#whoops i didn't realize i was so predictable

[bg-brainrot]

~continuing to build out the classical art Astarion collection~

Astarion as Apollo in Apollo, God of Light, Eloquence, Poetry and the Fine Arts with Urania, Muse of Astronomy by Charles Meynier, 1798.

Astarion as Persephone in The Abduction of Proserpina by an unidentified painter, second half of 17th century, feat. Cazador as Hades.

Astarion as Narcissus in Echo and Narcissus by John William Waterhouse, 1903, feat. rogue!tav as Echo.

Astarion and rogue!tav in The Kiss by Auguste Rodin, 1882.

Astarion and rogue!tav in Sakuntala by Camille Claudel, 1905.

Astarion and rogue!tav in Eternal Idol by Auguste Rodin, 1893.

I feel like a weird little art curator. Anyway, there are a few more I'd like to do, namely Cupid/Psyche, but I haven't run a poll in a while so I might do that next time c:

[genshingorlsrevengeance]

March 7th, before the relationship

The Reader (who has a crush on March that Stelle teases relentlessly) enters March’s room one day/evening/whenever, and as the two are talking, the Reader slowly begins to realize that most of the pictures on her wall are of them.

(Honkai: Star Rail) Reader having a crush on March 7th

This request was made in June 2023 WHOOPS Edit: THIS DRAFT WAS MADE Jul 26, 2023, AND NOW IT IS MARCH 7TH 2025. THE STARS HAVE ALIGNED FOR THIS DAY

(March 7th) "Ah, S/O! You're just in time!"

S/O raised an eyebrow at her as they entered the train car. They were originally going to their own room before March stopped them.

(S/O) "In time for what?"

(March 7th) "For a late night snack! And you are personally invited to munch with me!"

(S/O) "...You bought too much to eat again, didn't you?"

(March 7th) "N-No! I just thought you'd like to try some of these really tasty nachos is all!"

S/O sighed, but smiled back at her, a subtle blush creeping up. Not like they were going to say no anyway.

(S/O) "Well, you're right about that."

S/O followed behind a cheery March, sitting down at her bed as the two began to chat idly.

As they predicted, March did buy too much food from a local stall when she brought it up to the Express, and just needed someone to help her finish it.

But, S/O was glad to help in that regard. In fact, anything March was doing, S/O would be (mostly) happy to join in as long as they spent time together.

Most of their time spent together was with Dan Heng and Stelle present, even Himeko and Welt sometimes, so they rarely got a moment just together.

Everytime they did so, S/O's heart paced a little faster, being with someone they had adored so much.

Her smile, her infectious energy, her beautiful-

(March 7th) "Hellooooo? S/O? You're zoning out looking at me!"

(S/O) "W-Wha!? Sorry, I-"

And to which March tapped her finger playfully on their nose, smirking.

(March 7th) "Just kidding! You were actually just staring off into space, so what's got you so flustered? Am I on your mind?~"

She teased, making S/O pout and grab another chip.

Their eyes trailed away from March, seeing the pictures on her wall. Most of it was filled from her journeys throughout the years among the Astral Express, only recently with some including them and Stelle.

Though, as they continued along the string of photos, S/O realized there was just a collection of photos tucked away in the corner.

It was her with S/O! That one was when she bought too much rubber ducks, which Pom-Pom sure wasn't happy about.

That one was celebrating her birthday on March 7th, that one was them shopping together...

...Actually, now that they had seen it, the photos of just the two of them took up a significant portion of the wall. As they looked around, they didn't see anyone else among the Express that had that same kind of treatment.

Before March could tease S/O again, she paused and turned to where they were staring, following their sight to her own collection of photos.

Leaving both of them silently blushing.

(S/O) "...A-Any particular reason you only have us together in that corner?"

(March 7th) "H-Hah um...I thought the photos were cute is all! Great composition and all that!"

(S/O) "...And did that composition of us smiling together need a giant heart circled around the frame?"

S/O's heart skipped a beat. Did this mean that she...?

(March 7th) "OKAY, YOU'VE EATEN ENOUGH! OUTOUTOUT!-"

She gently pushed them out of her room and quickly shut the door, leaving a blushing and bewildered S/O.

(S/O) "...What just happened?!"

[rayne-showers]

So I wanted the details from qhqfeihuo's post on X (""After interviewing Director Li, Hui Xiaohui clarified key points about the Yingdu arc") (also linked in @protect-namine's neat meta here) for reference for myself in text form so see below:

(If someone already typed this out or it was in a non-image form elsewhere, I did not see it, whoops. At least typing it out gives me more time to think about it I guess. If anyone sees this and spots a typo, let me know. Vein's name was all lowercase except for the start of #13, I capitalized in all instances below.)

The main storyline of the Yingdu arc seems to be about finding the whereabouts of CXS's parents, but in reality, it's about what's stated in the synopsis - whether LG can break the predetermined cycle of death.

When LG traveled back in time, he didn't initially expect to change the past. He simply followed the steps to recreate key events as accurately as possible. However, things still deviated in Yingdu. Under extreme pressure, LG fell into a fever and lost consciousness. When he woke up and reviewed what had happened, he attributed these changes to the butterfly effect caused by his own choice to return to the past. But in reality, more than his choice, the real reason for the timeline disruptions was another time traveler - CXS's mother - who went back in time to save her husband's life (as revealed by Li Haoling in an interview).

Realizing that the past was still deviating, LG decided he couldn't just stay on the defensive - he had to take action.

The actions LG took in Episode 6 will be revealed in Season 3. What is clear is that he didn't directly kill Vein. Instead, he took a gamble on probability. As a time traveler from the future, LG knew certain key pieces of information. He predicted that if he orchestrated a certain sequence of events in a specific setting, something unexpected would happen to Vein. Using the information he had, he pieced everything together like a Rube Goldberg machine. He wasn't certain that this setup would eliminate Vein, but in the end, his gamble paid off. However, his knowledge was incomplete, and the final outcome wasn't exactly what he expected - Vein came back to life. This is something LG didn't know, and it also serves as a major conflict in Season 3.

If LG didn't take action after realizing the timeline was shifting, he would only end up in an even more passive position.

Wang Qing's blue eyes were confirmed to be her own ability activating, not the result of LG possessing her. (Hui Xiaohui saw an unreleased review version of the episode, and at that stage, even Wang Qing's eye color hadn't been finalized.)

The color of the clothes worn by the person who grabbed XF's sleeve, as well as the yellow eyes that appeared on CXS, were animation errors.

LX has his own agenda, and even his decision to study in Yingdu was part of his plan.

QL has indeed gained LTX's ability.

The reason LX is so invested in the CWM case and so sensitive about the Bahati fire is that Bahati is a school linked to supernatural abilities.

LX's interest in the CWM case, as well as his own ability to "hear people's heartbeats", is connected to the idea that supernatural abilities can be taken away.

