#THE NOVELS BASICALLY GIVE YOU EACH CHARACTERS ACTUAL PROPER ENDING | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

lecliss · 2 years

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I finished ff7. Hearing the series theme is what got to me. Im sad. I miss it 😭😭😭😭

Anyway uhhhhh, thoughts. My opinion on Aerith sure did change thats for sure. Getting to see the original version in person, she was hilarious sometimes and other times I was just like 'girl what the fuck is wrong with you'. I ended up genuinely feeling nothing for her. Sephiroth was also very unintentionally funny to me and I couldn't take him seriously. I felt like he meant nothing. Not necessarily to me like with Aerith, but like to the story. Like yeah he meant something to Cloud as an enemy, but man. The extra context you get from Crisis Core is like, actually necessary for Seph to become an actual fucking character, lol.

On the other side, I definitely have always loved Cid, but now there's a real possibility that he might best Vincent as my fave character in the entire series. That one crewmate on the airship calling him warmhearted nearly had me bursting into tears. I love him so much. He means the world to me. I want to be hugged by him please for the love of god. And Tifa is best girl.

And like, in terms of the story, maybe its just cuz Ive done so much research going over everything about the story for years and years that knowing everything beforehand lessened the experience, but like. Well... I think 8, 10, and 13 actually have better stories. Tho I think 13 is more of a personal preference. Maaaybe 8 too cuz everything about Squall makes me cry and my opinion toward Cloud was mostly 'yeah thats Cloud' the whole time, but like. The story of 8 isn't all that much, tho still slightly better than 7. I think what really helps 7 is the existence of the compilation as a whole when plenty of the other games never got sequels or novels or movies and all that. But 10, yeah thats the one babey. This has solidified that 10 is top tier.

Anyway Im gonna rewatch Advent Children probably tomorrow and then replay Dirge of Cerberus probably the day after. And then I'll just cry everyday until the Crisis Core remake comes out so I can see Zack and Genesis again.

#like idk. i think my problem is that it felt like it wasnt done at the end. like there was so much that just felt. like thr story there #wasnt complete #and thats where you need extra stuff from the rest of the compilation #like seph felt flat without the context from cc #the thing with zack is like. who the fuck is that??? until you play cc #the stuff added to DoC gives everything to vincent that he needed and didnt get #THE NOVELS BASICALLY GIVE YOU EACH CHARACTERS ACTUAL PROPER ENDING #thats the thing!!!!! you get to the end of the game and its like. okay now wheres the fucking ending????#people lost their minds over this shit in 1997???#me saying 8 is probably better than 7 is probably a death sentence tho lol. like if i said that on a forum in 1999 i woulda been banned #tho saying 10 is best is not nearly as much of a divisive opinion #for real for me the compilation is the best part of 7. not the base game. tho it may just be where the focus on the things i like is at #personal #long post

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gayemeralds · 3 months

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i would like to know any novel gayemeralds thoughts about. knuckle <- predictable. (or mayhaps whoever non-shadow you’d like to talk about bc we’ve all heard enough about the corpse they keep dragging out for today)

thoughts on knuckles…… you know despite the fact he’s intimately connected to a million things in life i surprisingly don’t have a whole lot of thoughts on him. but I’ll give you my top three

1) i like to think he probably raised tails more than sonic did. classic sonic especially was not the type to be tied down, and i can’t see him being interested in basically raising a kid. he’d let tails tag along on adventures but i think tails spent a majority of his time hanging out with knuckles. knuckles was sort of annoyed at sonic just dropping tails off at his doorstep every few weeks but tails was eager to learn everything he could about Angel island and echidna culture and lore and knuckles was e static to find someone who would listen. knuckles had also just broken out of a 12ish year isolation period so the social contact with tails (after the mess with eggman and sonic, whom he still had very conflicting feelings on) was nicer than he would ever admit. knuckles and tails do hang out with each other outside of sonic, like in sonic heroes, so i like to imagine they really bonded during the classic era

2) to me the eventuality of the sonic franchise is that all the chaos energy eventually gets destroyed. so when that happens sonic chronicles has already taken place. echidnas have populated angel island and are taking proper care of it. the master emerald is gone. so i think knuckles, rouge, and amy eventually partner up to go treasure hunting for a few years, glob trotting the world in search of ancient history and artifacts. they spend a lot of their time trying to piece together ancient history (like the precursors, babylons, gaia temples, ancients, etc).

3) i kind of think knuckles should be in less games. he’s a very stationary character and it doesn’t make sense to involve him in adventures where the master emerald isn’t involved or the world isn’t completely ending. i think his duty vs desire conflict, wherein the master emerald keeps him stationary despite his own interest in travel/treasure hunting is a very important part of his character, and at the moment i wish they would explore that more if they keep having him in random games. that said i also kind of wish they would actually Use him more- like use the master emerald in games more, and by extension knuckles himself (to where it makes sense). that wasn’t coherent but like. i want knuckles around i just wish they would do a better job of why and maybe lean into how him being there is him being conflicted by his duty/desires instead of him just Being There.

bonus: i need a knuckles chaotix reboot right fucking now i have the perfect pitch for it (mighty and ray go missing and knuckles enlists the chaotix’s help to find them as their backstory)

#i also have. a surprisingly amount of thoughts about his relationship with silver #master emerald brothel #knuckles……………….

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citrus-cactus · 8 months

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I LOVE this series!!! Have you drawn a Dracula+Jonathan version? Or planning Dracula+Lucy/Mina version? Or Jonathan+Mina, as even if they haven't blood transfused each other, they've clung and got "stained together with vampire blood" in the process

I was holding off on answering this until the series was complete, but aaaaah thanks Anon, that’s so sweet! I’m glad you enjoyed them, and I’ve really enjoyed reading people’s’ comments and responses in the tags (<3) so I’m gonna take some time to ramble for a sec because I’ve thought a LOT about Alternate Dracula Ballet Stuff!

I didn’t necessarily have the scenes you mentioned in mind, if only because the Michael Pink ballet does SUCH a great job telling the story with the Count as the focal point (particularly Act 1 with Jonathan at the castle. I don’t think anything I could draw could possibly improve it!! Also uh… I haven’t figured out a character design for Jonathan I’m happy with yet, he’s tricky ^^;).

Following Dracula Daily last year, I became really attached to the parts of the novel that focused on Lucy, and basically everything from August onward, so that’s where my brain started going “I NEED TO SEE THESE SPECIFIC THINGS AND THERE NEED TO BE POINTE SHOES INVOLVED,” ahaha.

Because I will NOT get to all of these, here’s a list of some other book-based ballet scenes I have in my head, just to get them out there. Hopefully I can actually draw some more of them someday, even if I don’t possess the time or art skills needed to do all of them justice! Honestly though, Dracula + ballet goes together so well, and there are so many cool things you could do to tell this story through dance. If other people wanted to use these, or had other interpretations, I’d love to see the final results! BALLET ALL THE THINGS!!!

I’m sure my idealized version would accidentally end up being 5 hours long, BUT WHATEVER here’s my list:

Include the three proposals as a way to introduce Lucy and the Suitor Squad. They DO all need to dance together in a pas de quatre, too :3

Mina and Lucy dancing together in Whitby; call it “Castles in the Air.” Mr. Swales and the News Correspondent can make an appearance too, plus the sleepwalking rescue.

Mina and Jonathan pas de deux post-Transylvania: he starts out bed-ridden but eventually gains enough strength to dance with her; they get married and he gives her his journal (still important that he uses a cane for a while though!)

Because of spoilers for things that happen after September 20th, I’m gonna put the rest under a cut.

Jack and Van Helsing dance together showing their Incredible Dynamic(tm) (+ late September graveyard shenanigans??)

The Suitor Squad (ESPECIALLY ARTHUR) dances with the Bloofer Lady (it’s about the symmetry. THE PARALLELS!!!)

Big ol’ Crew of Light montage to represent them coming together, reading each other’s notes, and becoming a proper polycule friends. Lots of possibilities for interesting dance combinations here*, plus something-something October 3rd :)

Post-October 3 pas de deux between Mina and Jonathan FOR SURE. Let them be INTENSE!!!

Bring the Weird Sisters back for a showdown with VH and Mina, let it be creepy and gothic af (because at first, you’re not sure whose side Mina is even on…?) and ultimately, she gets to shotgun a vamp or two, as a treat :D

*I DO really love the Mina-Renfield pas de deux in the Michael Pink version too. I didn’t expect that combination of characters to dance together before I watched it, but it was SO GOOD!!

#dracula daily #re:dracula #dracula #dracula (1897)#asks #anon #ballet #dance #lucy’s illness pas de deux #the cactus speaks

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h-worksrambles · 1 year

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How to get into Echo

I’ve been posting, reblogging and writing about Echo quite a lot over the past few months. I don’t think it’ll surprise anyone when I say this is one of my favourite games I played in 2022. But I’m sure some of my followers are looking at these posts and wondering what exactly Echo is. God help you, some of you may actually want to try it out. So to give myself an additional excuse to talk about this game, here’s a short spoiler-free guide to getting into Echo and its assorted spin offs.

What is Echo?

Echo is an indie horror visual novel following a group of anthropomorphic animals and former childhood friends whose reunion in the town where they all grew up quickly grows awry. You play as a 21 year old otter and college student, Chase Hunter, who returns to his old home to investigate the town’s history and reunite with his old friend group, only for things to go very wrong, very fast. The game explores a mix of psychological and supernatural horror as the characters are forced to confront their pasts, their inner demons, as well as their fractured interpersonal relationships as they attempt to unravel the truth behind the town.

The game uses a route system common in visual novels and plays with the tropes of dating sims in particular. About 2 hours in you pick a dedicated route for one of five characters, each one of Chase’s oldest friends, and follow their personal narrative making choices as you go. Each route has a pretty hefty amount of content and several have multiple endings. Depending on individual reading speed, seeing every route could take around 25 hours give or take. And it’s highly recommended to do all of them to get the full story. Very little content is repeated between them and they’re all substantial worthwhile stories.

That’s the basics of the basics in order to give you the lowdown without spoiling anything. But just know that the game is free to download, and is absolutely worth it if you’re interested in expertly written slow burn horror, intelligent character writing, and complex, flawed LGBT+ characters.

Anything I should know going in?

As much as I want to reccomend Echo there are some important qualifiers before going in.

1) This game is NOT SUITABLE for those under 18. Echo is a exceptionally dark horror game with numerous topics of adult subject matter. It is clearly marked on its download site as 18+ so pay attention to that warning.

2) Building off my last point, the thematic material of this game is heavy, and it’s important to give proper content warnings. There’s frankly a lot of ground to cover but the biggest warnings would be: Graphic depictions of violence, descriptions of sex, as well as portrayal and discussion of sensitive topics including homophobia, racism, drug addiction, mental illness, emotional abuse, sexual assault and torture.

Take the developers’ advice and be considerate of your own mental well-being before starting the game. There is no shame in deciding this isn’t for you.

Any advice on how to go about playing?

Honestly the best advice is to go blind. Make whatever choices make sense to you in the moment, and be sure to save regularly, so you can go back and try different outcomes. Several of the routes have multiple endings so keep plenty of saves handy to pick up where you left off and experiment with the game’s choice system.

There is some dispute among fans about recommended route order. I maintain that you can play the various routes in any order and enjoy the story regardless, so just go for whichever of the main characters you think is interesting to start with. By the time you play every route, you should understand everything no matter the order. The route split is very clearly signposted so you’ll know it when you see it. However, if you’re having a hard time deciding, the developers have suggested following the routes in the order they were completed back when the story was being periodically released in updates during the game’s beta. That order being:

1) Carl. 2) Leo. 3 ) TJ. 4) Flynn. 5) Jenna.

But again, feel free to divert from this order if you’d prefer.

You can download Echo at itcho.io for free.

I finished Echo. What do I look for next?

The first thing I would say is once you’ve finished all the routes, click on the image of the lake on the title screen. There’s a bonus menu there with some content that, no spoilers, you’ll probably want to check out when you’re done with the game.

After that there are three other spin offs of Echo I would suggest looking into if you’re hungry for more. And I’ll go into each of them one by one here.

It’s also worth remembering that all three of these titles are also 18+ and two of them are also full on horror titles. As such, many of the same content warnings still apply.

