#and no i'm not depicting zero as a hero he's not...
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Soooo... I didn't continue this (extra heretic) headcanon of mine from this post but now that we are here...
So I want to begin by saying that the whole KDL2 and KDL3 events happened mostly due to a personal vendetta plus some other reasons... But mostly due to the former.
You'll see why:
FAR, FAR BEFORE ANY OF THIS EVER HAPPENED
While Nightmare and Zero hadn't directly interacted yet, they did know about each other. Zero saw Nightmare as a very well-put and organized businessman with a great trajectory. Nightmare on the other hand thought of Zero as an intellectual with an excellent sense of strategy and leadership, although a bit unfocused calling him "a lazy genius".
Zero has really never found Nightmare to be a threat in spite of the latter's habit of conquering and destroying planets and civilizations. Not until, Nightmare attempted to get him to join, Zero always maintained a negative posture towards this proposition, however, this wouldn't stop Nightmare from meddling with what's not his...
Consisting of stealing Dark Matter for business profits and other nefarious things, this made Zero very angry and declared enmity with Nightmare ever since.
The few times they did interact physically almost always ended in a hostile note. This reached its peak when Nightmare came to the main Dark Matter cumulus and came to ask Zero for one last time to leave their differences aside and invited him to join him in his conquering.
Zero still denied the offer and before he could even do something, Nightmare quickly drew a sword and cut his head off. Of course, Zero didn't die since he's immortal, he furiously picked his head off the ground with the intention of getting immediate revenge but Nightmare was already long gone.
But, this didn't die here, this was just the beginning of everything...
The occasion arose when NOVA invited Zero to attempt to solve some past differences (will be explained later). Nightmare (nobody knows how...) managed to find them and began taunting Zero over the last time they met. Zero had a plan, a very risky and even borderline stupid plan, but he had a plan.
Zero got into a defensive position, which Nightmare took as a challenge and drew his sword out. Zero quickly proceeded to turn to NOVA and ripped one of her magical parts.
Nightmare still didn't budge.
This was just what he needed, of course, NOVA's magic is light magic in its purest form, using it meant that either this was going to be a definite win or would get the two of them severely hurt (even killed), since both are beings of negative energy.
Zero ran towards Nightmare and so did his opponent, Nightmare brandished his weapon but this time, Zero did manage to avoid his attack and kept briefly avoiding and blocking Nightmare's attacks until he saw the perfect moment, put the weapon to work and lanced Nightmare with it, while quickly trying to get away as fast as he could.
Nightmare screamed in agony, and while Zero was also hurt, it wasn't nearly as bad as Nightmare. He managed to make Nightmare go away for a long time and that's all that mattered.
Of course, he knew he would eventually appear, either by his own accord or someone would be stupid enough to summon him.
With this in mind, Zero basically dedicated himself for the longest time to find the people who awoke Nightmare up, kill them and enclose Nightmare all over again (skipping the first two steps in case there was no one to blame); becoming a sort of legend in the process.
His most successful attempt at locking him away was at the Dream Fountain, while risky (for the same reasons of using NOVA's artifacts), it seemed to really keep him there for a very long while.
Now, even when Nightmare wasn't active, he obviously had his subordinates doing his job, Zero also went on his way to eliminate all of them... or at least he thought he took all of them out.
Nightmare's most successful and loyal worker, The Salesman, managed to run away from Zero's deadly grip and enlarge the presence of Nightmare's business across other corners of the galaxy while he wasn't present.
FAST FORWARD TO THE ANIME
Escargoon and Dedede sign a contract with eNeMe Enterprises as part of an FTA and while Nightmare wasn't awake, The Salesman was sure doing everything possible to make sure Dreamland was next to be conquered, while also avoiding Zero at all coasts.
Year after year of unsuccessful attempts at conquering Dreamland (therefore Pop Star), the FTA was broken by the King's side, leaving both Escargoon and DDD with a huge debt impossible to pay and The Salesman roaming around away from Zero's reach.
FAST FORWARD TO NIGHTMARE IN DREAMLAND
Kirby and Dedede foolishly get Nightmare out of his enclosure and its both's duty to get him back into the Dream Fountain.
In another part of the Galaxy, Zero was informed of Nightmare's presence around and that two fools managed to succesfully bring him back on Pop Star. Zero was usually characterized for being very stoic and composed, even in dire situations, at most, he was usually a victim of silent rage episodes. Not this time, Zero was completely furious and out of his usual element, the other Dark Matters were completely scared, as seeing him being this out-of-control state was a (terrifying) rarity.
After briefly calming down, Zero plotted a raid on Dreamland, to search for every corner of the planet and bring in the people responsible of releasing Nightmare back so he can kill them.
Even when in the middle of being his plan he was told that he was enclosed again by the same people, he was still adamant to have them executed since he couldn't trust they wouldn't bring Nightmare back again.
AND SO KDL2 BEGAN
Zero sent the Dark Matter twins (and other drones) to start the invasion in Dreamland, in search for the two nimrods responsible for initially releasing Nightmare. The first one being located was the king and while he tried to fight back it was futile.
Kirby on the other hand, dark matters really never thought he could throw hands so efficiently and he sure was giving them the challenge of their lives.
By the end of this journey, Kirby had to get Dark Matter out of Dedede's body to give the final fight and drive all dark matters away from Dreamland, which he succeeded and took the two (very injured) twins out of Dreamland.
But things weren't remotely done...
In spite of the twins' failure to bring them with his leader to make those two pay for their tomfoolery, Zero knew that wasting time moping served for nothing, and took matters into his own hands.
PLANNING FOR KDL3 TO HAPPEN
Zero went on his way to seek for those two morons, of course, now it was easier since, he was told where he could find both the king and the kid. And now he set himself to shroud every corner in Pop Star with his presence, he was not going to let them escape from him any time soon.
He sure was really good at giving the heroes something to be occupied... Specially now that Dedede was so close to be executed, not before having a drone use his body as a puppet (again).
And sure, Dedede was going to be used to subdue Kirby and then have them both killed.
But even with all the momentum and Dedede at his feet, Zero suffered from the same results of his most experienced fighters, and with the little strength he had left, took all of himself away from Pop Star.
POST-... ALL OF THIS
After disappearing from Pop Star, Zero, just like the twins, got thrown into a pile of Dark Matter that allowed him to heal completely, because of his injuries and boy did it take him time...
While he didn't invade Pop Star again, and he's glad that Nightmare hasn't come back with his fuckery, he keeps holding a deep grudge against Kirby and Dedede, mostly towards Kirby and has remained like that even up to Star Allies.
#admin talks#headcanon#ah yes I forgot that nightmare is also a swordsman... oh well!#and no i'm not depicting zero as a hero he's not...#he just hates nightmare that much he doesn't only make him disappear he kills others that try to make them exist at the same time...#he has a phd in psychology a masters in literature and another phd in hater-ology#kirby zero#nightmare kirby#n.m.e salesman#nova kirby#dark matter swordsman#dark matter#kirby#king dedede#tw: decapitation#tw: murder
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im soso curious, i need to know... why is tim a child of apollo? bless u for not going with fanon<3
[referencing how I decided who the Batfam's godly parents were in my PJO AU WIP]
People like to sort him into Athena because DC has spent the last few years emphasizing how smart he is and how he's better at the more “cerebral” and detective aspects of the job. But Tim’s most prominent pre-reboot traits are not actually his detective or tech skills: they’re his reckless, impulsive bravery, his ability to analyze and think very quickly on his feet in dangerous situations, and his "power of friendship" idealism.
He's a people person; it's one of his greatest strengths. Tim is like...physically incapable of going somewhere and not making at least one friend while he's there. Hell, when he ran off to travel the world on his "fuck you, I'll find Bruce on my own" trip he still managed to pick up his own little crew of assassin friends along the way. Making connections and talking to people and relying on others for help is how he successfully navigates being a hero, as he himself notes on multiple occasions:
"Did you think I was going to run all around the city, desperately trying to save everyone all by myself? I'm not Batman. I have friends." -Red Robin #12
Tim loves his family and friends, and losing so many people he's close to within such a small timespan sends him off the deep end in multiple ways (trying to clone Kon, fighting Dick to get the Lazarus water, isolating himself from everyone, fighting with Dick and running off to find proof that Bruce was alive on his own, etc).
At his core, Tim is an idealist who becomes a hero for no other reason than a) a broken man needs help and a broken family needs mending and b) if Dick won't go back to being Robin he might as well do it, because someone has to be Robin. He sees what will happen if Bruce stays on the path he's on and says "no. I'm not going to let that happen." He's a hero because someone has to help, and he's able and available to do so. He doesn't work on cold hard logic and facts. He works off of gut instinct and then uses his big brain to go find facts and logical conclusions that support those instincts.
Tim was never going to be an Athena child.
So I started thinking. At first, I wanted him to be a Hermes child; it seemed right to frame his parentage around being the child of the messenger of the gods given how he became Robin. But that's not really him, either. Apollo, within the scope of both classical mythology and the PJO-verse's depiction of him and his children, fits him better.
While modern culture tends to zero in a lot on Apollo's status as the god of music, poetry, and the arts (for good reason), Apollo in classical Greek mythology was first and foremost known as the god who (for lack of a better term) helps his people. He's the god of the sun, of light, of medicine and healing, of prophecy, of truth.
Tim comes into Bruce's life at a time when Bruce is at his absolute lowest point. Jason is dead. He's estranged from Dick. He's failing in his mission to save Gotham. He's highkey passively suicidal. And Tim takes it upon himself to fix that. And he does it by being a solid, bright, stable presence in Bruce's life and an extremely blunt, truthful messenger of the future he sees: Batman needs a Robin, and if Bruce doesn't have one he's going to die.
And I didn't abandon his intelligence in the calculations: Apollo is also the god of rational thinking, order, and knowledge, contrasting and working in harmony with Dionysus (the god of irrationality, chaos, and passion). He was also known to be the god whose job it was to interpret the will of Zeus to humankind, which I thought was appropriate for a boy who spends quite a lot of his time being the living communication translator between Bruce and everyone around him.
So. Apollo child.
............also I thought it was funny to make the god of youth the father of the boy DC refuses to allow to age.
#I also have a thread of connection running between Apollo being the god of plagues and Tim getting the Clench in Contagion#but that was kind of an aside to the whole thing#tim drake#tim drake meta#dc comics#bruce wayne#batman#my writing#batfam pjo au
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I was bored, so I did a movie cast meme featuring characters present within my AU based on the 2021 Mortal Kombat movie.
