I know I’m late but idc that person who tried to spread fake allegations about tubbo is so fucking stupid. Like yeah, the obviously fake story is telling enough but their lack of forethought as to what they’re actually doing is just crazy.

They outright used Tubbo’s name and blatantly accused him of a crime that he didn’t commit. AND if his viewers can defend him based on the limited evidence we have, I can only imagine what his lawyer could do if given the opportunity. This random person has potentially put themselves in so much legal trouble and for what? goddamn twitter likes???? Like congratulations, thanks to your actions not only will you rot in hell but also possible rot in jail as well.

It hasn’t even been a month since Cellbit’s twitter calúnia case was made public and yet we still have people who don’t understand that their actions have consequences ESPECIALLY IF ITS FUCKING ILLEGAL

RWBY Recaps: Volume 8 “Ultimatum”

Welcome back, everyone! We had an unexpected break last week due to the horror going on in Texas. I'm glad we did. Not because of any salty "RWBY is bad right now yay free Saturday" feelings, but because keeping to a schedule for a fictional webseries should never take precedence over peoples' safety. I can't believe I need to type that sentence out, but it's true! Over the last seven days I've seen fans who are not merely disappointed by the mini hiatus (understandable) but outright hostile towards the crew because they... were ensuring everyone survived during an unprecedented emergency? Yeah. Given the highly critical nature of these recaps — including today's! — I want to be clear that my thoughts towards Rooster Teeth's creative choices are distinct from any thoughts about the crew itself, including the most basic forms of compassion like, “I sure hope everyone is okay over there.” In an age where it has become horrifically common to harass creators and even send them death threats over stories, it has likewise become necessary to remind people: Don't do that shit. Never do that shit. If I can teach anyone anything at all, let it be that!

Anyway, dark fandom reminders out of the way, let's dive straight into our delayed episode. It was certainly a doozy. Titled "Ultimatum," we open on a trigger warning for flashing lights. Good on Rooster Teeth for including that, though I do wonder if creators shouldn't be including time stamps as well? Or perhaps a note that you can find those time stamps in the credits, avoiding any (minor) spoilers for everyone else? I'm not photosensitive myself, so I certainly don't mean to speak for that group, but my first thought was, "So how would I watch this episode if I was? Hand on the pause button, hoping I stop fast enough as soon as the lights start?" Hard to do given the surprise nature of the scene. Really, my answer would be, "Wait for the fandom to post warnings of their own, likely including where it happens so I know when to skip" which is perhaps an indication that this information that should be included from the get-go.

But I am glad the warning exists, regardless. The episode itself begins with a shot of Ironwood looking down at the kingdom. He's used his windows as a vantage point since Volume 7, so that's nothing new, but something about this particular shot reminded me of Ozpin, looking down from his tower. I'm sure the response from many would be simply, "Ah yes, the two power hungry dictators watching over their victims," but I think there's a much more nuanced reading here about leaders being expected to fix the literally unfixable and what that responsibility does to an individual. Of course, it's a nuance that is absolutely obliterated by the episode’s end, but the implication existed for a hot second!

Two other soldiers are in the room with Ironwood, reporting that Cinder has helped Watts escape. They try to soften this with news that they still have Jacques in custody, but receive only a, "I don't give a damn about Jacques Schnee." Which, fair. He's pretty useless at this point. It's when Ironwood learns that both Qrow and Robin escaped too that he really gets mad, something his subordinates have been expecting given their scared expressions.

Now, I'm treading lightly here because I realize how this is going to sound given the end of our episode, but I still want to note that outside of that ending... this is a weird take? Just hear me out. Since Volume 7 the show has worked very hard to make Ironwood seem scary and unstable — bad setup for what we end with today — but the problem is that none of it works in context and it certainly doesn't work when compared to other characters' actions. They are literally in the midst of an unwinnable battle and thousands of his people are dying. If the audience wants a human being — who also just lost a limb and was betrayed by half his allies — o remain perfectly poised and polite during that, sorry, but that's not how human beings work. But even beyond this, what’s the message here? Ironwood raises his voice, so does Yang. Ironwood hits his desk, Qrow hits a child. If we're going to examine how Ironwood handles his stress and anger, he often handles it better than many of our heroes. Namely, by continually taking that anger out on inanimate objects. I kept waiting for him to attack his subordinates or attack Winter this episode, especially given where we end up, but it never came. Ironwood always has enough control to break the desk or punch the wall, not the person in front of him. Which, of course, would not be a good thing in the real world. I want to be clear given these sensitive subjects that if someone is breaking things in your presence that's a major problem to address. But this isn't the real world. This is a fantasy world in the middle of a war, populated by other characters who express their anger by punching people, slamming them into walls, or screaming at them until they run away. The story wants us to fear Ironwood long before he makes his objectively horrific choices and it tries to achieve that by showing us characters who are clearly terrified in his presence, by giving us a string of broken objects in his wake. But those details don't land well when we compare them to other instances of stress. In the same volume I have watched Ironwood take a deep breath to calm himself down when things have gone horribly wrong. I've also watched Weiss start a conversation by threatening her defenseless brother. So again, what’s the message here? It can’t be that acting violently towards someone = villainous behavior because, as established since Volume 6, that’s common for the heroes. Why are these subordinates terrified about Ironwood slamming his fist on a table, but Whitley has no problem hugging the woman who threatened him? Obviously there is a HUGE difference between our main group and Ironwood when it comes to other actions (cough-bomb threats-cough), but these day-to-day moments don't match up. The show wants to use violence as a way for us to easily identify the Bad Guy while ignoring all the times when our heroes do the same thing. 

All of which isn't meant to be a defense of Ironwood. As we'll see in a bit, there is no defense for what he's done. Rather, it's a way of acknowledging just how badly he's been written. Why does a man who consistently reins in his anger and takes it out on objects suddenly shoot a councilman for literally no reason? Why does a man defined by wanting to save as many people as he can suddenly threaten to bomb his city? Ironwood's characterization is all over the place, in the sense that they keep writing him as the morally gray, sometimes harsh, but ultimately compassionate man he started out as... up until they need a villain. Salem isn't here yet, so Ironwood can shoot Oscar. Salem isn't attacking yet, so Ironwood can shoot the councilman. Salem is currently reforming, so Ironwood can threaten YJR and Mantle. He's the B-plot villain whenever Salem is out of commission, which is a problem for both their characterizations. This filler doesn't make sense for Ironwood and it severely undermines the threat of Salem. You finally introduce the Magical Big Bad and our heroes are facing more of a threat from a guy with a broken army and three loyal allies left? Hmmm.

The tl;dr is that Ironwood's arc is a disaster and, frankly, it's gotten old reading simplified takes of, "It's just a realistic look at what white U.S. men will do in power sweetie :) " RWBY does not have the context capable of conveying that sort of critical take because our world is not besieged by literal monsters and an immortal witch, to say nothing of how real life good guys do not get deus ex machina canes that fix the problem instantaneously. Ironwood is not an example of anti-U.S. imperialism, he's an example of writers who don't know how to write.

Anyway, I'm getting severely off topic. Obviously Ironwood is a major part of this episode, but the problems demonstrated here are two years in the making. This is the culmination of things I've been discussing for months across hundreds of posts... so I should probably stop trying to summarize it all in a few paragraphs lol. Perhaps when RWBY is over — or Ironwood has died — I'll do a single meta on his character, try to pull everything into one, unified argument.

For now though, we have an episode to analyze.

While Ironwood is receiving this news we get flashbacks to Qrow and Robyn. Qrow attacks a soldier in his bird form, which is hilarious. Someone GIF that please. It does raise some interesting questions about this magic though: does Qrow retain his aura and strength in this form (something I thought given his choice to transform during the explosion), or was that soldier just so shocked at being attacked by a crow that he went down easy? We'll never know, because that would require establishing concrete rules for this world. The point is Qrow is going feral in his freedom, throwing punches left and right — did he kill that guard? — while Robyn watches it all from under a rock. They're apparently still somewhere in the facility since all the exits are guarded, but that's not the good thing Ironwood seems to think it is. After all, Qrow is out to murder him. He wants to be there.

We all see where this is going, right? The show is going to ignore Qrow's crazy belief that Ironwood got Clover killed in favor of a "Qrow saved Mantle by murdering Ironwood"/“Qrow got revenge for Mantle by murdering Ironwood” ending. Who cares why Qrow wanted to kill him in the first place now that Ironwood has his finger on the trigger? If RWBY is good at anything, it's writing moments that encourage you to ignore everything that came before it. We'll be seeing more of that in just a bit.

"Damn it!" Ironwood yells, because the show is leaning into its cursing. He orders that the subordinates not return until "you have Qrow Branwen in custody." Here we have another great example of the show conflating what the audience knows with what other characters know. See, we know Qrow has a vendetta against Ironwood. We know their relationship is the important one to the story and that Robyn is incidental. Ironwood doesn't know that. There's no reason for him, as a character, to specify that they only bring Qrow back, but it makes sense for the audience who has the whole, thematic picture. Our understanding of the situation is influencing Ironwood's dialogue, which is... not great.

This entire scene we've had creepy music to hammer home just how evil Ironwood is. Except, as said, he takes a breath to calm down and the music fades. Instead of flying into a rage, hurting someone, or doing anything the music suggests he might, Ironwood calmly calls in for an update — which is when the explosion hits.

