#where it’s not like a confirmed thing unless you interpret it that way

[squuote]

we need to go back to when people treated stanarrator as a small fun aspect of the game and not the fandom’s main focus please. yes the narrator is gay or whatever, cool, let’s talk about him possibly being a skull now

[guessthatrec-poll]

Welcome to the Guess That Rec tournament!

Do you like enemies-to-lovers? Non-stereotypical queer rep? A cyberpunk setting with dragons in space about friendship, family, and the dangers of capitalism?

Well, this isn't any of those things! This is Guess That Rec, a tournament by the mod of @besttropeveershowdown where we'll be voting on media based entirely on bad, Booktok-style recommendations. Inspired by @guess-that-ship and this post, the rules of the tournament are simple: submit a recommendation for your favorite piece of media, and we'll vote on which ones we like best, BUT, here's the kicker: You may not mention anything about the actual plot of the story. Instead, we will be voting based on promo-post-style recommendations, which can include tropes, representation, setting, genre, very general theme, and anything else, as long as it doesn't describe anything that actually happens in the story!

Example:

Do you want a high school story about a neurodivergent protagonist working through their trauma by going on adventures in the big city? Queer-coded side characters? Male characters breaking through their toxic masculinity and expressing their feelings? Wholesome sibling relationships?

Then you'll love Catcher in the Rye!

The tournament will work similarly to the way @guess-that-ship does. Each rec will be assigned a number for the poll with the rec itself going in the body of the post, and each round, there will be a poll pitting 2 recs against each other. Vote for whichever piece of media sounds most appealing based on the rec alone. At the end of each round, I will reveal the identity of the loser. Guessing what work each rec is for in the comments is encouraged!

The submission form is here.

THE RULES:

Any type of media is permitted. Both fiction and nonfiction are allowed, but everything must be presented as if it's fiction.

You may NOT mention anything to do with the actual plot or premise of the story. You may, however, mention:

Tropes (ex. enemies-to-lovers, fake dating, unreliable narrator)

Representation (ex. disabled protagonist, gay side character)

Character dynamics and relationships (ex. dysfunctional siblings, grumpy x sunshine lesbians)

Setting (ex. in space, in the Old West)

Genre and subgenre (ex. historical fiction, whodunnit, workplace comedy)

Comparisons to other media (ex. if you liked Avengers you'll love this, it's Twilight meets Hunger Games)

General themes (ex. love, grief, family)

General elements (ex. murders, adventures, road trips)

Anything else that has NOTHING TO DO with what the story is actually about!

3. You may NOT make anything up: everything must be technically true, or at least up for interpretation. So, in my Catcher in the Rye example, I can't say that there are "canonically gay characters" because there aren't, but I CAN say that there are queer-coded characters. Similarly, if there's a character in your piece of media who exhibits autistic traits but has never been confirmed autistic, you can't call them "autistic", but you can call them "autistic-coded" or mention their specific traits. The use of weasel words (ex. describing a mentally ill serial killer stereotype as "neurodivergent", or a gay villain as a "major queer character") is allowed and encouraged.

4. Do not include any identifying details (ex. title, character names, identifying place names) in your rec.

5. Funnier submissions will be given higher priority. Submissions are funnier if A) they're of media that most people have heard of, and B) they are technically true while not at all capturing the vibe of the media.

5a. Additionally, remember that this is meant to be BAD recs: don't just use this as an excuse to recommend your favorite media! If a Booktok-style rec actually provides a good picture of what your media is, consider either rewriting or not submitting it.

6. Should the same media be submitted by two different people with different recs, priority will generally be given to the first submission, unless a later submission was significantly funnier by the guidelines stipulated in rule #5.

7. There is no banned media: go nuts!

Submissions will be open for at least 2 weeks, depending on how many I get, after which polls will begin! Happy recommending!

Tagging @tournament-announcer!

[wispstalk]

Some writing advice for hunting, bc I see a lot of hunting scenes in fantasy that make me itch. More under the cut. Don't read if you're sensitive to blood-and-guts discussion or animal death.

Finding game:

- I don't hunt much these days bc I don't feel like getting my ass out of bed at shitfuck o'clock every weekend during the season. Which you have to do, because much of the time you come home empty-handed. Successful hunts come about when you're out there often.

- You don't really have to be a good tracker to hunt, but you do have to know the basics of your prey and you have to be able to interpret the landscape even if it's unfamiliar. It's less likely a tracker is looking for "bent blades of grass" or whatever and more likely they are noticing game trails, sheltered areas where nests and burrows are, a spot of thick vegetation which would indicate a water source.

- Scat and footprints are useful too ofc but to varying degrees. If I'm hunting deer it's just confirmation that they're in the area; more often I use knowledge of their habits to actually find them. If I were hunting something elusive and solitary like a cougar I would pay more attention to the tracks but that's also a reason people hunt with dogs!

Actually hunting:

- Bows are not the only hunting weapons, though would be most common in ur typical medieval fantasy type setting. Spears and lances, slings with stones, and clubs would also be used. And knives and swords but in this hunter's opinion, FUUUUCK that.

- Lung shot is a quick death. Heart shot and head shot too but that is much harder. Other shots might mean tracking a wounded animal as it runs away. This is where things like broken twigs/bent grass are especially telling, and ofc blood. Small game bleed out faster and won't get as far but you might spend quite a while running after an elk shot in the flank.

- This highly depends on the prey but hunting often involves more sitting around than people realize. I bring a small pad for my booty ass bc sometimes you'll spend hours in a strategic spot waiting for the game to pass by. Also hides (the shelter, not the skins) are a thing and most hunters would consider shelter-building an essential skill.

- Hunting seasons are not entirely a modern convention -- there are better times of year to find different animals. But there would be less concern, historically, about killing animals during the breeding season than we have today.

- Even when I was hunting regularly and more confident, I got a huge adrenaline spike EVERY time I had an animal in my sights.

Big game:

- A deer has a lot of meat on it and though it's not a bad thing to leave a carcass for scavengers, your party of two or three adventurers probably will not go to the trouble of hunting deer unless they have some nearby place to cache, preserve, or trade what they can't eat before it spoils. Are they leaving it behind or do they have some way to take full advantage of such a large kill?

- If your character gets a large game animal they're probably going to field dress it: deal with all the blood and guts on site, then quarter it so it can be packed back to the campsite or whatever. My dad is a big burly mutant man and he cannot carry a deer by himself. You can carry game on poles or horseback too but field dressing is pretty typical in a situation where u can't just fling it in the back of the truck and hang it at home.

- I grew up eating bear and when it comes up I'm often surprised how many people don't know that people hunt bear for meat. It's tasty imo, especially makes a good sausage

- I can hunt deer alone, though company is nice. I wouldn't attempt hunting something more dangerous by myself. Large animals especially are better taken down as a group effort. In the TES context for example it would be kind of insane to hunt horker alone. Not that some folks wouldn't try.

Small game:

- A character who subsists mostly on hunting is going to be eating a lot of small game. They are probably going to use traps and snares in addition to actually going out on hunts.

- Look up "rabbit starvation." Small game is often (but not always) lean and going without fat for a long time can cause serious health issues.

- I joke that you don't hunt turkey, you just go get one. Game birds are kind of stupid. I plan a deer hunt, but I have gone out and shot grouse on a whim.

Processing:

- Draining blood, skinning, plucking, butchering, dealing with all the bones and guts, storage and preservation: pretty time consuming and involved. It's a good excuse for social activity.

- The moneyed classes likely would not process their kills themselves, unless they're doing some kinda randyll tarly masculinity flex for the symbolism. Kitchen staff or a local butcher would handle it.

