#and made it clear i'm not targeting (or frankly even thinking of)
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asking you about... wen qing
I will admit that WQ is actually one of the characters I've thought about the least, because she has minimal impact on the characters I'm personally invested in. That said, of course I've done some close reading because I am a super mega nerd and I do have thoughts.
I actually feel bad for WQ as a character, not just within the narrative but in the context of how she appears to be treated by fandom. The yassification of female characters is so depressing to me and she's probably one of the characters who suffers most under fandom's misguided and yet utterly relentless commitment to its own brand of frustratingly regressive progressivism.
Normally all my meta is grounded firmly in MDZS, but I do have to mention CQL here to underline my point. There's an abortive romance arc introduced between WQ and JC in CQL, and while (reasons behind that particular decision aside) I have no issue with that change in theory, it's directly responsible for one of the two main fandom-sanctioned WQ takes.
Take One (thanks CQL)
WQ is a badass awesome lady yeah! She pegs JC all night long because penetration is empowering!
Take Two (actually I'd blame CQL for this too except fandom loves doing this to all female characters regardless)
WQ is a badass awesome lesbian yeah! She's in a lesbian relationship with [insert female character du jour here] because she is a lesbian and that's empowering!
In case you can't tell, I have minimal patience for this sort of thing. Everyone has the right to write and enjoy whatever they like, but in my own space I have the right to highlight fandom trends and interpretations that I feel are unsupported. A lot of my frustration stems from the very fact that they are trends. Individual fics and meta posts are rarely the issue. The issue is that it's so difficult to find anything that is actually textually-grounded.
Anyway, the WQ and JC relationship in CQL is actually quite a mature depiction of two people who have an interest in each other and ultimately recognise that a relationship would not only be impractical, but that neither of them are the type to forgo their other loyalties and responsibilities for each other. Quite a neat parallel to Xiyao and contrast to Wangxian, actually. Overlooking these challenges in favour of centring the question of who is penetrating whom doesn't do either character justice. Pegging is all good fun, but its prevalence with this particular pairing is something that raises my eyebrow. I am deeply wary of analysis that looks at the power dynamic of a relationship, concludes that the woman has the stronger personality, and equates that with the man being the receiving partner.
As for WQ being a lesbian, from what I can tell this originates in theory from WQ being alone with JYL one time in CQL (gasp) coupled with fandom's insatiable need to make every single female character a lesbian regardless of whether the text supports it or not. And I'd be truly interested in a resistant read or a speculative fic that is canon consistent and depicts WQ as a lesbian; in MDZS especially we know nothing about her orientation. And yet what I see is not thoughtful explorations of gaps in the text. It's muddy hobnail boots all over the text and the result is rarely nuanced or convincing. WQ and her partner du jour are reduced to a superficial collection of traits only tenuously connected to the source at best, and more often than not they are also supporting characters, existing within a fic merely to cheerlead the m/m couple and nominally tick a box on the representation checklist.
This post is quite harsh so I'll reiterate: I'm not speaking about any particular person or fic here. I'm speaking about trends. The problem is one of quantity as much as it is quality. If I could find a reasonable percentage of content with a solid grounding in the source material I would be very happy, but the ratio is just absolutely horrendous.
Getting back to what is actually present in the text, WQ is an incredibly resilient character. She's trying to balance her loyalty to her clan with her own ethics and the wellbeing of her brother and she does as well as anyone can in the circumstances. I like that she isn't necessarily the Actually Good Wen and that she isn't secretly working against WRH. She doesn't really like what he's doing but she understands the reality of her position and she's trying to work with that. I always respect that in a character because I find it much less interesting when someone wearing protagonist armour comes smashing through the plot (WWX, we'll get to you later).
#ask#exoscopy#roquen meta#i hope i've properly contextualised why i have gripes#and made it clear i'm not targeting (or frankly even thinking of)#anyone in particular#but here goes!
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I actually hate having to post this, but
I feel like I have to post this in response to some recent drama stirring. I will cop to making an alt blog to post this because the hate around this has been virulent.
Recently this post has been shared regarding another artist creating locked tomb fan art
In this post which you should read they make the claim that the creator of these pieces 100% for certain created them with AI image generation software generating quite a lot of attention. The problem is that their supposed supporting evidence is INCREDIBLY flawed to the point of contradiction and nonsense. For example both of these cropped images
are given as evidence of AI generation, claiming that the smudge is the result of AI failure and that the hand is CLEARLY ai generated…except that even a cursory examination and familiarity of what AI image generation ends up looking like would make it obvious that these aren’t AI hands and are just…normal hand drawn hands. As for the smudge we could easily explain that as the artist not noticing a mistake in one of their layers before posting, but we don’t know that. Except we do.
Because if you were to look at the artists blog now you might notice they have made some corrections and small edits to the original piece and lo and behold…no smudge. Now here is where things get properly silly, instead of drawing the obvious conclusion from this that the artist being able to go in and fix the layers of their work means that they actually drew it THEY CLAIM THAT THE ABILITY TO DRAW AND EDIT IN THE EXACT STYLE OF THE PIECE IS FURTHER EVIDENCE OF AI.
WHAT.
I don’t think I need to point out to most people that AI image generation tools do not work that way and they certainly don’t allow you to make subtle targeted fixes and edits.
There is also a claim that the artist admitted to using AI to produce the piece which is a gross distortion of what they explained, the artist openly stated that they have tried using image gen tools to assist with their thumbnailing process. Let us be clear that thumbnailing is NOT producing any sort of final piece but is simply the process of brainstorming ideas and concepts. It’s seriously gross to flat out lie and claim the artist said anything different. Thankfully someone else screenshotted this so there’s actual evidence that accusations are being made that are straight up lies.
It is also at this point we should take a look at some of the artists other publicly available work.
I chose this selection because another accusation in the post that is hard evidence of AI is that because the posted pieces are “too different” in style from other earlier work posted on their blog, it should be fairly obvious how silly this is with even a small sample of what they have produced. This is an artist who obviously has the ability to work in a wide range of artistic styles and mediums but instead this is being used to claim they…can’t art? It’s also worth pointing the obvious that there are plenty of works in that artist’s portfolio in the exact same mucha style, including ones that are literally hand drawn on paper. Works that literally predate the availability of image generation software going back years. It is a complete farce to suggest this person CANT DRAW HANDS.
Frankly it is incredibly disappointing that the community is barraging this artist with insults and hate because of one persons incredibly flawed accusations. A person that I might add has deleted comments on their post that disagreed with them while at the same time castigating the artist for blocking them and deleting their post as evidence of their guilt.
While this isn’t conclusive in and of itself I’ll end with this.
It’s more effort than the accuser went to before rallying a witch hunt against someone else.
#the locked tomb#harrowhark nonagesimus#illustration#harrow the ninth#harrowhark#locked tomb#htn#alphonse mucha#tlt fanart#gideon nav#griddlehark#gideon the ninth
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What is your opinion on terf blocklists, where every one on there at the time had clear and intentional radfem beliefs pushing shitty ideas about trans people and easily identifiable as to what exactly they believe via what they say and circulate and who they constantly reblog shitty things about trans people from?
I promise this is a genuine good faith question; I want to understand if the thing I've been taught be others to do with the purported intention of eliminating platforms for terfs to protect ourselves and others is actually helpful or if that also has far reaching consequences I hadn't considered before. I'm trying to think about it but struggling with the idea I got taught to do them/follow them (blocklists) for being to identify correctly and block, not harass. But do the harms of encouraging that approach actually outweigh the benefits and that doesn't change even if the blocklist is for actual bigots?
Again, genuine question. Trying to learn.
I think the problem here is less in how a blocklist is constructed; it's not hard to imagine that a list can be made under strict enough criteria, with enough careful vetting, to contain only Genuinely Bad People- or at least people who would not object to being placed in the category of that list. It's also not hard to come up with categories of people that feel morally reprehensible enough, and unattached from any marginalized identity enough, to be "safe" to target: it would be absurd to argue against a "Nazi blocklist" that contains only self-proclaimed Nazis.
The problem also isn't really in how blocklists are intended to be used; it's pretty fair that someone might want a list of people to block pre-emptively in order to avoid harassment, particularly when that harassment is bigoted. It's not hard to imagine that someone making such a list is doing so with the intent that it only be used for blocking, and that they might even make an effort to say as much in the post. And at that point, is it really their fault if someone goes against their clearly-stated wishes?
The problem is that a blocklist is, by fundamental design, "free research". It's put forth entirely so other people do not have to do their own research, which means the entire premise discourages people from doing that research.
You aren't offering up a list of people that others should go look into and form their own opinion about, you're offering up a list of people you already did the research on so people can copy/paste and be done with it. It would be counterproductive- and frankly silly- to post a blocklist with some "but make sure to double check these yourself!" disclaimer, because like, that's not the point of the list. Nobody is going to do that. Even if they did, they're looking into these people under the assumption that there is something to find; everything is going to look suspicious in a way it never would have without that framing.
The question isn't whether a blocklist can be made with good intentions and due diligence; the question is whether it can be made with ill intent or sloppy execution, whether anyone can tell the difference, how likely they are to actually check, what you're doing with that list, and what impact your choices have.