It's MASSIVE, seeming to originate from a lightning strike, which is weird, since it's coming from inside the whale, but whatever. The animation is very dramatic and pretty, as we've come to expect of RWBY, but the actual plot is lackluster at best. It's funny though because I thought for a hot second, when Winter and the Ace Ops were caught in the blast, that RWBY had actually done something exciting. I mean, holy shit! There are the deaths we expect from a battle like this. My god, what is everyone going to do when they realize that Oscar's needless attack took out five characters, including Weiss' sister —

No wait, never mind. They're fine.

Let's talk about that "needless" descriptor for a moment though. Do you all remember, two weeks ago, when I went, "Hey, why isn't anyone telling Oscar that that Ace Ops are approaching with a bomb? They're on a time limit! If someone would just mention that Very Important Information then Oscar wouldn't keep standing around to fight Salem." See, at the time I was frustrated because of how the plot was needlessly allowing Oscar to put himself in danger (especially when the whole point of this mission was to rescue him). Now, I'm frustrated because that same plot needlessly wasted the most powerful weapon the group had. There was no reason for Oscar to use literal lifetimes worth of stored energy when the heroes already had a bomb to do the same job! What was the point of that? I guess he took out the other grimm too, but without the whale that still would have been a challenge with a finite end, one Ironwood's army and the remaining huntsmen should have been able to handle. It doesn't feel justified to have Oscar use a weapon kept on the bench for lifetimes when there was another option literally minutes away.

There's so much wrong with this I need another list. So:

Ozpin's cane supposedly stores kinetic energy, which may contradict what we've seen from it before. Regardless, we’ve never heard about this. The all powerful weapon comes out of nowhere

It also begs the question of why Ozpin wouldn't use that power at Beacon and why he wouldn't insist that they try to get their cane back while captured. You had an out this whole time! But we’re going to ignore that because Oscar is a little hesitant? 

Which makes YJR's presence even more useless than it originally was, which was already pretty useless. Oscar essentially rescued himself

This kinetic energy miraculously doesn't hurt any people or buildings, just grimm

So what is the point of Silver Eyes? That's been their MO since they were first introduced. Sure, Silver Eyes can be used far more often than Ozpin's cane, but it still feels like a let down to learn that the Big Secret behind this weapon is... the exact same thing Ruby has been doing for years

Like Ruby, Oscar likewise didn't need any practice or training. He just set off this massive attack perfectly and without issue

We have now eliminated the biggest threat to the cast instantaneously — the whale and the other grimm — with no effort from the rest of the heroes. Like the Hound, the stakes are obliterated with no satisfying work on the part of our protagonists 

Instead, as said, the actual plan already in place never happened. The bomb just... goes back. Kind of like how Cinder attacked and then just went back to Salem. Penny woke up and then just got knocked out again. We continue to go in circles 

This is because no one took two seconds to tell Oscar, "There's a bomb on the way"

Because this threat is gone the show needs a new one, hence Ironwood randomly threatening Mantle with said bomb

The one way we might have justified Oscar blowing up the whale instead of Winter is if he did it to save Hazel, but Hazel is implied to be dead

Maybe he's alive, but if he's not that happened off screen and we're not sure how. It couldn't have been because of the blast itself — everyone else is fine — so what, Salem somehow killed him before she was blasted to bits? While he was holding her? 

And there's no body?

Salem was torn apart multiple times during that fight and reformed instantaneously, yet now, conveniently, she's taking her time

None of the characters mention the issues above. None of them admit that there was no reason for Oscar to waste LIFETIMES worth of power when they already had a solution in the works. Fantastic

I need to take a moment to acknowledge that so far this recap feels... bad. Disjointed. Bit all over the place. Which makes a certain amount of sense because that's where my thoughts are at. There's so much going on in this episode — so much wrong with it — that I don't know how to boil it all down into a few, neat claims. This episode is a mess! We're barely a few minutes in and the combined issues of Ironwood's characterization and Oscar's choice have left me reeling. So if you're still reading this, bless your patience, I think we'll both need it for the rest of this journey.

Let's snag a neater plot-point to discuss. Amidst all the chaos Neo literally skips away with the Lamp, clearly thrilled at how her own life is going. Later in the episode she'll text Cinder with the obvious: Salem is going to be pretty pissed when she realizes this is gone. “If you want her name you know what you owe me." 

So wait... what is Neo leveraging here? Is she agreeing to give the Lamp back so Cinder doesn't get in trouble with Salem? Give Salem the password she's been looking for? Or give Cinder the password to use the Lamp for herself? What would Cinder even want the Lamp for when she's after the Maiden powers? I'm confused about what Cinder is being blackmailed with. Regardless, she needs the lamp for something and presumably what she "owes" Neo is Ruby. We get a cut to her just to hammer that home.

(Side note: both pictures of Neo are hilarious.) 

Before that though, back at the whale, everyone is taking stock of the situation when Marrow cries, "Hey, they were still in there!" I feel like this is another scene meant to make him look like the one good guy in the group — he cares about YJOR while the others can’t be bothered — but as always, that reading doesn't fit well with the situation as a whole. The others have barely had time to realize they're alive. I don't think it's a moral failing that they didn't instinctually worry about four betrayers, one of whom attacked them, while they're still checking that they have all their limbs intact. Besides, why does Marrow assume they're dead? The Ace Ops were caught in the blast as well, yet miraculously came out unharmed. They clearly didn't set their own bomb off, so it's logical to assume that YJOR did something themselves. It feels weird to have a "Marrow mourns them and Winter is the only other character who cares" moment when everyone is recovering from bomb shock and no one even knows if the others are dead. But, of course, the show is out to portray only two of these characters as good people, so ignore the logic and run with the emotion of the scene.

All of which is bolstered by Elm pulling away when Vine puts a hand on her shoulder. Why is she acting cold towards him now? Because they're not friends, remember?

While we get more ridiculous relationship dynamics, Ironwood calls in and congratulates them on the bomb working, but tells them to get back because they have another problem in the works. That would be Qrow and Robyn. Winter decides to tell him about the bomb in person.

We cut to Watts and Cinder watching the remnants of the blast from a rooftop. Cinder has tried calling, but no one answered. Unsurprising, given that Salem doesn't have any other allies left. Cinder says that the plan hasn't changed, she's still going to take the Winter Maiden's power for herself, and Watts can help her by bringing Penny here. He explains that he doesn't have full control over her. Rather, he implemented a virus that is setting her on a single path: open the vault, then self-destruct. Cinder, as one might expect, is furious.

She snags Watts by her grimm arm and threatens to toss him over the side of the building. Thus begins the best part of the episode, hands down. Despite the danger he's in, Watts throws common sense out the window in favor of dragging Cinder in the most satisfying manner possible. 

“You think you’re entitled to everything just because you suffered, but suffering isn’t enough. You can’t just be strong, you have to be smart. You can’t just be deserving, you have to be worthy! But all you have ever been is a bloody migraine!”

It's true! You know what else is true? This speech could apply to our heroes as well. Accusations of entitlement and reminders to be smart as opposed to just strong hit hard, considering those are the same flaws our protagonists are struggling with. The difference is that Cinder, miraculously, listens, pulling Watts back to safety and going to cry by herself. That moment is simultaneously more growth than Ruby has gotten and more sympathy than Ironwood has gotten. The woman who murdered Pyrrha is treated more kindly by the narrative than one of our initial heroes and our very first villain has taken more time to reconsider her choices than our title character. You know a show is falling apart when excellent choices are applied to the worst possible character.

So Cinder is crying while Watts looks guilty and we cut back to YJOR's group post-blast. Yang is finally able to answer a call from Blake who is obviously overjoyed to see her. Weiss gives them directions to the mansion and they ask what in the world they'll do with Emerald, currently on her knees, mourning Hazel.

Thus begins the third most frustrating part of this episode. See, on the way back the group continues the conversation about what to do with Emerald, with Yang and Jaune distrusting her vs. Ren and Oscar encouraging cooperation. I can't believe I'm saying this after's Ren's speech and Oscar's entire existence... but I'm team Jaune and Yang here. Look, what Oscar and Ren say — the literal words coming out of their mouth — is nonsense. Ren goes, “We can’t let all of our actions stem from fear," as if Yang and Jaune are being ridiculous for mistrusting Emerald, one of the established villains, after years worth of harm from her. It’s weird that Yang points to her arm as something Emerald is responsible for, rather than being framed or the deaths at Beacon, but the general sentiment of, “She’s done horrible things!” is true. Ren’s perspective is the same simplification that was applied to Ironwood last volume, wherein everyone acted as if he was crazy for fearing an attack on his kingdom... post an attack on another kingdom and pre an attack on his kingdom. Putting generic lines in Ren's mouth about not being afraid makes him sound willfully ignorant, as if choosing to believe that someone is good will magically make them so, to say nothing of thinking it will erase all the harm they've already done.

Oscar at least acknowledges the difficulty here, but then follows this up with, “You don’t have to forgive her… just give her a second chance."

