#wow what an essay lol

[vixendoesstuff]

Meet White Vortex!

vv Here's their vehicle mode, or something closely resembling it vv

More info under the cut!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Name : White Vortex Species : Metal Cardbot Pronouns : They/Them Eye Colour : Emerald Green Height : 7 ft/2,1 m Vehicle Mode : Kawasaki Ninja H2 Allegiance : Rogue (former), Edo Workshop (current)

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

Back at Planet Machina, it's uncommon to find Metal Cardbots in White Vortex's size. Unfortunately, because of this, they're subjected to a lot of bullying and discrimination due to their size being "miniscule" and "weak". This left a deep fear of people, especially those bigger than them, within the Cardbot, causing them to be closed off from the outside world to spare them the pain.

But if you somehow, by some miracle from Deus Machina itself, managed to breach their walls, then you'll find that they're... kind of awkward when it comes to a conversation. No surprises there, to be honest.

White Vortex, while seemingly cold and aloof to outsiders, is far from that. They're a soft spoken, kind and loyal individual, who will try their best to please those who they deem trustworthy. This can come across as overbearing at times, so the best option is to gently tell them off (though the end result is highly dependent on the Cardbot's response to it all).

Overall, White Vortex is a good bot in heart, and a faithful friend to have, who will remain at your side 'till the bitter end.

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

If this looks rushed, it's 'cause it is. I couldn't be bothered to make a fancy refsheet since the time I take to draw digitally is about 3-5 days, so I just drew it all on paper, did some Ibispaint magic, and here's the result lol.

But anyway, here's my attempt at making a Metal Cardbot OC! I'm both surprised and not surprised a Korean kids show about transforming alien car robots got me hooked on its premise so fast. I mean, I'm also currently into Transformers, so I guess it's a given lol.

To my knowledge, all the currently known Metal Cardbots has mostly been cars and planes, with the occasional boats and animals. But I've never seen one who's a motorcycle, so I thought, "why not make one?". The premise might get debunked later as the show goes on, but a person can dream, right? Besides, it's just a harmless OC, so no harm done.

Anyway, the inspiration from their design mostly comes from, well, Transformers obviously. More specifically ROTB Arcee, Bayverse Sideswipe, and TFP Optimus Prime. I know the Cardbots all look blocky and not lean like what I have here, but my reasoning is that since they're a motorcycle, they don't really have a lot of kibble to form armour with. Hence, their slender appearance. I also took reference of real biker helmets for their head.

I was debating on colours for a good while when I was working on this, going from pure black, grey, blue and teal. But I decide to go with a simple colour scheme, a monochrome look if you will. It works somewhat at a lore standpoint, they don't want to draw too much attention at themselves, and that plan fails if they have neon blue and red as their pain or something. Perhaps I could add some green accents to match their eyes in the future and add some variety to their look, who knows.

Anyway, for their weapons and abilities, that will probably come in a later post. I'm still debating on what will it be. One idea I have floating around is a Weapons Card named Tread Wheels, which are just basically wheel attachments, with spikes so you know it's dangerous lol. One ability I have for this is called Vertigo Kick, where if the spike managed to pierce a Cardbot's armour, the energy from the kick will then be absorbed into that Bot's processor, causing it to malfunction. This causes their vision to glitch out, showing copies and after images and their hearing is amplified or decreased depending on the Bot.

It's not concrete yet, so expect things to change.

But until that day comes, here's what we got for now! Until then!

[polin-erospsyche]

This post was inspired by a comment from an anon in my ask box. They mentioned that if the Queen hadn’t interrupted Polin's wedding, they could have had a beautiful wedding night (if you’re the anon and you’re reading this, hi! And also, I know this isn't everything, but I'll touch on the rest. Small disclaimer: this got long and I’m sorry).

