PROMPT 114 BUT THE ITS THE READER WHO CAN SING NOT JOEL 🙏🙏

OMG Hi Bestie!

Thank you so much for this prompt (which was sent in by other folks too!) as it’s the PERFECT chance to introduce y’all to Bambi, the main character from the next fic I’m going to write, Yearling.

This fic is set post season 1 in Jackson and Bambi comes to town after spending years with raiders and, before that, years on her own surviving. Joel starts calling her Bambi the minute they meet - her wide eyes and skittish way of being reminding him of a baby deer. I’m sure we can all guess where this is going.

The drabble below isn’t canon but it is a good way to get a taste of Bambi and Joel and what’s to come in Yearling. I hope you like it!

Linger

You think you have privacy when you decide to sing for one of the horses. Turns out, that’s not the case.

Based on Prompt 114: “I didn’t know you could sing.”

Pairing: Joel Miller x Female Reader

Warnings: none!

Length: 1.5K

The vet said the horse was going to be fine but still… it didn’t feel right to leave her overnight.

“Hey there, Cassiopeia,” you said, keeping your voice low and gentle. The horse whinnied at you from her place on the ground. You got down on her level, tucking your legs to the side, and gently trailed your fingers down her forehead. “How are we feeling, sweet girl?”

She huffed in response. You smiled sadly.

“I know, it hurts,” you said. “Gunshots are no fun. People are the fuckin’ worst.”

You looked around her side to the bandage at her flank. It was, all told, a pretty good spot for a horse to get shot.

But it was still getting fucking shot.

You felt extra protective over Cassiopeia. She was the first horse you’d helped bring into Jackson. She had been a wild, free thing when you’d brought her to the town after several horses had been lost to attacks by raiders. The patrol needed horses, you knew how to catch and break them. It made sense for you to bring them in.

The horses, at least, led a pretty plush life here most of the time. They had enough work to keep them occupied and entertained, a pen that let them stretch their legs and graze, comfortable and clean stalls. Not to mention enough food that there was no risk of them starving in the harsh Wyoming winter.

It helped you justify capturing them and breaking them. You were helping them have an easy way of living, once they came around to it. A way out from the threats of wolves and raiders.

It just came at the cost of a cage.

You’d been a caged animal once. You knew what it was to catch a glimpse of the world you knew existed from behind bars. Yes, the horses here were treated far better than you had been but a cage was a cage.

Cassiopeia shifted and huffed, laying her large head in your lap. She was a beautiful animal, her coat coal black with a white star mark on her forehead. That’s why you’d named her what you did. A bright star in the dark, a creature that was trapped in a place a more powerful being had placed her. Where you’d placed her. And she’d been shot for a job you’d trained her to do.

“You did so good, sweet girl,” you said, gently stroking her mane. She whinnied. You leaned down and pressed a kiss to her head. “You got your rider back safe, helped him escape raiders. You deserve a good, long break. Recovery time and then some. I’ll swipe you some apples tomorrow, you’ve earned them.”

She seemed satisfied at that and shifted a bit again, settling her head against you. You leaned back against the stall wall and thought about her rider, the one she’d helped protect: Joel Miller, the surly man who’d brought you to Jackson to begin with.

You’d hardly had any contact with him in the months since. In fairness, you hardly had any contact with anyone if you could help it. Animals were way more your speed. You wanted as little to do with people as you could possibly manage and Joel seemed to feel the same.

But you did wonder about him.

He’d been so damn insistent on bringing you back to Jackson when he found you. Like he saw something in you that was worth trying to save. It didn’t make a lick of sense.

The horse shifted again and nudged your stomach with her head.

“Oh I’m sorry,” you looked down at her. “I thought we were done talking, I thought I was giving you a chance to rest young lady.”

She huffed and looked at you, raising her head a bit, insistent.

“Do you like it better when I’m talking?” You asked gently. She set her head back down. “Alright, I can keep talking then…”

Not that you were a stellar conversationalist.

But you could sing. It always calmed your horses before, them comforted by the sound of your voice and the rhythm of song.

No one around to hear how out of practice you must be, at least.

You tried to think of a song before you found something you actually remembered the lyrics of.

“If you, if you could return,” you sang it soft and lilting, slow enough that she could sink into it.

“Don't let it burn

Don't let it fade

I'm sure I'm not being rude

But it's just your attitude

It's tearing me apart

It's ruining every day

I swore, I swore I would be true

And honey so did you

So why were you holding her hand?

Is that the way we stand?

Were you lying all the time?

Was it just a game to you?

But I'm in so deep

You know I'm such a fool for you

You got me wrapped around your finger

Do you have to let it linger?

Do you have to, do you have to, do you have to let it linger?”

“I didn’t know you could sing.”

You about jumped out of your skin, Cassiopeia’s head flying up off your lap. You scrambled back into the corner of the stall, looking something you could use as a weapon as Joel came and leaned against the stall door frame. He crossed his arms, looking a little amused.

“Easy, Bambi,” he said. “Not gonna bite.”

“Scared the shit out of me,” you panted, adjusting on the floor of the stall again so Cassiopeia could lay her head on you once more.

“Sorry, wasn’t tryin’ to freak you out…”

“The fuck are you doing here?” You asked, still not ready to trust his word that he wasn’t here to hurt you.

“Wanted to check on her,” he said, nodding to the horse. “Hell of a mouthful you named her, by the way. Where the fuck does Cassiopeia come from?”

“It’s a constellation,” you said, going back to stroking the horse’s mane. He nodded slowly.

“Have to tell Ellie that,” he said. “She loves space…”

Joel hovered for a moment and then sat down against the stall wall across from you. You pressed back against the stall

“You play, too?” He asked. “You sure can sing like you know music…”

“Been a few years but,” you shrugged. “Yeah.”

He nodded.

“If you want, you can borrow my guitar,” he said. “Long as you bring it back.”

He looked you up and down and you tensed. He frowned.

“I’m really not gonna hurt you, Bambi,” he said. “You don’t gotta try n’ hide from me.”

“Yeah well,” you shrugged. “You haven’t given me much reason to believe you yet.”

“Would I have gone through that much fuckin’ trouble to get you to Jackson if I wanted to hurt ya?” He asked, almost bemused.

“Yes.”

“Well, I didn’t,” he said. “Sides, we’re apparently gonna be patrol partners soon. Gonna have to get used to me.”

“Well on patrol I’ll have a gun,” you replied. “Good luck fuckin’ taking it from me on your own.”

“Not gonna hurt you there either, Bambi,” he said. “Surprised you know the Cranberries. Seemed like before your time…”

You frowned.

“I was an adult when the outbreak happened,” you said. “I had a job and shit and everything. That song was big when I was a teenager.”

“Sorry, I thought you were younger,” He said. “Know how to play it?“

“I could figure it out pretty quick,” you said. “I was only ever good at two things, music and horses. I’m outta practice but I could play it quick. I’m sure of it.”

You looked him over for a moment. His shaggy graying hair, his soft brown eyes. Part of you wanted to be next to him. But most of you was scared. Joel was a big man, you were still weak even after a few months in Jackson. He could do whatever he wanted to you if he got you in the right position. You didn’t trust him not to.

“You play then?” You asked. “Since you have a guitar.”

“I play,” he nodded. “Wanted to be a singer when I was a kid.”

You snorted.

“Sounds about right.”

You and Joel talked for hours. You didn’t really notice that it happened until the sun started to rise, Cassiopeia asleep on your lap. But it was the longest you’d talked to another person in years.

“I should get back,” Joel said, craning his neck to look at the sunrise. “Got shit to do this morning…. Well, now.”

“I should, too,” you agreed, getting up. “At least go and wash off the stall.”

“Thank you,” Joel said watching you for a moment before getting up himself. “For lookin’ after the horse. Didn’t expect anyone else l to care about her like I do.”

“She’s my baby,” you shrugged.

Joel nodded.

“Well, Bambi, it was nice gettin’ to know you a bit,” he said. “Sure we’ll end up talkin’ more on patrol soon.”

“Yeah,” you said, letting yourself stand a little closer to him than you normally would. “Sure we will.”

so i've been rewatching DW and i just finished the NYC-Dalek episodes in S3

and i think i finally understand what they were going for with martha jones and why it didn't work as well as it could've

i've been really paying attention to what the writing had for martha and a lot of it i think is really interesting and even necessary in terms of the overall RTD era story arc (stay with me)

more under the cut 'cause this got long

like...martha is supposed to be the opposite of rose and we're supposed to compare them:

both her parents are alive and in her life (even if they're divorced)

has siblings

no boyfriend when we meet her

not only finished high school but went to uni and is continuing her education even further as a medical student (rose dropped out and had to get a job)

doesn't feel stuck with her life

older than rose (i think martha's like 23? idk)

booksmart (rose is streetsmart)

dark complexion (rose is fair complexion)

a little more socially awkward compared to rose

*not as assertive and is more timid*

and i would argue sheltered bc her family is clearly on the wealthier side (one of the reasons i think she doesn't fight back physically very often and is so easy to kidnap)

and honestly i'm not mad at any of this - i think it feeds into ten's heartbreak and loneliness in interesting ways and S3 did not need a new rose we needed someone different for that heartbreak and loneliness to make the impact it did

it works well within the narrative and for ten's character arc (S3 helps make tentoo work imo)

HOWEVER

martha's character arc gets buried under her crush on ten and what he's going through

after the loss of rose for the audience the crush angle gets annoying fast - because we also miss rose and we miss how ten was with her! all the big smiles and laughing

S3 ten is so self-distructive but doesn't have a tyler woman to slap some sense into him and that's part of the point it just sucks that it's at the cost of the 1st black female companion and her character bc then her arc doesn't get as much focus as it should (mickey got better development in 2 episodes in a season with a bigger reoccuring cast than martha did in 12 with fewer main cast members)

martha's character journey i would argue is about learning to be brave and assertive in ways she's never had to be before (when we meet her she's the peacemaker of the family; she doesn't like confrontation) and i think making her a medical student is a great vehicle for that arc bc she'd have to learn how to do that anyway if she wanted to be a successful and effective doctor (compassion only gets you so far and martha jones is already quite compassionate)

BUT i think if the writing highlighted that more and gave her even more moments of learning to stand up for herself and taking charge without someone having to tell her to (aka ten) and leaned more into her booksmarts her character would've been even stronger than it got to be by the end of S3 (when she finally tells ten to f-off and let her do as she likes)

i love all the RTD era companions including the "side companions" (mickey, jack, wilfred) and yes rose is my favourite but i adore martha too and she deserved better than she got during S3 (thank god S4 and torchwood fixed some things)

i do think if the writers had just given her a little more in terms of influencing episodes and leaned more on her "traditional" intelligence (aka high education) and let her be less passive (oh my god is she passive!) then her arc wouldn't have been as buried as it feels when watching S3

because it's not a bad arc! not at all! it just needed more focus than her crush on ten

Hey, really liked your analysis of Hinata. I feel almost the same way about her. Even though generally I dislike female characters who are naturally meek, subservient and pointless with no character arc in any type of media, what made me absolutely hate her character was how she treated Neji. If Kishi wanted to show her arc being developed organically, instead of proposing to Naruto that removes her stuttering and gives her new found confidence (because girls only get confident when proposing to guys 🙄), Kishi could have shown her talking to Neji after he literally told his bitter story on the chuunin exam grounds in front of everyone. She is shown like she is sympathetic but didn't do anything about it. She didn't even talk to him after he was hospitalized. She knew exactly why he was the way he was, and yet she fights him as if it was his fault. She, an heir of the clan, could have asked her father to support Neji, she had some clout. But nope. In fact, it was Neji who apologizes to her in a way, he is the one who trains her and help create a new jutsu for her. What did she ever do for him exactly? And Neji didn't have to help her. She was in the best position to help and understand Neji but what did she do? A lot of fans like her character because she is reserved but kind and sympathetic. She is reserved but a coward. She was not kind towards Neji. He died for her when he didn't deserve to, he had dreams and goals that were much bigger than Hinata's entire existence. She couldn't even see her own cousin's pain and she claims to understand Naruto?? Really??

Even Kishi said she was a pitiful character who only watches from a distance. He deliberately made her that way, no goal, no backbone and no lines. And I think she sucks the most after Danzo.

WoooW!!!! Thanks for the ask, Anon.

[[Hinata and Sakura fans!!!! Please stay away and don't interact. I fucking tagged them properly]].

Even though generally I dislike female characters who are naturally meek, subservient and pointless with no character arc in any type of media, what made me absolutely hate her character was how she treated Neji.

