Tumgik
#is unfair and flawed and whatever but like. idk. i just think it’s unfair to want him to die for struggling w that and i think that aspect
pepprs · 2 years
Text
ppl are being so fucking mean in the notes of this one wc post abt the new excerpt like. don’t get me wrong i think redacted is a deeply flawed character and i share everyone’s anger and frustration in his storyline being so badly written and lazily thought out and a perfect example of the misogyny in wc like that’s part of why i stopped reading the books bc they kind of fucking suck. but ppl in the notes are saying he’s a loser and should die over… resenting that he is the last person picked for the team? like is that not a universal experience. have we not all been through that. idk. like i know that’s not the most important aspect of this conversation and at the end of the day it’s a fictional character but also it’s like… lol
#purrs#ppl saying he should die over resenting his mom too when like. idk. i get it and i know talking abt these aspects is like unhelpfully#detracting from what the conversation is actually about but like. i think even if his reasons to hate his mom and feel distanced from her#are immature and selfish and he’s needlessly cruel (not to mention the personalities of well established (FEMALE!) characters are literally#being bent into unrecognition narratively to prove him right which i fucking hate) and i think it’s dumb that they didn’t go w his mom for t#this storyline when it was the obvious choice. but also like. the mom stuff is so real. the scene with him and his mom and sister (sorry im#vaguing bc i don’t want this in the search lol) just like wrenched my guts bc that’s what it’s like w me and my mom and my sister. i don’t c#care about the character i don’t even really like him that much and i skim his parts but i think the mom drama storyline is important and#the whole warped view of the world bc of your mom drama storyline is also important and i just don’t like seeing ppl bash him for those#aspects bc… a lot of people out there do that and have that and it doesn’t make them bad people. idk maybe im just defensive and butthurt or#whatever bc it’s making me think abt how maybe how i treat my mom / react to her emotionally neglecting me (and even PERCEIVE it as neglect)#is unfair and flawed and whatever but like. idk. i just think it’s unfair to want him to die for struggling w that and i think that aspect#of it is written in a very real way that i appreciate a lot in a vacuum / detached from the context of the character. and i wish ppl were#focusing their anger towards the erins for choosing him and warping the storyline more than they are taking issue with the actual like.#conflict and emotion in it because yeah i do think that redacted is justified in feeling how he feels in some ways. idk#it’s been pissing me off all night. like ppl are allowed to say die and kys and explode etc i do it all the time but also.. for that#specific thing it doesn’t feel fair. and it’s embarrassing to say that but im saying it. lol#delete later#like the reason he hates his mom isn’t because he hates women it’s because she abandoned him and couldn’t be a mother to him (for extremely#justifiable reasons but still) and even though it’s justifiable that is also like.. real. and it impacts you for life. lol! 🤸🏻‍♀️
13 notes · View notes
judasgot-it · 11 months
Text
Tachihara x Reader
Tumblr media
Scenario: You get a ride home with Tachihara after attending a company party. On the way back, you decide to attend a shitty pop-up carnival
I had this in my drafts for like over 2 months so I just wanted to like, finally finish it. I think it's silly and idk not the best, still figuring out how to write Tachihara TBH but I think he's a cutie patootie.
Side note this is like 3500 words ?? it's kinda long for tumblr but ima upload it anyway
As the secretary of the Hunting Dogs, you were unfortunately forced to attend their company parties.
If there was someone else in your department, you would have loved to complain to them about how this was 'unfair' and a 'worker's violation' as you were not even being paid to attend these.
Off the clock.
But no one else was dumb enough to take this job, so you were the only person in your department. Seriously, you did the paperwork for 5 people.
The dental was amazing, though.
But that left you as the only 'sane' person forced to witness the antics of the Hunting Dogs while they were drunk. Really, you forced to watch them sober, since you couldn't ever get more than a drink in before the drinking contest began.
You would think Tecchou would be better than this but as of now, he was doing karaoke with the commander while Teruko was laughing at...nothing. She was somehow standing though, which was better than Fukuchi who was shirtless and kneeling on the floor while singing whatever song was playing.
You could barely tell what it was, it might've been Taylor Swift. He seemed...passionate.
If you had to hear whatever sad song it was all night you were going to make your ears bleed.
Although thankfully, you had a backup plan. You couldn't drive - your car was destroyed in a recent bombing attack, so you were lucky that your bed for tonight was your desk.
Which was on the other side of the building, probably far enough away to at least let you sleep quietly.
You could probably get away with it. No one here would notice.
So you took your snacks - which were probably the best thing about these parties, and left for what would be your bedroom
Exiting the room, you could see now that it was quiet and kind of terrifying - a liminal space.
The hallway was now darker than it should have been, settled in an uneasy quiet. The lights above your head had sobered you up quickly, as you walked away from the room, leaving the sounds of laughter and screaming.
You felt something warm pull your shoulder to look behind you. The reaction you had might have been dramatic.
"Are you ok? You aren't scared are you?"
Tachihara was there, smiling as he looked perfectly sober - he didn't even smell of any alcohol, holding a juice box instead.
Now you felt a real fear coursing through your veins. He was going to say something, wasn't he?
"No, I was just heading out."
You weren't shaken easily - unsettled yes, but not truly scared.
"Do you want a ride home?" He said it with a genuine smile, not knowing the genuine terror that was running through your veins right now.
You really did care about Tachihara, as he was probably the most normal member of the Hunting Dogs, but there was one flaw you could not get around.
He drove a motorcycle. You hated motorcycles.
It was nothing short of terrifying every time you saw him riding it, let alone the thought of you getting on it. How could you? It was nothing short of a death trap.
There were no seatbelts either, there was just too much that could possibly kill you.
"No that's ok. I didn't plan on going home anyway, I was going to sleep in my office."
It sounded weird saying it outloud, but you were not going to let him take you on a ride on his deathtrap.
Tachihara just blinked.
"Really? Isn't it closed off still for cleaning?"
Oh. Right.
"Then the lounge. I can manage. Seriously, don't worry about me, just get yourself home, ok? I don't want to be a bother when it's so late."
You tried to sound serious, but Tachihara was still a man that had major flaws. His right now? Being too kind.
A good flaw, but a painful one to fight.
"No it's ok, you aren't a bother. Seriously, your house isn't far off from mine, it'd be very quick I swear."
He was earnest, already leading you in the opposite direction of where you were originally going. You decided not to fight it.
Home was better than a dirty floor anyway, so why not?
You let him guide you to where his vehicle of death was waiting, accepting your fate.
It would be a short ride, so you would just have to suffer through it for only a little bit. That's what you told yourself.
"Oh, Jouno! What are you doing out here?"
Oh god oh please no.
Just at your greatest inconvenience, you found Jouno outside the building, right in front of the parking lot, sitting right at the smoker's bench. His white head of hair peaked from underneath the overhang, nearly impossible to ignore.
"Oh, Tachihara. Are you heading home?"
"Yeah, I was bringing Y/n home too. Do you need a ride? I can't help but notice you're sitting here by yourself..."
Tachihara was too kind. You were already forced to accept his offer, but please, Jouno could take care of himself-
"Tachihara have I ever told you that you're one of the only people I respect on the team?"
Jouno had gotten up, strolling over to where the two of you stood underneath the light. You hated this. Jouno definitely was going to tease you about how scared you were, which was not fun at all.
Also, how were three people going to fit on his bike? It wasn't exactly the biggest, and shoving you between two full-grown men didn't seem ideal.
"Are you sure we're all going to fit? I could just go back inside or call a ride."
You said this in hopes of maybe getting out of it one last time. Jouno just laughed.
"Aw, are you scared?"
Tachihara, the angel that he was, reached over and patted your shoulder.
"You'll have me and Jouno. Know I won't let anything happen to you - swear on it."
"You swear on what?"
Tachihara paused, contemplating his next words.
"Um...my sword."
You raised your eyebrow at him. He patted your shoulder again, trying to put your unease to rest.
"Let's just go."
Jouno walked ahead, towards what will be your sudden demise. You tried to stay calm following behind them as you saw the death trap in waiting.
Tachihara walked towards its side, taking the helmet he had let hang on its handlebar, and gently placed it on top of your head. You didn't bother fighting him, looking to the side as he fiddled with the clasps underneath your chin.
"You probably need this the most. Don't worry though, I'm a safe driver."
"It's not that - what if there's a drunk driver and they hit us? What if I fall off? What if we're all too heavy and we can't turn properly and we crash and explode?"
You felt a hand land on your shoulder as your heart pumped through your ears. Your fear was starting to overwhelm you.
"Don't be a pussy Y/n. Get on, I'd like to go home."
That was really reassuring. Thanks, Jouno.
You straightened up, holding your sandwiches closer to your chest. Tachihara sat on the bike, patting the seat behind him.
You got on, pressing your body behind Tachihara's. You didn't know what to do with your arms, so you just clutched your sandwiches. They were your sense of comfort right now.
"Y/n, you'll fall off if you don't hold onto something."
Oh. With one arm, you grabbed Tachihara's waist, trying your best to keep your head up and look forward.
"Scoot forward."
You felt Jouno sit behind you, pressing you closer against Tachihara. You felt his hand sneak around you, stealing from your sandwich bag. Bastard.
You swatted him away, trying not to fall off. It led to you leaning your full body on Tachihara, who was taking a long time to put his keys in the ignition.
"Did you forget how to drive Tachihara? I'm getting a little cold back here."
Jouno said this with a mouthful of your sandwich. He chastises manners but here he was, a thief and a brat.
"Who said you could have my sandwiches?"
"They aren't yours, know your place Y/n."
"You didn't even stay to eat any of them so shut up-"
The bike started, to Tachihara's joy. You felt the fear course back through your body again, but you didn't get to dwell on it it again as he only kicked back the leg and started bike, not giving you even a chance to adjust yourself.
You tried to hold your head up and stay strong, not show weakness - but the wind picking up around you and all you could do was bury your head behind Tachihara.
You heard Tachihara and Jouno begin a conversation but you didn't even acknowledge it, not even the sandwich stealing anymore as you held onto the man before you as if your life depended on it. Hopefully, his surgeries were enough to protect against your iron grip, as it was the only thing that made you truly feel safe.
