#understand her beliefs

[spurgie-cousin]

i've been neck deep in new age cult stuff lately bc i can't stomach the fundies, i've been watching that guru jagat doc (fascinating) and re-reading some stuff about Love Has Won. female cult leaders especially, I'm so so interested in them lol.

I think because I can wrap my head around that more as to why people are attracted to them, like the stereotype of controlling and abusive male cult leader is just so saturated into the culture at this point. I also find it so interesting that the connective thread between these women, especially Katie (Guru Jagat) and Amy (mother god), is having an innovative and robust internet presence; Amy especially, for all her wackadoo shit was so ahead of her time with her website and live streams, and the online community she fostered. And similarly, Katie was very ahead of her time as far as leaning into and capitalizing on the fact that she was a woman in a historically male space (well as historic as it can be, given that it kundalini was invented not that long ago) and doing that knowing you're going to attract the exact type of people you want to; women who are looking for solace and healing in specifically female spaces. And I think most woman can understand why that breeds a certain kind of deep loyalty and connection.

Idk it's just so interesting, I'm not gonna say I love female cult leaders lol because they're obviously abusive but I just love learning about them.

[musashi]

not a narumayo shipper but i believe in their beliefs

[mega-banette]

anyway i think the funniest way to hc teru as trans is to have him not know that there are trans people other than him. he woke up one day when he was 11 and was like oh of course i can be a boy i am the main character and most special person and then he just attacked anyone who said he couldn’t with his psychic powers.

[gonkaccino]

Season 4 hope/prediction: Deb's show is solid, zero issues, runs flawlessly with great ratings, but her personal life is completely eroding. We start with her discovering Marcus is leaving, and it culminates in DJ going into labor right before a taping. Deb chooses the show. When it's over, and she finally flies to Vegas, it's too late -- Aiden's not letting her in because he loves his wife too much to let DJ get into a shouting match with her mom right after giving birth, and instead takes the brunt of Deb's wrath, with her making excuses and talking about how they used her money for IVF, and anyway, DJ's fine, so who cares if she wasn't there? Kathy's in the room with DJ and the baby (DJ's the closest she has to a daughter, after all) and Deb leaves too furious to think about how badly she's hurt her family.

She heads back to her Vegas mansion -- empty, obviously, Josefina and the dogs would be in LA -- and pops open a bottle of wine. Alone. Completely alone. Can't call Marty, she has no friends, the closest she's got would be Kiki and wouldn't that be embarrassing, calling your poker dealer to talk about your feelings --

and then Ava's there. She got the news about DJ's labor, she got the story from Aiden (who was distraught, by the way, man's too much of a sweetheart for Vance drama), a spare key from Damian (happy to pawn that off on her, though if it isn't returned promptly he's taking legal action) and has arrived just in time to see the Deborah Vance having a breakdown the likes of which no one thought physically possible. Crying gives you wrinkles, you know. But Ava has to be here. She's the physical embodiment of a lesson Deb never truly learned: you don't have to like someone to love them.

In my imaginary fantasy land that I am concocting this would then subsequently lead into them fucking nasty but I understand that this may be a step too far for the surprisingly large number of very normal people who watch this show and would forgive JPL for not taking it that far. However I do believe they should fuck about it and let Ava take the reigns in their relationship while they see how many of Deb's bridges they can un-burn.

[sukibenders]

Aegon, Aemond, Helaena, and Daeron looking at Alicent after she washes her hands of a war, that she (and Otto) dragged them into, and the throne, that she (and Otto) forced them to grasp/fight over even though they obviously didn't want it, and goes off to live her best life while they are all still stuck in a cycle forced on to them without their input (obviously this is about the s2 final):

[amugoffandoms]

"You have your best friend."

(understand, misunderstand, accept, and let go.)

[yarrowleef]

I was skimming part of code of the clans today where the Leafpool narrator goes over proposed code rules that were struck down. I was curious why this StarClan rule wasn't implemented because it seems like something the zealot clan cats would go for. The guide does not rly answer my question lol

This is such a weird paragraph. It's like. In one breath Leafpool-narrator is saying they didn't make it a code rule because clan cats can think for themselves, but in the next breath implies that belief in StarClan is in fact necessary for living in the clan, because to live in a clan means you have to follow the warrior code, and belief in StarClan is what makes them follow the code (apparently). If you don't believe in StarClan, she seems to imply that must mean you are planning on leaving the clan? ("it's not a law to stay in the clan" + you can "choose a different path"?) There is not actually any room being made here for a clan cat to peacefully not believe in StarClan---at least not a good code abiding clan cat. And the alternative of leaving the clan obviously means you are no longer planning on following any of the code, so like...how is this meaningfully different from making it an official code rule?

[solasfenheral]

veilguard really feels like its missing a guy thats weird about faith. faith (or the absence of) as a central talking point between the companions in general tbh

[thistleation]

ALSO.