Oscar, honey, that amounts to the same thing in this situation. Allowing Emerald a second chance means working with her, which means trust, which means emotionally reaching a point where these characters can put aside the harm she's done them in an effort to give her that chance in the first place. This actually ties into a post I saw last night, one I've come across before, that claims redemption arcs don't require any suffering on the part of the person who has done wrong. I agree in theory, that prolonged suffering doesn't help anyone, but the problem is that people tend to conflate suffering with consequences and someone who has done this level of harm should face consequences for their actions. The problem with redemption arcs is not that the bad people suffer too much —  emotionally and physically beating on them as a form of revenge  — but that the people they've harmed are put into situations like this one. If Yang and Jaune let Emerald go like she suggests, they are agreeing that she doesn't have to face any consequences for the damage she's done (which, keep in mind, involves multiple deaths, not including all the lost lives here in Atlas). If they agree to give her a second chance, they are forced to jump straight to some level of forgiveness. We might claim they don't have to forgive Emerald to work with her, but from a practical perspective how are they meant to function, especially during a warzone? Anything she provides them with — information, watching their back in a fight, undertaking missions, etc.  — requires trusting her enough to allow those things to happen: working with that info, letting her protect them, allowing her that responsibility. It's all about trust, trust she has yet to earn. In order for a redemption arc to be successful, the power has to be in the hands of the victims. They need to be able to see some justice for what was done to them, be offered some proof that the person in question has truly changed, and have the ability to walk away if they decide no, I don't forgive you, glad to hear you've improved, but please stay out of my life. Jaune and Yang have none of that. There are currently no systems in place for Emerald to face consequences for her choices, she has offered them no proof of her remorse or true motivations, and the other half of the group is pressuring them to give her that second chance without closure or reassurance. None of that makes for a good redemption arc and reducing that to, "So you want to see poor Emerald suffer, huh?" ignores the suffering she has already caused. The group are her victims and they are under no obligation to give her a second chance, particularly under these circumstances, which makes the story's choice to have Ren and Oscar act like Yang and Jaune are being stubborn or inconsiderate a problem. The conversation boils down to, "Give the woman you know to be a liar, manipulator, murder accomplice, and servant of our enemy a second chance based entirely on unfounded faith. If you don't you're letting yourself be ruled by fear."

RWBY's touchy-feely themes really don't sit well within its realistic, morally gray premise. We cannot continually have these characters go through hell one moment and then have others accuse them of being paranoid the next. The fact that all of this is wrapped up in the group trusting Robyn, Emerald, and Hazel over their established allies remains beyond frustrating.

Because yeah, you know how Oscar finishes his speech? “I’ve already gotten a lot of help today from someone I don’t exactly trust right now." Meaning Ozpin.

The story is trying to compare Emerald and Hazel to Ozpin.

"Oh hey, I kept a secret from you after lifetimes of watching that secret lead to betrayal and death. I keep apologizing for my mistakes while ignoring that I had no reason to trust a bunch of kids with such world-shattering information and also that you tore it from me in the most traumatic way possible."

"Oh hey, I willingly joined our world's version of the devil and helped her destroy your school, leading to numerous deaths including your friend and headmaster. It was his death that put Oscar in this position in the first place! I then continued to attack your group, leading to another near death of a friend, and a kidnapping, and the destruction of Amity, until I became scared enough to make a run for it."

Which one of these characters is granted an instant second chance? You'll never guess who!

And I do think the word "instant" is important here because just like Jaune and Yang have the right to have distance and justice from Emerald, they had that right with Ozpin too. The difference is they got it. They had the power in the situation, as evidenced by their use of the Lamp and physically attacking him. Ozpin heard what they needed from him — leave us alone — and did that without complaint. They were given months to come to terms with the secrets he kept. They were offered apologies and acts of service to demonstrate intent: saving them in the airship and continually saving Oscar. I don't believe Ozpin ever needed a redemption arc, but even if we think he did, he had it. After three volumes of material Oscar's perspective is still "I don't exactly trust [him] right now" but Hazel and Emerald have earned at least the same amount of trust in a matter of hours? They're really having my boy look at the guy who has tried desperately to do right by him despite unimaginable circumstances, and the guy who tortured him to get information for Salem, and went, "That first guy. He's the one we need to watch out for."

To make things even worse, Oscar tells the others that Ozpin took on all the torture so he wouldn't have to. So he did that and they still don't trust him? If you had told me back in Volume 6 that two years later the group would still be hostile towards Ozpin, while simultaneously urging one another to trust Emerald, I would have said you were lying. RWBY has its problems, but it's not that bad. Yet here we are. I suppose the one silver lining here is that Ren smiles when he realizes Ozpin is back? So at least one of them isn't prepared to draw their weapon at the mere mention of his name.

Both these moments raise more questions though. How in the world did Ozpin take on that torture when we clearly saw Oscar getting pummeled for a good portion of the kidnapping? Is that a weird merge thing the story hasn't bothered to explain? I wouldn't be surprised, considering Oscar said last episode he didn't want to use magic because it hastened the merge, he uses the biggest explosion of magic we've ever seen, and nothing has changed. Ozpin is still in the back of his head, thanking him for the tinniest shreds of decency they get. Ren, meanwhile, seems to be back to mindreading. How in the world does he know that Ozpin is back? I assume it has something to do with his semblance, but we don't know what. They could have shown us Oscar from Ren's perspective, perhaps with two distinct emotions swilling around to imply that he sees two different people now, not a useless shot of Emerald with purple flower petals, whatever purple means.

Oh, but no, we shouldn't have gotten either of these scenes. Remember that Ren's aura broke a very, very short time ago? Is it back already? Can he use this part of his semblance without it? Considering it was near impossible to see Ironwood's aura breaking in the Watts fight and we were then mistakenly told he used his semblance in the office, I'm going to go with, "The writers forgot."

Oscar explains that the cane had "lifetime after lifetime" of power in it and though there's still some left, "we have to be careful with how we use the rest." He says that Ozpin trusted his judgement and of course he did! Ozpin also didn’t know that there was a bomb on the way. Yet funnily enough, no one else mentions that, whoops, your choice made in ignorance was a waste and that's due entirely to us prioritizing hugs over basic mission information.

Also, all these explanations take place in front of Emerald. Half the group doesn't trust her, but they'll freely discuss their powers and limitations here. Remember how the group once wanted to talk about magical relics in front of the old lady they'd just met? Yeah, they've learned nothing.

Combine all this insanity with the fact that Ozpin's magic saved the day before Ironwood's bomb could do the same... while Ruby sat in a mansion drinking tea. Who's our hero again?

So things are a hot mess, to put it lightly. Their conversation finally ends when they hear voices and round the corner to find all the Atlas citizens huddled in the subway. For once the show actually writes them in a sympathetic manner, emphasizing how terrified and helpless they are. This image doesn't lead the group to any revelations though, certainly not anything that would tie back to Ren's earlier speech in the snow. No, once again the justified criticisms here are ignored as we hear that “However this fight ends, we could really use someone like you, [Emerald.]” That's it then. Discussion over. We knew as soon as it started that blindly trusting her was being presented as the "right" thing to do and now here we are, deciding that conclusively, despite Jaune and Yang's complaints. By the time the group reaches the mansion, Oscar is defending Emerald from Ruby. We're supposed to just accept that she's a part of the group now, only minimal pushback allowed.

Before that though we return to Ironwood getting news that their bomb never went off. He briefly wonders who else could have done that, but puts the currently unanswerable question aside for what he does know. They still have the bomb and it could be "useful." See, this moment — like shooting Oscar and the councilman — is when Ironwood just randomly goes off the deep end. One minute he's talking about what they've lost and cradling his new arm, 

the next he's saying that he should have tortured Qrow to get Penny to obey him! Which doesn't even make sense since I'm pretty sure Penny hasn't ever spoken to Qrow. She wouldn't want anyone to suffer, true, but it's not like Ironwood had a close friend like Ruby to use as leverage. Qrow is just Some Guy to her. Regardless, he thinks Yang, Jaune, and Ren are decent replacements, despite Penny also having no relationships with them. This is what happens when your characters only start breaking up their teams eight years into the story, the response to Ironwood wanting to torture Ren to hurt Penny is, “Does Penny know Ren exists?” But, you know, torture is torture, right? Maybe. Probably not. I mean, if they're going to turn Ironwood into a cartoon villain, they could at least keep him smart.

Because all of this is just the height of stupidity. Ironwood wants to torture people Penny barely knows to make her listen (so just grab some civilians? It would do the same job...). Ironwood wants to shoot down empty ships, even though no one, including us, knows where in the world those ships would have gone. Ironwood wants to destroy an entire city to try and save another city. He wants to use a bomb meant for a comparatively small whale and acts like that alone will take out the majority of a kingdom. None of it makes sense! And I know the easy comeback for that is, "Well yeah, Ironwood is crazy and evil" but he's not. I mean he is. Threatening torture and bombings is obviously evil, but he's never been insane, or stupid. As said before, his arc (or lack thereof) is an absolute disaster. The fandom assumes so many things about Ironwood given the opportunity — the whale is a suicide mission. He expects the Ace Ops to die on his order — and the writing hints at so many things that never happen — he's going to hurt his subordinates, attack Winter for disobeying him — and every time what we actually get is a far more compassionate, level-headed character... until he randomly does a 180 and goes, "Let's murder a whole city now!" I never wanted Ironwood to be the bad guy, but they could have at least given me a persuasive decent into this level of horror.

So... yeah. Ironwood has got to die by the end of the volume, yeah? Between Ruby warning the whole world about him and him going into full villain mode, there's no coming back from this.

