#world but people don't really tend to question whether it is that deep.

[fiapple]

okay, i know chopper & zoro's friendship is very much enjoyed, but i do think people also underestimate just how necessary it was as a means to flesh zoro out as a character. honestly, i'd argue it is in part due to the subltety of it, but chopper allows zoro to let his guard down in a way that is unique to their dynamic alone.

there's gonna be some paraphrasing here, but zoro is able to be soft with chopper. he is able to recognize the ways that chopper is vulnerable, & this allows him to be gentle with chopper. yes, he'll toughen up around chopper when there's trouble or he's giving tough-love, but his general demeanour around chopper is much less heavy than with the others.

&, like, the distinction there is clear even just from the moment chopper joins the crew. while luffy volun-telling people to join his crew is not itself atypical, zoro's response is generally focused on the thought-process informing Luffy's behaviour as it pertains to acceptance (ie. "you can't just decide for yourself" upon hearing no, or "she's not coming, if you really wanted her to join you should've forced her.") where as with chopper, he specifically latches on to how luffy is treating someone ("you don't ask someone to join your crew by saying 'shut up!'").

& with how much zoro is somewhat cold & overall very much driven by a thought-out internal logic, the distinction that exists within his friendship with chopper specifically becomes a very understated but very, very integral way of ultimatley humanizing zoro as a character. it's lighthearted & often played for chuckles, but that doesn't mean it is pure fluff narratively speaking. just... the ways in which chopper is zoro's little buddy first & foremost.

[eggluverz]

A STARE WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS

PAIRING. dan feng x gn!reader

WORD COUNT. 1.4k

SUMMARY. you and dan feng were just friends. close comrades who challenged each other. but you were starting to suspect that just friends don't stare at each other like this...

NOTE: dan feng on the brain !!!! i was looking thru some writing prompts and there was a list of friends to lovers that inspired meeee :> i hope y'all enjoy this lil dan feng drabble!! :o ~sof

It wasn’t always easy being a friend of the esteemed High Cloud Quintet, but it sure was fun. In a group of warriors and leaders, some of your morals seemed to go against the grain. With your more pacifist approach, you preferred healing and mediating disagreements rather than resorting to a clash of the swords.

Still, you were not young with folly such as before. You understood there was a time and place for everything and, sometimes, war was inevitable in this world. You could only sigh to yourself, wishing it weren’t so.

But while battles waged on, you at least wanted to help those wounded trying to fight for what was right—no matter how misguided you thought their approach was.

Dan Feng was someone you chose to confide in. The great warrior, the Imbibitor Lunae, somehow empathized with your inner conflicts more than you would have expected him to. He may have been a cutthroat, fearless leader, but he was also gentle and thoughtful, pondering whether or not the ends truly justified the means in between brutal battles. 

The people he led could never see that ever-questioning side of him. Nor could he ever find the vulnerability to show them. That was something he reserved only for the closest of friends. 

That was something he reserved only for you. 

You let out a deep breath after a long day of work, smiling only to greet Dan Feng who had asked you to meet up with him over dinner.

“Like a date,” Baiheng sang with a grin when you had told her the previous day.

Your cheeks flushed at the memory. Two friends could certainly partake in evening consumption of sustenance together without it being a date, you had reminded her. And yourself. 

“Sure, but do just friends stare into each other’s eyes for seconds too long like you two do?”

With a small laugh and a shake of your head, you brought yourself back to present time with Dan Feng.

“Good evening,” you greeted with a wave. “Have you been waiting long?”

“I have been left alone here all day waiting for your arrival,” he jested with a dramatic sigh, one corner of his mouth tilting upwards to let you know he was only joking.

“Of course,” you played along, “I do not doubt that the great Imbibitor Lunae has plenty of time to spare waiting about.”

“For you? Most certainly.” 

You fought a grin off your face at his kindness. Dan Feng truly was a good person, always putting his friends first. For a moment, you wondered how much more thoughtful he would be towards a partner—towards someone he had romantic feelings for. But you did not allow yourself to entertain those thoughts for too long. After all, you had food to eat. 

“I requested your favorite dish,” he said as the meal came to your table. Establishments in which private outdoor dining was an accommodation were not common in your area, so you and Dan Feng often frequented the one closest to you. It was no strange feat for him to commit your favorite dish to memory. “I hope I did not overstep, but it was getting dark out and I know you tend to grow rather famished at this hour.”

You smiled as the scent of the food in front of you wafted through the air, causing your stomach to grumble quietly. “I appreciate your preparation, Dan Feng. You aren’t overstepping in the slightest.”

In fact, you quite liked that Dan Feng went out of his way to ensure you would have food to eat by the time you arrived for dinner. He was right— You were running late today and you were rather peckish by the time you had arrived. It was a simple act of kindness, and you were grateful for it. 

Dan Feng really was nice to his friends. 

If you did not have a good head on your shoulders, you might have let your emotions confuse the situation and misread his intentions towards you. He simply was a good friend to you and the High Cloud Quintet, though in moments of delusion you felt yourself imagining more. 

Especially moments of delusion fueled by the unnerving stare on his face directed right at you. Unnerving in a positive sense, of course. 

Unnerving in a way of not being able to understand the depth of emotions behind those bright eyes of his. Unnerving enough to pique your curiosity and want to learn just what that stare meant. 

The certain stare he was giving you right now. 

Was he looking at you like a confidant? A scholar to share his pacifist literature with? A friend? A lover? 

If Dan Feng noticed your inner turmoil, all he did was smile. It was a smile that said he knew exactly what was running through your mind. His piercing gaze stayed locked on yours as he tilted his head and took a sip of tea. 

Unable to help yourself, you blurted, “Do you intend to look at me in such a way?”

An expression of delighted amusement formed on his face before he regained his stoic composure. “In what manner are you referring to, my dear?”

Your heart stirred in confusion at his affectionate words. This High Elder truly had a disarming effect on you.

“Such as how you are staring at me right now!” you cried, feeling rather indignant. “It is how you’ve been staring at me for the past few months, even. It— It bewilders me!”

“And how, exactly, am I staring at you?” he pushed, a confident smile on his lips as he awaited your answer. 

“You are staring at me…as if you want me.”

His eyes widened for a brief moment, like he was shocked you gave in to his teasing and prodding this time. 

“You keep staring at me like that, and treating me in a special manner… You should be careful, Dan Feng,” you said with a sigh, slowly bringing your utensils to your mouth. Before biting, you stated, “You could confuse even the most refined of individuals that way, are you aware?”

He studied you before asking, “As an esteemed and refined Vidyadhara yourself, what do you find confusing?”

“Whether I am reading your intentions incorrectly or not,” you said, no longer bothering to hide you frustration. 

“It is not my desire to confuse you,” promised Dan Feng, a genuine look on his face as you finally met his gaze again. “For that, I apologize sincerely.”

Your stomach churned in dejected understanding. “Thank you for the apologize. It is okay.”

Perhaps you shouldn’t have gotten ahead of yourself and confused his kindness for interest. You shoved the food around on your plate, trying to downplay your disappointment that Dan Feng did not desire you after all.

At your lackluster response, he cleared his throat. He looked at your downcast expression and frowned. “Perhaps I am not making myself clear enough. Believe me, you are certainly not misinterpreting my intentions.”

Your eyes widened at his clarification. “Meaning…?”

“I do want you.” Dan Feng set his teacup down with a conspiratorial glint in his eye. “I admire your strength and your intellect. Your desire for peace and your willingness to do what is right. You are nuanced and complex and, at times, even oblivious,” he smiled at the thought of you misunderstanding his initial confession, “and you are my close friend I have found myself getting more and more drawn to.”

Giggles bubbled up from inside you, more so in excitement than in amusement. If it weren’t unbecoming of an unpartnered Vidyadhara to show public displays of affection, you would have ran over to Dan Feng and given him a hug by now. 

“I want you, too, Dan Feng,” is what you said instead. “You are cunning and sharp, yet understanding and gentle. Your thoughtfulness is inspiring and I have never met anyone more loyal than you.” 

The apples of his cheeks tinged the lightest pink you had ever seen, and you fought the urge to continuously shower him with more compliments.

“You’re the only one I could confide my potentially treasonous thoughts in,” you laughed while he nodded with amusement. Your gaze softened as your tone grew more serious. “You are one of my best friends, but I can envision a road in which we are more than that, even— Lovers.”

If he was surprised at all, he did not show it. 

“That is the path I would prefer to take.” Dan Feng extended his hand from across the table as if it were a mere offering to your boundless grace. “Do you desire to take it with me?”

“With you?” you repeated, slipping your hand into his with a smile. “Most certainly.”

[trainsinanime]

I sometimes reblog posts about US Americans being weird here, but honestly I don't love how angry or smug most of these posts are. It's just that angry and smug posts tend to get more traction, and so they get reblogged more, and so I tend to see them and reblog them myself. Hm, maybe there's a lesson for all of social media and for me in particular here.

Anyway, what I want out of these posts is not for any US Americans here to feel bad; it's just "funny" and perhaps, perhaps a tiny bit of consideration for how being US American means you experience the internet on easy mode.

This is not your personal fault. Nor is it ethically wrong. It's just a thing that exists, and it may be worth thinking about it.

Examples of that easy mode include:

It's your language. The vast majority of people on the internet need to know a second language to at least participate passively, let alone actively post. It's not just the internet; for e.g. my job, all documentation for all the tools is only in English, and I was required to listen to English lectures and write both my bachelor's and master's thesis in English, my second language, to pass. That's why e.g. posts about bilingualism tend to cause a bit of a discussion, because knowing a second language isn't a special skill but a necessary survival tool.

It is your world-wide culture. The list of most popular video games, TV shows, movies and songs tend to be fairly similar across the world (in particular the part of it we call it the western world, another discussion that I'll get into below), and they're dominated by the output of US media. There is no equivalent to e.g. Disney anywhere outside of the US.

It's your debates and discussions. Because of the huge importance the US has economically and culturally (not to mention militarily), we tend to discuss US topics a lot, and we tend to discuss them from an American point of view.

This introduces American oddities into a lot of the world. For example, I'm a STEM guy, I have a STEM education, a STEM job and my primary hobbies are also STEM based, so what I notice are imperial measurements like feet and inches. Those are not "one of two equally valid choices", they're the unique hobby of the English-speaking countries, and within them, increasingly only the US. But we still tend to see them here as if they were a normal usual thing, and often europeans (including me) feel compelled to provide translations into these units.

But it's not limited to that, court room dramas are another example where courts in the English-speaking world tend to work very differently from those in the rest of the world. E.g. there's no pleading guilty or innocent in most of the world. There are boundless more examples of that, and these things can be grating every once in a while.