LX's actions in Yingdu had two purposes: 1) Summoning Vein to Yingdu and using his connections to locate Wang Qing in order to obtain her notebook. 2) After hearing LG's unusual heartbeat at the airport, he sent XF to monitor CXS and LG.

Vein's actions in the Yingdu arc were mainly due to his collaboration with LX. He used CXS's investigation to carry out LX's plans - helping CXS find people was just a way to lure out Wang Qing. CXS and LG's teamwork during their photo investigations unintentionally led Vein to discover Wang Qing's whereabouts.

As for XF, according to Li Haoling's interview, Vein bringing XF into his modeling agency and helping him with workplace bullying was purely out of principle and personal interest - he just found the kid amusing.

Through his interactions with Shiguang, XF formed a genuine friendship with them, which led him to propose ending his partnership with LX.

XF's disappearance three years later might be connected to his investigation into Vein's death, which he started by tracking Wang Qing's whereabouts and looking into the Bahati fire, ultimately getting caught up in the greater conspiracy.

Regarding LG's background, Li Haoling hasn't given any clear hints, but he seems to have already planned it out. There's a chance it will be revealed in Season 3.

[cuephrase]

from the questionnaire:

are there any results that really surprised you or that you didn't expect?

oooooh good question!! for me personally, no, not really? at least nothing that automatically comes to mind, so yk, don't quote me on that if i share data later and say "this surprised me/i didn't expect this!!" lmao

ummmm, hmmm. well actually okay, so i did expect Tim to be the Most Disliked Robin, but not by such a margin, if that makes sense? more like, logically one of them was going to be the most disliked even if only like 10 people disliked a Robin and my bet was that Tim would have the most votes, by process of elimination/other hypotheses. i wasn't upset by the results, if you've seen the post you know i was incredibly entertained.

there were definitely some results that were a relief? like they aligned with my personal predictions, but it was still really nice to see them.

oh, something that did surprise me was the amount of commentary i got on batcest!! there is zero discussion of shipping in the questionnaire, which is mainly why i wasn't expecting so much commentary, and there's not really a whole lot of ship discussion apart from batcest stuff that i remember- i did think i might get a couple mentions of it but i got a lot more than a couple lmao.

in favor of and against, to be clear, and to be even clearer to anyone reading- this is not an invitation to share your thoughts about batcest with me, i truly do not care. not to be rude, either, like i don't care if you love it or hate it, i just have zero interest in discussing it since a) my blog is mostly gen and b) i don't see any benefits in engaging in discourse about batcest 🫶

on the individual response level, there were some things that surprised me in isolation, but made perfect sense in the context of the responder's answers, like for instance one person said they didn't see Dick as brothers with any of the boy Robins except for Damian, because "he doesn’t really interact with a lot of the other robins in canon", that being said, the only eras they said they read were pre-crisis and rebirth. makes a lot more sense in that context. like i was thrown for a loop, but then i saw the full picture and i was like, "oh. okay."

let this be your daily reminder that the statement "i read comics" means basically nothing lmao. and i don't mean that as a dig at that responder, not at all, just that if you're someone who reads comics you cannot assume that someone else also reading comics means that you guys will be on the same wavelength. not because canon is nebulous and unknowable imo, but just because there's a lot of it!!

also!! a decent amount of people said i was brave?? that freaked me out a little, because i hadn't really...i didn't think i was stepping into shit, okay? in hindsight, i realize that that was naive of me, but idk. i wasn't thinking about the results in that way, and i also really didn't think i was going to get much interaction either- i was floored by the engagement the questionnaire got. but yeah, idk, i was just genuinely curious to see if my theory had any weight, i wasn't thinking about the broader implications of what the data might reveal. whoops.

and here's what surprised my wonderful data-crunchers:

@chinajousama: Hmm, I think one thing that did surprise me was how little the types of Robin media actually impacted the results [of the Most Disliked Robin]. Aside from that pocket of Jason hate from the post-Crisis fans, everyone was remarkably consistent. Also, it wasn't really a surprise, but it was extremely funny to see how big the gap between tim and literally anyone else was, dislike wise.

(we got an ask about if the media/eras consumed impacted which Robins were disliked, so that math has been done, but i haven't shared the results yet, sorry!!)

@tevyaa: Lots! Off the top of my head: - I was sure that the clear winner of the most disliked Robin poll would be Damian. He's the only one I've ever really seen hate for - probably because I entered fandom through Tim-centric whump fic 😂. I was shocked that it's actually Tim who the fandom is most annoyed with. - I was surprised how much of the fandom does actually read comics! I would have guesstimated that the comics/non-comics fans were something like 50/50, and was shocked to find out that only 15% of fandom doesn't read comics (and only about 4% doesn't interact with canon at all, including comics/ games/ animation)

(dw, we haven't released any data apart from the MDR yet, but you'll be able to see the breakdown of comics read/canon interaction eventually!!)

ty for the ask, anon!! i hope you enjoyed the answer!!

[nono-uwu]

New chapter, you know what that means...

Ch 139 first impressions! Spoilers obviously

- I was hoping we'd see Krul, Crowley and co. interact a little more :<

- ok, everyone's getting bullshit powerups now lmao (at least it puts Shinoa squad at an equal footing)

- Shinoa, Mitsu, Kimi and Yoi caring for eachother and goofing off ueueueueueu they're so cutee

- sigh... more boob jokes... siiiiiiiigh...

- they all got wings! Cool :D

- Ferid's new outfit still looks kina mid imo. It's just so... boring

- hehehoohoo I'm predicitng Guren/Mahiru/Ferid vs Shinoa squad soon... I'm scared for the end result of that!

- Shinoa is so cool omg and she has control over the 'darkness' that's even more cool

- And Ferid and Guremahi for once don't have a bullshit way of bypassing a powerful abilty! (Still salty about Krul)

- ofc Ferid has to know Shinoa is there but she covered the tracks real quick. Good on you Shinoa!

- ...why would Ferid think Shinoa squad would have sinful keys??

- "We need to keep control of our fates." That's one hard line. Shinoa dropping bars in her last few appearances fr

- Vampires sure did a shit job at maintaining the status quo lmao

- Mika bad news, Shinoa has other motivations besides her crush now

- hhhhhhh back to the "everyone gets resurrected with no sacrifices whatsoever" plan. Good that Mika is aware of the likley consequences

- Roger, Ulrich, Kirsten and Lest are hereeeee (they didn't beat up Yuu. Sadge)

- "Where did the first go?" "My (ex?) friend eated him"

- Rigr looks... surprisingly alright. Maybe I just got used to the art style shift with him specifically but he gives me a lot less 'yaoi hands' vibes yk?

- Ky... you were this close to whooping Yuu's ass...

