#trans!janai

[raayllum]

History demands that you—History demands nothing! 🏳️‍⚧️

[nerd-with-a-cause]

Given that Kazi is a nonbinary linguist, I bet they have some detailed thoughts on gendered language:

Kazi: Technically, I don't "use" they/them pronouns because I rarely talk about myself in the third person, so it's more accurate to say, I use I/me as my pronouns and other people use they/them pronouns for me. I used to use he/him because there is linguistic precedent for "he" as a non-gendered pronoun, but then I worried that it would be confusing, so I switched to they/them, which, by the way, has been in use as a singular pronoun for over four centuries! I briefly used "ze" but then I realized that "ze" and "she" look similar for people who rely on lipreading, because the difference between Z and S is really just a difference in voiced versus unvoiced oral sibilants, and if I'm serious about working as an interpreter, I want to make sure my pronouns are clear to the people I'm working with. So I usually just tell people to use they/them. Anyways, what are your pronouns?

Amaya: [points at herself]

Kazi, nodding seriously: That makes sense.

Janai: What the fuck are you two talking about?

[irlkomaedanagito]

(sending an ask instead of reblogging that post again)

Assigning you Just Evil. I feel like you'd be a discourse character.

oh bro you are so on the money its insane. like not to hashtag traumadump but i had a bit of an Unusual Disposition surrounding my abusive mother in my teenhood (read: i would hit her and actively wanted her dead and be very open about the fact that i never loved her)

this was legitimatley a contentious topic among various friendgroups ive had over the years. to this day i dont understand why (shes my mom not yours, at least im not a doormat unlike you people, she treats me like shit so why cant i treat her like shit back, etc) other than "violence and murder is scary so people have a knee jerk reaction to it"

but it was legit A Topic Of Discussion, so much so that once someone started a whole argument IN A PUBLIC SERVER about how since i had detailed fantasies about killing my mom, that i a) would 100% do it without a doubt and b) this was a bad thing. like bro i wish but unfortunatley the police exists

and that's just a) the historic stuff that b) anyone with sense will agree is a total banger move on my part. i feel like ive gotten even more contentious over the years. the stuff i do with soulbonds would curl toes (but most people dont think that shit is real or it matters so i get away with it 🎉)

all this to say that u are 100% right and i would be the kokichi 😔

[hopkei]

It's not an illness, old man. Who Cares About Old Men's Underwear! - Episode 1

[fujosh1dreamer]

More spoiler for tdp s6!!!

I'm anticipating that I'm gonna be the only person that doesn't give a flying feather about Aaravos and his revenge.

That's not to say I don't feel sympathy for what happened to him and leola, like the council absolutely suck. Who dishes out cosmic justice to a literal child?!?!

But none of that changes the pain he's putting our non-immortal characters through. Like Claudia went through hell this season, so did Ezran, janai and Amaya, and even viren... I don't even like viren.

Sorry but Aaravos still suxks!!!

On an unrelated note Astrid is confirmed trans!!!! Woohoo!!!

[spop-romanticizes-abuse]

since it's pride month, i want to highlight my favorite underrated/underappreciated queer characters and ships! (part 1/???)

(feel free to add more!)

Lake - Infinity Train (non-canon)

it's not canon but you cannot tell me that Lake isn't an allegory for trans/nb people. her arc is so beautiful and her character resonates with me so much!

i have to admit, i actually kinda hated her in the beginning because of how aggressive and rude she was, but she actually gets good character development and you can also understand why she was the way she was, being a good representation of a minority who is constantly suffering because of the social norms she’s forced into. also i don’t ship her with jesse but i do like the idea of them in a qpr or just being platonic besties.

(i use she/her pronouns for Lake because that's what they use in the series, but also because not all non-binary people use they/them, and it's kinda weird to see people insist on using they/them for Lake just because she's nb-coded. she has never shown an aversion to bring referred to with she/her pronouns.)

Le Chevre x El Topo - Carmen Sandiego (canon)

they are side characters who don't play a huge role in the narrative but they are a really cute couple and have been confirmed to be canon! even without the confirmation, it’s clear that they were written to be a romantic couple.

mild spoiler: after the series ends, they stop being antagonists and instead put up a food truck together! it’s the cutest thing, i swear

Ryan x Min-gi - Infinity Train (non-canon)

my OTP through and through! i say non-canon but the romance is so heavily implied, you cannot ignore it.

they're a good example of childhood friends who had a complicated relationship where both individuals did something wrong, but in the end, they grow as people and manage to mend their relationship together.

Moomin x Snufkin - Moominvalley (canon)

i have only read one of the books and watched a few clips of these two characters but from that alone, it's clear that they were written as lovers (and the author is queer too!)

they are a beautiful portrayal of long-distance relationship where both individuals have different needs in life, but still want to be with each other regardless.

Terrestrius / Terry - The Dragon Prince (canon)

Terry is canonically transmasc and they actually manage to explain this in the series, without making it sound too forced or expository. he's such a sweetheart too, and his relationship with Claudia is actually really sweet, despite the fact that she's one of the villains.

Carmen x Julia - Carmen Sandiego (non-canon)

again, i say non-canon but it is heavily implied that they have feelings for each other, especially in the extra interactive episode, where Carmen leaves a bouquet of red roses for Julia, and Julia is shown to blush when receiving them.

Amaya x Janai - The Dragon Prince (canon)

what’s that? it’s actually possible to write an enemies to lovers romance that is healthy and not extremely abusive?

Amaya and Janai have such a good relationship in S5 (and Amaya is also a great disabled representation!) Janai actually learns sign language to communicate with Amaya, and there are no unnecessary miscommunication plots or drama, they’re just a really loving wlw couple.