As I said before, I don't think there's any moral value here either way. You're not wrong for being an American (but you're also not better because of it). As I hinted at before, I'm still in a very privileged position myself, being from a wealthy European country, and my culture even without Disney is still far closer to that of the US than it is to most of the rest of the world. I'm sitting in the very same glass house, just maybe a different corner (TODO fix this metaphor before posting).

For example, I'm talking about court rooms and inches versus meters, but if we're thinking about history and ethics, there's deep issues in both of them. When it comes to measurements, it's ultimately the question of whether you use the measurements of London or those of Paris. For most of the world it's a colonial imposition either way. You can make arguments for why one is better for technology than the other (and as you can probably guess, I have strong opinions here), but in the grand scheme of things, neither of them is more "ethical" or more "universal", not really anyway. Same with the way legal systems work, where again, countries either adopted (and more often than not were forced to adopt) either the English system or the French system (with quite a few countries choosing to adopt the German version of the French system as well).

I know that's a boring digression but it's something that's usually missing from these posts, especially ones written by europeans, including some I've written myself. I don't really have a conclusion to any of this either, except perhaps that this is something that's worth being aware of.

[the-badger-mole]

But FWIENDSHIP!!!! 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺

Okay, so you all know how I get when something gets stuck in my head, but yesterday I saw a post talking about how Katara and Zuko's potential romance messes with their friendship, and I don't understand how, but that's beside the point. This is an anti-Kataang post.

I will once again admit that I don't spend a ton of time in Kataang/anti-Zutara spaces (cause I'm respectful like that), but every so often, I see one of those takes pop up in my safe area (because respect isn't always a two way street, unfortunately). It's interesting to see how many times this take seems to crop up. Katara and Zuko falling in love would ruin their friendship, yet those same people fail to acknowledge that Bryke went ahead and ruined their friendship anyway out of jealousy. These same people also tend to hold Kataang as a prime example of Friends to Lovers, the only problem is, Aang isn't Katara's friend at any point.

Throughout the series, it's made very clear that Aang likes Katara, but for most of the series (until literally the last few seconds, in fact) it's also clear that Katara only sees him as a friend. This should have been an object lesson that sometimes crushes don't work out, but friendship can be stronger than temporarily disappointed feelings. However, that's not what we get. Aang doesn't care about Katara's friendship. He doesn't want Katara in his life unless it's in a romantic capacity. We see it in how he reacts when he feels romantically rejected (lava fissure, EIP). The narrative doesn't give Katara any space to say no to Aang without it permanently damaging their relationship, because they never had the relationship Katara thought they did. Katara thought she was Aang's friend, but for Aang, their 'friendship' was just a precursor to romance. In this, the year 2023, I know we all understand why this is a problem.

Aang can't even conceive of a world where Katara does turn him down. He dreams about her enthusiastic response to his declaration of love; he assumes that since they kissed he kissed her and staked his claim, they should be together, despite there never being any sort of conversation, and the fact that the one time he did try to talk about it, she changed the subject very quickly. Katara's feelings are an afterthought for Aang, which is terrible for any relationship, but particularly in a romantic one. There is never a moment where Aang puts Katara's emotional needs ahead of his own. He never puts a value on her platonic friendship. There's never a moment where he decides that despite his feelings for her, having Katara in his life as a friend is better than not having her at all. That moment should have happened regardless of whether they ended up together or not, because friendship is the most important component of the Friends to Lovers trope.

By comparison, the friendship Katara eventually forms with Zuko is much deeper, and based on a mutual respect, understanding and emotional support for each other. This is a fantastic foundation for a romance, although bafflingly, people who laud Katara and Zuko's deep friendship don't seem to agree. Them potentially falling in love doesn't cheapen their friendship because they actually were friends first. On top of that, their Enemies to Friends journey ending romantically would not only not cheapen their friendship, it would tie into the themes of the show beautifully (the illusion of separation; love being stronger than hate; learning to respect other people's differences etc).

Let's be real, what Kataang actually represents is The Hero Gets the Girl, and I think deep down we all know that, even the ones calling it Friends to Lovers. In the Hero Gets the Girl trope, the Girl in question doesn't really matter. She's less of a romantic partner and more a prize for the Hero saving the day. Her emotional journey to falling for the Hero mostly plays out off screen, even though she may not have even liked the Hero like that initially, and the hero doesn't ever show that he respects her as a person. For the most part it works (arguably) because the Girl isn't a character in her own right, she's just part of the Hero's story. The reason it doesn't work with Kataang is that Katara is a character. She does have her own journey, and as passionate and outspoken as she is in pretty much every other aspect of her life, it doesn't make sense for her journey to falling for Aang takes place largely off screen. Not unless you understand how little Katara's feelings matter to their relationship. Had Katara actually rejected Aang, their friendship would have ended because Aang was never interested in her friendship.

It's interesting to me to see people who claim to value friendship over romance spend more time complaining about a romance that isn't canon over the actual canon ship that really does cheapen the friendship. But then again, I guess that was never the problem in the first place.

[nevereverywhere]

Paul McCartney Interview 1982

Q: "Let me ask you what everybody wants to know. How did you feel when you heard the news about John's murder?"

(at that precise moment my cassette auto-stopped)

PAUL: "You see, your cassette didn't even like the question. (laughs) Listen, John would be the first guy to laugh about that. How did I feel? I can't remember. I can't express it. I can't believe it. It was crazy. It was anger. It was fear. It was madness. It was the world coming to an end. And it was, 'Will it happen to me next?' I just felt everything. I still can't put into words. Shocking. And I ended up saying, 'It's a drag,' and that doesn't really sum it up."

Q: "Were you actually still close to him?"

PAUL: "Yes, yes. I suppose the story was that we were pretty close in the beginning when we were writing stuff together. We felt alot of sympathy for each other, although on a personal level, based on a lot of stuff that went down later, I obviously wasn't that close to him. To me, he was a fella, and you don't get that close to fellas. I felt very close to him, but from alot of what he said later, obviously, I was missing in the picture. But anyway, I felt very close to him then and when the Beatles started to feel the strain towards the last couple of years, it was getting to be a bit of a strain and we were drifting more apart. I think the kind of anchor that had held us together was still there. I think that we all, in a way, started to get really angry with each other, annoyed and frustrated, but we were still very keen on each other, loved each other, I suppose, because we had been mates together for so long. Like Ringo says, 'We were as three brothers.' It's that kind of a feeling. I mean, I didn't realize that, but Ringo would tell me later, 'You are like my brothers, you lot.' We all knew that there was some kind of deep regard for each other."

Q: "When the rift started, it was more like a divorce, like a love/hate relationship, coming apart. Is that true?"

PAUL: "Yes. It sounds weird when you use that analogy because then it takes on another meaning. But yes, it's true. What I mean is that there was that kind of deep feeling and deep heat. (laughs) Then we started arguing about the business and we just started to drift apart, as you say, like a kind of divorce. The bitchiness set in and everyone started going, 'Oh you say that, do you? Well, I'm really gonna let you know what I've been thinking all these years.' And we tended to go over a little bit over the top, I suppose. So it started to split apart. We got very estranged because John went to live in New York with Yoko and they were very much their own couple and there weren't many people that could get into that thing. I really think that was one of the best things that ever happened to him, for his personal happiness. It wasn't too easy for all of us, because he was sort of leaving us and going off on a new life and, whether you like it or not, we felt that each one of us had been each other's crutches for a long time. Then, with John moving away, there was a lot of bitchiness carrying on."

"I talked to Yoko the day after John was killed and the first thing she said was, 'John was really fond of you, you know.' It was almost as if she sensed that I was wondering whether he had... whether the relationship had snapped. I believe it was always there. I believe he really was fond of me, as she said. We were really the best of mates. It was really ace."

Ray Bonici for Canadian music magazine Music Express

the whole interview

[sotwk]

Hi! What character do you think most people get wrong? Or what’s a character that you see differently than most other fans?

Hi Elleth! What a great question--and the kind of topic I'm amazed anyone wants to hear my opinion on!

I'm of the belief that there is no wrong way to write fanfiction or headcanons. I support creative freedom in all fandoms, even in one so "classic" and "high literature" as Tolkien's work. We all have a right to our own takes, interpretations, and AUs, as long as it's all done for fun and love of the original content!

Some takes on characters are more popular, some are less popular, and that's all there is.

I'm one of those writers who tend to be more canon-compliant and less "out-of-the-box" creative, whether in Tolkien or any other fandom. I guess my Type-A mind likes having a structure and "rules" to work with! I like to tweak things here and there to please myself, usually by "saving" doomed characters, but for the most part, I tend to run with what Professor Tolkien wrote and fill in the blanks as best as I could.

What do I see differently from most other fans?

I'm probably in the minority regarding Thranduil's "once in an immortal lifetime" love for his wife, his Elvenqueen, the mother of his children.

The "Eldar marry only once" custom, as described in the "Laws and Customs of the Eldar", is one that I personally subscribe to for my Elven characters, but perhaps even the most for Thranduil.

Not only does Thranduil have zero desire to marry again after the death of his wife, but he never takes interest in anyone else romantically, passionately, or sexually, ever again. Most writers enjoy giving him a second chance at love by having him fall for and/or marry someone else, and that's totally valid, but I personally don't envision that for his character.

In my mind, Thranduil in his youth was disinterested in romance, and perfectly content with staying unmarried for his immortal life. But then he met Maereth, who changed almost everything he believed about his own purpose and destiny. He saw her as his life partner, someone meant to exist alongside him and he beside her, forever, whether on Middle-earth or Aman. That's how he explained the deep affinity and immutable love he felt for this lady, anyway. She was simply irreplaceable.

Thranduil is arrogant, self-assured, and supremely confident in his attractiveness, and combining this with this extroverted, mischievous nature means he tends to be a playful flirt. But he views love as the most serious of matters, and the giving of one's heart as nothing to be trifled with.

Another unpopular take of mine is that Thranduil is not lustful or easily sexually attracted to others. He did not even feel that desire for Maereth until he had already known her for a few centuries. While their marriage included a healthy sex life that begot many children by Elven standards, without Maereth, Thranduil's interest in sex disappears entirely (again aligning with what was written in LACE).

Although I wholeheartedly agree that Thranduil is a sexy character, I suppose I just don't view his character as actually being very sexual. (Hopefully that makes sense?) There is more than enough to preoccupy him with his many duties: standing guard against The Enemy, serving his people as a good king, caring for his wife, and raising his children and grandchildren well.

SotWK Fancast: Jennifer Connelly as Elvenqueen Maereth

I could certainly write countless essays about how much Thranduil loved Maereth, but goodness, I really need to actually write STORIES about it! Part of my writer's block is probably intimidation, since I feel I have to justify Thranduil's eternal devotion to this one special person. What a lady she must be! He certainly must have had many good reasons to love her so dearly!

