One of my absolutely favourite things about Across the Spiderverse, other than the amazing sound and visuals, is the small little metaphorical forshadowing we get.

My person favourite is the cakes. When Jefferson and Rio are talking to Miles's teacher, she tells them that Miles "wants to have his cake and eat it too" which is impossible and Miles bursts in and says "unless you have two cakes." And it's such a subtle way to hint that Miles has conflicting intreasts, and that's his biggest issue. He wants to be Spider-man, but he doesn't want to sacrifice the people he cares about. And in case you think I'm grasping at straws here, they do more with the cake when Miles literally decides to buy two cakes for his dad because he cannot fit the writing on one, but by the time he gets home after doing all his Spider-manning both cakes are destoryed. It's forshadowing not only to the fact that Miles desperately wants both things equally, but by trying to have both of them, he's going to cause detrimental damage.

The idea of having things in double is a general reoccurring theme in ATPV. We see it with the cakes, and we see it when Miles and Pav talk about Chai-tea, and Miles tells the spot not to call it an "ATM Machine" because M means Machine. The constant reference to the unnecessary repetition is almost representing the duality of being Spider-man and how taking on that role means making sacrifices and potentially harming your normal life, but it's also forshadowing to the fact that in the end, we have two Miles's. We have Spider-man Miles and Prowler Miles.

Things in this movie come in doubles and I absolutely fucking love it 😭

Can just say, I love how on almost every TCF cover, we get Cale AND Raon?

Aside from a couple exceptions, where he's either alone or there are other characters (such as Choi Han and the kittens – and I think there's Kim Rok Soo on one as well?), no matter whether it's novel or manhwa or fanart, we consistently get the two of them on covers. Together.

And yes, I realize some of it is because Raon is a Dragon and Dragons are cool to draw and basically the staple of fantasy... but that's not the main reason why and we all know it.

While Choi Han is definitely one of the main characters, if I had to name two most important characters in TCF... it wouldn't be Cale & Choi Han. It would absolutely be Cale & Raon, hands down.

After Cale himself, Raon is present in almost every arc in the story (I think the only exceptions are the Sealed God's Test, when they got forcefully seperated, and the Sealed God's Temple because Cale had him stay outside). Choi Han seperates himself from Cale on occassion to go on missions and stuff, but not Raon. He's there because he wants to be, intentionally making himself the most prominent member of the cast. He solves problems no one could solve aside from a Dragon. He stays by Cale side when he's sick and suffering. He literally acts as second-in-command after Cale used Instant, despite being a child.

But back to the cover – yes I'm sure part of the reason why Raon is always there because he looks cool. But it shows what an important character he is. In fact, I don't believe this story could exist without him.

#Deuteragonist Raon

Why Blitzø Likes Stolas

I've made jokes about Blitzø liking Stolas bcuz his type is tall, rich, powerful demons with musical talent, and that's probably kinda true, but I wanna talk about the real reasons Blitzø likes Stolas. Tldr at the end.

I think one of the major reasons Blitzø likes Stolas is how kind, sincere, and affectionate he is. Stolas is always making sure he is okay and is very passionate about litterally everything he does (dramatic little bitch, lol). And while he's ignorant ("my impish little plaything"???), he does mean well. Taking Octavia to Looloo Land to make her feel better, Going full demon mode to save IMP, his attentiveness to Blitzø during his mental breakdown in Seeing Stars, him absolutely adoring Octavia, him helping Ozzie when he gained no real benefit, etc, etc.

Also, expanding more on the affectionate part, Blitzø is shown to not get much affection or love in his life at all. His family situation was a giant mess (his dad literally sold him for 5 bucks and a condom Jesus Christ-), and Stolas is a very loving and affectionate person. Obviously, this is shown with Blitzø, but also with Octavia ('my precious little starfire', always staying patient with Via, even if he can be a bit dismissive, going full demon mode when Blitzø said he lost Via), and even his plants (he raised the flesh-eating plant since he was a kid, he pets the plant, on his insta he called a puprle rose "a handsome little rose"). And yeah, he's going to be affectione with Via, that's his daughter, but in Hell, (or maybe just from Blitzø's perspective, it'a hard to tell honestly) that's shown to be a rarity. So obviously, he's going to admire that about him.

And also, compare that to Blitzø's life. His dad saw him as less than, something happened that made his sister hate him, his mom seemed to be a good parent, but she's dead, his best friend and former crush hated his guts for 15 years, his daughter does care about him but she also mostly just shows anger and annoyance with him, and even Moxxie, who'd I'd argue is his best friend, gets annoyed with him constantly (I would too tbh but this isn't about that). Stolas just being his loving and affectionate self and being so happy to see him and always being so sweet to Blitzø is like a breath of fresh air to him.

Another thing is that Stolas shows clear interest in the things he likes. Take horses as example, bcuz we all know Blitzø is obsessed with them. Most of the time, his friends are pretty passive about it, but Stolas actually indulges him. Some of this is from their instas, but Stolas got him a horse Hoodie, he draws horses with him, and Stolas even got inspired to draw because of Blitzø.

(Also, plz note that in another post he commented that it smells like Stolas, and I want everyone to appreciate how happy he looks in this photo while smelling it again)

Blitzø probably admires Stolas's theatrics as well because despite growing up in a Circus where you were supposed to be dramatic and showy, he was still always taught to ignore or hide his true emotions (Cash ignoring that he didn't want to go to the Goetia Palace because "MONEY"). And while Stolas was raised the same way, he still wears his heart and emotions on his sleeve and is always showing them, whether it be positive or negative

And we all know thst Blitzø has major self hatred issues, but Stolas was genuinely interested in Blitzø as a person. Laughing at his jokes, asking how his day went, and with all of this, you can't help but wonder if Blitzø was figuring out that he did too. I think that's why he was so heartbroken about Ozzie's. Because to him, Stolas hiding his face was just proof that Stolas didn't care. That he was just a little plaything. But, Blitzø liked that Stolas liked him for who he was, and that he didn't have to pretend to be someone different.

