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lonelywretchjervistetch · 9 months

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My DC Cinematic Universe: Superman (Epilogue)

Epilogue: My Adventures with Superman

...Well, holy shit. Just when I was getting worried that nobody would get Superman, along comes one of the best comic-book related products we've seen in years, which delivers me so much of the stuff I wanted in a cinematic version of Superman...and is almost perfect. Yeah, it's definitely not perfect, but goddamn if this isn't one of my ideal versions of Superman.

Y'know, I've considered doing sort of a sum-up of the different major adaptations of the Superman mythos by bringing together all the points made in my essays, but I felt it was too much. For this, however, I think that makes sense. And yes, I'm doing this after only 4 episodes have aired, and yes, I realize that what just happened in the most recent episode is fucking insane and something I desperately want in a Superman story...but I'll at least cover my personal approach, since this show's kinda hot right now. And rarely do I have the chance to jump on a burgeoning fandom, so FUCK IT!

If you'd like to see my previous and insane essays on my preferred version of the Man of Steel, here's the link! Always. Be. Plugging. But if you'd rather hear my opinion of My Adventures with Superman, then check out the section after the jump. But just know that I like it, with a couple of caveats that you've probably already heard about this show.

Clark Kent: Abnormal Superman

Um...did somebody read my essays before I even thought about them, because this is pretty goddamn close to my ideal Clark Kent. He's a big ol' dork with a heart of god who wants to do the right thing, but is also nowhere near perfect in his everyday life and methods. He's a teensy bit clumsy, but still very well-put together. He wants to help when and how he can, and is willing to go along with shenanigans to do so. He has an actual personality, and most importantly, he feels human.

Yeah, this is a dude from Kansas who also happens to be an alien. And good goddamn, is scaling down his powers and knowledge of his past a great idea. Smallville, of course, did this, but that version of Clark was often too serious and rough around the edges. And maybe most importantly, Tom Welling's Clark never seemed like an outcast. I mean, the dude was handsome as all fuck, and built like a linebacker. And yet, I'm supposed to buy that the guy is a loser and outcast? Yeah, no, not buying it. But this Clark? Yeah, the guy's a massive dork. Handsome and built like a fucking freight train, yeah, but still a dork. And maybe most importantly...I don't buy this dude as Superman.

Yeah. Really. I mean, dude is OBVIOUSLY Superman, because he's built like a tank and super nice, but I get not fully seeing this guy as Superman. Somehow, FUCKING SOMEHOW, they pull this off better than literally any other version I've seen since the Christopher Reeves version. And yeah, that's insanely high praise, because Reeves has some of the best dichotomous acting I've ever seen. But this Superman and this Clark both seem like the same person and separate people at the same time somehow. It's an impressive feat that I can barely explain.

And yet...they're still definitely the same person. Any sane person would be able to figure it out eventually, with enough personal interaction. It's one of the reasons why the glasses joke exists, because it really shouldn't make much sense. But in this series, the glasses actually change the shape of his pace, and slight changes in his posture and voice (by the pretty great Jack Quaid) actually do work as a subtle mask for the character. But will that last forever? Well...more on that later.

I also said this before, but I love the fact that we're learning about Clark and his powers as he's learning about himself. This series is obviously anime-inspired, and it really leans into the shonen angle thematically and visually. When the first art for this show came out, I was intrigued but cautious. Now, though, I'm into it. We'll see how the more anime-esque electrical powers work out, but it actually seems like a reference to the sporadically used bioelectric field manipulation ability that Superman has in the comics. Yeah, he has a field of bioelectricity around his body that provides him (and his costume) with invulnerability, and also occasionally gives him plot-convenience powers. Don't ask questions, OK? It's a comic book thing.

Speaking of that, though, the creators are definitely playing fast and loose with the Superman mythos, and I'm interested to see exactly how that plays out as the series continues. I'm a little cautious for reasons to be addressed later, but I'm still quite interested. So, now that we've covered Superman, whom I think is fantastic in his characterization...let's get to the character who I think is excellently represented in this series.

Lois Lane: Intrepid (Intern) Reporter

Jesus Christ, this is a great Lois. There are a lot of ways you can do a good Lois, and there are a number of great Loises, but MAWS' Lois ranks extremely high on that list. Dogged to the point of recklessness, determined to get the truth at all costs, and desperate to be a great reporter, she has the stuff that makes any great Lois. But what really puts her over the edge for me is her characterization. Alice Lee does a fantastic job as Lois' voice, and gives her a mix of naivete, determination, and...oddly, hope. I dunno, there's something about Lee's portrayal that really works for me.

And a lot of people have pointed out two things. One, she's basically Lux from The Owl House. Yeah. And? Fucking and? Luz is a fantastic character in her own right, and very Lois Lane-esque. Personally, I think that's a great and worthy comparison for any version of Luz. Secondly, she's a tomboy. And I think most people on Tumblr are fine with that, but I also see some criticism for that choice. And for those who don't like that...fuck off a little bit. Not a lot, but a little bit. There's nothing wrong with a slightly more tomboyish Lois, and I actually adore a Lois who isn't a damsel in distress all the time. She literally fights some of the bad guys in this series, and we're only four episodes in! Seriously, I love that. And she is occasionally in distress, but she gets into that shit herself, which is exactly what Lois Lane is supposed to do. Look, I love this Lois. Oh, and another thing!

