#you may disagree but I feel this character fits her super well

[muffin-snakes-art]

Guys I literally just thought of “Professor Magolor and the Forgotten Future” for the re-title of my last doodle and I’m devastated that I didn’t think of it before posting it to most my socials already. I’ve failed this time but I’ll get em next time

[flower-boi16]

I have a theory why Charlie is so childish and naive

I thought why Charlie is so naive and stupid, although it's hell, it's illogical as hell, but then I had a theory why Charlie is so naive (and stupid), it's all because of overprotective parents, I think Lucifer and Lilith overprotective of Charlie, not letting her see the dirty and dark side of hell, because you know, in order not to harm the child's psyche, typical parental protection, but they only made it worse, Charlie grew up with a completely unrealistic view of life, which does not correspond to reality, so she does not understands sinners/imps and their difficulties, and how hell works too, she thinks that friendship and rainbows will help, that's why she is so stupid, and remained a child, despite the fact that she is already 200 years old, that's what overprotection does to people, and Charlie is an example of this

Although this is just a theory, it fits well, honestly, if there was any good writer, he/she would have explored this theme, and made Charlie grow up, in other words, make the development of the main character, but no, unfortunately we have Vivziepop who seems to be against growing up

It's funny how my anons keep on coming up with more interesting ideas than Viv can come up with. But in all seriousness, that would have been super interesting for the show to explore.

From what I've heard Charlie grew up sheltered as a child so this theory aligns fairly well. It would have been so interesting if the show explored how Charlie was sheltered for her whole life, affecting how she views people and society. But the show never really seems to do that, I've talked about this before but Charlie has many character flaws, and those flaws are shown in each episode, but the show never seems to want to confront those flaws or make Charlie grow from them, instead, it insists on portraying her mentality and ways of seeing things as completely 100% correct.

The show never explores how Charlie growing up sheltered may have affected her, it does show that through Charlie's personality but it never gets into the roots of why Charlie is the way she is. It really seems to come from an inability on the show's part to let Charlie grow out of these mindsets, mainly due to the show, again, portraying Charlie's black-and-white "everyone can be redeemed" mentality as purely correct and demonizing anyone who disagrees with her.

Exploring how Charlie being sheltered for her whole life affected her could have been very interesting and provided good development for her as a character, and your idea adds so much more depth to Charlie than the show ever could, but it doesn't seem like Viv really thought of that when it came to Charlie. Her whole character just feels like an afterthought to me, she's not developed at all and is lacking in an actual arc, which is embarrassing for the main protagonist of you're show.

[gauloiseblue]

OMG

HOLY SHIT

First of all, reincarnation stories are so *mwuah*

Second, I love the interactive/visual novel/otome game style.

The Endings are so delicious and just makes me want to bite and eat it 😏😏😏.

I love the fact that in true otome game/VN style, the endings all give us little bits and pieces of stuff that fit with each other giving us a nice picture that is still kind of incomplete.

Ending 1 is the meet cute with our hubby (who is definitely not going to kidnap us at the slightest inconvenience like how Megumi summons Mahoraga).

Ending 2 is the one where we get stuff about our childhood and how there's this thing that yadda yadda yadda... we had a friend... NINA, MY BABY IS ALIVE!!! Our former childhood friend wants to marry us awwwww... Someone held us hostage while biting us... Awww... What a nice conversation with one of the women who took care of us Oh look some guy in the shadows (I'm sure that's nothing). This one is actually the first I got.

Ending 3, the “Horror/Bad” Ending, is actually not that bad because technically, all endings are bad because he will always find us. We just get a big question called “What the fuck is going on?”. It's just bad/horror because we're scared :( Also biting kink~

Ending 4 is where we find a super sweet note about love and perseverance. This couple is so sweet and romantic. The woman knows that they haven't been together for so long but she already knows that she's going to be with this guy for the rest of her life aww so sweet. She also talks about how love should be built on patience and to never rush it. She also talks about how this will be her last secret awwwww... Super sweet with no horrifying implications whatsoever.

These endings work well on their own but as you read the other endings you get the answers for the questions you have from the other endings but also questions that not even reading all the endings can answer.

Does that man there's a Golden/True Ending or A Bonus Scene?

Also

NINAAAAAAAAA!!!

MY BABY

YOU MAY HAVE EXISTED FOR A BRIEF IN IOFAB BUT EEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!

Also this fic reminds of one of your art that has König buying reader. Biting kink, my beloved. Something something he would sooner mangle your flesh before letting you go...

[Major spoilers under the cut]

I actually almost made that fic into a game, but I realized it's not worth the effort so I didn't make it XD

Actually, this is how I think of the endings;

Ending 1: Good Ending with a question mark

Ending 2: Bad Ending

Ending 3: Cautionary Ending

Ending 4: Secret Ending

I feel like if you get the first ending, there's a chance you'll live happily ever after with him, especially when you really love him and accept him as he is.

As for the second one, congrats on getting it for the first time XD This is actually my favorite ending, bc it can lead to a continuation.

For the 3rd ending, it's just an attempt to write horror. I always want to bring horror elements to König's fics, because his character does have that potential. Also, it's just an excuse for me to write about my kink so—

I feel like I had to talk about the 4th ending, because it lacks some basic explanations. We all can pretty much guess who's the husband, so I'll skip that part. She and König weren't always this miserable, and the letter was the evidence that they once were a happy couple. But somewhere along the line (the reincarnation), she strayed away from him, for whatever reason. Just as he disagreed with her, he did the opposite of what she'd do if he loved her less than a lover; forcing her to be one.

It's actually a story about irony, because the only way to bind your lover with you is to make them hate you. The reincarnated reader hated to be bitten, so he marked her with his teeth. She didn't like when he's impatient, so he took it to the extreme. But all his actions were rooted from love. He did it because he loved her, he did it because he wanted to be her—in this life or the next. Like, you can find so many ironies in the letters. But I won't point them out bc it's more fun to discover them yourself 😌

Fun fact, the thing about her last secret or whatever implies that König shamelessly read her diaries XD She couldn't keep her secret because he'd just find it and read it. It's also ironic that he always found her secrets—even in the most difficult places—but couldn't find her last secret, which is the letter. That's why the papers were hidden for years inside the music box, until the reincarnated reader discovered it again. Makes you wonder what could've happened if he read the letter. Maybe all these tragedies wouldn't happen.

I'll be honest, I like Nina a lot too. In my head she ran away with the reader in IOFAB, and they lived happily ever after. Like, she deserves so much happiness 😭

Oh, that artwork. Haha… it's just a study on anatomy I swear 💀

[matt0044]

What can I say? Tangle & Whisper's mini-series had me by the balls. Can't wait to dive into the Metal Virus. In any case, here's a voice cast I've had in mind when reading the comic original characters:

"Christine Marie Cabanos as Tangle The Lemur" - Many fan casters tend to focus on Tangle as a sporty tomboy and think of a raspy voice not unlike Rainbow Dash or Amethyst. This isn't bad but I found myself thinking outside the box when I was revisiting Kill La Kill and its bombass dub at the time. Christine's Mako Makanshoku had just the kind of energy and cocksure that Tangle would have as a rookie to the Resistance.

Mind you, she would even out the pitch to sound closer to a young adult/older teen that the characters tend to (mostly) come across as but no less hyperactive like Mako when the moment calls for it. Additionally, Christine could dip more into her Madoka Kaname performance to capture her more emotional side, particularly when Whisper lets her in on what happened to the Diamond Cutters. It would make for a great range that toes the line just like Tangle has in terms of being somewhat obnoxious but not in a "Scrappy Doo" kind of way.

Bonus - This is a song that I think fits Tangle's character to a T: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVimjyR6vIc

Another that describes her and Whisper because this ship has me by the balls: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h2rNLdSJjxU

"Erica Mendez as Whisper The Wolf" - Erica would play her not too unlike her soft-spoken Retsuko (barring Heavy Metal scenes played by an actual Heavy Metal singer) but in a consistently hushed tone. However, moments where she's emotionally devastated like fearing losing Tangle or... losing Tangle would be where her performances as Atsuko Kagari from Little Witch Academia and Gon from Hunter X Hunter come in.

Bonus - This song describes what I think is her vibe after Mimic's betrayal and between missions: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fkifn-zJzx4

This describes her memory of the Shadow Androids: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvKBMVKJOz0

"Todd Haberkorn as Dr. Starline The Platypus" - Todd's performance as Death The Kid shows a very balanced performance between his more goofy side and serious, grounded side, one that would apply well to the campy Dr. Starline. It would work well with his raising of Surge and Kit with his callous use of his Hypno Glove.

Bonus: I feel this music works well with his character (starts at the 1:04 minute mark): https://soundcloud.com/user-335233093/goseiger-matrintis-bgms-kotetsu-no-akui-matrintis

"Sarah Anne Williams as Surge The Tenrec" - Anybody who's heard her performance as Nonon Jakuzure and Tifa from FFVII Machinamabridged will know that Sarah can do punk. She just needs to ramp up the gruffness if only to see Surge as a homegrown teenage with major issues.

Bonus - This more rocking variant of Starline's theme would work with how he still haunts her (starts at the 24 second mark): https://soundcloud.com/user-335233093/goseiger-matrintis-bgms-2-kotetsu-no-akui-matrintis

"Johnny Yong Bosch as Kitsunami The Fennec" - Johnny may be known for his Super Saiyans, bounty hunters on the run and Anime pretty boys but his performance as Doraemon's Nobita as well as Yokai Watch's Nate shows that he can do timid young boy. Kit being the Tails to Surge's Sonic makes it a perfect fit.

His theme would be a more subdued version of Surge's (starts at the 2:34 minute mark) https://soundcloud.com/user-335233093/goseiger-danger-bgms-brajira-bgm-1-sakushi-wa-denki-tenshi-no-yume-o-miru-ka

"Cherami Leigh Kuehn as Jewel The Beetle" - A similar beleagured tone of voice to Lucy Heartfilia but with an light English accent, a total contrast to Tangle's character. A way to mask it for future performances given Sonic's big cast.

Agree with me? Disagree with me? Drop a comment for a little convo so long as we can keep it civil and constructive.

[bunnys-beetlejuice-blog]

Hey! I love your Beetlejuice stories on A03, all of them are wonderful. Do you have any tips on writing the Maitlands? You write them so well, keeping them sweet while giving them depth.

you're so sweet! this got super long so its under a cut. please keep in mind that these are my interpretations of canon and you might disagree and that's totally fine!

Lemme break these into specifics for each one cause while theyre a matching set and should not be separated they're also pretty different! Barbara- the more out going one between the two of them, more willing to jump into new situations. i think of her as someone adam can lean on, and because of that their marriage is a little non traditional, despite what beej might say, since she's the one more likely to do things that scare her and sort of lead the two of them. barbara should be sweet, empathetic, and very patient, but also willing to put her foot down when it matters. she's a doormat no more. between the two of them, she's the one more interested in arts. while she might not like making pottery i think she's the more creative one - she apparently also started and gave up oil painting (the painting she smashes) i read her as someone who comes from religious trauma but that also might just be me putting my own baggage on her. she just feels like someone who would/could have been more outgoing if she hadnt been raised in a very traditional way, where women are a step below their husbands. i dont think that believe holds true in her marriage obviously but it's engrained to some degree that she needs to behave like the perfect wife/mother. this could also be part of where her anxiety about being a mother stems from (this part obviously is VERY personal to me and her character may not read that way to you, i acknowledge this i headcannon territory here) she's also willing to push adam into things that make him nervous, because she does want her husband to stand up for her. (that moment when beej is having his soliloquy, if you watch her she's arguing with adam and telling him to say something to beetlejuice, and that's the reason why adam interrupts him) in general i think she finds things that are odd and unusual to be more funny and interesting than scary - her laughing at beetlejuice's antics in the attic a lot come to mind. Adam - the more shy one. adam is someone who i read as having a fairly heavy degree of social anxiety (there are strangers downstairs! i didn't like strangers when i was alive-) and because of that he tends to overthink and be in his own head too much. adam's fatal flaw might be that he wants to sit down and puzzle through things instead of reacting. while it's good to keep a clear head sometimes you do need to react in the moment and stand up for yourself (which he learns by the end! go adam!!!) adam loves working with his hands. while barbara creates, adam maintains. he restores furniture and does woodworking. i do like to mix movie adam with musical adam a bit, because in the movie adam owns a hardware shop, and i think that vibe also fits musical adam as well. adam leans on barbara a lot - when beej is asking them to hire him, he looks helplessly to barbara, and he's always willing to follow her lead. in a sense she wears the pants, but it doesn't read as emasculating to me - barb's strength is leading and adam's is supporting. does not like to yell or wish people unwell. THAT GUY!! NEEDS!! therapy, i hope he gets the help he needs :( to me this, combined with him honestly thinking beej might be his dad for a moment, reads as someone who had a very turbulent early childhood. a negligent or possibly abusive father who disappeared early enough in his life that adam doesn't remember his face. maybe he doesnt like to yell because that's what his own father did, and he doesnt want to be like his dad. he wants to be better than that. his not knowing his father could also lead into his fear of becoming one - he didn't have a strong father figure growing up, and he's never had that behavior modeled for him

The Maitlands as one - they should be like two halves of a whole. barb might lead, but she never steps on adam. adam might support, but his own impute is never stifled. barbara will encourage adam to be more brave and outgoing. adam will help barbara keep her temper or talk through things that frustrate her. they're so in love it's kinda gross.

[eamonorus-blog]

Why Abby from TLOU2 is a non-compelling character.

OK, I know that what makes a compelling character is subjective. If you say you really related to Abby I can hardly tell you you are wrong about that. However, there are reasons why Abby is so controversial and disliked, and there are more than simply her being responsible for killing Joel. Let's look at other characters who have killed beloved fan favourites. Zeke Yeager from Attack on Titan, Tywin Lannister from ASoIaF, Silco from Arcane. All of these guys have many fans, and even those who dislike them tend to agree they are well written characters, they may root against them, but they don't resent their inclusion in the story. In my experience at least, a character being disliked doesnt have terribly much to do with how much the audience disagrees with them, or the bad things they do. So long as a character is understandable in their motivations, and possesses certain admirable qualities we can respect, then they will be well liked, and even those who dont like them will at least appreciate the role they play in the story. in TLOU, most people loved Joel as a character. But even if you didnt love the guy, you could at least understand and appreciate him and his story. His character is almost universally respected in terms of protagonists in video games. Does the fact that he robbed and probably killed innocent people in the past change this? Does the fact that he is mean and short with Ellie when they first meet change this? How about the fact that he is a criminal smuggler, that he tortures men for information, that he killed a doctor trying to do whats best for mankind? No, none of those things changed the fact he is well written and broadly very well liked. Why is that? Because we can understand every step of his journey why he does what he does. In the harsh setting of tlou, we expect that people have to make harsh choices to stay alive and protect those they love. And this is NOT because we see things from his perspective. We would feel the same way if he was a side character that we saw him through someone else's eyes. All the characters I mentioned before aren't ones we really see the perspective of, and yet they are hugely well liked, and even those who don't like their characters admit they are well written and compelling. So why does Abby not fit into this category? Lets start with how we are first introduced into her. We learn a few things about her fast. 1. She is willing to capture and torture innocent people on a slim chance of getting revenge on someone. 2. She is willing to put her friends and comrades at risk to do it. 3. She has no sense of gratitude or thankfulness to somebody who saves her life. 4. She shows no remorse at torturing someone to death while their loved ones scream at them to stop. This is not the kind of actions which this harsh world justifies to a degree. This is pointless self destructive killing at its most extreme. Its hard to even wrap our minds around how someone could get into the space mentally to be so psychotic.