The ride wasn't even a full 5 minutes but you felt like you were in hell that whole time. You'd think being pressed against two men like this would be more romantic but you didn't feel that way, instead feeling bile rise up in your throat every time you all turned.
"That stupid carnival is back in the city. I can smell it from all the way over here."
You perked up at that. Jouno had his head up, his hands loosely holding onto your waist - this type of ride really did seem normal to him, as he just looked out somewhere, eating his sandwich.
"Oh that seems fun. Do you wanna go? They stay open pretty late."
Jouno scoffed.
"No, they absolutely reek. I also happen to value my sleep, unlike some people." The people you assumed he was referring to were his teammates, who were most likely either passed out drunk or still singing their godawful karaoke.
"Why don't you and Y/n go, I know you absolutely love carnival rides, don't you Y/n?"
Your heart was speeding up. That was terrifying - you hated the idea of any of that.
"Who says I don't like my sleep either, Jouno?"
"I'd like to go! C'mon, it'd be fun! We can go on rides, maybe we'll even arrest someone!"
Tachihara was being so positive tonight. It was almost suspicious. It was tempting to say yes just because of his attitude alone, but there was that funny feeling in your stomach at the thought of it.
"But what if the ride breaks down and we all get crushed or fall out and die?"
You were simply being realistic.
"I'm a hunting dog, Y/n. I can handle something like that easily. Plus, if that happened Jouno would be there, right?"
"I'm not a chaperone for your little kiddie date. You can handle things by yourselves, the worst is just you guys getting scammed."
Finally, you'd stopped to drop off Jouno. He could've walked this distance, although maybe he had something to gain from the ride. Like your food, which was now all gone.
All you had left was an empty bag, the absolute prick that he was. He also left you a cold back, since you were squished between him and Tachihara during the duration of your ride. From his smirk, as he was walking away, waving goodbye to the two of you, he knew how agitated he had left you.
It made you pull yourself closer to Tachihara, trying to steal his body warmth in order to recoup what had been lost. Tachihara coughed, adjusting himself so the two of you could have more space on the bike.
"So? Let's go to the carnival."
It was a way to break the silence the two of you had fallen into. He said it was a confident smile, as if he practiced this in the mirror twenty times before. You simply nodded, not knowing how to reply.
He revved up the bike, heading in its direction. You didn't know what to say to get out of this, since a part of you did want to go.
It'd be like a fun date, even if you couldn't say that out loud.
"I'm scared of rollercoasters."
You told him honestly. You hoped he wouldn't judge you, seeing as he was a very earnest man.
"I figured. Don't worry, we'll conquer your fear tonight. Exposure therapy does wonders, and plus? I'll be there the entire time, so it's not like you'll be alone."
You said nothing, just holding his waist firmly. This seemed like a better idea than what you had originally planned for tonight, so why not? You could trust Tachihara.
He stopped the bike, in some lot a little walk away from the carnival. You could hear the pop music and screams coming from the place.
Turning towards you, he gave you a warm smile.
"If anything does happen, I'll be sure to protect you, ok?"
You handed him the helmet, giving him a smile. You did appreciate the gesture, as much as it was well-intentioned. That didn't stop you from not wanting to rip your own teeth out of your mouth as you got off the bike and forced yourself the walk towards the carnival, and not away.
"How expensive are these places anyway? I don't actually know if I have my wallet on me."
"Oh don't worry, we aren't paying."
Oh?
Tachihara turned towards you, a strange look on his face. One you would associate with Teruko or Jouno - a grin that typically held ill intentions.
Mischief.
What was this man dragging you into?
Well, turns out - dubiously legal activities.
Being a hunting dog had its perks. For one thing, his government ID assured him discounts everywhere he went. It was great when he went grocery shopping - you would know, you abused Fukuchi's credit card as a perk of your job.
Although telling the ticketing staff that he was 'inspecting' the rides, and would arrest anyone who didn't comply with his orders, hardly counted as getting a 'free' discount.
You were now forced to play along with this. You didn't even know Tachihara had such a cruel side to him, bullying a bunch of carnival workers who just wanted to get a paycheck by making fun of teenagers and out-of-touch men in their 40s.
It was a hard job to have, obviously.
The staff stalked the two of you as you walked in, giving you goosebumps. It didn't help that the two of you were still in your work clothes, really selling the 'government inspection' that the two of you were giving.
Although by the end of the night, you were expecting your clothing to probably need a good dry cleaning.
The fair wasn't bad - but you could smell vomit near some of the rides, and they looked suspiciously rusty. Clearly, this place was in tip-top shape. You just had to convince yourself that the Ferris wheel wasn't making suspicious creaking sounds every time it started up again.
You clearly were just a bit paranoid.
"So what should we ride first? I'm thinking we start small and then build our way up."
Tachihara had his hands on his hips, looking around for the best ride to start. He was being nice at least, giving you the illusion of choice now that you've gotten this far.
You were stuck. It didn't matter what you did, you were the idiot that agreed.
"I'm ok with that. I don't think the hand gliders look that bad, they seem pretty tame."
It also featured a seatbelt. And a big, nice, safety bar.
The best part? It was a two-seated ride. So if something happened on that ride, you knew that Tachihara would be there with you.
Tachihara smiled, as clearly, this would be a good night for him.
-
The night was going about as great as you expected it to. Although, you could even say a little better, even.
If this were a date, you might have kissed Tachihara by the end of it. You sure as hell owed him something at the very least, as he had now been your human cushion on several rides, preventing you from being crushed against the greasy metal as they began.
It was a good thing he was a hunting dog. Your body weight against his was nothing to him, although he still felt like complaining once and a while about how much pain you put his ribs in.
As if you were the one with the bright idea to go here.
If he died because you crushed him to death, it was entirely his fault and his fault alone.
"You know what we need to do?"
You watched as he pointed at the ferris wheel - one that loomed over the carnival, due to it's sheer height. Seriously, how tall was that thing?
"I mean...yeah."
There were no arguments against him here. You've gone on every other ride already - you've even ridden the carousel 3 times. Tachihara used the excuse that you were 'inspecting the ride' for imperfections.
You were starting to think he was serious at some point, when he spent 5 minutes grilling a poor fair worker about the importance of safety and on how rusty their bolts were.
There was no time to dwell on that though - Tachihara was smiling as he dragged you to the last stop at the carnival of doom.
"I heard some kid saying that from the top they could see the entire city. That sounds pretty cool, doesn't it?"
He was smiling ear to ear.
You couldn't deny that offer when he looked like that.
So with your head in your heart, you let yourself be dragged through the motions, letting it drop to your stomach as you watched the city fall below you as your body raised to the sky.
You tried to stay at ease even as you were slowly raised higher and higher into the sky, the cart you were sat in shaking back and forth more than you were comfortable with.
It made you scoot closer to Tachihara, squeezing him as if he were your lifeline. He might as well be, since his body would survive a fall at this height while yours would splatter.
"Look! You can see headquarters over there."
He was pointing outward, towards a rather dark spot of the city. But it was visible, which to you felt amazing.
Also terrifying.
You clutched his arm tighter. As insurance.
He was also incredibly warm - it was cold so high up, and unfortunately, your work uniform did not account for this. You were practically trying to melt into him due to how cold you were, but you still had some pride left. You would suffer a little, having your exposed skin go numb from the cold.
"Hey, Y/n. I wanna tell you something."
"Are you going to kiss me?"
It was the perfect moment for it, really. You couldn't blame him. Everything was screaming that this was a "how I met your mother" moment anyway.
"What? Sorry. Um. No. Just-"
Tachihara looked at you, red in the face. He pushed you into his chest, holding you tight. If you squeaked, that was between you, him and the ferris wheel.
"I think I like you."
You blinked. Your hands were awkwardly held up around Tachihara, not knowing where to go. You could feel him awkwardly fidgeting with the fabric on your shoulders in your silence, as you tried to figure out a way to respond.
The ferris wheel creaked in the silence, keeping the two of you alone up top, watching the city.
"Um. I like you too, Tachihara."
You put your hands on his waist, feeling just below his ribcage. He was skinny for a guy, but you could still feel his strength.
"But how much?"
"How much?"
"How much do you like me?"
You huffed, gripping his uniform shirt and pulling him away. His eyes were almost wet with worry as he looked at you, trying to discern what you meant by your words. Fucking idiot.
"Enough to deal with this. And enough to want to kiss you."
You cupped his cheeks with your hands, looking him dead in his honey eyes. His gaze was dead set, looking right at you, not even at the city that was behind you.
"Kiss me. I'm not asking again."
You closed your eyes and waited until you felt his cold lips press against yours, finally obliging your order. It was all enough to distract you from how your stomach dropped at the thought of being so high up in the air, as now your stomach was dropping at his hands reaching down to touch your waist, his knees knocking against yours as he tried to pull you closer.
90 notes · View notes
jennagrinsoverml · 2 years
Note
hello, idk if you've done this yet, but do u know any good post reveal pre relationship fic recs? sorry if this request is kinda vague lol
General requests are easier than super specific ones lol so you don’t need to apologize for that! I have been meaning to do a PRPR rec list for a while now (and, not directed at you, anon, but yes, PRPR stands exclusively for post-reveal pre-relationship) so thanks for giving me the push to finally do it! (Sorry, I may have gotten a little carried away with this one, but it’s truly one of my favourite things to read.)
The Official Summer Buster Kiss List by @peachcitt
“You’d really be alright with kissing me?” he asked, and Marinette popped the cap of her dry-erase marker on and off.
“I mean, yeah,” she said, and they stared at each other for a moment. “Of course,” she hurried on, “you’d have to be alright with being my candidate. Teacher. Guide. Whatever.” She made a few empty gestures with the marker, and the loose cap flew off the end, bouncing off the wall and rolling off her desk.
Adrien caught it before it could fall to the floor, handing it back to her. “I am,” he said, looking her in the eye. “I’ll do it.”
or
a very simple four-point plan to tackle the issue of marinette's abysmal kissing life that turns into a six-point plan and also results in an outcome that literally no one could have predicted (sarcasm)
One-shot. They’re just so incredibly stupid (affectionate). The writing is gorgeous, the humour is spot on, and I loved all the little details of their lives with the passage of time. It’s so clear that they love each other, but as always, it takes them way too long to admit it haha.