Neo sends her text to Cinder and the group makes it back to the mansion. Remember Yang's criticisms of Ruby's leadership? The ones she conveniently forgot about when Ren started to agree with her? Yeah, those are entirely gone as the sisters hug it out and, presumably, forgive one another for... daring to admit that things are bad? Look, I'm not going to deny that Ironwood's scene with Winter was creepy as fuck, 

but I'm not of the opinion that the heroes are any better when it comes to the theme of obedience. They've attacked one another, screamed at one another, and any dissent from Ruby's leadership results in the questioner being left behind in the snow. We'll accept you again when you fall back in line. I used to adore the relationships in this show, but watching them now is just discomforting. The show might be 100% more obvious with Ironwood, using creepy music, a smile, and that hand on Winter's shoulder, but the concept of, "Sorry I dared to question you before! We won't ever do it again :)" isn't healthy either. The fact that the show keeps erasing theses problems with hugs — Weiss hugs Whitley now, Yang hugs Ruby, someone will probably hug Emerald soon — doesn't make the circumstances any less uncomfortable.

None of this even gets into the Blake and Yang hug. First of all, why is Blake acting like they had a fight and Yang might not want to see her? She's hiding inside rather than rushing to greet them, ears down in a devastated expression until Yang touches her. Combine this with Yang's "Do you think she's mad at me?" and it feels like the writers cut a fight in the final script and then didn't bother to remove the fallout from that. Seriously, where did any of this come from? You can't just have characters act like they've been fighting when they haven’t.

Also, can't forget this.

At this point there's nothing more I can say in regards to RWBY's almost-queer baiting. Is touching foreheads more intimate than the hugs Yang gave the others? Absolutely. Is that an appropriate stand-in for overt representation? Absolutely not. This would have been a perfect time for them to kiss. Take out Blake's nonsensical fear and replace it with them both reuniting after their first separation since Volume 5, working under the knowledge that either one could have been killed, finally admitting their feelings. Hell, they don't actually have to kiss. Not all girlfriends are interested in kissing! But they could use the terminology that makes things unequivocally canon.  Another forehead touch when we got that in Volume 6? It's not enough, especially not when our straight couples have all been allowed their rep.

Ren at least wants to know where Nora is. He's presumably told what happened off screen as Oscar tells Ruby that Emerald is their friend now.

Then an emergency call from May interrupts the reunion and the group learns that Ironwood is bombing the Schnee ships. “Those ships… they were going to save people” Weiss whispers. How? Tell me how they were going to save anyone. Where were you going to take these people where they would be safer than where they are now? RWBY continually asserts things without explaining them, meaning there is precisely zero emotional weight here. Again, Ironwood is far past the point of defense, but I'd be a whole lot more critical of this particular action if I had a better sense of why it's bad. He appears to be endangering the people given May's shout to run — falling debris? — but the further implication is that Ironwood has doomed the people of Mantle by denying them these ships. It's that part that makes no sense based on what we've been told.

Which finally comes to the ultimatum of our episode title: Penny opens the vault, or Ironwood bombs Mantle. Great! So glad this plan is wicked smart and works well for his characterization. It's definitely not a nonsensical, unfounded, overblown change that feels like it belongs in a child's cartoon, complete with dramatic spotlight. Nope. Excellent writing choices all around.

Our final line of the episode is, “I hope you live up to the title I gave you," referring to Penny's job as the Protector of Mantle, and you know what? That line could have been very cool if it was delivered by an Ironwood with a persuasive fall and a halfway decent plan in place. I love that we've twisted the concept of a protector and turned the title into a horrifying, rather than honorable responsibility... I just hate everything surrounding those details. 

So, usual RWBY fare.

(At least we get to see that Nora is awake!) 

Will things get better over the next four episodes? I doubt it. We're still expecting the rest of the Ace Ops + Winter to ditch Ironwood, someone getting the vault open, the fall of Atlas, now the potential destruction of Mantle, and none of that includes Salem who should reform at any moment. Frankly, I'm not looking forward to any of it. The final leg of a season should make its audience excited to see how everything turns out, not dreading it. I've heard from multiple people that this is the volume that finally got them to drop the show and honestly? I'm not surprised.

As a final (happier?) note: we've finally got a bingo! I completely forgot our board last time, which was a terrible oversight, but we can update it now.

Our army of grimm can't kill anyone now that it got KOed by Oscar (that is the third one hit defeat of a major enemy we've seen this volume. Yes, I'm including the Hound considering it was obviously on its last legs after Ruby's eyes.)

I'm likewise including "Ozpin apologizes for everything including his existence" because he's done nothing but apologize since he came back. The emotion is there even if the literal words are not. Oscar reminded everyone of how untrustworthy he is, but kept the group from jumping them again. And Ozpin thanked him for it.

Neo didn't literally backstab Cinder (shame), but the Relic still counts.

So a triple bingo! Is that how bingo works? Idk, I've never played. I feel like I should have thought up some sort of humorous prize, but sadly I've got nothing. If you think of anything, let me know lol

That’s all then, folks. Until next week! 💜

Hi! I read your analysis and criticism of MLB in your other blog and let me tell you that I really love them!

Gabriel/Hawk Moth is what I’d like to call “a mess of ideas.”

Gabriel started out in Season 1 as just kind of a neglectful dad. He tied down Adrien as much as possible, but there were also hints in episodes like Jackady and Origins that he has at least some sympathy for Adrien’s wants and desires (even if that sympathy needed to be forced onto him). Still, he was redeemable, even is unlikable; you could blame at least a few of his traits on his wife “disappearing”.

Then, you had Hawk Moth, who was a devious yet somewhat campy villain. There wasn’t much to his character aside from the fact that he knew Emilie and wanted the ladybug and black cat miraculouses for his own goals. He wasn’t really on the “redeemable” spectrum, as there just wasn’t enough for him to show that he was sympathetic. After all, he took over people’s minds and twisted them into supervillains for his own ends, presumably not caring about the consequences since taking their powers away doesn’t negate what they did. It’s Miraculous Ladybug that restores everything, which can’t be used if he takes that miraculous away.

And then… Gabriel and Hawk Moth were revealed to be the same person, which brought along a whole new host of problems.

[Gabriel the Father]

Suddenly, Gabriel was no longer just a neglectful dad. Gabriel was someone who willingly caused akuma near his own son. Even in episodes where he didn’t akumatize one of the students in Adrien’s class, he akumatized people who would go after him (as in Gabriel), which already puts Adrien in danger since someone could so easily use Adrien as a hostage. Take Jackady, for example, which had him akumatize someone who was in the room with Adrien at the time. Even in Season 2, which had already had revealed him as Hawk Moth by Episode 1, there were episodes like Style Queen where the person he akumatized sought him out and Adrien was in the room. Then, he’s surprised when Adrien gets turned to gold, simply not having the foresight to text Adrien away before the akuma takes hold of Audrey.

And then, there’s Riposte, where Riposte actively seeks out Adrien. It’s not like Hawk Moth tries to coerce Riposte into going after Marinette instead; he just lets her chase after Adrien. Yes, he tries to stop her once to remind her to get the miraculouses for him first, but that’s about it. Riposte essentially tries to murder Adrien and there’s next to no response from Hawk Moth.

Natalie even calls him in Style Queen to say that he took a risk with Adrien and Gabriel admits that he wishes he could tell Adrien because Adrien would understand, but we don’t get why he can’t. Narratively, we know it’s because Adrien is Chat Noir and him knowing Hawk Moth’s secret would throw a thorn into the show, but the story doesn’t give a different reason. Adrien would just be so much safer if he knew, and even then, Gabriel still doesn’t take countermeasures to keep Adrien safe except for Catalyst, the second to last episode in Season 2.

And wouldn’t that have been a nice hint to Gabriel being Hawk Moth in Season 1; him trying to sneak Adrien away whenever the akuma was harmful and close by? Sure, not many akuma are after Adrien directly, but that doesn’t mean he can’t be harmed by others or the destruction those others cause.

The show only decides to focus on the danger Adrien is in when it’s “plot time”; it’s handwaved otherwise. In fact, it was one of the reasons why people didn’t think Gabriel was Hawk Moth before The Collector aired; because he’d be putting his son in danger a lot if he was.

It’s not even as if Gabriel just doesn’t care about his son; then it wouldn’t be a problem. Yet, we’re shown multiple times that he must care, given how long they always hold on scenes where Gabriel hugs Adrien. He only cares when the show wants to have a touching moment. Any other time, the show just shrugs and hopes you don’t notice.

[Gabriel the Villain]

Gabriel and Hawk Moth being one also affects the villain side. In the show, we’re given more moments of Hawk Moth reacting to things, but it’s very infrequently that it relates back to him being Gabriel. Gorilla and Style Queen, for example, show his Gabriel side very clearly when he’s commenting about something concerning Adrien.

It’s not like they try to retcon him either. They still have him laughing maniacally and doing the typical Hawk Moth things that Hawk Moth does.

Otherwise though, we just see more of him, and “more of him” isn’t exactly what we needed. Because of the Hawk Moth reveal and a heavier focus on the Agrestes in general, Gabriel/Hawk Moth gets a lot of screentime, mostly just to increase the angst factor in the show.

And it’s not as if we get the bonus of seeing him really laying out his plans. On the contrary, in the Season 2 finale, quite a few people in the fandom were confused as to where his plan came from. We get a hint of it in Anansi, but with all the time they spend on him, you’d think we’d get more information.

Because, yeah, we still don’t know that much about him. Season 2 revealed his secret identity as Gabriel, but most people expected that already and we just got it confirmed. We already knew that Gabriel owned the grimoire and the peacock miraculous, and just by the fact that we saw “Hawk Moth” staring at Emilie’s picture in Origins, we could gather that his wish involved her even before Queen Wasp confirmed it.

Anything else is learning about his powers or who he can akumatize (ex: Robostus); not really about Hawk Moth as a character.