If I make a list, the message I send is, "you can trust me. I did the research, I did it right, and this is a Good Blocklist. If you trust me, you should trust this list."
If I reblog a blocklist, the message I send is, "I trust this list. I may have even checked it myself. This is a Good Blocklist. If you trust me, you should trust this list."
The majority of the people who follow me probably believe they can trust me to some extent; oftentimes, people just trust that whatever is on their dashboard is trustworthy, because someone they follow put it there. Those are their friends, and their friends are trustworthy!
This should make you nervous. You should not be comfortable with this. People make mistakes all the time, and even if they did do the research (it's so much more likely that they did not, especially if they're not the original creator), someone else's standards of what kind of person "deserves" to be on a list like that are very likely different from your's. Are you going to double check every single name on that list yourself?
Well, if the accusation is bad enough, probably not. Especially if the accusation is something like "Nazi" or "TERF". And if you do start checking, how likely are you to check every single name? If the first 3 or 5 seem to check out, will you bother with the other 50 on the list?
What if OP hid someone in that list who doesn't belong there; someone they just have a personal grudge against? What if OP defines "TERF" to mean "anyone I assume doesn't think trans women are the most oppressed", and after the first 15 actual TERFs, the list is just a bunch of transmascs- many of whom don't even disagree with OP in the first place? What if they define "TERF" to include anyone who has ever been a TERF, and one of the people on that list is a trans person that has been rumored- without any foundation or grain of truth whatsoever- to have once been a TERF?
Will you know? Will you check? Even if someone you trust reblogs it? Even if someone you trust made it?
A blocklist may not have the same kind of obviously punitive intent as a callout post does, but it's a tool from the same toolbox. People think callout posts are about "safety", too. Lots of people also think that about the criminal justice system, about prisons, about the death penalty.
The question is not whether that could be true, or whether there could be a world in which justice is administered correctly with these tools. The question is whether it could fail, and who it hurts when it does.
Who can abuse this system? How easy is it to do so? Who is most likely to be hurt; is it the intended target, or people who are already disempowered by our systems and society?
What is the best way to go about this?
Even done correctly, a blocklist is not the most effective tool here: people can remake their blogs, change urls, and often have sockpuppets ready to go anyway. The list is rendered useless and inert as soon as enough people change their strategies to evade it. A more effective tool is education; teaching people how to recognize a TERF, or TERF ideology, on their own. Teaching them why those ideas are problematic. Encouraging them to block and disengage, and teaching them why engaging is harmful and counterproductive. Talking about de-radicalization, cult recruitment and radicalization tactics, and how to fight this epidemic.
Telling people what to think does not solve the problem, but teaching them how to be critical might.
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hey i'd just like to come on here and formerly apologize. i did more digging, and I realized frankly, i shouldn't have done that. and i'm extremely sorry. i'm not only regretting it because of the hate and whatever i'm getting in return, but i realized I shouldn't have come for you like that. it was in the past and i didn't think at all. and you're incredibly right with everything you said. i'm once again so sorry for coming out and harrasing you about something so long ago, and frankly, not even as bad as some others have done. you are right- i am just a silly teenager and i'm willing to accept my mistakes as one. this has taught me a lot. and yes, this is ser0_t0nin, i just changed my user because I had people messaging and sending me asks telling me to off myself, and having others attack my other socials. i am once again so sorry. thank you for this learning experience and I will never repeat this incident to anyone else. It was so wrong of me to just come out and accuse you of shit. anyways i keep saying sorry a lot but it's cause I am. I immediately regretted it, even after I sent the stupid ask in. i'm sorry if I made the day bad for you and I wish you the best. once again, for the seventh millionth time, im sorry. ps. you don't have to accept my apology i just hope you know i took everything you said into consideration and have changed my outlook on things. i'm sorry.
huh, it's fucked up that people have been telling you to kill yourself. while that isn't a lesson i would wish on anyone-- and i have repeatedly tried to make it clear to my followers that harassment is wrong and nobody should ever do it, no matter the target--it does serve as a pretty clear demonstration that the internet is full of reactive assholes who don't actually care about right or wrong, just finding their next victim. it could be me, it could be you. eventually it will be both of us.
im sorry you're having such a bad time. it was my intention to give you a sharp wake-up call, not weeks of undeserved suffering. as you can see, a lot of getting by on the internet these days is blind luck and a very thick skin, not behaving well or treating people right. still, being a teenager is hard enough without also slogging through harassment, so you've got my sympathies. i hope you get through this in one piece, and find a comfortable place to enjoy yourself again.
turn anonymous asks off, and good luck.
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Tyler Galpin :
Good. I'm going for it. With Tyler, we are sure a teenager who had a lot of problems in his life. The trauma of his mother's death, his father's neglect, etc. Yes, we know that he was not a child at heart, friends with the guys from the world of pilgrims, massacring Xavier's fresco. But he went to a recovery center after that, visibly moving away from his old associates afterwards.
That's where Laurel came in.
She targeted him, taking advantage of his solitude, his insecurities, and his need for attention, gaining his trust by telling him the truth about his mother, unleashing the Hyde in him. At first he was scared, so she chained him up in the cave, abused him physically, mentally and emotionally until he obeyed her, injecting him with I don't know what product, enslaving him, she becoming his master. God, she saw him naked, tied up, freaked out and scared. Total vulnerability.
She refers to herself as his "mom" and has frankly frightening gestures of "affection" towards him, stroking his hands and face. In the café flashback scene, it definitely felt like flirting. It was knowingly abused, let's not be afraid of the word groomed, would be more correct.
Tyler couldn't remember what he was doing at first, not understanding what happened to him. However, he also tells Wednesday that he came to enjoy killing.
But is this really the case?
We're sure someone's absolutely fucked up psychologically. So, did he really end up enjoying doing all this? Or did Laurel convince him he liked it? Has he convinced himself to preserve himself? Give himself a modicum of control in a system where he had no choice anyway? (Because yes, let's remember that in any case, the master controls the monster) Has he gone mad?
Or, (and most likely to me) is it just the Hyde talking? Does Tyler have two personalities?
We all know that Hyde comes after all from Jekyll and Hyde. The duality between good and evil. We are also told that his mother was probably bipolar, and the doubt as to whether she really was, besides being a Hyde, is kept. (so maybe Tyler had other mental issues before Laurel arrived and she made them worse)
When Tyler reveals the truth to Wednesday, tears gradually fill his eyes, it is already completely the case when he whispers in his ear, all the more visible when he raises his head. You can see that he is holding back his tears. For those who say he's just putting on the nice guy mask, it doesn't make sense, the tears are progressive and start when he talks about the murders. Also, when he leaves, on the contrary, his face is not sad, but neutral. (I even think he has a little smile at one point) Only against Wednesday did he look so sad. Nobody else. Because yes, he looks sad. The interest if he reveals to him to be a monster? There is no more manipulation in play at this time.
This scene terribly gives the impression that two personalities overlap and clash, not that we are being revealed to a big bad manipulator in my opinion, sorry.
Either way, Tyler's case is clear. He is above all a victim. Someone who needs to be psychologically treated, even though he ended up "liking" committing these murders, since in any case, he was formatted to be this murderer by Laurel. I'm sick of seeing people spit on his character, saying he's just a freak psycho, when Laurel is literally there and the show is very explicit about what she did to him. How can someone think he is completely in control of his condition when he says he likes to kill? Even if it came to this result, you have to think about the whole phsycological process behind it.
Also the idea that Tyler has completely manipulated Wednesday does not pass in my opinion, already, just with this scene, but even more so with episode 1. Tyler was ready to help Wednesday leave town. There was no reason for that, even for Laurel's plan. When Wednesday asks him why he would agree to help him leave town for free, he replies that at least one of them can go, as if something is holding him back. I'm sure he didn't know Laurel's plan yet, it wouldn't make sense otherwise to agree to help Wednesday get out of town. Wanting a romantic relationship with Wednesday isn't a necessity for Laurel's plan either, like, really not. Maybe he just liked the idea of making a marginal suffer? Unlikely for me. The effort Tyler showed on their first date, and the detail he put into it, is obvious. It's way too much for someone who just plays comedy. Decorating the crypt, the choice of film, or the fact that he carefully observed her reactions throughout.
And to anyone who says Wednesday could never be with Tyler because he killed people… how shall I put it. The fact that he's killing people isn't Wednesday's issue. The problem is WHO he killed, or at least who he tried to go after, namely people she liked. But beyond that, with Tyler's situation and if he's showing any regrets, I think she could easily forgive him. We're talking about a girl who was tossed piranas into her high school swimming pool as revenge for her brother's bullies. She was even disappointed that she had failed to kill them. She admits to having sociopathic tendencies, worthy of a serial killer. She tells Tyler that she would have done much worse than mugging Xavier and ruining his mural and that she isn't judging him. She also had Xavier accused of murder, without real evidence, and was completely ready to torture Tyler. She adores her Uncle Fester, who finds having a necrophilia bent an awesome quality, and who apparently served time in prison for eating Boy Scouts. Knowing that in the movie, Morticia says they like to reap themselves from those who would like to submit them, apparently the motto of the Addams family, I think this reference to cannibalism is not just a joke, even for the series.
