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lupically · 3 years

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#D40404 | KAEDEHARA KAZUHA.

genre | fluff, light romance

word count | 1245

warning | mention of alcohol and drinking

note | a tribute to me risking it all for maple boy (unfortunately) and getting c6 rosaria instead.

kazuha always sighed when you complimented him.

it has nothing to do with shyness and embarrassment. even though whenever you stared at him with those playfully longing eyes of yours, and your lips sprouted dead petals that often contrasted his literary excellence with pure honesty, he would sigh with pink-tinted cheeks, he still insisted that it had nothing to do with him feeling shy and embarrassed about your direct compliments.

he did not blush because of those whimsical emotions. he blushed because of defeat, he sighed because of defeat. he would consider it a dissatisfaction of your shallow words—there must be more words to just... pretty.

"can you please eat your food? they are going to get cold," kazuha mumbled after taking a sip of his miso soup.

his brows furrowed deeper when opened his eyes and found you grinning dreamily at him. your chin was resting between where the base of your open palms joined, creating an allusion to a bloomed flower with your hands. and you were looking at him attentively, as you have been doing so ever since he caught your eyes amongst all else in the crux.

"you're so pretty, kazuha," you said, hints and hints of a soft giggle trailing in the tremble of your words. "you're pretty like a maple leaf."

he closed his eyes to ignore the present. bringing his chopsticks up to his mouth, he munched on the ball of rice with a visible frown you never cared for.

once again, there was absolutely no care for poetic greatness in your words. reflecting your simple mind, your words were plain and bland—he may be pretty, but your words certainly did not meet his standards!

additionally, he knew you think he is pretty! that was all you talked about when it came to him—heck, that was the only reason why you joined the crux! because you said you wanted to chase after him!

until today, he still couldn't understand why beidou found your lack of shame and your bold honesty so hilarious and a necessary part of the fleet. he just thought it was a mistake. a big, bad mistake.

somehow, beidou liked to tease him otherwise; that this has nothing to do with the clash of word choices and careful mind between you two, that this has something else stirring in him that he wasn't admitting to himself.

she liked to tell him it was all because he has unresolved feelings boiling inside, the feelings that refused to surface because he was too busy prioritizing a non-existent goal. she liked to tell kazuha that it was, in fact, shyness and embarrassment, because he hasn't realized that he has already developed feelings for you.

kazuha has not realized the monster he would become if one day, he listens to the wind and you're not within the breeze, and suddenly he couldn't find you anymore. he has not realized the significance that fact held.

"chased them away again, i see?" laughing loudly as she would after she gulped down a mouthful of alcohol, beidou pulled up a chair and sat down at your spot after she saw you stood up and ran off to patrol around the deck. "with the way flowers spill out of your mouth, i would expect you to be better at getting yourself a lover, you maple boy!"

kazuha deadpanned at the nickname, completely disregarding the fact that beidou almost slapped his heart out of his mouth. he scratched the back of his head to fix his ponytail, then he mumbled, "don't call me maple boy."

"oh? so [name] can say it but your captain can't?"

"i don't want anyone to say it."

beidou drank a few sips of alcohol as she squinted her eyes suspiciously at kazuha. pulling the bottle away from her face, she huffed dramatically before waving dismissively at him. she looked more serious now as she stood up and gave him a nod.

"alright then, i didn't know you dislike the name that much," she said, pointing over at your shadow on the deck. "i know they barely listen to you, but i'm sure if i talk to them, they would stop calling you that so i'll be on my way."

kazuha tapped his feet against the wooden floor. uneasiness was churning inside him heavily—swirling and swirling, bringing wind and mud together to craft a monster that seemed terrified of what the future could bring, what a future without you calling him your maple boy could bring. he closed his eyes to suppress it, his fingers fidgeting the further beidou's footsteps fade with the wind.

you would listen to her. you would call him kazuha, like everybody else, even though you were not everybody else. you have never just been everybody else.

he is your maple boy. he is not everybody else's maple boy, just yours.

"beidou–ah!" he jumped when he found the captain staring at him a few feet away, her boots in her hands and her silent steps treading the ground.

she laughed out loud at kazuha's shocked and wronged expression while she loudly approached him again. she sat down and began putting her boots back on slowly as she smiled to herself.

"i knew you cared about that name!" she said. "i also anticipated that look of constipation on your whenever you try to deny your feelings for [name]."

"i do not look–captain beidou, please!" kazuha gasped in defeat.

she laughed once again, bold and strong and secure. once her boots were laced up, she crossed her legs and kept silent as she took a good look at kazuha—her great companion, her strong and reliable companion, her companion who has finally found someone he could unconditionally seek comfort in.

"they are the only person who could break your composure, do you know that?"

she knew, everyone else in the fleet knew, and mostly, kazuha himself knew.

as calm and collected as he was, the possible turn of a monster's soul lay just within a snap of your fingers whenever you needed him to; violent, brutal, protective, and merciless. the treasure hoarders and the fatui learned of it the hard way when they thought you would be an easy target for your utter lack of combat ability, completely neglecting the pair of maple red eyes that glowed and glare in your shadow.

just a gust of wind, a cry for help, threatening footprints that trailed after your whereabouts—kazuha would turn. gone with the wind his composure and gentleness, the monster inside him crashes and burns and scratches until his undoing was done by those reassuring hands of yours against his cheeks.

"oh, hey!" you greeted when he climbed up the crow's nest up on the mainmast. grinning, you waved briefly. "my maple boy is here! what's up?"

kazuha softened.

he could be undone so easily. just three words from you and his claws, his sword, his knowledge fly, up and away into abandon.

the wind blew. with your scent, it brought him peace from his past and future. nothing about any time could be better than this moment, it felt to him, where your hair danced to the air and your relaxed smile complimented the sky. and when you called to him—maple boy, my maple boy—there wasn't much to say or think.

with all his literary excellence, the only words he could muster in his mind were three.

"you are pretty."

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rainofaugustsith · 3 years

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SWTOR: It's. About. Story.

After weeks of complaints about the new Galactic Seasons program, the devs posted a response today. Unfortunately they managed to neatly sidestep almost all of the complaints players have been making en masse:

1. The PVE objectives funnel a lot of players into areas where the instances are too large for the map to accommodate, such as 30 players on CZ-198. It's thus making those areas miserable to play, and woe to anyone actually trying to complete story (such as Rishi and Yavin 4).

Solutions to this issue would be a) lower the number of players in each instance; b) distribute the objectives more broadly so players don't all converge on a few specific areas. EA/BW said nothing about the former and doubled down on making the objectives narrow for the latter, at least for the first season of GS.

2. The "RNG" for objectives is very heavily skewed toward PVP and GSF, which are activities many players dislike and do not want to do. It's not uncommon to have both GSF and Warzones come up as the day's POs, and there's only one re-roll.

3. Re-rolling any objective often results in GSF or PVP coming up again. There's only one, so that often means a player cannot complete their PO (s) for the day.

As solutions to #2 and #3, players have been asking for a) more re-rolls; b) a way to toggle mission preference between PVE, solo PVE and PVP objectives so they avoid the ones they hate and won't do.

4. There are no solo weekly POs.

It seems as though EA/BW is making a conscious effort to ignore all the feedback on what many players actually want from the game and the issues they've expressed both on the PTS and live, to try to push the play styles they - and a small clique of fans - personally favor. It feels to me that they are trying to force the game and the player base to be something they're not.

SWTOR was marketed as a story based game. Its core demographic comes largely from two single-player, story-based games: KOTOR and KOTOR II. When it was released it was praised for the richness of its storytelling, and the strength of its voiceover artists.

Not PVP.

Not raids.

Not GSF.

Story. Good, substantial story.

The writing on the wall is there with other EA/BW games, too. The next Dragon Age was changed from a MMO to a single-player game. Anthem, a game involving group play, failed. Fallen Order, a single-player story based game, did well.

Mass Effect and Dragon Age are a decade old. KOTOR is an older game, too. People still play them, and want more of them, because of the story.

Of course, EA/BW would love it if the SWTOR playerbase en masse learned to love PVPing and GSF. It's low-cost content for them. They don't have to do much; just provide the maps and let players kill each other. But that isn't why people play this game, overall. There are far better games for PVP, first-person shooters and space battles, if that is what one actually wants. Heck, there's an entire space battle Star Wars game, Battlefront II, if that is what one wants.

In SWTOR, it's about the story. It's about the characters.

Sometimes I feel like there are devs at EA/BW who are trying to do this with the resources they have, and I'm grateful for that effort. The swoop rally had short storylines and characters to talk with. Echoes of Oblivion brought us the best writing since KOTFE. They had a Mandalorian themed flashpoint that brought in a storyline for non-Force users. None of it was IMPS VS PUBS 4EVA!!! which was great. Even the Secrets of the Enclave was pretty good. While I dread what it may be setting up, and it's back to the IMPS VS PUBS 4EVA!!! treadmill which is boring and tedious as fuck, it was designed well and had some really excellent moments.

But...Spirit of Vengeance was designed initially at a level much more tedious, and requiring better gear, than usual story/solo flashpoints. GSF objectives get way more conquest points that anything else. Some mats are only available through ranked PVP or NiM Ops. And now, Galactic Seasons, which could have been brilliant but seems to be garnering more resentment, anger and lost subscriptions than anything else.

When is there engagement and interest in SWTOR? When does one see more people posting on the official forums? When do the planets seem busier? When there's new story or event that can be soloed.

What do people constantly ask for? New stories, new engagement with companions, new strongholds, new world building.

It's interesting that EA/BW never has to beg or bribe people to play the story. Players do it because they want to. Even KOTFE/KOTET, which are not super popular, do not require player bribes. The only story content people seem to avoid or revile en masse are the walker missions; Oricon, which needs two ops to be completed; and Makeb, which tellingly has no characters with which the player can bond and engage long-term.