Emergency Contact by @coffeebanana
When Marinette invites Adrien to live with her temporarily while she recovers from an injury, she thinks the hardest part is going to be hiding her feelings from him. But Adrien's idea of being helpful might go...a little overboard.
Post Shadow Moth defeat, Aged Up Characters, Read the Tags
Multi-chapter. This fic is just so real and messy and beautiful. The mutual pining is absolutely perfect! The backstory and how that impacts their current dynamic is so well woven through and adds another layer to their relationship. But also, I love the lack of perfection, that these are real people with real flaws and the way that all plays out. I absolutely love this fic!
rainwater and brown sugar by @aerequets
He knew they shouldn't do anything (whatever that 'anything' was). They couldn't. Not until they defeated Hawkmoth. Not until their relationship wouldn't get in the way of their work (or whatever other excuse they'd come up with over the course of three months). He knew all this. He knew.
But it was the raindrop that did it for him.
One-shot. It’s seriously unfair that someone who draws so beautifully should be able to write equally so. And yet. This is just so beautiful and SOFT and lovely. And then THAT KISS!!!!!
An Open Secret by @kasienda
Adrien whirled around toward Marinette. She smiled at him.
He couldn’t smile back. He stared at her like the dumb blond model that he was often accused of being.
Something shifted in her expression. And her warm open Marinette smile transformed into Ladybug’s grin. He was looking at Ladybug right now.
He knew Ladybug’s name!
Her name was Marinette Dupain-Cheng.
And he couldn’t say anything! Not to Marinette! Not even to Plagg, who had confided two weeks prior that Master Fu was growing increasingly paranoid since the location of his home and hideout had been compromised. Their master had apparently decided that Chat Noir and Ladybug would have to give up their miraculouses if they ever discovered each other’s identities.
It wasn’t fair!
...
A fic where they both know, but can't openly talk about it.
Multi-chapter. I absolutely love the early reveal in this fic. I’ve read a lot of reveals, but this one is really fun and original! And then the premise of the fic itself isn’t one I’ve seen anywhere else, which makes it very different from the usual PRPR fare. Because even though they both know...they can’t actually talk about it. And it’s so interesting and different and sweet?
A little push by @emsylcatac
Alya asks Chat Noir to record a video of himself encouraging Marinette to confess...to Adrien.
Of course his mouth speaks on its own. Of course he says yes.
Of course his Lady is most likely sure to kill him.
...And of course Marinette feels like she's the one who's about to die.
One-shot. @emsylcatac‘s fics never go the way that I expect them to, and I really love that about her writing. Although this starts off really silly, the way Adrien expresses himself at the end wasn’t something I saw coming at all, even though it’s SO TRUE to his character. The pining and miscommunication is wonderful, but it’s the ending that really sells me on this one.
17 days, 2 hours and some odd minutes by @miabrown007
It has been 17 days, 2 hours and 14 minutes since Chat Noir flirted with Ladybug for the last time.
It has been exactly 17 days, 2 hours and 13 minutes since Adrien realized his very good friend and his best friend were, in fact, one and the same.
Consecutively, it has been exactly 17 days, 2 hours and 12 minutes since he constantly fought the insurmountable desire to kiss the said friend.
One-shot. The yearning in this fic is absolutely e x q u i s i t e . I love it when Adrien stops flirting post-reveal and Marinette takes it the wrong way. And they’re just SO STUPID here, and then they get to be adorable in love dorks.
the wonderful part of the mess that we made by heresie_irisee
They knew.
They knew, and there would be no magical reset button for the memories they'd made today. She'd have to see him at school every day, and she'd see the Chat in him, as surely as he'd see the Ladybug in her.
One-shot but a lengthy one-shot. How about some post-Oblivio fic that has the magical ladybugs NOT erase their memories of the fight (because lbr that made no sense anyway)? Oblivio is probably my favourite episode and this is such a great fic. The mutual pining is so, so, so good! Especially love Marinette struggling to assimilate Adrien’s identities and Adrien’s obliviousness.
The Boy She Loves by @goth-bias
Adrien just wants to know who Marinette has been in love with this entire time, but she refuses to budge. Accidentally reading a part of her diary, however, gives Adrien the answers he has been looking for.
One-shot. So you may not know this about me, but I’m absolute sucker for the trope of Adrien fixating on the boy Marinette loves post-reveal. (And tbf for him fixating on the boy Ladybug loves pre-reveal.) I love how well done the miscommunication is here, where their failure to confess makes sense and all of the tension naturally follows.
Make it clear by @amiraculousplatypus​
After years, the masks have fallen. Marinette and Adrien figure out what has changed. And what hasn't.
One-shot. This one is all about the yearning. And then Adrien’s beautiful honesty that pushes Marinette to finally do something. They’re both so in character and I love them so much!
White Lies Over White Nights by meirencollector
“Tell me, Marinette. The other boy, is it me?"
There’s something about the way he says it. The way his lips move. The way his eyes glaze at her. The way he looks at her as if she hung the moon and stars. The way there’s a warm glow when he's drawing close to touch. Even in this snowstorm, he was a ray of sunshine, and she was a sunburn.
One-shot. This one is really interesting because of both its device--a game of Truth or Drink--and its use of non-linear storytelling. Even though the fic is set post-reveal, we get all kinds of flashbacks to memories of their pre-reveal interactions that really illuminate the present and are extremely well woven into the narrative. I also really appreciated how honest Adrien was about his feelings, even with their relationship being so ambiguous.
The following fics are amazing and absolutely worth reading, but do feature sexual content, so minors beware.
your lips are meant to be kissed by @zimtlein
During a tipsy evening, Adrien kisses Marinette’s forehead.
Understandably enough, Marinette has a complete meltdown.
One-shot. Rated E for sexual content. This is one of my favourite fics and I’ve read it a good half a dozen times at least. The pining is absolutely phenomenal and Adrien is so, so oblivious. And the tension between them just builds and builds and builds until I thought I was going to die! But instead it all leads to a phenomenal resolution.
631 notes · View notes
lottieurl · 1 year
Note
you can literally always hate jeff in the tags of my misty posts btw im reading those tags the way one reads a morning newspaper. the fanon version of jeff seems so different to canon jeff like he’s not really the dedicated malewife people make him out to be shsjsks. he didn’t want to even try strawberry lube like c’mon now. he freaked out when she saved their asses and grabbed the gun. perhaps this is an unfair assumption for me to have of the writers but ive seen it happen in other shows and i fear they might’ve seen how the general audience liked there’s no book club!jeff and added more of him and that general vibe bc of it. but to me s1 jeff worked bc you spend most of it distrusting or disliking him and then he has a shining moment at the taylors and thennn he goes back to being Like That when you find out he’s the blackmailer. and it’s like this really sad, terrible marriage two people are stuck in for various reason so idk where the couple goals even in a fun failmarriage way comes from. he’s not even the most interesting non shauna member of the sadecki family!!! callie is right there esp if they’re focusing on her motherhood!!! ANYWAYS. jeff & walter’s downfall 2k23 im with you
okay thank you for giving me the excuse to talk about it actually cause i was thinking this since the season started. people's ENTIRE interpretation of jeff as a character hinges and is almost exclusively based on THERE WAS NO BOOK CLUB? literally everything else he does gets twisted so he can stay this fanon dream himbo wifeguy. and that's the show's fault to an extent for sure cause there is a framing there due to how much they want jeff in the comic relief role. but the show does make a point of showing that jeff is deeply disturbed by shauna, that he's been a shit husband actually and he's kind of an awful person tbh. like! thats not a character flaw per se, we are all here for awful characters. but people don't want an interesting dynamic between those two or for jeff to be more than a one dimensional goofy idiot. and they also want shaunajeff to be like. santa clarita diet marriage or whatever which. loved santa clarita diet but that's AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT THING. and an entirely different type of show and we do all get that this would strip shauna of all her amazing nuances right? right? anyways back to jeff. people will see how he reacts to shauna pulling that gun or how he's entirely against everything shauna does regarding callie and go omg wifeguy always supportive. he is not? and for good reasons lmao? people will see teen jeff cheating and be like ye shauna was awful for doing this to jackie but jeff is just a poor little idiot plus (did see a take like this which. hello) jackie wouldn't have sex with him so he's without fault. like. what. anyways he's a cheater who found out SOME of what his wife experiened in the wilderness (not everything for sure cause that man is way waaay WAY too freaked out by shauna's behaviors to know it all lets be real) and decided to profit off the victims he knew as a teen dgsbjfjdjdsb like he offered to go to jail for adam murder in part cause his own blackmailing scheme is what pushed shauna to kill adam? just cause he's kind of funny every once in a while doesn't mean he's A Loving Himbo Wifeguy. all jeff related posts are that and its why i started having an allergic reaction to jeff
53 notes · View notes
ben-wisehart · 1 year
Note
hi! do you ever feel like the bingqiu fandom is binghe biased? like a lot of the time its giving.. “wow binghe is our little precious bun who deserves the world and more! ..oh and stinky neet loser sqq is so blessed to have him lul” it feels unfair towards sqq :( it makes me sad hes no ones fave but thats okay like whatever right? but even when its bingqiu hes treated like an afterthought. like we have binghe fans criticising sqq for not doing more, sj fans are frankly delusional, sqh fans think hes “too mean” to their precious hamster, liushen fans only like him bc hes a good hole/dick for lqg (obligatory “not all men” lol) idk i only follow a handful of svsss twt accs because no one seems to like him, he feels either tolerated or treated as a gag character lol 🥹
i just dislike a lot of fanon bingqiu i think? i read all the books before hopping on twitter and i see some absolute rancid takes on there like the woobification of Shaun(tm) qinghua and jiumei.. which is easy enough to avoid tbf so whatever floats their boat idc. but when i follow bingqiu accs, it feels like OC x OC rather than ~bingqiu~ if that makes sense? like i LOVE the manipulative crybaby domtop x flustered thin face subby pillow princess they have going on!! and fanon bingqiu is just.. not it? and obv id never send hate or anything (i just block and keep it moving) but it makes it kinda sucky when the fandom is already teeny tiny and a large chunk of the fandom isnt what i envisioned/expected i guess which is so odd! when they essentially erase canon!! if it’s like some queerbaity ship or whatever, people can characterise them however they want but its like CANON how they act/are in bed/etc and its all taken away!!! idk im probably just whining sorry 😭
(i included all my thoughts here sorry for the spam!!)
hey, thanks for stopping by!! I definitely know what you mean with regards to SQQ, but I will assure you that there are very much still plenty of dedicated "sqq mains" out there. My sphere of influence on twitter is heavily biased toward people for whom sqq is their favourite character, so maybe I'm not getting a representative sample of the fandom overall, but he's definitely a very well loved character and has more than his fair share of people who do him justice in their writing and for whom he's their primary blorbo!! I remember posting this on reddit a while back and more than half of the responses (though admittedly a small sample size) had him as their fave. So, I don't think he's without appreciation!