Route 65

This is a short prequel visual novel that shows a point in time where the main characters were all teenagers. Specifically, it follows Chase, the protagonist of Echo, over the course of the day he comes out to his friends and family as gay. This gives you a chance to see the cast at a younger age and get insight as to how their dynamics used to work compared to how fraught they are in the present day. It’s very short, only taking a couple of hours to complete, with a few minor choices to provide replay value. However, it’s really just a minor slice of more Echo content. Not particularly essential but a good way to give minor details of the main game more context.

When should I play Route 65 if it’s a prequel?

That’s really up to you. Route 65 provides enough context that you could concievably play it first, and then move onto Echo. However, I’m not sure I would advise this. You certainly can still follow the story, but Route 65 was made while Echo was still ongoing, and expects you to know these characters already. Some people suggest actually stopping midway through Echo and playing Route 65 partway through, usually before either Leo or Jenna’s routes, as it covers topics that their routes will build on.

However, if jumping between games like that sounds confusing, I would suggest simply checking it out after you finish Echo to get a little more context. There’s different ways you can go about it, and it’ll work fine whichever way. Route 65 is also free to download on itch.io.

Arches

This visual novel is a sequel to Echo, set five years later. It follows two new protagonists, young couple Cameron Wilson and Devon Ortega. They visit the now almost completely run-down town of Echo due to Devon’s interest in the paranormal. They quickly learn that the town’s reputation doesn’t even scratch the surface of what goes on there, and must come to terms with their own secrets (some of which they haven’t even told each other) if they want to get out alive. Arches is a relatively distant sequel to Echo and does not explicitly follow on from the ending of any one route so far as we know. It’s most commonly interpreted as an alternate timeline which doesn’t undo any of Echo’s possible outcomes. But it does revisit places, characters and concepts from Echo so you should still play that game first to better understand Arches.

The main difference between Echo and Arches is that Arches is much smaller and much more linear. Currently it has absolutely no choices. It has all the aesthetic elements of a visual novel but you simply read it like a book and can save to pick up wherever you let off. However, I would suggest clicking on the image of Cameron on the title screen at some point after you start. You’ll know why when you see it. Another important thing to remember is that Arches is not currently finished. The story gets periodic updates every few months with a new build. If you choose to get up to date now, be prepared to wait for the rest. I know some people prefer to wait until these kinds of stories are done and read it all at once, and others like to follow along. However, whichever choice you make, Arches is already well into its climax, so you won’t be waiting too long for the ending either way.

Regardless, this chilling sequel is there and ready on itch.io if you want to see what happens next in the town of Echo. Or if you feel like going back instead...

The Smoke Room

Last of all is this ongoing prequel visual novel. Set in 1915, 100 years before the events of Echo, the player follows Samuel Ayers, a character whose name, if you’ve played Echo, should be more than a little familiar. Sam is barely getting by as a sex worker in Echo, but one evening, sets out on what he thinks is his one chance to leave the town behind. When the plan quickly goes awry, Sam is left stranded in Echo, carrying a dark secret that could get him sent to the gallows. Sam’s only real option is to lie low with help of one of his clients, unaware that his secret is only one of many lying at the heart of Echo, which now threaten to disastrously boil over.

While still a horror game, The Smoke Room also has a much more overt romantic element, though I still wouldn’t exactly call it a dating sim per se. If Echo is a deconstructive horror game disguised as a dating sim, Smoke Room is more of a horror/romance genre hybrid. Like Echo, the game operates on a route system. After about an hour or so of gameplay, you choose one of a group of four characters, each of whom are one of Sam’s clients. They all have a fully fledged story to follow while also being very much the love interest of their respective routes. While it’s unclear how long the full game is going to be, it’s likely to be at least as long as Echo once it’s finally complete and even now there’s a decent amount of content on each route already should you wish to get caught up now. Still, even at this early stage, so far it’s offered the same mix of effective gradual horror and intelligent character writing and I would still absolutely recommend it.

Anything I should know going in?

1) Once again, this game is NOT suitable for those under 18. Much like Echo and Arches, The Smoke Room is a horror game, one just as dark, if not darker than its contemporaries and all the same content warnings apply, including graphic violence, discussions of racism and homophobia and drug addiction, as well as references to abusive relationships and sexual violence. Another thing to note is that The Smoke Room is also substantially more sexual than the previous Echo VNs. You might have guessed as much when I said the protagonist is a sex worker, but suffice to say this is a pretty major part of the story and there are multiple, very graphic sex scenes between its male characters on each route. This is hardly unprecedented in visual novels, but it is worth mentioning it as something to know going in if you plan to try it yourself.

Take all of these matters into account before playing the game yourself.

2) Much like Arches, The Smoke Room is still under development. According to the developers, each route is, at most, halfway done, and it will be a substantial amount of time before the game is complete. The development will likely be far longer than Arches, so if you want to get caught up now, you’re in for the long haul. While personally I would highly recommend it based purely on the quality of what’s already there, (similar to something like Deltarune), it’s worth keeping in mind before you start.

3) One other thing to note is that, being set 100 years prior, The Smoke Room is only a very remote prequel and can actually be played standalone. I’d certainly suggest playing this after Echo as there are certain details you’ll notice as a result, but if you want it start with Smoke Room, you can.

2) Any advice on how to go about playing?

For the most part, all the same advice as Echo applies. Go in blind, save regularly and be extra sure to save at any choices. Even at this early stage, The Smoke Room has already implemented a number of branching decisions into its routes, arguably more so than Echo. So be sure to make enough saves that you can experiment with all the different outcomes as there’s already a lot to see.

Much as with Echo, there is the question of route order. Fortunately, at this stage, that’s a pretty flexible arrangement. Since none of them are finished and are being updated concurrently, there’s no fixed order of release and none of them have really overlapped enough to make any route order really preferable. However, the developers have suggested doing William’s route last out of the four. While largely standalone, it features many of the characters from across the other routes and somewhat brings the threads of the other stories together, kind of like Flynn and Jenna’s route did in Echo. Other than that, I’d just start with whoever you find interesting. But as a possible order if you’re stuck, you may consider:

1) Nikolai 2) Murdoch 3 Clifford 4) William

Though again, this is very flexible.

3) What’s this I hear about an AU?

Ah yes, this is another aspect of The Smoke Room worth checking out. Currently, Echo Project have released two downloadable ‘special episodes’ featuring the main cast of The Smoke Room reimagined in the modern day. For as much as Smoke Room is a supernatural horror, it is also just as much a period drama, exploring how the various struggles of the characters are exacerbated by the circumstances, social climate and prejudices of the time in which they live (being queer wasn’t any easier in 1915 after all). As such, this AU places the cast in a more contemporary setting to show how a happier, more hopeful outcome for how their lives could have gone. Basically, it’s like the kind of coffee shop AUs you see all the time on AO3, except this one is made by the actual creators. As of now these are just light hearted slice of life stories with these characters, one being a Christmas special and the other a summer special and outside of strong language and suggestive themes, require no major content warnings. At present, nothing about this AU is canon or significant to the main game, you don’t have to play any AU content to understand the main story. This exists purely to have some cute fluff with these characters if you enjoyed them in the full game.

Like all other Echo Project VNs, you can download the latest build of The Smoke Room from itch.io.

And that’s all the advice I have into getting into Echo and its expanded universe. These games mean a lot to me, from their stories, to their characters and of course, their horror. They’re definitely niche experiences and I wouldn’t recommend them to everyone. But if my content about them here has peaked your interest, I hope this helps you make a start on these remarkable games for yourself.

Who knows? You may just find yourself moving in circles thinking about these game, just like the rest of us…

#echo vn #arches vn #the smoke room vn #echo project #beginners guide #welcome to the fandom

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mengyao · 1 year

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I made kind of a throwaway post yesterday about He Xuan's hypocrisy, and it prompted some discussion, so I cleaned it up a bit.

My intention with the original post wasn't so much to make claims about the specifics of what He Xuan's crimes against Ming Yi were or were not, as commenting on the fact that it annoys me when I see this dimension--the fact that Ming Yi had to foot the bill with his life for He Xuan's revenge--of He Xuan's character downplayed, because it adds more nuance to the story, and specifically the contrast between where he and Shi Qingxuan end up. Also I like it when my faves act badly.

Though the hows and wherefores are quite confusing due to the general incoherence of TGCF's timeline and backstory for reasons both intentional and non- on MXTX's part, I'm not really sure how one can get around the fact that He Xuan took Ming Yi's place in heaven against the latter's will. Some basic facts are:

1) In order to gain access to the Heavenly Capital, He Xuan impersonated a real god named Ming Yi, who was the genuine Earth Master, and

2) by the time we get to Black Water Arc proper, the real Ming Yi is dead, and so can't provide an account of what happened to him.

Whatever the specifics, I don't see a plausible explanation for how He Xuan could have intercepted Ming Yi between his calamity and ascension and talked Ming Yi into just... giving up on being able to go live in heaven under his own name, be celebrated for his accomplishments, have total freedom of movement, etc, without some level of coercion. Ming Yi doesn't know He Xuan. Ming Yi doesn't owe him shit, and was completely unrelated to the business with the Shis -- he was just convenient. Why would Ming Yi agree to go along with this of his own volition? I guess it's possible to come up with a scenario where He Xuan offers him a satisfactory compromise where He Xuan offers him... something? in exchange for all of this, and that could be a fun fanfic premise, but it involves a lot of extrapolation off of anything we're given in the text, because I don't see what He Xuan has to offer Ming Yi to make this anything but a loss for MY. He Xuan isn't needlessly violent, but he's capable of being less than morally spotless when it's justifiable to him -- he was keeping a bunch of random madmen prisoner on Black Water Isle in pretty deplorable conditions for god knows how long so he could use them as pawns, frex (more on them later). Kidnapping and/or imprisoning (even if that was a very loose, "you can come and go in the mortal world as you please, you just can't go to heaven/interact with heavenly officials/claim your work as that of the Earth Master, and need to keep things on the DL" kind of deal, which is the most generous explanation I can come up with, vs. something like Ming Yi being kept on indefinite house arrest in Nether Water Manor, which is more in line with what the novel implies IMO) one heavenly official as the necessary casualty to a very important part of He Xuan's master plan doesn't seem like a stretch for what we know of He Xuan's ethics and behaviour.

Original Ming Yi had his “rightful” (to whatever degree “being fated to an epic cosmic destiny” is actually something one “earns”/“deserves”, which I don’t think the book is uncomplicated about) position as a god and ability to live a free life as the Earth Master taken from him because He Xuan needed a cover in heaven. He Xuan doesn't need to have personally have killed the guy to have fucked up and usurped his life in a major way. Ming Yi had his ability to live a free life taken from him, or at least significantly impaired. On the scale of “bad shit people have done in TGCF” it’s not that bad, but it does make HX a hypocrite – we know that his and his family’s physical/material suffering isn’t the only thing he has an axe to grind about. Having his destiny stolen and given to SQX is part of it, too:

Without blinking once, he stared at Shi Qingxuan and spoke each word with clear enunciation and intent.

"Your little brother, an ordinary, common mortal, obtained the ability to ascend. His endless glory was plundered from my fate; he enjoyed my divinity. And you tell me that this has nothing to do with him?"

In the grand scheme of all of the violence that He Xuan could have done, it's really not much. But individual people's lives still matter, even people who are inconsequential to you, and your personal pain and suffering doesn't justify harm done to them, even if the harm could be a lot worse than it is. That's the angle most aligned with the novel's themes, which makes me inclined to lean that way even if the continuity details of getting there are fuzzy.

The fact that He Xuan experienced some degree of moral erosion (even if, again, it's not as bad as it could be) is important because He Xuan thought that with enough loss and suffering, Shi Qingxuan would end up just as bitter and compromised as he himself did. (Bolded emphasis mine.)

"Do you know who these people are? [...] Rotten fates. Contemptuous fortunes. Lives lower than an animal's. Fates that can drive a man mad," He Xuan explained.

and

Although Shi Qingxuan's original fate wasn't good enough to ascend, it was still a life filled with peaceful luxury and leisure. The madmen, on the other hand, were racked with disease and rotten sores and had been driven to madness by adversity. It was clear that every single one of them was ensnared by an absolutely wretched, miserable fortune. If Shi Qingxuan exchanged fates with any of them, wouldn't that mean he would fall into the same tragic state? Such fates would drive one to madness in and of themselves. He would suffer endless agony and torment from then after. [...] a common mortal suffering the most wretched of fortunes--how could [he] possibly keep living?