Is Lois Korean? Holy shit, that's fantastic! I said in my second essay that Lois is one of those characters who isn't racially bound in any way. There, I suggested that she could be played by a Latina, which has been hinted at before in some comics. But honestly, this is a great choice! And I only say Korean because, in the most recent episode, she appears to be wearing the top half of a hanbok, which is a traditionally Korean dress. And yeah, I'm fully here for it. Don't know if she's mixed or not (we'll probably see Sam Lane at a later date), but this is great all on its own.

And then, there's the other thing: Lois' position as Superman's Inevitable Love Interest. The ILE is, of course, a tradition in all things superhero comic, and Lois is arguably the first and most famous of all ILEs. Like Thanos before her, she is truly inevitable, and that seems to be at the center of this series. Oh, and at this point...sort of SPOILERS AHEAD??? I mean, come on, this was obviously gonna happen.

By the end of episode 4, these two are clearly romantically interested in each other. Hell, by the end of episode 1, these two are interested in each other. And can I just say that's they're hands fucking down the most adorable Clark and Lois I've ever fucking seen? I mean it, they're the best version of this couple in live-action media, and I can actually see them becoming the comic book versions of that couple.

As a quick compare and contrast of the most notable versions:

Reeves and Kidder were great, but the movies never actually committed in having them be a couple. They actively made sure it wouldn't happen a couple of times, to much irritation, and their relationship never truly blossomed, which was based on the comics at the time.

Fuck Dean Cain...but Cain and Hatcher were pretty good as a couple, pre-and-post-marriage. Which, again, was a part of comics at the time, so it makes sense. Even then, I wouldn't call them particularly cute, just more of a relatively normal couple.

Don't get me wrong, I love Daly and Durance's animated versions of the two...but they never actually became a couple until the very end of Superman: The Animated Series. And we only saw them as Lois and Superman, not Lois and Clark. So, sadly, they don't rank.

Welling and Durance were...off-and-on. Funnily enough, their appearance as this version of the couple in the Arrowverse crossovers was probably better than any other appearance they had, and their appearances in the 10th season were genuinely quite nice. High up there as the best version, and one of my favorites.

Hoechlin and Tulloch are, in my opinion, the best married version of the characters. They honestly nail it, and their chemistry is pretty much perfect. Their versions of the characters still rank pretty high as some of the best, and they're even better as a couple.

Routh and Bosworth...moving on...

Cavill and Adams...well...I mean...they have some chemistry, and...they've definitely had sex. Um. Yeah. That's it. Whoooooo.

O'Connell and Romjin are a little-remembered animated version of the two, and not the only animated version of the two, either. But honestly, they're really good in The Death of Superman and Reign of the Supermen, and were my favorite animated version of them as a couple...prior to MAWS.

And OK, sure, we've barely seen these two as a couple at this point, but I really like them. They're adorable, they're adorkable, they're supportive of each other, and their chemistry is basically immediate. They're just really cute and fun to watch, and I can't wait to see them progress. Especially because...

OK, I can't stress this enough, but skip the next GIF if you don't want spoilers, and scroll down until you get to Jimmy Olsen. Please. This is a biggie. OK? Got it? Read at your own peril.

HOLY FUCKING SHIT ARE YOU SERIOUS THEY ACTUALLY DID IT

If you've read my Superman essays, you know that I want movie Lois Lane to have found out Clark is Superman on her own, and before the movie starts. And holy shit, they actually did it in MAWS! FUCK YES! Lois is smart and sharp, so she should pick up on the fact that Clark is Superman! I love that they did this, even if her way of finding out was somewhat by accident. She still put the clues together on her own, so I'm satisfied with this ending! And I'm pretty sure they're not going to reverse this! If they do, I'd be pissed off, but I don't think they will. Just...HELL YEAH, BABEEEEEEEEEE

OK...I think the spoiler-free have scrolled past this by know, so...let's move on with the essay, shall we?

Supporting Cast: Jimmy and the Rest

OK, let's talk Jimmy Olsen (played by Ishmael Sahid). Honestly, I love the fact that he's a conspiracy nut with his own YouTube channel, and that he's literal bunkmates with Clark in this series. This is also pretty close to my perfect version of Jimmy Olsen, not gonna lie. His streaming name is even Flamebird, a deepcut comics reference that shows the creators not only know their stuff, but also actively care about Superman comics and history. That's one of the things that one me over in the first episode, for the record. But more on that later.

Jimmy is the third wheel, but one who's usually welcome. We'll see the fallout of the Lois-Clark romance soon, I'm sure, but Jimmy's role has been pretty much perfect. However, I would be remiss if I didn't mention that a black Jimmy Olsen, while welcomed by me...is a little weird when you look at the legion of ginger characters in media that have been replaced by black characters in adaptations. While, again, I don't think Jimmy is racially bound to being ginger, it is a fairly iconic part of his identity. And...yeah, a lot of ginger characters have been translated into black people in recent years, and that's...really weird, not gonna lie. Makes me think even more about my Legion of Super-Heroes essay, honestly. Still, solid-ass Jimmy, and I can't wait for more.

I actually adore Perry White (voiced by Darrell Brown) in this series, and his grumpy boss persona is...well, quintessential Perry White. I'd actually say this is a perfect version of the character, although that's not as difficult to nail as some other versions. Looking forward to seeing more of Perry's life as he supports our bumbling interns.

I was tickled pink to see Cat Grant (Melanie Minichino), Steve Lombard (Vincent Tong), and a genderbent Ronnie Troupe (Kenna Ramsey) in this show, because it once again signals to me that the show creators really care about Superman mythos. And honestly, these guys were transplanted essentially unchanged from the comics, as far as we can see so far. This may change in the future, but I'm very excited to see the rivalry between our three and these reports build and develop during the series. Great job with these guys.