- the last page... all of those reactions are meme worthy lmaooo

- "SO ALL YOU VAMPIRES HELP ME!" "FOR THE SAKE OF WORLD PEACE! GOT IT?!" "AND BRING ME FOOD TOO!" Now I may hate Yuu but even I have to admit he has that dumbass charm (he gotta team up with Vash the stampede first that love and peace)

Overall, chapter was aight. Hope Yuu realizes that Shinoa and co. aren't necessarily against him just really worried and confused because he fucked off without telling anyone anything and Guren wasn't helping too (at least that's how I see it)

As for my insanely unrealistic hopium prediction: Shinoa squad beats Ferids and Guremahis asses and gets the still conscious vampires put of Ferid because they could be useful (<- words of a person slowly losing it)

[districtunrest]

hello! 11, 19, 23 for thg sleepover Saturday? <3

thanks!! :)

11. Did you make any predictions about either of the prequels? Did they come true?

not so much Ballad, besides Snow mentoring the first D12 victor, which we were led to believe anyway. I made way more predictions ahead of Sunrise, and some of the ones that I personally feared came true 😬 like it retconning things and flattening Haymitch's character. and this might sound crazy or unbelievable this side of Sunrise, but I did wonder if there was going to be some weird dynamic among the tributes that got cut - and if the volcano was to stop it or smth. just vague 'what ifs' that could feasibly fit into the story we got from CF.

and I did get some things on my bingo cards right (or half-right, like there being a 'legacy' tribute)

19. Who do you think the Capitol planned to win the 75th Games?

Finnick.

23. What is something you realized upon rereading that you didn't catch the first time?

hilariously, I missed that Haymitch was overweight at first bc I didn't know what the word "paunchy" was. it wasn't until my best friend and I jokingly referred to our 7th grade science teacher as Haymitch, and he mock scoffed "what, you calling me drunk and fat?!" (a Haymitch reply, tbh) that I went back and reread his description at the reaping more closely. whoops lol

sleepover saturday

[beevean]

I know I keep harping on the same bullshit and I'm sick of myself as well, but it really baffles me that this is considered near perfect writing:

He's looking at Lenore as she's about to sun herself. He's talking about vampires. So let me ask: what the hell do you mean "recently".

Appreciating the beauty of vampires is all you've been doing!!

Hector started as a victim of abuse so alienated by his own kind that he related more with animals than humans. He's fascinated with death. He's fascinated with vampires. This is not a good thing, since it's the main reason the man thinks that turning humans into cattle would be a "merciful" compromise: he sees humans as dangerous animals that need to be controlled, but not completely eradicated, as "like any animal, I think the world would be poorer with their extinction".

You'd think that his development would be about him reconnecting with his humanity. Realizing they are people, with hopes and dreams and kindness and they deserve better than being food for vampires. Just as he, too, deserves better than being cooped up in a little house, or in a castle. You know. His literal development in canon.

It's predictable, but at least it's coherent. But eh, I guess Isaac stole this poignant character arc, whoops.

That line makes no sense. Not only because of what I just said, but because Hector just finished comparing vampires to parasites that do nothing but eat, so starved they are for power. For fuck's sake it's literally what triggers Lenore's suicide! That realization by all means should have been him accepting that vampires are not as wise as he thought, that at their core they're still animals and they hurt him and are harmful to the world because of it. But apparently no. He's still on his bullshit, just as his big badass moment in this season is planning to bring back Dracula even after he realized that he had lied to him to exterminate mankind in a way he didn't approve of.

Ah. But this isn't about Hector. Hector stopped being a character halfway through S2. This is about Lenore. This is him doing the closest thing to confessing his love for the woman who abused him in all sorts of ways. She's beautiful and she should have lived with him, but she chose to peace out, unwilling to withstand her own ironic fate with the man she enslaved: and he's perfectly fine with her choosing the "freedom" that she deprived him of, that forced him to multilate his fingers to gain (and even in part, as he's once again stuck in a castle with no desire to see the world).

But it's fine. She's a beautiful vampire and he'll always cherish her as such.

This writing is disgusting. This show puts vampires on an uncomfortable pedestal and does very little to make them sympathetic, so it really comes off as simply misanthropic.

[ladyluscinia]

Organizing my thoughts on OFMD 2x01 - 2x03

Strong start to a season. I really enjoy the black comedy aspect of the show, and the "all these people are kinda terrible" aspect, so win for me! The opening scene gave me a lot of thoughts. Actually, lots of stuff gave me thoughts that I'm gonna dump here (as I rewatch the episodes since I spent the first go around whooping and cheering more than paying attention to details lol) so I can start picking through them more coherently.

---

Ok, first. OHMYGOD EDWARD AND IZZ- *I am yanked off the stage* Ahem. BlackHands thoughts will go into a different post, so as not to overwhelm the many other things going on worth discussing. (Link to post)

So. Real first point:

Kraken Era

Big thing I was absolutely wrong about was how dark Edward's Kraken arc would go. I was counting on a very handwavy resolution that would still let him do some fucked up shit, but I expected it to be mostly externally directed violence that toed up to a potential line but didn't quite cross it. Reminiscent of Flint's vengeance rampage after Miranda is killed. Self-destructive harm but only tangential harm of others in your social sphere.

That is... we did not get that. But what we did get I am very here for.

I'll be honest - I wasn't sure they were bold enough in a romcom to blast right over the line into horrifying and then be so audacious it looped back to funny, but they did. And I think the tone is working for them so far. Big saving grace is they went way further with Edward's cruelty but they counterbalanced it by going way further with the suicidal themes, which made the whole situation more extreme and sympathetic. He should still probably apologize tho.

The Breakup Boat

Frenchie my beloved! Also Fang & Jim & Archie & Izzy! Literally the breakup boat is a resounding success all around and I adore every second of their fucked up trauma bonding. Win after win after win.

Frenchie is repression king and it's hilarious. I love how he gets named first mate for presumably being the only one who sounds plausibly honest when getting interrogated, tries to turn the job down, and then doesn't follow a single order while vibing. Also the bonding with Izzy?!? He's steps in during the intervention. He hides him after Edward shoots him, and then later he's checking in on him and leaning against his leg in the cell. Please Frenchie get all up in that Edward and Izzy mess!

And I'm trying not to turn this into a breakup boat recap but also Fang sobbing through basically every scene. The wooden boy story. Jim's terrible voices. Izzy hiding in the walls. "He's our dick" to "He was your friend" holy fuckkkkkk. And the whole mutiny scene was amazing. Jim saying fuck this toxic bullshit and Izzy saving them all!!! (Sidenote: love how all the nameless extras got washed overboard in the storm. More bodycount!)

The tearing into a seagull like zombies scene - perfect. Archie recognizing Stede (did they tell her about Stede in hushed whispers or was it literally just Izzy's singular statement?). All backing each other up on the "retirement" story. Izzy taking the blame to motivate Stede in trying to defend the crew again.

Trauma bonding WIN!

Also sympathetic Izzy has been real forever despite misreads of S1 and the mistaken predictions they spawned, but once again... Izzy!!!