He Xuan devised this fate-swapping bit because he sees it as comparable to what happened to him -- the narrative establishes that nothing about the confrontation with the Shis is out of balance with the suffering that Shi Wudu's actions have caused He Xuan ("If the motives behind this punishment were disregarded, then it was truly vicious." [I.e if they are regarded, it's justified -- and this is coming from Xie Lian's POV!]) Though the literal fate-swap doesn't happen, Shi Qingxuan is still left in a much worse set of circumstances from where he started out, and He Xuan's intention in offering him the Jigsaw trap options was for Shi Qingxuan to either become the means of He Xuan's bloody revenge, or to experience a "rotten fate" like the one that was foisted on He Xuan instead.

Though I doubt he thinks of himself in these terms, the description of a man driven mad by his rotten fate is reminiscent of... someone we know:

Shi Qingxuan looked up. His voice trembled. "Ming-xiong, I..."

"Shut up!" He Xuan shouted.

When Shi Qingxuan saw his near-savage expression, he shuddered and went silent. He Xuan whirled around and started pacing the hall of the Nether Water Manor, growling as he walked.

and

Shi Wudu laughed. [...] "Because I see you right now--so filled with rage, so filled with suffering, so filled with hate. You're grinding your teeth so hard you're crushing them. And yet you're still powerless to bring your family back! You're still nothing more than a ghost of the gutters. Be as angry as you want, they're long gone! [...]"

With the caveat that I can't read Chinese and can't compare with the original text (would be very interested to hear about the phrasing in the raws), the word choice in the 7S TL seems to draw a through-line between He Xuan's madmen, He Xuan himself, and the future that is to come for Shi Qingxuan.

So, while He Xuan never comes right out and says "Now you, too, will become corrupted by your trauma just like me," that reading is in line with what the novel gives us.

Another piece of evidence here is the weapon He Xuan gives Shi Qingxuan to kill Shi Wudu with: a rusty knife that couldn't make a clean mercy kill. We learn in the Bloody Fire Social chapter that after Scholar He snapped, he "hacked [the offending people] to pieces"/"butchered" them (depending on the translation), and I believe that the actor playing Scholar He that the gang sees in the parade is using a knife. By 124, He Xuan is contriving circumstances that he thinks will bring Shi Qingxuan down to his level in one way or another.

Though most of his ire is directed at Shi Wudu, the times when He Xuan really goes off the chain during the big confrontation--such as the line where he shouts at Shi Qingxuan, when otherwise throughout the scene He Xuan is described as cold and removed--are when he's forced to engage with Shi Qingxuan's innocence and naivete. Everything about this pursuit of revenge would be easier if he hadn't given Shi Qingxuan so many outs, which he wouldn't have done if Shi Qingxuan was a willing collaborator in Shi Wudu's crime. The fact that Shi Qingxuan was able to benefit from He Xuan's suffering without even having to bear the guilty knowledge, and thereby not deserving a straightforward and decisive punishment like Shi Wudu, is deeply frustrating to him, both because it makes things more difficult for himself in seeking his revenge and because it's yet another way in which Shi Qingxuan got to benefit from the way things worked out--she got the benefits of the fate-swap and a clean conscience, too. Both of the options that He Xuan offers Shi Qingxuan have the intended end result of Shi Qingxuan losing their privileged and sheltered state of innocence, in some way--either through becoming a killer or experiencing a fate so bad it will corrode their spirit.

Needless to say, becoming disabled and unhoused and losing the ability to change forms and witnessing his only family member decapitated before his eyes etc all fail to sever Shi Qingxuan from his core convictions and values. The people around him might think he's a madman for wandering around claiming to be a former god, but we know he's not. More importantly, he has friends and community. Not exactly mad with rage or "living lower than an animal" (which, rude)!

TL;DR He Xuan is interesting because he retains certain principles and moral lines but has also made choices as part of his revenge quest that involve perpetuating some of the same harms that were done to him in the first place. I think that he was able to rationalize this as an inevitable outcome of his suffering, with the proof being that the only reason straightforwardly "good" people like Shi Qingxuan are able to exist is because they haven't known true suffering. But he's wrong! Sucks! Hope this doesn't have any lasting impact on your sense of self and understanding of the universe's moral logic!

#he xuan #tgcf

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collidingxworlds · 1 year

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4 and 9!

Asks for multimuse blogs || Accepting !

4. Is there a muse that not a lot of people roleplay with?

Yep, I dare to say that there's more than one xD Mostly Sam and Moriarty.

In Sam's case, it's my fault, because I made them before my hiatus and never given them proper time in the spotlight. I'm planning to change that very soon, once I've recovered some brain power.

As for Jim, I suppose that it's because he isn't an easy muse to interact with, also because of how specific his canon is. I need to work on giving him some verses, both general ones and maybe other fandom AUs, to make him more approachable!

9. why were you drawn to each one of your characters?

Oh boy xD Let's see how I can answer this one without writing a novel xD

Abigail: What got me interested in her first and foremost was the duality of the character. For a good part of her arc we don't know whether or not she had truly helped her Dad killing those girls and, if yes, to what extent. The series unfortunately doesn't analyse it too closely, but she tends to swing between two kinds of behaviours and identities: the traumatised victim who is trying to get her life back together after it has been shuttered and the manipulative accomplice who exploits the circumstances to get away with a clean slate. Useless to say, I like to portray her as the latter wearing the former's mask as an act. Another reason why I chose to pick her as a muse is because she has a lot of potential that however was never used. Gotta make up for that xD

Five: For him there's no big, complicated reason tbh xD He's just the type of character I enjoy, both when consuming medias and while writing. Practical, sarcastic, smart, witty, with poor manners because he couldn't care less about being polite (unless it benefits him). But also characterised by a tragic past, a lot of trauma, flaws that caused his downfall and a fierce attachment to something (in Five's case, his family). It's a lot of fun to explore the different sides of his person and find out where the lines blur!

Sam: They are my OC, so...I basically built them fitting the fictional family you, Chloé and I came up with. In a way, they have Abigail's same duality (victim vs perpetrator), but in this case the second side gets openly cultivated by their new family and I found interesting to explore the effects that such an environment can have on someone who has never truly been taught the difference between right and wrong. Sam grew up as an outcast, unwanted and unrecognised, and the very first time they find acceptance is under a woman who believes that killing men for their own advantage is her family's right. That's a fascinating combination xD Also, as a non-binary mun, I've been wanting to write a non-binary character for a while now!

Crowley: He is one of my oldest muses, one of the firsts I picked up when I started to RP on Tumblr. He used to have his own sideblog and all, before I decided to make this multimuse. I had a lot of fun writing him, also because he embodies the only kind of good guy I can and like to properly write. Someone with good intentions but also questionable methods and even more questionable morals. Also, even if in the book/series isn't shown much, I like to dig into the trauma of his Fall and all the consequences of it, how it has left him torn between what he wants to be and his demonic nature. So yeah, another traumatised gremlin xD

Will Graham: Speaking of trauma, here is another embodiment of it xD What got me fascinated with Will first and foremost is the way the series portrays his "pure empathy": how he can put himself into the killers' shoes, actually live through their fantasies, and how all this constant exposure to this twisted minds end up changing him. That's definitely another thing that drew me to Will. His character arc, evolution and how the potential darkness inside him emerges and takes shape. Obviously, all this happens through a lot of struggles and contrasts. Also, gotta love the sass xD

Will Byers: Together with Sam, he is my traumatised kid x'D He has been my fave character since season 1 (and he stayed vanished for most of the season, so that should tell you how much I liked him since the very start). What pushed me to pick him as a muse have been basically two things: the huge potential for the exploration of trauma / PTSD / sexual identity crisis and his connection with the Mind Flayer. There's just so much that could be done in both directions!

Moriarty: Ngl, I picked up Jim as a muse mostly as a challenge. I want to try my hand at a villain and he has always been one of my faves. Love me a psychopath who also has a ton of charisma and a sense of humour (I find him beyond funny xD). Moreover, ages ago I had come up with a whole backstory for him and this was my chance to do something with it!

Gabriel: Last but not least, he is literally one of the first two muses I had back when I started to RP on this hellsite. He is one of my fave characters from the show, has been even before we found out that he was Gabriel (and I refused to acknowledge the shit they did with him in season 13). He is a bit like Five, character wise, but with the twist of being an insanely powerful being. Plus, I loved adding bits and pieces from the Norse myths to his backstory / portrayal, and that was an additional reason because Norse mythology is my jam!

#(( mun scotty's personal log ::ooc:: ))#(( about the mun ))#omniishambles #(( thank you for the asks <3 ))

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joe-the-english-otter · 1 year

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Cerebus The Aardvark: Issues #1-#100. My thoughts so far (Repost)

I'm gonna be reposting my thoughts on Cerebus The Aardvark onto Tumblr, mainly so it's easier to read and is much more accessible this way. This will be a three part saga, the next two parts will be posted over the next few days. I will also be putting caution warnings for specific things at some points in these posts, so if you see one that warns of content that might upset you, please do turn away.

(Originally posted to FA on January 9th 2023)

So, in late December, I discovered a now relatively obscure graphic novel series called; Cerebus The Aardvark. In a general sense, the series is about the life and times of an aardvark barbarian as he slowly climbs the ladder of power while everything collapses around him, sometimes very literally.

The series started in 1977 as a Conan The Barbarian parody and was an independently made and published series, made by a grand total of two-to-three people throughout it's near 26 year run, with the series ending on it's 300th issue. So you'd think a really long running and at times, very critically acclaimed, independent comic series would be talked more or at least be mildly well known, well I'll get to why it isn't later. First I'll give my thoughts on each major chapter/story arc of the series thus far:

Issues #1-#25: Fairly decent stuff, remains a parody of Conan for a good chunk of the first couple issues, along with parodies of other comic or fantasy characters of the time, such as; Elrod of Melvinbone, who is a light parody of Elric of Melnibone. Artemis Roach, A.K.A The Roach, who is used as a parody of whichever male DC/Marvel superhero is popular at the time.

Also introduced is Lord Julius, who is 100% written and drawn as Groucho Marx, though the character is portrayed as a comedic character, with a mind like a steeltrap and a skilled political master mind, which comes into play in the second story arc and throughout the rest of the story. This also introduces the trend of having parodies of various celebrities occasionally showing up and playing minor roles within the story as a whole. There are other characters that're introduced throughout the first arc, but most of them aren't hugely important to the story just yet, so I'll get to them when need be.

But yeah, it continues on it's parody path for quite a while as Cerebus goes from one-shot adventure to the next and we start to get an understanding of his character. He's not just your basic barbarian character-type, he is a full blown "Glorious-Bastard" type character (A Glorious Bastard, is basically a main character who has no redeeming qualities, at all, but you end up supporting them, because of them being surrounded by idiots, being stuck in a situation they can't escape from or you're awaiting to see their downfall. E.G. Edmund Blackadder in Blackadder) and as the series goes on, you slowly see how he gets corrupted almost completely by the want and need for gold.

Eventually the one-shot stories are phased out for an actual story that lays the ground work for the rest of the series, lots of world building and the start of character development.

Issues #26-#55: Honestly, some of the best stuff I've read. The writing and art style improve dramatically. This is where it turns from a straight forward parody, into a well crafted political drama and satire. It still has plenty of parody in it, but it definitely makes a shift towards the serious and it pays off, it's hear where we see the more "human" side of Cerebus, showing that he has complex emotions and is shown off when he finally find his love interest Jaka (Who was introduced towards the middle of the first arc) and the many people who're trying to take advantage of him as he becomes Prime Minister and trys to hold onto it when everything goes tits up.

This is where minor characters who were introduced early in the series get more fleshed out and given proper character arcs. Namely; Bran Mac Mufin, who was a throw away, off-screen warlord character, who turns out to be a civilized person and becomes a mysterious ally of Cerebus, talking about things to come in the most vague ways possible.

Another character that plays an important role in this arc, is Astoria, who basically tries to use Cerebus as a political puppet, but is unable to control him as she tries to use him for her own ends and to get back at Lord Julius (Who happenes to be her ex-husband). It should also be worth mentioning that Elrod and Roach occasionally show up throughout the series as comic relief, though they do both each play a somewhat important role in this arc as well.

