#zero has no morals when it comes to the ones he holds dear

[kartoonatic]

I'm a huge "themes" guy in stories and one thing I appreciate about Spin of Fate is how it positions all of it's main characters to explore different philosophies within activism.

SPOILERS UNDER THE CUT:

Aranel, mostly in the first half but throughout the story, is an idealist with a rigid perspective on what is just, moral, and good. For him actions are easy to judge and circumstances are an abstract thought that he tacks on to his considerations after the fact. Morality is a zero sum game to him, and he fears being on the losing side of this game so much that he tortures himself with every "sinful" thing he's made to do. He's literally obsessed with moral purity and believes the widespread adoption of those exact ideals is a blanket good for all of humanity without accounting for the vastly differing life experiences of his fellow human beings. Most of the book is him deconstructing this ideology, and he comes a long way in developing a richer understanding of how circumstances influence a person's behavior. He becomes more empathetic, more willing to sacrifice his own privileges in order to elevate others, but he doesn't get all the way there. Taking the ending into consideration, I'd argue he still has a ways to go. He hasn't really deconstructed this "zero sum game" philosophy in regards to rights and wrongs, and he hasn't learned that he doesn't know the people of Malin as well as a person from Malin.

Aina is a radical idealist, she sees a system that has made her to suffer along with everyone she holds dear for literally eternity. Not only did Toranic Law condem her at birth to a life of pain, poverty, violence, and disease, but she can't even effectively defend herself with channeling due to circumstances beyond her control. This system is literally responsible for all of her hardships. She harbors no affection for Toranic Law no matter how absolute it is. Even when it seemingly starts to work in her favor, when her spin reverses, she still views it as an unfair injustice and resents it to the very end.

Meizan is a staunch realist concerned only with his material reality. He believes Toranic Law to be unjust and cruel like Aina, but harbors no resentment towards it, and has no desire to tear it down because it's imposible to him. He literally tells Aina that hating Toranic Law is a waste of time since they have to live under it anyways. He is first and foremost concerned with his clan, his people. A lot of time in his perspective is spent on how he processes the situation in front of him. He's motivated to understand his surroundings and the people in his vicinity but only as much as he needs to to keep himself and his people safe. He spends the least amount of time speaking on his ideology or telling people what they ought to do.

All of the characters are manipulated by the existing politics of their world, but it's Aranel and Aina who have their passion and convictions turned on them the most. Aina's main goal is always reuniting with her mother but she believes in the Balancer's mission the most of all three leads. Aranel begins the book with an unwavering loyalty to the Preservation but makes a hard flip towards Balancer loyalty. Both parties take advantage of these characters by weaponizing their strong held beliefs, especially in what they believe is moral and just, to radicalize them in their favor.

Aina tends to let her ideas guide her in a very literal sense. The idea of her mother, the idea of the life they could have together, and the idea of revenge cloud her analytical mind and get her into dangerous situations. That idea of a good future with her mother is so powerful to her that it literally drives her back into hell. Aranel suffers from a lack of lived experience, and even after all his time in Malin still cannot conceptualize the reality of things like war, disease, and lifelong suffering. It's why he sides with Zenyra in the end, because he cannot understand the weight of his actions, what putting people through war really means. Meizan, being only concerned with what he's directly experiencing, is the least prone to manipulation in terms of ideals. He's not moved by any cause except that of Kanjallen. But while he's more stable in this regard he's harder to move to action, and harder to trust. He makes it explicitly clear that when it comes down to it, his people come first and no other relationships or ideals are that important to him. It leaves his values kind of up in the air, and as the end of the book illustrates he has no idea what he believes is best, so he goes back to the clan. He consistently struggles to envision a better outcome for him or his people, and i think that's a greater flaw than people give credit for. Especially since we know better things are possible. Will his lack of vision hold him back from a life free of violence, the one he's already convinced he'll never know?

My guy, who's to say but I need this second book expeditiously. Post-haste.

[29daffodils]

Gay relationship is not immoral but being with a minor is. I don't know if you have the brain to comprehend it. You can portray such relationship in media but it should not glorify such behaviour or should be shown in a romantic light.

I don't where danyok is illegal (other than countries where gay relationship is seen as illegal which is not the issue we are talking about) when yok is full adult when he gets into a relationship with dan.

It's not even about whether a person is 18 or not cause Akk sleeps with ayan while akk is a minor and ayan is an adult in the story in technical terms but it's not an issue because they are in the similar space in life.

Whether you do the same in real life doesn't matter ( honestly we don't know) but other people could be influenced and could think something like this is normal especially among the young. Why do you think there is such backlash against colleen hoover books being published as romance. Sensitive stuff should be handled with care and not used for entertainment

ask #22 : media literacy, who?

listen anon.

since you are bringing up the brain's comprehension capabilities. let me tell you some things, which i know you will take in one ear, and out the other.

1) I don't know how old you are, but the way you speak shows you're not mature enough to engage in fandom in a healthy way.

i would like to think you're just young, because i have seen older fans think like and parrot bs like and ultimately it's come to bite them in the ass.

your simplest response to my previous answer could have been blocking me and moving on, but ofc you chose this. the anon cover. because what could be braver than that, right?

nevermind. your goal of making me see sense or whatever is ultimately pointless. kudos to you for trying though.

2) creators of media portraying sensitive themes are not liable for your well being. none. large productions or small fanartists.

my parents, however fucked they are, actually properly parented when it came to what kind of shows i was watching, or books i was reading.

I wasn't allowed to pick up a sidney sheldon book, even though my bestie was bought one by her parents. the reason is my dad reads through these things, her parents did not. or at least trusted her enough to know the good from bad. my parents made sure I wouldn't consume something that wasn't made for me. nevermind the fact that i picked up godfather in 7th grade from the school library and instantly regretted it.

so your bs argument about colleen hoover holds no ground here. you know why? because it's not on colleen to monitor her audiences or create stuff that can "teach you good from bad". no, she's creating stuff she wants to and trusts that her readers are old enough to know the difference or at least have someone who can outline those for them. she is creating for a specific set of audiences who love her.

so fuck it with your lame ass excuses. ask the parents to parent better. because they have clearly prioritised everything else besides the well-being of their children. and if you're telling me grown ass adults cannot differentiate and taking their moral lessons from a fucking fiction book —

( i have zero idea what's the content of that book btw besides domestic violence and a ..... divorce, maybe?)

— then, my dear. y'all are fucked. and probably your parents and the adults in your life did a shit job of telling you right from wrong.

3) my god, fuck it, some of y'all lack media literacy. clearly nobody paid mind in literature class 😑

the most immoral of media created, has a specific set of audiences. i write about stuff and know that people who can read between those lines, will know what i want to say. only idiots bring out the big words “glorify”, “romanticize” when they understand shit and want to look cool and pure and crap.

from your point, yok is an adult and dan too. how much older is dan? isn't yok 21-22 max? don't you think danyok have an unbalanced relationship because atp i could say that dan should have never gotten with that kid. you know why? because yok hasn't lived through things dan has, your stupid ass arguments about akkaye working out because bless my soul , two minors doing the deed??!, is nullifed here. people can be the same age and have different maturity levels, or be years apart, even while adults, and still be in entirely different paths of life.

anyway this is getting too long for you, i guess.

so my last point is.

4) you DO NOT have the right to police what kind of media someone should consume or not.

people who consume dark media, most of them know what they are doing. people cope through it, heal through it. i read fics where self-harm is glorified because it's the only way i can stop doing it to myself.

so don't you EVER come back here with how “immoral” media shouldn't exist or immoral things shouldn't be glorified. it's not art's job to educate you, unless the artist deems so. and lots of artists create stuff that doesn't glorify so called immoral things. read those books, genius.

if i could actually see you, i'd block the fuck outta you. but like the coward you are, I'm already expecting another anon ask.

next time though, all you are getting is my middle fingers. all four of them. cheers.

(p. s.: to the danyok girlies, i love them dw, I'm just using them as an example here)

[voidendron]

OC Tag Game

tagged by @raven-of-domain-kwaad - thank you, Raven! 💚💜

tagging @teetertottertales and whoever else wants to do this! (bc most of who I'd have tagged are tagged already haha)

I'll be sticking to SWTOR characters for this, just for consistency

Favorite OC: Rediaex'aere'zortiea

This was a difficult one, but I think I've got to go with Xaerez. I've really enjoyed developing him over the last few years, and I always enjoy writing fics for him, answering asks, or just doing Certified Oliver Ramblings about him. The way duty contradicts morals for them (A Lot) makes them a lot of fun; I always enjoy thinking "ok, this is what he Wants to do, but this is what he's Going to do" when it comes to the various situations I shove them into whether they Want those situations or not.

Newest OC: Fower Vek

I believe it's Fower ("Flower"), from the Rediscovery Era crew! Like Farsc, she's a professor - they worked together at a university on Coruscant, so that's how Farsc ended up going to her to get her on the crew and in on a little grand theft auto to steal the Star Hopper from a museum oops. She's an astronomer and cartographer, so makes sure the crew doesn't get lost while they search for where the Alliance disappeared to all those thousands of years ago. I like to think she's an ancestor to Lina and Varrich.

Oldest OC: Synnda V'ehsz

I have many OCs much older than Synnda, but in keeping it to SWTOR, he was my very first. ...Probably not surprising, considering my legacy name haha - although he was named after my legacy, instead of the other way around. I did (and still kinda do) self-project a lot onto him, but I've developed him a lot over the years and he's very dear to me. I've got a Synnda clone on just about every server if that says anything - including 2 versions of him on Star Forge alone.

Meanest OC: Ehna'dissen

Ehna, hands down. (Commander!Varrich comes in close, however) She's an interrogator, and enjoys holding power over others. It's because of her that Xaerez's Castellan restraints get re-triggered. Because of her Synnda eventually loses his life. Because of her that the Cadera siblings nearly tear each other apart as she watched on. She's absolutely horrible, she knows she's horrible, and she thinks it's all just a fun game that she's winning.

Softest OC: Parrakh Djal

He just wants to be a healer, help others when he can. His life had an unfortunate start, but he finds his place as one of Synnda's students.

Most Aloof/Standoffish OC: Anaehr Cadera

The youngest of Terrin and Torian's kids, Anaehr was already distant from his older siblings who were less than a year apart. He distances himself from his family as he grows jealous and angry of his siblings' success, makes terrible mistakes for it, but stands his ground and refuses to feel guilt for the actions that make him Dar'manda. He doesn't let anyone get close to him; his anger becomes numbness, and he becomes a cold and hateful man.

Dumbest (Affectionate) OC: Jen Sept

My Voidhound. Need I say more? ajksl;djaskld Jen is. A lot. He can walk into a trap, know he's walking into a trap, and continue to walk in with zero plan anyway. It's....a good thing he has Risha and Kitty to steer him in the right direction, or this cat man probably would have gotten himself killed a long time ago.

Smartest OC: Kitty

While Synnda and Qizulth are both extremely intelligent, their knowledge is a lot more limited to their interests. Kitty? He learned to survive during over a decade on the run after sneaking out of the academy on Korriban. Medicine, cultures, languages, mechanics, history--chances are if you ask him something, he can at the very least point you in the direction of getting the right answer even if he doesn't know it himself. Good thing, too: Marrying the Voidhound means someone needs to have the braincell or they're doomed.

Horniest OC: Jen Sept

Jen again! He kinda just. Slept his way through the galaxy until he met Kitty. And now that they're together, Jen likes to experiment in bed, and sometimes they'll bring in a third for the night, too. With Jen having so much power in the underworld, it works Mighty Well for getting other bosses to cooperate with him.

OC You'd Bang: Aaz'n Tarnak or Lina Tophrik

I like strong women OKAY don't look at me

OC You'd be Friends With IRL: Kidak Hess

He's just a very gentle person, and the thing about him is he Knows How To Be Friends With Introverts Without Being Overwhelming. He's totally chill to just be in someone's company without needing to be Doing Things. He's happy to talk about his own interests for hours, but at the same time he'd be happy to listen to someone else ramble about theirs while he he just soaked up everything they said. He'd just be really nice company, and the exact type of person I'd love to hang out with.

[ink-and-dagger]

Got Milk? - Singed x Heimerdinger

His mouth goes bone-dry at the flash of honey-gold fur that draws his eye, beautifully displayed by the frayed denim daisy-dukes the Yordle is wearing, and he swallows in time with the slow, languid cross of one stout leg over the other.

“Indulge my curiosity for a moment, will you?” 

Singed is far from what might be considered an Eco-Warrior. But when a brand new, Zero Waste Food Stand opens up within Zaun's bustling market district, the Doctor finds himself a regular visitor, thanks to the attractive, golden-furred stall owner.

Tags: Singed x Heimerdinger | Singerdinger | Yearning | Kismet | Milk

Wc: 1.2K | SFW but suggestive undertones and mention of nipple(s)

It has nothing to do with morals or values, and it’s getting to the point where he can no longer pretend this is the case.

No. The facts are straightforward. Singed doesn’t care one iota about ‘saving the planet’.

He has no qualms about dumping the toxic waste from his experiments directly into the creek outside his lab. He doesn’t think twice before discarding single-use plastic cutlery. And on more than one occasion he’s happily left various electronic devices running through the night, simply because he was too lazy to get up and switch them off after having settled in bed.

There’s one reason, and one reason alone, as to why Singed has suddenly become such a regular customer at Zaun’s new Zero Waste Food Shop.

And as the Doctor approaches the refillable food stand, (nervously, and with his empty, brushed steel canister clutched to his chest), that reason smiles familiarly at him from atop a high stool behind the stand; setting loose a flurry of butterflies behind his ribcage.

At least Singed thinks it’s a smile. It’s hard to tell exactly with the thick snowy tresses that cover the Yordle’s mouth. A mouth the Doctor has been dreaming about for weeks. That he would give anything to see curl into a true smile; unhidden by fur. That he would love to feel—

“Back so soon, my dear?”