- A good skinning knife is kinda wide and short. Some game knives have a rounded tip which keeps it from puncturing the skin in case of accidental slippage.

- Skinning is done with a light hand bc puncturing the digestive system means you've poisoned the meat. I will say it is less difficult than I expected it to be the first time I tried it.

- We don't eat a lot of offal in the US but a deer liver, for example, would be considered prime meat by many and eaten first. Bear, walrus, and seal liver contain toxic amounts of vitamin A and would be thrown away.

- I've been told every animal has enough brains to tan its own hide, but I think there are some exceptions. It's definitely true of deer and elk. With small animals like rabbits it's hardly worth the effort of getting the brains out and other things can be used but brain tanned leather is soooo soft and nice.

- Hides and pelts are useful and valuable and would be kept or traded if circumstances allowed. You can tightly roll a hide to keep it from drying out before tanning, or you can freeze it, basically indefinitely. You can also air dry it once scraped clean and soften it later, which is what fur hunters would most likely do for efficiency's sake. Tanning is also so so so fucking gross imo. Really slimy process, and tanneries REEK.

That's all I can think of for now and this is already hella long but the takeaway is that it is generally a pretty involved activity and more impactful on lifestyle than I usually see depicted. So there ya have it

[pippin-katz]

How Long Did It Take For Charles To Find Edwin In Hell?

I did warn you people that you'd start seeing my name in this tag a lot, so hello again! I'm having more thoughts! Something that has been poking me in the back of my mind is the shift in Edwin's behavior in Hell.

First, we see him running around in a state of obvious distress. He's panicked, and he doesn't seem to know where he's going, or rather can't remember the layout (that's why he wrote it down in first place).

He is running though, and manages to find the room Simon is in to briefly hide from the monster. He's not okay, but he's definitely trying.

Then Edwin talks to Simon, and he tells him with confidence that he is going to escape Hell again, asking him to come with him.

The important part is that Edwin literally says, "I'm going to get out of here again." He says it like he believes it. He's determined, even if he's still terrified. He's going to keep trying, and must feel pretty confident in his willpower to invite Simon to come with him. It would be a death sentence to take Simon just for him to give up. Edwin wouldn't do that to him, so he must really believe that he's going to get out somehow. He asks him twice to come with him.

Edwin, despite claiming to not be good with people, is actually incredibly compassionate. This is the boy who got him killed as a teenager and sentenced to 70 years in Hell all because he wanted to prank him. Someone hurting you on accident doesn't erase the pain they caused; like Jenny, who acknowledges that there was no way for Niko to know that Maxine was violent and deranged, but still can't forgive her yet. Edwin gets angry for all of a few minutes, then immediately catches himself while talking to Despair. He not only calms down from his anger, he tries to defend Simon to Despair; when she sends him back, he's in the middle of saying "he didn't realize-"

The fact that Edwin is that quick to forgive Simon, even before he learned he fancied him, shows incredible empathy. He's not going to drag Simon through the Dollhouse unless he's absolutely sure he can, eventually, get them out.

So Edwin is determined and motivated to escape again. At least, that's how he acts here.

The very next time we see him is when Charles finds him. All of that determination, confidence, willpower, or whatever motivates him to try and escape is completely gone.

Edwin is sitting completely out in the open in the hallway, at intersection that has three different directions things can come from. Hell, there's light falling through the roof on him like a spotlight. He's curled up and crying.

Could he be any easier for the demon to kill right now? Hell, the Spider snatches him up effortlessly a few moments later to prove the point.

Why was he curled up, out in the open, crying? He has to know without a doubt that it'll get him caught and killed easily. The only thing he could do to make this worse would be to start screaming loudly so it locate him even faster.

The only reason he would be doing that would be if he'd given up on escaping. And that's then confirmed when Charles finds him in the cell. Despite being confident enough in his ability to escape that he invited Simon, he's now completely lost all hope entirely, even with Charles' presence. It takes Charles basically forcing him into action with the bomb he rolls at the Spider for him to move from being curled up into a ball in the corner.

How did Edwin go from having enough confidence in his ability to escape again to invite Simon, to completely hopeless, in what appears to us like a few hours?

Edwin is stubborn as fuck, and went through this shit for 70+ years. I find it a bit difficult to believe that he would go from being that determined to utterly defeated in a couple hours; this made me think of a common headcannon/theory/interpretation of time in Hell moving differently.

We get very little of Hell when you take a step back. There's a large map of Hell in the Lost & Found Department, the same as the one Charles shows the others when he's explains Edwin wrote about his experience. The Night Nurse says there are "entire worlds" in Hell.

I actually already intended to bring this up at some point, but Edwin tells Charles: "I spent 70 years, in the worst place, with worst people."

We don't see anyone else in the Dollhouse; Simon is in an attached room, but Edwin clearly didn't find it the first time. There's people in the Lust and Gluttony rooms, as well as Limbo, but it's not like Edwin could've talked to them to find out why they were sent to Hell. We can see that it's possible that people who don't fully deserve to be there can end up there. Simon was there for sacrificing Edwin, but we see he has immense amounts of guilt and did it on accident. After talking to Edwin, the blue light appears, so it seems that people can be redeemed/find salvation. We also know that Edwin was passed around to three demons. Sa'al, the first one, a demon in the middle, and the Spider.

So, my curiosity lies in how and where in Hell Edwin ended up interacting with "bad guys who do not worry about being bad guys". It's definitely not in the Dollhouse.

Back to the main point, we know very little about Hell, so the concept of time passing differently is definitely possible. Seeing the massive swift in Edwin's behavior/emotional state, I think it's worth thinking about.

Maybe it's similar to the Cat King's room, but in reverse, where one minute stretches into one hour in Hell. Maybe it depends on where you are. The 70 year time period that Edwin says he experienced lines up with the years in the mortal plane, so maybe it doesn't. Maybe I'm just assuming too much of Edwin's personality. I don't know, just thought I'd throw the thought out there! 🙃

(ko-fi)

[lilirot]

As far the whole "Homicipher isn't romantic (enough)" debate- Like I'd definitely say it's romance lite but it's definitely got romance especially if you read between the lines. It doesn't have a lot of the "dating" aspects you'd expect from a otome but considering the setting is that really surprising? Hard to go on a date in a constantly shifting labyrinth where the closet thing to a restaurant (a random ghostly painting) is serving unknown meat and blood "tea". (Spoilers)

Like, barring Mr. Silvair, who outright says he's not interested in you, and Mr.Machete barely acknowledges your existence in general in his route. All the other boys pretty obviously (to me) are attracted to MC romantically. Mr. Crawling is the most obvious with his route him outright saying it, and like, the other Mr.Crawling focused ending is literally called "Blissful Love Life". Mr.Scarletella is the same. He says he likes/love you, he says you like/love him (even if you don't agree obsessive love is still love). Honestly, I'm pretty sure that Scarlet Rain is the actual canon ending too. Mr.Hood you could absolutely interpret as more parental in his route for MC, but I think we need to use Otome's Razor (It's an Otome game so assume all the characters are into MC unless stated otherwise), here that it very much still equally possible he likes you too. Mr.Chopped is the most interesting because you definitely have to extrapolate based on information over the whole game and not just like his route. In fact Mr.Silvair's route, the explicitly non-romance route, pretty much confirms that Mr.Chopped is interested in MC. The monster that Mr.Silvair kills is Mr.Chopped, he ended up that way because MC mentioned that it would be for the best if he had a body, if he wasn't interested in MC he probably wouldn't have bothered to convinced Silvair to help him get his body back and ultimately turn into a mindless beast. Which is fucked up honestly. Bro just wanted to impress MC but ended up getting actually killed (seriously, he's one of the few characters that actually dies in this game what the fuck lmao)

[sgiandubh]

I love your style, intelligent, down to earth, very practical, not in the 5-10 children in 7 years part of the fandom. Guess that’s why I’m very intrigued by your take on recent events. I feel a massive shift in their public behavior, very different from the last 6-7 years where they tried very hard to separate themselves from their characters and each other. Why do you think that is?