Lots of tense moments, character drama and angry aardvark moments, highly recommended.

Issues #56-#100: This is where things take a darker tone for the series. The art style is still really fantastic and it continues to just get better. The writing can be very up and down in parts, it mainly starts to go down the closer it reaches issue #100. The character drama is still there, though it moves more into the religious area as Cerebus becomes Pope and abuses that power to it's most extreme lengths.

This is also where the character Adam Weisshaupt (who was introduced way early on and becomes Cerebus's political rival) becomes the series antagonist for the next couple issues, as he tries to control Cerebus as Prime Minister, but fails as Cerebus is made pope suddenly scrapping his plans and basically making Cerebus the most politically powerful person.

Obviously, this sudden rise in power makes Cerebus even more corrupt and his character is on the tight line between Glorious-Bastard and straight up villain throughout this arc and one particular moment really pushes it, though I'll mention that point shortly.

There's still a few more issues in this specific arc, so I haven't finished it just yet, but my thoughts thus far are; It's alright, there's some good moments, some bad moments and one really uncomfortable moment.

(Caution Warning: Character Sexual Assult Mention)

Right, now I'm going to talk about the thing most people will skip straight to; The controversy about the comics creator, Dave Sim. He is without question, an extreme sexist. For context (For what little I can give): The series started of as a Conan parody, so there was going to be the smallest amount of sexism in it, however the sexism really starts to ramp up as the series goes on and it really rears it's ugly head towards issue #100, when Cerebus basically rapes Astoria, after she threw her panties at him, implying that she was asking for it (Fucking ew).

Not only that, but the general treatment of female characters starts to get worse and worse, like, Astoria was initially written as a complex political chess master, whose trying to lead a political movemnt but over the course of a few issues, she becomes a generic feminist strawman, written from the perspective of someone who holds feminists in low regard.

Any other female characters who had any ounce of interesting developement, are watered down or are sidelined. The only female character that has some level of depth is Jaka and she's rarely seen throughout the series thus far.

Some of you are probably thinking at this point. Well that's bad sure, but that doesn't mean he's sexist. I'd like to refer you to two well written articles on Dave Sim: https://comicsalliance.com/tribute-dave-sim/

https://literatemachine.com/2020/08/28/cerebus-misogyny-and-madness/ There are spoilers in those articles for those that are still interested in reading Cerebus. I was warned beforehand about his sexism and how the last 100 or so issues of the complete 300 issue series, basically devolves into Dave Sim ranting about feminism and anything else that he doesn't agree with, framing it in the context of Cerebus The Aardvark.

I will continue reading the series as I'm already in too deep and I need to see how deep the rabbit hole goes. I will post the next update when I've finished issue #200.

Thank you for reading. If I'm factually wrong or have said something you disagree with, do let me know via a comment or DM me on either here or Twitter. Cheers.

#cerebus the aardvark #dave sim #comics #80s comics #cerebus #aardvark #opinion #critique #comic review #review

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smokeybrandreviews · 2 years

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End of the Line

This past season of anime was one of the best in some time. I took on a myriad of shows, eight in total if memory serves, and made an effort to finish them all. Obviously, if you've part of the anime culture, you know that almost never happens. We are about two episodes in to the Fall season of anime and before I stake my claim on the shows I am most definitely finishing, I wanted to take a look back at how my Summer Season fared.

Completed

These are the shows I actually finished. I went week-to-week, watching each episode the day it aired, waiting with baited breath for the next. I mean, not really, but these shows did enough to get me to come back.

Song of the Night Walkers

Unbiased opinion, based strictly on merit, Night Walkers definitely takes anime of the season for me. It's beautifully animated, deftly acted, and has a soundtrack that presses the best of BLEACH. Thoroughly surprised by how much I enjoyed this adaption considering how much I disliked Dagashi Kashi. Here's hoping we get a solid second season because that's when sh*t gets really real. Also, if you can't tell, I did finish this one, too. Best time I've had with an anime in some time.

Black Summoner

This one was disappointing. I did finish it but, goddamn, was i let down. I am a pretty staunch fan of the manga but this show got so much wrong, it just felt bad to watch. The animation, in particular, was terrible! How the hell do you have such pedestrian production for an adaption based on what is effectively a battle manga? More than that, the characters don't feel like the ones I read on the page. Watching Black Summoner was an exercise in frustration because I know what could have been and what it is, is a f*cking bust.

Uncle from Another World

Uncle, in complete contrast to Summoner, was amazing! The animation, the aesthetic, the acting; All of it was top tier. The release was a little wonky but, overall, I had a solid time with this show. In a rare turn of events, the show made me pick up the manga again and I'm glad I did. Isekai Ojisan is worth every second. Definitely give this one a shot if you haven't. Sh*t is totally worth.

Danmachi IV (part I, apparently)

Hestia and her Familia usury find there way onto my watch list whenever we get an anime. I love Bell and the gang almost as much as Ainz and his crew but it's hit or miss for me with this show. The first season was solid as f*ck and actually elicited a proper emotional reaction out of me. Season II was met but III definitely delivered. I was looking forward to the continuation and, for the most part, I was rewarded. A little buggered at how it ended but, fortunately, the second half immediately stayed airing so I'm good. None of that waiting a season for the next part sh*t anymore. Also, it helps tremendously that the next arc is heavily focused on Ryu, who happens to be one of my favorite characters. Also, Aisha.

Overlord IV

Obviously I finished Overlord. Obviously it's my anime of the season. Obviously that last statement is laced with such sycophantic bias, it's nauseating. In all seriousness, Overlord was definitely going to be the one I actively finished, come hell or high water. I love Ainz and his misfit bunch of malevolent malcontents. Part IV was a solid outing, rivaling the strength of the first, and a welcome change from the lackluster III. My only gripe is that it ended far too soon for my tastes. Also, I'm Renner is giving Albedo a run for her money as best girl. Her whole little song and dance was wonderful!

Dropped

These are the shows I bailed on. Most of them were surprises because, in one form or another, I am a fan of the franchise. I guess something was lost in adaptation.

Harem in the Labyrinth of Another World

And now we get scary with a bang! Yes, you read that right, I did drop this show. Listen, read the manga or the light novel. I think those mediums capture the spirit of this narrative much better. The show is basically just porn gorgeously animated porn, (goddamn them jiggle physics on Roxanne!) But it's just porn, nonetheless. That sh*t is a shame because the world building is so goddamn rich, you tend to forget about all the problematic humping. Not in this show, though. It is made VERY apparent in the first few episodes what you're getting into. I made it to episode five and bailed. Haven't looked back.

Vermeil in Gold

I fell off this one after two episodes. Didn't even get to the requisite three. I tapped out almost immediately. It's odd because I eventually dropped the manga, too. Vermeil is just way too derivative. There is nothing new, intriguing, or dynamic about this narrative. It's a paint-by-numbers, magical girlfriend outing and I've seen that done before, much better. I like Vermeil's design but that's about it. There is literally nothing redeeming about this show.

The Devil is a Part-Timer II

The less said about this show, the better. Part II was such a disappointment, man. I remember being a huge fan of the first season but this one? Meh. I think i made it to the fourth episode? Whatever the amusement park one was and immediately abandoned the entire series after that. I just didn't care.

Picked Up

After dropping a ton from my initial watchlist, I promptly picked up a few and actually finished them, too. Most of these things were pretty solid and I kind of feel like I should have started with them instead of sh*t like Slave Harem. F*ck, was that a letdown.

Lycoris Recoil

This sh*t turned out to be last season Spy x Family for me; An overlooked gem that hooked me immediately. I had such a great time watching this show. The animation was gorgeous but it was the chemistry between the two leads that really sold me on Recoil. It's like Non-Lethal Weapon with cute school girls! Also, best action of the season.

Cyberpunk: Edgerunners

Look, this show is for Normies, all day. This is the show you put your friend who doesn't like anime on, to change their minds. It's accessible, stylish enough to wow, and has a solid goddamn soundtrack. How do all of these shows keep the banger heat like that? Now, if you go deeper, if you actually dare to commit to these characters, you are blessed with one of the most complete, human, emotional narratives ever put to animation. This ain't Erased by any means but I've seen this show compared to Arcane and that sh*t is properly apt. Edgerunners is the rare piece of media which effortlessly lives up to the hype

#anime

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smokeybrand · 2 years

Text

End of the Line

Completed

Song of the Night Walkers

Black Summoner

Uncle from Another World

Danmachi IV (part I, apparently)

Overlord IV

Dropped

These are the shows I bailed on. Most of them were surprises because, in one form or another, I am a fan of the franchise. I guess something was lost in adaptation.

Harem in the Labyrinth of Another World

Vermeil in Gold

The Devil is a Part-Timer II

Picked Up

Lycoris Recoil

Cyberpunk: Edgerunners

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thescrapbookingscientist · 2 years

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Biweekly Media Roundup

- Prey (Movie) - This was a pretty good single person survival movie with the pros being the cool looking alien, the dog surviving, and the pretty environments and the cons being the pretty basic “girl must prove she’s as good as boys” plot and vaguely anticlimactic ending. Mostly though I just had fun watching it with my family as we theorized about the Predators culture-like is the whole planet like this or do you think most of the planet are just normal people with basic office jobs and they see these guys as like douchebag agro-trophy hunting jocks? Like “did Xilonarf send you those pics of him killing those aliens too? Ugg what a tool, he thinks he’s so Alpha cause his mom bought him all those high-tech alien killing weapons. No one’s impressed Xilonarf.”

- Bridgerton (TV) - Wow everyone in this show is an awful petty person huh? I like period dramas as a whole but like goddanm I want just 1 not stupidly wealthy character to become part of the cast and tell everyone off for being shallow assholes with non-problems. In some ways it’s so ridiculously over the top and nonsensical to the point of being funny, but in others it’s just the boring kind of bad where the characters are all selfish jerks constantly yelling at each other, so not sure whether this will be worth finishing.

- Last Week Tonight (TV) - Thank you John Oliver for keeping me informed of the various atrocities of the world in an entertaining way.

- Bargain Block (TV) - HGTV baby.

- Mob Psycho 100 (Anime) - Listened to the new S3 OP and wow just straight up bangers every time for this anime huh?

- The Great Ace Attorney (Video Game) - Yup.

- Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes (Video Games) - Finished it! While I still vastly prefer Three Houses, I did at least come to enjoy the gameplay of Hopes once I got the hang of it, and appreciated all the extra content with my beloved Black Eagles. Hubert and Ferdinand in particular got a lot of chances to shine in the new story, and the EdelClaude alliance was great as well. Shez was a surprisingly likable protagonist, lots of personality, and I liked her relationships with Lysithea, Caspar, Marianne and shockingly Byleth quite a bit. I do have complaints-the gameplay got better over time but left a lot to be desired, they really nuked my boy Linhardt, there where far less supports than I would have liked, and the ending was pretty lackluster given we never actually get to see the end of the war or even an S Support, but overall I am glad that I played it at least once.

- Made in Abyss (Anime) - Glad that it’s back but like geez man they didn’t even give us a tiny break huh. Like 3 seconds into episode one and they’re like hey remember how this is a show where unforgivably awful things happen to children? Well guess what we’re back with even more children to have even worse things happen to them, isn’t this what you wanted?

- Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint (Webcomic) - You ever see something and just know it’ll be your next obsession? Stumbled across this korean webnovel by accident after watching some neat animatics for it, and from what I’ve gathered from the fan content/ webcomic I already know it’ll be right up my alley. Time travel and time loops, an annoyingly self-sacrificial rat bastard protagonist, found family, meta commentary on media and story-telling, gods and alternate realities, yup definitely has some potential. As of now I’ve just started reading the novel proper, so I expect to have more to say as I get through it.

Listening to: Champagne Problems by Taylor Swift, We’re Screwed by Unlike Pluto, No Body No Crime by Taylor Swift, Rubik’s Cube by Athlete, He Mele No Lilo (Lilo and Stitch soundtrack), Must Be Love by Christina Grimmie, Say Love by James TW, Go Tonight by Krystina Alabado, Bang Bang by K’NAAN, Not A Love Song by Bulow, Curses by The Crane Wives, Wedding Song (Hadestown)

#weekly roundup #my posts

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yuyuntianyu · 3 years

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[2HA analysis blog] To love you is torment but leave you I cannot

I wanted to write this (hopefully not-too-long) blog to give 2HA fandom a different perspective of the events in the past timeline. I noticed that there are many little things that could not be carried over to the English language. These little things can give more explanations to our characters’ actions so I hope sharing this would help the novel make more sense. This blog focuses on Taxian-jun and Chu Fei.