And heck, if you want to take it a step further, what’s his plan if something happens to Adrien yet he gets the miraculouses? Does he plan to don the Ladybug miraculous temporarily and do a big Miraculous Ladybug onto everything? Does he know if that’ll even work? Does he care? He shrugs Adrien’s “gold-ization” off in Style Queen and goes ahead with his plan anyway, so he either doesn’t care enough about Adrien as long as he gets his wife back, or has a plan but won’t tell us because mystery.

Also, speaking of Adrien, why does Gabriel keep him on such a short leash? It seems like a small thing, but the reason is very important for his character (and how we feel toward him by extension). The only excuse we get is that it’s “too dangerous”, which isn’t valid because Adrien still goes out for photoshoots and fencing.

It’s an especially huge problem when it comes to “sympathy”.

[Gabriel the “Sympathetic”]

Gabriel, in combination with his role as Hawk Moth, is not a sympathetic character. Yes, out of context, his “feel sad” scenes are very well shot, but when looking at him in the grand scheme of things, I just don’t see how this guy is sympathetic.

Without Hawk Moth, sure, I could see Gabriel being just a neglectful father who has the potential to be sympathetic. Yes, he has to keep learning that trapping his son inside is not good for him and we keep having these hug scenes that are supposed to show he’s improving even though he has statistically kept Adrien inside more in Season 2, but sure! I see a redeemable man here.

But, as Hawk Moth, Gabriel has done awful things. He takes advantage of people in distress, turns them into his minions, and doesn’t care who gets hurt in the process (unless it’s Adrien and only if the plot demands it).

And that would be one thing. I mean, the basic concept of “people are sad and are given the power to do something about it” is not inherently evil.

It’s the way it’s carried out.

Look at just about any episode and watch Hawk Moth’s emotions. He might have a “good” motive in bringing his wife back to him, but look at how much he enjoys what he does. Look at the wicked smirk he gives at the end of his transformation that just screams evil. Look at how much glee he takes in finding a new victim.

From a visual standpoint, he’s not just doing this because he “has” to; he loves doing it.

And talking about sympathy, he laughs like a pure evil villain. He has The Villain Laugh™. You know the one. They don’t even retcon it, because he does it again in episodes like Anansi.

It’s just really distracting to see Gabriel keeping his son at home, part of the time with NO EXPLAINED REASON IN-EPISODE, even loving being Hawk Moth so much that he laughs maniacally in a dark room over the potential defeat of two teenagers, but then turns around, hugs his son a few times, and laments the current state of his probably-pretty-darn-dead wife.

These things do not mix. There is such a thing as a “complex redeemable villain”, but Gabriel doesn’t feel like that, especially because his and Natalie’s relationship (something that plays into his sympathy, as some of his “softer” scenes are with her) is either a retcon or something we never got to see in Season 1 (so, basically, a retcon; Gabriel and Natalie’s relationship should’ve come up at least once, even if his reveal as Hawk Moth to the audience hadn’t happened yet).

[Gabriel the Mess]

This is why Gabriel/Hawk Moth is a mess of ideas. It’s like the writers threw as many ideas as they could at this guy and hoped that everyone would enjoy at least one of them. I’m fine with them going through any of the routes they’re trying to go on, but not when they try to go on all of them at once.

Not Hawk Moth Routes:

Sympathetic - Gabriel loves his son, but is distraught by his wife’s death. He keeps his son close by keeping him “trapped” in the house whenever possible, out of fear that Adrien will leave him now that Emilie’s not around anymore. He does hug Adrien, but only after Adrien has been in danger from an akuma attack, as Gabriel fears getting too attached only to lose Adrien anyway. Down the line, he’ll realize how harmful this is to both himself and Adrien, and thus will give Adrien more attention. His arc involves him letting go of Emilie and no longer letting past experiences interfere with giving his son what he deserves.

Complex - The death of his wife has sent Gabriel into a confused despair. He throws himself into work out of a desire to escape the reality of a world without Emilie, but it’s caused him to have a love-hate relationship with his son. He loves Adrien dearly, but seeing him just reminds Gabriel of Emilie and the fact that she’s not around anymore. He works with Hawk Moth out of a determination to get her back, willing to cause akumas as long as they’re not harmful, but insists that Adrien never be a target. Regardless of whether Emilie comes back or not, he’ll end up with weekly therapy sessions to help him cope with his issues.

Unsympathetic - He’s just a completely neglectful father, only keeping his son around because he reminds Gabriel of Emilie. He works with Hawk Moth as well, but even if Emilie did come back, she’d want nothing to do with him. He’d end up in jail for coordinating with Hawk Moth.

Hawk Moth Routes:

Sympathetic - Gabriel dislikes his role as Hawk Moth, but feels that it’s the only way of getting Emilie back. His inspiration has plummeted since Emilie left his life and he fears losing everything if he doesn’t get her back. He doesn’t see akumatizing as making supervillians; rather, he sees it as sympathizing with the problems of others and giving them a way to fight back. While he neglects Adrien (mostly out of having too much on his plate now, burying himself in work and also being Hawk Moth), he actively makes plans to ensure that Adrien stays out of danger, even calling Adrien to take care of an assorted task right after sending his butterfly off if he knows that Adrien is near the person he’s akumatizing. This will make it seem like he’s loading Adrien with things to do at first until his reveal at Hawk Moth. He has multiple plans when it comes to protecting Adrien (if Adrien DOES get affected, he will actively stop speaking to akuma and let Ladybug take care of it) and tries to keep damage to the city minimal. He even treats Nooroo with respect. Things like the fashion contest are actually future plans to find an heir to his brand as, if he IS aware that a sacrifice is needed to bring Emilie back, he plans to sacrifice himself as repentance for his actions.

Complex - A complex Gabriel is neutral to his role as Hawk Moth. He’s well aware that causing akuma is wrong, but sees it as a means to an end with getting his wife back. He neglects Adrien, but with a knowledge that it be best that Adrien have a poorer opinion of his father if he were ever to find out the truth about him causing supervillains. He still loves his son dearly though, so things like hugs tend to leak through his stoic facade from time to time. He makes plans when it comes to akuma or Adrien staying out of danger, but can make sporadic and illogical decisions if he feels that he’s close to getting the miraculouses. An end for him is therapy at best and jail at worst.

Unsympathetic - Losing his wife has driven Gabriel insane. He can maintain a serious outlook if needed, but takes immense joy in causing akuma and wreaking havoc, blaming the world for the loss of his wife. He doesn’t care for Adrien and keeps him only because Emilie liked him. A lifetime in jail or death is the only end to his story.

(the campy evil Hawk Moth we know from Season 1 would probably be the non-Gabriel Hawk Moths and also Unsympathetic Hawk Moth)

Regardless of any of these (though, if you’re curious, I’d pick a mixture of Sympathetic and Complex Hawk Moth, presuming that I have to stick to the show’s reveal of “Gabriel is Hawk Moth”), I’d make his relationship to Natalie consistent between Seasons 1 and 2. I’d also give more foreshadowing for his plans and further explain his EXACT wish in terms of Emilie. In addition, I would’ve elaborated on the precise terms of Emilie’s “disappearance” sooner. Unrelated to Gabriel himself (but crucial to making us feel more for him in his quest to get her back), I’d show flashbacks to Emilie’s character, because it’s been two seasons and I don’t know a single thing about this woman except for the fact that Gabriel and Adrien both cared about her very much.

Gabriel isn’t like my post about Chloe or Adrien, where I only had to change a few episodes/arcs or go back to a certain point and then run it from there. Keeping in mind that he was going to eventually be revealed as Hawk Moth, he was doomed from the second he denied Adrien a party and the moment that Hawk Moth laughed like your typical irredeemable bad guy. “Fixing him” means changing so many pieces about him that it’s essentially re-writing his character.

I’m weirdly interested in seeing what they’re going to do with him, but saying that I’m confused about exactly what that’ll be is an understatement. Without retcons, I honestly don’t know if this is a mess that can be cleaned up.