But with that said, I do get where you’re coming from. I’m not gonna talk about readers who take his actions in bad faith and actively dislike him (HOW??), but as you’ve said, even among people who do like him, we don’t always understand him as well as we could. Most fans do get on some level that he’s an unreliable narrator, but it’s still very common for people to take him at face value and completely miss his depth. He’s a funny little guy with amusing narration, but he’s also kind and selfless, and he’s also smart and witty, and obnoxious and annoying, and frankly pretty insensitive, and deeply, deeply traumatised—and a million other things! He has layers.
I think all popular characters in fandom will inevitably start getting boiled down to a few key traits. And as somebody who’s been writing fic for 15 years, it’s really hard not to let your own biases colour your portrayal? I absolutely do it with SQQ!! I focus on his kinder, warmer aspects and downplay his flaws, I’ll readily admit that. We all get drawn to a favourite character for a certain trait, and that trait becomes the grit around which our interpretations form. If you’re somebody that likes silly characters, you’re going to write SQQ and dial his silliness up to eleven. If you like kind characters, you’ll write SQQ with emphasis on his kindness. None of these traits are OOC in and of themselves, but if you start to only read fanfic and don’t revisit the source material, you can get lost in what’s popular and forget all the depth that actually made them interesting in the first place. And once you’ve grown attached to a particular version of the characters in your head, it can be really hard to let go of it. I don’t really know where I’m going with this, but I'll add that I think protagonists are just particularly prone to this happening because they're usually the one the audience relates to most.
Idk if any of that really addresses the stuff you were talking about. You mentioned dom top Binghe/pillow princess sqq and to be honest I’m kind of reluctant to talk about this in depth because I’ve received negative comments in the past for supposedly being anti-bottom Binghe, when all I’ve ever said on this matter is that I think it’s a bit weird to insist that “I’m scared of hurting you so I might as well let you do it” is proof that Binghe is canonically a bottom. The fact that someone found that statement so threatening to their view of the characters that they would go to my ao3 page, click on the first fic they saw that happened to feature bottom SQQ and leave their holier-than-thou anonymous opinion there is just bizarre to me.
To be honest tho, it tends to be Binghe characterisation that puts me off moreso than Shen Qingqiu. The only SQQ characterisation that truly bothers me is when people write him as willing to hurt Binghe, or willing to do anything with underage Binghe, but there is a LOT of Binghe stuff that I’m sensitive too. Idk if you read this thread of mine but like, even my friends whom I love make “Binghe stalking/imprisoning/"atticwifing" SQQ” jokes and these bother me way more than any random stranger saying SQQ would get off on spanking Binghe.
And like, it’s kind of hard because objectively, Binghe is a very dark character, so it doesn't feel particularly OOC to say he would do those things, but it's about framing. It bothers me when the emphasis is on how fucked up he is and not how hard he's trying, because it implies a level of futility that I just don’t think is there in canon. To me the beauty of him is in how much doing right by SQQ doesn't come naturally to him, but he ultimately decides to do it anyway because he wants SQQ to be happy. (I feel it needs to be said that I don't mean this in a judgy "if you write dark Binghe you don't understand him and are a bad person" way. Just that I myself can't handle that, and I strongly disagree if you think it's where Bingqiu's relationship is headed).
but idk, I've found my corner and I'm very happy here. I actually don't read fic as often as you'd think, mostly because I am sooooo picky, so I totally get where you're coming from :) but the fandom is still decently sized and very diverse, so there are always going to be at least a few people who share your feelings, if you can find them!
54 notes · View notes
keepmeinmind-01 · 28 days
Text
rewatched the ministry corridor scene and while it does have its flaws (i.e., what the hell is going on and how come this doesn’t really matter), i really like how they made newt prickly and theseus (awkwardly) affectionate there. I think it’s so interesting. like newt is compassionate and friendly to everyone but a bit standoffish to theseus. theseus is distant from most people and pretty reserved but affectionate towards newt. the contradictions!
like i know i write them with a bagful of problems that complicates this, and this scene was also charged by the credence discussion—but hey, let’s pretend for a moment it’s just set neutrally, and forgive me for writing my own subtext that’s actually not subtext.
I love prickly newt and affectionate theseus.
in short, I like the idea that maybe newt just doesn’t like theseus very much at that point, because i sort of relate to placing distance between myself and other people for no tangible reason. it feels like such a good character flaw. being sweet and compassionate but also just that little bit defensive. and even more interesting for newt’s psychology if it’s not a cut and dry situation and perhaps it’s even a little arbitrary, rather than super deep. like maybe he just doesn’t want to be around theseus, he just wants to leave; it’s not because he has a history where he hates theseus or because he loves leta. it’s just that he doesn’t like theseus in that moment, even though theseus is (according to david heyman, which you’d have to squint to see) finding middle ground. like maybe theseus is doing all the things that are technically right, but newt is just being prickly because at that moment, he /is/ prickly.
I feel like a core thing in their relationship is a certain amount of irrationality because of the distance. like newt pushes theseus away for /some/ reasons but he also doesn’t know why. and theseus keeps persisting in this very limited way with this somewhat one track mind and still doesn’t /quite/ break out of it. maybe they have many other reasons, but when it comes to a quick interaction, this is just “what happens.” perhaps not because theseus has ever been particularly mean, or newt has ever done whatever that equivalent is back, but just because they’re both so unsure with one another.
idk…i wish i could articulate it better, but i really like it, I don’t know why. I feel somewhat represented by the fact that newt at his core is compassionate and gentle, but doesn’t come across as “nice” all the time when he’s uncomfortable or unsure, and perhaps sometimes that’s just how he is. like maybe newt is being a little “mean” to an observer, because he’s not perfect, but theseus keeps pushing on: because in the end being a /little/ prickly and mean sometimes is /okay/. you can be a cinnamon roll-style character and not always extend eternal love and sunshine to everyone all the time, because it’s hard to work like that.
this part is slightly tangential, but, like, i think i am autistic, and sometimes, even though my family are fine, i can’t bear to talk to them, or anyone at all. i like to think newt has days like that, where he’s snippy and a bit unfair/resentful and quietly prickly and desperate to retreat, but we (and all the characters) love him anyway. :,)
7 notes · View notes
hello-nichya-here · 2 years
Note
If Iroh doesn't acknowledge Azula as a victim of abuse, that means he can't relate to her, therefore Iroh either wasn't abused by his family or he was abused in a different way from Azula. Or maybe the truth is he just doesn't want to understand her. I really don't get why he's more sympathetic toward his brother who mutilated his beloved nephew's life. Like, what is he thinking, exactly? Perhaps his reasoning isn't supposed to go side by side with logic, but rather with feelings or sth. Here are my only guesses why Iroh doesn't care about Azula
1) She reminds him of his younger self that he wants to forget (which I don't even think has a point in saying how much is unfair to Azula)
2) She's a "hindrance" to Zuko
Sexism??? Idk. Actually no I don't think Iroh is a sexist based on his interactions with other women we saw so I'm not counting it, but you're welcome to correct me.
Iroh is not dumb enough to not comprehend what kind of situation Azula is in, but he's selfish enough to do zero shit about it. And for the ppl yelling "he was protecting Zuko from her" bitch pls. Azula didn't harass Zuko from the day she was born yet even when she and Zuko were children and their relationship wasn't so fucked up (which Iroh totally could have interfered with after he came back from war and even prior to that) he didn't give a shit. This man never cared about his neice, even before they became enemies. (No, the doll was not him showing her love lmao) Tell me then, if Iroh genuinely wants to guide Zuko on the right path and shield him from misfortune, why has Iroh never tried to pit Zuko against his real abuser, Ozai? Or do you want to tell me that Azula has somehow abused Zuko more than him? Why, throughout Zuko's whole journey, has Iroh never told his nephew that the way he was treated by his father, was wrong? Honestly I wouldn’t bash Iroh sm if he set Zuko against both of them yet here we are. Like really, Iroh? You think if Zuko puts her in her place and murders her, he's not going to lose it and be relieved or vice versa? You think making kids nemeses is going to lead to any good? Wisest character", my ass.
Warning, this is gonna be LOOOOONG and I'm gonna answer to your questions along with this ask I got from @profoundkryptoniteblaze after I pointed out another flaw of Iroh's because there are some points you both brought up that can be combined.
***
"If there was ever any moment in which Iroh could be seen as endangering Zuko, it was that one - hell, Iroh realizing he almost got his "son" killed was probably why he was following him during "The Chase" and tried to reason with him in "Lake Laogai."
Y'know it really gets me thinking if Iroh never learned anything from indoctrinating and sending his own son to death and only realizing the wrong of his actions after having lost him. Iroh let his other son chase after false hope and waste his life, exhausting himself physically and mentally for three years and was never shown trying to pry him away from Ozai or the FN's toxic mentality. Later he helped Zuko chase and almost capture the avatar at the north pole, the latter would've been frozen to death as a result had it not been for Aang's sympathy (honestly not just Iroh and Zuko but the whole world is lucky that he's so patient and compassionate) And then Iroh calls Zuko out for his recklessness in "Lake Laogai". Like what, weren't you the one who-- ah nevermind. I've only scratched the surface about how Iroh failed to guide Zuko and yet neither he, nor Zuko, nor the fandom seem to realize it.
***
To really understand the issues with Iroh, we need to look at the context behind his actions BOTH in universe and in the sense of "He is a fictional character and can be whatever the fuck the writers say he is."