Warning: Spoilers ! ! ! Taxian-jun and Chu Fei are their own trigger warnings ! ! !

Despite the novel having 350 chapters, we really know little about what happened between Taxian-jun and Chu Fei besides the abuse and mistreatment and that little is relayed to us by the Most Unreliable Narrator of the Cultivation World - Mo Ran Mo Weiyu. If we only take Mo Ran for his words then a lot of his and Chu Wanning’s decisions told later on would seem irrational and almost silly. So let’s dive deep in the past so we can understand how the great cultivator Beidou Xian-zun could raise such a dumb husky since the events in the past would explain the more irrational decisions made by both main characters.

Given Mo Ran’s narrator is about as reliable as his character in the first 120 chapters, we have to look at other more subtle clues and some of them are due to cultural and linguistic differences.

1. I used to like you a lot

At his coronation day, Taxian-jun stated that he once greatly looked up to Chu Wanning and that he used to love and respect him dearly. Maybe I am reading into this too much but this is my theory: The flower could erase the memory itself but cannot erase the feelings associated with the memory. He had his memories of the good deeds Chu Wanning did for him erased but still remembered that he used to love and respect him. It doesn’t make sense unless it is indeed that the flower could not erase its host’s feelings. So throughout the novel, Mo Ran’s complicated emotions are complicated possibly because he could not remember how he came to have these feelings. Similarly, Hua Binan could mess with the undead Taxian-jun’s memory to a great extent but could not erase his obsession with Chu Wanning.

2. I gave you a new title

Chu Fei. 楚妃. In the Imperial Chinese harem hierarchy, “Fei” means consort and not concubine (嬪 “Pín"). Consorts were highly respected positions in the palace weidling much political power and were only seconds to the Empress Consort. Another major difference is a consort would be married to the emperor while a concubine would not. So if Taxian-jun had truly wanted to only humiliate Chu Wanning and keep him for the carnal pleasures (I am intentionally ignoring his breeding kink completely), he would keep him as a concubine but he gave Chu Wanning the Consort title and hid him from the world. At this point, Taxian-jun had almost lost Chu Wanning once and had spent a lot of effort to bring him back from the verge of death after hearing Chu Wanning’s apology so his anger might have softened a bit. Also, given that Chu Wanning is a man, having a legitimate offspring ( (I am still intentionally ignoring Mo Ran's breeding kink completely) is not an issue so although this is not clearly stated, I believe Taxian-jun wanted to force a relationship and somewhat proper marriage on Chu Wanning. Another hint of this is in an Extra chapter where Taxian-jun tried to get Chu Wanning a birthday gift. He recalled that in his past timeline, he had wanted Chu Wanning to give him something on his birthday as well and that he had wanted Chu Wanning’s heart.

3. Shizun likes to write letters and poems

On Book 3 Chapter 247, Chu Wanning sat down and wrote a few unsent letters to the people he used to know. He also wrote a few lines of poetry. In the first few lines taken from different literature works, he expressed his sense of helplessness and his wish to remain untainted despite the circumstances. The more important two lines are from a poem written by a real poet named Fàn Chéngdà ( 范成大) who lived in the 12th century Southern-Song dynasty. The two lines read:

“May I be like the stars, may you* be as the moon. Night after night, may we shine together side by side.” **

*In the original work, the character used instead of you is “jun” 君 (as in 踏仙君 Taxian-jun). 君 could mean king, emperor, lord, or gentleman ** This is my rough translation - I haven’t found an English version of this poem

These two lines are commonly used in romantic novels as a way to express one’s unchanging love and loyalty to another person despite the circumstances. He compared himself as the stars and wanted to remain by Taxian-jun whom he viewed as the moon. Chu Wanning wrote this to express his willingness to stay but he would never voice this out loud. In the next timeline, he did the same thing by quietly loving and caring for Mo Ran 1.0 despite the mistreatment and was content with never expressing his feelings vocally. Mo Ran was rather uneducated and thus could not fully comprehend these two lines and misunderstood that Chu Wanning was missing Xue Meng.

4. You are all I have left

In chapter 252, after Chu Wanning returned to The Red Lotus Pavilion, he found Taxian-jun already waiting for him. Taxian-jun told Chu Wanning about a dream he had and said:

“I am afraid I don’t resent you… I want to resent you… Otherwise, I…” “In the end, it’s just you and I”.

This is not the first time he expressed that Chu Wanning was all he had left or they only had each other. I believe that at this point, Taxian-jun might have somewhat believed Chu Wanning and recognized that his memories were missing. His words and behaviors seemed a lot more gentle and he mentioned they did have periods of time where their marriage was easier. I believe it was after this point. He told us about the numerous times he attempted to spoil his consort or expressed his affection through gifts, a trip outside the palace, goods, jewels, and even teaching Chu Wanning how to cook or personally taking care of Chu Wanning when he was sick. At one point, Taxian-jun expressed his wish for a more peaceful marriage with Chu Wanning through his breeding kink by saying that if they had children, perhaps they would be more civil towards each other.

Edit: I really wanted to go about this blog without having to refer to their particular taste in bed

5. Are you still mad?

This is a smaller detail but in the original text and the Vietnamese official translation, the way they talked to each other had a bit more of the “husband-wife” dynamic. Especially Chu Wanning ( l┐(︶▽︶)┌ ), the comment section said he sounded like when your wife is mad that you didn’t take out the trash but still says: “I’m not mad” and Taxian-jun, the husband, would come around and ask “Are you still mad at me?” after every fight.

6. I did not think you would really leave me.

On Chapter 99, Mo Ran recalled the fight between him and Chu Wanning after an assassination attempt. In order to convince Mo Ran to not go to Taxue Palace, Chu Wanning said:

“If you destroy Taxue palace, if you kill Xue Meng, I will die before you”.

Now the line “I will die before you” in my language is less of a suicidal ideation but more of a threat. It's used when a person already knows that they are important to the other person and is using their own death as a threat to make the other person do something. This line is thrown around a lot during heated arguments between people close to each other but they almost never mean it. (Even my mom said it numerous times before T_T . I personally think it’s manipulative). Therefore, it is understandable Taxian-jun did not take this line seriously and replied almost mockingly. After all, they had been married for almost a decade at that point, Taxian-jun probably felt somewhat comfortable that Chu Wanning would not do anything reckless. He could not foresee that Chu Wanning meant what he said and actually followed through with his words. I believe that if Taxian-jun had known that Chu Wanning was serious, Taxian-jun would not have gone to Taxue Palace. 7. Don't leave me, ok?

Then Chu Wanning died and Mo Ran spent two years alone. In those two years, we know he basically went insane because of grief, talked to a corpse everyday, and deep fried his Empress Consort. But strangely enough, Mo Ran 1.0 did not immediately mention this after being reborn although it was the main reason he committed suicide. And at that point, it had been well over a decade since Shi Mei faked his death in the past timeline, yet Mo Ran 1.0 seemed to still hold a lot of resentment towards Chu Wanning. Also, he said he could accept Shi Mei’s death but would never accept Chu Wanning’s. So honestly, it did not make sense to me the first time I read the novel and I believed Mo Ran resented Chu Wanning for a different reason.

The answer was first hinted at in chapter 9 when Mo Ran scolded the sleeping Chu Wanning. He called Chu Wanning a donkey hoof (lol) and this is actually an idiom to scold someone who is disloyal and unfaithful in love. The puzzles came together when the undead Taxian-jun showed up and immediately went after Chu Wanning (and not Shi Mei). He believed Chu Wanning used his death to hurt him and was angry at Chu Wanning for leaving him. This is the resentment Mo Ran 1.0 carried over to the next timeline. He hated Chu Wanning for abandoning him. This is solidified in chapter 262 by the undead Taxian-jun pleading to Chu Wanning:

“Don’t betray me” “Don’t leave me the second time. The first time you left, I could choose death as a relief. This time, even death is not an option any more… I won’t be able to bear it…”

So there it is! I hope this blog brings some new information and feel free to discuss! Let me know if you have any questions for me ＼(￣▽￣)／

Disclaimer: Plenty of this is my conclusion drawn from the already ambiguous original text and various translations. Unless Meatbun says it, it’s not canon. I am looking at the novel in three different languages so I might have made some mistakes. Pls forgive. Also, I am not making excuses for Mo Ran 0.5’s actions nor am I justifying the abuse in any way. Chu Wanning never said Mo Ran 0.5 was innocent of these crimes nor will I.

#2ha #the husky and his white cat shizun #chu wanning #mo ran #mo weiyu #ranwan #taxian jun #chu fei #erha #husky is dumb but husky tried his best

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alderaani · 3 years

Text

more than gold

summary: A lost Jedi Temple, a riddle, some literature, and feelings that Cody isn't ready to speak out loud. | AO3

note: written for @codywanweek and the alt day 5 prompt Sith/Jedi Artefact Shenanigans! sliding in on the last day with one more thing written than expected, so i’m happy with that! i’m pretty ill today so i hope it actually makes some coherent sense 😂 also if the riddle was super obvious, soz, never written one before and turns out it’s really hard.

“You know, I could have sworn I told you not to touch that,” Cody says conversationally, from where he’s splayed out on his back.

“Really? I’m sure I didn’t hear you,” Obi-Wan says, cheerful despite being crumpled in a heap. His elbow is in Cody’s gut. Cody glares at him.

The room they’re lying in is circular, stone, carved out of some Forced-damned mountain and according to Obi-wan, practically thrumming with power. The ceiling is high and vaulted, letting in slivers of light where intricate mirror systems catch the sunlight of double suns and project it deep underground. It takes on a slightly blue cast, reflecting off the huge pool of water they were lucky to not fall into. Four walkways at each cardinal point lead to a central platform, and interspersed between them are four waterfalls.

It should be serene. Except now the waterfalls are travelling backwards, and all the doors, including the one they came in by, are blocked. Cody scrambles up onto his elbows, dislodging Obi-Wan with a grunt.

“What did you do?”

Obi-Wan follows his gaze and gasps, delighted. “Now, will you look at that?”

Cody is looking. Frankly, he doesn’t trust this place enough to not keep his eye on it at all times. Obi-Wan keeps saying that this temple was built long ago, by ancient, peaceful Jedi as a place of learning, and that it won’t hurt them. After they got cut off from the rest of their men at the entrance, however, Cody thinks he could be forgiven for having his doubts.

As Obi-Wan himself proves, peace-keeping hardly rules out danger.

“Amazing,” Obi-Wan breathes, hoisting himself to his feet without a second glance, to walk back up to the plinth and stalk round it, examining the incomprehensible runes engraved there.

Cody is left to peel himself off the floor, and instead goes to prod at the barriers now sealing the exits with the end of his blaster. He tries not to look too much at Obi-Wan, at the soft sweep of his hair and the span of his shoulders. Being on their own like this is something he’s avoided, of late - not because he doesn’t enjoy it, but because he’s starting to enjoy it all too much.

He doesn’t trust the way his heart leaps when Obi-Wan smiles, when he asks him to call him ‘Obi-Wan’, when the cycle draws on and they’re up late again, companionably finishing reports and debating strategy. Or, as they had been doing until Cody got cold feet and started finding excuses, debating novels, which Obi-Wan checked out of the Temple archives and read aloud, one chapter at a time, before they turned in for the night.

He doesn’t trust himself not to ruin this by overstepping. There’s something about his general that makes him lose all control of his tongue, and puts him in danger of voicing thoughts that really he should not be having at all.

It’s agony. It’s bliss. It’s stretching him to breaking point, and this is possibly the worst situation they could have ended up in, really.

“These are made out of water,” he says over his shoulder, grunting as he tries to push his blaster through. He is, of course, unsuccessful.

“Ingenious,” Obi-Wan says. “How did they manage that, I wonder?”

Cody cuts a glance back at him, and grins, despite his exasperation.

“You’re not more worried about how we’re going to get out?”