Yes, ik Blitzø wasn't here for some of them, and he thinks that Stolas is just faking all of this. BUT, Blitzø can notice things subconsciously, and the stuff that Blitzø wasn't there for was to talk about Stolas's character as well. That's why I wanted to talk about this, to talk about what Blitzø sees in Stolas and his character.

Feel free to add anything if you want! I'd love to hear your guy's opinions, takes, and thoughts on the ship. I'm probably gonna a make a post on why Stolas likes Blitzø at some point, lol

Tldr; Blitzø likes Stolas because he's kind, sincere, loving, affectionate, passionate, caring, dramatic, and likes Blitzø for who he is.

I think we don't talk about this scene enough, so let's dive in:

Earlier episode 5 establishes that Din and Bo had grown closer to each other, while staying at the Covert:

There's plenty of space so there's no need to sit so close to each other unless they've grown closer.

Now back to this scene where the Armorer asks Bo to remove her helmet.

She was hesitant, and we rarely see Bo being hesitant about anything.

Now ask yourself why? Why was she so hesitant here?

Why wouldn't she want to get rid of her helmet? Not so long ago, she called Din's tribe a cult because of keeping their helmets on.

So what changed?

She lost her home. Din offered shelter. Then she *accidentally* joined his cult.

It's not indicated anywhere how much time passes between episode 3 and 5, but I would say at least a few weeks, if not a couple of months.

So why wouldn't she be relieved to receive the chance of removing her helmet?

You could say, well because she would become an apostate in the other's eyes, and therefore would be thrown out of the Tribe.

But, the Armorer refutes that by explaining "Bo Katan is walking both worlds."

But she is not concerned with the others, at least not at first. Her whole attention is hanging on Din's reaction.

She's afraid of losing his respect, and his friendship they had forged during their time together in the Covert up until this point.

She seems to want to say something in her own defence, but can't, because there's nothing. Instead, she's pleading with her eyes. (Katee's acting here is phenomenal)

This moment is about whether or not Din will reject her for taking off the helmet, like her Nite Owls rejected her for not getting the Dark saber.

And we know, that he not only doesn't reject her, (like he did in the past at their first meeting), but he joins to help her seek out her fleet.

From this point on, Bo is looking for his approval, and support.

Continuously!

It's so intriguing to watch how much she comes to rely on Din.

Then the pledge scene:

She's completely taken off guard.

She didn't expect him to support her after revealing how she surrendered, which inevitably led to the Night of a Thousand Tears.

This time Din goes beyond the simple nod of support by pledging his undying loyalty.

This marks another turning point in their relationship.

*Don't even try to tell me this isn't romantic as hell!!!*

It's clear where their relationship is heading.

She even says it:

Gif credit to: @enidsinclair

Amity Park citizens canonically commit tax fraud

Welcome to my TedTalk

Doctor’s Disorders:

Jack: Oh yeah and why should we trust you?

Betrand: Because I’m with the government and we can audit your taxes if you don’t.

Double cross my heart.

Mr Lancer: And what makes you think I want to co-operate with the feds

Operative K: Because ghosts are a constant threat to your student body.

Operative O: And because we're with the government and have access to your tax records.

Mr. Lancer: What do you want to know and how fast do you want to know it?

Conclusion

Amity Park says fuck the government and taxes.

My Commentary on Tim Drake: Robin

Because it’s my blog and I can do what I want

Starting off strong with the panel that made TimKon shippers go crazy

Ahhh! I love them calling eachother the Batfam it makes me happy

Then look at how small Bart looks

Small boy

A couple commentaries not connected to any particular panel but I adore the art style and I’m so happy Tim and Stephanie worked things out.

But I think Tim might have a type

TimKon shippers, TimBern Shippers and Platonic Tim and Steph fans somehow all got fed with this Pride Comic

People say Jason is the book nerd when Tim Spends this whole story recognizing and remembering the plots of detective novel not to mention he recognizes that he lost four books and figured which ones they are not to mention just the collection of book he treats like his most precious items. Like I acknowledge Jason and Jane Austen and love it but he should not be the only one joked about being a book nerd.

These clone escue thingys show up and Tim’s thoughts about them are so interesting.

I adore that even as he’s fighting them he’s saying praise for all of them, though he’s got the most for Dick. And the first read through I thought he didn’t compliment Jason and that made me sad.

Close up on Damian’s because you can’t really see it in the full page pic and the my baby brother just really got to me. I am very susceptible to Batfam moments

But Gosh even knowing they’re not his actual family it’s got to hurt to hear them confirm all his worst fears of never measuring up.

Well like father like son I guess. It’s not like Batman hasn’t figured out how to take down almost any hero he meets.

Little does Bernard know.

I love the TimBern in this. Their relationship is still developing, it’s clear that Bernard is comfortable in it from the start of the volume but Tim has his doubts of where they stand, of whether this is a good idea because he’s just dragging Bernard into his mess. But Bernard has his own messes and struggles and they can just be with eachother through all that

Tim. Timmy boy. That’s not a good thing. You should learn how to have some more self preservation, just because your family are all self sacrificing doesn’t mean it’s the healthy way to be.

Why is Superboy’s biggest fan what Tim finally responds to? Also why does Bernard call him that? Is Tim talking about him all the time? Also I love that Bernard calls him his boy wonder once again little does he know. (This is another scene I’ve seen TimKon fans go crazy for)

That’s the last picture on this post as I’ve hit the limit but the book was very good! I loved the villian, loved how they explored Tim. Love the Tim Bern. Tim coming to the realization that it’s ok not to know who he is yet is amazing. He’s figuring things out and that’s ok.

Have you ever wondered how many people watch She-Ra in 2023?