Dear @i-ship,

Thank you very much for the kind words. I try to keep things in check and base my opinions on solid facts. Not 'FACTS', mind you, but as much as possible publicly available documents and data. The not so public things (meaning you have to pay for those, which indicates a different confidentiality level) I keep for myself, because I am not an idiot: in no way, however, do they contradict the rest, in which case I would immediately recalibrate my analysis. I also know very well that confirmation bias has often been mentioned as a sad excuse across the street, when things didn't look good for them. That is wishful bullshit, because no legal professional would prostitute their skill in order to shoehorn reality into a given scenario. Papers speak by themselves - there is no need to stretch the information they contain, but yes, you can (and you should) interpret them. Therefore, all I did was to translate in everyday English what is often not accessible to everyone and wrap it in a bit of context. This is, apparently, a mortal sin and I know it is the main reason I am being hated with a passion, by many.

All of the above just to stress the fact that I am not easily swayed by sensational pics, tidbits and gifs. I may sound like a damned party pooper to you, but I prefer to patiently follow what I think is interesting, rather than childishly bounce on my chair every single time people see what they really saw a thousand times before, in eleven years of saga. Nor do I need to have confirmation four times a day of something that simply exists, irrespective of the fact I know about it or not.

I will say only this: C definitely looks as she DGAF about the whole circus anymore. It started with the piggyback pics, on March 25, continued with the Taylor Swift concert (the only time I allowed myself to oooh and awww at 4 AM) and is now seemingly confirmed by these new promo pics and interviews. Yes, they screeched 'it's fan service', but as far as I know nobody forced C to behave the way she clearly intends to show everyone. It's Season 7B, for Christ's sake, the script is hogwash and the acting is not so good (yes, I will need a rewatch to write something decently balanced about it), the audience numbers are dwindling and OL is on its way out. Hard truths, no matter how you turn it: why would she open again the door to 'speculation' (ah, but what's in a word?), especially considering this cesspool of a fandom's obsessive-compulsive collective behavior?

Unless...

Unless, @i-ship. Let's not write the script, but you got me. I hope this answers your question - at any rate, it was a pleasure trying to.

[luckycharms1701]

*leans over well, and whispers over it* Have you ever thought about mikey during mating season?? I would love to hear your thoughts on it… (I’m very normal about the thought of it)

who, me??? think about mikey during mating season? i would never

so anyway, here are some thoughts about how bay mikey is during mating season

needless to say this is a little (a lot) spicy 🌶️ , reader beware. seriously, i did not hold back

Mikey is a little unpredictable during his season. Sometimes he’s whiny and needy. Sometimes he’s a smooth motherfucker who gets you where he wants you without you even noticing. Sometimes he can’t think about anything but sex. Sometimes he just wants to cuddle. Mostly it's a little of everything.

The number one thing for Mikey during his season is you. Before you were in the picture, mating season was a miserable time for Mikey. Now that he has you, he can’t believe how much better it is. He even looks forward to it! Because it means you will be with him as often as you possibly can. So he is Super Clingy, to the point where he often just has to be touching you in some way, sexual or not.

He spends hours trying to prepare you for what is to come when you agree to this the first time. (He still asks. Every year.) Leo and Donnie help him with a presentation and everything. Raph doesn't help with the presentation, but he's there when it happens, to help you interpret when Mikey goes a little off script. It's the most serious you've ever seen Mikey be.

Mikey does NOT like to share when it’s his season, unless it’s with you. You need to take him somewhere private because he suddenly decides that everything, including his brother’s belongings, is his. One of the earliest indicators that he’s in season is when he snarls at someone for picking up a slice of pizza. It’s always a slice of pizza, the first time. And when you’re involved it’s all bets off. No one can even look at you without him staring them down.

Okay. Okay. This mans? Has stamina like you've never seen before. ALL of his energy? Is focused on you. You will never be as satisfied as you are when it’s mating season. Mikey loves giving oral, and when he’s lucid he will spend as much time as you’ll let him between your thighs. He especially enjoys the noises you make when he fucks you with his tongue.

When he’s not lucid? Well. Sometimes, especially when it’s early in his season, Mikey enjoys the chase. He’ll stalk you through wherever the two of you have holed up, calling for you with a smirk. He catches you, divests you of one piece of clothing, then lets you go to continue the chase. You’ll occasionally put on a lot of layers to tease him. The longer the chase, the more excited he gets, the better the sex is.

Mikey will let you know he’s ready by lightly biting your shoulder. He’ll just kind of hold his teeth there, waiting for you to give a signal that you’re ready. He’ll take a verbal confirmation, but Mikey likes it best when you start stripping him as an answer. If he’s already naked, he wants you writhing and pulling him close, showing him that you’re desperate for him. Your neck and shoulders are always covered in mottled bruises when mating season is over.

He starts slow. Mikey wants to be gentle with you, wants to make sure you enjoy this. But every time, his hormones take over, and he can get a little rough. As time goes on, the gentle periods get smaller and farther between. However, he never draws blood, never actually hurts you. (Leo worked with him relentlessly until even when he’s working on nothing but instinct he won’t hurt you. Mikey asked him to do this.) Unless you ask him to, that is. Then all bets are off.

Mikey is the king of nicknames, but not when it’s mating season. Then he always, always uses your name. Sometimes it’s as if he can’t believe you’re here. Sometimes he’s desperate for you, only you. Your name is whispered in your ear and shouted to the heavens. The only other thing he calls you? “Mine.” He’s unsurprisingly quite loud when he fucks you, churrs and chirps and growls and moans echoing around you.

He’ll take you wherever and whenever. Up against a wall, bent over a table, you kneeling on the couch while he stands behind you. Hell, if nothing convenient is nearby he’ll pick you up and hold you against him while he fucks into you. But Mikey is sweet (and vanilla) at heart. His favorite position is always with you laying in bed so that he can stare into your eyes and watch when you come.

When mating season is over, you won’t have to lift a finger. Mikey cleans the area and very gently cleans you. He takes care of your bruises. He makes sure you’re fed and hydrated. He airs the place out. If you even look like you might want something, he’s there asking what you need. “You took such good care of me angel, let me take care of you too.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

head bonks: @yorshie @avery73 @justalotoffanfiction @thejudiciousneurotic

[sunderingstars]

hello~ I really like reading your theories on Sampo because I also have been deep diving the strangeness of his (and Aha's) existence. I'm not done reading all your theories but here are some random thoughs I wanted to drop

As a little note - I find it interesting that he has themes of love while Aha is one of the only aeons to have an explicit romantic interest (Xipe/Ena).

i also have a hard time believing the interpretations about Aha. Much of what we know about the Aeon's is second-hand. Simulations in themself are from recorded pieces of information. The records of the XL are very biased imo just due to the nature of interpretting divinity as well as the bias shown towards some dieties and against others. From what it seems like, Aha likes jokes, but almost all of his actions and the actions of his followers in the down-stream have prevent atrocities -

Rubert -

For example, during Emperor Rubert's campaign, Aha's believers kicked off another riot after the Philosopher Union was reduced to the domain of inorganic life, infecting the conqueror's computer systems with another troll virus called the "Philosopher's Poison" and overthrowing the local robot army.

Aha laughing at his death. Literally a riot, which may not have had huge impact but overthrew a whole army at a point in time when it was most important.