Obi-Wan waves a hand. “I’m sure the path will reveal itself, in time. Oh, look - Cody, I think this is a puzzle!”

Cody bites back a groan. They do not have time for this. They never really had time for it, but Obi-Wan promised it would be a brief detour on their way to the capital for hyperspace lane access negotiations. He’d looked so excited by recon reports of a lost temple that Cody just hadn’t been able to say no. He’s never able to say no to Obi-Wan, even when he isn’t following orders. It’s probably his fatal flaw.

“I don’t suppose there’s an off switch? A back button?” He asks hopelessly. The Force, at least the Jedi sort, very rarely seems to work that way. Obi-Wan is always talking about moving through problems, about seeking balance and adapting to what’s around you, rather than manipulating it. It’s not Cody’s favoured approach; he was trained to leverage his environment to its maximum advantage, and finds he has little patience for anything else.

Obi-Wan snorts. “This is a defensive mechanism, I’m afraid. Judging by the architecture this was built at the height of the Sith Wars. This artefact is designed to trap us here until we understand the mechanism and progress, or until, back when the temple was occupied, someone would come and deal with the intruder.”

“That doesn’t sound very peaceful,” Cody says.

Obi-Wan shoots him an amused look, the warm, soft kind that makes heat rise from the pit of Cody’s belly right up to his ears.

“Even a pacifist may defend himself,” he says, then leans over the pedestal. “Now, how about you stop grousing and come help me with this?”

Cody rolls his eyes, but goes, slinging his blaster across his back and crossing his arms.

“And stop looming,” Obi-Wan laughs, catching one of Cody’s gloved hands and pulling it down to rest at his side. The simple touch makes Cody’s cheeks burn.

“Don’t see what help I can give you, Sir,” he says, frowning down at the characters surrounding the bright blue artefact. “I was never any good at Ithorian.”

Obi-Wan pauses, then tilts his head up. “Ah. Is that what it is?”

“I - I think so?” Cody was never any good at his language flashtraining; he never had the proper patience for it, but he can usually figure out the basics.

“No, no,” Obi-Wan muses, stroking at his beard with his free hand. “You’re quite right. Goodness me, it's been a long time since I last saw this dialect. Let’s see now…”

Cody steps back and waits, keeping his attention firmly split between their blocked exit points while Obi-Wan ponders. The slow upward movement of the waterfalls is eerie - it still makes noise, but none of it is right. Instead of the gentle patter he expects of water joining a larger pool, there’s a faint gurgling as they move further into each grate, travelling somewhere he cannot see.

Obi-Wan finishes his fifth circle round the platform, and the hand at his chin goes still. Cody stands at attention, expectant.

“It’s a riddle,” Obi-Wan says, and if possible, his delight grows. “Yes - the language is coming back to me now. Do you know, I haven’t looked at Ithorian in maybe 12 years?”

“Sir?” Cody says, tilting his head to look at the characters more closely. He doesn’t have even a passing proficiency at modern Ithorian, and presumably it’s changed a bit over the millennia. His training was focused on the basics, and only the useful bits, at that. He thinks he can make out the words for ‘ water ’, and ‘ enemy’ , both of which are either unhelpfully descriptive or frankly discouraging, but that’s about the extent of it.

“My old master - he loved prophecies. When I was a teenager I could never see the point of it, but it meant I spent a lot of time learning the old Ithorian dialects. They’re known as the most peaceful species, did you know?” Obi-Wan shakes his head. “They’ll exile anyone violent, it’s quite remarkable, really. I suppose in some sort of idealistic emulation, a lot of the early Jedi texts are written in their dialect.”

His blue eyes are keen, his laser sharp focus firmly on the podium. It gives Cody a moment to observe his clever fingers, the long line of his neck, the open delight with which he tackles this new problem. It’s a rare thing, to see him so relaxed, and Cody can’t help the fond smile that creeps up on him despite the circumstances. This almost makes it worth it, and on reflection, he’d rather an ancient temple than the last thing that had made Obi-Wan so happy; a wretched, bioluminescent fungus, which had infected half the battalion and given them hives. Their general had studied it for weeks.

Obi-Wan’s lips quirk up. Cody barely trusts himself to speak.

“I didn’t know, Sir,” Cody croaks, then pauses, fishing for something normal to say. “Didn’t we have to defend the governor’s daughter from an Ithorian bounty hunter on Ganaris-IV?”

“Well,” Obi-Wan grins. “Those exiles have to go somewhere, don’t they?”

Cody huffs a laugh and reaches up to scratch his neck at the seam of his bucket.

“Let’s just hope they didn’t all come here. What’s this riddle, then?”

Obi-Wan shifts to the side, then points at a spot on the podium. “As I said, it’s been a long time, but I think it starts here, and goes something like:

A thing to be forged, where water is thicker,

Worth more than gold, unless it’s pyrite that glitters.

An enemy of my enemy, or in hard times, in need,

Sometimes fair-weather, or in high places indeed.

What are you, traveller? ”

All of Cody’s hopes that it would be something nice and obvious, like “lightsaber” or, given what’s going on around them, “gravity”, escape from him like smoke. Jedi and their metaphors. It’s not just a quirk of Obi-Wan’s, clearly.

“Does that mean anything to you, Sir?” he asks, turning the words over in his head once, twice, then frowning when nothing comes immediately.

Obi-Wan’s brow is also furrowed, but in a leisurely, meditative manner.

“...I have some ideas, I think,” he says. “How about you, my friend?”

What does he think? He thinks that there are other sorts of puzzles he is much better suited to. Word play and idioms...what does a clone have to offer that?

Still, Obi-Wan is watching him, expectant and gentle, and he sifts back through the lines, a little more seriously this time.

“Ice, maybe?”

Obi-Wan nods, slowly. “Perhaps. Walk me through it.”

Cody swallows. “Ice is something that can be made, right? It’s not exactly forged, but…”

He trails off in uncertainty.

“Go on,” Obi-Wan says with another one of those soft, devastating smiles. It fractures all the thoughts in Cody’s head, and he has to stop, clear his throat and gather up all the pieces.

“I suppose...it’s just thicker water, isn’t it? On warm planets it’s a valuable commodity, it’s found in high places, and I suppose if you wanted snow, a freeze would be fair weather.”

Obi-Wan is rubbing his beard again, and he’s still smiling. “Fascinating. I would never have thought of that...only, I don’t think it’s quite there. That mention of pyrite is troublesome, and the ‘enemy of my enemy’, where does that fit in?”

Cody shrugs his shoulders, frustrated, and feels a hot flush creep up his neck. “Don’t know why you’re asking me, to be honest, Sir. Kamino hardly covered poetry.”

There’s a slight pause, then Obi-Wan’s hand is on his again, tugging it slowly down from where he’s crossed his arms.

“I wish you wouldn’t do that,” he says, soft.

“Do what?” Cody’s voice is gruff.

“Dismiss yourself. You do it sometimes when we’re reading together. There is often no right and wrong answer to these things, no secret. There is only perspective, and you see things I never would, if only you would trust yourself.”

Cody looks down and away, back towards the waterfalls and their slow, glacial climb. He isn’t sure that’s true. He enjoys what Obi-Wan shares with him, what other lives he gets to touch in their books, but more than anything they convince him that, beyond war, he knows very little of anything at all. He would like to, someday.

His eyes land on Obi-Wan’s lips briefly, before he tears them away. Particular experiences he would like to know more than others.

There was one book that Obi-Wan had read early on, back when this infatuation was just setting its first tendrils into him, about a forbidden romance at the heart of the old Mandalorian court. Two heirs of rival clans battling to be together against the good approval of their noble relatives. It had been torrid, ridiculous and entirely unexpected when Obi-Wan had suggested they break up their reports with some literature.

But what it had done was give him the words to express the crawling heat in his stomach, the urge he has to reach out, to touch, to soothe, to care for. He’d known what he wanted before that, of course, in a more rudimentary manner, but it had gifted him the language of yearning.

Suddenly, a particular passage springs into his mind and he straightens.

“You don’t think it could mean ally, do you? In Beneath the Armour, Mata threatens Clan Riza by saying he has ‘allies in high places’.”

Obi-Wan pauses, and then a brilliant smile spreads over his face. “Yes, that’s it! Pyrite - Fool’s Gold; a false friend! Brilliant Cody, whatever made you think of that?”

Cody grins, even though Obi-Wan can’t see it, and doesn’t answer.

“Is that really it?”

“I think you’re very close,” Obi-Wan says. “The characters engraved into the platform...yes! Stand close to me, Commander.”

Cody does, watching curiously as Obi-Wan lifts his hands, shuts his eyes, frowns, and pushes . Six blocks that make up the platform lift, the characters on each glowing bright, lurid blue. Under their feet, something scrapes, shifts and clunks, before the platform lurches upwards, spinning gently.

There’s a thunderous gurgling sound, before all of the pool beneath drains away.

“The answer,” Obi-Wan says, slightly breathless, his hair a little out of place. “Was friend.”

“The doorways are still blocked,” Cody notes drily. The plinth with the blue orb that started this whole mess has also risen, and underneath it are a set of very wet, slimy looking steps. “I don’t suppose it’s as simple as just walking down these and getting in?”

“Likely not,” Obi-Wan agrees, then inexplicably shifts a little closer, so that they are sharing space. Cody’s heart skips a beat. “But it’s like I told you, Cody. You are far greater than what you have been given.”

Cody coughs and looks at his feet, at their boots almost toe to toe, pleasure at the praise singing low through his body.

“Now,” Obi-Wan says, too close and not close enough. “How do you feel about another puzzle?”

Cody groans, laughing, and after a moment, follows his General into the dark.

#codywanweek2021 #codywan #obi wan kenobi #commander cody #alderwrites #i would tag this jedi culture but i literally pulled this out of my ass #there is absolutely no basis in canon here #only vibes #the clone wars #star wars #codywan week 2021

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getoutofmyjaneway · 3 years

Text

Beta Cannon: the Pre Voyager Era of Kathryn Janeway | Mosaic v The Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway

This weekend, I got a copy of the Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway from a local book store. For how frequently we speak about Mosaic in the community (despite having some flaws) I was shocked that I had not heard a lot about this book and assumed it was a bad thing. And yeah in some regards it was (see @mia-cooper’s post on the subject). I have a lot of feelings (I’ll post a proper review at a later point) but one thing that did stick out to me is the divergence from what we have considered Beta Canon, aka, the extended universe of Star Treks told through novels, short stories, video games, etc. After completing the novel, I jumped right into my old standby copy of Mosaic, which has dictated a lot of Janeway’s back story since 96. Both of these novels cover the beginnings of Janeway’s life and how she was shaped into the woman we know.

TLDR The Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway changes a lot of things for no reason. Some of these are for the good. Some for the bad. And some, for like no good reason at all, like it was fine as it was, and was accepted cannon for like 25 years, but sure fine whatever.

I will mention that, as Mosaic has been a book in my library and I have read it too many times, so of course, I do have a bias toward it. Additionally, I feel like it is fair to mention here that authors of Fanfiction have leaned on this as their bibles since 1996 as Mosaic is written by Jeri Taylor, one of the show-runners for Voyager. Because of its connection with a showrunner, Mosaic is also integrated into the canon of the show. It seems that most points that are taken from Mosaic in the Autobiography are only included because of their existence in cannon material.

Anyway, this review is going to focus on the characters that shape Kathryn and I will end with my final thoughts. This is long so to respect your dash, you are going to have to click keep reading. You’re welcome.

Obligatory Spoiler Warning for ALL of Mosaic, chapter 13 of Pathways, and chapters 1-7 of The Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway

Edward Janeway

In all media, I feel like we can safely say that Kathryn Janeway is in fact a daddy’s girl. Her relationship with her father is very important to her, so it is interesting to see how it is portrayed very differently in both novels. In Mosaic, a lot of the highlights of Janeway’s earlier years revolve around time spent with him. From giving her special attention after ‘Your Sister’ was born, to consoling her after her losing tennis match and subsequent walk home in the rain, and trips to Mars, Kathryn mentions great fondness of quality time spent. In the Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway he is more described as an absent father, one that she always wanted to see and please. When he was home, she wanted all of his attention and to impress him greatly. She wished to follow in his footsteps after gaining a love of flight and the stars with a plane ride and a telescope he gave her. He tried to prepare her by detaining the events of the current conflict with Cardassia and inviting Starfleet brass over for dinner. Overall, in her early childhood, it makes more sense for Edward to not be around often. There is not a lot of conflict between the sources, other than the details of the aforementioned tennis match and different childhood nicknames.