The cast:
- The hero - Liu Kang (Ludi Lin)
- The hero's love interest - Sonya Blade (Jessica McNamee)
- The sidekick - Kung Lao (Max Huang)
- The sidekick's friend - Cole Young (Lewis Tan)
- The sidekick's second friend - Jax (Mehcad Brooks)
- The sidekick's love interest - Li Mei (no actress yet)
- The redeemer - Kuai Liang/Sub-Zero (Yoshi Sudarso)
- The redeemer's friend - Hanzo Hasashi/Scorpion (Hiroyuki Sanada)
- The redeemer's love interest - Kitana (Adeline Rudolph)
- The hero's parents - Lee Kang and Lin Kang
- The hero's best friend - same as the sidekick
- The hero's superior - Raiden (Tadanobu Asano)
- The traitor - Kano (Josh Lawson)
- The traitor's friend - Kabal
- The traitor's second friend - nobody else (I can't really see anyone else befriending Kano)
- The one who dies first - Johnny Cage (Karl Urban)
- The villain - Shang Tsung (Chin Han)
- The villain's bodyguard - Goro
- The villain's henchmen - Bi Han/Noob Saibot (Joe Taslim), Mileena (Sisi Stringer), Syzoth/Reptile, and Reiko (Nathan Jones)
- The villain's love interest - Nitara (Mel Jarnson)
Author's notes:
- While Karl Urban is playing Johnny Cage in the upcoming sequel, I used the image of Simpy Cage aka his counterpart from the Legends animated movies. I'm not too excited for the sequel, one of the reasons why is because of a huge emphasis on Johnny Cage and what his role will be over arguably more important things like whether or not Liu Kang will be the hero and defeat Shang Tsung.
- Jade, Shao Kahn, Sindel, Quan Chi, Baraka and Jerrod have been cast for the upcoming sequel, but I did leave them out of this meme since I had nowhere to include them. I could have easily cast Jade as Kung Lao's love interest, and it's great if you ship them, though I kinda ship him with Li Mei more.
- The images for Li Mei and Reiko are from New MK1 since Li Mei is not in the film universe yet (and whether or not she will be depends on whether or not the film franchise keeps going), and the way Reiko was depicted in MK 2021 was really lame.
- Yoshi Sudarso isn't confirmed to be Kuai Liang/Sub-Zero in the sequel (at least, as far as I'm aware), but he is quite a fan favorite choice to play the character if he ever does appear in the film universe.
That's all for now.
#mortal kombat#mortal kombat movie#mortal kombat 2021#movie casting#funny memes#liu kang#sonya blade#kung lao#cole young#jax#li mei#sub zero#scorpion#kitana#raiden#kano#kabal#johnny cage#shang tsung#goro#noob saibot#mileena#reptile#reiko#nitara
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I'm conflicted about the Maker as a character. On one hand, he's a great dark reflection to 616 Reed. He's what Reed would be if he never were confronted by the damages his ego might cause (in 616 Reed's case, the fact that it was his ego that made his loved ones change forever, while the accident was Doom's fault in 1610). He is arrogant, selfish, hyper-competent and a super-scientist-genious who, instead of fiding solutions with humanizing elements to the world's problems like 616 Reed does, doesn't care about ethics or morality, instead trying to create a perfect world regardless of how many have to die or suffer for it, whom he doens't spare a second thought for or feel guilt about.
On the other hand, I feel that WHAT he is is more interesting then HOW he became this way and WHY, and I kinda need to know the how and why to fully understand and appreciate him. I've recentely read the Ultimate Doomsday trilogy and the reasons for Reed to turn bad, the turning point to be precise, and what he was plannig exactly were… unclear to me.
His demeanor seems to change according to the writter as well. I've read the first 12 issues of Ultimate Comics: Ultimates and Hickman writes him as calm and condescending, someone who doesn't show his strong emotions, which is great. But after Humphries start co-writing from issue 10 to 12, his characterization and voice change. He is much more extrovert, so to speak, more prone to showing emotions, and he seems more generic. Also, some writers write him as still loving Sue, while Hickman doesn't seem to write him that way (the Maker doesn't show interest for the Sue in Secret Wars and he kills 6160 Sue).
I think what I want to ask is: do you also think the Maker has been inconsistently written as a character? And do you also think that the why he does things and the how he became the way he is are necessary for enjoying/understanding his character?
Oh he's a fucking incoherent mess. As a concept he's great, as an evil Reed under Hickman he's great. As the evolution of Ultimate Reed he makes zero sense.
Bendis depiction of his "fall" was awful and incoherent. Under Bendis, Reed instantly becomes the type of guy willing to commit cold blooded murder against both his family and other heroes for no real reason. If Reed is pissed about the military controlling everything, why is he trying to kill Peter Parker? Shouldn't he be trying to kill Nick Fury and destroy SHIELD? That at least would make sense, Ultimate Nick Fury is a fucking awful person. Instead he murders his entire family instead of just his asshole dad because... I don't know, he's just evil now. A writer can't write someone smarter than them, and Bendis is just not the guy for tackling the world's smartest heroic mind descending into villainy. Reed's plan is dumb and paper thin.
A better approach would have been that Reed creates minions and has them attack various heroes and SHIELD, but only the attack on SHIELD is genuine. All the attacks on heroes are false flags designed to fail, Reed even has them attack himself and his home to make it look like he's a victim too. Only his dad gets killed because his dad was the one Reed hated. Reed's plan is to kill off the military handlers, and bring the heroes together to solve a threat by themselves, in hopes that everyone will see they don't need to be taking orders from SHIELD. Heroes can solve problems on their own. Reed also wants to reunite the Fantastic Four and thinks that this could remind the other three why they need each other. Of course the other heroes find out that Reed is responsible and attempt to bring him in, with Sue, Ben, and Johnny turning on him being what sends Reed off the deep end. He becomes the Maker and resolves to build a family in his image which will be what he wants them to be.
Other writers desperately tried to reconcile Ultimate Reed with how Bendis portrayed his fall but it just never worked. Hickman had the right approach, he threw Reed into the City where times passes at an accelerated rate to justify the changes. Maker isn't human anymore, not really. He's been alive for so long that his perspective on everything has changed - or so it seems. It's tough to talk about Maker in Ultimates because Hickman never got to finish his story. No doubt in my mind that the Maker storyline was meant to run for a while, but Humphries understandably didn't want to be saddled with another writer's storyline forever. My recollection is that Humphries worked off of Hickman's notes, and while the execution differed it's possible that some of what Humphries did was Hickman's intention.
Some of what Maker does under Hickman doesn't make sense if Maker is as cold and pure logic-based as he tries to come off as. For example the City is on Earth instead of the moon or whatever because the City needs a "solid foundation" which presumably means Earth like conditions. Ok - why the hell does Maker put his City in Europe? Why not Antarctica or some other remote location? In Hickman's New Avengers, Maker recreates the City in a remote region of South America, which means he had other options. Putting his City in Europe feels like he was itching for a fight. Obviously there was quite a bit of gap in time between when Hickman wrote those two issues, but then there's other odd behavior. Why does Maker insist on humiliating Thor by forcing Thor to serve as his messenger instead of just... sending a message? Why bring Falcon in and show off the City instead of kidnapping world leaders for the same effect? My belief is that Hickman does not intend for Maker to be pure logic. Spite is definitely a big part of what drives him. On some level Maker was clearly itching for revenge and for praise from his former comrades. He wanted to hurt them and impress them, or at least rub in their faces what he had achieved.
Wish Hickman would share what the original plans were, but if Humphries really was working off his notes I could totally buy that Maker was going to be brought down by a need to impress Sue. He'd bring her into the City to brag and flex on her, the jilted boyfriend simultaneously hoping to hurt her for leaving him and win her back, and she would bring him down. Unlikely that Hickman would have Reed outright admit that the way Humphries did, but as an undercurrent to his actions he may not even be aware of himself? Yeah I could buy that. As for why he doesn't care about the other Sues, he spells out in Secret Wars: they're not his Sue.
Even Hickman has him admit that he's wondered what his life would have been like if he had gotten the life 616 Reed did. Plus there's his whole torturing of 6160 Reed. He could have killed 6160 Reed along with the other three, but he didn't. Instead he turned the guy into Dr. Doom and attempted to break him. Why? What purpose does that serve? 6160 Reed knows Maker hates him but can't figure out why. My theory is that it's because Maker is trying to take a Reed who is similar to 616 Reed and transform the guy into a monster like him. It's his middle finger to 616 Reed. Maker wants to prove that 616 Reed isn't better than him, if Mr. Fantastic had lost his family and been put through hell like Maker had, he would break too. That 6160 Reed is, so far, not a monster like Maker pisses Maker off. It's not logical to keep 6160 Reed around, and doing so leads to Maker's fall.
Hope that long winded rant clarified my thoughts for you. Moving on to the second part, do we need to know the how and why of Maker to enjoy him? Depends on how he's used. Something like Cates' Venom run, no. Maker is just an Evil Reed there, we don't need his backstory to understand that he's a power hungry bastard out only for himself. Per Cates himself, Maker is there because he wanted a dark reflection of the Peter/Mr. Fantastic relationship, and it's enough that Maker is a villain working with a dark anti-hero Venom to help facilitate that. Now in Ultimate Invasion, yes you do need to understand the how and why. Problem is that it's not clear why Maker does a lot of what he does. His creation of the Ultimate Illuminati is explained and makes sense, but what is his endgame? What does he want 6160 to become? I can't tell you. No clue at all what his endgame is supposed to be. Does he want to turn the world into a global version of the City? Does he genuinely want to make a utopia? He seems content to let his underlings run their fiefdoms with a relatively free hand. 6160 America appears to be much more advanced thanks to the technocrats running things. Even allows Howard Stark and Bruce Banner to express misgivings about his rule. Public seems to think he's a great guy, presumably he didn't kill a shitload of people to build his society this time around. We needed more info on what his plans were and we didn't get them.
Maker is a fun character and also an inconsistent mess. One does not always preclude the other. Now my personal opinion is that he's approaching the end of his lifespan, I think Hickman needs to give him an ending. Whether that's death or something else I don't know, but a confrontation between Maker, Mr. Fantastic, and DoomReed is all that's left to do with him I feel. Hickman is really the only one who has used him to his full potential anyway. Give him a proper send-off to close the door on the old Ultimate Universe as we move into the new one.
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Not sure if you’re still taking characters asks but if you are:
2, 3, 8, 23, 25 for Madelyn, please!
I sure am taking character asks always!!
2. Favorite canon thing about this character?
Her little outbreaks. I love when she keeps on the corporate facade and then, as soon as she's alone, she throws shit around or slams her hands down mid-party because Stan Edgar made her his successor or has a look of utter panic on her face when Homelander turns his back during the Becca scene. There's a human underneath the persona, and I love when we get to see her.
3. Least favorite canon thing about this character?
Diabolical!canon Madelyn. It is, unfortunately, part of canon, but she behaves sooo not like her in her scenes there that I simply don't like the concept. Sure, the Madelyn we see in Diabolical is a solid twenty years younger than the one we meet in the show, but she has nothing of what I admire about Madelyn in particular. Diabolical!Madelyn is just an empty shell that has Elisabeth Shue's voice talking lines that make me go: she would not fucking say that!
8. What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you despise?
Either vilifying her too hard or not vilifying her enough or not vilifying her for the right reasons. Like many characters in this canon, she is both victim and abuser, and that becomes very, very clear in her relationship with Homelander. She is not more of a monster than anyone at Vought, but neither is she an innocent. She's a power-hungry career ladder climber who will stop at nothing to get what she wants, but she knows her situation is dire, and if there is one thing I love, love, love about her, it's the "I'm scared of you" moment, so there you have it.