Benson x Troy - Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts (canon)

when i say we need more mlm ships in animated media!! i’m so glad us sapphics are getting a lot of representation but it’s time cartoons started including more queer men.

benson and troy are just a really sweet couple with a good relationship that doesn’t have a ton of pining or unnecessary angst. while i love complex and tragic queer relationships, i also think that it’s good to show teenagers just being teenagers sometimes.

this opinion seems to be scarce in the queer community, which really annoys me tbh.

Raine x Eda - The Owl House (canon)

i cannot believe that given the popularity of TOH, Raeda is still such an overlooked ship. this might be an unpopular opinion but Raeda is better written and has more chemistry than Lumity and Huntlow.

just within the span of Raine's introductory episode, they managed to establish a clearly romantic past between these two characters, and also an interesting dynamic. and even though they didn't have much screentime, they still turned out to be the best ship in the series. (again, just my opinion, don't come at me)

i think it's so important to show older queer people in media, just as it is important to show younger queer characters. it helps establish the fact that queerness has always existed and isn't some newfound trend that social media invented. not to mention, raeda is one of the very few canon ships that include a non-binary character.

[forgotten-daydreamer]

I love how inclusivity is handled in The Dragon Prince, here's why.

In most shows, as much as it bothers me to admit so, some people are right, inclusivity does feel forced sometimes. But it's not the characters' fault, it's not because of them being part of the lgbtq+ community, or being disabled, or being POC, or being strong women who do not conform to patriarchal standards.

It's not that.

It's that the show they are part of is a straight, white, abled parade - and notice, most of said shows won't even pass the Bechdel test.

So yes, in a show written by and aimed to straight, white, abled people, even I, a gay, non-binary, chronically ill person feel weird seeing charcters that are there just for the sake of inclusivity, albeit 'inorganic'.

In a show with the premise of "straight, white, abled men are the indiscussed MCs", seeing that one side-character that stands out and is often ridiculed and/or reduced to a single trait of their 'personality', such as 'the gay one', 'the asian one', 'the disabled one' (etc) is upsetting and feels uncomfortable as hell.

But TDP is different.

They immediately introduced powerful women, people of color, characters that are openly part of the lgbtq+ community, disabled characters etc. And not one of them per 'category', no. For the lgbtq+ community we have Amaya, Janai, Runaan, Ethari, Terry, Kazi. For the disabled community, we have Amaya again, Villads, and even a disabled wolf Ava. For the POC community, we have literally half of the cast, starting from King Harrow, then Ezran, every sunfire elf, Terry as well, etc. Same goes for women, who take up on roles that are rarely considered 'for women', like Opeli being the main member of the High Council, Amaya being the General, Rayla being the main Dragon Guard, Claudia being one of the main antagonists, etc.

Both main and side-characters are part of the communities, everything is so much more organic, enjoyable, thrilling.

We do not come in 'minor quantity'.

We are everywhere, among others, living our lives, doing our best, existing, thriving, proud. It's not just one or two of us among thousands. Surprise, 'categories' can mix! Just like I, a real human being, can be gay, enby as well as chronically ill, we can have characters like that as well! Amaya being lesbian and disabled, Terry being black and trans, Janai being black and lesbian, etc. And, another surprise, 'categories' don't define us. We don't 'shove it' in anyone's face like they say we do, we're just being us and cishets are upset because we don't conform to their sick standards.

Inclusivity is organic in TDP because nobody in that universe questions anyone else's color, gender, orientation, etc. And it's organic because we didn't have to wait half a season to see a black character, or a disabled character, or a gay character.

The key to inclusivity is to realise that we aren't just 'bonuses'. Fill shows and comics with lgbtq+, POC, disabled, and female characters. Not just one every 15, 20 characters. Everywhere.

We are everywhere! We are proud! We deserve to be seen! We deserve to be depicted as the normal people we are, without diminishing our traits but without making them our whole personality either. Treat us like human beings, be considerate like you should be with everyone on the planet of course, but treat us like humans.

Antagonising people who are 'different' (in the mind of straight, white, abled people) will not suppress us. We will keep insisting until you hear us. It's literally one of the main messages, one of the main teachings of TDP and it's so damn important.

Every single person on Earth should watch it. Every single kid should be introduced to TDP at an early age. Every old bigot should watch it, as well. Everybody. Even if it's considered a y7 (y10 for s4 and s5 apparently) show, everyone, no matter their age, should give it a try and watch it thoroughly.

Lots of love to the creators and everyone, literelly everyone involved in the production of one the best, most entertaining, most exciting, most formative shows ever. Please, keep it up! And thank you so much!

[bisexualenbyblueberry]

My Favourite Details This Season

Callum pacing and tossing the cube in episode 1 he's just like me fr

"I heard you were up here losing your mind ;)"

"Lots of books, I like books :D"

"I HAVE AN IDEA" "So,,,, what's your idea-" *runs out of room*

"I HAVE A SECRET PLAN" with the most dramatic stage whisper I've ever heard

SNEEZLES IN CALLUM'S SCARF

Pyrrah stretching like a cat

Literally every interaction Soren and Corvus have. The party conversation. "Maybe it's edible" "NO, and PLEASE don't find out" and then Corvus having to tell him to spit it out. "You’re a man of mystery, Corvus ;)))" and "You clearly didn’t learn anything at camp 🙄🙄🙄" “It’s not great.” “Yeah I tried. “Okay” “It’s the effort”. Soren’s head falling onto Corvus’ chest

Janai being so damn tall. I swear to god this woman grows like a foot every season. What is happening to her. Why is she like that

"Wake up kids!" When they arrive at the frozen sea

"It’s literally frozen in time 😮" "it’s literally frozen in ice, it’s figuratively frozen in time"