(PnF) Headcanon #7 Thomarie Nitpicks #1 Bridgette

The next couple of post will be centered around some critics I have with both the ship Thomarie as a whole as well as the characters evolved in it, and their general world. For those who don't know the ship Thomarie is centered around (OC)Maria Flynn & (OC)Thomas Fletcher. I will mention this again at the end of the post, but more about the canonical versions of these characters can be found on angelus19 & sam-ely-ember deviantart(Thomas Belongs to Melty64). If you can not tell I will not be working with a lot of the canon information about these characters as I'm not really in to it-as I will explain with the next couple post-but the fact remains I did not create these characters. Critic #1: Bridgette(Bridgette belongs to Orthgirl123 on DeviantArt) Okay, it's best to start with the longest post as to get it out of the way. I HATE Bridgette as written in the MnT(Marie & Thomas) Universe. I'm sorry if that sounds harsh, and I am not trying to bash the character herself. I am talking completely in the context of her role in MnT. She is written as nothing, but a generic secondary love interest from a bad teen romcom. I read the post her creator made about her, and it gives the character a lot of potential that is never used. The rundown is that Bridgette's dad went MIA(Missing in Action) when she was around nine or something, so her mom remarries meaning Bridgette has a step-dad & new brother. Bridgette says in that post that she had a good life with nothing to complain about, yet she goes on about how she hides her 'real self' out of fear, and ends up coming off as a jerk to everyone around her. Again I do not hate the character, she has potential, but not in the way her creator tries to portray. Because I hate to break it to you, but girl if you come off as a massive jerk, you're not pretending, you are one. Like look, I get we all can be jerks by accident sometimes, but that doesn't mean you weren't a jerk, and the people you were a jerk to have the right to miffed about it. See what Bridgette has is a classic case of 'Victims Complex', she believes she has a right to act this way towards people, because she was hurt once. She wants the people around her to feel bad for her, and thinks her hurt garners her the right to be excused of her mistakes, when everyone else gets punished. So, do I feel bad for Bridgette? No. As a victim myself I can't feel bad for someone who uses their status as a victim to exploit the kindness and understanding of other people just so they can get away with not returning that kindness by being a massive jerk. Does this make her a bad character? Not at all. I think this type of personality has great potential, but it needs to be recognized for what it is first instead of sugar coating it to make a bland 'relatable' character. Which brings me back to the problem with her in MnT. In MnT Bridgette is portrayed as a a jerk whose actually really kind on the inside, and when Thomas accidentally sees that kindness, he accepts her invitation to go on a date. There she tells him her 'sad' backstory to garner sympathy from Thomas which works, and they become closer cause he's also a 'jerk' at times due to his past. By the end, Thomas chooses Marie over Bridgete causing the girl to go into a fit about how nothing in life goes her way, and Thomas comforting her with kind words. This, all of this, is BULLCRAP! Let's break this down one by one. First problem, being nice to ONE person does not excuse being mean to HUNDREDS on a daily bases. Secondly, no one goes out with the biggest jerk at their high school just cause they learned the person has the ability to be the bare minimum of a decent human being. Thirdly, using your sad backstory to garner sympathy when you know you've been a massive jerk is manipulative, and funny enough usually garners the exact opposite in real life. I've never met a nice guy whose tried to do that, and didn't instantly get blocked. Fourthly, Thomas' rude behavior is nothing to Bridgette's, they're incomparable, but I will compare them anyway. Thomas occasionally ignores people when they're talking to him, and on one or two occasions has given someone the finger. Bridgete started rumors about multiple people at her school(including Marie) that caused these kids to be taunted mercilessly by their classmates until they refused to come to school again. Yes, Thomas did try to turn the citizens of Danville into a mob of criminals that attacked each other(See the fanfic Monster on angelus19  deviantart. Warning it is only in Spanish), but he was nine, had been hit by a Emotion Enhancer(Look up the definition of enhance), and had been disappointed by his dad and annoyed by Marie all in the span of like half an hour. I think he gets a pass. Fifthly, the idea that Bridgete should be instantly forgiven after have a tantrum over losing to a girl she started horrible rumors about. And lastly, the idea that THOMAS of all people forgave her. I mean look I know in the canon Thomas is like just a brooding emo, but this boy tried to turn his own father into a criminal in Monster, and yet he harbors goodwill towards a random bully who started rumors about his crush? With that out of the way, let us proceed to the revision paragraph for this critic. How do we improve this character and story? Well, are goal is to make Bridgette if anything a realistic character which means she must have her own goals that make sense in the context of her past and personality. Those goals can be outlandish, but she should have some realistic ones on occasion. She should be bound to the rules of reality as well as her own society. Her actions must always have consequences of equal measure whether her actions are good or bad. She must be the norm not the exception, and those around her should not differ from their established character, merely on the basis that she exist. In summary, we don't want Bridgete to be special, because no one in life is special. Even Marie & Thomas shouldn't be special(more about this critic later). Yes, these characters should all be different, but the universe shouldn't show favoritism, because that means the creator shows favoritism which is not relatable. The creators of Phineas & Ferb are a great example of making the main characters unique, but not special in comparison to those around them. Every character has a talent, interest, goal, and even flaw unique to them. And, the only time someone is seen as above reality-the rule of equal consequence-is by other characters who don't understand the whole story. This makes even simple one or two off characters memorable for all the right reasons(ex. Any of Doofs ex-girlfriends.) Bridgette is not memorable, because she's a good character, she memorable because she's put above the other characters whenever she's around. In all my reading experiences with Bridgete I've never felt like I choose to focus on her because I really liked or related to her, I instead always felt like she was forced into my focus every other line of dialogue. I don't want to hate Bridgette, if I wanted to hate Bridgette I wouldn't be writing an entire critic about how she has WASTED potential. I would just rant about how she has NO potential. Alright, we've made it to the advice portion of the critic a.k.a the last paragraph of this post. In this paragraph I'm going to share the changes I've made to Bridgette in my own stories in a summarized manner. I will explain why I made these changes and the benefits they have on the character and story. Firstly, I changed the reason for Bridgette's interest in Thomas. In the story 'Who I Really Am' by Orthgirl123 on DeviantArt she writes that Bridgette didn't like Thomas originally, but just kinda started to like him. This is not only boring, but also makes no sense. She just...starts liking him? That's kinda not how people work. So, instead I came up with the idea that Thomas & Maria built something in class that backfired resulting in Bridgette breaking her arm. This leads to Thomas & Maria having to help Bridgete until her arm heals. Because of Bridgette's status as a bully not many people like her and no one is nice to her, so Thomas' kindness mixed with Bridgette's insecurities about her dad being gone result in what most would call 'Daddy Issues'. This change does many things, for starters it establishes a reason for Bridgette's feelings that make sense in the context of her character, secondly it establishes Bridgette delusional mental state. Bridgette being established as delusional is important for her arc. You see if we establish that Bridgette is oblivious to the plights of others, blinded by her own pain making her unable to see the error of her ways, we allow her to be cornered. Instead of being able to say she did a bad thing and just apologize for it which is unsatisfying when your someone who bullied a girl into basically a depressed state. Bridgette will be confronted leading to the breaking of her delusions. This will allow Bridgette to be blinded by confusion as well as denial for a short period before she spills her guts about what she did out of the new found unbearable guilt. Her broken delusional state allows Bridgette's subconscious to eat away at her in a way no punishment could. This character arc becomes even better when we tie to loose threads together. In the MnT canon universe Maria's school stalker takes her depressed state as an opportunity to make his stalking known to her hoping she will be desperate enough to accept his feelings. But, in my personal headcanon Bridgette is the one who tells the school stalker about the situation and encourages him to pursue Maria. This may sound extreme at first, but remember that Bridgette's horrible behavior is usually a fleeting comment. Even Maria hides her pain when baring with the insults Bridgette's rumors have incited others to sling Maria's way. These facts make it difficult for the readers to comprehend the pain Bridgette is really inflicting on these people to the extent at which they truly exist by making them seem unreal or a drifting matter with little effect. This portrayal of the effect Bridgette has on people also makes it more difficult for Bridgette herself to comprehend what she's truly doing to people. To Bridgette they are just words-that as a bully-she has had to endure plenty of times. She doesn't sympathize with or even pity the people she hurts, because they feel detached from her life-like her comments, a fleeting name on the wind. So, if we have Bridgette do something that has such a massive effect, like enticing a stalker to harass someone, we turn that fleeting name into a news story. We don't just make Maria a girl Bridgette started a hurtful rumor about, we make Maria a name on her tv, just like Bridgette's father. We don't just make Bridgette a bully who said horrible things about people, we make Bridgette a suspect in an assault and harassment case. We put faces to names and bring the consequences outside the school bubble that protected Bridgette for so long. But, what really breaks Bridgette's delusions is Thomas. In MnT canon Thomas learns Bridgette can be a decent human being, tries to make her a replacement for Maria, and watches Bridgette scream about never being good enough, and feels pity for her, forgiving her for making Maria(and others)depressed. In my headcanon, Thomas finds himself harassed by Bridgette after her arm heals. She never stops trying to coerce a date out of him which Thomas is both not used to, and does not appreciate. She learns of Thomas' feelings for Maria, and tells him she is better then Maria so he should pick her, but Thomas only responds that if she is aware of his feeling she should give up before she hurts herself, he won't play games with her. And, when Thomas learns that Bridgette is the reason the stalker pursued Maria he does not let Bridgette throw a tantrum then forgive her. He makes it known she's crossed a line, and if she doesn't find herself back on it, she'll be the one at the tail end of his gun, not that stalker. In this scene Thomas breaks Bridgette's delusions by making it clear that he is not someone to be fond over and obtained. He and Maria are people with lives outside of playing the school hierarchy game Bridgette has concocted in all her years of turning the school into her consequence free paradise. He puts his foot down, something no one has ever done to Bridgette, and teaches her that their are worse things than petty popularity contest outside those school walls. And, if she doesn't sort herself out she's gonna step on the wrong peoples shoes. These warns strike a fear in Bridgette she's never felt before, but also slams her into denial. Thomas leaves her to think about what she did, and when a day or two passes of Thomas completely ignoring her. She lets out her confused emotions on Maria right before the school play when the two girls are alone. This is were her abandonment issues from the fanfic that I haven't mentioned come into play. It's Bridgette being ignored by the one guy she believed could replace her dad that triggers her fear of abandonment leading to her breaking down in front of Maria. She leaves the play before Maria can say anything, but the two meet a week into the new summer, and Maria confronts Bridgette. In the MnT canon Bridgette has her outburst in front of Maria & Thomas before being forgiven and giving up peaceful, for some reason happy with herself despite learning nothing as she's faced only the miniscule consequence of not getting the guy she likes and having to settle for Maria's cousin Xavier. In my headcanon, Maria is the one who confronts Bridgette who is still hurting from what happened with Thomas. Maria takes Bridgette and Thomas somewhere they can talk despite Thomas' disinterest in the idea. There Maria makes it clear what Bridgette did-both the rumor and stalker-were beyond horrible, but she can see Bridgette is also hurting. At this point Maria & Thomas are together, and Maria tells Bridgette that she will try to forgive Bridgette, if Bridgette promises to admit to spreading rumors about people, and apologizes to her victims directly. Bridgette accepts hesitantly and is helped by Maria to make a change. The two eventually develop a friendship after Bridgette starts getting therapy again, and Thomas does eventually stop ignoring Bridgette. In my headcanon, Xavier never had feelings for Bridgette. Because, yes Bridgette is a redeemable character, but not enough that I or anyone should want to see her related to Maria. In summary, these are my thoughts on the character Bridgette and the general storyline she is involved in. If I ever post a complete story about this exact topic I will let you know. I want to make it clear I do not harbor any ill-will towards the creator of Bridgette or the creators of Maria & Thomas. I just don't enjoy their story telling or how they portray these characters on most occasions. If you yourself have any thoughts on my changes or have an idea of a change you would add, let me know. If you want to read or see any art involving these character's check out their respective creators DeviantArt. More post about critics for the MnT Universe will be coming out soon. *Disclaimer: While I have made changes ranging from small tweaks to drastic alterations to many of the pre-existing characters on this post, I remind you that I DO NOT own any of the characters. Though I also remind you that I have made changes to these characters as to fit my own personnel headcanons or stories. So, do not assume that they follow the same timeline or share the same basic information.