The class stories? Still being played. I've been through the Sith Warrior story four times, with several clones at various points in the class story working their way through. I've been through the Sith Inquisitor story three times, again, with more clones coming up. Bounty Hunter? Three times, so far.. Smuggler? Twice, so far. Imperial Agent? Twice. I've repeated every class story at least once, and I still keep coming back to do the class stories and planetary stories and side quests, because they are good. Because I like the characters I meet. Because the planets are engaging.

Shadow of Revan? Still being played.

I still see people on Ilum. I see people on Onderon and Ossus. Even Zakuul and Iokath. The story content gets played, and played again. One of the things people have requested again and again, in fact, is a way to repeat the story content.

Voiceover artists are expensive, especially when three languages are being recorded, but players have offered ways to add engagement with companions without speech, such as emails from them. Silent missions. You don't need to have a voiceover artist to animate a short scene of Lana Beniko or Theron Shan dancing on the beach with a PC they've romanced. Even if they cannot keep up every romance, if they just kept up with Lana and Theron it would make players happy. Add in, let's say, four or six selected from the class stories - let's say Scourge, Kira, Quinn, Jorgan, Vette, Risha - and a lot of people would be overjoyed. Four men, four women; equal number from each faction + KOTFE. That does leave an uneven number of mlm/wlw possibilities but there are two of each, as well. And those companions can certainly have platonic friendly conversations with the PC, too. I personally really miss Vette, Talos, Xalek, Blizz, Ashara and Jaesa being in my story. And many others, too.

The things being offered by GS are things that story players enjoy - decos, new strongholds, companions with side story missions - and this makes it even more frustrating that story players are being expected to PVP, GSF and use Group Finder, unless they want to buy their way through, to get them. Don't get me wrong - the fact that it's all optional makes me less angry at EA/BW than Iokath and Oricon did, by a long shot. All the same, it's a shame they're setting it up this way, because if they gave story/solo players objectives that were not PVP and group based, I think they'd be seeing a lot more excitement and engagement right about now.

Right now, it seems EA/BW is far more interested in catering to a smaller player group who enjoys side content that the rest of the player base has to be actively bribed and coerced to play. Should PVP and GSF get development? Sure, if people enjoy it. Should the game try to funnel the rest of us into it? No. The fact that players don't want to be there, and have expressed that sentiment again and again, and constantly need to be bribed and coerced into it, should be a wakeup call. But EA/BW is still sleeping and hitting the snooze button.

SWTOR is a story-based game. Raids, PVP, GSF are all wonderful for those who enjoy them but they are not for everyone. Players in a story based game need story.

#swtor #rain talks swtor #swtor critical #ea/bw critical #galactic seasons critical

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winterune · 3 years

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Hello! I happened across your analysis posts on Ren Amamiya and they are very well-written! I know this conversation can be considered taboo for some (I'm sorry), but if given the choice from what you've seen, who would you say is the more likely romantic option for him? I'm curious what you have to say. Thank you and I hope you're doing well :)

Hello!

Ahh thank you so much!! I'm really glad you like them! I wrote them quite a while back and never did finish them (as I intended to write them per episode of the anime). It makes me smile to know people still read them and find them enjoyable :))

To answer your question, I would first like to say that this is entirely my opinion, and not at all intended to undermine any ship. Anyone can have their preferred ships with their own reasonings on why it works. Also, as Ren is a silent protagonist, his personality is, for the most part, made up of our choices and our headcanons. Whatever interpretation we have of his character, and any of the other characters, is valid. This is just my own take on who suits Ren best based on how I think he is.

With that said...

In my opinion, taking into account what Ren has been through and his mindset at the beginning of the game, I would say Ann is the more likely romantic option. My reason is that Ann's kindness and non-judgmental behavior lets Ren be vulnerable in front of her. Just as he let her be vulnerable in front of him, Ren needs someone, some place where he can put down all mask and pretense and just be him. Broken, confused, prisoned by his own unescapable situation. If only he hadn't met Shido... But he would probably do the same thing again were he be put in the same situation twice. He has a lot of things to untangle from his mind, and in my opinion, Ann is the best companion to help him (Shiho too imo, if she were a romancable character and we get to see more of Ren x Shiho interactions).

She never saw him as the troublemaker the rumours made him out to be. She never believed in the rumours in the first place, as she has been the subject of such misguided things for years. Her hostility at the start stemmed from her wariness toward people, but that still didn't stop her to accept his help when she needed it most. In fact, after her breakdown and seeing that he's still there, listening to her, she said, "I kinda had a feeling they were all just exaggeration. You seemed lonely--almost like you don't belong anywhere." She saw herself in him as he saw himself in her. One thing I belief a couple needs to have a lasting relationship is the ability to be vulnerable with each other and accept all that there is. Both Ren and Ann are kind, accepting people, so that's why I think they suit each other.

Would like to note that they were not my first ship. I shipped Ren with Futaba for a while (because they're cute and I love how Ren is like an older brother to her, very caring), until I joined a zine focusing on the protagonist x lovers ship and I ended up looking at Ren x Ann with a new perspective. I've always liked Ann. Almost shipped them too, but ended up thinking they're more like friends.

And that's the thing. They're friends. Just two people supporting each other. Equals. Before they slowly fall for each other throughout the course of her confidant. For one thing, the friend-to-lover is one of my favorite tropes, so there's that. But, why I don't ship Ren as much now with the others is because, in my opinion, for those ships to happen, I feel like Ren has to have some sort of closure with himself first before he can form any sort of connection. It also applies to Ann, yes, but Ann has known him from the beginning, known who he is behind the mask, heck might even be the first person who glimpsed the real Ren, because, again, she saw him as lonely even when people said he assaulted someone.

So, yeah, after all these analyzing of Ren's character, I cannot highkey ship him with anyone else. I still ship him with several others because I think they're cute or that their dynamic has a lot of potential fanwork-wise, but whenever I take his character, his mindset into consideration, all I keep going back to is Ann.

I'm sorry this turned lengthy, but thank you for the question, anon! Hope you're doing well too :)

#asks #anonymous #shuann #renann #ann takamaki #ren amamiya #p5 musings #character analysis #p5 character analysis #p5 character analysis ren #p5 character analysis ann #persona #persona 5

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fallout-drabbles-n-stuff · 4 years

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Non-romanced companions react to sole grabbing their hand when startled

Cait:

“Oi, I’ve seen ya shoot a deathclaw in its arse without second thought. What’s got you so worked up?”

She was nothing short of flattered. Her badass partner was really going to grab onto her for safety? Cute.

Curie:

“There there Madam/Monsieur, it was only a kitty cat..”

She honestly had a hard time not laughing. True to her word, a grey cat leapt out of nowhere and found it place at your feet. However that isn’t to say she didn’t secretly love the contact.

Danse:

“Oh um, are you okay?”

Physical contact never ceased to fail in surprising him. So, purely out of shock his eyes would widen to saucers, quickly falling down to look at your intertwined hands. Next he’d awkwardly mumble something about assessing the area..yknow, typical Danse stuff.

Deacon:

“Heh, I gotcha.”

Eh, he didn’t care. You could jump up into his arms like shaggy and scooby from that pre-war show he knew nothing about...and he’d be a-okay with it.

Gage:

“Get it together boss, ain’t nothing gonna sneak up on us...”

He’d pretend to be immensely bothered by it, taking his hand back with a sharp jerk of his arm as he gave you what you liked to call his “resting gage face.” Truthfully though, he didn’t mind it nearly as much as he let on.

Hancock:

“Shhh, relax..”

He wouldn’t mind it one bit, clearly understanding that you did it out of trust. So, true to his nature he’d just do his best to calm you down whilst also trying to figure out if you were under attack or not.

Macready:

“What the heck are you doing? Wait, what was that?!”

He’d be shocked at first, ready to recoil his hand away until he too heard the source of your sudden outburst...which made him also clutch onto you.

Maxson:

“...It..it’s quite alright soldier.”

Though he was pretty taken aback by the sudden contact, he surprised you even more by not reacting in any other way. At first he’d be pretty rigid, holding his breath until second by second he’d calm down a little. Eventually he just cleared his throat and pretended it didn’t happen.

Nick:

“Watch it kiddo, you gave me a start too..”

The sound didn’t shock him nearly as bad as you grabbing his hand did. Not even his good one, the one completely uncovered. A wave of self consciousness would claim him, making his eyes dim slightly as he tried to brush it off.

Old Longfellow:

“Well, you could just say thatcha wanted to hold hands cap’n *chuckle*.”

Whatever fear you felt immediately dissolved into annoyance at the old man’s words. Of course he went there. Oh well, at least he made you unafraid.

Piper:

“Everything alright..?”

She’d be pretty confused, flattered but confused at that. Why on earth would you grab her hand? No matter what the answer to that might’ve been, she’d just eventually roll her green eyes and smile as she tore her hand away.

Preston:

“What’s wrong General?”

Thought the sound might’ve startled him as well, he was able to complet disregard his fear in favor for making sure you were alright- refusing to let go of your hand no matter how awakes it might’ve been until you calmed down.

Sturges:

“Oh shoot, what was that?”

He’d be equally as spoked, maybe even grabbing your hand tighter as his dark eyes darted across the room to try to find the source of the noise. Once he realized just how childish his actions seemed, he’d blush and politely excuse himself to go tinker away at something to hide his shame.

X6-88:

“Does engaging in physical contact with me make you feel better, ma’am/sir?”

He was stiff. As matter of fact, so much so that he was completely rigid..until he automatically shot the source of the loud noise in a single deadly firing of his laser pistol. What unnerved you more than the sudden noise was the obviously forced, wrong grin he attempted to create to “reassure you” of your safety.

