#we have learned time and time again that they'd do anything to justify the killing of people

[roachliquid]

Man. It really bites seeing Maximus (from the Fallout series) be so heavily overlooked by the fandom, when he is such a well-written character. Bar none, he's one of the best fictional examples I have ever seen of someone raised in a high-control group.

The Brotherhood of Steel, in their entirety, are given all the classic traits of a cult or HCG. They boast about having these grandiose ideals, all of which revolve around controlling other people's behavior. They use those same ideals to justify abusing lower-ranking members, implying all the while that it serves some greater good. And despite their supposedly rigorous beliefs, they're happy to turn a blind eye to unsanctioned abuse - because it serves the same purpose of keeping people "in their place".

Then we're introduced to Maximus - a young man who has made the mistake of taking those ideals seriously, but due to the environment he's been trapped in, was never taught how to act on them in a real and meaningful way. And in the process of figuring that out, he fucks up. (He fucks up a lot, because the Brotherhood wouldn't dare teach him anything that might help him function without their support.) But he genuinely wants to do the right thing, and we see that come through time and again as he slowly learns how to be his own person.

And yet, even with all that growth under his belt, getting away from the group isn't that simple. Because, like any high control group worth its salt, the Brotherhood doesn't want you to leave. Sure, they'll threaten to kick you out (or in this case, kill you) - because it keeps you in line. But they'd much rather have you under their thumb, so he still has to deal with the threat of getting sucked back in.

As a cult survivor, I rarely see people like me depicted accurately in the media. We're almost always either scheming sadists or helpless barefoot victims - you rarely see a nuanced depiction of how a regular person, with both good intentions and the skills needed to get away, can still end up trapped in that kind of group. Maximus is an incredible example of how that can play out, and I hope more people come to appreciate both him as a character and how well that dynamic was handled.

[leonidas1754]

Hey you wanna know a kinda fucky idea that's been bouncing around in my head since I woke up for some reason.

Spoilers for 2nd Scenario/Coming of Age/SF/Slasher. Also just like. A lot of canon-typical technically temporary character death. Not graphic or anything but it definitely happens.

I've touched on how the literal only thing that matters to Takumi is his friends and how damaging that is to him in another post. So, what if he starts remembering timelines more often like Hiruko apparently does?

Like, even discounting the slasher timeline if he could learn to accept that he wasn't in control (which we see in SF he does not really do well), remembering all the times his friends have died and the responsibility he feels for failing them, and remembering the SF timeline where they thought for certain they'd escaped, but if he's here remembering it, that means they didn't (Bc really there's a few things fucky with the SF timeline and ending 55 that make me think they didn't actually escape the time loop).

And of course there's everything with Eito. Killing him, sparing him, trying to help him. Arguing with Eito about it in this timeline because Takumi wants to help him.

I find it a compelling conflict of ideas. Yes, Takumi does clearly have something at least resembling a savior complex (I don't think it's entirely accurate to say he completely has one, not in every timeline), but at the same time, Eito's cognitive distortion causes a lot of suffering. There's the obvious in that he's a danger to others, but there's also just Eito himself, intensely harmed by the isolation and anger living like that has caused and continues to cause him. It makes perfect sense that Takumi would want to help him, even playing down what happens in Route 0. And time and again, Takumi has failed to successfully help him, including doing things he feels deeply guilty for while remembering them in this timeline.

In Coming of Age, he suggested Sirei put Eito through that awful brainwashing machine. Sure, he didn't fully realize what the "therapy" was or what it entailed, but he'd seen the effect it had on Eva, and of course, with his knowledge from 2nd Scenario, he fully understands what it does now. And of course, by the end of CoA, Eito reveals it didn't actually work, meaning he put Eito through that suffering for nothing. All of the joy and happiness and such they experienced together was a lie for the sake of Eito's arguably semi-justified rage.

And in SF, they use that Cognitive Glitch Repair Program, which seems to work, but Takumi doesn't really see the results of the program without the brainwashing. We know Hiruko put him through it, and that it's supposedly far harder to shake this time. Takumi again doesn't fully understand what the brainwashing is in SF, but he doesn't have much time to question it regardless, instead fully focusing on the goal of breaking the time loop.

He tries to discuss this with Eito, but Eito is predictably incredibly antagonistic, painting Takumi as having a savior complex. When Takumi points out the real harm Eito's condition does to him, Eito laughs in his face, because he can't accept that idea that his righteous eyes have only hurt him, perceiving it as a gift is his only coping mechanism. If Takumi truly wants to see him happy, then he should leave Eito alone so Eito doesn't have to deal with a repulsive human, or better yet, let Eito kill everyone, both the SDU and the humans in the Artificial Satellite.