I've been visiting reddit for a while now and i find people there so biased. I have favorites from both sides so I'm neutral when it comes to both sides. Reddit is mostly team paradis. You can't find posts about marleyans without reading top comments about how they don't care about them or "this is war" or "they deserved it" etc. So, can you please recommend some neutral or less biased blogs in this site?

Reddit in general is a bit more decent than YouTube, but overall it’s mostly populated by anime plebs who don’t look further past their nose. Whereas YouTube can be as negative and childish as they want, the subreddit wants to stay ~neutral, positive and civil~. Yet you’ll notice they favor EMA and the SC in general. It’s perfectly ok for characters like Gabi to have a hate thread, but god forbid if you say anything bad about their precious MC Eren who suddenly developed this mysterious care for his victims. I’m not counting the comments here, but the number of upvotes the OP has. Usually people put an upvote and leave.

Even outside of Reddit, it’s hard to find blogs who got past chapter 86-89 when it comes to Marley’s viewpoint. Or even bloggers who don’t have a black/white axis when it comes to the world’s perception and judgement. I notcied it was often the “Paradis good/Marley evul” who played purity politics or had that Holier Than Thou attitude. Coincidence?

Anyway, I’m not going to recommend meta writers who will write for the Nth time how Marley is not completely evil thanks to some randos who were nice to Eldians once, nor am I going to recommend the ones thinking Eren is doing Marlean Eldians a service after committing a massacre on the plaza. The former is rare, however. I don’t know how many meta writers based themselves on a “shades of grey” scenario when it comes to the oppressive superpower who happens to borrow WW2 imagery. After all, Isayama wants to create a morally gray story, and Marley is no exception. Yet everybody saw it as the “big bad” or the “final boss”.

Damn, I miss the old meta writers who swapped fandoms like dragoplateau, leviskinnyjeans or papermoon2. Their posts were inspiring enough for me to start.

@momtaku is the big head of the fandom. She tries her best to find the middle ground as she claims to be Team Both. She’s been critical of Eren’s actions lately and thinks well of the kids. 

Another one making interesting points as of lately is @arlingtonpark. They’re also critical of Eren’s actions and make their points using historical references. A good read if you want some context on top of the manga chapters. It’s important to keep in mind Isayama is Japanese. Ergo, he’s more likely to base himself on his country while using an European setting.

@snkception is good if there’s some obscure SnK facts you’ve overlooked, like comparisons between factions that are currently left aside like the MP.

Another recommendation on YouTube (yeah yeah) is AndrewAllStars (thanks anon!). Whenever he makes an Attack On Titan video, he reviews the most popular theories and compares them to see which ones are the most plausible. Plus his research results go deeper than the average YTer, which sets him apart. 

You know what I'd love to see in S3 of Supergirl? Supergirl saying "I got this" and then...having this. Like capably assessing and dealing with a situation like any other superhero would get to do on their show. There are so few incidents where Kara is allowed to be confident and act without immediately being proven wrong by a character or narrative. It just drives me nuts when they nerf Kara to give others agency

It’s funny, I was thinking about how annoying that is when I originally made that post.

But I think it’s a pattern writers fall into to teach characters new lessons each episode, and it’s not something unique to Supergirl, by any means. 

It just shows up in different ways on other shows.

For instance, from what I remember from when I watched Arrow (it’s been a while, so it may have changed), Oliver has to relearn to trust his teammates constantly. You think he finally gets it, but then a couple episodes later he’s back to brooding about on his own when he would be so much more effective with real help. 

In the Flash, one instance of this is Barry repeatedly relearning that he shouldn’t alter the timeline.

But Supergirl's Lessons are a lot more heavy handed and obvious, possibly because the age range starting younger. It’s a mark of the Family Friendly Show.

And Lessons aren’t in and of themselves a bad move (though it’s a bit after school special for my tastes), it only really becomes a problem when the characters themselves are lessened so they can then learn. 

The goal is to give characters some kind of advancement each episode, but what results is often simply the illusion of advancement. One step back, one step forward. And it leaves audiences who are in tune with the characters frustrated, because not only is there no real forward movement, but the characters are temporarily moving backwards for no reason, damaging the cohesiveness of the character’s qualities.

But it’s more about the writers being unimaginative than something done on purpose or because they have a poor opinion of Kara (or any other character in question).

Rather than having to elevate their material and tackle more complex problems for the character to face, they make the character a little dumber/stubborn/irrationally emotional etc. than they are so they can learn simple lessons that they, the writers, know how to teach.

They probably don’t even know they’re doing it.

But I’d argue that this doesn’t necessarily give other characters more agency. In fact, in Supergirl, the opposite has generally been proven to be true.

At the beginning of season 2, I complained about Kara learning lessons she didn’t need to learn before.

Suddenly Kara felt entitled (to her position with Snapper), suddenly Kara was xenophobic (though we learn later that the planet was filled with slave owners so it was less “hmm this culture is bad because it’s different and because of the wrong things my planet taught me about them” and more “wow these people actually do bad things and should be criticized” but that’s not something they had in mind at the time. The original storyline was framed so that Kara was in the wrong, had this negative quality, demonstrating something we’d never seen from her before and never really saw from her in any other context again).

Season 1 had a theme of the week, but it generally handled the lessons in a way that aligned pretty well with the character (Kara learning to deal with her anger, learning how to balance her life, etc.) 

There were still slip ups in that regard, but my disdain for this system was more about the cheesiness and clear formula than poor character treatment. 

So season 2′s handling of this especially bothered me, in the beginning.

But then, the lessons stopped. 

Kara wasn’t learning something new every episode. In fact, she often had the answers that someone else needed. She helped J’onn accept his feelings for M’gann despite feeling guilty about moving on after the loss of his family, she helped Alex deal with her feelings for Maggie. Mostly, she helped Mon-El become a Real Boy.

And it was disastrous.

Mon-El became at the center of the story, because he was the one learning things. Kara became his teacher while also not really learning anything new on her own each week, and thus became a passive character. Mon-El was doing all the advancing, while Kara mostly just dealt his “advancement” or with the immediate problems she faced each ep without growing much.

So now? I miss the lessons...

Of course, you’ll be delighted to know that there’s a way to have the worst of both worlds!!!

The episode “Alex,” which I never seem to stop complaining about, had Kara simultaneously develop negative traits that go directly against her previously shown qualities and development (ex. “Why would we talk someone down when we could break their arm instead???”) and didn’t give her a fully developed arc within the episode. (I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Kara was the antagonist of that episode and I hate them for it.)

But in general, with these kinds of writers, Lessons = focus and attention.

So what the writers should do is teach Kara real, new lessons that stick and that Kara should actually learn.

For instance? 

“How To Make A Plan Before Rushing In”: The Episode

The “Alex” episode touched on this idea, but they added qualities that she didn’t have before—like a mistrust of those with experience—to make it happen. In a situation with such high stakes, Kara being asked to give them a minute to figure it out (knowing that Alex still had more time) should have resulted to her allowing consideration to occur. Her fear of the drastic results of her failure should have kicked in. She should know it could go really wrong, and having her ignore that makes her look stupid and intolerably careless.

This concept should have been something that was presented in a less high-stakes storyline. 

Perhaps Maggie and Kara teaming up because Alex, J’onn, and Winn are in a DEO lockdown (that they’re totally handling, a.k.a. B story), and there’s a villain on the loose that sets traps for Supergirl.

Start the episode off with someone being hurt because Kara wasn’t quick enough, and then she overcompensates and make mistakes when the plot gets rolling (resulting in her landing in traps that she has to be rescued from, perhaps for no reason because they were tricked into thinking people were in danger that weren’t), thus triggering Maggie’s insistence that she low down and think.

(Kara being the one at risk because of her mistakes also lessons the unnecessary animosity between Kara and Maggie in the scenario, because the reason Maggie tries to convince Kara to use her head is for her wellbeing.)

This way, Kara’s need to get there to save people before time runs out—her own safety be damned—is acknowledged by Maggie and by the narrative, but then it’ll be proven that it’s better for everyone if she takes a minute to consider the best move.