But then we are given the supposed rationale for why she is doing this. And what do all the flashbacks with her Dad show us? 1. She was willing to kill Ellie for the cure. This tells us a number of things about her, at least, a number of different things which might be true. Either that she REALLY wants the world to be saved and is really idealistic. Or that she doesn't care about the life of a strange girl at all. The former could be something I suppose, if we got any indication of this afterwards. But she immediately gives up completely on fighting for a greater cause after her Dad dies. Which makes the idea that she is SUPER committed to saving the world a bit suspect if she gave up on it so quick. Instead Owen is the one who hangs on to it and is more likable as a result. But its also just a really bad indicator of her moral character, speaking on someone elses behalf. She really shouldnt be volunteering someone elses life. 2. She knew what her Dad was going to do with Ellie but she still considers Joel totally evil. Again, this is only a justified response if she was totally onboard with her Dads mission, but the fact she never shows any indication of wanting to continue it or trying to fight for a better world, that seems unlikely. Or maybe she was just angry for the normal human reason that someone had killed a member of her family. Well, if family was so important, why is she risking her de-facto families lives by going after him across country attacking a large, fortified settlement? The evidence doesn't support her either having a family first attitude, or an idealistic attitude, only a bloodthirsty one. And with Ellie she has the gall to berate her for coming to Seattle after she let Ellie live! Oh really? So its wrong to try and kill someone after they attack you but let you live? Well Joel didnt even attack her and let her live, instead he risked his life to save hers unprompted, but she doesnt seem to think thats valid. What all the previous characters I have mentioned have, that she does not is a kind of inner strength of character, a value and goal they fight for and remain consistent in. Abby doesnt have this. Sure she helps Lev, but this isnt related to what she did to Joel, I mean it could be I suppose, but you have to reach to make a connection there. She never goes through serious retrospection or self examination about her own hypocrisy or how she is responsible for what happened. Her connection to the WLF that she casts off to help Lev isnt related at all to what she did to Joel, so her main arc has nothing really to do with killing Joel. This means that the game never really demands she reckons with what she did. With Joel we fully understand what drives him and what he fears. With Abby we have a vague sense of a desire for revenge and a willingness to kill people who have done her no harm and are no threat to her, and a desire to be a better person without having to confront what she has done.

[vigilskeep]

Did you like mota? How do you feel about Tallis? Do you have any thoughts on her?

I personally love this dlc. I really enjoy playing it, it's interesting and fun but has serious and even dramatic moments at the same time. And it's different from the main game (in a good way). Like, I love da2 but this dlc succeeded in making us feel like we really are out of Kirkwall and having an adventure that's a bit separate from the rest of the game. And I do like Tallis as a character. I appreciate her role in the story and I like that she provides us with another point of view on the qun. But I also feel very sorry for her. She just can't break free. For me, her character theme is doubt. Idk if you know her backstory but she's an elf from Tevinter who was sold into slavery by her own parents and then captured by the qunari who deemed her an unsuitable convert because she was too "headstrong". Apparently she didn't want to be qunari at first and they wanted to use qamek on her. But Salit took her under his wing to make her a tallis so she escaped that fate. And as we see, with time Tallis changed her mind on the qun. I think it happened because of the qunari propaganda and because she had nothing and no one but also because she genuinely started to see good things in the qun. After all, among the qunari Tallis felt like her life meant something to other people, probably for the first time in her life. And she wants to believe that there is a society and ideology where people are valued and everybody has their own place and purpose. (Her line "most qunari don't even understant humans, why you act like you do. But I grew up among you. I understand perfectly well" makes me loose my mind). But she still has too much free will for a qunari so she doesn't really fit in. So she doubts. Tallis does feel that something's wrong but she just can't let the qun go. She doubts herself and the qun for years but still can't find the answers. And that's just tragic. I can't imagine what it's like, to live in doubts for so long. I'd like her to finally realize that she in fact wants to be free of the qun but at this point I'd be happy if she just found peace as a qunari. That's better than being in the state of constant inner turmoil imo.

Also the whole dialogue between Tallis and Hawke and the way they can mirror each other is super interesting like. "Just tell me: can you honestly say there's nothing to improve, nothing to strive for?" My pro mage Anders romancing Hawke may think that qun is horrible but she can't disagree with that. My Hawke and Tallis share this dedication to their believes and inablility to ignore injustices and that's where they find common ground, that is why they respect each other. Tallis' motivation in this dlc is literally saving innocent people so yeah.

Um. Sorry for such a long ask. Hope reading this isn't too boring lmao.

it was a fun dlc!!! you’re right it rlly felt like a breath of fresh air. it was nice to see what hawke and the gang are like outside of kirkwall for once just having a good time out (aside from all the deadly danger etc)

tallis was super interesting, i do like her. it was interesting to spend a lot of time with someone who was clearly on the track of her own story rather than a companion whose fate it’s up to me to decide. and i liked exploring the idea of elves joining the qun with an actual character rather than just vaguely suggesting that it happens. i don’t have any super exciting thoughts yet mostly bc i find the qunari difficult to approach conceptually but also just because i only got to know her like yesterday, i didnt rlly know much abt her beforehand except that she was qunari

my experience with her so far is obviously filtered through keir, who... did not like her at all agshsjsksk. she was incompetent and a liar, and she was picking up a blade for a belief system it was obvious she couldn’t even commit to herself. the qunari talking points didn’t help either, keir isn’t overfond of religion no matter which one it is; all he sees is the damage it does. he did grudgingly fight beside her at the end, mostly because he believed her that innocents were in danger and thought she clearly wasn’t up to the job herself, but he was happy enough to be rid of her and part ways at the end. it might have been just as in character to leave her, though, and i plan to do a second run through with other companions at some point so i might see how that turns out

[duckielover151]

Strong World and Sexism

This is a debate I've seen around the fandom but haven't really participated in yet. I'm just shy of the 400-episode mark, so that has something to do with it. But it's been on my mind lately and was something I really couldn't ignore in the Strong World movie, which I saw tonight.

(I want to just throw in here that, as a whole, I really enjoyed this movie. It feels super fitting that the music got this huge upgrade... right after Brook joined the crew. And it looked fucking amazing. Like, did this movie make it into theaters outside of Japan? I feel like that's kind of a recent thing for anime movies... but if it didn't, it should have. I may be a decade (or more) late to everything, but I hope other fans got the joy of a theater experience for something that looked and sounded this good.)

The story was the only part that was a little weak. And that weakness mainly came from the misogynistic vibes I was getting.

Where to start? I guess I'll start with how Naruto was a huge cornerstone of my love of anime, growing up. A show that is well-known for how terribly its female characters are written. Honestly, it's become a big point of reference when judging other anime on that point. And One Piece has avoided a lot of the issues Naruto has.

While being a show that largely designs its female characters in a way that... shows off their physical assets a bit more? However you want to describe it. The girls who are meant to be seen as attractive tend to follow the same design scheme: big boobs, unreasonable curves, very little clothing to cover them.

And I want to mention that because it's something I've seen held up as an example of One Piece being sexist... and I have to disagree on that point. I don't feel like design alone is enough to be sexist. It's all about how a character wears their design. The women I've met in One Piece are all confident and powerful enough that they can dress however the hell they want. It becomes sexist when it doesn't feel like they're in control. And it's a huge selling point for me that Robin and Nami pull their weight on this crew. Robin is as effective a fighter as any of them. They literally could not survive without Nami's navigational skills, and she's begun doing her part in the battles a lot more too.

(Now, I'm not saying there are never over-the-top moments with the outfits especially... There's a scene in this movie where Nami makes an effort to pull her shirt down to cover her stomach... but doesn't seem to think twice about how her shorts don't cover her butt. Which is... Whatever. That much is fanservice, plain and simple.)

What bothered me in this movie is that it really shoved the girls into damsel in distress roles. Even Robin-- who barely has any lines in this movie-- has a moment where she's overpowered and captured. There's a distressing amount of... 'The boys get to be badass while the girls need to be rescued' in Strong World. The entire plot revolves around Nami being kidnapped. And that could have gone a lot worse... She does manage to rescue herself and only returns to her kidnapper as a way to try and sacrifice herself so they'd leave her crew (and entire island back home) in peace. And even then, she's still working to undermine his plan... At no point does she ever completely give in.

I think that just stings a little extra because it's coming right on the heels of something very similar happening to Nami on Thriller Bark. (She gets kidnapped by an enemy who tries to force her to marry him.) Which really isn't a trend I want them to continue. It's a little disappointing to see it doubled down on, because it really isn't a problem I felt the show had leading up to this point. I can't imagine them taking a huge step back with the sexism after 400 episodes of the girls being strong and respectable enough to overlook any fanservice... But I guess I'll be on guard for it.

I guess I just want to say that for how old this series is... The way it treats its female characters has actually been a really pleasant experience.

[mooropitant399]

I feel like my characterisation of Pokemon characters in my writing has always been very personal to me

I typically focus on Steven and flannery the most bc I adore them and the candlestick ship

Steven for example is super perfectionist and constantly worries about what to say, and he tends to shut down when he’s upset/overwhelmed, and also has a very specific niche interest (his rocks vs my animal nutrition)

Flannery is definitely more overtly anxious and insecure abt her capabilities as a gym leader (like me with my academics/career even tho I’m passing everything decently), and she also has the spirit of wanting to care for others (eg enjoying cooking and trying to accommodate everybody even if she has to bend over backwards), and she’s also quite explosive in terms of her personality, not so much fury but more bubbly/no filter in her feelings/emotions

whereas for my headcanons of the kid characters (eg May, Brendan, the twin gym leaders) it’s a bit more bittersweet bc it’s a lot of my own reflection upon my childhood experiences and wanting kids to grow up feeling like they are accepted & loved (tho this plays a big part in the game-arc when May encounters Really Bad People who are going to tear her spirit to shreds)

Part of the joy of writing I think is the humanization of characters and bringing them to life - it’s almost like painting in a sense!! And I really enjoy Pokemon fanfic writing especially, because there’s so many ways you can interpret a certain character just based on their interactions with the player character!!

Like with flannery I’ve seen her being portrayed as more violently tempered (kinda like how I’ve pictured her grandpa) which even tho I disagree with that headcanon I definitely appreciate the different perspective, and with Steven it’s in terms of his romantic orientation (from fully gay only to bisexual to straight) and his personality as well (at least in the older fics), he’s portrayed more as a rich guy who wanders around doing whatever he wants and doesn’t stick to serious relationships because of his wandering (which is interesting and I can definitely see it especially in emerald!!)

Idk I just nerd out abt writing a lot and I’m feeling good today so here’s a word dump of my favourite characters

Also I know some people absolutely hate shipping but I think I adore it precisely because I can see how these characters contrast yet fit together SO well!!

Especially in terms of candlestick, I think with how Steven is much more reserved vs flannery being more exuberant, and how he tends to be introverted yet has so many friends, and flannery who’s extremely extroverted (like me!) and doesn’t have very many healthy relationships (platonic) or exposure to romance because of her panic attacks and her grandpa complex, and how Steven is characteristically the stronger one for sure but flannery has the type advantage!

I love seeing how the characters grow together and how when one falls down the other one helps them up, like how Steven takes on the job of helper/support at first when they first meet but then when May comes into the picture (as the first serious challenger to him not as a ship lol) flannery starts picking up the support

Sigh I just love them your honour

[juanarc-thethird]

In your expert opinion, what butt does everyone on RWBY have?

Ok this is going to be a long list and to make it a little easier for me is going to be in alphabetical order. I also want to add that this is just my opinion and is for fun. If anyone disagree with me, that's totally understandable. So after saying all that, let's do it!

----------------

Amber: Norm, in the scenes where she appears, she looks normal.

An Ren: Norm, same here. She looks normal. I think all the characters that only appear once are Norm.

Arslan Altan: Muscle, since she does martial arts, I feel like this suits her.

Blake Belladonna: Badonk, I think we can all agree with this. No explanation need it.

Carmine Esclados: Thick, Just by looking at the art they made for the mobile game, you know that she is Thiccc with three c's

Ciel Soleil: Bubble, She looks like she works out regularly, so I think she would be this one.

Cinder Fall: Donk, She has that extra cushion in the back

Coco Adel: Hourgalss, She's like a model so this one fits her well.

Deery: Apple, Yeah, I don't know what to say, only that this one fits her.

Dew Gayl: Hourglass, She has the hips.

Elm Ederne: Double Wide, Remember that Aku meme about Extra thick? She is that.

Emerald Sustrai: Hourglass, I would like to have them as my pillow. (I'm sorry)

Fiona Thyme: Apple, I mean, she's small, it fits her.

Glynda Goodwitch: Thick, Mommy, sorry, Mommy, sorry, Mommy, sorry. (Jk)

Gwen Darcy: Bubble, It's hard to know which one would fit her, since she's always in a dress, but I think this one looks good on her.

Harriet Bree: Hourglass, I mean just look at those thighs.

Ilia Amitola: Apple, She is slim so this one fits her well.

Jinn: Badonk, Three words: Big Thick Woman

Joanna Greenleaf: Muscle, Again, it's hard to see, so this one suits you better.

Kali Belladonna: Badonk, I mean, blake had to get it from somewhere.

Lil' Miss Malachite: Double wide, I think this one was obvious.

Lisa Lavender: Norm, We've only seen his face so I'll play it safe.

Maria Calavera (Young): Hourglass, She seems to do a lot of walking on her travels so I think this one fits her.

May Marigold: Hourgalss, Why did I choose this? Yes.

May Zedong: Hourgalss, She has a slim waist and has to move around a lot when using her sniper so….

Melanie Malachite: Bubble, She's skinny so I think this one suits her.