So thanks to the recent writers and actors strikes, Netflix have been made to release viewing figures of all their shows... which obviously includes our beloved She-Ra. Thanks to my friend @swearyshera , who has been able to read the recent report Netflix put out of their number of hours viewed and do some calculations, here's how the various seasons of She-Ra have done. I should stress, these figures are only for the first six months of 2023, from January to July, nothing before or after that. Without further ado, here are the viewing figures. The actual view counts are Alice's very rough estimates.

She-Ra season 1 - 5.3 million hours streamed, est one million views.

She-Ra season 2 - 2.3 million hours streamed, est 820,000 views

She-Ra season 3 - 1.8 million hours streamed, est 750,000 views.

She-Ra season 4 - 3.5 million hours streamed, est 675,000 views

She-Ra season 5 - 3.7 million hours streamed, est 710,000 views

Hope you find this interesting!

The TFA universe is a fucking nightmare and I wish people would actually talk about it. Long rant incoming.

Don’t expect good spelling or grammar I’m sorry

Like the show didn’t even care enough to address how fucked everything was. Like all the little baby robots just don’t have names until they go through the military/boot camp, which doesn’t make a lot of sense as the whole point of basic training/boot camp is taking away one’s identity and individualization aka what a lot of cults and extremist groups will do to get people to go along with whatever they want them to, as it’s a lot easier for group think to occur when there is a group. The whole “small cog in a bigger machine” bullshit speech is literally just that but dressed up to look and sound pretty (propaganda). But half of the names given at the boot camp are insults and that’s really fucked up. And it’s almost implied that the other transformers recognize Bulkhead and Bumblebee’s names as being insulting in nature because when Sari introduces herself to Bumblebee it sort of goes like this:

“My name is Bumblebee” “I’m Sari” “Oh don’t be, I like my name.”

But that would also imply that the show was thinking about acknowledging how messed up its own world is and I don’t really think it is. I think that’s a joke, was meant to be taken as a joke, but could be read into as world building or something.

It’s been a hot second sense I’ve rewatched season three of tfa but from what I remember, Ultra Magnus was sort of a dictator? Like I know that there is some form of election, but the main way anything gets done is through the council of primes and in TFA it is established that “prime” is a military rank, and those who advanced to “prime” have to be approved by the council, which Ultra Magnus is the head of. He doesn’t have full dictation over it (he wanted OP to not be horribly punished) but he does have a sizable amount of control (op was still given a job and got to keep his rank). The election cycles are nonexistent as the only time anyone thinks of trying to replace Ultra Magnus is when he is on his death bed. So is it like the Supreme Court? The people technically elect a leader but the council that would decide on important laws and if they are constitutional is chosen by the leader, not the people, can serve until they die, and can do fuck all and no one will challenge them because they have the final say on the law? For a thing like economics or the Supreme Court it would make sense to have these be not elected officials for the sole purpose of “they wouldn’t be pressured by potentially not being re-elected and so they would be able to do their jobs without worrying if it would please the people.” A lot of things done to fix and adjust the economy will look really bad at first but it ultimately serves to balance everything. But the people in charge of the FED and other economic shit also don’t serve until they die. Long tangent to say, not a lot of democracy in this word.

The only way to gain power in cybertron seems to be to either join the military or do a hyper specific job. Also how long has ultra Magnus been the leader? Was no one ever unhappy with how he lead? Sentinel Prime was but that was seen as a bit of a taboo. Also Sentinel’s Cybertron immediately turning into an Orwellian styled red scare nightmare was a choice. Establishing curfews during a time of potential war where the planet/country/city could easily be targeted for an attack isn’t in itself unreasonable. It’s immediately taken to 11 but the general idea of curfews makes sense. As well as reporting potential spys for the main reason that spy’s had been proven to have infiltrated the prime counsel thing. It goes to fear mongering almost instantly but the general idea isn’t bad.

Im interested to know how Ultra Magnus would have handled the situation because the show just sort of is neutral about him. He’s just there most of the time and tells OP not to try and be a hero. I want to know if he would have done something similar to Sentinel and I want to know if the show would address it. Because the general difference between UM and SP is that UM is better at hiding how much he manipulates power. He’s still a dictator even if he isn’t an antagonist force. He’s not a benevolent dictator because dictators, by definition, cannot be benevolent. If they were truly benevolent then the people would get a choice in the world that they live in.

All this to say, “dictator bad”

ALSO is there no trial system? Wasp just was sent to prison and they didn’t think to look into any of the evidence? Did no one think to maybe investigate the people who would have had the codes or spare keys for the locker things? Do they just send people into solitary confinement without any sort of hearing or evidence or was Wasp just waiting for his court date? Why does Optimus want Bumblebee to apologize to the guy who clearly doesn’t want to speak to him? He literally watched Bumblebee give an apology and a reasonable explanation for his actions. He wasn’t making excuses he was manipulated by a person who he thought was his friend and the main reason why he was able to be so easily manipulated was because the person in power was actively antagonist towards him. He did the right thing. He asked a person, who would have known how to make a report, how to make a report. If shockwave wasn’t the person who was in that roll then Wasp probably wouldn’t have been framed. And even if Bumblebees wasn’t the one who found the things in his locker, Sentinel still would have found them because Shockwave planted them. I’m sorry but asking a person how to make a report so you can go around the person who is acting aggressive towards you and holds a significant position of power over you isn’t the same as purposefully ruining someone’s life. Bumblebee was going off of evidence that was 100% circumstantial, biased, and highly questionable, that doesn’t automatically mean that he was trying to frame Wasp. If he had reported that he overheard a spy communicating with the decepticons and had reasons to believe that it might be Wasp, then I would assume that whoever the fuck would do an investigation and either clear Wasp or just arrest him because due process and fair trials is for babies. In which case, it still wouldn’t be the fault of a person who isn’t in control of anything. Blaming Bumblebee for what happened to Wasp is like blaming doctors for how expensive medical treatment is. He trusted the wrong person and that person used his trust against him. The people in power did not think to do an investigation into any of this. And even if the whole Wasp thing was open and shut why wouldn’t they look further into this? Maybe there was other spy’s? Did anyone think about that? No? It also isn’t Bumblebee’s fault that Shockwave got to the position of Prime. The security system and the people in charge of screenings didn’t pick up on the fact that there was a spy. That is not the fault of a random cadet who trusted someone. Shockwave’s actions and the people who died because of them are the fault of Shockwave. Bumblebee’s fuck up did help him not get caught, but it was also the closet we see to him being caught before he becomes a prime. If the people in the TFA world weren’t so fucking stupid then this wouldn’t of happened because maybe this hyper advanced world would have fucking security cameras. If they can figure out how to bend time and space then I think they can figure out how to install things that would record a conversation.