Iroh as a result of issues with the writting
When Bryan and Michael were still toying with ideas to figure out what story they wanted to tell, Iroh was NOT the character we saw in the show. He was originally meant to be a twist villain who was intentionally giving Zuko terrible advice, to make sure he would never capture the Avatar and be able to come home.
That idea was scrapped and replaced with Iroh being a grey character. He was likeable, nice, and even kind, but he was on the wrong side of this conflict. He could be wise, but he could also give Zuko bad advice, the difference being that he didn't mean any harm and genuinely wanted the best for his nephew. He is far from perfect, but there is more than enough evidence that he can redeem himself.
Then, the writers thought of ANOTHER Iroh. One that had already gone through his redemption and is as perfect as a human being can be. This was the Iroh they decided they wanted.
The problem is that they only realized that was what they wanted in book 2, once they had decided that Azula would be both Aang and Zuko's antagonist, meaning the audience had already seen the morally grey Iroh, and thus they couldn't just go back and rewrite the story with that new version of Iroh in mind.
So, they had three options:
1 - Throw their new idea in the garbage can and stick with the one they had already spent over a season developing.
2 - Give Iroh a deep, complicated, time consuming character arc to lead him from point A to point B. This woudly likely force them to have more than jus the three seasons they were planning, and was a bit of a high risk, high reward situation, since it'd be hard to make a grey character naturally become basically perfect, but it could pay off if they did it right.
3 - Retcon the past season, acting like Iroh was ALREADY perfect and thus didn't need that major character development, pretending he had always been working behind the scenes with the White Lotus to end the war and never acknowledging that he spent all of book 1 trying to help Zuko capture Aang.
Bryke chose option three, and when we combine that with the fact, to this day, they don't seem to realize that Azula is an abuse victim and child soldier, makes Iroh's flaws and antagonism towards her a bug instead of a feature, since he is now meant to be perfect instead of a deliberately flawed character, whose opinions should NOT be taken as absolute truth.
Iroh in universe
When it comes to the Fire Nation royals, we need to remember that, on top dealing with the cicle of abuse, they're also fighting two wars - one against the nations they're invading, and other amongst themselves, to see who will be Fire Lord - that made their already fucked up family even worse.
Ozai tried to steal his brother's throne, and to assure her son wouldn't die, Ursa had to help him commit treason by killing the Fire Lord and usurping the throne of the rightful heir (Iroh). And Zuko, even though he loved Iroh, didn't recognize the fact that his father had no right to throne until the series finale. He went so far as once referring to himself as rightful heir to the throne due to being OZAI and Ursa's son - and that was while he was banished and being hunted down by Azula, who is either the Fire Lord's heir or the usurper's heir depending on whose side you're on.
But why would anyone side with Ozai? Simple: the Fire Nation has a noticeable pattern of thinking ANYTHING is fair in the fight for power, which makes sense considering they're imperialists that think the whole world belongs to them just because they said so.
THAT is how Iroh was raised to see things. Sozin, his gradnfather and Fire Lord, decided that he could murder his best friend, kill 1/4 of the world's population, and take over territory that belong to the other nations just because that was what he wanted to do. Azulon followed in his footsteps, and had no problem sending his own son into the battlefield - something Iroh also did, and then paid the price.
Lu Ten's death shook him to his very core - but it did NOT make him change sides. Neither did Ozai stealing his throne, nor him disfiguring and banishing Zuko. He was so passive by that point that Ozai just allowed him to stay in the Fire Nation, and even be a part of war meetings.
In said meetings, no woman was ever present, because the only three female warriors we see are Azula, Mai and Ty Lee (a princess/prodigy and two noble girls who are best friends with said princess). The only other women in see in anything close to a position as part "Fire Nation army" was the female guard that Iroh befriend AND the guard at the boiling rock. We also know that Azula would have been the first female Fire Lord ever, which all but states that, even if Ozai had been the heir and Azula had been his eldest child, the throne would have still been Zuko's, because women don't get to be rulers in the Fire Nation. It is very likely that being married to a ruler and having his heirs is the highest position a woman could have in their society. Royal and important, sure, but always in a supporting role.
This, obviously, affected Iroh too. While he doesn't really seem to think anything of women being warriors (which makes sense considering he spent life attacking other nations, and thus probably fought women sometimes - we saw women fighting in the Southern Water tribe and let's not forget the Kyoshi Warriors), we cannnot forget he did things like take advantage of the fact that June was paralized to show that he CAN be a bit of a dirty old man, and that his idea of a perfect gift for AZULA of all people was a doll.
However, that doll also reveals something important: Iroh DID once view Azula as a child, and as someone he had some sort of obligation to - hence him being "fair" and getting her a gift too since he had gotten one for her brother.
But the main problem when it comes to Iroh and Azula's relationship (or lack there of) is also clearly already there: Iroh has no idea who his niece is as a person, and assumes he can figure that out by just using some concept of what she "should" be like, based on her position in their society.
At that point, she is just a little girl. Little girls like things like pretty clothes, playing with dolls, and talking with their friends. Not something he can relate to, but not something that gives him a reason to hate her. She is also a princess, and thus important, worthy of praise and respect, and to be protected by all - just not as much as she would be is she were a prince.
But as we know, Ozai sees things differently - but that doesn't exactly means he sees Azula for who she is either. She is the second child, like himself, meaning she is not meant to inherit anything, only support her older brother. She is also a prodigy and incredibly smart, which could make one wonder if maybe she wouldn't be a better Fire Lord than the actual heir. Ozai was projecting onto her from the moment she was born, hence him naming her after the Fire Lord - after his abusive father that never gave a damn about him.
And that leads to another thing that makes Iroh not as perfect as the fandom sees him: Ozai's dynamic with his own children mirrors how Azulon raised him and his brother. One was the good for nothing child, the scapegoat, the disgrace of the family. The other was the golden child, the one who was absolutely perfect - because they HAD to be. Let's not forget that Azulon's idea of defending the rights of his favorite son involved making him grief both for his son AND his nephew. He also didn't give a shit about the fact that Ursa, Azula and especially Zuko, the one whose death he was ordering, had nothing to do with this shit. Azulon believed EVERYONE had to pay because ONE person fucked up.
This suggest that, even being the favorite, Iroh likely got screwed over by his father many times, and his continued support of him until his death AND the fact that he NEVER said a single negative word about him suggests Iroh is looking at Ozai's treatment of Zuko and Azula, seeing their own dynamic with Azulon in it, and thinking there's nothing wrong with it. I've said it many times, but he is the classic case of "That's not abuse! My parents did that to me and I turned out fine!" when they're not, in fact, fine.
Either way, due to still being too broken after losing his son, he isn't interested in this proxy-rivalry with his brother. But he did develop a genuine bond with Zuko - the first-born. the "heir", the son his brother looks down on. Which means he is sort of having a "passive" role in this weird dynamic, while Ozai is holding all the cards, and likely believes that Iroh is only "choosing Zuko's side" because he is also a "useless" son who just happened to have the luck of being born first.
For many years, Iroh isn't acting, he is reacting. Ozai wants the throne? Fine, let him have it, it's not like Iroh is in any condition to actually deal with that kind of stress anyways.
Ozai is playing favorites? Not great, but hey, isn't that what ALL fathers/Fire Lords do anyway? Either way is not like he has the authority to tell his brother how to raise his kids. It's too late for him to fight for the throne now.
Zuko needs someone to help him on his doomed mission to capture the Avatar? Fine, Iroh will go with him. He likes the kid.
The Avatar IS alive after all and Zuko is actively hunting him down? Well, those were the Fire Lord's orders, guess they must capture him.
Zuko wants to go capture the Avatar alone, in enemy territory, at the risk of freezing to death if he doesn't find some decent shelter? Well, it is his mission, he calls the shots.
Zuko is upset that his father doesn't love him? Why not tell him that Ozai DOES love him, and that's why he banished him? There's no way this could backfi- WHY WON'T ZUKO LISTEN TO HIM? WHY IS HE BELIEVING AZULA'S OBVIOUS LIE THAT OZAI WANTS HIM HOME?
But then we have the chain of events that make Iroh snap out of it: Zhao tries to kill Zuko, then kills the moon, and, finally, Ozai sends Azula to capture them.
Nearly losing someone he loved again, having his nation do something ungodly dangerous and stupid just to win more power, and then being actively hunted down forces Iroh to wake up and be the Dragon Of The West again.
But he did not heal. He did not change his mentality. He never understood just how horrible of a situation he was put in by his father - and that he is essentially giving into Ozai's game, in which they use Zuko and Azula as a way to hurt each other.
And we have the final piece of this puzzle: Azula is now, officially, his and Zuko's enemy. She is Ozai's heir, is trying to capture them, and her goals are to help the Fire Nation win the war - something Iroh can no longer accept.
He changed sides, but in his mind it is still "Us VS Them", and Azula now happens to be on the side of "Them." She is a soldier of the enemy, and can rival Iroh's chosen heir.
She is in the way, and in a war, people like Iroh are expected to either capture or kill "obstacles" like her. So, he does that, and expects Zuko to do the same, for his own good, because this is war, and if they don't win, they'll be at Ozai's mercy - and we know he doesn't have much of it to offer.
She is also someone who is going against what is "right." She is rebelling against her uncle and true Fire Lord, as well as her older brother and future ruler. They are above her in the Fire Nation's laws and social hierarchy in every way (status, age, gender, etc), and yet she is supporting a traitor who stole the Fire Lord's throne. She needs to be reminded of her place, and she can either accept that or deal with the consequences.
It never occurs to Iroh that it doesn't have to be this way, because this is all he has ever known.