It did anything but.

#fallout #fallout 4 #paladin danse #fo4 companions #fallout companions #danse #elder maxson #porter gage #curie #fo4 reacts #fallout 4 companions react

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hunxi-guilai · 4 years

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I love reading your language and analysis posts, thank you for all your hard work. Out of curiosity, what are your favourite character songs from the CQL album?

gosh... this is such a difficult question because I’ve been listening to the CQL companion album pretty much non-stop since February because it’s so??? good??? you didn’t ask for this but now I’m going to talk about ALL the MDZS/CQL music I’ve been listening to on repeat:

Songs that I Loved from the First Listen:

无羁 Wuji: listen. I know this show had 50 episodes. But I. Refused to let Netflix skip me immediately to the next episode. Because I just. Wanted to listen to this song on repeat. Production crew is lucky that this theme song is so good because they smack us over the head with the instrumental version every chance they get, and I still thank them for it

恨别 Henbie (Jiang Cheng): I was floored by how good this song was??? it’s just???? incredible??? melancholic and mournful backed by the understated strength born of endurance? fuck me UP Wang Zhuocheng

不由 Buyou (Lan Xichen): again, not a song I was expecting to immediately fall in love with but neither was I expecting to walk out of this show with SO MANY feelings exclusively about Lan Xichen. There’s an interview somewhere with Liu Haikuan who describes this song something along the lines of ‘an unending sigh’ and just... yep. Yep. brb just being more upset about Lan Xichen

清河诀 Qinghe Jue (Nie bros): Ayunga goes hard and I thank him every day for it. This song is probably the greatest source of my feelings on the Nie brothers

荒城渡 Huangchengdu (Xue Yang): Zhou Shen is a LITERAL GOD. THAT FALSETTO. I don’t even like Xue Yang but any vaguely positive feelings I have about his character can be attributed to his character song

多恨生 Duohensheng (Jin Guangyao): the first time through I started laughing when it merged into vaguely semi-rap but then the more I listened to it the more I realized how well the electronic aspects work for the song? That undercurrent of frustration mirrored in the breaking-down of his image, translated to a sonic medium? I’m sold.

最是少年不可欺 Zuishishaonianbukeqi (Juniors): I! Love! The juniors! And it helps that their character song is 1) not bitterly unhappy the way everyone else’s is and 2) it’s like, actively a good song. 10/10 a song for waking up to with the intent of fighting the sunrise

Songs that Grew On Me:

曲尽陈情 Qujinchenqing (Wei Wuxian): talked about it in this post!

不忘 Buwang (Lan Wangji): also in that post

孤城 Gucheng (Song Lan and A-Qing): can in fact confirm that my enjoyment of this song was 2000% improved by watching Song Jiyang dance to it, blindfolded in certain performances, which is like, what the heck, that fucks with your balance so much, how did you not trip and fall flat on your face good sir

疏林如有诉 Shulinruyousu (Wen Qing): the only reason why I didn’t fall in love with this immediately is because YouTube neglected to inform me this song exists. It’s so underrated. My goodness

Songs That I... Skip on Shuffle:

意难平 Yinanping (Jiang Yanli): I’M SORRY SHIJIE

永隔 Yongge (Jiang Yanli and Jin Zixuan): I CONTINUE TO BE SORRY

赤子 Chizi (Wen Ning): I’m the worst but... this song is just not my type...

不枉 Buwang: it’s... uh, there?

Bonus! Non-CQL MDZS-affiliated songs!

醉梦前尘 Zuimengqiancheng (MDZS donghua title song): this song as a whole is a BOP but special shout-out to that moment at 3:34? I forget what that rhythmic evening is called in music theory but it’s so good

问灵 Wenling: still screaming about 2:05

忘羡 Wangxian (MDZS audiodrama): this song is just four minutes of solid romance and I can only handle it in small doses

人间纵我 Renjianzongwo (MDZS audiodrama season 3): starts at 120mph, ends at 120mph, went full anime rock and I love them for it

忘尘如羡 Wangchenruxian: 3:01. You’re welcome.

落雪寻花 Luoxuexunhua: a song that took a while to grow on me, but the lyrics are so well-written aaaaAAAAHHH:

我願無聲無言 / I would soundlessly, wordlessly

無悔無怨 / without regret, without resentment

守護你笑顏 / guard and protect your smile

願你無悲無痛 / I wish for you to be sorrowless, painless

無憂無慮 / without worries, without anxieties,

恣意如少年 / willful and untamed, as in youth

恨他世事莫測變 / I hate that -- the affairs of the world are unpredictable and changing

恨我竟無力回天 / I hate that -- I have no power to turn back time

你化作雲煙不告而別 / You dissolve into clouds and smoke, departing with no farewell

#not a complete list of MDZS/CQL music by any means #but definitely the ones I've been listening to recently #I am also terrified of trying to translate song lyrics because song lyrics are HARD #anyway please enjoy some satellite material that has been bringing me great joy in these trying times #MDZS music moods #ask and ye shall receive

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thessalian · 3 years

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Thess vs Origin Stories

I’ve figured out what DA:I needs and was seriously missing. I mean, besides something that actually links some of the dead, meaningless zones (*coff*HISSINGWASTES*coff*) to the main plot. So, here it is:

Origin-specific quests that aren’t just a little bit of side colour on the war table.

DA2 didn’t have that problem - it was all Hawke, all the time, so it was inherently personal at a core level by default. Hawke’s origin was set in stone from the beginning, so they didn’t really have to worry about it.

But Origins’ charm was always largely about how personal things got. You’re playing a Circle mage? The bit in the Circle Tower was really personal as you saw what happened to the halls you once called home. Love the Circle Tower or hate it, you still knew people there, and your in character reaction to it was really hecking personal. Both dwarven origins got serious character development potential when you got to Orzamarr, given Bhelen’s either patron to your sister or your traitorous brother (though I’d argue that dusters got the most personal shit in Orzamarr just because of the bit in the Carta hideout and Leske). Dalish elves were a little short-changed at the Brecilian Forest but you at least got to see a clan and hear news about your own, and they more than made up for it during the shriek attack, given Tamlen. Alienage elf? Oh, look; Loghain’s selling your dad into slavery. Human noble? Howe. All the Howe. So much Howe.

Inquisition, though ... all you really get that ties the story to your character’s background is a couple of bits at the war table and some dialogue options. Now, maybe this is supposed to represent how your entire life takes a back seat to the Inquisition, but that didn’t hold true for anyone else. All of your companions got way, way more connection to their backstory than you did to yours, and you’re the main fucking character. Hell, even non-companions got more involved on a personal level with the plot than the Inquisitor does - XREF: Morrigan.

When a character you never even see in this game and whose identity you might not even understand if you never played Origins gets more attention at the war table than the main character, there’s a problem with emotional investment with the main character on a base level.

I admit, I’ve only ever played human and elf thus far - I know what I like, and I know damn well that I’m going to have to skip Warrior in general because I find ranged works way better for me in this game because of how they changed the mechanics, so I’m going to have to change a couple of ideas on what I want my dwarf and Qunari to be character-wise - but given that the most you get about your Dalish clan is some extra dialogue, the ability to romance Solas, and a war table questline that, if you don’t handle it just right, gets your whole clan dead... Well, I don’t imagine they did that much better on surface dwarves and technically-Tal’vashoth. And I haven’t heard any evidence to the contrary from anyone else.

I know the entire dev team is working on DA4 and DA:I is basically done, but I would seriously pay money for, in the spirit of ME3′s Citadel DLC, a DLC pack that unlocks a bunch of origin-specific quests. Actual quests, not just war table “pick a solution between diplomatic, sneaky or military” shit. If your family’s using the Inquisition’s name to their own advantage, you should have the opportunity to fucking confront them. If your clan’s getting threatened by red lyrium bullshit, you should have the opportunity to personally handle the situation before anyone gets hurt, whether it’s “I’m the only person who could convince my clan to up stakes and leave”, “I’m the only person who could convince the town sheltering them to stop being assholes”, or “YOU THREATEN MY CLAN AND YOU FUCKING DIE”. A Qunari should be able to join their old mercenary company on a mission and introduce them to the Chargers - maybe even replace the Chargers if Bull’s loyalty quest goes a certain way. House Cadash would be a major asset and it’d be fun to be able to get them out of trouble.

Varric talks a lot about how it’s nice to remember that the Inquisitor’s a person, not just an ideal. It would have been nice if Bioware had remembered that in more than just a throwaway comment or two from one sodding companion.

#Thess plays video games

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antivan-beau · 4 years

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51-54, give me your headcanons

Aww thanks, Auby!! I decided to lean in and had a lot of fun with these.

51. Favorite Warden/Hawke/Inquisitor headcanons (any or all)?

GOSH, this is so broad! I’ll go with some HCs for my characters that are a little unusual and/or contradict things established in canon.

Beatrice Cousland - Morrigan performs the dark ritual with Alistair without Beatrice’s knowledge or consent. For those unfamiliar with Beatrice’s story, she and Morrigan get a slowburn romance throughout the events of Origins that has a pretty different trajectory from Morrigan’s canon romance. On the eve of the final battle, Morrigan proposes the ritual, and Beatrice flatly refuses to ask Alistair to go through with it. She is perfectly content to sacrifice herself, do her duty as a Grey Warden, etc, plus she argues that this ritual is just a final way for Flemeth to exert control over Morrigan’s life. But Morrigan can’t bear to lose Beatrice, and she feels she has very legitimate reasons for wanting an Old God Baby that her lawful good gf doesn’t understand. So after Beatrice falls asleep, Morrigan sneaks out and convinces Alistair herself. Beatrice is shocked and upset when she makes the final blow and lives through it. Her time during Awakening is spent with Big Angst trying to figure out why Morrigan would go behind her back, why she would leave afterword, and how the heck is Beatrice gonna find her swamp witch gf again.