Also, yes, Wednesday genuinely liked / love Tyler. No one can say otherwise. She was intrigued by him from episode 1. She went to the ball with him in episode 4, was planning to kiss him back when he tried in the crypt, is the one who ended up kissing him the first, and most obviously, she smiled at him. Not sketches like she had with other characters, but a real sweet smile. The truest we've seen after the one she gave to her uncle and which was huge by comparison, I grant you. But Tyler is the only person after Fester with whom she has sincerely, unambiguously or restrained, smiled.
Ah and there is also the fact that she says:
Of course the first boy I kiss would turn out to be a psychotic serial-killing monster. I guess I have a type.
(I put in parenthesis because I'm not sure which one, is it me or Wednesday also had tears in his eyes when Tyler revealed the truth to him? Knowing that once again, the only person for whom it is sight crying is the thing)
Wednesday is not one to develop these kinds of feelings easily. I doubt that Xavier arrives at such a result so quickly, although yes, Wednesday appreciates it, but not in a romantic sense for me. Yes, she took an arrow for him, but she was ready to fight for everyone in her school at the time.
So when I see some that say there's 0 possibility that Wednesday and Tyler will still be romantically involved later on, I'm like:
I know the actor said of Tyler "He was always playing her. Maybe there's an attraction there and, he probably wouldn't admit it, but a respect for her, but he's filled with so much anger and hatred toward her and her family and all of Nevermore because of what happened to his mom." But the actors are not gospel, they can say things that are inaccurate, even downright absurd for some. Also, they are not in the writing room. Also, I think he is just giving his opinion. And I'm sorry, but again the idea that he manipulated her from A to Z, feeling only a form of attraction for her, does not fit many moments in the series. Again, the beginning where he agrees to help her get out of town, the interest? It was the first episode, and he probably didn't know Laurel's plan for him yet. When Wednesday asks him why he would agree to help him, he replies that at least one of them can leave this town, as if he wanted to get out of it but was stuck there. The date too, once again there were so many unnecessary details in there for someone who was just playing. The looks he gave her when she wasn't looking. Not to mention that much-discussed moment where he reveals the truth to Wednesday, but literally looks like he's about to cry at the end? Sorry Doohan, but I find it hard to take your words as the absolute truth. Hyde, as in Jekyll and Hyde. Tyler doesn't just have the Hyde in him. It would be a monstrous waste of his character otherwise.
Frankly, I would be extremely disappointed if the show only made Tyler the enemy of Wednesday in the sequel, in pure monster mode. I even think that it would be a rather nauseating message in view of what the character has suffered and the allusions to mental illness.
It would also be so interesting to see the reintegration of a Hyde among the marginalized. Because yes, it seems that Tyler is at this stage his place nowhere. Neither among normal people, nor among the marginalized. He is the ultimate misfit. We don't know everything about the Hydes, and Tyler would be a great way to find out more, to finally complete the research on this subject.
Seriously, don't you find it depressing the idea that a particular type of monster, among a swarm, is deemed worse and unsalvageable? That no Hyde could ever manage to control himself? I see them so much as a parallel to bipolarity, especially because of the case of Tyler's mother. There should be no exclusion among the marginalized. Not to mention that it's not like we tried to help them in a separate way, no, we just excluded them when they didn't ask to be who they are. Literally only one person trying to find out more and no one took over after his death.
I would really like Tyler to have some kind of redemption, while obviously keeping some of his dark side that makes him a member of the marginalized.
Your thoughts on this?
#tyler x wednesday#wednesday x tyler#tyler and wednesday#wednesday and tyler#wednesday addams#tyler galpin#wednesday netflix#wyler#weyler
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hi!! so there are a lot of improbabilities that make this hypothetical unlikely but: if kabru had met toshiro first & recruited him (toshiro being so passive + not with a clear goal would have helped there & kabru is ptsd-driven but very noble in his goals which can be explained) AND they got all the way down to the bottom (idk if i believe in them...but hypothetically!) would the winged lion find either of them to be a good target for next dungeon lord? one over the other? im thinking kabru has the intensity and complexity of desire necessary but i can't imagine what it would look like if he became lord of the dungeon. do you have any thoughts?
Good morning. This is a very fun thought experiment!
(side note: I got a second anon this morning with a very similar request? not sure if related. I'm gonna let this answer speak for both of them)
Toshiro sure would have had a different time of it if Kabru had gotten to him first, huh? On the one hand, Toshiro seems to like Kabru; I think it's sweet that Kabru seems to gravitate towards hanging out with him when he isn't with the rest of the main cast. So they probably would've been good in a party together.
On the other hand, Toshiro never would have met Falin and fallen in love with her. Even if she didn't reciprocate in the end, I don't think he regrets anything that happened. Even his difficult friendship with Laios was ultimately positive (for both of them!).
They definitely would not have made it to the deeper floors, I think Senshi is crucial to achieving that ... but this is a hypothetical.
I'm puzzling over the question of Toshiro, because he is a secondary character and there's only so much we know about his motivations. His big one in canon is to save Falin, even if it means all he can do is put her to rest. Without that, without her, what sort of desires does he have?
Toshiro originally came to the Island because of a demand from his father: for one of his three sons to find "something interesting" enough on their travels to bring back home that would convince their capricious bastard father to make them his heir over the others. So they're all off on their separate training journeys with their respective retainers with the added caveat that they can't return without something to impress their father. It's implied that after falling in love with Falin, Toshiro had wanted to bring back home a wife.
Since he's said to inherit the family after he returns home without her anyway, I've been assuming that the "thing" Toshiro ended up bringing to Toshitsugu Nakamoto was the story of the dungeon, the demon, and his friend Laios, king of a risen country and Devourer of All Things Horrible.
Anyway, the things we know about Toshiro's home life are kind of fucked. It's amazing he turned out to be so nice. He's always been a shy, sensitive person, and he was sickly as a child; Maizuru cared for him despite her spymaster duties and ended up filling a motherly role for him, even though Toshiro's mother is still alive. Historically, it wasn't uncommon for noble children to be raised more closely by their governesses/household retainers than their parents, so perhaps something similar was happening here (disclaimer that I don't know much about feudal Japan specifically).
We know that Maizuru loves Toshiro and dotes on him, but she's also very strict and frankly terrifying; she used the same Hag summon that she was monitoring Izutsumi with on Toshiro as a child just to keep him from wandering off. We also know that when he found out that Maizuru was having an affair with his father, it put a distance between them. Whether this is because he felt betrayed on his mother's behalf or because he dislikes his father that much, or something else, is unclear.
Toshiro was childhood friends with Hien, but as they got older, she had to take his place as one of his retainers, which seems to have severed that closeness. Canonically, he isn't close to his two younger brothers either. Toshitsugu literally bought Inutade and Izustumi (the latter as a drunken "gift" for Maizuru!). We see that Toshiro is uncomfortable with this, but doesn't know how to approach the issue. He lets Izutsumi go the second she's out of sight for five minutes, which implies to me that he really wanted the excuse to do so. Inutade is harder, because she loves being with the Nakamoto family and hero-worships Toshiro's father.
...all this to say, Toshiro has complicated relationships with his family and household. There's love there, but also a lot of coldness enforced by the upper-class need for propriety. Toshiro falls in line and acts as the proper stoic samurai, but he chafes at this; he envies Laios's gift for feeling and expressing things openly and readily. I think that's what the Winged Lion would prey on, given the chance.
I don't think he would be prime dungeon lord material, but if it came to that, I could see the Lion tempting Toshiro with a kinder vision of his life, one where he and his little brothers weren't pitted against one another, where his family was warmer, where there weren't barriers of class between him and his retainers, where he was allowed to be more himself.
Now ... Kabru.
Kabru is interesting because, since his ultimate goal is to seal the dungeon and eradicate monsters, I imagine that meeting a demon would be like a guy who's given a genie and wants to wish for no more genies. And if said genie is trying to take over the world via wishes, the genie is a bit screwed. I really think that Kabru is the character who would stump the demon(s) the most, despite his complex desires, because they are antithetical to the demon. Laios also had complex desires, but the Winged Lion lured him and set him up as the hero of a fake prophecy because a lot of Laios's desires revolved around monsters, so his wants aligned perfectly with the demon's methods. Oh you want monsters? That's great, they're the things I use to solve most of my problems anyway.
Even in the absence of prior knowledge of demons, I think Kabru's back would be up as soon as the Winged Lion tried speaking to him. Kabru's insight is almost preternatural, and he's well-versed in persuasive speaking thanks to his own silver tongue. He would mistrust the Lion immediately, especially considering its monster-like form.
Giving the demons bestial appearances is an artistic choice on Kui's part, so I don't think there's any indication that the Winged Lion & co can't look human, but the Lion might have been constrained both by Thistle's seals on it and the need to maintain the lie that it's just the innocent guardian deity of the Golden Country. If it could, I think it would try to look less monstrous, with Kabru.