Soul Glad & Penacony

-Masked fools at one point released soul glad to wake up members of penacony. was said to be a joke but we all know how penacony ended. Sparkle was also in penacony with aventurine to help uncover what was going on with the family.

The Worm

-People claim aha is nonsensical because of the worm but this was in response to a spider being in the genius society.

there is also an SU occurrence that comes up every so often and when SU!Aha helps against polka where you adopt a sentient worm and try to take care of it.

I swear I saw something else about this darned worm and the genius society member #29 i believe.

-The Unshackled ( i don't remeber this event but dlkfjsd)

Another person on the XL who was a masked fool was messing with individuals who released creatures of abundance into the wild.

even the masked fools have a lot of strange details about them from outside sources, but their actions have been helpful it seems? Not to mention Sampo's eerie premonition about something horrible about to happen with Jarilo-IV.

idk to me Aha doesn't seem as nonsensical as the records make him out to be. it's like his "pranks" are taken at surface level but it's even acknowledge that he works in a butterfly-effect type of way.

hi !! 🪐 thank you for taking interest in my theories — i always love when i can encourage sampo / aha brainrot!

i definitely agree with the weird quality of how aha is perceived by others; back when i had more aha!sampo theories, one of the things i thought about the most was how… different aha!sampo seemed to be than how aha is usually depicted by groups like the masked fools!

even though my theories have shifted a bit, i still think the way “mortals” in hsr view “immortals” (aeons) may not be entirely accurate unless you’re talking to an emanator or an aeon themself. (for example, i’m not super inclined to assume the parable of aha’s rise to aeonhood is based on fact since it was created and spread by the masked fools, and seems to confirm their pre-existing beliefs!)

while it’s entirely possible that aha acts exactly like others expect them to, i think it’s also just as likely that they don’t. like you said at the end, aha very much seems to operate in a “butterfly effect” way, meaning their plans may seem incomprehensible or “surface-level” to others, when in reality they are operating with the higher machinations of a god! i feel like the only way to know for sure is to actually meet them — or at least speak to an emanator, which i’m hoping sampo is / was.

i also agree that the masked fools (and especially sampo) have helped us out quite a bit, despite their proclivity for fanaticism. as with aha, i think it can be easy to assume they are only invested in surface-level chaos, but with penacony shaking out the way it did, i think they aren’t quite as bad as a lot of people in-universe make them out to be. they’re chaotic, sure, and i absolutely believe they are capable of doing messed up things in the name of their cause, but they’re also just as likely to end up helping someone in the process.

basically, wild cards are wild cards — they can be good and bad, and just as capable of planning things out meticulously as not!

also, i haven’t run across that worm occurrence but man i really want to now !! it sounds super interesting — especially the adoption part! honestly, i think the worm is a great example of how complex aha as a character and aeon is. it’s difficult to wade through the different perspectives of aha (as mentioned earlier) to reach an objective course of events, but it seems that aha had both intent and knowledge when creating the worm.

for a while, i too considered the worm to be completely random and surface-level, probably because of how absurd the idea is. however, me being me and analyzing literally everything into pieces, i eventually realized that it was different than i’d originally thought.

i feel like there’s a layer of plausible deniability when thinking of the worm as a random, chaotic joke; aha isn’t really seen as an aeon so much as a glorified cosmic child, unaware of the consequences of their actions. but again, as we’ve been talking about, that’s not really how they operate. it’s a lot more unsettling to think about the fact that the worm was premeditated — aha created a sentient being knowing it couldn’t survive without them, and once that being failed to accomplish what they wanted, they tossed it aside to die. they knew, and they did it anyways.

to me, aha seems to have a striking amount of thought put into some of the “jokes” they do. i have no doubt they do things on impulse as well, but especially considering doll!sampo and how the elation seems to be “guiding” the trailblazer in a way, it also seems like aha has a complex understanding of how events will play out. very interesting stuff !!

anyways, thanks for theorizing with me & thanks for letting me ramble LOL, i have a lot of thoughts about mr. sampo and aha !!

[dearweirdme]

Hi 👋

First, I wanna thank you for being honest with me. I'm not the best at reading social cues so unless you are direct with me I'll be thinking "I think we're getting along!" and go on completely oblivious to any implications lol So your honesty is greatly appreciated, I'll keep everything you said in mind in the future.

On a second note, I'm really sorry for how my words came off 🙏, that really wasn't my intention. But now I see exactly what you mean, it really wasn't my place to tell you how to run your blog, it came off really bad. I sincerely apologize for that.

Now, to be real with you, I don't see you as delusional or wrong, or to be more accurate, both our opinions are based on pure speculation and personal interpretation, so I don't see you as any more delusional than I see myself.

In my perspective, I don't see Jikook as a real couple because they have never confirmed themselves to be one. And as long as that question lies unanswered, I'll only truly believe what they have described their relationship as, which is close friends. There's a part of me that suspects they're a couple but I don't see it as a fact.

So, keeping that in mind, I'll only believe you are actually delusional if there's not a single fiber of your being that believes you could be wrong, you are 100% sure Taekook are a couple. But that wouldn't be because you're a Taekooker, it'll be because you, a complete outsider to their life, believe your speculations to be a fact. And that's just a dangerous mentality to have in general, and unfortunately, I see it frequently in both jikook and taekook circles.

I don't come here to try to change your mind about Taekook, I come here cause I like reading your takes. You give very grounded opinions and debunk many biased assumptions I have of jikook, showing me different perspectives I couldn't see in my little bubble.

Moving on, I wanted to ask you: what really sold you on taekook, that made you go "they're dating"?

One thing I see as suspicious is the weird tension they have with each other, I don't see any other members having that same tension.

I think it's this very tension they have that makes Taekookers believe that taekook prioritize hiding their relationship to protect themselves, and Jikookers believe that taekook really did grow distant and got closer after In the soop.

Taekookers: tension = sexual tension and hiding relationship

Jikookers: tension = distance and awkwardness

I understand both of these takes, but I have some different interpretations of it, but ain't nobody reading all that. This shits WAY too long already lol.

Borahae 💜

(the more you look at him the more beautiful he gets, we can't blame Jungkook for getting a little lost in him kkkkk)

Hi @moo-mood!

I’m glad you understand.

As for your question about Tae and Jk, I think your ask really shows how people outside of tkk fandom don’t really understand where we are coming from.

We don’t generally focus much on sexual tension I believe. I’m sure there corners in our fandom that do, but in general sexual tension between Tae and Jk is not that often a point of discussion. There are moments that I feel classify as that, or at least as strong attraction.. but we don’t really get to see much of those. We also don’t expect to, because the last thing we would be privy to see between a closeted couple is obvious sexual tension. They hide that, and I think they hide it well. We see flirting, we see tenderness, and we did get some more loaded moments.. but imo not as much to be able to say Tkkrs generally explain the tension between Tae and Jk as it being sexual.

Sexual tension is only one part that might clue us into wether two people are in a romantic relationship though. What clued me in was how Tae and Jk are just a level up in closeness when compared to the other members. Imo they are closest physically and emotionally. There’s a reason why despite efforts to show Jk and Tae as less close (and yes, imo it’s been efforts) there are still soo many who never believed that. It’s because all throughout the period that Tae and Jk were deemed to be distant, their bodies and their interactions showed us differently. We often get laughed at because of our words on stares, looks, touches.. but those things are actually the hardest for people to consistently fake and to consistently hide. No other duo is as aware of each other as Tae and Jk are. No other duo gets each other as easily as Tae and Jk do… and that is actually something I am quite sure of… regardless of wether that means they are in a romantic relationship.

