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#protect adora 2020
goddaniiit · 8 months
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Adora 2020, selfie on a psvita
Wig Styling | Ran Chii Sword of Protection I Gunslinger Dirge
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aprillikesthings · 2 months
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HELLO EVERYONE
it is Thursday night which means it's my weekend which means IT'S SHE-RA TIME
On a related note a bunch of the stuff for my cosplay (like, clothes) gets here tomorrow and then I can put it all together and look in front of the mirror and make weird noises at myself and take terrible selfies, so stay tuned for that yeah? Yeah!
OKAY
I'M STARTING SEASON FIVE oh god
s5 ep1 Horde Prime
My semi-frequent reminder that these are a re-watch, spoilers ahoy, I make a lot of dumb jokes
I'm going to tRY to scale back on how much of the episodes I like, describe. Those last two eps of s4 I ended up just telling the whole thing, to the point of copy/pasting a shit-ton of dialogue from the damn fan transcripts.
BUT THERE WAS SO MUCH LORE AND STORY AND SHIT and I want to remember everything uggghhhhh
okay I just noticed the rating, and I can't screenshot it bc it disappears when I pause, but the show is rated for age 7 and up and says "fantasy violence, fear"
Fear??? I mean that's...not wrong. But it feels like a weird way of wording it?
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This was pretty, but then the damn Horde Prime ships showed up.
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you broke the sword, girly
(for good reason! but still. also the music actually starts the little rah-rah transformation tune and then cuts off)
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I hate it when creepy dudes watch me via bot soldiers
I remember reading that there are parts of the intro that change multiple times across this season, and I know Daci and I just skipped the intro every time when we marathoned this season back in 2020, so I'm watching them all this time, and
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O_O
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And she's not She-Ra! Just Adora!
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the shards of Narsil....wait wrong fantasy story
Ohhhh they're all hiding under some kind of invisibility/protection shield constantly maintained by sorcerers. That makes sense.
ALSO I remember noticing this the first time, but you can tell they got a higher budget this season.
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ugggh let it go
Everyone else says the same thing lol (along with "literally we can't because we don't have She-Ra anymore")
Adora's obviously still engaging in her self-sacrificial bullshit and Perfuma's like "no u gotta take ppl with u" but then
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NOT. HELPING.
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I mean Glimmer's room on the ship is nice (if sterile and too brightly-lit) but oof
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oh, are you also lonely? do you also long for someone at least a little familiar? Hm????
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;_;
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Horde Prime just like "yo my bro hated your guts when I showed up lol did u know that"
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(referring to the Heart of Etheria) yeah sweetie that's not gonna save your ass for long
He's so fucking creepy!!
Also I know they were inspired by megachurches and conservative Christian stuff when making Horde Prime's ship, but the music here even sounds kind of like an organ!
(...which is funny when you remember that megachurches usually have, like, rock bands)
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Stop doing your self-sacrificial bullshit....without us!!
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Does anyone else always wonder what they use for bathrooms?? The ones in the Fright Zone didn't have obvious restrooms either. Anyway.
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So I know people were shipping Glitra for obvious reasons before this season but this whole storyline was just fucking great on that front lol
But also look at how fucking SMUG she is!
bahaha the "how's it going, Princess?" line is said almost as unnecessarily sexy as the "hey, Adora" thing
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HAH. Glimmer is RIGHT.
Catra: nah man I'mma kick my ass to the top like I did last time Glimmer: u will get crushed like a BUG you DIPSHIT Clones: COME TO DINNER
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oh sure, NOW you're looking at her for sympathy pfft
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Clone: PRAISE THE LORD Everyone else: oh please shut the fuck up
("April aren't yOU Christian" yes but like, not that kind.)
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Who else read A Wrinkle in Time? Remember that meal they had on Camazotz where everything tasted like sand to Meg because she was the only one who was completely resistant to the hypnotism bullshit IT did? Anyway that's what I'm reminded of.
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the little she-ra doll :(
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Even Catra's not thrilled to see this. (That or she saw Scorpia fighting and feels guilty)
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When says "Adora," Catra scratches the table
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GLIMMER GOD DAMMIT (but also look at poor Catra's face)
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OH RIGHT because if he knows this he has no reason to keep Catra around.
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But she can't stop looking at the screen where Adora just was ahahah
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YOU COULDN'T DO IT ALONE BEFORE
lol Bow says it. "You're not alone. You've never been." But he's nicer about it than me.
Catra: oooh, princesses and their *~feelings~* Horde Prime: lol you're not any better
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I am actively resisting the urge to make a BBC Sherlock reference. IYKYK.
"Adora means something to you." 👀
His little speech about "you Etherians are all alike, such strong connections to each other...it's what makes you weak," is such a great way of contrasting him to the actual Good Guys. Empathy and compassion, caring for others--those aren't weaknesses!
But if your goal is ruthlessly destroying everything in the universe for your own power, then yeah, they would be.
And of course, Catra does think her connections to others is what makes her weak, at this point in the story.
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augh
"Now that I know about She-Ra and the weapon, what purpose do I have for you? Your little ploy of parsing out information like a bartering chip was never going to last long out here... I see all. I know all. But fear not. I have great plans for you. Every part of the machine is of value. Even you...little sister."
AAUGH
(and that's why the rating for this show warns for "fear" lol)
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And then Adora has one of her weird dreams about She-Ra and shattering the sword but while awake, and clearly it pains her--and then she passes out, end of episode.
Anyway I managed to make it all fit in one post but only barely, I had to go back and delete a few, lol
TBH I should probably just assume these are all gonna be two-parters, there's so much plot.
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You Wouldn’t Understand
An old She-Ra fanfic, circa 2020.   In honor of Sweary She-Ra hitting a point where, unlike in canon, Entrapta is making it clear that she's out to save Hordak as well as Glimmer, I thought of this old short fic I did for Entrapdak Month about Entrapta having a secret ambition.   Rated G.   Characters: Entrapta, Adora.  Hordak is mentioned.  Takes place during Season 5, some random in-between moment.  Summary:   Adora had just rescued Entrapta from a squadron of clones. She gives the scientist a good scolding about running into danger and notices the purple crystal in her hand. Can be found on Ao3, or just read here, under the cut.  
You Wouldn’t Understand Adora and Entrapta sat on a log in the latest Bright Moon base-encampment.  Even from several feet apart, there was tension between them.  They were both bruised and scuffed.  Entrapta’s scalp hurt, but she said nothing about it.  Her mask was firmly down and she was pawing a purple crystal in one hand. “Do you want to tell me why you ran right into that squadron of clones?” Entrapta gripped what was in her hand and turned away. “You could have been killed.” “You wouldn’t understand.” “They weren’t Hordak.  You have to stop looking for him.  If he’s one of them now…he’s not himself anymore.  Or maybe he is, I don’t know!  He’s an invader! This war, this hiding, all the fear!  It’s what he’s brought upon the world!” “Different.” “Entrapta, this was his plan all along!  You know it!  You said it yourself that he told you that his plans for the portal were to summon the rest of his army to conquer Etheria!” “He was different.  Not like the others.” “Entrapta, listen to yourself!” Entrapta slowly, reluctantly pulled her mask up, showing her tear-stained face.  She was shaking, but all of her data on human communication indicated that showing facial expression was vital to making a point.  She wanted to continue hiding, but Adora needed to know. “I’ve been observing the clones.  They work and talk in unison.  They have a similar-sounding voice, but they don’t talk like him.  They move differently.  It’s like… how Emily is different from standard drones.  If you know she’s different, why can’t you accept that he’s different!”  her fists were balled up now.  “I need to find Hordak!  All I want to do is talk to him!  I know he remembers me, deep down inside!” “Entrapta…” “Do you take me for a child, Adora?” Adora was taken aback by the question, “N-no?” “You’re treating me like one.  I bet you didn’t know that I knew.  The other Princesses don’t really like me much, do they?  Scorpia does, but everyone else… I’m really working hard on being a good friend, like Bow said, but none of you are like Hordak.” “Of course we aren’t like Hordak!  We aren’t evil conquerors hell-bent on subjugating the world!” “That’s what you really think, isn’t it?”   “Well, look around!  We’re stuck in a magical safe-zone!” “We were thinking of… holding off opening the portal…indefinitely.” “What?” “I didn’t want him to have to go and I don’t think he really wanted to go.  Catra showed up with you and your sword and we kind of felt like… we had to?  Hordak likes appearing strong.  He’s actually very sick.  He broke his old armor protecting me from an explosion and I made the new set… because, well, without it, his body is falling apart.  He suffers a defect and that’s why Horde Prime cast him out.  He was sucked into a portal to this planet!  He wanted to prove himself to Horde Prime because he doesn’t know anything else, but… we were thinking of… not.  You do know that I was going to warn him that the portal was unstable when Catra knocked me out.  Scorpia told you all of that.  We could have been happy, just working together.  We could have just had the Fright Zone and the Horde, or maybe even something else…but now…” “Entrapta, I’m not sure you’re making sense.  He was just using you.” Entrapta slammed her mask back down, but looked Adora dead in the eye from behind the lenses.  “What, like the Princess Alliance uses me?  Nobody ever wants me around for anything but what I can fix and make – but Hordak, he was different.  He’s brilliant, Adora!  And we really liked…being friends.  He listened to me.” “Only because you were improving his weapons!” “So?  That’s all the Alliance ever wanted me for!  And, no, Adora.  He listened to me about everything!  He showed me the stars and taught me about space!  I talked with him on a level that I can’t talk with anyone else, not even Bow!  He’s not…what you think he is, Adora.  Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to find him, okay?” She got up to leave and Adora stood in front of her, hands on her hips.  “We aren’t going to let you go out there and get yourself killed messing with clones!” Entrapta turned her head.  “If I show him it, he’ll remember.  It’s the chip that powered his armor.” Entrapta presented the purple crystal that was in her hand. Adora gasped.  “You know what it says, right?” “Well, yeah.  I primarily chose it for the armor-build because it had just the right coding for what I needed it to do, but… what it says is a bonus.” “Loved.”  Entrapta, don’t tell me that you… “He couldn’t’ read it, but… I was going to teach him to read First Ones just like he taught me about the stars.” “Entrapta… I don’t know if we can save him.  I don’t even know if he’s worth saving…with the mess he’s made of Etheria.”  Adora was looking at her very seriously.  “If we meet him again, I may have to… you know.” “I know.  But I’m gonna try to save him and you can’t stop me.” “I…I understand.” “I don’t think you do, but thanks, anyway.”