Receiving Asks certainly helps motivate me, so thank you again for this great question and giving me a chance to share my thoughts!

Elves HC Tag List: @a-world-of-whimsy-5 @achromaticerebus @aduialel @asianbutnotjapanese @auttumnsayshi @blueberryrock @conversacomsmaug @elan-ho-detto-elan-15 @entishramblings @fizzyxcustard @freshalmondpandadonut @friendofthefellowshipsnerdblog @glassgulls @heilith @heranintomyknife23times @ladyweaslette @laneynoir @lathalea @lemonivall @LiliDurin @quickslvxrr @ratsys @scyllas-revenge @stormchaser819 @talkdifferently6 @tamryniel @tamurilofrivendell

For more Thranduil/Mirkwood headcanons: SotWK HC Masterlist

Other useful links:

Introduction to SotWK

Fanfiction Masterlist

Fanfiction Request Guidelines

[strawberrystepmom]

I have two zodiac-based questions (but not horoscope explanations like you've been doing), the first is dependent on whether or not you've watched Fairy Tail. (I'll send a separate ask)

The second: if you were to assign ONE anime character to best exemplify the different zodiac signs, who would you pick? (Can be from any anime of your choice, and they don't all have to be from the same anime, but you can only pick ONE).

Alternatively you could pick two, but they have to be based on the month divide (social media tells me there's a different between June and July Cancers (and obviously the others, but we're in Cancer season lol)?).

Feel free to answer in your own time, or completely ignore it.

ALRIGHT! this has been such a fun task to complete and I cannot thank you enough for asking me such a thoughtful question. I really have pondered on this for days just to be certain I have it as right as I want it to be.

Aries: Akitaru Obi - Fire Force

reason: embodies most of the natural traits of Aries as a sign. motivated, hard working, friend and family oriented. willing to put in the work to get done what he needs to get done. he trains every day for this!

Taurus: Gon Freecss - HxH

reason: aside from being boy of All Time, Gon to me embodies everything a Taurean is at their best. loyal, digging their heels in when it matters the most, giving it all but also understanding the joy in laying on your back and watching the clouds roll by.

Gemini: Itachi Uchiha - Naruto

reason: literally the most stereotypical Gemini I can think of even down to his decision making processes. committed to the bit when he was ready to go all in, thought a lot about it before then, remains fluid in his decisions afterward although it comes from an altruistic and good place.

Cancer: Ichigo Kurosaki - Bleach

reason: truly every Cancer trait exists in this man in a way I've seen very seldom. he's loyal, emotional, compassionate, but he doesn't let it blind him and this is common for a lot of Cancer people once they can suss a situation out.

Leo: Bulma Briefs - DB/DBZ

reason: hot genius heiress and literally knows it. I feel like a simple look at her screams LEO so loudly I don't really need to explain.

Virgo: Kakashi Hatake - Naruto

reason: the first Virgo man to ever make me crazy gets to keep his title but mostly because of his internal thought processes. Kakashi's anxiety has been widely debated in fandom for many years but I've always firmly subscribed to the theory (and tbh fact if you read the manga but I digress) that is is wracked by it. he is loyal, he tends to be grounded but he questions himself. idk. just so Virgo it hurts down to this.

Libra: Joseph Joestar - JJBA

reason: please watch one episode of Battle Tendency to know more. I will not be defending this decision and you will come back to tell me I'm right.

Scorpio: L Lawliet - Death Note

reason: intelligent, intuitive, endearingly strange. he is the Scorpio pinkprint in the very best way.

Sagittarius: Asuka Langley-Soryu - NGE

reason: literally every Sagittarius stereotype exists in this lovely young woman and she does no wrong to me so it doesn't matter but she's brash, she's proud of herself, she gets done what she sets out to do.

Capricorn: Senku Ishigami - Dr. Stone

reason: work ethic alone. he is the most stereotypical Capricorn I can think of in any media depiction down to deep emotions and the way he views his comrades and the things he does for them to make a world they weren't meant to be in more comfortable for them. I LOVE U SENKU!!!

Aquarius: Suguru Geto - JJK

reason: even if he hadn't gone murderous over it, he is an Aquarius through and through, down to everything he does being for the whole rather than himself.

Pisces: Yuuta Okkotsu - JJK

reason: literally the Pisces stereotype. kind, compassionate, good to everyone, everyone eventually becomes family which is just sooooo deeply Piscean thanks to our ability to really tune in and be there for people. just so good. glad to be associated with him.

[astrojulia]

Transiting Pluto sextile your natal...

MOON

During this transit, you can make efforts to improve your home and eliminate unnecessary clutter, focusing on what is truly important to you and your family. Your emotional range may feel narrower during this time, but you have the opportunity to fully experience and harness the power of your emotions. You can delve into your deepest psychological side and gain a better understanding of your true motives and unconscious impulses. This may lead to intense and concrete emotional experiences, but you will have the ability to handle them.

This transit is also perfect for exploring personal growth and human potential, without getting all abstract about it. You'll naturally approach people with more emotional depth, which is awesome. This transit can bring positive changes to your personal and family life, as well as your inner psychological world. You might find new ways to connect with your parents and family and have some creative breakthroughs.

SUN

Even if you don't have a crush, this is a great time to go out and discover one! You'll not hold back when you're interested in something. You're all in or nothing, and that's what makes you so effective. Your strong will and conviction will help you achieve important goals and prove yourself, even if you think you don't handle pressure well.

You’ll prefer to do things your own way, though, and can only tolerate those who follow your rules. But that's okay, because your strong will is usually an asset rather than a liability during this cycle. Just being in your presence can have an effect on others, especially when you know what's right and can easily convince others of your point of view.

You'll always pursue the truth, even if it's just your own truth. This period can help you tap into what gives your life true meaning and passion. At the same time, you can see through insincerity in others and unmask the reality behind appearances.

MERCURY

The type of information you get during this time really depends on the questions you ask. You're not afraid to look at things on the surface until you're sure you have all the facts. That's how you avoid surprises. Whatever you're interested in, you have a chance to really dive in and get results. This period can be a powerful opportunity to reshape your mind and focus on what's really important, letting go of everything else. If you take time to reflect, you might even make some significant discoveries.

You're generally making great decisions now because you really take the time to consider all your options. Once you've made up your mind, you stick to your guns. Some people might think you're being stubborn, but you just know you're right. You'll listen to advice, but if your mind's made up, you won't change it. Your words have a lot of conviction behind them, and that can be pretty influential.

You might find yourself talking a lot during this period, especially if you have something to say. Short trips can help you recharge and get your mind going. All in all, it's a great time to develop your mind and find more meaning in the world around you.

VENUS

If you're trying to make a deal but others are dragging their feet, you're pretty good at convincing them to come around with your persistence. And while you might enjoy reminiscing about the past, you tend to focus pretty hard on one person at a time. Right now, you're getting a deeper appreciation for what really matters and you might find yourself getting rid of things or people that don't fit with your values.

But by focusing on what's truly important to you, you can make a bigger impact and amp up your charm. This is a great time to get your finances in order, whether it's making smart purchases or reorganizing what you've got. And if you're determined, you might uncover some real treasures by digging deep into any resources you've got.

When it comes to relationships, things are getting deep and transformative. You might make some new friends or even find yourself a significant other who becomes a big part of your life. Your existing relationships can also become more fulfilling, as you learn more about yourself and what you need. It's all happening pretty smoothly, and you're going to appreciate the people in your life even more.

MARS

This cycle is all about perseverance and strength, and you've got it in spades. You go after what you want without hesitation, and if you stick to a clear path, you can achieve amazing things. Even in intense situations, you can handle anything that comes your way. You've got great instincts and can weigh the consequences of your actions, which earns you respect from others who follow your lead. You're not afraid to take risks that others might shy away from, but you don't rush into things without thinking them through first. Even if things don't go as planned, you've got what it takes to make it through.

This is your time to take charge and do things for yourself, rather than just sitting back and letting others do it for you. You've got the power to achieve great things and make a big impact on the world around you. Your energy levels are high, so you can put in a lot of effort for a long time, which means you can make real progress towards your goals. So go out there and show the world what you're made of!

JUPITER

During this time, if something's removed from your life, it's usually replaced with something better, which strengthens your trust in the process. Moving forward becomes easier when you're not afraid to let go of what's holding you back. You don't necessarily need to subtract to progress, but committing to a plan and ignoring what's irrelevant can lead to greater success. It's essential to focus on what's most gratifying and provides lasting satisfaction. This cycle is an excellent opportunity to make changes and position yourself for success that lasts.

Whatever you do during this time, it's likely to work out in your favor. You can grow and move beyond limiting conditions without looking back. This can help rebuild your confidence and deepen your understanding of yourself and the world around you. Travel and studying can be particularly enjoyable and broaden your beliefs. Probing below the surface can have a profound impact, so don't be afraid to dig deeper.

SATURN

Knowing exactly what you want can make a huge difference in how much you enjoy this intense focus that's available to you. You're a real go-getter, and when you're feeling secure, you can totally achieve some major goals. Sometimes, though, you gotta lose a little to win big, you know? And this cycle might make it super obvious that you need to get rid of some stuff that's holding you back. But that's cool, because you're totally feeling the urge to reorganize and streamline things for maximum efficiency.

This is also a perfect time to lay the foundation for long-term success by tackling any fears that might be getting in your way. You can totally break free from any toxic patterns that are holding you back from achieving your goals. And even though you can see those negative forces and self-doubts clearly, you're using them to motivate yourself to be even more badass.

You're totally in charge right now, and you've got the power to reshape your world however you want. You're a great leader when you know exactly what's going on, and there probably won't be too many surprises to throw you off track. But even if something crazy does happen, you're totally ready to roll with it and find a way to make things work, no matter what it takes.

URANUS

This is a super creative time for you, and you're buzzing with energy. You're eager to try out new things and explore avenues you've never tried before. You might even get into astrology and metaphysics as ways to uncover spiritual truths. You're primed to venture into higher realms, and you might meet some cool people who can guide you on your journey.

Things might be pretty chill during this phase, unless you're feeling extra rebellious. If you're willing to go against the norm, there's some sweet opportunities to shake things up. You've got a lot of influence when you're being your unique self, and you won't compromise your awesomeness for anyone.

Even if some wild stuff happens that totally messes with your routine, you've got this. In fact, some big changes might come your way during this time that could completely change your path for the better. You're not one to make waves unless it's necessary, but you can roll with the punches like a champ.

And yes, you might encounter some ups and downs, but the unpredictability can actually keep things fresh for you. You tend to thrive on change, and this is the perfect time for it.

NEPTUNE

This is a time when you might feel drawn towards the deeper meaning of life and all things spiritual. It's like a door has opened up and you're eager to walk through it and explore new paths. This phase can be impersonal at times, but it's important to pay attention because it can have a big impact on you.