"The frozen ship, so sad😔"

Rayla sitting on the table reading a book imagining the characters she’s so silly

“Is Rayla crying?? I’M COMING RAYLA 😡😡😡”

“Rayla! I’m here!” *door slams in his face*

"NO PUNCHING THE BOAT" and Callum's facial expression and pose afterwards 😭

Sneezles and Stella being buddies

“Your breath is warm” “Oh…sorry”

The way they SITTT (Karim in his throne, Janai after trying to burn the tree, Soren against the wall in the first meeting, Miyana on the rocks in the second episode, Ezran on his bed, Janai near the tree, Rayla lying on her bed and on the table)

 RAYLLUM ON THE SIDE OF THE SHIP

“ARE YOU BEGGING FOR MERCY?” “NO” “GOOD, YOU DON'T DESERVE ANY” HOLYYYY SHIT

Terry's glasses making their heavily anticipated return

"And this is Rayla- wait, did you want to do your own intro?"

"Welcome to the starscraper 😌" "WELCOME?! YOU NEARLY KILLED US" "Nearly, but the fates seem to have another path in mind for you" "The FATES?! What does that even... is that even an apology?!"

"Okay, you both seem on the nice side, so not to be rude... as if somehow this is ruder than throwing people out from a great height🙄🙄🙄..."

“Wait, is everyone else wearing blindfolds too?” “That is a joke.” “Yeah it was funny 😡”

Astrid saying Callum has greasy hair

STELLA TRYING TO STEAL THE SKETCHBOOK

“Where’d you get that comically large block of ice”

Callum trying and failing to use Rayla’s blade and almost cutting his fingers off

“How do I insult a star spider? 😆 Ezran would know what to do- ow OW HEY”

Astrid’s little trans speech your honor I love her

"This orb.... is a giant peice of candy 😐"

Jack De Sena's voice acting in Kosmo's hallucination?? Hello?? Poured out his heart and soul all for a hypothetical

"A child will die 😠" I'M SORRY IT'S A FINE LINE BUT IT CATERS TOO MUCH TO MY SENSE OF HUMOUR FOR ME TO TAKE IT SERIOUSLY

Wind elk :)))))

The awkward giggles when they're about to kiss that first time

THE VOWS, THE WAY THEY LOOK AT EACH OTHER, THE CEREMONIES??? EVERYTHING ABOUT THE WEDDING IS PERFECT I’M CRYING

The entire “fiscal exercices” conversation 

“HER DAD JUST DIED”

Leola. Just everything about Leola she's just like me fr

Feel free to add on because I certainly will. This list is like 50% unfinished

[raayllum]

What Is Up With Terry :: the Thread of Necessity

Intro

Terry is an interesting character in a lot of ways. He's unflappably kind and optimistic, accepting even to a fault, and he's an elf with no issue with dark magic yet doesn't seek out its use for himself. He's a non-traditional antagonist for starters, he's trans without being overly sanitized, and he most notably provides a sounding board for more overtly 'evil' characters like Viren in season four and Claudia in seasons five and six. Most of this is in service of Claudia's goals, with Terry not having many of his own goals outside of his support of Claudia and Viren; this is, mind you, not too dissimilar from Soren with Ezran in arc 2 as well, or even Amaya with Janai.

I also think he's a very important in a character in a lot of ways, for the ease with which he explores and exemplifies

You can love / support Viren and Claudia and that doesn't make you a 'bad person' in the show

You can be okay with dark magic without changing your mind and that doesn't make you a bad person either

You can kill someone in TDP and that doesn't automatically make you a bad person either

We know all of this is true (and will likely continue to be true) as we know in S7 there is an episode about Terry related to him still having a "true and pure heart," which is about as classical "good guy protagonist" speak as you can get. In those lenses, I think Terry was a fantastic choice in introducing a new character to not only contrast against Claudia and Viren, but also in terms of getting us to be more sympathetic towards them (particularly Viren) than we might've been inclined towards in arc 1.

That said, I think the most important thread that Terry carries is that he is a character who truly and wholly does whatever is necessary for his cause, nothing more, nothing less.

But what does that mean, tangibly, within TDP's narrative? Well, let's talk about it:

Necessity

The concept of necessity—I needed to do this, or I have to do this (even though I don't want to)—is one that has been central to TDP for a while. We see this characters who cite a lack of agency ("He was going to take Claudia's life, I had no choice" / "Every step I took, I took because I had to" / "I'm sorry. I have to do this") throughout the show, both dark mages and not, particularly Rayla, Soren, and Callum.

And in return for perceived necessity, as Harrow states, "I have done terrible things. I thought they were necessary. Now I don't know." We increasingly see people justify, or struggle to justify, worse and worse actions. Claudia's mindset has become very transactional, for example ("He saved you, and now we have to save Aaravos" / "It's a mistake! I saved you! You owe me your life!"). Generally speaking, the show treats these things labelled as necessary as unnecessary (hence the regret they experience, and even Terry disagreeing more adamantly than he ever has before).

This is, of course, because 4x09 and 6x09 together very clearly spells out what is important for Terry to believe something is necessary: it must be done entirely out of love, no more and no less.

I've seen you do a lot of awful things, dark magic things, but I always believed in you because you had a reason [saving your dad]. But what you just did, the way you tricked that Moonshadow elf? It was just cruel.

Maybe it started out as a story of love, but along the way it got twisted. [...] He isn't doing anything for love. He's doing it out of revenge.