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bccrsk · 4 years
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#protectAdora2020
Felt cute, thought I'd post this analysis I wrote a while ago, but I held off because of screenshots, but now I'm too busy to do that soooo.......have fun reading :D -----
The tragedies of Adora's character are rooted in the concepts of identity and choice and what it means to love and accept yourself. You can even say Adora's identity crisis closely parallels that of say, a young queer person from an oppressive background struggling to embrace their sexuality and who they are. 
One of the first facets of Adora's identity is chipped away when she realizes the Horde is evil. She has a rude awakening that the people she knew, the people she looked up to, her family, have all been lying to her. Everything she'd known in her life up to this point was a lie. Because she loves Catra so profoundly, she assumes when she tells Catra the 'truth' that she will turn tail and run away with Adora. When Catra does not and reveals that she knew all along what the Horde was doing, it rips another piece of her identity away. In her mind, her best friend isn't who she thought, and it hurts. In Promise, she gets a glimmer of hope, but their trauma and memories tear them apart because Light Hope wanted Adora to let go of Catra. To activate the Heart, you can't have a heart. Even then, Adora's never fully let go. Note that Adora had no choice but to grow up in the Horde— it's all she's ever known yet her dedication to morals and ideals are so powerful she's able to defect without thinking of the person she loves the most. "I had no choice— I couldn't go back," she says. Ironically, this is one of the few times Adora actually did make a choice, and in her mind, later on, it blew up in her face.
Another piece of Adora's identity is broken away when she learns the truth about her origins: she is not of Etheria; Adora had a family, and she was taken from them without choice. Learning this devastates her for two reasons: 1) people have lied to her again, and 2) she feels robbed of a life that could have been because she never wanted to be a hero. We see this in how she tries intimidating Shadow Weaver— "Tell me the truth, for once." One thing that sticks out in this scene is when SW says, "or perhaps you would have preferred the comfort of lies." SW raised Adora, and she knows how dedicated Adora was to the Horde when she did not see the truth. Adora saw how Catra was treated and yet did not believe the Horde was evil again because, in the Horde, you don't get to form an opinion or identity— you are a soldier and nothing more. The only foundation to build herself on was a higher purpose/goal, which was to free Etheria from the Princesses. So yea, when Shadow Weaver tells her the truth and when Light Hope confirms that SW was, for once, not lying, she's at a loss. The few times people actually tell her the truth are plagued with drastic consequences. She's so demoralized that she chooses to venture to the Crimson Waste, a place known for being barren, deadly and somewhere no one visits willingly. When Huntara betrayed her, Adora was so devastated because it was finally her chance to get answers for herself— to not have to rely on others to reveal her destiny. Then she gets kidnapped, it all goes to shit, and everyone is sad (aka me). 
Adora learning she had been robbed of a chance for a happy life devastates her. You can see this clearly when she screams at Light Hope, "Don't I get a choice?" to which Light Hope responds— "You do not get to choose. You are chosen." Recall when Mara says, "I never wanted to be a hero,"—Adora, at this point, is in the exact same boat. She never wanted to be a hero; she was living up to expectations thrust upon her. She was doing what people thought she should be doing. None of this was her choice. She never wanted to leave Catra. She never asked for this.  Catra describes Adora as "earnest, naive, ridiculously easy to manipulate," and the fact that Catra herself pointed this out shows just how well anyone who really knows Adora can work her. Adora's impulsive nature is also positively reinforced throughout the series— she finds the sword, defects and is rewarded with new friends, a new home, and a life she never dreamed she could have. 
Adora's abuse had such lasting impact because it preyed on her naivety and dedication to her morals and ideals; she must do this to serve the greater good, she must be useful or else what good is she? It damaged her psyche so negatively that even Razz comments, "You ran into the woods and asked the first old lady you saw what you should do." Ironically enough, when she punches Catra in the portal, she says, "You made your choice— now live with it!" When you really think about it, though, did they really get to make any choices based on what they wanted? Yes, Adora chose to defect, yes Catra pulled the lever. But is that what they wanted? Earlier on in the portal episode, she comments, "Catra, this can't be what you wanted!" The thing is, even Adora doesn't know what she wants at this point; Adora is doing what she thinks she should be doing because Light Hope bent the truth. Which brings me to...
The final piece of her identity that's chipped away is when she learns the truth about the Heart of Etheria— that she was not chosen to be a savior but to be the key to a superweapon whose sole purpose is destroying worlds in the name of 'peace.' This piece shattering comes to a head when she, for the first time, defies her predetermined destiny. She essentially breaks her sense of duty because, in Mara's words, "you can save the world we love." This is intentional; Mara could have said, "you can save Etheria!" but she instead chose to go for the heart. It's because of this love, not factions, or artificial ideals that she's able to overpower all the magic on Etheria. 
While this may seem extreme given that she's lost in the past against less threatening enemies, it actually makes perfect sense. When Mara tells Adora the truth about the Heart, she says Adora "will be more powerful than they ever planned." We get the first hint of this on Beast Island when she overpowers her fears and insecurities to save her friends, who she loves. The second glimpse we get of this is when she overwhelms Light Hope and even gives Light Hope enough strength to defy her own programming— all because Light Hope loved Mara. And when she awakens the She-Ra within, it will be because she loves you-know-who (NOT VOLDEMORT). 
I'm going to take a brief tangent, now—think about where Adora was raised: the Horde. Now think about how she left everything behind because she realizes the Horde is evil and found the Sword of Protection— aka a First One's artifact. Now think about how she left everything behind to become She-Ra for the 'greater good.' Think about Adora's reaction when she found out she was a First One. Now think about how the First Ones turned out to be not such good people after all. Next, go ahead and think about how Adora is going to grapple with the fact that the ideologies of the place she was born and the place she was raised in completely clash with her own. Though we know She-Ra isn't actually a nefarious being, Adora does not. In Adora's mind, if the First Ones made the Sword and the Sword is She-Ra, then that means She-Ra, Adora, was the villain all along. To top it off, in the Horde, she was always in the spotlight, a centerpiece made for greatness, just like when she was She-Ra. You'll bring peace and order to Etheria, Adora— you are Etheria's champion, Adora, but by the way, when we mean peace, we totally mean destroying everything. That's not gonna ruin anything, right?
Does this hurt yet? Cause it's about to get worse! Now combine everything you just read with Adora's hero complex— everything is my fault. She needs to feel useful to feel like she's worth existing, but what happens when two core parts of her identity are the reasons why there's so much turmoil on Etheria? What happens when, though obviously untrue, she feels like she does make everything worse? Remember when Light Hope told her that her friends get hurt whenever she's around? Remember when Glimmer first called her a heartless destroyer in the pilot? Remember how that came full circle, and Glimmer later blamed Adora for Angella's death? Yea, it's not going to be good, chief. And she sacrificed everything and everyone for the Sword— in a way, the Sword represents Adora, and she willingly destroys it to save everyone else. Adora breaks herself to save the world. Mara, Adora—it all ends the same. Hurts, doesn't it? 
