Luz and King. She can’t guide them. Luz and King both face horrible trauma but in very different ways, hyper-specific ways that you’d be hard-pressed to find anyone to connect to over it. They all love each other so much, they’d do anything for each other, but that love isn’t enough and sometimes it’s all powerless.

Sometimes all they can do is make breakfast, hug, get King’s plushie, give the kids one last nice day. The small gestures of comfort futile in an objective standpoint while they are all faced with stuff there truly is no getting comfort for. I love these episodes.

[icy-watch]

That's... surprisingly not a terrible amount of stairs.

[theaceofarrows]

And I'm going to keep doing it. Congrats for coming up with a legendary ship name👏

Okay what names are we going with for Masha x Vee? Here are my options:

Mavee

Veesha

GothSlug

WitchVee

That’s it. If I don’t get good responses I’m gonna start unironically calling them GothSlug so it’s up to you if I lose followers or not.

[sepublic]

TOH’s Dangerous Idiots

            Thinking of that tweet about how OP expected the men in power to burn down the world, they just didn’t expect them to be such losers about it. And the growing awareness of people like Trump and Musk who present themselves as brilliant, but are actually just very confident, loudmouthed idiots, and how incel ideology encourages a very dangerous breed of idiocy.

            And with Follies at the Coven Day Parade’s ending being modeled after the writers’ anxieties during the 2020 election, it makes me consider also how characters like Jacob Hopkins or Bill the Titan Trapper are pretty obvious, delusional idiots who go out of their way to buy into dumb stuff because it serves their egos. Adrian Graye can be somewhat clever, but he’s ultimately a dimwit both creatively and in general. Kikimora is delusional enough to believe Belos will make some exception for her, even after everything she’s experienced from him.

            Odalia is obviously business-savvy; But the way she buys into Belos’ genocide as something that doesn’t matter because she’ll be rich enough from his Abomaton purchases, is clearly modeled after wealthy people who believe they’ll be the last to suffer the consequences of a burning world, that they’ll be safe in their apocalypse bunkers, while also taking for granted that there are supply chains their hedonistic lifestyles are dependent on that will collapse during said apocalypse.

            And to be real here, Belos himself also qualifies; Like sure, he’s fairly decent at manipulating people now. But this is after centuries of trial and error; Any idiot can learn with that many chances. Before that, he was Philip Wittebane, who could fool people by playing up a sympathetic act. But there’s a reason we say “Fool me once, shame on you; Fool me twice, shame on me” and that’s because you’re not clever for lying to people who aren’t going to assume the worst of strangers at first glance; You’re just willing to cross an ethical line that most won’t. Which I feel also plays into Gus thinking of himself as an idiot in Labyrinth Runners after aforementioned idiot Graye gets the drop on him once, nevermind Gus seeing through him just before… Plus Luz’s guilt at having been fooled; They’re not dumb, just good-natured.

            And per Luz (and Lilith’s) example, people learned very quickly from Philip’s BS! There’s a reason Belos admits voluntarily without prompting that he got run out of town; He had no real backup plan for his backstabbing! He doesn’t even consider that Lilith’s about to punch him despite how obviously she’s telegraphing it, and tries his luck on her despite having almost gotten her and Luz killed.

            People question Belos’ first(?) sermon and so he had to resort to violence via false flag explosions to strong arm them into silence; So he has power but it’s a crutch he’s missing, which plays into how people can’t question him as easily under the coven system. And of course Belos’ acting during the “attack” was shit. It took centuries to achieve a true clone. He’s revealed to steal credit from others and failed to make a second portal, implying Philip plagiarized Evelyn's notes.

            He had centuries learning Archivist magic that gives him an edge over others from the Collector, but never goes close to how the infinitely younger Eda did during her final display of magic. When caught his excuses are laughably bad and he makes huge mistakes out of ego that lead to his life’s work being undone and his eventual death. He let Kikimora eavesdrop and it led to his entire plan being ruined. He carved glyphs into his skin when he could’ve just used tattoos, implying he didn’t even understand glyphs very well when he copied them from others.