Still, the point of the demons, I see, is that anyone can be tempted, anyone can be manipulated, because we are all full of buried desires that can be unearthed, and wanting things and having to defend them make you susceptible to manipulation.
Consider what Mithrun told Kabru: they keep the knowledge of demons secret because knowing the truth would not stop people from trying to have their wishes granted. After all, Mithrun was a Canary, but he fell for its temptation anyway. I've seen people characterize this as a sort of rock bottom decision, and maybe that's true, but I also pin it on his toxic inferiority/superiority complex. That's exactly the kind of thing that makes you think you're built different.
Would Marcille have stopped before unsealing the Winged Lion if Mithrun(/Kabru) had actually gotten to sit down with her for five minutes and explain why becoming dungeon lord would be a very bad idea? Maybe. Or maybe her desperation, and her own pride, would have made her decide that she knew better, that she'd be careful, that she'd go in with a plan and definitely get what she wanted with no dire consequences.
I think Kabru could be desperate enough to make a similar decision, even if his desires were antithetical to the demon. And the demons have an advantage over the aforementioned genie simile: their ability to eat desires.
If the Winged Lion were smart, it wouldn't let Kabru seal it away like Thistle. Given the opportunity, its best chance for dealing with Kabru would have been to immediately eat his desire to stop another Utaya.
I'm gonna plug this wonderful and tragic little one-shot someone wrote recently about the dungeon lord Kabru hypothetical: This place is not a place of honor.
#oh my god someone fucking shoot me with a tranq dart PLEASE#Dungeon Meshi spoilers#dungeonposting#musings with Dea#I hope someone writes a hypothetical party comp switch AU fic one day#like Laios's own AU of getting eaten in Falin's stead#and Falin going in to rescue him ... but what if Marcille came with her? and Toshiro? and they met Senshi?#or an idea I've mentioned before: Laios and Kabru would be an excellent tank/DPS combo#Kabru's party is really cohesive and good at fighting! they just don't have monster knowledge#if Laios were there to point Kabru's blades in the right direction he'd be absolutely lethal#anyway. hope this scratched that itch a bit!#sorry I didn't include more visual aids here I'm struggling today#Dea answers#Dea's anonymous friends
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I think some people are missing the point of TopMew. We, as an audience, are not supposed to cheer for this couple and wish they could make it work.
Top's and Mew's relationship is not based on love - it is entirely based on the thrill of the game with each person looking at the other as some kind of exciting target. Top sees Mew as a naivé virgin and therefore, a rare conquest. On the other hand, Mew sees Top as a 'top-tier' player that only he can fix.
There is no "spark" or "chemistry" between the two because, frankly, there isn't supposed to be one. Just two pretentious people trying to gain the upper hand to feel superior in an increasingly toxic relationship.
Now, some people will argue: how about the other couples? Why do they have 'spark' or 'chemistry'? Well, then, it is pretty obvious that Sand genuinely cares for Ray even when Ray himself cannot be bothered (due to depression and insecurities stemming from his relationship with his mother). That care translates in every scene they are at, but in particular, in the episode entitled "25th hour". Same can be said with Nick, whose intense like for Boston is already reaching a level akin to obssession. Nick IS TRULY GIDDY every time Boston pays him any attention.
Back to TopMew, neither has genuine romantic feelings for each other. For both of them, the relationship is a game. This is mostly hinted in earlier episode when they where playing laser tags. I wouldn't be surprised if the upcoming episodes stay true to this dynamic, making them seem like a lifeless couple. BECAUSE THAT IS WHAT THE SHOW IS TRYING TO SHOW THEY ARE. It is not a testament that Force and Book have no chemistry - on the contrary, it is a testament of ForceBook's acting.
Seriously, I'm not even sure why people are expecting a traditional BL romance when it is made clear from the very start that Only Friends will never be that. I mean, P'Jojo directing should have given them an idea that things will not be gooey and sappy. 😅
End of rant.
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Thoughts on that ceasefire statement?
So I have several people asking me about this. I do have some thoughts, but you'll have to forgive me, I am only able to engage with this passingly.
I want to make a few things clear: I'm originally from Iraq. I do live in the U.S. now, but I grew up in Iraq. And like most Arabs, the Free Palestine movement is unquestionable for me. I have been an uneqovical supporter of Palestine my whole life. Which means the past couple of weeks have been excruciatingly painful. And the horrifying circumstances of it have taken over almost my every waking moment. That, coupled with my own childhood of living through a war which the past two weeks have been triggered again and again, have really tanked my mental health. I mention this to make clear that I will speak to this question just this once, to articulate some of my thoughts around it. In order for me to do the work for Palestine sustainably which I fully plan on doing, I need space to step away from it. I'm choosing this website with the pretty images to be said online space. So I will not engage in any further discourse after this. Even now, I will engage only as far as my mental capacity will allow. As I'm sure you can understand, I am utterly exhausted, and what little energy I have left is better expended elsewhere. I thank you for your understanding.
I want to start by pointing out something that I unquestionably liked about his statement, because I think it's important and a lot of people won't read this whole thing: His mention of the West Bank. The media attention has focused a lot on Gaza, and rightly so. But Palestinians in the West Bank have been suffering gravely for the past two weeks under the tyrannical rule of the settler colonial Israeli government. You should all go read about this and learn more. Palestinians are getting arrested, kicked out of their homes, being brutalised, harrassed, and murdered. It's starting to get *some* coverage now, but still not enough. This would also be my time to remind you that the West Bank is not at all controlled by H*m*s so like, bitch what's your excuse now?
the gist of my thoughts: Is Hozier a Palestinian freedom rebel? No, absolutely not. Is he a hateful supporter of genocide? Also, no, absolutely not. I think Hozier is a well-intentioned celebrity with passing knowledge of what's happening, a publicity team that curtails his words for better or worse, and who has a lot to lose if he missteps in any direction. Whatever we may think of his actual politics that we can glean from his music is not quite the same as coming out with a very clear statement that could put him, and a lot of the people around him at risk. And I mean that both physical safety and otherwise. I think saying something very overtly pro-Palestine could very well put a target not just on him and his team, but possibly on fans attending his concerts in droves right now, especially since he's in the U.S. right now which is a) not his country and b) the country that's primarily funding this war so like fuck me the pro-zionist sentiments here are still STRONG (I just got egged yesterday at a protest and wearing the keffiyah has genuinely made me fear for my life for the past couple of weeks). This may be disappointing (it is), but I frankly have very little energy left to truly feel disappointed. More than anyone, I would have loved for him to come out, blazing fires in his eyes, carrying the Palestinian flag. But alas, I knew that wouldn't happen except in my wildest dreams. I understand that people want to hold him accountable. But it does feel to me like expending this level of energy on a celebrity whose statement was frankly more nuanced than what even media outlets have said is just not where I'm at. I understand if that's where you're at. But it's not something that I can currently engage with.
This is the extent to which I am able to speak to this at the moment. I am sorry if it's not good enough or extensive enough. There's so much that you can pick at, the framing of it, the specific wording that he used. Again, for better or worse, but I just do not think this conversation is where my currently very limited supply of energy should go to. It is up to you whether this is where you'd like your energy to go <3
I hope you're all well. Sending you all so much love.
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Hi, I'm really sorry if this does come off sounding rude. I've followed your 3h content for a while now so I was around to see the drama with raxis and things like moonlitboar occur. It really does suck and I've seen a lot of toxic edelgard stans myself in the fandom. I do understand how raxis does tend to block evade thus making it a prolonged conflict with no easy end. But I can't help but feel that the discord screenshots you've posted have not helped in resolving the conflict. I don't think that you have been wrong about the culture of toxicity inside the discord but I feel that the discord screenshots may have escalated the conflict since now there are people there who are becoming very paranoid about about "spying" (which in itself a little bit of a grey area because it is a public discord) . But I think that paranoia in the discord now has the potential to turn really ugly and further radicalize more people in the discord. And because there are some neutral people in that discord who do seem to want to just block and ignore/tired of some arguments, I think that an end to the discord screenshots would keep them from being swayed by the paranoia/ a sign of good faith. I really don't think that you are in the wrong when it comes to this whole thing with raxis. I think that raxis's actions and behavior do deserve to be called out in the past and present. But I just feel like trying to call out one person is one thing but a whole discord is just a very huge and impossible challenge. I think that the discord is just best left ignored as these people have clearly made it clear that they really don't want to be reasoned with or want to change and I think that they are getting really dangerous. I really do hope this doesn't come off as both sides are bad because I do believe that this problem has always originated from Raxis. Sorry this got so long and I really do wish you all the best.
It's no problem; I understand where you're coming from.
What I feel about it is this: people from outside the server did not know the depths this server was sinking into. Leaving them alone as we have been would have resulted in them continuing to go on as though everything was fine as long as they confined their rhetoric to a certain spot; I feel it's important to remind people that that is not true, as that would only isolate the problem while doing nothing to actually rectify it or stop it from getting worse (even though this of course isn't going to magically cure everything either, to be clear).