Your imagination is firing on all cylinders, and you're likely to attract a lot of creative energy that you can work with. You might even have some vivid dreams that give you some direction in life. You're able to plan and dream big, and you're not held back by limitations. Your intuition is strong, and you're able to sense what needs to be done without over-analyzing it. You're open-minded and accepting of all sides of life, even if they seem conflicting. Unexpected experiences may come your way, but you're able to handle them with ease. You have a broader perspective on things now, which helps you accept what comes your way.

PLUTO

It's time to make some moves in your life and reach your goals! It's all about embracing change and transformation, especially when it comes to your mental and spiritual growth. Say goodbye to old habits that have been holding you back, and make way for some major success.

Things may be happening slowly, but trust me, they're happening. Sometimes it takes letting go of what's not important to make room for something new and amazing. You'll find that by tackling the big issues, you'll be able to replace small, surface-level problems with some serious substance.

So dig deep and ask yourself the tough questions - you're sure to find the answers you need. You're pretty brave, so don't be afraid to face any challenges that come your way. You got this! But be prepared, it might take some serious effort to reach your goals, and you may have to let go of things that seem important to you. In the end, though, it'll all be worth it.

CHIRON

During this time, you may feel like the universe is conspiring to help you heal old wounds and put past issues to rest. It's like you have a magic touch that can transform pain into wisdom and growth. Maybe you'll reconnect with someone from your past who has the power to give you the closure you need, or maybe you'll finally achieve a long-standing goal that has eluded you until now. Whatever the case may be, you're feeling like the universe is on your side and you're ready to seize the opportunity with both hands. Your heart is full of hope and determination, and you're ready to make the most of this chance to move forward and leave the past behind.

LILITH

This is a time for you to explore your deepest desires and embrace your independence and sexual freedom. You have a strong urge to break free from past restrictions and redefine your identity. This transformation can be quite dramatic, and you may find yourself shedding old limitations effortlessly.

With your newfound confidence in your sexuality, you are ready to take on the world and explore new horizons. You may find yourself drawn to new experiences, people, and opportunities that are exciting and liberating.

This period offers you a chance to explore your true self and discover what you really want out of life. You can let go of any inhibitions or fears that have held you back in the past. You have the power to transform your life completely and embrace your authentic self.

It's important to approach this transformation with an open mind and heart, and to be willing to take risks and try new things. You may encounter challenges along the way, but with your newfound confidence and independence, you can overcome anything that comes your way.

NORTH NODE

It's time to get excited because destiny is calling you! All the hard work and effort you've put in is finally paying off and you're about to receive some amazing rewards. Get ready to walk through some doors of opportunity that will help you achieve your life's purpose. You might even meet someone super important or join a group of people that will guide you on your path. Or maybe something epic is about to happen that will completely change your future! Keep your eyes open because big changes are coming and they'll have a deep impact on you!

SOUTH NODE

This time period might make you face some old patterns or issues that are holding you back. It's time to let go of those old habits or beliefs and turn them into something positive to propel you forward. You might need to confront some past traumas or emotional baggage, but trust me, it'll be worth it. This transit might even bring up some past connections or karmic stuff that needs to be dealt with. Take a moment to look back on your journey so far and see how it has shaped you. Use this chance to let go of what's not working and find a new path to success.

ASCENDANT (1ST HOUSE)

You've got some amazing opportunities coming up! This is your chance to show the world a new side of yourself. You can totally switch up your look or just try out new ways of connecting with people. And guess what? These changes will lead to some seriously positive shifts in your life.

Right now, you're feeling extra motivated and determined to succeed. You're not afraid to go after what you want, and you're not about to let anyone hold you back. You've got this inner strength that just radiates out of you, and people are taking notice. You're making all kinds of great connections and getting lots of support from important folks.

You might even feel like making some big changes, like moving to a new city or trying out a new career path. And you know what? It's all totally doable. You're ready for whatever comes your way, and you're not afraid to take risks.

Plus, you've got some serious skills when it comes to helping others. You might find yourself drawn to teaching or advising, or even discovering a new talent for healing. Whatever you do, just remember that you've got the power to make amazing things happen.

IMUM COELI (4TH HOUSE)

This is a time when your home life and family situation might be going through some changes. You could be feeling the urge to transform your living space and create a cozy, nurturing environment for you and your loved ones. It's a great time for home renovations or even moving to a new place that better fits your lifestyle. You might also feel a stronger connection to your roots and ancestors, and want to explore your family history. But, be prepared, this transit can bring up some emotional issues from your past that need to be dealt with before you can move forward. Don't shy away from it, confront those feelings head-on, and let go of any emotional baggage holding you back. That way, you can create a solid foundation for a brighter future.

DESCENDANT (7TH HOUSE)

This period can really shake things up in your love life and partnerships. You might feel a strong urge to revamp the way you interact with others and create more genuine, fulfilling relationships. It's a perfect time to address any lopsided power dynamics in your relationships and strive for more give-and-take. You'll also get in touch with what you really want from a relationship and might even want to try out new ways of connecting with people. Just be aware that this transit can also bring up some deep-seated issues with control and manipulation, which you'll need to work through to move forward. Take the time to strengthen your bonds and lay a solid foundation for future relationships.

MIDHEAVEN (10TH HOUSE)

This thing that's happening right now could totally shake things up in your career or how people see you. You might really want to change things up and make your work life more meaningful and fulfilling. It's a great time to take a look at any unfairness or negative stuff that's been going on at work and make changes so you can be more successful and happy. You might also figure out more about what you really want from your career and how to make that happen. Just a heads up, this transit could also bring up some tricky power dynamics or other issues that you need to deal with to move forward. Take this time to make your professional life stronger and better than ever!

-> Back to Pluto Transits Masterlist

[crystalelemental]

As I've mentioned, part of what got me replaying Pokemon games was a stream series I've been following. During the course of one of their other streams, their cohost made the comment "Who cares about the story in a Pokemon game?"

This was a fascinating comment, because generally speaking I think the response would simultaneously be "everyone" and "no one." Story is an often discussed aspect of Pokemon, but at the same time it feels like stories are often skipped. There's a giant rift between those who seem to really engage with the story of Pokemon, and those who are just here to play, and that discrepancy tends to inform preference for the games. As they become more story-centric in modern generations, the more gameplay-aligned grow less and less attached, though the complaint is more often that the story is bad, rather than the gameplay-story ratio is out of balance. It seems like story is often wanted, but to be more "serious" like some nebulous older days when they cared.

With that, let's talk about that nebulous time: Gen 5.

Okay so real talk! Like, super real and earnest, and kinda deviating from what I usually do with the Pokemon write-ups. I don't really care too much about story in games like this as long as it's out of the way.

I think when story is discussed, people often expect "good story" to mean the most complex and thematically potent thing released. But that's not really true. A perfectly serviceable and sensible story can still resonate well, and adds a bit of flavor to the world you explore. This is often what Pokemon aims for, even now. The stories are never that complex, but they can be engaging and fun ways to rope the player in to whatever is going on around them.

Gen 5 is heralded as the strongest story, in large part because of what it discusses. The question of whether Pokemon are being oppressed in our current society is a fair one, riffing on a long-standing joke about Pokemon being slaves and doing whatever players tell them to etc etc. Thing is, the story never really challenges anything. The people advocating for releasing Pokemon are entirely framed as misguided at best and overt lunatics at worst. The decisive answer given is "No no, this is fine, don't think about it." It's a story that pretends at strong themes and exploration of a conflict, but it doesn't really exist.

The same is true of characters. A lot of characters are presented as really deep and complex, but that...also isn't entirely true. Cheren and Bianca have their own things going on, but they're not necessarily more complex than, say, Silver or Wally. They just show up and talk more often, waxing philosophical about their inability to determine what they want for their futures due to being roughly 10-14 years old. I'd be willing to argue that even N is not particularly complex, and offers less depth as a child of abuse than SuMo Lillie and Gladion did.

This isn't to say you can't like these characters. I certainly do. But I think it's odd how much emphasis gets placed on Gen 5's story and cast despite them not really being more complex than anything that came before. There's more time given to the leaders and rivals and such, but they're not more fleshed out, just more present. Which is the point. You don't know more about them. You're around them in the gameplay longer.

What this suggests is that there's a good gameplay-story balance within Gen 5, which is...possible. Gen 6 onward do feel like you're being stopped every route to have people talk at you. But having just played it...Gen 5 does the same thing. And in some ways...Gen 5 is legitimately worse.

I talked about this a few weeks ago, but Gen 5 is the first game I've replayed that I put down for a while, because it was driving me crazy. The game has a lot of trouble in the early acts, due to EXP scaling. Your level is universally below your opponents, and every single fight feels like a shitshow as a result. You're constantly in need of healing, and opponent movesets are expanded and much stronger. Compare Lenora, whose Watchog has access to Crunch, to Gardenia, whose Roserade has almost exclusively Grass moves. Despite Roserade being stronger statistically, Gardenia is easier to beat because they offset the stats with a movepool that can be counterplayed.

This is the crux of Gen 5's...I won't call it issue, but I'm thinking it. Difficulty has been a hot-button topic with Pokemon for a long while, and the Gen 3-5 era is the main draw for those discussions. Gen 3 was challenging because it had a lot of good strategic play from opponents. Gen 4 introduced really strong opponents and restricted movesets. Gen 5 turns this up with scaled EXP and expanded enemy movepools, without giving players the same. For example, my Deerling didn't learn a damage-dealing Grass move until level 32, which was 9 levels above what I caught it at. We did not have a Grass move for Clay as a result, but don't worry, his Excadrill has Steel, Ground, and Rock-type attacks.

Your solution to this is meant to be Audino farming, which is a huge spike in EXP, but you have to run around doing nothing until the grass wiggles, then hope no other encounter intercepts before you get to it. It's a slow, tedious process that really hinders the flow of the game, and this continues until you get the Lucky Egg from Juniper in Chargestone Cave.

On that note: this was the second fastest clear of any game I've played, losing only to Blue. The game feels long, but was one of the shorter experiences.

This game, more than any other, feels hindered by flow in the early game. Past that Lucky Egg, my team was able to actually stay above the level of opponents until the League. But getting to that point feels so wildly tedious because of the EXP scaling. There are tradeoffs. Using a strong Pokemon like Durant late in the game results in rapid levels, getting even two in a single fight. But the problems that arise tend to involve sharp spikes that cannot otherwise be overcome with any reasonable ease.

I got locked in this game. My team could not outspeed Ghetsis' Hydreigon, and it one-shot everything except for Emboar. Yes, even Zekrom, who rolled a -Sp Def nature and must've gotten crap Speed IVs. My solution at this point was to take one of two options: go back and somehow farm levels past 50 using enemies in the mid-30s, or find a way to reroll events until Ghetsis missed Fire Blasts or Quick Claw activated. I opted for the latter. It was Not Fun.