WAIT- doesn’t Bumblebee use something similar to that to figure out the decepticons plans and relay it back to earth? And they have computers that have screens so why don’t they have cameras installed?

Anyway, Wasp blaming Bumblebee makes sense. It makes sense that he is angry at him and it makes sense that he wouldn’t forgive him. That’s not the issue I have with this the issue is that OP also blames Bumblebee. Which I guess would also make sense as animated Optimus seems to be deeply rooted in the military and is a string supported of Ultra Magnus. It is stated in the first episode that he watches propaganda and repeats the military speech about being one big machine. He lies to save his friend and he sucks for that because his friend abuses his power whenever he gets the chance to and he knows this. Optimus lying for Sentinel is much more  egregious to me than what Bumblebee does because Bumblebee didn’t know that Longarm was a spy. I understand why Optimus would lie for Sentinel, he is a loyal friend and he definitely did blame himself for what happened. That doesn’t change the fact that he KNOWINGLY let a person who he knew to be irresponsible and who got others into dangerous situations into a position of power. I think Ultra Magnus knew that Optimus was lying and like- why are you people like this?

Bumblebee could have been called out for so many different things that he actually did. Like is he a bad friend? Yes. He treats Bulkhead badly, most of there interactions are just him insulting Bulkhead and Bulkhead never insults him back. If they both were insulting each other then I wouldn’t really have an issue but most of the time they are seen together it’s just Bumblebee being an asshole. He’s willing to abandon his team and objective to chase down Blurr, he doesn’t listen when people tell him not to do something and it often leads to problems. There are reasonable things to call Bumblebee out on but the Wasp thing doesn’t make sense. If Optimus wanted to address Bumblebee never taking responsibility for his own actions, then why not do that when a consequence is the result of Bumblebee’s actions in a meaningful way. What the hell was he supposed to do? He didn’t know how to make a report so he asked. This is one of the only times that Bumblebee stops to think and consider his options, he could have immediately began spying on Wasp and the other cadets but he didn’t. He wanted to pass it off to the right people who would be able to handle it.

Animated OP frustrates me because I come so close to liking him and then he does something that personally annoys the hell out of me. I get why he would lie for his friend who was manipulative and generally awful towards him but its still just like— you have seen the consequences of his actions. This is no longer just hurting you or him, it has maybe killed a person and he has not changed. Optimus thinks he can change but he has an obligation to not let him hurt anymore people and he just needs to tell the truth. It’s really hard to leave friends behind, I know that. Even when they hurt you and actively make your life worse it is still extremely difficult to let that relationship go. I appreciate how Optimus has issues in that regard. But it’s gotten to a point where Sentinel’s poor judgment and refusal to listen to others puts himself and others in danger. Optimus gave him the opportunity to continue to cause harm to others, and he really wants to sit here and say that Bumblebee was making excuses when he just wasn’t? And he never and would never be called out on this.

One last thing, Ultra Magnus and the rest of the high command clearly don’t give a shit about the cybertronians who were fighting (they were so willing to just kill Arcee for the activation code) in the war and also don’t ever try to investigate any issue further. Potential spy? Eh sure throw him into solitary confinement. One of our top cadets went missing and might have died but no body has been recovered? Well fuck, gotta just say she died and not look into it to make sure there wasn’t any malpractice.

So in conclusion:

The name thing both doesn’t make sense and makes too much sense

Ultra Magnus is kind of a dictator kind of not a dictator

Optimus prime spew’s military bullshit and propaganda and no one cares

Wasp is a dick, didn’t deserve what happened to him

Bumblebee is an asshole, he still didn’t try to ruin a persons life.

No one cares about investigating serious crimes and accusations

I’ve been thinking a lot about how people’s reactions to certain queer shows and something I think we need to examine how we treat more ‘dark’ and ‘emotional’ shows versus more ‘happy’ shows in this case I’m gonna be talking about the “debate” between Young Royals and Heartstopper.

Firstly these shows exist in two different lanes, and draw in two different audiences and potential age ranges, in my opinion, Young Royals is for older teenagers (think juniors or seniors or someone who is about to graduate high school and is going into college) while Heartstopper is geared towards those who are just starting high school or in the middle of it and is in that transitional period of their lives. Obviously, if you are not in these age ranges you can still consume and enjoy these shows, But I want to discuss how people act like they both can’t exist and you can’t like both or both shows existing for a reason. I’ve never really been a fan of punching down or belittling queer media (unless it’s harmful) Queer media in all forms is still lacking (especially those mediums centering WLW relationships). That being said the debate of which show is better is honestly so tired.

For people who say Young Royals is so much better (don’t get me wrong it is an amazing show and by all means like whatever you want) but liking it more because it’s “darker and more realistic” compared to Heartstopper which is "much happier" and "unrealistic," To me is so disingenuous because firstly so what? campy shows that feature queer characters deserve to be unrealistic, What's wrong with being unrealistic? Queer media has been subject to the Burry Your Gays narrative for decades or extremely unhealthy tropes and storylines so what's so wrong with having storylines and shows that are unrealistic or extremely happy? (even though the themes in Heartstopper are realistic).

Have you thought about how that may be an intentional choice? Now bare with me here this may be my over-analytic brain at work but Heartstopper has more or less some of the same themes as Young Royals just shot in a very vibrant and colorful manner to showcase how happy and colorful young love is BUT if you actually have watched the show or read the graphic novels you would know the show and graphic novels cover some heavy themes.