Even well before I posted these specific screenshots, they were paranoid about the entire fandom "persecuting and targeting" them for "no reason," they were paranoid about how everyone is "out to get" Edelgard in FE's general fandom spaces, they were paranoid that every single other person who ever criticizes them is some form of evil bigot (which would normally be a bit of an exaggeration, if it wasn't for them genuinely saying this every single time something like this happens); at worst, this will just be used as yet another scapegoat to continue their self-fulfilling prophecy of being generally disliked in the fandom. At best, this warns people about what's been going on - a miracle could even happen and some of the people in the server can see what the higher ups in their server have been letting slide and leave.
I called out Raxis because of the harm he was (and, frankly, still is) doing to others, and I am doing the same to the Edelgang discord because of the harm their mods have either allowed to happened or have outright participated in themselves. Given the general consensus of people from the outside's reactions (that being shock and/or disgust), I think it's ultimately important to warn people of harmful actors and the rhetoric they spread.
Especially given how they responded. If there was any sign of remorse for what was done - Shandale disavowing their previous beliefs, or if that didn't happen them getting unmodded/banned/some sort of action done from the mod team, or even just some pushback from the general members (something they were more than ready to do in defense of Raxis, and something they were willing to do when these sentiments were first said) - I would have been more than ready to delete the screenshots and apologize for showing them. But their defense of it - that it was "taken out of context," as though what was said could ever be alright to say, as though they do in fact stand by them - shows the importance of calling this behavior out.
They do not think it was that bad. They think these sentiments are okay to have, as long as they are in the "right context." And I don't think it's okay for people to not know that given how dangerous the rhetoric is
#ask#anon#I appreciate and understand the concern though! don't worry you don't come off that way#I just think that leaving it alone isn't really going to do any good either at this point#so I'd rather let people know to avoid this
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I just think it needs to be said that adults have to regulate themselves in online spaces in a way that is responsible for minors in fandom spaces. This will be long im sorry.
And im not specifically talking about adults with lists of DNI minors and block anyone at or under a certain age as well as make it clear their blog may not be safe for minors (ie spaces with a lot of nsfw content). Though curating an experience is a big part of being responsible of course. This post though is mostly delving into adults' behavior and how you need to be aware of your behavior.
For example, if you're an adult who purposefully curates a blog dedicated to fandom discourse, harming other people in the fandom, vagueing, and just having general toxicity about people ESPECIALLY when the targets of said harassment and toxicity are often the youngest in the fandom this is something you really need to reevaluate yourself about for a million reasons but including how this harms and serves as a poor example to younger people what a fandom space is meant to be. Like when I see minors involved in these types of toxicity, not to say they shouldn't be informed or held accountable or the ppl harmed should forgive them, but as an adult I mostly feel sad. I feel sad because I hope they're going to be okay when they're my age and look back on themselves. I hope they're safe esp when the adults around them act like this kind of behavior is normal and okay even though they've long graduated high school (even though ot wasn't okay then either for the record). Like does it not bother you that you're an adult who feels superior sending hate campaigns and ask box harassment and cyberbullying to minors on the internet because you're insecurities are that large and you've no ability to regulate them healthily? Does it not bother you that you teach young ppl in the fandom to do similarly by your actions, and affect their experience? Does the harm not bother you?
Because it should bother you. When you grow up especially in online fandom spaces you do need to be more aware of not only your words in general, but how many people may look up to you and use you as example and that you have a responsibility to be healthy online for the sake of yourself, others, and esp the youngest of the fandom.
Because it hurts to think ppl can grow up in fandom to think "oh sending kys and gore and dead animals over [insert discourse] plus potentially bigotry is normal because everyone around me does it and I want to fit in and I also fear speaking up against the adults who do this because you know the harassment".
And you might say "well cup im just gonna block all minors the end I get to harass people forever hahaha haha!" And well okay, but for another post (plus ones I've made before) there's still a million reasons this is fucked up you see but I'm just focusing on one aspect rn in this post.
And then there's the adults in fandom who all of a sudden hit my age and all they do is belittle kids and the way they act and there is all of a sudden a Certain Maturity that needs to be upheld for Everyone but Especially Adults.
So on the first point this includes adults who are like "I hate kids!!!! They are so [insert anything negative]" and it includes any comment to meta/writing/art/etc that is like not allowing a younger person in fandom to grow. Like the way I talked as 11 years on the internet was incomprehensible and frankly would've been subject to "omg kids are so cringe ew!" For sure these days, ig I was lucky my online friends were also 11 at the time. Looking at my old fandom Meta posts when I was 15, like I could imagine the way I see adults talking about takes like "oh shit I was worse!" Which is just a bag full of insecurity for me, but I also can't imagine being young in fandom and directly experiencing such critiques all the time. Like does it not bother you, once again? That you don't want to see kids in fandom grow into their creativity and co-exist safely in fandom as they do in public and experience overall and public joy? Why do you hate I mean hateee kids as an adult and why does their joy spark hate and misery in you (you might need therapy or to work that out srsly). And do the effects of your actions not bother you? What do you think you're doing other than silencing the creativity and joy in people and invoking ways to people please or for minors to Act Mature (in reality acting the way these adults want to avoid harassment ofc!) Instead of of course just experiencing joy and fun and community as they would normally.
And that brings me to my last pt of the effects of you hit [adult age] and must Act Mature and not Care About Cringe Fandoms or Watch Cartoons and do anything that would indicate you god forbid Don't Have a Real Job. This is the reality for growing up in fandom its finite once you're 19 no more Cringe of course /s! Because I've been subject to this take before as a criticism, and I've seen essays about how adults who watch Bluey are destroying the world forever, and I can take it because I go to therapy and I'm secure in my own maturity where it matters and joy where it matters. But imagine how younger people in the fandom feel. Like you're basically telling kids "btw once you're at Adult Age you must stop having fun forever and you must have a Real Job (or Education) and stop enjoying Immature things like fandom (even though I am in fandom btw im not a hypocrite saying this) or you're a freak immature adult who will never grow up". Like wow.
Like the conservative and near unnuanced take of to be Mature you need a real job (whatever that means) and to only watch adult shows in a normal manner (again whatever that means) aside, like you're really telling kids to grow up and be insecure. I'm serious! Like of course as you grow up it's important to mature no duh, but with real maturity means realizing there are times to be serious and there are times to enjoy things. Maturity doesn't mean I can never watch bluey god forbid else I have a not real job or become media illiterate as a consequence (esp when actually marketing wise a lot of kids shows are meant to also be entertaining for adults watching with their kids... and lo and behold your media literacy doesn't go away magically the moment the show starts). Like you really want younger ppl in fandom to be miserable and grow up miserable and create a cycle of miserable lest they become Cringe Adults that watch a harmless cartoon and enjoy it.
I'm never good at ending rants like this but conclusion. Get a grip on yourself and insecurities and be really careful how you foster fandom community for yourself but also to those that grow up in these spaces too.
As always add on/send asks/correct me/add nuance/etc. ❤️
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What is your opinion on Winx Club and it's art direction?
Honestly I never watched Winx Club growing up, so my frame of reference for it isn't particularly intimate. But just looking at the characters, it's clear there's a bit of Sameface and Samebody Syndrome going on.
The art style's certainly unique for a Western kids' show, and there's a nice variety of bright colors. But man, I hate to think what kinds of messages the show's young target audience took away from these designs. If all kids see in their media are tall, impossibly skinny bodies portrayed as desirable, they'll wonder why their own bodies don't match. And creators should be especially sensitive to this when they're making shows for girls, since media bombards them with a host of beauty standards to measure up to (and it's not like I'm any kind of expert in child psychology, but I'd wager the advent of social media hasn't helped matters). So it frankly didn't surprise me to learn that this show was created by a dude.
Look, I'm not saying men can't be mindful of the effects media can have on girls, nor am I saying men and boys never deal with their own body image issues. But if you're making a show with a majority-female cast, maybe consult some women about their designs-? In the credits of the first episode there are two feminine names listed as character designers (Michele Lilli and Andrea Pulito), but they appear to be outnumbered by twice as many men. (Though apparently those names can be masculine in Italian, so it's possible Michele and Andrea are men as well. Too bad their IMDB pages don't list pronouns for them.)
And according to Winx Club's Wikipedia page, after a pilot that was unsatisfying to the creator, the team hired fashion designers to revamp the characters. At first I thought this would explain the girls' proportions (it's common practice in fashion design to draw slim, taller-than-average figures with elongated legs), but the concept art from the pilot tells a different story. Even before the fashion designers came aboard, all the girls had the same tall, skinny physique.
Not that there's anything wrong with being tall and skinny- hell, I'm a beanpole myself! But when all your characters have the exact same body type, whatever that may be, it leaves out so much human variety and just looks repetitive as a result. It's boring. And on top of that, it creates a visual impression that these characters are interchangeable with little to no individuality. The girls do have their own distinct personalities in the show (I ended up watching the entirety of Season 1 for this post), but those personalities don't come across well in still images.
It'd help if they were posed in ways that showcased their individual traits rather than just... "feminine and vaguely playful" across the board. Where's Stella's cockiness, Flora's kindness, Musa's sarcasm, Techna's logic? I'm wondering if the fashion designers sketched out these poses as well, because they seem much better suited to displaying clothes than demonstrating character.