The Kents only make an appearance in one episode thus far, but I think they're pretty good! We see them in the past and in the present, and they're a couple of farmers who love their son. They're also some of the youngest versions of the characters we've seen in adaptations, save for Smallville, and it works well! They also make it apparent that these are Clark's parents, even in the short time we see them. Again, good job so far, and I want to see more!

So, with all of that, I adore this series, and it's perfect! Right? Right?

The Villains: Literal and Figurative Cons

If you've heard anything about this series from Superman fans, then you've probably heard that the villains are...not amazing so far. And that's mostly because the villains are where this series takes the most liberties, while also downsizing most of them pretty severely. I'll go through them briefly here, but just know that the changes made so far are...not my favorite. And if you've read my essays, you know my opinion on villains in superhero media: you gotta nail them.

So, let's start with Livewire, AKA Leslie Willis (voiced by Zehra Fazal). I really love this character (and actually positioned her as a major villain in the second Superman movie of my cinematic universe), so I'm quite invested in Livewire. And this version is a tech-powered villain who kicks off the conflict for the first part of the series. She's a completely different version of the character...and she works? Kinda? Look, as the first villain to face Superman, she's fine, but she's barely Livewire. The end of the second episode hints that she may become more like the original down the line, but she's missing that sass of the original. And yeah, she works without that, but it doesn't feel like Livewire to me. That's nitpicking, though, because we have a much worse set of adaptations to cover.

Intergang is so much of a non-entity in this show, they have no GIFS on Tumblr. Understand, this community has made GIFs of every other character except these guys. In total, they are Silver Banshee AKA Siobhan MacDougal (played by Catherine Taber), Mist AKA Kyle Nimbus (played by Lucas Grabeel), and Rough House AKA Albert (played by Vincent Tong). And they've been changed from:

A cursed Scottish-Irish woman, empowered by magic and a major threat to the Man of Steel, having nearly killed him multiple times...and is currently dating Jimmy Olsen, which I kinda love?

A scientist who invented a process to turn himself into gaseous form, and used his powers to fight the hero Starman; this rivalry was passed on to the next generation, on the side of both hero and villain.

And the clone of a gangster endowed with super-strength, serving beneath Boss Moxie of Intergang, and the forces of the dark world of Apokolips above him.

...into a group of loser who got technology they couldn't handle. Yeah, it's a major downgrade, and two of those guys weren't even that notable in the first place. Siobhan gets completely fucking shafted here, and I think it's a genuine failure of this series. Harsh, I know, but seeing Silver Banshee get fucked over that hard really sucked for me.

Oh, and yeah, Intergang was a major villainous group for the Superman film in my cinematic universe, so removing their Apokoliptian ties...bums me the fuck out, too. Also, it looks like Flash villain Heat Wave is an upcoming member, which is...weird as fuck, honestly. We'll see how this pans out, but I'm not terribly enthusiastic about it.

And then there's Anthony Ivo (played by Jake Green), who's been repurposed into a tech bro entrepeneur in the vein of Elon Musk, in charge of AmazoTech, which is obviously a reference to the comic book version. And this was an...interesting set of choices, honestly. Some spoilers here, but Ivo's version of AMAZO is an armor that drains the power of Superman and redirects it against him. And yes, that makes Ivo also this universe's version of...Parasite. ANOTHER villain that I put in the second movie of my cinematic universe, and one of my absolute favorite Superman villains.

I don't hate the reinvention, but that's only because of what happens to Ivo at the end of the episode. I won't spoil it here, but he definitely turns into a more proper version of the character, so we'll see what happens there. As for his assistant, Alex (played by...somebody), well, he's interesting, isn't he? At first, I thought he was Alex Allston, one of the Parasite twins from the 2000s. But a number of people seem to think he might be another familiar red-headed Superman villain named Alexander, if you know what I mean. Let's just say, there's a possibility that he'll steal forty cakes at some point. And that's terrible.

And finally, there's...wait, is that Deathstroke AKA Slade WIlson (played by Chris Parnell)? Why is he young...and hot? Why is Slade young and hot? And two-eyed? I mean, yeah, sure, that's not the worst thing in the world, but...goddamn, that's some whiplash. Interestingly, he appears to be affiliated with Task Force X, which is name dropped in episode 2. Plus, Amanda Waller is clearly in the background, so a much wider plan is in play. And yeah, while it's weird to see young hot Deathstroke, I'll give it a chance.

Other villains have been hinted at, and allegedly radically reinvented, such as Mr. Mxyzptlk and Brainiac, but we've yet to see what will become of them. Still, this is a divisive start. As long as we get some actual supernatural threats, and not just people in armor, I'll be happy. Time will tell.

Story: Just Getting Started

At this point, it's pretty much impossible to judge the story of this series, since we've only just started. But, with the technology obtained by Livewire from a mysterious source, and then leaked into the criminal underworld, we at least have enough threats to supply tension throughout this first portion of the series. The relationship of our trio is progressing nicely, with Jimmy realizing his third-wheel status, and with the Lois and Clark relationship moving along interestingly and unexpectedly.

There's also a number of hanging plots that look promising, including Clark discovering his powers and origins; Task Force X and Deathstroke, as well as their interest in Superman; the missing Parasite technology after Ivo's fall; the rivalry between the interns and their reporter rivals; and even Lois' relationship with her father (who...might be the guy standing next to Waller in Task Force X? No clue, that's just a guess). So, we have some stuff to look forward to! And maybe, just maybe, the villains will also steadily improve. I think Silver Banshee's a lost cause at this point, but I have hope for Livewire and Parasite, at least. But again, time will tell.