We definitely share the same thoughts on this one, Anon.

I am really tired on most of the media for their poor treatment of female characters.

The last time I was amused by a female character was from 'Game of Thrones', I loved Cersei Lannister, who is an absolute biashhh and Sansa Stark, started out as an annoying rose tinted princess but ended up winning everyone's heart. Both are non-combative, soft spoken and somewhat powerless women in a world dominated by men. But they just didn't let the inconveniences stop them and instead they learned how to fuck that world back and take control. Both are similar and yet very different.

After seeing, such well-developed characters..... For me girls in Naruto series, is blehhhhh..... Nothing to get inspired from them. And I knew it by episode 3 itself. I have no idea how can girls, in real life, treat Sakura as some feminist icon, which makes my skin crawl for number of reasons. If you point her mistakes out in any discussions, they will pull the misogynist card to your face. When in reality, I am also a girl and my world views are entirely different from Sakura or Hinata. There is no way a 12 year old girl would want to look at the Duck of another boy.

And the problem is, They form the majority, I mean people who can connect with Sakura or Hinata. So, as long as girls like them exists, we really should suffer from these crap portrayal I guess.

That's why I advise people that If you want to see a good woman character, Narutoverse is not the place.

Having said that, I find Temari, Konan, Tsunade were better (I mean inside the Narutoverse). Though their motivations or reason to achieve a goal revolve around their men, I find their attitude relieving. Unlike Sakura or Hinata, they don't wet themselves on the sight of the men they love.

What irritates me was, Kishimoto could've easily put a character like Temari or TenTen or Tsunade into Team 7. It would've made my viewing experience a lot better. If he doesn't want the strong girls to take over the attention from his boys, then he should've introduced a meek character like Rin Nohara. She is silent and cute but atleast she was willing to die for the Village and never wetted herself over Kakashi, though she loved him. And she treated Obito like her best friend. But he deliberately made Sakura hateful and he never stopped.

Sakura and Hinata were the lowest of the low, compared to any other side characters. And, in the end, they got the main Character's Ducks without actively doing anything. For me this tells me three things

He was using these girls as a shield to close the hetero normative mouths while in reality hiding those boys true feelings under that shield.

He really hated these kind of girls and constantly showing his hatred on them at every given chance and never redeemed them back. 

He knew the target audience’ mindset and he simply caters them by giving them what they need and at the same time writing the important arcs according to his wish.

I think, it’s the combination of all three. 

Just to give you an example.

There is this delusional SS shipper Who justifies Sasuke was acting Tsundere throughout the war arc. I mean, come on!!!! 

I came across this post because, the Original Poster was an idiot who comes into the anti SS tag and reblogged my content and saying I was wrong... So, I don’t mind sharing that person’s content.

So I don’t know where this delusion comes from... It's truly pathetic.

There are millions of idiots who believe in this kind of shit and Kishi is deliberately feeding them with bits and crumbs while making his boys go out and save the world.

These delusional mindset tells us they don’t give a single shit about the story as a whole. They watch it purely for the pretty faces and getting high over them. In this case, Sasuke.

It’s as clear as day that Sasuke didn’t care about anyone other than Naruto when fighting the war. You don’t have to be a shipper but even a non-shipper can point this out. I mean Sasuke wouldn’t have saved Jugo either, if he didn’t come to Sasuke and advice him. Do you think Sasuke would’ve tried to look for Jugo and saved him at all cost???? It’s just that he came to Sasuke and he helps him back. But Sasuke would’ve saved Naruto from the bomb blast even if he was standing a mile away.

So, if these delusions reflects the mindset of the majority of the women audience, then the creator will never try to give anything better but instead give us some low-life characters like Sakura and Hinata. 

So, Anon, your expectation for Hinata’s character could’ve been developed much better is just a wishful thinking. Because, Hinata is a character for these kind of people and not for us. And the author deliberately did it. 

She was in the best position to help and understand Neji but what did she do? A lot of fans like her character because she is reserved but kind and sympathetic. She is reserved but a coward. She was not kind towards Neji. He died for her when he didn't deserve to, he had dreams and goals that were much bigger than Hinata's entire existence. She couldn't even see her own cousin's pain and she claims to understand Naruto?? Really??

For me, this also irked me a lot. 

Hinata could’ve tried to talk to Neji about his problems even when he was a child. But she was simply playing innocent when in reality, she is just a coward. Even after the Chunin Exams, there was no apologies from her side, like you said. Because she is from the Main Branch. That hierarchy never changed. If she had the gall, she could’ve easily broken that hierarchy by saying, ‘I want Neji Nii-San to take over our Clan, He is the best candidate for this and I can gladly help him with all my efforts’.  A single line and just 2 or 3 panels, it all takes.

For me killing Neji is where Kishi asking us silently, 

Do you really want these pair to happen despite having a blood stain of another character??? 

Most people said, ‘Yes!!!’, because they don’t give two shits about Neji. As long as Hinata gets Naruto, the main character’s Duck, that’s all there is to it. It doesn’t matter who dies, who lives. 

That's why Kishi is shitting on them by making her as a non-existent woman in the Boruto Manga.

Even in real life, there are many hopeless foolish little girls who would do anything for the man she loves. I've seen them and I always stay 2 miles away from them. I mean, they even ditch their own friends and spends her entire time with him and when he dumps her later, she will come back to her friends for consolation. I think Sansa Stark is the best example for this. She started out much similar to Sakura and Hinata, believing in Princes and shit, she even naively betrayed her father for the man she had crush on. But the author made her to learn her lesson in a much painful way and later she came out as a Queen who no longer needed any man at the end. I think, this is called Development.

At the end of the day, Romance and Sex is all that matters. The author knew it. So, he is feeding these girls with some low quality cookies and they are very glad to take and eat it.

other main character meta- Ochako, pt 1

<part 2>

“Could you send me there?” you ask, while i blink, confused. “The world where someone else is the main character? not because i have any hypocritical biases against the one i got, just curious how the fandom meta changes.”

“Oh, yeah, sure.” I nod, thinking, before tapping my wand against your forehead. “Let’s start with Ochako.”

"I'm going to warn you now- I will have to slightly adjust the plot like I did with Mirio, just to actually let her be the main character."

"Yeah, that checks out." You nod, thinking about certain arcs where the female fighting teams get no coverage while the dudes get four different backstory reveals and full fight focus.

"Very well."

The show begins with a brief narration by the girl of quirks and super hero fights- all flashy. Then it zooms out to show the destruction, and a small construction team moving in as Ochako explains that just as there are new careers in society for heroes, there's also a bigger market for construction companies, one of which her own family runs.

"I've always wanted to help them with it, and my quirk would be useful"- a tiny, adorable Ochako finally appears, making rocks in a park float- "but to get a work license like that is expensive and selective- you've got to make a lot of court appearances and convince them why is a good idea and won't destroy the economy. It's much easier to get a hero license."

Then she explains: "Of course, once you have a hero license, you can make a lot more money than just by helping the company. Especially if... Your family company isn't doing very well." A series of tired but loving parents are shown working all hours to make ends meet.

"I want to help them- my parents. They've done everything for me, and they deserve a break. So that's why I'm going to be a hero- their hero."

The training montage is quick, using her quirk during school in training, after school in secret, around the house. She saves up money too, and studies, aiming for a scholarship.

She applies and tests for many hero schools, and the exams all vary widely.

The first episode ends with her looking up at UA, her final one, the one she really hopes to get into.

"Oh, that's nice." You nod. "And we even get to know her parents' quirks here."

"Yep." I agree. "In general, there's a lot more of a look at the financial side. It's pretty interesting."

"And the fandom?"

"Well, certain people get praised for the bare minimum, but I'll admit having a female lead is super uncommon for shonen jump." It's an improvement, though it's up in the air how much of one it will be. "There's also, because we saw a lot more hero schools, a ton of "students at different school" fics, either because they were expelled or because of the danger UA gets into."

"I do kinda feel like this universe is lucky for that sort of world building." You nod.

"It's very cool to see the takes on the aus. But, I will say there's a cost for this world building- the AfO stuff reeeeally comes out of nowhere and tends to not be popular with fans."

The next episode starts, and Ochako helps a boy from falling. "Love interest alert!" The fans notice quickly when the cute boy blushes and doesn't manage to say much before she walks away.

"They caught on quick." You note.

"And they aren't wrong." Not that it's any real feat to be right.

The exam starts, and Ochako is off in a flash. You see a few glimpses of future classmates- Iida, Aoyama, Kirishima.

She does well, racking up villain points and rescue points, until she's a little too ambitious and falls into the rubble. Her nausea is well established by now, everyone knows she's at her limit.

She can't get up.

The green haired boy comes back and stops the zero pointer.

And breaks every bone in the process.

Ochako saves him in return, lifting up the rubble and stopping his fall.

And then vomits violently afterwards.

"You know, I think quirks suck, actually." The fandom tends to agree on this after that episode/chapter. "But it is interesting that there's such a price for the powers, balances it really well."

"Ha." You shake your head. "They caught onto that, quicker."

"Yep." I can't even say it's more highlighted here, it's the exact same way it was shown in our universe- down to the sparkling rainbow puke.

"Though..." You can't quite imagine that's the only thing the fandom is saying isn't actually that great.

"Ding ding ding." I nod. "Did our own main character get treated just like a damsel in distress? Sure, she saved him back, but that just meant she could have floated away on her own in that time, even if it made her sick. Better that than dead. Is it the sexism?" I shrug. "Most decide to wait and see a bit, and by the time they work together in the first battle exercise figure it's a pretty even split between them saving each other."

"So no sexism?" You get happy at that thought.

I cough. "Ah, no. Both in the show and the fandom. You wouldn't believe how many grown men complain about the lady mc, even as they keep watching."

"And have her body pillow."

"Please don't make me think about that." I cover my eyes, but don't deny that it's true. "Anyway, yeah. Get ready for a lot of people to point out that even though the main character is a girl, every single other girl is flat as cardboard so far and that she only has developed friends that are guys."

"Hey, they aren't flat-"

"In the first season? Yeah they are. Unless you meant, physically, in which case..."

"I didn't." You protest. "But I guess I can see your point, at the start."

"Right. Let's continue on."

Uraraka goes to Present Mic to offer her points. The man pats her on the head, and skyrockets to the position of fandom dad.

"It's all about Dadmic and then Dadzawa here," I explain. "The fans were very disappointed to learn Mic wasn't her homeroom teacher, but yeah... He got a huge head start before Dadzawa fics got going."

"Nice. And it's all fanon?"

"Yeah, it may be a good thing he's not actually in it much, or they might realize how much they just made up on their own."

Then she gets accepted in, on hero and rescue points- she's third place overall, and she gets the scholarship.

On the first day of school, she actually gets to know her love interest's name- Midoriya!

There's also the quirk assessment, which really leads to the "expelled to another school" au and the "fire Aizawa and replace him with better Mic" aus, the first of which lasts much longer in the fandom use, but the second one was just as passionate for a while.

Iida becomes the second friend, and gives her the "Infinity Girl" nickname- which actually is the fandom assumption of what her hero name will be for quite a while, a la 'ground zero'.

Then it's time for All Might's first appearance on screen, to much applause of the students, and the announcement that they get their costumes.

During the first battle exercise, there's a lot more lingering camera work in the changing rooms. Ochako gets to expand a lot more on how she didn't want her costume to be that tight. It's uncomfortable, especially when she thinks about wearing it in front of everyone.

"Oh, I forgot she didn't like it at first... Does she just, get used to it here?" It sounds horrible for the plot to just say 'get used to it' to the main character being sexualized by costume makers outside of her control, especially as a child.

"Not on my watch." I mumble, waving the wand. "Don't worry, she'll actually get more costume changes each time, like some other characters."

"Oh good."

Mineta, regrettably, still exists. You find the fandom manages to be even more violent in his removal.

The battle does even out the opinions on Midoriya, as well as lead to a boost in Iida's with his charming little attempt at thinking villainously.

And cements Bakugo as rather hated. No one has really liked him, when the first thing he did was blow up at Midoriya, then get revealed to have called him a cruel nickname all this time. And then specifically hunt him down because all he cares about it beating him up.

"Yeah he's not gonna get a lot of fans here huh."

"He sure never gets first place in the popularity poll." I agree. "Most consider him the subversion of the rival trope to show is just stupid and violent and in real life, people like that don't go anywhere."

"Most?"

I look away. "How dumb of a discourse do you think you could see today?"

"Oh please, show me." You lean in. "It's nice to not have to deal with it in my universe, so I don't care."