Edric Surana - By the end of Origins, my boy’s personality is 50% mage rights, 30% wanderlust, and 20% spite. He has no desire to stick around and be Warden-Commander. He can’t bear to be told what to do or to give other people orders anymore. He also shirks his duty because he and his BFF, unhardened King Alistair, end the game on tense terms, since Alistair doesn’t want to be king and Edric thinks he needs to suck it up. After Edric survives killing the archdemon (in this worldstate, Morrigan’s ritual is very much an awkward act of wlw/mlm solidarity), Edric and Zevran leave for Antiva together. Edric is an active participant in Zevran’s quest to hunt down and kill Crow masters, which pleases them both immensely. I’ve got a vague idea that Edric actually shows up in Kirkwall with Zev during the events of DA2.

Anias Hawke - like many Hawkes, she is a disaster, but I think in her own special ways. She goes from “bright-eyed refugee trying to do the right thing” to “overtired bureaucrat/public figure, constantly thwarted at doing the right thing” to “washed-up celebrity who spends too much time drinking with Isabela on weeknights and Aveline on weekends.” Probably my most unusual headcanon about her is that I simply rewrote the whole end of Act 2 / beginning of Act 3 because I was so mad she didn’t immediately get to have a follow-up conversation with Isabela about stealing and returning the Tome of Koslun. Anias is doggedly persistent and simply would chase Isabela to the city gates if she had to. This short, kind of mediocre fix-it dialogue was my earliest foray into DA fanfic, before I even knew there was an active fandom :’)

Bastien Adaar - Only 15 hours into my first playthrough of this game, so everything about Bastien is subject to change! I’ve been toying with the idea of roleplaying her as a faithful Andrastean who genuinely thinks she might be the chosen one? I don’t see that much with Inquisitors, especially with an Adaar, so I’m trying it out and seeing where it gets me.

52. Favorite non-Player Character headcanons?

Kirkwall feels so lived-in! My brain is full of specific ideas for the ways the DA2 companions spend their time away from Hawke’s missions. Merrill spending time with Alienage kids and telling them Dalish stories about elven heroes :’) Anders’ clinic is always busy, but every day is a different adventure - delivering babies, curing food poisoning, unexpected veterinarian queries that he’s 100% unqualified to answer but he’s so beloved by Darktown residents that people go to him, anyway. Fenris devotes serious time to learning to read, but I also like to think (after a particular Sebastian party banter) that he decides to teach Alienage elves how to fight. Aveline on the slow, tragic slide from ‘daily city patrols’ to ‘daily office paperwork.’

53. That One Headcanon that hurts to think about?

I love thinking about Taliesen and Zevran re-meeting in Denerim. I HC that Taliesen still has “yeah, we’re best friends! also, would definitely still sleep with you if you asked” feelings for Zevran. But since Zev’s actually experienced some personal freedom + healthy relationships by this point, his feelings about Taliesen are complicated at best. You know when you’ve grown and changed a lot, but somebody from your past shows up, and they haven’t changed at all? And they still have all their old flaws and lame ambitions? Must be an incredibly bittersweet moment for Zev - confronting his changed circumstances and how much he’s grown, but also confronting the realization that he doesn’t have any choice about killing his other lover, too.

54. Fluffiest headcanon ever?

Gosh… everything about Beatrice and Morrigan after the events of Origins’ DLCs. When they finally meet up again, perhaps a year or two after Witchunt, they are finally able to admit the depth and complexity of their feelings, and begin to reconcile their very different worldviews. They settle down in Orlais together, they’re very good moms to Kieran, Beatrice hangs out around the Orlesian court being a chill knight, probably stealing kisses with Morrigan in alcoves that aren’t as private as they think. I commissioned art of them at this point in their lives just to indulge my desire for fluff.

#ask meme #edric surana #beatrice cousland #anias hawke #bastien adaar

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greyvvardenfell · 4 years

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yeah why the heck not, dragon age questions - 1, 12, 58, 59, 61 (I take this to mean non-companion?)

1. How did you get into Dragon Age?

when I was in high school (around 2011), the guy i had a massive crush on recommended I play origins because i couldn’t shut up about how much i liked skyrim, and he thought i’d like dragon age too. he was right. i didn’t play da2 or inquisition until i got back into the fandom in 2017.

12. Do you prefer DA:O, DA2, or DA:I most?

as much as i love the origins companions, i have to say da2. it’s fantastic (as in related to fantasy) while still being relatable in terms of hawke’s arc, coming from nothing through so much loss and still making something, only to have it end through forces outside of their control. i love how different each playthrough can be depending on dialog choices and companion combos, and i love how the companions exist on their own outside of hawke’s circle.

58. Who has the best character arc overall?

obviously i’m partial to zev. whether in a friendship or a romance, his arc is so good. being at his lowest low when he meets the warden, having another chance sprung upon him, and embracing it, even reluctantly at first, until he really feels loved and accepted and like there’s a life for him outside the rigid structure he was raised in is... Good.

i also love fenris’s arc though. it hits a lot of the same notes, just in a slightly different way. i love his anger and resentment, and that his growth is not linear. that’s hashtag relatable.

59. Who was written really poorly?

who wasn’t i can’t stand aveline. she’s the only character i honestly see no redeeming qualities in. the way she treats isabela is disgusting, and there are enough cop-loving bootlickers in real life. i don’t want one in my game. she abuses her power and thinks she’s blameless in kirkwall’s problems. adding on top of that that i think she was voice-acted poorly and it’s no wonder i rival her with every hawke.

61. Favorite NPC?

hmmm.... my first instinct was lace harding. in my alternate inquisition canon (in which jakariel lavellan is not the inquisitor), he ends up with her. i also love krem. how can you not love krem.

#thanks liv!#rey answers people

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slippingbetweenthestars · 4 years

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Secondary Characters Rec List

Ah, secondary characters. I love them. If you do to, here’s a rec list! To be updated as I go.

Links go to AO3. Heed the tags. Most of these should be gen or very G romances, so I’m not marking “adult” fics, but a good deal of them involve “The Sound of Drums/The Last of the Time Lords” and deal with correspondingly dark themes.

For the purpose of this list, “secondary character” means a character who 1) appears only in a few episodes &/or 2) one who isn’t a long-term companion. I’m ignoring spin-offs, as I haven’t seen any of them. Thus, I’m including Sarah Jane here with the secondaries despite her experiences as a long-term, beloved companion.

These are stories primarily focusing on the inner lives of these characters, not the Doctor, though he’s sometimes a catalyst for the events in their lives.

Primarily one-shots.

Please, feel free to reblog or comment if you’ve enjoyed something not on the list! I’m always on the lookout for stories like these. I’m still missing fics for Chantho, everyone in Voyage of the Damned, POV Mr. Copper stories, non-Jethro Midnight stories (sorry, he pops up a lot but I’m less interested in him than, say, Dee Dee), Adelaide Brooke and Co, Raffalo, the cast of Planet of the Dead minus Christina, Suki/Eva Saint Julienne (the Long Game), Lynda, and more. Heck, even Adam would be interesting to read about.

Lucy Cole/Saxon:

Colluding with the Oppressor (or: We're all mad here) by inkteller: Harry had been so, so brilliant and charming. She hadn't seen the other parts of him. Or maybe she hadn't wanted to. Okay, this is one of my very favorite DW stories. Like, ever. 10/10. What’s going on in Lucy’s head throughout her relationship with Harold Saxon.

Of No Consequence at All by Culumacilinte: Lucy Cole had never fancied herself the part of the widow. A snapshot of Lucy’s life post-Valiant. (Ignores the jail scene in The End of Time, but let’s be honest, that was one of the weaker scenes from the finale, so I’m content to ignore it as well).

Harriet Jones aka my favorite non-companion:

The Politesse of Love and Flight by kaffyrutsky: Who, after all, can say "Yes, we know you" with so little appreciation of the one they think they know? A story of women and wings. Character study and a story of persistence.

Things Kept (Caliban Bass n' Drums Remix) by Aris Merquoni (ArisTGD): Harriet Jones has always had her reasons, and always had her pride. What happens, exactly, after the whole world watches the British Prime Minister shoot the American President? Includes a visit from the Tenth Doctor.

Call to Duty by Amand_r: She almost flashed her ID before she realised that she hadn't one. For a while she'd toyed with using her passport, but that seemed a bit much. Her fingers itched when she didn't have one, and she considered the fact that really, this was the first time in a long time that she had had the opportunity to introduce herself. Everyone, apparently took great delight in remarking on how much they knew her. Introducing my favorite rare-pair, Harriet Jones x Mr. Copper. Also prepare to have your heart ripped out a bit.

While we’re at it, Mr. Copper:

Copper Armour For Miss Jones by kaffyrutsky: Harriet Jones learns that Copper can be much, much more valuable than gold. So here’s the happy ending version of that rare-pair, aka death is overrated sometimes, even for an angst-muffin like me.

Miss Jones and the Good Egg by kaffyr (kaffyrutsky): There was no accounting for taste.... Pure fluff, in which Mr. Copper wants to taste the famed Christmas eggnog, and Harriet takes pity on the poor old fool and humors him.

Mickey Smith:

Brave by AstroGirl: Mickey makes a decision. An internal monologue about Mickey deciding to stay behind in the other universe.

Yesterday (Powell Estatesode) by Coru: In the wake of Canary Wharf everyone has to deal with loss. A very short story in the A Man Who Wasn’t There series, post Hour of Darkness. After the Battle of Canary Wharf, the whole city’s in mourning. Rose’s funeral, featuring several other characters on this list.