So now that the sword is broken, her relationship with Catra seems irreparable, and Glimmer's been taken by an ominous alien warlord, what should she do? You can tell her spirit is at its lowest point by the composition of the scene: she's alone and small in a dark void, with nothing but broken pieces at her feet. She stares at these broken pieces with heartbreak; this is all a metaphor for her current state of mind and how she is processing everything. She is also realizing, or will realize, that all of this heartache that she's suffered in the name of the 'greater good' was for a lie; she sacrificed everything, gave up her heart, for a lie. 
When she sees Bow afterward, she seemingly hardens her resolve. At this point, however, this resolve is a facade— Adora is terrified, she no longer has a purpose, She-Ra is gone. How is she going to be useful without the sword? She's going to save the universe, but how? In S1E9, when she had to rescue Bow and Glimmer from the Horde, Angella asks her, "How are you going to do that?" In the season four finale, Bow expresses the same doubt— 'what are we gonna do?' When Angella asked her, the first thing Adora did was put on a brave face. Then, however, we see the beginnings of a breakdown; she buries her face in her hands and begins sobbing silently. Of course, the other princesses unite, and they save the day. 
Adora's identity is completely shattered at this point except for one thing: her attachments. Her love. And while Adora herself thinks some of these attachments are broken, the truth is that they aren't. Glimmer obviously still cares. Catra has always cared— it's why she went to such extremes. Her attachments, her heart will become her new compass— not her ideals. When she tries leaving everyone for the greater good, Swift Wind reminds Adora that her friends need her, that they've always needed her. Then she has a moment— she says, "I didn't choose to become She-Ra to fulfill some destiny. My attachments, my friends, are a part of who I am." This will come full circle, especially because of her fight with Glimmer, a fresh wound. Adora's self-worth is tied to what she can do for others, their expectations and Glimmer blaming Adora for her mother's death takes a significant toll on her self-esteem. At this point, Adora (and her hero complex) is probably thinking that this is all her fault and she needs to fix it, which is what she tries doing in Hero, only to learn that Etheria is a weapon, etc. 
There's good news, though; the only way now is up. Adora will only pick herself back up, will only awaken her She-Ra powers within when she chooses to believe in herself and when she chooses what she fights for. Razz will have a big part in this since she always seems to come to Adora at some of her lowest points. S1E3 will come full circle because Razz tells Adora that she must decide for herself what is right. And an essential piece of Adora coming to believe in herself and deciding what she fights for will be Catra. In essence, she's the only person that truly knew Adora before she became She-Ra, and Adora, no matter how messed up their relationship grew, loves Catra with all her heart. The tragedy behind their relationship is that their love is so strong— but the actual thread holding it together was (hehe)...shadow weaved. They were torn apart by lies and misunderstandings and the tragic Scapegoat vs. Golden Child dynamic. 
To conclude, Adora's character arc is so tragic because it deals with the fallout and consequences of a life-altering identity crisis. For many people in the LGBT+ community, that is a very relatable thing. I'd also like to add that Catra's journey parallels Adora's in how facets of her identity heavily influenced by the Horde are chipped away piece by piece until, again, Catra makes a choice of her own to save Glimmer. In the past, Adora and Catra were always brought back to each other, not by free will, but external influences. They were torn apart by deception, manipulation, misunderstandings. Now that their hearts are broken in such a way that each half finally fits with the other, now that the infected pieces of the past are gone, they'll learn the truth. Adora and Catra will find their way home when they both choose each other because of love and trust, and when they acknowledge that love. This new bond, this promise, won't be out of survival; this promise will be out of true love, out of two halves of a heart finding their way home and becoming whole again. 
It's beautiful and compelling storytelling not just for individual characters on parallel journeys to self-actualization and finally believing in themselves and their own choices, but for showing two young women on the cusp of adulthood—both who were abused in different ways that molded their worldview, who have different skill sets, who complement each other like light and darkness—learning to love themselves and recognize their love for one another. Like fire and ice, night and day, good and evil, neither can exist without the other. They are a core part of each other's identity. And the fact that the finale episode is most likely called "Heart"? Can it get any more obvious?
Also, fuck Shadow Weaver.
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cantstoptheimagines · 4 years
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Protective (Adora | She-Ra & the Princesses of Power)
Summary — Adora knows that you’re one of the bravest members of the Rebellion. However, after you put yourself in a dangerous situation, she can’t help feeling a bit protective.
Requested by anonymous — can i request an overprotective!Adora x fem s/o where is also a fighter in the rebellion, but adora isn’t too keen of her s/o throwing herself into danger like that. So they argue then adora says something she regrets and causes her s/o to get pissed and walk away. Then they make up super fluffy yay!!!
Warnings & Other Tags ➳ Angst; arguing over the Reader’s safety; Adora being overprotective.
Notes ➳ Word Count is 366. ➳ Reader uses feminine pronouns (she/her). 
FAQ | Masterlist | Fandoms | Requests | Coming Soon | Schedule
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“I can’t believe you would do something so dangerous!” 
You rolled your eyes. In your opinion, Adora was being incredibly dramatic at the moment. During the Rebellion’s most recent encounter with the Horde, you had come face-to-face with Catra. You decided to fight against her in order to let Glimmer and Bow escape the oncoming Horde.
“Adora, it’s fine!” you exclaimed. “Catra didn’t even come close to hurting me! I know what I’m doing!” 
“That doesn’t matter, (YOUR NAME)!” shouted Adora. “It’s still Catra and the Horde! They’re strong! You’re not as good as you think you are!” 
“Excuse me?”
Adora froze. You had a hurt expression on your face and you were glaring at her. She didn’t know how to respond. You turned away from her, beginning to walk away.
“Wait, (YOUR NAME)! I’m sorry! I didn’t mean that!” she exclaimed, quickly moving to stand in front of you. “Please, don’t go... I’m really sorry...”
“Just because I wasn’t in the Horde with Catra like you, Adora, doesn’t mean I don’t know how strong she is,” you said. “Like I said, I know what I’m doing. I’ve been a member of the Rebellion for a while. You shouldn’t doubt me.”
“I know that... and I’m sorry, (YOUR NAME),” said Adora, resting hands on your shoulders. “You’re one of the strongest and most talented people I’ve met. I didn’t mean to doubt you. I just feel like I should be protecting you, especially from Catra... Can you forgive me?” 
“Adora,” you paused for a moment, “what you said really hurt my feelings.”
“I know,” she replied, “and I’m really sorry.”
You gave her a small smile, and said, “But I suppose I can forgive you... just this once...”
“Thank you, (YOUR NAME),” she said. “I promise I’ll be more aware of your feelings in the future.”
“I would appreciate that, Adora,” you replied. “Now... weren’t we supposed to meet Glimmer and Bow for lunch today? It’s your first picnic ever, right?”
Adora’s eyes lit up with happiness. She took your hand in hers and began running to the courtyard where Glimmer and Bow would be waiting, both of you laughing with one another along the way.
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scarytheory · 4 years
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2020 IN TV
28) She-Ra
Season 2
(2019)
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experiment-000 · 3 years
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My Top 10 Ships of 2020
It's been a weird year but I've seen other people doing this. Plus this year I've been way more into gen fics (love a bit of found family especially in clone wars and marvel) than anything shippy. So I genuinely don't know what imma put on here aside from two ships for sure. Sorry this post is super long idk how to do the below the cut thing and I've had this app for 5 years...
10) Viktor Nikiforov and Yuuri Katsuki - Yuri!!! On Ice
It was a real toss up between this, supercorp, kanera and wolfstar cos they're all very integral ships to my fan heart but this son because of the Yuri on Ice fandom's rebirth this year. I've never stopped shipping this, never stopped reading fanfic of them for any extended period of time, they're still my most bookmarked ship on ao3 (although I think now star wars - all media types may have overtaken them for fandom). They were one of the first things I watched where the queer ship I loved became canon and I can't wait for the film (and hopefully someday a season 2). Heck I even made my mum watch Yuri on Ice with me so I think that says it all.
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9) Edelgard Von Hresvelg and female Byleth - Fire Emblem: Three Houses
My first fire emblem game was fates when I was like 14 (and finally gay awake lol). I was so disappointed that I had to be with a guy character because the only female option was kinda creepy and also I wouldn't get the character of kana. So when three houses came out I was so happy because finally there were beautiful incredible female characters my female byleth could romance (I'm so sorry mlm you deserved so much more than you got). I got the game as soon as it came out (had to search a lot of shops let me tell you) and started on black eagles. I was actually kinda disappointed back in 2019. I didn't like the explore the monastery bit (still find it kinda tedious) and the battle mechanics weren't quite the same as fates (no pairing up?! Aka my main battle technique for protecting the weaker units). So I got like 20 hours in and put it down. Came back to it in lockdown and finally finished it! I'm so proud of myself I virtually never finish games. And I fully fell in love with the useless lesbian edelgard in the process. When I started back playing in 2020 I was like eh I wish I'd picked a different character to romance (like shes an emperor that's morally very shady) but then the romance stuff started with edelgard and I fell the heck in love.