I agree, that could have happened. But honestly, I'm really glad it didn’t. Don’t get me wrong, I would have loved to see it, but I don’t think it would have been good for them. The intimate scenes we did get tell an overarching story and serve a purpose in the narrative. We’ve been told that these intimate moments are a way for them to communicate, so let’s unpack that.

The first intimate scene is about them discovering each other in a new, intimate way, moving from friendship (which had already started to happen in the carriage) to a lover relationship. This moment is crucial for Penelope's story and character development. From this, she grows in confidence and self-awareness. She expresses this to Colin multiple times, such as when she says, “with the confidence you’ve helped me find this year,” and later, “You’ve taught me to hold my own. You have shown me I’m capable of pleasure beyond imagination.”

From that intimate scene onward, Penelope starts to come into her own power and that includes her sexual power. Colin shows her a level of love and care beyond what she ever thought possible, breaking down the belief system she built around herself. She was ready to sacrifice her dreams of being loved and held for financial stability, a mindset ingrained by Portia. Colin helps her see that this doesn’t have to be the case, chipping away at her long-held beliefs.

Let’s now move to the scene in the alleyway, which links back to anon’s comment. Anon suggests that this is the moment they start repairing their relationship post LW reveal. That following this scene they were in a good enough place to enjoy their wedding night if the Queen hadn’t crashed the party. Yes. And no. 

And oh my god how I’ve longed to discuss this scene but I never quite knew how to approach it. At this point in the show, the narrative is like a tightly wound ball of yarn with so many threads to pull at. So, let’s attempt to pull at them. 

First of all, they’ve entered a whole new playing field. And they’ve entered this playing field while being “the oldest of friends really” so they have ammunition against each other. Pen has hurt Colin by lying (hiding the truth from him time and time again) about her identity. She has let him go on and on about his despise of Lady Whistledown. About his dreams of being an author. These were things he told her in intimacy. Those were things he told his best friend and the person he fell in love with. Not the woman who hides behind her column and has done so much wrong to his family and loved ones. 

There is a separation between the two. For Colin, in that alleyway, there is still just Pen his best friend, Penelope the woman he loves and on the other side of that there is Lady Whistledown, the woman he vowed to destroy. He expresses that when he says “so then you do not need Lady Whistledown anymore”. What he fails to realise at this point, and he cannot be blamed for that, is that Lady Whistledown is an integral part of who Penelope Featherington is as a person. That her alter ego is not just a mask she wears but a crucial aspect of her identity, giving her a sense of power and agency in a world that often limits her as a woman. Something that Pen has slowly come to terms with when she says that she no longer needs to hide behind this alter ego but that does not mean there is no value in it, something that she also explains to him after the Queen has crashed their wedding breakfast. 

Now I say that he cannot be blamed for his refusal of recognizing that they are one and the same because he is still holding onto his misbelief, which is that to be loved and to have a value he must protect what he loves and be useful. Part of that is saving and avenging the people he loves from Whistledown. He has given his word to Eloise, to Marina indirectly, to himself and I’m thinking to Pen silently after what she’s written about herself. He finds himself, due to his misbelief, between a rock and a hard place: “the person he vowed to destroy is, in fact, the person he vowed to protect, and there is no separation between the two” (not me directly quoting myself lol). To this you add all the shame over his writing and his envy of her success and you have a recipe for disaster. 

So essentially, in that alleyway you have Pen who is already well along her character arc and Colin who is still gripping onto his original, unchanged self. This represents a power imbalance. What I love throughout this season, and I might write something about this one day, is that Pen and Colin are never quite on the same level both literally and figuratively. There is always one ahead of the other. This, in the long run, is another recipe for disaster because they are never quite equal. That is UNTIL that butterfly ball when they’ve gone through their character arc respectively. That is the moment they fully come together. They become a unit. They are no longer fighting against each other but with each other and for each other. 