133 notes · View notes
netherfeildren · 8 months
Note
What are your favorite aspects of the readers you've written?
am i allowed to say everhtbing about them? hahaha
idk that’s such a difficult question because i love them all so much flaws and all. birdies my favorite only by virtue of being the first i suppose, my first born. but i think two things — mostly one, being the way she is in regards to joel which might seem like diminishing in terms of her being her own person but what i mean is like how understanding she is of him. like you know when you’re being absolutely foul and impossible to deal with and just ugly all around and you don’t want to be like that but you just can’t help it? like that’s joel in fog, he hates how he acts but won’t let himself stop and yet she’s patient and she understands him, but not without a backbone, and like i feel like a lot of us can be like him sometimes, i definitely can, and we just wish there was someone who could just give us a second to get through those growing pains and still be there at the end waiting for us. it’s unfair and selfish and whatever all those bad things but it’s also human she’s patient and kind and understanding and i wish i could be more like her :’) my second thing with her is the very real fact that she didn’t actually want to be a doctor she never wanted it and yet she still loves it and appreciates it in a very real and meaningful way, and excelled at it and gave it her everything. like she’s just good good good to her core and again, i wish i could be more like that myself.
someone’s wife, even though the story harps a great deal on her letting go of that aspect of herself, the fact that she’s a crier. like she lets herself feel her emotions, which might seem contrarian to her actions in the story bc for a long time she doesn’t let herself BE with joel but she feels everything so strongly and she’s emotional and vulnerable and i think that’s a good thing to be sometimes. i have a hard time being open like that so that’s why i wrote her as such
tcc little sith girl hehe i love how funny she is honestly she’s bratty and she does what she wants and she has bite but she’s still soft in her own ways when it counts. but mostly how funny she is :]
14 notes · View notes
yusuke-of-valla · 7 months
Text
Eh whatever I’ll ramble
So a month? Ago was the Pokémon World Championships and amongst several other controversies was that a record number of participants were disqualified for having hacked Pokemon.
As far as I know (and for the sake of argument) these hacked ‘mons are the exact same stat and moveset wise as other Pokemon. No one’s hacking in a Regigas with Wonder Guard. At least one person eliminated said it was because they didn’t have time to play through Legends Arceus
Now a lot of digital ink has been spilled about fairness, wether that rule is arbitrary, wether having the time/money to play multiple Pokémon games and have home and be literate in competitive battling is ALSO an unfair advantage etc, but while I’d love to bust out my copy of Homo Ludens and talk about the structure of rules and games, I’m not going to, because I don’t really think the Pokémon company cares about fairness in that sense.
I think what matters to them is that people who are hacking in mons might not be giving them more money to buy their games, DLC, Home, etc.
Because frankly, if they wanted to cut down on hacking, the best thing they could do would be to just. Make a game where all the mons available in competitive are available in the game on it’s own.
But if they did that then people would only have to buy one game, as opposed to now where Urshifu and Enamorous are pretty popular, and if you want them you need at least 3 games and Home. And if you want to buy Sword and Shield that shit’s still full price.
For all that Scarlet and Violet works to make competitive more accessible (focusing on new battle items in trailers, terastalization being a gimmick that feels really meant to change up the competitive scene specifically as opposed to being flashy, the classes explaining math and what not that were never explained directly before), it doesn’t actually go out of it’s way to make it, like, actually accessible to anyone who doesn’t have the time and money to buy and beat two versions of a game. So it kinda feels like they’re trying to hook more people into being interested in the competitive format so that they will be incentivized to buy games and dlc and come to see worlds and buy merch and all of that.
Idk maybe I’m being too conspiratorial but honestly yhe hacked mons thing is more a symptom of the greater flaw that is competitive Pokemon only exists to make the Pokémon company more money and every decision should be viewed through that lens
13 notes · View notes
cockneydio · 1 year
Note
Impossible question: who do you think has the saddest backstory in Vento Aureo?
Ok I've thought about it and I'm gonna rank the backstories by degree of tragedy, with methodology, hold on to your butts:
9. Diavolo - His backstory is fucked up, like it sucks his mom was in jail or whatever, but I have zero pity for Mr. Arson McSmashNDash
8. Trish - She breaks Narancia's arm and demands Chanel and Evian when we meet her. Trish's present may suck but she came up ok.
7. Leone Abbacchio - We've all hit that moment of disillusionment when you grow up and realise the institutions that are designed to support our society are in fact irreparably corrupt, yet managed not to collude with pimps and murderers. Abbacchio's personal pity party is sad but he brought it on himself.
6. Guido Mista - Up until like a year before the part starts he was living an easy breezy life, chasing skirts and picking fights he couldn't win. The failure of the justice system is unfair and unfortunate, but Bucciarati bails him out too soon for me to feel too bad for him.
5. Giorno Giovanna - Not that I want a bunch of Giorno kinnies coming after me (again), but while his early life sucked, Giorno gets a full fledged deus ex machina when he's only 4 or 5 that improves his life practically overnight. That's something that goes completely overlooked when people talk about his story, particularly in comparison to the next ones on this list. It got better for him, in part because of his own gut sense of justice, and he's able to come clear-eyed into the gang, unlike everyone else.
4. Pannacotta Fugo - I've moved Fugo around on this list a little. I don't feel any particular sadness when I think about Fugo's backstory; it sucks but it's complicated. I am not a manga purist by any stretch of the imagination, but I tend to defer to the original IP for authorial intent. And in this case, Fugo wasn't designed to have as tragic of a backstory as the other guys (presumably to make it easier to accept his eventual departure)...so I kind of disagree with the anime adaptation making it sadder? I think Fugo could have been a unique character among the group, one whose own personality flaws (i.e. murderous temper) rather than systemic injustice were the reason for his social ostracism. But the anime made him a victim, which idk seems too easy. That said, there's no question his anime backstory is fucked up.
3. Narancia Ghirga - His mom dies of a slow and painful disease, his father neglects him, he runs off and lives on the streets, gets screwed by the people he's come to trust and also the justice system, and nearly dies from a similar condition to what he'd seen his mom suffer thru. People who are supposed to care for Narancia let him down at every step of his life, taking advantage of his good and trusting nature. That breaks my heart.
2. Bruno Bucciarati - My thoughts on Bucciarati's past are well known at this point lol. This man's whole life is a tragedy.
1. Jean-Pierre Polnareff I ran out of colors idk - surprise right lol. We know the tragedy Pol suffered before Part 3 that led him onto that devastating journey, which ended with even more pain and regret. I imagine Polnareff and Jotaro just sorta..floating thru their 20s, conscripted by the Speedwagon Foundation to keep revisiting the circumstances around that traumatic stardust crusade without any real aim or hope of closure. Then Diavolo nearly kills him, which effectively forces him into hiding. He just lives for so long plagued by the problem of the stand arrows, it dictates his whole life, and that really fucks me up man.
37 notes · View notes
awisetoad · 3 months
Text
gentle reminder that you can just not like something because you don't like it.
there doesn't need to be some external reason for your dislike— a book you don't like doesn't have to be "bad writing". you can just not like it because you don't like it. a game you don't think is fun doesn't have to be be "unbalanced", "broken", "badly designed". you can just… not like it.
of course, those things CAN be true, but just because someone don't like something doesn't mean the work is bad or that it must be flawed in some way.
9/10 times, what makes people say those things is the desire for the answer to why. at best it's just seeking validation, worse is that it's a desire for a sense of superiority, and the absolute worst is just because it's cool to hate stuff now.
but what happens is that seeking these reasons put the onus on the creator for not pleasing them, specifically, when they might not have been the target audience at all or perhaps they're just judging the work compared to some hypothetical idealized imaginary version that only exists in their head and never has nor ever will exist, which is kind of unfair.
and then, so so so often people get fucking rude about it. because what happens is that instead of admitting they just didn't like it, which has the potential of opening THEMSELVES up to be vulnerable— to be judged on their taste in media or whatever it may be —they instead throw the "blame" onto the artists and creative professionals.
that's not to say media can't be bad or have flaws. it absolutely can. but I'd wager that more often than not, the thing that people "have a problem" with is not even actually the cause of the issue, and thus they end up throwing shade at entirely the wrong group of people.
laypeople have very little idea what goes on behind the scenes. most media is pretty complex. there's a lot of moving parts, a lot of input from many, many stakeholders. rarely is it just "the writing" or "the balance" that's wrong. these are handwave-y terms that are pretty much a massive red flag that indicates someone has very little idea of what goes into making something like a film, a show, a game, etc.
like, the core reasons for the issue have almost certainly been debated and talked to death about. someone brought up the issue, and for whatever reason a decision was made for it to be the way it is. maybe it was a budget issue. maybe it was a creative choice. who knows? who cares. but I wish people would stop and consider what those reasons might be before being outright fucking rude and saying no one knows how to do their jobs lmao.
people are so quick to jump on "wouldn't it be great if…" and "imagine if they'd done it this way?"
like, can we just— 
imagine if it was like that and it fucking sucked?
I worked with a guy whose head was effectively in the clouds like this. he was a nightmare to work with, because for problems for which we only had a teeny budget to solve, he'd propose some ideal solution that was actually hugely lofty and would've taken quintuple the amount of developer hours to build. HE was bad at his job because he couldn't work in scope. and often scope is far less resources than we'd like, so the solutions weren't at all perfect or user friendly. you just have to do your best with what you have, and just because every little thing isn't 10/10 doesn't mean it's a failure or that it's bad. something can absolutely be just kind of fine, too? but anyway his attitude was exactly like all these people online who think they've come up with the "perfect" solution to make something better.
like, sure maybe? in a vacuum?
the funny part is that sometimes you even get to build that thing with the unlimited budget and resources, review it, only to realize holy hell it's actually terrible.
(see: new coke)
idk basically this is probably in the top 5 of why I almost don't ever engage with fans of anything online.
2 notes · View notes
Note
I wish that people who hated Nightheart wouldn’t be so, like,,, hostile about it towards his fans, I guess? Idk I personally relate to him to an significant degree (like I don’t think I’ve ever related this much to a character before ngl) in spite of his flaws. And yet, in saying this (on both tumblr in the past and on other sites), I have been attacked verbally and accused of being somehow misogynistic (uh,,, what? Many of my favorite characters are literally the she-cats, such as Mothwing or Frostpaw or Hollyleaf or Squirrelflight) or even accused of being ‘abusive’ for liking him, which really doesn’t make any sense to me either? He’s not, y’know, Bramblestar or something. This is especially true when it comes to trans headcanons: I personally like to view Nightheart as transmasc like myself because I find a lot of his story elements regarding his name change and identity issues ofc. But,,, whenever I say anything abt this headcanon there’s always some ppl who use it as ammo to accuse me / others of awful stuff. I even got told to unal1ve myself by someone before over this which is,,, not cool. I try not to let this sorta thing get to me but I do feel that it has gotten pretty extreme over this past year and I don’t think it’s okay at all. People can like or dislike whatever characters they want imo (unless we’re talking about, like, Thistleclaw supporters. That’s a bit weird) and they should never ever be sent literal hate or harassment over it. I just kinda want people to chill a bit and maybe consider that there are better ways to discuss any disagreements they may have over the books and not jump straight into being cruel / accusatory towards them, if that makes sense.