Miltia Malachite: Bubble, Just like her sister, she is skinny so I think this one suits her.

Nebula Violette: Donk, I'm going with that.

Neon Katt: Bubble, Anything else would have been a lie.

Neopolitan: Bubble, She has some, but not much.

Nora Valkyrie: Badonk, Do you think that having thunder thighs doesn't have its benefits? Give me a break

Octavia Ember: Badonk, Okay hear me out, the way her dress fits her body, she definitely has it.

Penny Polendina: Donk, She got that upgrade~

Pyrrha Nikos: Thick, Cereal may not be good for your health, but it is good for something else~

Raven Branwen: Badonk, Living in the forest has its benefits.

Reese Chloris: Norm, I like Reese, but I have to be honest.

Robyn Hill: Thick, I'll just say she has my vote.

Ruby Rose: Hourglass, All those cookies put in one place.

Salem: Badonk, Is it a problem that I like dangerous women? Yes. Is it my Hispanic blood's fault? Probably.

Saphron Cotta-Arc: Donk, Do you think that terra only noticed her because of her personality? Yes she did, but she also wanted some of that famous Arc booty.

Sienna Khan: Thick, The tiger is the second most dangerous predator, Sienna is in first place.

Summer Rose: Donk, Besides being a super mom, she was a super mommy~

Terra Cotta-Arc: Bubble, Again, do you think Saphron only noticed her because of her big ass? Yes, this time yes. And it was the best decision of her life.

Tock: Hourglass, Watch where you touch or you will lose your hand.

Trifa: Bubble, Cute spider girl.

Velvet Scarlatina: Hourglass, I need to drink some water.

Vernal: Donk, I would let her hurt me.

Weiss Schnee: Hourglass, The only thing she got from her mom.

Willow Schnee: Badonk, The living definition of a MILF.

Winter Schnee: Hourglass, That's Atlas Ass.

Yang Xiao Long: Donk, All that training paid off.

---------------------------

So that's all. Again, this is my opinion, it may be wrong.

[melrosing]

actually, it's a pretty common theory. a lot of shippers basically don't want jaime to die and brienne to live because they said and i quote, "if jaime dies, brienne will be alone." they're overestimating jaime's importance and undermining how much of a catch brienne is. sorry if i sounded rude btw, i just thought you'd hate that theory too. and it is more common than you think. just look at the way all those ppl started theorizing that show!brienne would be pregnant with rejection baby

there's nothing wrong with implying that a single mom would take care of her kid after her baby daddy dies. but there is something fucked up in the idea that she apparently can't find someone better and has to be alone and unloved for the rest of her life. Jb shippers always say that love is an important part of brienne's story, but they actually only want her to be loved by jaime and have no issue throwing her under the bus to validate their ship.

siiigh okay let's do this. "a lot of shippers basically don't want jaime to die and brienne to live because they said and i quote, "if jaime dies, brienne will be alone." JB fans are shippers. they like Jaime and Brienne together, and do not want one half of their ship to die. so far so good: this does not strike me as offensive. I also think JB shippers are likely right in thinking that if Jaime were to die, Brienne will be both A) unhappy! and B) lonely! she's a character who has longed for love and has feared she'll never have it. Jaime is introduced as the character who will contradict that notion and love her as she loves him. there's this sort of... extended bit in ASOS where grrm kind of explores why they're that special fit for each other, it's pretty good. lots of soulmate imagery going on, etc etc. so you know, Jaime's death is kind of a... sad ending for Brienne. life certainly goes on, and hey, the story may well end like that, but it doesn't seem all that radical to me that some JB/Brienne fans might dislike that as the conclusion to her story and theorise that maybe, Jaime might live. "they're overestimating jaime's importance and undermining how much of a catch brienne is." they're overestimating Jaime's importance.... to whom exactly? to Brienne? the woman who thinks about him like... every couple of pages in AFFC? should we assume that actually, Jaime's death is no biggie for her, even though she has nightmares about him dying, even though she literally tried to die for him in her last chapter, even despite this constant refrain that goes 'I'm meant to protect him'? and I'm sorry, where do JB fans undermine 'how much of a catch Brienne is'? the whole point of JB is that Brienne is a catch lmao, and that Jaime, so far, is the only character who's actually opened his eyes and seen that. does that mean JB/Brienne fans believe Brienne can never be loved again post-Jaime? no. it probably just means that, as people invested in the characters and relationship of Jaime and Brienne, they are not super interested in waving off Jaime's death as 'shit happens' and moving onto exploring the relationship of Brienne and some character who does not exist in the story.

GRRM has done a lot of work explaining why Jaime and Brienne fit together. nobody is super interested in talking about how a similar relationship might play out with a stranger offscreen. "just look at the way all those ppl started theorizing that show!brienne would be pregnant with rejection baby" I saw those theories. nobody wanted it to happen. there were just some fans who, seeing how badly the show had already treated Brienne, thought there was every chance D&D might do still worse by her in the final episode. "but there is something fucked up in the idea that she apparently can't find someone better and has to be alone and unloved for the rest of her life." like I mentioned, I imagine what you're talking about has less to do with 'nobody else could ever love Brienne and she must be alone' and more to do with... no-one really being especially interested in exploring a relationship that takes place offscreen with a character who doesn't currently exist. but besides that, you will always find shippers who feel character A could never truly love again after the death of character B, particularly where the 'soulmate stuff' is played as hard as it is with JB. this strikes me less as offensive and misogynistic and more just the way people feel about their ships. I had a Renly/Loras fan basically tell me the same a couple months back when I suggested that perhaps Loras might find someone else post-canon, because they couldn't fathom Loras loving again after Renly. this didn't strike me as uncharitable to Loras, but just the strength of their feeling for the ship, and the strength of the love they read into it. and GRRM even sort of supports the idea with Loras' line "When the sun has set, no candle can ever replace it." perhaps this is the grief talking, or perhaps this is true for Loras. personally, I like to think everyone can love again after the death of a partner, but I don't think it's an offensive reading for someone invested in the ship to believe that Jaime was Brienne's great love and "no candle can ever replace it." it has nothing to do with thinking she has to be alone and celibate forever without him. it is simply their reading of Jaime and Brienne's relationship and how Brienne's grief might manifest, you're free to disagree with it if you like.

"Jb shippers always say that love is an important part of brienne's story, but they actually only want her to be loved by jaime"

JB shippers are only invested in Jaime and Brienne because theirs is the romance the story is exploring. they are two characters whose stories are about love, explored via the other. like, I'm sorry, are we supposed to just get on with shipping Brienne x Ser Not-Appearing-In-This-Story? what is your actual issue here?

[denkineptune]

mha date headcanons- boys and girls :))

♡ request: “i love ur blog already, ur writing is so good!!! im so excited to see the content u’ll be posting !! :D since ur taking requests, how abt some date headcanons for the mha boys (or girls if u want!) ?” - @dianangels​ 

♡ thank you for letting me write girls aaa i chose to do some as first date hc. it was kinda hard to keep jirou’s gn because i wanted to reference wlw stereotypes but i succeeded in gender-neutral because i want everyone to be able to enjoy

♡ dedicating part of this to @anxious-botanist​ because she’s the one who inspired the momo cuddles hehe sorry it took so long

♡ fic details: headcanons, fluff, gender-neutral reader, 2nd pov

characters: kaminari, amajiki, jirou, ashido, yaoyorozu

kaminari- arcade

↠AR C ADE   DA T  E

↠you hear me??? arcade!! date!! ideal man, right here, someone claim him immediately or else i will be forced to take ownership

↠he’s super laid back and chill, pretty childish at heart. he only means the best, though, so i think an arcade is exactly what he would go for when taking you on a date! he doesn’t have a lot of money but still wants you to go home with something to remember the date by

↠he buys like $50 worth of tokens and splits it between the two of you, making sure that he tells you which games give the most tickets, because he’s definitely been here enough times to remember

↠his favorite game is either crossy roads or the big bass wheel- he loves crossy roads because of how cute the style is, but also there is impending stress and levels of  d o o m  as you progress further. big bass wheel is basically just gambling, and i think he’s yumeko jabami.

↠he hacks games to make you win sometimes,, his quirk is bascially designed to do this. it’s like he was born just to take you out on this arcade date. he uses his quirk to short circuit the game and trick the computer into giving you hundreds of tickets

↠he just wants to make you happy and see you smile!! there’s not a feeling quite like succeeding at something as silly as an arcade game, but there’s a certain pride to it that he loves seeing on your face. 

↠kaminari only does it a few times, since he knows that you should be earning your prizes ((not that you know when he does it, he’s really cheeky about it))

↠playyyy multiplayers with him! he loves DDR (dance dance revolution)- you do multiple rounds and are equally exhausted by the end of it akdflad you may not be good, and tbh neither is denki, but you still have fun, which is what matters

↠he also loves taking photobooth pictures, he puts on the most horrendous filters and does the dumbest poses, but it’s so adorable. he does the typical one smile, one “serious”, one silly face, one kith > <

↠kami gets cocky,,, it’s just how he is,, he gets overly confident whether or not he’s been on a winstreak

“heyy, y/n! look at my speedrun on this, i’m getting so many tickets, i’ll be able to get a house by the end of it!”

↠and then he CAN’T because he doesn’t get the jackpot eghgdhgeh

↠by the end of the day, you’ve spent hours at the arcade, laughing and screaming with denki as you terrorize the small children. yes, he’s that kind of guy

↠by “terrorize”, i don’t mean like a bully, but he’s unintentionally intimidating kids with his pockets overflowing with ticket chains, a crazed look on his face as he goes absolutely ham on the shooting games

↠there’s electricity coming off of him, kids sometimes have to dodge it when passing by

↠so anyways, by the end of the date, you’re basically being kicked out of the arcade, because, as kami puts it,

“we were here when it opened and i’ll be damned if we’re not here when it closes,”

↠between the two of you, you’ve aquired tens of thousands of tickets??? the employees probably hate y’all, they had to count those beasts of ticket rolls you’ve accumulated during the 10 hours the arcade was open

↠exactly 62,069 tickets (69 go brrr- kaminari’s brain), and you can basically buy the arcade with that currency

↠but here’s the thing: he lets you spend all of it. you heard me, all. of. it. he just wants to see you happy, and the best way he can think of to get a final glorious memory of your smile is to let you spend the tickets as you see fit, this generosity just to see you glowing as you walk out of the building, arms chock full of amazing junk

↠but of course, you’d feel bad if you spent all of it, especially since he was the one who took you out, so you offered him the half of the tickets that were won

“denki, you won most of these with your amAzINg gaming skills, it’s only fair you get to have something too,”

“my prize will be seeing you- your- your-- aw fuck, i forgot the line, it’ll come back to me, just give me a minute.”

↠he tried to be smooth and it failed, but you chuckled at the attempt, so all around, he considered it a success

↠denki gets a lot of dumb things that will probably end up being thrown away soon, but he also gets you a very soft bat stuffed animal that you should treasure and keep forever 

amajiki- a walk and picnic in a japanese garden

↠tamaki is very shy, very socially anxious. he’s the kind to wait for people to leave a section of a store before he goes there, purposely do his errands in the early morning to limit social interaction, and find any excuse to leave a situation. which, tbh, isn’t that all of us?

↠let’s be honest here, if it wasn’t y’alls first date, he’d probably not go anywhere. as long as he’s with you, he doesn’t really care for anything too fancy

↠but he’s convinced himself that he needs to do something reasonably big for your first date to make sure you don’t regret your decision to go out with him. so instead of deciding to stay in, he goes somewhere that’s only slightly anxious for him, but where he still feels comfortable

↠so he’s decided on a japanese tsukiyama garden! these places are beautiful by design, not cheap but not too expensive, and people are obligated by rules to be quiet and keep their hands to themselves

↠nobody goes to a garden to socialize, in fact, i’d argue most people go just to look around, rest, and clear their heads. there’s usually not any screaming children, no quirk usage, no villains, it’s a little safe haven. 

↠bonus: there’s butterflies :))

↠it’s so peaceful, and he gets to focus on you instead of whatever loud noise is making him anxious

↠he brings a picnic basket filled with all your favorite foods, and his! he makes a show out of displaying what he can manifest with different snacks, making a point to eat edible seeds so he can produce flowers for you 🥺🥺🥺

↠you walk around the garden for a few hours, marveling at the decor and how well-maintained everything is. there’s a koi pond, hanging wisteria trees, and multiple gazebos that create a really comfortable and calm environment

↠speaking of koi ponds, amajiki offers to buy you food so you can feed the fish! you stand on a bridge above the pond, sharing the container with him. the sMILE on his face when he watches you throw the food is so pure i’m-

↠he’s the walking embodiment of “uwu”- his face is so calm and his eyes are shining and he can feel his heart swelling with love i am GOING to cry my eyes out 

↠but honestly, he wishes he could stay in this moment forever- you’re happy, he’s happy, and it feels like you two are the only people in the universe. right now, he doesn’t have to worry about school, villain attacks, his future, or anything that makes him anxious; all that he can see right now is how beautiful and at peace you look. he took you out today, and you’re enjoying yourself. this is one of the few things that makes him confident: knowing that he’s able to make you happy

↠tamaki is silently celebrating; you’ve had a good time and he didn’t freak out, so it’s the best possible scenario!

ashido- rollerskating! ((look at her she’s adorable the smile n the eyes aaa))

↠mina is a very energetic and bubbly person, its quite obvious if you’ve spent any amount of time around her

↠for your first date with her, she’d already have a location in mind!!

↠the atmosphere of rollerskating rinks is so electric, she can’t help but feel happy there, and she wants to experience that lovely feeling with you, too :))

↠you enter the rink, and mina is already borderline bouncing off the walls alskdfj

↠whether or not you’ve ever skated before, ashido is super cautious with you- multiple times she’s fallen on her butt while learning how to skate, so unless you’re a pro, she’s watching your every move to make sure you don’t get hurt

“y/n! please be careful- you’re not getting hurt on my watch!”

↠she jabs a thumb in her direction proudly, with the cutest bigass grin on her face awh 🥺🥺🥺she’s really enthusiastic about sharing one of her passions with you

“try to balance, alright? don’t put too much weight on your heel or toes, because then you’ll fall on your butt. here, take my hand and i’ll help you! hey, there you go, you’re doing great!”

