#utterly obsessed with him and his tragic backstory

[itgirldraco]

do you have any fic recs?

yes!! so many!! please check the tags for each!

all time favorites:

way down we go: an absolute classic. werewolf harry, chronically ill utterly miserable draco, post-war in small town america. enemies to lovers slowburn with protective harry and hopelessly gay draco.

in hopes that you may drown: SO much of my art is based on this author's harry and draco. such a lovely fic. post-war, draco raising delphi and absolutely perfecting the stressed yoga mom vibe. harry is instantly smitten.

in our blood: about haunted houses, parenthood and growing to care for each other. I love this one.

you'll still find stone: arranged marriage. draco expects the worst and harry is an absolute sweetheart. angst but so heartwarming. (mind the tags!!)

ANYTHING by corvetteclaire! their blood link and in the mirror series are severely underrated and genuinely took my breath away. some of my favorite writing and plots.

inside grey eyes: so so beautiful. quite dark and yet exceptionally hopeful. all about draco's recovery from a nightmare situation and harry's unending support. (mind the tags!!)

anything by tessa crowley!! an absolute gem in the fandom with an impressive variety of works.

the mirror of ecidyrue series: perfection.

in your arms, rests my world: “You make me feel safe, Potter. You keep me safe.” yeah..yeah. (mind the tags!!)

anything by toxik_angel tbh..one of my favorites is infairitance even though it’s incomplete; fairy draco is a game changer

oxytocin: angst, angst, angst, and so much cuddling. slowburn in the best way possible.

Soup-pocalypse and The Great Curry Cataclysm: i read this some time ago but i remember adoring it.

Diffraction Patterns (I Don't Know How to Forget You): another incredible old read .

everything by beloved @rockingrobin69 !! this is one my favorites ever i never stop thinking about it

fluff/humor:

manlet: PLEASE read this one! so so cute and adorable and hilarious ft sweet giant harry and tiny angry draco and wickedly funny narcissa. will definitely open your eyes to small draco.

screw you: extremely funny and extremely hot.

like a star across my sky: SUCH a good fic! feels like a romcom.

title of their sex tape: as funny as it sounds.

flirt: really sweet. disaster flirty draco and awkward yet charmed harry.

married to a brute (ongoing): genius and hilarious

smut:

it beats me black and blue: absolute perfection. no notes.

let me roll it: so delicious. clueless mess draco and grumpy harry who hates everyone except draco.

his little something: size difference excellence

scenes of surrender: a combination of smut, love, recovery and caretaking

a perfect fit: hung harry and size queen draco

come up for air: veela draco

fawning for you: harry is completely obsessed with draco's videos. very cute, muggle setting.

burning the ground: creature fic

ongoing/other faves:

one elephant at a time (ongoing): i recommend this fic to EVERYONE. genuinely incredible. think yellow wallpaper, jane eyre, crush by richard siken, and the author mentions being inspired by my dark vanessa as well. so essentially a modern romance with a dark gothic backstory. every single sentence in this fic stands out to me. every characterization, every conversation, is just so honest and genuine. also!! draco has a cat called lady di!! and he loves to wear earrings! (mind the tags!!)

within the hollow crown: more of pre-drarry tbh. such an interesting plot!! harry grudgingly cares for an increasingly spiraling draco who is except under close and constant watch by the dark lord-every second of his sixth year. currently has an ongoing sequel.

imperfection (ongoing): another fic by robin! and another of my all time favorites, so so lovingly written and so tragic and lovely and heartbreaking. really digs into draco's psych and his manic mindset and constant spiral BUT there is light at the end of the tunnel and so much love surrounding him even though it's hard for him to see it. (mind the tags!!)

saviour series (ongoing): wouldn't necessarily call this drarry? more of a stockholm syndrome gothic novel type of fic but i recommend it all the same. the writing is truly extraordinary and the pacing is incredible. will leave you breathless. part one is complete. (mind the tags!!)

perspective series (ongoing): the original books with alpha harry, omega draco in gryffindor, and an adorable friendship dynamic between the golden trio and draco. really sweet, and super interesting. no romance as of yet but there are little moments.

tales of the potters: very interesting take on the arranged marriage trope! i recommend all of this author's works; they have a gorgeous way with words and their work really brings harry and draco to life.

the veiled boy (ongoing): one of the most intriguing recent fics i've read. really delves into character dynamics in such a realistic and refreshing way and draco is so endearing in it. every chapter has gorgeous illustrations.

never in extremity: reread this one recently. equal parts heartbreaking and heartwarming. (mind the tags!!)

[maskyartist]

utterly obsessed with @bafflement's Young Ozpin AU love me some lil guy shenanigans and drama, he is so WIDDLE and BABY

my favorite :)

[charlesemersonwinchesteriii]

Garak is So much right from his first episode. Laura Palmer of Cardassia over here trying to get laid, foil a terrorist plot, AND work a retail shift, all while high as fuck. Dude’s schedule in Past Prologue is FULL.

[dippiin-dops]

Mrs. Robinson

Personal Character Reference for Writing

There are quite a few things that make Mrs. Robinson a compelling antagonist. In particular, his character design, supernatural charm/fighting ability, and musical references come to mind. However, in being such a short-lived character, much of his use is put into foreboding the very real threat of the desert (a threat that, as of his debut chapter, Gyro underplays and fails to appreciate).

Understanding his role as a symbolic warning is a huge part of understanding him as a character– however, there is still more to him than just that.

1. Character Design

While his general punk-ish appearance works nicely with his backstory ("rebelling" against death), the most important part of his design are his eyes– both in that he has the ability to remove his left eye at will, and that he carries with him a collection of eyeballs which he wears as earrings.

Because of this obsession, and since all other parts of his body are intact, it can be assumed that he lost his left eye before he died and collects them from anyone he kills to "make up" for that fact, which mirrors his search for revenge.

Other important aspects:

His horse's (named "El Condor Pasa") number is either branded or painted onto their neck, which implies such a focus on the race that he'd scar it into his partner rather than transfix it as removable accessories

The decoration around El Condor Pasa and himself somewhat mirrors that of police tape– however, it swaps "warning" for "true love" (more on this aspect under musical reference)

2. Supernatural Charm & Fighting Ability

Unlike the other antagonists in SBR that will be introduced in the future, Mrs. Robinson is not a stand user. Rather, he is a zombie that believes himself to be cursed with the unattainable task of revenge:

As such, he can use his body (by raising insects inside of it that helps him fight) in ways other people cannot, which is where his vaguely stand-like ability comes from.

It is also in this way that his association with the desert is most clear. Obviously, he is no longer human; he is a slave to a curse, and uses his body in ways that further separates himself from his past humanity. He is not himself, in, say, the way Johnny might be emblematic of determination but ultimately still his own person; Mrs. Robinson is only an emblem of a curse born from the desert. He is not his own person anymore.

At the very least, that is how he understands himself and his situation, and is also something he embraces; notice how he says "in order to separate myself from others", rather than "to become stronger" or something similar. Being a hopeless slave isn't something he resents– in fact, he lets it define him.

Furthermore, his ability works only when he is in the desert– when he remains in the place he died. He uses the cacti to his advantage, but does not actually control them. If he were in any other environment, his ability would be utterly useless. It furthers the idea he is a slave bound to the desert he died in.

However; while this idea of being purely an incarnation of revenge is certainly the most immediate focus of his character, there is something much more personal to him as well. It is not so major that it will remove focus from his big takeaway point (the desert is fearsome), and in fact relies partly on how meaningful you consider a character's song reference to be.

3. Musical Reference

Mrs. Robinson is a song written and sung by the duo Simon & Garfunkel about the titular wife and mother. It references an affair and her feeling powerless, but the overarching idea is she is unaware of the love around her, especially if she'd only accept Jesus.

Mrs. Robinson is a character who refuses death– refuses Jesus –and roams the desert helplessly in search of something he admittedly can never achieve. Paired with the song, it suggests Mrs. Robinson of JJBA is not truly meant to be alive; although his death was tragic, the best thing he can do now is accept his fate.

Now, I also mentioned under his character design section that his sashes closely resemble warning tapes– however, it says "true love" instead of "warning". Coupled with the song's story about infidelity, it could point to the reason behind the "scuffle" Mrs. Robinson references; perhaps, he cheated on his wife or slept with someone else's wife.

This idea is based almost entirely on a song separate from the story, so I do not wish to say it is canon. If you do choose to believe it though, it adds a little bit more to his character. A man who believes love is something to be "warned of" (like it is inherently bad and he could not have made any personal changes to better it) and who'll neglect to take blame in a scuffle he partly set off is a man who is incapable of introspection. It is precisely the kind of man who would refuse to accept a fate that disfavors him.

(note: Mrs. Robinson was not written strictly for the movie "The Graduate". Therefore, I'll neglect any comparisons to it.)

El Condor Pasa, translating to "If I Could", is a song covered by the same duo. It generally concerns wishing to be the one in power instead of being the one hurt by those in power. However, there is a particularly interesting verse in it when it comes to Mrs. Robinson's character. Please read the following lyrics:

The lyric very clearly parallels the days leading up to Mrs. Robinson's death, being tied up to a cactus tree and left there to die. It shows this event in an incredibly personal and tragic light, which does not follow through in Mrs. Robinson's quick summary of the event. This is not to say he does not feel affected by it, of course! In fact, naming his horse after such a song suggests the opposite. Understandably, it portrays his death as a tragedy– because it really was.