Singed’s heart skips a beat, as it always does when Heimerdinger greets him with that term of endearment. He knows the Yordle hails all his regulars with those two, affectionate syllables. But still, the man likes to imagine the high pitched, melodic voice holds an extra edge of fondness, just for him.

“Uh, y-yes,” Singed responds dumbly, as he comes to a stop in front of the open-air kiosk. He shuffles awkwardly from foot to foot, suddenly feeling horrifically self-conscious in the brightly patterned romper suit he’d picked out to wear today. 

The lab explosion a few years back which had claimed so much skin and tissue from his face and torso had, thankfully, left his legs mostly unscathed. As it stands, Singed considers them his best asset; long, thin, and wiry. Which is why he’d decided to put them on show today. But the short, skin-tight romper that had seemed like such a good idea when he’d admired his reflection before leaving, now feels much too revealing for comfort.

At least it’s hot enough today that such an outfit won’t necessarily seem out of place. An attempt to keep cool – not to seduce.

Indeed, Singed realises now that he’s not the only one who’s dressed for the summer weather.

His mouth goes bone-dry at the flash of honey-gold fur that draws his eye, beautifully displayed by the frayed denim daisy-dukes the Yordle is wearing, and he swallows in time with the slow, languid cross of one stout leg over the other.

“Indulge my curiosity for a moment, will you?” 

The subtle way Heimerdinger has of rolling his Rs when he speaks always sets heat pooling low in Singed’s stomach.

“I have long since wondered what use a man such as yourself has for so much dairy.”

There’s something utterly disarming about the way he says it. The teasing cadence. The coy head tilt. Perhaps it’s the insinuation that Heimerdinger has been thinking about him—

“Yoghurt,” Singed blurts, clearing his throat when his voice cracks, “I make yoghurt.”

“Yoghurt?” Heimerdinger asks with the amused quirk of a single bushy brow.

It’s a lie of course. Singed doesn’t even like milk. In fact, he’s almost entirely certain that he’s lactose intolerant. He dumps the contents of the canister into the creek the second he gets home, and then counts down the days until he can return for more.

“Yes… home-made yoghurt.”

“How wonderfully quaint,” those large blue eyes, the ones that so often materialise within his sweetest dreams, lower for a moment, before rising to meet his beneath heavy, demure lids, “I should like to try your home-made yoghurt sometime, considering how much of my product is used to manufacture it.”

All the air is expelled from Singed’s lungs in a violent enough rush to be vocalised into a low, hoarse, whimper. And he almost drops his canister with how quickly he fumbles to adjust the wrappings around his face in a poor attempt to hide the flush he knows is creeping high across his cheeks.

The fur above Heimerdinger’s mouth shifts in such a way as to suggest a slow, wide smirk beneath, and a soft, throaty titter dances through the air and lodges itself firmly in Singed’s heart.

With every visit, he falls deeper and deeper under this creature’s spell.

“Shall we get to it?” The Yordle asks, holding out his hands.

Singed can’t think straight – with his sensitive skin being attacked from both the oppressive summer heat, and the scorching rush of his blood through his veins, as well as the constant, incessant ringing in his ears. Which is why he reaches out and wraps the Yordle’s hands within one of his own like an idiot.

Stupid stupid idiot. 

“I meant the canister, deary,” Heimerdinger chuckles good-naturedly, with a wink that has Singed’s stomach flipping straight over itself.

“Yes… yes of course,” he mumbles, bowing his head in mortification and hurriedly snatching back his hand, before pressing the empty receptacle into the Yordle’s palms instead.

Another quiet chuckle, before Heimerdinger twizzles around on his stool and places his back to the Doctor.

This is always the best and worst part for how viscerally Singed’s body reacts to the sounds which follow. The click of shirt buttons being undone. The almost rubbery sqeeit that precedes the gentle plip of the milk making first contact with the metal bottom of the canister. The burbling gush as the flow settles into a steady stream.

Singed averts his gaze instead to the wares which are displayed on the stall in front of him. Closely examining the suddenly very interesting range of refillable food items. Rice, flour, nuts, seeds, pasta, granola—

The almost lewd spray of one teat running dry, and the low sigh as Heimerdinger shifts the canister to another acts as a siren’s call; drawing Singed’s surreptitious gaze back up.

The Yordle always faces away – to afford himself privacy, of course. And so Singed’s breath catches in his throat and lodges there at the pink flash of nipple he spots from the not-quite-fully-angled-away Heimerdinger.

He shouldn’t be looking. Oh, but he can’t stop. 

He’s thoroughly, disastrously enthralled by the sight of that single dusky teat, and the creamy ambrosia that spills from it in undulating ripples.

If Singed had lips, they’d part now in soft wonderment. Even more so, as he suddenly realises the Yordle is peering coquettishly over his shoulder at him.

The Doctor may not have much experience with flirtations, but the sinful glint in those sky-blue eyes is impossible to misinterpret, and has his unmarred skin puckering and tightening over his bones.

The prolonged, hungry eye-contact only comes to an end once the silver canister is almost overflowing with fresh, frothy milk.

Heimerdinger securely caps it, re-buttons his shirt with expert agility, and turns back around on his stool.

Fuzzy fingers brush and linger as the receptacle is passed back into Singed shaking grip, and he holds the warm canister against his chest like a treasure.

“Thank you,” Singed breathes.

“You’re welcome,” Heimdinger replies, with equal softness.

Time stills for a moment as the two merely gaze at one another; the air itself feels charged with something electrical and inevitable.

Singed swallows, forever bashful and inexperienced when it comes to matters of the heart. He averts his gaze – shattering the far too intense moment as his fingers fumble through his fanny pack in search of his coin purse. But Heimerdinger raises a single palm, halting Singed’s clumsy movements. Long, elegant ears sway in time with the slow shake of his head from side to side.

“You are my most loyal customer. Please, allow me to show my gratitude.”

Another wink that weakens the Doctor’s knees.

“This one is on the house, dearest.”

[queer-as-used-by-tolkien]

Which College Was Blish a Member of?

Taimi says she "knew Blish from college." Even the wiki - which has a VERY firm stance on 'speculation' - agrees that this means Blish was a member of the College of Synergetics.

I have a different proposal.

When we met Taimi back in S1, there were two older asura keeping eyes on her: Zojja, and a Dynamics asura named Vorpp. This is the Vorpp who did experiments on the Secondborn (including Canach) from Caithe's memory seeds in S2, but we didn't know that at the time.

THING OF NOTE: Vorpp (he's on the wiki as Emissary Vorpp but ahaha there's like zero things there) does portal things. I dug around some maze-like wiki pages and discovered that he's the one who reverse-engineered some of Scarlet's portals so we could find her lair and beat her up in one of the S1 missions. There's a whole achievement (and, notably, as far as I can tell, he's the first one to have come up with a communicator device like Taimi's - obviously inferior, but still).

But. This is very obvious evidence that portals is a field of Dynamics. Which only makes sense, because asura gates were created and are maintained by the College of Dynamics.

My POINT HERE is this: Taimi was still hanging around and involved with Vorpp of Dynamics even though she was a member of Synergetics.

And Vorpp's field of expertise is portals. And also very Inquest-like experiments on Secondborn sylvari.

Utter and rock-solid and extremely true headcanon: this is how Taimi knows Blish.

Blish is a portal specialist. Taimi "knows Blish from college." Blish is a member of the Inquest.

We all assume that Blish was Synergetics because Taimi knew him in college. But that's not necessarily true!! My 100% headcanon is that Vorpp was Blish's college mentor before Blish went off and joined the Inquest. Vorpp's experiments on Secondborn likely happened before Blish was even born (that was in 1302 and Taimi was born in 1313, so if they're anywhere near each other in age...) but Vorpp's tastes and morals likely remained the same, which would help explain why Blish and Gorrik were so 'eh' about being in the Inquest (my other headcanon is that they only joined looking for something to help Blish, but they didn't have to be so casual about it - this would explain that).

I feel like I need to obsessively defend this headcanon, simply because the wiki definitively says Blish was Synergetics. But that's derived SOLELY from the fact that Taimi says she knew him in college, but she never specifies which college.

Dear Brain, please stop holding the word of the wiki as golden when you help edit that thing and you know full well what the source of Blish's 'Synergetics' tag is!

[soranis-sunshadow]

Why it’s not ok to compare Wrong Hordak to his defective brother.

It doesn’t sit right to me when someone pits two abuse victims against each other based on their coping mechanisms because their circumstances are never the same.

Wrong Hordak was immediately adopted by people who slowly de-indoctrinated him and offered him a supportive environment for all of that growth and healing to happen. When the BF squad kidnapped him, he was ardent about his service to Prime and he only followed them because they deceived him in believing they were servants of Prime.

By providing clear irrefutable evidence of Prime’s fallibility, deceit and the squad’s moral support throughout this moral crisis, they were able to wean him off of his programmed behavior and offer him a new onlook and an informed choice.

Hordak was a defective clone that was sent to die on the battlefield, in essence he was abandoned by his maker for being worthless and deflective. This is why his own disability is such a source of crippling shame and self-loathing, it made him unlovable in Prime’s eye, the person he was literally programmed to worship, love and blindly obey.

For all intents and purposes, Prime is the horde clones’ God. He appears to be all-powerful, omniscient, omnipresent and he is their literal creator. Through doctrine, clones are taught that all creatures are beneath Prime, only His light and His love is relevant. (Prime is that much of a narcissistic monster)

 Even while stranded on an alien planet, cut off from his Maker, it makes sense for him to prove his worth through the only means that he was ever taught (worship and conquest), perhaps, that way, he may repent for his failure of being created defective.

It makes sense for him, a brainwashed cultist, alone and stranded on a strange and hostile world to try and bring it into Prime’s light. He didn’t know that he could have been free of Prime if he chose to integrate with the natives. Every time he detected Light Hopes’s portals on the surface of the planet, he went to investigate, hoping Prime had come for him. That is how he found Adora after all.

Of course Hordak was brutal, brutality was all he had ever been shown. Of course he conquered in Prime’s name, that is why he was created. Of course he condoned the training of children to become soldiers once they reach maturity, that is how he was made after all, he didn’t know any better.

It's important to note that before Entrapta, Hordak is essentially a recluse. He hides away in his laboratory and he doesn’t directly interact with most of his underlings who avoid him. In many of his appearances he clings to the shadows or is only shown on a monitor. 

Instead of proving his worth to Prime, he seemingly fails at all of the (impossible) tasks he had set himself to accomplish in gaining his God’s favor: He doesn’t conquer the planet (it’s a whole damn planet), he can’t treat his defect (it’s gotten to the point that he’s an emaciated sickly wreck dealing with crippling chronic pain and is immobile without his prosthetic armor), his attempts at making a new body for himself have failed (he is defective, any clone made from his genetic code would also be defective) and he can’t even open a portal to go home (the planet’s magic does not allow an exit from the different dimension it is in). After decades of failure after failure, that he blames himself for, he has grown bitter and hopeless.

That is why Entrapta and her message is so important to him. She teaches Hordak that he has inherent worth as an individual. His imperfections do not mark him as something lesser, to be discarded, to her, he can be beautiful just the way he is. This is when he starts considering  to stall the portal project, a project that has been his purpose for years, and considers staying on Etheria with her. "There was even a time you wished I would not come for you." - Prime

When he is told by Catra that Entrapta "betrayed” him, he doesn’t want to believe it at first but his own self-loathing plays a huge part in why he buys the lie. He is after all a defective and worthless failure. Catra’s lie is so much more plausible than anyone ever finding worth in him. As such he comes to reason that another person he has dared to get attached to has abandoned him.

Whereas Catra believes that everyone leaves her, when really she pushes them away, Hordak genuinely has had everyone important in his life "leave" him, as far as he knows. This is why we see Hordak in his most evil during season 4 when he has the arm cannon and he is sacking Salineas. He's completely fueled by insecurity and loss, he has something to prove again, to Entrapta and to Prime. He was eager to face her and show her, on the battlefield, that he can be worth something (affection).

When Double Trouble reveals that Entrapta was sent to Beast Island, Hordak believed she is likely dead after so long. He thinks his gullibility has cost Entrapta her life, another failure to add to the long list of sins.

When he is teleported on Prime’s ship, he is terrified of him. He tries to appease Prime in whatever way possible. His body language, his meek, scared tone of voice, and the terrified expression on his face coupled with the fact that he is literally shaking in fear convey the fact that Hordak himself knows he will not be shown mercy. In order to adapt to Etheria and further his goals, he had committed unforgivable blasphemy, he had taken a name and shown initiative. Prime violates his mind and erases him.

It comes as no surprise that once his memories of Etheria resurface because of Catra’s presence, memories of abject failure, of loneliness, of grief and of betrayal, he submits himself to erasure once again. (in season 4 he had actually let Catra in, he trusted her, they had started a tenuous friendship that weirdly enough went both ways. She too was glad to see a “friendly face”)

Once he finds the crystal Entrapta gave him, he starts remembering her. Her memory is so dear to him that he actively tries to hold on to whatever fragments of her he can hold on. He even hides this from Prime (his only lie in the whole show).

In the final confrontation, while still linked to the hive mind and in the presence of his god, he chooses Entrapta, not because Prime was proven to be wrong or evil or fallible but because Entrapta found worth in Hordak despite his imperfections. He goes against his creator still believing that Prime is all-powerful, omniscient, omnipresent because he cared for Entrapta that much.