I also can't wait to see what the creators have up their sleeves. They're obviously ans of Superman and his mythos. I didn't even mention what won me over on this show in the first place! Other than Clark and Lois themselves, of course. In the first episode, Lois introduces Jimmy and Clark to her information gatherers: the Newskid Legion. And for those of you who don't know, that's a reference to the Golden Age of Comics, and a group of street-wise kids that would become supporting characters of Superman's during the '90s (through the trendy magic of cloning)! The kids have an adaptation in this series, and that attention to lore alone made me an instant fan of this show. Sounds like nothing, I know, but it meant a hell of a lot to a Superfan like me. Now GIVE ME MY EVERYMAN BIBBO BIBBOWSKI!

Conclusion: A Hopeful Tomorrow

I'm...scared about Gunn's Superman film. I won't write a whole essay about it, but it sounds ambitious to the point of being bloated. A lot of recent casting news makes me feel like this is more of a set-up to the wider DCU, as less of a Superman film in and of itself. Plus, with rumors that Luthor is being cast, and no sign of a villain announcement yet...I dunno. It has me worried. So thank God for My Adventures with Superman.

This series is a blessing so far. Sure, it could blow for the rest of the season, but call me hopeful. I think this show is fantastic so far, and I'm really thinking it'll stick the landing with the first season. Alongside that, honestly, is the fact that it's trying something new for any Superman adaptation, and there's a bravery in that. I don't know if it'll go down as my preferred Superman adaptation (Superman: The Animated Series is a hard one to beat for me), but it's got a good start. And a brave series that inspires hope in the face of fear and impossible odds? Man, that's what Superman is all about.

And now that that's said and done (for now, anyway)...

I believe I have another essay series to finally finish.

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Part I: Why I Love Superman

Part II: On Lois Lane

Part III: The Kents

Part IV: The 'Rents

Part V: The...Frendts?

Part VI: Lex Luthor

Part VII: The Real Villains

Part VIII: Superman's Rogues Gallery

Part IX: The Story - Act One

Part X: The Story (Acts Two and Three)

Part XI: The Story - Climax

Part XII: Epilogue (Part One)

Part XIII: Epilogue (Part Two)

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be-the-glenn-to-my-maggie · 1 year

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Unfortunately for you guys, I just started the paper my foolish professor let me write about studious deracination in James Cameron’s Avatar, so get ready for some some academic posts to start trickling in. Here is a more detailed post of the tiktok I made.

Today we are going to talk about race as an allegory in Avatar again!!! Avatar (2009) is a pretty blatant representation of indigenous peoples on Earth being colonized. Like, I don’t think anyone disputes that. But why do this and not make a movie about colonization?? Why make them aliens??

By separating these things from our real world, our real history, things we may have bias about, we can view it from a completely fresh lens. There's a deliberate choice to present a different planet and a different species and in that way, they have that allegory for colonization, for racism, for the destruction of our planet, be more evident and sympathetic to everyone viewing it as an example of our planet and these real-world things that are happening. Sometimes it’s easier to approach these issues when you don’t feel like they are targeting you.

However, I feel like there's an interesting, perhaps not intentional, thing that James Cameron did as well with the second movie and that is addressing colorism. I read a lot of your fanfictions, okay, I read ‘em. Every time they're set in the modern era and our main characters are human there is a conscious choice to have Jake Sully's biological children Tuk and Neteyam be darker skinned, and to have Lo’ak be lighter skinned. We are all picking up on something that is implied in the narrative that I don't think anyone intended to be there. I don’t wanna give James Cameron too much credit in that regard. Let’s talk about that phenomenon.

So this is studiously deracinating something, it’s a narrative strategy defined by an evacuated racial consciousness that ironizes assumptions of white universalism and uncritical postracialism. So what does that mean? That means by taking race out of the equation in something, the concept of race, it allows you to analyze the same concepts in more of an unbiased way, just as stated above with the first Avatar. It allows you to kind of look at yourself as well, your own biases and how they come into play while you’re reading or watching something. You are fully unaffected by the concept of race in the novel and are more so affected by your own assumptions.

I think there’s such an interesting example of this in Avatar because of the way we have been perceiving Lo’ak and his outcast status in this movie and the way I’ve seen so many people perceive him as lighter skinned than his siblings. He has more traditionally human features compared to the other Na’vi, and this sets him apart and he is treated differently. I think so many people connect with him without fully realizing why. In Avatar we know that the Na’vi represent the indigenous and people of color, while the humans represent colonizers, majority white people. We take the colorism step without even thinking about it, our own assumptions and biases take us there. Just a thought. :)

#i'll prob make a follow up post with books and movies and stuff centered around studious deracination texts written and intentionally used #by authors of filmmakers of color #because of course the point of avatar as james cameron and jon laundau have stated #is to elevate these voices #but ur welcome for this insight into my next paper #i hope maia regrets letting me do it #lo'ak sully #jake sully #neteyam sully #tuktirey sully #neytiri sully #james cameron #avatar #avatar the way of water #james cameron avatar #melissas academic bullshit #melissa og #melissa on avatar (cameron)#melissa is an english major

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the-real-sasuke-uchiha · 4 months

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What do you think of Madara and Obito?

What do you think, anon? I mean…

They are not the kind of people I like to hang out with, certainly.

I mean, I understand their rage. I am not saying their motives are not valid. I am not saying you are to blame if you go insane after losing everything, after feeling so betrayed and being treated with so much injustice. After seeing how everything you worked so hard for, your last hopes for yourself and those who you hold dear, stumbles and falls before your eyes. But Obito did help in the massacre of my clan, supposedly after being manipulated by Madara and following whatever plan he entrusted to him. Do I have to forgive them because they are Uchiha?