This then blends into the immediate post-game experience of being in the low-50s, and having to immediately face opponents in the mid-60s in every direction. I despise this part of the game. While you get more EXP for them being higher level, trainers tend to be not fully evolved, which sharply reduces the EXP gained. So it takes forever to break through that ceiling as well.

Gen 5 lacks for a clear level curve, instead having awkward spikes that are impossible to keep up with. Lenora's nigh-impossible to keep up with if you have more than your starter in use, and that's a dangerous prospect in itself. Elesa's impossible to keep up with due to lack of Audino in the desert, and the obvious Sandile doesn't evolve until it's at her level and cannot statistically hold up against her team. The post-league hunt is a mess of opponents being much higher level than you for a long while.

These kinds of jumps are not new to the series, but this is also the first game where it feels like there's no actual response to what the opponent brings. When Norman is a huge level spike with no real room for training, you at least have the possibility of Aron or Rock types that largely block his attacks. When you have an opponent like Whitney who is huge, there's a ton of extra routes beyond her that can be used to level. Gen 5 has little to none of this, or at least not enough.

Let's take that example earlier of Clay. Clay has Ground types, weak to Grass, Water, and Ice. Around him, you have options: Deerling, Swadloon, Ducklett, and Vanillite. Great! Except Deerling doesn't learn a Grass move until too late, and can't evolve so it's statistically worse than his entire team. Swadloon evolves via happiness, which you're sure not gonna have, and is weak to Rock, which he has a ton of. Ducklett has similar evolution problems to Deerling, you don't have Surf yet, and it is also weak to Rock. Vanillite also doesn't evolve until late, and is both weak to and does not deal much to Steel. Essentially, there is no solution to Excadrill nearby if you haven't already trained one. And if you do pick them up, you're wildly below his level, and better hope you can handle all the fights nearby enough to clear.

Add to this, the change to reusable TMs was a double edged sword. Unova allows you to put your big moves on everything as needed, but in compensation, all the good moves are postgame locked. This results in tragedies like Seismitoad, who can't learn any Ice moves until post-game and is useless against Iris, and doesn't get a good Ground move until postgame when you find Earthquake. I can't say it even feels like they're restricted for reasons like Gen 4, where boosting was BP locked because the game wasn't balanced to respond to them, leaving only a few options. Like every Psychic learns Calm Mind, it's not a big deal.

At a guess, I think the design intention here was one aiming for difficulty. I was not super attentive to fandom around this era, so I may be offbase, but I wonder if arguments about difficulty in these games escalated around this time. It just feels like the type of game that tried to do things solely to make it hard, that...well, it didn't, it just made it tedious. I can't think of any other reason for movepools to feel so awkward, good TMs to be so scarce, boss fights to be so constantly above your level with tremendous movepool coverage, and even random encounters having serious threat potential while having a million of them. It just feels like something that was designed not to be fully its own adventure experience with your Pokemon, but to be actually challenging. And if I remember critical reception, the game bombed. I kinda wonder if that's not a huge cause of it.

To be honest, it feels like I'm mostly complaining at this point. There were a few points of fun, specifically around getting my new additions leveled up, like facing the League to get Deino to evolve and start contributing. But on the whole, this was...the least fun experience I had with the series thus far, from a gameplay perspective. Maybe I'm just burning out a bit after all this time, but even coming back there were times I felt like progress was just too slow and frustrating. I'm not sure how the next sets will go. I've been a long-standing hater toward the EXP All era, but I'm going to give this an honest try, and see what I feel about the games moving forward.

[langernameohnebedeutung]

Hey, I wanted to say I really love your takes on Borderlands, particularly with Nisha and her relationship with Jack. I wanted to get your thoughts on that particular line in the DLC where Jack said it's always me doing all the work and she goes I've said that before. I've noticed some fans tend to take that joke seriously and I thought of it as a light-hearted joke between those two. What are your thoughts?

hmm...I feel like there are several layers to this? Or at least, from what we know and don't know about their relationship, there are different possible interpretations of it.

(Like, I wrote one Nisha/Jack fic where this definitely was the case ...but in fairness that was also right after Jack got the vault-symbol punched in his face so-)

I think one very simple layer of this is that Nisha just very consistently likes to poke fun at Jack. We see a lot of that in Borderlands 2. Which is really an aspect of her personality - she likes to make jabs at other people. So yeah, obviously if he says something like that and she has a good comeback, she's not going to let that slide.

And on a deeper level of that: I think it's important to keep in mind that Jack and Nisha are both very dangerous people with extreme trust issues. Who somehow try to make a relationship work. And on the one hand, it makes sense that these two would get on like a house on fire. But on the other hand, it's kind of an undertaking that relies on a LOT of mutual understanding and trust. For that relationship to work, these two people, who are in the eyes of everyone else (except maybe Wilhelm who doesn't care) a duo of sadistic hypocrites, need to find a way to integrate each other into their very self-centred worldview. Their entire modus operandi is to apply rules to others that they don't apply to themselves - or to one another. And I think their banter is (on a subconscious level) one way of confirming "hey, things are good, we're having fun, I'm happy in this relationship, I still care about you" without ever being forced to be deep about this.

This is something that we also get a lot with Nisha: When Nisha says mean stuff about people, there is often a wide difference in quality. It makes a huge difference whether you are her friend that she wants to poke fun at, some idiot NPC that she considers below her notice, someone she just happens to dislike for her own reasons (like Moxxi in the beginning of TPS) or someone she has a sincere vendetta against (like Lilith and Moxxi at the end of TPS). What really sets all of these apart is the tone and the way in which she says those rude things. And whether she makes threats. That's why Nisha engaging in friendly banter with Jack is a pretty important aspect of their communication.

Another aspect I think is that Nisha and Jack are very performative people. Like, one of them puts up golden statues, and the other one larps as a western Sheriff. And while I think there are slightly different reasons for this (I think Jack buys more into his image or at least...depends more on it to feel good about his more monstrous side. While Nisha's more chill side seems a lot more authentic and more "two parts of the same coin" rather than "mask"), I also think that their relationship and especially THEIR ability to get along and THEIR ability to take criticism from one another and THEIR ability to understand each other's...pretty impenetrable moral code is something that they can have a lot of fun with. Because now they can project out at the world: "See how perfectly we reasonable we are? We are sure getting along. We don't understand why you all insist on not simply getting with the very evident and not-at-all-murderouly-hypocritical programme."

Now, I think the big question for a lot of people in the fandom is: How much (does it?) reflect on their actual sex life.

And ...without much contex about their actual relationship, I think there are several interpretations are possible:

Nisha literally just says it to be funny. As in, she just thought it was a funny moment to say that line. Like a "yo mama" joke.

The joke is that Nisha said it before in a different context that the Vault Hunters know about. e.g. the fact that Jack rarely accompanies them to their mission.

Or it is indeed a comment on their sex life. The thing is, I feel like the insinuation has always been that their sex life is pretty damn good. I think there is even a confirmation of that from Anthony Burch himself but I cannot be bothered to look for it - really, my reasoning is that Nisha is presented as a very sexual person and these two are often presented as very much on the same wavelength sexually. Quite frankly, I don't think Nisha would stay if she was genuinely unhappy with their sex life. A possible interpretation I do see is that they are both Nisha very canonically, Jack frequently implied, switches. So I think if we were to take the comment at face value and assume that a) she really "said that before and b) it was about sex - I would interpret it as "she has been playing the dominant part a lot lately"

[maxwell-grant]

Has anyone asked what do you think Kent Allard/The Shadow was like as a child or a teenager? What kind of personality (courteous or crude, grandiose or grounded?) did he had, and how did carry over to his latter life?

Nobody as of yet, because this is the kind of thing that tends to be viewed as complete hardline sacrilege by Shadow fans, and for some fairly self-explanatory reasons it's gone completely unexplored in any official material for about 90 years now (besides like one scrap of dialogue in a deleted scene from the 1994 movie). Nobody's yet pulled that trigger and botched a retelling of a childhood for The Shadow, and I don't think anyone's looking to be the first.

Naturally, you can imagine that I do practice heresy on the regular and have spent a lot of time thinking and crafting ideas for that part of the character's life, most of which I'd like to keep to myself for now, although whether I'd even actually use them if I could, is another thing entirely. Not that I need to, but I do like to have some basis for whenever I go into headcanon territory, so we're gonna get into those:

Fittingly, as far as I can tell, the only two bits of concrete information we've ever received in the pulps were related to Lamont Cranston: one bit in House of Shadows that mentions Cranston's fortune was inherited, and the famous "Lamont Cranston Talks To Himself" scene in The Shadow Laughs where The Shadow mentions that he knows Cranston's family history better than he himself. We can extract that Cranston at minimum has a family history of fortune and privilege, and presume he has still living relatives.

Some people call me The Shadow. That is but one identity. I have other personalities that I assume, as easily as I don my black cloak and hat. One of my personalities is that of Lamont Cranston. In the past, I have used it while you were away. At present, I choose to use it now.

You have some knowledge of Lamont Cranston's family history. I doubt that you could recall the maiden names of both his grandmothers. I know them. - The Shadow Laughs

The question of what young Kent Allard would be like largely hinges on just how gradual was the shaping of his personality, or whether he was just on some level always Like That, and it points both ways. I've talked a lot about how The Shadow's backstory lacks that one defining moment that's supposed to provide a clear separation between who he was then and who he is now, and there really isn't one thing that makes or breaks The Shadow, so much as a series of events and processes that led him across the years. It's a sandbox backstory.

But let's look at some things that could be used to inform a reading of what Kent Allard might have been like in those formative years

Way before he was The Shadow proper, he was already redefining his presentation depending on his surroundings. As Gibson once remarked on the character, "Always, his traits and purposes were defined through the observations and reactions of persons with whom he came in contact". Kent Allard the famed war hero was one name, but he went by others like Clifford Gage the American explorer who would first meet Lamont Cranston amidst his journeys to India and Tibet. Blanton the Frenchman who would conduct missions in Monte Carlo with a man who would later call himself Cliff Marsland. Whoever he went by in his time within the deep court of Tsarist Russia, and his later claims to have names given to him across the world and be able to be recognized no matter what tribe or city he goes into, and so on.

(Relevant to the above: The Dark Eagle was a name given to him by his enemies, and it's unclear how much was it a codename or a separate identity, since certain characters connected The Dark Eagle to The Shadow, but never to Kent Allard, and of course it's because Allard was a soft retcon, but still. He never actually called himself The Shadow in the first book either, it was a name first uttered by Harry Vincent that Claude Fellows and the story's gangsters coincidentally also picked for him, he'd only embraced it later).