This is why Hordak's defiance against Horde Prime has so much impact, at least for me personally. Hordak is a character who never really got a choice up to this point. Arguably, it was less a decision and more of a last resort to protect Entrapta in whatever way he could. And even this choice was a zero sum equation. He either killed the one person that has ever shown him unconditional kindness or he turned against his God. It was a loss either way. The inescapability of Prime and the magnitude of his control over his clones is underlined by his possession of Hordak after he had declared his individuality and tried to kill him. In the deleted extended scene, Hordak himself is horrified at the fact that he had shot his Brother. His conditioning and indoctrination is still there. He never learned that Prime is a narcissistic monster and that he used his little brothers as chattel and had been consistently lied to.  He just wanted not to hurt Entrapta, this one choice is his first step towards individuality and freedom. This is the first time he actually exerts his own will and not Prime’s. He’s even making this obvious by saying "I am Hordak." I am someone, I exist.

I think Hordak is actually one of the best written characters in the show, and not because he's a sympathetic villain, but because he is very realistic to how a lot of children that experience neglect or other forms of parental abuse behave as they grow up. They only know anger and rage, never being shown love because they hide themselves in the shadows. Only when someone breaks down those walls can that person begin to heal.

Hordak and Wrong Hordak may be identical clones but their circumstances are anything but and it is wrong to pit them against each other. They are both victims of severe abuse. The comparison is not a fair one since one of them had all the means necessary to break conditioning while the other had all the circumstances necessary to enforce it. Despite what Hordak has done, he deserves to live and he deserves a chance to rebuild what he has destroyed in Prime’s name. Some of his victims may never forgive him, that is their choice. Nobody should have to forgive him. That is not how forgiveness works.  Etheria’s justice system is focused on rehabilitation, not on punitive vengeance.  Hordak too deserves a chance to heal after all that has been inflicted on him from the moment he was created. He deserves a chance at redemption.

I am open to more discussions on the subject if anyone is willing.

[ryuichirou]

I saw one very stupid post on my dash about how snk is OBVIOUSLY nazi propaganda and trying to convert all of us into imperialists and white supremacists. tbh it’s not the first time I’ve seen that kind of stuff and probably won't be the last, but for some reason this time it gave me a lot of anxiety (I got wordy, I'mma need to send another ask, sorry)

(part 2) It's been more than half and hour and I still feel this awful sensation in my chest. It's just overall pretty fucked how to have something you hold dear being misinterpreted in the worst way possible, and I was just wondering what are your thoughts on this situation or how you deal with people claiming all sorts of awful shit.

(part 3) I imagine that as an artist some people probably direct their issues with snk towards you, 'cause I don't even post that much fanart and I've gotten anons "trying to educate me" on why this series is so wrong, after posting drawings. Of course, you don't have to reply, maybe the topic makes you anxious too and I don't want to bother you, so sorry for the depressing topic (｡•́︿•̀｡)

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

Tiiish, I want to hug you, I’m really sorry that this happened to you. I hope you’re feeling a little bit better now.

Like we already mentioned a while ago, when we were talking about that darn article, after we read through it and did a little fact checking (and I mean it when I say a little, because there weren’t many facts to check), we stopped caring about it. It’s not research at all, just a manipulatively written speculation on Yam’s motives and worldview, but sadly, people easily believe these accusations because they hate SnK and want to find a valid reason to hate it and shit on its fanbase. Because “I hate it because it’s nazi propaganda” sounds much cooler than “I hate it because it’s popular”, doesn’t it?

It’s easier to ignore the article itself though, and it’s much harder not to think about tumblr posts or those Twitter threads that get very popular (although there are a lot of bots on twitter, trust me…), and it’s especially difficult to ignore it when it’s specifically directed at you. But the only thing that these people deserve is a good ol’ block and (if they’re getting too offensive and abusive) a report for harassment. The thing is, their opinion doesn’t matter: it won’t change SnK’s story, it won’t affect its success and popularity, it doesn’t affect anything other than our mood (temporarily lol). Because they aren’t critics who actually give a flying fuck about the subject matter, they’re just random assholes with a hateboner for SnK, who sit in their echochamber and discuss the same shit over and over again. And if they’re “fans” of the SnK, it’s just them “consuming it critically” 🙄 such a convenient phrase and so easy to abuse.

If we think about these accusations again… they’re so damn nonsensical, it’s almost amazing. I’m not going to reread it or to make a proper counterpoint article out of this ask, so this is just based on how we remember these accusations.

Like, what part of SnK approves and pushes the idea of imperialism in any way? When the entire idea of the story is that war is bad? When people like Onyankopon, whose homeland was invaded by Marley, exist? And it’s never portrayed as a good thing? Having only one country dominating the world’s situation is literally the main reason why everyone’s suffering??

And come to think of it, Isayama is one of the few manga artists to kind of sort of openly critique Japan: he literally drew Kiyomi losing her cool and drooling while thinking about all the profit and wealth she would get from the deal with Paradis. Why do people never talk about that? What is it, if not a critique of greedy and two-faced nature of people from Azumabito clan, who are heavily implied to represent Japan? I don’t read a lot of manga in general, but do you know how many mangakas I’ve seen who directly talked shit about Japan while being Japanese? Two. Excluding Isayama.

Isayama is clearly invested in the Western culture and he understands the World’s History. He understands that political relationships are complex and that there are no “bad” or “good” countries. I don’t want to make assumptions about how much perspective of the world’s relationships the average person from Japan has, but I still feel like Yams has a pretty good understanding of it. He did his research for the subject matter, and while it’s obviously not perfect, it’s clearly there.

These people also claim that SnK is anti-Korean and anti-Semitic, but if Hetalia had taught me anything, it is that if the story has or used to have any anti-Korean undertones, the Korean readers wouldn’t want to have anything to do with it. They would be the first people to ditch the manga, they would be the first people to critique SnK, and rightfully so. They burnt Uniqlo clothes, their overall domestic policy is pretty anti-Japanese, so there’re literally zero reasons for them not to destroy SnK if they see it as anti-Korean. But the size of the Korean SnK fandom suggests otherwise, doesn’t it.

And the “big noses = Jewish caricature” argument, seriously? How anti-Semitic can you get? Who the fuck looks at people and goes “oh, those have big noses, bet they’re caricature of Jews”?? Sorry I’m getting heated lol The argument about “Asian artists portray Westerners with prominent noses because that’s what we look like to them” has been done a lot of times, I’m not going to go over than again.

And god forbid Isayama to use Germany and Europe to draw a story where his characters are (approximately) Germans and Europeans! Let’s go fetch our pitchforks to punish Isayama for using their aesthetic to make his story look more believable and authentic, right? “Oh, those areas where they hold Eldians resemble places from real life”, like no shit???? Ofc they would??? That’s what references for making the story more grounded are used for??? If I were to write a story about a fictional place based on a real one that I don’t live in, I’d use some visual references to help me to make it more believable??? Why do I even need to explain that?

In my previous post I talked about the armbands and ghetto and stuff, but I’ll reiterate: even if there are thematic similarities, it doesn’t mean that the story mirrors our history. And it doesn’t mean that there is an analogy, since Eldian’s situation is quiiiite different than what Jewish people had to go through. It’s just thematic similarities. And it still doesn’t plant any specific idea in the reader’s head, other than “having people shoved into ghettos with 0 civil rights is a horrible thing”, and I can’t comprehend what’s anti-Semitic or imperialistic about it. Also I’m sorry, but nazis are not the only people who genocided a bunch of people, breaking news. Nor did they invent armbands. Same goes for Japan in WWII.

And now for my favourite argument: Erwin is nazi because his name is Erwin and he was born on the same day than some nazi guy died… I won’t even talk about why this idea is hilariously stupid, I just want to appreciate the level of nitpicking that’s going on here.

So… yeah. People who have nothing else to do but to complain about the show they hate don’t matter. And people who consider themselves a part of the SnK fandom and still say this bs (yep, there are people who do that) are huge hypocrites. The heck are they doing in this fandom then?? Of course, any story is up to interpretation, but this is so backwards?

Sorry for rambling so much… anyways. We’re happy enough not to encounter any hate related to this topic, but we think it’s because we ship Ereri and people already hate us for that, so the majority of shit we get is related to that, I guess we’re a lost cause for them. We’ll see if anything happens after this post though.

But once again, I’m very sorry that you had to go through this. Please remember that this isn’t personal at all, and people who harass strangers on the internet just want to flex their high moral ground while acting like complete assholes. You don’t have to explain anything to them, you don’t have to talk to them, you don’t have to listen to them or give them any attention. I hope you’ll never stumble upon anything like this; but if you ever do, please block them, don’t even bother reading their attempts at “educate” you. Isn’t worth it.

Please have a good day, Tish. And everyone who’s reading this reply.

[ajcrawly]

Should you fight this character (Archive Squad Edition)

Jonathan Sims: Well, everyone else has. And I can see why you’d want to! He’s a small, prickly man with a small, prickly face and he will absolutely insult you ten times before breakfast before asking for favours or deep dark secrets from you, so I understand the compulsion to ‘do a bit of a Mike Crew’. On the other hand, these days he’s a little less prickly and a little more Apocalyptically Terrifying and so unless you actually want the world to know about your hideously embarrassing vore kink or your AO3 search history or That Thing You Did When You Were Seventeen it’s probably not worth the satisfaction of a quick punch in the kisser. Ask yourself: will it make you feel special? Will it fill the void in your heart to punch a man so thoroughly beaten-down by the world? Will it be worth the Liam Neeson style revenge of one Martin Blackwood? 5/10, initially satisfying, fundamentally not worth it. 

Martin Blackwood: Take a seat. Look at your life. Look at your choices. Look at this jumpered man who is shaped like a friend. Could you fight him? Sure, you could try, but he’ll probably just hug your arms to your sides and talk to you about your problems a bit and you’ll end up feeling better, but empty inside. Maybe he’ll just cry. Maybe he’ll - worse still - just take the punch and say he deserves it. You can’t fight a man who is so absolutely centred on fighting himself. Do you think Martin cares about your violence? Against him? Fighting Martin isn’t worth it because Martin would fight himself if he had the opportunity because he thinks he deserves it (and also because it unquestionably makes you a very, very bad person, you monster) 1/10 because why would you? 

Timothy Stoker: Tim Stoker knows no fear. In the three seconds after you throwing your first punch he will have ascertained your relative strength, whether there’s a chance of this just being foreplay, and your absolute greatest weakness. He’ll spike you through the solar plexus and heelie away without a care. He probably won’t even stop smiling. “Oh, hey, how’s it going - wow, bitey aren’t you, let’s just knock you out there, great chat byeeee!” Now I’m not saying it’s not feasible that you could get the drop on him, and he’s a bit of a bastard sometimes anyway so you might even want to, but Tim stands a better chance of trying to pick somebody up on the dancefloor, slipping on a patch of jaegerbomb and knocking himself out than he does of being knocked out by you. Still. Shoot your shot, I guess - that’s the advice he’d give you. 7/10 depending on sympathetic you are about his backstory. 

Sasha James: Now, look, it’s not that Sasha James is exceptionally strong or exceptionally fast and if you really, really wanted to fight her, you’d probably win. You would! You’d win. Well done you. Off home for a victory march you go. Now watch as your credit-card information disappears and your bank accounts drain overnight. Your broadband bill has tripled but you somehow don’t have any of the packages you want. Your wi-fi has stopped working and your printer keeps printing things that you’re pretty sure you never asked it to print (it’s mainly memes, and that’s Tim’s influence). Sasha will wreck your entire life in an afternoon. And also - why would you want to fight her in the first place? Sasha James has never done anything wrong in her entire life, ever. 3/10, yes you could fight her, but at what cost?

Melanie King: Do Not. Even if you get a few good licks in she will bite off your ears and use your skull as a colander. 0/10

Basira Hussain: You could. But consider for a moment Basira’s absolute ruthless pragmatism. If you pose a danger - to her, to those she holds dear - she will have precisely zero hesitation about burying you twenty foot deep after killing you in a distractingly thorough and practical fashion (can’t come back as an undead monster if she’s buried your lungs in Swindon and your feet in Bournemouth, probably). It probably won’t even ruin her day. You can fight her, die, and it won’t even ruin her day. It might even improve it. It’s nice to get something productive done in the morning while you still feel fresh. 2/10 if Basira doesn’t kill you Daisy sure will.  

Daisy Tonner: There’s a lot of arguments for fighting Daisy (remember that time she stabbed Jon in the throat and made him bury a man lol wild) but the only time you stand a chance of fighting her is when she’s fresh out of the Buried and God, talk about kicking somebody when they’re down. That’s on fighting-Martin level of monstrous, tbh, and you’re bad for thinking about it. The only exception to this rule is if you’re Into being Torn Apart in a Sexy Way and honestly, you might get more than you fucking bargain for. 3/10 sure can understand your motivations, chief, but have you considered maybe not 

Peter Lukas: Ooooh, I’m a big Avatar of the Lonely, I have a ship and a hat and a whistle and I can feed people to my eldritch god oooooh. Peter big (this we know). But Peter doesn’t like confrontation. Peter will not know how to respond to a flurry of fists and fury that isn’t Elias and there’s a pretty good chance that he’ll just run away. Still, if you can corner him, you should absolutely fight him, because Peter needs to be taken down a peg. Sure, you’ll feel like a bit of a bastard because he’ll keep trying to smile that cheerful smile and complimenting your technique as you break his jaw, but you’ve got to look past that and remember what a monster he is. 10/10 fight him and push down your own inevitable guilt. 

Elias Bouchard: Does this even need a score? If there is anybody in the entire Archives you should be fighting, it is this mean. Sure, it’ll cost you some resurfacing of your deep-seated trauma but that’s a small price to pay for the satisfaction of clocking him in the skull with a stapler and hanging him by his silk underwear on a flagpole somewhere. It’s What He Deserves. 99999999/10 this bastard rat man absolutely deserves to be fought. He’ll make out like he’s pleased by this, or that he’s enjoying it, or that it’s all part of his Grand Plan. It isn’t. It is your moral duty to fight Elias and frankly if you’re not already on your way to the Institute I’m shaking my head. 