SPOILERS AFTER THIS POINT……

I want you to keep the song Pumped up Kicks by Foster the People in mind throughout this...I have a point I promise. Heartstopper is shot in a very poppy colorful way and in my opinion, symbolizes how when you’re young and in love everything feels warm, colorful, and vibrant. While Young Royals doesn't utilize this cinematic style they do use some form of vibrancy to convey tone and emotion. In Young Royals many of the scenes featuring Simon and Willhem's 'good moments' feature the sun especially shining on Simon when Willie is looking at him or whenever they are just in each other's company, this is especially prominent in the last scenes of the last two episodes of season 3.

So while people's criticisms of Heartstopper can be warranted (not saying you can't dislike the show) the comments that it's just so bubbly and bright just aren't true. The last season of Heartstopper saw multiple characters go through traumatic situations and it has been building up that way from the very first scenes in the first season of the show (but for the sake of time I'm only going to discuss both main characters in the two shows) Charlie not only is still struggling with being outed but is also battling with an eating disorder, this is foreshadowed throughout the first two seasons leading up to its inevitable blatant reveal when he is at dinner with Nick and his family where Nick starts to piece together why he is never hungry, passed out on the Paris trip and never finishes his food, which leads his to eventually research the signs of an ED. Nick is also still figuring himself out when it comes to his Bisexuality, while also dealing with the feelings of, feeling abandoned by his father, and having to reckon with the fact his brother is not supportive and dismissive of his sexuality and relationship.

Now before I said keep Pumped Up Kicks in mind that's because while this song has an upbeat, catchy tempo the song actually has a really dark undertone and meaning. So while Heartstopper is shot in a very vibrant colorway most of its characters and content of the show deal with dark themes and it's not all just a happy love story, and if the script for the next season follows the graphic novel closely, then we will see the characters go through even more challenges which also falls inline with the "darker" more emotionally message of the show. So to end this so it doesn't become a dissertation, both shows more or less have the same themes they just exist in two different lanes, I don't know why exactly people are fighting for one to be more valid than the other. When both can exist and be impactful to both or each audience, more queer shows need to exist where the characters are just happy and in love and I need y'all to unpack why you view more doom and gloom (for a lack of a better word) queer shows or movies are more valid than ones where the characters are just happy and have relatively in some aspects great experience when it comes to young love and figuring out one's identity. Sepreatlty why do you want these characters to suffer to find love? Why do characters have to go through something traumatic for their identity to be more valid and for you to relate and want to root for it more versus the latter?

Anyway, this was longer than I intended it to be but I just had to get my thoughts out there. TL;DR: Heartstopper and Young Royals are two great shows and if you think one is better than the other cause it has darker themes you are missing the point or probably objectively missed the dark undertones of the show, and one isn't more valuable than the other.

went on a tear the other day,,, think i mighta been onto something

❥ A Dabi/ Touya Todoroki analysis ( also just some thoughts and telling the difference between fanon and canon). ❥

Few songs that remind me of him:

This one is gonna have a little kick

• Touya todoroki is an interesting one. I think I've always liked his character but it didn't really start to intrigue me until late season 5( cs i haven't read the manga, yet).

• So just like all of the villains in the series he didn't wake up one day and choose mass murder. It was a process, chip by chip, little punches here (metaphorically) a couple kicks there until he starts to crack. The whole idea of being the n.o1 hero, being the best was instilled in him by his father. Parents play a huge huge role on the opinions and morals that kids develop. Then when he can't seem to reach that standard, the one to please his old man, it frustrates him, but he was like what 10?. He didn't give up, he was determined, he didn't care if he hurt himself in the process, once he achieved his goal it would be worth it ( which I'll talk about again).

• So when his father insist that he should stop, he should give up, it's just, so odd, to hear a parent telling their child to give up. Knowing Enji this wasn't just for his child's safety, it was probably also for his image, and because he saw it as a waste of time to train his soilder if he couldn't fight on the battle field. Touya knew this too.

• I've seen on many apps, or maybe even edits saying that if endeavor just went to see his son on seketo ( is that it? ) peak that day, it wouldn't have happened and he'd be 'normal', or somewhere close to. I beg to differ, it would have happened anyways, his sheer will to just outshine whoever his dear, precious father wanted outweighed his concern for his own well being. Especially with shoto being born and the new focus of attention. It was just a matter of time, fate, even.

• I remember TikTok in covid time💀, i was on of those people who had a hugee crush on dabi and tomura (mostly dabi), and i remember i used to say things like "I could fix him" "he's just misunderstood" "he secretly loves the league but just can't show it" no pookie bear that is definitely not the case😭. Fanon dabi is.....cool, but if i actually tried to interact with him he'd just, i don't kill me? I don't think he cares about anyone.

• Definitely not his siblings, he hates them too. He has an almost patronizing look on the women in his family, not doing anything to help or protect him ( not that he wanted it). He hated his little brother, shoto, for stealing his life, the life that he wanted. He hates his father for igniting a spark in him, then abandoning it, causing it to burn him up. He hates natsu, for not understanding and just accepting that they were both failures. His relationship with natsu, based on the little snips that we got give me very bittersweet, angsty vibes that i do want to look into. I digress. But no, Touya cares about no one, not even the league, they're just another tool to get him closer to his goal.

• He doesn't care about himself either as i mentioned earlier. Remember that spark i talked about?, it didn't burn him up completely, left a nasty big scar though. It's still burning, it's just fueled by something else now, a desire, a need to torture and kill Enji Todoroki. He isn't afraid of death, he was at it's doorstep and age 13, he's tasted it. He only puts in effort to preserve his life because his goal isn't complete. If he dies during or after, once he gets what he wants, and sees the look on their faces, he couldn't give a shit about what happens to him.

• Touya is not emotionally constipated. He's fucked up yeah but i believe that he's learnt how to feel his feelings, which are mostly anger, disgust and hatred. He appears nonchalant cause he channels those emotions into his revenge plan.