BlackBonnet "On A Break"

They are idealizing each other so fucking hard. Also Stede what on earth are you talking about in the first episode??? "He's just blowing off some steam." "I'm afraid that your life is better without me?" MY GUY are you reading that list of what Edward has been up to??? Denial so strong.

So we have Stede still full of self-loathing and simultaneously convinced Ed couldn't want him but also avoiding the realization that he hurt him really bad because Ed wanted him. And we have Edward actively suicidal over feeling unlovable and determined to murder-suicide his situationship and the kids, except he can't kill himself so he's trying to make everyone else do it.

(And, you know, Edward is very pointedly refusing to see how the people around him would care for and support him if he would let them - even when they straight up offer it to his face - because he is more concerned with the misery of his own twisted narrative about being fundamentally unlovable than whether or not that is a true statement. Stede doesn't want him and everyone else is just a prop for his depression's final act. Very "I don't have any friends" of him - shoutout to that flashback in his purgatory sequence too.)

Edward's self-loathing throwing him into the water, but Edward starting to save himself well before merman!Stede shows up. Because he does, deep down, want to live with or without Stede. Very strong. Like that. Also the idealization on Edward's end of envisioning Stede as a legit magical being of golden scales??? Fuck, you two need to get some perspective.

Stede's Crew

Trauma Lucius I was not counting on, but Lucius going from BlackBonnet supporter to FUCK YOU STEDE was fun. Also Stede offering to be supportive and then immediately trying to nope right out.

Sea Witch Buttons!!!!!! We're going to get naked Buttons charging into a scene screaming about how he's a seagull or something, aren't we?

Confirmation that Oluwande can't read in the funniest way. Well I guess on reflection the scrolls are probably in Chinese so reading wouldn't help, so maybe this point is null.

I did like the note of Stede knowing "The Soul Reaper's" real name. Piracy hyperfixation bonus.

JimOlu vs JimArchie... If we get another poly ship then I'm calling SteddyHands real. I'm just saying.

Oluwande taking initiative to step up and flex his boytoy powers to advocate diplomatically for the crew - very Captain material of him. Also conveniently doubled as a distraction so he was essential to the plan. Go Olu!

Antagonists New and Old!

Spanish Jackie was a treat. I enjoy that she still hates Stede. The Swede literally became a new man by marrying her. AND WE SAW THE HUSBANDS!

Prince Ricky is so far just kind of a shady classist scumbag - presumably that's going somewhere.

Zheng Yi Sao on the other hand... interested what's happening with this whole armada plan she's apparently enacting. The whole Olu boytoy arc was fun. I'm not as into the whole "girlboss" approach to every single female character in this show so far, so, uh, concerned about that. Hoping for more exploration of how she's doing Stede's version of piracy but what exactly is off about it? Because so far there's no real reason to resist her, other than maybe the whole "I didn't conquer China by listening to pirates ramble about their feelings" bit.

Hornigold. Yeah, I know he was a subconscious manifestation of Edward's self-loathing but I still have hope. "Last time I saw you, you said you were gonna flay my skin and feed it back to me." Does that not sound like a great foreshadowing for S3???

[nyxknocks]

What an interesting premise that was terribly disappointing in execution. This is possibly going to be very critical, whoops.

The premise of Pulse is very fascinating. I love a good ghost story, or multi-dimensional story, especially when you tie in some aspects of tech-horror that this film has. And I do love a good apocalypse, especially a creeping one that you don't realize is happening until its too late. Those aspects of this film I appreciate. However, man what the hell.

So, clearly the conversation that this film is trying to tackle is about how the creation and ease of access of the internet is creating a worldwide epidemic of loneliness and isolation that is slowly killing the population. Not in any drastic way (though in some instances, yes, with the first death where he hangs himself) but in a looming, subtle sort of dissolving of sense of self. The people that get this... virus or whatever literally fade into surfaces and leave behind an imprint of the body. It acts like a computer virus--but it's really just highlighting what's already there. (In the case of Harue, who said she's always been alone. It's not a surprise she naturally turned to the internet/computer science to fill that void).

All of these aspects I genuinely enjoyed. The execution was dismal and confusing. I spent so much of the movie getting genuinely irritated by the logical leaps the people were making. Like, they would somehow immediately know things or suddenly forget important things, and it kept happening throughout the middle of the film that I was actually getting pissed off because it rapidly took me out of the story. Like the shit about the spirit realm being overwhelmed and having to come here, but then why are they making more spirits? Who aren't hanging around really all that much except for the few times someone hallucinates them? And then also it just wipes out everyone on the Earth? Stupid shit. Why did you bring up that random story if it has no relevance? Or is it related, and the message just got lost?

It had such a strong start, too, and even with the slow, creeping realization of what's going on, the end felt like the script writer got lost in his own sauce and forgot what story he was trying to tell. It became a weird jumbled mess that just repeatedly smashed you over the heat with a metal baseball bat about how terrible the internet is for society. Which like, totally valid, especially in 2001 but dude we get it. I got it the first 600 times you said it, I still get it now. I didn't get brain damage or alzheimer's in the last 20 minutes since you told me you were lonely.

Another positive I can give this film is the use of unease and discomfort of the use of shadows throughout this film. It was incredible. Possibly one of the best to do it, especially with all the people lurking (makes me think of Hereditary). I spent more time focusing on the background than the foreground, waiting to see what shadow was gonna move.

Another negative, this was so predictable. So, so, so predictable. Great idea. Mid execution.

Now, my theory is that the red used throughout is somehow the protector. Obviously, the red tape seals the door--but could it have been any tape? Probably, but they chose--and continued to choose--red. It is EVERYWHERE in this film. I think that's why our main girl survives. When shit starts really kicking off, she's always tied somehow to red, be it on her clothes or directly around her. Same with the loveable idiot Kawashima who wears his red hawaiian shirt until his dumbass changes to green and walks into that opened door.

I love how bleak this movie is but I hate everything else.

[ajentmm]

'24 March Refine Review

Mmmh delicious update. Here was my prediction and I did pretty good.

Okay, I predicted that Seiros was going to effectively have Atk/Def/Res+6 and omni breaker at all time. I did this by combining the player phase standard and enemy phase standard condition. FEH just gave her no condition at all. All this, plus Guard and Accelerate Special, all the time. Is this powercreep? At least her second part requires more than 25% HP, which is where we have the true damage based on foe's Res (I guessed that) and Dragon Wall (I guessed true dr based on Res), and 7 HP after combat (2 for 4). This behemoth combined with her support utility makes her an anchor of Aether Raids.

Dagr got a much tamer way of distributing [Pathfinder]. Rather than all allies, she only does 1, her support partner. This mean she can't be used with Arena / Aether Raid Defence teams, but that's likely what her sister will do. In Aether Raid Offence is where she is meant to be. Outside of that, she has Grand Strategy and Panic (For Atk/Spd/Def) during combat, true damage base on Atk (since her B slot already does Spd TD), and 40% DR (guessed that one). I really should have predicted Panic in combat since her other alts do that.