I don’t know if this is going to be controversial or what, but what is the reason for Obito to take “revenge” against the Uchiha in the name of Madara? Even if they were wrong, even if Madara felt they betrayed him, even if they choose a path that he did not agree with. Even if reason was on his side. You just don’t kill family for that. Obito had the power to help his kind, to prevent the massacre. And he didn’t, he just killed his family in cold blood. The family Izuna was so desperate to protect. If Madara taught him that logic, he must have been completely insane. And if not, what was Obito’s justification? Trauma for losing his girlfriend? And why? The Uchiha had nothing to do with imprisoning and spreading tailed beasts around the world to make friends for Hashirama. They had nothing to do with anything that happened to Rin.

You know? I think if you are treated always as an outcast, if they convince you that there is something wrong with you in essence, that your nature is to be eventually possessed by some kind of inevitable evil, and thus you can’t be trusted… If you are severely traumatized by the cruelty of war, and all you have experienced is that you deserve to be nothing but a tool to achieve an end, an end more important than preserving human life… I don’t know, maybe you end up believing it? Why does Obito himself repeat the bullshit of the curse of hatred? Why does he help spread hate against his own? He is so alienated he makes sense no more.

I don’t even think helping with the massacre was necessary to advance on his plan. And I don’t know what would have happened if Itachi did not have help that night. I love Itachi and I can forgive him and understand that he was coerced to do that. I can’t feel the same towards Madara or Obito. They just don’t have that privilege, call me hypocrite if you want.

They seek a world without pain, peace… Well, know what? They helped my world to be hell. And moreover… Obito knew the truth about my brother and let me confront him. He knew that would destroy me, that I would go insane with pain. And he did so anyway, just trying to manipulate me for his own ends. Well, sorry, but I can’t forgive that. His good guy façade in the end only involved regret for starting the war and doing things that bothered Konoha. He did not regret for a single second anything related to the massacre of my clan.

So I don’t like them. I straight up hate them. Sorry.

#anti Obito #anti Madara #anti Konoha #pro Itachi #Sasuke Uchiha #anon #ask

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m0thh-chai · 1 year

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Experimented on yautja and the subspecies that it created

Alright let’s get down to business. An AU that my friends and I regularly play with, It’s pretty fucking Hectic. I modeled it after Avatar, where humans come to the native planet, and fuck everything up. So here’s the summary before I get into it.

Humans arrived on Quatza-rij, or the yautjan “home world” if you will. The Fuckers kidnapped 2 Yautja children, and experimented on them. The kids were killed during the torture, but special Alien circumstances scientists got their dna, and mutated the fuck out of it, including making more yautja with it. Without further Ado, here’s what happened.

Yautja Abominations

A Yautja abomination is a species that is mainly yautja, but with added dna and advanced abilities. They are generally larger, stronger, taller, faster, and advanced. On rare occasions, the added dna they were mutated with was an animals. Let’s say…Dragon for the sake of this I guess. They would have Horns, wings, sharper claws, longer teeth on their mandibles, maybe tails, and very rarely could breathe fire. The abominations are yautja, mixed with whatever the fuck the humans decide to mutate them with. But after a while, some of the yautja abominations escaped from the facility, leading to wild yautja abominations, not lab grown ones. They tend to be on the edge with Yautja Malisons, with some abominations being accepted and taken as berserkers, and occasionally generals.

Yautja Purebloods

Yautja purebloods are the backwater of the yautja. They are seen as outcasts, because they are the most human with significantly less yautja malison blood than an abomination. They by no means can pass as a yautja Malison(I’ll get into them), whereas some Yautja abominations could. Their yautja malison features are the following: Fangs, no mandibles. A few of the dreadlocks that you see in malisons, but also have human hair. Claws, but They have much smaller Claws than both other subspecies. They tend to have skin patterns/markings, such as what we saw in the first predator movie, that yautjas marking was spots, and in the elder we see in avp, spines. However, this species has evolved to have many secret abilities. They adapted to live out of sight, in secret, and in conditions that no other subspecies could. But by far, their most effective gift is their strongest connection with the gods. While a Malison priestess needs to see a spirit sight, have her spiritual token, her spiritual familiar, her spirit sisters even, a Pureblood priestess needs no more than her Spirit Staff to have a stable connection with her deity, and some can even speak directly with theirs if they are at a spirit sight. The reason they have this power is from their creation. The yautjan child that was captured and it’s dna used to create them, was born from no female yautja, but from the goddess of Power and divinity herself, No’a’tey(made her up and will make a post abt her later).

Yautja Malisons

I really don’t have much to say about these guys, because you see them in every predator movie. If you figured out that I just call them malisons before, then 10 pts to you I guess. But yeah, Malisons are the purebreds, the originals, the ones who weren’t experimented on, and the ones who are native to the mother world. As you know, Malisons are the strictest subspecies by far. Tradition tends to be extraordinarily strong and important for them, Such as their ranks, battle formations, their code, who can become a general, who can become a priestess, how you must complete a ritual, etc. Some will accept abominations and nearly none will accept purebloods, viewing the latter as a stain in the species, especially since the purebloods are yet to even consider sharing their hidden abilities with the Malisons.

Bonus

Abominations and Purebloods have been known to occasionally create clans together, such as the Night clan(clan that I made, my ocs live there, will explain that in another post). Such clans are also open to Yautja Malison Badbloods, depending on what they did to be named Badbloods, and these clans tend to be much less strict, intimidating, and harsh, with more of a laid back and calm approach to everything.