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8) Cory Matthews and Shawn Hunter (and Topanga Lawrence) - Boy Meets World
Disney+ was released in the UK this year and I finally got the opportunity to watch boy meets world in its best quality (aka not on YouTube). I watched it back when I was like 12 or 13 and it's such a nostalgic show for me. Watching it again I still absolutely adore it (and my bi ass was low-key crushing on Shawn especially in chick like me - I'm 18 btw and I got so scared for a sec but rider strong was 18 when chick like me came out so it's fine woah). And of course now I see the possibilities of the beautiful Cory and Shawn relationship like they were so bromance it was basically romance and throw in topanga it's the perfect ot3 (but I'm also fine with just Cory and Shawn or just Cory and Topanga). Read some good fanfic for them this year. My favourite was one about Shawn stealing makeup and stuff and exploring gender (need more fics like this I'm biiii).
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7) Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes - Marvel Cinematic Universe
I rewatched all the MCU films this year too. And got really into Peter parker whump and irondad. Plus my eternal obsession with identity and relationship reveals of course led me from Spiderman identity reveals (and found family cuteness) to stucky coming out. Especially when it involves the internet and social media. Not my favourite ship but it's been significant to my year due to the sheer amount of marvel stuff I've read.
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6) Satine Kryze and Obi Wan Kenobi - Star Wars
I rewatched clone wars in prep for season 7 and wow Satine's death was sad and sudden. She first appeared in S2 E13 I think and just the sheer sexual tension of their bickering. "The sarcasm of a soldier. The delusion of a dreamer." Just ugnnhhh my bi ass can't take much more of this. And Anakin just sipping his wine in the background grinning. And I fully believe korkie is a Kenobi.
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5) Commander Cody and Obi Wan Kenobi - Star Wars
I am very much an Obi wan multishipper. I don't really have a favourite but I fully believe he was with satine and Quinlan in his life. I don't think be would've actually done anything with Cody because of the whole superior officer thing. And this probably isn't even my favourite Obi wan ship - that honour probably goes to quinobi or obitine. However the most popular ships in the fandom are codywan, quiobi and obikin. No offence to anyone who ships these they're just personally not to my taste, but I can't stand quiobi, and obikin I find only slightly more tolerable and I think that's just because there's so much obikin content so if I like the concept of a fic that happens to be obikin I'll read it. I'm just not a fan of the mentor/student relationships. So I generally favoured the codywan fics when there was shipping involved meaning I read a lot of them this year. Needed that nice fix it content post season 7.
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4) Zuko and Katara - Avatar: the Last Airbender
Again I am a multishipper I have nothing against zukka it's cute. But I'm a zutara shipper first and foremost because when I first watched avatar I was like 13 and denying my gayness and gayness in general so I shipped the straight things and the straight things only. Most of these ships I stopped shipping - dramione, spuffy, some my little pony ones which we don't talk about. Zutara stayed. (I have nothing against any of the things I used to ship I just stopped shipping them so much/shipped new things more). I've continuously shipped zutara since I first watched avatar even if I didn't necessarily spend that much time on it it has always been here as one of my favourite ships. It has such good fanfic I swear including my favourite ever fanfic from any fandom - love thy enemy. Plus like the black games (reread this for the millionth time this year), a delicate subterfuge (which I read for the first time this year and damn it's so good) and so many more. With the avatar resurgence this year I haven't actually rewatched avatar aside from my normal random episode every now and then when I feel like it. But there's been a lot of avatar on my dash from people I follow getting into it and people I followed for avatar returning so naturally I returned to the fandom and read quite a lot of fanfic. I also read just a lot of avatar gen fics which were great at the whole found family thing I've been so obsessed with this year.
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3) Catra and Adora - She Ra and the Princesses of Power
Catradora is canon! They kissed! What more is there to say. Arguably they should've been top but I never shipped them that much since I was always very much a multishipper when it came to she ra so yes I was very happy it became canon because we actually won for once but also I've never read much fanfic for them etc. But they are very much a dynamic I love and watching she ra all again in prep for season 5 I really enjoyed the build up of their relationship. The other two only go above because Buffy is my favourite show ever and damn there's some good fuffy fanfic and Aphra and Tolvan is both fresh in my mind and star wars owns me. Would love some catradora fic recs btw if anyone has them tho.
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2) Buffy Summers and Faith Lehane - Buffy the Vampire Slayer
I didn't realise it was last year that I got super into them but according to my ao3 bookmarks it was lol. 2020 I swear it's lasted an eternity. I got into them about a month before lockdown (which feels like another lifetime). I've loved Buffy since I first watched it when I was 13. It's arguably still my favourite TV show. I've been through a lot of ships for Buffy - bangel to spuffy and now fuffy. I still think angel and her were a beautiful ship back in season 2 and especially in the angel episode I will remember you. But faith and Buffy had so much chemistry in season 3 - she would've been a fresh start for Buffy and the amount of fix it fics I read I swear. My favourite has to be one where they met in LA during Anne and how that changed everything feat Buffy's internal homophobia.
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1) Cheili Lona Aphra and Magna Tolvan - Star Wars
I read Darth Vader (2015) and Doctor Aphra (2016) for the first time at the end of 2020 (got a comic subscription which has served me very well already I've nearly finished the star wars canon comics). Just to see canon queer ladies in star wars was so magical for me as a queer lady. I didn't think star wars would be so overt yet as to have a queer kiss in canon (even if it's in the comics) and especially not with the main character of arguably their main comic series. Now we just gotta hope that we'll get it in live action someday soon. They weren't the ship I consumed the most content of in 2020 but they were the highlight of my 2020 because star wars did that and I finally found out about it
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Honourable mentions: Vivian and Elle - Legally Blonde, Candace and Vanessa - Phineas and Ferb, Stevie and Alex - Wizards of Waverly Place, Xander and Spike - Buffy the Vampire Slayer (I actually don't ship this but damn some authors are good - this was the ship that made me realise I don't need to like a ship if the author is good enough to write it well), Eli Vanto and Mitth'raw'nuruodo - Star Wars (started reading the books last year but finished this year and only started with fanfic this year), Villanelle and Eve - Killing Eve, Kanan and Hera - Star Wars, Barriss and Ahsoka - Star Wars, Remus and Sirius - Harry Potter, Kara and Lena - Supergirl (let's hope this becomes canon next year!) (Those last four are ones I've shipped forever some of my og ships but nothing particularly big has happened for me this year with them so)
I got Disney+ this year so rewatched a fair few things from my youth and though hey my obsession with that character may have been a little gay.
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Jo’s Top 10 of 2020
I see lots of artists doing that thing where they post a piece from each month of the year... unfortunately my content creation isn’t necessarily consistent and it’s hard to track what month individual fic chapters were posted in, but I figured I’d do something similar and post my Top 10 pieces of content I created in 2020, what they’re about and why I love them. I actually did get a fair amount done this year thanks to the lockdown, but I’ve narrowed it down to these ten that I’d like to reflect on. (To be fair, I’m probably forgetting something huge. Feel free to leave comments if you think I passed over something important lol.)
10. Friendship in the Horde (meta): This is something I’d wanted to write for a while but finally got around to finishing in February. It’s basically a sociology paper lmao, an analysis of the social hierarchies and systems of the Horde. It was also a convenient excuse for me to gush about Catralonnie, an underrated (friend)ship. But honestly this was an important piece for me because I have always identified with the Horde characters way more than any of the rebels (other than Adora, who grew up in the Horde) and part of why is how they are in an unsafe environment and end up forming relationships that are helpful for survival but hinder them psychologically. And I think to understand the Horde characters and really evaluate their motives and choices you need to understand this first.
9. The Sting in My Eyes: On the surface this is just a run of the mill hurt/comfort oneshot, but it was a really important post-canon processing fic for me. I had a lot of feelings about Catra’s relationships with Shadow Weaver and Melog in season 5, particularly about how Catra must have felt really conflicted after Shadow Weaver told her what she wanted to hear all those years but in a way that felt unearned and out of the blue. It was really cathartic for me to write a scene where she struggles with those mixed feelings but has Adora and Melog to help her process them. And I had long associated the song the title is from with Catra and Shadow Weaver’s relationship, and the way she died trying to redeem herself really solidified that connection.
