#turn from evil

[biblequotes24]

Finally, all of you should be of one mind. Sympathize with each other. Love each other as brothers and sisters. Be tenderhearted, and keep a humble attitude. Don’t repay evil for evil. Don’t retaliate with insults when people insult you. Instead, pay them back with a blessing. That is what God has called you to do, and he will grant you his blessing. For the Scriptures say, “If you want to enjoy life and see many happy days, keep your tongue from speaking eviland your lips from telling lies. Turn away from evil and do good. Search for peace, and work to maintain it. The eyes of the Lord watch over those who do right, and his ears are open to their prayers. But the Lord turns his face against those who do evil.”

1Peter 3:8-12

[tom4jc]

January 15, 2024 Verse Of The Day

[theoldkyokodied]

The Allegiance of the Ascended Vampire and the New God of Magic

[sariphantom]

Rise April 2024 Days 1, 2, and 3: Trick, Fashion, and Crossover

Technically... Usagi counts as crossover, considering he's from a different show.

[wreniriis]

Guilt

[bunnieswithknives]

(nature au) you said that while dale dislikes dev using a cane in the house he doesn’t really care too much, but what if dev used a cane in public? i can’t imagine dale would be okay with that at all. he’d be pissed, like confiscate the cane kind of pissed

Originally the gag here was just going to be Dev clinging onto his dads arm for dear life while he shivers like a chihuahua but he is just. So small.. I couldnt get it to look reasonable

Bonus:

[haloswrld]

internal call: office 3-07

being the receptionist at the dynamight agency is interesting when the first call of the day before work hours is coming from inside of the house.

“dynamight agency front desk, how may i help you today?”

you grow irritated when a certain blonde making the call fails to make noise on the other end.

“i don’t know if you recall, but i believe i told you to use the other line for anything you may need, sir.” you ennunciate the last words to match your annoyance when you think about how he most likely does remember but chose to ignore it.

“yeah yeah, whatever. that isn’t why m’ calling.” his voice comes through clearly and you brace yourself for what he’ll ask in the absence of his assistance who’s been on leave for a few days now.

“then..”

“actually,” he drawls, his voice dropping into a more casual, almost lazy tone, “ just wanted to say you look good today.”

the words throw you off balance, and you blink, believing you misheard him. “what?”

“you heard me,” he answers, sounding almost smug. “that color suits you.”

you glance down at your outfit, realizing you’re wearing the new top you’d bought—a burnt orange that reminded you too much of the color on his hero costume. it’s not even 8:00 and your cheeks warm at the prospect of being seen by the man on the other side that you’re yet to see yourself.

“katsuki,”

he notices how you’ve ditched the ‘sir’ and any attempts to remain professional as he adjusts his ear to the telephone.

“why don’t you come down here and tell me that straight up to me.”

katsuki bakugou knows a challenge when he hears one but more so knows a bait when he sees one, so he anchors himself to the seat below and faces towards the blinding sun that’s entering the windows of his office.

“can’t. m’ busy and also wouldn’t want to stroke your ego.”

it’s a lame excuse, he’s aware, but he thinks you seeing the current color of his face is even lamer.

↺

[citrine-elephant]

Won't you help me sober up Growing up it made me numb And I want to feel something again

the s in leon s kennedy stands for "sad"

[lavb-b]

Puppet.

[crumb-crumblet-s-crumbington]

his daughter is not a weapon!

[soupinaboot]

Batman's life must feel like a goddamn soap opera at times.

[crimescrimson]

Leon S. Kennedy in Resident Evil 6 (2012)

[yume-fanfare]

happy halloween! the cast from fist of idol: togenkyo have reunited again to bring us...... a horror movie?!

[segretecose]

"i am 15% scandinavian 18% french 3% eastern europea-" okay well i will kill 100% of you

[the-violet-galaxy]

If Sun let Ruin (try to) help out in the Daycare.

He's trying his best!

[bonefall]

Hey, what makes a character a 'plot device but not a character'? And how do you not do that? I'm trying to do it on purpose but also I need to still make them interesting because it's on purpose, yknow?

A good skill to pick up is to learn to criticise criticism itself. A "plot device" is simply a thing that moves the plot along, it's a neutral literary analysis term! Usually, when people are angry that "a character has been used as a plot device," it doesn't mean they hate plot devices. It means they're gesturing at something deeper.

Runningwind and Bumble are equally plot devices in their deaths. They are both killed by the antagonist to escalate political tension. Runningwind is rarely "accused" of just being a plot device, and yet, we're talking about Bumble for the same thing.

So, why?

Well, Runningwind is just a background character, but in life, he was a part of the community. He was characterized as impatient but responsible. Yet, he wasn't SO important that he died with a bunch of unresolved plot threads.

He is mostly an extension of the entity of ThunderClan. His killing by Tigerstar, and the fear and paranoia that settles on the group after this, feel like a progression of the story insteas of something forced.

Bumble, on the other hand...

Is hated immediately by Gray Wing, when she's established as Turtle Tail's friend. Bumble's abuse at Tom the Wifebeater's hands invites even MORE investment. The rejection is shocking and upsetting. There's a story there about our main characters being imperfect; jealous, bigoted, and judgemental.

But, she is simply killed off. Everything they set up for this character is gone with little personalized fanfare. It's not a tragedy with a lesson about cruelty, or something anyone regrets.

It's just... plot. Gray Wing whinging that no one will like his shitty brother now that his body count is 2.

More than that, in the discussion of women in particular, "Fridging" was coined to give a name to the way women characters often don't get their stories told at all. There is a CULTURAL trend of female characters facing disproportionate violence, for the sake of advancing male plots.

Bumble has a lot going for her. Petal had a lot going for her. Turtle Tail had a lot going for her. Bright Stream had a lot going for her. When they died, they took their potential with them.

It's not always wrong to kill off a character of high potential, mind you. In Gurren Lagann, Kamina's death is sudden and shocking, leaving a massive hole in the hearts of the cast that never heals. Grappling with that loss, but also letting his memory fuel them, is a major theme of that story.

All that to say... there's no formula for avoiding it. You've gotta identify what the deeper issue is, in your specific narrative.

I can't say for certain what that will look like for your story, but here's some things I keep in mind;

When you make characters who exist to die, make sure they're people before you axe them.

Ask yourself; what about them does the cast miss?

If they just miss them because they were (pre-existing relationship), go back to the drawing board.

Fluttering Bird as an example. Who was she? Dead sister. Why do they miss her? Dead sister. No traits until after her death.

Runningwind was short-tempered and helpful. Kamina was a valuable leader who made people believe in a brighter future. Swiftpaw was fiesty and desperate to prove himself. The better characterized, the more profound the loss usually is.

If this is a female character who is dying just to serve the plot, be aware of cultural bias and tropes. How is the gender ratio looking in your cast? Is this happening disproportionately with your girls?

Note how Quiet Rain's litter had both a boy and a girl, but the girl was chosen to be "weaker" and wither away.

And how most of the time in DOTC, whenever a man had to be upset, a girl would get killed for it.

If you ever feel like the character on the chopping block is NOT a full character, ask yourself why it needs to be a character at all. You don't need to spend narrative time building out someone when a literal object of high value might suffice.

"My sister died when I swore to protect her and I can't face my family" = Old. Tired. Ive seen this.

"I lost my heirloom sword when I swore to protect it and I can't face my family." = Fascinating. Why was the sword so valuable? Will they really not take you back? How did you lose it?

When you do kill off "high value" characters, try to make sure you're not leaving too many plot threads hanging. Or at least make a point of how they will never get closure.