He was doing Shadow things decades before actually being The Shadow, like donning black-garbed disguises to rescue Allied prisoners from German camps, engaging in hard-fought battles under the cover of darkness, throwing himself into dangerous situations to protect others and/or for the thrill of it, and his backstory reads a lot like The Shadow was something in the blueprints of his life for a while, whether he knew it or not.

EXTREMELY precocious, at minimum, and he clearly didn't pick up his skillset from standard military training. Gibson placed the character's birth around 1892, which means he was doing all of that work in Russia, befriending the Czar and embedding himself into a secret spy order meant "only for the most trusted members of the regime" even while known to be the agent of another government, barely into his twenties and barely old enough to enlist at all (assuming he didn't lie about his age), to say nothing of all the other legendary things he'd go on to accomplish before settling in America. He's either just that supernaturally good at learning on the fly, or he clearly had some kind of background learning and training in some of these things before he enlisted, which begs the question of who would even teach him, but the word precocious has been attached to Kent Allard's early backstory quite a few times.

He takes to aristocratic characters with ease. Lamont was said to be his preferred or even outright "favorite" of disguises, and he has several other personalities that are basically just Lamont with a different name (some take this as proof that he had to have been raised as an aristocrat, but I'd argue it points to the opposite).

He likes to dwell within dark, silent places, not just to get work done. He feels at home within it. This isn't just a matter of efficiency and such, Gibson describes quite frequently that The Shadow enjoys dwelling in the kinds of dark, silent, gloomy locations he most blends in. The Sanctum itself is almost comparable to a sensory-deprivation room and it's where he goes to do his best thinking. Nothing else ever merits this kind of description of him, of anything feeling "like home". "To The Shadow, stealth was an instinctive possession. When garbed in his accustomed attire of black, he became a part of the night itself". "Surrounded by the blackness which to him was home." - The Shadow's Shadow "Gloom enclosed about the visitors, for the building blocked the rays of the sun. There was something somber about the atmosphere that chilled Eric Delka. The Shadow did not feel the same sensation. Instead, the smile reappeared upon his lips. This was an atmosphere of mystery that carried the touch of darkness. Such elements were to The Shadow's liking" - Castle of Doom

There's also the Street & Smith "Clews": This was part of a campaign ad released before The Living Shadow to help promote it, as listeners of S&S's radio program were supposed to be on the lookout for clues that The Shadow would randomly state in regards to who he was or what he looked like, you can read them in full here along with ensuing theories about The Shadow's early life. Some of these don't seem to have carried over much to the pulps proper and how Gibson presents him, but as a whole they were never "discontinued" either. Most of these are fairly evident in the pulps as is, but there are others that either come up very rarely or simply did not come back at all:

He has a cobra tattoo on his chest. He plainly does not have this in the pulps on the few occasions his torso was exposed.

He says he has "artistic hands" and plays cards with them.

He is blond and dyes his hair to hide "my Nordic forbears"

"Like a bird, I take to the air when seeking out a lair" I think this carried over to him becoming an aviator but "seeking out a lair" is a weird phrasing.

He is a fastidious dresser, citing Beau Brummel in tastes, who's known for having defined the modern image of the dandy. He also has slim feet ("8 triple A, the salesmen say")

He attained a Bachelor of the Arts degree at the age of twenty and is currently forty. This was way before Gibson assigned him a birthdate decades later, but it matches with the 1892 date provided.

He practiced rowing in college. The clues describe him as tall ("Low doorways please me not"), athletic and slim enough to squeeze through prison bars, which matches his pulp body type (he'd perform a far more impossible feat of contortion in one story much later). The article above uses this clue to argue pretty convincigly that The Shadow would have gone to Princeton.

Now, these are in a very ambiguous position because they're attached to a version of the character right in the middle of transition from spooky radio narrator to pulp crimefighter, and it's unclear how much if at all Gibson even used them. But they exist, and you could make them out to be facts about Allard's life, or Cranston's life, or things The Shadow made up based on former identities. Point being, it's one thing we can use to piece together things about his first 20-or-so years.

"I'm not sure about Cranston," he said seriously. "The man is famous in a way. Too famous!"

"Famous for what?"

"For his adventures all over the world. He has money, yes, which he is supposed to have inherited. But the records on the subject are very meager.

"I think that Cranston may be an adventurer in more ways than one." - House of Shadows

Cranston's upbringing should also be relevant here, because what little we do can already be a bit telling: Lamont Cranston was raised in a wealthy Jersey mansion and supposedly inherited his fortune from a family with a certain amount of history, but he's become famous for spending all of his time globetrotting and staying everywhere but home, dodging responsabilities to go shoot elephants or climb mountains in the Himalayas with his trademark leisurely, detached demeanor, barely in touch with his own family or tax records. A man who has "many friends, but none who know him well". Cranston did most of the work dissappearing from his own life and country, and half of why he and Allard have that set-up is because of that, and because Cranston quickly and even happily agrees to it. The real Lamont Cranston is completely fine with another guy doing being Lamont Cranston for him.

And a final addendum: For the most part I'm ignoring what the 1994 movie and it's different takes in comics and novelization did, but the novelization did provide a little bit of background for the Cranston family that we could go with in the absence of anything else:

Cranston was everything Allard wasn’t: privileged, pampered, opportunistic.

The Cranston fortune had been made in railroads and manufacturing, among other things, and had survived Black Friday by dint of the late Theodore Cranston’s uncanny knack for the market. Cranston was one of few New Yorkers who hadn’t sold his property to a developer because of the servant problem, or the escalating costs of maintaining fifty rooms in the heart of a thriving city

Family heirlooms handed by several generations of Cranstons. The house had the look and feel of permanence, as if the Cranstons were only the latest in a long and continuing line of distinguished occupants.

Now, some have said that Allard must have been raised an aristocrat, which makes sense but, The Shadow's aristocrat leanings are always in the form of him playing a character, and characters he's quite fond of but are always a mask he's putting on. And if Allard is meant to be different from Cranston (otherwise he's redundant as an identity), whether he's a world-renowned hero or a faceless, injured nobody, it stands to reason that he should have a fairly different upbringing than Cranston's. As The Shadow or whatever else, he relates to his own life in a completely different sense, completely buried in his duty to justice and the responsability he takes to others within it, protecting everyone while Cranston barely cares to protect himself (notably, when he does do it in The Hydra and has to kill a man with an elephant gun, he almost immediately starts feeling bad over his game hunting sports compared to what The Shadow's been doing).

So let's gather up some of our homework so far: We know Lamont Cranston has a family history from which inherited his fortune, that he was born into privilege and went on to live apathetically numbed by it. We know Kent Allard is not Lamont Cranston. We know he's had a proclivity for disguises and reshaping his identity long before he became The Shadow proper, and that just as now, most of his personas are either based on existing people or named by his enemies. We know he was doing quite a lot of things that pointed to his becoming The Shadow down the line, but that there was clearly a long process to get there and there's no clear moment where he truly becomes The Shadow, not even when he buries Kent Allard in that Guatemala plain crash.

We know he was highly precocious, enlisting and getting drafted into performing extraordinarily dangerous spy work from a very young age, and that he's apparently always had a strong sense of duty towards others, this being part of why he rejected becoming a mercenary after the war (although he still considered it). We know he likes impersonating and performing wealthy characters and he's mastered upper-class mannerisms so thoroughly to the point he can seamlessly blend in and make aristocrats, Russian or American or otherwise, mistake or accept him for one of their own. We know he likes to stay and plan and rest within dark, silent places others would find eerie or uncomfortable to stay in, and that he feels at home the most within total darkness.

And from those early contest clues, he claims to have been a rowing athlete at college and he claims to be fastidious and well-dressed, and combined with the above this points to him having either been raised in strict, aristocratic fashion, or precisely the opposite and it being something he had to learn and master just as he learned and mastered countless other skills of disguise and mimicry, or somewhere in between. He claims to have attained a Bachelor of Arts degree fairly young as well, and describes having "artistic hands". And he claims to be naturally blond and to have a cobra tattoo on his chest.

Again, I'm not getting into my headcanons for his family life and other things I'd keep to myself, but still, what do I think young Kent Allard's personality was like? Well, to keep it short, I'll think of a few things.

I think those might have been the closest years he ever had to something resembling normalcy, and it wasn't meant to last so, maybe they should be good ones, no?

I think he was raised decently, and I don't think he was raised rich with money, not during his earlier years. Other things, most definitely, but I think he had to learn a lot about how to deal with money, and this is part of why he's ultimately able to better handle Cranston's money as well as never need it and have his own undisclosed personal fortune.

I think he had to learn a lot about how to deal with people, and fighting, and mimicry, and interpersonal relationships, and aviation, and any other number of skills and things that he'd be highly proficient at barely entering adulthood and that he'd have to rely and develop so much to save his life again and again. He is restless, genial, unsuited for settling down and staying still, always thinking and planning and researching, and he most likely was always like this one way or another.

I like to think of him as having been raised mostly by his mother for several reasons, one of which being a point of contrast with Cranston's father, and maybe there were other hands on deck trying to steer his development for better or worse, but it was definitely her first and foremost. I think it was a different upbringing than you'd expect someone like him to have, maybe one that separated him of some opportunities but definitely prepared him more for those he'd give to others. I will put my foot down on just one idea, and it's the idea that he lost his parents or is driven by the loss of them: that's someone else's thing, it's never been a factor in his driving motivations and it doesn't need to be.

He grew up in an imperialistic America adapting to labor confrontations and conflicts posed by the Industrial Revolution, and I think he was no stranger to evil or injustice from an early age, and that burying Kent Allard was a decision made with a long history and experience showing him it had to be done, but that he was still very green around the gills before the war, more prepared than most but still initially out of his depth in the face of such callous, monstrous, pointless cruelty. He most certainly did not grow up knowing he'd be The Shadow, but I think he grew up knowing he'd have to be something, because being nothing, and thus doing nothing, was not an option. Maybe that was an option for the wealthy young man about town who lived elsewhere with a different name, but not for Kent Allard.

I think he had more of a sense of humor than he lets show nowadays, that the laugh was just always the language he'd prefer to use the most, same as is now. I think he had a fondness for stagecraft and arts, maybe was raised close to it, and that so much of his extensive repertoire of skills and disguises started there, and that maybe he still somewhat treasures that Bachelor of Arts degree, even if the man who worked to get it, to get into a prestigious college and had friends and a winning team and things to call his own, can't really exist anymore.

But he was there once.

I think he had things he loved very much and would have laid down his life to protect, whether they were still around for his adulthood or not. Good parent or parents, good friends, a good home, good experiences, good dreams. Maybe not all at once, but certainly they were there, and they mattered. They had to, he had to have had something, because I don't think there was ever a time where Kent Allard never had any enemies or people trying to hurt him one way or another.