Other than that, painting her as a pedophile. One, it is way too crass for her and we never see any indication that she shows that proclivity. If anything, she is not 100% comfortable with Homelander's mommy shtick and uses it mostly when she can get an advantage out of his loyalty or when she tries to keep him satisfied so he doesn't, ya know, kill her or ask questions he shouldn't. Put a finger in his mouth and shut him up, girl, you've earned it. Two, the timeline simply doesn't allow for it. When she met Homelander, he must have already been at the very least an older teenager. Somewhere around 16-20. Now, do I believe she might have sexually groomed him? Yes. Do I believe she was doing it out of some perverted desire? Nope.
23. Favorite picture of this character?
I fell in love with her with that cocky, expectant lip bite she gives the mayor of Baltimore. I was like: now this is a woman I can get behind. She would have made a great politician. She would have made a great anything, to be honest.
25. What was your first impression of this character? How about now?
My first impression of her was: oh, girl, you are gonna girlboss too close to the sun. And then I continued the show. And I was correct about that assessment.
I know I never talk about her enough because there is zero audience for Madelyn Stillwell five years after her show death, but I truly think she is one of the greatest characters, and the brilliant-Vought-villain era ended with her. In a way, the things I loved in the first season: the way the heroes were depicted as actually doing their job, the way the humans handled them and how they kept them under their thumb, it all came to an end with her.
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I said I may or may not write my opinion about Blue Eye Samurai and guess who finished the first season and felt like sharing some stupid thoughts! (Gonna use they/them pronouns for Mizu - I think the creators' been using she/her but they just have that vibe, sorry.)
First of all, I'm NOT gonna praise it and say this is the best animated series I've ever seen in the samurai genre - this show is at most an okay copy/retelling of the classic Japanese revenge stories, however, it is still captivating.
For me, it felt like a mixture of two of my fav stories, namely Kaze Hikaru and Bakumatsu Kikansetsu. Mizu is pretty much like Kaze Hikaru's Sei (though a hundred times stronger and a million times more bloodthirsty with just an ounce of mercy) with a though start in life thanks to links to the Western world, losing family and wanting revenge so much that both of them end up leading the life of a man, often encountering how much better they are off in this role. On the other hand the whole show's vibe and Mizu's design remind me of Bakumatsu Kikansetsu's more serious tones and its hero, Akizuki - mysterious dude with unconventional clothing, blue eyes, a badass special sword, with the occasional rampage. Maybe my nostalgia towards both stories made me watch this one within a day.
The mix of Japanese and American storytelling was fun, although I must say that the baddies lacking complexity whatsoever made me itch sometimes. (Except for one dude, who really managed to fool me for so long.) Fowler is plain and boring, the most typical big brute Western guy they could depict, though it's fun to think this was an intentional copying of similar anime archetypes of Western characters. Taigen felt like a cheap imitation of Zuko being honor-bound but getting his ass constantly kicked, but who, by the end of the day, seemed to learn nothing. Ringo was fun and proved to be a million times useful indeed, though he just went and followed his heart in the twenty-fourth hour instead of his common sense, not helping those who would've needed it after all (though in the end it seemed like his help was not even needed lol).
Ah yes, this was my big problem with the show. Sometimes people just went to do stuff that... resulted in nothing. Like. Okay, go, warn people of imminent danger but what is the use when they can just...spot the danger like five minutes later without the warning and those minutes make zero difference? Ringo almost abandoned Mizu several times just to go after them eventually, for what?
But the series also offered some very clever ideas. For example, I truly thought that "oh my god are we going to get a two floors/episode fight or what? getting to Fowler will be like a stupid video game" just to have some pleasant surprise instead. Mizu's weapon... I'm not gonna go into that because I'm so in love with it! The red-light district and Madame Kaji and her girls were also A+ content.
This is again, something the show handled tastefully. Since anime can't show nudity without censorship (I think that law still exists?), I don't think there's any show, hentai or not where they could've got away with these sex scenes, but in an American animation on Netflix? No problem. I'm really not a fan of hentai or this type of mature content (I'd choose the most disgusting gore over it any time) but didn't bother me that we had a sex scene in every episode. (Maybe except in the last one.)
As for Mizu. Their whole aesthetics is so badass. You cannot not fall in love with them, ruthlessness or not. I know their whole character is built upon the fact that women couldn't get their revenge in the shogunate's era thanks to the strict patriarchy, and really, the most a women could achieve was rather Akemi's path. However, there are a few instances where it's not that easy to decide whether they are just pissed to be looked down upon as a woman, want to keep their secret, or there's more than that. They might be considered an unconventional woman who could never be satisfied with the traditional roles of women. One, who is forced to take on the role of a boy and does not know how to forget that when they can return to their womanhood. But that womanhood also feels forced. As if they're just simply outside of this whole shit that dudes are honorable samurai (or artisans / farmers / merchants), women are cooking and raising kids. That's part of the reason why I loved the idea that their sword is actually multifunctional and can be used as a naginata. Naginata became the weapon of women in the Edo era, so even though we're not there yet, it seems to have more feminine connotations than a katana. This double-shape of their weapon seems to reflect their soul. This is further emphasized by their outcast half-breed status, which, again, means they're not entirely one, not entirely the other.
Anyway.
Go watch the show.
It's worth it. Mizu is like some cockroach that refuses to die and kills at least a hundred people and just wants to be left alone to kill their enemies.
Please, watch it, otherwise we may never get to know how the fuck will white dudes die by the hands of a lowly half-breed who has the most crazy and determined eyes you've ever seen.
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i'm thinking about when i received anon hate and was accused of being a cesare hater and it had me giggling because why would i even waste effort and a second of my time making gifsets of him? but it seems like stating that he was incredibly insecure when it came to his father's love for him (similar to juan with how he feels that cesare is the one rodrigo counts on), and the difference is that his actions exhibited various forms of abuse and that a deeper analysis would reveal that his actions stemmed from negative qualities and beliefs (which is hot btw), on the other hand, juan's efforts (though he could be an obnoxious loser with a cocky assholish façade) were genuinely driven by a desire to impress his family and protect them, albeit in a misguided way (before syphilis, gangrene, and opium fried his brain and turned him rabid).
cesare wasn't given the 'from zero to hero' trope; instead, he was depicted as turning from an innocent, genuine young man who did everything for his family (especially his sister) to a power-hungry and ambitious man who didn't need to justify his wrongdoings to anyone, even if it meant throwing his family under the bus for political gain. françois arnaud deeply loves and cares for cesare borgia, and if he can recognize that his character is vicious and his portrayal is inspired by machiavelli's 'the prince' and embrace it, why can't people enjoy analyzing it? i have always been drawn to dark media and i'm totally not interested in watching a show with perfect people doing nice things, instead, i'm tuning in for our pretty megalomaniac princely main guy with leather and divine curls committing all the atrocities <3
#it was crazyyyy that day made me feel like i'm on twitter lol#we actually got lucky that he was the one who was chosen to play him it's an absolute win#i'm obsessed with reading his interviews about his character especially when he's been saying everything that i've been think of about him#i love himmmm#mostly because he wasn't portrayed like every romanticized period drama hero#cesare borgia#the borgias in history#text post
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Oh My Love (Damien Karras x GN Reader Pt. 5)
(Pt. 4) (Pt. 6)
“It's not your fault.”
“It is it is it is. I wasn't there. I wasn't there.”
“There's nothing you could've done.”
“No. I could've, I could've…”
“Shh. No. Breathe. Breathe through it.”
You shake against him. “Are you gonna tell me to pray?”
A beat of silence. Then,
“No.”
-
Rating: M
CW AND AUTHOR NOTES: featured in this chapter are graphic-ish depictions of infant death/mutilation along with graphic violence.
While I understand there MIGHT be some nugget of truth behind extreme Satanic cults committing atrocities, I also know that the vast majority of Satanists/Luciferians are folks just like any others. I hope you've been able to tell that our hero is doubtful of the way literature presents non-Christian belief systems.
I do not view Satanism/Luciferianism in this way and I believe all religions/spiritualities are valid as long as they don't harm other people.
16· degrees.
That's how cold it is when you stumble out of your apartment and into the blistering snowstorm.
Wherever you're going, it has to be away from the nightmare.
A dark forest. Then, a pit of hell. Then, a sickening basement. Pentagrams on the floor. Hooded figures.
The forest again. Creeping, reaching, grabbing white trees.
The pit where a jagged hand lays on your shoulder.
Your feet pad unsteadily along the sidewalk. You'd managed boots at least.
The forest where snow falls.
The forest where ash falls.
The basement. Bleeding candles. The screaming of an infant.
One of the hooded figures wears an elk head like a mask.
A turn here, a turn there. You have no idea if the snow slows you down.
You're pushed and prodded through the crowd. Breaking through the throngs of people on the street.
Your aunt and uncle see you. You call for them. They leave.
At the center of the pentagram is a baby. It's William. You know, because you were there when he was born.
A door opens and you stumble inside, your snowy boots squelching on carpet.
In the forest, in a patch of dirt where nothing grows, there's a rabbit laying on its side. Its breathing is labored. Its stomach is open. Maggots eat away at the already rotting flesh.
William splits open.
The forest is ablaze.
You bang on a door. Or maybe your fist simply grazes across the wood. You can't feel your hands. You can't feel any part of your body.
There's nothing but blood. It's boiling around you, inside of you. It's in your eyes. It's buried in the carrion in your teeth.
There's nothing to do. Shikata ga nai. It cannot be helped.
There's nothing else.
When the door opens you sway a bit. Damien looks at you with wide-awake eyes.
“Y/n?”
You don't respond.
“Christ, come inside.”
He ushers you in. You're at his residency room.
“It started sleeting,” you say mutely.
He sits you on his bed. He's still dressed in his sweats. How long has he been up?
How long did you walk?
“Okay, okay sit down.”
He leaves your field of vision so you zero in on a bookcase in front of you. You hear opening drawers, a muttered curse, some shuffling.
Damien returns to you with a bundle of clothes in his hands.
“Here, get changed. Can you do that? Can you change your clothes?”
“Bath…”
“No, you could go into shock. Please. In the bathroom.” Then, “Do you need my help?”
You nod mutely. At least you think you do.
His bathroom is small and bare bones. He peels off your coat. Lifts off your soggy sweatshirt. You manage to step out of your pants. He helps you into his clothes and has a sharp intake of breath every time his warm skin brushes your frozen body.
“I had a nightmare…” you mutter.
He walks you back to his bed and slips two pairs of socks on your feet.
“It’s okay. Okay. I'm gonna start some tea.”
You catch his sleeve.
“No. No, coffee, please? I can't go back to sleep- please don't make me go back to sleep.” You begin to cry through your words. He pats your arm.
“Okay, it's okay. Coffee.” He moves to the sink and fills a filter with coffee grounds as his hands shake. “What were you thinking? You know people die for the kind of cold out there- I mean what were you thinking ?”