[thanksjro]

More Than Meets the Eye #11- Soak the Matrix in Lemon Juice and Break Out the Hairdryers

So, small problem.

Prowl realized he was in the wrong comic run and had to split.

But not before yelling at Orion about how stupid he thinks this National Treasure bullshit he’s trying to pull is, and makes a request that Chromedome be left out of this whole mess.

Why the fuck wouldn’t you tell him that?

Bye, Prowl. See you later, I guess.

Chromedome and Roller have brought in some help for the heist from the local college. These students were super gung-ho about stealing the Matrix, not because they’re agents of political chaos, but because the Senator has his name attached to this little project. They feel a certain debt to the Senator, since he’s been doing his best to protect them from the Functionist Council.

Gee, wonder who that truck is.

We get a little rundown of our new friends, while Chromedome has a minor temper tantrum in the background.

Skids is also a member of this group, labelled as a super-learner, enough so that it may not even be a voluntary thing on his part.

In the present day, Swerve’s returned from stealing things from Trailcutter’s room, apparently totally unaware of what’s happened to his roommate. You’d think someone would have gotten in contact with him about that.

I mean, maybe? You did say you liked purple.

Swerve lets it slip that this isn’t the only story time circle Rewind’s hosted in an attempt to get Rung’s brain back up to speed… which makes me wonder just how often the medical staff on board the Lost Light actually check on their patients, if Ratchet had been surprised that this event was happening today.

Swerve makes fun of Tailgate for needing to open up the wiki so he can keep track of what’s going on, then goes over to call Rung the wrong name. Swerve is very lucky Rung is essentially in a coma right now, because that’s probably the only thing keeping him from trying to strangle our resident barkeep.

Whirl helps Rung express himself by playing with his eyebrows, a trait which, now that I think about it, probably only exists for expressive purposes, considering that his eyes are covered by his glasses and we can’t see their shape.

Rewind saves Rung from being played with, perhaps solely because he’s a historical constant.

So you’re saying Rung gets around. Nifty.

Rewind decides that they’ve taken enough of a break and it’s time to get back to the juicy stuff, completely blowing off Ratchet’s professional opinion about what to do with Rung.

Nothing gets in the way of story time.

Nothing.

In the past, Orion Pax is poking Skids in the face, specifically in his mini Matrix tattoo, which is giving him ideas. Skids is a little weirded out, but this isn’t about Skids, now is it? Chromedome goes to pay a visit to a coworker to get things set for the madness that’s about to unfold.

My boy! My beautiful boy!

Yes, Ironfist, before shooting himself in the head and having his spirit broken by the horrors of direct combat, used to be a cop. Everyone’s a cop in IDW, at least for a little while. He’s also missing his faceplate, and isn’t nearly as cute in Milne’s style, but we can’t have it all all the time, now can we?

Chromedome’s feeding into Ironfist’s fanboy nature, pretending to be just as much as a nerd as he is to call in a favor. In exchange for getting Ironfist’s Delta Magnus body pillow back from their boss, Chromedome needs to borrow Ironfist’s one-to-one replica of the Matrix.

I mean, you practically are already, but the sentiment is appreciated. We haven’t gotten to the point where we’re comfortable with thank you kisses yet, and it’ll be a while still.

While the Senator and company gush over Chromedome’s good job, Roller pulls Ratchet and Orion over to the side for a little chat.

Roller doesn’t trust the Senator. He’s done his research, weighed their options, and he really isn’t sure about this guy. Turns out that Orion isn’t the only guy who’s been modified to fit a Matrix without his consent. Honestly, I’m with Roller on this one; that’s mad creepy to be loading the bases like that.

Orion doesn’t really see it that way, though.

Only one of these things was ever a secret, my guy. You worked with Whirl, he was in your precinct for crying out loud! At least he admits to his ignorance.

Back in the present, we check in on Rodimus’ investigation. Looks like we’ve got our answer on who tried to kill Red Alert.

It was Red Alert.

First Aid explains.

Fascinating.

Rodimus fails to see why exactly Red Alert would choose to go this route, because A) he doesn’t know that Red Alert knows about the dirty little secret in the basement, and B) despite probably having depression, may not be the type to have suicidal ideation. It’s true, those types of people exist!

Oh, this is a savior’s complex thing. Nyon really fucked you up, huh Rodimus?

After Ultra Magnus gets Rodimus to stop accosting the doctor, they’re faced with a sort of moral quandary.

IDW’s More Than Meets the Eye! Come for the space adventure, stay for the rumination on whether it’s ethical to allow a mentally ill person the right to self-termination!

After consulting with Drift, because it’s always important to get a second opinion, Rodimus agrees to put Red Alert in cold storage, to remain until their quest is finished and they’re in a place that’s better for his mental health.

Anyway, back to the heist plotline.

Orion breaks down the plan for everybody: the basilica is nearly impossible to break into, but they’re going to do it anyway, because this is the past, and we as the reader already know that things go alright because Chromedome, Ratchet and Skids are still here and Optimus Prime came into being.

Roller will hack the sky spies, make things look all hunky dory, while the rest of the boys magic carpet up to the top of the building.

Looking mighty relaxed there, Glitch.

Glitch is probably sitting down to conserve as much energy as possible, because his job sucks some major chrome- he’s got to keep the detector beams off, using his outlier ability, but it really friggin’ hurts for him to do it. He’s going to have to do it for an extended period of time.

Glitch really got the short end of the stick in all this, didn’t he?

Okay, so I was wrong, Skids uses his grappling hook a fucking shit-ton in MTMTE. Today, he’s going to use it to lower Orion down into the basilica so he can crack open a cold one and steal the Matrix.

Things can never just be simple, can they?

Over on Roller’s end of the workflow, Chromedome’s irritated that he’s got to babysit the Senator. Chromedome spends a good portion of this story arc irritated at stuff, in case you couldn’t tell.

In this case, the Senator agrees that having Chromedome stay back was probably unnecessary. Or at least, he did, until he noticed that the Academy of Advanced Technology is burning to the ground on live TV.

Then the wall explodes.

Things can never just be simple, can they?

Back on the front lines, Orion tags out and Ratchet tags in, because the locks on the Matrix are mad crazy hard to undo and they just don’t have time for pussyfooting around with all that. Ratchet is apparently a master lock pick. Must be those magic medic hands.

Even the Matrix being full of Fiji water is no match for our CMO, as he makes quick work of the bomb and removes it. Hooray! Now we just need to pull him back up and we’ll be all set to leave.

Or at least, we would be, if Glitch wasn’t the dumbest bitch alive.

Ratchet braces for an explosion.

And braces.

And braces.

But it never comes, because Windcharger has magic arms and zero patience for facing his own mortality.

The boys haul up Ratchet and the bomb, fly on out of there, then Orion jumps off the slab they’re floating on because Roller was supposed to call and he hasn’t. I’m going to hazard a guess and say that Roller might be a bit preoccupied at the moment, and it isn’t by the television.

That is a BIG BOY.

“Cleanse and control” was what Trepan’s idiotic tattoo said, so there’s a good chance that our buddy the Senator is about to go the way of Pious Maximus in a minute. Or at least, he would if Orion Pax didn’t embrace is inner monster truck and punch a hole in the big boy holding the Senator like Lennie does a rabbit.

Kroma isn’t one to let the opposite side have all the cards though, as he holds a gun to Roller’s head and suggests that the Senator be given to him, lest we be down a cop in this story that’s simply awash with them. The Senator, being the nice guy that he is, goes willingly to his doom.

Be a lot easier if we knew your name, bud.

The Senator is taken away, but Kroma leaves Orion with the other big boy, and he’s not playing nicely. Orion helps himself by way of domestic terrorism.

But that’s not the end of the story! Oh dear no!

After the explosion, Orion unearths Chromedome, and they make tracks for the Institute. Small issue with that though:

Well, dang.

Thus ends the tale of the Matrix heist, the mysterious Senator, and Chromedome’s awkward relationship with Prowl. Our storytelling session ends with the sound of the alarm, and everyone runs off to see just what the hell’s gone wrong now. Only Skids hangs back to take Rung to the medibay, but not before trying one last thing to help his partner in vent-crawling out.

Man, all they had to do was annoy him and everything would have been fine? Rewind’s going to feel so silly for all that work he put into this.

Back in the past, Orion’s digging through the remains of the Rodion police station, when a robot comes up to him, saying that they have a mutual friend who asked him to find Orion if he ever went missing.

The mutual friend was the Senator.

And the robot is Zeta, who would become Zeta Prima.

The Senator was really playing the field with all these Matrix reformattings.

Speaking of the Senator, he’s just arrived at a The Institute, where they’ve decided to not only shadowplay him, but also empurata his whole deal just to be assholes. He just wanted to be beautiful, on top of conniving, but I guess we won’t be having any of that anymore. Not that it’ll matter.

Because vanity is illogical.

No wonder Whirl’s so goddamn angry all the time.

[quakerjoe]

Dear Biden Bro Rape Apologists

This includes you politician motherfuckers backing Biden right now.

A CUPPA JOE for CINCO de MAYO, 2020

During all this time you spent bashing me because I supported Tara Reade, I’d like to point something out at this time that clearly y’all missed in your ever-glorified shit-slinging fest defending your GOP insider, Joe Biden.

No ONCE did any of you motherfuckers ever ask one simple question of me and it was this:

“Do you actually BELIEVE Tara Reade?”

Rather an important question, isn’t it? Here’s what separates me from you shit guzzlers who are so fucking terrified and scared of trump that you’re willing to back any piece of shit just to be rid of him. 

You see, dumbasses, my answer would have been “I don’t know; I wasn’t there.” But like most feckless twats, you all missed the point and now it’s too late for you all. The train left the station. That ship has sailed. The point was that we needed to take the accusation seriously, for the sake of all women and all Survivors and investigate the matter because it would have been the right thing to do, not ignore and scorn her and try to cover it up. I’d expect that of the GOP, but come on, Democrats! You were supposed to be better than that! EPIC FAIL ON YOUR END HERE. 

Since clearly you left-wing trump-tards-for-biden types need it spelled out for you:

Whether of not Reade’s story is true or not is, at present, immaterial. What matters is your conduct and the conduct of the fucking assholes in the DNC and the party, and you all failed at being decent human beings.

You failed to take the accusation seriously when it was YOUR guy while not that long ago you were all screaming for justice to the victims of people like Bret Kavenaugh, trump, Cosby, and Weinstein to name but a few rich and powerful types who adhere to trump’s “philosophy” of how you can grab ‘em by the pussy and get away with it when your famous.

YOU FAILED. Not me. You.

What’s worse is that good people like Al Franken had their careers burned for far less. You failed him, and not you’ve shown that you’re willfully ignorant, selfish cunts, just like trump supporters. JUST LIKE THEM.

You see, there’s supposed to be this process when it comes to vetting people for things. Employers tend to do a general background check before hiring employees. When I joined the Navy over half a lifetime ago, my life was thoroughly put under scrutiny because I’d volunteered to serve on submarines. They looked into every detail of my life from my family to my schooling to my jobs to interviewing my friends to get a feel for whether or not I was trustworthy enough to work on classified equipment, also checking my finances to ensure I wasn’t vulnerable to things like being tempted to be a traitor by selling secrets to foreign adversaries because I was in a tight spot. They wanted to make sure there was no dirt anyone could have on me that might compromise me in some way.

Trump got ZERO of that. I was only an enlisted fuck serving on a sub. Why is it we do not hold the Commander-in-Chief to an even higher standard when he’s going to have the “football” within reach at all times with nuclear codes?

As I’d mentioned, the investigation involved looking into character. Biden is a CREEPY CHARACTER, but clearly like trump supporters, you Biden Bros are fine with Biden being creepy and possibly even RAPEY. But the point is we’re talking about an outright RAPE here. RAPE. Biden is accused of cornering and then digitally penetrating a woman’s vagina against her consent. Does that mean ANYTHING to you? Especially you women who are betraying your own supporting this fucknugget! Where’s the concern? Where’s the desire to delve into the vetting process and enact this “DUE PROCESS” you once screamed for?

I don’t know if Reade’s story is true or not. However, where we part ways is that I, for one, took it seriously. I firmly believe, in good conscience, that Biden’s got enough going against him as it is that that Due Process will either vindicate him enough that people like me might be able to choke down the vomit long enough to force myself to vote for him OR he’ll be proven to be a rapist and should, by rights, step out of the way for someone that’s NOT a rapist.

You assholes backing him FAILED. You failed not only women everywhere who are Survivors, you betrayed MeToo, TimesUp, the already weak and tarnished reputation of the Dem. party, and overall and most importantly- your country.

You FAILED to be a decent human being. So, to end this, you clearly need me more than I need you or Biden. If you can’t represent what I hold dear and adhere to a code of conduct becoming a representative of the US Presidency, then I won’t be bullied by you or tolerate you forcing me to betray my code of decency. You won’t tarnish my moral compass. But, in the end, you’ll still need me.

Like trump supporters, you need what I represent- “The other”. I’m the one you’ll blame in November when Biden tanks and we get 4 more of trump because somehow in your addled brains you equate MY lack of support as support for the other side. I support neither because to me, they’re one in the same all working to promote the GOP agenda of utter shittiness. None of my values are being represented by Biden except by way of paltry lip service in order to get elected to his likely one term where he promised to literally change nothing. Yay. A real go-getter to save the working class and save the world from disease, poor education and climate change. Woo-hoo!