8. Hail Mary, chapter 6: This was supposed to be a short chapter mostly about the backstory between Catra and Scorpia in this au, with some Catradora yearning thrown in. It evolved into a massive, sprawling thing that is very atmospheric in terms of how the setting and vibes are described and how in the moment it feels. Hail Mary is like that sometimes but that type of narration is usually about football games rather than parties, so this chapter was a fun change of pace in many ways. It was really nostaglic for me to write too, the nerves of being a teenager at a party with your crush and how intense everything feels. And the Scorptra stuff really is delicious, it was nice seeing them have that conversation they never got to have in canon and truly make up, and the tiny sliver I added of Catra’s earlier history was heartbreaking in the best way. So this was not what I intended to write, but it turned out way better for it.
7. A Better Son or Daughter (AMV): I’ve done other Adora AMVs, but this one is really my iconic piece. The song is perfect for Adora, so perfect it’s on Noelle’s Adora playlist. The vid itself is a character study about Adora’s mental health struggles and the way she represses them, as well as a tribute to her resiliency and her eventual triumph of getting to a better place in her life. This is a song that gives me a lot of feelings and once I was making it about Adora it gave me even more, so this was a very satisfying piece to complete. I wish Noelle had gotten a chance to see it but oh well, maybe down the line.
6. Hail Mary, chapter 12: This is the chapter that much of the fic had been building to, Catra and Adora in conflict because Catra finally got the chance to be Adora’s hero and Adora shot her down. It’s painfully analogous to canon, both in terms of how (I suspect) Catra felt in Thaymor and Adora’s tendency to victim blame because she’s so pragmatic. There’s definitely some tones of Taking Control in there but Lonnie does a much better job of examining Catra’s psychology and needs than Glimmer did in canon (a writing error imo, Glimmer should have had more insight). Adora just wants to help but sometimes in her quest to do so she disenfranchises others, and this was a much needed look at that aspect of her character. It’s also an excellent illustration of what it’s like to play a peacekeeping role in an abusive household and how stressful it is trying to protect others while also protecting yourself.
5. Unstoppable (AMV): This is not my favorite Catra AMV I’ve ever done, but it might be the cleverest. The soundtrack is a song about mental illness masquerading as a song about being a bad bitch, which is basically Catra in a nutshell. The lyrics are incredibly fitting for her and her arc as it develops over seasons 1-4. The vid itself takes a hard turn in the interpretation of the lyrics, going from talking about how no one can stop Catra to how she can’t stop herself because she’s in such a terrible sunk cost fallacy spiral, and I think I got several death threats over that twist lmao. As someone who primarily deals in angst, there’s hardly a better compliment to be paid.
4. Demons, chapter 31: This one got real dark on me. The concept of this chapter was originally an examination of how comparing abuse can get really dicey but you also have to respect that other people have had different experiences from you and you have to be careful not to equate things or make it sound like you’re talking over someone else. I guess it’s also a bit of a look at how autistic people (like myself) will often explain why they can empathize so others know they understand rather than saying empty platitudes, but that can come off as insensitive or like they’re making things about them. I mean, in this case Adora kinda was making things about her, but she was provoked into it by a parade of comments insinuating she didn’t suffer at all, which was also unfair. Anyway it’s one of the more important Catradora fights in Demons and something I’d written bits of over a year prior, it was that important to the plot, but it also took a turn I was not originally planning. I finished the chapter when I was in a really bad depressive and self-loathing spiral and that bled onto the page, but it worked perfectly for Catra in this scenario... that push and pull of feeling like the world has hurt and victimized you mixed with knowing you’ve done some bad things yourself and feeling like you don’t have a leg to stand on when mourning the ways you’ve been hurt. It’s intense as all fuck but it’s excellent.
3. Hail Mary, chapter 11: Speaking of dark Catra content, this chapter... whew. It was really something else, to read and to write. I have written flashbacks in Demons that are more detailed and even include explicit violence but because those scenes are always in flashback form I never really got the chance to sit in the head of an abuse victim waiting for the other shoe to drop for an entire chapter like I did here. It’s quite different from the rest of Hail Mary stylistically and is both highly sensory and extremely internalized. It took me back to some terrifying moments in my own life so it was difficult but also extremely cathartic to write. It’s important too because it really sets up where Catra was at mentally heading into her big fight with Adora, and that chapter is in Adora POV. This chapter is ranked so high simply because it’s... polished, as @malachi-walker put it. It almost is its own story within the story and really noteworthy as a piece all its own.
2. Demons, chapter 26: This chapter is very similar thematically to Hail Mary 12, just based in the canonverse. It deals with one of the core (but highly neglected by fandom) conflicts between Catra and Adora, where they both need to feel like they can take care of and protect the other but also detest feeling weak or vulnerable themselves. It leads to Adora’s ego making Catra feel disrespected and Catra’s behavior confusing Adora and making her think she’s an ungrateful brat rather than someone who needs so badly to be needed, just like her. There’s definitely some power struggles in this chapter but finally they’re able to get to the heart of it and seeing them talk it out is so satisfying. Getting this chapter published was also important to me on a personal level because, like I said, this aspect of their conflict and relationship is rarely acknowleged for how important it is when really it’s one of the deepest conflicts between them in the series. It’s a scene I started writing pretty much as soon I knew I was extending the fic into something longer because I just needed them to have this conversation, so finishing it was so satisfying.
1. Satisfaction, chapter 3: This chapter took me a really long time to write, both in terms of time to get it published and time I actually spent working on it. It’s the crown jewel of a fic that’s really important to me and I had to get it just right, so I spent more time agonizing over every detail and rewriting things to get them absolutely perfect than I usually do (I’m a perfectionist anyway, but this took it to a whole other level). But in the end it was worth it, because this chapter is damn fine. It’s really hot, as you’d expect from a smut fic, but it’s also an excellent character study of how both Catra and Adora were affected by their abuse and trauma and the issues it raises for them in terms of sex and intimacy. Also, come on, we need more BDSM fics out there that focus on the actual point of it all (the trust involved) and promote communication and do the character work to explain why they might be into it in the first place.
BONUS (from December 31, 2019): One of my favorite pieces of 2020 technically came out in 2019, but I posted it on New Years Eve so most people first saw it in 2020. It’s an absolute banger of an AMV called I’m Not Jesus that’s all about Catra and Adora’s anger towards Shadow Weaver and their refusal to forgive their abuser. Funny enough this came out before Adora’s iconic “I will never forgive you” line, and Shadow Weaver definitely made things more complicated with how she went out, but I think the sentiment still applies.
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maddhatterreviews · 3 years
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Hope punk stories you should check out if you already haven’t
I think after everything 2020 threw at of as a people (And some of the bullshit we’re still dealing with now) we could all use something to lift our spirits a little. And what better that fiction to escape from the horrors of reality for a little bit? 
Just to be clear about this list, this isn’t a top ten or anything. This isn’t me saying these are the best movies/tv shows/ games/ whatever that have that Hope punk feel to it, these are just things that I like and might help you get through shit. 
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Effectively the codifier for the term. (Or at least the first piece of fiction the term was applied to) I actually stopped watching She-Ra about halfway through the second season, but I’ve been meaning to get back into it for a while. Although I do know that the series ends with Adora and Catra kissing and that somehow fixes everything. And if saving the universe with the power of love isn’t Hope Punk, I don’t know what the fuck is.
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If you follow me, you already know how much I love this show. But If I’m being honest, the Hope Punk feel doesn’t really start until the three season. Until then it a pretty generic action anime. Still good though. The show is in more of a darker, “Oh god, we’re all screwed” phase of the story (Not to mention a mid-season hiatus) but it wouldn’t be Hope Punk if there wasn’t some darkness to fight against, right?
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Yea, I think this counts. Parks and Rec is all about a genuinely altruistic politician trying to make the city she loves better despite opposition from seemingly every direction, and backed up by a group of loyal friends. As weird as it might seem to call a government worker punk, that is what Hope Punk is all about. And for all the supernatural evils that appear in these other stories, none of them are as scary as an incompetently run branch of the US government.
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The first Kingdom Hearts is my favorite game of all time. And as weird and convoluted as the story gets, I still love these games. Sora is the ultimate Hope Punk hero; an eternal optimist who stares down the most wretched darkness the Worlds have to throw at him with a smile. (And a magical sword shaped like a key) What makes Kingdom Hearts Hope Punk to me, is the fact that the thing that makes Sora so powerful isn’t necessarily the Keyblade, but all of the people he’s connected with over the course of the series. Sora himself says it best “My friends are my power!” Saving the Universe with the power of love and friendship.
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Okay I sure this is another one that’s gonna throw some people off. But despite the Crow being a gothic revenge story, it’s also about hope and kindness. Or at least the movie is, I still haven’t read the comic. Sure, Eric Draven kills a bunch of cartoonish psychopaths in the most violent ways possible, but he only kills the people who murdered his girlfriend and himself, he protects a young girl he was friends with when he was alive, helps the girl’s mother get her life back together (by scaring the shit of her, but it worked) and only goes after the big bad to save someone that has nothing to do with his revenge mission. I don’t feel like I’m doing this movie the right justice. So if you’ve never seen the Crow, go check it out. I think it’s on Hulu and HBO max.