What does contrast from his character are the lyrics around it, the ones concerning a swan. "I'd rather sail away" does not match up with a man hellbent on pursuing selfish motivations. However, especially when paired with the next verse in the song that says "I'd rather be a forest than a street", it likely denotes his wish to simply be away from people. It would make sense for him to want this, considering he went to such lengths to differentiate himself from other people, embracing a curse instead of death. A fear of other people would track, also, considering the brutal way he was left to die by others.

Mrs. Robinson is a character deeply defined by tragedy and a personal inability to accept an unfair fate. He confines himself within the area he died in, resigned to a bitter chase of revenge that he allows to define him, even when he understands it is impossible to attain. In the Steel Ball Run race, he allows this thirst for revenge to fester into something much more broad: he will attain total victory at the cost of anyone else's life.

And with such a tragic fate at the hands of other people, who's to say using his curse of immortality against just anyone isn't revenge?

[lizzyscribbles]

Today’s MHA thought is brought to you as I watch the livestream of the Wisdom Saga from Epic the Musical. Go take a listen, I’m sure it’s gonna be great.

Honestly I have no transition into today’s thought so we’re just gonna move along here we go.

Lizzy’s MHA thought of the night: Yoichi and All for One’s relationship and why I think it’s brilliant.

Let it be said, All for One is a fantastic villain. I think he’s well written in the sense that I absolutely, positively, HATE him. He is an absolute asshole and he has very little reason to be. Does he have a tragic past? Ehhh, kind of? But I would argue that he started screwing people over in the womb, so I have a hard time feeling bad for him when it kinda seems like a lot of his issues were his own doing. But that’s why I like him, because he doesn’t have that super sympathetic backstory and he doesn’t have much of a reason to be an asshole other than “I want to win and see people suffer :D”. Now don’t get me wrong, I LOVE a sympathetic villain (see my posts on Touya and Toga) but I also love to see a villain that is just evil for the sake of being evil.

However, I don’t doubt that he probably has some kind of personality disorder, plus he did have to entirely raise himself, and if we pile the theory that quirks influence personality on top of it, you don’t get a pretty picture. It’s an interesting look at the nature vs. nurture debate in a world like this. It was a perfect storm of genetics and circumstances that made All for One, a terrible turn of events to be sure.

And yet, despite being twins, Yoichi doesn’t turn into a psychopathic maniac. It’s honestly wild, and a kind of psychological circumstance that fascinates me. And, let's be honest, it's not out of the realm of possibility that AFO is partially to thank for that. After all, he took care of Yoichi like, straight out of the womb. However, what gets me more is their relationship.

It’s messy, it’s toxic, and it’s a little weird, but it’s so unique because we rarely see it done like this. It’s codependency at its worst, more so on All for One’s side, though he’d never admit that.

It really begs the question, why? Why was All for One SO obsessed with his brother? By all accounts, his brother only ever stood in his way and screwed with his plans. He was a hindrance, even when they were kids, so why keep him around?

To be honest, I’m not entirely sure. I think a part of it is Psychological Reactance (which I talk a bit about in my post on Toga), basically, it’s a common reaction in humans when you tell them they can’t do or have something. It’s often rooted in control, we don’t like to loose control of anything, and so we automatically act out to make sure our control is preserved. It’s emotional and behavioral, and we know All for One LOVES his control just as much as he loves his quirks.

And you know what else he loved? He loved Yoichi, and in a way he could never love anyone else. And maybe Yoichi loved him too, I think he did, but he loved him enough to tell him he was utterly wrong even when his brother wouldn’t listen. So, here’s this one thing he genuinely doesn’t want to loose because it’s the one thing he can never replace and it wants to leave?? Excuse???

Here’s what I think, I think Yoichi was the only thing he ever really lost control of.

Yes, I think his twisted sense of love had a part in him chasing his brother across generations, but I also think All for One could not handle the idea that he lost control of something he actually cared about.

We see in Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs that our most basic needs above physical are relational. Family, friends, safety, belonging, those aren’t things that are plentiful when you’re a dictator. Yoichi was there with him from the beginning, he fulfilled that need in some capacity.

We’re all afraid of losing things, especially those we love the most, it’s human nature. No matter how powerful you are, you can’t substantiate real human connection.

The day All for One lost Yoichi was the day he lost the only genuine relationship he had, it’s not surprising he spent the next few centuries trying to get it back.

…

I had fun with that one! Imma do one one Yoichi one of these days, because I love him and he deserves it, but for now I’m gonna go enjoy the Wisdom Saga and plan out a little Yoichi one shot I’ve had bouncing around in my head for a while.

[tacticalhimbo]

— 10 Fandoms, 10 Characters, 10 Mutuals

@perpetuagf tagged me in this and i am OBSESSED, tyvm for tagging me babs <3

apologies in advance if anybody gets a repeat tag in this!

@carlosoliveiraa | @alexxmason | @captastra | @bbrocklesnar | @vendettapandav | @kourumi | @scarfacemarston | @captain-radioactive-mentality | @ollierachnid | @theavaricesystem

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AIDEN PEARCE | WATCH DOGS; this man embodies older brother rage and it resonates so hard. like. the protectiveness over his remaining family. the fact he acknowledges (even if a bit harshly at times) that he is a bad guy. the fact he thinks he is utterly irredeemable… obsessed with him and his funky sense of fashion

APOLLYON | FOR HONOR; bastard woman. but i love her for it. her backstory doesn't get a lot of mention and i constantly think about how being a child when her family and such was slaughtered, and to have seen how the man who swore to protect them simply turned his back… i just. the way she's grown into someone who is willing to maintain the presence and intensity of war just to showcase its brutality. the way she took said man's armor and forged it to be her own. her brain!!! she is evil and i support women's wrongs o7

ARCADE GANNON | FALLOUT; the original "just like me fr" character, and one of the first canonically queer characters i had exposure to. my favorite companion always. his personality? incredible. his backstory? tragic. his humor? dry and awful, but i still love it and love him

DR. VIKTOR VEKTOR | CYBERPUNK; literally the character with the most transmasc swag i think i have ever witnessed in a game. like. genuinely. this man is trans to me and i am just so head over heels for this old man and his humor and his genuine care for those within his circle

ELSA WOLCOTT | WILSON'S HEART VR; underrated game and underrated character. genuinely. she is such a good character. i love the whole "parent who will do anything and everything for their child" trope (see: my inclusion of sam fisher and, by extension, aiden pearce). but like genuinely, elsa is such a tragic character when you look past the humor of the plot (re: the game being a mish-mash of horror tropes). i wish she coulda had a redemption arc q0q

MAJOR JACK KRAUSER | RESIDENT EVIL; bastard man. but i love him for it. the dynamic he has with leon (aka his obsession over his former ally) is so… man!!!! he also has transmasc energy and i really don't know how to explain it. he just. does

OBI-WAN KENOBI | STAR WARS; my first fictional crush fr, but also he is just. the character ever. the things he's been through, the way he uses them to better himself. the way he tries so hard to be a good man for everyone around him… obsessed

PUNISHED "VENOM" SNAKE | METAL GEAR; i am so normal about this man (lie) and the fact that he is a shell of his former self that has been molded to fit another's perfect image in an attempt to achieve a greater cause (one that would inevitably become corrupted and lead to his own death) and i just. mm. obsessed again

SAM BECKER | FAR CRY; underrated fave. i love sam's bombastic personality and how it stems from the fact that, after facing tragedy and having to adapt a role that makes him complicit in shit, he finally feels hope at things getting better (at least that's how i see it). he is my tragic little meow meow and i am still so sad about his death. i literally know it happens and every time i play the game i start getting so :((((

SAM FISHER | SPLINTER CELL; i discovered him while playing ghost recon and then he single-handedly shot me into the splinter cell series and now i am rotating him in my brain always. his character arc is one of my favorites, and a scene that always plays in my head is the one in conviction when he finds out the truth about his daughter's disappearance like. ugh!! plus i just love very involved and protective father figure characters (if you haven't noticed the trend on this list. and if you did? shush <;3)

[maegalkarven]

Choosing the frame.

After the dust settles and the wounds close, everyone contemplates what they can and should do now.

The Elder Brain proves to be a formidable foe, but not all is lost.

Or is it?

Set between Empty Prayers and Interlude. (I swear I'm better at chronological order on AO3)

The Dark Urge x Enver Gortash.

Characters: Dark Urge (Nemo), Enver Gortash, Isobel Thorm, Dame Aylin, Wyll Ravengard, Ulder Ravengard, Karlach, Gale, Astarion, Jaheira, Halsin.

POV Gale.

They’re the pitiful bunch survived in the latest attack of prior unknown enemy; harpers, refugees, flaming fists and several cultists who surrendered the moment they saw the Elder Brain.

And what a sight it was, a gigantic monstrosity of the flesh floating in the air, commanding the army of tadpoled marionettes to march on Baldur’s Gate.

And they did that, Nemo and Gortash. It was their plan what went astray.

Gale contemplates if there is any future for them yet, or this is it.

The end.

The drastic failure.

He would still have his backup plan to use the orb as a weapon of mass destruction to deal with the brain, if not for the knowledge newly aligned with them tyrant brought.

What it would save no one. What it would simply turn every illithid-infested person into a mindflayer.

Mystra didn’t care for the fate of all these people; she never cared for the safety of the Sword Cost.

All she ever cared for was the threat the Crown of Karsus posed to her.

And if this isn’t a waking up call.

Gale feels...

He isn’t sure how he feels. Devastated, probably? It’s not every day you find out your goddess and former lover is not what you imagined her to be.

It’s not every day you get disappointed in your god.

And to think he was ready to...

Unbelievable.

But again, all things considered, maybe he is where he is supposed to be; in a circle of kindred spirits and minds. Most of them have some inner or outer struggle going on with one deity or another, even the newcomer.