To Terry, you do what you have to do but go no further; you don't give into anger, you don't give into revenge. You act entirely out of love, and keep acting out of love and let it temper you. This is why Terry resonates, I think, and seeks guidance from Viren after the mage's initial assessment of what's been happening, emotionally:

This is similar in practice to why Viren (and Claudia to a lesser extent) are characters with such fraught paths. Not only because of their dark magic use, but because of their denial. Viren violates Lissa's safety and trust to save Soren, but then blames Soren for it; Claudia heals Soren and brings back Viren, and doesn't understand why fixing things physically wasn't enough. "I had no choice" for them means "I have no accountability," and that's why they kept spiralling deeper till Viren broke out of it. He atones then not by swearing off dark magic (although it helps) but by taking full agency in the choice to do dark magic and in what manner (not sacrificing his family again) and without a desire for ego, which was his biggest character flaw in a lot of ways.

The reason I bring this up is to provide a contrast for Terry in a few ways, such as

Terry always being very emotionally open, rather than repressing or offloading blame onto other people

Mandates that he had no choice (4x03, 4x04) but to kill Ibis verbally, but is also aware that it very much was

Is able to accept that this was a choice and move on

Terry does what he believes is necessary. He feels things about it. He doesn't go further into outright self destruction, and he doesn't escalate to what harm is deemed unnecessary. That doesn't mean Terry's levelheadedness can't be a flaw (he absolutely should have told Claudia to give up magic in 6x04) or that what he believes is necessary always is / that his choices are perfect (they're not), but that in his contrast to Claudia and Viren, he continually provides that contrast. He can be held at sword point by Rayla, a total aggressive stranger, and still recognize that withholding her family from her is what he deems as unnecessary cruelty (but more on that later).

For now I want to talk about patterns, specifically two that he engages in with Claudia.

Patterns

The first pattern is unsurprising, perhaps, given that Claudia-Rayla have continually had parallels, given that:

1) Claudia keeps leaving him

This is, of course, most obvious in 6x01 when Claudia states her intention to do so, or even in 6x09 wherein Aaravos literally lifts her away from Terry:

But we also see it earlier on with even the choices Claudia makes in her mission. Terry is a passive person, much like how Claudia at her core is ("Tell me what to do" + 90% of interactions with Viren that aren't about saving him), and therefore Claudia leads the way, and Terry is happy to let her.

He never really considers that he might be a core part of her truth, and that she wants more active advice (see the way Rayla counsels Callum about his dark magic use, comparatively, in 6x03, or nudges him forwards elsewhere throughout the seasons). While Terry isn't wrong to encourage Claudia to think staunchly for herself, and in fact she very much should, it does leave her more vulnerable to the next first person willing to tell her what to do: Aaravos.

We also see Terry's passivity go even further back to one of his first episodes, as well as in the S5 finale.

Each entry in the pattern is a little different.

4x03: Claudia leaves / goes in alone and fails at her mission. Terry follows and saves her by killing Ibis at great cost to his personal emotional state.

5x09: Claudia leaves / goes in alone and fails at her mission. She goes further into Aaravos' clutches (the ocean here metaphorically) and returns of her own accord.

6x01: Claudia succeeds at bringing back her father but cannot make him stay. She leaves on her own in an attempt to break her family's cycle of abandonment without realizing how she's continually perpetuating it, but returns in a devastated and dejected state.

6x09: Claudia succeeds at her mission of freeing Aaravos, and the Startouch elf takes her literally into his clutches and away from Terry.

Each time it is her choice to leave, with only 4x03 firmly having Terry following without her returning by her own merit. Whereas Claudia plays out her family's cycle of abandonment with all its members—her mother, her brother, and finally her father—Terry plays it out with just Claudia, over and over again. This doesn't mean their relationship is bad or that some of these times are unreasonable—Terry is willing and supportive to let her go in 4x03 and 5x09 much the way Callum is supportive of Rayla in 4x09, 6x05, and 6x09—but it is a pattern that has then taken on a negative slant in S6 and will likely to continue to worsen in S7 before it gets better either in the season or beyond.

Then, we have the pattern of how

2) Claudia gradually stops listening to him.

This is probably more interwoven with the thread of necessity than the previous pattern, since as stated before, sometimes when Terry is letting Claudia go off on her own while it's imperfect in the narrative, it makes sense within their dynamic / resources. Like as previously mentioned, too, Terry is more often correct than he is wrong about the next moves people should make. He's right that Claudia will need help in 4x03, he's right that they should go look for her in 4x07, he's right that she needs rest in 5x02, and right to be wary and against Aaravos in 6x09.

In the beginning, Claudia listens to him.

But as the seasons go on, this gradually changes with twice back to back in 5x06.

T: It won't chase us anymore, you won. It's trapped. Please. C: You're right. It won't follow us. But not because it's trapped.

Season six is arguably the season where Claudia listens to him the least despite Terry reaffirming her agency most directly (6x04) as she ignores or doesn't listen to every reservation he has.

T: It's him. It's your Dad. C: Then I have to... T: No! Please! Please don't... I don't think you should see him like this. C: I have to! I came all this way to see him one last time. I need him to show me the right path. T: This won't give you answers. Only anger. Only pain. I'm so sorry. He's gone. He is gone.

And Terry, who does things only that are necessary, only out of love, would know the difference: unlike Rayla, or Claudia, or numerous other characters arguably in the show, he always has, particularly when given broader context the way he is in 6x09 (which hasn't always been true in his relationship with Claudia, either).

None of this is to say that Claudia is a Bad Partner or that your partner should always listen to you, either, because neither of those things are true in life or in TDP. Healthy couples in TDP disagree all the time in both healthy and unhealthy ways. Rayla left Callum when he explicitly made her promise not to, and Callum did dark magic to save her twice despite 100% knowing it's not what she wold've wanted.