So don’t you worry. I’ll be here for you to blame. I know you will because taking personal responsibility for your loss is just what trump supporters do- deny mistakes and blame someone else; trump style, but you know what? I don’t give a flying fuck in a rolling donut. I for one as will others like me will know that the fault is yours for not standing up to the fuckery of the DNC and always taking a knee to bow down to corporate/establishment Democrats who truly don’t give a fuck about you. I’m here for them too; the Great American Scapegoat, that’s me. You people will never learn and you’re no better than the GOP, trump, or his dumbass supporters. Blame me and my kind all you want because we’re not only not afraid to stand up to trumplefuckstick, we’re also not afraid to stand up to Democrats and call them out on their bullshit, either. You Biden Bros had a simple job- sell us on Biden. Earn our votes. Convince us in a meaningful way. Instead, you’ve demonstrated that you’re pieces of shit like trump’s cultists.

It’s not MY JOB to vote for someone, especially if I don’t believe him or if he represents NOTHING I want from my representative in the White House as POTUS. It’s THEIR job to convince me to HIRE THEM because this is a big fucking job interview, not a round of fucking Candy Land. So far, I am about as impressed with the Democrats as I am with the GOP and you’re not helping. To me, you’ve gotten to be more of the same than you were back in 2016. It’s as if trump has actually set a new standard so low that Dems are racing them to the bottom.

If Democrats want my vote, they’ll front me at least SOME of what I want in a POTUS. Biden offers ZERO for me, and if you weren’t so terrified to trump like scared little children, you’d get your heads out of your stupid, well laid asses and see that Biden’s just not into you either.

~Quaker Joe

[creativenicocorner]

7, 8, and 13 for the otp ask - stricklake, please

Tadaa! @megan0013 💖 

7) What’s the first thing that changes when they realize they have feelings for the other?

Oooh I like this one! Hmm I think I’ll focus on the little changes for this one

With Barbara, she starts to frequently check to make sure her glasses aren’t dirty as often as she can (which intern, inspires Walter to carry a lens cloth with him for when Barbara misplaces hers, and to be suave). 

She also flosses more, mainly due to a very embarrassing moment that occurred while dating an ex, ( after all it is human to carry past experiences with us forward, even without realizing it), though the more comfortable with each other Barbara and Walter become the more she calms down about the flossing. Especially after a tiny moment by Walter (while unaware of the teeth and flossing thing) gestures her to lean forward, telling her she “has a little something right…” and kissing her before she has time to get worried. Which opens a wave of nervous laughter and a wholesome discussion. 

As for Walter fun “oh shit I caught the feels™” moment of delightful dread aside, he starts applying chapstick more, like he did so already but this time its more for the off chance he’s lucky enough to be kissed- he’d want those bad boys smooth and pillowy. 

He also does the laundry more, takes the time to press his clothes more, and coordinates detergent and perfume/cologne. He likes smelling clean, and adores that long inhale exhale people do when he smells nice, and being told he smells nice, and in a slightly more touch starved way - it invites others to linger a little more in their hugs or embraces or close proximity.  As affectionate as I HC him to be, he also longs for affection. 

In the words of Audrey Hepburn: “I was born with an enormous need for affection, and a terrible need to give it.”

8 )Nicknames? & if so, how did they originate?

Ooh a very good question I don’t think I’ve spent enough time thinking about!! Thank you! 

Hmm…Well we do know Walter appreciates being called “Walt” by his friends, and what the heck is an otp without the deepest thread of friendship?!?! What’s the point without being the best of friends to boot?!! 

I’ll have to come back to this and answer it far more properly some day, but in the meantime while I think about this better; if they ever do nicknames it would most certainly be born from an inside joke, and very very nerdy, as well as spontaneous and almost a surprise to themselves (especially in the ‘pet-name’ category). 

Though I suppose it should be noted that Barbara can get prickly with certain pet-names, especially if its one that was once used to patronize her.  

Pet names Walter would say to Barbara, and importantly that Barbara is 100% okay with: Love, Darling, Dearest.

Pet names Barbara would say to Walter: Honey, Chief, and when a bit drunk Sweet Pea 

13 Who reaches for the other’s hand first?

Walter McFreaking ‘Let me kiss your hand to boot’ Strickler!! Hands down! 

When they first started dating Barbara was certainly braver than him when it came to reaching for a hand, or rather didn’t contemplate as much on the timing of it all. Whereas as frequent as Strickler was in offering a hand he was also a little strategic about it (even in the courtly sense lol)   

 But when they became more comfortable and established I am of the firm belief that this dude 100% has zero qualms in showing affection anytime anywhere. Strategy drops and frequency doubles anytime anywhere (double-y so after all the delicious changeling angst). 

Barbara has never once had to question whether or not he cares about her. Morally grey as he is, with so much of his life a question and being up in the air, the power of holding hands is very dear to his bi little heart. 

He’s the walking meme of the two people walking with one holding groceries, and when the other offers a hand to help hold the groceries he moves the groceries to one hand so the other is free for hand holding. 

We’re talking Gomez Addams level of hand holding / affection. 

And, I know this is deviating from the question a bit, but if I had to describe Walter’s version of “Tish! That’s French!” it’s Dr Barbara Lake discussing medicine and science. 

[sidespromptblog]

The Runaway

Summary: Running away is often seen as a coward’s move, winners never run away, and adults never do either. However, for Logan... it is the only choice that his life has left him, he wants a life. A life that is his, and a life that isn’t tied to someone else’s success. So for once... He’s going to be cowardly and he’s going to be selfish. He’s going to..runaway. 

Roman stared down at Logan front the judge’s stand, from where Logan himself should have been seated. The jealousy that Logan felt flaring up in his stomach, made his hands clench and shake the longer that he stared at the white robe that should have been black and gavel that should have been in his hands. He could hardly recall the words that left his mouth in that moment, in the moment of such a furious rage crawling and spreading through him like a forest fire that just kept burning and burning without an end in sight. He couldn’t recall what he said, but he could feel his teeth chomping down on his tongue and he could see the way that Roman’s facial expression shifted, clearly he had said something that had made the creative side furious.

A heartbeat passed between the seconds that it took for Roman to open his mouth, and the very moment that he did, Logan knew that he was right about his original assumption.

He had said something completely and entirely wrong to Roman, but in turn… Roman said something so much worse to him.

“Well, maybe you shouldn’t have been impersonated by Deceit!”

The sharp bitter words had been flung through the air without so much as a second thought, and just as Roman had clearly wanted...they hit their mark as Logan felt something stop dead in their tracks as his beating heart that had been thudding so loudly inside his chest turn as cold as ice. For a solid second, Logan forgot how to breathe as he sat there staring gobsmacked right back at Roman’s perfect make-up covered face which held a look on it. A look that told Logan, that Roman had meant every single word that had left his lips, the gleam in his eyes telling so much more than those cruel lips could ever say to him.

It was a look that turned the icy tundra of his heart, into a burning inferno.

He couldn’t help but to sharply lean back as his eyebrows traveled up to his hairline disappearing into the messy bangs of his hair. His lips pressed themselves into a thin but sharp line as his eyes narrowed. “Fuck You” Logan hissed back, he didn’t regret it. No, he refused to regret those words as Roman jerked back in complete and utter surprise at the logical side’s surprisingly vulgar language. It would be a cold day in hell before Logan ever cursed the way that he was right now, and luckily..or rather unluckily for Roman. It was about as cold as Logan’s heart, as the logical side stared almost hatefully back at the creative side. His teeth gnashed together so roughly that he was almost certain that he was about to crack a molar with the strength he was putting behind his jaws.

Even so, that did not stop him or his nearly trembling knees from rising in the witness stand.

His entire body was shaking with pure rage at this point, but that wasn’t going to stop him. He wouldn’t be stopped anymore as he glared back at Roman with a look that honestly would have made anyone drop dead in an instant. “Oh fuck you Creativity.” He didn’t give a single damn about whether or not he was using Roman’s title, or if his words were seen as rude to everyone who was watching slack-jawed in pure uninterrupted silence, even Deceit, the one who had orchestrated this whole thing was staring in something akin to awe. As he watched what could be said the calmest member of the light sides, utterly losing his shit. It must have been entertaining to watch, but the fucks that he could count were at a nice and steady zero.

He could have cared less about all those who were watching, especially as he started to clamber down from the witness stand. He didn’t care about the steps he easily could have taken to get down, that would have shown that he gave a damn about their little stage production.

Which he didn’t.

He really didn’t.

“Really?” He hissed, finally landing on his feet as he spun back around to cast one more scathing glare at Roman who was finally gathering his wits about him. “Really?! If this is how I’m going to be treated for something that isn’t my fault, then fuck you!” Logan snarled, spittle flying from his mouth as he clenched fists tightened even more. He could feel his nails digging into the palms of his hands, and the sting of it didn’t do much to lessen the overall fury that was roaring in his throat at the sight of the others’ uncaring expression when he had first been called into their little courtroom.

They didn’t care, of course, they didn’t.

All this talk about emotions, and they didn’t care about how he felt about being excluded from something that he obviously would have enjoyed. It made him want to punch something, it made him want to slam his fists against the judge’s stand again and again, until his knuckles were bloody and he couldn’t feel a single thing. His chest was heaving as if he had just gotten out of a three hundred yard sprint, his teeth were barred like some savage animal’s, and his face was flushed a harsh strawberry red that made his cheeks sting like it was the dead of winter.

That much he could tell, from the fact that his entire body felt way too hot, and the air around him way too thin to get a decent lung full.

But he was past caring, not that he had the emotional depth to anyway.

Roman swallowed thickly, attempting to shove down the sheer surprise that colored his face at the sight of Logan. Of this Logan that stared at him as if he was staring down his most hated enemy, “Come on Lo,” He attempted to pacify him, to get this court hearing back in session and about something important to Thomas. “It was only a jo-”

“Nobody’s laughing Roman,” Logan abruptly but him off, his eyes glaring daggers into the creative side. And...he was right, none of the others were laughing, and none of them had even looked amused at Roman’s jab when he had first said it. Logan took a step forward, and that step might as well have been him lunging for Roman’s throat with the way that the other shrank back from him. “Nobody’s laughing...Most certainly not me.” Logan hissed, his ordinarily chocolate brown eyes as dark as the midnight sky as he looked back at Roman. “So fuck off.”

Looking around the courtroom, at the blank faces, at those who had never bothered to defend him against anything Roman had said to him. It suddenly hit him, weighing down his chest like a pound of bricks, even more so as he looked back at his host. His host that had only used him for exposition, his host that never loved him, and never looked at him in the same way that he looked at the others, and his host...who wasn’t even worried when Deceit had taken his place. He looked back at the person who he loved and cared for with his entire existence, and...he saw only a stranger sitting there next to Patton. He saw…

Blank eyes, and a scared expression of someone who regarded him as a stranger as well.

Someone who..who didn’t want him.

His throat seized at the realization, and heat stung his eyes the longer he stared at Thomas, his body trembled, but this time for an entirely different reason. The world blurred before him, and the weight that had been pressing on his chest felt like it had increased tenfold from before. Was this what it felt like to want to cry? Is that what this was? He didn’t like it, no..he hated this feeling if that was what this was. He hated it with every ounce of his entire being, he hated it so damn much.

“I’m leaving,” The words left his mouth in a rush similar to that of a mudslide, once they were out though he really couldn’t take them back. “You all seem to be having a lot of fun operating without Logic anyways, so… I’m gone.”

Almost immediately Patton’s expression changed from outright fear, to desperation once he seemed to realize just what was on the line. The legs of his chair squealed against the floor as he hastily stood up, and the loud resounding bang that carried through the air as it completely fell backwards and onto the floor made none of them flinch. All eyes were locked onto Logan, for once in his existence he had their attention, for once they were listening to him, and for once...they were understanding him.

But it was far too late for that.

“Lo-”

Before Patton could even get Logan’s name out he was cut off, with a harsh cutting motion of Logan’s hand.

“No,” He growled, not this time. This time their dear moral side would listen to him, or rather he would listen to the last words that Logan had to say before he left them. He didn’t care if they didn’t want to listen, because..regardless, they would. They would listen, and they would know just why he was leaving them. “Goodbye,” He bluntly stated, ignoring the frantic shaking of Patton’s head, and just how hastily Roman was standing up from the judge’s stand in an effort to get to their dear logical side before he could sink out.

Even Virgil was standing, scrambling over the edge of the jury stand. “Wait!” The anxious side practically screamed out the words, desperate for Logan to at least listen to him. To hold on for just a second, to think rationally about what he had just told them, to..to listen to the one person who had understood him in the days where he had been an outcast. Honestly, the anxious side was desperate for anything to work, as the three other sides all made a move to grab the logical side as he sank down. “Wai-”

And he was gone.

Patton’s hand missing him by just a millimeter, grazing Logan’s soft combed hair.

The moral side crumbled to the ground in the place where Logan had once been, as Roman’s back thudded against the judge’s stand. His eyes were hollow and blank as he stared at the empty spot where Logan had once been just a mere few seconds ago. The numbness that spread through his chest, quickly being overlapped with wave after wave of guilt that emptied out his insides like a hollowed out rock from years of erosion.

It was just a joke.

That was all that it had been, right?

Just a joke…

Rising back up, Logan felt a tugging, a gnawing of something at his heart in the brief few seconds that he took to look at Thomas, his eyes closed as he sat on the couch. He was still in the mindspace that Deceit had summoned, so that at least gave him a little bit of time to do what he needed to do. And even so, even knowing how little time he had left, Logan couldn’t help but to look a little bit longer, at the chestnut brown hair that wavily flopped in front of Thomas’ eyes, begging to be swept out of the way with a brush. His host was a mess, and he would be an even bigger mess without him.

But that was something Thomas would have to deal with, he didn’t want him, and that was fine. Truly it was, no matter what his aching heart said to him…

This was for the best.

Leaning in, Logan’s fingers gingerly brushed the stray locks of hair out of Thomas’ face, before he backed up. At first taking a single step back, before turning on his heel and sprinting for the front door and the human world that laid outside it. The doorknob felt cold in his hand, and it felt as if it weighed a ton as he turned it. Revealing the busy street before him, a human street.