(Gonna @ a few people with yautja stuff for no reason)

@cyvorg

@shaymin-99

#yautja #predator #avp: alien vs. predator #alien vs predator #AU #Yautja AU

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a34trgv2 · 8 months

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The Problem With Exposition Dumps

In any form of entertainment, it's important to establish some context for the events of the story. There is a right way to do it and a wrong way. Dumping exposition onto the audience is most certainly the wrong way. For this post, I'm going to explain my problem with exposition dumps and how to better convey exposition. And in case you're wondering, no, I'm not going to put down writers who use exposition dumps as "lazy" or "pathetic."" My intent is always to educate, not belittle.

You should be familiar with what an exposition dump is as they pop up everywhere. In movies, TV shows, video games, radio podcasts and etc.. Characters will stop the story dead in it's tracks to spend more than a paragraph talking about lore, character backstorys, or the setting they're in. This makes for boring entertainment because at that point the characters are just spouting random tribia from the story bible and not actually telling a compelling story. I'm all about fun facts and interesting lore, but not at the expense of good storytelling and creative world building.

Let's dissect this clip from Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur. Moon Girl says that she's tired, yet the way she's animated in the clip leads me to believe otherwise as she's not panting or sweating. She also mentions that the bad guy is getting stronger, then asks "but how?" I can suspend my disbelief enough to get behind a child prodigy befriending a dinosaur and fighting bad guys in New York, but I don't buy for a second she doesn't know what a troll is. But okay, let's actually assume she doesn't know what a troll is (as unlikely as that sounds); she should still put 2 and 2 together when she sees that everytime she takes his petty comments personally, he gets stronger. She should've known before this particular clip that he was feeding off her negative emotions like a parasite, or in this case, a symbiote. She then zooms in on the troll and realizes that it's a symbiote before spelling out for the audience what a symbiote's weakness is. First of all, even if people didn't know what a symbiote was, you could've still showed us what it's weakness is by having Devil roar immediately. Or better yet, leave it a mystery to be solved in a latter episode because it honestly doesn't matter too much in the context of the episode. Second, you mean to tell me this kid knows what an alien symbiote is but not a troll? This makes her less of a relatable kid who just so happens to be smart and more like a socially inept outcast who's so caught up in scienec and math that she's basically stupid when it comes to being a human. Not only was this exposition dump useless, it was also poorly constructed based on what we already know about Moon Girl and what kind of girl she's supposed to be.

Is there a way to give exposition without it feeling pointless and boring, though? Actually, yes. One of the best examples I can think of is the opening to Samurai Jack. It perfectly sums up the main driving force behind Jack's quest with the late-great Mako's chilling and sinster voice, and eerie flute plaing, and the still images that look like ancient Japanese artwork. The lines used are also vague enough for the audience to fill in the gaps and we're told just enough to be invested in the story. Exposition can also be told in a way that's funny, such as in the Wander Over Yonder episode The Ball, where Beeza nonchalantly explains to Wander and Sylvia that the world is ending (again) at the paws of a giant space puppy. The comedic timing is on point as Tara Strong gives a very relaxed and soft spoken delivery as Beeza mentions cannibalism and starvation as possible fates for her people. Exposition can even be sung in a banging musical number, such as Part Of Your World from Little Mermaid, One Day More from Les Miserable, or the iconic Oompa Loompa songs from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. In the hands of the right storyteller, the exposition scene could be an audience member's favorite moment from the story.

As the saying goes, less is more. This is especially true when you're writing exposition. Dumping exposition on the audience will either frustrate them or bore them to sleep. If you're gonna give exposition during the story, try having it delivered in a way that's interesting; i.e. during an action scene like in Kung Fu Panda, a funny scene like in The Bad Guys, or in a musical number like in The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Just because exposition is necessary doesn't mean it has to be boring. Exposition is the avocado of storytelling. Alone, it's bland and boring as paint drying on a rainy day. With the right ingredients, though, it can make for some pretty good guacamole. See you next time ✌️

#reblog #share #like #follow #animation #comedy #rant #problem #exposition #exposition dumps #samurai jack #moon girl and devil dinosaur #storytelling #boring

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expensivemistake · 1 year

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Is there a reason you seem to be more into MLM ships? I don’t mean Glee wise but in general it seems like you tend to favor the MLM ships over Wlw. I hope this doesn’t come off malicious (and if it’s wrong I’m sorry it’s just my observations) I’m genuinely curious because a lot of WLW feel the same way and I’m just interested in why.

Oooh, interesting question! Don't worry, I didn't read this the wrong way at all, and I have historically had a lot of thoughts on the topic!

I think I'm an interesting person to ask, I think, because I'm not really a shipper. I tend to just like characters, and sometimes that involves ships with the characters I like. But I do sometimes think there's a few big reasons.

Also for context (anyone who doesn't know), I identify as a lesbian, though I did identity as bisexual a few years ago.

Adolescence. So, eh. The simplest explanation is the old classic, which is... how my teenage self went about fandom. I very much had a little bit of that "not like other girls" attitude, which I'm gonna expand deeper in my next point, but 15 year old me was the type of young queer girlie who felt quite disconnected from traditional femininity. I think it's quite common for this attitude to permeate through fandom when we're young, and some of it sticks.

Relatability. So, I'm going to use Glee as an example here, but I do think there's general differences between the writing of mlm vs wlw in popular, especially teen, media. I think there is a general trend of the gay male characters being more outcasted/othered, while the 'popular mean girl lesbian' is one of the most dominant tropes. While this isn't strictly true of everything, the media that sticks in my brain typically falls into this. Let's just say, while I very much appreciate Santana's story, it doesn't connect to me in the way Kurt's does.