But to arrive to this moment they need to do it separately. They need to be able to work on themselves before they can fully be able to work on their marriage. Genevieve says it well “there is no such thing as true love without first embracing your true self”. For Penelope that is becoming Penelope Bridgerton, an amalgam of the best parts of Whistledown and Penelope Featherington. For Colin that is deconstructing his hero complex and fully believing that he is enough just by being exactly who he is. And that has not happened in that alleyway. Truthfully the surface has barely been scraped in that scene because she essentially shuts down his demons for an instant by saying that she loves him. However, the issues remain. 

So yes, we can speculate all we want. If the Queen had not interrupted their wedding, they might have had a wedding night and they might have had a talk about everything afterward. However, the lack of acceptance of their true selves would have driven them up a wall at the next problem, which was how to handle Cressida.

And I think that is why Polin season is actually so beautiful. It is not just about Polin. It is about marriage and how hard it can get, and how you have to work on yourself to fit around the person you love without sacrificing yourself in the process. It is about choosing each other every day, through the ugly as well as the beautiful, through the hard parts as well as the easy ones. It’s choosing to have faith that you’ll work and figure it out without an assurance that it actually will, but if the love is there, then it just might. That is the story they chose to tell through Penelope and Colin.

First gif made by my bestie @polinsated ����

[akkivee]

this might be a stupid question but im gonna ask it anyways, is Shakku Kuukou's biological or adoptive father? I need the info for a project I'm doing thank u

congratulations!!!!! you’ve stepped on vee’s number one crack until it’s not kuukou theory LOL

the real answer is that there shouldn’t be any doubt kuukou isn’t shakku’s biological son lol, kuukou himself has said he was born as a temple heir in his first hypnosis radio and shakku and kuukou do look enough alike, and that seems to be a common thing amongst the characters with parents as a focal point; ichiro and dice also look like their fathers (presumably on dice’s part lol)

kuukou’s mom being out of the picture makes him the odd one out of these mommy/daddy issues characters lol, like regardless of whether or not they’re in the picture, we do know what happened to bb’s parents, we know what happened to samatoki’s and dice’s. between bat’s general ‘our important central blood family figures are dead’ theme and kuukou’s own ‘separation from bonds’ theme that tells me kuukou’s mom is either dead (and/)or somewhere else

kuukou being adopted i think can work if kuukou’s mama abandoned kuukou at a very young age, and kuukou eventually finds meaning ig in buddhism, causing a rebirth (reincarnation if you will lol) within himself, hence the born to the temple thing he’s said and that’s also a common sentiment with various religions like with christianity/catholicism, a religion kuukou actually has been connected to via the hella awesome banquet mv

but fr, kuukou and shakku should be blood father and son lol

[galactic-mayhem]

MY APPLICATION FOR STUDY ABROAD GOT ACCEPTED IM GOING TO CHINA THIS MAY LETS GOOOOOOOOOOO

[heartshapedcreaturefromcriptoon]

... So was anybody going to tell me that CW Supernatural also had a canon queer female character named Charlie, but she was apparently stabbed to death in a bathtub? Or was I just supposed to learn that in a queer made, movie length video essay about the history of homophobia in Supernatural, despite recently having Supernatural Fans attempt to bully me in public for daring to mention Hazbin Hotel in the tags of their shitty fandumb post myself?

Like, I'm sorry Supernatural Fans just stink and their show fucking sucks and their parents didn't love them, but I guess they really are jealous and smoking some serious cope over Hazbin Hotel Fans just getting to have the superior demon show(s) made by actual queer people who actually love their queer fanbase, huh?

[ratatatastic]

for everytime swaggy uses we are the champions in any post i think we need to shoot him with a paintball gun in the back

[arielluva]

actually so funny (it isn't) that everytime i struggle to do something and i tell my parents about it they just respond with "you just have to do it." like. guys. if i could "just do it" i would NOT be complaining about not being able to do it!!