So it started with me believing Tae and Jk are closest. And what made me believe they are more than friends is basically everything else around them. The way they are the biggest ship, and yet Hybe does not commercialize them. The way they get jealous and/or annoyed because of the other. The way they are at times possessive of the other. The way the other members react to them (wether in a good way or in a way that they’re afraid of discovery). It’s all supported by my belief that individually speaking I feel Tae and Jk are possibly queer.

All in all, when I think of how I feel a closeted idol couple within the same band would be dealt with in SK.. it’s just basically what I see happened with Tae and Jk.

[galactic-glamour-girl-posts]

Something Something Animaniacs Headcanons

--Yakko is omnilingual, although he's better at speaking some languages than others (for example his Japanese is better than his Spanish).

--Whatever species the Warners are can breathe both underwater and in space. Any segment where they are shown in scuba gear or space helmets or anything like that is done for show, for S&P, or just because the Warners are goofing around.

--Clearly Jürgen was not feeding the Warner Clones well, but if he did I think Ditto's favourite food would be strawberries and cream (given that she's already confirmed to like strawberries), Ratto's would be leafy salads, and Saffo's would be sushi.

--Dot's favourite type of flowers are buttercups.

--The Warners consider Scratchansniff, Slappy, and Skippy the closest thing to an extended family they have (their father yes Scratchy being their dad should mean he's part of the nuclear family, but...shut up, aunt, and cousin respectively):

I was gonna save this for the tags, but nah, you CANNOT convince me they didn't choose to have these three specific characters play the Warners out for what was (for all the staff knew) their final full segment ever for a reason. This is the last shot of the original show (unless you count The Animaniacs Suite, but...come on. That's a clip show.)

The Warners went from only having each other to the size of their family doubling! I won't interpret this shot any other way 😤

[bloggingboutburgers]

Hey there's something you might wanna know

George Cubbins/Karim from Lockwood and Co. is aroace :D

It's not openly stated or anything but like c'mon its obvious as shit

For example, in the last episode of the show George is helping Lockwood walk after he got injured and says "This is so touchy-feely." And you might think thats just his autism or something BUT THEN Lockwood replies "It's a medical necessity, George, it doesnt mean a thing."

:DDDDDD

Hey! Thank you so much for the recommendation^^

Personally, I haven't touched upon it much in my latest post but I'm pretty strict with what I consider rep and if asexuality or aromanticism isn't explicitly named in the story, or at the very least laid on very very very veeeeeeery thick with no possibility AT ALL to interpret it any other way (but really mostly... Yeah explicitly named), I don't consider it actual representation. (On that note, no, mere Twitter-or-Tumblr-confirmations don't count as proper representation to me either, if you have to go to a social medium to know about more things that "are in the show" then they're not really "in the show", are they.)

The reason is I think a- people who watch the series and don't know what asexuals or aromantics are won't know any better if it's not named, and b- I actually trust society on that so little that I doubt most writers even know what asexuals or aromantics are, OR if they do, CARE about representing them at all, so unless it's actually named, I'll mostly come to the conclusion that it's done by accident. In short... Maybe it's obvious to US who recognize ourselves in that orientation but to the average person, characters that only exhibit traits of asexuality and aromanticism without it being explicitly named are "haha so quirky" and kinda nothing more.

Basically we're at a point where asexuality and aromanticism are not public knowledge enough yet for mere hints to count as rep imo. Which is tricky because mere hints are enough for most orientations, but... I don't think the knowledge about us is there yet to the point that it'd be enough.

But... Yeah that's my take on it, and I AM pretty strict about those things, so I don't mean to ruin that for others if that's enough for them TwT Cus regardless it can be pretty great to recognize oneself in a character. So this is pretty good to know for people who don't need the orientation being named for it to count as rep in their book! So thank you for that^^

[eggman-fan]

Let's be honest, eggman in the sonic movies ain't going to be permanently dead unless Jim Carrey actually doesn't wanna return.

Like... Apparently people assume eggman is permanently dead in sonic 3, when really it is the exact same way he "died" in sonic 2, as in, his death is left up to interpretation until the the next installation confirms his return or not. And since Jim Carrey has expressed being interested in doing more of these films, plus metal sonic being a thing... I believe he is NOT dead in sonic 3.

Besides, I'd argue that his emotional sendoff isn't gonna be ruined if he survives and becomes a villain either, because ironically, it would be the reason he would not give a damn of humanity anymore.

Eggman's last shred of trying to care about a family was Gerald robotnik, however once he betrayed him in the end, the ONLY flesh like person eggman can truly trust is agent stone, and the metal sonic designs would reinforce this:

You see how unique the metal sonic designs are compared to his usual drones? That definitely is gonna be symbolism that eggman is gonna care more about his machines then ever before, where originally the designs all looking identical would be they're expendable, but starting with metal sonic, the robots will potentially have a different style from each other, implying eggman will care more about machines especially after Gerald proved he cannot trust another human minus agent stone.

[onredrouge]

skk hate each other, and no one's actually surprised.

Everyone seems to be losing their shit over what Asagiri has said. And when I said everyone, it's mostly those skk haters celebrating their imagined downfall of Soukoku. To be honest, what Asagiri said doesn't surprise me anymore. 

I don't really get people saying Dazai and Chuuya don't hate each other when that has been the foundation of their relationship ever since their first meeting. They're both strong in their own ways, and they showcase that by never concealing what they feel about each other. Both of them have never been passively aggressive about that. They show it with their words and their actions; their entire dynamic is built on the fact that they hate each other's guts. Sometimes (or most of the time), it is that "oh, I hate you so much and you should pay attention to me so I could show you how much I hate you" kind of hatred. At some point, it was a childish exchange between two teenagers finally finding a sort of escape from their toxic environment in the form of annoying the hell out of each other. They spent time together, blah, blah, blah, and then it turned to an unexplainable visceral kind of hatred that allows them to work so well with each other like one soul in two bodies. Is it toxic? Maybe it is, just like all the other things they experienced and would never deserve. They're not some high school friends meeting up in a park after class. They're both morally gray individuals who find a sort of familiarity between their shared hatred towards each other. I can't really explain, and I don't even want to try putting into words the kind of connection they have. That's mostly the reason why they're so interesting. Soukoku have this kind of connection that will make you want to rip your hair out just trying to find the right words to describe them.

Hating someone doesn't mean you can't feel other things for them. I think Asagiri just meant to say that hatred is not a mask for anything, mainly because they've always been upfront with their feelings for each other. Whatever other emotions they feel for each other have always been hinted at. I don't know about what Asagiri wants to say about that but it's there. I'd love to see more exploration of their dynamics because I'm genuinely crazy about them, but I've accepted it a long time ago that there's a slim chance Asagiri's going to do any of that. Dazai's still so heavily connected to the mafia, the whole agency is; however, there are so many other connections Asagiri would choose to discuss when it comes to Dazai, and his relationship with Chuuya's most definitely not going to be the first choice no matter how interesting it is for the majority. (I'm going to still dream about that every day though.) It doesn't mean their relationship is suddenly unimportant; that would be contrary to what has been brewing in the manga. It doesn't mean their connection is a thing of the past as their lives are still very much intertwined with each other. However, a deep exploration of their connection is probably only possible once all the major issues in the manga are settled. That's where the derivative works enter the scene. Asagiri's not really going to give us any deeper insight on the other dynamics of their relationship, so fans are free to interpret them in any way they like (just not in a way that trashes their individual characters, like what some skk fans do). Who knows?  Maybe someday we'll learn something more about them. Right now, one thing we're sure about is their hatred for each other (as confirmed by the author himself) and the countless different possibilities fan works can explore. They hate each other? Wow, would you look at that? Another added spice to many series of fics that are sure to come. Soukoku's not ending. Unless Chuuya's going to weirdly disappear in mersault arc, then I don't think this downfall you all are wishing for is going to happen.