Writing. Sort of similar to the above, I think the pervasive stereotypes/thresholds for representation have something to do with it. Again, with Glee, I do think part of why I don't connect much to Santana is because she falls into the "gay man's idea of a lesbian" thing I've heard a few people talk about. These characters, while not bad representation, are often sassy/mean and have diva tendencies, which appeals to gay men who do want a diva to worship. Now, that doesn't mean I think every gay man prefers wlw representation over mlm, but there's a general trend where the sorts of guys who love lesbian characters like Santana will really diminish Kurt's impact. I think the inverse can be true too. The focus on gay male characters as being markedly queer for not fitting gendered conventions, using fashion as a form of self-expression and having generally compassionate personalities is very relatable as a lesbian. At least to me.

In most of my fandoms, I tend to focus on characters/platonic dynamics. For instance, with Doctor Who, I've never been a shipper in any sense. I really, really love the queer companions, but because I'm not a doctor-companion shipper and because a lot of them are going from place to place with some alien (usually presenting male) I don't have a lot to latch onto. I LOVE Bill Potts as a character. She's one of the most special lesbians to me. And I like Bill/Heather fine, but also I saw Heather like twice so as long as Bill's happy, I'm fine but won't really think about their relationship (I also have this with Klaus/Dave from the Umbrella Academy). I love heavily implied bisexual companions like Ace and Clara, too, but again, unless a love interest is on the show a lot, I'm not much of a shipper. It's actually why I think I can like a lot of m/f ships, things like Rory/Amy or Clara/Danny. Basically, I like a lot of characters without being a ride or die shipper. Clare is by FAR my favourite Derry Girl and I'm happy she's happy, but I don't feel the urge to explore a one-episode dynamic she had.

I think those are the main four reasons I can think of. It's mostly down to a preference thing, relatability of the storylines that get written in the media I consume, a lack of investment in shipping in general unless it's a character I love with a canon connection.

But I'd love to hear your thoughts on this too!! It's a complex, messy kind of thing in fandom spaces. xx

#ask box

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florencicle · 8 months

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reallu long rant below tw for talkimg ab sex in general

i love my best friend to death. i do. i genuinely love her so much but today she just absolutely pressed my last button and i snapped and i feel bad about it but like. basically for context my best friend was like super popular in hs and ms and then there was always Me. like it was (let's call her L) it was "omg there's L!!" and then me trailing behind her. the only reason i wasn't a complete loser in high school was because she stood up for me to everyone who even dared talk shit or be mean to me. and like not to say that this was one of those really horrible friendships in the movies where the popular girl is always mean to her best friend - that's not the case at all. this girl is genuinely my platonic soulmate and she has saved my life on multiple occasions and she is the reason i am still here. i love her to death. but her popularity really just . bothers me ?? i guess. that sounds super like gross and jealous but i'm not jealous. i like my solitude. but she's always got people in her dms who want to date her and shes always in the talking stage with someone or like she's always getting hit on. she's talking to this guy who she REALLY likes and this other guy who she's kinda just like leading on and like it's so frustrating. even though i told her like hey man as someone who was JUST in that situation it kinda sucks you really shouldn't lead that boy on and she's like but it's just hard to open up to (original boy she likes) and it's ez to open up to this guy and so i want to keep him around as an option. and the boy has like no problem with this bcus ik him personally and like he's also talking to other girls at the same time so it's not really the whole like leading him on thing that bothers me. it's just like. idk it makes me feel kinda outcasted and insecure hwen it comes to talking about our romantic lives because she's always talking to someone she really likes and i'm either recuperating from a bad situation or i'm in a bad situation. i have never had a romantic relationship that has ever treated me like a human being. /srs. i think that's why i'm still caught up on this whole thing that just happened bcus for once in my life i felt like someone actually cared about me and actually liked me for me and treated me like i fucking mattered. it just is so alienating to me whenever she talks about it because i don't understand how she opens herself up for love so easily after rejections and bad situations. it's so so so hard for me to open up to friends, let alone someone i'm romantically interested in, and so i can just never relate to her. and i hate opening up, i do, zone wohld know, they've asked countless times for me to talk about my feelings and i just. Can't. so for her to just be like yeah i'll keep this guy around as an option u know just to be safe it's so ??? and upsetting bcus i don't get options. i get one person who i think i like and then i hesitantly open up and then boom. they do something shitty or they leave me and i'm left to pick up the pieces and there goes any chance of me opening up to anyone for the next 700 years. after i broke up with my ex last august it took me literally an entire year to let myself even think about the idea of a romantic relationship. my friend can just rebound so easily and i don't get it. i dont connect to people the way she does and whenever i connect to people there's just something so horribly wrong about me that makes them want to leave or that makes them treat me like garbage. and it's just. i'm almost 20 and ive never been on a real date and im still the v word and im so so so behind on everything. i cannot connect to people easily and it's even harder for me to make them stay and it's just. i wonder how she can do it and i can't and it's like. there's gotta be something wrong with me. i've done everything. i've changed my hair i got piercings i changed my style i put effort into my appearance and still nobody wants me (mitski ref) and the people who do want me end up hurting me. i just cannot for the LIFE of me understsnd what is so wrong about me.