↠she pays for everything and will WRESTLE you if you try to disagree aldkfa if you’re the type of person to pay for everything as well, y’all are going to have to fight; mina will not give up

↠ashido comes here a lot, so she’s friendly with all the employees, she has the uncanny ability to make friends wherever she goes ((i mean she’s friends with bakugou,, if she can do that,, she can do anything))

↠she takes one of your hands and backs onto the rink, watching for anyone behind her. once you’re balanced properly, she shows you how to move your feet so that the two of you are in sync

↠skating isn’t super hard to figure out, it’s mostly intuitive, so you’ll get the hang of it quite quickly!! maybe you’re not too fast, but it’s still fun, so it doesn’t matter

↠while you’re moving with care, making sure to focus on your footwork, mina will definitely take the chance to show off her skating skills! she’s moving like crazy, weaving around other people and nearly toppling them over but shh she’s trying to impress you and if i’m being honest??? she’s really fucking good aldkdf 

↠it’s obvious that she loves this hobby, and the fact that she likes you enough to share it with you on your first date is so adorable aaaa

↠mina’s really agile- you don’t know if that’s all the hero training or just something that comes naturally, but the way she moves makes skating look like the easiest goddamn thing in the world-

↠she’s such a romantic, she’s definitely put in a request for the dj to play your favorite song, no matter if it fits the mood or not

↠heavy rock? sure!! as long as you’re having fun, who cares about what other people think? super vulgar rap?? w h y  n o t ? !

↠she just has that extroverted, positive, charming energy that’s infectious

↠you can’t help but feel at ease around her, she’s a genuinely a great person, and what you think the epitome of a hero is

↠all ashido really wants here is to have fun with you- i mean she really likes you, and hopes that she’ll get to go on another date w/ you, so she’s doing everything in her power to woo u

↠and you’d be lying if you said it wasn’t working 🥺👉👈

jirou- hanging out in her room

↠kyouka jirou, being the more introverted person she is, wouldn’t really want to go somewhere super public, like mina would

↠i also believe that she’d want to be friends (or at least acquaintances) with you before asking you on a date- she’s easily annoyed by people, so i think that she’d need to be comfortable around you if she was to be romantically interested 

↠and you’ve ticked all these boxes! you understand her sarcastic, blunt personality, and find it pretty amusing. beyond all that, she’s kind and caring, and deep down, she aspires to be a hero for all the right reasons. who wouldn’t love her for that?

↠so for your first date with kyouka, i think she’d want to be somewhere quiet and intimate with you. she wouldn’t want any interruptions ((specifically from jammingyay, who enjoys butting his head in other peoples’ business))

↠the most comfortable place for her would be her room, since it’s really just an extension of her personality, and since you’re quite close, she’d be okay with letting you in her private space. she trusts you.

↠just two guys bein dudes 🤠 ((if you’re a girl, it’s just sappho and her friend--))

↠music is one of the biggest things in jirou’s life, and i think she’d want to share it with you. that is, if you’d let her :)) she has dozens of different instruments, so if you want to attempt to learn something, she’d be totally down!! 

↠please show her what kind of music you’re into! no matter what it is, she’ll listen to it. she wants to get to know what kind of person you are when you’re not around other people, and music is a great way to do that. even if you don’t have the same taste as her, she wouldn’t mind, since a) she’ll listen to pretty much anything, she’s not picky; and b) it’s something that you’re showing her, and that’s enough to make her happy

↠she’s not a very formal person, so i think she’d just want to talk to you and hang out. i’d think kyouka would be more of a fan of a gradual relationship, one that starts from friends and slowly evolves into more. and yes, as you can probably tell, i am a sucker for mutual pining and friends-to-lovers tropes-- im a simple hoe 😌

↠she’s super fun to hang out with!! her sense of humor is really snarky, she also enjoys talking shit about people she doesn’t like. if you’re not into that, she’s able to carry on conversation really well. there’s not a moment of awkward silence between you

↠jirou actually really likes talking shit about people hsahsh- as long as it’s someone that’s been mean in some way. she won’t say anything bad about someone who hasn’t done anything to deserve it. but if you’ve wronged her in some way, boy, do you have it COMING

↠by the end of it, i just know your cheeks hurt from laughing 

↠she’s just a really fun person to be around, she may not be the most bubbly person ever, but she’s super easy-going and cool ((jirou bias incoming ekejke))

↠i do think she’d try to sneak some kind of affection if she thinks you’d reciprocate- if you’re really getting along well, she might snake her hand into yours when you’re sitting on the bed, laughing

↠honestly you might not even notice until she stops, because your hand feels empty and cold without her like your heart aa

↠if she’s really into you?? might get a smol peck on the cheek 👉👈 please try to get a smol peck on the cheek, it’s very cute and she gets so flustered

↠she goes up to you as you’re about to leave her room, grabs your shoulder, turns you around, and gives you an adorable if not slightly aggressive smooch

↠then she reFUSES to acknowledge what she just did akdfld- she turns away, beet red, and is completely silent

↠meanwhile you’re probably laughing your ass off because wow she’s so cute

↠kudos if you give one back to her, baby is on the verge of exploding ejkdjf 

↠her heart just can’t handle what you’re doing to her

↠and despite what her appearance is, her heart is doing backflips- she’s whipped <33

momo: tea and c u d d l e s

↠she’s a very fancy person, obviously. yaoyorozu wants only the best for everyone she loves, and that, of course, includes you! she loves showing affection through giving things to others. her family status only magnifies this aspect of her personality, as being born into wealth gives her the means to spoil you rotten

↠and even though she’s bougie as all hell, she also somehow maintains an elegant and simple air about her. it’s impressive, really. it’s not like she tries to flex her money, it’s just a part of her life, and she enjoys using her privilege well

↠that being said, what’s more elegant and mature than going for tea? it’s a lovely pastime that momo would love to include you in! 

↠lowkey,, she’s a whole sugar momma dfkdjla im not even joking- she doesn’t try to be, but virtually everything she does shows how rich she is

↠you arrive at the tea room, and by god is it fancy. there’s multiple chandeliers suspended from the ceiling, which is decorated with classic renaissance-style paintings. all the tables are set with white cloth, plates made of pure fine china, flowers and woven baskets set everywhere to create a cottagecore-like setting. the air about it is so sophisticated, from the patrons (wait is that a celebrity-) to the decorations

↠your face is kinda just,,, 😮,, because what in the world did momo get you into??

“momo, you’re so sweet, and this place is lovely, but don’t you think this is a bit much? not that i don’t absolutely appreciate it, it’s just that this seems really expensive, and i don’t want you to have to spend that much for just one date.”

↠she just chuckles, saying that it was “really nothing” (???? MISS GIRL???)

“don’t worry, y/n, this isn’t too much! i want to have fun today, and this place is so nice! let’s just find a table, alright?”

↠like, hunney, you’re so kind, but this is a LOT

↠but if you say so....

↠she looks at you with the most enthusiastic, wholesome eyes, and soon you’re following her like a puppy towards your table. the waiter sits you down, and leaves, giving you a moment to glaze over the menu to find a drink

↠and there’s so many types of teas, at least 30 on this page alone. you hadn’t even heard of half of these drinks, how would you know if you’d like them?

↠yaomomo seemed to notice your puzzlement, and said that you could get a pot of something simple, like jasmine green or earl grey, and she would get something fancier that you could try. why not?

↠a few minutes later, you’ve already adjusted to the sophisticated and intimidating environment, focusing only on the girl across from you, and how her eyes glittered with happiness

↠she orders a few normal tea foods, like scones with jam, lemon curd, and devonshire cream, and finger sandwiches. the fanciest thing she buys, though, is a blooming tea that arrives in a clear pot. it has an open flower inside of it, which is what the tea is infused with. it’s nearly 16,100 yen for one pot, though, and while you protest its expense, momo reassures you that it’s no problem (you just learned not to say anything about money, as it wouldn’t stop yaoyorozu from spoiling you)

↠ngl, it’s so fun to pretend to be fancy for a few hours at a tea room !! you acted as if you were a member of high society, using stereotypes to exaggerate your actions. it made some people only slightly irritated, but hey, it got a laugh out of a pretty girl, so who’s the real winner? 

↠yaomomo taught you some classy etiquette that you should definitely use, it makes her so happy to think that you’re learning about new things while still enjoying your time with her

↠she makes really good conversation!! her intellect seeps through everything she says, anyone who talks to her would be able to tell that she’s extremely well-spoken and mature. momo is modest, and deflects a lot of the compliments you try to give her, so if you try to display your admiration for her, you’d probably need to be very specific about it. she doesn’t have the best self-image when it comes to her heroism and field work. spoken affection sometimes doesn’t get through to her, but you know what does? physical affection!

↠she loves cuddles, and will regularly take you back to her house after a date to cuddle in her bed. her mattress is legendary, and it’s comfortable as hell. there’s an abundance of pillows and the bed isn’t too soft or too firm, and it’s always somehow an amazing temperature???? mattresses are investments, and this was definitely a good one

↠momo loves the intimacy and trust of holding you, it allows her to escape from overthinking and only focus on you, her beautiful partner. she doesn’t care if she’s the big or little spoon, but her favorite kind of cuddling is when you’re on your back and she’s curled into your side, head tucked under your chin and hand on your chest

↠she can do this for hours, please let her. she feels safe with you, confident, because you’re choosing to spend time with her in this quiet moment instead of being off somewhere else.

↠in conclusion,,, 💕women 💕

-denkineptune

[polyghostfacehours]

CONGRATS ON 3K BUBALLOOOO so well deserved!!! as for your little matchup thing I'd love one! gimme that sweet romance, baby!! my emoji of choice: 👹. I feel like you've seen how I look physically speaking but I'm 5'9 brown hair, a few sporadic tattoos. I grew up swimming competitively, love animals (have 2 dogs and a cat), love horror movies obv, travelling, LOVE sushi and greek food. umm I own my own business. honestly my mind is suddenly blank! I hope this is enough lmao

LEEEX GOD. This took forever for me to do because I really had to think.

So, romantically, I think you fit well with both, hence being more near the middle BUT I feel you'd match a little better with Billy.

- Competitive swimming? You can't tell me they both wouldn't find that hot, if you disagree then shut up + ratio. Seeing their SO in a swimsuit is absolute *chef's kiss*. But I can see Billy especially liking it, bc that means physically you could put up a good fight. And he'll allow himself be a little rougher with you than maybe someone who isn't an athlete. He'd manhandle you in the bedroom oml, and once you let that knife/blood kink out? Absolute nut man.

- I can see Billy being into tattoos and wanting some of his own in the future (this may or may not have something to do with Skeet's recent instagram story pics bc woof bark bark grrr)

- I don't know why, but I hc that Billy wanted a dog as a kid, but never got one bc his parents are low-key satan. So his partner having any sort of pet, cat or dog, just seems like something he'd enjoy.

- Horror movies is basically a req. with these two, but I feel bc Billy likes theorizing and analyzing horror/characters he'd especially need someone who can share that with him. So yeah, you liking horror. Thas good.

- So you liking travelling is something that actually really appeals to Stu, since I hc that the one part of being dragged by his parents to business trips or social events is that he loved travelling to new place. Sightseeing, trying local cuisine, etc. He loves it and loves to have someone to share it with. Billy has never left California, and didn't really travel too much outside of Woodsboro save for local towns/cities, so you being into travelling can be exciting to him. He's so ready to leave Woodsboro, like you wouldnt believe lol. Free him.

- Stu loves all types of food, either super cheap or super expensive. Billy's palette is much more restricted, and it'll take time for him to get used to foods he isn't used to. And if he has a bad experience with one dish, it takes foreeeever to get him to give it another try lol. Stu would like both greek food and sushi, while I can see Billy mainly just being okay with greek.

- God okay so, you owning your own business? Not only does it do wonders for their (particularly Stu's) views on women or women's roles, but also is strangely hot to them? Billy particularly likes that whole girls who "arent like other girls" bullshit, so yay for you. And he likes a partner who wouldn't be completely dependent on him. Show them the light of a woman who can run her whole shit.

[itsclydebitches]

RWBY Recaps: Volume 8 “The Final Word”

Well, we made it to the finale, everyone, and if you're reading this it seems you've survived the watching of it too. Barely. To say that some questionable choices were made across these 20 minutes is... an understatement.

But before we delve into the episode, I want you to cast your mind back to November 7th, 2020. A horrible year that heralded a horrible RWBY volume. There, coming off the shaky writing of Volume 7, I posed a number of questions and concerns that the show needed to tackle, with the promise that we would return to these expectations in four months time. Now, here we are! Let's refresh everyone's memory, yeah?

Taken directly from that recap, what RWBY promised us, through various teasers and Q&As, included:

Emphasis on Ruby’s leadership and how Summer’s death has impacted her

Insight into Ren and Nora’s flaws

May Merigold will supposedly have a larger part

More information about The Long Memory (Ozpin’s cane)

Theme of the volume is that you can respect someone but that doesn’t necessarily mean you agree with them

Very short timeline (supposedly just two days)

Yang in particular is very suspicious and distrustful

And you know what? They did all this. In the spirit of being fair and honest to this show, RWBY succeeded in delivering on everything they promised... it was just our foolishness that expected that these ideas would be delivered well. Ruby's leadership took center stage in the form of her hiding for multiple episodes and then others telling her she's still The Best before the plot dropped a solution into her lap... one she could have used at any point prior to this. Summer's death certainly has an impact, though it's an impact born of a crazy reveal that Summer likely isn't dead, but turned into a horrifying grimm monster. Ren and Nora both delve into their flaws, but heaven forbid either grow from that reflection. Ren learns that if he pushes past his primary flaw of keeping his emotions buried and actually expresses his doubts for once, he'll be yelled at and ignored until he admits how wrong he was. The "real" flaw is being a bad friend, with "bad friend" equaling "Not agreeing with Ruby 100%." Meanwhile, Nora considers that maybe she shouldn't rush in recklessly and hit things with her hammer... which is why she rushes in recklessly, hits something with her hammer, gets grievously injured, and is told that this is just who she truly is. No growth there, not unless we count her sudden desire to figure out who she is without Ren... but that exploration hasn't started yet. Too bad she wasn't the teammate separated at the end of the volume!

Meanwhile, May did indeed have a larger role to play, one I quite liked, it's just that this role — like all the others — inevitably circled back to realizing how wonderful Ruby is. May challenges Ruby to make a decision, but instead of being the catalyst for Ruby's growth, May becomes another forgotten side character who does a sudden about-turn regarding her perspective, leaving the group with the contradictory message that Ruby is actually doing her best, she's just a kid, no need to try any harder... everyone who claimed otherwise up until now was mistaken. May is another Cordovin. She's another Qrow. She's another Maria.

Fun fact: we don't even know if Maria is alive right now. That's how little she means to the show!

Actually, wait... anyone remember this nonsense from Volume 7? 

I was too lazy to change the date.