The discourse is such.

Bakugo is gay-coded for Midoriya, the violence is a result of him being shoved off for a girl's love interest when she should be single and independent, and the homophobic creator is vilifying all gay people by saying they are predatory to poor straight boys with refused.

"They............... What."

"If it makes you feel better, that's a very brief minority of the fandom. My favorite response to it was "he's not gay-coded, he's bully coded you sanctimonious sumph of a shmuck.""

"Oh good," you sigh. "I'm glad we don't have to deal with actual queerphobic tropes like that."

I stare at you.

"What?"

I sigh. "Nothing, put a pin in that until I bring up the predatory bi thing with Toga."

Your eyes widen, and you start to have some regrets.

"Anyway, we can talk shipping later. Time for more."

The 'exit sign Iida' gives him a boost in being shipped with Ochako, (as well as Yaoyorozu) and also the general idea that "Ochako has two hands."

That one hand can have a boyfriend with a lot of cash to spare for her and the other is also played with.

"I missed the main trio, like this." You smile as they walk off into the sunset after school.

"Yeah." I agree. "Anyway, time for some near death experiences."

The USJ marks the start of the gradual, gradual growth of Dadzawa fics. It also focuses far more on Ochako, Mina, Sero, and Iida having to think strategically to get around Kurogiri. It's only after Iida escapes that we cut back to a slightly abridged version of how Midoriya was doing, then the other kids, before help arrives.

He does still through his first non bone breaking punch though, which makes the audience happy.

All Might saves the day. Aizawa is battered afterwards. Many fans start out by saying they were disappointed, since this was supposed to be the first big fight, and the kids didn't do much. Many others say in response that's the point- we're looking at first years, they had to think and help each other, but in the end they had to rely on adults.

And then the sports festival is announced. They want to do well, because this is how they get work-week placements, which could become internship offers.

Ochako thinks about Hado Nejire, the only intern of a top ten hero, and senior at UA, along with a few others who are on the up and up. She's determined.

"Really? You're bringing in the big three early?" You ask, glancing at my wand.

It's not sparkling.

I cross my arms with a huff. "Look. Nejire is at this point the only intern in the top ten, she would have been recognizable to the students for that, even if they didn't recognize the big three (which really means that they aren't actually called the Big Three by everyone, or at least not a wide enough group for it to be as big a deal as it's treated. Anyway.) But she wasn't, even if she should have been the most famous of the bunch, considering the coverage the first years got in just their first night. That's because a certain someone doesn't actually think of his female characters much, but he has to in this universe, so."

"Ok, yeah, that's fair. So does that change the sports festival?"

"Not... Much." I admit.

“What?”

“Well, keep in mind in the first universe, our main character didn’t make it past the second round in the one-on-one’s. So she’s not exactly guaranteed a win here either.”

You have to nod, admitting that is true.

“And the conflict isn’t so much about having to live up to any predecessor or breaking down some people’s walls via breaking bones.” I tap my wand against my chin, thinking. “There really is two- one about Midoriya, and one about Ochako’s parents.”

“Oh?”

“One, there’s been the Uraraka’s not happy about how much danger Ochako’s been in. Its been hinted at in the phone calls, but really shows up when we get to see them at home before the SF for the first time since she moved for school. They aren’t sure if she can stay there herself, or if the right thing to do would be to pull her out and maybe try a smaller school.”

“I suppose that's fair, if they haven't been able to actually see her or her progress.”

“Right. The second one is- well. in this, Izuku’s win of the first round, and then breaking out of brainwashing, is more about really piling on how good his mind is- all that brain power. This adds more pressure when we see Ochako being offered a plan from him to beat Bakugo.”

“Oh that does sound neat.”

“Yep- but of course, she still refuses. It’s held up as a worse thing, strategically, initially- but then she comes up with a plan that Midoriya confirms in the stands is better than his, and proves to her parents that she’s smart and skilled enough to handle continuing at the school.”

You smile. “That is a cool arc to do, i guess, if very not traditional. But what about all the character setup and growth with Shinsou and Todoroki?”

“Oh, Shinsou’s largely gets delegated all the way later for the joint training arc, where Ochako’s team is directly against him. Todoroki...” I begin to giggle.

You wait for me to answer, getting more concerned the longer i laugh.

“Pocket?”

“Sorry, sorry, yeah. He actually tells her himself in this canon, a bit after stain. Oh! right, i forgot- the cheerleader incident.”

“Oh no.”

“Oh yes. of course they need this merch opportunity! But yes, it happens. The... shall we say, non-body-pillow portion of the fandom, generally saw it as the end of any goodwill to Kaminari, who had previously been seen as a tertiary possible love interest, since he’d flirted with her on the first day. Flirt, but harmless, and unlikely to be important. Then there was that breach of trust and international embarrassment, and anyway he’s basically the second least likely in 1a to be shipped with her now.”

“Wow. So none of that changed?”

“Well, the setup wasn’t under narration from Todoroki about how his mother was bought for her body and how much that sucked and impacted her and the family while on screen we see multiple girls tricked into barring their bodies and its treated as a laugh instead?”

You stare at me. “I’m not sure if that’s better or worse.”

“Neither am I.”

“So, the Todoroki reveal?”

“Right. So, first you need to know the Stain thing- the claims he has against ‘false’ heroes focusing on money is better spotlighted. After Stain’s arrest, Ochako hears a couple of sidekicks at Gunhead’s agency-”

“Wait!” you interrupt. “She still interned with Gunhead? Then what was the point of showing Nejire and Ryukyuu earlier?”

I try not to massage my forehead. “To build up to it. She only made it to the first of the final round, she couldn’t get an internship with a top tenner yet. She’s also got to learn how to disarm someone who fights with a knife. These things build up over more time, small steps.”

“Ah.” You’re satisfied, and let me continue.

“Right, so, Overhears a couple of them talking about Stain’s philosophy and ends up just feeling really bad about it for a bit, trying to figure out if she’s actually being selfish or a bad hero for, you know, wanting her family to not be crushed due to capitalism.”

“Poor girl.” You shake your head in sympathy, the freeze. “Oh. did not intend that pun.”

“It’s alright, i know what you mean. And yeah, she bottles it up for a bit, until the second day back at school. Then Iida reminds her that him bottling things up last week got several kids in mortal danger, and she begrudgingly admits that he has a point and tells them about what has been bugging her.”

“And they comfort her?”

“Well, Todoroki also offers to tell off Kaminari because at this point his mention of stain upset both her and iida, but yes, A lot of reassurances.”

You squint. “I feel like shippers.”

“You’re learning! Yes, Todoroki is just a bit behind Iida in terms of popularity shipping with her. and she does basically get shipped A Lot with each girl in her class too, like imagine double to triple the amount with each girl now, and for the minor guys- but yeah. There’s a lottttt of ships. This was basically called ‘todoroki’s introduction into ochako’s harem’ in the fandom.”

Shipping. fandom just can’t escape it.

“So, then she learns about Todoroki’s past? oh, and what about Hosu? Does she- and everyone else- actually think Endeavor saved the three??”

I snort. “Oh, no. Todoroki’s flat ‘yeah my father totally helped us, as you read on the official report’ basically tipped the fandom off that something else had. But nothing confirmed either, you know? Filling in the hosu gap is another trope in fics that is pretty common.”

“Neat.”

“Yep. But yeah Todoroki tells her his backstory a bit after his introduction into her ‘harem’ of friends. It’s really played up more to caution Ochako- its alright for her to want to help her family, and to work for money to do that. But Rei accepted the marriage offer for money for her family too, and it ended up breaking her. Ochako has to accept a balance- she can work to help her family, and its good, but there are some things she cannot morally do to help them, and other things that she shouldn’t do because she has to take care of her own health first.”

“Ohhhh.” You hadn’t quite expected that, but you sorta liked it, now that you thought about it.

I smile. “It is pretty neat, yeah.” I glance at my watch. “Look, i hate to cut you off, but this post is gonna end up thrice the length of Mirio’s and i think tumblr might stop me, so we’re gonna have to do a two-parter.”

“That’s fine.” You are gracious for what you’ve gotten so far, and do have questions that you’re excited to see answered for the rest of the series. “It’s been fun.”

“It has been.” I agree. “Lets take a break, but you can ask me any questions too, before I return for part two.”

<part 2>

I edited the ask slightly to make it clear this is about apologists making excuses for Chloé's behavior and not fans who just feel frustrated over not getting an arc they wished to see.

Anon said: I think what really annoys me is Chloe apologists that cry she’s, “just a kid she can learn to be better and outgrow her abusive tendencies” seem to gloss over or ignore that Chloe has been given MULTIPLE chances to do better for 3 seasons and at every turn she always returns to her spoiled bratty bullying ways. Especially in season 3 where she didn’t listen to Ladybug about never getting the miraculous and felt entitled to the power.

It’s just so annoying how chloe apologists act like she’s the real victim just cause her mommy doesn’t love her, news flash she’s not the only character in the show who has a bad relationship with a parent. It doesn’t give Chloe the right to degrade and abuse people. Im not sure if Chloe needs to hit rock bottom before she turn things around or this is heading towards a corruption arc. However im also annoyed when parts of her fandom claim it’s misogynistic that she doesn’t get better.

Because sometimes bad people stay bad and never get better, it would be a very powerful lesson to teach kids who are in toxic abusive relationships especially with childhood friends that sometimes you have to let them go and cut them off because they’re causing you harm. It was very powerful of Adrien to stand up to Chloe multiple times as an abuse victim and not let her drag him down to her level. All the people mad at him for queen banana don’t realize that Adrien can’t make chloe a kinder person. No one can make someone mean good.

Plus the show is chock full of actual good and kind girls with positive supportive friendships so having one or even two female characters turn out bad isn’t sexist to me. Same with people who claim Zoe is a Mary Sue and it’s wrong that she’s replacing Chloe. Which is weird because Zoe can’t replace what Chloe never was, a friend to the main cast. Chloe was never close with the class or their friend even if she tried to be involved in their projects he never tried to get along with the others.

Plus Zoe made a mistake by trying to emulate her family and be a bully but eventually realized being awful like them wasn’t worth their approval. Whether she’s a better hero or deserves the miraculous is another discussion but we’re talking about Chloe here. If she continues down the path of selfishness and hate becoming like her mother and her sister Zoe, who also comes from an abusive family, doesn’t that just means one overcame their trauma and the other didn’t.

Sorry for the rant just I’m so tired of seeing the tag be cluttered up by Chloe apologists who won’t stop crying or complaining about her character.

With what the canon actually gave us, Chloé's arc could have gone, and could still go, either way on the redemption/corruption scale. Yes, Chloé messed up royally in the season three finale, but she was under duress to a degree. While Chloé showed few signs of becoming a selfless hero, since most of the people she helped as a hero were people she put in bad situations to begin with or she helped out to get to hang out with Ladybug, she's also showed no signs of becoming a true villain the same way Lila has. We can clearly see Lila developing into a supervillain, but Chloé is very much stuck in the middle and could go either way if she suddenly got superpowers with no strings attached.

The real issue here is Chloé's civilian life. She's never been kind to her classmates and goes out of her way to make sure they have a bad time. This has never been influenced by whether or not she had a Miraculous, so obviously something not-superpowers-related needs to happen for her to see anything wrong with what she's doing.

And there's a real chance Zoé is meant to be that thing that makes Chloé see. Chloé could see how her sister was forgiven and welcomed by her classmates and realize how easy it is to stop being awful and get validation and friendship from the class that way. This realization might make her look down on the class as gullible fools, like Lila, or it might make Chloé want to belong and try to adjust her behavior, having her follow Zoé's lead.

Of course there's still a chance that Chloé will just keep swinging between sitcom arch nemesis and not-quite-a-supervillain, that she'll still be used as a civilian life obstacle for the heroes to overcome and she's not meant to be redeemed or corrupted. In this case I can see this fandom discourse continuing for years to come, since it's the uncertainty of Chloé's role that's fuelling it so much.

Crying misogyny every time your favorite female character is treated in a way you don't like, when it’s used in a way that’s clearly just a buzzword meant to manipulate people, is something I'm just so done with. In the case of Miraculous, though, it's especially misguided, with how much the creators clearly try to be feminist. It's one thing to say something they did fails at that goal and leans into sexist attitudes and another to say they're being purposefully misogynistic because the show isn’t to your tastes. Because, let’s face it, a lot of the show’s attempts at being progressive have been tone deaf, but it usually seems to happen by accident and sometimes, at least with Fei’s design, they seem to be willing to amend a mistake when it gets pointed out.