            Of course Belos is a less stupid Trump/Musk. He’s as much of an engineer as Edison. Relying on unfair advantages as a crutch always taking and benefitting but never giving back. Making it harder for others like Luz to follow by driving people from the Knee and suppressing wild magic.

            Belos got smarter after centuries, but people don’t get centuries; He’s not special for that, he just has an advantage and so many chances to get it right that nobody else does, by hurting Palismen in a way people refuse to. He likely consumed Palismen essence on the basic logic that it’s powerful so it’ll make him powerful, and failed to consider any consequences, such as a curse, much in the same way that a lot of right-wing conspiracy idiots will take dubious concoctions under the delusion it’ll make them into “Alphas” (Think the Rhino Horn Boner Pills from Glass Onion). You could also tie this into how he carved glyphs into his skin instead of using tattoos.

            And in the end, for whatever cleverness Belos DID have… His manipulations still had a limit, hence his hilariously poor excuses in the S2 and S3 finales; And yeah he adapted to the Collector a second time, but the Collector is someone Belos got to know for centuries, his longest relationship by a long shot. Belos isn’t that smart, not without crutches that can be seen as symbolic of privilege and wealth that is stolen from others. Even IRL dictators have done more in less time.

            Furthermore, we have the other loyalist coven heads; We’ve already established that falling for a cult doesn’t necessarily make you an idiot, but in the end, they don’t know what they’re doing and that makes them dangerous because they’re bringing the devastation of their world and themselves. It all makes me think of how Trump and Musk somewhat know what they’re doing; Like, they ARE being exploitative of the poor and persecuting women and minorities, the like. But in the end their bluster fails to understand the huge mistakes they’re making as well, and their inability to actually run a country.

            Belos is good at being confident, and acting like it was his plan all along, like in the S1 finale where he saves face following Eda’s escape. And in that sense Trump and Musk can be savvy, in just these crucial spots. But all it means is they’re clever enough to look clever and were in the right place at the right time. Belos fixed the portal, but we know the Collector helped the protagonists build a fully-functioning one from scratch, and also taught Philip “magic stronger than anybody’s” which is clearly connected to the spells of the Archivists.

            Belos ultimately has two fight scenes just as himself without Hunter or the Titan to rely on, and it’s against Luz, who makes him a fool of him both times; He really comes across as a big fish in a small pond, flexing his power over children but otherwise hiding behind others or avoiding conflict entirely. Belos is a con artist so he’s not a total idiot, but let’s not give him too much credit.

            This is also a REALLY obscure deep dive, but one of the writers also made a joke about Boiling Isles cryptocurrency on Twitter, in which Mattholomule, some random background character, and the Emperor’s Coven’s historian Flora D’splora were all shown to be investors. Yes, the same Flora that Lilith looked up to in her naivete, whom Belos assigned with setting up a completed time loop.

            Overall, I do consider that TOH is making a demonstration of how a lot of the Alt-Right is comprised of confident idiots whose stupidity makes them dangerous, because they refuse to listen to reality and are dragging other people into their violent BS fueled by violent fantasies. There’s nothing really glamorous about TOH’s villains, (save arguably the Collector, who’s a weird case); They’re often undignified and in positions of power they don’t deserve, who are inadvertently taking the rest of the world down with them.

            It makes me think of how the trope of the hyper-competent mastermind villain almost feels in line with religion and even conspiracy thought, in the sense that there’s a need for the world to make sense because it’s following someone’s logic, rather than it being a bunch of messy mistakes and contradictions without meaning, there is no destiny, no planned destiny that is. That’s scarier, it’s chaotic and unpredictable. But that energy is as inherent to life as wild magic.