Wed! Micaiah got a proper broadleaf dagger effect in her base kit, meaning you don't need the Dou button, with omni breaker added in. She then has all the Chill tier 4 skills in one effect, making all the highest Atk, Spd, Def, Res foe penalized and [Sabotage], with foe's nearest also getting penalized so she can gain as much Atk during combat as possible. So if there is one enemy left, they will get 28 penalties turned into Atk for Micaiah. Also, DR halving makes it so tanks can get the true brunt of damage.

Annette got the extra turn after rallying like I predicted this weekend after making the theorycraft months earlier. It's funny that Silvan is getting an alt that does the same thing, but then buffs himself extra, rather than the target ally. Annette doesn't get the +1 movement, but she does get to move 4 spaces with that additional turn. After that, she has . . . tier 4 Seal Spd/Def/Res. That makes sense since she comes with Def/Res Ruse. The bonus is that if the foe has penalties already, she deals 15% of her Atk as true damage. I really thought it would be 20-10% of foe's Atk, as that's what Ash did, but ah well. Combined with 40% DR and this true adaptive damage, this might make up for the fact she needs her Ruse skill, that could be replaced with NFU or Tempo. Oh, and skill no +1 movement to ranged cavalry. Guess we can't mess. Hopefully you will just see her more in random event modes rather that high level play.

F!M!Corrin is much more powerful than his female counter part, but now realize on solo conditions to get the whooping 11 to all stats. Plus, he gets Guard and 7 HP healing after combat unconditional, just like . . . Serios? Is it just going to be dragons that get unconditional stuff? Maybe for now. He also gets Atk/Spd+6, [Dodge] and "neutralizes foe's bonuses" if he is < 2 units adjacent to him, at the start of turn. That pairs well with Rouse. Oh, and there's Spd TD.

Midori's Lucky Bow (surprise) doesn't have the [golden bar] mechanic, but still has the Spendthrift effect. It's now supercharged to 15% Atk TD and 15% Atk TDR, to make up for the +2 Special cooldown after combat. However, with the omni breaker in the second part, she might trigger moonbow (or noontime if you are feeling tanky). Oh, and she can heal and cleanse allies of penalties, like the apothecary she is. I'm glad she got a good weapon, and now I wait for when her and Eir get a harmonized alt together. I'm Kind of miffed we didn't get Mirabilis and Linhardt as a harmonized unit.

Finally, Gangrel, got the adapted damage we expected, but he also just inflict Spd/Res and [Guard] on the nearest foes in order to get his 20% Res TD. Also, in combat panic and 30% DR (no brave exceptions oddly)

Oh man, I'm going to need to speed up if I want to talk GHB units during their respective normal banner, since Jorge is next. What's that one? Oh, the long awaited Path of Radiance banner, Despair and Hope. This was when the power crept became noticeable with a Dragonflower jump and CYL4 just finishing. We have come so far. Thou, I could also just do all the Summer banner refines in one blog too. What do you think?

[yvesdot]

7, 23, 69!

7. David Guetta ft. Bebe Rexha - I'm Good (Blue)

I'm glad we got this out of the way first because I actually didn't realize that this was a controversial take (it's not; it topped charts in 20 countries). I have had two coworkers in the past week press me on this, including one who said, "so, when you're walking to work, you just think to yourself, 'I want to listen to I'm Good (Blue) by David Guetta?'" To which I said, yes, definitely, that's exactly the point, so I don't kill myself on the way there. And then the next day I had that exact thought and listened to it.

Even if that hadn't happened, I probably would have evangelized this song. I think the original is wonderful, and I'm glad it exists! This makes it easier to play in a party context, and it matches the lyrical content to what has always been the "feel" of the song. It also kicked off an unreasonable amount of pop songs trying to do what it did, which is impossible, because Blue (Da Ba Dee) is probably the only song which could be adapted for the better (or even neutral) in this way. It's just such a weird song. I like this version! Now the rest of the post goes under a readmore for my crimes.

23. Terror Jr. - Come First

I got my own, don't need to roll me a blunt Don't ask me questions like you care if I'm dumb (Oh?) Take my treasure in your hands Better get with the program I'll let you stay if you do something I like

Does anyone remember in 2016 when this random band emerged and people started speculating that the lead singer was Kylie Jenner? It wasn't, and that seems to have ended popular interest, but the songs were genuinely fun and bright, and I missed listening to this one. I love how the singer enunciates and the little "whoop"s, and the production seems to predict my later love for SOPHIE, whom I hadn't even heard of at the time. This was a good year for diving into my old obsessions.

P. S. This is why my mother is set at "Terror Sr." in my phone.

69. Olivia Rodrigo - vampire

You said it was true love, but wouldn't that be hard? You can't love anyone, 'cause that would mean you had a heart I tried you help you out, now I know that I can't 'Cause how you think's the kind of thing I'll never understand

Rodrigo is the new TSwift in many ways-- a young up-and-comer sold on her relatability and simple lyrics about betrayal by demonic ex-boyfriends-- and I am loving it. There's not much to say on this track that hasn't already been said a hundred times better; it's just plain a good song and GUTS was a very fun album.

send a number from 1-112 and I'll give you a song from my "looped in 2023" playlist!

[rabbithaver]

uh. whoops. idk if this qualifies as a vent post or if it's just me being introspective but either way, it kinda got away from me so now i'm putting it beneath a read more.

usually, when it comes to strangers, i am pretty good at not giving a shit about whether or not i am annoying. it isn't something that bothers me as much as it used to.

what really gets me is feeling like i'm annoying to everyone i know personally. like eventually one day everyone in my life is gonna realize, "oh rabbit is actually really irritating, frustrating, and stupid" and leave. and i cant even deal with this anxiety by being like "that's ridiculous, it'll never happen" because. it has happened. many many many many times. it's happened dozens of times throughout my entire life, in fact, and it has permanently fucked with my ability to form bonds and relationships

so many of my interactions with people now involve me mentally wondering if that interaction will be the final straw, the thing that makes the other person realize, "why do i bother, again?"

because there is nothing about me that someone else doesn't already do better. someone out there is nicer. someone out there is funnier. someone out there is a better artist or writer. someone out there is better at socializing. someone out there has far less emotional baggage than i do.

someone else will always be better than me at everything i am good at and at that point it's like... why even keep me around? i'm not worth the trouble. i'm not worth the annoyance. there is genuinely nothing special or unique about me; people can always get what they come to me for somewhere else that's far less frustrating and pathetic.

so many people have either left or hurt me or both that it colors every conversation i have and every social action i take. it leads to me pushing people away or clinging too hard. it leads to me predicting based on past toxic interactions that something bad will happen in an otherwise healthy friendship. it leads to me misinterpreting signals in the worst way because i want to be prepared for things going wrong.

because they always, always go wrong. and in an effort to deal with that, i became a massive people-pleaser.