He didn’t look back as he closed the door.

Towards a new life.

A life...that would be something he chose, and a life that would choose him

.

Taglist:

@snakeboicouldbegayer

@roanoaks

@dailypattondoodle

@thedreamer240

@soijusthavetoask

@hell-or-high-waters

@appleflavoredkitkats

@idioticsky

@elizabethnordwell

@3amthebitchinghour

@ab-artist

@violetsandpride

@kastrefeila

@the-parentheticals

[hitchell-mope]

(Film three. In Auradon. Bal’s apartments in the castle. After “best day of my life”. Mal’s in a pair of Ben’s boxer shorts and a doctor who T-shirt. Standing there)

Ben (looping his arms around her waist): hey

Mal: hey. How are you?

Ben: good. Good. And you

Mal: oh so much better now (she turns around) and is this all for me?

Ben: mmmmmmaybe?

Mal: well I greatly appreciate it whoa

(She’s turned around to get a better look at him. He’s, just like her. In boxers. Longish purple hair. And literally nothing else)

Mal: oooh I’m feeling very matchy matchy and very much mismatched

Ben: well there are two ways of remedying that. I could put a top on. OR. I could lock the door and soundproof the room and

Mal: lock the door I’ll soundproof

Ben (very happy): okay

Mal: oh my god!

(Under Ben’s shoulder blades are two jagged cuts from which are growing beating miniature mounds of flesh in a dark blue colour)

Ben: what’s wrong?

Mal: your back!

Ben: what! What is it. What’s wrong?

Mal: I. I. II don’t. Know. It looks like somethings growing out of your back

Doug (walking in briskly with Evie right begins): it’s probably dragon wings. The ember sped up the process I think

Mal: and how do you know that?

Doug: Hierachy And History: all levels of magic and their effects and uses. First edition illustrated.

Bal: can I?

Doug: yes you can borrow it. Hell. Keep it. I’ve got plenty

Mal: how do you know all this?

Doug: I uh bought literally every book about magic when you brought it back. Physical copies and on kindle

Mal: ohhhh. For a minute I thought you were mansplaining to us.

Evie: he’s not chad. He actually knows things. And why the hell aren’t you dressed?

Mal: well sis. We almost died a couple of hours ago so Ben and I were about to engage in a bit of glad to be alive

Evie: eww shut up

Mal: oh like you and Doug haven’t

Evie: that’s besides the point.

Mal: why are you here?

Evie: why do you think. Ben put a top on or something

Bal: no

Ben: I’m comfortable

Mal: I’m relaxed when he’s like this

(Evie sighs and looks defeated)

Doug: so what’s the plan

Mal: yeah about that. I’ve been thinking and I think I’ve connected the dots

Doug: oh?

Mal: yeah and it’s got to do with you and I sis

Evie (horrified): no

Mal: yah

Evie: no

Mal: yeah

Evie: nonono

Mal: yesyesyes

Evie: NO!

Mal: yes! Face it E we might be related

The boys: what?

Mal: think about it. Our mothers are the most self centred vainglorious batshit crazy bitches that side of the river Tiber. They would want the most powerful. Chernabog is a recluse and an altruist. The headless horseman has no mouth so can’t sing their praises. So all that’s left is the god of the dead

Evie: but I’m beautiful

Mal: and what am I. Corned beef?

Ben: I’d still marry you if you were corned beef if that helps

Mal: it does help surprisingly

Evie: but didn’t Maleficent say your dad was human?

Mal: villains lie E. That’s why I was always a disappointment

(Ben hugs her)

Adam (sauntering in like he owns the place): well isn’t that sweet.

Evie: what the hell are you doing here?

Adam: I’ve come to discuss the appalling situation that you let happen.

Mal: I’m sorry?

Adam: so you should be. Ben I have a plan. Put them all back and close it permanently

Doug: what

Adam: go back to the mine. It’s where you belong dwarf

Ben: ok you get out.

Adam: what?

Ben: you heard me. You’re not king. And you have no control over me my actions or my friends. So please. Get out

Adam: fine. But you should at least hear what happening since you had to have him save you

Doug: my names Doug but go on.

Adam: the people are in a panic. They’re terrified. If hades can escape others will try to. If you ask me

Bal and Devie: we didn’t

Adam: if you ask me I personally think it’s high time you do away with this ridiculous endeavour once and for all

Ben: no.

Adam: I wasn’t talking to you boy. I was talking to the future queen. Your people are scared. And even the poor are scared they lash out. Either way you’ll end up back where you cane from. You Carlos and the rest of the technicolour freaks that are destroying the property values that I painstakingly created. You are a “vk” are you not?

Mal: I’m not uh I uhm I don’t consider myself a vk anymore

Adam: then who? That is who you are right. Cradle to grave and all that rhetoric. Face it Mal. You are not an Auradon girl.

Elsa: oh you are so right beast. My daughter is not an Auradon girl. She’s the soon to be the queen of Auradon and isle AND she’s the princess of Arendelle. So that’s three titles to your zero. Meaning you’d do well to shut up

Adan: to what do I owe this...thing

Elsa: my daughter was hurt. So I’m checking on her. Like you should be doing for Ben. Or has belle finally ridding herself if you rendered you void of the most basic compassion for your son as well as everything else?

Adam: as I was saying. If my reasonable suggestion goes unheeded the people will rise up and there’s (a phone blasts out “backstreets back”) OH WHAT NOW!

Ben: it’s my cell phone. Doug would you be a dear and grav it for me

Doug: sure. But only if you put a top on?

Ben: I’ll think about it

(Doug snickers and answers the phone)

Doug: king Ben’s personal cell phone the major-domo speaking. Yes. Yes. Oh shit. Thank you for informing us (he hangs up) the wand, the spindle, Jafar’s staff and the magic mirror have been stolen from the museum

Bal, Elsa and Evie: what?

Mal: when?

Doug: two hours ago. There’s no security footage. The cameras were busted. Ten guards are dead. Two have had the hearts crushed. The rest were cut to pieces by glads shards

Adam: ok then. It’s decided. Round them up. I’ll get the trucks ready. We can have you and them all back by sundown

Elsa: you realise who you’re sounding like right now?

Adam: the only sane man. As it has been for years. Now Mal my dear. Your choice. Anarchy or order. Where’d she go

(Mal’s teleported away)

Evie: you poked the dragon.

Ben: I’ll go after. See if she’s ok

Elsa: no I will. This is a mother’s job

(She teleports after Mal and finds her in the dining room hyperventilating)

Mal: I can’t do it. I I can’t

(Elsa pulls her into a cool down hug)

Elsa: shhh shhh now. Don’t listen to him.

Mal: but he’s right. I’m going to be the queen. I should be thinking about these things. And ten people are dead. And some nutbag has some of the most powerful magical relics in existence

Elsa: but you still have the book and the sceptre. And the book. And if your hunch is correct. You’re half god. So

Mal: so, what?

Elsa: so...beast cannot lay a hand on you or Ben or anyone you care about. Not without your say so.

Mal: so what you’re saying is I hold all the cards

Elsa: essentially yes

Mal (weak laugh): why doesn’t that make me feel better

Elsa: because your upbringing had left you scarred and unable to make decisions that could impact people you care about

Mal: ... harsh but true

Elsa: listen

(This is when “brave” happens)

Mal: I can be brave. I can tell Adam where to stick it.

Elsa: I’ll supply the barge pole

Mal (cackling): please let me see that when it happens

Elsa: hmmmmm maybe

(Back in bal’s living room)

Evie: you’ve hated us all since the moment we arrived. You couldn’t stand the fact Ben chose my sister over the Hunan balloon animal you picked out.

Adam: sometimes the parent really does know best

Evie: said Gothel. Said Madame Mim. Said Jafar, Cruella, my mother, Yzma, Gaston, Maleficent and every single shitty parent we had to deal with over there. You’ve joined their ranks plain and simple

Adam: I am not one of them. You are. Upsetting the well defined status quo on a whim.

Ben: you were a bastard of a father and now you’re a bastard of a human being. The kingdom has me now. And I shan’t make the same mistakes errors and blatant crimes against humanity that you did

Adam: then you’ll be a disappointment as king.

Evie: oh for once in your life shut up and let others speak

Adam: PRETTY THINGS SHOULD SIT STILL AND REMAIN SILENT!

Evie: oh there’s my mother again. Doug honey did you know that she said that exact same thing to me when I stared talking?

Doug: oh my god I’m so sorry.

Evie: eh don’t be. I’m over it. Well mostly. But the fact that this idiot is saying it says plenty about his perceived moral superiority

Adam: if you can’t listen to reason I can always force you.

Evie: once again. My mother. Maleficent. Gaston. Jafar. Cruella. Mim. Medusa. Yzma. Hearts. Need I go on?

(In Ursula’s grotto Uma’s working on something)

V!Harry: what are you doing. Well. I know what you’re doing. I’m you. I’m just asking for the benefit of those out there

Uma: who?

Harry: nothing. Don’t worry.

Uma: ugh whatever. I’m working on an escape. If she thinks she can stop me she’s sorely mistaken

(This is when “speechless” happens)

(Mal bursts back in to the room)

Mal: alright here’s what’s going to happen. Ben, Evie you guys still wanna continue with the program?

Ben: yes

Evie: absolutely

Mal: then you do that. Because, Adam, we aren’t closing the barrier. You got that?

Adam: I really don’t think

Mal: I don’t care what you think. Nobody here cares what you think. You’re no longer king. Hence superfluous to the narrative. You’re nothing. The chain of command goes Ben, Doug, me, Evie

Evie: uh excuse me?

Doug: sorry hon. She’s right.

Ben: yeah. King, major-domo, queen, chancellor.

Evie: shit

Mal: so you can scream shout moan complain. But we’re not closing off the island. EVER!

Adam: you’ll regret this.

Mal: pretty sure we won’t.

(Adam stalks off)

Mal (immediately deflating): man I need a drink. Amethyst wine anyone?

Evie: do I even wanna know?

Mal: probably not.

Ben: it’s great. Just like the butter bars

(Evie turns green around the gills)

Doug: I’m probably gonna regret this but what’s in it

Mal: white wine. Vodka. A quarter pound of sugar. And it’s all mixed together with juiced violets. Hence the colour

Evie: that sounds disgusting.

Ben: oh it is. But we made it with magic so the potency is through the roof

Doug: meaning?

Ben: meaning it’ll get you blackout

Mal: shitfaced

Bal: blindingly drunk

Evie (forcing back a disgusted look): ahahaha. I’ll pass

Bal: suit yourself

(They commence drinking. In the isle chadeficent is looking on as Ursula goes belly up)

Chadeficent: need some help?

Ursula: my wretch of a daughter blew up my grotto and escaped with that mouth breathing pirate spawn. Of course I need help

(Chadeficent sends eerie magic hands, the exact type that ripped out Ariel’s voice, plucks out Ursula and drops her on the pier)

Ursula: now that that’s all settled. Who the hell are you

Chadeficent (now only using Maleficent’s voice): you tell me sea witch.

Ursula (unsurprised): you’ve literally never looked worse

Chadeficent (in Chad’s voice): hey watch it bitch!

Ursula: excuse me

Chadeficent (still in Chad’s voice): I mean seriously you look like a desaturated smurf.

Ursula (eyes glowing teal): Do you wanna say that again kid?

Chadeficent (in Maleficent’s voice): no he does not

Ursula (smirking): who’s body?

Chadeficent (both voices now): the son of Cinderella

Ursula: oooh a new meal?

Chadeficent: no. A tool (Maleficent’s voice) in more ways then one

Ursula: how’d you get here.

Chadeficent (both voices): the elongated horseless carriage

Ursula: so the limo

Chadeficent: yes.

Ursula (very much unimpressed): mhmm. Why are you back?

Chadeficent: I’m starting a coven. I assume you want in?

Ursula: eh what the hell. Wouldn’t be the first time we teamed up to ruin lives

Chadeficent: remember when we ruined for children’s lives simultaneously?

Ursula (mad): oh you mean that time my daughter was publicly humiliated and gained a dehumanising epithet all because your daughter acted out in anger at something the witches daughter did that left the freckled thing to be tortured by the furrier for a month?

Chadeficent: yes

Ursula (bark laughing): HA. Good times good times. So. What’s the plan

Chadeficent: we are going to break my daughter

Ursula: mind? Body? Soul? Spirit?

Chadeficent: all four

(In Auradon. Adam’s just sat down at the bar of a tavern)

Adam: double scotch on the rocks

Bartender: coming right up sir

Adam: never have kids Moliere

Bartender: my names not Moliere sir

Adam (not even listening): you raise them. You teach them. You impart your wisdom. Your values. And what do they do? Take a giant steaming shit on all you worked on and turn everything completely upside fucking down in the name of goddamn “progress”. Know what I’m saying?

Bartender: ohhhhkay?

(Adam gets off the stool and starts the jukebox. This is when “gold” starts.)

Bartender (very very scared now): sir. Your majesty are you ok?

Adam (pensively): no. No I’m not a majesty. Not anymore. Well. Not yet at least.

(He runs out of the tavern without paying)

Customer: what the hell was that all about?

Bartender: I don’t know. But I have a feeling little benny needs a warning.

[axelsandwich]

Sorting The Untamed characters

In which I have a lot of feelings about sorting The Untamed characters into @sortinghatchats​ classifications because I’m a LOSER NERD WITH FEELINGS : D

Wei Wu Xian - Gryffindor primary/Gryffindor secondary

WWX’s Gryff energy is like….what are you so LOUD for. There’s nothing he can do other than stick to his morals and principles and what his gut is telling him is the right thing to do, no matter the cost. Even if it makes him public enemy number one of the cultivation world, even if it exiles him from his family and clan, even if it goes against everything he was taught and involves helping and saving his worst enemies - see: Wen clan in Xuanwu cave, the cultivators in Burial Mound after losing their spiritual powers due to Su She. This is someone who adheres brightly and with his all to his principles simply because it is the RIGHT thing to do and he knows this with unshaken conviction and is steady once he discovers this, which has its own power. 