I agree, I understand why people may not like Nightheart but it is completely unacceptable for people to be harassing people like that, I’m very sorry you’ve experienced that. I understand people are frustrated about how the female characters around Nightheart have been written in Sky. But that’s a writing issue and not a reflection on Nightheart himself imo, and it is extremely unfair to judge people for liking him. Especially with as you say Nightheart not being problematic in himself.
Of course it’s not excusable to harass people in any kind of character debate such as this but I feel that the Nightheart hate has become extreme in certain areas given how unproblematic the actual character is, if people enjoy the who he is then let people enjoy him. I find him funny, I like Nightheart, and although I can definitely see the issues with how some characters have been presented to suit his narrative more I still like the character.
Obviously this isn’t all Nightheart dislikers I’m talking about, not by any means, but the minority that do harass people like this are just ruining it for everyone.
I do wonder, obviously without reading Shadow myself, if this is inherently an author issue this stems from. In River the world warped around Nightheart much less and the female family members in his life were treated with more consistent and sympathetic characterisation. That was a Cherith book. People after River disliked Nightheary sure but it was more of a “I find him annoying” thing. Sky is where it all went wrong and where I’ve noticed people taking it out on Nightheart for being understandably upset about Sparkpelt’s and Finchlight’s characterisation changes in that book. That book does have much more emphasis on the Firestar thing from characters who are not Nightheart (in River his frustrations were largely self imposed), and the TC female characters act a lot more unreasonable than they usually would in general. That was a Kate book. Meanwhile I have heard that Shadow, another Cherith book, treats his female relatives much more sympathetically again. So I can’t help feel that author bias may be influencing the writing associated with him here? Sorry to go off on a tangent at the end here but it’s just a thought, and one I wonder if could cause a change in fandom perception of Nightheart again once shadow is out.
11 notes · View notes
szif · 9 months
Text
ok im watching a video from a really annoying guy talking about how sthe second half of dark souls falls apart compared to the first and he really goes down on tomb of the giants even though its.... not that bad. honestly it may be cuz i went to lost izalith before it and got the door shortcut opened with the sunlight maggot but like. i do not know how you could get so emotional about it like. also nito is an easy fight that you simply have to pay attention to (if youre deaf im sorry for the attack you wont be able to hear and theres no visual indication. that is a huge flaw) and its like. its not that bad compared to motherfucking seath the scaleless i mean come on. bed of chaos is bad because of a lack of information conveyed to the player, seath the scaleless is deeply flawed and becomes easy after you nullify the flaw that makes him unfair, and then nito is just. ok whatever. as long as you hear that unavoidable attack of his you can just get over it. like idk yeah sure i guess tomb of the giants not that good but if youre not flipping tables over the duke's archives and crystal cave and seath fight before it then like. i dont know if i can trust your opinion like the amount of pain i have absorbed in those areas amount to nothing when it comes to tomb of the giants. i actually kinda enjoyed the difficulty spike of the tomb because i saw the gigantic skeletons and it felt super scary and felt actually hard but i never died in there (got close to having a flyfuck amount of health though) and its like. idk whatever this guy is saying feels so personal and driven by his own emotional outburst for tomb of the giants and gravelord nito but i cant even imagine thinking of that area THAT much....
2 notes · View notes
Text
anyway i’m bored and i’m back into my echo/becho stanhood era so let’s get into it:
a lot of the vitriol echo experienced from fandom was somewhat unfair, especially on a show like the 100, where the entire point is to question the morality of decisions and how much survival is worth over doing the “right thing” - which, on this show is entirely subjective. like it’s perfectly normal to hate a character, for a character to get somewhat on your nerves, but some of the complaints regarding her were just plain nonsensical, and mostly out of boredom but also because echo deserves a lot more credit than she’s given, i’m here to address all the arguments against her.
1. echo was just as interesting, and multi-dimensional, as clarke, and as morally grey/compelling a character. in s2, she was a side character, a random girl in a cage, and we knew little to nothing about her other than the fact that she was a member of ice nation and she and bellamy were forming some kind of alliance and borderline friendship in the “you’re a war prisoner and our groups are fighting but you’re also being tortured and i don’t want you to die” sense. in s3 echo and bellamy had a familiarity to their relationship when echo seeked bellamy for help after she was “captured” (i think that’s what happened it’s been years since i watched t100 s3 i barely remember it) and he told the other person to let her go, exhibiting some kind of trust and friendship towards her in this scene too. now, i liked echo despite how little screentime she got as opposed to other characters like roan, because she was very interesting in s2, even when she spat on bellamy - and given the audience’s love for bellarke which had spanned multiple eps since the pilot, it would make sense that they wouldn’t be as enthusiastic about her, or a ship where the two characters’ first interaction was to spit on each other, but echo as an individual was pretty interesting imo. the reason echo wasn’t fleshed out as much before s4 was because she was freshly introduced and naturally had to take a backseat to clarke, the lead, bell, the male lead, raven and jasper and lexa... the list goes on. even roan got more screentime than her, because she wasn’t as important to the narrative, other than being the instigator for the Gina Died Incident so bellamy could become an ooc villain and be driven to genocide.
the Gina Incident in particular is what most of fandom seems to hate her for, and she didn’t seem to be particularly remorseful in the traditional way about it either - but remember, this is coming from ppl who liked BC even when clarke told bellamy his life and endangering his safety was worth the risk to further her plans, when she used information he’d given her while coming down from intense hallucinations to get him to come back from camp (a scene lots of ppl interpreted as a milestone/improvement in their relationship, much like the “i was being weak” scene), when bellamy and clarke betrayed each other left and right for the span of the entire show, especially s5 (clarke left him to die in a fighting pit at the hands of his tyrannical sister and still ppl hated on echo for wanting to avenge bellamy and being angry at clarke?? and physically assaulting the woman who got her boyfriend killed??? like idk about y’all but that’s perfectly relatable and justifiable to me lol). clarke is a very flawed person much like echo but because she’s a main, we root for her, because her side of the story is always shown so we can cheer her on as a hero. echo does one admittedly terrible thing, and because she’s not a main and thus we don’t know her motivations, we’re inclined to dislike her. all we knew her as was the blindly loyal soldier who would commit murder at her boss’s demand, even if it meant bringing a friend’s loved one to great harm.
but echo knew what she did was wrong, that whatever trust bellamy had in her couldn’t be restored properly, and she accepted this. there are many scenes where she quietly took responsibility for her actions, where she made no excuse, something the beloved protagonist clarke does several times (it was all for my people this and that). she was almost driven to s*icide in the s4 finale out of grief and shame for her actions - which, obviously, doesn’t absolve or redeem her of them, but the point is that despite complaints about tasya teles’s “lack of facial acting range” (which, considering the environment echo grew up in, it would more than make sense for her not to show her emotions plainly on her face but rather in her actions), she shows remorse and loyalty and the many things that make her character unique so blatantly and clearly.
2. echo experienced a lot more growth and development than fandom would like to acknowledge. echo is a loyal person, and had blind faith in azgeda’s actions and what they told her to do because that’s the environment in which she was raised. surviving on the ground meant to prioritize life, and the clan, above all else. grounders glorify war, grounders brutally punished their people (such as when nia forced echo to kill the original echo or when roan left echo to die in a poisonous radiation wave even though she only tried to help the clan, not just herself, survive). but she never used her upbringing as an excuse - it’s merely a fact that she was raised this way, and she’s held accountable by bellamy and the narrative for all her “sins,” as it were.
but here’s where her development and growth, which y’all like to ignore, comes in. in s5, she, for the first time, experienced the genuine love of a real family, who didn’t rely on her to commit murder or do their dirty work like azgeda did, who valued her for the first time as a person, not just as a spy or based on what occupation she could do for the group. her loyalty was still there, one of her many core traits, but when used properly it’s actually a very good character to have - and echo did not use it blindly. she did not support violence and murder for the sake of it, did not follow a leader or authoritative presence because she could, and there are several instances where this shows - she refused to give away the defectors to tyrant!octavia, she wasn’t the one who immediately followed the teachings of the primes despite being, arguably, the most vulnerable in the group to that kind of propaganda and brainwashing (plot twist: it was murphy who attempted to become a Bodysnatcher because he was so afraid of hell). we also got to see her background and childhood traumas in s6, the lack of which many members of fandom were complaining about, and then immediately hated once they got exactly what they said they wanted because it interfered with their favorite characters getting more screentime (which really was the main problem with echo all along, lbr).
3. becho was a very healthy, stable, and mature relationship. on the ring, bellamy and echo experienced a drastic change as they both needed to adjust to a life where violence was no longer necessary, where they could live in peace. much of echo’s actions on the ground were a result of wanting to belong in a group after she lost her family (and her friend, Original Echo) - and that desire being exploited. but on the ring, she flourished, as did her relationships. bellamy and echo learned to properly cope with the trauma they’d experienced on the ground, bellamy was able to hold her accountable for her actions (something the narrative never lets him do when it comes to cl*rke, especially after she repeatedly endangered his life and proved she could do it again and again), and as they got their bearings in a new life, they both began to grow into evolved versions of themselves. it was clear they enjoyed spending time together, that they were friends, and that friendship blossomed over three years before the buildup led to their eventual kiss.
and the writers make an effort to show them communicate, to challenge each other, to reassure each other about their biggest worries. echo confides in bellamy that she thinks their affection and love and respect for each other will change on the ground, bellamy reminds her that nothing would change because they won’t revert back to what their relationship was like before - trust and mutual respect was restored between them. in s6 - in their huge fight which BCs like to think is some kind of proof of BE being toxic for some reason, even though it was a relatively normal and organic conflict for becho as individual characters and for their relationship - bellamy confronted echo because he felt she was becoming emotionally withdrawn from him, and he feared this time they’d fall into their old patterns. echo was overwhelmed, because she was processing this big new change in her life - the loss of two members of her family - in the only way she knew how and felt pressured by bellamy, and went to get space away from him. he admitted he was wrong, he made the genuine apology, he let her grieve in the way that was best for her and was only concerned about her well being and happiness, and was a sweet, emotionally supportive, and caring boyfriend. the entire scene was actually designed very well, successfully rounding out becho’s relationship and help us, as an audience, get to know them more intimately - especially after the considerable backlash because their six years together onscreen wasn’t shown and thus fans couldn’t invest in the relationship.
idk about y’all, but this is actually normal relationship stuff and that fight is a lot more healthy because of the mature and rational way they worked through the conflict (it wasn’t as if bellamy endangered echo’s daughter and echo threw him into the hunger games and sentenced to his death, lol). it was resolved beautifully in a way that worked for them and made their relationship shine - and, comparatively to b*llarke, becho is the type of relationship ideal that’s actually for the most part healthy, excluding the beginning of their relationship. and even in that case, bell and echo were on different sides of a war, which fandom is inclined to forget, while clarke repeatedly betrayed and even shot at bellamy while they were in the stage of their relationship where they were (supposedly) friends.