[bleue-flora]

In fact, as least for me, the characters aren’t even objects as much as they are ideas, events, circumstances, emotions and feelings. It is for me to take my feelings in life and to express them in a concrete way that makes sense. Trying to deal with how I feel trapped and tortured in/by life despite not being literally trapped or tortured through the actual imprisonment of a character into hell in a box. In this way, it is very helpful as it allows you to explain, further tackle, understand and express how you feel in a way that isn’t as hard to rectify. In other words, taking your feelings to project onto a character in order to allow yourself to feel it and express in a way you otherwise can not. This projection of making feelings more concrete can often be the cause of self-harm - taking the pain you feel emotionally and turning it into something physical to help you grapple with how you feel. So, do whatever to your characters you want, allow yourself to cope, address, confront, express and process. It does not make you a bad person or vile or twisted. It does not mean you have any cruel or violent intentions whatsoever. It can be a creative expression of emotion in the same way a piece of art is. So let it out and allow yourself to write and read and draw guilt free because it’s ok to feel things and it’s certainly a more positive and meaningful way than other means, plus it can bring people together to enjoy each other’s pain and the beautiful mess going on in our minds.

This has been your PSA from my qualified and published therapist.

I really think everyone needs to truly internalize this:

Fictional characters are objects.

They are not people. You cannot "objectify" them, because they have no personhood to be deprived of. They have no humanity to be erased. You cannot "disrespect" them, because they are not real.

[fobnsfwdoodlesbackup]

4 26 30 for pride asks 👀

Answers below the cut!

4) Are you "out" to your family and friends?

Yes! When I was little I thought maybe I'd reach a point in life where im stealth buuuuuut nah. I'm a yapper and I love talking about my queer experiences, so basically the only people I'm not out to is acquaintances. And that doesn't last very long. For me knowing about my queerness is just part of knowing me. (Big privilege here, I'm 27 and live alone, and generally don't engage in spaces where I would have to be in the closet if I can avoid it)

26) How do you feel about the term partner rather than husband/girlfriend/etc?

It's my default! I had a bf for 8 years and we just always called eachother partners. I don't know, I guess part of it is that it feels all encompassing, like I'm not very interested in marriage but we weren't casually dating. We were partners. Uhh also I think I build intimate relationships a tad non traditionally so. Partner just feels accurate and practical. But Lover is preferred >:3c

30) Are you monogamous or polyamorous?

Hm good question. Let me know if you have the answer! (The answer is not secret, but something I'm still exploring. I enjoy having many intimate relationships re: I'm In Love With All Of My Friends. But also there's definitely things I miss lifestyle wise about having a Partner. I'm not very sure what my ideal lifestyle would look like)

[boysnberriespie]

Tasting the beginnings of an essay about beauty as a theme in IWTV

[imblocking-you]

Puna na 'yung tags nung isang post sa this is the second one lmao. 3 AM NA JUSQ

[snapcracklepop-myjoints]

wow haha you* think this large area of land is uninhabitable and empty ? wow thats so funny that sounds so much like this fucked up terra nullius thing but surely you arent all mindlessly peddling that colonial narrative of australian land as uninhabited and therefore free for the taking, right ? that would be silly.

and its not like there's a common law doctrine that was only legally discredited in the last 30 years that literally refers to "desert and uncultivated" land as a justification for taking land that is inhabited but is deemed to not have "settled" inhabitants or "settled law" according to colonial standards, right ?

because if there was then it would obviously be super fucking racist to continue to legitimise and perpetuate the erasure of indigenous presence by reaffirming the conception of large swathes of land as desert and uncultivated empty and uninhabitable.

and obviously it would be not only racist but factually incorrect to identify an area as "uninhabitable" purely on the basis that that it was deemed less compatible with colonialist + capitalist agricultural and settler projects and practices, (putting aside the fact that nonnegligible areas are, in fact, settled and used as such) because that would not only continue the erasure of a diverse array of indigenous ways of life, but would also continue to give legitimacy to the idea that presence on land must be identifiable by colonial signifiers thereof, otherwise it is not real and does not count. so obviously you would not do that, yeah ? good talk <3

*"you" as in the ppl in screenshots/ppl who are saying this shit, not op. Just to clarify.