He returns once the coffee starts. He retrieves a woolen blanket and wraps it around you. He sits himself next to you and slings an arm across your shoulders and rubs your arm. His broad torso encases you entirely.
“I woke up and…I couldn't… I didn't know what else to do. I couldn't be alone. Not after…”
You try to cry but you can't, whether it's from the cold or exhaustion.
“Okay, it's okay.”
Damien leaves again to pour your coffee. You drink it in gulps despite the fact that it's scalding.
“Hey, easy. Easy.”
Damien gently takes the mug from you and sets it on a nearby table. Now exposed to more warmth, you start shaking. Not shivering. Shaking . Like a tremor.
“Here. Get under the covers.”
He helps you and you shudder upon remembering-
“They killed him. William, they killed him…”
“It was a nightmare. Nothing else.”
“Nothing else…”
Damien sighs as you try to fight sleep.
“Maybe you should be up and moving.”
“I move too much.”
“I don't know if you're supposed to go to sleep…”
You shoot up. “No! I can't go to sleep again.” You grip his forearms. “I can't do it again.”
Damien's eyes fill with concern and he hands you your coffee again. You sip it more carefully now.
“What can I do?” He asks. You catch his double meaning. You both know he's doing all he can to help you right now. But what could he possibly do to heal your heart?
You burst into sudden tears. “It's all my fault. I wasn't there.”
Damien scoots closer to you and stills in shock when you throw yourself into his chest. He takes your coffee again before holding you. One hand across your arm, one on your head.
“It's not your fault.”
“It is it is it is. I wasn't there. I wasn't there.”
“There's nothing you could've done.”
“No. I could've, I could've…”
“Shh. No. Breathe. Breathe through it.”
You shake against him. “Are you gonna tell me to pray?”
A beat of silence. Then,
“No.”
He holds you through the worst of it. Eventually your body forces you to sleep but there are no more nightmares.
Damien wakes before you, surprised to find himself with his arms still wrapped around you. Your face is buried right above his heart. He tries to read the clock across the room. 8:13. He'd slept through mass.
There's a knock at the door and Damien realizes it's what had woken him up. He carefully untangles himself from you and makes sure your head finds a pillow before answering the door. When he does, he only cracks it open a hair. Who should be on the other side but Joe.
“Damien- geez you look a mess. What happened? You weren't at mass.”
Damien runs a hand through his hair. “Think I'm sick. May be something I ate last night.”
Damien knows that Joe's noticed the way his body blocks the doorway. Joe peers beyond Damien in what little way he can. He spots clothes on the floor, a jacket. Your jacket.
As soon as Joe's eyes widen, Damien has pressed himself into the hall and shut the door behind him.
“Joe-”
“Tell me you didn't.”
“Of course not.” His face burns at the mere implication. “They showed up at two this morning. Walked from their apartment . They were in a complete fugue state. Barely knew what they were saying. Something about a nightmare.”
“They trudged across campus in a snowstorm for a nightmare ?”
Damien shakes his head. “It wasn't just that. Not just a nightmare, I mean. They saw something very disturbing. I just don't know what.”
“And?”
“And what?”
“What do you mean ‘and what’?”
“They passed out after fifteen something minutes. We fell asleep. They're still sleeping.”
Joseph wears a look of uncertainty. “Joe. Joseph, you know I’d never-”
“I know, I know. I don't know why I even bothered to ask. But if word got out-”
“It won't. And even if it did, who would care?”
“Don't act oblivious. Many people would care.”
“Well. It won't matter. When they wake up, I'll call a cab to take them back to their apartment.”
“And you're going to walk out of your room with a student wearing your clothes ?”
Damien chews on his lower lip.
“It does look bad, doesn't it?”
“Terrible.”
“I can't ask them to climb out the window.”
“Of course not. Just- be careful, alright? Let me know how they are when they wake up. And let me know if you need anything.”
Joseph places a hand on Damien's shoulder and leaves it there for a brief moment before walking away. Damien sighs and re enters his room. You're still passed out in his bed. He can't bear to wake you up. Quietly, he calls the church director and says he's sick. He can't take any appointments today. Instead, he sits at his desk, doing what work he can until you wake.
When you wake, your eyes crack open and you stare at the ceiling. It's not your ceiling. It's the residency ceiling. You sit up too fast and get lightheaded. Damien hears you.
“Hey. Hey, take it slow. How are you feeling?”
He sits next to you on the bed.
“How did I get here?” You notice the sweatshirt across your chest. “I- is this yours?”
“You don't remember?”
You shake your head.
“It had to be near two thirty when you showed up outside my door. You'd walked here through a snowstorm. We got you changed and you went to sleep.”
You'd walked ? Straight to him? He'd helped you change clothes-
You're wearing his clothes. They smell like him. Your face burns red and you bury it in your hands.
“Oh my god. I'm so sorry. I don't know what I was thinking.”
“I'm not sure if you did then, either. You were incoherent. Said something about a dream. What happened?”
You search your memory. “I was reading before bed…”
“What were you reading?”
Oh God. You almost don't want to tell him.
“Your book.”
His eyes fill with guilt.
“God, I should’ve known.”
“How could you have known?”
He chuckles humorlessly. “I don’t know. I’m sorry it had this effect on you.”
“It wasn’t just scary. There was something about it. It was too…personal. Evil.”
He searches your eyes.
“We often associate horror with the supernatural because we can’t possibly imagine that it comes from our own minds.”
To distract from that unsettling, likely true thought, your eyes scan the room. Not much furniture or personal effects. Your clothes have been hung up in some form or fashion- socks on the radiator, jacket and pants slung over the bathroom door.
“Why did you have that dream?”
You groan and find the cold coffee from the night before. You sip on it.
“I already told you. The book.”
“But specifically why that nightmare?”
“I don't want to have therapy right now.”
“Considering what we've both been through in the past six or so hours, I think we can manage this.”
You tap your nails against the ceramic mug. You don't have to think very hard.
“It's my fault they died.”
Damien runs a hand over his face. “No, it isn't. And I think you know it isn't.”
Your face flushes with indignation. “Then why did you even ask?”
“It wasn't your fault. You were half a world away.”
“And I wasn't there to help them.”
“Neither were your aunt or uncle, but you're not blaming them.”
His words stick you to your spot. You open your mouth to respond but no words come out. You stare into the coffee which has now gathered some thin, swirling film on top of it.
“I guess it's easier than just accepting the tragedy. It's senseless. The tragedy and the guilt. They're both senseless.”
Damien watches you for a moment before standing.
“Don't drink that. Let me brew a fresh pot.”
You throw the blanket off your shoulders. “No, don't bother. I should probably leave. I've taken up too much of your time already.”
You stand but your legs give out almost immediately. Damien catches you.
“Hold on a minute. You ran here in dangerous weather in the middle of the night and now you're trying to run off. What happened?”
“I shouldn't be here.”
“Why not?”
“Oh come on, you know why.”
It comes out much harsher than you mean it to and Damien looks stung by your words.
“There's nothing wrong with this. It's what the church is for.”
“The church. Not you. ”
Damien digests your words, scoffs, moves to his small window.
“Maybe I'm just crazy.”
“What's that?”
“Joseph Dyer came but earlier and was speaking very similarly to how you are now.”
Your face burns and you manage to stand and stay standing.
“You mean he knows?”
“Christ , stop making it into some big scandal!”
“What is going on with you? You take the lord’s name in vain, you don’t care about appearances which you should be very careful about, you hate your job-“
“What could possibly make you think that?”
“What you said last night.”
He looks at you incredulously.
“What are you talking about?”
“‘It’s just part of the job’.”
When he remembers, he sighs and rubs a hand over his face like he’s trying to wipe the memory away.
“Everyone has bad days. Priesthood is a job like any other job, but it’s also my life. I eat, sleep, and breathe it. Forgive me, please, if I get a little burnt out.”
Only reading his words, one might think they are laced with sarcasm. There is certainly a degree of exhaustion, but most of all, it is pleading . He is actually asking. Please, patience. Please, grace. Please, protection. Believe me so I can believe myself.
He is in torturous denial.
“That’s what you’ve been toiling over, isn’t it? Is Merrin telling you to stick it out? To have faith and it’ll get better?”
He looks utterly betrayed.
“We shouldn't be having this conversation.” He stands. “Do you need me to call you a cab?”
Oh. He's kicking you out. You suddenly turn cold at the thought that you've broken something you can't fix. You've said something you can't take back. Breached a wall you can't climb back over.
“Damien, I'm sorry. I just- I consider you a friend and I hate to see you hurting. Especially…” You trail off.
“What?”
“Nothing. You don't have to call a cab. Thanks for last night. I'll see you…”
But when could you see him again that wouldn't be drenched in pain? What can you say that isn't a poisoned dagger in a festering wound?
You move around him to gather your things. He grabs your arm. And this time, he grabs it. Not aggressively. Not painfully or with malintent. But desperately. Please, stay. Please, tell me the truth.
You look into his eyes. He's begging for levity. Please, don't leave angry. Please, don't leave.
Please, forgive me.
“I think…space, and time…”
He trails off. He doesn't actually have anything to say.
You laugh. Not ruefully. You decide to grant his wish. You don't want to leave angry either.
“Oh yeah? Space and time? You think ‘space and time’?”
He laughs as well. “Okay, okay.”
“You're a scholar.”
“I'm a psychiatrist.”
“You're a Philosopher,” you joke, gesturing to the worn letters across your chest. His sweatshirt.
“Alright, let me get your clothes in a bag. They're still a little wet. Is that alright?”
You nod and watch as he carefully folds your clothes and places them in a brown grocery bag.
“You're sure you don't need a cab?”
You slip past him and pull back the delicate curtains to look out the small window.
“It's not even snowing anymore. I'll be fine.”
You know he'll worry but you can't let him order you a cab. You just can't.
When you get home, you turn the satanic ritual book face down at your coffee table. And once you unpack your clothes, you rub them between your fingers with a small smile playing on your face.
Bone dry.
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Red Hood and the Outlaws #4 (2011)
Back on Lobdell's bullshit!
There had been vague references to Roy being a "screwup" in the first three issues of the book, but this issue confirms that he is, as he was pre-Flashpoint, an addict in recovery. There are two major differences, though: one, his sobriety seems a lot shakier than it was pre-Flashpoint (at least, before Lian's death), and two, he is now an alcoholic, rather than a narcotics addict. Pre-Flashpoint, Roy was regularly shown drinking casually and sometimes even actively drunk (Ollie's bachelor party), and it was never depicted as a problem for him, though Kyle at one point gently teases him about staying away from booze. (Interestingly, Ollie is occasionally depicted as having an unhealthy relationship with alcohol himself, but no line is ever drawn between his potential addiction and Roy's, in any continuity.)