Moving on, Ozpin's cane turned out to be a stakes obliterating bomb that came out of nowhere, makes no sense logistically — how do battles store energy that only hurts grimm? — yet nevertheless seems to have killed Hazel? It's a disaster of unanswered questions. Similar to the disaster of our two day timeline when, I'm fairly sure, we've had an unnatural number of sunrises and sunsets. I'll have to take a look back at the volume as a whole now that it's complete to be sure of that though. As for our themes... did we really explore the idea of respecting someone even if you disagree with them? Because Ironwood wasn't shown any respect. Ren wasn't shown respect. I think the closest we got was Oscar calmly validating Yang's worry about getting buddy-buddy with Emerald, but the whole point there was that Yang was wrong. She wasn't wrong, but that's what the text would have you believe. She is indeed "very suspicious and distrustful," but that's hardly unjustified in these circumstances. I'm still boggling at the fact that it took the group three volumes for forgive Ozpin, even while he was actively working to assist them, yet I-helped-destroy-Beacon-and-tried-to-kill-everyone-you-love Emerald is the group's new BFF after she... ran away with Oscar? She didn't save him, she just went along for the ride. At the very least we might have gotten a scene where Penny was like, "Hey, why are you all laughing with the woman who just tried to kill my dad?"

But oh yeah, the story doesn't remember Pietro exists either. His daughter is DEAD and he hasn't been on screen since Episode Five, let alone there when she passes.

I had my own list going in, including such expectations as "Ozpin bb you got done dirty please acknowledge this" and "Queer baiting, queer baiting… you’re on thin ice at this point, RWBY. Just skate on over to the queer snack bar before you fall straight into the lake." Obviously these needs were not met.

So what, given this mess of expectations, did we end up with?

Our finale — for some reason — breaks the one word title trend with "The Final Word." It's an expression that refers to the final word in an argument or a discussion, the idea of winning by making a last, devastating point. It can also refer to making the final decision on something, which is the best way I'm able to apply the title to this episode (outside of any “final” comparisons). Penny's death is certainly all about choice and making some kind of decision... but on the whole, this title doesn't feel like it fits well. Not like "Worthy" or "Creation" or "Risk." The two latter titles had obvious connections to the episode in question through dialogue and plot, while the former was a deliberate callback to Watts' speech. "The Final Word" feels... less obvious in what it’s trying to say.

That's a minor nitpick though. Let's get into the meat of the episode.

We open on the grimm whale still disappearing, which is weird. I get that it's massively bigger than any other grimm we've seen, but they all turned to dust near instantaneously and it's been, what? At least an hour since Oscar blew it up? Likely longer when we factor in their walk back to the manor, the fight with Ironwood, fixing Penny, and this entire evacuation. It certainly makes for a nice visual, but like so many details in RWBY, it raises unnecessary questions along the way.

The important bit though is that amidst the whale carcass a blob of evil is swirling about. Salem, obviously. 

She’s not reforming in time to actually do anything though, don't worry.

Instead, we cut to the Ironwood vs. Winter fight and there's at least some dialogue this time. Ironwood yells that he's sacrificed everything to keep Remnant safe. Winter yells back that he actually sacrificed everyone else. Obviously, Ironwood should be called out for things like, you know, his unprompted murders, but instead they have Winter listing stuff that she was never shown to have a problem with before. The embargo? "Squeezed Mantle until it broke?" She, as Ironwood's second hand, understood and supported both the decision to close the border and the need to collect resources for a plan designed to take out Salem. I hate that no only did she turn without an ounce of hesitation or grief, but now they're having her act as if Ironwood forced these decisions on everyone, rather than everyone supporting him through them. We all remember Volume 7 when Ruby pressured him to finish Amity, right? And in trust RWBY fashion, most of these words are meaningless. Mantle "broke"? What does that mean? The class disparity did not come about through Ironwood: that's been in the works for generations. The lack of resources made things harder, yes, but when they were reclaimed by Robyn nothing improved. Watts is the one who turned off the heat and Salem attacked Atlas, leaving Mantle alone. Now, all the citizens have escaped through magical portals. So how is Mantle "broken" exactly? More importantly, why is Winter upset over this vague, nonsensical dilemma when she could be yelling about Ironwood wanting to bomb Mantle?

Again: this woman watched Ironwood shoot the councilman, shrugged, and continued to believe in him up until she realized his bomb threat was real. That was one of the main reasons why I thought the councilman might be alive, with Ironwood only shooting a warning shot past him. Because this is how you react to a good person unexpectedly killing someone else

whereas this is what we got from Winter and Harriet.

Hell, Weiss has more of a reaction to Yang telling Ruby things aren't super great right now.

So either Ironwood didn't do something that bad, thereby justifying these tame reactions (unlikely, given where his character ended up), or we should believe based on the animation that everyone was super chill with him killing an unarmed civilian. Which is then directly contradicted when they're like, "You're going to shoot Marrow? Bomb a city?? How could you do such horrible things??? 😲" Friends, buddies, fictional pals... you already watched him murder a dude.

The point is, there's a lot for Winter to be upset about, but she's not upset about that. There's a lot that Winter herself believed in, but the writing has forgotten that. This entire arc went off the rails a volume ago.

Also, why is Ironwood fighting with that giant gun? This is his final battle, presumably ever, and he's wielding this awkward, sluggish weapon we saw him randomly pick up two episodes ago? Let him use his regular guns! Give us a fantastic battle like he had with Watts! Instead, RWBY's final showdown consists of him using this no-name weapon as a unwieldy club in some of the most boring choreography we've seen to date. It doesn't help that this fight needs to share time with three others. Instead of an epic showdown, we're given glimpses of the battle before continually cutting away from it. 

During that first cut we return to the Team RWBY battle where Penny, doing her best to stay out of Cinder's reach, is whisked away on Weiss' wasp.

Too bad she didn't do that for Yang...

Jaune and Nora watch this horror unfold until Jaune says, "Priority one!" and they split. Except... what is priority one exactly? Helping the civilians? I guess, because they don't enter the fight until the very end of it, when everyone else seems to have made it to Vacuo. And you know what, I like that. For once it feels like the group — or at least the B Team — is acting like huntsmen, putting the needs of the people over their own, personal desires. I'm sure Nora wants to help the group after Yang's (presumed) demise and that Jaune would like nothing more than to get his hands on Cinder, but they put those grievances aside to do the work they signed up for. Good job!

My only real gripe is that we don't really see this struggling in the animation, I'm just assuming it's there. In particular, there's a moment when Jaune sends Nora through the portal for reinforcements — not knowing they can't return — and they seem a little too jovial when, by this point, three friends have died.

There's letting your cast be supportive, and then there's having them ignore that three teammates have perished in an abyss. It really doesn't help to sell the idea that Yang, Ruby, and Blake are in any danger here.

But I'm getting ahead of myself.

Penny tells Weiss that since Cinder is really just after the Maiden powers, she can buy the rest of the group time to escape. Weiss, obviously, isn't fond of this idea... and then the both of them are blasted off the wasp by Cinder's fire. Which they deserve, frankly. They're just having this casual conversation about sacrifice while in the middle of a battle. Did they somehow forget that Cinder can fly too?

Note that multiple attacks from Cinder, another blast, and a hard landing on the pathway gives their auras a knock, but doesn't break them. The primary defense for Yang's aura shattering in a single, simple hit was that everyone is exhausted and running on little to no power... yet here the rest of the cast is, tanking multiple hits as we've come to expect. There is no explanation for Yang's defeat except that the writers chose to ignore the rules of their world for a dramatic death scene... even though that drama was erased a week later as half our team falls into the void too.

We'll get to that though. For now, Cinder corrects Penny's belief with "I want it all" and proceeds to try to finish them off, only for Blake to arrive, having made her choice from last episode about who to help. It's a legitimately nice attack, but I happened to pause at the bEST MOMENT

Anyway.

We leave that fight to return to Qrow and Harriet who have, off screen, started an entirely different battle. What I mean is, last we saw Qrow had broken through the windshield of the airship, roughly pinned Harriet, and was taunting her about getting the fight she wanted. Now, suddenly, he's going “You’re making a mistake, Harriet, what happened to Clover—” as if he's been trying to talk her down this whole time. It's jarring, especially when we consider that Qrow had a volume long "kill Ironwood" arc that was dropped because... Robyn reminded him that murder is bad? RWBY feels like a storytelling pinball machine. Characters bounce from one personality to the next, one perspective and another, round and round until you don't know where they'll end up.

Harriet screams for Qrow to just shut up already and honestly? Same. I love Qrow, he's one of my favorites, but I can't deny that he's been done dirty like so many others since Volume 6. I love who Qrow was, not the mess RWBY has created the last few years.

Time to delve back into fic after recapping!

Sadly though, this strange dialogue wasn't the only "wtf" moment. Harriet is still trying to drop the bomb — which is its own mess of confusing motivations — when Vine and Elm show up on Harriet's ship. Elm begs Harriet not to do this "because you’re our friend!”

Am I glad that they finally acknowledged that the Ace Ops have always been friends? Sure, but why did we spend two volumes claiming otherwise? They were friends, a fantastic team, then Harriet announces that's a lie and we get a bunch of "Team RWBY is superior because they're actually friends" messages. Except this entire time we're still watching the Ace Ops be kind and playful with one another. But they're not friends, the story says. Not friends as they fight these battles. Not friends as they grieve for Clover. Definitely not friends as they react in horror at Ironwood nearly shooting Marrow. No, there's nothing there... until Elm claims there is! Then Harriet reacts in shock. I have friends?

Except Elm was labeled the one "just following orders" by Yang. Elm is the one who shook off Vine after the whale exploded. This isn't the story of one character, Harriet, thinking she was alone and then realizing that people do care for her, this is a story that, seemingly at random, had this group being BFFs or acting like they hated each other — and at each point the visuals are contradicted by the story's message. When they act like friends, we're told they're not friends. When they don't act like friends, we're told they really have been this whole time. I mean, do any of them even care that Marrow teamed up with Qrow and Robyn to take them out five minutes ago? All three were going along with Ironwood's scheme until they were physically stopped, but now Elm is convinced this is a bad decision she needs to talk Harriet down from with the power of friendship?

None of these characters are characters, they're just slapped together reactions based on whatever the plot needs. Who is Elm? I've got no clue. Her personality changes every episode.

Also, love that Qrow moves to stop the bomb from dropping and Harriet screams at him to "Get out of the way!" rather than just... attacking him? She even throws her hands out like she's having a temper tantrum. This feels like schoolyard bickering, not a life or death struggle.

Even though, you know, the audience is aware that the people of Mantle have already been evacuated and Qrow's group is aware that Atlas is falling on top of Mantle as they speak, so... why does the bomb matter? It's going to, what? Destroy the city thirty seconds before Atlas does? Oh no, the horror.

Things then, if you can believe it, get even worse. The bomb is still about to drop, so instead of doing anything to stop it — I mean seriously, we know it takes four people to shoulder the bomb's weight, but you're telling me Qrow and a reformed Harriet can't snag it in a pinch? — Qrow sits there, looks at Clover's pin... and the bomb careens towards the side of the airship instead, stopping.

Because I guess Qrow has good luck now? Or always did and somehow never noticed it? Or his semblance evolved?? Again, we don't know, but it's a bad moment any way you slice it, imo. Qrow has always been defined as the guy with a bad luck semblance and, much like Penny's android struggles, the allure was in watching him overcome those challenges, not having the show erase the challenge entirely. Especially when we don't even understand how it was erased. Qrow just... stops drinking, stops caring for Ironwood, stops wanting to kill Ironwood, stops causing bad luck, I guess. RWBY takes major character traits and flips them off like a light switch, leaving the audience with no emotional tether. We didn't watch Qrow overcome his drinking, or realize he can't bear to kill Ironwood, or discover a way to live life with the horrible hand he was dealt, he just blinks one day and those things are gone. Why? No one is sure. Not even the writers, I'd wager, because otherwise they would have written explanations into the text.

Many in the fandom insist that any basic information provided by the story amounts to "hand holding" when in fact there is a massive difference between the sort of unnecessary exposition that bogs down a tale, and having facts enough for the audience in its entirety to be on the same page about what is actually happening. For example, recently someone argued strongly that the "Penny is human" take is incorrect because Penny isn't human, she has an inhuman body made entirely of aura... yet where in the world does this exist in the story? Ambrosius may have been unsure about what Penny would be prior to removing her robotic parts, but that ambiguity is gone once her body forms, the equivalent of worrying about that gun only for a flag with 'BANG' to appear instead of a bullet. Worrying about something doesn't mean that something actually occurred. Penny appears human, expresses human sentiments, and then, this episode, dies as a human. If it walks like a duck and talks like a duck and succumbs to the mortal peril that all ducks face... it's probably a duck. As I said in a recent ask, I implore the fandom to stop writing RWBY's scripts for them. Or rather, do so in some amazing fanfics. Don't do it on critical posts as a means of insisting that your revision is canon.

So Qrow has good luck now, maybe, but this character change doesn't amount to anything because Watts remotely starts the bomb's countdown.

At least he’s entertaining and competent. We had that for a time. 

Back to the main battle, Neo is kicking Ruby's ass. Why? Because there's no consistency in power levels in this show. The ancient woman who hasn't fought in decades dances circles around Neo, highlighting how weak she supposedly is, yet now Neo dances circles around our main character. None of us should expect fights to follow the logic of the world, only what drama the plot wants to stir up. Ruby is eventually knocked down from a hard hit — yet her aura's intact! — and is saved at the last second by Weiss tossing Neo into one of the portals. 

Far more of a problem than the power leveling is that Ruby gives no indication here that Neo just murdered her sister. Again, that's what the characters are meant to believe, yet Ruby is as stoic as she would be fighting a bunch of White Fang grunts. If you showed this scene to a RWBY fan on its own and asked, "What do you think happened prior to this?" the answer would be, "Uh... nothing? Ruby is just fighting Neo like she did on the airship in Volume 3." Nothing about this scene — from dialogue to animation — sells the idea that Ruby just lost the person most important to her in the world.

When we do finally mention Yang, it's Weiss who goes, “Come on, we have to do this for Yang” and the delivery is... meh. Honestly, I normally don't pay much attention to the voice acting, but I had a problem with most of Weiss' lines this episode. The "Leave her alone!" during this fight and later a "Get back!" as she attacks Cinder both fell really flat for me. Given the devastation and charged emotion that's supposed to be here, we can't give her anything better than generic cries that, again, she’d throw at any grunt? In that later scene the animation absolutely helps sell Weiss' distress, but the dialogue is common and the delivery has no emotional punch, leaving it feeling like Yang is just hanging out in Vacuo and they promised they'd beat the baddies before catching up with her. No one but Blake is acting like Yang died.

In fact, we see more emotion from Ruby when Weiss shoves her back, taking the brunt of Cinder's blast.