Jackie Tyler:

Motherhood by ofstormsandwolves: Jackie Tyler ponders motherhood. In which it’s not easy watching your child grow up.

Beans on Toast by ALC: Rose Tyler loves her mum and considers herself a very lucky little girl, indeed. In Jackie's eyes, quite the opposite is true. Love this.

The Jones Family:

Snapshots by cosmogyrals: Series of ficlets about Martha and her relationship with her family.

Francine Jones:

Out of the Nest by LizBee: Francine learns more about the Doctor. Or, what could have convinced her so quickly that Martha was in danger.

Home Cooking by Rheanna: "Fish and chips? Has the oven broken?" This one’s POV Martha, but it’s about Francine and Clive.

Tish Jones:

Trying To Protect What I Keep Inside by Nevanna: Despite being menaced by a dangerous alien dictator, Tish tries to resist in the only ways that she knows how, and safeguard what matters most to her. I’m really fascinated by Martha’s whole family, really, and I really enjoyed this look into Tish’s head.

Leo Jones:

The One That Got Away by Shivver: Clive, Francine, and Tish were taken prisoner, Martha escaped via vortex manipulator, but the Master never caught Leo. Excellent glimpse inside the Year that Never Happened.

Jabe:

Tree of Life by kaffyr (kaffyrutsky): The Forest of Cheem had not had to grieve such a loss in 30 millennia; it could not stand. The aftermath of Jabe’s death, featuring just stellar alien worldbuilding and a good heap of emotions to boot.

Companionable Silence by AstroGirl: The Ninth Doctor and Jabe share a quiet moment. An AU in which her fate in "The End of the World" was different.

Nancy:

Five Times Nancy Gathered a Spark by brightthunder: The ethical choice doesn’t always feel like the right one. In which Nancy of "The Empty Child"/"The Doctor Dances" saves the world in ways the Doctor never can. So much had to have been going on in her head. In which Nancy is Jewish.

Gwyneth:

More Things in Heaven and Earth by WanderingThroughWickford: Servant girl Gwyneth has heard the voices of her 'angels' since childhood. Now, as she prepares to let the Gelth through the Cardiff Rift, she comes to a shocking realization about them - and herself - that will force her to choose between two worlds. A different take on Gwyneth, in which she is not *quite* human.

Wilfred Mott:

I struggled on whether or not to include Wilf, because he’s basically a companion in The End of Time, and he packs such an emotional punch for someone who only gets a few episodes. But hey, if I’m including Mickey and Sarah Jane, Wilf fits the bill as well. I have...surprisingly few POV Wilf fics...

A Friend In Need by stcrmpilot: Wilfred is surprised when Donna and the Doctor accidentally drop by the day before New Year's Eve. The Doctor gets a surprise of his own when the fireworks displays start a bit earlier than expected.

Sarah Jane Smith:

This Sporting Life by Netgirl_y2k: Sarah Jane thought that she had quite enough troubles already, what with the bright purple man-eating aliens living in the Thames. Then the Doctor turned up with a new face, an inexplicably northern accent and a sex crazed Jack Harkness in tow. Slight AU where Nine has met Sarah Jane. Post-Canary wharf for her.

After Christmas by cosmic_llin: Sarah needs to talk to the Prime Minister about the Doctor. Post-The Christmas Invasion. Sarah Jane and Harriet Jones spend a bit of quality time together.

Donna Noble Investigates by cosmic_llin: Here Donna was, trying her best to find the Doctor, and all she kept getting was this irritating reporter woman. In which Donna meets Sarah Jane while investigating Adipose Industries.

Toshiko Sato:

Of Course I'll Cover for You by Timemidae: It's Tosh's day off, but she just can't say no to Owen. How Tosh ended up at Albion Hospital, autopsied a space pig, and briefly met the strangest and most wonderful man in the universe. Or, why not to dissect an alien pig.

Kate Lethbridge-Stewart:

Like Father, Like Daughter by Domina_Temporis: Kate Stewart has two role models in her life. One is her father. The other is a nameless alien she's never met. Now she's working at UNIT, where both are legends and she's about to come face to face with the Doctor at last. At least, that's what she thinks. A short journey through Kate Stewart's UNIT career. Even though I’m staunchly anti-DotD, I love this little story.

Bonus:

And So He Goes by V762CAS: The Doctor is left beaten and lost after the Time War, and soon afterward finds himself dealing with yet another threat in London. Meanwhile, a girl from the Powell estate finds herself suddenly unemployed. This one is POV Alastair Leftbridge-Stewart. I just couldn’t leave it out, even if it is about the Doctor.

Destroy Everything You Touch by Glinda: It was Ace who blew up the factories at Villengard. Ace and Nine meet up and destroy some weapons factories.

Interim by Clocketpatch: They thought he was dead, so they buried him. Another Ace story, taking place during the time war.

go on, within the black night of the age by extryn: Martha knows by rights, she ought to have earned her qualifications on the field. Her faculty doesn't agree. The slow path might humiliate her, but damn it, she's holding her ground. This one’s EXCELLENT all around. It’s about Martha, but there are some fascinating glimpses of Francine and Tish, so I felt it warranted a mention.

#sarah jane smith #wilfred mott #Jabe of the Forest of Cheem #jabe #lucy saxon #Harriet Jones #HARRIET JONES!#mr. copper #mickey smith #leo jones #tish jones #francine jones #ace mcshane #the brigadier #kate lethbridge-stewart #toshiko sato #dw gwyneth #gwyneth

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black-clover-incorrect-quotes · 4 years

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Fairy Tail (fandom), MarsFana (ship), Zora (character)

+ Gaara and Lee ( I can’t post the screenshot of the second ask for some reason, sorry!)

This is about this ask game! Reply under the cut because this is going to be long.

Fairy Tail:

Favorite character: Erza. Least Favorite character: Oh boy. Zeref maybe? 5 Favorite ships (canon or non-canon): Jerza, Gruvia, elfgreen, Miraxus, and LyonxJuvia. (though I only really ship Jerza) Character I find most attractive: Lyon. Character I would marry: No one honeslty. Most of them are fun to be with but not really husband material. Character I would be best friends with: I wouldn’t mind be friends with Lucy, I think we’d get along. A random thought: This is just a vague question. I think Fairy Tail might be one of the best anime, not because it’s Good, but it really let every character develop, even “weak and useless” ones and I’m a sucker for the Friendship and reedemed villains tropes and unlike what most people think I like how it treated its female characters, they always had something to do and were equals to their male companions, they weren’t there just for healing and cheering on the main character. An unpopular opinion: Natsu is overrated as heck in the fandom and so is NaLu, and they give too much importance to romance when romance was never the point of the show to begin with. My Canon OTP: Jerza. My Non-canon OTP: I don’t really have one. I mention in other posts that I’m not much of a shipper. Most Badass Character: Gajeel maybe. I’m also partial to Ultear’s Time Magic, too bad it didn’t effect living things so it wasn’t as badass as it could have been. Most Epic Villain: My fav villain was Cobra and his powers are very cool (he can tell what people think, damn it). Pairing I am not a fan of: Gajevy. Why is it even a thing? He nailed her to a tree and no one sees an issue with that. Character I feel the writers screwed up (in one way or another): I’m rather happy with how the characters were handled, but I wish we got to know were Aquarius is (though I feel that’s gonna be explained in the sequel). Favourite Friendship: Saying that I like the Found Family that is the Fairy Tail guild would be too cliché, so I’m going with the Jellal-Ultear-Meredy guild, besides the relationship itself I like the concept behind it. Character I most identify with: Lucy maybe? Not much but that’s the closest I got. Character I wish I could be: Natsu. He’s always so carefree and he’s always so confident in what he is doing.

MarsFana:

When I started shipping them: Since pretty early on, since the Dungeon arc. My thoughts: It’s a really cute ship. I feel like I’d ship it a lot more if they’d come back and we got more content for them. What makes me happy about them: That they finally have a shot at being together. What makes me sad about them: That they aren’t together. Things done in fanfic that annoys me: I don’t read fanfics so idk Things I look for in fanfic: As above. If I were to look for one though I’d look for a modern AU. My wishlist: Getting more of them in canon or in these fillers. That’s really all I’m asking. Who I’d be comfortable them ending up with, if not each other: No one? Generally, I’d like for them to find someone and be happy I guess, but there’s no character I’d ship them with as of now. My happily ever after for them: After fixing things in the DIamond Kingdom, they leave it and its politics and just see the world together. When they inevitably need to settle down, it would be nice it they became instructors for the army and helped in raising a new generation of magic knights -in the right way, of course.

Zora:

How I feel about this character: I don’t hate him and I don’t like him. He’s okay. Any/all the people I ship romantically with this character: Age difference aside, I’d ship him with Noelle and with Mereoleona. Now, it’s clear one of these two ships must be problematic from an age point of view but I’m not sure how old Zora actually is. My favorite non-romantic relationship for this character: Even non romantically, I like his dynamics with Mereo. I also like his friendly banter with Asta. My unpopular opinion about this character: He could try to be less of a dick. One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: Show us more BB-Zora bonding moments. For now, it doesn’t really feel like he’s part of the fam. Favorite friendship for this character: I don’t know what to reply to this one help. My crossover ship: Same as above.