I'm of two minds about the change. On the one hand, though I have a strong attachment to the original "Snowbirds Don't Fly," it was very much commenting on a specific cultural moment, as well as being very deliberately designed to open up conversation about drugs and drug addiction in comic books (prior to "Snowbirds," the depiction of drug use was banned by the Comics Code Authority). There's no reason to stick specifically to heroin, other than tradition. I hate to praise Tom King, and I have quibbles with him giving Roy an addiction to prescription drugs in Heroes in Crisis (if injuries in the field led to Roy's reliance on and then addiction to prescription painkillers, why is he the only superhero to develop an addiction? it should be like a third of them!), but it's a choice that feels very current, the way that heroin felt very current in 1971. (People obviously still do heroin, but you know what I mean.)
Making Roy an alcoholic instead of a heroin addict provides an interesting opportunity to compare the two addictions. Alcoholism is much more culturally accepted (and, you know, legal), easier to hide, and carries far less stigma, both when using and when in recovery. And yet RHATO depicts a Roy who appears to be in greater disgrace with the superhero community than pre-Flashpoint Roy ever was. It would have been interesting to explore the difference in how the two addictions are received, in getting and staying sober, in the dangers of using any substance to excess, even legal and widely accepted ones. A thoughtful writer could have told a really moving story with this change.
Of course, we're talking about Lobdell here, so the change feels completely arbitrary and downright lazy, especially since Lobdell (and King) has a habit of doing zero research and changing things at random. Both the alcoholism and the prescription drug addiction wind up coming across like all addictions are interchangeable, which is...shitty.
But, you know. It could have been good.
On the other hand, here we have the debut of the single best thing about all of RHATO: the Jaybird nickname. Drink it in, friends.
Meanwhile, Kori gets attacked by this guy, Crux:
She's TAMARANEAN. In fact, the word "Tamaranean" is used later on the same page. What a shitshow.
Crux is a human whose parents were killed when a random Tamaranean spaceship hit their car (why were Tamaraneans just cruising by Earth? no idea), so he devoted his life to destroying aliens in general and Tamaraneans in particular, including using alien DNA so he can turn himself into a giant bat-lizard at will.
Meanwhile, the hot lady sheriff turns out to be an Untitled, and she and Jason frisk each other sexily before she turns into a monster and attacks. It's boring.
The issue ends with Roy going to help Kori, who is losing her fight, and Jason facing off against the Untitled. So to sum of the events of the issue, two fights start and Roy calls Jason "Jaybird" for the first time. It's amazing how little story you can tell in when you average like two panels per page!
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So, I'm way more critical of GRRM than, like, 90 percent of the fandom so I have a very low opinion of how he will handle R/L. I 100 percent think that when he conceived of the story back in the 90s he meant for R/L to be an unambiguous, consensual love story. He once called R 'lovestruck' and a fool in love in a few interviews which lmao. I am not saying this as a R/L shipper, I actually intensely despise both characters. But this is the same man that called the Dani/Drogo wedding night a 'seduction' and included a J*n/Ar*a romance in his original outline. Keep in mind, J*n knew Ar*a while she was literally IN UTERO but people somehow think GRRM will frame R/L as some parable on the dangers of an older man grooming a young girl lol. Do I think that now, in the post-me too era where everyone is super cognizant of issues like age gaps and grooming, etc. he realizes that he needs to 'fix' that relationship? Yes. A big reason I think it's taking him so long to finish the books and why he never will is because a lot of his ideas back in the 90s are now deeply unpalatable to modern audiences. That's kinda what happens when you procrastinate for three decades on finishing a series - social mores change dramatically and now you have to course correct. I just don't think he has the effort, care, or energy to critically reappraise his framing of R and R/L as a couple. I do think prophecy played a part in R's actions, but GRRM also meant for R/L to be in love. Now, do i hope GRRM does not frame it this? Yes. But I have almost zero faith in him lol.
Hi anon, I think you're saying that since Grrm has a warped view of consent because he called Dany/Drogo's first night as seduction (when it's clear it was rape), you think he might not view R/L as problematic and might depict them as a love story because he has also called Rhaegar a love-struck prince before, and paired Jon with Arya in the original outline... I don't agree. Grrm is wrong for what he said about Dany and Drogo, but in the text, though Dany views Drogo positively, their relationship is still depicted as abusive.
I'm just basing my thoughts on what we know from the main series here because I have no idea what Grrm initially intended for them in the 90s.
If Grrm intended this relationship to be consensual and positive, I don't think he would characterise Rhaegar as someone obsessed with siring three children, nor would he give Rhaegar a wife who he reproductively abused for children before he left for Lyanna.
Remember, Rhaegar and Aerys' main purpose in the story is to incite events that bring the end of House Targaryen in Westeros; their actions and their crimes are supposed to spark the rebellion that destroys their dynasty. That's why GRRM has characterised Rhaegar as prophecy mad: he was obsessed with siring three children; he impregnated his chronically ill wife in quick succession and humiliated her in front of the nobles from across the kingdoms at Harrenhal; he knew something had to be done to remove his father from power but chose to make everything worse by disappearing with a Lord Paramount's daughter. He left his family and the realm at the mercy of his mad father for months before reappearing and promptly dying in his first battle.
I don't see Grrm positively depicting such an irresponsible character or giving him any narrative triumph or hero-like treatment just because he contributed sperm that created one of the protagonists. I think GRRM intends for Rhaegar to be glorified through the eyes of some (very flawed) characters, and then later dismantle his romanticised image by exposing his true nature. Alongside Rhaegar's romanticization, Grrm has also written many instances that hint that Rhaegar was not as great a man as his admirers say.
In ASOS, Jorah Mormont tells Dany that "there was no higher honour than to receive your knighthood from the Prince of Dragonstone." To readers, it looks like Rhaegar was an incredibly noble and admirable person; however, that line is a callback to AGOT (Sansa II), where we read that Rhaegar had knighted Gregor Clegane, the man who brutally murdered his wife and children. This shows GRRM didn’t intend to depict Rhaegar as a good man, even when he published AGOT in 1996.
Since Rhaegar's faults are not yet as emphasised in the text compared to his romanticised image, readers may not notice or give importance to them. However, Grrm is not the type of writer to continue glorifying a character whose actions brought so much pain and suffering to others, so I'm certain he will negatively depict Rhaegar in the future.
My take on R/L is this. I think Grrm is only making R/L seem like a love story when what actually happened is much darker. I really can't see how he could have intended for R/L to be unambiguously consensual once Rhaegar is implied to desperately want 3 children and it's implied that he might have raped Elia for conceiving Aegon because he impregnated her when she was on bed rest recovering from the birth of their first child, Rhaenys. It was only after Elia was said to be too weak to give birth to another child that he took Lyanna. He hid Lyanna in a secret tower in the middle of nowhere, and she died giving birth with not even a maester to assist her. It sounds like Rhaegar cared more about her staying hidden and giving birth in secret than about her health.
Also, when Grrm glorifies Rhaegar through the eyes of characters like Jorah, Barristan, Cersei, Kevan Lannister, and Jon Connington, he uses that character's (and the reader's) prejudice regarding misogyny, racism, and ableism to depict Elia. Many of them call Elia unworthy and blame her for Rhaegar cheating on her and for the war. Elia is also sidelined without a voice. I'm pretty sure Grrm characterises Elia like this for now in order to build Rhaegar's image and Rhaelya's 'love'. If Elia was given more space in the backstory, readers would sympathise more with her than with the mirage of noble Rhaegar and his beautiful romance with Lyanna that birthed our hero Jon Snow.
And notice how none of Rhaegar's admirers care about Lyanna either! Some of them romanticise Rhaegar's love for her, but they don't care that he was said to have abducted her and she later died because of it. It's interesting that Rhaegar is romanticised through characters who don't sympathise with the women he harmed. It's only a bunch of randos who personally never knew Rhaegar that are shown to admire him (Dany, too, is only idealising an image of Rhaegar that Viserys and Barristan fed her). I'm certain that in the next book, GRRM will condemn Rhaegar and dismantle his legacy.
#asks#anti rhaegar targaryen#anti rhaelya#thanks for your message ❤️. i thought a lot about this ask#thats why my response is so late#cw rape#lyanna stark#elia martell#asoiaf#rhaegar#lyanna#elia
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On Berserk and Takayuki Yamaguchi.
I'm making this post to vague about a stranger, and also to talk about Takayuki Yamaguchi, who rules.
Someone once said that, in the wake of Miura's untimely death, Takayuki Yamaguchi should take on the mantle of writing and drawing Berserk.
No offense (OK, some offense) to the guy who wrote this, but I can't think of a mangaka with a more diametrically opposed creative voice to Miura's, even if they both had similar root influences (Go Nagai, Fist of the North Star, Phantom of the Paradise and henshin heroes like Ultraman, Kamen Rider and Kikaider) and aesthetic interests (intense gore and violence, muddy textures, weird and often extreme sexual imagery).
For one, Takayuki Yamaguchi is a man who IIRC has directly stated that he's not great at subtle or nuanced emotion and thus excels at creating narratives built off of repressed characters unable to fully express themselves and asking him to illustrate a manga whose identity is partly defined by its creator's mastery of expression and subtle emotion isn't a great idea, really.
He was good at rendering subtle emotions once, during the early chapters of Shigurui, and he then promptly abandoned that skill in favor of intense stoicism for good reason.
One, he makes it look good, two, his work is defined by its detached, clinical tone. He deliberately views characters at a distance, by either using impersonal, novelistic third-person narration, viewing his protagonists through the lens of others within the narrative, or through something as simple as avoiding language and explicit information, valuing weighted silence over exposition. This dovetails *beautifully* with the narratives he handles.
Gekikou Kamen is about a tokusatsu enthusiast's relationship with Imperial Japan as reflected in the art he consumes, Shigurui is a critique of rigid class structures and loyalty to the state, and Exoskull Zero is his version of Casshern Sins I.E a manga about a former superhero in a doomed, fantastical landscape at the end of time out to save people who might not even exist.
They're manga that require an ambivalent approach to function: any kind of emotional scrutability or visceral intimacy would contradict Yamaguchi's novelistic style and frank examinations of flawed social structures and the people they produce.
Shigurui's macroscopic critique of Edo Japan doesn't work as an emotionally intimate narrative, and Gekikou Kamen's critique of the imperialist subtext behind much of tokusatsu doesn't work if you were immediately sympathetic to or understanding of its wannabe imperialist lead, for some examples.
If you asked Miura to draw a Yamaguchi manga, he'd have failed spectacularly because of his love of intense, emotionally intimate storytelling and illustration. He was simply not capable of (or perhaps more accurately simply uninterested in) the kind of emotional ambivalence that Yamaguchi excels at.
Hell, as I'll discuss later, intimacy vs. ambivalence might be the best summation of the differences between Miura and Yamaguchi's respective styles.
I don't think Yamaguchi would be a great choice for Berserk's action scenes either. Yamaguchi displays his mastery of action illustration by dilating time to show every individuated step of the process of movement, making his action feel intensely deliberate and methodical. Every step, and every step within that greater step, matters.
Kentaro Miura, meanwhile, often did the opposite with Guts, depicting the beginning and end of a sword swing and deliberately excising everything in between to generate a sense of speed and kinetic intensity.