Edward is in a crash aboard an experimental ship on Tau Ceti Prime which leads to his death. This is where the big differences begin. In Mosaic, Kathryn and her fiancé are also on board. In Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway, Kathryn is still on the Al-Batani. The fall out of this event has a great effect on Kathryn of course in both novels. As this is a missive shaping event of Kathryn’s life, I felt it very jarring to be changed. This moment shaped Janeway and gives us good context for why she handles situations the way she does. I see this trauma and I understand her character better, for dealing with the loss of two of the most important people in her life all at once.

Gretchen Janeway

The Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway was good to Gretchen Janeway as her character is basically a blank slate. We know little about her from Mosaic as it mostly focuses on Kathryn’s relationship with her father (and other male influences in her life). It is nice to learn more things about Grechen as with Edward’s job, it is likely that Kathryn was mainly raised by her. Other than being an artist, she also wrote some of the Flotter holos and wrote a number of children’s stories about the people of Bajor during the occupation. She does a lot of humanitarian work with the refugees from Bajor during the occupation. She loves to garden and get her daughters involved. She has a close bond with Phoebe due to their overlapping interests, but you can tell that she strives to support her in what she does. Overall, I like getting know Gretchen to be someone of than Kathryn’s mother.

Phoebe Janeway

I was shocked when researching Memory Alpha for this review, Phoebe is never named in any Cannon media up to this point (Star Trek Prodigy could very well change this). We know Janeway has a sister and she is an artist, but that is it. Both novels keep her very similar personality-wise. In both stories, Kathryn is not looking forward to being a big sister. They also both mourn the loss of their father together. In Mosaic, she is not mentioned much. Kathryn tells her she is not old enough on an off planet trip and Phoebe plays pranks on her. The Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway goes much more into depth. They don’t get along when they are younger. They fight a lot. I feel this is a very realistic portrayal of real siblings, vying for attention and approval, snapping when they don’t get their way. They both excel at what they do, Kathryn in her studies and Phoebe through her art. They seem to need to one-up each other at every turn. As they grow up, they grow closer together, as many siblings do. Points added for giving Phoebe a wife, something which has been included in a lot of fanfiction. Overall, there are no big conflicting points.

Mark Johnson

Kathryn’s fiance at the time of the Voyager’s disappearance, Mark is a very different part of Kathryn’s life in both novels. In Mosaic, he is a childhood friend and went by his middle name Hobbs. Seemingly always two steps behind Kathryn, he did a lot of the same activities that she did, tennis and swimming in the underground cave systems. He did these poorly, and this makes Kathryn always look down upon him. They reconnected after her father’s death and she fell head-over-heels for him. Personally, I always felt this was a little uncharacteristic of Kathryn, to run away from her responsibilities to be with a man. It just seems very out of character and has always bothered me. The Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway takes a completely different approach. She meets Mark as a friend of Pheobe and her wife as a widower. They hit it off and they fall hard. You can see the conflict in Kathryn as she debates how to move forward with a relationship as they have different outlooks on life. She has a drive to explore but does not want to be an absent parent. She debates quitting, which I don’t think is something Janeway would have ever done. Overall she decides to accept Mark’s proposal just before taking command of Voyager. This makes the Dear John situation a lot more believable as it makes sense that he would want to move on with his life much quicker. Overall, I have to just ask, why? I know Mark doesn’t have a lot of character, but why change basically their whole relationship dynamic?

Justin Tighe

Justin is a character I actually like for selfish reasons. This explains why I was very miffed that he was nowhere to be seen in the Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway. Justin is Kathryn’s first love, they were coworkers, engaged and in love, and dies in the same accident that takes her father. As a person who always wanted Chakotay and Janeway to get together, this incident perfectly gives the reason. She is afraid to get romantically involved with a crew member because of the nature of the job. This dynamic is seen between Picard and Nella Daren in TNG very well. Kathryn has learned the hard way that she can lose a person under her command and how it feels when you are in love with that person. In early Voyager, you can see she isolates herself from the crew and it takes time for her to get comfortable. And during Night she relapses to her old ways. This is the way I have always justified Janeway’s reluctance to have a romantic relationship during their time in the Delta Quadrant. By understanding her background, I have a lot of respect for that choice. Her relationship with Justin really shaped how she handles relationships and without the impact he had on her life, it actually makes her character weaker.

Owen Paris

Owen is Kathryn’s mentor. In Mosaic, they meet as he is reviewing her junior honors thesis advisor on massive compact halo objects. From here they gained a relationship built on respect and learning. It makes sense that, as he was her personal mentor, that she would be close with his family, and why she would seek out Tom as a person to bring with her to the Badlands mission. In the Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway, she does not meet him until she is on the Al-Batani. This doesn’t only weaken her relationship with Admiral Paris, but moreover weakens her relationship with Tom. If he was her superior officer, why would she develop such a ‘big sister’ mentality to Tom if she didn’t have as many opportunities to meet him?

Tuvok

Mosaic does not go too much in depth with Tuvok and Janeway’s relationship, but its sister novel Pathways does. In Pathways, Tuvok meets Janeway when he is an ensign under her command of the USS Bonestell. The Bonestell and the Billings, two ships that Janeway served on, tend to get confused a lot. Most sources have Janeway’s first command as the Voyager, Including Voyager itself - “It doesn't seem like my first command is shaping up the way I expected,” Janeway Shattered. The Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway has her and Tuvok meet on the Al-Batani. I actually really like the dynamic between them, as they grow to respect each other over a much longer period of time. I also like that, though Janeway climbs through the ranks, it does not change their relationship dynamic as she still relies on him and asks him advice as if they were equals. I think giving them a longer time to build their relationship. Also would like to note that Janeway and Tuvok also had a friendship with the original CMO of Voyager, Dr. Fitzgerald. I always wanted to know more about the Pre-Caretaker crew and I would have loved to see this dynamic and how the grief of losing a close personal friend in the Caretaker incident would impact them both.

Also I feel obligated to shout out the Janeway and Tuvok story in Star Trek Waypoint One-Shot. I need to get around to doing a series retrospective, but this short story I have not seen anyone talk about and I love it so much. Please read Waypoint. Okay next.

Other characters

Cheb - Janeway’s boyfriend in Mosaic. He was kind of an asshole and got her into trouble. He is not in the Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway and I see no problem with this.

Boothby - “[he is the] head groundskeeper at Starfleet Academy. When I was a cadet, he used to give me fresh roses for my quarters,” Janeway Revulsion. Boothby is not in Mosaic. In the Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway, it is explained that her mother loved to garden and this was something that Boothby did as a gradian figure to make her feel at home and destress. Makes sense.

Aisha - A childhood friend of Katheryn’s. Only in the Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway. Mosaic has this weird thing about highlighting the relationships with only the men in her life, so it is nice to see her have some other female friends.

Nexa - Katheryn’s roommate at the Academy. Only in the Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway. Nexa helps broaden Kathryn’s horizons by helping to learn about Exoliguisticts, first contact, and the Betazoid culture. Again nice to see her have other female friends.

Riker - Yes they go on a date in Mosaic. He is not mentioned in the Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway. I know he is a gag character but I still liked it.

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Final Thoughts

A lot of characters were changed between these two novels. There is a lot to like and a lot to hate. I really like what the Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway did with characters like Tuvok and Gretchen Janeway. Other characters were not so lucky (Justin, sweetie I’m so sorry that they would erase you like that, oh my god). It’s a mixed bag, but one thing I need say is... why?

We have had a good thing going here with the established canon as is. Mosaic (and Pathways) is the foundation of which the last 25 years of fanworks and the relaunch novels are based on. Why change history when it is already written?

Always, would love to hear your thoughts and thank you for reading my novel of a post. I will see you in the full review.

#star trek #star trek voyager #kathryn janeway #janeway #voyager #voyager book club #star trek novel #the autobiography of kathryn janeway

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nocluewhatsupg · 3 years

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Michael, Brahms, Jason, and Billy being dragged on a hiking trip

Michael Myers

What

Wack

Mildly amused by whatever he finds along the trail

Does not complain, somehow keeps that creepy speed-walk for the entire trip

You’ve got no clue how he feels, but you’re certain he’d rather be anywhere else

Might push you into the lake if he’s bored (and you’re around one)

Might try to trip you by suddenly walking both ahead of you and over you (he’s more important).

Doesn’t want to leave his signature jumpsuit no matter how much you nag, instantly regrets his decision once he’s covered in sweat and his clothes are scratched and covered in scrapes from thorns he wandered into. Won’t admit it, though.

Wears the fucking mask. You may be able to wrestle him into a short sleeved shirt and sweatpants with a lot of careful persuasion, but the mask is non negotiable. He also pours water from your bottle directly onto the mask. Maybe he drinks from the eye holes, who knows. You have no clue how it’s in such good condition.

Speaking of wandering into thorns, he’ll wander off the trail. No need to go after him or worry, he’s a real survivalist , and he’ll either find his way back to your car, or you’ll hear of a recent massacre in a nearby town...

Glares at anyone you may encounter, standing behind you menacingly. Funny, people are so rude to just hurry past you, and not greet you...

Drinks from the lake too, despite your protests. Should’ve brought him some fucking fruit juice or something.

Will find a squirrel, or whatever animal he can choke the life out of, and promptly place it in your hands.

Take him home now or you’re next.

The trip ends there, and went just as bad as you expected.

If there’s a visitor’s office, he’ll be fascinated by the trinkets for sale. He doesn’t want one, and might strangle you if you point out a magnet or key chain with his name on it. If you’re immortal, you might buy one just to fuck with him later. He shoplifts some food, mainly dried jerky, while making direct eye contact with the poor cashier (who is currently wondering if their job is really worth it).

Stares at the taxidermy animals stuffed on the walls. Idly wonders if he can get you stuffed when you eventually die. If he’s in a good mood, he’ll point to the morbid work of art, then to you until you get the point. He doesn’t want your opinion. He just wants you to know he’ll think about doing it. How sweet of him.

There are some cheap stamps on a table, meant for small passports you can buy to track where you’ve been (if it’s a large, government funded park). Michael will allow you to stamp (and maybe thirst over) his hand, but only after you’ve stamped your own hand first. Just in case. Mildly panicked when he couldn’t rub it off. There was obviously no emotional reaction, but his sharp blue eyes betrayed his fear. You quickly reassured him it would come off, and he relaxed. Looked very dead inside, and you would be dead on the outside and in if you mentioned it.

Next time, you hike by yourself, and find that he’s lurking in the shadows. How he got there before you is beyond you, but he’s there. Mission passed?

(Secretly enjoyed the outdoors, just doesn’t want to do what you tell him)

Brahms Heelshire

Props on you for getting him out of his mansion. You’re most likely walking around the estate’s vast property, the most you could convince him to go.

He is whining, tugging on your sleeve, begging to go back inside.

He is not tired, or sore, or uncomfortable. Going out was never part of the rules. There was no need to do so.

Brahms grows more and more irritated as you continue, and you realize why you never saw parents with small children on the trails.

Snap at him and he’ll snap right back, picking you up and throwing you over his shoulder. He takes you, screaming and kicking, back inside. You yell at him for a good long while, and by the time child-Brahms is back and begging for your forgiveness, you’ve lost the mood to hike. With a sigh, you leave him in the kitchen, and turn to lock yourself away in your room. He isn’t far, however..

Assuming you bit your tongue and stayed silent (as you did with many of his strange mannerisms), he just might shut up long enough for you to begin to enjoy the thick British forest. Mossy stones and vine covered trees, all much older than you could begin to imagine.

You might have a better chance at hiking in peace if you tie it into the schedule, opting to tell a fantasy story about goblins or fairies as you both walk through the very land the story could just take place in. Distracted, he’ll become enthralled in your story, and throwing you over his shoulder, taking you where he wants to be, will slowly slip out of his mind. You aren’t safe, though.

The sun dips below the trees, and you realized just how long you’ve been wandering around. There was still no sight of the fences that close the land off.

At the suggestion (or command, really. You are the one in charge. Maybe.) Brahms stands very still. The porcelain mask tilts upwards, to the multicolored sky, and he asks to sleep under the stars. The novel the two of you read back in the mansion had just been through a chapter where the characters slept outside, and it was only natural he wanted to experience it too.