Especially the newcomer.

It’s not every day one meets a fellow Chosen, and not every day he finds out one of his closest companions is one as well. Or was. They all are falling from grace, aren’t they?

The fact what Nemo and Gortash are involved is not as surprising to Gale as one might have expected it to be; Gale is not a stranger to inner turmoil and deep longing what separation from a lover can bring.

He expected Nemo to have a tragic backstory akin to his - minus the goddess part – but what he didn’t expect was how utterly mutual this romantic obsession of his was. At least that’s the picture he drew for himself after hearing of what have passed in the illithid colony.

And even now Nemo and Gortash are the last to emerge to the small crowded room where Duke Ravengard is holding a counsel.

They look rattled, two disgraced chosen of evil gods, and they also stick close to each other, as if the entire world is their enemy.

It stings a little, Gale would hope Nemo to know he can always lean on him, especially after all support Nemo gave him. The unconditional, nonjudgmental way Nemo has been treating him and his condition got to his heart, as well as Nemo’s begrudgingly good deeds.

And now, once Gale knows the truth about Nemo’s upbringing, he is even more amazed of his friend’s defiance, of his proud and unyielding stance. To defy one’s god, to defy one’s creator...It is not a small deed.

“We need to decide our further actions,” Duke speaks. He has noticed the latest addition to the counsel and, from the slight frown on his face, does not look happy about it. But Wyll, who sticks close to his father, smiles to Nemo and gestures for him to come closer.

Nemo smiles back, warmer than many would expect, definitely warmer than Gortash would expect, if the flash of surprise over his features is of any indication.

“And why are you the one to speak?” the voice rings out from the crowd. Gale knows it’s one of the tieflings before he turns; the girl Nemo saved from the towers, Rolan’s sister. Lia stands tall and proud and refuses to lower her gaze. “You didn’t do anything to stop it from happening, did you?”

Wyll whips his head, ready to respond, but his father ushers him to stay quiet.

“That is true,” he agrees. “And I am in no ways diminish the heroic deeds of the ones who stood against the evil, even if they have failed to defeat it just yet.”

“Well, if so, when let them speak,” Lia insists. “Here they are! Nemo-“

“Oh, sure,” one of the fists argues back. “Let speak the one who started this all mess, that’s a great idea. He is not a hero of this story, but a villain. Another spawn of an evil god-“

“Don’t remember you saving our lives, dipshit,” Cal chimes in. “I do, however, remember you whimpering like a little baby at the first sight of the shadows.”

“Enough,” the duke’s voice rises to the commanding tone and, miraculously, they do quiet somewhat. “Why don’t we let the man speak for himself? A hero or not, it is yet to be decided, but his assistance will be irreplaceable in the battle to come.”

“What battle?” one of the harpers argues. “Where will be no battle, this will be a slaughter-“

“Do not lose hope,” Isobel tries. “The situation is looking grim, but I’m sure together we will find a way-“

“Not really taking advice from a daughter of Ketheric Thorm,” one of the Flaming Fists spits. “When were you going to tell us all of this is because of you, eh, Isobel?”

Nightsong steps forward.

“One more word out of your mouth and I will rip that tongue out-“

“How about we all take a deep breath?” Wyll, a poor soul dedicated to diplomacy, tries. “Listen to the ideas the few of us have and not spend time in endless squabbles? We all are upset, scared, shaken by that has happened, but blaming each other is not a way to fix it. And we need to start fixing it right now, before it’s too late.”

“Listen to Wyll Ravengard,” Nemo finally manages to get to the small stage in the middle of the room and, with Wyll’s help, climbs it. “And also listen to me, for I am one of the very few people who knows what we’re dealing with. It is true what I am a child of Bhaal,” he meets the gaze of the fist who called him out before and the man lowers his gaze first. “My involvement in the plot what lead us to where we are now is also true. But,” he raises a hand to stop several people from speaking at once.

“I am not here to apologize. Yes, you heard me; no apologies will be said today, for none of you know what it is like to have a father, a god, such as mine. None of you are in the position to judge me. And if, per chance, you decide to judge me, where will it lead you? Nowhere, I say, for you need me to survive this mess. You need me and you need my close ally Lord Enver Gortash,” several heads turn and said man tips his head slightly and proceeds to the stage. Gale hears Karlach curse under her breath.

“It is true what him and I created this plot, under the command of cruel gods you know as The Dead Three,” Gortash, on his part, has no trouble climbing the stage with no help needed. “Ketheric was the Chosen of one of these gods: Myrkul, Lord of Bones.”

“It was with Myrkul’s power,” Gortash smoothly joins, hand coming to rest on the side of Nemo’s back naturally. Gale hears Astarion huff and turns just in time to see the man roll his eyes.

Interesting.

“What the beloved Isobel Thorm was returned back to us,” the lord smiles and alright, he is not without the charm of his own. Wyll looks mildly annoyed by his interference, but since it was Nemo who quite literally asked the man to join, does not argue against it.

“Ketheric Thorm was a man who sold his soul more than once, first to Shar, and then to his last master. And all,” a dramatic gesture. “In the name of love.”

“I didn’t ask for that,” Isobel tries, even thought everyone knows she doesn’t need to defend herself. Yet some part of her seems to believe she has to, for in some awful, twisted way the cursed lands around them is her fault.

“It is not your fault your father’s grief changed him so,” Aylin tries, but even Gale sees her words give little comfort.

“Let’s not condemn the children for the sins of their fathers, shall we?” Nemo chimes in. “No one is blaming Isobel, we all know she was the one who singlehandedly kept the Last Light protected from the Shadow Curse.”

“That’s true! She saved us from the fate worse than death!”

“She defied her father!”

Isobel smiles weakly, grateful. Nemo smiles back.

“And now,” he looks around; making sure everyone is paying attention. “Ketheric Thorm is dead. And the age of the shadows is over,” a loud cheer goes through the room like a wave. Gale catches Lord Gortash smile like a cat that just got the cream.

“We have defeated the Curse,” Nemo continues. “Our friend Halsin ventured into the lands so dark and lifeless very few get to tell a tale about them, and returned victorious. Because of him, because of everything he did, everything every single one of you, Flaming Fists, Harpers, the brave souls who dared to walk into the deepest depths of Shar’s temple did – we have defeated the curse.”

Aylin beams.

“Do not let the looks deceive you,” she booms. “Do not let the cursed bloodline running in my friend’s blood discourage you. For when I gaze at him I see an ally. I see a man who looked into the face of the abyss and refused to succumb. I see a man who brought the light into the darkest corners of the darkest of places. I see a man whose cruel father put him against his own sister, and I see a man who was worthy of the sacrifice,” a sharp piercing look into Gortash’s direction. “Unknown to many. You look upon those men, those former chosen of gods, and see villains. I gaze at them and see hope. I see conviction what no matter how dire things might look, there’s still a way out. For if the worst of us are capable of selfless deeds, when what are the best of us are capable of?”

“Did she just call me ‘the worst of us’,” Gale can imagine this is what Gortash murmurs into Nemo’s ear. Nemo smirks.

“She might have meant Ketheric, you’ll never know,” might as well be his smug reply.

“I’m pretty sure she meant me.”

“Relax, a daughter of a goddess just praised your deeds.”

“I can see why Ketheric hated her so much.”

“Well, Ketheric’s opinion notwithstanding, we really need her support. You’re lucky she likes me.”

“I can’t see why.”

“I will tell you what we’re capable of,” Aylin continues, oblivious to the conspicuous whispering the two men are having. “Anything. Together we can do anything we put our mind into, defeat any evil. The Elder Brain is powerful. It is an enemy we have never fought before. But it, as any other enemy, can be defeated.”

“Indeed it can,” Lord Gortash raises his voice once again. “First step to defying the enemy is knowing the enemy, and this is where I come into the view. Some of you know me, many of you distrust or even hate me, but I assure you this will come to pass quite soon. For you will have no better ally and no more knowledgeable advisor than me, unless, of course, you count mindflayers, and they’re of uncooperative kind. Luckily for you, I,” a generous and quite dramatic gesture. “Am willing to help.”

“I know the Elder Brain and know how it operates, and trust me when I say you’ll need all the allies you can get if you even hope of winning this battle. An Elder Brain is supremely powerful organic calculator, a mental machine able to process a vast number of simultaneous thought processes. It is always a hundred moves ahead, and cannot be surprised except by a sudden confluence of unexpected variables,” he smiles, observing the silence what has fallen over the room.

“But luckily for us, we are those variables. We are the most unlikely of people to work together, the least possible allies, and this is why it might just work. The Elder Brain is the entity beyond mortal comprehension, but it doesn’t mean it cannot be subsided. It has been done once already, in a calculated plan to overpower it. And it did work, if for a while.

The reasons for why it worked and why it fell apart are irrelevant now, but I assure you all we need is ourselves and the minds we bear. The Elder Brain has no weakness but the unexpected, and it means we need to be just that – unexpected, unpredictable, completely out of any line and form of rationalization. And what is more unexpected than yesterday’s masterminds turned today’s saviors? What is more unexpected than all of us, working together towards one common goal?

What goal, you may ask me. Survival. Such a simple word, isn’t it? And yet it drives us all, this deep-rooted need to overcome what comes our way. To live, to see the other day. I don’t know about you, but I am not yet ready to die. I expect to have a long and fulfilling life. And what about you?”

He looks from face to face, as if capturing them in his mind, cataloguing and putting into categories.

A clever man indeed, Gale has to admit, and good with words. Probably good with his tongue too, if Nemo’s blind loyalty to him is of any indication.