All of it is pointless. No matter what he does, what he tries, Takumi is stuck. He can't save his friends, he can't help Eito, he can't do anything.

And he just kind of snaps.

Eito wakes up one morning to his cage unlocked. He waits, figuring it'd be more trouble than it's worth, but no one comes to bring his food all morning, and eventually, he leaves to investigate. No one seems to be in the rest of the Academy, and he can't find Sirei either, even in the Defense Room. The only place he hasn't checked yet is the roof.

When he goes up there, he finds the doors of their rooms open, and Takumi near the fence, infuser in hand. He just... smiles at Eito, not the least bit surprised he's escaped, and apologizes because he meant to come back, but everything took a little longer than expected. Eito is, of course, confused, so Takumi explains.

Takumi drugged the rest of the SDU. It was a bit tricky, but Yugamu was already dead in this timeline, and he was the only one who really could've picked up on it, most likely. They were sleeping completely soundly, just like in that one timeline where the G'ie used something similar. He also destroyed Sirei, which was the cause of the delay- getting revived took longer than anticipated.

And then, Takumi absorbed the hemoanima of every single person left.

Eito is understandably gobsmacked, because, well, this is the same person who just had a discussion/argument about Takumi wanting to save all of the people he cares about, including Eito. At first he thinks Takumi just saved him for last, but Takumi shakes his head.

No, he did it because he was bound to have an easier time doing so than Eito would. Now, Takumi has all their hemoanima, so when Eito kills him, he'll have all the power he could possibly need. Killing V'exhness and returning to the Artificial Satellite shouldn't be a problem.

Maybe Takumi can't save Eito, but he can try to make at least one timeline where Eito can be happy. Usually, the time loop resets on day 100, but there's times it pushes beyond that a little, including that one time where Takumi remembers having spent fifteen years afterwards trying to achieve peace between the Futurans and Humanity. And even if it doesn't extend like that this time, well, Eito won't know, so he can still be happy with having won.

Takumi definitely expects him to talk about how awful Takumi has turned out to be and whatnot, but to take Takumi's offer to absorb him. Hard to say how Eito would actually react, though, if the "Together Forever" ending is anything to go by (I haven't actually gotten it myself yet but I've Heard About It lol).

[ramblings-of-a-mad-cat]

Damn, with your track record of unpopular opinions and hot takes, I was sort of hoping you'd be TG. Ah well lol. Have you seen the S2 trailer?

I'm not really anything.

I've certainly made a number of posts supporting Team Liquorice over Team Broccoli (I prefer to use those names as I am uncomfortable calling any faction that House Velaryon associates with "The Blacks.") and I stand by pretty much everything I said in them, but if you want to see some Pro-Broccoli posts, I can make those too. I know it's cliche to call myself "Team Smallfolk" but I really am first and foremost on their side. I've always said that this war did not need to happen and it was within the Highborns' power to stop it, to prevent the common people from having to go through The Dance. All that needed to happen was for someone to concede. That's it. Literally all it would have taken, and to her credit, Rhaenyra considers doing this.

Team Broccoli have it tricky, because the show is framed around Rhaenyra, it centralizes her as the protagonist. It puts Alicent and her faction in the role of antagonists of Rhaenyra's story. Additionally...it' would be difficult to identify as a Green, because right out of the gate, you'd have to defend yourself and clarify that of course you're NOT a misogynist. The Broccoli faction is heavily associated with misogyny as they are trying to prevent a woman from taking the throne. Naturally, this doesn't mean that people who support Aegon over Rhaenyra are sexist - and if you're one of the people saying that...um, stop it. They are fictional characters in a fictional war. We really shouldn't be taking it that seriously, and it's disingenuous to act like misogyny is the only reason a fan might choose Aegon. Even the Hightowers don't really care that Rhaenyra is a woman. That's the basis they're using to seize the throne, but that's nothing more than a means to an end. If Rhaenyra were a man, they'd still want to seat Aegon, they'd just have to think of something else to justify it.

I have seen the trailers, and I love just about everything about them. I especially love how they gave us one for each team, that is genius. The only thing I don't love is how we're already getting a reduced count of episodes, from ten to eight. Particularly since this show is apparently only going to be four seasons or so, this hurts. Like, did you guys learn nothing from the last two seasons of Game of Thrones? All the negative reception they got for how rushed they felt? Even if they wanted to say, push certain battles back to Season 3 for the sake of budget, they could have stretched things out a little more, given the episodes, characters, and plots time to breathe. I don't know, it also just depends on how much content is available to be adapted.