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Fanfic DSMP tropes that need to fucking die:
Tommy talking like a fucking toddler even at the age of 16 and older
Techno is depicted as a cold asshole with zero humour
VIGILANTE AUS I SWEAR TO GOD IF I SEE ONE MORE HALF ASSED PLOT JUST BECAUSE ITS POPULAR I WILL KILL SOMEONE. The first ones were really good and enjoyable but now its just *cheap copy of popular story* *cheap copy again* *oh my fucking god they didnt even change the hero/villain names from the popular work they copied*
Phil depicted as an abusive parent (overdone)
Puffy depicted as an abusive parent (overdone)
Dream magically comes out of prison fully stating outright that he deserved all of it and grovels at everyones feet (overdone and fucked up, torture does not magically fix people wtf)
THE EXILE, STOP WRITING FUCKED UP SHIT NOT EVEN IN A FUN WAY BUT IN A BAD WAY. I'm not talking about interesting explorations of what isolation can do to someone. I'm talking about everything else IYKYK. I know they run in poppy circles I can see the damn signs of their fantasies in their fics I'm not stupid.
Sorry I may have gone too far, I think you just wanted annoying but harmless tropes 😅 my bad
based as fuck
#asks#tropes discourse tag#the first and the last point written together especially....#we see u ***** enjoyers....#the puffy thing especially thoooo that one just bothers me because shes not even dreams mom#I read ONE good mom puffy fic in the last year
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Tomatoes Don't Bite | Eddie Munson
Smurph's Masterlist | Zero to Hero Masterlist
Warnings: graphic depictions of violence, shock, terror, arguments, crying
Summary: Eddie meets Screech and Clem... and it doesn't go well.
I lounge back in my rocking chair as the sun begins to rise over the Haven. I set a filled coffee mug on the table between me and Eddie, but he doesn’t notice. For the last few hours he’s had a hand over his mouth as he stares wide-eyed at the sky.
The small patch of sunlight rests above like a single out of place square of fabric on a ripped quilt. We're surrounded on all sides by the Darkness, nestled in this enclave of trees and paths I've created. To me it's comforting, but to Eddie it seems to be petrifying.
I’m on my third cup, listening to 70’s soft rock as the world inside the Haven wakes as I usually do. Eddie’s getting in my way, but I’m trying to remember what it’s like to be a human being again and let him work his way through his shock. What I want to do is shake him and maybe give him a sharp backhand to snap out of it, but from what I recall about being in polite society that isn’t very… polite.
“It’s not so bad, y’know?” I muse aloud. I’ve been musing on and off for the last few hours but have only gotten a few grunts and sighs in reply. “I have a big garden, a pond. There’s a lot of books for you to read while you recover.”
He says nothing, and I can see the red marks on his cheek from how tightly he’s holding his face. I want to force his hands away from his jaw but it would likely upset him. He’s refused to get out of the armchair since I moved it with my powers. I probably scared him.
“You should take a bath. I don’t have a shower.” I sip from my mug to give him the opportunity to reply, but he doesn’t. “I washed your hair as best I could but you’ve got as much as I do so I’ve mostly let it be. It could use a good wash.”
No reply.
I take another pull off my coffee before deciding I've had enough. The clothes I gave him last night still lay on his lap, so I get to my feet and grab the sweatpants. Eddie lets me maneuver his feet into the leg holes and tug them up over his thighs. I try to keep the blanket in place since he seemed so sheepish before about being naked, but it just makes this harder. Where I came from naked bodies were just bodies, but once I got into the real world I found people didn't think that way if they didn't grow up in a lab.
I use my powers to lift him up enough to pull them over his hips, and he finally seems to notice me. Eddie drags his hand from his jaw and sets it firmly on the armrest of the chair, watching as I unfold the flannel.
"How long have you been here?" he asks. His voice is small, gravelly from lack of use over the past few weeks. I shrug and take one of his hands, pull it through the sleeve.
"Eleven years."
"Eleven?" he asks sharply, and when I meet his gaze he's shocked, terrified. "How am I supposed to get home?"
"I can take you home when you've healed more," I reply, shrugging again. "You can't exactly go to a hospital with these injuries. They'll ask too many questions."
"I should have died-," he begins, but I cut him off sharply. I don't like the thought. I don't want to bury him now that I've spoken to him.
He's real now, not just another victim I've happened upon in the Darkness. He has life and light behind those warm brown eyes. He has people waiting for him in the real world.
"But you didn't. Don't worry about it."
Eddie watches me in confusion as I finish dressing him. I leave the flannel open so I have easier access to his healing wounds, and he makes no move to button it up. He leans in as I'm on my knees in front of him, "You're like the rest of them. From Hawkins lab. You're like Eleven."
Eleven? I think, she's just a little girl. But she's not anymore. If my math is right she's just about fifteen, more powerful than she should be though I haven’t seen her since she was a child. I can feel when she comes here. I can feel how scared Henry is by her presence. Like the rest of us I’m drawn to her, but staying here means I can keep myself far away from her and the truth that comes with her.
I eye him with caution. I don’t want him to see more than I need to give. The more information Eddie Munson knows about me the more danger I’m putting myself in.
“I haven’t seen her in a long time,” I tell him quietly, but my own longing for my sisters surfaces again as it had years ago when Eight escaped the lab herself. My voice threatens to shake as I ask, “Is she okay?”
“I don’t know,” Eddie says softly, apologetically. “I never met her. I only heard stories from my friends.”
Eddie flashes me a lopsided grin that shocks me, a startling change from his statuesque staring at nothing all night. “I hear she’s a total badass, that she’s one cool chick.”
I hum as I think about that. I don’t even know what she looks like anymore. I used to cuddle her on my lap, rubbing my hand over her buzzed head as I rocked her to sleep. She always had nightmares, like me, and I tried to give her good memories that I never had. We shared the same eyes, deep brown and big like a doe. All the kids did with the exception of Henry, no matter how much they looked like their birth mothers. Eleven and I always looked a lot alike.
So maybe she looks like me… I find some comfort in that.
Eddie breaks my thoughts with a hand that covers mine. His fingers are now home to small scars where the bones broke through the skin in some places, but his touch is gentle. He’s warm and for a split second it grounds me before panic sets in. I’m not a human anymore, I shouldn’t be treated like one.
I will always be the monster that did this to Eddie Munson and the rest of those kids.
“They said she can… I don’t know, find people?” he starts, slow and soft. “Can you do that or do you guys have different powers?”
"That's dangerous, Eddie," I growl, and he leans back. "You go looking for people and they can find you back."
"At least they'll know I'm alive!" he bursts with an energy he shouldn't have. "She'll know you're alive and she can come get us out of here. We can stop Henry and-."
“No.”
“Zero, come on,” he begs as I stand and snatch my coffee mug from the table. I’ve had enough of his questions, so I wave my hand behind me as I stalk back into the cabin. His armchair screeches across the wood as he twists in it to look at me. “I need to see them. I need to know they’re okay.”
“I’m sure they’re fine,” I grunt in annoyance as I stomp into the kitchen. I pour myself another cup of coffee and lean against the counter. I turn the chair so he stops angling to see me. “Screech and Clem didn’t tell me anyone else was out there.”
“Who’s that?”
I blanch, and right on cue the front door bursts open. The screen door hits the wall with a clattering BANG, and Eddie jumps in his spot, eyes going wide. Clem comes bounding in, all gurgling barks and growl-like pants, followed by Screech ambling in through the doorway.
“What the FUCK?” Eddie screams. He scrambles against the back of the chair, clawing to get away. Clem jumps up on the edge with her talons, licking out at him as he swats her feebly away. “Help! Oh my god, help!”
I roll my eyes and set the mug on the counter. With a flick of my wrist the armchair pulls back a few feet, and I hurry in front of it before Clem can pounce on Eddie again with her kisses. Holding out my hands, I give her a stern look.
Clem sits down with a plop, her little tail thumping against the wood. Screech stands behind her with his wings tucked behind his back, head cocked down thinking he was in trouble. Eddie pants behind me, a reedy high sound as he tries to steady himself.
“Guys, go outside,” I tell them, pointing back the way they came. They both look out the door and back to me, cocking their heads. I sigh, “I know you want to meet my new friend but he’s not ready. Go outside and I’ll feed you dinner later.”
I can feel their thoughts, how sad they are that I won’t let them hang out with us here. I'd rather talk to them than Mr. Twenty Questions anyway. "Go on, it's okay."
With little brrups, they turn tail and sulk outside and I swing the door shut behind them.
"Wait!" I call out, and they turn to face me again. I hear Eddie shudder behind me but I ignore it. "Did you see anybody else out there recently? Alive or dead?"
Screech nods, and I hear his yes inside my mind. Eddie groans, "Oh no, no, no."
"Did they die out there?"
No. Screech shakes head and points at Eddie. Just him. The rest escaped from his group. The others were dead when their consciousness was brought here.
"The rest escaped," I reiterate, and Eddie stops his babbling. "They're back in the real world. The gate closed behind them."
"How do you know?" he asks. I turn to look at him and those brown eyes pour over with tears. It twists something inside me and I want to smack him as though that may make it stop.
I jerk my head over my shoulder at Screech, who waves one bony wing, "Screech told me."
"But, but, it's one of them," Eddie blubbers, his eyes flicking between me, Clem and Screech. "It's one of the monsters. They killed Chrissy! They ate my insides like a fucking taco, Zero-!"
Screech whines, Clem covers her face with her paw. Their pain at being compared to those corrupted beings radiates inside me. I shake my head at Eddie.
"They're my friends. I found them as babies, hiding under a leaf and curled up together."
I smile at the memory, and I point my palm at Eddie to show it to him. His eyes glaze over as my power takes root, and he fights me, but I push gently until I can reach inside his mind and latch on.
Purple storm clouds flash in a vibrant sea of red violent haze. Goosebumps form on my skin in the warm summer air as the memory of that cold night pours through us both. I'm watching my boots sink into the sticky gray mud in the particle ridden rain. I'm sneaking through the woods back to the Haven, but I trip over a vine and burst into tears as I hit the ground.
Every day in the cold was getting harder, and I was so weak I could barely walk. I sob into the mud, ready to give up when I hear it. A small screeching caws at me, so loud that I flinch and lay down flat so nothing can find me. I hear it again, but the fluttering of wings that accompanies it is too small for the voice.
That's when I see them, two small beings that can fit into the palm of my hand. One is a tiny bird with no eyes and red leathery skin. The other is like a chubby tadpole, its mouth shaped like the puckered end of a clementine.
When I reach out my hand they climb onto my palm and nestle in, and the connection is immediate. We're bonded in that split second of terrifying vulnerability, the same way I felt when I healed Eddie for the first time.
I let the memory wash away with the rain, and Eddie gasps as his eyes pull back into focus. He struggles to stand and this time I let him, ready to catch him if he falls.
Eddie clutches the arm of the chair, his body trembling. His voice shakes with his fear, "Why are they different?"
He points at Clem and Screech, who wait patiently for further instructions. The warmth floods back to my skin and I take a shuddering breath as I shrug, "Their mothers were killed. I took care of them. If I hadn't they would have died or been eaten by one of the others."