Weiss' aura breaks, not that that's a danger or anything. Everyone falls before they're injured, Winter gets the Maiden powers, Ren barely has to fight. Losing aura in this show used to be a moment of peril, where just last volume Winter was bruised, bleeding, and now needs an assistive device because she had to continue a battle with no aura. Now it's a joke. Aura breaks left and right across the volume with no repercussions attached to that.

We see a bit of the Blake and Penny vs. Cinder fight where Cinder blasts Blake off the edge. Penny rushes after her because at least one character remembered that they can fly.

Ruby, meanwhile, remembers that she can fly when it benefits her. After getting hit down onto a lower level and watching Crescent Rose plummet, she taunts Neo into an attack with a move that's actually quite good. I like the confidence with which Ruby riles her up and I like the strategy of darting behind Neo to knock her off the path instead. “Whatever you wanted, I hope it was worth it."

The only thing I don't like is that this speed and ingenuity had to disappear to justify Yang falling.

Cinder breaks Ruby's aura from behind though, sending her over too and grabbing onto Neo's leg. In an obvious moment born of the trope, it looks as if Cinder is reaching to help Neo, only for her to snag the Relic instead. “You should have never threatened me," she tells Neo and to Ruby: "you should have never been born.” 

Love that they erased all that cool growth from last episode! And by "love" I mean "hate." As I said last recap, I'm not going to pretend that Cinder's character isn't riddled with problems, but realizing she was stronger by teaming up with Neo and Watts was one of the best things they've ever done for her. It made Cinder dangerous again and showed Watts' speech having a clear impact. It also made her more entertaining, creating a new dynamic among the three villains. Now though, Cinder is just... Cinder. The same boring, stupid Cinder we've had since Volume 4. She betrays Neo and then later betrays Watts.

So Cinder kicks Neo and Ruby both over the edge because why would we want to make her interesting? Neo falls, but Ruby has friends there to catch her! Unlike Yang. Jk. Weiss’ aura is gone and Blake actually tried both times, so major kudos for her. Using momentum supplied by Penny, she snags Ruby and hooks her weapon into one of the pathways... only for Cinder to cut the ribbon. Both plummet and once again Penny has a more believable reaction to all this, just like she did last week

Speaking of reactions, does anyone else find it weird that Cinder finally succeeded in killing Ruby and... doesn’t seem to care? 

No? Just me? 

At least we get that good animation with Weiss I was talking about before, even if the dialogue is lacking. I love that she snagged Blake's weapon and uses it to try and take out Cinder, shaking the whole time. Those are some great details. 

Back to the bomb, Qrow is trying to escape, but Harriet says there isn't enough time to get out of the blast range. "I've killed us all." Vine has the solution though, using his semblance to wrap up the airship, thus containing the blast when it goes off. His final words are to reassure Elm that he can give his life, "if it means saving all of my friends." Just in case you missed the part about the Ace Ops being super close this whole time. Even though they also weren’t. Trying to eat your cake too, RWBY? 

Frankly, I didn't feel much of anything during this scene, not when Vine made the sacrifice, nor when Elm and Harriet look on sadly while Robyn pilots them away (that's her contribution this episode). 

All I can say is, good on RWBY for not killing one of the three dark skinned characters, or just murdering the Ace Ops as a whole. What the story is going to do with them though, who knows.

Jaune and Nora have that ‘You can do it!’ moment after three of their friends have presumably been killed. I swear, about 80% of Jaune's scenes do not work tonally and oh boy, things only get worse from here.

First though, I like his entrance. He slams into the fight against Cinder and lines up with Penny and Weiss, who is still dual-wielding her and Blake's weapons. That's an epic shot.  

It looks as if they stand a decent chance against Cinder — Weiss' lost aura notwithstanding — except then Cinder's arm starts going crazy and she gleefully announces that Salem has returned.

Working on a time limit now, Cinder unleashes a volley of attacks that Penny steps in to protect the other two from. It's here that Cinder grabs hold with her grimm arm.

It's here that Penny dies. Again.

For the third time.

Friends, I am tired. This moment honestly deserves the most epic of rants, but that, in turn, requires energy. Energy? In this economy? Ha! That's hilarious. Taking this seriously though, the problem here can — as usual — be boiled down to a single question: What was the point?

Penny died in a horrible attack that shook the cast and audience both to their core.

That emotional impact was erased through her resurrection.

The resurrection did not create a new emotional impact for our heroes to grapple with.

Penny is given the Maiden powers, solidifying the fact that she's always been a "real girl."

That lesson was erased when the story decided to make her human for unexplained reasons (because no, she never needed to be human to survive the virus).

Penny then dies, passing the power to Winter... who was set to get the power in the first place.

We have, once again, come full circle. You can take Penny out of the story and nothing changes. Does Ruby lose any lessons or emotional growth? No. Does anyone survive who would have otherwise died? No. Does her getting the powers lead to someone unexpected snagging them upon her death? No. Penny's existence was filler. She was put in the story to take up time and, that done, was removed from the story once again. It's a choice that wouldn't be half as horrible if that filler hadn't done so much damage along the way.

First is the obvious: that Penny didn't deserve this. As a character, she didn't deserve to be brought back just to be killed off again, seemingly without narrative purpose, serving only to draw in viewers who RT knew loved the character. Second, keeping her in the story led to her entire arc unraveling. Initially, Penny died as an android in the world's eyes, but those who actually knew her — Ruby and Pietro — mourned the girl she really was. Now we have this horrible message that being a machine isn't real enough, so she has to die as a human being. It's a disservice to her character and, as an allegory for many minorities, downright insulting to the audience. Third, this offensive 'better to die as a human than live as a robot' message is wrapped up in the claim that Penny finally gets to choose something — “Let me choose this one thing. Trust me” — but she already did that when she chose to take the Maiden powers. We already had the better written version of this last volume!

And the fourth issue...well.  

Fourth and fifth are the real kickers. Fourth is that Penny's death was an assisted suicide. She explicitly asks Jaune to kill her so she can ensure she's thinking of the right person when she passes (never mind that her thoughts would probably be on Jaune while this is happening) and that's... pretty horrible. Look, I'm no purist. I like a great deal of dark, gritty stories whose plot exists to make us uncomfortable. That's a valuable emotion that fiction can generate. The problem is not that RWBY is tackling a sensitive topic, but that they aren’t tackling it well. Yes, they put in a content warning and (from what I've heard) a suicide helpline as well, but providing the already necessary resources is not the same thing as writing that kind of scene with respect and care. All of the above tells us that, no matter what RT may have intended, that respect and care weren't communicated to the audience. Like Yang, they didn't even bother to keep Penny's death within the rules of their world. Jaune is right there ready to heal her and Penny says no, there's supposedly not time.

Um... since when?

Jaune's aura boost is instantaneous. The second he amplifies aura is the same second the healing starts and their talk could have been spent saving Penny. There was certainly time to save Weiss in Volume 5. To have a character go, 'Nah, it's too late' when the solution is right there is the ultimate cop-out. Suddenly announcing that the solution will no longer work For Reasons is not a legitimate limitation and it's made doubly insulting that RT didn't simply use the limitations already available to them. Jaune has been running low on aura since the whale. He then expended a great deal of aura boosting Penny to keep the virus in check. Every other ally has had their aura broken in this fight so, there. That's your solution. Have Jaune take a few hard hits from Cinder, his aura breaks, and then when Penny is mortally wounded he no longer has a semblance to heal her. It's that easy! Yet instead they had Penny reject help so that she could ask to die. That's what's offensive here.

Finally, reason number five... why is this moment given to Jaune? That's another easy solution: Jaune has gone through the portal and can't get back to heal Penny. There. Done. But logistics aside, this scene should have gone to any other character. Who is Jaune to Penny? Or Penny to Jaune? No one! They don't have a relationship. I get that the writers didn't want any of the girls at her side because then it would be hard to justify Penny not passing the power to them (which I get: making one team member a Maiden changes the show drastically), but you know who should be there instead of Jaune?

Pietro.

Pietro, who built Penny as a weapon and who was never given the chance to apologize for that. Pietro, who told Ruby he could only rebuild her once more, setting up an expectation that he'd sacrifice himself for his daughter (despite the complicated racial issues that would bring up). Pietro, who watched Penny plummet and has no idea what happened to her, let alone that she's been made into a human girl. Pietro should have been at her side, saying goodbye to his child and helping her complete her last wish.

And it would be so very easy to pull off. All it takes is a single line where Penny remembers that her father exists, asking Ruby to ensure a portal opens up in Amity. There's a quick reunion along the pathways before Cinder attacks. We hear a cry of despair as Penny falls and she looks, seeing her father racing towards her, though she thought he'd already made it out. There, you’re done. We open ourselves up to a lot of attacks whenever we say, "Why didn't RWBY just do ____?" because those who vehemently defend the writing like to go, "Oh, you think you could write RWBY better?" and no, I don't. I struggle with long-form storytelling and massive casts. I don't think I could do justice to the sort of show RWBY wants to be, but I do think I'm a decent enough writer to spot when there are major problems like this. The question of "Why doesn't Penny remember that her beloved dad exists?" and "Why, out of that massive cast, is Jaune the one to do this deed?" are both things that a newbie writer can spot, and a sometimes okay writer can figure out how to fix them both simultaneously. A good writer will start thinking about themes — what might it mean for Pietro to kill the creation he made? — and a great writer will find a way to pull that off without having that insulting, discomforting feeling pop up. At this point, our RWBY crew feels less like new writers making mistakes (because they're not new, not at all), but rather just writers who haven't bothered to learn from their mistakes after eight years. That's a lot harder to watch.

Because putting Jaune here doesn't just mess with RWBY's internal rules (not using his semblance) and it's not just useless in terms of Penny's development (she doesn't know him outside of "dude who boosted my aura for an hour"), but it also falls back into a pattern I thought RWBY had finally broken from: making Jaune the story's emotional center. This is not the JAUNE show. It's the RWBY show. Yet here, once again, we have Jaune in the spotlight. Why, after a whole volume of Ruby avoiding making decisions, does Jaune finally make the hard call? Why, after a scene where Penny asked Ruby to kill her, does Jaune do that deed? Why, after a divisive arc where all the grief for Pyrrha went to Jaune, is Jaune now set to shoulder the grief of Penny? At least Jaune had a relationship with Pyrrha, even if Nora and Ren did too. Yet with Penny he seems to be there solely because the writers can't bear to keep him out of that center spot for long. All of Team JNOR make it through to Vacuo... except Jaune. Jaune falls into the abyss too because, if the show goes this route, we apparently can’t have a volume just about Team RWBY, the main characters. The main characters are separated from the rest of the team and it's Jaune, not Oscar and Ozpin with a connection to the lore, not Nora or Ren whose development now hinges on them learning who they are without the other, it's Jaune who follows the title characters into a new dimension. 

The issue is not whether Jaune deserves to grieve over the truly traumatic thing he just did now that he’s done it. He obviously does. The issue is the writers setting up a scenario where Jaune is situated to do that emotional work in the first place. 

I like Jaune as a character. I don't like how the writing uses him as a character. RWBY is built on the idea that these four girls are the heroes of this tale, not the expected blond, blue-eyed, sword wielding guy we’ve seen in so many other stories. So why does that guy get the most important scene of the finale? Yes, Jaune had much less screen time this volume than he did in the past, that’s a good thing given the number of important characters RWBY has to balance, but that hasn't erased the problem of him being given significant moments that should be going to title characters. Does Ruby’s team rescue Oscar and take on Salem? No, Jaune's team does. Does Ruby's team save Penny? No, Jaune's semblance keeps her grounded and then holds the virus off. Not everything is a problem — we've also got good choices like having Ruby defeat the Hound and Ruby's team take on Cinder for the majority of the fight — but that doesn't erase that Penny’s death wasn’t something Jaune should have been a part of. Not unless he was going to heal her. Doing better than they have in the past doesn't mean that RT isn't still slipping when it comes to giving him undeserved focus.

They took one of the most controversial characters, controversial because of how much emotional focus he's gotten in the past, and had him help a fan favorite commit suicide while he cried about it, showing more emotion for a near stranger than our title character showed for her sister. This is a character who, up until two or three episodes ago, had no connection to the victim and still has no reason to thematically be the one committing this act. That is why the fandom goes, “The crew loves Jaune and does everything they can to put him in the center of the action.” Ruby, as main character and Penny’s first friend, is the obvious choice here. Pietro, as Penny's father, would be a good choice too. Hell, Nora is a better option given their moment in the Schnee manor this volume. Or Winter given their moments in Volume 7! Have her escape Ironwood, find Penny, receive the powers, and then finish him off. Literally anyone would be better than Jaune, not because Jaune is a bad character, but because Jaune has no emotional stakes here and putting him in a position where he could heal Penny but doesn’t is massively stupid. No one should be surprised that a lot of the fandom is upset about this. It was one hell of a reach to give him this moment and, since Jaune's problem has always been getting too much screen time and emotional nuance compared to our main cast, it's no wonder this act brought up a lot of bad memories. RT fell back into an old pattern after two volumes of improvement and they did so at the worst possible time. 

The tl;dr is that Penny's third death is a writing travesty, just like her second. I shouldn't be surprised, given that this is the same volume that tortured a kid and the only thing they did with it was have him blindly trust his torturer... yet I find myself surprised nonetheless. Because Penny had such potential as an android Maiden and, as much as I personally hated it, potential as a former android learning to be human too. But why explore any of that when you can kill her off instead? Again.

As a final, far smaller note about this scene, we have the continuing problem of what purpose Cinder's arm is serving. If everyone recalls, its threat comes primarily from the fact that she can "siphon off" power from other Maidens.

She did it to Penny during the Amity battle and now she does it again, a great deal of green energy absorbed into Cinder. So what's left to give to Winter? Why doesn't Cinder become noticeably stronger with each successful theft? Like so much else in RWBY, we're told it exists without actually seeing the impact of that. Winter isn't a weaker Maiden for having lost power and Cinder isn't a stronger Maiden for having snagged it. It's just.. there, hanging out and looking vaguely menacing, I guess.

Outside of this unnatural not-transfer, we get to see how the power normally passes as Penny meets with Winter in some in-between place. It's a soft, heartfelt scene... with the exception that Winter says, “You were always the real Maiden at heart. I was just the machine. Just following orders."

I don't know how any viewer can doubt that RT now believes machinery = evil. Penny's machine body is magicked away so she can be a real-real girl. Yang announces that the arm she worked hard to make a part of herself is just "extra." The man with half a metal body is made this volume's villain and losing his second arm is, by the authors' own admission, a symbol of his lost humanity. Mercury with two metal legs remains a bad guy while Emerald and Hazel are hastily redeemed. Tyrian with his cybernetic tail is the most devoted crazy of the bunch. Maria, blind and in need of assistive lenses, is so forgotten by the story she was left in the tundra nine episode ago and won't be mentioned again until next volume (if then). Pietro, the guy in the wheelchair, is forgotten too, despite it being his daughter who dies on screen.