Hey, here's a nice thing I can say about Team Broccoli. Your trailer slaps. Team Liquorice's trailer is just kind of average. Then again, the main reason the green trailer is better is because of the Aegon content. He's everywhere in this trailer and he is killing it, so I really hope this is a sign that they'll make him more important. Also, he now has the funniest line in the entire show so far. "To war then!" Like. Oh god. You absolute idiot, you slay me. Meanwhile, Rhaenyra's trailer is...fine. There's nothing wrong with it. I'm just glad they fixed Jace's hair. (And ruined Criston's, it's a tradeoff.) I love everything to do with Alicent and Rhaenys in these trailers, they really are setting up to be the voices of reason. How bout that scene of Alicent in the dress she wore back in episode one? I'm thinking dream sequence, because why would she still have that dress after all this time? There's also poor Helaena with a knife to her throat. That kills me, because I've read the books and I know what scene that is...

[lightofraye]

What kills me are the comments I've seen by her/his so-called stans on videos that show Danneel belittling/putting him down. They'd be all "YAS QUEEN!" or "yeah, he deserved to be taken down!" like... why??? No, seriously, why did he need to be taken down? In that particular moment, he wasn't doing anything to deserve such a response!

"It's just their banter!"

Banter requires two people to be actively involved! Want a good example of banter? Here, from Facebook. This couple has been married 20+ years and still banter like this!

There was more in the comments, setting all of us laughing. They do this frequently, and we could tell it was out of love and affection. The way Danneel does it? NOT. Danneel takes Jensen down all the time because she's wildly insecure. He has a decently successful career, a handful of real friends that actually care about him, and makes decent money.

Anything she tries to do fails and turns into dust. She isn't willing to put in the work. She doesn't want the effort, just the rewards. She lies through her teeth about everything. She has so badly diminished Jensen and all the stans cheer her on.

Wales Comic Con was a good 50 minutes of her repeatedly insulting him, demeaning him, belittling him. She made fun of his voice, which got a defensive response from him. He avoided responding to her comments because he knew if he did, he'd pay for it later.

His own statement about how he handle arguments was a big red flag, as he mentioned several terms that an abuse victim would use. Jared's response was couched in love and understanding. Jensen's was clearly that of someone who learned not to fight back because all it'd do is net more anger and belittlement, even if it was in defense of self, even if it was a justified response.

Danneel is not, never will be, someone worthy of any fan adoration. She's proven that again and again and again over the years. She can scrub her history from the internet, but we've seen her true colors.

I'd rather give fan adoration to Audrey Hepburn, Angelina Jolie (some missteps notwithstanding), or anyone else. Never her.

And no: just because she's Jensen's wife does not mean I have to respect her. She hasn't given me any reason to.

Danneel stannies logic: Jensen is married to Danneel and therefore I MUST stan her.

The reality is there’s nothing, nothing creepier than overinvested fans in a relantionship where they don’t belong. Most of her stans’ comments and posts make my skin crawl. Get a grip on reality before making fools of yourselves in the eyes of the very people you are trying to ingratiate with.

[oveliagirlhaditright]

I never gave this panel much thought, even though something I'm about to show/explain in a moment shows that Buffy didn't know about "Not Fade Away" in season 8. (The above panel is from season 9.) I just assumed Angel and Spike must have finally filled her in about it here in season 9.

So, yeah: the proof that Buffy didn't know about it in season 8, and isn't letting Angel tell her about it at the time (though Buffy is definitely justified in her anger here atm and in not wanting to talk/listen):

But now I'm thinking that when she does finally learn about it in season 9, it was probably just Spike who just told her about it--which is really kind of sad, when that whole thing was Angel's whole idea and major sacrifice, really--since she and Angel aren't talking at the time.

But, yeah... everyone in the comics who didn't live in L.A. didn't know about "Not Fade Away." For months, the entire city gets sucked into Hell at the end of that episode. At the end of "Angel: After the Fall," which covers that whole thing, Connor dies. And Angel is unwilling to accept that, of course. And he and Wesley very cleverly realize that Wolfram & Hart want him for their plans and won't just accept his death and will be willing to do anything to stop it, should it happen. So, he then kills himself. And then in order to save him/bring him back, the Senior Partners have to undo the past months, and they essentially make it so everything that happened in "Not Fade Away" (following the alleyway fight) never did. And because of this, only the people in L.A. who had gotten sucked into Hell remembered that L.A. had ever disappeared and that they'd been gone. So while Buffy probably did know that Angel and the crew were gone at the time it happened and mourned them, by the above part of S8 she no longer does.