“Do you want to die? Are you ready to lay down your weapons and simply give up? I find it hard to believe. No, you,” he gestures at the harpers. “Who fought the losing battle against the undying enemy? Or you,” another one, this time at the fists. “Who fought to protect the innocents despite all odds being against you? Or even you,” now at the group a part of which Gale himself is. “A bunch of damned and unlucky, happened to be at the wrong time at the wrong place. Tadpoled, frightened, hunted for life, but fighting on. Are you willing to die? Or are you going to stand up with me and see the other day?”

Some whispers, someone cheers.

“Are you going to do the impossible or will you give up before even trying?” more cheers.

“Will you get your lives back or will you quit?” at this point the cheering is almost deafening.

“A good speech,” Jaheira comments. “Too bad he doesn’t mean a word he says.”

“He doesn’t,” Karlach agrees with a scowl. “But damn if they’re not eating from his palm already. I’d thought it would take more for him to trick them all. Turns out I was wrong.”

“They’re scared,” Halsin tries. “They’re lost. They have entered one battle and were thrown into another, so much bigger than everything they have always known.” The druid frowns. “And he is using that against them.”

“Well, whatever he is doing,” Astarion chimes in. “It seems to be working. And damn if I am not a little inspired myself.”

“I know what you mean,” Gale agrees. “I can see how Gortash managed to achieve the heights he did, if these are the kind of speeches he gives.

“Don’t let him get to you,” Karlach begs. “It’s bad enough he has Nemo wrapped around his finger, worse yet the entire crowd of people who should rightfully hate him.”

“To be fair, he did save Nemo’s life.”

Karlach scoffs.

“And I still don’t get why,” she runs her hands through her hair. “He had nothing to get out of that, nothing.”

Halsin coughs.

“Is it possible he did it out of...well, the affection he holds towards Nemo?” he tries. “They do seem to be locked together quite tight.”

“Don’t remind me,” Karlach sighs. “I can’t stand to watch how ridiculously proud Nemo looks right now. Damn straight swooning at the spot."

“What can I say, Nemo knows what he likes. Or, well, who he likes.”

“His taste is shit-“

°°°

“Wow,” Nemo laughs. “I haven’t had this rush of adrenaline since Methistar. Good job.”

Enver smiles and moves to catch Nemo’s face into his hands. It was an efficient speech, all things considered, even though most of it Enver just bullshitted though, adding there and there the facts he has learned about the Brain.

But it seemed to work, the general gloomy mood lifted, and, more importantly, it gave him a break to collect his thought and think ahead.

With Bane and the Church out of picture, he required a lot of thinking.

Rewiring the entire strategy will not be the easiest task, but Enver is up to it. If anyone can do it, it’s him.

But that, too, can wait.

“Still got it in me, huh?” he chuckles, though he doesn’t really need any conformation, not with the way Nemo stares at him, wide eyed and entirely lovesick.

Here, that’s better. His sweet, dear, bloodthirsty partner.

And to think Enver almost lost him.

“You were excellent,” Nemo all but purrs, leaning into the touch. “As ever. Never change,” he leans for a kiss, planting the softest, feather-light one up Enver’s mouth.

Then, as quickly as he leaned in, he suddenly pulls away.

Enver follows, trying to capture familiar lips under his, but the assassin prevents him from that, tears out of his hold and takes a step back.

“Nemo?”

The Bhaalspawn blinks.

“It was too easy,” he murmurs, blinking some more. “Too fucking easy. Of course it’s not done just like that,” more blinking. “Of course he is not letting me go. And with Orin out of the reach-“ he gasps, then bends in half.

“Nemo,” Enver tries to reach for him, but gets swatted away unceremoniously.

“Don’t touch me,” Nemo growls, and it is a growl what makes Enver pause. This is not a human sound; this is a howl of a beast what has no place coming out of Nemo’s throat.

Of course, he thinks. Bhaal has gone nowhere.

“Control yourself,” he tries, adding steel to his voice, but Nemo just laughs.

“Control yourself?” he gasps. “You have no idea what it is like, no fucking idea. And why would you? No one understands what it’s like to be Bhaal’s favorite, no one can ever-“ another growl tearing out of his throat. “Get...help.”

“What?”

“I said get help,” Nemo cries out. “Get Karlach or Wyll, or, for god’s sake, get Aylin here, I’m sure she can hold me down.”

“You don’t need their help,” Enver tries and knows instantly he is lying even to himself. An awful, loud sound of the bones cracking comes rattling through the room and Nemo screams. “Alright,” he decides. “I will,” another pained cry instead of an answer. “I’m sure Nightsong can-“

“Just go!” Nemo chokes out as his flesh tears, white bones showing though the gaps. His limbs shake and twist and it’s about the end of Enver’s endurance.

He goes to get help, leaving his ally alone in a dark, cold room.

With nothing but Bhaal in his head.

[atamascolily]

princess tutu re-watch, episode 20

Fakir: Because we are all participants in a story, if I randomly select books, one of them will be the right one, because that's how stories work, right?

Fakir: … except all the endings are missing. What on earth could this possibly mean?

Me: I dunno, maybe you should WRITE YOUR OWN or something.

Then a new girl shows up (!!) and kisses Fakir on the cheek (!!!!) and suddenly he has bigger problems to deal with.

Fakir: Damn it, the childhood best friend romantic subplot is kicking in at the worst possible time!

Lilie yelling "Ahiru, you musn't look!" then twisting her head in that direction of Fakir and the new girl is hilarious.

Pike: Ahhh, he's hideous when he smiles, who knew?!

Due to circumstances outside her control, Duck ends up third-wheeling along back to Charon's place.

The new girl (whose name is Raetsel) asking Charon if Uzurua is his kid and Fakir and Charon both shaking their heads is delightful. But we cut to Uzura sitting on Charon's lap probably to keep her from mischief, so he does care about his weird puppet-child-creature.

Fakir: Raetsel is my older sister. My surrogate mother. I cannot emphasize this enough.

it turns out Raetsel is crushing on Charon, but he (correctly in my opinion) thinks she's too young for him

Raetsel: Oh, yeah, where Mytho? A family reunion wouldn't be complete without him.

Fakir (with a completely straight face): He's got dancing fever. Absolutely obsessed.

Raetsel asks Ahiru if Fakir is writing stories with the same attitude that most people reserve for drugs.

Ahiru: He can write stories that come true? That sounds like it might be useful, actually! THANKS FOR THE EXPOSITION, LADY!

Fakir (going to his trust horse for comfort): I just want to solve my problems by punching things, why does that no longer work anymore?

Horse: ....

Fakir then has a panic attack when Ahiru brings up the possibility he could save Mytho by writing

Fakir: NO! NO WRITING! ONLY VIOLENCE!

meanwhile, Mytho has swapped out the delicate "Waltz of the Sugarplum Fairy" for "Night on Bald Mountain" and scary crow choreography (croweography?), lololol

Raetsel arrives and Mytho, sensing weakness, immediately starts creepily flirting with her.

Rue, watching from the bushes: I have to let him seduce with other women so he'll be all mine someday. That makes sense… right?

love the shots of Fakir and Ahiru both hunched up with their knees to their chest, utterly miserable, and for the exact same reason

Ahiru asks Raetsel for advice, on the grounds that adults have their shit together, not realizing this woman is an emotional train wreck herself.

WHY IS RAETSEL STAYING IN THE MILLHOUSE OF ALL PLACES, I HAVE SO MANY QUESTIONS. Does Kinkan Town not have inns or something?

Fakir's tragic backstory unlocked! Ahiru regrets everything! Although the framing is ambiguous as to whether Fakir's stories do come true, or if he merely believed that they did.

Mytho shows up and corners Raetsel because he is a creepy stalker

Mytho: You have two loves, and you can't choose between them, so PICK A THIRD OPTION - ME!

Raetsel: Yeah, okay, that checks out. Good thing I brought my wedding dress with me!

Princess Tutu discovers the ugly truth: not only is Raetsel an emotional mess, she also came to town hoping Fakir would write a happy ending for her.

Tutu: Your feelings are valid, but also there's a lot to unpack there.

Fakir: Mytho! Time to resolve this like MEN--by beating the everlasting shit out of each other!

Mytho: Sounds great, let's do it, even though you suck at not dying!

Fakir: You know, actually I'm going to count "not dying" as a success instead of a failure from now on.

The real Mytho emerges long enough to seize control and run away. Fakir stalks off and heroically returns to his desk to write a story--the hardest part, in my opinion.

Burning (heh) question here: do you think Ahiru gave the lamp spirit to Fakir for inspiration or do you think it's a completely different lamp on his desk?

Raetsel decides to marry Hans, which is probably for the best, as I have zero investment in this character or her relationship with Charon and cannot wait to see her GTFO of town.

Fakir: You know what, Ahiru? You were right. I think I'll give this writing business a try. How hard could it be?

Drosselmeyer: Oooh, those are fighting words! I'll believe it when I see it, hahahaha.

(bold words from someone who still hasn't finished their WIP, am I right?)

[sasorikigai]

I am so fucking livid at this recontextualization of Hanzo Hasashi's canon (starting with Kuai Liang being the new Scorpion). While I see the connection between Scorpion's MK11 ending (which I absolutely hated too), I am not vibing with this alternate version of Hanzo scouring the multitudes of timeline in search of reality where his wife Harumi does not get brutally butchered.

The reason why I absolutely fell in love with Hanzo/Scorpion's character is his utterly bleak and tragic backstory; the entire Hasashi family were killed in the Shirai Ryu massacre committed by Lin Kuei, and being reborn as a Revenant full of vitriol vengeance. As if Hanzo's canonical story wasn't absolutely heartbreaking and depressing enough that he became an undead spectre, he has once again, descended into an explosive spell of rage and vowing to burn MK1's timeline to the charred rubble.