Now Winter, also bearing an assistive device, says that she's the real "machine" here and tells Penny, now human, that she was always the "real Maiden." I don't know what happened to make RT do a 180 lately, but the disability rep is no longer what it was.

Penny reassures Winter that she'll always be a part of her and then passes on, for good this time.

The rest of the episode feels lackluster, if I'm being honest. Images of Cinder beating Weiss are intercut with Ironwood beating Winter, getting her to a point where her aura breaks. 

But then the powers appear and, as we'd expect, she easily turns the tide. 

Gorgeous animation there. 

But RT once again rewrites earlier scenes by having Ironwood claim that the "destiny" he chose for Winter has finally arrived — isn't that Cinder's MO? — and Winter shoots back that he chose nothing, this was a "gift." Except, it was never about destiny or orders? This was why Weiss' anger in Volume 7 was ridiculous. She acted like Ironwood forced Winter to accept the powers and Winter told her point blank she chose this. Ironwood didn't decide anything, he offered and Winter chose... kind of like how Penny is choosing now. I hate how nearly all of Ironwood's character has been ignored or, during times like this, outright lied about to make him seem super duper evil. He tried to bomb a city! You don't need to make him seem evil anymore, that job is done! Like their sudden change regarding disability, RT now seems to be allergic to nuance. Heaven forbid Ironwood be allowed to have valid points like he did in Volume 3. No, if you've got an antagonist every single thing they've ever said must be twisted into a display of their evilness.

Unless you're Hazel, who Oscar trusts for #reasons. Unless you're Emerald, who the group immediately embraces. Unless you're Cinder, who gets to cry on a rooftop and secures the trust of her allies long enough to betray them again.

But Ironwood? Nah, screw that guy.

Salt aside, the fight is pretty boring. Winter literally just throws up a wall of ice and Ironwood's blast rebounds, taking him out.

Winter flies through the portal and we return to Jaune. His sword is broken by Cinder, so weapons should be quite the problem in Volume 9. 

There's a bit of sword vs. sword Maiden battling — this episode really pulled heavily from both Volume 3 and 5's finales — before Cinder gets smart again and attacks Weiss, currently trying to escape with Jaune. Weiss goes right off the edge and Winter isn't able to reach her in time. That's the entirety of Team RWBY, lost to the magical void.

Kudos to Winter's VA and the writing here though. This feels like an appropriate reaction to losing a sister. Screaming, sobbing, falling to her knees and beating the floor... Ruby, take notes.

A roar sounds through all the portals though, the sort of roar a pissed off witch might give. Jaune convinces Winter they need to leave Cinder behind, but before they can escape Cinder... makes a new wish?

Look, it works on all the major fronts. Cinder has the staff, check. We've basically established that Ambrosius can make an unlimited number of things per era, check. We know the previous thing disappears when a new wish is made, check. My only question is the timing. In all honesty, I'll have to re-watch the scene to be sure, but at the time it felt like the portals began disappearing almost the second Cinder left. Did she really have time to summon Ambrosius, deal with his explanatory nonsense, and get him to make a new wish without any fiddly concerns? Sure, fire is just fire, but it still felt like way too much happening too fast off screen.

Either way, the portals are gone and Winter makes it through in time, but Jaune does not. He falls through the void along with Team RWBY. And Neo.

Neo is the only addition I'm looking forward to here.

We get a few shots of our other characters as Winter arrives, saving the day by taking her grief out on the grimm. So glad something came of Ren breaking his aura again! Maybe they'll be more fighting at the beginning of Volume 9? If we see any of this group outside of 9's finale. My worst fear right now is that we'll spend an entire season away from the main action — remember how I said it would be stupid for Team RWBY to go on a side adventure while Salem is attacking the world? — and when they return there will have been some major time skip. Salem has destroyed most of Remnant, only pockets of survivors remain, it's all dark and dystopian... and oh look, every bit of character development happened off screen. How did Nora discover who she is without Ren? She did it while Team RWBY was gone. That merge we've been teasing for five years? That happened while you were gone too and, btw, Ozpin has ceased to exist. So sad, right? Not that anyone will actually mourn. Just take comfort in the fact that his last line was an "Oh no" about Ambrosius and his last major scene was apologizing for how the group treated him. Emerald's redemption? Off screen. Winter's grief? Off screen. Any and every one of these challenging beats to tackle can be waved away with, "We went through that arc while you were lost in the magical realm. Just get to know our new, improved selves now!"

Please, oh writing gods, don't let that happen.

Though I do worry because my last prediction came true.

But we all knew we’d end up here. My current theory? The portal should still be open at the vault. Winter will fight Ironwood, escape through it, and it will close right before he escapes too. He’ll fall with Atlas and everyone will act as if it’s some beautiful, poetic justice for him to perish with the city. 

Ironwood didn't make a break for the portal — too busy being unconscious — but we got everything else. Winter left him, he falls with Atlas, and this is some poetic justice, I guess. Really, it's just an undignified death. I'd hoped for a sympathetic kill, something that showed the characters still cared about him even if they knew Ironwood had to be stopped. Baring that, I'd hoped for an epic battle that took him out with style. Instead, no one even bothers to kill him. Ironwood is now beneath the entire cast, not even worth finishing off. Winter casually tosses his blast back at him and leaves. Cinder throws out a "that's checkmate" and leaves. I don't think Salem even looks at him. Ironwood (presumably) dies with no one and nothing, just a casualty of the city Team RWBY made fall. And I say "presumably" because the audience isn't even given the satisfaction of being sure he's passed on. Like Hazel, Ironwood's death is this weird, ambiguous moment that, based on the other character reactions, isn’t meant to be ambiguous. Is he dead? Most likely. Is it possible, based on what we've seen, that he'll pop up two volumes later like

Yes and, memes aside, that sucks. I don't want to be wondering for the next couple years if Ironwood survived and if they'll bring him back just to drag his character through the mud again. Move on.

But no, we don't even get that.

I've spoken at great deal about Ironwood both in these recaps and on my blog more generally. Last week, I said I'd covered it all and there was no need to rehash it all again. I stand by that, so let me just conclude this travesty with a final note: if your bad guy's final moment is using the last of his strength to point a gun at the actual villain of this story, and you don't realize the problem of how this image contrasts everything else the story has insisted about his character? … I just don't know what to do with that.

Oh, actually, final-final note: Ironwood’s semblance is officially a Schrodinger's semblance. It is both canonical and noncanonical simultaneously. Wooo. 

Cinder tells Salem she used her wish to "add more flames to the first of Atlas" and we cut to Watts, trapped in a roaring fire, unsuccessfully trying to break his way out. Wow, I hate that too! Next to Tyrian, Watts was our last remaining, entertaining villain. He carried a lot of the last two volumes and, I had hoped, was going to add some bright spots to the coming volumes as well. Apparently not.

Just another waste.

In addition to this casual, second murder of her ally, Cinder successfully convinces Salem that Neo killed Ruby and Ruby used the Lamp's last question, but she's back in her good graces since she snagged the Relics anyway. “You’ve done well, Cinder. Our work here is done" and they leave, blasting off like a less cool Team Rocket as Atlas plummets into Mantle.

Let's spend a second to tally things up then, shall we? What happens if Ruby, instead of throwing a moral fit, says, "You're right and we never should have lied to you, or betrayed you. But we want to help now. You get the Relics and the Maiden to safety in Atlas, if you can, we'll defend the people of Mantle"?

Well, they can still tell the world about Salem and call for help, much more easily now since Ironwood would likely just give them the code rather than them needing to spend an episode stealing it.

The Staff at least may not have ended up in Salem's hands and the group could have actually focused on getting the Lamp back (also solved if they'd been smart and just put it in the vault to begin with).

Mantle would still have been safe because Salem was never interested in Mantle to begin with.

Atlas wouldn't have fallen.

Ironwood wouldn't have died.

Penny wouldn't have died.

Even Vine wouldn't have died!

Our heroes unambiguously made the situation worse. Rather than banding together with their allies to fight the real enemy, Salem, they pushed until they made enemies of Ironwood and the Ace Ops both. Then they asked for help — which a pinch of logic said would never arrive — and twiddled their thumbs waiting for it. When it was clear none would come they...did nothing. They sat around, upset that the people were in danger, but not willing to do anything about it. It's only when one of their own, Penny, is threatened that they kick into high gear, hitting on a solution that they could have posed to Ironwood from the very start if no one liked the fly away plan. Yet instead of taking a few minutes to brainstorm other ideas — doing anything other than denouncing Ironwood to the rest of the group and attacking the Ace Ops — they spent two days sitting around, fixing minor messes they’d helped to create, then rushed through the portal plan, messing up the wish and stranding an entire kingdom in a sandstorm, with only Winter now to protect them from grimm.

Fantastically done, team. 

The villains won, yes, but not because the villains were smart and compelling. Watts' hack on Penny and the heat petered out to nothing and Salem... well, she sat around for the whole volume, expending energy only to torture Oscar and try to (unsuccessfully) stop some escapees. Neo and, miraculously, Cinder did the most damage, but only in the final hour, with this "damage" being that our characters fall into a void that we now know looks remarkably like a paradise! Everything bad that happened was a result of our heroes being stupid and stubborn. That's a compelling story to tell... but RT isn't trying to tell it. Our heroes caused so much damage, yet that damage goes unacknowledged — or worse, ignored into silence like with Ren — and everything else is waved away with the magic wand the series claims isn't there. The cold doesn't kill anyone. Oscar has no problems walking off the torture. Nora hops back out of bed. Ruby one-shots the Hound. The civilians lost to the void must have survived too. The entire kingdom successfully makes it to Vacuo... unless you count the massive army we never saw making use of the portals, but who cares about them, right?

The villains won, there was indeed something resembling consequences, but none of it was emotionally satisfying. Not even when the series tries so hard to insist that emotion is there.

Qrow watches Atlas fall, mouthing Ruby and Yang's names, but it's too little, too late. Where was this care for his nieces when he was obsessed with killing Ironwood? When did they care about him? Was it when Ruby shrugged at his arrest, when neither cared that he was missing, or when they were designing an escape plan that didn't include putting a portal where Qrow could reach? RWBY markets itself around the found family-ness of its cast, but they're done a poor job in recent volumes (not others) of convincing me that most of these characters care for one another. We went from Ruby denouncing all adults, to Ruby pulling an Ozpin with Ironwood, to Ruby watching blandly as her sister falls to her presumed death. This is my hero? This is the simple soul we're supposed to rally behind? Ruby doesn't feel like a character who cares about other people anymore and, given that she leads the charge, neither do most of her friends. Or, when that emotion appears, it's jarring and undeserved. Jaune cries over Penny's death? That's tonally and characteristically backwards.

This volume was the culmination of so many mistakes over the past two years. No, Covid couldn't have made things any easier for the crew — the fact that they got a volume out at all is amazing — but the pandemic isn't to blame for the problems in the story. These seeds have existed since Volume 5, with some (like Jaune) going back even farther. I don't think we're ever going to get that flawed, but emotionally fulfilling RWBY back. The show has dug too deep and unless it somehow manages to create a clean slate — those time travel ideas get more and more alluring! — there's nothing they can do but keep on digging. At this point, I can only hope that the series does wrap up within the next two volumes, rather than dragging RWBY to a Supernatural-esque length.

Our final shot of the episode proper feels fitting for what this volume has been. Atlas and Mantle flood rather than exploding, something that makes a certain amount of sense, sure, but definitely wasn't what I was expecting. And after all these shocking images — Penny dying, the grimm attacking, our main characters disappearing in a puff of gold dust — we end it all with bits of random debris. It's strange and underwhelming. Out of everything you could have done with the options you had, you choose to do this?

Of course, RWBY always has an after-credits scene (RIP Raven's, still amounting to nothing). Here, the sounds of water return to show us a beach. Crescent Rose imbedded in the sand, mirroring its classic pose in the snow.  

There's a tree. It's a very different kind of tree from what we saw in Volume 6, but the height and shape is nevertheless reminiscent of Light's domain.

A tree of life, anyone? After all, the group has fallen into a dimension created by a Relic, the gift of Light himself. It certainly seems as if RWBY is heading towards another encounter with the Gods, though what that will look like and how narratively satisfying it will be remains to be seen.

As for our bingo board, RWBY certainly pulled its weight! Only three squares got gold stars: Watts and Jacques didn't manage another team up because both are dead, Oscar didn't apologize for getting shot because he was too busy being tortured, and Qrow didn't drink likely because he didn't have access to any alcohol across the whole volume. Can't say that's a stellar result. The final image is something to behold though lol.

What a mess.

And on that less than exciting note... we’re done. This has been the volume of desertion, with a large number of fans telling me that they will no longer watch RWBY, but baring something entirely unexpected in my future, I'll be back next volume, for whatever that's worth. It never ceases to amaze me that even one person would give these nonsense recaps the time of day, so in all seriousness: thank you for reading. You rock.

Now go forth and fill the hiatus with great RWBY content!

✌️

[pwnyta]

I'm starting to think that some cookies really needs a redesign/new models because some of them really...don't look good at all. For example they really need to redesign coffee cookie to match coffee tribe look/lore. Fire spirit and wind archer defo needs a lil bit more details because let's be honest they look more like rares than legendaries . Also lemon and dinosour too idk how to explain that but they look.... weird (?).

Also do you have any tier list about your favorite/least favorite cookies that laying around? I wanna ask more questions but idk which cookies you like other than milk and dark choco

Well I disagree they should be redesigned but a costume to maybe make them fit in more with the standard now YES. ... Like Dark Enchantress' design is not terrible but like her hair is obviously like an old design choice to make it look more like the white frosting and her costume fills her hair in more and just looks amazing.

Lemon I think it might be because hes so lanky? He stands out because of it, same with Whipped Cream but Whipped Cream has a stronger design and his legs are probably designed to make him look en pointe where as Lemon is just super lanky. I have no problems with Dino tho IDK lol.

TIER LIST MAKER IT IS! (I only added NPCs if they were top tiers) Thank you for giving me an opportunity to talk at length about Cookies. Im delighted. Feel free to ask on commentary on other characters I didnt talk about

TOP 10 in my favs-

-Milk is obviously my absolute fav. I love loyalty in characters, I love buff sweet boys... Milk is perfect. I love the broken pedestal hero worship hes got and I genuinely dread and am overly invested in Milk and DCs meeting.