• I'd like to say he's a typical case of a psychopath, psychologically speaking. It's just that he has a motive to kill, most psychopaths do not (realize i said most) they just kill for the thrill. But other than that he checks off all the boxes. He's killed on multiple occasions, having very very little or non existent remorse for his actions, not very socially inclined, and if you think about it, is kinda selfish.

• Do not believe for one second that touya would see and remember the things he went through and be like "no, I'm above that". You're wrong, he would gladly mirror the behavior that he grew up around if it suited him. Top tier gaslighter and manipulater energy from this man.

• I'm not trying to demonize him, it's not his fault he doesn't care about anyone. It's just that he's never felt it, he doesn't actually know what it is, so he can't give it, you can't give something that you don't have. Some may argue that he had his siblings and rei, not saying they didn't love him but he didn't feel it, or want it, he wanted his father's love which he didn't receive in the slightest.

I didn't go over this so they're might be spelling errors

Overthinking this definitely but I really like Stella's letterman jacket and the implications for her characters. An letterman jacket is typically something asscioted with highschool and youth and we all know highschool was probably an happier time for stella than now is. In highschool Stella had her friends, Tabby, Gretchen, and her parents.

But now kaneeka is too busy with the general store, reese is too sick, tabby had cut her off, in some paths Gretchen can die, and her parents are dead. It's like stella is wearing an visual reminder of an happier time in her life.

This is also one of the few peices in her wardrobe that gets repeated

On day 4, stella is going through a crisis and we see that she put back on the letterman jacket again. Since this is the day stella either comes to terms or dosent with her past, it's a nice touch she has her letterman back, litterally wrapping herself up in happier times in attempt to cope with her truama.

Like I said, I'm probably overthinking things and this may seem like a stretch but idc since I find it interesting lol

Rosegarden, Cinderella, and Fairytale Romance

0r Why I Will Eat My Glass Slipper if Oscar and Ruby Don't Dance by the End of the Show

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Part of Ruby's arc in v9 is realizing that the ideals and dreams she had as a (younger) child are too ambitious and unrealistic. That life, huntresses, herself… they can't be like the fairytales.

It is a very big lesson to learn but, much like all things in RWBY, there is a push for nuance. Weiss and Blake even have called out in show that those storybook morals are too simplistic or black and white. Ruby is overwhelmed and breaking under the weight of her burdens and is being given the opportunity to either keep trudging on until it destroys her, or leave all of it behind.

But what about a secret hidden third option? Can she not leave Ruby Rose behind, not become someone entirely new, but rather… Choose to be the version of Ruby Rose she wants to be on purpose? And not as a result of other people's pressures or expectations that she's internalized for too long?

The point I'm trying to make here is that she can admit that holding herself to the impossible standard of an untouchable hero that always wins in the end isn't sustainable, but still find the intersection of fairytale and reality.

Now how does this tie in to RG? For that, I want to talk about two things:

The other canon romance plots in show

One of Ruby's smaller/more subtle 'allusions'

Of the three other big relationships in the show, each one's confession seems to fall into a very specific 'theme' (I understand I am generalizing/simplifying a bit but bare with me):

Arkos is rooted in tragedy: Pyrrha's death

2. Renora is rooted in reality: A two volume long conflict that ends in them acknowledging their feelings, talking it out, and agreeing to be patient with each other.

3. Bumbleby is rooted in a literal fairytale: A pocket dimension created specifically in the Ever After to push them into smooching (and y'know... confessing)

Rosegarden is currently in the tragedy stage. Constant separation over and over again leading up to Oscar being left in Remnant thinking she's dead and Ruby stuck in the Ever After not knowing how much time is passing back home and if he'll even be there when she gets back.

Reality we've seen for them a lot in how down to earth they are with each other. The constant quiet support. Oscar seeing past the pedestal, past the ideal, straight through to Ruby. Ruby seeing past the merge and seeing him fully as just Oscar.

But how do we tie the fairytale into it when Oscar isn't in Ever After to give them that storybook magic? Well, we go back to the earlier mentioned subtle allusion for Ruby: Cinderella.

NOW I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE THINKING. "But Chai!! We already have a very clear allusion to that character!!!"

Okay yes, but Ruby is a mirror to Cinder. We've seen it in their arcs as primary antagonists to each other, we've seen it in their costume designs with the parting of their hair and similar colour schemes. Cinder Fall, Ruby Rose (as in to rise). They are two sides of one coin.

Back at the dance in v2, Ruby arrives and is left alone by her friends. She isn't wearing glass slippers, but there is a whole lot of focus on how uncomfortable her shoes are.

She leaves the dance early after not having fun and runs into Cinder. And when the clock strikes midnight and the spell is broken? Cinder is at the dance in her pretty dress with Mercury and Ruby is back in the tower getting one of, if not the first big reality check(s) of the series.

This situation is teased by Oz in the episode prior with his little conversation with Ruby:

Ozpin: Not enjoying yourself? Ruby: Oh, no aha, everything's fine. I'm just not much of a... dance-y pantsy... dance-y girl. Ozpin: Well you can't spend your entire life on the battlefield, even if you may want to. Ruby: Yeah that lesson's been floating around a lot lately. Ozpin: If you think about it, fighting and dancing aren't so different. Two partners interlocked. Heh, although one wrong room on the ballroom merely leads to a swollen foot. Ruby:Or a twisted ankle Ozpin: It's not every day that friends are able to come together like this. Time has a way of testing our bonds. But it's nights like these that can help keep them stronger than ever. Nights like these are ones we'll never forget.

He teases that the dance is special. That Ruby should get to enjoy it because life has a funny way of creeping up quickly on these things. That these moments are rare and should be treasured... and he's proven right almost immediately.

Every other person in the cast got a dance - or something close to it - that night. Blake and Yang. Blake and Sun. Weiss lost her date 'cause Neptune's a goof, but they still got to sit down and talk. Jaune and Pyrrha had a moment on the balcony before he went to grab a dress and they all danced together. Ren and Nora. Penny even danced with one of her guards. Glynda and Ironwood too!!