[arandomperson5647]

Encanto info from Jared Bush's Q&As

This is a little place where you can find (hopefully) a lot of info Jared has said in his Q&As. This is if you wanna check smth and don't wanna go on a hunt to confirm it since it's been so long. Idk if I got everything, I highly doubt I did, so if you have a piece of info I don't have and have a link to it, I can edit it on. Ngl I'm also kinda doing this for myself cuz I was curious to know everything he's told us. I'll mostly summarize the answer so it isn't longer than it needs to be, but I'll also copy+paste if I'm too lazy.

The info here kinda varies from interesting, to obvious stuff, to potentially pointless but really any of it can be used to do whatever.

Some of the answers he provided aren't concrete solid ("I think __ would happen", "I always thought ___", etc), so take this all with a grain of salt. I'll try to phrase the uncertain ones differently so you know they're not 100% (probably, possibly, might, etc). If the answer he gives is completely up to interpretation, then I won't include it. Some might be repeated cuz I don't feel like looking back to see if he answered the same question twice.

Just to warn you guys before you click "keep reading", this is a LONG post, so if you don't want it fill up your page, don't click it unless you really wanna read everything.

Antonio's Birthday Q&A #2 (5/21/23)

Canon universe:

Dolores never truly believed Bruno was still around. She heard stuff, but everyone told her he was gone, so she thought she was imagining things. "I knew he never left" was her way of saying "I shouldn't have doubted myself."

Antonio was a shy kid and animals are were easier for him to make friends with.

The potteries in Bruno's room were because it was fairly public for people who want visions, so they're probably a nod to that.

When Pedro went to the attackers when he died, he was planning to reason with them.

Luisa's associated with donkeys because they’re beasts of burden and that’s how everyone treated her.

Mirabel has her embroidery because she loves her family, but potentially also because she subconsciously want to make sure the villagers know despite having no gift she is every bit a Madrigal.

Isabela might potentially secretly like Pepa's chaos.

Julieta's really good at hiding her feelings about the pressure of being the town's healer, but she's also a naturally strong person.

There's a reason why Bruno's single but Jared didn't tell us.

Bruno's favorite food is Ajiaco, but potentially also big butt ants.

Julieta probably noticed Mirabel wasn't in the pic at Antonio's ceremony immediately after it was taken, but Mirabel had already left by then.

For a while, Bruno's limit for future seeing was until the fall of Castia, but now it's limitless.

Alma didn't necessarily approve of Agustín at first because he wasn't overly spectacular or confident.

Mirabel and Camilo got along well when they were young, but after Mirabel's ceremony, Camilo felt more pressure to perform and show off.

Even before his gift, Bruno probably worried and wondered about the future, which is what caused his gift.

The Madrigals mostly assumed Bruno had somehow left the Encanto after his disappearance.

The birth of the miracle happened near the turn of the 20th century, and Antonio's ceremony was 50 years later.

The 5th birthdays for the Madrigals is the big one. The others are "regular".

Camilo often annoys Isabela for fun and also because he's a bit envious of her. They're kinda opposite, perfect vs a clown.

The post-movie relationship between Mirabel and Isabela is probably mischevious.

Bruno probably already was breaking from pressure when Isabela was only in single digits.

Alma was loving to all her grandchildren, but sometimes it felt conditional due to her expectations. She wasn't self-aware enough to realize.

Félix can play the tiple, but not shown in the film.

Agustín and Félix probably wore their respective colors before marrying their respective wives. Their colors are also a nod to regionality.

Alma might've seen cracks before Mirabel saw them at Antonio's ceremony (not at the moment tho), giving her a reason to actually believe Mirabel and pray to Pedro.

Based off the book "Mystery in the Rainforest", Dolores and Mariano are engaged and planning a wedding soon.

There is a school in the Encanto, but since it's closed off and was formed in the beginning of the 20th century, new info would cease.

Pedro might've been the one to know sewing and embroidery. He taught it to Alma, who taught Julieta and Mirabel. She probably taught others but Mirabel did it the most.

Bruno's door might've started glowing again during his vision in Antonio's room because Mirabel is making him feel included in the family (and therefore Casita) again.

The Madrigals do have friends groups, just not shown.

Camilo's gift can be tiring. Like an actor playing their part.

Mirabel probably would've had a negative or even traumatic impact from the fall of Castia, mostly due to a near death experience.

The Madrigals have never tested their gifts beyond the Encanto, so it's still a mystery on what happens.

Antonio probably can talk to animals from different countries, not just Colombia.

Camilo sometimes tries to impress everyone with his gift.

Mirabel's birthday became "stressful" ever since her 5th.

Isabela would probably help Antonio decorate his room with crazy plants.

Behind the scenes:

5/21 is Afro-Colombian Day, which is why that's Antonio's bday.

There used to be a deleted scene of Mirabel getting grounded by Casita.

The Guzmans originally had the same number of family members as the Madrigals, and each member was like a doppelgänger of each gifted Madrigal child, except Mirabel, who was represented in the Guzman family by a goat.

There used to be a scene where Camilo's gift goes haywire at night or smth (can't figure out the full pic for this one).

Writers considered early on that Mirabel would want to leave, but they decided that from a character and cultural perspective, leaving her family would have been the absolute worst thing she could imagine.

It's never been established how long the ceremony doors appear before the ceremony, but 9 months has been considered.

Early versions would show that Alma had strict parents. It may or may not be true now, but it would make sense.

Mirabel used to have a gap in her teeth to show her quirkiness, but was removed because they wanted to show it in other ways.

Encanto Disney+ Hollywood Bowl Q&A (12/28/22)

Cannon universe:

Emotions can sometimes affect Bruno's visions.

Camilo often helped take care of babies even before Antonio's birth. He was just naturally good with them.

The stairs in Bruno's room probably grew as he became more distanced, so they probably lessened when Casita came back.

Luisa's favorite sister is probably Mirabel.

Camilo would probably sometimes be happy that Isabela found her true self, while also a bit jealous. It depends on the moment.

The Madrigals' reaction to someone entering the Encanto would probably be chaotic.

As a way to protect them, Alma was always a little strict on her family.

Julieta and Agustín often worried how Mirabel was doing, especially for Antonio's ceremony.

Alma tried to show she loved Mirabel in her own way after her ceremony and before the movie.

Camilo's experience being the only boy in the house for a while was...interesting. Not the easiest.

Pepa and Dolores' gifts have caused some difficulties between the two.

Especially post-movie, Bruno, Agustín and Félix would be a ridiculous trio.

The candle is now gone, but a new miracle took its place.

Félix and Mirabel have a good relationship, especially post-movie.

Isabela's 5th birthday was the first gift ceremony for the grandchildren.

Bruno was probably superstitious before moving in the walls.

Before the house fell, Alma probably wouldn't like Dolores marrying Mariano. After, she'd accept it.

The other Madrigals might have hidden potential in their gifts, much like Isabela did.

The townspeople mostly either put the Madrigals on a high pedestal or see them as equals.

Isa probably had at least one flower she'd intentionally give Mirabel allergies with.

Bruno was probably a bit popular at one point.

Adopted Madrigal kids that were 6+ would probably still get a gift.

Mirabel's near-sighted.

Camilo's probably gotten in trouble for his disguises at times.

Bruno's mostly a rat guy because he's around them the most.

Pepa has a sweet tooth but doesn't let her self have too much due to her weather.

Isabela can grow trees and crops.

There's no definite reason why Isa was the favorite grandchild, but being the eldest didn't help.

When Alma said "the magic is strong, and so are the drinks", she was really trying to get everyone back to the party.

The gifts can tire out the Madrigals if used a lot, sometimes physical pain can occur.

Alma might have siblings, but it's not confirmed.