"Why?" he asks defiantly. My answers aren't good enough. Even I know it, but fuck this guy. I saved his ass so I don't owe him shit.
"They're predators. It's what they do."
"That's not what I meant."
I look at my friends and smile, and they visibly relax before heading back outside. I coax Eddie back into the chair by pushing at his chest, and since he can't do much else he falls back onto the seat.
I lean over him until my nose nearly touches his. He gulps, his pupils dilate, a soft sheen of nervous sweat eases its way from his pores. I know he's scared and I'm not helping, but I don't want to talk about this anymore.
"I didn't want to be alone anymore."
Eddie stays defiant, on my nerves and pissing me off. He sets his jaw and squares his shoulders, "Is that why you brought me here? So you had someone to talk to? Are you that miserable?"
"Maybe I should have left you there to be eaten alive then!"
"Maybe you should have!" he screams back, and I've had enough. I turn on my heel and stomp towards the door, toward the sunshine and away from Eddie Munson. He yells as I walk through the frame, "And stay out of my head!"
"Fine!" I throw over my shoulder, flinging the door shut. It lands with a shattering crack as the frame splinters under the force.
"Fine!"
Eddie glares around the cabin after Zero storms out. The screen door hangs on a hinge in front of him where she busted it, and he can't believe the stories are true.
All his friends had said about Eleven… everything he'd seen Henry capable of… his mind was struggling to grasp it all. Zero's power terrified him. He'd felt her seeping into his mind, not using him or taking his control, but spreading around him in a vision that he swore he could touch. What else was she capable of?
He'd felt the creatures, Screech and Clem, climb into his palm…Zero's palm. The rain bit his skin and blanketed his bones in the damp chill. He'd felt the connection of their consciousness… of his own connecting with hers.
She was so frightened…even now with him. He felt it all.
Eddie never understood what true psionic telepathy meant… but now? What a whirlwind… What a gift. He can't wait to meet Eleven.
Eddie can hear the gurgling barks of the demadog, the little coos of that bird. She's talking to them softly, apologizing for him. After everything he never thought of those things as animals capable of anything more than death and terror. She saved him, and from the shoddy bits of memory he had, the creatures had too. Dustin told him once that he’d saved a demadog and it became his friend. It ate his cat, but in the end it didn’t hurt him.
That has to count for something, right?
Deciding it's best to keep the woman who saved his life on his side, Eddie gets shakily to his feet. His muscles shake like jello, but luckily the cabin is small enough that he can hold onto the various shelves and plant stands Zero has set up all over the place.
Avoiding the splinters in the wood, Eddie opens the screen door and steps back onto the porch. She sits with her back to him in the grass, but he sees her head cock to the side. Screech and Clem are nowhere to be found so he lets the door swing shut behind him as he grips the rail for support.
He hadn’t noticed before, but there were plants everywhere in this place. They seeped out of the windows of the cabin and around the rails of the porch, long tendrils vines creeping through the grass. They reminded him of the vines in the Upside Down, but these didn’t frighten him. Instead he rather likes the look, a place filled with life in the dark.
"You shouldn't be walking around so much yet."
With a flick of her wrist Eddie's pulled off the porch. His center of gravity lurches as she lifts him with ease, a startled yelp bursting from his chest. His eyes snap shut in fear but then he's plopped down on a pile of dirt beside her.
"You need to rest," she says as he opens his eyes, watching him out of the corner of hers. "Your muscles are weak from laying in bed for two weeks. Take it slow."
Eddie squints, "Two weeks?"
She nods, her fingers go back to the dirt in front of her. Her eyelids flutter for a moment, and from the ground sprouts a stem. Eddie watches in awe as it grows and hardens until it reaches the top of her head, and two tomatoes bloom from two of the branches.
Zero plucks one off and hands it to him without a word before sinking her teeth into the other. It's warm in his palm like the sun has soaked it in its rays for weeks.
She turns to look at him, "It's not gonna bite you."
Eddie waves it at her, marveling at the squishy firm fruit in his hand, "How did you do that?"
"It's basic biology. Turn sunlight into nutrients with the water and soil." She lifts an old tupperware from the ground beside her and shakes it. It sounds like a rainstick. "Just add a seed."
"So you're like a druid, huh?" Eddie smirks. He leans his elbows on his knees and squeezes the tomato lightly just to see it bend and bounce back into shape. "That's awesome."
Zero cocks a brow, "A… druid?"
"Yeah, like in DnD."
"That game with the dice?"
Eddie nods with a smile. She doesn't return it.
She makes a face. “Eat your tomato.”
Eddie complies, sinking his teeth into the ripe fruit. The acidic-sweet juices flood over his tongue, and before he can stop himself he lets out a humming moan. Zero watches him with a curious smile while he chews and swallows.
“That’s the best fucking tomato I’ve ever had!”
Zero leans back to rest on her elbows to watch him. Eddie tries to focus on his tomato and not the way her flannel rides up to reveal her black panties and the tops of her tanned thighs. The last thing he needs is a boner in front of this girl he doesn't know.
"What were you doing out there?"
When he makes a face she points to where the Upside Down meets the sunshine. His eyes widen. He'd nearly forgotten about that.
Eddie lets the tomato hang in his hands and sighs, "We were trying to stop Vecna…Henry."
"Well, that was dumb. How the hell were you going to even do that? You're a weakling compared to him, might as well be a mouse against a lion."
The anger from that morning builds in his chest again, and he waves the fruit at her, "Why haven't you stopped him?"
She shrugs. "What happens outside of the Haven isn't any of my business."
"He's killing people, Zero!" Eddie yells, but she just stares at him. "He killed Chrissy and so many others."
She sighs in annoyance and shakes her head, "People die every day, Eddie. It's not my job to save them."
"Yet you went out and saved my ass anyway." He points out.
"You can thank Screech and Clem for that. They wouldn't leave me alone until I checked out the swarm that was eating your insides."
"Those…those monster things?" Eddie sputters, "Why would they care?"
"They might be predators but they're not monsters," Zero growls. Her dark eyes light with fire as she stares him down, her jaw set tightly. "You don't understand anything about this place. Another reason you and your friends shouldn't be messing with it. You should never have come here."
"He killed Chrissy in front of me," he whispers, his voice cracking with the memory of her violent death. He can still hear the noises… Eddie shakes his head to wash it away. "She was scared and in pain. She didn't deserve that."
Zero softens, but only a bit. Her eyes are calculating, watchful, like she still isn't sure what to make of him. Her voice is gentle as she crosses her legs and leans forward, "He killed your girlfriend?"
Eddie shakes his head, "She wasn't even really my friend…but she was nice to me. Even though she was the most popular girl in school she was always nice. She was just scared and needed help.
"I tried to help her." Eddie drops the tomato and presses the heels of his hands to his eyes as tears begin to form. His grief for Chrissy was overwhelming when he let himself think too long about her, especially after Max told them what she'd been seeing. "I ran away."
"Of course you did. Anyone would," Zero's voice came from his side, and when he looked up she'd moved next to him. Her hand hung in the air like she thought about putting a comforting palm on his shoulder but thought better of it.
"She was so scared." And with that Eddie finally burst into tears. He wanted to curl up, but his sore and stiff body wouldn't quite let him.
His chest shook with the weight of it all, exhausted and terrified and just wanting to go home. Instead of holding him, Zero just moves to sit between his spread legs and lets him cry without her watching him. He was grateful to be away from her sharp gaze, and his hand found its way to lean heavily on her shoulder as he sobbed.
She didn't seem to mind, and instead focused on growing her tomato plant. Zero didn't even stiffen as he held on to her. She was the only lifeline he had left, and she let him cling to her like a child lost in the woods.
That's exactly what he is.
Lost.
Smurph's Masterlist | Zero to Hero Masterlist
Notes: I'm always gonna be salty about Chrissy bc I think she and Eddie really could have been good friends <;/3
ST Taglist: @tlclick73 @theloser007 @sadbitchfangirl @chaoticcancer @harrys-tittie @assassinsasha23 @spacedoutdaydreamer @legendarytrashcopeclipse @notahappystan
#Zero to Hero#eddie munson x f!reader#eddie munson x oc#eddie munson x you#eddie munson x reader#eddie munson smut#virgin!eddie munson#eddie munson fanfiction#eddie munson fanfic#eddie munson fic#smurph writes#stranger things fic#stranger things fanfiction#Eddie Munson/OC#ocapp#ocappreciation#ocfairygodmother#eddie munson imagine
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🐶 & 🔪!
munday no-no and yes-yes list
Send 🐶 for a role play related pet peeve.
A classic: It feels like people just do not read the rules/bio/etc.
And it irks me because I try to keep my character bios fairly focused on the core ideas, the essentials, so it isn't daunting to newcomers and if they want to know anything else, they can ask or see it play out in threads. And I don't expect people to memorize every little detail! Just have the gist of it, the page is always there, I try to welcome questions and discussion once we've interacted a bit.
I have had the most excited, friendly IC/OOC responses to me and my stuff! But it feels a bit like hollow lovebombing if people gloss over details. Worst case it leads to substituting details on their own.
Send 🔪 for a fandom you refuse to associate with
Here's but one: I have BNHA as a 'maybe' on my rules list if I feel comfortable with whoever I'm RPing with. It's also helped that I've mostly only interacted with folks writing OCs, usually with their own unique spin on things that distances their character from the source material.
I'll bar all other gripes I have with the author/series (really, that I've had with a few mangaka in how they depict teenagers or embrace nationalism) and try to zero in a bit on what's got me even more miffed about it than usual recently as it's specifically irked me in RP.
The series drops surface level attempts at clever ambiguity before backtracking as if nothing happened. The villains are furious because hero society doesn't offer provisions for their well-being. BUT WAIT then the heroes insult them about how they're "friendless" and "don't contribute to society" and then the majority of villain characters devolve into mindless chaos murderers so the heroes can do their thing unbothered. Meanwhile the heroes who treat people like dirt are praised and protected with such gusto. And this would be so juicy if it were explored in some other narrative, but it's not! We're just supposed to return to standard good vs evil and accept that. It just feels like it's insulting audience intelligence for even being invested in the idea for a moment. Because it keeps popping up!
Now my frustration with this in regards to writing it with any of my hero-oriented characters--- Rex for instance, comes from a world like that where entire industries revolve around the fame and marketability of supers (not even just heroes, celebrity villains exploit this too). But Rex was cast out for his inability to function there, and whether friend or foe he feels sympathy towards fellow low ranked, nameless dregs. BNHAverse is kind of like his worst nightmare because every criticism, every complaint ends up wrong and to offer one would be to disturb the natural order of things.
And I've been in threads where-- again with Rex since he doesn't fit the mold, is subject to that pseudo-nuanced morality-- and what's funniest is it was often with characters who weren't directly based out of BNHA but the character faceclaim/aesthetic and inspiration was all there, same style more than once by multiple separate people. Skirting around the rules a bit there, I dare say. All other OCs I've encountered have either been cool, or didn't really interact when we were mutuals.