This is literally where Lin Kuei has stolen everything from him, desecrated everything that was his worth and character. It took him decades to amend with Kuai Liang (in MKX), and finally come to a realization that he has been a very selfish man who nearly caused Earthrealm to be extinct because of his impulsive, vindictive actions. And I would most definitely like to believe that Hanzo/Scorpion has acted this way not solely because he himself was killed in the massacre, but because of Harumi and Satoshi. His love for Harumi Hasashi goes beyond the realms (literally, enough to become deathly obsessive of searching for a reality where she lives, finally), and his transformative character in MK11 as Grandmaster Hasashi proves that every action he effectuates is due to his eternal love for her and Earthrealm, even for Lin Kuei.

TL:DR; this is such a disservice to Hanzo's character, and this will never bring Scorpion's gratification (further destruction and annihilation never does anything good). This relinquishment from all of Hanzo/Scorpion's character evolvement absolutely SUCKS.

[sebastianshaw]

Okay, a question I've wanted to ask the mun? What drew you to pick up Sebastian as a muse? Asking out of genuine curiosity because I absolutely love this colonialcore menace (the person who coined that term deserves a medal btw🥇)

THEY DOOOO I got into X-Men in middle school, when they were a hyper-obsession that I spent a LOT of time and money on, learning everything about every character there was at the time, whether I gave a shit about them or not. One of my faves back then had been E.mma F.rost, whom I was introduced to in New X-Men, which was coming out when I was in middle school. I liked her a lot because SHE was a very nasty breed of heroine, something I'd never encountered before. Shaw features in her backstory, and he came up a few times in New X-Men, though he didn't feature largely at all. I didn't pay really any attention to him at the time. Around 2013 or so, I started coming back to X-Men. I was in my early 20s then, a recent college graduate, and I wasn't really interested in what was currently going on in the comics. Instead, I returned to the 90s, which were the first comics I'd ever read. I encountered Shinobi S.haw, Shaw's son, and I just adored him. Through him, I found Fabian C.ortez, and I loved him even more. Namely, I loved him because he was JUST SO GODDAMN AWFUL. Around that time in my life, I had also started really like bad guys, in particular unsympathetic ones. It's not that I think nuanced, noble, or tragic villains are bad, but when you're in fandom long enough, you get exposed to so many people just falling over backwards to excuse everything a character has ever done if there's even a scrap of sadness or good reasoning to them. It's actually a lot less a problem now due to the backlash it's received (to the point that now you can actually get hate for it, which I don't think is right at all either) but me being a contrarian, it just pushed me in the opposite direction. I started gravitating to unabashedly NASTY baddies. And Fabian was my PEAK baddy for awhile. But in coming to like Shinobi, I also became reacquainted with Shaw Senior, and started finding him really interesting and really funny as well. That's a big thing for me, the bad guys I like also have to be amusing. No matter how serious a threat they are, I just can't get into them without SOME element of comedy there too. And Shaw was funny. Like, he was awful, he was irrefutably irredeemably awful, the literal FIRST thing I knew about him as a character was how terribly he abused Shinobi. I didn't go in with any illusions. But as I learned more about him, I found him really hilarious in his own right (THE CONSTANT SHIRT REMOVAL) as well as actually really interesting. I enjoyed how, in a sea of ideological mutant leaders (X.avier, M.agneto, Apocalypse, etc), Shaw was a pure profit man. He was utterly, purely, absolutely unabashedly selfish, and I really liked this about him, just as I'd liked it in Fabian and Shinobi. I also found myself really liking the Hellfire Club in general, I loved the idea of a bunch of fancy evil rich people who don't give a SHIT about the political conflict that's usually so plot-central. And as I read more and more of his stuff, I was like...shit, this guy is actually REALLY INTERESTING. He's actually got a lot more nuance than he seems, while still being an Utter Bastard. I even ordered The Legacy Quest Trilogy novels, which I reference a LOT on this blog as a big source of my Shaw characterization, because Shaw features heavily as a main character, complete with his own arc and chapters from his perspective. It was INCREDIBLE, it added so MUCH to him while also not relying on changing anything about him. It stayed true to the character while also expanding on his mindset at the same time, and he was a great villain in it too. It won me over COMPLETELY. So, here we are! Thank you for the question and your interest!! <33

[eyeofprovidence]

BILL CIPHER is from GRAVITY FALLS. he is a 46 year old/immortal dream demon, physicist, and uses he/him pronouns. he has the power of mind invasion, shape-shifting, and astral projection. bill is portrayed by andrew scott and written by ALEX (est / 20 / they&she)

At a glance, most would hardly find Bill particularly intimidating, with his outward projection to those in Evermore residing somewhere between "mad scientist" and plain ridiculous. However, it's an intentional facade that he finds tends to sufficiently lower the defenses of others. Make someone underestimate you, and they'll easily spill information without even having to take the energy to delve into their mind! First impressions of him may often align with annoyance or exasperation - or, if they're a person he finds potential in, he takes effort to see that they’re charmed by the demon with his quick quips, a bigger-than-life personality, words to soothe their ego, and endless knowledge to offer that can’t help but lure their curious souls in. 

Of course, obnoxious "friend" and otherworldly yet altruistic muse are but facets of myriad sides, with his truest self being the epitome of the demon he is: cunning, sadistic, manipulative, and utterly selfish in the name of pursuing the chaotic weirdness that he finds gives existence meaning. Humans are only pawns, and even other demons and creatures like him serve simply as stepping stones to further his goals: to cause chaos in a dimension he may rule without the fear of it inevitably collapsing.

Bill won’t hesitate to lie and manipulate humans into creating doomed deals, torture and kill, or do whatever he deems necessary or even fun, according to his warped definition of such. Still, he's good at maintaining a mask - and has and will keep one up for decades if it means he's closer to achieving his goal of breaking into a new dimension to achieve his full potential. Generally, he’ll say whatever he needs to if it means getting closer to his goals or resulting in an amusing outcome, and while his words may technically hold some truth, he’ll gladly twist them to benefit none but himself.

To a being trillions of years old, reality is illusionary, utterly temporary and doomed to collapse, so why not have some fun while trapped in this new plane? Sure, he’s primarily focusing on his main goal of creating a proper portal to allow him full access to a new dimension, but some chaos and nightmares to fill open time are inevitable byproducts. Messing with mortal minds and watching them descend into anarchy is his favorite past time while waiting for them to do the dream demon's dirty work for him, after all.

As always, his own arrogance remains his very literal fatal flaw, with his constant underestimation of mortals and eagerness leading to deadly mistakes. You’d think Bill would have learned after literal children managed to thwart him multiple times, but nope! Safe to say, those patterns will continue in this world even in the presence of those who’ve outsmarted and defeated him before. Can’t teach an old demon new concepts like humility!

HEADCANONS:

"Misses home and can't return. Says he's happy. He's a liar." His obsession surrounding chaos and weirdness was initially something rather forced - a persona adopted after burning his dimension to the ground and having to deal with the guilt and loneliness accompanying losing everything and everyone. After billions of years having passed, his morality and any sense of remorse withered away, yet he still isn't happy - more existing to fulfill an ever evolving goal, perhaps too big for even someone as powerful as himself to achieve. Not that he'll ever admit that, and he’ll easily laugh at someone lamenting over their own tragic backstory while telling you how funny it was witnessing his family burn to ash. 

Even to allies who he considers somewhat useful (which, let's be real, are the closest to what you could call his "friends"), he's a compulsive liar. It doesn't matter the topic - even if it's asking what he had for breakfast or what his favorite song is, he'll lie. And potentially try to gaslight you regarding his previous answer the next week because he sucks. And sure, he may not be able to tell the kaleidoscope of possibilities that lie in your future in this dimension, yet he'd still make up a date and cause of your future death to unnerve you.

Despite his general lack of regard for life and homicidal tendencies, he loves weird little creatures like blobfish, goblin sharks, star-nosed moles, whatever. They're simple but freak people out for just being a little different - they're like a little sliver of the weird shit he wants to consume the universe! Here, he has a pet axolotl.

He's still terrible at occupying a human body. He'll simply forget to sleep until passing out at his desk, has a diet consisting of simply whatever is within arm's reach - and only showers because he realized a bad scent detracted potential "friends". He's still amazed at having two eyes all to himself! If he refers to humans as one lifespan, three-dimensional, five sense skin puppets, don’t worry about it. He’s definitely a very normal human person who has always been a normal human person!

Almost obnoxiously "friendly" most of the time - even if some of what he’s saying sounds vaguely threatening or generally concerning and is simply accompanied with a smile. Don’t worry about it; he’s just got a weird sense of humor! He’s got a large circle of… well, more acquaintances than friends, involving himself in others’ business whether they really want him to or not. After all, in a world where he's a bit less omniscient, it’s easier to observe people by simply surrounding himself with them. (To a certain degree, at least - humans stop being entertaining and become more predictable after so long.) 

As he's older than time itself and from a dimension that (he claims) has billions of genders, Bill really does not care about pronouns or human ideas of "gender". He usually defaults to he/him due to his typical appearance and name, but gender really isn’t something he concerns himself with, so any pronouns are fine! He'd likely just tell you his pronouns are [R̵̔͝E̸͋͝D̴̘̏Ã̶̎C̷̈́̽T̵̓͒E̸͌D] if you asked. The number one fan of chaos obviously tends to find any sort of categorization meaningless and needlessly tedious. 