"put The Shadow anywhere, in any locale, among friends or associates, even in a place of absolute security, and almost immediately crime, menace or mystery would begin to swirl about him, either threatening him personally or gathering him in its vortex to carry him off to fields where antagonists awaited."

We can never know the full extent of it, but however his life was like from childhood to adolescence, and whatever happened to him to lead him to mature so fast and ultimately enlist so early with such impressive and dangerous skills, I think Kent Allard had good times.

Or maybe I just want him to have had good times once, before what became of his life, before the war swallowed him and his own choices made all he was before an irrelevant trivia of weakness he can never admit to because it undermines the very foundation of The Shadow as an unknowable force of nature and mystery, in-universe and outside of it, and so it needs to be buried and wiped and erased.

But before the war and the spy and soldier work and the travels and the dark missions and the faked deaths and the arrival of The Master of Darkness to be all that he was, is or would be, there had to be a time where he knew something else besides those things. There had to be a time where The Shadow knew something besides being The Shadow. Because becoming The Shadow was, above all else, his choice. That which he stated the one and only time he made it a point to unmask and give us the truth about himself:

"I chose that mission."

You must treat the character as a discovery,rather than your own creation. Treat him, not just seriously, but profoundly.

Picture him as real and beyond you, in mind as well as prowess.

Feel that however much youhave learned about him, you can never uncover all.. - A Million Words a Year for TenStraight Years, by Walter Gibson (Writer’s Digest,March 1941) )

[lillified]

Hello! I hope you don't mind this, but I've been trying to better understand He/Him lesbianism, but google isn't very helpful and I've heard a lot of explanations and I wanted to hear your side of it since your Megatron seems to align with that? Your explanations tend to make more sense to my neurodivergent brain 😅

-Bi lady trying to better understand the peeps around her ❤

I mean, I’m probably not the best person to explain this and you’re probably better off asking someone who is one, since everybody’s reasoning and experience is different. I’ll try to give a basic overview to get you started, but I really can’t claim to speak to everyone, if even very many, people’s experience:

The basic principle is that pronouns are social arbitrage and are indicative of how other people in society perceive you, but they are limited to describe the scope of gender experience. you may not be a man, but still identify strongly with masculinity and “benefit” from some of the social consequences of presenting and performing masculinity—or, in many cases, the rigid expectation of femininity is just way too narrow and suppressive. The tragic fact is there really isn’t a lot of precedent or understanding for women who aren’t feminine or perform feminine roles, and those expectations are so ingrained that they infect the core of people’s expectations of womanhood. I’ve heard butches describe that sometimes it’s just easier to use masculine identifiers because it helps people understand, which is something I’ve experienced to a lesser degree (even now as I’ve become less ambivalent with my gender I still frequently call myself “guy” and “man” and similar things).

All that being said, presenting socially as masculine doesn’t necessarily change who you are, or how you experience the world. Butchness is very performative and masculine, but deep down most butches have a connection to women and femininity that is extremely strong. Womanhood is an isolating and often dangerous experience, and, historically, lesbianism isn’t JUST about relationships, but the effort of women to find protection and support from sexism, oppression and violence within themselves. Being butch, even to the point that you “pass” and don’t experience as much targeting for being feminine, doesn’t erase your connection and experience with the feminine, and with womanhood. Whether you are cis or trans, your experience of the world and your treatment at the hands of other people has, and probably will always be, affected by that overarching social expectation, and often detriment, of womanhood.

Being butch is a personal celebration of the fluidity of one’s gender and the performance of masculinity, but just because it rejects the appearance of the feminine, that doesn’t mean it dislikes or “rejects” femininity. This is something I’ve struggled to reconcile for myself, but it feels demonstrably true. Your physicality, appearance, and social role may appear masculine, but manhood is more than just short hair and pants, just like womanhood is more than long hair and dresses. They’re simple blanket statements intended to describe a range of human experience that is extremely vast, both socially and biologically. Your pronouns can describe you to strangers and peers, but they don’t always represent your experience and reality, and that’s where you get he/him lesbians, who are masculine in performance, but feel a connection and allegiance to womanhood that is far deeper than someone who identifies as a man might.

that being said in Megatron’s case (can’t believe we got here from a transformers question), while I use he/him pronouns for him, they aren’t his only ones, nor are they even the ones I’d say he’d choose. I see him as ambivalent, and a performer; he presents a very exaggerated, masculine persona to hold power and communicate strength, so masculinity is something others see and expect from him. In a situation where power games weren’t mandatory, I could honestly see him preferring other pronouns. I guess that does kind of tie in with what I described, lol.

Anyway, I hope this helped, at least a little bit! I got kinda rambly there, apologies. I feel like the nightmare scenario of guy whose interests include gender study nonsense and transformers. once again, I am just one person and I’m definitely not the best qualified, so please seek out other material if you’re confused, and remember that everybody’s relationship with gender is completely different!

[howlingday]

Hey Howling, thanks for the advice before! I know asking questions isn't how most people expect advice, but it does work since it forces us to sit down and think a little bigger.

So thanks for that.

I guess that brings another question/advice/opinion I've been meaning to ask you.

When it comes to creating content to share, whether fanfic or original, what motivates you?

Cuz' the more serious I tend to get about an idea, the more I freak out about how much of my own personal time I inevitably start devoting to it.

Which is great in one sense... cuz I get lost into my wondrous world of writing headspace...

... and short little drabbles, and silly prompts are great fun! I really do enjoy them!

But when it comes to fanfics, swimming super deep in the depths of my untethered imagination honestly scares me...

Because who knows if all my effort will be shrugged at and forgotten by the fans or other creators, when I could have been doing something original...?

Or if... when I finally do stick my head up out of the depths of any fandom...

...I'll find that back in the real world, above the surface, the tide of my life will have changed, and I'll realize how much the shore has shifted and moved on...

... alongside my loved ones who will have made new memories without me, every time I insisted on spending just a little more time diving deep, as they never had the urge to go exploring with me...

... all because I was so focused diving into the fandom of someone else's waters.

Sorry, if it got a little heavy, (and I get it if this doesn't get posted), but as someone who gets lost spending months at a time thinking up of new ideas, I wanted your insight on what makes fanfic writing worth it.

Small prompts are fun and a great way to use time, but lengthy-novels and time-consuming art?

What do you think?

Oof... Really aimed right at a very tender and sensitive weak point of mine, to be honest.

But first of all, I'm glad my advice helped you out with your thought process for building your world.

Now, I'mma be really real with you about the whole "time" thing. One of, if not the most absolute worst thought I could ever think of is "how much of my time was this really worth?" Because one thing I find myself often being during my "slumps" is a nihilist. I'll be in my groove, popping out funny ideas and neat little plot points when BAM! I ask myself "What is this all amounting to? Is this something that's going to matter in ten years? Or five years? Next year? What am I going to do in the real world?"

THIS IS THE POTENTIALLY WORST MINDSET YOU COULD POSSIBLY EXPERIENCE.

What helps me out of it is to, well, keep doing it. Get my idea out there and see how much people love it. Keep going at it, build yourself and your style, and learn from your prior mistakes and the mistakes of others.

As for the OTHER aspects in my life, it boils down to numerous factors, because on top of the multiple dozen drafts of asks I have saved for later, I also have my job, my stack of video games to beat and or give up on, my 3000+ YouTube Watch Later list, my MMA classes, and whatever I've got planned with my friends. I remember in college, there was a critical thinking class that said,

"YOU DON'T MAKE TIME, YOU BORROW IT FROM SOMETHING ELSE."

I see the small prompts, incorrect quotes, and spitposts as just fun little writing exercises to just get out there. Definitely play around with them if and when you can.

I hope the advice I gave helps and didn't just sound like me whining. Honestly, the best way to get good at all aspects of writing, including planning, dreaming, and actually writing is to keep doing it. And kinda let it all blend together in your life. If I see or hear something funny or inspiring or just plain awesome, I'll pop it into an incorrect quote and send it out! People love it? Great! No? Oh, well...

But always, always, always...

KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!

[wastemanjohn]

happy ww dude!!! do you think there are any kinks that dean had with john that he doesn't have with same, and do you think there are any that he discovered that he JUST has with sam>

Happy WW Rae! Or indeed nearly next Wednesday now!

Woof what a question.

So I think that John actually enjoys sex a lot, when he's in the right headspace at least - I think hes very much Dean's father in that respect. However at the same time, like many people, I tend to err on the side of John being nauseatingly vanilla. Like, the goal is getting off. I think John's idea of adventurous is fucking on the floor. He's maybe even a little prudish? Idk incest aside obviously but I think he might literally faint if Dean asked him to piss in his mouth or something. I think he maybe doesn't understand the point of most kinky things, and is quite surprised/unnerved the more he learns about Dean's (canonical, which is a gift) proclivities. I think, purely because Dean's hot when he's all turned on, he'd indulge Dean with some pretty low key stuff - a bit of spanking, maybe tying him up a little - but ultimately he finds it all a bit daunting, or even just kinda pointless, and doesn't really vibe with it. I can see him very much being a "but what does [kink/fetish] have to do with sex?" type person lol.

Apart from one thing. I think Dean owns panties. I think he gets off on the simple fact of owning them, and keeps them very hidden. I don't think he admits that particular kink to John out of embarrassment, but... say John comes home earlier than planned once and catches Dean spread out on a motel bed, naked aside from a silky red thong, happily jerking off for a while before he realises John is standing in the doorway gawping... I lean towards this flipping all kinds of fucked up switches in John's brain. We could get deep about the emotional incest that may have led them here or we could all just agree that John pushing those panties aside, rolling Dean over and fucking him senseless in them while role-playing husband and wife is really hot. And probably something they'd struggle to stop revisiting afterwards because they'd get off on it so so much.

So yeah, needless to say, even if Sam thinks it's the hottest thing in the world Dean would never be putting on panties for Sam. He was Daddy's pretty baby girl. He's never going to be anyone else's.

As for Sam... while I don't see Sam as 100% vanilla (we've all seen that primal MF in action) I do wonder if he'd have a harder time indulging Dean's more masochistic/subby kinks even if he wanted to because of his fear of being evil. (Early seasons at least). Like he's scared that if he gets off on hurting or dominating Dean what that might say about him... so idk if they'd avoid doing anything too out there for that reason. Although after they've been to hell I'd imagine they'd both develop some pretty nasty and gory kinks lol, whether they liked it or not. Stuff they probably couldn't do to each other without one of them getting killed shall we say but they could definitely get off on some very warped fantasies together... indulge each other in that because literally nobody else they sleep with could ever understand why they might have developed a taste for disembowelment or something. John would be turning in his grave if he knew what s11/12 Sam and Dean's dirty talk consisted of. And the boys probably laugh about it.