Also, because sexism and feminism are about gender politics, the thing with discussing sexism is not actually comparing a female character with other female characters, it's about comparing a female character with male characters. If a show aims for gender equality, a character's gender can't influence how they are treated. This means we need to see if we can compare Chloé's character to a male character and find equality.

And we can. Miraculous Ladybug has a male character who causes others pain on purpose. This same character has several chances to stop being awful with "not being awful" costing him nothing. He even shows a softer side in 'Style Queen', just like Chloé in that same episode, but ultimately tosses that change aside when he finds something he thinks can help him gain his goals, like Chloé does in 'Miracle Queen'.

I am of course talking about Gabriel Agreste. I have repeatedly said that Marinette and Chloé are mirrors, what the other could be if they changed how they view other people and themselves. Gabriel is a foil to Marinette, so he naturally mirrors Chloé as well. However, Gabriel's arc has a similar forwards-and-backwards beat as Chloé's does. Even Chloé Apologists recognize the similarities between the two, since I've seen them voicing concerns that Gabriel might get redeemed while Chloé doesn't, because they think Gabriel having sympathetic aspects is a sign of a redemption arc for him like it supposedly was for Chloé. Instead, they are still both firmly in the area of antagonists and villains.

Although I will concede one key difference: Chloé is still way more likely to get redeemed than Gabriel.

I also think that, even if Chloé does get redeemed eventually, it’s still important that Adrien didn’t just hang on waiting for it when she spent so long proving again and again that she didn’t want to change. Because the other characters couldn’t know for sure if Chloé would change. Just like in the real world you won’t know for sure if your toxic friend will ever change, so you might have to let them go for your own sake. Even if they might get better one day, even if you’re not their target, it’s not on you to stand by them when they do things that are against your personal ethics.

Itaewon Class

How Much I Loved It: ★ ★ ★ ★

Rewatchability: ★ ★

Bingeworthy: ★ ★ ★

How Many Times I’ve watched it:  ★

OTP: Saeroyi and Yiseo

Some of my favorite things:

Saeroyi treats everyone the same, as if they are deserving of respect and kindness until they show him otherwise.

Mr. Park and his just keep on trucking attitude was really inspiring. So you got kicked out of school. You can get your GED! So I got fired. We’ll open a restaurant! He’s always optimistic and he doesn’t let life get him down.

I think it’s a tiny bit funny that both of Saeroyi’s love interests are acting like garbage humans when he first meets them. Ngl I kind of loved Yiseo from the beginning. She takes no shit, she doesn’t care what you think, and she might be a sociopath.

Soo ah looks out for Soo ah and I can respect that

Yiseo is just as driven as Saeroyi, but in a different way. I loved that when either of them said they were going to do something, they did it, no matter how long it took or what it cost

Neither of these women seemed like a good match for him, but I did appreciate that Yiseo was never shy about being in his corner.

I loved how Yiseo walked in and could instantly see everything that was wrong with DanBam and then she just... fixed it. And then Saeroyi learned so quickly from her he was able to implement all of her changes in other people’s restaurants.

The implications of Saeroyi having to use the Jang family method to make his own business successful, how he basically lived in Daehee’s shadow his entire life, how making his life about revenge tied their fates together, how he realizes all of this so late... it was very poetic.

We have a trans character in the main ensemble which I love. It did bother me a bit that they knew she felt like a woman but they didn’t start using female gendered terms until after the transition surgery. I’m wondering if that’s a cultural thing? But all of the main cast were eventually were accepting and it was really nice because after it was a plot point we just moved on and she got to just keep being her? If that makes sense?

Everyone gets a back story and it’s so cool to see oh well, Saeroyi is nice to everyone but somehow he has a knack for being nice to the right people and watching that pay off for him.

Seung-gwon and his arc was amazing and the lesson that your life isn’t over just because you’ve made some bad choices or bad things happened in your life.

Soo Ah refused to give up on her dreams even though they ran counter to Saeroyi’s. And then we find out the entire time she was spying to take them down, but she never used this information for ease her guilt with Saeroyi or make him pick her

Everyone in the cast was just unfairly attractive. Though my dude, Saeroyi you’re successful now, try a new hair cut!

Saeroyi never judged anyone for their choices, even when, imo, he should have

I thought it was a bit funny that they just assumed Toni spoke English but I wish that they’d touched on it a bit more and the racism hidden in that assumption

Oh! When someone wasn’t good enough Saeroyi just told them to get better instead of firing or punishing anyone!

And his management style was all about the people, the people he worked with, the people who were us suppliers his investors, etc. it was a really nice juxtaposition with the way Janga ran

I loved the way he was able to take Janga down because they’d been so cruel and awful to so many people that Saeroyi was kind and generous to. Like if Daehee had just been a decent human being Saeroyi would never have had enough people or resources to beat him

Things I hated

Holy back story. I get that it’s important to the story but the first two episodes are all back story before two time skips to get you to present day. Speaking of which...

Holy time skips! Again, I know the story doesn’t make sense without them but there are a lot, and a lot of what felt like could be interesting story was just buried in them

The relationship drama. So much of it. For a story about a man avenging his fathers death there sure is a lot of “do you like me?”

Geunwon had such potential for a growth arc! He’d never been given a real consequence in his entire life, never shown love or affection, so his behavior wasn’t really that surprising. But then he was removed from his silver spoon lifestyle and instead of coming out of it having learned something he’s just incredibly unhinged. It made me sad. I really wanted him to grow when he was taken from Daehee the same way Geunsoo seemed to be subverted by him when he stepped out of the shadows and was influenced by their father

Overall this one was really fun and easy to get through. I loved all of the messages throughout, about standing for ones principles about not judging people about being kind no matter anyone’s station in life... honestly there were too many really good messages to count. I think this one lived up to the hype.

How “The Dany-Show” ruined GoT at the core: 3-point system

1. Sansa vs. Cersei: 

How is it possible that we had a million reunions - many of them involving secondary characters for fluff and fan service with zero impact on the plot - but these two women who had so much drama, so much unresolved business, never saw each other again? This is where you would have found the good story to tell and a major plot strand to resolve: the conflict between the Starks and the Lannisters. This is what started it all, this is where it should have ended. This is the story they should have focused on. 

So why didn’t they? 

Because Game of Thrones was already dead and gone and the series had become The Dany-Show and nothing but The Dany-Show. 

Every character, every story arc, everything had to be directed towards Dragon Barbie and her drama. So of course there was no time or space for anything that was not related to the The Dany-Show. Basically a black hole that sucked all the great storylines and characters into its dark void. 

Massive loose plot strands like the Stark-Lannister showdown were left to rot, because it was far more important to show off that CGI budget for gratuitous dragon shots and inane conversations between secondary character including sex jokes on the main. 

There was literally more screen time allotted to the dragons than to Cersei...

After four seasons of Sansa and Cersei constantly referring to each other and the day they would meet again (willingly or not), it’s scandalous that they shoved so many characters back together for pointless reunions that were more or less blatant fan service (Bronn and the Lannister boys, really?!) but the big conflict, the personal drama that was playing out between Sansa and Cersei - that had actually taken on political dimensions now - did not even get a single scene? 

Wrong choice. 

I mean can you even imagine how Lena and Sophie would have acted the shit out of their reunion, because I can and it makes me furious that we were robbed of it. When two characters have so much unfinished business, so much foreshadowing and so much history that still isn’t resolved, the least you can expect is to give them at least a half-assed resolution - but we did not even get that, because it had nothing to do with The Dany-Show. Because all the characters have to only think about Dany and relate to Dany and if there is to be a conflict between female characters, it has to involve Dany and no one else. 

Poor Lena deserved better than to be reduced to playing a two-dimensional shadow of Cersei Lannister who was little more than a prompt giver to The Euron Greyjoy Side-Show (because sex jokes!) 

Also Bonus fuck-up: the prophecy of the YMBQ? Cersei died in the arms of Jaime, if anything Dany’s attack had given her back the one person/thing she cares about. So how exactly did Dany rob her of “all you hold dear” when Dany’s attack caused Jaime to literally drop Brienne like a hot potato, declare his undying love for Cersei and run back into her arms for his final moment? 

Before that, Sansa had already “taken” Jaime into her services together with Brienne. He’d actually switched sides to serve “another queen” (just not Dany) and at least this prophecy made sense for two seconds but of course the YMBQ had to be Dany because it’s The Dany Show, whether it makes sense or not...

They just didn’t care anymore, did they? 

2. Little...who?: 

So we have half a dozen characters rolling up to Winterfell who knew Littlefinger and his dirty business, and Arya, Sansa and Bran are about to go: 

Only for some reason: NO ONE asks. 

There is not a single reference to the fact that the Stark kids found out that Littlefinger is the mastermind behind 90% of everything that has happened since S1 and that he was executed for this. It’s like it never happened and he never existed and neither did all the important plot points before S8. 

Did Jon ever find out that Littlefinger betrayed Ned and conspired with the Lannisters to bring down the Starks? 

Did Tyrion ever find out that Littlefinger framed him at the Purple Wedding?

Did Varys ever find out that his nemesis was outsmarted and defeated by three teenagers?

Nope. Nope. And nope.  

Ain’t we all?

A character who’s been hailed as MVP by a huge part of the fandom because he knew how to network and play the game™ that is advertised in the title like no other, isn’t even mentioned again. One of the most popular theories re: S8 was (ridiculous as I found it myself) “Littlefinger isn’t dead” because many people felt he was still important to the story and there was also a lot of unfinished business with other characters he was connected to...Jon, Varys, Tyrion, Cersei, Sansa...

Instead, Littlefinger himself, his death and every plot point he was ever involved in was simply erased -  because Littlefinger and his relation to these characters had nothing to do with, i.e. did not contribute to...you guessed it...The Dany-Show and therefore POUF, he never existed...

3. R+L = who gives a f***

But you know, these are minor grievances compared to the fact that Jon’s character was not only dumbled down and turned into a complicit in genocide...

Jon’s parentage story arc - you know, THE big revelation and PLOT TWIST  - was turned into a side note, a five-minute mini drama that was more about how this will affect poor little Dany and her feelings. 

They gave us scenes of Dany waxing on about how Jon’s being the one true king stresses her out because she wants the throne and what she expects him to do about it - but they ROBBED us of the moment Jon tells the Stark siblings that he is not truly their brother, but their cousin. 

Because who cares about how Jon feels about this and his “siblings” coming to terms with the fact that:

their father Ned Stark had kept Jon a secret from everyone 

that he had not fathered a bastard and betrayed their mother

but saved the one true heir, at cost of his honour, 

they lived with the Targaryen crown prince and raised him under everyone’s nose...

No, no, the important thing is how Dany feels about it all and how it affects her. 

After the huge build-up, the theories, the overt foreshadowing,  even more infuriating - after throwing poor Elia and her children under the bus and making Jon legitimate...

After literally EVERYTHING in this series leading up to the moment when everyone would know who Jon Snow truly is...it had no effect on the story whatsoever, besides contributing to Dany finally revealing the full extent of her insanity (which was only a matter of time anyways)

Heir to the Iron Throne? Targaryen Prince? Rhaegar’s son? PTWP?

The point is: Drama for poor little Dany because her nephew doesn’t want to fuck her anymore is the actual heir. 

You can’t even say that it led to her advisors finding out and betraying her because that is something they should have done ages ago, at the latest when she burned the Tarlys. It gave them a legitimate alternative option, yes, but it was not the first time they thought she needs to go...

At least R+L=J served one good purpose: it rubbed Dany’s nose in it that she is not special at all. She is NOT the last Targ, nor the “princess that was promised” - and it was never her destiny to rule, she was only ever the “aunt” of the prince. 

Sadly, this is again ALL about Dany and her feelings and how everyone else reacts to her in light of the news that Jon is Aegon. 

So R+L=J is not even about Jon in the end, it’s just another element of The Dany-Show. And once Dany is gone, it’s like R+L=J also got erased (just like Littlefinger and the Stark-Lannister-conflict) 

...because let’s just send the Head of House Targaryen and last of his line beyond the wall again just because the murderous army of the mad tyrant, whom he heroically freed us from, demands it...and of course we have to wrap up the last five minutes of this shitty episode. 

Conclusion: 

D&D just REALLY didn’t care anymore once The Dany-Show was over and it’s painfully obvious to see. The good news is that all of these plot points that got erased/dumbled down/ignored^^ are things that are important to GRRM, which gives me hope for the last books at least...

my thoughts on season 2

or rather, a list of things i didn’t like about it and a few things i did. spoiler warning, of course :~)

hello friends, thank you for joining me on my journey to convince the world to hate season 2 - I’M KIDDING LOL i liked season 2, but there are quite a few things i wasn’t that happy with and i’m going to cry about them like a baby now.