Honestly I was actually initially thinking between Slytherin with Claw and Claw secondary because WWX has an improvisational streak to him, managing to thrive even when thrown into the worst of circumstances with a combination of his own prodigious skill and flexibility when it comes to drastically relearning the dark arts to compensate for a lack of golden core. But here’s the passage that convinced me otherwise: “it is a Gryffindor’s stark, direct honesty makes them them feel the most secure. Lies, or even misdirects, are slippery footing. For a Gryffindor Secondary, their blunt honesty is a facet of their personality and their morality—lying about who or why you are taints the victory. A Gryffindor Secondary can and will lie if the cause is important enough— but it will leave a bad taste in their mouth the same way trusting a stranger with their honesty might terrify a Slytherin Secondary.” The blunt honest is self-evident in…well, WWX’s entire existence lmao but even when young in the Gusu Lan sect. But what convinces me is after WWX gets Chenqing and the way the great lie about why he doesn’t use Suibian anymore is framed afterwards. It kills WWX to lie about all that he is, it’s presented as one of the fundamental tragedies of his story - the ultimate betrayal of himself that he makes for a greater purpose and in pursuit of his Gryff primary ideals. The fact it’s not treated lightly or as a tool to be used to achieve his goals is what makes him a Gryff secondary. 

He models a Claw’s curiosity and intellectual fascination with questioning the world order and a Slytherin’s keen eye for motivations and people, but ultimately it comes down to that red thread of charging when backed into a corner - quite literally, he charges towards the Xuanwu, out of Chiongqi Road with the Wen prisoners, into the plaza of cultivators calling for his ashes, directly into Guanyin temple where Jingyi is in danger; he puts himself in harm’s way without a second thought when his gut is telling him he’s right to do so. He also has the classic Gryff secondary trait of amassing an accidental army in his wake of the most unlikely people, all transformed by his draw and that irresistible quality of truth to him. 

Lan Wang Ji - Gryffindor primary/Ravenclaw secondary

LWJ is a quiet version of the Gryffindor primary, raised in a culture that forces him into like…the strongest of all Ravenclaw models. He adheres strictly and obediently to the Lan clan’s system of the world because in his mind, it was the right thing to do… until WWX forces him to re-examine his morality, about what he was taught and everything he believed was right. And when his model of the world is challenged, what he ultimately goes with is…his heart. Not necessarily because his morality is guided by how WWX is his in the same way of Slytherin/Hufflepuff’s personal morality, but because WWX embodies the new insight that nothing is truly black or white in the way his clan’s system has taught; because LWJ feels that WWX is good, even when every other rule he’s been taught is saying otherwise and, little by little, he rebels quietly by dismantling those systems that once shaped his worldview. 

LWJ wrestles visibly with this the entire flashback arc of the drama, unable to bring himself to denounce WWX despite all the ‘bad’ he had done all the way until the Nightless City battle and when push came to shove, at the very end, he still chose to clutch onto WWX’s hand until WWX made the choice for him to let go. I do think he was ‘stripped’ by the experience - his internal compass, sense of purpose, and even sense of worth broken by the loss of WWX and that’s what he spends 16yrs atoning and suffering for. After WWX’s revival, he accordingly sets himself up against the cultivation world with no hesitation because he’s had 16yrs to regret not following his Gryff primary heart that said WWX’s way of seeing the world is right and he’s not going to falter again. 

Ravenclaw secondary bc……his first instinct when his boyfriend was changed by demonic cultivation was to flip the library upside down trying to find a cure and try to invent a whole ass song to cure him nghghghshf. But yes, he’ll fall back on systems, skills and knowledge he’s carefully built from the ground up when backed in a corner, drawing on what he’s known and carefully cultivated, looking through resources to try and gain more knowledge. 

Wen Qing - Slytherin primary/Slytherin secondary

Wen Qing’s morality and driver is very simple. It’s her brother at the start, her family, and gradually expands as people help him and - by extension - her: WWX, LWJ, Jiang Cheng. For them, she’ll betray the wider clan with very few qualms because they’re not her people and those who are hers come first. She connects with Jiang Cheng on the basis of both their Slytherin primaries, but understands immediately that he would never have gone with her to rescue Wen Ning because while she may tentatively be one of ‘his’ people in his mind, Wen Ning isn’t, and so any future with him is tragically unaccepted. When it comes down to sacrificing even the brother she holds so dear, she does it in the hope that her people - WWX and her wider family by proxy - may be saved from the cultivation world’s wrath. She’s a Slytherin secondary because she’s adaptable and able to draw on whatever skills she needs and be who she needs to be to achieve her goals, with a knack for zeroing in precisely on people’s true motivations and what will and won’t work with a cultivation society looking to find a bad guy. You can bet she’s the one who figured out how to trick Jiang Cheng into believing he could get his golden core back. It’s telling that her most emotional moments are when she lays down all her defences and sincerely speaks from the heart - whether it’s crying over Wen Ning’s body or thanking Wei Wu Xian and apologising. ; _ ; Wen Qing is a good egg. 

Jiang Cheng - Slytherin primary/Gryff secondary

It’s clear from the start that Jiang Cheng’s morality revolves around his family who are his and come above everyone else, along with his pride (but we’re not gonna talk about thatttt...). His impassioned plea of ‘it was enough to just save ourselves, why did you have to save them’ re: bringing the Wen clan wrath upon the Jiang clan proves he could never see eye to eye with WWX’s Gryffindor primary that demands what is right be applied to all, and therein lies the source of their feud, when we get to the pointy end and doing what’s right involves a lot more sacrifice and hardship. Jiang Cheng’s very specialised loyalty is tested over and over throughout the beginning of the series by outsiders casting suspicion on WWX’s motivations, pricking at his pride and his deep set insecurities about his own position and whether he’s actually loved by the people he’s claimed as his own and also on their priority list (see: his father, WWX). 

What truly makes him give up and cut WWX out of his circle is when WWX himself says ‘I exile myself from the tribe’. In Jiang Cheng’s eyes, to betray the people who are yours is what is unforgivable and impossible to understand, and that’s what comes out as the most deeply buried point of pain in Guanyin temple and what’s driven JC’s anger the last sixteen years. That doesn’t make him any less of an extreme Gryff secondary than WWX, whether it’s charging straight into the feared Burial Mound where no one’s ever come out alive just to drag his brother out and confront him about all the problems directly, to confronting WWX directly in Lotus Cove, to marching into Guanyin temple’s front door. Which is probably why they fight. We also find out in the end that Jiang Cheng is fully capable of the same dumb self sacrifice that WWX made for him. Ironically, both of their actions boil down to ‘I must protect my brother’, except where WWX does it because it’s right, Jiang Cheng does it because that’s his brother. 

Jin Guangyao - Slytherin primary/Slytherin secondary

WWX’s diametric opposite. I do think he seems like a petrified Slytherin - Guanyin temple arc reveals that his world once comprised at least of himself and his mother, and perhaps the idealised image of who his father would be, and he strove and strove until his father shattered all his dreams, until his world narrows until it’s ultimately and dangerously comprised of just himself. I do think Nie Mingjue, Su She, Qin Su and Lan Xichen came the closest to who he would consider ‘his’ people, but even that falls away as they ‘betray’ him and because his actions are ultimately guided by his loyalty only to himself, and warps exactly what he interprets as ‘betrayal’. This is what allows him to betray them when they ultimately fall out of line with JGY’s priorities and give them such cruel endings despite how much he professes to treasure them. It’s what creates his resentment against NMJ that festers until it leads to NMJ’s demise - in JGY’s eyes, to throw aside everything in their relationship for the sake of some lowly, subhuman captain who’s always treated JGY with contempt and to keep holding it against him is incomprehensible, unforgivable. It’s also why LXC stabbing him is met with such choking disbelief and anger - because JGY, true to his word, would have never entertained the concept of betraying a person who was proving to be his and LXC was his last hope. His secondary Slytherin allows him to transform and shift with the wind, shedding personas and layers as easily as water, the same way it pains WWX to do the same. 

Nie Huaisang - Slytherin primary/Slytherin secondary 

Jin Guangyao’s equal and foil, ironically also putting up a very self-entered front in the world where it seems like he only cares about his own self interests but quietly loyal to a select number of people who are his - WWX, his elder brother - and will quietly work in the shadows playing the long con to systematically dismantle everything about the person he despises. Slytherin secondary allows him to make himself a fool without any qualms about it not being a reflection of his true face or authentic self, and pull the puppet strings on even those he cares about until he gets to where he wants to be. 

Lan XiChen - Ravenclaw primary/Ravenclaw secondary

Xichen sticks much more closely to what his clan’s systems are and his carefully constructed understanding of the world and that’s what both blinds him to JGY and shakes his worldview so heavily when JGY reveals himself to be a villain. But his felt morality, guided by the system of being just and fair is also what allows him to reject JGY and entertain the possibility of his betrayal. A Slytherin primary may stubbornly cling to faith in a person that he sees as ‘his’ person, but a Ravenclaw primary will feel guilty and immoral to be sticking with them despite knowing they’re betraying the system of justice that he prides above all. It’s what allows him to be an ally to both WWX/LWJ and JGY for the latter half of the series, trying to understand and question the logical holes in WWX and LWJ’s arguments. Where WWX and LWJ don’t have evidence for JGY being evil, they can feel it in their guts and they charge towards getting that evidence based on those convictions. LXC on the other hand may sense something in his gut but he will not act against JGY without being convinced of said evidence, until he is certain of what the real truth is and will methodically keep digging and questioning the evidence being presented to him until it becomes undeniable. It’s also telling that his anger when Huaisang manipulates him into stabbing JGY is not so much about the fact he betrayed his friend (which is the key pain point that JGY angrily latches onto) but that Huaisang may have been lying, that LXC may have acted on something that was not true and he had been unable to see through that. It’s a subtle difference I think, but what separates his primary. I think his Ravenclaw secondary is pretty obvious in the thoroughness of his methods and the ways we’ve seen him dodge the Wen clan, to be willing to work with JGY during the Sunshot Campaign. It requires flexibility of thinking and drawing on a range of resources and that’s what LXC quietly excels at. 

Jiang Yanli & Wen Ning - Hufflepuff primary/Hufflepuff secondary

Both are honestly quite similar — they’ll hold onto their belief in the basic goodness of all people, regardless of allegiance and regardless of their past history and that’s the source of what endears them to people and why they manage to build an army of people who would die and care for them when push comes to shove. 

The little we see of both Yanli and Wen Ning’s way of operating from a secondary perspective revolves around being of service to others, being a source of reliability, support and consistency, quietly building, strengthening and contributing to their little community. Wen Ning quietly and diligently attends to WWX’s protection at all times, reliably taking on the roles allocated to him with a genuine commitment to performing them to his best ability. 

When they ‘fight’, they fight by drawing on their resources, through a thorough, systematic and relentless persistance. A Li’s approach to the battle of words on Phoenix Mountain is an example of this - she draws upon her position, her knowledge of what is ‘proper’ to do within the community and the goodwill she’s built with Madame Jin to subtly dismantle Jin Zixun’s arguments while still pleasantly entrapping him in the niceties of the community she’s a part of without alienating herself the same way WWX can’t help but do with his bluntness. When JC threatens to push WWX to the limits of his endurance, Wen Ning defends WWX through words, standing up again and again despite being violently thrown back and systematically dismantling all of JC’s defence mechanisms by thoroughly and sincerely pushing back on every false claim and even urging JC to call on the community to verify the truth of his words. They’re indomitable, stubborn and effective and that’s Puff/Puff energy right there.

Jin Ling - Gryff primary/Gryff secondary

Gryff primary…why are you so LOUD for Pt 2. Poor Jingyi, two Gryff secondary uncles and father…he had no chance lmaaaao. Impulsive, reckless, absolutely a ‘charge first and ask questions later’ kid and screaming Gryff secondary. Will bash a hole in a wall when he’s denied entry and get caught by the skeleton demons than like…find another way around, you know? Or charge into Guanyin temple without much second thought. His Gryff primary and his gut morality of what is right - aka. trusting WWX and treating him with fairness - ultimately wins against him being pushed hard into the whole ‘pride in your clan only’ angle by his Slytherin primary uncle, and that’s what allows him to become a WWX duckling (begrudgingly) despite all his puffery and objections. It’s also what lets him survive and accept the betrayal of seeing his other uncle revealed as a villain and how he’s able to reject JGY when his misdeeds become undeniable. I also think it’s super cute he’s the same type as WWX, honestly...it’s why I love their dynamic. He’s the young, unjaded version of his uncle.    

Lan Sizhui - Puff primary/Gryff secondary with a Claw model?

There’s a kindness to Shizui that he extends to Mo Xuanyu, Jin Ling and Wen Ning against convention and despite - in Jin Ling’s case - how hard he tries to create distance in that relationship that makes me think Puff primary and his determination to see everyone as people to be respected. I feel like we don’t see enough of Sizhui in action to really be able to determine his secondary - he has something of secondary Puff/Claw vibes in the way he comes across as quietly diligent, reliable and insightful, but he’s also got a certain amount of fire when he needs to - grabbing people’s legs as a kid, making a move towards possessed Song Lan in Yi City despite WWX telling them all to get out, brawling with the other ducklings when tied up, rushing recklessly back up the Burial Mound path to find WWX and LWJ who were holding back the ghouls etc. Maybe a secret Gryff secondary that’s normally held in place by a Claw or Puff model. 