Rock Lee ( I assumed you intended it as two separate character and not as in GaaraxRock Lee. Sorry if you didn’t mean it like this. I always misunderstand when there’s two way to read something lol):

How I feel about this character: I really like him!! They did my boy so dirty, he deserved so much more screentime and so much better in general. Any/all the people I ship romantically with this character: I’d say Sakura but since she picked a-hole Sasuke over him she really doesn’t deserve him. So I’ll go with TenTen. My favorite non-romantic relationship for this character: His father-son relationship with Gai. My unpopular opinion about this character: I don’t believe this is an unpopular opinion, but HE DESERVED BETTER. One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: I just wish he had any plot relevance after the Chunin Exams, am I asking too much? Favorite friendship for this character: Neji. My crossover ship: Never considered this before, but I’ll go with Asta because they have so much in common (Workout addicts, no magic/no chakra, want to prove you can be strong even if you don’t have magic/chakra etc)

Gaara: How I feel about this character: I luv him. My favorite character in the series. Any/all the people I ship romantically with this character: There was a time I shipped him with Fu, but that was long ago and honestly I forgot some parts of Naruto shippuden (that’s why I’m currently rewatching it lol) and besides I only ever watched a filler episode, I think it was a weird Killer Bee’s dream, with the two of them together. My favorite non-romantic relationship for this character: The sibling bonds he manages to build with Kankuro e Temari. My unpopular opinion about this character: I love him but he was really a bad person in Naruto, doesn’t matter how bullied or alone you are, you can’t crush people for the funsies. I feel like not enough people think ths is true. Also, whose idea was it to let him lead an army when there are more skilled and experienced Kages? One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: I lowkey wanted a canon ship for him. Possibly more screentime. Favorite friendship for this character: Naruto duh. My crossover ship: None really.

#a 'read more'?#Finally #ask #zora #fairy tail #naruto

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amariemelody · 4 years

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for the ask meme, 5, 20, 30? :)

(Sorry for this late reply, my frickin’ browser done closed out on me so I had to re-write my answer. Arrghh!!)

Already answered #5, but thanks, honey!

20. What’s your favorite minor character you’ve written?

Huh, I try to write a lot of minor, oft forgotten characters into my fics, especially characters of color. But my fav one, I would probably have to say is...Dr. Yinsen from the Iron Man mythos. He gets next to no love or recognition in the fandom and he’s a POC, so I thought it’d be perfect to include him in my With Harlem Lights; the Prequel story. He’s the doctor that comes to see Tony when his Soulmate Mark starts to itch.

I really do hate that he’s mostly forgotten and ignored by fandom. And I really do think that he’s a man Tony looks up to not just academically, but morally and ethically. And I’d really love to find some comic panels of Dr. Yinsen and his family before they were killed, even Dr. Yinsen during his academia days. That’d be swell!

So it’s been a pleasure and it will continue to be a pleasure to include Dr. Yinsen!

30. Tell us an idea for a longfic you want to write in the future.

Oh gosh...so many...

And this is a longfic, but one that I’ll never finish and post. But what the heck:

I have wholly unfinished in my jumpdrive a fic about a racebent!Maria and Howard Stark during the events of Captain America: The First Avenger, AKA during World War II. I wrote of a white-passing black!Maria who fled to the Northern U.S during the Great Migration and a gentile-passing Ashkenazi Jewish!Howard Stark who fled to the U.S long before the war.

Write it as a slow, slow, slow, slow, slow burn romance. “Howard Stark” is not his original name, but one he made up and chose along the way; he still invents and invents and becomes as wealthy as he is in canon while subtly helping POC thru his company. Maria plays piano Like A Boss (and I think that’s canon for her), but refuses to take a job in the jazz clubs bc it could take away from a darker, equally talented piano player. So she goes with her 2nd love which is journalism, quickly finds that she can’t abide the atmosphere in white’s-only newspapers and she does try unsuccessfully to show her face in a black newspaper...

...So she becomes an undercover, anonymous journalist a la “Icognegro” (totally recommend that comic) with Howard’s full support. In exchange she helps him by appearing as his companion during galas, press conferences, luncheons, etc and gives him ideas for further helping their peoples. Cue that slow burn.

Was gonna write it alongside a black!Peggy Carter (non-passing) and keep Stevie a Whitey McWhite bc writing a man of color being experimented on for a super soldier serum...for me it’s a no. Just a no. To get that black!Peggy closer to Steve, I wrote it up as her being his logistics officer specifically and, since Colonel Phillips stated “I asked for an army and all I got was you. You are not enough”, Steve is basically there as her body guard on the front.

I have over...15 pages of sweet, funny, semi-smexy, and bittersweet scenes of all 4 of them. And I still laugh at the scene I wrote of the 1st time Maria, as Peggy’s best friend on the down-low, came to meet Steve as Captain America.

It’s stayed in my consciousness over the years and a few times I added to it. But I’ve ultimately benched it bc while a white-passing black!Maria Stark is in my lane (as is black!Peggy Carter) what with me being a real-life black woman, a gentile Ashkenazi Jewish!Howard Stark who was in the U.S during the Holocaust is so not my lane.

And I do like to stay in my lane in all parts of life.

So...yeah it’s a longfic that I worked on, but that’ll never see the light of day. But it was nice to write.

#drakefeathers #Ask Games #I sometimes get asks #Holocaust mention tw

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claramurphyqueenoffandoms · 4 years

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Guys, I think I figured out shipping.

Whenever you’re watching a movie or a show or reading a book or something, if the story is SPECIFICALLY a romance, or something where the romantic outcome is a given from the beginning, it’s not really shipping. It’s just reader (or viewer) expectations.

I mean, nobody doubts that Philip and Aurora will be together by the end of ‘Sleeping Beauty’. That’s just how fairy-tales work. We EXPECT it to happen. What makes it most interesting is how they manage to get there—through curses, orc-hordes, thorn-forests, and a witch-fairy dragon and, quote, ‘all the powers of Hell’. We know what’s coming, but we want to see the journey it takes.

But ‘shipping’, in my mind, is taking the reader/viewer expectations for a romance, and applying it to EVERY story and EVERY relationship. It’s assuming that every genre of story is just a subgenre of the romance.

It’s looking at every relationship—be it a band of companions on an epic mission or quest, a bitter rivalry, a mentor and learner, a pair of bickering best friends, or even a FAMILY (just think about THAT for a minute)—as a relationship that invariably leads to romance.

It’s ignoring the storytellers and the intentions they have for their own movies, shows, and books. And I don’t think that’s the way we should look at stories. It’s downright disrespectful. I mean, who’s telling the story here?

Sure, sometimes there’ll be a romantic relationship that’s seriously just cardboard, and anybody can see that there are better people for either of them. That’s just bad storytelling. There, I totally sympathize. (Example, even though I haven’t watched it in a while: Harry and Ginny)

Sometimes there’s a romantic relationship that people have come up with that I think seems sweet, but unlikely. And I kind of enjoy those, if only to imagine it in an alternate timeline or something. (Example: Jason and Connie in Adventures in Odyssey)

Heck, sometimes people come up with crossover ones, where characters from totally separate stories meet and fall in love. Those, of course, are usually INCREDIBLY implausible, but they are sometimes fun to imagine. (Example: uhh… I know Jack Frost and Elsa are one that goes around on the web?)

And yes, occasionally I do just go all in and see two characters as a couple. It’s rare, and really only when there’s not another existing relationship it breaks up, but it happens. (Example: Reuben and Shirley from The Partridge Family.)

(Hey, he’s the only one that can really handle them! Besides, it’s better to go with someone you actually know than a guy that showed up a week ago (like all the guest stars that popped up so they could have romance episodes.) Plus… well, okay, I just really like it and feel like it fits. See, I can do it too.)

But aside from those rare instances and the fun-to-imagine ones, there aren’t a lot of exceptions from the rule of canon for me.

(And don’t even get me started on slash. It’s the worst. It basically slashes the ties of friendship (or even hatred, oddly enough) between two male characters and shoves their faces together. So stupid.

Oh, and if you decide that you see the two characters as friends, as brothers, as father and son even—literally as ANYTHING besides romantic partners—you get endless flak for it. @julientel knows about this firsthand. I mean, it’s tough being a non-shipper! Why doesn’t anybody appreciate FRIENDSHIP anymore?

Now, I love a good romance as much as the next person. Honestly, I do. Heck, I’m posting a theory about one of the sweetest ones in all creation tomorrow. (And that's on its own feet, without the theory [which is a crossover theory].)

But unless the story is a romance, I just wait to see what the story does, where AND IF they bring in that sort of thing. And unless the story itself comes right out and says ‘these two are a couple,’ I don’t generally assume otherwise (or ‘ship’). Friends until proven lovers, amirite?

In short, enjoy character relationships for what they are. Enjoy the romantic relationships, yes, but enjoy the friendships too. There’s more to love than the ‘kissy-and-touchy’ kind.

#st. valentine's day #shippers #romance #frienship #not a shipper #am I coming off as a curmudgeon about all this?#because I like curmudgeons #slash is stupid #please stop #julientel #sleeping beauty #Adventures in odyssey #jasonnie #the partridge family #crossovers #no ship like friendship #the four loves

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theorynexus · 4 years

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76: Hopefully this does not explode like a nuclear bomb in my face.

Seems it’s time to follow the excited Mascot of Freedom and his merry companions once again! Also a terrifying clown.

This is incredibly silly and absolutely ridiculous. But also, it is pretty hilarious how this makes him seem like the Shakespearean Fool. (Which means that things are going to go horribly wrong. I am going to either greatly enjoy that, or cringe so hard my eyes pop out of their sockets and I never post again.)

Me too, John. Me too. Also... FRACK, HE’S TRYING TO SPREAD THE DARK CARNIVAL LIKE I PREDICTED--- EVERYONE RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!!!

I blame the similarities between Void and Rage as far as inebriation goes and/or the obfuscation of things (rational thought, knowledge, truth)~

DARNIT, HUSSIE, STOP MOCKING THE MAYOR!!! (And yes, I will say that even if it IS someone else who’s actually controlling the narrative, because he holds the imaginary pen in real life.)