But our hero didn't get one. All she got was a fight.

And see, this is where I think the 'fairytale' comes in. Ruby's had her reality check. Time and time and time again that fairytale spell has been broken. She is going through a metamorphosis throughout v9 to become a newly actualized version of herself, or at least find the start of the path that brings her there. But when she returns to Remnant what is waiting for her? More war. More fighting. More responsibility as being this symbol of hope and a leader for everyone. But part of her arc is learning to share her burdens with others. And the person that has consistently tried to do that with her without her asking for it, has been Oscar. Oscar, who is currently in Vacuo with who knows how much time passing wrestling with the knowledge that Ruby, the rest of her team, and Jaune are very likely dead. Oscar, who is now bearing the weight of this world saving mission without her there.

All I'm trying to say is that a celebration of sorts with a redemption dance, quite possibly in Vacuo, isn't entirely off the table. In fact I'd argue it's been teased since the very start, especially considering just how often they are posed as if they are asking each other to dance.

Also to go back to something Ozpin said "fighting and dancing aren't so different"... One of Oscar and Ruby's first scenes together, they are sparring in front of a sunset and they can't stop smiling at each other. They're just having so much fun with it.

Also their premiere moments in volumes 6, 7, and 9 are all RG in a fight of some kind. The first two Ruby is saving him from Grimm. The latter Ruby is being attacked by Neo's illusion of him. In volume 8, we don't get that. But we do get these two moments which also count for something (especially because dances and hugs are also quite similar in some ways):

There are going to be very high emotions when RWBYJ return to Remnant and what better way to celebrate that they are still alive than a party (and if not then, then after the war is over... but hopefully not THAT long). Where they can just 'dance and laugh and love… and just live'. Even for just a moment because who knows what the next will bring.

Ruby in v2 wasn't really a dance-y pantsy kind of girl... but post-v9 Ruby? She gets to choose the kind of girl she wants to be. Just the knight? Or maybe the princess too, even just for on day. And I think if anyone is going to offer her a chance to try it out, it's going to be her Little Prince.

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I love these normal kids with their very normal knees a very normal amount. I love how their respective 'specialness' makes them the perfect match for each other because it means they can be 'normal' together. That is all ty for listening. RG canon okay byeeeeee~

I often forget just how fucking batshit insane Rhulk was and how equally batshit his backstory ended up being. Like, with most asshole/villain characters in Destiny, you can read their backstories and be like 'ah, this is why you are Like That'. Mara is the way that she is because she was an autistic child with an emotionally abusive and neglectful mother who was tasked to basically rear her equally abused and neglected brother from a very young age, a complex which was then made much worse when people started to view her as some sort of savant rather than a person. She acts like a manipulative god-queen and a massive bitch who is very emotionally unstable and overcontrolling because she was raised in an environment where emotional processing skills were neglected and her taking complete control and responsibility was always rewarded. Eramis is a vengeful ball of hatred and rage who made the very poor decision of accidentally dealing with the devil because she has lost everything she cared about in her life, experienced massively traumitizing events beyond most people's comprehension, and survived on scraps for so long that her pain and survival instinct is all that she has left. She's been hollowed out by everything that she went through and she hates the world and the Traveler and herself for it, but she couldn't stop herself from trying to push forward and fight desperatly for scraps of a possible future until very recently, where she realized the true horror and scope of what she'd wrought.

But Rhulk? Rhulk is the WHOLE package. It's impossible to tell if his circumstances shaped him into what he is or if Rhulk is just genuinely Like That. Most likely it's a little bit of both, but the threads are so tangled together that you might as well just throw out the whole package. The only thing we can say for sure is that he's the space equivilent of a teenage redditor falling down an alt-right pipeline that eventually spits them out into a genocidal extremist cult, but whether he was indoctrined into it because he was weak and desperate or just naturally on that path to begin with is not something that I personally have the capability to suss out. He's so fucked up

Another analysis of Bakudeku’s relationship! (Shout out to Syd for helping me) - Manga spoilers

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If Horikoshi planned to make them holding hands in a life or death situation, aka an important situation…imagine for the manga and how important it’ll be

It’s different from the movie for sure but still…If his first idea was them to help each other in the most unexpected situation and where they NEEDED it to survive, it’ll be more impacting in the manga

When he never saw him in this state before, for him it was the first time he truly saw his childhood friend died in front of him. The same childhood friend with how he wouldn’t imagine a world. And seeing him *dead* in front of his eyes might awaken something in his chest because the idea of losing him was hard, but they caught him right in time the last time at Kamino…this time, no one was here to save him, and Izuku might blame himself because now he’s considered dead.

It’s like imagining one of your closest friends (even your best friend you’ve known since childhood or years, it doe matter, as long as you know you both had a strong bond) dead, and damn...I think no word would be enough to describe the pain Izuku might have felt at that moment, so instead, his emotions spoke for himself and me, the fear deku we have now is the traumatized and the real Izuku, the one unable to control his feeling- see what I mean with the Izuku stuff?

How the Izuku was seen until now was the « fake » one, and the feral one who entered into craziness after seeing Katsuki dead is the « real » one, almost as if his feelings were personalized in one person, and it’ll be the current Izuku.

I love the symbolism of “holding hands.” Until now, all the people who held someone else’s hand were important to them, so it’s not just an “I’m saving you” thing, it’s more like an “I’m saving you because I TRUST YOU” thing.

The notion of trust is really important, and it depends on the relationship. For example, in season 6, when Tenya held Izuku’s hands, it was because he trusted him.

During the Kamino accident, Izuku WANTED to be the one to save Katsuki (in a part of his mind) because HE TRUSTED HIM. At this period, he was afraid because he didn’t know if it was mutual, so he let Kirishima do it.