But the first thing I want to address is the difference between Claudia leaving out of grief and trying to feel in control after losing everyone but her boyfriend, and Rayla leaving out of grief and trying to feel in control after losing everyone but her boyfriend because they are wildly different for one main reason.

Rayla left in the middle of the night while Callum was sleeping because "you’ll wake up and try to stop me… from doing what I know I have to do. Leaving. But I can’t let you stop me, Callum. No matter how much I want to. [...] And if you said even one word to me, I wouldn’t be—couldn’t be. If I stay even until your eyes open and you yawn your silly morning yawn, I’ll break" (TDP reflections, Dear Callum).

Terry, meanwhile, is actively begging and pleading with Claudia, and he is still abandoned. Granted, Claudia seemingly comes back within a day or two, not two years, so that does mitigate things, but the fact remains that Rayla thought she wouldn't be able to leave to protect Callum if she even heard him speak a word or yawn, and Claudia was able to leave to protect herself while having a full on conversation. Ouch.

Nor does this completely absolve Terry of the one time Claudia straight up asks him to tell her what to do, or what he thinks she should do, Terry doesn't (6x04). He's not wrong that she needs to choose the way and figure out what she needs, but him emphasizing that he can't tell her what to do and then immediately accepting her premises that Viren can and should tell her what to do is something that's already bitten both of them in the ass.

Terry also only asks Claudia to listen to him, really listen, and to tell her what she should do when he thinks it's absolutely necessary.

This is also one of the reasons why she and Terry are suited to each other. Both value and respond to necessity, scaffolding everything else on top of what needs to be done or doesn't need to be done. What's risky about this mutual understanding is the potential for it to stop being so mutual if they start to have different views on what's necessary. And as we see in 6x09, that's happening more and more. What is going to continue happen when Claudia keeps viewing Aaravos' actions as necessary, and Terry doesn't?

Questioning

So Terry is, presumably, going to increasingly be wary and against Aaravos. What is that going to look like?

We have a decent idea, honestly. As stated / noted before, Terry actually pushes back against Claudia fairly often. He's just rather gentle about it, and usually is trying to prioritize her wellbeing (or someone else's) when she isn't. Examples include:

4x09 over the coins / being cruel

5x01 ("You'd think if dark magic does this to a person they might not do it")

5x02 over resting

5x06 over attacking the dragon

5x06 over killing the dragon

6x01 over her leaving

6x04 with telling her what to do

6x08 over seeing Viren's corpse

6x09 in helping / freeing Aaravos

However, we're also yet to see him be angry in his questioning or when pushing back, which is what I think would be most interesting to see change (think the moment where Iroh finally yells at Zuko beneath Lake Laogai). His pushback with Claudia has gotten more and more consistent as well as more dire throughout the seasons, and just like how Viren and Claudia eventually disagreed and split up, I think Terry and Claudia will too. How permanent that split will be, I think, is up to her (I could see parallels happening between Soren and Terry teaming up to try and bring her home, with Ezran and Rayla doing the same for a brother-partner tag team Callum duo), but I do think that Terry's testament of "I love you, I will never leave you" is apt foreshadowing to see what it would take for him to break his promise, and do just that.

To what he knows needs to be done, even if that means walking away.

Misc. Season Thoughts

Terry also has some interesting things that don't fall under the necessity umbrella that I wanted to talk about as well. One of those things is

TERRY AND IDENTITY

This isn't to say I think Terry actively has an identity arc in seasons 4 through 6 the way other characters (Callum, Rayla, Viren) are, but that Terry like most of the main cast is linked to arc 2's continual increased emphasis on identity and choosing your own identity. This is true particularly in 4x01, which opens after the intro with Callum running through / clarifying his titles (or identity roles) and concludes with Viren and Terry being introduced to one another. Terry gives details on his name ("[Terrestrius] is a bit traditional, but my friends call me Terry") and then asks for clarification on what he can call Viren.

Later on in S5 and S6, we see Soren and Rayla respectively see through the 'monstrous' / threat of others by reaffirming their similarities ("I know what this is like. I know how you feel" / "This storm isn't your rage, it's your grief. I know how you feel") and bestowing agency through naming conventions. Rayla identifies the monster isn't a monster but a pet, and more than that, gives Esmeray back her name. Elmer does the same when he overthrows Finnegrin and Soren likewise affirms it: "We literally didn't [defeat him]. Elmer did."

Why is this relevant? Well, in an arc that's all about emphasizing over and over again to see other people's personhood by using their name(s), recognizing that you have a choice, and choosing who you want to be...

So often queer characters in media are regulated to their queerness being happenstance (i.e. they fulfil a certain story role regardless and just happen to also be queer) or it's all their character gets to be (a "figuring out queerness and/or a coming out" arc). One of the reasons I myself (as a queer and trans person) has always deeply appreciated Terry as a queer character, specifically as a trans character, is precisely the way that his transness is interwoven with TDP's broader themes of chosen identity, self-actualization, and knowing / name motifs. In having these themes and ideas for multiple cis characters, Terry's interplay gets to be enhanced by his trans identity and simultaneously let him enhance the thematic explorations the series has going on, and I think that's pretty cool. Identity is one of the main themes of s4, and for Terry as well, so it's nice to see the ways that's reflected.

I expect season 7 to challenge his identity further ("I'm going to be strong enough to do whatever I need to do and still have feelings") if forcing him to confront who he wants to be, who Claudia is becoming, and who he thinks they can still be together. In a lot of ways I'm expecting S7 to be a sister season to S4 thematically even as S7 builds on S5/S6 in terms of plot and character arcs, since S7 seems geared to be about identity directly even more than S4 was (and much more than S5 or S6 were).

TERRY AND COMMUNICATION

If season four is about identity, season five has a strong emphasis on communication. This is, again, likewise true for Terry, as he encourages Claudia to communicate in various ways across the course of the season.