Well, yeah, they’re a whole universe away from the genuine article. Of course the traditions technically have a bit of a disconnect. THAT SAID... Huh. It’s interesting that John’s mentality did eventually circle around to seeing the sky as being an imperfect simulacrum of his own original version. Very intriguing.

I really, REALLY don’t trust that sort of mentality, Callie. That’s how politics gets screwed up and falls away from the public interest. Also, to be fair, he does indeed have some control over the political situation! What a silly little adorable skull monster. :3 (This really does make it seem like Gamzee is messing with their head, honestly. Rage screws with priorities. Through Gamzee, it manifests destruction!) I am honestly glad that Rox gets to finally enjoy that coffee shop with John, though~

And yet, I imagine it is cute!

Calliope is a shipper, and grew up with Troll Romance. The idea that they would be open to them being in a relationship and not uncomfortable with it seems quite probable. Also: *shudders at the thought of Gamzee as Callie’s dog*

... Eh? Wow. Taking a direction which is unexpected, here. I do wonder, indeed, why Calliope might think that this might mean the end of their time with Roxy (Gamzee, Gamzee, Gamzee [unless they just mean they wants to spend more time with her, and is feeling a bit jealous; in which case, not the best look, but I can understand that feeling, honestly {And yes, I think I will be referring to Roxy as a “her” until I am led to believe that her gender identity has changed. I do not know when it might have been that she and Calliope came to their understanding of their non-binary/agendered identities in the Meat timeline, now that I think of it, so it may actually be either before or after the split between the two sides, and thus Roxy may not come to that understanding of her/theirself, this side of the divide; as such, the default of female seems a bit more appropriate, at least for now}]).

Eh? Sad? I thought this was the path that Callie wanted things to go down? Hmm.

I mean... to be fair, that (the brain damage bit) might be true. Hard to say. Don’t know how troll anatomy might react to such issues. Buuuttttt... he’s also almost certainly manipulating her, so-- whoops --there goes my pity.

***gags*** Oh my gosh, I had forgotten about his disgusting outfit. ewe

Dangit, Roxy, stop inversely prophesying about John screwing things up by making Gamzee go flying off the deep end like an acrobatic fricking ninja! (And I don’t mean it in the semi-racialized sense that Gamzee uses the term.)

Man... it’s not nice to steal a lady’s seat while she’s gone. :o(

***snerk*** I don’t know what’s funnier-- a god asking for help from a waiter (though to be fair, Gamzee’s sortof invincimmortal) or him being called Gamzee’s “horndog.”

At once, I find this absolutely fricking terrifying, and also appreciate that he calls him “vertebrother” instead of “invertibrother.” (Though I admittedly do type with Gamzee’s quirk for fun, sometimes, I’m not going to do so here in the quotes in order to dignify this garbage with my approval.)

One: No. Just no. Two: Wow, if Gamzee is the cause of their relationship actually starting up, I think I’m going to be sick. Three: Gah, I hate the bilge he spews, sometimes. Not that Gamzee always has garbage in the thoughts that he’s communicating. It’s just... the content (not even the quirk, which I am fine with). The way he communicates things, such as calling Roxy a “premium ho”... I don’t like people being referred to in that way. (Now I’m paranoid that people will accuse me of racism for my reaction, when my objection is with the it feeling misogynistic to refer to someone in that way, rather than the racial coding of some of his juggalo-isms in general. Like... right afterward, he suggests that John is “squandering pussy.” What the heck? ewe )

Wow. Insulting him by calling him a “little bitch” as he’s offering to help is not cool. Also: Weird fricking metaphor. @w@

I know how you feel, John. You deserve all the headpats for the garbage you are now putting up with. uwu

#GAMZEE MAKARA #Homestuck Spoilers #Homestuck Epilogue #Candy Epilogue #Homestuck Liveblog #honk HONK #Rage Aspect

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courage-a-word-of-justice · 5 years

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The shows that have made it this season will be getting their tags...soon. Because I fell behind early in the season, trying to read ahead is nastier than it really should be...

Update: I forgot to roll out the tags...! Sorry about that.

One Punch Man 2 1

This season’s name…sounds counterintuitive, to say the least.

I love how Genos is carrying a box of hijiki (which looks like hair) and Saitama’s wearing a shirt that says “hair” (in kanji) all over it. It’s funny for a bald man and his “work of modern art”.

I never knew Genos was so blunt. Maybe because the last season was a good 2 – 3 years ago…and was by Madhouse and Shingo Natsume, and so this feels slightly different.

Oh, Sonic…! I didn’t realise how much I missed you! (Not to mention, you look hot with the off-the-shoulder shirt, y’know?)

“Enoki” is a type of mushroom.

Oh, Garou!...Oh wait, there isn’t much more of the episode left, is there…?

Afterlost 1

Oh great…this is the second time the subs don’t work on my device of choice. Then again, it seems to be a problem with the ad blocker and not the video…Okay, fiddling with the ad blocker worked.

Let’s play Spot the Main Character Amongst All the CGI Guys! Yay! (obviously sarcastic)

Without the volume…this OP is, to not put it lightly, s***.

Shoumetsu means “extinction”, not “lost”.

And the reward for Jankiest CGI this season belongs to…

Okay…this is stupid…if it f**ks up even more, I’m out of here!

I know the horned owl is your mascot, but that doesn’t mean you needed a real owl.

Waittttttttt…how did the scientists know Yuki’s father was responsible for this stuff anyway?

I feel like Takuya was shoehorned in. I mean, there’s a better example of this character type in Naofumi (Shield Hero).

This guy’s name, as we know it, is Geek. Wow (sarcastic). Also, I find it funny Takuya has a “ta” on his licence plate.

“…she’s just a package.” - Welp, you don’t get any more blatant than that for female denigration! I think Anime Feminist had a field day with this one.

Come to think of it, I saw some helmets back at Geek’s place but Takuya never seems to use one…

You had one job, Takuya…*sigh*

I swear I said a few previews ago I don’t like 1st person cam…no one ever listens to me, do they???

Not dis shitto agen!

Okay, enough complaining. It seems Yu-no wasn’t bad enough, so they had to produce something like the Chaos Dragon and Seisen Cerberus of old…

RobiHachi 1

It’s Takamatsu being Takamatsu again. Also… I forgot to mention this earlier, but…Taiga Umatani seems to be related to Kurari Umatani (who is credited for Boueibu), so…I wonder if it’s a collective writer’s name for Studio Comet, like Izumi Todo for Toei? The only thing that goes against that is the fact “Kurari” existed during the Diomedea days of Boueibu. Also Isekandar seems to be related to Yamato’s Iscandar (which Takamatsu seems to like, based on the fact he once used Matsumoto metres as a shorthand for being in space). If you don’t understand, Yamato’s endgoal contains a place called Iscandar and that’s by Leiji Matsumoto.

Okayyyyy…what are these rabbit creatures…? But yes, it does smack of Boueibu simply because the episode layout’s the same.

Hmm…? So Robby seems be En (the do-nothing life) in spirit, but Kinshiro in background, but also he runs away from his fortune. “Hmm” indeed.

Oh! That’s what this string of misfortunes reminds me of! The monsters of the day from Boueibu.

Acrymalide.

Hatchi is a Kinshiro in looks but an Atsushi by being a goody-goody.

Hmm…they actually bother to show girls now…apparently Takamatsu went to a boys-only school, which is why his original works focus on dudes (as in, you can pick out when Takamatsu is adapting someone else’s work because it has a heavier focus on girls as supporting characters).

Mechs and spaceships are probably two of the only ways I accept CGI…and you, Takamatsu sir, have just done it (the latter)!

Aw! Lookit his (Hatchi’s) face light up like a Beppu’s! It’s cute!

Hatchi getting out the hatch…lame, but still somewhat effectve on me (because that’s my wordplay game you’re playing, Takamatsu…!).

LOL, it’s a transforming mech. It seems my words from a few comments earlier were basically foretelling the future.

Kimetsu no Yaiba 2

Yikes, “Sakonji Urokodaki” has a lot of strokes…

My Little Sister Lives For Headpats…hey wait, don’t all anime kid sisters do that(?)

For some reason, I know the “Don’t Lose Your Way” meme from Kill la Kill and yet I’ve never…watched KlK…?(!)

I swore that was Giyu (it’s the haircut, I swear), but it’s a random demon…

When all you have is a hatchet…use your head. (LOL)

Ooh, nice eyecatch!

This is really black comedy, in a sense. (I remember this demon fight from the manga which is why I say that.)

Hmm…this wispy stuff wasn’t in the manga.

Come to think of it, I don’t know how Tanjiro got his scar…

If you squint really hard, you can see CGI Urokodaki and Tanjiro…

He probably has no footsteps because of his shoes. Or the fact he’s a ninja. Were there ninja in the Taisho era…? Update: Tanjiro has the same kind of shoes…oops.

Come to think of it, Daisuke from DN Angel had to dodge traps every day before he became Dark…(thinking of this because I reread the first volume of DN Angel recently)

Oh! Manga panel preview! That’s quite fun, really.

Kimetsu no Yaiba 3

I just really like how Tanjiro’s eyes grew larger with what was clearly resolution before he closed the door.

Why do the non-descript hunters look like Giyu too…?

I’ve never seen KnY so comedic…and that’s coming from someone who thought the Head Demon fight from last episode was funny.

Welp, this is…kinda interesting (<- says a fan of Touken Ranbu).

This letter writing…it reminds me of Kekkai Sensen somewhat.

This realistic water…it’s beautiful, but it looks like it came straight out of Niagara Falls. Is that…too realistic for anime?