And while we're at it... let's just talk about the comics hinting at the information that was passed along from the Buffy group to the Angel groups--and vice versa--as a whole. Because I've meant to discuss this for a long time:

So, Angel and Spike clearly told Buffy about Illyria. And since Buffy flat-out says Angel was part of that, this was undoubtedly in season 5 that that discussion happened.

Angel must have told Buffy stuff about Connor (who then told Xander). There can be no other explanation for the above scene, really.

I will say that one thing that kind of saddens... actually, even ticks me off a little (though at least where the shows were concerned, there were legal issues involved, in which it got to a point where Buffy and Angel couldn't appear on each other's shows anymore--at least not very easily--because they were on different networks), is that after Buffy and Angel breakup he shows up a number of times to help Buffy out with her apocalypses or to be moral support for her when she needs him. But Buffy only ever shows up to help Angel once. (Edit: And this is why, even though it's not the canon verse, I actually kind of prefer the "In Every Generation" timeline where Buffy took an army of Slayers to help Angel and the A.I. team in the "Not Fade Away" battle.)

I've seen the argument that it's because the one time she did go to help him (the Faith thing in "Sanctuary") it didn't go well, they were on two different sides of that argument, and just ended up fighting with each other. But that's not a good enough explanation for me. Really, I feel like that's just an excuse to try and justify it, when really it makes no sense and kind of paints Buffy in a bad light.

And we see in the comics that there were definitely times when Angel wanted Buffy's help/could've used her help, but didn't get it (though of course, once again, he goes to help her with one of her apocalypses in the comics. And is treated kind of badly while most people there while doing so. Which I do get after the whole Twilight thing, but sheesh!):

(In the above panel, Dawn's beginning to fade away--and people are starting to forget her--as the world no longer has magic in it anymore.)

Which is why I'm actually kind of glad we get this moment in season twelve, where Angel takes this apocalypse he needs help with to Buffy and is basically like, "Yeah, you're all going to help me with this, and I don't want to hear it."

Anyway...

Edit: However... in the classic comics, at least, Buffy went to help Angel a few times (which I so appreciate!). Thank God.

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[desertdragon]

Two headcanons

After the events of Shadowbringers and having put all of the residual Warriors of Darkness souls to rest, Vaste finds each Source version of the relic weapons they once used and brings them to the First

She goes to the spot they originally died, by a hill in Kholusia, and stabs each weapon beside one another at the crest- this is their memorial where everyone else let everything they did besides their sins be forgotten

She visits them as frequently as she can and especially to mark milestones in her life, since we see their spirits at the end game cutscene I imagine they're capable of reappearing in the world from time to time, and they'd probably figure out what she's done for them, learn through her that Cylva is still alive too

They talk to her on these occasions, either as individuals or in pairs and as a group, but half the time it's empty, and that's still ok for Vaste because there's still the idea that they're listening whereever they are now- other times when they come down I'm sure they'd check on Cylva now and then too

All she ever wanted was to be their friend, she gets her wish

--------

Her relationship with her younger brother U'ingwe was very much influenced by the positivity and support her older sister U'rahtalo gave her whenever she was down- with her brother being born rather small and initially reserved even for a Drake, she felt a commonality with them both being separate in some way from the Normal of everyone else (at the time of course she didn't know she was mixed heritage and just figured she'd been born a little different)

In a way interacting with him showed and cultivated the first signs of her ability to lead people through kindness; even after they've separated he embodies her old self, the kinder, open, and more gentle person, back when her worst experience was the guilt after killing an old Sundrake for her huntress trial- that's the person she wishes she still largely was without faking most of it as she tends to now

She would do nearly anything for him and her sister despite the huge differences between their places in life

In the events I have conceptualized for after her goal for a world without Primals and magic, I imagine she slowly relearns those parts of herself, though forever afflicted by her traumas yet working past them with her loved ones and herself- she would vow never to kill again and cultivate life than end it, all the killing during the fighting previous weighs hard on her, there was so much of it it feels pointless and as if she's drowning in death itself seeing so many lives ended, justified or not she'd want an end at last to so much carnage and no more souls added to those haunting her mind after she killed them

I feel like most regular people would think she died in changing the world, so her resolve to be more pacifist just completes the deception that she's just some farmer or whatever exactly she chooses to do as a civilian, that's ok by her, people can have the myth, they don't need to throw themselves at her feet and she never liked that anyway

She wants to go back to being nobody and live life how she pleases above all else