Bill influenced human history from the beginning, and I like to think he did so on other planets than earth throughout the literal trillions of years given the 700 quintillion planets in the third dimension - but as sentient species inevitably destroyed themselves over the years, Earth has been his target for the last few millennia. He's the reason the pyramids were built, why the eye of providence watches you on the dollar bill, and why many historical figures both failed and succeeded. He'll also take credit for just about any major invention, unless it's circular.

This is canon - "Bill Cipher" is not his true name, as stating his true one aloud (or so he claims) would lead humans to evaporate upon hearing it. I mean, you can hear it, but just once!

His voice always seems… loud. Even though it's not being unnaturally distorted in his human form and he's rarely outright yelling, it seems to echo in your ears. Maybe it's simply another a side effect of Bill haunting your nightmares!

[shihalyfie]

With Digimon Ghost Game starting, I thought about how different it is from previous Digimon series, though it's still undoubtedly Digimon... and then I realized all Digimon series are like that. So I wonder, what do you think sets each Digimon series apart from the rest?

I think both Ghost Game but also the reboot have been a wake-up call for people in terms of realizing that likes, dislikes, and tastes are subjective, and I think it's especially important in terms of this fanbase that is so obsessed with this idea you can objectively rank things by quality -- especially when each series is often deliberately trying to have its own identity, so it's arguably apples and oranges -- and forcing this idea of what's Good and Not Good on everyone else (especially when there's a nasty double standard phenomenon where Adventure and often Tamers get to be so impervious to criticism that people conveniently forget they're perfectly capable of being scrutinized for a lot of things they're weaker in). Very frustrating to see everyone who likes less popular series treated as if they have to accept that they like a "badly written series" for some things and everything else is a guilty pleasure, which I find to be incredibly dumb.

The most important take-home here is that the fact each series has its own identity is always going to be the main factor in what makes it "good" or not to you, not some arbitrary bar of comparison that's based on some narrow-minded view of "good writing" (which is usually unreasonably based on Adventure). For instance, the reason why 02 is so important to me is because (see below), to me, it has the highest amount of meaningful, important life lessons and themes that it wanted its audience to remember, to the point that I frankly do not care about where the plot goes in comparison. That may not be the case for everyone else, and that's fine, but should my tastes be called unreasonable for that? I think we're also coming to realize that because of Adventure (and kind of 02)'s precedent, so many people have been judging series purely by how intimate their individual character development style is, but this is unfair because Adventure and 02's ridiculous level of character depth to psychological detail is extremely unusual and unrealistic to expect of others; Adventure and 02 only achieved this by practically considering the plot utterly subservient to its character arcs, and it's arguably why they have some of the weakest "plots" in this franchise. It's so bizarre that I can see character development in other Digimon series that outstrips even most kids' anime on the market, but it's not as much as Adventure's so apparently it's bad. And, moreover, as it turns out, some people have priorities other than characterization; just because Adventure had that as its strength doesn't mean that's the only thing anyone should care about. Is the plot fun? Is there a meaningful message besides characters (also important to me)? Do you vibe with the tone being dark, or being silly? How much do you care about resourceful usage of Digimon lore? That kind of thing. Everyone is different, so that's why everyone has their own priorities. If you’re someone who prefers darker content, you may not realize that writing good and well-timed comedy is actually a very, very difficult task, especially when said comedy simultaneously has meaning (in comparison, it’s surprisingly easy to write “dark” but shallow content).

I think it's fair to like every Digimon series for its own thing, depending on your personal tastes. I can't speak for everyone, but my impressions are that it has to do with the following:

Adventure: Significantly easier to understand than 02 due to its more straightforward plot, and focus on individual character development ("individualism" being a strong point here). In terms of characters, it goes a lot into some very real social problems (the divorce around the Ishida and Takaishi families and the pressures surrounding Jou, for instance) in a very realistic manner. Also, it has that sense of mystique and absurdism to the Digital World that's both whimsical but also mysterious, and while 02 has it too, Adventure's the isekai story that has it the most.

02: The first is its focus on the importance of human relationships and the compelling group dynamic unparalleled in this franchise, and the second is its important themes and life lessons that I think are some of the strongest in said franchise. I have a whole tag for the ridiculous amount of nuance packed into every detail and dialogue line for this series, and I think every time I've rewatched an episode I've learned something new about it because there are so many things that clearly wanted to be said in each line. The entire series is basically an unpacking of the feelings of insidious self-hatred and the crushing feeling of being subject to society's expectations, and ones that are so deep-seated that you often don’t even have a single answer to how to unpack it (for instance, Miyako hardly has a tragic single event in her backstory, but she says and does a lot of things that'll be painfully familiar to those who have experienced chronic anxiety). Almost every plot point can be said to connect to each character arc in some way, and the mantras for appreciating and treasuring your own life and living life the way you will make this, in my opinion, the strongest series in terms of speaking to those who struggle with this kind of existential crisis for reasons of depression or otherwise. (Oops, I think I went too passionate about this; my biases are obvious...)

Tamers: I think it forms an interesting study and unpacking of the kinds of things you take for granted in Digimon or the monster-collecting genre in general, and an examination of how they'd work in a real-world context (although 02 had a focus on daily life, it didn't quite merge the Digimon and the real world factors until very late in the series). Also, probably the second highest on "hard sci-fi" (the only one that outstrips it is probably Appmon, but Appmon has a very different, more simplified take on it).

Frontier: A series that lies somewhere between Adventure's scale of individualism and 02's scale of group dynamic, and one more discussing the feeling of having your heart hardened from being an outcast, and what it takes to accept the idea of opening yourself up to others again. Recommended for those who like transforming hero and magical girl stories, too. From the Digimon perspective, also the one with the most detailed and consistent Digital World mythos.

Savers: I think this is the series that most drives home "life is complicated" (i.e. there isn't a single mastermind behind everything) in the most tasteful manner, because while it drives home the point that you can't just simplify everything into a good side and a bad side, some bad things really are evil (hi, Kurata), and it doesn't change the fact that everyone's responsible for cleaning up the fallout. The portrayal of the evils of government bureaucracy is probably the most realistic out of any of these series.

Xros Wars: For those who like fun, most of all! For those who like seeing Digimon finally get more of the spotlight and individuality since so much of it had been geared and biased towards the humans prior to this. For those who really like worldbuilding, and, after all, this is called Xros Wars, so it's interesting to see shakeups on the usual formulas in the form of the different factions and their priorities. Hunters is very different in tone, but I do think they have some of these aspects in common; that said, it being closer to having single partnerships brings it a bit closer in line to conventional Digimon partnerships, and it also has more of a picture of daily life. Also, as much as Tagiru is probably your-mileage-may-vary since he's not exactly a very nice kid (I get it if you don't vibe with that), which may also rub those hoping for not nice kids to become nice the wrong way, I do have to say I find him to be one of the funniest characters in this entire franchise, and you'd be surprised how hard good comedy is to write.

Appmon: Probably one of the strongest theme narratives besides 02, since it has a very clear and obvious theme about the importance of kindness in a world where technology is dominating and we're almost encouraged to strip the feelings out of everything. (Bonus for more straightforward plot than Adventure or 02 while still retaining a lot of its elements in terms of how to characterize them.) Also the first series to be speculative about the near future instead of taking place around the time it airs, and it's very obvious it wants to provide important and necessary commentary about what we need to do in the incoming era, especially as a lot of what it has to say becomes increasingly relevant.

Reboot: For those who like Digimon mythos and null canon -- this is probably the only series to show it off in this level of detail -- and the kind of cool action fights that would usually be saved for the climax in prior series (and animated in much more intimate detail with battle choreography than prior series would have). There are a lot of people into this franchise who felt like it genuinely was not making enough use of its Digimon roster and its potential because it kept going back to the old standbys (especially Adventure-based ones), so it was a huge relief for that crowd to see attention finally being paid.

[voidpumpkin]

I don't know anything about Demon Slayer but I DO know Rengoku sorta and he's my favorite character. I have never seen that other guy you have been posting him with! Could you talk about both of them/who they are and why you like them together?

K lets go over them separately, Rengoku Kyoujurou is the Flame Pillar, the strongest swordsmen wielding the flame breathing swordstyle. Set up to act as a mentor character to the main cast. Key belief of his is the temporariness of life makes it beautiful and that it is the role of the strong to protect the weak. Revealed in his introduction arc have a lot of hidden insecurities about his worth due to his abusive father. He dies at the hands of Akaza but succeeds in saving everybody's lives.

Akaza, number 3 most powerful demon underling, believes the only goal in life is to get stronger (but doesnt eat women, which apparently would make him much stronger, demons need to eat people btw), thinks temporary life is gross and despises the weak. He's the one who kills Kyoujurou. Pretty much all demons have a tragic backstory that they forget upon becoming a demon with Akaza's being that he was a kid who dedicated and risked his life to looking after his father, then lover after his father dies, whilst being taught to protect the weak, with belief of his being that weak, sick shouldn't view themselves as a burden. He's forcibly turned into a demon after killing the people who murdered his fiance and mentor, (though his love for his fiance preventing him from harming a women even though he has forgotten her.)

Why i like them together: First off, them being together requires Kyoujurou lives (i've always been of the opinion that his death is one of the earliest signs of demon slayer going downhill) and i love Kyoujurou and i want to see him and his relationships be explored. Secondly what happens in their fight together, mainly: they have ideological conflicts with each other, Akaza is utterly enamored with him asking him to be immortal so they can fight together/each other forever and literally begging for him to become an immortal demon after dealing the killing blow. What they say during the fight and who they are creates so much juicy drama, Kyoujurou can confront Akaza's belief and make him remember his backstory, convincing him to join the good guys, an idea i'm obsessed with is him asking Akaza 'what is true strength, giving into your urges as a demon, or resisting them'. Akaza in his complete admiration of Kyoujurou can get him to value his life more and confront his insecurities in a way nobody else can as he is the only equal/above Kyoujurou's level to express such admiration (everyone else are family members, students or colleagues).