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Sure this was written long before the concept of punk was even a thing, but it’s the story of quite literally the smallest, least powerful being in the world going up against an all-powerful, damn near godlike overlord to save the world. The extended cast doing what they can to push against an insurmountable force of evil, and everything coming down to two tiny hobbits. This shit is punk.
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I’m not the biggest Doctor Who fan in the world. I’ve seen most of the new series, but nothing of the original. And I still haven’t watched anything of the 13th Doctor. But I think there is absolutely an argument that can be made that Doctor Who is Hope Punk. 
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No, Not you!
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That’s Better.
I don’t know, this one might be a stretch, especially since Hellboy is another government agent. But he does quit eventually. So there’s that. And I think it says something that the thing Hellboy fights against is the concept of Destiny itself. Hellboy doesn’t care where he came from or what everyone whats him to do or be. He just wants to live his life the way he wants to. Even when Hellboy get sent to hell, he still just trying to chill and live...Uh, you know what I mean. 
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Spiderman feels like the physical embodiment of Hope Punk. Nothing in his life goes right. His friends and family are constantly either dying or turning into supervillains, half the time New York hates him despite how many times he’s saved, the guys spear heading the Spidy hate is his own boss (Who isn’t a big fan of Peter either) not to mention he’s just continually getting his ass kicked and is perpetually broke. But in the face of all his hardships and heart breaks, Spiderman keeps fighting the good fight. No many how hard he gets knocked down, he always gets back up. There’s a reason the “Shear Strength” shot (As I call it) is such an iconic panel from the Spiderman comics. I mean...just read this fucking panel. Sipderman IS Hope Punk. And there’re plenty of movies, cartoons, games, and of course the comics are always easy to find. The Dan Slott run is one of my personal favorites. 
I’m sure among any one of these there’s something that will get you through these troubling times. 
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arceneades · 3 years
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Why I Love She-Ra (2018)
I watched She-Ra after my YouTube feed had been inundated with She-Ra for a couple of years. I just sort of wanted to know what it was all about. People were talking. I was curious.
I think the first time I felt like crying was during the theme song the first time I saw it.
“We’re Gonna Win In The End!”
This was a queer show. I knew that. And... well, I grew up in the 1980s. And people, we are winning. We are winning this fucking fight with the forces of fucking darkness, some of which were in my own mind and heart, and it has been a long god damn slog but we are winning.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, I worked for a company that published a phone book (yes, a printed book, with phone numbers in it that you could call. It was a different time, okay?) that was targeted to the gay community. Specifically, it was a yellow page directory with advertisements for restaurants, and florists, and plumbers, and towing services, and any other business that you could think of that were paying money to let gay customers know that they would be treated like fucking human beings by that business.
That book doubled in size every year for 4 years. Because we were winning.
It took decades to go from the Defense of (straight) Marriage Act to nationwide acknowledgement of marriage rights. But we got there. Because we are winning. And I care about this fight.
So, yeah. I’m in. Let’s go. We’re gonna win in the end.
The feels did not stop. I cried during “Promise”. Well, I mean, of course I did, I’m not an inhuman monster. I cried during the battle of Bright Moon. I cried for Catra when Shadow Weaver left her, when she hurt her friends, when her pain and rage tore the world apart. She just kept breaking my heart. I wanted her to make just one good decision.
She did, of course, and I cried about that too. I knew what was coming with “Corridors” but it killed me anyway, Adora’s “no, no, no” just bruised my soul.
And “Save the Cat”? Adora’s righteous fury and the power of her love for Catra... again. Tears.
Maybe it was just 2020. Maybe my emotions were just close to the surface. I don’t know. I HURT for those kids. I wanted them to be okay. I still want them to be okay.
But I also felt seen. Seen in a way that... was different.
I was a middle aged, cis-gendered, straight white male. And this show was hitting me, and hitting me hard, and I didn’t know why. I was invested in this love story. I was invested in the war. I knew they were the same thing.
Not unusual, I suppose. I’m a Jane Austen fan. I like love stories. I like it when main characters get together. I’ve read Pride & Prejudice more than twice. But I don’t feel seen when I do.
Part of it was Catra. We all probably have some Catra in us. I might have more than most. It’s taken a long time to get some of my more extreme behaviors under control, although my rage and trauma tends to direct inward, not outward.
Part of it was Adora. I love characters that reflect fierce protectiveness, a part of us that wants to stand between the universe and the people we love and say “No, You can’t hurt them. You can’t have them. They. Are. Mine.”
But hey, you know, Tony Stark has that vibe in “Avengers: Endgame” and even dies to protect what he loves and while that speaks to me, I don’t feel... seen.
Tony Stark is played by Robert Downey Jr, an actor I grew up watching. Avengers is essentially built for me to watch. Literally, I am the target market, me and the kids I’m going to bring to the theater. I don’t feel seen. Marketed to, maybe. But not seen.
Which led me to wonder why a love story about two lesbians who are too young to drink, set in a world where it is not only okay to be a teenage lesbian but it isn’t even worth commenting on, meant so very much to me.
And thinking about that reminded me of something. Which is that when I was super into Second Life, a decade or so ago, I always used a female avatar. Always.
And it felt right. Perfectly right. And I had a lot of conversations with trans people who were also using female avatars because it helped them get along with their dysphoria. A feeling I don’t have. Of course.
I mean, sure. I prefer playing female avatars in games. That’s totally a cis-het thing to do, right? You know the joke, “If I’m going to be staring at an ass, it might as well be a nice ass.”
Okay, so maybe, just maybe, I did sort of decide that I wasn’t a man during that time. I wasn’t sleeping. I was depressed. I hated my job. Totally understandable. My friends straightened me out, shamed me out of that. Maybe that wasn’t the nicest way they could have approached that but I got shamed out of it, didn’t I? If I were actually trans, that wouldn’t happen. Right?
And I like being male. Well, I like the privileges that come with being male. I like having the upper body strength, and I find other men to be sufficiently terrifying that I wouldn’t want to... take off the armor. Not around them.
Yes, maybe, just maybe, I would prefer to have sex as a woman, given the option. That doesn’t make me trans, it just means that I really feel at home around lesbians and want to be a part of their world. Totally normal cis-het feelings there. It’s not like I would actually transform into a woman if I had a magic wand. I mean, not permanently. Not all the time. Just, you know, sometimes. When I wanted to take the armor off. Just when it felt safe.
Totally. Normal. Cis-Het. Feelings.
I mean, obviously I don’t want to be a woman. I don’t want to carry breasts around, for one thing. Looks uncomfortable. I like having just muscle up there instead, thank you very much. And I’m super comfortable with short hair and a beard. It’s a good look for me. I wouldn’t want to look different. I’m happy with my hormone mix. So, there you go. I’m a boy. 
So why don’t I want to be one?
This argument has been raging in my skull forever. Am I a boy? I’m not a girl. I like being able to grow a beard. I’m as Dad a Dad as any Dad on the face of the planet. I don’t want breasts. But... I sort of do want hips.
When I first started questioning my gender, as far as I knew, there were two options. And neither of them fit. Because what I am is non-binary. A fact I would not know if Noelle had not made SPOP, and I don’t know how I can possibly thank her enough for that.
And according to the kids on the enby lesbians server, I’m a non-binary lesbian, which explains the fact that I’m on my fifth Subaru, but doesn’t explain why I don’t currently share my life with a mixed breed Labrador.
I am queer. I felt seen watching She-Ra because I was seen. On Etheria, everyone would use my pronouns. On Etheria, my friends would have helped me through my gender crisis. On Etheria, even in a war, we love and accept each other for who we are. We see each other.
We’re not on Etheria. But I believe we’ll get there.
We’re gonna win in the end.
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adoracats · 4 years
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DID SOMEBODY SAY MODERN SOCIAL MEDIA SPOP AU
part 1 > part 2
[image 1: Adora’s twitter profile
Banner: a photo of sunflowers
Icon: A blond girl looking over her shoulder, down towards the camera. She is wearing red-rimmed sunglasses and a white t-shirt with a red trim on her sleeve.
Title: adoraaa
Status: edit profile
Twitter handle: @she_ra
Bio: “🏳️‍🌈💖🌹; horse insta: [link]; sword insta: [link]”
Location: Brightmoon University
45 Following, 29.3K Followers]
[image 2: Glimmer’s twitter profile
Banner: A girl wearing red lipstick and reflective sunglasses running a hand through her short hair. Her head is tilted away and she’s staring off-camera.
Icon: A close-up shot of girl with short, dyed gray hair wearing a red and blue striped shirt. She is smiling towards her shoulder, which is slightly hunched. Her eyes are closed and her hair is covering half of her face.