At some point in the episode, Maggie’s need to protect Kara because of her relationship with Alex is brought up (maybe mid-argument, for Drama). 

“If something happened to you, Alex would be destroyed,” 

“I have a responsibility to protect those people,” 

“I know. I’m a cop. But you have a responsibility to the people who love you, too.”

“...Well, Alex has you now, remember?” type deal.

Which would lead into the whole “Where do I fit in?” thing they both have with Alex, resulting in them both admitting to fearing that the other will compromise their relationship with her. There’s a whole camaraderie thing that results from it.

At the end of the episode, Maggie and Kara come up with a plan together, Maggie sharing some of her Detective Skills for Kara to internalize. 

Kara is surprisingly the one to have the eureka moment, showing us that she had the capacity to do it, just not the patience. 

They go to stop the villain together, and it goes well. At first. The villain of the episode gets the upper hand somehow, putting Supergirl in danger again. 

Then, plan-less, Maggie rushes in and Does Something Stupid to save her, and it actually works. They save the day, and in-conversation wrap up the idea that planning is the best move whenever possible, but sometimes you have to go by your gut. Lessons, all around.

When everything is said and done, Alex is finally free of the DEO and texts Kara to ask for a sister night, but Kara says that she’s busy, but maybe tomorrow would work. Alex also texts Maggie asking to hang out, but she says she’s occupied as well.

(Don’t worry, J’onn and Winn end up taking her to the bar anyway. One of those Bonding themed episodes.)

Cut to Maggie and Kara eating at some diner referenced earlier in the episode,(Maggie—healthy food, Kara—fast food) and talking and laughing about their old cases. Maggie mentions how she figured out how someone had a gun in their pants by the way they were walking, and Kara mentions the time she fought an Alien whose face turns red just before it blasts it’s victim with fire. 

“Ha. Sounds just like my boss.”

*One of those chatter/laughter wholesome ass fade outs*

In this scenario, no one looks dumb. Hell, there is even a slight amount of character regression (Kara being more reckless than usual) that spurs the Lesson on, but it’s because of a realistic character-true reaction to events within the world.

And then, ideally, Kara continues to know the skills she learned from this episode in the future.

But hopefully, if they use this Lesson technique while Mon-El is away, they’ll remember the difference between things Kara needs to learn and things she already should know.

I mean, the “I’ve got this,” in question may not actually include Kara fucking up afterward. The context of the clips in the trailer includes Kara being depressed and isolating herself from her loved ones. The “I’ve got this” could simply be an indicator of how she is going out on her own now and relying on only herself.

This is a Lesson she’s likely learning here—to let those around her help her. To let people in again, in general. But I consider this new, temporary lone wolf outlook she’s adopted to be a character-true regression.

But if it’s The Main Bad Guy, she’ll likely fail to capture him if it’s in the beginning of the ep. But none of the heroes defeat the bad guy before the climax of the episode. It’s just how tv works. She may not be shown to be incompetent in some way, just outmatched.

It’s a valid criticism of past episodes, but we’ll have to wait and see what the context of this instance is.

(I really do want Kara to have an ep in which she tries for some strategy, though. And continues to try to think that way in the future. Prayer circle for a strategy ep!)

A Conversation with My “Rapist” - Part 1, A History

Two days ago, I had a very interesting experience. TW: abuse, trauma and rape

I want to share it with you all and process it - brace yourself for a long, very personal, pretty heavy read... in multiple parts 

 I came to uni  3 years ago, at age 19,  with an open heart and open mind, thankful to have escaped from the home town where I suffered a great deal of abuse, neglect, bullying and harassment. I was feeling hopeful - I could use this fresh start and change of environment and pace to change things and myself. I was also very vulnerable - having missed out on so much development and many of the experiences that a normal child growing into an adult would face. 

I knew I was damaged from my past, I was scared of simple things - like being hugged. This held me back in connecting to people  (and still does now in more complex ways) - the thing I wanted most, and I tried to work on this everyday. I attempted to slowly confront my fears and relearn how people are.(As it stands, I can now hug people without being scared so yay me!) 

During this time, I find someone who I really like and am immediately intensely attracted to. They are charming, fun and somewhat mysterious. Truth be told, I could still write a thousand sonnets about the experience of “falling in love” (albeit superficially) with them. This was maybe the 3rd time in my life I’d had a real life (as opposed to online) crush return the interest - the first and only genuinely wholesome time being when I was 14. (side bar: Dear Penguin Boy, you will always hold a special place in my heart, you adorable nerd. I am so sorry I dumped you out of the blue, I wasn’t aware of splitting back then or my shitty disordered attachment style. PS. How’s your egg doing? ) The second was when I was 18, and in retrospect was probably (read: definitely) being manipulated by this older Dutch man who had a thing for taking advantage of inexperienced younger girls. (Which my virgin ass surely was.) The trauma of that experience is a story for another time. 

This was only made better by the fact this time it was a fucking girl. A fellow woman? Showing interest in ME? LORD BE PRAISED - MY GAY DREAMS ARE COMING TRUE. I could barely believe it was even happening. 

We hook up and eventually begin to date. The relationship is incredibly tumultuous - our flaws and unresolved past baggage ravage the other’s. We both like each other, but over the year and a half of stop and starts we hurt each other frequently. 

I know I’ve made mistakes in the relationship - applying pressure for it to be more serious than she wanted (FWB to actually dating) being the main one. And beyond that, pushing for things to go to fast and trying to rush the emotional connection that I was craving. We start on poor footing due to this, but she doesn’t protest strongly or make it clear when things progress further that we’ve gone beyond what she wants. In retrospect, it was still wrong of me to pursue to relationship in the first place.

 I  wish we’d just dated super casually instead - less sex and private hang outs (where if you don’t talk, there’s not much to do but fuck) and more public dates until we knew each other better or didn’t want to pursue it further. I also wish we’d deeply and bluntly discussed our understanding of what was happening, where things were going and relationships in general. Pro-tip: always confirm definitions - people mean totally different things with the same words.  It would have made things a whole lot less confusing. 

As we date, certain things become clear.

She doesn’t understand consent. She knows that if someone says no you stop - but beyond this, she cannot see the grey areas that exist and that it’s most important to get a yes.

I live in the grey areas, unwillingly, which is why I try to communicate so bluntly and be so straight forward. I’m already so complex - I don’t need or want to add any extra grey. Being complicated isn’t something fun I chose to do to be mysterious - it’s something I had forced upon me by circumstance - fighting to survive and get my needs met as a child. How I’ve adapted to cope with that. It’s something I’ve spent and will spend years in therapy trying to rectify. 

When I try to talk to her about this - she wants me to teach her about BDSM, so I try to start with the most important part, the foundation, consent and communication - she gets angry with me. She considers herself the victim and does not take criticism or questioning well - but it takes me years to realise this. 

I try desperately to understand her, but with no communication to go on, I am lost. She hates when I probe and needs to open up in her own time. She doesn’t share much of anything at all  -  from the small details about her day up to how she feels in the moment. I am sometimes given stories from her past, and left to extrapolate the rest. I hate the unknown - I am scared, so I push- for anything.

I have idolised her and refuse to blame her for her flaws. I buy into the victim narrative she believes not realising it. I am unable to explain her behaviour through insight into her past or present emotional state/experiences due to lack of data, but I try desperately anyway. Lacking context, I settle on believing her actions are always my fault, a lie I’ve been fed by abusers in the past. She’ll give me what I want and need when I deserve it by being perfect.

I become increasingly scared, self-loathing and insecure. I berate myself for every small thing I see as being done wrong, and whenever I take issue or am hurt by something she does or doesn’t do (usually communicate with me more), I find a way to make it my fault. I waste hours of my alone time on this, tearing myself down. 

I believe I am abusive and toxic, I am the perpetrator and she believes she is the victim of things in life and I suppose that she rarely does anything wrong. I deny my own reality and accept hers. She doesn’t need to manipulate me, no one would, I do it to myself.

 In my defence, my reality was/is pretty fucking abysmal and you might want to deny it in my place too. Despite the misplaced shame and guilt, it’s easier to be an abusive person than admit you’ve been so chronically abused and continue to relive it. One is a position of power... and the other is a complete lack of it. If I’m being abusive, then I can change. If I’m being mistreated, there’s not much I can do, it’s in the other person’s hands to cut it out or step up. And if there is anything that will trigger a victim of childhood neglect and abuse it's feeling helpless / powerless. 

To others, it looks like she is manipulating me to believe this about myself, but in fact I am filling  the gaps in our relationship with past experiences. I am reliving and recreating the trauma of my past abuse. She shares the victim mentality (and unfortunately enough, the height and build and gender expression of, priming me for this response) with a past online lover of mine who I was emotionally abused by and sexually pressured by for a year at 17.

It is easy to see how rape occurs within this dynamic. And, as a big surprise to no one, it did

 In a way, it was predestined by the circumstance and flaws of each of us. It was almost inevitable, unless either I realised what was happening and dealt with my past trauma or she worked through her issues with the victim mentality and then went on the learn more about consent and communication. We were both 19. This wasn’t going to happen without some outside intervention. 

Here’s the interesting part though - the level of insight, understanding and processing I have now would not have been reached had I not sat down to talk with her multiple times. It wasn’t easy and it definitely wasn’t pleasant for either of us - but I know it was ultimately beneficial. Or, at least... the most recent go at it (only a few days ago) was. And that’s what I would like to explore next.