(To make matters worse, there's a point in the show where the girls look like literal clones. This screenshot where they're all wearing the same outfit really highlights just how little body diversity they have.)
And what's bonkers about the faces looking so extremely similar is that creator Iginio Straffi based these characters on real women-? Namely Britney Spears for Bloom, Cameron Diaz for Stella, Jennifer Lopez for Flora, Pink for Techna, Lucy Liu for Musa, and Beyonce for Aisha. Here's how they all looked around the time of Winx Club's development:
And here's how I'd use the photos as a starting point to make each character's face stand out more.
They seriously couldn't have just leaned in to what made each face unique rather than painting them all with the same brush?
I get it, drawing all the characters with the same base makes it easier to keep them on model (and I imagine it keeps things cost-effective when making toys of them). But good god, you couldn't have treated them as actual characters rather than paper dolls for the fashion of the week?
From what I saw of the show, it's fine. It's passable. I fully accept that I'm not the target audience for it, but it's not bad for what it is. Could use a ton more character development, though, both in the designs and the writing. In any case, I'm glad that present-day animated shows seem to be evolving past cookie-cutter character design.
To close this out, here's something that I absolutely should not be able to get away with:
Recognizing these poses from the DVD cover is a sign of knowledge.
Realizing I switched them around is a sign of wisdom.
#character design#winx club#critique#sameface syndrome#samebody syndrome#media#media criticism#long post#ask#phasedahmer
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I'm interested in your Fire emblem essay and what you said about the story being a reflection of the SRPG gameplay
Looking over the essay I have saved in my drafts, what I actually talked about was the answer to the question "Why did Fire Emblem get popular?" Fire Emblem has been around since 1990 and has been localized since 2003, but the series never took off to truly mainstream popularity in either Japan or the rest of the world until 2013, when Fire Emblem: Awakening was released, at which point it meteorically rose to become one of the best-selling Nintendo franchises.
In my essay, I posited that there were two "obvious" reasons for Awakening's popularization of the franchise, but a third less-obvious reason that was even more important. The first "obvious" reason was the introduction of Casual Mode, which removed the franchise's signature permadeath feature and made it far easier and more accessible to a broader audience. As someone who was in the trenches of the Fire Emblem fandom from 2004 to 2012, I can tell you that the series heavily attracted difficulty junkies during this time. The demographic heavily skewed male, and the most popular topics of discussion were tier lists and debates on the usefulness of various characters in certain challenge run settings (such as Low Turn Count, or LTC, runs). Casual Mode opened the doors for, well, casuals to join in on the fun.
The second "obvious" reason was that Awakening was anime. While every Fire Emblem game has had anime character designs, past titles were often fairly reserved with these designs, featuring knights in full armor whose only distinctly "anime" characteristic was green- or blue-colored hair. Awakening, however, leaned into the significantly more absurd, flashy, and/or sexualized designs that are what people far more commonly associate with "anime." It wasn't just the designs, though. Awakening also took an "anime" approach to character personalities, often giving each character one or two traits that are amplified to extreme degrees. This change is easy to spot if you compare Awakening characters to similar ones from past titles. In Genealogy of the Holy War, Arden is an armor knight who is teased by his comrades for being dull, boring, and generally stuck on sentry duty. In Awakening, Kellam is an armor knight who is so dull and boring that characters cannot even see him when he stands right in front of them. Recurring jokes involve characters thinking they're being haunted by a ghost when he talks to them, or forgetting he exists entirely, because he is so unassuming and banal. It reminds me of KonoSuba, in which characters have a singular trait that is pushed to its utmost extremities for the sake of humor; this is a style of humor commonplace in anime, especially anime that targets a young teen demographic.
My argument, however, was that these "obvious" reasons fail to adequately explain why Fire Emblem got so popular so quickly. They may have been sufficient in 2013, but the popularity of subsequent titles has called into question how much these reasons matter at all. To be clear, Fire Emblem probably doesn't become popular without Casual Mode; the accessibility is just too important. However, simply being accessible doesn't mean people will access it. There are plenty of SRPGs out there, like Shining Force, that never had permadeath, that were even localized during the 16-bit golden age of JRPGs, yet never gained major popularity. So while Casual Mode was necessary, it wasn't the change that took the franchise from the edge of Underperforming Nintendo Franchise Hell (F-Zero, Star Fox, Metroid, too many others to name) to 17 representatives in Smash Bros.
And frankly, I think the anime argument isn't a factor at all. It was a tempting argument to make in 2013, when the anime elements of Awakening were the most obvious deviation from the franchise's past, but 2019 a little game called Fire Emblem: Three Houses came out that utterly decimated the thesis. Three Houses is, of course, by far the most popular Fire Emblem title, with double Awakening's sales (1.9 million vs 3.82 million worldwide, according to Wikipedia). Notably for this argument, however, is how un-anime Three Houses is both in character designs and tone. In fact, Three Houses narratively hearkens back to much older Fire Emblem titles, with a major focus on politics and serious worldbuilding, significantly less comic relief, and relatively "realistic" character designs that avoid absurdity and fanservice. In its tone and story, it is far closer to Path of Radiance than Awakening. So if we take "more anime" to be the root cause of the revitalization of the franchise, how do we explain Three Houses?
There needs to be another explanation. Something both Awakening and Three Houses did that previous entries did not.
My argument is that what the Fire Emblem franchise did to turn itself around was change from a focus on plot to a focus on character, with innovations to the gameplay that emphasized this change. This sounds a bit more esoteric than the other explanations so let me clarify. Awakening introduced a mechanic called pair-up, which allowed two units to join together to gain large statistical and combat bonuses. On top of that, Awakening emphasized the game's support system, which had been present in older titles but much more difficult to access and inconsequential to gameplay, not only making supports easier to achieve, but central to character building and recruitment in the form of child characters. This gameplay emphasis is mirrored in the story, with Robin's character arc being rooted in the "bonds" he forges with his allies, and the child characters also having a significant role in the plot. On top of that, the more "anime" characters have livelier support conversations, as opposed to past games where many supports often boiled down to very generic "You are my friend. I will have your back on the battlefield" sorts of conversations.
With this character-and-relationship-driven gameplay/story in mind, look again at Three Houses. While lacking the pair-up mechanic or child characters, Three Houses adds a Persona-esque social link system that is extremely extensive and probably takes up about half the total gameplay. Strategic battles are deemphasized in favor of running around the monastery, talking to your allies, going to teatime or doing activities with them, finding them gifts, and so forth. The central narrative gimmick of the game is the three Hogwarts houses, which give certain groups of characters innate bonds that the gameplay then allows you to explore thoroughly. Even the aforementioned political nature of the plot feeds into these relationships; many characters are defined by the political placement of their birth, and their attempts to balance their personal goals with the goals of their station leads to intense interpersonal drama. And the plot itself boils this drama deliciously when it comes time for the three houses to go to war with each other.
This thesis of mine also extends to the less-popular installments of the franchise in the post-Awakening era. Though all these games sold decently well (likely due to install base), they don't match the success of the other two, and are a lot less well-regarded by the fans. Fates nerfed Awakening's pair-up system and lazily tacked on child characters via an absurd "baby dimension" that was poorly implemented in both gameplay and story; Shadows of Valentia was a remake of an NES game that, despite heavily revamping the story and adding some support conversations, did not change the core gameplay of the original; and Engage put in a more shallow monastery-like hub world, with much more simplistic characters, and a core gameplay gimmick that involves making one character a God instead of combining your units together.
Indeed, Fates and Engage are probably far more "anime" than Awakening and Three Houses, which most fans consider to their detriment rather than benefit. Most damning of all, however, is that the story of these games heavily revolves around a singular self-insert protagonist, with other characters having a much less important role. This narrative focus deemphasizes character-bond-based gameplay, rather than emphasizing it like the other games do.
(I'll mention that I personally think Engage is an excellent game, though this is because I am one of those spreadsheet and tier-list loving oldheads and I appreciate the excellent map design, core gameplay, and higher difficulty mode that actually seems like it was playtested. In fact, it was my love of Engage and the relatively lukewarm response from the fandom that led to me asking why Fire Emblem was popular in the first place. I had thought the fans loved all the goofy anime stuff, so why were they pissed about it now? What was Engage missing that Awakening wasn't?)
You can see how this shift from plot-based story and gameplay to character-based story and gameplay has affected not simply the raw number of fans, but the demographic makeup. In 2011, the fandom was nerdy dudes who liked to compare stat growth rates. In 2023, the fandom is far more evenly split between male and female players, and the fandom is a far more robust space for fan fiction, fan art, and other creative endeavors. It's characters who drove that change, not a more anime tone, not even a reduced difficulty. And after the relative reception of Three Houses and Engage, I'm extremely interested to see whether Intelligent Systems realizes this point, and what the next Fire Emblem looks like.
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"What did you expect, calling yourself the Goblin Menace?" Mizora said.
Wyll's cheeks went warm. He expected people to think he was a menace to goblins, not that he was a goblin who was also a menace! He took another step through the snow, pausing to listen for the sound of his quarry.