[mbti-notes]

This is unrelated to MBTI but do you believe in eternity? Is there anything in this life that y believe lasts forever? I have a Christian friend who believes in this concept, hearing her talk about eternal life after death frequently makes me actually curious whether to believe whether anything could last forever. Thanks for reading;)

As a general rule of thumb, I'm open to discussing but not debating matters of faith. Discussion is a process of exploring ideas and concepts, whereas debate is about critically examining ideas and concepts with the goal of arriving at truth. Matters of faith are, by definition, beliefs that are presumed true and thus do not require any explanation or justification. Trying to debate them usually just takes you round and round in circles. If you enjoy that, more power to you, but I personally don't.

What motivates people to hold beliefs based only on faith? Sometimes, it's because you don't know enough but you still need to proceed as though you do. Sometimes, it's because there's no better option. Do YOU want to believe in an eternal afterlife? Why would you? Most likely because you fear the unknown and/or you fear loss. Both fears stem from a deep-seated fear of death that is present in every human who understands their own mortality. Anyone who claims they don't fear death is either lying or hasn't properly acknowledged it yet. People can certainly face death bravely, but it doesn't mean they feel no fear.

Perhaps I'm wrong to assume, but the impression I get from believers in the afterlife is that they believe mainly because they are afraid. Very few people want to believe that death is the absolute end. It's quite painful to confront the possibility that you and everything you've experienced, accomplished, and loved just disappears. And then the world just continues chugging along as though your time meant nothing. Being unable to cope with meaninglessness is an easy way to trip into nihilism. From the perspective of your emotional health and well-being, faith seems like a better option than nihilism, doesn't it?

For the most part, I am a rational person, which means that I strongly prefer my beliefs to be well-supported by facts and reason. However, I will readily acknowledge that what humans know about the universe is infinitesimal. Being trained in philosophy, I'm more than happy to face up to all the things I don't know and, most importantly, I am relatively comfortable existing in ambiguity and uncertainty. Therefore, I don't have much use for faith, on the assumption that people use faith for the purpose of soothing existential fears. I accept and embrace my existential fears.

If I were to seriously consider the question of "eternity", I wouldn't do it from the perspective of death and religion but from physics and metaphysics. Whether there exists anything eternal is a question of what the universe really is at its most fundamental level.

The concept of eternity as it relates to religious afterlife is based on a particular view of physics. For example, it assumes that our conventional human conception of time is objective and real, as in, there is actually a past, present, and future. It also assumes that the true source of what we call human consciousness isn't the physical human body. Given what we currently know about physics and biology, both of these assumptions are difficult to defend.

I don't believe in an afterlife in any religious sense of heaven, hell, purgatory, or reincarnation, though I flirted with these ideas when I was younger and confused by the many religions around me. However, I do tend to believe that consciousness is fundamental and ubiquitous, a view that some theorists call panpsychism. If I was forced to hold a faith-based belief, this is what I would choose.

The "consciousness" that panpsychism refers to is not the same as ego consciousness or whatever you include in your definition of who/what you are. It refers more to whatever animates the fundamental building blocks of the universe and produces the will to move and evolve. In this view, for reasons not yet fully understood, consciousness is neither created nor destroyed but just is, and it's always changing form. I suppose you could call that "eternal". Some people don't like the word consciousness and prefer "energy" or something like that.

Perhaps consciousness doesn't disappear at death but rather dissipates and reconstitutes as something else. Does this count as an "eternal afterlife"? I don't think it does, since there is no meaningful continuation of my personal ego consciousness. But the idea does grant me the tiniest speck of solace nonetheless.

[katyspersonal]

Hey for the fandom ask let’s change a little i’m curious to know what you think of Deltarune characters (& Undertale if no one else ask)

Oh, alright! Yeah, I do not address UTDR all that often despite avidly awaiting Deltarune's completion... This happens when I am into a thing but choose to not interact with the fandom! I will separate the games because even though UT and DR share some characters, even they are slightly differently portrayed.

(Asks from this ( x ) meme)

DELTARUNE:

❤Favorite character

This motherfucker is some of the most intimate and personal a character ever got to be for me:

I was actually so surprised by Literally Everything about him that I needed several days to process his EXISTENCE xD I absolutely love every single line he makes, and I feel strange deep relation to him (not kinnie one, but it feels spiritual). We are just on the same wavelength about being huge l00sers, being cringe but with a unique charisma, having intense mood swings, using weird humour and, of course, the whole 'perceiving the world as a simulation and going insane because of it'... I wish there was a legit term for 'the character I do not kin yet relate to and feel emotions of like they were my own'. I also once had a weird dream about him fusing with me into one entity to get to be 'real' using my human soul, and trust me, that was a whole TRIP for a considerable time. :')

👿Least favorite character

I will have to say Jevil, but this isn't entirely fair... Like I said, I am not ABLE to dislike a fictional character, ESPECIALLY by Toby, but with Jevil it is a love/hate relationship, so he is the only one who can even approach ;-; He is same category as Patches Fromsoft: the 'You have a lot to love about you, but... WHY.' kind of character. xD

💐Comfort character

Deltarune version of Asgore is THE definition of the soft man. Somewhat lingers with me that in UT timeline he murdered children, but... this just doesn't get to me. After all, most people are capable of terrible atrocities, it is only a matter of whether they meet the conditions that bring it up in them or not. Hehehe...

😍Character you have the biggest crush on

Surprisingly, not Spamton! We are only [[Serious Business Offer]], my [[babygirl]]! Instead, I fucking HAD to have a crush on the hypocritical weather wane bitch ass motherfucker idiot Rouxls Kaard! x_x I still can't justify it to this fucking day. I tend to only like characters that are smart and complex, but I guess his Style TM and charisma alone are irresistible.

🤝Character you relate to the most

You probably won't believe me, but... Noelle? Yeah, I know, this is very hard to communicate because she is sweet and soft but I am rude and abrasive, to say the least. Nonetheless, I am as far as kinning this character. There is a side of me that is alas not shown very often, however, close friends know of it. Christmas is my favourite holiday, I am very smart and talented but let people use me, I ask too many questions, I have some kindness to me, I am anxious and get startled easily, I am actually easy to push around the closer you are... Heck, sometimes I switch full mode into speaking like her, feeling like her and envisioning myself as her in my mind. x_x

It is a side of me that no longer shows often, nonetheless, it is still alive, like a soft core under a very thick skin. I also started to SERIOUSLY relate to her history after learning of the Snow Grave route.

🔥Character you think is overrated

I ammmm gonna say, Spamton NEO version! When this character became really popular, it felt as though everyone only cared about his NEO form! Yeah, they are the same character, actually, but it is more about the delivery! If you don't love Spamton at his 'silly super short failing salesman that lives in the trashcan', you don't deserve him at his 'tall cool robot' form!!!!1! /lh

🧨Character you love to hate

Rouxls Kaard again! I know, it is the only DR character that gave me even a semblance of attraction, but I will always bully him for the coward and hypocrite siding with the winning side that he is XD

🙈Character you always forget exists

That one red blob with a face that characters always act around as if that's their friend and someone famous. See, I do not even remember their name! This is how much I forget about them!

🐰Favorite non-human character

Deltarune has only one human character to begin with, so I will use this field as 'favorite unexplored character' instead. Well, I was actually rather fond of Diamond King in my time! Gave him hella headcanons and all that!

❤️‍🩹Character who deserved better

ALL THE KINGS!!!!!!!! Diamond, Heart and Club Kings - because they were just a haha funny cameo with only Diamond King having at least SOME lines. Spade King was handled well enough in the canon, but it was the fandom that gave him pretty bad treatment - from neglecting the nuance of his character to the outright ableism (I am serious). But even fandom aside, Spade King deserved better than having endured an obvious divorce from a rather shallow wife, being abandoned by his Knight and living in the bitterness about how Lightners treated the Darkners. No shit he became an unlikeable person. Like... can anyone treat him nicely?

UNDERTALE:

❤Favorite character

I love them all, but THE favorite got to be Undyne!

She is already the badass fish girlfriend in the normal timeline, however, her best traits sure get to shine in Merciless Route. Her speech about humans and monsters hearts beating as one just to continue existing absolutely won me over. The coolest character, hands down.

👿Least favorite character

No such thing, sorry! The closest I can think of is Muffet because unlike other bosses, she is Just There and is doing the smug anime girl moves, but she is still cute! Also I still like spiders ;-;

💐Comfort character

W. D. Gaster + Whatever fandom made out of W. D. Gaster (that mostly comes from interpreting Mystery Man sprite as him). But honestly, this character makes me happy! A mad scientist that accidentally cancelled his own existence and transcended beyond his own plane.

😍Character you have the biggest crush on

Stupid motherfucking Mettaton and his pretentious, full of self personality -_- Can you tell yet that I have a type? W. D. Gaster is the close second, however.

🤝Character you relate to the most

Honestly, Papyrus. Almost a kinnie. Again, something hard to explain, because you can see my personality doesn't match, but it is just... the whole 'looser that really wants approval but is THE manifestation of everything that won't make anyone except a few people appreciate him'. He is also silly, that I can relate to. I will turn goddamn full TWENTY SIX in April, but I am still just really silly and naive @_@

🔥Character you think is overrated

I don't know whether I want to say Sans, because he kindaaaaa deserved his popularity... I think it is more about how his potential was overrated. In every Undertale AU, he is the central figure, and like... THIS is my gripe. If you gonna alter universes, why not touch other characters?

🧨Character you love to hate

Mettaton, because he is a huge bitch, actually xd Like, yes, he is very attractive, but I also want to short his circuits and not in the way of a weird euphemism, but in a literal way :( Think of 'I want to strangle him' but in regards of a robot character. Fuck him for abandoning Napstablook and being mean to Alphys when she is clearly struggling with many issues in weird ways :( I still love him tho

🙈Character you always forget exists

Nice Cream guy! Only ever remember about him when he is brought up in his ship with Burgerpants.

🐰Favorite non-human character

Again, Undertale has like... TWO human characters, so I will reverse this point! Picking between All Two of them, I think I like Chara better than Frisk. They invoke so much sympathy, they were the only one who truly understood Asriel (by his OWN admission!), they take lacking trust and bullshit very seriously and were clearly a very strong-willed child.

❤️‍🩹Character who deserved better

The entire Dremurr family, including Chara. I mean... the whole plot sprouts from the tragedy of this family, so I guess this part is a no-brainer. Honorable mention is Alphys in the ending variant where Mettaton becomes the king, because it is heavily implied that she either committed minecraft or simply was in a terrible mental space enough to distance and disappear from society. I am thinking about that timeline every now and then. I even had a lost concept of her trying to run away from everything that fell on her and falling into rift in time, that changed her permanently. A never developed AU because people in a Discord server dissed my overly elaborate idea :(

Thank you for the ask though! I don't get to talk about UTDR side of me all that often, despite how much it means for me!