[morsking]

tangentially relevant to agartha (even though i would’ve preferred not to talk about this at agartha’s intervention) if only because hazuki minase failed to realize this but fate/stay night and by extension fate/zero and fate/grand order are about not only exposing the mistakes of previous generations but also proving the fundamental principles they are based on wrong. the thing is though that’s not just limited to the three founding families, kiritsugu himself, or the animuspheres’ experiments. it reaches all the way back to our most ancient real-life myths and their concepts of what makes a hero.

kiritsugu in fate/zero symbolizes the classical (greek) hero, and in fact there are several tropes within his character that fall in line to that archetype. he’s got veritable prowess in combat (he involves himself in wars only when the fighting is at its most intense), he has unshakable principles of right, wrong, salvation, and service to humanity that double as his hamartia. but among other things, he possesses an extremely gendered trope, probably his most gendered one by far: he has a woman he must sacrifice for his ideals and principles, despite loving and treasuring her dearly (well, two women, but let’s not get into illyasviel right now).

this is an extremely common trope in myth that has persisted into contemporary fiction. women are often brutalized to serve as a stepping stone for a man’s development and eventual victory (or defeat) against his opposition. this trope is so aggravatingly ingrained into western culture it is almost impossible to find media, particularly adult and teenage media, where this doesn’t happen.

and nasu seems to be aware of this, as fate/zero’s main story beats and major developments were written by nasu himself while handing the actual story to gen urobuchi to adapt, intentionally trying to draw that parallel between kiritsugu and shirou and irisviel and sakura. nasu wished to explore that particular topic of gender in the stories central to western society, deconstruct why women are so prolifically slaughtered for their masculine protagonists, and propose a more logical, more heroic, more empathetic choice to this cultural decision.

kiritsugu makes the choice to sacrifice irisviel as the vessel of the holy grail and use her death as the necessary vehicle for the miracle that will make his dream of a conflict-free world to come true. it destroys kiritsugu from the inside. it makes him hate himself, engaging in extreme measures of self-punishment like sleeping with maiya while being married to irisviel (god i fucking hate you urobuchi) to make himself suffer with guilt. kiritsugu is obviously scared and reluctant, and even considers running away with irisviel and illya far away from the grail war and the einzberns.

and the thing is, he doesn’t HAVE to do those things. he doesn’t HAVE to let irisviel die, fight the grail war, and potentially risk illya meeting the same fate as her mother. he doesn’t have to punish himself, he doesn’t have to stay, he doesn’t have to follow the einzberns’ orders, he doesn’t have to be a violent mercenary and killing machine, he doesn’t have to do ANYTHING. as much as i detest prisma illya, this is a path that’s lampshaded in that parallel storyline. kiritsugu and irisviel just slaughter the einzberns, dismantle the holy grail war, and take illya to live a merry normal life where she doesn’t have to know conflict or trauma or abandonment or sacrifice.

fate/zero intentionally portrays kiritsugu’s choice as difficult and wrong. the grail shows him that if everyone thought as he did and was allowed to project and amplify that method, sacrificing the few for the many, then eventually not a single person but himself would be left (also showing him what his true desire is: to simply be with his family while forsaking the rest of the world, more metaphorically than literally). kiritsugu’s path is painful, lonely, and above all, unnecessary. unnecessary because it’s painful and lonely, and that’s just no way to live and conduct oneself. 

in contrast, shirou refuses to sacrifice sakura. unlike classical heroes, shirou doesn’t sacrifice a woman for his principles, he makes the empathetic, humane, choice to sacrifice his principles for a woman, for a fellow person rather than consider her a monolith on which he can project his emotions and ideals and ultimately destroy for angst and moral validation. nasu criticizes that long-standing textual masculine selfishness and ego-centrism by providing that alternative choice. nasu tries to send the message that instead of sacrificing people that we hold dear, we should hold them closer, we should protect the happiness of those we love. if we all did so, then no one would ever have to be lost, nobody would ever have to be in need of saving, and in that manner, everyone would be saved. 

i said i didn’t want to talk about this in relation to agartha, but sadly this is a part of the conversation that made it here because it just happened to be relevant. agartha could have been a further exploration of this trope. penthesilea, dahut, scheherazade, and wu zetian all had their lives shaped by men. penthesilea met her death in battle, a humiliating demise on top of having her sister also being wronged by hercules, developing an understandable and perhaps even righteous grudge against male greek heroes. dahut’s demise was decided by a priest (in some versions of the story) because she was prophecized to be evil, and this could have been an opportunity to explore the classic fate discussion of “is one evil because one is born evil, or because one is made evil, and who decides what good and evil are?” 

scheherazade is obvious and many people have already touched upon her and how she could’ve been portrayed much better and nuanced. wu zetian on the other hand, constantly found herself stonewalled and impeded by men in court who absolutely did not want her to be in charge and tried to sabotage her ascension to the throne, and therefore could have been the central figure of a critical discussion of historical institutionalized misogyny and gender essentialism (rather than a reinforcing of gender essentialism via young fergus).

regardless of agartha, those are my thoughts on nasu and fate in exploring the gendered aspects of myth and how they correlate to modern literature and meda.

[bigskydreaming]

So this is kinda a Bobby Drake post but its also kinda not because its more of a just in general musing on characterization and what distinguishes between a character being written as in character and as wildly OOC. So its actually rooted in a lot of Dick Grayson thoughts I’ve been having lately, as well as being relevant to some Scott McCall musings.

Its a Martha Stewart Home Living pot-pourri thingamabob! Something for everyone! I think. I don’t really know what pot-pourri is or even how to spell it and I don’t really know why the fuck I pulled a Martha Stewart reference out of my ass in the year 2019, like, none of these things are like any other thought I’ve ever had ever, like...who am I right now. Whatever. Shut up. My metaphor absolutely works and this isn’t just my brain on sleep deprivation. I like, totally get symbolism.

OKAY! RIGHT! ACTUAL CONTENT OF THIS POST:

So, the only adaptation Iceman’s had just a very minimal presence in was the 90s X-Men animated series. He only appeared in one episode, in one of the later seasons, and most people talk about that episode as though Bobby was wildly out of character because he told no jokes, yelled quite a bit, and told Scott to fuck off a lot, which is also what he did in a flashback scene to when he quit being an X-Man years before the show started, and retired from the hero life to settle down with Lorna.

Except the thing is, that episode is actually WAY more true to his overall characterization than Frosted Flakes in the X-films ever was, or also, pretty much any time Bendis writes him or other writers use him in similar ways to him - like that thing where Bobby stands in the background and says one-liners and also occasionally does something with his powers whilst monologuing about what he’s doing and how.

Because Bobby absolutely is that cheerful, determinedly optimistic heart of the team at a lot of times (sound familiar, lol)....but like.....he also historically has a decades long history of being written as the team hothead when for instance its just the original five and there’s not one of the X-Men’s other resident hotheads available to fill the role of the impulsive troublemaker who second guesses Scott’s decisions in order to make Scott actually think things through. Like the thing in the cartoon about Bobby quitting the team and storming off because he was fed up with Xavier constantly lying to them all and keeping secrets from them - that was lifted STRAIGHT from the original run of the comics, where he did precisely that, for precisely those reasons. Bobby was actually the X-character calling Xavier on his bullshit long before Scott started being written that way, ironically enough....

In fact, during Simonson’s original X-Factor run, it was pretty much ALWAYS Bobby filling that role going against the grain and questioning their official decisions and making everyone else think things through. Because at the time, Warren was pretty much entirely focused on his Archangel issues, Hank was dealing with his continuing physical mutations, that also had a side effect for awhile of giving him a host of mental health issues that interfered with his ability to reason through things as intelligently as he usually did....

And Scott and Jean were of course constantly getting bombarded with Sinister drama and trying to raise their kid except oh no, an evil fox person from a thousand years in the future has kidnapped him and infected him with Minecraft and now this giant asshole who looks like the bastard lovechild of a Transformer and a Smurf is quoting the Book of Revelations like he’s standing on a NY street corner wearing a sandwich board and ringing a damn bell. They all had shit going on, so it was actually Bobby who the kids staying with them (Rictor and Tabitha and Rusty and Skids and Wiz Kid) usually went to first when they had problems or like, Julio got kidnapped again or shit like that. 

Point being, there are many many instances and entire runs of different books between the 60s and the early 90s where Bobby is a happy go lucky jokester, its true....but he’s equally depicted as this guy who runs pretty hot and he’s not going to blindly follow orders that sound fucking dumb to him, he’s going to ask Scott to break it down for them or go back to the drawing board because “why are we pretending to hunt other mutants again and just leaning into the anti-mutant hysteria? Guys? Is it just me or does this all seem really fucking dumb and counter productive?” Like he makes jokes when he can afford to spare the spoons for that, but he knows how to be serious when the occasion calls for it.

Its just after the big Blue/Gold relaunch in the 90s, writers just....stopped writing him this way. But given that the cartoon was written and aired....in the early 90s....those previous decades of Bobby being written this way WERE the source material they were going off of at the time.

So that character most fans EXPECTED to see when they watched the cartoon in later years and saw he was guest-starring in an episode - like yeah, that is very much his characterization and always was.....on his good days. But like everyone (and certain other faves of mine, lmao) he has his bad days too, and guess what counts as a bad day? 

Coming home to find out that secret government agents have kidnapped your girlfriend and when tracking her down to rescue her discovering that no, wait, actually she was not kidnapped at all, that was a job offer and she accepted and just....did not tell her live-in boyfriend that hey, I’m gonna go be a superhero again but like...for the government which is completely the opposite but whatever, look the point is don’t freak out or think I was abducted or anything because that’s definitely not what happened here, I just dumped you and started dating my new team leader Havok and forgot where I put my Dear John letter. (You want to talk OOC in that episode, it wasn’t Bobby that was unrecognizable, it was Lorna).

But like, that’s a BAD FUCKING DAY. That’s a day where it would be utterly bizarre for Bobby to be acting the way he often does, like he doesn’t have a care in the world, trying to make light of situations and buoy spirits, which he can AFFORD to do, because usually he is not the central focus of big team-encompassing plots....its rarely him tied directly into the angst of the story, freeing him up to be the guy who focuses on making sure the morale of the teammates more directly affected by the angst doesn’t like....dip into the negative integers.

But you just flat out can’t do that with him in a story where THE ANGST IS ALL HIS, its CENTERED around him, because if he was right in the thick of all that and wisecracking and acting like this was any other mission, its no big deal....he’s going to come across as the world’s most immature, shallow and emotionally insensitive dumbass, because there is a time and a place for that, and that time and that place is not when you think your girlfriend has been abducted by the government and then find out that nah dude, she just disinvited herself from your relationships, whoops, sux2BU.

So if you take any given scene from that one episode and hold it up for comparison against say, a comic written in the last five years where he himself has relatively low stakes in whatever adventure he’s having.....those two characterizations are going to look COMPLETELY at odds. Like one or the other has to be WILDLY OOC because like, the two depictions seem like they’re depicting two entirely different men.

But they’re not. They’re just depicting one man in two entirely different contexts. We all take our cues from the situations we find ourselves in and our physical and social location and environments. We’re all totally different people on our best days than we are on our worst days. But these are all just....different facets of any given individual because we’re all fucking complicated little contrarians who often don’t even make sense to OURSELVES let alone outside perspectives. We each contain freaking multitudes. We are a million different things over the course of our life, and snapshots taken twenty years apart often are gonna look like we got a personality transplant between now and then...because we’re not MEANT to skip over twenty years of in between continuity and act like that doesn’t make all the difference in the world. The journey IS just as important as the destination.

And I guess the point of this particular post is that....IMO the key to strong characterization is recognizing that any character can theoretically be capable of just about any response or action or choice....in the right situation. None of us, no matter how well we know ourselves, can actually say we know for sure how we would react if suddenly dropped in a situation we had zero prior experience with. So I think where a lot of writers get turned around when writing characterizations is they go into a plot, an outline, a narrative, with their mind focused on the characterization they want to show, the way they want to depict a certain character.....instead of letting the situation, the scene, the narrative, inform that character’s actual characterization in this specific context.

If you try and FORCE a certain behavior with a character because you’ve rounded up and that’s the over-all characterization you personally enjoy best with that character, so that’s what you want to write....without fully taking into consideration how the stressors and other aspects of the situation they’re in that are UNIQUE to that situation, that are things they perhaps haven’t encountered before or dealt with often...and thus are things that would be MOST likely to prompt or provoke an unusual or more extreme response from a character than they would normally show in most other situations....that’s when characters get bent out of shape and end up most OOC, I think.

Because writers try and squeeze specific attitudes or reactions or behaviors out of characters caught up in a scenario where those attitudes are just....not appropriate responses to what’s happening around them. And thus they end up coming across as 2-Dimensional, more aggressive than the actual situation calls for, or more immature than the gravity of the actual situation warrants...they end up coming across like they’re a name card placed on top of a situation rather than a character immersed in all three dimensions and existing fully as PART of the situation...because the writers aren’t LETTING them. They’re not letting the character actually engage with what’s happening, react in the moment, have an unexpected response....because they’ve already decided what they want the character’s overall ‘feel’ to be before the actual situations were even written in the first place. 

And written like that, a character is never going to feel real. They’re always going to feel like an afterthought, like something hastily thrown on top of the otherwise completed project as a last minute addition you want to at least make sure is THERE because it just occurred to you that crap, I totally forgot to include this totally crucial element, and you don’t want it to seem like you just completely forgot that thing existed.....but that slapdash shot taken from halfway across the court when the buzzer’s already started ringing and you’re late to school with absolutely no more time to make changes...like....its still usually not gonna do anything to help improve your grade, because just because you threw it in at the very last possible second doesn’t mean that its presence is actually contributing anything to the entire project...especially not when compared to all the other elements you took your time thinking through and carefully integrating into their proper places.