[tamaharu]

its very funny to be in this class because to me it simultaneously feels like a gender 101 class (even though i know its not especially considering that amnt of cis people in it) and also its very nice to have sociological terms to use/have all this gender stuff laid out very cleanly in a way i often dont bother to articulate?

[desperatelyseekingcannibals]

Telling Hugh Dancy about trans masc Will and more...

As some of you already know by now, I went to Boston Fanexpo this past weekend for another stop on the unofficial Hannibal 2024 Reunion Tour.

I had planned to do autographs on the Friday before the Hannibal panel and had brought some gifts for Hugh which included a copy of Adapt. Evolve. Become: The Genderqueer Fandom of NBC's Hannibal, which I compiled and edited last year. I also got him to sign my own copy (above).

It all moved quite quickly, but I did have the chance to explain that it's a volume by and about trans, non-binary, and genderqueer Fannibals that includes art, fics, essays, and personal pieces. He seemed intrigued and I said I hope he'd have the chance to read it and that the art isn't explicit/sexual but some of the fics are - he laughed and said he appreciated the warning.

It was all quite the whirlwind, especially after coming all the way from the UK, so I was absolutely mortified when I remembered the next morning that I had talked with a few trans Fannibals who had specifically asked me to let him know that he/Will is a trans icon. So I went back up to see him again on the Saturday morning when it wasn't too busy (and get more stuff signed) and this is what happened:

[I wrote notes down right after so this is as close an account I can get without having filmed it!].

Me: I saw you yesterday Hugh: I remember (smiley-friendly) Me: I gave you a book Hugh: I remember (smiley-friendly) Me: well, I forgot to tell you. A few trans Fannibals reached out to me to tell you that Will is a trans icon to them and we all love you for it. Hugh was surprised (in a nice way) and I was pretty much going to walk away then - job done and feeling like time for me to stop bothering Hugh lol. But before I could walk away he sort of held out his hand to stop me and said something along the lines of - I don't mean this in a disrespectful way, don't take it the wrong way... I'm genuinely curious- I get that it can be about identity- but what is the connection to Will and being trans? Luckily - my essay in the book is exactly about how Will can be read as trans, so I sort of gave him a summary of that. I explained that (obviously) both Will and Hannibal can be read as queer, and that - especially as both characters have dominant masculine and feminine traits, it's also easy to read them both as trans or in some way genderqueer. He was nodding and agreeing, so I further explained that with Hannibal, he is fully formed - he's already whatever he is - which Hugh also agreed with. But that Will is still becoming, still transitioning and therefore can be more relatable to trans fans who see that journey in themselves. So although it's not necessarily the same journey - there is enough to it that it resonates with trans people. I said that in the show there is also the added bonus of Will being seen and accepted for who he is, just as trans people wish to be. He was nodding along and agreeing with me and then he thanked me for explaining that. It was pretty quiet previously but I'd been there a few minutes so the queue was building up a little but he was so focused on me - so genuinely intent on hearing what I had to say and learning more. SO I CARRIED ON. (lols) I explained to him that it goes further than the show, that we have found a community in the fandom and that many trans people have a catalyst in their life that sparks their journey - like Will had in his friendship with Hannibal. For us it might be a person, an event, or even a TV show. I explained how the fandom are so supportive of trans people - that we are SEEN. That I for one wouldn't have been able to afford top surgery without the kind donations of Fannibals back when I was not in a good place (mentally or financially). That we all help each other and for some of us that has been life-saving. He did the hand on heart thing and said "wow" and was clearly moved. I said to him that so much of this is in the book, that I completely understand if he doesn't want to read the fanfic, but I really hope that he will at least read each of the personal pieces - that each of the fics and art also have a little write up from their creator about what the show and/or fandom has meant to them and their gender journey - how important this has been in our lives. He repeated a couple of times that he would definitely read it. I thanked him and he held out his hand and gave me the most genuine hand shake I've had in my life.