-Dark Choco is a tragic character im very invested in. And I currently have a knife at the throat of Kingdom if they dare hurt him anymore. The point is digging in as of the story out so far but I know hes got to get that evil costume mode in before things get better for him probably...

-Cotton Candy was my first fully maxed out character because I stared the game while a CC max out event was running and she carried me so god damn far in the game I owe her everything. Shes also adorable.

-Blueberry Pie is just a baddie all around and she also helped me get higher scores for a very long time. I loved the game when she was meta. She made everything so easy.

-Herb is baby. I love that hes friends with monster plants, the main baddies crazy sister, high-class rich boys and also is Sea Fairies son? or something in the comics... like what on earth is going on with this man?

- DJ is basically rainbow Lucio whats not to love? I only wish they were a musical healer too but w/e. Still adorable.

- Hero also helped me for a hot minute in early game and is also Iron Man so...

- Strawberry is my absolute baby and I love her more and more with each appearance.

- Millennial Tree is my favorite Legendary, I think hes beautiful, I love earth tones and his serene personality with his massively destructive ability is just everything. Coincidentally he seems a lot like Zhongli and then now in Kingdom shares an EN VA with him. Which I just think is funny.

- Black Raisin is terrific, she really stands out to me from the rest of the Kingdom-only Cookies and I just hope she comes to Ovenbreak.

Top 10 in Pretty Great-

- Aloe! Aloes first run was before I got into the series so the only thing I knew about her was what Ive seen in the fandom... and the fandom made her into like... a fuck boy type? Kinda and I hated 'him' but after she got the spotlight I adore her. Again that loyalty... shes just a sweetheart.

- Hydrangea is such the opposite of my usual type... but shes such a callous bitch to her boss that its just so fucking funny. Her design is beautiful and her personality is hilarious so.... She also taught me how to spell Hydrangea without looking it up!

- Almond may be a cop but more importantly hes a caring father and I love that. Cant go wrong with an over-worked, sweet father.

- Pancake has kind of an annoying personality.... but hes the reason I got into Cookie Run in the first place. I saw a pic of him while looking at fandom discourse and was like... WHO IS THIS CUTIE PIE?! So hes got a special place in my heart.

- Captain Ice is similar to Almond but I dont like her design as much. But shes still a baddie.

- Amber Sugar looks like he'd bee annoying but he was actually very cute in his story quest. He is peak tsundere unlike a lot of 'tsundere' characters who are just assholes that people insist have a good heart. Amber is actually does. Hes a good boy and his design is very cute.

- Pistachio is on of my favs... but I do think her design is MEGA DATED.

- Red Velvet is so unfortunate getting roped into DEs side as if its not her own fault that people are scared of the cake monsters. But his design is amazing and his love for little cake dogs is super cute.

- Prophets design is also amazing... I love that he tells fortunes and his mustache is a fortune cookie that when he speaks it cracks at the crease... thats so clever! Hes also pretty funny. -hold him up like a potato- I JUST THINK HES NEAT.

- Roguefort... classic. are they a bit of a bitch? SURE. Are they hilarious? Absolutely. Also their costumes are great. The bastard never misses.

Top 5 Good cookies-

- Dark Enchantress, Scorpion, Lotus, Wasabi. Sometimes you can be a rancid bitch and a bad bitch at the same time... I cant help it... I kinda of love these awful femme fatales.

- Yogurt Cream is also just kind of the worst... but hes funny about it.

- Squid Ink is one of the few characters that make me understand SKRUNKLY. I love that everyone is scared of this sobbing baby... its very funny.

- Raspberry Mousse... The fact he seems oblivious and confused by his own attraction to Rose just makes him amazing. Hes the weirdest incel.

- Birthday Cake is a mood.

- Earl Grey would be higher if he didnt look so much like Roguefort. The fact he just blindly follows the creepy twins is weird and uhm... kind of great, he doesnt seem evil but his duty is to serve them. Hes just incidentally on the bad side which is kind of funny.

- Sparkling is sort of like that too... the event with Roguefort had him like be an accessory to almost murder because he was like 'People tell me things, I knew shit was happening but thats none of my business.' LIKE? LMAO Ok. Herb your boyfriend is out of control.

Top 5 Takem or Leavem

- Avocado has a great personality but I genuinely hate her design, its so ugly. She needs a costume so bad pls Devsis...

- Fig is just weird all around but its not as fun or funny as the ones in 'good'.

- Eclairs design is technically good but also doesnt look like his namesake and also also looks too much like Roguefort and Earl Grey which is so tired at this point.

- Affogatos design his simply gorgeous but what a dick.

- Space Donuts design Ive always hated but its bear jelly costume is everything and its gameplay is pretty fun.

- Something about Apple just irritates me.

- Licorice also irritates me but I think hes the best of this category because I think thats the point of his character... hes like the Nuka (Lion King II) of Cookie Run...

- Madeleine was my favorite designed character for the Kingdom pre-release but his personality is obnoxious.

- Yam too is obnoxious. I was more tolerant of him earlier when he didnt have much screen time but now has been in the spotlight several times and hes just insufferable.

- Muscle is one of my fav characters to play as because his skill is challenging but very fun when you get the hang of it... but hes hideous and has an annoying personality.

- Carol is fine but her design is so terrible... Thats really the only thing but I hate it so much and her personality is a big shrug from me.

- Cocoa has the inverse problem... her design is phenomenal, its so fucking cute she used to be one of my favs before the Christmas event.. but her personality is fucking grating I just cant stand her.

- Ice Juggler is a clown, I hate clowns... also I hate douchey characters. Theres literally nothing appealing about this character, even their skill is just boring. How are you going to be an asshole to Banana Cookie whos just a sweetie pie?

- Sugar Glass seems like a character I would like... but even for me shes a bit much and her design is garish as fuck.

- Ginseng just skeeves me out because its clear that the flower is embedded in his head and his eyebrows and beard are its roots... its so gross...

[yumgrapejuice]

An analysis on Ranboo’s lore playlist

okay y’all first of all, ranboo has a killer taste, i love him, and second, i couldn’t resist. i’m an analyst by nature. am i looking too deep into some things? did ranboo maybe choose some songs purely for the vibe? perhaps. do i care? no. let me have my fun.

I’m gonna drop my own analysis/interpretation based on these songs but feel free do use this yourself if you want!! And also feel free to disagree/correct me on anything!! I’m not a professional musical analyst lol and I did take some inspiration from already existing interpretations for the more lyrical songs.

here’s the playlist btw

“Introduction to the Snow”—introduction to the album. Fitting for the playlist’s beginning, seeing the tone. It’s mostly referencing (self-imposed) isolation.

“Dream Sweet in Sea Major”—this Miracle Music’s whole album is about dreams and reality, how they clash, loneliness and the wish to be close to someone, yet still remaining isolated. Very whimsical, metaphorical, melodic, and it has this vibe as if on the edge of consciousness. I’d say it fits quite well with c!Ranboo’s general vibe. This song in particular deals with sleepwalking(ha)/being in a dreamlike state, the line between what’s real and what’s not blurred.

“The Mind Electric”—oh this one fits Ranboo extremely well. First part is in reverse, the second in normal (mirroring), and it can get quite unsettling. Like you’re not sure what’s happening with the instrumentals, many different voices. Again, very metaphorical, but to put it shortly, the protagonist is being judged for a crime they’ve committed and, in their defence, they say: “Father, your honor, may I explain, my brain has claimed its glory over me; I’ve a good heart albeit insane”. They get “condemned to the infirmary” for that, where electric shock is used on them as a form of “therapy”. As a result, the protagonist loses grip on reality and themselves and truly does go insane. They beg for mercy and sympathy, but there’s no one to help them. “Someone help me; Understand what's going on inside my mind; Doctor I can't tell if I'm not me”—need I say more, really?

“Live and Let Die”—the phrase “live and let die” means to live your life how you wish and let others live how they wish without interfering. At first, you live by the phrase “live and let live”, meaning you have your ideals and you try to change the lives of others according to them, but as life progresses, you stop caring as much/try to distance yourself from others’ business.

“Turn the Lights Off”—dreams and nightmares. Mildly foreboding yet energetic. The actual meaning is about growing up (transition from childhood to adulthood), but we can take some other interpretations that’d fit with Ranboo’s character better. This Tally Hall’s album deals with differences, black and white, and how there shouldn’t be a divide between them. In this song, there are some noteworthy lines that I’d like to mention:

- “Bend the nightmare, you control it; Artful dodger, easy does it”—lucid dreaming, you have to be careful with it so as to not lose control.

- “Shut the closet, get under the covers”—you’re afraid of something and instead of facing it and seeing whether there even is something to be afraid of, you hide.

- “Turn the lights off”—confront your fears. It can also mean that in the dark, there’s no differences between people, going back to the album’s meaning.

- “And everybody wants to get evil tonight; But all good devils masquerade under the light”—this could mean that everyone has a darker part of themselves but those who actually indulge in their dark tendencies do so in plain sight by pretending to be someone else.

“Ruler of Everything”—the main theme here is time and how it’s the “ruler of everything”; time doesn’t matter about where it goes, and it will never stop. The second verse is most interesting to me—there are two singers, man and time, but for the sake of interpretation let’s just see it as two voices. One is obsessed about being liked, fitting in, constantly asking for reaffirmation (“Do you like how I walk? Do you like how I talk?”), while the second criticizes the first (“You practice your mannerisms into the wall”). They argue—”I’ve been you, I know you, your facade is scam; You know you’re making me cry, this is the way that I am”. The second is calling out the first for not being honest to himself. Tone is lighthearted but with an edge of unease.

“Merry-Go-Round of Life”—from Howl’s Moving Castle soundtrack. The title’s self-explanatory, I’d say.

“Killer Queen”—this one’s a harder one to interpret in regards to Ranboo lol. The song is about, based on an interview with Mercury, a high class woman that likes to indulge in her various desires (mostly sexual). I would doubt that’s what Ranboo was going for, so! Perhaps about a person that has no regards for their reputation and instead does whatever they feel like it? They have a certain image but still act however they like. Yeah, not too sure about this one :’) But that’s what I’ll go with for my later analysis.

“Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked”—quite straightforward. A person that performs bad deeds has reasons for them. Not excuses, but explanations, and you can sympathize with it. We all do “bad” things for one reason or the other, and, in the end, we’re all just trying to get by. Once again, plays into the theme of there not being a clear distinction between good and bad.

“The Bidding”—another harder one to interpret. On the surface, it’s about an auction where men are trying to sell themselves to women. They all present themselves in different images, and it’s remarked that the women care less about the date and more about the prospect of it, the pretty words. The date, actually, ends up being disappointing. Could be about expectations. Some men outright admit they’re assholes so whoever chooses them should know that. People can tell you what their intentions are from the start so if you end up hurt, you have no one else to blame but yourself.

“A Mask of My Own Face”—another interesting one! Unusual instruments, strong beat. They’re singing about how they have a desire to pretend to be someone else while secretly still being themselves. “I’d rob my own apartment and I wouldn’t give a damn; I’d blame it on the person that nobody knows I am”—implying they have no regard for their own livelihood and are just out to have some fun. Plus, that no one would be aware it’s all an act. “I'd wear it on Thanksgiving and I'd laugh in the parade; At all the people hissing, knowing I'm the one they hate”—they take delight in the idea of upsetting others and them not knowing it’s actually the singer that they should be hissing. “And at the big finale I would tear my face away; And smile as they grip their own and try to do the same”—everyone wears masks, and this person implies that their mask and their true self is not different from each other while others’ are.

“Stardust Crusaders”—soundtrack from Jojo. Action-packed? idk never seen it sorry lol

“I Can’t Decide”—oh, this one’s a doozy! One of the ones that do not fit c!Ranboo at all, but that’s what makes it interesting. A classic, the singer is out to have fun, very lighthearted and yet they’re singing about murder. The protagonist here is clearly mentally unwell and they’re indecisive whether they should let their enemy/toy/(up to interpretation) live or not. Some curious lines:

- “It’s not easy having yourself a good time”—in the context of the song, that “good time” implies something wicked.

- “I’m not a gangster tonight, don’t wanna be the bad guy, I’m just a loner, baby, and now you’ve got in my way”—they don’t view themselves as “bad”, however, the next two lines are paradoxal—the singer says they’re alone and yet decide to “mess around” with whoever comes up in their life.

- “No wonder why my heart feels dead inside, it’s hard and cold and petrified”—signifying lack of empathy.

- “It’s a bitch convincing people to like you”—they don’t actually want to do that and see it as a bother.

“Stranded Lullaby”—back to Miracle Musical, back to the theme of isolation. Super lyrical, super musical. They talk about how their memories float around aimlessly in their head, a sea, and may sometimes get lost. The protagonist, a sailor, is losing touch with reality and can’t tell apart what’s a dream anymore and what’s not. They question what they’re going through and why.

“Hidden In The Sand”—a song about longing, in my eyes. The protagonist sings about how “you” love things and how he wishes to love the same things, in the end admitting that “all I’ve wanted was you”. They don’t wish to be separated, they wish to have someone in their life that they could love.

“Now I’m Here”—euphoric. They sing about how they’re alive again, thanks to one specific person. I’m not gonna go too much into this one (partly because it’s a more difficult one for me again, partly because it’s Queen and I don’t wanna uhh talk nonsense on accident lol), but what I got from it is that when one one else saw them, someone did, and they made them “live again”, and now as a result the protagonist is devoted to them.

“&”—really highlights Tally Hall’s album’s theme of black and white and that there shouldn’t be a divide. The repetition of comparing opposites is present throughout the entire song (Weak & Strong & Wet & Dry…) and it’s heavily implied we should “say goodnight” to this mindset. But people love to choose sides, put things into good or bad categories. By the line “They took a lesson from their fathers” it’s implied that people don’t develop this mindset by themselves and are rather influenced by others around them. The whole album is titled “Good & Evil” and Tally Hall examines and criticizes this idea. If we keep dividing people into good and bad, eventually, we’ll all destroy ourselves.

“I’m Gonna Win”—a song about someone who’s struggling to get by. “Sometimes it can seem like a merciless dream”—life can get really hard and the protagonist wonders “what’s really worthwhile”. In the chorus, whoever, they declare that they’re “gonna win” no matter what. They might get “bloody and bruised” but they won’t give up until they “won’t be abused” and until they’re “laughing alone”. No matter how hard life/others kick them down, they’ll keep going. By the lines “It’s hard to be charming and smart and disarming; It’s hard to pretend you’re the best; It’s hard to fulfill everyone’s expectations; It’s hard to keep up with the rest” it’s implied that they find it tiresome to keep up appearances and be liked. It’s challenging to always fit everyone’s expectations, but they’ll continue doing whatever they have to to “win”.

if ranboo ever adds more songs to his playlist, i may add them here too :)