Title: glimmer ✨
Status: following / follows you
Twitter handle: @glimmoon
Bio: “my name is glimmer and i SPARKLE; pre-law crim major 💕”
Location: Brightmoon University
Link: instagram
52 Following, 52.8K Followers]
[image 3: Bow’s twitter profile
Banner: a pink banner that reads “stay positive” in loopy script
Icon: a profile shot of a boy with curly black hair smiling downwards
Title: Bow ❤️
Status: following / follows you
Twitter handle: @heartbow
Bio: “Bow · he/him · trans; Mechanical Engineering major at BMU. Designated holder of the braincell”
Location: Brightmoon University
89 Following, 17.3K Followers]
[image 4: Perfuma’s twitter profile
Banner: a colorful array of flowers
Icon: a close-up shot of a girl with a neutral expression and long blond hair standing in a field. She’s wearing an off-the-shoulder dress and red lipstick. Her eyes are closed and her head is tilted slightly towards her shoulder.
Title: 🌸 💕🌷𝔭𝔢𝔯𝔣𝔲𝔪𝔞🌷💕🌸
Status: verified / following / follows you
Twitter handle: @blossomgirl
Bio: “Protect our planet 🌎 ❤️”
Location: Brightmoon University
Link: plumeriaproject.com/volunteer/
247 Following, 35.9K Followers]
[image 5: Mermista’s twitter profile
Banner: A low-angle shot of a girl with long dark hair. Behind her is a clear blue sky. She is wearing a yellow shirt and is holding a yellow rose, which obscures her entire face.
Icon: a faded picture of a dark-haired girl leaning against a yellow wall. One of her arms is wrapped over her head, brushing back her hair. She is wearing red-rimmed sunglasses that glint in the photo.
Title: 🌊🌊🌊
Status: verified / following / follows you
Twitter handle: @mermysteria
Bio: “i’m a cool kid 😎 💙 💫 💅🏽 💕”
Location: Brightmoon University
Link: instagram
48 Following, 40.6K Followers]
[image 6: Sea Hawk’s twitter profile
Banner: A photo of a burning ship
Icon: A canted close-up photo of a couple in the shower. A boy with soapy hair is squinting and making fish lips at the camera. A dark-haired girl is smiling into his cheek, gripping the other cheek with a soapy hand.
Title: SEA HAWK
Status: following / follows you
Twitter handle: @seashanties
Bio: Theater major at BMU. Prone to starting fires. Glossly in love with @mermysteria. WILL spontaneously break out into song.
Location: Brightmoon University
74 Following, 28.3K Followers]
[image 7: Adora’s twitter feed
Tweet 1: Sea Hawk
9 minutes ago
“The bone is NOT broken 💃🏻 🎊 🎉”
14 replies, 1 retweet, 28 likes
Tweet 2: Scorpia
08/21/2020
“Aren’t girls just 😍💕💐😌💝🥺❤️😤👏💘🙏😭🤧💫😇🌹🤩🙌💖🥰👁💗✨🔥😘👍🌸☺️💓”
132 replies, 6.5K retweets (retweeted by user), 16K likes (liked by user)
Tweet 3: Mermista
22 hours ago
“brb gonna scream till my fucking vocal chords explode”
382 replies, 22K retweets, 56K likes
Tweet 4: Glimmer
08/19/2020
“but at least i’m cute”
675 replies, 38K retweets (retweeted by user), 68K likes (liked by user)
Tweet 5: Perfuma
19 hours ago
“My new roommate: *lifts a 30lb box w/out breaking a sweat*
Me, a weak gay: 😳🤲❤️”
24 replies, 4.8K retweets, 12K likes (liked by user)]
[image 8: Twitter thread
Main tweet: Perfuma
“My new roommate: *lifts a 30lb box w/out breaking a sweat*
Me, a weak gay: 😳🤲❤️”
24 replies, 4.8K retweets, 12K likes, Twitter for iPhone
Published at 11:14 AM on 08/22/2020
Reply 1: Adora replying to @blossomgirl
15 hours ago
“When she goes 💪 💥: 😍😍😍”
81 retweets, 5.2K likes
Reply 2: Glimmer replying to @she_ra
15 hours ago
“just @ huntara already smh”
2 retweets, 22 likes]
[image 9: Twitter thread
Main tweet: Adora
“Left my roommate alone for two hours and she wrote “pussy” across our ceiling with a hundred glow-in-the-dark stars. Don’t know whether to be mad or impressed.”
Published at 02:25 on 08/22/2020, Twitter for iPhone
14K retweets, 46K likes
Reply 1: Glimmer replying to @she_ra
8 hours ago
“😇”
1.6K retweets, 24K likes
Reply 2: Bow replying to @she_ra
8 hours ago
“The dedication 😭🙏”
3.5K retweets, 20K likes]
[image 10: Tweet from Adora
“Every night I lay in bed and look up at the stars and wonder, “Why am I still friends with Glimmer?”
Published at 10:42 PM on 08/22/2020, Twitter for iPhone
32 retweets, 589 likes]
168 notes · View notes
aswellingstorm · 3 years
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taylor swift x catradora playlist
in honor of evermore dropping tonight (midnight, EST) i humbly present the following by album break down of songs that miss swift wrote solely for catradora
taylor swift (2006)
tied together with a smile--the struggle adora faces being the hero/put on a pedestal from her horde days to becoming she ra
invisible--catra facing jealousy over adora’s new friendships
i’m only me when i’m with you--young catradora/growing up in the horde
fearless (2008)
forever & always-- broken promise. need i say more
white horse-- catra’s resentment for adora’s hero complex
breathe-- mutual catra & adora--struggling to cope with the other choosing the opposing side
you’re not sorry--adora coming to terms w post s3 catra & having to accept her former best friend has gone too far this time
change-- post s1 victory for adora
speak now (2010)
the story of us--princess prom catradora vibes
mean--unfortunately.........could see the best friend squad singing this therapeutically & adora thinking of catra
better than revenge-- ‘stealing other peoples toys on the playground won’t make you many friends//i’m just another thing for you to roll your eyes at honey’....jealous catra really comes thru here
innocent-- feel like this could be applied to adora but more specifically catra losing herself and her innocence in this war/getting caught in the cycle of abuse shadow weaver set her in at a young age
if this were a movie-- adora’s naïve hope that catra might make the right choice one day
haunted-- ‘all this time you and i have walked a fragile line, never thought i’d live to see it break’, easily fits into adora leaving the horde, but def has the angsty vibes for ‘save the cat’
back to december--regret. longing. wishing u could take something back but knowing you really cant
enchanted--ok hear me out. not necessarily a ‘meet cute’ for them, but could def see this song playing at a princess prom post s5 and being a cute look for them over all.
red (2012)
treacherous--post ‘save the cat’, catra learning redemption is....something she Wants
the last time--post-portal. def reminds me of the scene where catra saves glimmer and apologizes to adora
sad beautiful tragic-- break up sadness
the lucky one--more adora becoming she ra/learning the truth of mara
i almost do--catra & adora missing each other on opposite sides of the war
come back...be here--^^
state of grace--end of/post s5
1989 (2014)
out of the woods--i mean..........those ladies entered the whispering woods in s1 on a stolen skiff and did not leave until the end of the series
all you had to do was stay-- aside from the title... “let me remind you this was what you wanted // you ended it// you were all I wanted //but not like this”. def catra yearning
i wish you would--all of the lyrics. all of them
bad blood--warrants no explanation
this love-- “when you’re young, you just run// but you always come back to what you need”......................the defense rests
clean--s4 adora accepting and coming to terms w catra’s decision
wonderland-- really captures the betrayal/hurt of s1 catradora
you are in love-- adora POV// subtle moments leading up to realizing she loves catra
new romantics--”we need love, but all we want is danger//we team up then switch sides like a record changer”
catra’s personal memoir reputation (2017)
i did something bad--a title that could (unfortunately for everyone else) summarize a large majority of catra’s decisions. the song is very justified/righteous anger/revenge. basically a ‘fuck you, i know i’m bad’ & embracing that. reminds me of her kicking sw & hordaks ass (the rebellion could never) and her just...war criming it up in the crimson waste
Look What You Made Me Do-- void!catra void!catra void!catra void!catra void!catra void!catra--
getaway car--could see this from adora’s perspective to catra solely for the whole leaving/betrayal bit. but might be more fighting for double trouble & catra’s relationship
dancing with our hands tied-- i mean...lyrically. everything. but esp ‘I'd kiss you as the lights went out//swaying as the room burned down//I'd hold you as the water rushes in//If I could dance with you again”
dress-- “i dont want you like a best friend”. period. end of sentence. 
this is why we can’t have nice things--s1 promise feels. the lack of forgiveness, the shade. u know.