            And with how sufficiently advanced ignorance is indistinguishable from malice, the reverse applies for characters who refuse to admit they were wrong and just double-down out of hatred. If Belos is meant to be a realistic villain based on IRL people in power, then his coven cronies could also be described the same; And in the end, perhaps the most unrealistic thing about him is not the fantastical magic elements, it’s that Belos is still noticeably smarter than Trump or Musk. But then again, those fantastical magic elements arguably account for that when you compare Belos to his youth, and the writers still wanted a bit of fantasy in this show. Even so, the letdown of his banality is like part of the show’s wake up call for Luz in regards to how her adventure won’t always be what she wants (Hence, Tinella Nosa’s reveal in Any Sport in a Storm).

[transmasc-tabris]

Taashweek day 4, posting before I chicken out. Shokra toh ebra. This one's lighter than I wanted it to be on directly focusing on the prompt but it is there.

595 words. Taash/unnamed qunari Thorne. Dialogue heavy, slightly post game.

@datvcompanionweeks

She took a deep breath, ordering her words back in place. “Do you think… I could go with you?”

Taash looked up from the now barren table before then. Like everyone else's, their room was mostly the same as before - only Bellara and Emmrich wanted to see what happened if they took anything this place had manifested into the regular world - but everything they'd brought in had been stashed tidily away.

“Go with me?” They turned to her. “How'd you know? I didn't tell you.”

She reached up, standing on her toes to hold their pull-up bar, looking up at it to avoid meeting their eyes. They didn't mind. They never had. She tapped the cold metal. “I… overheard you and Lace. Sorry.”

They shrugged. “Would've talked in her room if it was a big deal. Don't you have Warden stuff now?”

She leaned back, stopping just before she could fall or pull the bar down. “Maybe a little. But you're still planning, right?”

“Yeah. Feels weird. Piecing stuff together. Asking so many questions. Waiting. Come on. That's Neve’s thing.”

“Hey, give yourself some credit. It's been… a couple weeks? And you're almost ready.”

“I still hate waiting.”they said, but a corner of their mouth turned upward. “What?”they added. “You've got that look.”

“What? The one I always have when I look at the most beautiful person I know?”

They laughed but rolled their eyes. “Cute. I mean like you wanna say something but you're stalling. The stupid look.”

“You wound me, Taash.”she said with a look of mock sadness, clutching her heart. 

“Huh.” Taash took a step toward her, pulling away their hand. “I don't see anything. But you smell good.”

Her cheeks warmed. She breathed in deep to steady herself. It was hard, with Taash so close, but they could wait at least a bit. She looked up at them, at their hair showing slightly silver in the low light and at their grafted horn. She couldn't tell anymore, where the mother's ended and the child's began. 

“Do… do you think it would have been better,”she started. “if you'd understood…?” She looked away, at the dark wall and blank mirror. “Sorry.”

“Shokra toh ebra.”Taash said, their voice low. It wasn't a question. 

She nodded. “Sorry. It's not my-”

“Dunno.” Taash shrugged, but they'd pulled away, and there was an edge in their voice. “No way to now. And I've got the work she left me.”

“That's what I meant.” She let go of the bar. “I want to help, if you'll let me.”

They crossed their arms but did not speak. 

“Shokra toh ebra.”she said, still unsure if the words belonged in her mouth. “It doesn't say you have to be alone, right?”

“Right.”they answered. “And you didn't die. Not yet.”

“Not yet.”she repeated with a small, hopeful smile. “So, what do you think? You and me, across the sea searching for answers, with all the… distraction I can provide?”

Another long second passed before, as they had months that felt like years ago, Taash stepped quickly toward her - but rather rather than a low growl against her neck or fire at her feet, she felt only Taash’s lips fervent against her own, their horns colliding with hers. She grabbed the bar to keep her legs from buckling. They pulled away. She looked up at them, breathless, her face hot again.

“Does… that mean…?”

“Yeah.”they said, their eyes a little brighter than before. “You can come. I'd like it.” They grinned and kissed her again, faster but softer. “Better find your sea legs, taarala.”