I want to really stress here how much this was instigated by Hugh. That he really wanted to know more and understand and didn't even look at the slowly growing queue but was instead intently focused on knowing more about the trans Fannibals and about why this show and the characters mean so much to us.

I then went off and spoke with a few Fannibal friends in the queue before getting around the corner to another Fannibal friend and having a bit of an emotional moment/breakdown. I can't even explain how grateful I am that he gave me the opportunity to explain all this to him. And I was especially glad I got to tell that Will is a trans icon because I'd have felt terrible if I'd have not done that after people had asked!! Thank you for trusting me to pass that message on for you!

💖

I know for many of you Adapt. Evolve. Become: The Genderqueer Fandom of NBC's Hannibal might have gone a little under the radar. So here is some more about that >>

It was compiled last year for Trans Hanni Day, edited by Max Turner of (and in conjunction with) A Coup of Owls Press - and published under Max's ACoO imprint.

It features essays, personal pieces, fanart and fanfic by and about trans, non-binary, genderqueer and otherwise non-cis Fannibals.

IT IS FREE TO DOWNLOAD, however we ask that if you do that, please consider donating to one of the linked trans orgs if you can afford to (or a similar organisation/charity of your choice).

It can be purchased on Amazon, however, as the proceeds go to charity, and Amazon only gives royalties, more is earned/given if bought directly via Max's shop.

Dearest trans Fannibals, please know that YOU ARE SEEN!

[okartichoke]

ace avian. that’s what we’re calling this 🗣️🗣️🗣️

please let me know if you have any thoughts or suggestions or input or anything! i’m happy to bounce ideas around (i'll post DL-6 someday soon i swear)

link to masterpost || explations below cut

shoutout to the anon who sent in that ask bc i seriously fell in love with blue jay phoenix. SHOUTOUT TO TAKAHE PHOENIX TOO THO takahe phoenix, you will forever be in my heart and im glad you existed <3333,, (maybe in this au he’s got some loving adoptive takahe parents :3) (YKNOW WHAT YEAH that’s canon now)

but yeah, flight-avoidant jay phoenix still lends itself well to the common-man hardworking underdog vibe i want from him. speaking of flight-avoidant...

Phoenix's relationship with flying:

It's a bit complicated. Basically, Phoenix can fly, but he historically chooses not to. From the lack of any practice, he's an INCREDIBLY weak flier. (That hovering is really all he can manage)

For one, he's still afraid of heights. Can't help that. This fear means he was less inclined to practice flying, which made him a weaker flier. And being a weaker flier, in turn, made his fear of heights worse. And so on, in a loop. With flightless parents too (it's canon now it's canon), there's even less of a reason to learn to fly. At some point, not flying might've even become something he stuck with out of stubbornness lol, knowing Phoenix.

(I will soon be making a couple small world building posts, but) flying isn't necessary to get around in their society. Convenient, sure, but Phoenix realized he could make do without, and so he did. Phoenix, you icon. Slay. 💅💅

i know this probably isn't the popular take with wing AUs??, but Phoenix being flightless (or at least semi-flightless) sounded like a really fun take on the idea to me. His name is irony at its peak. I also look forward to exploring how other characters react to him not flying. The prosecutors are going to have so many cheap insult opportunities.