Today we have heroes rising where, in a life or death situation, Katsuki AGREED to hold Izuku’s hands and accept his help because he TRUSTED him. He always did, and it was complicated during the deku vs. kacchan two fight when he refused and rejected izuku’s help. Because Katsuki was TRUSTING izuku, and he always did, but he was afraid and lost in himself.

The beauty of their relationship (bkdk) is how Izuku knows that Katsuki is not okay, and he gives him time. Instead of forcing him, he would rather let his childhood friend discover things by himself and be here by his side when this happens. When Izuku always knew about how HE trusted Katsuki, like an obvious thing for him….it took more time for Katsuki to admit it.

Admiring it means being vulnerable, and until now, the only moments when he was vulnerable were around Izuku, and, even if they didn’t solve their problems at first, it helped Katsuki to build this trust and the idea of “Izuku is here when I’m vulnerable, so this means he’s trusting me” (or something like that) so yeah, the most interesting part of their relationship is how they grew up.

When Katuski fully realizes it’s okay, and they trust each other, he’ll be more open, and their bond will be stronger. It’s the prettiest thing about their dynamic.

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(Credit to Syd for this part !)

If it was izuku who had his hand out for Katsuki instead of kirishima, but I’m glad it was him because izuku wanted to be the one to save him, but honestly, I don’t think he would’ve taken his hand. (Since he rejected 3 times when izuku offered, but you know katsuki too stubborn) and so we get to where I love the hand-holding bc katsuki is now accepting izuku and wants to make things right between them.

Katsuki character i think is very unique. Izuku is just a beautiful character overall.

The relationship between them is something that I never really seen before (i mean I’ve seen stuff with enemies to friends or enemies to lovers) but this is a little different and that’s what I love about it.

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Let’s be real, we always wished it was Izuku because it’s our comfort ship, but seeing this story as external spectators….this won’t work.

Katsuki would’ve to reject Izuku because he didn’t “trust” him (aka accepting how his feelings were valid too and it shouldn’t be scary to accept Izuku’s help), and they’ll put his life in danger even more. It was a question of second, let’s be real (again) Izuku might be hurt by the fact that Katsuki wouldn’t accept his help and see someone else doing it or “taking his place” FOR THE FIRST TIME.

It was new, and I’m sure he suffered, but then deku vs. kacchan 2 happened, and they solved things. It was a difficult phase in their relationship, but it made it more realistic. That’s why I love them and how detailed it is. In the current manga they had to live in the same situation about saving each other they will. Katsuki would accept Izuku’s hands because they worked on it for months (in the manga Timelapse).

It’s different and well done, this makes them more attached and humans. They made mistakes, apologized, and agreed to give each other a “second chance” to start better, which is beautiful. They both complete each other most unexpectedly, and it’s the craziest thing about their relationship, how it feels natural.

I’m truly glad about how their relationship turned and their development <3

Thanks for reading and take care of yourself ! (Sorry for the mistakes)

[Trope Interest] Twin Bodyguards and Their Hunter Sister in Supernatural Works

Source: Promotional/Cover Art for Kyousougiga, Jiu Jiu, and Trese

By: Peggy Sue Wood | @pswediting

For some time, I’ve been fascinated by the trope of twin bodyguards who can shapeshift from humans to dog forms and their accompanying female “hunter” character. I find it interesting that this trope appears with enough frequency to be noticeable, yet it lacks a specific name, unlike “Single-Mind Twins” or “Tag Team Twins.” There are several examples of this trope. To name a few examples, Kyousougiga (Japanese) features the character Koto being followed around by her “brothers,” A and Un; Jiu Jiu (Japanese) has Takamichi followed by her shape-shifting, half-demon wolf-dog familiars, Snow and Night; and Trese (Filipino) has Alexandra with her adopted brothers, Crispin and Basilio.

Upon further review, I think that the trope of twin sidekicks/bodyguards and female hunters in supernatural comics and animation likely draws from various sources of inspiration and cultural mythology. One possible influence is the traditional Japanese folklore of “Inugami,” or “dog spirit.” Inugami were said to be the spirits of dogs that were killed by humans and were often summoned and used for various purposes, including protection, curses, and revenge. In some stories, Inugami could take on human form and even possess humans and other animals. Interestingly, these spirits could become attached to bloodlines, following a family through their descendants.

Another possible influence is the Japanese mythology of Komainu, lion-dogs that guard the entrances of Shinto temples/shrines, or the Shisa, which serve a similar purpose. Both of these seem to have derived from the Chinese (or Imperial) guardian lions, which symbolize protection (one physical and one metaphysical). Either way, around the world and over time, dog spirits have often been portrayed as both guardians and harbingers.

While I’ve come to understand, at least in part, the dog-twins potential origins, I still struggle to understand or find a related myth to a singular female hunter-type character. There is Artemis, the famous greek/roman myth character who is goddess of the hunt, but her image and story rarely overlap with the hunter characters seen in works that have this two+one combination. Moreover, the close emotional bond that the three tend to share in the stories–often portrayed with familial-nature (adopted siblings with no romantic interests)–seems to be a significant factor in the continued use of this trope. Continuing in our prior examples, Koto is searching for the black rabbit/her mother; Takamichi is hunting demons, and Alexandra is after monsters.

The twin sidekicks are always depicted as “protectors” or “guardians” to a female lead, often with her occupying an adopted sister role rather than existing as a love interest. They are portrayed as loyal, fierce, and powerful, with the ability to transform into large, intimidating dog-like creatures to defend their master. Overall, the dog servants are depicted as essential members of the hunting team and play a significant role in the story.

Of course, the influences behind Kyousougiga, Jiu Jiu, and Trese may have come from other supernatural comics and anime that have used similar tropes in the past. They may also have combined these cultural sources with their own stories to create a unique take. Regardless, it is an interesting trope to examine, and I continue to wonder about its specific origins.

If you have any ideas about the specific source(s) for this trope, I hope you will share them with me in a comment or message as I really do not know and am very interested to learn about this idea. Thank you for reading!