[yourfavanxioussunshine]

i’ve been sick all day—upset stomach, heavy head, missing home more than i’d like to admit. there’s something about being unwell that makes you feel like a little kid again, just wanting to be held, fed something warm, and told everything’s going to be okay.

and then he showed up.with my favourite ice cream—melting at the edges because he must’ve rushed. “you haven’t eaten since lunch, jaan,” he said, so softly i could’ve cried.

we took a slow walk through my neighbourhood. i didn’t think i had the energy, but he kept me steady, made me laugh when i needed it most. every few steps, he’d half-bend, arms out, insisting,“main tumko utha ke sab jagah ghuma saku isiliye toh gym jata hu,”and honestly? i just lost it. melted right there, all gooey and heart-eyed and hopeless.

my knees started hurting, so we sat for a while, and i kissed his face like it was the only language i had left. he blushed, laughed quietly, let me. i think we both needed that little moment of pause.

he brought me flowers too—out of nowhere, just handed them to me like it was the most normal thing. placing them in my hands like offering calm to a storm.“you looked like you needed something nice,” he said, shrugging, like it wasn’t the kindest thing anyone’s done for me in weeks.

and now? i’m tucked into bed, because he literally tucked me in. brushed my hair back, kissed my forehead, made sure i had water nearby. he’s out getting me meds as i write this.

he calls me jaan, and somehow it doesn’t feel dramatic or over the top—it just feels right. like someone choosing to love you on your worst day, and not making a big deal out of it. just… being there. quietly, consistently. he is a quiet kind of magic—not loud, not grand,but steady. like breath. like belonging.

i don't know what i ever did to deserve a heart like his,but tonight, sick and aching and full of gratitude—i know this:

he feels like home.and in a world that forgets to be gentle,he remembers. every time.

i don’t know what i did to deserve him.but tonight, with a tired body and a full heart, i’m just really, really grateful.

[locusnegotium]

You guys don't give SPOP enough credit. It's RIDICULOUS to me that its fandom isn't even half the size of ATLA's, despite having immaculately juicy arcs and emotional beats.

My unpopular hypothesis with the majority of the internet (including Tumblr) & offline world is that it's because it has a female lead (it would've been the next ATLA if the kids were alright and As Feminist as they were 10 years ago.)

My unpopular hypothesis with feminist Tumblr is that it's for kids.

There's a lot of "machismo" posturing (as someone else put it) on here, and some gals have outright said it's because it's not a "mature" depiction of a lesbian relationship. But the issue is a double-edged sword: if you pad one end, the other end has to be left sharp, because children's media can't depict the gritty details of adult, sexual relationships, and also because lesbophobia is illogical. (Both myths can't simultaneously be addressed through children's media: "Depictions of lesbian relationships are too sexual/aren't for children," AND "Depictions of lesbian relationships have to be pure, because women are non-sexual beings." That doesn't mean children's media shouldn't exist or depict lesbians.)

It's one thing to say lesbian rep in children's media isn't your personal thing, but to say it's "the wrong kind of depiction/shouldn't exist," as an objective statement, ignores the other edge of the sword. We need both kinds of rep in our shows (yes! for kids too! and I don't think we appreciate just how much of a LEAP SPOP took. ATLOK, Adventure Time, and Steven Universe walked so She-Ra could POLE VAULT, and then TOH was able to follow. That, by the way, is an amount of shows that can fit on one hand.)

It just comes off as picky perfectionism that the community really can't afford. (I'd understand if it were bad lesbian rep, but rep aimed just at kids? The lesbian girls you used to be, and probably would've killed to grow up seeing onscreen?)

Just push for more adult lesbian content, but don't push for less children's content. It's not as if there's some bias toward one edge of the sword/children's media (tons of people suspect TOH was cancelled over Lumity, and SPOP had to stealth Catradora until the very final episodes to get under the studio's radar because they knew they still had to, in 2019), nor is it as though we have zero lesbian rep in adult media (LoL: Arcane and BTVS, as well as some CW/Max shows post-2010.)

I just don't think it's fair when both sides of the aisle hate on female-centric media.