1. my second biggest disappoint with this season... NO HAZEL!!! i’m devastated!!!! i absolutely love hazel’s character and the depth cameron britton brought to the role.. i can’t believe they killed him so quickly :( maybe cameron had other work commitments but man i’m so sad. i seriously felt the lack of his presence this season and it was a dynamic that was sorely missed imo. the swedes could never.

2. the plot moved slower than i’d like. season 1 was very well paced, it felt non-stop, and like they were always working towards a goal, moving somewhere. some parts of season 2 felt slow or like things had come to a standstill and we were just watching them live rather than seeing them work towards something. which is fine if that’s what you’re into, but for me i think TUA works best when it’s GOGOGO like in season 1, and when it wasn’t, we had really intimate character moments, which i felt season 2 lacked.

3. the music didn’t hit as hard :( when i think of season 1 i can immediatley name a multitude of iconic scenes with the soundtrack - five murdering everyone in the doughnut shop, the bowling alley fight, i think we’re alone now OF COURSE, the slowmo montage to all die young, hazel and chacha burning the prosthetics building, gerard’s cover of happy together, five walking through the apocalypse to noel gallagher, run boy run, etcetcetc. those all just came off the top of my head. when thinking about season 2 i can only name two scenes off the top of my head (frank sinatra and backstreet boys). which is pretty sad.

4. the characterisation felt weaker overall. it didn’t feel as complex or deep whereas i felt season 1 really delved into each character and explored them a lot more. they all felt slightly watered down, especially luther, oh my god!! they turned him into a characeture whose only purpose is to eat a lot of food and pull silly faces. that was really disappointing. i’d hoped we’d get some scenes with him where he’d discuss all the pressure put on him by their dad, the guilt he feels for screwing up, insecurity etc. the scene with him and five in the club only scratched the surface. plus, allison only mentioned her daughter two times? it was really bizarre to me, it literally seemed like she’d forgotten about her. and speaking of forgetting family members... 

5. why does nobody give a shit about ben. i’m fuMING. they all saw ben in the season 1 finale and then they didn’t even care to mention him other than five asking if ben was there once, only once the family were all back together mind you, and when klaus said no, none of them even questioned it. despite the fact that klaus very clearly is talking/bickering with a spirit in front of them several times. none of the are like ‘uuhh klaus are you talking to ben or like...’ and that is really goddamn sad. ben deserved so much better.

6. ben’s arc in general! this is my biggest disappointment with this season. personally i’d really hoped they’d go the route that klaus would learn to control his powers and manifest ben in the real world for limited periods of time, like when ben punched him in the face or when ben pulled klaus and diego out from under the falling roof of the academy. and then eventually, when the show ended, ben could ~move on~ and go to the afterlife after being able to spend time with his family. but nooo. he’s back to being invisible, uncared about, forgotten and miserable. i like that they let him possess klaus for a bit and experience the world again, that was nice. though when it turned out klaus had already slept with his crush and she called him d*ddy i did my bigget sigh ever. and he’s just gone now. he doesn’t even get to go to heaven. he’s just. nothing. and vanya is the only one who even acknowledged it (other than klaus obviously). i swear to god, if season 3 doesn’t do a scene where klaus ~dies~ for a bit and goes to the afterlife again and sees ben there, i will RIOT. 

7. didn’t much like klaus’ storyline this season either. the cult thing was a bit weird and wasn’t done in the way i’d expected them to do it at all. i thought klaus would be a lot more sombre and serious this season too without the drugs to distract him, but he still acted high and Quirky the whole time, which is a shame, i’d love to have seen some more depth added to his character. plus, i thought he took the drugs because the ghosts were always bothering him.. we literally didn’t see any other than ben. also the stuff with dave was... Not Good. the kid they cast as dave had zero chemistry with klaus/robert, and he looked super young so it was.. kind of weird to see klaus be all like I AM IN LOVE WITH YOU. and i don’t think it even went anywhere. it just seemed pointless to me.

8. i felt like the fallout from the previous season was really glossed over. like vanya just forgot everything and everyone else is kinda like *shrugs* ah well. idk man i feel like there would’ve been a much bigger emotional cost and internal turmoil than there was. 

9. i hated the ending. sorry. it felt really ~generic superhero story~, as did the siblings vs commission thing in the last episode, which TUA isn’t supposed to be. and emo ‘ben’ made me cringe gfhjskkdfj. plus the oopsy we did a timeline fucky thing is getting a lil old now but whatever. plus the sparrow academy means a bunch of new characters which means screentime will get even more split from the main siblings, which i don’t want. 

so yeah.. i have some gripes with season 2. that said....

i did like some things!! i loved vanya having a female love interest, hell yeah. i loved five meeting old five, their dynamic was really fun and the dude who played old five was great, i feel like he really delivered his lines the same way aidan does. lila was cool too, i really liked the actress, she did great. seeing the siblings get closer was really nice too. 

overall, i’d give the season a 6.5/10, so yeah, i did still enjoy it!!! i just don’t think it was as good as season 1, by quite a long way, and i have some things i didn’t like. feel free to disagree with me tho, i’m just a big dumb idiot. and thanks for reading :~)

List of favorite!

Female Disney characters

*Warning this is just my opinion*

Honorable mentions ( Audrey Ramirez, Grandma Fa, Meg, Belle, Jasmine, Moana, Captain Amelia, Yzma,Colette, Frozone’s Wife, Madame Medusa,Mother Gothel)

10 ~ Helga Sinclair (Atlantis)

This list was SOOOO hard to make and rank everyone cause I love all of them and the honorable mentions in different ways. but Helga is a baddie I think her Audrey and Kida were one of the main reasons I watched the movie and LOVED IT it is still my top 5 favorite Disney movies to watch. She and the other women in the movie just radiate strength and elegance at the same time and her fighting skills against Rourke is just amazing and her send off at the end is iconic I literally quote her all the time, “nothing Personal”.

9 ~ Edna Mode (The incredibles)

For the short amount of scenes she is in, she makes the most of every one liner she has, she is probably the most quotable Disney character.....change my mind. When I was younger I would just yell “no capes” randomly through the house jumpscaring my parents (I have no regrets), I literally wanted to be just like her and live in a mega mansion just like hers. I love how she gave zero f@cks about who you were super or not she would tell your straight up and kick your @ss if needed, she’s iconic.

8 ~ Esmeralda (The Hunchback Of Notre Dame)

She is someone I would vote for to be my President, she is so beautiful, her hair, her eyes, her everything, I felt for her so much as a woman who was fighting against the injustice her people face and I can relate to her on a emotional and intellectual level even as a kid when I first watched the movie (which is also in my top 5 Disney movies). Her sass and roasts against Phoebus and Frollo always gets me hyped, and she is so creative in the way she performs and escapes situations with her goat, she is just all around great.

7 ~ Rapunzel (Tangled)

She is such is ray of sunshine (no pun intended)and I really related to her chaotic energy, she was instantly going to be one of my favorite Disney princesses just from her positive and bubbly nature in true princess nature, while also being naturally quirky and awkward from being inside for years is kinda relatable in this current moment. Her singing parts I just always know the lyrics by heart idk how since I don’t watch the movie that often but that’s how good they are, Rapunzel is a very hard character to dislike.

6 ~ Violet Parr (The Incredibles)

She is meme duchess, a Mighty and Powerful GOD!!! I loved her first movie and even more in the second movie, before going to see the second movie I was dealing with angst and anger everyday for no reason. So when I saw Violet having that same irration in the movie was so funny and accurate, I just love her iconic reaction to her crush who happened to be their waiter it KILLS ME. We must protect her at all costs.

5 ~ Nani (Lilo and Stitch)

I respect Nani so much as a big sister mother at such a young age taking on the responsibility of caring for sister and keeping her family together, yes she makes mistakes and can be crass at time but that’s why I love her. She’s not perfect at all and is hilarious for kids and adults to relate to in every way possible. She also reminds me of my sister being 12 years older than me it can feel like she trying to control and mother me which in my head is annoying like how Lilo feels, but I know she means well. So in conclusion Nani is a true Disney Princess.

4 ~ Lilo (Lilo and Stitch)

Speaking of Lilo....She is my future child, a little me. She’s weird, creative, funny, blunt, kind, and strong minded, I love her so much😍. What’s not to love her growth through the movies is ASTRONOMICAL, she starts out as awkward girl who feels like a weirdo who doesn’t fit in anywhere, and by the end is self assured, focused, ambitious, and confident and embraces her weirdly wonderful self. She is a legend I have nothing but amazing things to say about her.

3 ~ Tiana (Princess and the Frog)

She is immaculate she is ambitious, she is hardworking, she is a Disney Princess, like I am amazed at how hard she works for what she wants with something we can all aspire to and I am constantly rooting for her in everything. For Disney’s first black princess I think they did very well giving her a base for what kind of person she is and felt like good representation for black girls like me and she is so beautiful and Anika plays her so well, but I just wish she wasn’t a frog for 3/4 of the movie... that kinda through it off for me. But other than that even as a frog I just love her attitude about her self and how she pushes through tough times while also having the ability to be vulnerable as well. I just love Tiana and more people need to STOP sleeping on her.

2 ~ Kida (Atlantis)

A bad B!tch in every way, I had such a crush on her growing up I was just drawn to her character, her design of her hair and outfit is so amazingly creative, it makes it even better when knowing about all the heart that went into making this movie and her character. Her passion and love for her people is so strong that she is willing to let in strangers to help her, and try’s relentlessly to unclog the secrets to save her peoples future it’s so heartwarming how selfless she is (sounds like another characterfrom another studio I know...Proteus cough cough😏). Anyway she radiates inner and outer beauty through out the entire movie, she deserves all the praise, go watch the movie PLS.

DRUMROLL PEASE...

1 ~ Fa Mulan (Mulan)

I mean it shouldn’t be a surprise she is my favorite, from the time I was 5 and first watched this movie I knew it was true love, Mulan has always and will forever be my favorite Disney character and princess she is the number one OG, she is graceful, selfless, brave as F@CK, resourceful, independent, awkward, courageous, confident, and a DAMN BADASS hero with the biggest kill count of Disney history she puts the villains to shame I SAID IT! AND THAT HAIRCUT SCENE AMAZING. She is so wonderful on screen an seeing her defy the odds as a woman in war fighting for her father and self discovery, while also being a caring, determined and skillful fighter who sufferd through the odds to save ALL OF CHINA was so comforting and inspirational to me growing and even now as a new adult. The songs in the movie are bops, I love Shang he is my favorite Disney man, I love mushu he’s iconic, and I love Ling, Yao, and Chin po, that scene of Mulan looking out at China as the all bow to her is chilling. I will forever proudly say I love Mulan for the rest of my days.

MXTX novels in a nutshell

Now that I have finished all three MXTX novels, I wanted to summarize them quickly so, here are my thought: 

MDZS / GDC

Among three of the books, if I have to choose one, it would be Mo Dao Zu Si, not only because of cql, the book has so many characters that made me feel things and the setting of the story suits my interest.

My favorite character in the novel, besides the main character, is Jiang Cheng. Poor boy went through so much, but still managed to lead the kingdom of his forefathers, collecting it from ruins. He could have done better, in regards to Wei Wuxian, but he gave into the situation. He was all alone, with no one to supervise, people make mistakes, esp. when they are young. 

The Yi City arc deserved their very own story, Ah Qing is not much discussed but that girl was clever, smart and dedicated. 

The juniors are much intelligent than the older generation. Jin Ling not hating on his uncle proves his maturity and that the next generation have bright future.

Nie Huaisang, I can’t help but think that in the end, he felt all alone. Wei Wuxian, who used to be his best friend once, does not feel the same way now, especially after knowing his true color. LXC and JGY, whom he used to turn to for every problems and who were so dear to him once, are no longer with him. The only thing he wanted was to avenge his brother, but after all the ordeals, I think that he was lonely, just my thought. 

Xue Yang and Jin Guangyao are negative character but knowing what turned them into antagonists, can’t hate them wholeheartedly.

The only character I dislike is Jin Guangshan, that old man have done not a single right thing in life ><

WangXian relation was wholesome, not rushed, not forced, natural.

The friendship we were robbed of are: 

- The triplets : WWX, JC, NHS

- WWX and Wen Qing 

TGCF / HOB

Tbh, due to the immense violence, self harm, gore and such I was not quite fond of reading it initially. 