i struggle to deal with simple, casual differences of opinion because i am so used to people using those disagreements as a blunt weapon. i am so used to having someone decide i wasn't "normal enough" to be their friend. i am so used to having someone screenshot all our private conversations to use them as "callout post material" later. i lived with these things throughout my entire teenage existence and now i don't know what a healthy friendship looks like. i don't know how to turn off the paranoia. i should be able to, but i don't.

and because of these things i walk on eggshells a lot. i get cagey and weird when there's differing opinions. and it's really really hard for me to take it at face value when people say "no, i'm not mad at you" because in the past, i've had people say that and then turn around and use the thing they actually were mad about as proof that i'm actually a bad person.

and like... i am actually a bad person. in the long run, anyway. when i was active in leftbook, i was really shitty to a lot of people who really didn't deserve it. i participated in a culture of cliques, ostracism, call-outs over minor discourse, and just... it was bad. i was a really horrifically bad person who said some really horrifically bad things to other people in the name of "activism" and being a "good leftist." i was dealing with my trauma by harming other people. i was lashing out at others even when they were trying to help me. i was deeply, deeply fucking toxic.

and as much as i've tried to mellow out over the years since, i'm still that same person. it was still me who did those things. i wouldn't do any of those things now, and if i could, i would undo them in a second, but that doesn't change the fact that there are people who are worse off because of my actions and because of the culture i participated in.

i've been trying to make the trip from "malicious and spiteful asshole" to "socially inept but otherwise friendly rando." it's harder than you'd think when the trauma that caused that negative shift in the first place is still very real.

[mammalsofaction]

A/N: Whoops, this came out a little more angsty than I originally planned.

Perry hates having to go to HQ.

Oh, he's got nothing against the building itself, and his relationship with most of his coworkers is fairly amicable. Perry just hates having to go there, since he generally prefers spending his free time (spare enough as it were) around family, and other assorted loved ones. There's almost nothing he needs to do at HQ that he couldn't fulfil in the lair beneath his house, or the office in his room, anyway. And shit always, always goes down when he has to spend more than 5 consecutive hours in his assigned office cubicle.

Of course, they key word to the first statement was "almost."

And predictably, the aforementioned shit he was waiting for strolls into his space half an hour past lunchbreak, slapping a couple of polaroids on top of his desk by his elbow.

Pinky waits patiently for Perry to give a damn, and Perry looks up warily when Pinky Garcia-Shapiro stays suspiciously quiet for a whole minute. Pinky gestures to the photos, and Perry takes a look, goes back to his computer, before realization hits him upside the head like a steel pole and shoves itself down the back of his spine, sitting him ramrod straight in his crappy office chair as he picks the first photo off the top of the deck.

Pinky's waiting with his eyebrows raised when Perry swirls around to face him fully. It's not what it looks like, Perry signs, and flinches when the look he receives in return is less than impressed.

Does that matter? Pinky signs sharply in return, instead of speaking aloud, which was the biggest sign if ever that Perry's not only screwed up, but he's screwed up bad. It meant that they're keeping this conversation on the down lower than low, and he owes his Pinky big time. Clint found these on the carnival security footage two days ago, and I had to talk him down from reporting to HR. I made sure he knows you owe him your life, and then some. Pinky continues, uncharacteristically serious. It's the most off-putting thing in this entire scenario. He's not Carl, Perry, not every intern in this company's all too happy about keeping their mouths shut about your goddamned crush. You took him to the pop shop? What were you thinking?

I was thinking it was an accident. And it was barely a date. Perry retorts sharply, hands stuttering on that last little tidbit. Wait, screw that, it wasn't a date at all. We were just-we were technically stalking Vanessa on her outing-

I'm not the goddamned Colonel, Perry. Pinky interrupts sharply, slicing his hand through the air. You don't have to make your excuses to me. It doesn't matter what it was, unless you're standing by Francis' desk when he has to answer for the shit leaking up the grapevine. It matters how it looks like. Perry, you don't need me to tell you to be-to be careful.

Perry grunts, slumping into the back of his chair, hands slapped over his eyes as he attempts to calm himself down. I know, he signs, one handed. I know, Pinky, I'm sorry. Thank you.

And he is sorry. He is as much grateful that Pinky caught it first, being the Chief of OWCA's digital security division, as well as that he had enough weight to throw around to stop these photos from leaking onto Francis' desk. Pinky didn't have to, but of course he did, because they were friends, and Pinky cared about him.

These last few years have been...hard. Harder, knowing Heinz was getting so ready to hang up his labcoat (at least in the evil sense of the word), a growth in character proportional to this terrifying, unnameable thing growing between them, full of weight and wonder and meaning.

It's made him reckless. And everyday that passes them by without having Heinz in his arms, it's getting harder and harder for Perry to remember why that's a bad thing.

Pinky sighs, squeezing his shoulder. "Hey," he says, out loud this time, so that Perry takes his hand off of his eyes to peek. "On the plus side, I've never seen the guy look so happy."

Perry feels his ears burning in embarrassment, and Pinky laughs, low and sincere.

"You guys look cute together." Pinky teases, and laughs when Perry swats at him, shoo-ing him out of the cubicle. He does leave, eventually, and Perry knows he owes the man lunch for at least the next two weeks, and taking over his next spare mission, at least.

He leaves the photos behind, and Perry picks them up, his hand reaching for the lighter he keeps on his lowest desk drawer to burn them over his wastepaper basket. They are likely the very last trace of such damning evidence of Perry's...Perry's fraternizing, too risky to keep around, and he has to burn them. He has to.

Heinz was caught laughing, in one of them, his hair ashen-grey around the edges from the debris of his latest failed Inator, but there was no sign of bitterness and regret in his features. Perry remembers how the wrinkles by his eyes had started to curl down his cheeks, like paper folded down the same joy-filled routes. Laugh lines. The photo could not capture the light in his eyes then; The setting sun had painted the slant of the pier a blood orange, but looking into Heinz's darling blue eyes was like looking into an eternal summer, evergreen.

They shared one drink, because Perry wasn't hungry, but Heinz wanted something sweet, and there wasn't anything Heinz wanted Perry didn't want to pay for. The two straws were a compromise, and the bartender had given them both a sly, knowing look Heinz had not understood, but Perry had. It took him hours to cool down the blush from his cheeks.

Heinz had called him cute.

In another photo, their heads are bent together, conspiring over Vanessa's love life, and Perry does not mistake their fingertips over the tabletop, his palms curling over the back of Heinz's own.

I've never seen the guy look so happy.

Damnit.

DAMNIT.

Fuck. Damn. Shit.

Perry throws the lighter back into its drawer with a vengeance, clutching the stack of photos like a lifeline. He slumps over his desk, burying his face into the crook of elbow to muffle a frustrated scream. Is this really how he was going to repay Pinky's concern? By shutting his eyes and spelling out his own doom, tucking the evidence of his own sins into his fucking wallet? Was he stupid?

(Is Heinz worth it?)

Yes, Perry knows, because the one person Perry could never rightly lie to was himself. Yes, he is.