"Really, you shouldn't limit yourself. You could simply be: the Menace," Mizora said.
"Don't you have better things to do?"
Read more on AO3 or below the cut
"No. I cleared my schedule strictly so we could have this little one-on-one. Frankly, Wyll, you're not meeting your key performance indicators. Lucky you, I've put together a performance improvement plan to help you–"
Something moved behind the brush. Wyll ducked behind a trunk, carefully scaled the tree, and got a better view of his target. A steaming, lumpy pile of human pieces, so pained it could barely be called sentient. Snow sizzled when the flakes hit its flesh, the ice around it slowly melting as it struggled towards the town.
"There you go. Kill that and we'll be back in the net positive," Mizora yawned.
Wyll drew his blade and did so.
~*~
"I could have told you Handler of the Flesh was also a bad choice," Mizora said. "Accurate, though. I've seen what you do in the evenings."
"I told you, I'm rubbing my muscles. They're sore," Wyll snapped. Appalling, that she would imply otherwise.
"Sneaking off to rub your muscles in the bath? Under blankets?"
Because he had no privacy with her around! He kept his stone eye under a patch, terrified she would use it to peek at him and mock him. He bathed and used the bathroom with one hand clamped over it, ready to cover himself should she appear. Bad enough that he was newly covered in pimples, hair and stretch marks. The idea that she could see him undressed made his skin crawl.
Don't engage her. Engaging her only encourages her.
Hard though. Nigh impossible. Just the sound of Mizora's voice made rage boil up. She'd taken everything from him: his life, his father, the respect of a city. Private baths. Being alone. Silence. He dreamed about drawing his blade and running her through. About being dragged to the hells after, leaving only a greasy pile of waste to mark his life. When she spoke, the anger took over and he found himself quipping back at her. Or, worse, setting himself up for her to make fun of him.
"Perhaps if you spent less time rubbing muscles and more time on your tasks, we would be done with this review. Your target is in that cave."
Cave. A generous description. More a hole in the side of a glacier, the ice barely packed and dripping. Wyll was going to melt it just by being in it. Melt it and it would cave in on him. In his last moments, he would summon Mizora and spit on her. Maybe, maybe even call her… a shitbag.
Yes. Yes, he would.
No he wouldn't. Oh, he could never say that.
He clomped down the tunnel, following the low gibbering of his prey. Curled at the end of the tunnel he found the bloated, bald things, squirming and shaking against each other as they tried to stay warm. A few blasts and they were back in the heat of the hells.
~*~
"Gangblaster. Gang. Blast. Er." Mizora sighed. "Wyll. We really need to talk about this–"
"Can't!" he shouted, dodging a swooping imp. Imp! He hated imps. They were easy enough alone, but they were never alone.
Imps had more friends than he had.
"What will you call this one? Imp Slapper?"
"Mizora–"
"Wyll 'Swoop Me' Ravengard?"
"Mi–"
"Wyll, Who is Below the Imps?"
"As you say," he said, finally giving up. The anger flared and then faded a little. Wyll was simply too tired to fuel it.
"The One Who Imps Come Down Upon?"
"Sure."
"Oh! Wyll: Bottom for Imps!" she laughed. "Get it? Because Wyll sounds like 'will'. Will bottom for Imps."
"Right."
"Poo, you're not making this very fun." She snapped her fingers and the imps burned away.
"You—you could have… you could have killed them all along?"
"Of course! They don't count towards your work, though."
"Then why—!" His voice echoed. He took a deep breath.
"Watch your tone with me, pup," she smirked.
He another deep breath, then another, trying to get it under control, but this, this…this shi—
No. No, he wasn't going to let her win. He turned on his heel and marched away, her laugh following him into the night.
~*~
Mizora only had one quip on the next assignment—that Wyll should return to Gangbuster, or perhaps Babykiller—to which he said, "Certainly," and that was all. The heat of his anger was still there, but combined with how he needed to stay frosty towards Mizora, it cooled to a low simmer. Strange, how out here being aggressive, being a fighter, kept him alive, but Mizora was more like being back in the courts. Listening to barbed silver tongues dribble insults and wait for a moment to throw them off their game.
Wyll had despised courtly intrigue, so he did the same here that he had there: he pretended he was a sculpture of smooth, gray stone, and let it roll off of him. Instead of an unstoppable force, he was an immovable object, powerful in how little she could affect him.
Falling into the rhythm of battle helped too, Wyll placing his feet as sure as he did while dancing, fiendish magic flowing through him, ducking a weaving and leaping around the gnolls. He couldn't beat them too quickly, after all, so he staggered them, keeping them up and alive until one unwittingly opened a portal.
Out tumbled dozens of maw demons, little more than hungry mouths on whatever limbs they hadn't eaten. The creatures squealed as they ran towards Wyll, who dispatched them slowly, their twitching bodies only stacking in the spell that was summoning them. A dozen, two, no, a hundred later and he blasted the remaining gnolls, closing off the spell and completing his task.
He wiped his blade off and returned to camp, oiling and caring for it. His family crest sparkled on the hilt.
One day. One day he would prove to father that he had done well. One day his father would forgive him. All he had to do was enough good to outweigh his foolishness. Enough good that the name "Wyll Ravengard" didn't fill him with shame.
And until that day he would be…
The Rapier of the Roads.
No! No, he could always hear Mizora saying something.
~*~
Years of being a mildly pleasant statue to Mizora meant she slowly lost interest in him. Far slower than a mortal might, but they say patience comes with age and she was ancient. She still stroked him and licked him but her touch was as inconsequential and stupid as a fly banging against the stained glass windows of his father's office. You could not hurt rock, not without breaking it, and he was worth too much whole. Thus he settled into a half life, never too happy—because Mizora would know what to take from him—and never too sad—because that would give her pleasure. A twilight, as cool and dim as he tried to be.
Perhaps that's why her requests turned cruel.
Wyll stared at the woman in front of him. Fiendish, certainly, with her horns and the glow of hellfire in her chest, the oily smoke that poured out of her shoulders. And huge, too. In a fair fight she would probably crush him. Definitely crush him. He'd lost a lot of skill thanks to the tadpole. Looking at her he saw Mizora, the empty smiles, the constant invasion.
But that wasn't reality. In reality she was like him: a plaything for devils. A weapon wielded to further their plans. Except she hadn't had a choice.
Mizora was going to kill him, he knew it. She was going to ruin him. Perhaps she would scream into his thoughts all night or pass her end of the sending stone around, filling his head with the mindless suffering of the lemures. Maybe twist him, turn him into a monster, stamp on his face that he was a sellout, scum.
Too late. He wouldn't kill an innocent. Let her ruin him. He would not ruin himself, not anymore.
The feeling of doing right filled him with a warmth as bold and bright as Karlach's smile.
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normally I would just put this in the tags of a critical post to keep it concise, but sadly rbs have been turned off! I guess dogpiling sucks when it happens to YOU, right? anyways,
just wanted to say that, yeah, it's proper fandom etiquette to tag things. even if they are only mentioned and then later confirmed to not actually be happening in the fic. That said ,, and before we forget, it is not a REQUIREMENT. Just as it's not a requirement for fic writers to post and share their products at all. Just as it's not a requirement to read and consume then. When people provide completely free services (like, say, writing, editing, and publishing and entire novel), and it's entirely up to you on whether or not to consume those services, it's a little weird to make extra demands, no? And especially to inflate these demands to the point of character assassination; not only dogpiling on the author, but all of the authors fandom friends, leading them to delete all of their soc med and hard crafted works in the process.
so you didn't like someone's fanfiction. and it was POPULAR fanfiction! that sucks. But arguments about transphobia, racism, pedophilia, etc. have already been well disputed in the very post I can't reblog, and I think it's abundantly clear that the author should not be punished for following established canon (i.e. Claw's canonical torture of children and Toichiro Suzuki's openly proclaimed eugenicist goals in taking over the world for "superior" ESPers) to a logical conclusion and for adding a layer of realism to the work.
It's not their fault you, quite frankly, didn't think very hard about what you saw and understood in both S1 and S2 of mob psycho. it sucks that it makes you uncomfortable. But it's not a stranger's job on the internet to completely wash their works of anything that reflect messy and uncomfortable reality to coddle you, a voluntary consumer of their media. And a fan writer absolutely should not be punished for producing a canon-universe work, when you yourself are a fan of the canon. The fan author, very obviously, does not condone transphobia, racism, pedophilia, or any other accused thing, just by depicting it in their freely made and voluntarily consumed fanwork. Just as ONE, very obviously, does not condone the torture of children, or child abuse, just by depicting it in Claw's organization and in Shou and Toichiro's relationship.