You sigh. There aren’t any proper materials to really camp, but you didn’t want to let him down. So, you compromise. You’d start a small fire, and you’d both sit around it until it grew too cold and the flames weren’t enough. There was no sleeping on the ground, but it would be a curious idea to do in the summer.

Brahms lost interest in the fire faster than you thought. He stared at it for a good ten minutes, then began to pester you. He realized it was nothing special, it was just like the ones inside. Plus, he’s spent far too much time outside and a chill was beginning to crawl down his spine, shown to you when he’d swirl his head around to stare at the pitch black forest.

Whispering, as if to not wake the world around you, you urge him to sit still and enjoy. He doesn’t. It’s too cold. When he sits closer to the fire, it’s too hot. You throw another stick of wood into the orange flames and tell him to go inside. That won’t work either, because he wants you to go in with him.

Without a word, you place your face sharply into your palms. Your hot exhales warmed your hands, and accurately expressed the sparking embers of frustration inside your stomach. Brahms shuffles nervously, not wanting you to act out of normal, but also not wanting to do anything about it. He’s real complex, isn’t he?

Eventually, you agree to go inside. You always have to do what he wants in the end. You’re too tired to shout at him when he sheepishly asks you to sleep with him. You kiss the porcelain begrudgingly, and shuffle off to your room.

He watches you a little longer, from the walls. Just to make sure you’ve got no plans to leave.

Then maybe sneaks into your bed. What? Why are you upset? You looked cold. He’s doing you a favor. Thank him. No he won’t leave, you’ll freeze to death.

Billy Lenz

Actually having a good time.

He’s nervous, as always, but he was far too distracted by the sudden change in surroundings to care.

Of course he’d been outside before, gone to parks in his childhood just as everyone had, but they weren’t trips he could enjoy.

Here, it’s just you, him, and the great outdoors.

Things start off well, with him stopping occasionally to touch a weird plant, or to point out a bug that scuttled behind a tree.

He walked oddly, hands in his back pockets and he was rather hunched over his own figure. He seemed rather awkward, and when you’d remind him he was fine, he’d stand up straighter and give you an unsure smile. Most annoyingly, he’d swing his elbows with each step. They often smacked into yours, and you never earned an apology.

You told him he’d get tired like that, and all he did was shout “Hogwash!” at you in an accent you couldn’t quite put your finger on, and continue. He swung harder just because he could, nearly twisting himself around with intensity, and you earned a bruise or two when he’d lean closer to you.

Predictably, he grew tired, and complained.

Congrats, you’re walking with a human radio that never turns off.

Offers to take your water bottle, and drinks it all while you’re distracted by the scenery.

Speaking of scenery, he doesn’t care. Billy might point out how a mountain off in the distance looks like a certain shot in a movie he watched years ago, or suddenly begin rambling about a plot of another film whose setting reminded himself of where he walked now. It’s interesting to listen to, sure, but he goes on for hours. Fortunately, he doesn’t seem to care if you don’t pay attention.

He will hiss and snarl at anyone you may encounter on the trail, either mocking them if they greet him (or you), or mock your response (or theirs). Please hope you don’t run into anyone with an accent, because he’ll speak in a poor reenactment of it for the rest of the trip.

Is incredibly hypocritical and will become upset if you cross paths with a group of loud hikers. Will scream how it’s rude to ruin the peace. Once the group silences, he will unconsciously begin to mumble or talk to you. Prepare for nasty stares.

Will stop to pee at least three times, both going and coming back. How many times he actually needed to was beyond you, but he did take an awful long time each stop. You do know for certain he flat out spat on the ground one time, then stood still for four minutes.

Secretly wants to go into the lake, but doesn’t say anything about it. You eventually pick up on the look in his wild eyes, and when you gesture to the deep blue water, he wastes no time jumping in. Will slip on a rock, misjudging just how slippery the lake bottom becomes, and is now completely drenched from head to toe. Billy refuses to get undressed, and becomes very uncomfortable if you do when/if you join him. That basically ends that if you are female, he’ll frown and carry a snarl in his words, mumbling something about appeal and trickery. He doesn’t discriminate either, the reaction is similar if you are male, although he doesn’t become nearly as upset. If you don’t go in (the best choice, really), sitting on the sandy shore and keeping your feet into the cool lake, he’ll throw water on you anyway. Rest in peace, your dry clothes. Refusing to surrender to your local attic rat, a playful fight ensues, and for that moment, you almost forget what a monster he is. Maybe it’s best you keep that locked away.

You win, and he bites your shoulder in bitter defeat. It’s not even in a sexy way or anything. He just fucking bites you. You’re lucky it doesn’t bleed much, the wound rather shallow, but it still hurt.

>:(

In his mind, he won, and that’s final. Will brag about his victory the entire ride home.

(shitpost: you cry about your wound, and get him to gingerly reach an arm out to touch it. You take this distraction to bite his wrist. Billy screams so loud all the windows in every car shatters instantly. He pulls away from you, clutching his injured wrist, and shouts every profanity he could think of. You both are not so kindly asked to never return to the park ever again.)

Jason Voorhees

Walking through Crystal Lake? No. You can’t do that. No, y/n, that’s his cursed campground. Go find your own.

You are, however, allowed to walk around the lake. Outside the parameters of the camp, he’s still a little on edge that you’re alive, but he’ll let you. Don’t say he never did anything for you.

He doesn’t make a single sound as he follows you from a slight distance, through bushes and low hanging branches, he’s silent. You turn around and see him standing there, machete in hand, watching.

A chill is constantly going down your spine, and no matter how much you trust him, your brain absolutely does not agree. About fifteen minutes into your hike, you swore you could hear a faint “ch ch ah ah” whispered through the trees.

If you call him out on it, he’ll simply shrug his broad shoulders, then turn his mask slowly to look ahead. He urges you to continue, so he can return to patrolling his beloved camp and slaughtering everything that breaths.

He isn’t being malicious, he cares about you, in some odd fashion. It is only natural for humans to long for companionship, and he is desperate for anything that returns him to a time when he was afraid of a hunter’s gun. You however, in all your beauty, are simply not enough to tear him away from his supernatural duty. Nothing is.

Returning home from the awkward hike, you invite him inside your house, a small two story cabin nestled just outside the camp grounds.

He agrees, shuffles into your living room, and stands there.

Jason parks himself just next to the small television, a spot he’d been to so often there was an outline of eternal mud and grime in the shape of perfect (and large) boots.

He stares at you as you go through your daily routine, as you cook dinner and eat it. As you watch some television, or read a book, or catch up on your favorite hobby. Jason is aware he’s free to leave whenever he wants, do whatever he pleases, but he doesn’t want to. He’s perfectly content with just standing there, far too nervous to actually interact with you.

The sky gets darker, and the crickets begin to chirp loudly. You tell him goodnight, get no response, and head upstairs. He waits a few moments, turns off your living room lights, and vanishes back into the thick, New Jersey woods. Duty calls.

#slasher #slashers #jason voorhees #michael myers #billy lenz #brahms heelshire #slasher community #slasher x reader #michael myers x reader #jason voorhees x reader #billy lenz x reader #brahms heelshire x reader

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eldritch-elrics · 3 years

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more svsss notes! from “shen qingqiu’s short but aggravating time in jail” to “shen qingqiu Fucking Dies” :]

...this got long. oops

so the book does this a lot but i’m always a huge fan of when a character (in this case little palace mistress) spouts off a cliche and sqq internally goes “oh my god here we go again. cringe.” it’s like... the reader gets to experience the drama of the cliche but also laugh at it

airplane has gay and homophobic vibes. or like...... araki jojo vibes. it’s so funny

the system keeps forcing sqq into plots that were originally meant for binghe’s harem members, which is of course hilarious (more so now that binghe’s not a teen anymore) - but i’m thinking about the fact that the system is literally powered by binghe. i wonder if binghe’s feelings are subconsciously influencing the system/the rest of the plot? like we know he has plot armor; does he also have enough influence to shift the story’s genre without knowing it? shit like this is why i love this novel. i’m really curious if it’ll be addressed

more of sqq being absolutely terrible at communication <3 please sir. say your FEELINGS. i’m sure you could figure out some way to explain without revealing that you know how the og plot goes...

another thing i find super interesting about sqq’s character is how sure he is that lbh’s gonna turn out how he did in og pidw. he’s just refusing to accept that lbh’s changed in any way, or that he cares about sqq at all anymore. there’s some line somewhere where sqq is like “oh no, being nice to him just made it worse... i’m stuck with him hating me even more now...” like NO. you’re just refusing to see all the signs of lbh’s hidden feelings. love unreliable narrators lmao

fate/destiny is such a big theme i keep noticing stuff about it

the system giving him a multiple choice answer to binghe’s “do you regret it” question, dating sim style, is of course hilarious, but it’s also a fascinating moment for a couple reasons. first, it shows how much of a crutch the system is for sqq - sqq’s leaning on it to fix his problems instead of actually putting in the work himself to get better at interpersonal communication. i hope that in a key moment later he’ll choose to defy the system. i think that would be a nice pivot point for three themes: first, accepting that sometimes he needs to fix problems on his own, without any omniscient outside guidance, second, accepting that not everything is written in stone (either by airplane or by the system), and third, recognizing that binghe and the rest are “real people” (ymmv on whether or not you think they are, but i think this is where i think sqq’s arc is headed) rather than video game objects to be manipulated.

i think that some shifts in his attitude do start to happen in chap 43 though when he sacrifices himself

back to slightly less analytical observations! sqq getting his clothes torn up. oh my god. and lbh’s REACTION...

dying at shang qinghua’s “coded” letter and the fact that its content basically amounts to “i fucked up, please escape from jail asap thanks bro”

gongyi xiao my BELOVED that prison break was pretty great. also i am so fucking sad about him. binghe WHY

so lbh wasn’t actually a disciple of meng mo? huh...

seems like the words of sqq’s vengeful ex weren’t completely true. i very much doubt the trial’s gonna happen now but i bet this will come up later

seriously losing it at sqq’s tavern disguise? smeared his face with dirt and drew on whiskers?? CATBOY SHEN QINGQIU???

love this development ning yingying’s gotten. the disciples’ relationships with their shizun in general are so cute omg

liu qingge keeps saving sqq from situations and it’s very fun. bros :)

also how lqg was like SO down to fight binghe at the end of that chapter?? king shit

binghe held out his hand to sqq when they were on the roof..... what was he planning to do.........

oh my god that whole confrontation. what is it with mxtx and Climatic Fights On Roofs

here is where the fate theme gets REALLY clear. sqq uses “we can’t avoid fate” as an excuse/coverup but lbh is like “no. was it fate that made you do all those horrible things to me?? i’ve decided that fate doesn’t actually exist. fuck the world i do what i want!”

which like. YEAH. protag energy. the rules of the world don’t apply to lbh so much do they???

im so excited for these themes to be explored more

also like. hell yeah. binghe finally sharing his emotions at a super climactic moment

and then sqq SACRIFICES HIMSELF...

god damn.

it’s a bit out of nowhere but also like. i kinda love it? because sqq knows he can’t talk his way out of this. he can’t say “hey it wasn’t me who abused you/made the choice to push you off the cliff.�� so he goes and does the most drastic action he can think of. and it WORKS

now initially i was a lil mad about lbh changing his mind so quickly but i actually think it fits for 2 reasons. first, he’s a webnovel character. they do that. second, his mind has just been cleared of xin mo’s influence, which had been plaguing him during his most angry/violent moments, so with all that anger suddenly gone it makes sense for his feelings to shift. and deep down, he really does care about sqq!

sqq fuckin DEAD and finally binghe is sharing his feelings,,

i do think that lbh should be allowed to feel mad about what og!sqq did to him in the past though? like. it was wrong, and though sqq may feel like he’s made up for it, i do think he owes lbh a proper apology and (if possible) an explanation. there’s much more work (and communication) to be done between them but i’m glad they’re finally getting somewhere...

but of course i don’t think they’re gonna be seeing each other again anytime soon :]

#svsss #svsss spoilers #my post #analysis #oh god this is so fucking long. sorry #after i finish the novel i might come back to some of this analysis and clean it up and post it as its own thing #because i have a lot of thoughts #finn reads scum villain

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