Other drama created is of one of the people who kills demon's falling in love with them, slayers can be kicked out for just refusing to kill one that hasn't eaten anybody. This drama as well as Kyoujurou coming to recognise the humanity of demons as well as their suffering as demons are constantly monitored by their creator who can kill them on a whim, is just another reason for me to love it. They have to keep relationship a secret, existing on opposite sides of a conflict and wanting to be together, which is so juicy to me.

There's also a plot reason as the good guys require high level demon blood to create a cure for demonism. Akaza, as number 3, becoming a good guy would mean they would have a lot more of the cure and make it even more powerful, this along with him fighting on their side in the final battle and Kyoujurou being alive to fight in the final battle means we wouldn't have that shitty ending where half the cast dies.

Renkaza is a relationship that by its very nature would require/causes drama and character growth, which is what makes it absolutely golden for a story.

As you can see i am completely normal about them.

[thebestpersonherelovesbucky]

Falcon and the Winter Soldier: Ep. 4 Takeaway

Uh. No. No, I was not in any way, shape, or form prepared for that heart-wrenching opening. That raw emotion. The gut-punching fear. The devastation. The soul massive relief from under all that fear and pain. No, I was not ready.

“She’s just a kid.” This is why Sam should be Captain America. Look, no one can replace Steve Rogers. There will never be another Steve Rogers. But that’s not the point. Sam isn’t meant to replace anyone. He’s meant to be his own Captain America. A man who has the heart and soul of a person who doesn’t go looking for a fight. A man who will fight when it needs to be done. A man who reaches out with compassion first and fists second. Sam is the Captain America this world needs in these modern times and tbh it doesn’t deserve him.

“Those are our friends you’re talking about.” “The Avengers, not the Nazis.” Thank you for your contribution, Bucky. 😂 No, but, I really liked the our friends. Not just my friends, but our friends and Bucky concurring with that by pointing out who Sam means. 

Sam sharing the story about his TT. His family means so much to him as does community and I think that’s why he can relate to Karli and what she wants to do but also cannot condone how she’s going about it. 

Yes, if anyone wondered, Baron Zemo would sell out his family to the White Witch for some Turkish Delight. 

I do like Zemo stepping back into the more villainous role. While I enjoyed the humor from last episode, it never really sat right with me that they gave Zemo a “tragic” backstory. He was Hydra in the comics and it feels weird to me to change it in such a way. He was a supremacist so his new anti-supremacist ideals is...off-putting to me.  

“It wasn’t just one community coming together. It was the entire world.” Hence why Sam can understand Karli’s goals.

Sam assuming the leadership role so much in the episode. So much foreshadowing to what’s (hopefully) to come. 

When Bucky loses it with Zemo and Sam is like “Don’t engage. He’s just gonna extort you and do that stupid head tilt thing.” Not only is this more leadership from Sam it’s also showing how much he pays attention. He knows all their social cues. He knew Zemo was gonna do that probably before Zemo even did. In other words, Sam Wilson is remarkable. 

Sam calling Sharon for help. I wasn’t expecting her again so soon. Yay!!

As soon as John Walker steps on screen I want to punch something. 

“He’s dealt with worth. And he’s not my partner.” Look at Bucky backing Sam up while trying to play it cool. We all know you love him, Buck.

Sam talking to Karli. Coming to her from a place of understanding and genuinely trying to earn her trust because he does understand her pain. He’s filled with so much compassion and so much empathy and he knows how to employ both of them to better a situation and the world at large instead of coming in guns blazing. He gets it. And he wants Karli to know that he gets it. His approach to getting her to see that she’s going about it in the wrong way. But while she’s okay with acceptable loss, she in fact expects it, Sam is not. “No, it’s not a better place if you’re killing people. It’s just different.” Again, this is what makes him a good Captain America. 

“He knows what he’s doing.” Bucky’s faith and trust in Sam when Walker is literally itching for a fight. That...cold, obsessed look in Walker’s eyes was chilling. (I’ve given kudos to Mackie and Seb for their acting but I should also acknowledge Wyatt Russel’s chilling performance)) 

Thank you, John Walker, for coming in and making things better oh wait, no. Just come in a fuck things up. Super of you. 

Sam’s immediate “no” when Zemo asked if he’d take the serum if he was offered it and asking about Bucky being included in the “super soldiers cannot be allowed to exist.” “Blood isn’t always the solution.” Sam is just. I’m running out of words.

I’m now walking a thin line of patience with Bucky criticizing Sam over not taking the Shield. Like, yes, he’s right in that Steve’s wishes were not honored, but Sam is living the consequences wanting to do the right thing by giving the Shield to a museum. He did not and would not have ever handed it over to anyone to use, especially not a man like John Walker. Sam didn’t give it to him. The government did. The same way they’d’ve given the serum to a man like Gilmore Hodge. The same way they forced it upon Isiah Bradley and then experimented on him and locked him away. The same way they “agreed” that Sam was doing the right thing by turning the Shield over and then handing it to John Walker. This is not Sam’s fault.  

I could take hours of Ayo and the Dora Milaje kicking John Walker’s ass.

Ayo and the Dora Milaje. 

Did I mention Ayo and the Dora Milaje? 

I really want to know what Ayo said to Bucky there**. After everything the Wakandans did for him, I can understand why she did what she did. She helped give his freedom and his mind back to him. I know Bucky only intercepted in that particular fight because Sam asked him to and he didn’t (not totally) want them to hurt Walker but. They gave him this place of freedom and his actions (breaking Zemo out, getting involved in their fight) did disrespect them. 

The Dora stepping on and catching the Shield. SWOON.

“They weren’t even super soldiers.” Oh, boo freaking hoo. You don’t need the serum to be a superhero, dude. And the fact that you’re basing so much of this on that plus your obesssion to gt it just proves you’re not worthy of it. 

“Power just makes a person more of themselves, right?” Vs. “Because a strong man, who has known power all his life, will lose respect for that power. But a weak man knows the value of strength, and knows compassion."

Seriously, the expressions John Walker makes sends chills down my spine.

Karli calling Sarah. I actually thought she’d show up in person. Sarah’s comments about “Captain America” and her assurances that Sam is not working for Walker. 

Sam’s immediate protectiveness when Sarah calls him and Bucky’s worry on his behalf. Sam’s anger with Karli when they meet again and the fact that he didn’t argue with Bucky for him wanting to come rather than Sam going in alone. 

Sam and Bucky working together (anyone notice a lot less bickering??) is so amazing. I love them as a team. 

Sam’s face when he realizes that Walker took the serum. 

Quite honestly, if Bucky Barnes wanted to stab me with knives all night long, I’d let him. 

Not happy with them killing Lemar for white man pain. I’m sure there were other ways they could have had Walker rage out. 

That amazing parallel between Steve slamming the Shield down in Civil War to defend himself and Bucky and Walker killing a person who was just with Karli. 

Speaking of parallels, there was SO many in this episode. The serum vials being shattered. The bursting through the doors Shield first. The jumping out of the window with the Shield. Just wow. 

“The Whole World is Watching”. A quote from Black Panther when T’Challa did not kill Klaue, an actual terrorist. The title of this episode when John Walker kills a man who didn’t even incite his rage. 

And, of course, that final image. I’m still shaking over it. If there’s a better image for what America represents to the rest of the world, idk what is. I just want to cry after seeing what this man is doing with it. This is why he’s U.S. Agent who represents the “power” and “strength” and “might” of the United States. Not Captain America who represents the ideals and hopes of what any country can be. 

The acting in this is utterly incredible. The story has me reeling. My mind has been blown by each and every episode and I can’t believe there are only two left. 

**Edit: Got it now! Thanks to those who messaged/replied!! 

[something-in-the-seas]

Infinite rewrite part 2:

Elizabeth~

Okay, so let’s cut to the chase: there is no way Columbia, a fascist, fundamentalist society that focuses on ‘traditional values’ is going to be pumped to have Elizabeth as their girlboss when women aren’t even allowed to vote in mainland America. Get out of here with that.

Comstock was so utterly disappointed that Elizabeth was a girl when he finally looked under the blanket that he was actually going to just drop her off the side of the railing until Robert Lutece intervened in his last moments before losing consciousness.

Comstock wanted a son. Only a son would keep his line and political power. This was his only chance to find a son and Lutece promised him it was a boy. Rosalind may have lied.

He keeps her hidden from Lady Comstock for a while until her powers begin to show and he sees through the tears that an Anna and Elizabeth will give birth to a son in the future. A very special son with extraordinary powers. Comstock is suddenly very interested. If this boy is born with her powers, well, this would be fantastic for his goals. If Lady Comstock won’t give him a son, Elizabeth will give him a better grandson.

Lady Comstock doesn’t hate Elizabeth, it’s really a misunderstanding. She’s one of the few besides Robert (Rosalind does not care) who is genuinely disturbed by Comstock and Columbia obsessing over this child being set up to give birth to this Christ like figure. She’s ready to tell everyone that the baby was bought to collapse the house of cards, but she’s murdered before she can be a whistleblower.