The situation is urgent, and you're worried I'm not treating it that way.

Terry consistently having clear communication is also something that puts him in direct contrast to Aaravos, who is a master manipulator and very careful liar-not-liar in his own way. Terry is always open and while thoughtful does not really bottle things up; he communicates clearly with other people and is comfortable doing so, and is very good at validating others as well. Whenever he does push against Claudia, he always clearly explains why he's doing so or why he disagrees but leaves the choice of what to do next in making amends or carrying on up to her. Aaravos, meanwhile, continually withholds or omits information, and presents things in certain ways in order to get, well, his way.

I don't have as much to say for season six, given that Terry is only in about half the season (6x01, 6x03, 6x04, 6x08, 6x09) and one of those is entirely silent. I'd say his main idea in s6, like s4 with identity and s5 with communication, would be the theme of Questioning (scaffolded under 'supportive'). He's supportive of Viren and Claudia's searches for meaning alongside his own increase questioning of what they and Aaravos are doing and why. I'll be curious to see what his main character beat may be in s7 going forward.

Conclusion

There's more I could talk about with Terry (Viren dreaming in 5x03 of chasing after Claudia only for her not to listen, only for Terry to live out that worst fear in 6x01 directly, for example) but I think for now these are the main things I wanted to discuss without going further into speculation than I already have. I hope this maybe brought a new perspective or appreciation for Terry as a character and for his arc in the show so far! As always, thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy.

[mari-buginette]

So Aaravos chooses to let his daughter Leola die. Tough choice, and the only way he could punish the Star elves rather than die with her and have zero consequences for the people killing his daughter.

I get that. He offered to die for her instead. He was told no, and there were no other options. Revenge was in fact his only action left. Ezran has been given choices as well, and he chooses to love, forgive, etc. I am interested to see how he reacts to meeting the assassin Runaan who killed his father.

It is not quite the same though- love for a child vs. love for a parent. Ezrans situation came with a lot of complications. Aaravos’ child was being punished for a ‘crime’ of compassion.

Terry will do anything for Claudia because he is trans, not understood by his people, and she loves him.

Callum will do anything for Rayla and Ezran, because they have been there for him and he loves them.

Amaya and Janai are compromising defining features of their lives to be together as wives because they love each other.

The story is so complex. Aaravos doesn’t try to get Viren to kill his children directly- he knows better, because if he would die for his child, so too might a human. He will hurt them, yes, but hints to Viren the idea of killing his daughter, just to counter with the magic child instead as a way of using Viren’s relief to push him to finish the spell.

He can do this, because Aaravos knows, truly, the power of strong emotions and how they can drown every logical thought. He has cried for a child he loved, who was killed, and he without her light, for a hundred years. He knows.

Aaravos is terrifying, and I think the worst moment for him will be when he has accomplished his dark goal, and knows he has nothing left, and cannot die.

I love the Dragon Prince and Mystery of Aaravos so much.

[zoguy1]

So. Every June, I try to challenge myself by posting something for Pride Month. For the past couple years, it's been ships with cute little pride flags. This year, the priority focus will be on the Trolls Summer Gift exchange. But at the very least I'd like to show ya'll the ones I've made in the past.

2022 bundle:

Bi Hiccup x Gay Jack. Fun fact: This was the first gay couple I've ever laid my eyes on as a young child. I saw this ship and thought "I want that kind of relationship."

Bi Tony x Gay Rudolph Watching the 2017 movie, these two reminded me of Luca and Alberto so much.

Aro Merida You get it? Cuz she's an archer. It's funny. Laugh.

Bi Nan Fang x Ace Fu Yao The headcannon was based off of a fanfic I read a while ago.

Demi Ace Xie Lian x Gay Hua Cheng. I sevearly enjoyed the series. I occasionally eat fics of these two as comfort foods.

Pan Xu Xuan x Trans Xiao Bai White snake was basically 2 hours of "What you are doesn't matter, it's who you are that matters", THEE Pansexual anthem, and then the second movie Turned Blanca into a guy? This is cannon.

Ace Liu Qingge x Bi Shen Yuan Imma be honest. I didn't like SVSSS very much. Yandere's are not my cup of tea. And I was really hoping Shizun would have gotten with Liu-shidi instead.

Gay Luca x Gay Alberto I'm so glad Luberto was actually confirmed to be somewhat cannon. Though Nowadays I see Luca as bi, cuz if we're counting the concept art as apart of the lore, then Luca had a crush on both Alberto and Giulia.

Gay Jade x Gay Katie. Kate is the first character I actually felt scene as a queer person.

Genderfluid Shi Qingxuan I freaking love them so much. Easily my favorite character.

Aro Nezha This kid knows chaos and only chaos.

Pan Adam x Gray Ace Freddy I saw this crossover on DA and thought they made so much sense together. Adam the literal personification of nature, and Freddy the unification of humanity and animals.

Non-Binary Merz x Lesbian Alice These two are OCs of mine.

Aro Lesbian Isabela and Aro Lesbian Elsa. I ship this in a sort of queer platonic way. Like a "we don't really want to date people, but everyone thinks we're dating, and we just don't care enough to correct them." kind of way.

Genderfluid Camilo I want the ability to shapeshift so badly.

Pan Ao Bing x Bi Xiao Jiu Ya'll get brownie points if you know which Ao Bing this is and double points if you know who Xiao Jiu is. Lol. It was a random crossover ship I made because the company liked to crossover their medias for advertisements, and we see the adults interacting and having fun, and Nezha joins them. But we don't see the two teenagers interact at all.