Behind the scenes:

There used to be a scene of Mirabel getting grounded. Idk if it's the same scene as the previous one mentioned, but the context of the question might suggest otherwise. ("What would've happened to Mirabel if she was found after the dinner?")

There were versions in the end credits of everyone reuniting with Bruno.

There is potential for a Madrigal with OCD, autism, etc, but not yet confirmed.

Triplet's Birthday Q&A (8/17/23)

Cannon universe:

Bruno and the grandkids now watch telenovelas together.

Julieta's favorite food is probably ajiaco.

Mirabel's first word would potentially be "sita" because she loved Casita but couldn't say the full word.

Dolores' room has a lot of soundproofing.

The reason Mirabel seems to interact with Castia the most out of the Madrigals is because she was mostly an outsider, with only Casita to talk to.

Encanto is a hidden place, so simply finding it is near impossible.

There are respected town elders in Encanto, but Alma is considered the founder.

Pedro said something to Alma before he died, potentially in Spanish, but it's not confirmed what.

In terms of personality, Mirabel is the closest to Pedro.

For adoptive kids, Casita may be able to anticipate the arrival of someone new even before the family is consciously aware of it, giving them a new door.

Bruno's a fan of chocolate.

Mirabel loves every color. She has no known favorite.

Julieta got married first between her and Pepa.

Bruno's rats aren't sentient like humans, so Bruno would have to train them to do whatever.

It's possible another Madrigal felt resentment towards Bruno after he left.

Julieta's gift possibly only works with a combo of cooking and giving, but not confirmed.

Bruno learned how to use his gift through practice and invented customs. It was complicated.

Julieta probably needs to know the person's injury before healing it.

The majority of the Madrigals' dominate hands are right. Julieta and Antonio are left handed. Luisa is ambidextrous. It's unsure, but Mirabel is potentially left handed.

Mirabel's favorite food is arepa con queso.

Antonio's favorite snack is nailed rice.

Agustín and Félix have jobs in the town, but not confirmed what.

In a book, it was mentioned that Bruno was the golden child of the family. He probably fell from that position in his late teens.

Agustín's favorite meal from Julieta is chocolate santafereño.

Gifts can possibly be repeated, but not in the same generation.

The refugees/townspeople had brought everything from home they used to start farming when the Encanto formed.

Isabela and Mariano still have a good relationship after the movie. Neither were too wild about the engagement.

The bedrooms can change if their owner wants them to.

The gift ceremonies will now be different without a candle.

Madrigals still do the traditional quinceañera.

The Encanto doesn't have electricity.

Bruno has left the walls a few times for a break.

Isabela will probably keep switching up her outfit now that she can.

Luisa has always felt protective of Mirabel.

Behind the scenes:

Casita used to have shown that it has only 1 bathroom, which was located in the back right corner under Bruno's tower.

There was a deleted scene where Julieta yelled at Alma in front of the entire town after Mirabel went missing.

Julieta is the one singing w/ Mirabel during the "constellations glow/the seasons change in turn" lyric.

There used to be a version of Bruno using water with his vision.

The line said by Mirabel, "Even in our darkest moments there's light where you least expect it" was cut after Lin Manuel Miranda wrote Dos Oruguitas and the emotional thrust of Mirabel’s words needed to evolve to encompass what she’d just learned.

There was a Waiting on a Miracle reprise that was cut because they felt they didn't need it.

The concept of a new door appearing was considered to start with the doorknob.

No one intervened during Alma and Mirabel's argument because the writers felt that it was Mirabel's moment to shine.

VERY early on, Bruno (then known as Oscar) was Mirabel's estranged cousin.

Indestructibility was a gift they wanted to use. It was actually Pepa's original gift.

Dolores' Birthday Q&A (8/31/22)

Cannon universe:

People in Isabela's position wouldn't really have the chance to have authentic relationships because they're hiding their true self. This could potentially apply to Isa herself.

Before Mirabel's ceremony, her family was excited for her. After, the family’s ability to see Mirabel clearly was too obscured by their unhealthy dynamics but were probably unaware of that until Mirabel brought it to light.

Bruno's oversized clothing was by personal preference, potentially because of his awkward nature.

Before Isabela showed up in Bruno's vision, another person was there, who is possibly a young Alma. While not confirmed, it is implied in Jared's answer.

Félix and Agustín already had gifts, just not in a way that others could see.

Isabela lets herself break the rules, so while not confirmed, it's possible she could recreate mythical plants.

The town probably functions like a combination of where everyone came from.

The triplets used to have little meetings in Bruno's room when they were little.

Behind the scenes:

There used to be a scene where Bruno revealed he had a secret elevator in his room.

Agustín's Birthday Q&A (6/19/22)

Cannon universe:

Part of what fuels the miracle is unconditional love. When Mirabel and Isa showed that during What Else can I Do?, it affected the magic.

Julieta often gives people the food they like rather than something random.

For a long time, Isabela was the favorite grandchild for Alma. Before her ceremony, Mirabel was. After Casita's rebuild, many dynamics changed.

Agustín was born in the Encanto, but his family was from a city, so he was raised with the city-vibe.

Luisa's favorite food is bandeja paisa.

Every gift can be affected by emotions in some way.

Casita probably helped Bruno hide, but not confirmed.

If Mirabel and Bruno decided to leave the Encanto after Casita fell, the entire family would've fallen apart.

The only people in the Encanto were the ones who traveled with Alma. They all got there at the same time, no one got in or out.

Behind the scenes:

There used to be an exit for Bruno's wall room behind the family tree, but it wasn't used.

Antonio's Birthday Q&A (5/21/22)

Cannon universe:

Mirabel's canonically 5'2.

Mirabel has good relationships with Pepa and Félix. Félix loves everyone and likes hanging out with pretty much anybody. Pepa is a good tia, she’s just very emotional, but for most of the movie (and her life before) felt she had to bottle her emotions which only made them worse.

Bruno probably doesn't need the sand for visions, but as time went on he added his own superstitions.

The color of the magic in the end changed. It wasn't the color of the candle anymore, but the colors of Mirabel. What that means? No one knows.

Bruno "felt" his vision cave collapsing and investigated. That's how he knew it was destroyed.

Camilo couldn't really hold a form forever because of how tiring it could be.

Mirabel did have a quinceañera.

Casita has a mind of its own with its own emotions. Sometimes it could play pranks on the Madrigals or be too upset to move anything.

Behind the scenes:

Earlier versions had a negative dynamic between Mirabel and Camilo.

The gifts are based off family archetypes. Antonio is a shy kid but opens up to animals.

Random Q&A (3/19/22)

Cannon universe:

The main reason for Mirabel and Isa's falling out was because they couldn’t see the difficulties the other was experiencing, because they were fixated on their own struggles. They were probably closer when they were younger.

Despite being shy, Antonio does have friends in the town.

Due to the triplets' bday being the same day as Pedro's death, it's a mixed day.

Pepa can try to stop natural disasters, but doesn't usually succeed.

Mirabel would sometimes have sleepovers with her sisters when they were younger. There was a deleted scene showing it.

The pink cloud scene in Surface Pressure represents the stuff Luisa wanted to do without the pressure.

Behind the scenes:

Tbh there wasn't any answers that could qualify as behind the scenes sooo... 🤷

Stuff that didn't come from Q&As but is still good info

Madrigal Birthdays (I'm not doing a link for each, just take my word for it lol):

Félix: November 11 (11/11)

Julieta, Pepa, Bruno: October 17 (10/17)

Agustín: June 19 (6/19)

Isabela: August 7 (8/7)

Dolores: August 31 (8/31)

Luisa: November 14 (11/14)

Camilo: December 28 (12/28)

Mirabel: March 6 (3/6)

Antonio: May 21 (5/21)

Madrigal ages:

Alma: 75

Julieta, Pepa, Bruno: 50

Isabela: 21

Dolores: 21

Luisa: 19

Camilo: 15

Mirabel: 15

Antonio: 5

I don't believe the husbands' ages are confirmed, but Félix is confirmed to be a little older than the triplets, while Agustín is a little younger than the triplets.