All of what I've said is about Side Quest, but it's absolutely disgusting that for some reason, the backlash over that specific fic went over mere criticisms of the work to harassing the author. Not only this, but to use the final chapter of Side Quest, and all of the produced fan art within it, as a blacklist of Twitter handles and social medias to then ALSO harass the authors fandom friends is purely unacceptable behavior. If you want an author to tag their works better, simply ask them to do so; do not harass them and their friends. If you want your "fandom" and "ship" to stay alive, you MUST learn how to dislike things normally and respectfully; otherwise, how can you expect people to continue to produce novels for free? At a minimum, you need to recognize that your fellow fans are real, live people and do not deserve targeted harassment, and if you truly believe them to be dangerous, contact a moderation team and avoid their fanworks.
on a personal level, I'm offended that you think I, and many others who genuinely enjoyed Side Quest, lack media literacy. I've always been a fan of canon compliant and divergent fics that follow canon implications to their logical conclusions, especially when that involves recognizing the problematic and uncomfortable aspects of reality. You may have watched mob psycho uncritically, but I did not, nor did I read Side Quest uncritically. I'm frustrated that these projections have led to more of my little joys and favorite thought-provoking fic becoming inaccessible to me, but mostly... I'm sad that these authors shared their works while not fully understanding how uncritical, reactionary, and ungrateful their audience truly was.
#side quest#kintsugi#silvercistern#mp100#spicychibi#honestly the world is literally on fire and you guys cant find a better use of your time?#kintsugi was 100k words of PERFECTION and on a personal note. im pissed that you guys are interfering w my little joys.#touch grass. call a legislator. read something else. GET BETTER MEDIA LITERACY YOURSELF.#i spend so much of my day to day doing climate advocacy and organizing and i cant even enjoy updates bto my favorite works#or to reread them#yes. my tags are me personally venting.#xan talks a lot#serirei#mp100 fic
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I'm curious about your opinion about 'a discussion' about the Doctor saying in Survivors of the Flux: "Earth has been shielded from the Flux, but it'll be vulnerable. It'll become a target. If the Flux is destroying the universe, if planets and stars are being wiped out, there will be displaced creatures who need a home. Somewhere to take over."
Mostly due to how I've seen it being said to be the Doctor expressing anti-refugee sentiment, especially the usage of 'take over'.
i've sat on this one because it depends Entirely on how this ~discussion~ happened. Your grammatical choices in writing this ask do not fill me to the brim with confidence, however.
Anyway.
If we're having an on the level discussion on linguistics and phraseology where we talk about how innocuous turns of phrase like 'take over' (mice took over my loft once, it sucked) have been co-opted as very not innocent phrases, and how it would have been better if they'd made it verbally explicit that they meant a colonization like something along the lines of what the Sontarans literally already did in Liverpool a couple of episodes ago then... You know, I may even agree? I do think contextually it's clear what they're saying here but hell, might as well be on the nose. If people are gonna accuse the era of spelling everything out for people, they might as well have done so.
However, if we're being cunning enough to ignore all context available in both that A) this whole era is a criticism of treatment of refugees AND simultaneously even more so a scathing criticism of colonialism, all to genuinely spout that they'd suddenly, in one of the last couple of episodes, do a step-heel-turn and deliberately say fuck them refugees that are gonna come steal all our jobs or something then... I mourn our good friend, Nuance McNuance. Such a good guy. Miss him so much. Gone too soon.
This line did not happen in a vacuum and should not be considered like it did.
(this is bringing me Back to people who complained that war of the sontarans had inconsistent morals. No. Actually it was just giving the thumbs up to beating the shit out of violent colonizers and also saying to stop waging pointless stupid war and getting people killed for no reason other than ego. Oh the death of nuance.)
Anyway, like i said, it depends on how this was said. Discussing linguistics choices is a totally normal port of fandom call, but ignoring context both of the scene and era at large to Choose to interpret in such a way that contradicts the themes and morals of an entire era of the show is... Well. We'll highball and say it's uncharitable.
(and since when does the Doctor refer to somebody being Nice as a Creature??? If we're digging in linguistically already then that is. Not a thing.)
You know that post going around saying that a person saying they support something but doing so using "bad" language is Far better than the person who uses the up to date appropriate terms, but is supporting a fucked up message? How in such cases sentiment is where you look because that is Far more important than linguistic choices? Yeah. I'm still far more worried about the zygon two parter, thanks (but i'm not gonna talk about That one bc i'd have to watch it again and hell no).
They're talking about daleks, and cybermen, and sontarans, and whatever other species may make like the british empire and colonize. This is clear, frankly, to the point you don't Need to think about it.
The conversation is about phrasing, which could be improved but is not, you know, Horrifyingly dire as it's obvious what they meant.
Incidentally, due to context, if said line had been said in Moffat's era i'd be Way more leery because of some unfavourable context in his era.
And, to conclude;
In the words of Fred Jones in Scooby Doo, Monsters Unleashed
"I think coolsville sucks"
#sapphichymns#dw shit#idk#i hope shoving that scooby doo quote there makes sense to anybody Not me#it makes sense to me#somethingsomething removing context to deliberately support an uncharitable take somethingsomething
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There was one more smear post that's been spread around that I need to address.
The first two points of this post aren't really that relevant. One is being mad at me for identifying as a tulpa and defending myself.
Another accuses me of spreading misinformation which is too vague to even bother arguing since people can call anything they disagree with misinformation.
Pretty usual stuff.
The third point though...
If anyone has seen this and would like further context for this supposed harassment campaign, here are the details.
(Assuming this isn't someone else who I don't know about.)
There was a system who started making posts making various attack posts about me, I think around last February. These posts ranged from callout posts accusing me of being transphobic or racist or dangerous to reblogging sysmeds who were arguing against my posts, including one that this system tagged by telling me to get banned.
All in all, when I counted at the time, I think my name was mentioned on their syscourse blog over 80 times in about six months. (CTRL+F is nice.)
This wasn't even including vagues. These are just mentions of my name.
During all of these callout posts and personal attacks, do you know what I did?
Nothing.
I ignored them.
When they reached out to try to talk to me to convince me to change my evil ways after that... I ignored them more, because I'm frankly not interested in hearing someone out who spent months attacking me personally and telling me to get banned.
Then I blocked them.
They, upset by this, made a callout post on their positivity blog telling their followers to block me. Then reblogged that to bump it several times. (I may be wrong about the timeline here. Maybe this came before me blocking them, while I was just still ignoring them. I can't remember exactly.)
As of that time, they had posted attack after attack after attack against me. I hadn't interacted with them or said anything bad about them directly at all, or so much as mentioned their names.
...
The so-called "harassment campaign" was me making, I don't know, maybe 4 or 5 posts in total (including responding to anons who asked about it) after a pro tulpa user they @'d was temporarily banned following a callout post they made that @'d that user... a user who had them blocked at the time.
They took issue with me calling their attacks against that user attacks, and falsely said I accused them of reporting the banned user user. (In reality, I was clear that I didn't know if they were responsible and didn't want to accuse them of falsely reporting, but I do hold them responsible in that the ban likely was triggered by them @'ing the other blog in an attack post. A blog which they knew had them blocked.)
I also said that I didn't understand why someone would tag an account that had them blocked unless they were intending to point harassers in the direction of potential victims.
I can't for the life of me understand why they felt the need to tag an account that had them blocked. Generally, the point of tagging an account is to send them a notification to let them know they were mentioned. But that doesn't happen if you're blocked.
In fact, not receiving notifications from users is kind of the main point of blocking.
So... what was the reason for tagging the blog that they were blocked by other than putting an easier target on their back so any potential harassers would be within one click of the blog? Because I can't think of a single one.
In that user's subsequent response to this, after reading this and hearing me explain why you shouldn't tag users who have you blocked, they tag me and link to my posts, while fully knowing I blocked them. Which at least feels to me like an intentional and malicious decision.
Me: There's no reason to tag someone who has you blocked except to send harassers at them.
Person I have blocked: Everyone, look what @sophieinwonderland said about me!
I also didn't "send my followers after them." I did end up mentioning their names (again, after literal months of them talking about me on their blog by name). But I didn't tell people to go harass them. Nor did I link directly to their posts or blog.
The Harassment Campaign
So, who was harassing who here?
If me making a small handful of posts that mention someone's blog name is harassment, what are the dozens of time my name was mentioned on theirs in posts attacking me?
What are the callout posts about me?
Or going beyond this user, the entire #Sophiecourse tag???
I don't care to rehash old drama, nor do I care about the particular user. It's water under the bridge, and I barely even think about that incident or them anymore. I actually genuinely hope they're doing well.
But I do need to comment on the sheer hypocrisy of the OP and anyone buying into this narrative that a few mentions of someone who made multiple callout posts about me by name, called me dangerous and transphobic and told me to get banned, is somehow me harassing them.
The sheer cognitive hypocrisy of the OP is wild.
And this also applies to their own post too.
If saying a couple negative things about someone is harassment...
I genuinely wonder how they would feel if I had that person's name in my pinned, making sure negativity about that user is the first thing anyone who clicks on my blog will see, telling everyone who follows that individual to not interact, while making lists of reasons I don't like them.
I genuinely don't care if certain people hate me. I don't care if people want to say bad things about me. I expect it, in fact. Anything you say that goes against societal norms will cause controversy. I'm not here to please everyone.
But at least grow up and stop being hypocrites about it.
I'm sick of the double standards on display, where attacking me is normalized and encouraged, and if I say anything about someone, even someone who attacked me first, they claim I'm harassing them.
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