Bi Verta x Bi Li Yunxiang Another crossover ship I made up cuz I didn't see a lot of Nezha Reborn and White Snake crossovers. Which surprised me, especially after Green Snake.

Gay Jiang Ziya x Gay Shen Gongbao These two lived in the same house together for 10 years and adopted a daughter together. I am convinced these two are a married couple.

Bi Mirabel There was a little bisexual rainbow on her dress. That's proof enough for me. Lol.

Lesbian Amaya x Lesbian Janai I loved seeing their dynamic in the show.

Non-Binary Kazi I love them. I'm glad they got more attention in the show.

Lesbian Susie x Trans Noelle "Why does Noelle have antlers. Is she trans? The Null the Null the Null the Null..."

Non-Binary Kris I love them. They literally never said a word, and I love them.

AroAce Krel Based on a comic I made.

Aro Blaze Another OC.

Aro Douxie Idk why, but I get that vibe from him.

2023 Pack:

Furry Omni Toby x Furry Demigirl Darci The moment Darci said she didn't want people to like her just because she was a girl, I felt that in my soul.

Bi Steve x Pan Aja I am not convinced Steve is straight.

Pan Simon x Gay Ao Bing This ship was inspired by a youtube video that had a list of crossover ships, this being on of them. And I freaking love it.

AroAce Sun Wukong and AroAce Tang Sanzang In Monkey King Reborn, out of everyone in the friend group, you can just tell that these two cared about each other the most. And I think that's just sweet.

Fuck. I can only have 30 images per post. I'll reblog with the rest of the 2023 pack.

[hopkei]

Sota instagram story update:

Higashi Keisuke: Welcome back Sota: I'm back! Madoka-senpai😉

TN: They are referencing episode 5 of their show Oppan! where Sota's character welcomes back Keisuke's character (his boyfriend) after he returns from a trip.

[baatarthefirst]

Janai + offspring

Janai wants three kids, it's not only tradition for the crown (one to rule the people, one to lead the army, and one to advise in magic and history), but it just sounds right.

She wants to have children with Amaya, to keep a part of her when her wife grows old and dies. She worries she may out live them as well, but decides it's better to live with the heartache than never to have known them. (either Janai is trans, or they use magic. With all the things we've seen magic do to bodies in the show, it's not unrealistic or pandering in the slightest.)

She is the very definition of overbearing while Amaya is pregnant. She fusses over everything from Amaya's comfort, to her safety, to her overall health. She treats her wife like she's made of glass. Amaya tolerates for only so long before snapping; Janai still fusses, but learns to make it less intrusive. When she's not fussing over her wife, she fusses over baby preparations. The entire camp would be babyproof if Amaya didn't intervene (you can't outlaw everything, Janai!).

And once the baby gets there, Janai is scared to let them out of her sight, Amaya stages an intervention with her advisors, were they sit her down and share their panic with their firstborn. It helps to know this sort of paranoia is normal.

The next baby is better, but Amaya does get sick of being doted on, and ends up kicking Janai out of their bed more than once (only to get lonely and let her back in an hour later).

[the-sky-the-stars-the-sea]

Day Six/Last Day of the Ultimate Dragon Prince Rewatch! 🙌🙌

AHHHHHHHHHHHH I CAN’T BELIEVE IT’S THE LAST ONE

I’M SO NOT READY FOR TOMORROWWWW

OK OK *Rayla about to swing off the ambler voice* HERE WE GO

Hoooooli cannoli what a strong opening for the season

Gotta say the first time I watched this season when I saw that Aaravos was the one crying I was like “YEAHHHHH” and after a few minutes felt bad…now that this is a rewatch and I know why he’s crying I’m like…yeah, so valid man. Also good job showing me this strong and emotionally distant character just crumble

TERRY AND VIREN HUG TERRY AND VIREN HUG TERRY SPINS VIREN AROUND 🥹

Claudia’s screams…😭😭😭😭😭😭 for real though her voice actress needs all the awards for those few minutes….😭😭😭😭😭😭

LORD BREADSANDWICH 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Season six is Sorvus season! Episode 2 >>> I was literally screaming at some of their moments. Gah I ship them so hard now.

“Are you looking for mercy?” “No.” “Good. You don’t deserve any.” GOES SO HARD

I’ll say it again: Terry is the greenest of green flags. Also when Terry comes back, Claudia has been relying on the staff (dark magic) as her crutch, but then Terry comes back and makes her a plant leg, and she throws down the staff (at least temporarily) to choose him. I think the symbolism speaks for itself

Claudia…you’re so close to figuring out yourself. But I understand why you still are looking up to your dad and wanting him to choose right from wrong for you.

“The human mage. Played right into my hands.” That was said about Callum…but then Viren is the one who wakes up with a start, screaming that never again…man so many Viren/Callum parallels…

Kosmo becomes Time Blind and the first thing he does is tell his sister how her star shines brightest in the sky…🥹 and she says her star was always there, others just didn’t see it…and her voice actress (trans) confirmed that Astrid is trans, and her hair is the shade of pink and white in the trans flag 🥹

Callum and Rayla paralleled Harrow and Sarai when tasked to slay a beast to save a people…but Callum and Rayla’s story goes differently because Rayla listens to her heart and finds another way to pierce the heart

It’s fascinating how they redefine the morality of lying in this season. Because past seasons have taught us that the truth and transparency is important. But this season says: “Are you giving them clarity, purpose? Or are you giving them the burden?” And shows us two examples of characters holding back the truth, one of those times came from rewinding time. But this season also says truth isn’t the most important thing: trust is.