I think it’s easy to underestimate the enormity of Beatrice’s decision to try and place the crown on Ava.

It happens in a flash, it’s followed by The Kiss (which is everything). I think some viewers might even have missed she was holding the crown at all.

And so much happens and events spiral so quickly, it’s easy to forget where in the story Beatrice stands at this point.

Beatrice does not know the specifics of Adriel’s plan. At this point in the story, the OCS’ best guess is Adriel will use the portal to bring through unlimited wraith demons. 

That’s the stakes for them: complete the mission or face a full on demon apocalypse. It’s literally “do this or the world ends.”

And Beatrice has lost so much. She’s lost Shannon just months ago, she’s lost Mary, Vincent betrayed them, to all appearances they’ve lost Lilith to Adriel for good. More of her closest family have died or abandoned her than not.

What more could the universe take from her?

And then the universe points at Ava and says “that one.”

You know those few months you got to spend away from the thick of battle? The short breath of time where you tasted life? Where you fell in love? Where you let yourself believe that — just maybe — happiness was possible? I want that. I want the person at the center of that, I want the one who gave you that.

Beatrice says no.

Putting the crown on Ava is not a discussion. It’s not a reassessment of the plan. It’s putting her unconscious to get her out. It’s aborting the mission.

The mission to save the world, where failure means wraith demons everywhere and most likely a literal apocalypse, and Beatrice says “No.”

Not if the cost is her.

Because how just is a world that keeps demanding this kind of suffering and sacrifice? There has to be another way for the world, because if there isn’t, she will not save it.

Not at this cost.

[lady-corrine]

"Rhaenyra being usurped had nothing to do with misoginy and her being a woman -"

"The Greens are not only constituted by misoginystic -"

"Aegon and Rhaenyra were just as bad and neither deserved to -"

"George is writing about how Aegon and Rhaenyra were equally bad, not about how misoginy and patriarchy killed a woman and ruined her entire life -"

"Rhaenyra being murdered has nothing to do with her being a woman, nor is she sexualized even in death-"

[mirixmoya]

i HATE the “effie is secretly an anti-capitol rebel” trope for a lot of reasons but the most simple of them is this: the dichotomy and contradictory nature of effie having essentially no agency within her own beliefs and actions WHILE ALSO willingly and often enthusiastically choosing to participate in the perpetuation of the hunger games is sooooo delicious. why would u want to take that away by making her rebellious and anti-capitol???

[mystic-orb88]

My favourite Harry Potter Hot Take is that Merlin is still alive, still waiting for Arthur’s return, and he is off all Ministry records worldwide, since he’s so powerful, and much older than Nicolas Flamel.

I say this as a BBC Merlin fan of 11 years and a Potterhead of 10 years. He’s definitely a Slytherin in that too.

[helenofblackthorns]

idk why but sometimes I look in the anti tsc tags just because it's fun. the insane opinions you can stumble upon... for example I had no idea people were so passionate about jalec & jace/izzy that they sincerely believe they should have been canon. like they might the only people who think that but I admire the commitment

also I once saw someone say that the show is better than the books because it had representation. they were not claiming the books had worse representation mind you, they were explicitly claiming that the book didn't have any representation 😭 I think they must have read the wrong books because????

I also saw someone say that you could cut coa & cofa out of tmi and it would be perfectly understandable. they doubled down on coa having absolutely no storylines that are relevant in cog which. it doesn't have to be your favourite book or anything. but things did in fact happen. people died (mainly simon).

[whogirl42]

Is it bad that my first thought after total shock seeing that Alicole scene was man, that'll be great to use for Rhaenicent manips?

[solasfenheral]

vg is a game where there a lot of parts I enjoy on paper and then you have to reckon w execution that keeps like. keeps immediately killing narrative tension before it can build

[divinekangaroo]

Was thinking while watching that scene where Pol tells Ada about her abortion.

Polly really doesn't take on the mum role in the family to my mind, or even the matriarch/aunt tbh. And I think, there was some summary somewhere that referred to her as the consigliere and while she does perform a certain bouncing-board, plan formation role with Tommy (and only with Tommy, and only with insight into certain parts of his plans; I'm struggling to think of times the others listen to her without Tommy backing her up, S3 as example of when they don't), her other behaviours in the family also mean this isn't her role at all.

She's the wild older sister who is loving and explosive and hurtful, and incredibly, incredibly fragile, afraid and she feels so very scared, vulnerable and alone, most of the time. She just wants all her loved ones to be happy and safe and in achieving that, Tommy is frequently as much of an obstacle as he is the vehicle to get her that. I do headcanon that Polly lives 99% of her life in fear and on that edge of breakdown, it's just that she's lived with it so long she probably doesn't even acknowledge it any more. Her reactivity is so high.

So yeah, it's no wonder Tommy sort of plays that joint patriarch-matriarch role (arranging marriages etc), because Polly is *not* playing the matriarch.