I got the inspiration from this post

[whatyourusherthinks]

Columbo Season 3

Oh thank god Season 3 is WAAAY BETTER than Season 2. I'm not gonna lie I thought this was gonna be a one hit wonder show. Y'know, one of those shows are like really good for the first season and everyone says the show is great because they only watch that first season over and over because when they get to the second season they realize the rest of the series wasn't as good as they remember so they stop watching the show and then forget about the whole thing and get the itch to rewatch the show after telling people it's the best show ever and the whole cycle repeats itself in a never ending loop until that person eventually grows old and their memory completely declines as their symptoms of Alzheimer's went completely unnoticed by their friends and loved ones because they were distracted by the show-watcher's insistence on how excellent the show is and eventually that person needs to get put into a home where they slowly wither away in a pastel Americana prison and pass away disconnected from their families. Well Columbo is not like that show at all.

I actually like Season 3 more than Season 1. Unfortunately those stupid cold opens from the last season return, but it feels like whoever made them learned from their mistakes as don't show anything significant from the episode. Also, I just think the plots of this season were just better. Well, you'll see what I mean when we get into it.

Episode 1 'Lovely But Lethal'

This episode is pretty good. It's got Vincent Price as a waspy make-up CEO, so yeah. I am always surprised when I see Vincent Price in something I like, even though he's pretty much known for doing shows and movies I liked. He adds class. Martin Sheen is also the victim. But honestly the best part of this episode is that I learned a lot about make up in this episode. I never realized you have to physically put on those beauty marks. Watch Columbo try to explain why he knows so much about make up made me chuckle darkly, but we'll talk about that in a later section.

Episode 2 'Any Old Port in a Storm'

This is my favorite episode of the season, simply because I really like the relationship Columbo has with the killer. I also really like how the guy got caught, I even predicted it. Won't say anymore those, watch this episode.

Episode 3 'Candidate for Crime'

In this episode, Columbo takes down a corrupt candidate for senator. I dunno, watching corrupt politicians get taken down specifically tickles me. One of my favorite episodes of Leverage (which is a show I'd be more than happy to review if people are interested) is the episode where they infiltrate Congress to stop a CEO of a cheerleading company.

Episode 4 'Double Exposure'

The episode has the coolest trap I've seen Columbo set for the killer. I also really like that the final piece of evidence that proves Columbo's theory is something that Columbo didn't know was part of the equation until it turns up at the very end. Really though, whenever Columbo and the killer come to and unspoken understanding that they both know the murderer did it but that Columbo has no proof are really entertaining.

Episode 5 'Publish or Perish'

I'm thinking a secret trick to knowing a great Columbo episode is if the writing industry is involved, because just like 'Murder By the Book' this episode is really good. Another trick might be the killer trying to set up a frame job too. Anyway, this episode is great and I'm not gonna say anything else.

Episode 6 'Mind over Mayhem'

This episode the killer uses a robot to cover for his alibi, and it still isn't the most absurd thing the show has done. I actually like that Columbo just full on lies at the end and almost arrests the wrong suspect on purpose to trick the killer into confessing (Whoops that was a spoiler my bad), it's sleezy and totally corrupt but it also really worked.

Episode 7 'Swan Song'

This episode has Johnny Cash playing a pedophile. He's also an airplane pilot, which is funny if you know about the man in real life. This episode is the weakest of the Season, and might be the weakest overall, despite having Mr. Cash guest star. There is a lot of filler. Some of it makes sense, if you have Johnny Cash you should have him sing. But there's like a five minute sequence of Columbo getting a sales pitch from a funeral director. Also they are really inconsistent with Cash's character and they try to go for a sappy ending where he admits he was going to confess at some point and Columbo knows that because he's a good singer? Yeah it's kinda stupid.

Episode 8 'A Friend in Deed'

If Columbo was a more serialized show, I could see the killer of this episode being a reoccurring villain or his nemesis or something. But as it stands this episode is pretty cool. I started thinking what if there was a Columbo villain where the Lieutenant's usual bag of tricks wouldn't work, and this episode is kind of that. I really like the way Columbo catches the bad guy in this episode as well, it's another great trick and I didn't even see the final twist of the episode coming.

Summation

I should probably start changing the title of these final sections to "Ranking" since this is what these are going to become. But anyway, just like last time I'm going to make the new episodes red to help you know which episodes were just added to the list.

Suitable for Framing

Any Old Port in a Storm

Murder By the Book

Publish or Perish

Double Shock

A Stitch in Crime

Double Exposure

Mind over Mayhem

A Friend in Deed

Candidate for Crime

Dagger of the Mind

The Most Crucial Game

Short Fuse

Blueprint for Murder

Prescription: Murder

Most Dangerous Match

The Greenhouse Jungle

Ransom for a Dead Man

Lovely But Lethal

Dead Weight

Etude in Black

Death Lends a Hand

Lady in Waiting

Swan Song

Requiem for a Falling Star

Oh... uh... since I have you here I was just wondering if you could hear out a theory of mine. What I was wondering

Is Columbo Gay?

Season 3 showed some promising clues for my little theory here. Some is just circumstantial, like Columbo knowing about make up, but my big piece of evidence is this: In 'A Friend in Deed', Columbo sets a trap for the murderer in an apartment he bought to do that. And he puts pictures of his "brother-in-law" and his nieces. But not his wife and his kids. Yeah, apparently Columbo has kids too. Admittedly that fact is does contradict my theory, since gay people definitely would be able to adopt at the time. Eh, let's just break even for now and move on to the next season.

[monk-of-figaro]

Fanmerch: おじゅ (Ohju/ouka)

Early in December 2023, one of my favorite artists posted that she was going to be selling a 2024 daily calendar for the 30th anniversary of Final Fantasy VI.

I was so excited for this that I immediately went through the processes of setting up a shipping account for purchasing items from Japan to be shipped to the US.

The calendar arrived last week and I'm ecstatic. For lots of reasons. I don't even know where to start.

First, let me say that this artist - whose handle is Ohju (おじゅ), and whose store name is Ouka (追歌) - is an absolutely delightful and generous person. It's because of her help that I was able to learn how to set up the process of shipping to the US. She's fielded some of my weird (but hopefully respectful) questions, and has overall just been extremely kind and patient when she didn't need to be. A very sincere and appreciative どうもありがとうございます to her. ❤️

Okay, the next amazing thing is that she sent me more than just the calendar. In fact, the package I received included the following items that I was not expecting:

3 postcards (one of which is a GORGEOUS illustration of Hydaelyn from FFXIV)

3 sheets of stickers

1 sheet of stamps

4 sheets of stationary

A mini zine she made named Relic Hearts that features illustrations of various FF6 accessories (this is akin to her amazing art depicting FF6 weapons for SWORDTEMBER 2020)

A handwritten envelope with a handwritten note inside it. HANDWRITTEN, people! That's a touch of love right there!