Oh yeah and BNHA also just seems to internalize the worst parts of Naruto now that I think of it (emphasis on the genetic exclusivity of the fancy chakra-powered jutsu techniques, protag is fighting doggedly to be part of the very system that fucked over him, his friends, and enemies alike. Like some blonde kid coasting on training through secret divine powers shows up promising that once he becomes president everything will be okay-- not because he has a plan or anyone else's advice or support, just positive vibes and great man theory? Lol. Lmao.).
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I've seen a number of discussions of the NMCU Daredevil ep Nelson V Murdock, some of which I couldn't understand, and figured I'd throw in my 2 cents so far as my feelings on one particular thing.
I really, really dislike what I call the 'BFF Secret Identity Reveal Fallout' trope.
I see it all the time, often as a key narrative beat when attempting to create tension or complexity. The hero has someone they care for or trust more than anyone else, but they keep the secret out of fear - fear of a number of things, but often at the core a fear of rejection. This might be amplified by the BBF previously expressing negative feelings about the masked persona.
Then the secret comes out, and just as they feared the BFF is angry, and at the center of the interpersonal tension is the fact that the hero lied, and that's the part that gets to me, because the reasons for why the hero lied seem to so rarely be taken into consideration - lying, especially to a loved one, is depicted as wrong in and of itself.
But here's the thing - lying isn't inherently amoral.
(I'll note here that I recognize this is an opinion - our personal morals are steadfast, connecting to our core values, which are actually the anchors of our identities/sense of self, but they're just that: personal, not universally absolute. What I'm expressing here is my own opinion.)
The concept that it is inherently amoral gets my back up, and I know it's because of personal experience (good times with trauma! (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:・ﾟ✧), but I think my feelings are legitimate nonetheless. I know how it is to lie to protect yourself or others from harm, physical or otherwise; that there are times honesty is unsafe, or even simply unkind. I know how it is to lie out of fear of rejection - every time I come out to someone I feel it. I've learned the hard way that someone who has given every indication that they have zero issue with queerness and would be accepting of my queerness can end up not being accepting. It rips my heart out every time, and does nothing to help my own trust issues - this reminder that you can never actually know how a person will react to something, or how they'll treat you as a result.
I know how it is for a friend to believe that them showing me trust creates an obligation that I show them the same - the expectation that trust from one party should engender an equal degree of trust in the other, regardless of what is or isn't being shared or what either party's personal experiences have been.
Now, how does that apply to these fictional situations? Well, it varies depending on the story of course, but when the 'lesson' is just straight up 'lying is amoral' or even 'best friends should never hide things from each other', I grit my teeth. The impact of a lie on the person it's told to is put front and center, while the impact of revealing the truth on the liar is treated as secondary or even treated as moot. The liar broke The Rules by lying, and that makes them the one in the wrong, full stop.
I see that a lot in discussions of why or why not people consider Foggy's reaction 'right' or 'wrong', and rarely consideration of the shape his reaction took (whether the things he said were warranted, fair, or should later be discussed or apologized for). I see people saying that Matt's reasons don't matter, and that he was wrong for not trusting Foggy (and whew, the issue of Matt's ability to trust is a whole other thing, speaking of trauma). I also see people defending some things Foggy said on the basis that he was angry and had a right to be, when his right to be angry isn't actually the issue. If I say something unfair or unkind, etc, in the heat of the moment, it's my responsibility to talk that out with the person later when tempers have cooled, regardless of whether I was 'right' or 'wrong'. That's the kind of thing healthy communication and healthy interpersonal relationships require. All emotions are valid, but not all behavior rooted in that emotion is.
Of course, it's a very complex thing. Sometimes there isn't a clear cut 'person A was Wrong and person B was Right'. And what you lied about and why factors in, but that's exactly the point. My ex lying to me because of trauma-caused trust issues? Understandable. Him doing it because he was afraid I'd dump him when I learned he'd been cheating? Nope.
And then there's the 'you should have known it would be different with you' thing.
I recently saw a situation play out in a story where the hero brings up the BFF's previously expressed opinions on the masked persona and the BFF saying that the hero should have known that their opinion would be different as far as the hero is concerned - that their particular case would be viewed differently, an exception to the rule, so to speak.
I don't love that, either. 'It's okay because it's you' is a kind of exception that isn't the kindness it's so often portrayed to be. I've had people say homophobic or sanist things then tell me that oh, they don't mean *me* of course, because I'm *different*. My grandparents heard the same kind of thing all the time growing up, having friends say all kinds of antisemetic garbage in front of them and say, 'oh, but we don't mean you, of course'.
When I'm treated as an exception because I'm a 'good queer', it isn't a relief. That person still disdains what I am. Them saying that to me isn't kind, and I can't believe it to be kind in these fictional contexts. If the BFF can understand, accept, or even get behind why the hero takes certain actions - or even commits certain crimes - that should open the door to the possibility that there may be more to why other people do similar things. A more openminded viewpoint, such as a willingness to look at all the factors before rendering judgement, should be the result, not 'it's okay just this once because I care about the person doing it'.
My feelings about people equating criminality with amorality is a whole other complication when it comes to my thoughts on these situations. I won't get into that here, but I thinks it's another issue worth consideration.
I'm not going to write out my opinion on the Foggy/Matt conflict, though I do get into it a little in the fic I'm writing. I really just wanted to express my issue with that particular aspect of that narrative trope in general and how it's discussed, and the way the matter of trust and applying morality to distrust is often talked about, too. I may be expectionally sensitive to this kind of thing, or maybe I'm not. I'm not sure my possible sensitivity is the point, though.
Either way, it's a trope that gives me a lot of anxiety, and when I rewatch shows or reread stories I often find myself needing to skip those parts. That goes for fanfic, too.
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The Eighth Sense; a tiny post-finale ink spilling session (spoilers included)
Hello, first boy love kdrama I've ever watched. I started watching this with zero expectations and a huge dark cloud above my head. Cloud being this worry whether or not the ending would give me a major heartache. Well, even if it had, I wouldn't mind at all.
Finale made us all feel safe and calm, I'm pretty sure of that. But! If you haven't watched this one already, then get ready for a wild ride. The series is heartbreaking, the entire fandom was not well, not until the very end. Every single person who truly enjoyed this drama and saw their own reflection in one of the two main characters - I'm so sorry (╥﹏╥)
T8S is about student life, new cities, friendships, relationships, emotional complexity, inner battles, depression, bravery, justice, moral, love, survival mode, desperation, devotion, guilt, overcoming mental obstacles, acceptance...
Just like linear algebra. It isn't just a cute romantic drama, even though our main hero Jihyun is incredibly cute, romantic character. He's one of those you'd wish to meet irl. Or one of those who make you want to become fictional, whatever works better.
Jihyun is a lovely ray of sunshine and the filming crew makes it clear to all the viewers throughout the entire show. He's introduced as an important piece which lights up the whole space and whose lack of presence gives you withdrawal symptoms. And no, that's not an overexaggeration.
Then we have Jaewon. It might seem like Jaewon is the one who pulls people in his orbit, but if you watch carefully enough, soon it becomes very clear that's actually not the case. People surrounding him are extremely vain and value him for his family's social status, nothing more, nothing less. The only time we see him shine is when he's reflecting lovely rays of sunshine and then we get this dim, mellow, soft illumination. A lot like moonlight, right? And for it's very nature, all that's required to turn its light off are a few dense night clouds.
So many lines this character delivers are in fact extremely realistic. However, behind their simplicity there are hidden many complex thoughts. Obviously, having a big heart also means carrying an excessive amount of burden too. I find his fight with depression faithfully depicted. His mental state after a loss or seemingly irreversible damage such deep trauma does to a human psyche can't just disappear, even with the passage of time.
Superficial relationships (as in general relationships with other people, not only intimate/romantic kind) don't help at all, on the contrary. They can't cure one's solitude or feelings of isolation and in fact might even lead to acts of desperation. One does start thinking like something is very wrong with them, which, again, leads to accepting whatever life throws at them, good or bad, without taking any action. Pushing oneself towards being numb. Because numbness and indifference, even if it's only "fake it till you make it" , oftentimes seems like the only effective way of self-perseverance.
What caught my attention is that mindset, that shadow which keeps lurking and following Jaewon the entire time. It keeps him convinced that he's not allowed to feel any true happiness and heartfelt joy, and if he does he has to pay a huge price for it. But it gets even better. Not only does he pay the price, but those involved have to pay, as well, now tenfold.
I can't keep wondering if it's universal experience. It certainly seems so. Sure, it all depends on the point of view; it takes all sorts to make a world. But it's interesting how severe accidents always happen and if you've ever lost a dear person before, you can't help but take the blame for all the bad things happening afterwards. As someone who has chosen the path of self-destruction once, it's interesting watching Jaewon coming back to his senses, choosing a person he cares for in the end and not allowing his fears to rule his life. It's very brave, getting back with Jihyun. I think it's the bravest thing he did.
That's why this is fiction and why it's right and well done in so many ways. Let's be honest, there's not many people who've led tragedy-free, accidents-free, loss-free lives. Especially if they're Jaewon's age (or older).
I believe that people who go through severely traumatic events, events which alter their psyche for 180°, won't really go through their recovery journey all the way. We see it with Jaewon as well. The dread of that shadow I've described above doesn't really go away easily, even after a conversation/therapy sessions with a person you deeply trust/professional. It's a paralyzing feeling which can stuck to a person for years. Thing that is not addressed (at least not directly), which I believe exists even in this work of fiction, is Jaewon's dread towards surfing and the ocean, since that's where the accident took place. Is there any therapist who could've helped him with that and make him go surfing just like before? I think not. There's always this distinctive reverence towards places which made a person lose their mind.
“And when you're ready, think about what to do next. I really want to protect him. But for now, I think this is for the best.”
For some, this is just a 10 episodes long bl story, cute, packed with angst, followed by an idyllic happy end. For some it's a blah, "really nothing to see here", shallow story of some college kids. For some this is an exploration journey of their own insecurities, challenges, smaller internal battles which seem like the worst thing in the entire world at the moment. For some, it's staring at a mirror which tells a story of what would have happened if they actually went to therapy, had a supportive partner and let go of unhealthy coping mechanisms. And for some it's just their journey right there on screen. Oh, and the group I must not leave out, since they are the most important ones here: the artists - the backbone of The Eighth Sense fandom. I can't say how they look at this piece because their analyses leave me completely speechless. There's plenty of their wonderful texts all around this platform, and they're fairly easy to find as well.
Still, how certain content finds its audience, and not the other way around is beyond me. Thank you🌻 to the one who recommended this piece, even if they don't like hearing thank yous and compliments of any kind. This kdrama piece was much needed in my little universe.
There's still so much to say about this drama, but maybe it's best not to go overboard. It would be a delight to see how life is going for our protagonists after some time. Who knows, maybe fans talk screenwriters into preparing another season. (no matter how unlikely it seems right now). Well ... That's all from me for now. Have a lovely day, it's finally spring so I hope you get to enjoy some sun. For me, I'm super excited may is right around the corner (✿ ♡‿♡)
Till next time,
Pluto
xo
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