As I mentioned though, he still uses his wings a LOT, though. He's much more emotive with them than most people. His sarcastic inner-dialogue remarks are also betrayed by his wings lmao

I also imagine bird-folk never really invented bikes (riding would just be annoying with their wings, plus bikes aren't fast/efficient enough to outweigh just flying), so instead, Phoenix gets around on a little wing-powered scooter device (like scootaloo lol) (they're usually made for children who can't fly yet, but Phoenix still uses one)

finally, wow, stellar jay’s are quite literally just phoenix wright as a bird lmao? color scheme, hair, it’s uncanny. give it a pink tie and it just is Phoenix Wright, i used a blue jay since they’ve got a bit more striking wings but wow.

(ty again for the support and for reading my essay ! :3)

one more thing, but @kora-kat YES YES YES this. ^^^^ omg THIS. this is still true even though he's a jay now.

[rootspiral]

Agatha All Along deep dive: episode 5 part 3

(Wandavision entries: [1][2][3])

(AAA entries: ep1 [1][2][3][4] ep2 [1][2][3][4] ep3 [1][2][3] ep4 [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][+1] ep5 [1][2][3][4][5] ep6 [1][2][3] ep6 [1][2][3] ep7 [1][2][3][4][5][6] ep8 [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9] ep9 [1][2][3][4][5][6])

when I first watched this I reallllllly hoped sharon was about to come back. but she wouldn't have ever called herself mrs. hart, that was an obvious giveaway

I know I'm repeating myself but - THIS MOTHERFUCKER

aw of course alice is immediately protective. that's so hot of her.

rio you'll have to stop being delighted by her antics, you're only enabling her at this point

agatha you fucker. and kudos for the excellent debra jo rupp impression, kathryn.

it's sweet and so sad that lilia fell for it. she consistently loses her seer abilities when dealing with the guilt for the people she couldn't save

jen is so done

rio is dismissive but also soft when she says this. and then she raises her eyebrows at agatha, as if dating her to deny it.

you can literally see her mask falling off.

billy shakes his head, disappointed. this is the first time he sees agatha fall so low

rio is like, come back here and face the music, my darling. she's really not letting her off the hook anymore

rio laughing in delight when death is mentioned, like yes! that's me! I'm here! just happy to be included!

agatha's panic is so overwhelming she's already at the point when she bolts. but there's no running this time. billy, like wanda, is merciless.

screaming so awful that lilia jumps back to episode 2 to escape it. meanwhile, rio.

(is jen wearing bunny slippers lolll)

yes, yes, it's hilarious that she had to spit out her retainer. but dear god evanora getting to jen first because she's the one agatha hurt the most.

now rio is casually modeling. she's making a great show of not caring about what agatha is going through

her coven turning her back on her. again.

sorry for always pointing out what rio is doing, but aubrey is killing me. now she's going oh well! you heard what the lady said! looks like I'm not the only one who thinks you're a piece of shit!

and despite it all rio (who, once again, is not allowed to kill a fly) is not doing what everybody else is doing. she's just being butthurt at agatha

the essays I could write about agatha's internalized misogyny

oh billy, no. you didn't ever realize all the shit you were stirring.

wow this particular line coming from jen really hurts

rio is trying to decide if she's into zombie agatha, lol. it's like she's always in a different show than everybody else. or rather, she's transcending genres, she's always doing her own thing because the Road doesn't affect her. while the others see real danger, she sees painted sets she can cut through with her knife.

but look what happens next. rio suddenly turns serious, and there's even a hint of panic in her voice. it's as if she realized this is not all tricks and smoke.

and finally, she fully comprehends how dangerous billy is. like, the staggering scale of it. chaos magic creates life in an artificial way that goes against everything rio stands for. wanda did not create an illusion of Vision, she made a real, alive vision out of thin air. billy himself was created the same way. and now he has effectively brought back evanora - not a pale imitation, a ghost Evanora functionally indistinguishable from the real thing, just as full of hatred and just as capable of hurting agatha. if it wasn't personal before!

you know, I didn't like this episode as much as the others on first watch, but I was wrong. there is a lot to unpack here. like many things on AAA, it's all in the subtleties.

go to episode 5 part 4