Comstock’s plan is to brainwash Elizabeth to think like him so that when he passes on from cancer, she’ll be able to then brainwash her children. Especially that very special, future Boy Mayor of Columbia, who will infiltrate the US government to reign nuclear war down on them. He’ll then pick a husband so that they can actually make a baby only to then have the... Vox... ‘tragically’ kill him when he’s no longer useful. He winds up choosing Fink’s eldest son, and the less influence and power Fink has the better for him.

Being raised on Comstock’s beliefs, Elizabeth has a very narrow view of the world. She is convinced Daisy killed her mother, that the Vox are scoundrels, and has some pretty bigoted views. At least, until she actually interacts with others and sees that what she was taught was all wrong. She’s also unaware about the whole “giving birth to the Messiah” thing, all she knows is that her father is entrusting her with an important task that only she can carry out for the good of Columbia.

She hates Daisy and everything she stands for at first, believing that she murdered Lady Comstock, tried to kill the prophet, and is out to destroy Columbia for Satan. It’s only seeing Daisy’s backstory unfold and getting to know her does she realize Comstock fed her lies. Seeing the brutality first hand of Comstock’s followers and the living conditions of those in Shantytown disturbs her greatly.

She carries around a book and when nervous holds it close. She’s a romantic still and believes that she’ll marry a handsome prince like figure who will take her to Paris. The man she is arranged to marry is handsome like a prince but his personality is hideous. Her entire arc comes from relying less on the men around her and allowing them to control her, and more on fighting for the freedom to chose her own destiny.

She starts to come around to Daisy after the latter reveals that she read and dissected Les Miserables, Elizabeth’s favorite book. It causes a discussion which then turns into them sharing their admiration of Latin.

She doesn’t take the reveal very well. She’d never want to fail her father and disappoint him, not after all he’s done for her, but being forced in an arranged marriage and having to birth Jesus 2.0 is not what she wants. Especially when she sees how obsessed these old men are with her uterus and the “divine fruit that it will ripen.” Finding out Comstock was the one who killed her mother and was going to kill her as well is the biggest betrayal to her. At that point, she’s realized the only ones who are making the world rotten are people like him.

Elizabeth is actually pretty shy since she grew up in a tower. Even when she went through tears as a child, Comstock drilling in how those on the “sodom below” were damned to eternal hellfire made her uneasy about interacting with anyone. Most people she encountered on the surface were very kind to her, but she saw it as them trying to lower her guard to corrupt her. She does remember one little boy who taught her how to skip rocks and invited her home for dinner. She got so nervous of Comstock finding out and punishing her though, that she left.

When meeting new people and in crowds, she’ll cling onto Booker. The arcade in Battleship Bay is pretty overwhelming with all the sights and sounds and smells, so she really attaches herself onto him. She’s also very apprehensive about new things. Booker has to convince her to try cotton candy by buying some for himself and eating it in front of her.

After interacting with other people and with encouragement from Booker, she does start to open up a bit more. She even begins to get friendly with some of the Vox members around her age, though, for Booker, she’s getting a little too friendly with one of them. She tries to teach him how to read and he invites her to dance with him during a Vox party. They step on each other’s feet while Booker grumbles in the corner.

Elizabeth doesn’t hate Songbird, but she is conflicted about him. She considers him to be the only one who will ever really understand her, but he keeps her locked away. He’s her warden, her shoulder to cry on, her friend, and her other father. Even through all control Comstock has on him, Songbird is the one who comforts her, listens to her, and sneaks in little gifts. Booker and the others only see a monster, but she knows the truth.

The Columbians worship her as the Mother of the Deliverer. More and more, they begin to believe that the child born from her will be Christ himself. A lot of Mary and Jesus type of imagery of Elizabeth and The Son is littered all over the city. This is especially upsetting for those such as the Catholics, who are vocal in seeing it as blasphemy.

Surprise, surprise, the proclaimed messiah is literally the anti-Christ. If Booker can’t stop Songbird, Comstock will abuse Elizabeth to the point where she goes through with the wedding between her and Fink’s son, she’ll birth the Boy Mayor of Columbia, and New York will burn in nuclear fire after he is elected as president. Old Lady Elizabeth knows her children, especially her eldest son, are vile, horrible people who cannot be redeemed and she feels guilty for raising them to be this way. However, she does not have the heart to kill them herself because she loves them too much, even as they hurt so many. That is why she asks Booker to stop the wedding, so that they will never exist and she will be free.

Elizabeth displays her powers fully after the Vox aide Booker in controlling Songbird by blaring the CAGE notes on the speakers of the airships. They get Songbird to destroy the siphon, crash the wedding at the cathedral, and watch Elizabeth object to the wedding by opening the twister tear that sucks most of the guests, including her soon to be husband and Fink, out. She then lashes out with Songbird and takes out more and more people. Comstock, knowing that he is surrounded, tries in a last ditch effort to kill them all by using Songbird. Songbird, however, gets back some control of his free-will for a moment and uses it to kill Comstock.

Elizabeth knows, however, that it is not over until Comstock never existed. No Comstock means no Elizabeth, which means no anti-Christ. Songbird goes into a frenzy and tries to kill everyone left alive so she takes him to Rapture. Most of the events of the ending play out like normal. The answer of Anna actually being in the crib or not is revealed in Burial at Sea.

[shenanigans-and-imagines]

Can you give me your opinions on Phasma? And I want more than just ‘she did nothing so she sucks.’ Make it nuanced. (I feel they kind of made her a damsel in distress by accident, which led to me feeling protective of her and ultimately igniting my obsession with her. I still think she’s badass, don’t get that wrong, but I feel her vulnerable side is what made me love her.)

If you’re looking for any sympathy from me when it comes to Phasma, you won’t find it. However, I will attempt to make a more nuanced argument to explain how she fails utterly as the character she was designed to be. So, buckle in.

First, let’s lay some ground rules.

I will not be discussing any of her backstory given in the books, comics, or other forms of media.  This is a discussion specifically about how her character is utilized in the movies.  Her backstory, no matter how tragic or interesting, is irrelevant.

Second, let’s define what I mean by “the character she was designed to be”. All characters are meant to serve a function in the story.  A protagonist drives the plot.  And antagonist apposes the antagonist.  Even background characters are meant to flesh out the world in some capacity.

By the director’s own definition Phasma was mean to be, “the new Boba Fett”.  Meaning, her main function was to be a minor antagonist to one of the main trio, besides the main protagonist.  Yes, there are the superficial comparisons such as having a cool character design, not having that main lines or screen time, etc, but that’s all they are, superficial.  Her job is to be a minor antagonist, specifically to Finn.  Like how Boba Fett is a minor antagonist specifically to Han Solo.

Now what fandom has skewed for many people is that Boba Fett is not a deep character in the Original Trilogy.  He shows up in The Empire Strikes back, has a cool character design, leads Vader to Han and Leia and then fucks off.  Then, in Return of the Jedi, he’s hanging out in Jabba’s palace, kinda chillin’, and is killed unceremoniously by Han Solo. 

He’s a flat character, which is not a bad thing by any means.  A story needs flat characters just as much as they need round ones.  You don’t need to know his whole backstory for him to function in the story.  Just like you don’t need to know why Greedo is hunting Han Solo in A New Hope or what Maul’s deal is in the Phantom Menace.

A flat character is there for the round characters to bounce off of while they go off on their own journey.  If everybody is a round character in your story, there would be no focus.  Flat characters are still good characters.

Now, with those definitions establish, when I say Captain Phasma fails as a character, I mean she fails at her function at being a flat minor antagonist.

She’s flat, don’t get me wrong.  All she does in the story is carry out Kylo Ren’s order to kill the villagers, berate Finn for taking off his helmet, allow Finn and Han to capture her, turn off the shield for Star Killer Base, and get shoved down the garbage shoot.  She then shows up at the very end to fight Finn and die almost immediately.

Nothing really there regarding her backstory or deeper motivation. Which is, again, completely fine.  She doesn’t need any more than that.  She’s a muscle baddy, along the lines of Jaws from the James Bond franchise.  Somebody who serves to do the main villain’s dirty work. However, the difference between her and Boba Fett, or Jaws, or even Maul, is that she never had a moment of victory that impacts the plot.  She never really has a moment of victory, period.

While Vader is the one to put Han in carbonate, it’s Boba Fett that leads Vader to him.  There is even a cool moment on the ship where Vader steps directly in from of Boba Fett, pointing to him and says, “no disintegration” implying that Boba Fett has a reputation for disintegrating people, which is just kinda bad ass. Either way, Boba Fett’s victory impacts the plot of The Empire Strikes Back.  His action causes Vader to find Han and Leia, driving the rest of the story forward.

Maul, in The Phantom Menace does the same thing.  He just shows up to wreck Qui Gon’s and Obi Wan’s day.  Yes, he gets more development in The Clone Wars, but in the films, all we know about him is that he’s a Sith and is following the orders of his master.  He then gets one of the most bad ass introductions in cinematic history and proceeds to kill Qui Gon Jinn.  Qui Gon’s death literal changes the fate of every character in the franchise.  Even though Obi Wan kills him a few minutes later, Maul’s victor impacts the story.

Phasma never gets a moment like this.  Her being captured by Finn and Han is not her, “showing vulnerability”, it’s failing to do her job.  She then proceeds to do what they ask her to do, rather than do the more impactful thing like refusing to tell them.  Literally she could have been replaced with any lackey in The First Order and it would make no difference.  And in The Last Jedi, she does even less, ultimately losing to Finn with no really moment of true victory before to make it impactful.

All the posturing in the world doesn’t make up for the fact that she does nothing on screen.  Her one function as a character was to prove herself a viable threat to at least one of the protagonist, and she literally never does. 

So, in conclusion; she does nothing, so she sucks.