Here are some pictures of these delightful extras. The first picture is how everything was packaged when it arrived.

(I didn't realize until later that my dog can be seen in the picture below. Whoops! 😂)

Here are a couple of pages from the Relic Hearts zine:

To reiterate, these are all things that were sent in addition to the calendar, which I haven't even talked about yet. I was truly blown away and became giddy like a child, like they were a bunch of surprise birthday gifts. THANK YOU for all these extras, Ohju-san! 🤩

So - the calendar itself. The first part is a 36-page booklet that contains empty spaces labeled with a month and day. The second part is a small, prism-shaped desk display containing seven sets of peelable stickers. The stickers are similarly labeled with a month and day, and the idea is that each day you peel off the current day's sticker and put it in the matching space in the booklet.

Her illustration on this depicts the process much more clearly than my bumbling text.

The dates in the empty spaces in the booklet are sometimes sequential, but sometimes not, so you can't always predict how the stickers are going to line up.

Each page in the calendar also contains some reflections and thoughts from Ohju-san herself about FF6, detailing some of her own history with the game as well as some of her own headcanons.

The calendar doesn't "start" until April 1st, 2024, so for now I'm just holding onto everything. I'm honestly a little scared to even use it; everything is so beautiful that part of me wants to just preserve it in its packaging forever. But that's not what Ohju-san intended, so come April 1st, I'll peel my first sticker to put into the booklet, and will then have another 364 days to look forward to.

Finally, a few other artists also contributed pieces to the calendar. I haven't seen any of their pieces yet, but six pages of the calendar are dedicated for their stickers, so I know which dates will be theirs.

I'm intentionally limiting the pictures I post in order to respect Ohju-san and the other artists' work. But here are a few pictures of the calendar materials.

There's even a guide sheet for where everything goes, just in case you get lost (which I absolutely will).

Anyway, this is one of the most amazing collections of fan merchandise I've ever seen. I'm extremely grateful to Ohju-san, and I can't wait to start using this calendar.

Please check out all her other artwork. Honestly, everything is stunning. She can be found:

https://narche.tumblr.com/

https://twitter.com/ojup

Once again, どうもありがとうございます, おじゅさん (@narche)! ❤️

[soimcoga]

"every major baddie problem in the lmk universe is caused by SWK not dealing with his shit properly"

exept he dealt with all the shit and i'm tired of people ignoring it to paint him as an ignorant, uncaring bastard.

(very very minor s4 spoilers, so the cut)

Demon Bull King? Got his ass whooped and was sealed away for however long years it took for an entire ass megapolis to be built literally on top of him, causing absolutely no trouble to anyone whatsoever. Oh, and what sealed DBK? The staff. And if you'd care to know SWK outside of the LEGOverse, you'd realize how strong was SWK's resolve to seal DBK - keep him relatively safe, one might say - by using his trusty staff. The guy would literally die seven times over than let go of this thing.

Also people like, ignore the fact that canonically SWK stuck around the area (for the most part to stalk MK, but still), so he was literally there to deal with the DBK family if something went southwards? He didn't, because MK was able to hold the staff and the legend of the Monkie Kid then began.

(also zero antagonistic feelings towards DBK from SWK, like, whatsoever. i bet the dude actually wanted DBK to be free, cuz he felt bad abt it)

Macaque? In a morally gray manner, still very dealt with. SWK killed the dude. He was literally as dealt with as it can be. Or what, should SWK have predicted that after thousand upon thousand of years later a spirit (he dealt with too) would pull Mac out of Diyu? Yeah, I'd like to see that thought process.

SWK isn't omnipotent, he isn't even that far-thinking. Never was, actually. So holding that against him is like, very stupid. Especially because you don't do it to any other character in the show. 

Spider Queen? Wouldja look at that, also pretty much dealt with. We don't really know how exactly, but we know that she lost literally every ounce of power she had and had to resort to living in the sewers, prolly never to cause troubles ever again because, well, we never even heard of her until the special. SQ was pulled onto the scene by the Lady Bone Demon.

Which is, again, something SWK couldn't predict even if he tried.

And now into the fun part.

Lady Bone Demon? Was sealed away by Tripitaka and also didn't cause any trouble until DBK decided to use this freaky coffin he knew literally zero things about for his plans.

"But he should've killed LBD!!!"

He tried. Believe him he tried. This decision just wasn't his, and if you hold it against him and not Tripitaka, shame on you.

"He should have told the crew about LBD!"

He really couldn't have.

And people thinking that are blatantly ignoring SWK's character. Not that obnoxious fan favorite uncaring bastard one.

SWK deals with things on his own. That is just how he is, how he always was and he never learned to do it the other way around. If that's a fight, he'll do it, because he's damn strong. If it's to scout the mountain, he'll do it, because Bajie is a lazy ass motherfucker. If it's to find food for Trip, he'll do it, cuz he's fast and his eyes are awesome.

Same applies here.

LBD? Tried to kill her and Trip didn't let me -> Basically I didn't do the job right -> WTF I always do my job right, I am Sun Wukong hello???

It was, dare I say, a question to his pride, and SWK will forever be prideful. And when he acts on his pride, he does it with style and flare, in the most stupid way possible.

Hence all of the s2 off-screen investigation arc.

"Well, he should've told about the Samadhi rings!"

It would've endangered Mei, questioned his at this point in time very shaky authority and ability to handle shit, and prolly would've fucked Mei up a very whole lot.

You don't go and say to a person that they are a part of the most dangerous seal in the world and could die and destroy everything they love because you fucked up long time ago (again, very much jabbing at his mentality of 'Sun Wukong can do no bad job, and if he does he'll better fucking die trying to make it right').

Was his plan a shitty one? Obviously. Like, no question asked, it was a shit show of a plan. Very in character, though (SWK handles all the shit because he thinks he can).

And this little character arc of SWK not learning a damn thing results in him, oh golly you would not believe it, running off to do things on his own because he thinks he can handle it, because he's THE Sun Wukong who already handled this in the past.

Who woulda thought.

MINOR S4 SPOILERS START HERE

And the new addition to the baddie group, Azure Lion. Won't be addressing all 'SWK is a betraying bitch' because the show refuses to give us SWK's perspective and I hate it.

But you already know what I will say, because you know the truth. He was dealt with. Got his ass whooped and sealed away in the inky scroll. To be pulled back onto the scene by a third party that Wukong literally couldn't have known about.

See a pattern?

SWK deals with the shit, some unknown variable meddles in it, suddenly SWK is an incapable asshole who left the problems for the poor lmk crew to deal with.

MINOR S4 SPOILERS END HERE

Wukong did his job. Someone fucked him over by undoing his job. He tried to deal with it again the only way he knows how, but the solo play doesn't fly anymore, so he made it kinda worse.

He's not an unbearable, incapable asshole because of it.

And I'm tired of people not seeing this.

Thank you for coming to my TED talk, I am Sun Wukong Apologist till the day I die.

Have a nice day!