Julieta is the oldest of the triplets, Pepa in the middle, and Bruno is the baby.

[piratecaptainscaptainpirates]

Breaking my own heart thinking about how fucking lonely Ed has probably been for so many years before he met Stede.

Ed, when he's acting as The Legendary Blackbeard, is not very approachable by design. Izzy controls Ed's view of things in a way I'm not even sure Ed fully realizes, just because Ed has Izzy do most of his grunt work and when he comes back Izzy lies to Ed about how things shake out, so in s1e3-s1e4 you rarely get the sense Ed ever leaves his cabin. Izzy also insults Ed to his crew members, making it unlikely they'd ever interact with Ed except when necessary, considering Izzy's always describing him as "half-insane." The interpretation that Ed barely talks to his own crew is all but confirmed when he tells stede in s2e5 that he'd worked with Fang for 20 years but never asked his real name before - we get the sense that their fishing trip was their first real, genuine conversation. And there's a reason for that - Blackbeard is a legend, so Ed can't go around making friends, that makes him way too human! Even when he introduces himself to Stede's crew, he's very guarded and Izzy cuts things short.

And on top of the situation of Being Blackbeard isolating him by design, Ed doesn't seem to have anyone who's willing to meet him where he's at when he's excited or just wants to share things. In s1e4 Izzy shuts down what Ed's talking about unless it's an Approved Blackbeard Topic, so Ed's not able to tell Izzy about what he's seeing in the clouds or why he's excited about Stede's knickknacks. Izzy's talking to him but he's not connecting with him. Even the connections we see Ed has, like Jack, Anne, and Mary, are the "pirates don't have friends" types. I can't imagine Ed sharing his problems with them or having emotional conversations with them (maybe in the past, but not now).

We get a picture of Ed as living a very isolated, lonely life. He has no one to really talk to lest he reveal himself as Ed instead of Blackbeard. He doesn't get to share the things that excite him with anyone. The Ed we know is chatty, easily exciteable, bouncy, so full of life, he's got so much to say! It must have been so painful for him to have to tone himself down for so long.

And then Stede is everything Ed's been missing. He excitedly shares things with Ed just because he thinks he'll like them. He listens attentively when Ed talks. They get to share things they're knowledgeable and excited about with each other.

Fuck, is it any wonder Ed fell for him so fast?

[multidimensionalguidance]

SR Chart in-depth Analysis Part 1 🗝️

I thought it would be a good idea to write down an interpretation of how my 2024 SR chart might develop during this year, forget about it, and then revisit it during and/or at the end of the year! A fun experiment for me, even though I can honestly say that I've already been seeing the way it has been activating.

Note: please keep in mind I use sidereal and whole house system.

Libra ASC: this was the first thing that stood out to me when I saw the chart. I was already feeling an "upcoming glow up" vibe, and confirming it was hilarious. Even though Libra and Venusians in general are not just about appearance, they value aesthetics A LOT. I've already received comments on how my skin is looking amazing, and overall, just a lot of attention from others being thrown towards my appearance. So, aside from that more obvious aspect, I would say that this rising sign makes one feel more keen to developing and/or creating relationships of all kinds, meaning, that it is expected to become a tad more social during this year. Romantic relationships, creativity, arts, a need to be more diplomatic or neutral, and communication with others will become themes I will engage with a lot.

To give dept to this house, I pay attention to the where Libra sits in my natal chart and where it goes on the SR chart, also, where the lord of the SR ASC sits (strength, aspects, etc.) in the chart.

Example: Libra sits in my 12th house, and becomes the rising sign for SR chart. This tells me that a lot of my subconscious patterns will become more noticeable, particularly for relationships, and that those matters that are usually hidden about me are now put on the spotlight. Now, it's very interesting that the lord of my SR ASC moves to the 12th house, so its like there will still be things that are still kept hidden. Knowing me, I will be content with spending time alone and/or in foreign places, so I don't mind. Venus is debilitated, and I'm assuming that keeping to myself will partly occur from difficulties with possible insecurities, being overly critical or focused on self reflecting. Themes of feeling unworthy, and healing it. A great amount of attention being placed towards looks could definitely make one feel uncomfortable or unsure of why you're receiving it so much, and if it has to do with superficial reasons it can makes you feel unseen, as if others ignore your depth.

Scorpio stellium 2nd house: a focus on transformations occuring around money, resources, values, face area, food or products consumed, luxury, comfort, sensuality, and romance. I would expect a highlight and plenty of motivation to pursue all of these topics, since the Sun sits there conjunct Mars. Scorpios move quietly and under the radar, so there will be lots of secrecy on how I will exercise my power/drive, and also on communications around how I'm making money or managing my finances. Money from others moving directly into my pockets from foreign matters, contracts, writing/communication (9H ruled by Mercury), networking, social media, creative pursuits, romantic partner (11H ruled by Sun), somehow losses that turn into gains, expenditure, spirituality, and foreign residence (12H ruled by Mercury). In general, major important upgrades to the way I relate to Venusian matters.

Sagittarius 3rd house: even if houses are empty in a natal or SR chart they still hold meaningful information, but will of course be felt less in comparison to the houses that have planets. I see that my mindset, near environment, and communication will be a lot about/with foreigners, spiritual topics, traveling, and philosophy. The ruler sits in the 7th house, so it will also be mixed with my romantic life (with a foreigner), business, contracts, and other type of close relationships.

Capricorn 4th house: I don't usually pay much attention to Pluto unless its close to ASC or inner planet (Sun, Moon, Venus) but I will now for the sake of giving more context. There could be a major change of residence occuring or renovations of some sort. Home environment could be a bit chaotic or under frequent changes. Part of Fortune also sits there, so all of those transformations might actually be aligned with blessings or for a better outcome. The ruler sits in the 5th house with the moon, so it will definitely make me feel anxious and emotionally restricted or numbed. Luckily, I've had enough experience with Saturnian energy, so I know how to work through it until I find balance.

Aquarius 5th house: as I already mentioned above, with Moon and Saturn conjunct here it is likely that I will be feeling as if my emotions are harder to access which could cause anxiety, creative blockages, frustrations, or depression. Definitely will incorporate lots of yoga, nature, and emotional regulating activities during this year to keep that on check.

Pisces 6th house: with Rahu sitting there, I could see that my attention will gravitate around how I incorporate work, daily routine, health, and exercise with spirituality, creative endeavors, and abstract thinking. I had already experience gut health issues and almost all of those topics shortly after my birthday, so I can see how wherever Rahu is placed in a SR chart, there is a lot of movement for good or worse. With the ruler of 6H going into the 5H, I could see how work and health matters could exacerbate my emotional challenges.

Aries 7th house: Jupiter is siting here, and even though it is retrograde, the functionality of the planet doesn't suddenly stop occuring. It makes Jupiter have a more inward expression if anything. There will most likely be expansion or growth of romantic suitors (specifically male, since its in Aries), contracts, business, relationships of all type of relationships being upgraded somehow, and in general lots of luck with interpersonal skills. Those with whom I develop close relationships will become like teacher, or enjoy providing protection to me. The ruler sits in the 2nd house conjunct with the Sun, so others will either expand my resources or simply have an influence in it. Since its with the sun, it should be beneficial or empowering.

Alllllriiiight, I shall stop here for now and release the 2nd part at another moment!