But Shi Qingxuan made the plot interesting and captivated me. Every character had their own story, which were super amusing.

My personal favorite characters in the novel are: 

Yin Yu - How could someone have such great heart. Sadly he had to pay high price for 2 words he spoke at wrong time and place. 

Feng Xin - Loyalty is his description. Poor boy had chance at building his own family but didn’t persevere to follow his master. 

Jian Lan - She is not major character but I admire her for letting her husband go, not only once but twice, for his sake. Usually females are depicted as clingy ones, even Xuan Ji had such character. But Jian Lan let Feng Xin go when she was pregnant, became a single mom, went to Paradise manor to get back her child, let go of her husband second time, even though she knew she and her child could have better future alongside him. Even though Feng Xin was willing to take up his responsibility but at what cost, she stood for herself.

Hua Cheng was always supportive of Xie Lian but never took the lead, that’s what I love about their relation.

In this too, can’t hate the antagonist truly, in fact, I feel sympathy for Bai Wuxiang.

By the end of the novel, it was a tie between MDZS and TGCF.

SVSSS

Honestly, I had zero interest in this book, but since it is one of MXTX works, I didn’t want to leave it unread.

From the beginning, I was not fond of the system, Shen Qingqui could not be himself, simply  to earn some points. The major thing upsetting me was LBH and SQQ’s relationship, somehow it felt one sided the entire time. Only in the last chapter, it felt like for once Shizun initiated the skinship earnestly, not to tame the Demon King or not to coax him from crying, or forcefully by LBH. The feeling of romance between them seemed unnatural to me, no offense though.

The extras and the side stories were the ones that made the novel worth reading. Knowing Tianlang Jun’s side of story, how could anyone hate him or call him cruel Demon Lord, it was human who think not my race, they must have different motive.

Zhuzhi Lang repaying the drop of water with a fountain was incredible. 

Gongyi Xiao was incredible kid, sadly his wish of going to Cang Qiong Mountain remained unfulfilled.

Liu Qingge seemed aloof and cold but was support pillar for SQQ. 

Yue Qingyuan was such a marvellous parental figure.

More than the main pair,  Shang Qinghua and Mo Beijun’s story fascinated me.

Hence, in a nutshell, the relation between Liu Qingge and Luo Binghe felt like that of Lan Zhan and Jiang Cheng, in-laws bitterness...lol  

Both Jiang Cheng and Yue Qingyuan could have achieved better peace of mind, if they were good in communication, them hiding their true feeling made themselves and their dear ones hurt.

WangXian and HuaLian’s level of trust is dream of every pair. The feeling was mutual and their level of understanding is something only few could achieve. 

I've been thinkn'...

Ya know, I really want to entertain the idea of Sakura being lesbian/bi and having a loving relationship with Ino, but then I'd have to consider that Sasuke is the reason for majority of her characterization. Like Ino is a loving friend and cared alot for Sakura as kids, but Sakura wasn't...like that in the same way.

Sakura's main goal was Sasuke, and she didn't let anything stand in her way, even if she had to lie or break friendships to get what she wants. I can't remember ever seeing Sakura showing that same kind of love or admiration towards Ino. Hell, even Naruto had feelings for her and did everything to protect her, but that was overshadowed by Sakura's obsession with Sauske, so she paid no attention him in that kind of way. Not to mention that she likes to use him as her personal punching bag (I don't care that it's 'comedy', Naruto doesn't deserve to be hit on like that just because he's a guy). She's shallow and very self-centered, doesn't speak well of her parents and doesn't show alot of empathy towards her comrades or their feelings. That's not a good combo for InoSaku, in which Ino is none of those things I described. Even Ino shared the same love interests in Sasuke, but she wasn't obsessive, and she tried to actually befriend him at some point. Ino has always defended her and tried to be a good friend, even in their 'rivalry' stage, and she truly believed in Sakura, but in Sakura's case all that was thrown out over Sasuke.

People say that SS is what ruined her character, but keep in mind that Sasuke never once looked at Sakura in a romantic way. At best, it was more a sisterly/friendship kind of way, if you ignore their violent history. People need to stop making Sasuke as the reason for her character being horrible as it was. She's the one that pursued him to ridiculous measures. She's the one that forced her feelings onto to him. Hell, most of her motivation behind getting stronger in Shippuden is for Sasuke to acknowledge her. She doesn't understand who Sasuke is, what he went through or his motivations. Her so-called "love" is self-centered and shallow. All she cared about was her feelings, even if Sasuke never reciprocated her, even EXPLICITLY stating that he has no reason to love her and rejecting her numerous times. I would say that SS ruined SASUKE'S characterization, rather, because pairing him with Sakura was just damn disrespectful. Even in Gaiden, I'm sorry, there is no love there between them. Sakura got what she wanted, but at what cost? Even their child probably knows there is no love, if she had to question their marriage.

She's the one that even lied through her teeth about having feelings for Naruto, and it baffles me how some her stans trying to rationalize and twist this as her caring for Naruto. Lying is lying no matter what the reason is. And don't get me started on her poisoning her teammates, putting them at risk, just so she can (foolishly) attempt to 'kill' Sasuke herself, which once again having to be saved by Naruto. Like, Naruto has put up with so much of her bullshit, I'm surprised he hadn't snapped on her at some point. That is not quality traits for friendship, relationships or what have you.

I really wanted to like Sakura and I did at some point, but I'm not about to delude myself into thinking that her becoming lesbian will make her character any better than it is. Because that'll involve rewriting her entire characterization from the beginning. She's not a bad person, but she's done alot of fucked up shit that warrants her being hated on. Kishimoto consistently wrote her this way, and I truly believe that this is what her character is meant to be. Sure the other female characters weren't written to optimal levals, but none aren't as trashed on as Sakura, and I'm not a Sakura hater. She's just...disappointing. Take it as you will.

Ranking Choices series by how Gay they are

A review no one asked for but an important one nonetheless

EDIT: Updated for latest books 6/29/19

The Freshman - While Zack, Kaitlyn, Becca, and Zig make this a sweet Gay Squad, the book has prominent bi-erasure if you date a man and forces you to deal with toxic Het Drama for multiple books that leaves you begging for the sweet release of diamond death to never come - 4/10 Gay but at what cost

The Crown and the Flame - Kenna is a bisexual Queen, but the fact that they don't give Dom a male li until awkwardly at the very end is tragic - 5/10 Could be gayer

Most Wanted - Look Sam is a Lesbian Icon(tm) but the narrative pushes for Sam and Dave - 3/10 Pretty Het

Rules of Engagement - Forces the MC to be with a man, doesn't give Party Twin a female li until the third book, and older brother's het drama is insufferable - 2/10 Some gay but too much straight to try

Endless Summer - MC can be a guy or a girl. Pretty gay, but the female lis are not treated as well as the male ones, also there are a lot of straight couples and the fact that Pirate Queen Yvonne ends up with a man? Tragic(tm) - 5/10 gay but could be gayer

LoveHacks - Points for the bi black man and the lesbians, but the first book paywalls its only female li to shit, only has the MC date men, and has Brooke end up with a man instead of Seerena - 3/10 Gay but too Het to handle

The Haunting of Braidwood Manor - Nothing but love a respect for my lesbian ghost girlfriend, but you have to pay to stay together (but it is only 17 diamonds and that is a bargain these days) - 8/10 Lots of lesbian love but at a cost

The Royal Romance - Largely forced to spend time with a man, has only one female li even though Olivia is literally right there, and has Penelope get with Kiara's brother even though Kiara is literally right there - 3/10 Very Het

Hero - MC can be a guy or a girl. Kenji is a BIcon but it takes a while to meet the only female li, also the Poppy and Dax het drama is too much - 6/10 Decently gay and has potential

High School Story - MC can be a guy or a girl. Besides the fact that we have to deal with the Het Tragedy that are Brian, Max, Kara, the dumb Autumn love triangle, and what the ever loving fuck is that set up your Dad with Emma's Mom nonsense, these books give a lot of LGBT+ rep - 7/10 Gen Z is the Gayest Gen

It Lives in the Woods - MC can be a guy or a girl. Gay Icon right here, we stan our Trans King(tm) King Kang, Ava and Stacy are female li legends, Lily is our beautiful Lesbian Queen, nothing like the raw gay energy of swinging a barbed wire bat at the undead - 15/10 GAY ICON

Home for the Holidays - One female LI, but at what cost? Can't play as a guy and forced to have dated one (1) man. Don't even get me started on Nick Peralta - 1/10 Literally ever Het Hallmark Christmas movie ever so RUN

Red Carpet Diaries - It feels like it should be pretty gay between the BIcon that is Seth, the Lesbian Legend that is Teja, and the absolute QUEEN that is Victoria, but man does it throw that all away to be SUPER FREAKING STRAIGHT between Matt and Hunt and paywalling the fuck out of Victoria - 3/10 RIP Gay potential

Perfect Match - MC can be a guy or a girl. Can choose to have your perfect match be a guy or a girl. A beautiful array of lis to choose from and they can all be yours because PB said Polyamory Rights! Even though there is some Het stuff with Nadia and Steve, it is actually tolerable. The President can also be a black lesbian and that's the America I want to live in - 10/10 Living my best gay thot life

Bloodbound - Even love interests whom? Sure you get two wonderful female love interests, Lily and the ultimate BI QUEEN Kamilah, but forget ever hanging out with them. This is the JAX AND ADRIAN SHOW ONLY BABEEE - 4/10 Not even a cheap Priya scene can help, PB said fuck wlw

Veil of Secrets - MC can be a guy or a girl. Ms. Harlenay is a Lesbian icon. Kate is a true BI disaster and the fact that we can only get with her romantically at the end of the book is the Biggest Tragedy of Choices - 6/10 It's fun and gay until you die alone bc you don't have enough diamonds

America's Most Eligible - MC can be a guy or a girl. You can thot it up and kiss so many people, Mackenzie is the only female li you can hang out with most of the time and there was one weird scene where Adam and Derek were super "no homo"??? - 6/10 Gay potential but oof the Het

Desire & Decorum - Only one female li, but she is Amazing. Mr. Chambers gay ass is the real MVP. God bless our non-homophobic gay ally of a dad (rip). But still this book got a lot of Het nonsense bc of the time period - 4/10 Press F to pay respect to our gay ancestors

Across The Void - MC can be a guy or a girl. Even number of lis with even screen time and your siblings can be gay too if they weren't so annoying and stealing your screen time - 7/10 Gay but it's hard to read

Big Sky Country - MC can be a guy or a girl. If you are a wlw, there is a lot of Het nonsense and it is hard to be with the female lis. If you are a mlm, ooh boy is this book Really Gay. Like literally every guy wants your city dick. Still there is some Het stuff - 6/10 Average; Life is what you Gay it

High School Story: Class Act - MC can be a guy or a girl. You can choose the gender of the li you are forced to have a crush on so that is nice. If you play as a guy your twin can be a Lesbian Icon and Erin can like girls but if you play as a girl it's like super het. Don't even get me started on Natalie and Clint - 6/10 Gay but oof

It Lives Beneath - MC can be a guy or a girl. Great even bunch of lis and our gay little brother is the most wholesome thing - 8/10 Good gay content minus you know all the Gore and Death

The Elementalists - MC can be a guy or a girl. Let’s hear it for Ace rep! Except the imbalance of li scenes and how Beckett is constantly forced onto you continues to put this book on thin ice, especially with the lack of flirting options for wlw - 5/10 Gay but lesbian struggles

A Courtesan of Rome -  Forced to kiss men. Female characters treated like shit. Sabina stans deserved better. But Gay brother can get his happy gay romance. Caesar/Cleopatra/MC threesome said bi rights. Parents are the biggest gay allies. The biggest disappointment is the untapped potential - 3.5/10 RIP to anyone who hoped to romance Cleopatra

The Heist: Monaco - MC can be a guy or a girl. Allows you to choose gender of one your lis. Has the potential to have 3 female lis who are all iconic. But makes you pay for not 1 but 2 women crew members so having an all women crew is a struggle - 8/10 Let's go Lesbians!