“No matter…”

It’s a fox version of Speed of Sound Sonic! Then again, the real Sonic is around this season and probably won’t be happy about that comparison…

Is “that guy”…Giyu? Or the demon who slaughtered Tanjiro’s family?

Spider lilies! I didn’t mention it last time, but the symbolism of the spider lily makes the ED real cool.

Bungou Stray Dogs 26

I’v read the wiki page for Chuuya enough to know the next few eps involve the LN Fifteen, so even though I haven’t read a translation of the source material, I know some of the ins and outs of it already.

Ooh! Kitty! (If you’re a manga reader, you’ll know the cat’s significance.)

I think at this point in time, all viewers are used to Dazai’s bulls*** by now.

Is it just me…or did Bones use CGI for the city? It actually looks kind of good…! Sasuga Bones!

I have a fic that predates Fifteen and could be set in the same period (the fic’s vague enough that it could’ve been them at 15, 18 or even 12)…and basically the only thing I got wrong was the fact Chuuya doesn’t have his hat (because I wrote Chuuya as having his hat in the fic). Also, the banter is tenser than I imagined it, but that’s subjective and something only I, the fic writer, can compare.

I wonder who the yellow-tinted Ability holder is…? Update: That’s Randou. Spoke too soon.

There was a box in the subs…I wonder what symbol that might’ve been.

“…closest to the explosion.”

BSD 3 2

Oh, so that’s what Randou was for! I see now.

Chuuya may be OP, but he’s one heck of a fun character…also, he’s not as OP as Saitama, so…yeah.

Oh, the ED from last time is the OP. I should’ve known.

I like the almost storybook-style of this episode!

I thought Dazai was faking releasing the hostages…I was wrong.

Face-stealing aliens return! (They were around last ep too, I think, but they were harder to see then.)

Again, watch for the cat!

Well, with only one suspect (or 3, if you count the Sheep kids), it was quite easy to figure out one of them was behind it. I kind of suspected Randou, anyway, considering what I’ve learnt from all the mysteries I’ve read.

Because I was watching this episode with the volume down low (so I could hear the OP and ED), the volume really did work wonders for the plot this ep…!

King of Prism – Shiny 7 Stars 1

This is the final debut of the season, so basically how this and Shield Hero perform will decide what will stay and what will go. Oh, yeah…apparently this is the companion to a movie, but the movie and TV series have slightly different content.

This dude’s (the one at the very start’s) so grumpy.

…welp, I didn’t expect it to be that much CGI.

This chunk of exposition…makes me feel like I missed something. It was probably in the previous movies, come to think of it…

Basically, this is…uh, Makura no Danshi or Room Mate all over again??? I’m noping out of here…! Bye!

Shield Hero 14

I’m putting this on the chopping block…just so you know.

…uh, age gap romance? It’s hard to tell at this stage, but they (Filo and Melty) sure act like it is romance.

Welp, this survived the chopping block. “Raphtalia backstory” is a good enough reason to stick around for, isn’t it?

Double Decker! EX 3 (FINAL)

I always miss the OP when I’m not watching Double Decker, but I miss the ED even more…

I can’t believe they tried to get away with a Spirited Away parody…!

I can’t believe I get to see Dr Apple all buttered up like this…

I love how Kirill is censoring himself. (At least he can prove he’s not a girl, unlike Valery/Milla, whose entire shtick is the confusion between genders.)

Oh! I think I know the answer to the case already! It was Kirill’s soap, so Doug is the “killer”. But then…why is it Derick, of all people???

LOL, the angles were so reminiscent of Detective Conan…

Underwear-stealing sextuplets…? Why does that kind of sound like Osomatsu-san…?

Ahh…I really am going to miss this ED. See you next time!

Shield Hero 15

I never thought Raphtalia would be so angry…that’s Naofumi’s job.

Okay…it’s the age-old question: do demis listen with their animal ears or their human ears? Do they even have human ears??? (That’s 2 questions, isn’t it…?)

Uh…CGI dinosaur, much?

Shield Hero 16

…and of course, the Queen is a loli. Of course (<-sarcastic).

“Why’d I even have to feed this KFC farm?” – LOL, but I wonder what it sounded like in Japanese…? (i.e. I didn’t listen to it and when I try to do that, there’s always something over the top of it…)

Sarazanmai 2

I wonder if I’ll ever get used to watching Ikuhara on a weekly basis…?

Kappamaki…geddit?

Wait…y’mean, Keppi’s breath smells like cucumbers? Uh…okay, TMI.

Enta’s Japanese house kind of looks like the one in Mawaru Penguindrum.

Wait…why does the Japanese word for “Fish Buffet” (Osakanazanmai) end in –zanmai? Does that mean Sarazanmai is…Dish Buffet?! (LOL)

Notably, one of the signs said “Union” in katakana. It must be an English play on words…y’know, trade union and union = connecting with each other? I’m surprisingly enjoying myself a lot with Sarazanmai, by the way. I didn’t think I would, but I am!

I think that might be Irohassu water. Or Dasani. I saw both those brands in Japan, but I don’t remember which had the green flowers.

Oh…my goodness! Nekoyama (Cat Mountain) Mokichi (written with kanji for “hair” and “luck”). It’s a Boueibu monster! Frick, I’m laughing too hard!

It’s very small and very thin, but the word next to the cat in the eyecatch is neko.

“…Meow God!” – It’s a pun on “Oh, My God!” but with a “meow” in it. It’s pretty forced, but it does get the nuance of the joke across…

Why the heck did the subbers choose “herb” as the word for weed in this? “Weed” is sufficient, right? Right…?

Well…if that spurt of water wasn’t symbolic…I don’t know what is.

The title translates better as “…but I want to steal”. Y’know, add a little force into it.

The two As and the “sara” below it seem to make a zombie face, huh?

Ooh, that ending…

#simulcast commentary #one punch man #sarazanmai #tate no yuusha no nariagari #Chesarka watches Tate no Yuusha no Nariagari #the rising of the shield hero #RobiHachi #double decker #bungou stray dogs #King of prism - shiny seven stars #Kimetsu no Yaiba #shoumetsu toshi #afterlost #Double Decker! Doug and Kirill #Demon Slayer #Chesarka watches KnY #Chesarka watches OPM #chesarka watches bsd #Chesarka watches Sarazanmai

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putterpen · 5 years

Text

TMNTxHuman fanfiction Opinion

Art Source

Voicing an opinion on TMNT romance fanfiction, I see a trend...kind of a lazy trend.

Nearly every TMNT romance fanfiction I have time to read are really lazy about this to the point that I can't even take the romance seriously. If you think about the relationship between a human and a non human in the long term it is destined to fail unless the non human and human can achieve an at least stable life together. But too many of these stories go "and then Mary Jane lived in the sewers with her lover. The End". And I shudder.

Heh, I guess she didn't realize the the sewers were where she always belonged... Fanfics tend to avoid the idea that external circumstances can doom a relationship as much as internal ones.

That is how these stories tend to end, and it's a bit silly. Even if the romance itself is so saccharine, cute, and fluffy that I find myself liking it, the ending where its like "Hey me and my boyfriend can't even be seen together in public" never comes up, along with the many other problems, it feels unfulfilling. Like nobody worked to get a happy ending. Everyone is just accepting a bad ending as a "good" ending.

I watched a video on youtube called "how to write romantic chemistry". The person in said video says you should let the tension grow and I agree...to a point. Because if you drag it out the wrong way it starts getting tedious. Will they/won't they can be either exciting or annoying. I guess it depends on how you write it. In this situation it can be entirely justified.

Say a human female (personal example I’ll say April) falls for one of the ninja turtles (Leo) and confesses her feelings after they have spent a lot of time together. In my mind, the tension that creates the romantic subplot is simply that he would not reciprocate. Or he can’t, or feels that he can’t, because of a nice healthy dose of reality and possibly some low self esteem. The thing is he likes her too but won't admit it, and is hoping she moves on. The difference between them and the worlds they inhabit are too great in his mind and likely they actually are. The only way they could be together is through a lot of hard work and world building. (a lot of world building).

It really is unfair to the non mutant half of this relationship. To expect them to live forever happy and content with a lover who cannot even walk alongside them during the day, I mean, being nearly constantly embroiled in plots to take over New York, the world, or even the universe is bad enough. But that is typical superhero fair that we are all used to. We assume the normal half of the relationship has the gumption to handle the instability of being in a relationship with a superhero, but at the same time this person, at least in most cases, has the simple reward of being able to go about in public with their special someone, hidden identity or not. This is not afforded to the TMNT. As such I believe the author should create a scenario where this changes.

HOW they go about this is up to the individual. The turtles can be gradually accepted by humanity or there is a world hidden from humans where they and their human companion wouldn't have to worry about that danger and live a semi fulfilling life time permitting. (Think the wizarding world of Harry Potter existing parallel to the muggle world)

Heck they could fly out into space or hop into another dimension, so many alternatives are possible. Though I suppose getting humans to accept turtles (and perhaps by extension all mutants) would be the hardest option to achieve and maybe the most rewarding to get right. But ANYTHING is better than Raphael’s human girlfriend just being content living in the sewers for the rest of her life. Or being content to only see each other at night, inside a secure building, in secret, with the turtle never truly being a part of the human’s life. To me that is a romance killer. I don’t believe even the turtles would think this the best outcome for their loved ones. And boy oh boy don’t even get potential children involved.

This all being said, I’m not saying a romance isn't valid unless Michelangelo can walk his turtle human hybrid baby to school every day. Most likely a middle ground is the best the characters can get. If the author can create an underground/hidden world. A community (Something more than just the turtles and splinter) where in a potential child could flourish and have more opportunities than their fathers then I consider that a successful attempt at tackling mutantxhuman relationships within TMNT.

#tmnt #human #teenage mutant ninja turtles #fanfiction #romance

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