lover (2019)
cruel summer-- “i scream for whatever it’s worth, i love you--ain’t that the worst thing you ever heard?” the heart. the longing. the ‘i dont want to keep secrets just to keep you’
the archer-- ‘who could ever leave me, but who could stay?’ + the rest of the song is v fitting for both catra/adora
afterglow--making up, admitting wrongs--catra perspective
miss americana & the heartbreak prince--idk just the narrative of the song reminds me of them
it’s nice to have a friend--whooooh boy this post is not about glimbow but this song works equally as well for them
daylight--enjoy the healing
lover--enjoy the healing pt 2
death by a thousand cuts-- warrants 0 explanation
folklore (2020)
finally
the 1-- definitley adora POV, reminiscing on maybe what they could have been. maybe in a world where catra never redeemed herself or they never reunited and adora watched her friends pair up/get married/build lives w each other, she might realize there is a whole in her heart. a part that’s missing and cant be explained, but she feels it every time she looks at glimmer&bow. 
cardigan-- feels like catra writing a letter to adora. reflecting on the feelings of hurt and betrayal after time has passed and the anger fades
exile -- lowkey the premise of my fic but. ‘i’m not your problem anymore/ you were my crown/ now i’m in exile seeing you out’ catra was raised to feel like she was adora’s problem to fix. she feels cast aside by her for a majority of the series etc
my tears ricochet-- “i didn't have it in myself to go with grace//and you're the hero flying around saving face//and if I'm dead to you why are you at the wake?//cursing my name, wishing I stayed//look at how my tears ricochet” tswift explained this in the doc about how no one can hurt you like your best friend turned enemy. so i think in that sense this song works from adora’s perspective--but there’s so much bitterness and anger that i feel like it fits more from catra’s POV
seven-- “love you to the moon and to saturn//passed down like folksongs//the love lasts so long” i feel like this is so young/child adora and her feelings of protectiveness over catra. their bond through trauma and abuse
august--lmaoooooo i know. ok i KNOW what the deal is. i KNOW that cardigan, august and betty are a narrative story and really there are 3 POVs--james, betty & august. but i will do with that what i please. i just see catra’s pov from this song just as much as i see it for cardigan. her losing adora/feeling like adora doesn’t want her back or will choose other ppl over her. 
this is me trying--can fit adora’s need to be everything for everyone/fear of failure--leading to burn out. also works for what i assume how catra’s redemption arc continued post s5. progress isn’t linear and this can show both of them struggling to recover from abuse
invisible string--if u strip out the imagery of taylor and her mans then sure
mad woman--i MEAN...is this not catra’s villain origin story? so often she was just poked/kicked/provoked into continuing down the dark path. not always by adora but regardless.
epiphany-- ‘with you i serve, with you i fall down’ reminding me of them both fighting/practicing/training together pre-s1 as well as them finally teaming up
betty--betty betty betty. the worst thing these two have ever done is what they did to each other. i see it more catra to adora, but it can go either way. gotta admire catra’s range for fitting into the role of betty, august + james... who else is doing it quite like her?
peace-- adora to catra. she can never not be she ra. is that enough for catra?
hoax--def more of a catra POV
evermore (2020?)
tbd......
39 notes · View notes
meg-noel-art · 3 years
Link
Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Adora/Glimmer (She-Ra) Characters: Adora (She-Ra), Glimmer (She-Ra) Additional Tags: 'I'm here' scene but how it should have ended, Canon Rewrite, Alternate Canon, Glimmadora Week 2020 3.0, Fluff, Fluff and Angst Summary:
“We need you here…,” Adora squeezed Glimmer’s shoulders gently. “I need you here.”
How could she even begin to explain to Glimmer what she meant to her? All that ever came out were petty arguments about protecting a Queen. But Glimmer wasn’t just her Queen. Not even just her friend.
Glimmer was everything.
I forgot I did two parts to todays Glimmadora Week Prompt - Day 1: Favorite Canon Scene. Here is a oneshot to accompany the art!
@glimmadora-week-3
27 notes · View notes
trees-to-meet-you · 3 years
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My 2020 Tumblr Top 10
1). 213 notes - Apr 3 2020
Is the Danny Phantom fandom still active?
2). 143 notes - Apr 30 2020
Someone listed Catra as Adora’s girlfriend on the fandom wiki page I thought you guys should know
3). 123 notes - Oct 24 2020
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I know it’s crumpled and torn pieces of pink paper but they kinda look like little roses
4). 115 notes - Dec 7 2020
So Animaniacs 2020 in no specific order Made fun of Donald Trump Knocked on America’s gun problem In that same episode had an...
5). 102 notes - Oct 24 2020
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Still losing my mind at the bubble in the background The pink looks like it’s in the shape of two small hearts
6). 49 notes - Oct 11 2020
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Puppy Man looks like a Kitty Cat
7). 49 notes - May 28 2020
So, You mean to tell me that Donald Duck is angry at the world for not being able to understand him. And he wanted to be such a good parent to the boys that he went to anger management. And he learned to channel his anger at the world into protectiveness for those boys. 
8). 40 notes - Nov 29 2020
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This should be appreciated
9). 39 notes - Nov 1 2020
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Oh god oh fuck
10). 37 notes - Nov 1 2020
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Can you imagine if it ended here?
Created by TumblrTop10
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bccrsk · 4 years
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Imagine being told ur meant for ‘greatness’ all ur life but both the ppl that told u that were actually evil manipulative people and that’s where Adora’s self worth is right now thank u for ur time
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isagrimorie · 4 years
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Expanding on this post about the Kingdoms of Etheria 
I love worldbuilding and I love She Ra but boy was it frustrating trying to figure out the government systems of Etheria -- and also, the hierarchy of rank within Hordak’s Horde. 
But also, I like to think about this stuff. 
IMO these were the best managed Etherian Kingdoms and Principalities before Adora and Catra entered the war and forever changed the status quo between the Etherian Kingdoms and the Horde.  
Bright Moon--  Mostly because of Angella, who brings with her both experience and Institutional Memory. As a long lived, ageless being she has ruled Bright Moon before Hordak crash landed into Etheria. However, Angella was a Peace Time monarch and is not prepared to be a war time queen. 
Micah was more adept at fighting, and with the knowledge he learned a thing or three from Shadow Weaver. The loss of Micah was the truest blow to the first Princess Alliance, because I bet he was an adept commander before his exile. 
Kingdom of Snows - Because of their distance from the front lines and strategic superiority they’re the second best managed kingdom in Etheria. Their people are safe and their trade routes are also hard to attack, whatever they’re exporting has kept the Kingdom of Snows afloat before Frosta’s parents died. 
The succession plans for the Kingdom of Snow seemed to have been prepared very well because Frosta was able to step into her parents shoes without any issues and her subjects and people seem loyal and fiercely protective. 
Netossa and Spinnerella’s Principalities (er, whatever they are). Judging how organized both Netossa and Spinnerella are and how much they still honor the Alliance, which frankly Angella and Glimmer should have appreciated more, I would bet dollars to donuts they’re actually both well defended and ran really well). 
Salineas - There’s no mincing words here, Mermista’s father ran Salineas to the ground. We don’t know if it’s because he’s incompetent at his job or because of extenuating circumstance like trauma from the first Alliance tanglement with the Horde, it’s pretty clear that Mermista inherited a Kingdom on the brink of destruction. He didn’t even have the decency to abdicate and give Mermista the crown. And honestly, right now I really want more of Mermista’s story because clearer more than ever that Mermista held Salineas together through sheer will power and duct tape. This made Catra’s invasion of Salineas all the more devastating. 
Mermista didn’t even seem to have enough of a budget to hire a Navy. It’s why Adora fixing the Sea Gate was crucial, it was a strategic value for Etheria. The only defense Salineas had before Adora fixed the Sea Gate was Mermista. 
Mermista was it. And sometimes when Sea Hawk’s around, Sea Hawk. 
Dryl.... I have actually no idea how it’s doing, I’m assuming the country is like Belgium (did y’all know it had no government from 2019 to 2020??? I didn’t know that. Did you??) and works without a leader. And probably the laws and system of government left behind by Entrapta’s --who is apparently 30 years old-- parents were in place before the Horde took over. As bad as the Horde takeover was, it was probably one of the few places that did benefit for having some kind of leadership.
Plumeria - I guess Plumeria is Etheria’s version of Tibet? Maybe? But also maybe didn’t have time to prepare her how to rule. 
--
In any case out of all these Kingdoms and Principalities the only ones that were actively stopping the Horde’s advance was Bright Moon and Spinerrella and Netossa’s princiaplities (uh, whatever they’re called). 
The other kingdoms/principalities seem to have retreated into their own borders, understandably more preoccupied in keeping their own lands and people safe. 
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