4. echo’s “regression” in which she almost reverted back to her old ways are good for her character. while fandom likes to spew vitriol at her for being murderous (even though clarke can do the same thing and be praised still), it’s important to remember how echo grew up, and how those life experiences would shape her choices (which she has always taken full ownership of with little complaint, unlike the main who is allowed to run away and to whine about “impossible choices” that she makes in the interest of “saving everyone”). of course she’d be tempted to solve a problem with murder - every single character on the show has done this at least once. the temptation to become a “follower” as ppl in fandom bashed her for being in s7, the temptation to kill the people on bardo as vengeance, were tests of her willpower, of whether or not she truly grew and changed. raven was echo’s loved one who reminded her of their family, of the love they shared based on friendship and honor, of their promise to do better. she reminded echo what bellamy would have wanted, and because echo values the love and respect of her friends, she made the correct decision, to stop the cycle of violence (which cl*rke didn’t do, and had permission as the likeable main character to revenge murder someone on behalf of a loved one without being loathed and punished for it).
i actually do understand why people would dislike echo, but she was actually far more amazing a character than fandom gave her credit for.
30 notes · View notes
yanderetrash · 1 year
Text
I swear ill shut up about it but
It may be that im just white knighting for Kim. I completely understand and acknowledge the possibility because otherwise it would be hypocritical
But. I feel like that one post is simply unfair, purely based on information we get in canon. Now, two things. Game is mostly what *you* make of it and one single playthru may not give you sufficient information which means you will substitute stuff based on your own personal bias
First off, based on my absolutely limited and flawed understanding of the world and with the caveat that at my best i can only half pay attention, revachol is an occupied state. Previously it was a monarchy and briefly a communist state but now its basically no national government or any other state branches but rather controlled by the coalition. In text this occupation is seen as "temporary" but also as, most likely if the status quo is not (heavily) hinted to change absolutely permanent. There are foreign military forces stationed in their airspace ready to strike at any moment should they try their whole independence thing again.
So yes ok this is a state under military occupation.
The RCM answers to the coalition such as it is because unfortunately that's the boss of this country now, they have been defeated and conquered. But like, RCM literally is the "citizen's militia" (in the name), and as Kim explains it its been set in place by the citizens (yknow) to take care (hey, let's say police) their own people. The coalition is not happy with this because the RCM is a house brand, not part of their structures. Shivers tells you that there is no need for the RCM in the rich parts of (the city? Its a city state, right?) so really they are only there to help the poor. Wouldn't the rich have better protection, coalition appointed? Bro i dont know either
The RCM does pretty much anything from cleaning up the streets of garbage to performing field autopsies, and it's underfunded and understaffed, with adherence to their ranks being voluntary. Sorta like the union appointed guys only tolerated by the occupational forces
Would also like to say that maybe as an american these very strong feelings don't translate as well but im east european so brother i feel so so so much. I understand their hope and hopelessness and probably have a more mellow, affectionate view of the whole situation. Of course that's part of my personal bias the window thru which i see the whole thing but i cant help but feel im closer to the shape because of it
Now the disaster of a main character youre playing as. I have to say first and foremost that this avengers good guys vs bad guys black and white mentality is sooooo boring and seriously detrimental to everything from worldview to personal growth. Blame whatever you want to blame for it (twitter, pop media, capitalism, idk). People don't necessarily have to fit into one of these two neat boxes labeled good guy and bad guy because by god people don't. Its not a storyteller's fault that their characters are not one or the other, bro thats good writing actually.
Hes a mentally unstable drunk who carries a heavy sadness and a strong air of failure and defeat. He's an overly sensitive little man who can barely face life one day after the other medicating this sadness with alcohol and drugs in a spiral of self destruction. And he really can't let go. The case, the love of his life. It's eating him away from the inside. Like, sometimes mental illness is not cute and its not pretty.
Bit sad that if you wouldn't wanna fuck a guy or whatever then hes tossed into the bad character pile. Wonder if he was good looking how much of this shit would have been overlooked, something to think abt.
So yea, he beat the shit out of that one guy. And he wasn't fired for it. Consider this however, the issue was ongoing for years, no one could find any solution, this wreck of a man was also drunk out of his mind, the only reason he wasn't reprimanded is because tallying things up his outburst solved the case and people (not the cops i mean the people complaining abt the drunks) were happy with the result.
But two things: i dont think that him being a cop made a difference here, harry would have done the same thing had he not been a cop but in the same mental state
And two, Kim would have never ever done this. I mean, no one else did all these years. It wasn't a strategy, it was a drunk's outburst
And three, harry felt very guilty afterwards (i know this doesnt excuse anything but does say something about him, no?), so much so he drunk himself into a mini mind wiping stupor. "Those two cases weighed heavily on you"
Lets be serious here, we've all met this person. Or could imagine this person. It makes me incredibly sad. Imagine to have to wake up being that person every day, i couldnt do it
Now onto the other guy. Completely agreed that Kim would walk around with any tolerate harrys whims if he wasnt a cop. I mean, why would he? I dont think they would even interact at all. The game wouldn't have happened. Null point.
His apprehension to interact with children is completely explained in game, and its not because hes an asshole but i think it would be better to just play the game and find out.
Besides, its not just harry hes patient and understanding with, its everyone. He plays second fiddle to your whims because you would play as Kim if that wasnt the case, but he never appears as anything but compassionate and understanding. He offers a prayer to the dead man. He treats the murderer with compassion. He agrees that letting Ruby go was the right choice and is heavily impacted by the loss of life after the tribunal. Maybe the choices made in game may affect the way he reacts (and honestly ive only done two playthrus so i dont know if hes secretly a bitch if you become fascist or something)
Sure hes a tiny little guy sometimes too rational for his own good, a cynic and a skeptic. Bit of a killjoy. But he's not an irredeemable asshole, and he's not a flawless saint either. He's a funny little weirdo and of course you want to please him since he's likeable and has an opinion on what you do (then again when games give me a little guy with opinions i always want to please them so maybe im not the best person to answer this one)
I think its very easy for strong feelings to swing from one side to the other (from love to hate) but i still don't believe this game is in any shape or form an allegory for modern day america or a commentary on the police institution in the US. Maybe its a bit of cultural dissonance at play. I dont know the remedy sad as it is because im not affected by it
8 notes · View notes
septembersghost · 1 year
Note
I absolutely hate when people talk about Taylor's rumoured hookups. This is why I hate the theories like WD=AS or Tenfefife sea is about Taylor or even her supposed hookup with matt Healy . Being invested in her s*x life is weird. Talking/guessing about whether joe banged her when she wore a black dress is weird. Swifties really think stanning someone means you have authority to discuss most intimate details of their life. (Same with harry. I saw someone diagnosing him of ADHD on fucking tiktok because apparently he forgets things is invasive.) Also if you don't think she was being truthful about a song make up your own story for that instead of playing guessing games. Saying she *definitely* did x y z is fucking weird. We don't know them. They are strangers to us. She is a celebrity not our best friend. Let that woman live her life
yeah i am very uncomfortable with that myself. i don't have a problem discussing her muses/experiences to an extent, and the way she embeds that into her work, because i think it's worthwhile in understanding her and what her writing means from her (even when we then internalize it and make her music about experiences/feelings for ourselves! which we should!), separating her and what she's telling us from her art does her a disservice, i think, and there are so MANY meaningful connections between her various songs/albums that the whole picture of it is more clear when we do extend her that understanding. but, for me, that's different than "theorizing" about stuff that isn't a part of the work or we don't have a concrete basis for. (this is not even to MENTION some of the things that go on, i just don't know how people get so lost that they can't see when what they're doing is invasive and wrong to the point of being unwell). the talk about [insert famous man she interacted with here] upsets me when we know how much that damaged her and made her feel like she couldn't even have a relationship! and maybe i'm a hypocrite because i've discussed situations and romances she expresses in depth on the albums, but by the unfortunate default of our celebrity culture and the reporting that goes with it, we do know those things and recognize the people and connections in them, there are just...lines to what i'm comfortable with. like, for example, i don't mind talking about what joe means to her because it's literally all over five albums' worth of material and has fundamentally changed her life, but publicly assuming things about their intimate moments or dissecting them to exploit their presumed flaws is just...??? those are real people!!! their status as public figures doesn't make them less deserving of respect and consideration! it's super weird to talk about real peoples' lives and most private moments like that. or with wcs, i don't feel it's okay to guess what she experienced (and it's even worse to say she's lying for attention...my god), all we need to recognize is that whatever happened traumatized her and is something she's spent many years processing, and that's enough to give her compassion!
i also really do not like the armchair diagnoses that go on in fandom either (since you mention that with harry), treating human beings like fictional characters simply doesn't sit well with me. if someone hasn't openly discussed a struggle or a diagnosis, it's not up to us to assign it to them.
why do you think they then express feeling trapped or feeling like they're not allowed to breathe or ever slip or up that they've been turned into dolls? it's remarkably unfair. :/
idk i just feel like it becomes far too easy for some to separate from the idea of famous people as also being real, flesh and blood, people in this world. everyone has different lines in discussing that, but there are some very firm ones for me.
1 note · View note