Update:

Ride or Die: A Bad Boy Romance - Everyone thinks you and Logan are dating even if you haven’t romanced him in the slightest. Gay rep in minor characters but at what cost. - 3/10 We been knew of the het nonsense since we saw the tagline

Open Heart - MC can be a guy or a girl. If you are guy this book is great. Seriously Dr. ER always down for the BJ (sorry homophobes he BI!✨). If you are woman, HAHAHAHa. Only one female li who is forced to hate you for a few chapters. Seriously Sienna and Aurora and Kyra are right freaking there just give the wlw something!!! - 4/10 Gay but could do so much better

Passport to Romance - MC can be a guy or a girl. Even number of love interests except for the fact that one of the female li has a boyfriend for 75 percent of the book. Still this book is dreadfully boring or annoying which is sad because Sumire and Ahmed are wonderful. - 7/10 Gay but forgettable

Wishful Thinking - Story has MC spend most time with the two male lis, but MC, Anna, and Ellen working together to take down corrupt politicians ala Charlie’s Angels is awesome! The fact that you can sleep with Ellen coming out of nowhere like a dark horse? Amazing! - 5/10 Gay potential

Nightbound - MC can be a guy or a girl. Even number of love interests, but recent changes make it obvious the book wants you to lean towards Nik. Barely any scenes with Vera or Katherine. There is a gay fae and rock troll love story but you have to pay for it -  4/10 A fun supernatural story PB is forcing to be the next great het romance

Platinum - Can choose for your two main love interests Avery and Raleigh to be male or female which means you are not forced to romance men unless you want to! The women are so pretty it hurts. Get to kiss beautiful women for freeeee. Shoutout to non-binary audience. Every song is bop that fills me with gay pride. Only major downfall is you can’t choose to play as a guy. - 9/10 Move over Hayley Kiyoko there is a new Lesbian pop star in town

And Sunkissed is still up in the air while The Royal Heir is on the thinnest of fucking ices.

Sekai Seifuku Sakusen Wishlist

Hello people~

Say, does anyone still remember that figure line by Megahouse *retches* ?

Well, it was a short-lived series focused on, as the name (“World Uniform Operation”) suggests, showcasing female characters in their school uniforms.

To my knowledge, all of them were released as 1/10 scaled (eww). And the Precure seasons that had the privilege of getting figures...

Were Futari Wa, Fresh and Heartcatch.

Sailor Moon got theirs as well (the Inner Senshi + Naru) but they were very meh, imo. You were better off getting a more dynamic-looking prize figure at a significantly lesser cost.

Anyways, back to Precure. Not surprised about these three given their seasons’ popularity up to that point. But a shame because as of 2016, there hasn’t been announcement of any new figures. Which basically means, this line didn’t do well. Didn’t do well = the project is more or less cancelled.

On one hand, I’m sorta glad cuz the prices on these figures were ludicrous, especially when made at that scale and with Megahouse’s poor quality track record (I don’t even want to go into all that limited exclusivity bullshit). I bought Tsubomi and Itsuki and they seemed pretty alright. Still too much for a scale with such a simple design, though.

Then on the other, I can’t help but whine to myself a little cuz this is such a great concept. We rarely get merchandise of the Cures in their civilian forms and if they have there Cure alter-egos to go with them, it would be an awesome display on a collector’s shelf.

*SIGH* ...oh well.

That said...if there was a continuation for this series, then here’s my wishlist of the seasons + uniforms I want the most to least:

1) MahoPre - Nobody should be surprised that this is my first pick. MahoPre will always have a very deep, very special place in my heart and as far as uniforms go, the Magic Academy one is indeed my top favorite in all of Precure.

Because duh, it’s for magic school, not regular school, so the design had to match with that idea in mind. And it turned out so charming, didn’t it? I love the magenta/pink color scheme, the plaid bow, the mini sewn-on cape.

Definitely would want the witch hats and wands with them as well. Maybe even the brooms if someone’s feeling generous, enough? hehe :)

Dude, I should just open up my own figure company and make these myself.

2) Go!Pri - I wasn’t a fan of overalls growing up but my opinion of them has shifted to a more positive one recently thanks to seeing the latest fashion trends and Precure’s influence on me.

Really, the character designers draw the girls so cute in overall dresses that I can’t help but think it as well!

Anyways, it seems I have a penchant for academy uniforms or something. There’s a combination of cuteness and sophistication there that I find difficult to resist. Also, the purple undershirt is very fitting since they attend Royal Academy. Wish my school uniform was that nice-looking but alas, I didn’t go to an academy in the Precure world. :P

Anyways, I wouldn’t get all the girls from Go!Pri. Just Kirara and Towa who are my forever favorites. <3

I’ve also seen someone’s fanart of them as a pair (and Haruka + Minami as another pair) based on the Sekai Seifuku Sakusen concept so you can imagine the huge disappointment I felt when I knew Megahouse would never get to this season. *sobbing* 

3) KiraPre - As I said in another post, I’m not collecting KiraPre merchandise but the KiraPati uniform is to die for.

I know this breaks the trend of the line needing to be in “school uniforms” but KiraPre’s school uniforms aren’t anything to write home about. These, however, are much more adorable and therefore, more marketable. ;)

4) StarPre - SERAFUKU BISHOUJO SENSHI

For sure, since they both have space themes, it was only appropriate for StarPre to pay homage to Sailor Moon with having the Star girls wear serafuku.

I like the simplicity of it as well. Hehe~ ^^

And whether I would want everyone or not...it really depends on what kind of poses they’re in and if they can complement each other well.

Also, I suppose since Yuni never went to school, she’d just have a figure in her normal Blue Cat outfit which is fine, too.

5) SuitePre - Mm, yes, this one I’ve been waiting the longest for, despite the seasons listed before it on this list.

I wouldn’t say Suite’s uniform is the most unique but I do love the contrast of the overall cyan color with the magenta contours and bow. It’s a shade I don’t think I’ll ever see on another school uniform and even so, it’ll probably be hard to pull off nicely.

Suite managed to do it and I’m sure we can find tons of references to give the girls the perfect pose. So yea, I’d definitely consider the whole set as well if everyone can get a great sculpt and paint job.

As for Ako, she doesn’t have a school uniform so we can just put her in the same group as Aguri and Emiru and call it the Pipsqueak Elementary Squad.

6) HealPre - I love this uniform immensely for how neat and snug it looks. Not to mention, the dark green just makes it look very comfortable to wear overall. I know, maybe it’s just me being weird but it gives off a very calming effect.

And as Precure allows for more variations in clothing and accessories among the main cast, it would make for more interesting figures as well. Then you wouldn’t feel like you’re getting the same figure with only different heads and poses.

...and socks.

Would definitely love to have Nodoka. 

7) Hugtto - Pretty much the same reasoning as HealPre’s above.

In all honesty, there’s nothing that special about this uniform so the fact that the Hugtto girls could wear something of their own choice over it really brings out their characters more that way.

8) SmilePre - Also like Heal and Hugtto above but to a lesser extent, I guess.

Still, Smile is quite favored among Precure seasons so I’d think they sell well regardless.

This uniform isn’t half bad either. I’m not sure why because there’s not that huge of a resemblance but looking at their shoulders kinda reminds me of a military officer’s uniform, especially from the back. Just a little bit.

My pick would definitely be Reika in this pose specifically.

9) Splash Star - Let’s say for the record that I like all the Precure school uniforms (or just uniforms in general). So Splash Star should actually rank higher (around where Suite is) given its more unique design.

Hardly anyone else employs brown or plaid so this combination along with the sailor collar over the blazer (?)... I just think it makes Saki and Mai look very endearing. Hmm, yes, I approve! :D

However, this is a season I’m not familiar with so my demand for it is less than the others. But I do think they deserve to get their figures first. What with being the second Precure installment and all. shouldn’t that count for something?

10) Yes! 5 - Oh, I do love the Yes!5 girls.

But...they suffer from lack of variation the most out of all the other teams. Seriously, even in one set of of their casual clothes, they all own the same shirt albeit in their different, respective theme colors.

It’s...weird. But less so on a school uniform, I guess.

Anyways, pose and sculpt would be the trick here. Even though Yes! 5 does have its fair share of fans, with how old and poorly received both their seasons are, you’d be hardpressed to find a lot of collectors willing to shell out for figures of them. So there would have to be more effort in making them look exceptional to draw a crowd.

11) DokiPre - It’s hard to find everyone wearing their uniforms in the same shot and frankly, I think I can count all the times I’ve seen Alice wearing her own uniform (it’s this) on one hand??

I mean, does Alice even go to school with all the private tutelage she probably receives or is it just a formality? ...I dunno.

Whatever. I think this uniform looks nice and the girls look nice but it’s not as eye-catching than if they were to wear their casual clothes.

12) HaCha - Feel bad for putting this last because it certainly isn’t the worst of ‘em (none of them are) and I do quite like it (because there’s red and I like red).

It’s just...hmm, I dunno. I guess it’s because the top’s buttons sorta makes me think of a chef suit. It doesn’t bother me or anything but... it’s just the first thing I think of when I see it. ( ^ ^ ;)