It’s always been her <3

I noticed that Arc 1 and Arc 2 had the same Rayllum Arc- season 1 and 4, not emotionally close; 2 and 5, more trust and lots of love but not quite defined, season 3 and 6, romantic love. Of course it’s not 1:1 the same dynamic because in arc 2 they have a ✨history✨, but you know

LET! JANAI! AND! AMAYA! MARRY! IN! PEACE!

Was nOT EXPECTING VIREN WITH FULL BEARD AND MUSTACHE, but also AHHHHHHH HOW DARE YOU MAKE ME THINK HE ACTUALLY USED SOREN’S HEART. WHAT DO YOU MEAN VIREN’S LAST ACT WAS DARK MAGIC AFTER HE SWORE IT OFF. WHAT DO YOU MEAN HE’S ACTUALLY DEAD FOR GOOD THIS TIME.

Leolaaaa 😭😭😭😭😭😭

Seeing Aaravos with the human girl…he was gentle once. He was caring once. But they did a number on him.

Man…Rayla saying goodbye to her parents because she can’t bring one back without the other and if she brings them both then she and Ethari still lose someone they love…what a scene 😭😭😭

Claudia’s repeating all her dad taught her. And it’s just…she’s not doing any of this off of what she thinks. It’s what she thinks her dad believes…

Terry’s tears when Claudia agrees to help Aaravos…😢

Claudia and Callum casting the same spell at the same time…two mages, both have dabbled in dark magic, both doing a spell out of love, and yet the contrast is still so stark

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

OK OK MORE THOUGHTS AND FINE TUNING LATER, SEASON SEVEN HAS DROPPEDDDDD

[malicedafirenze]

so I finally got done watching S5 of The Dragon Prince and ghgnghghggngh why do I have such a mixed bag love hate relationship with this show (spoilers)

I want to love this show but there's so many things that just don't land and don't work, and yet here I am, hooked once again, because after 8 episodes of cringe humor and weird dialogue it fed me some crumbs of delicious Aaravos content.

I find so many of the accents so goddamn stilted and awkward. The french sun fire elves are the worst. I don't object to french-sounding elves in principle but dear lord does it sound unnatural and strained

SO much of the humor just does not land and the pacing of individual scenes is just ??? ATLA had some very kiddie humor here or there too, and I love the somewhat darker and more mature tone of TDP but jfc it feels like they need to hammer every joke home with so much time that you'd think they were planning for a laugh track

ep 8 and 9 were so much better than the whole rest of the season because once this show lets itself focus on action and drama, it's actually pretty fucking good, but for some reason you need to get through a first half season of awkward goofs.

Terry annoys me so much. Yay trans rep, but why the utterly random coming out out of nowhere (that was S04 I know but I watched it very recently okay) and his whole sounding like a therapist shit towards Claudia, like yes, it could be funny that this random wood elf does aroma therapy on his dark mage gf but everything somehow turns awkward in the execution

The library showdown was generally cool but the framing for why Amaya told them to leave without her was so fucking weird: you have this moment of Dragon Ex Machina, Zubeia wiping away the demon bears with ease, and then suddenly when Amaya is back in the frey after grabbing Bait, they're suddenly out of time and need to leave that instant??? Like I see what they were going for, obviously Zubeia was under real threat from the demon bears, but imo the framing/visualization of that threat did not work at all and I audibly went "WHY" at my screen at the random "you have to leave without me" thing.

That being said there's some shit that goes extremely hard and I'm here for it:

Rayla just fucking dismembering Claudia apparently wtf??

I enjoyed the sexy fish pirate man, I hope he survived getting eaten

I am an utter addict for Aaravos' voice and even the flashback repetitions in Janai's nightmares were legit enough to get my attention again

I am very excited for how someone is going to end up saving Viren's life against his will and I will gladly read fanfic of it

I had the 'our child' thing spoiled by being careless on tumblr but seeing it actually on screen was better than expected, love that for my OTP, toxic af parenthood is just what they needed

I really expected there to be more Aaravos since this show got renamed to Mystery of Aaravos false advertising smh.

They got creative with Dragon designs this season and I support that

out of all the things I found weird and cringe, I am 100% here for Zubaia getting randomly healed by a funky little gnome that calls himself the mushroom mage, 10/10 no notes

young viren hot

Rayla and Callum worked much better for me towards the end of the season when they got more comfortable with each other, love that for them, some delicious drama when the sexy fish man tortures them in front of each other, good for them, that's my shit

Considering all the things I liked about the last 2-3 episodes I feel nitpicky and weird for complaining about the first 7 or so but UGH it was a bit of a pain to get through them tbh. There is so much I deeply, deeply appreciate about what this show tries to do, as a high fantasy kids show with an overarching story, gorgeous visuals and explicit lgbtq and disability rep that I feel like an ass for complaining about it so much, but god damn there are so many things that are just unbearably cringe about it and OH MY GOD I just remembered the god damn "maybe you should express your love like a bee, here just move your tushy like that" scene holy FUCK can someone please give me an edit of this show with about three times the Aaravos screentime and all this second hand embarassment removed

[hxneyfarm]

i have to ask about t4t steddie 💕💕💕

hiiiii janai~~

so t4t steddie is just a lil brainworm i'm having rn about transmasc eddie and his best friend transfem chrissy, who've just moved to a new city. chrissy's talked eddie into going to a local trans support group/social mixer and oop guess who they meet there ~

Eddie only came to this thing because Chrissy talked him into it. And okay, the cute guy at the clinic might have suggested it too but this wasn’t about that. The cute guy at the clinic was definitely just a cute guy and super out of Eddie’s league anyway so yeah. This definitely wasn’t about him at all. This was about Chrissy, who insisted they go because community, because they couldn’t just be the two of them in a whole new city the way they were back at home - Chrissy needed to find girls like her and she thought Eddie needed to find boys like him and they needed friends.

ask me about my wips