*sigh* With how HaCha’s being treated in S.H. Figuarts department and its polarizing reception in the fandom in general, I doubt this would be a priority on many people’s wishlists. Still, it would be wonderful to see HaCha get even some love, y’know?

~~~~~

Yea.

My dreams aren’t that big but they’re long alright. :3

Glitch | Ateez Gang!AU | PROLOGUE

⟶ gang!au, hacker!au, love-triangle?, poly?, female!original character

How curious it is, the fact that the police just gave a media conference, confirming ATZ’s involvement in Kyungri’s families newly-appointed murder, just as she sat down for her best friend, Jaehyeon, to be tattooed by one of the gang members?

⟶ glitch ml! main ml!

⟶ next

⟶  note! if anyone wants to be on a tag list for this fic just let me know!

⟶ 591 words!

⟶ edited 06.03.2020

PROLOGUE: The End Of Mina, Soobin And Sungri Pyo.

Saturday 24th November 2018, 15:58

On the day of their death, the Pyo family were not whole. One member, the eldest child, was on her way back from a school field trip. The other four – Pyo Soobin, (the father) Pyo Mina, (the mother) Pyo Sungri, (the brother) and the youngest, unnamed and still growing inside their mother – were on their way home too, from the grocery store.

However as the clock on the dashboard ticked over to 15:59 their lives were changed, ended in a flash of light and a surge of heat. Of course, it wasn’t actually a minute, there was much more to the story than what the police at the scene would have you believe. 

Seven lives were taken and only one of them may have deserved it.

Pyo Mina had always been a strong woman. She grew up with three younger sisters with their single mother, who taught them how to strive for their best lives. Unfortunately, it would seem that the youngest sister would outlive all of them as Mina’s body was found a few meters away from the crashed and smoking car. She was a clever woman, strategic. Her job as a Crime Scene Investigator demanded it so. Her body was not burnt, nor was she beaten. A singular gunshot to the forehead marked the end of her life, her own gun still in hand as she lay down her life to protect her family. This was not included in the official reports.

Pyo Soobin was a generous family man. He loved his wife. He loved his daughter. He loved his son. He was ready to love the new child, who was only a few months on the way. His status as a lawyer had given his family a good life, comfortable. Unfortunately, it also garnered many enemies with thoughts centred on revenge, blinded by anger and embarrassment as they were put away by a damn good lawyer. This was not thought of during the official investigation, as his body was also unburnt, with broken bones and blood covering his entire face, left at the side of a river – a huge drop from the bridge the rest of his family were.

The son, the joyous little boy called Sungri who was excited to become an older brother, would never see his sister and shout the good news in her face like he planned to. He wouldn’t see anyone anymore. He wouldn’t grow past the age of ten. He wouldn’t see the new friends he had just made at school anymore. He wouldn't grace the world with his beautiful, innocent, smile anymore. He was unidentifiable during the preliminary investigation, having been ‘left’ in the car as it was engulfed in flames. This was not addressed, at all, during police statements.

A second car had been involved. The two passengers died in the front of the car. This was the car that caused the crash, according to the official report. This was not particularly a lie but, it was also not the truth.

At the age of fifteen, young Pyo Kyungri lost her whole world. 

Years later, when the tragedy was ruled an accident an eighteen-year-old Kyungri was overcome with angered agony – to which she vowed to use to her advantage and figure out what really happened for herself. No matter the cost. She would hone the skills she had to work for her, becoming a better hacker every day. She would be a glitch to a crumbling system. She would lay her family to rest properly, with justice. 

Just as her parents had taught her.

I'm not sure if you talked about this, but did the series ending altered your interest in the books? Because for me, no matter how many pretty words GRRM can use I'm not down for Mad Queen Dany or Bran the Broken king of the seven, oops, six kingdoms. If GRRM ever writes TWOW or ADOS I'll look to the spoilers before I decide if its worth reading it. This ending really did a number on me I'm still so mad and disappointed... Dany deserved so much better. Ps. Do you speak Portuguese?

Well, I don’t believe Dany would go mad. And if Bran is king, it’s going to be in a way that makes sense (probably King in the North, but if he’s King of Westeros I don’t think the bullshit of only the North having independence could happen). So, in this regard, I do have some faith that GRRM is a better writer than D&D, and I don’t think he’s a raging misogynist that would give Dany the ending she had in the show.

But even if I trust GRRM to be a better writer and give Dany and the other characters endings that are more worthy of them, I still don’t like what it seems to be the overall plot points of the ending. King’s Landing exploding because of wildfire was a theory that I always considered very likely to happen, and that I always disliked. I don’t like the idea that it makes the main female ruler in the books look like she’s “irresposible” in comparison to the main male rulers like Jon and Tyrion. Jon and Tyrion will have their darker moments as well, but none of them looks like they’ll have a huge mistake like this that will cost the lives of so many people. And given that the only other main female ruler we have that is comparable to Jon and Tyrion in terms of ruling storyline is Cersei, the women come out of this looking worse than the men. So even though I think Dany is stil going to be a hero and this will be an accident, I don’t like it.

I also don’t like the Starks being the ones in power in the end. First, because Bran being king seems very random and not consistent with what his arc and his story has been about. I don’t think a few chapters in ACOK, in which he watches Maester Luwin and Ser Rodrik rule and suggests that the Hornwood bastard should inherit because he’s thinking of Jon, is enough for me to think that he’ll be a good ruler or that he has experience, because he was not the one that was ruling and a lot of the time, he didn’t even understand what was happening (which is fine, he was a very small kid, but like I said, it doesn’t make him a ruler). I also don’t like the implication that only a person with omniscient power could be a good ruler. Why spend so many chapters exploring how other characters rule and how ruling is hard, if George is just going to have a deus ex machina solution to the question of ruling in the form of omniscient magical powers? Second, because one of the reasons I like Dany so much is that she’s a revolutionary character. Her arc, alonside Jon’s arc, is about making reforms in society. That’s not part of the arcs of the Starklings, so I can’t help but feel very disappointed that these characters will be the ones to rule. Even if the Starks decide to bring changes in society in the end, it’s not going to feel earned, because this is not what their arcs have been about, it’s what Dany’s and Jon’s arcs have been about. So it would just feel like the Starks are stealing Dany’s arc by being the ones to bring change.

About Dany’s death, I obviously think Dany dying as a villain is bullshit. But I also hate the idea of Dany dying as a hero, because I don’t think a heroic death is fitting for her. I don’t think sacrificing herself is the culmination of her arc. Dany’s arc is not about learning about the importance of self sacrifice. If Dany was a selfish queen that didn’t care about her people in the beginning, it would make sense for her character development to lead her to a point in which she realizes that she has a duty to her people and sacrifices herself for them. But Dany has always sacrificed herself for her people, she always knew what a queen’s duty was, she has always been selfless, so I don’t think sacrificing herself is a culmination of her character development, because she has been selfless from the beginning, it was not something she learned throughout her journey. I don’t think it makes sense for “self sacrifice” to be the big takeaway from her journey, but apparently, this is what we’ll get in the end. But you know what she did learn throughout her journey, what her character development really is about? Ruling. Dany learned how to rule, how to lead, and how to make changes in society. A fitting ending for her would have Dany using the political skills she learned. I don’t necessarily need her to be queen. But I would like if she at least did something to set up a new system, even if she doesn’t rule in the end. But it doesn’t look like this is going to happen, and this makes me feel like 90% of Dany’s story in Essos was completely pointless. Also, if GRRM wasn’t going to make Dany queen and wasn’t going to give her any political role at the end, THEN WHY DID HE MAKE HER THE BEST RULER IN THIS DAMN STORY???

I also think that if Jon and Dany have different endings (with Jon living and Dany dying, and none of them has any political importance), all of their parallels are also pretty pointless. Jon and Dany have way too many parallels, and this makes it feel like their stories are going to intertwine and have some great epic conclusion as a pay off of all those parallels. So anything less than epic, and anything that breaks their parallels (like one living and one dying) is going to be a huge let down for me.

So yes, the show ending did alter my interest in the books. I still love Dany just as much, but I’m less interested in the books, and I’m already anticipating that it’s going to be disappointing. Even if it’s better written, I still think that this ending wastes the character development of many characters, and it doesn’t end with the political change that I would like to see. It’s “unpredictable”, but I never wanted the ending to be unpredictable. I wanted thngs to pay off. Dany and Jon’s political storylines had to have some payoff somehow, but they won’t. So yeah, I’m not really looking forward to reading the books, I’ll only read them because I’m still hoping against hope that none of this happens.

And yes, I do speak Portuguese, it’s my mother tongue. I’m Brazilian.

** spoiler alert ** My Review of The Shadow Glass To think that this fantastic story landed in my lap because I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review of The Bone Witch. This was such an all consuming trilogy with bits and pieces of different books it reminded me of: the Witcher (the way the runes were drawn and it has a bard), Memoirs of a Geisha (the way the asha are trained), Twilight (the way Kalen tells Tea not to move when he kisses her for the first time in the 2nd book–Edward and Bella much?), a little bit of Avatar, the Last Air Bender (the different elemental powers used, wind, water, fire, air, earth) Harry Potter (betrayal of teachers and dragons aka the aza), The Bear and the Nightingale (a powerful woman coming into her own powers to right wrongs society has accepted), I read somewhere a little bit of GOT but I never watched/read those books…I know, gasp. Mulan (how Kalen trains Tea super hard, kind of like how Li Shang trains Mulan). And some Divergent (anti hero giving her life for the better good, brooding handsome love interest). How could one not love the this? First of all, THANK YOU RIN CHUPECO (not sure if you’ll ever see this review) for a couple things: 1. Creating this amazing story that consumed my life while obeying Stay at Home Orders 2. Softening the blow of Kalen’s death by giving us a heads up in the first book. GOOD LORD, I still cried when he actually died. Also, did anyone else picture a younger, buff, Ben Barnes (Prince Caspian) as Kalen?! No? Just me? 3. The loving sibling relationship between Tea and Fox until the very end 4. and Kalen’s POV on your blog. Honestly, you knew we would need that and you delivered. Can you please write all 3 books in his point of view?! Please. I do have a question though. Given how there was so much LGBTQ representation from many of the characters, was Prince Kance asexual? 1. He admits he had no feelings for Inessa, 2. thought of Tea as a sister (which, even though we’re happy she’s with Kalen, come on! I wish he would’ve had at least a little crush on Tea!), and 3. He never really pursued a relationship with anyone or showed any interest. If so, kudos for the serious representation. Likh. How can you not love Likh and her journey, her transformation, from male to female. Her reasoning, explaining what it felt like to be born in the wrong body and wanting to finally feel comfortable in her own skin; the reader can’t help but want Likh to be loved and accepted. Then finding love with Khalad, accepting her just the way she is, yet being completely oblivious to her (and his own) feelings for the longest time. The innocence is so real, it’s adorably painful. Not to mention how kick-ass Likh is as an asha. Yas Queen. I wish there would’ve been more dialogue between Kalen and Tea in Shadow Glass. I know that Kalen is man of few words, but the first half of the book had me longing for more insight into their relationship. Kalen’s confession of his love for Tea in The Heart Forger was so moving and deep, I wanted to see more of that in the third book. I wish the third book would have given us some more intimate moments, especially leading up to his death. It felt short changed, they shared a moment and it was taken from them, as many other moments were during their quest, which I guess is a reoccurring theme in their relationship. They would never truly be happy until the very end. However, Chupeco gives us Kalen’s insight later on on her blog when she writes his POV, something I didn’t know how badly I needed. Your welcome https://www.rinchupeco.com/kalen/ Your welcomeBut Tea’s drunk scene?! YES! I love how she lets her inhibitions down and just swoons over her love for Kalen, to the point that she basically says she wants to marry him! And how he never scolds her for her performance. She’s so in love that she sings a song about him! She never sings! She also professes how glorious in bed he is, like damn Chupeco, why couldn’t we peek into that part of their relationship? lol. Instead he’s amused and gives in to her. How can we not love this guy! Can we just gush over how much Fox and Tea love each other?! Very rarely have I read any genre that puts such importance on sibling relationships! I read in one of Chupeco’s interviews that she imagined Fox as her older brother that passed away before she was born and it just made me love Fox even more. I couldn’t stop from crying when Fox begs Tea not to leave him behind when she does the rune from the book of hidden runes to make him human again (I can’t remember what it’s called). He’s willing to follow her to the after life and spend the rest of his new life making up for turning on her. Like wow. Understanding his anguish, choosing Tea over Inessa, which I think has to do with when Tea lowers the veil during his conversation with Inessa earlier in the story and he claims he would slay his own sister if he needed to because she was getting dangerous. When he feels her presence, before he can explain anything to her, she builds the veil back up and seals off all connections with him, understanding that he will be safer this way, but still hurt from what she’s heard. She never once holds it against him. Not. Ever. The guilt he feels for not believing her, all the time lost between them, the fact that he would leave Inessa behind to make up for everything shows us how deep their connection and devotion is to each other. And Inessa and Kalen aren’t ever jealous. The Oracle! I did not see that coming. That was some A+ plot twist there. She was a formidable opponent and there was a few times where I didn’t think Tea would be successful at the very end. It also cleared up a lot of questions I had about the Oracle, which I appreciated. And the betrayal of Althy. HOW COULD SHE?! I was completely floored when Althy says that although she influenced Tea, it was still Tea’s doing, killing Daisy. Like, no. NO. It was not her fault, how dare you, sir! To sit there and say she was doing this all for the sake of also getting rid of magic. Girl, you lyin. When she delivers the fatal blow to Kalen, I was emotionally wrecked. When Druj turns into a Blight at the very end, I was at the edge of my seat. But of course, Tea comes through showing how powerful she truly is, unfortunately, at the cost of her life. My heart breaks for Tea because it’s one trial after another until she finds peace in death, easing (my) emotional turmoil by having Kalen join her.When she offers Kalen the opportunity to be human again!!! Like, girl! This world does not deserve you! Tea is always putting those she loves ahead of her own needs and desires. I imagine it was the most painful thing she’d ever have to offer, she probably couldn’t live with herself if she didn’t, but of course he turns her down, there’s no Kalen without Tea. I thought I wouldn’t like when Tea gives the rest of her story, written out, to the Bard, because that meant we couldn’t be with her as she continued her mission. But the Bard, true to his word, tells the reader the story from the other side, what we wouldn’t have been able to know if it was just Tea telling it. Everything told from the present point of view was always told by him. However, I’m biased. I just wanted to know more about Tea and Kalen lol. Given how the story revolves around death, the books don’t talk much, if any, about what happens when someone dies. Dark Asha are able to raise people from the dead, but never saying what the after life holds. Understanding that reincarnation is a common belief in Asian cultures, when Tea asks Fox where he went after he died, he says something along the lines of, “nothing and everything” making the reader wonder what death truly holds. At the very end of The Shadow Glass when the Bard is paying respects to the statue of Tea and Kalen, before Fox and Inessa’s wedding, he hears a familiar voice, turns around in disappointment when the voice and face don’t match. The woman he see’s says, “sons with my fire, daughters with my eyes. Mayhap one day, they will. A life worth dying for is a life worth living after all’” and then the man and woman disappear. They don’t enter the party, they don’t leave the palace, they just disappear. There’s a possibility that they may have been reincarnated. Another theory could be that this was her final goodbye to the Bard for telling her story. Interestingly enough, after Tea gains her black heartglass back during her exile and goes to the Gorvekai to pass the final trial Love, the one she failed the first time, she receives a vision: “A new vision swam through my mind. I saw all seven daeva bowing to me, with Kalen, smiling and alive, my hand in his, while I stood surrounded by light. You were right, Lily, my heartsglass wept. A prince on my arm, surrounded by silver. You were right.” The main possibility is that they’re living in the after life, because once she drew the rune to give her brother back the life he lost, all magic in the world would disappear, meaning both deava and Tea and Kalen would no longer exist because they were now magical creatures possessing the shadow glass. I’d also like to think Tea and Kalen are rewarded for their good works and given the opportunity for a second chance in life, however, the interaction with the bard could have been an apparition since no other instances of reincarnation are hinted at. Needless to say, I have an emotional hole in my heart after having finished this trilogy. It’s always hard closing a book with characters you grew so fondly of. Excuse me while I binge watch the office to cheer myself up. Rin, did you cry at the end as well?