oh my god i hit the maximum for a text block i didn't even know that was a thing. anyways. i've spent the last couple of days rotting in my room trying to figure out why i can't be a normal teenage girl and go on dates. i have to LIKE LIKE the person to even consider a date with them. i have to be practically in love to even consider having sex with them. i kissed a guy in july. we are good friends, we went to see lovejoy together like. that's my homie fr. we kissed and it wasn't a bad kiss but i wasn't attracted to him. i was sick to my stomach for weeks /srs. i genuinely was nauseous and ill and i felt gross for weeks because i just wasn't attracted to him. and it's like. my friends r out having sex and going on dates and i can't even consider sex with someone i don't like like. and they're like oh sex isn't even that such a big deal like once u have ur first time it's genuinely not special you don't need to give ur v card to a special person and it's like. it's not that. i could care less about sex and your first time being some sacred important thing or whatever, i just don't feel comfortable having sex with a total stranger. i was so opposed to the idea of even having sex with my ex because i wasn't attracted to him anymore towards the end and i just .. to me sex is such an intimate thing and it's so vulnerable and i hate being vulnerable that i would rather die a virgin than have sex with someone i met on tinder. and i don't get it. why can't i be normal?? why can't i just be normal and go on dates and let people in so easily?? i just genuinely want to be Normal and be okay with the idea of talking romantically to multiple people at once. i just want to be able to talk about my many different options wjth my friends instead of me sitting there like a fucking dweeb who's recovering from another hesrtbreak. like i don't understand how they can give themselves to multiple people at once because when i like someone i give them everything i have. i give every bit of effort that i have to make it work andnit just doesn't and i am always left heartbroken because i just can't be normal and be happy with the idea of talking to someone romantically and not expecting a relationship. why r we talking romantically if there's going to be no relationship. i don't get it. that doesn't make any sense to me. one time my best friend called me a serial monogamist and i think that's 1. really fucking funny and 2. it's just true. i don't see the point in fooling around and it's what's gotten me heartbroken so many times bcus im just seen as something to fool around with. a fun summer fling or someone to get them through the winter. i just . it's hard to believe that this has happened to me three fucking times already but it's because i keep putting myself in those situations. i keep putting myself in the position to be heartbroken because i can't be normal and want to have a fling. i dunno. it's all so stupid and i wish hookup culture didn't fucking exist and people weren't so shitty and i wish that i was actually loveable and capable of being given love. i deserve it. i do i know i do. i may be a bitch and a cunt but i've never done anytning Bad in my life. i deserve to be loved the way everyone else is being loved. i deserve it and yet i cant fuckimg receive it

#if u read all this ur a real one and i love u and dm me for a picture of my cat as ur reward

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lunarnatalya · 3 years

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💕Rising Sign Observations💕

Observations about the rising signs from the eyes of a Scorpio Rising watching you all from the corner with x-ray vision O_o... jk xD

🔥ARIES risings tend to embody this energy of being both slightly distant, slightly somewhere else, yet simultaneously very on edge and physically responsive to their surroundings. They can be very caring but their attention span isn’t very long so their sympathies can be kinda blunt in nature. They are not afraid of being in opposition with anyone (Aries/Mars being the God of War) so when they disagree with something you said or did, you will FEEL it especially if you’re a Water sign... they won’t make the effort to hide their facial expression, or posture or anything of that nature. Sun is exalted in Aries (in Vedic astrology), so everything shines through.

🌱TAURUS risings are very generous and giving, and it tends to be because they don’t want to get wrapped out in the complicated nature of 8th house stuff. They’d rather give to everyone and show their cards than find themselves feeling in debt to others, or like people are angry with them or anything. Of course out of the kindness of their Venusian hearts as well, but also just for peace.

🕊️GEMINI (I’m using a Dove because they are messengers just like Gemini) risings are super playful and easy to get along with, they make you feel comfortable and at home in conversation like you’ve known each other for years. The thing is, then you’ll see them talk the same way to someone else and some people, especially water signs will see this as a betrayal when they don’t mean to hurt anyone, they are just natural social 🦋s and want to extend the same kindness and communication to everyone. I’d imagine that the Geminis in question would be Rohini Nakshatra in Vedic astrology, which is described by astrologers as ‘babylike’ and wanting to experience bliss all the time much like babies do.

🦀CANCER risings, I’ve noticed are super sweet and kind, but because of their extreme sensitivity and vulnerability tend to be very taken aback if you do anything to make them feel out of their comfort zone or like their safety has been threatened. As soon as you do that, they’ll forgive you, but they will deem you as someone who they should be wary around- and of course they’ll bottle up their emotions about it. They forgive, but they also collect all of the things that have happened and emotionally hold onto them.

👑LEO risings I’ve noticed are very in their regal energy and confidence all the time not really taking things too seriously and more focused on just living an awesome life, but when personal things or things related to family or the heart come up even slightly, they get VERY fierce and something in them just seems to rise from within them. I’d guess it’s because the majority of the time, a Leo rising will have fierce, loving, protective and loyal Scorpio in the 4th house of home, family, and the heart space.

.🌿VIRGO risings have such a distinct energy! There’s something about them that you can’t miss- could relate to how in Vedic, most of the Virgo risings will be Leos. They have such a quiet authority and power and can be very dainty in their mannerisms and everything. They suppress their voice a lot and don’t speak up so that they don’t ‘make any mess’ socially or emotionally, and can be really hard on themselves in that way.

🌸LIBRA risings I’ve noticed, can be very cynical but very motivated to move forward nonetheless especially because they’d never want to let anybody else down. I think this also relates to how in Vedic, the Libras are mostly Virgos. They can be very picky about aesthetics especially! Libra risings are also often very quiet, but I think this one depends. The misalignment with Libra & Scorpio is a big reason why I stick with Vedic often too- Libras in western often don’t embody balance so much as the embody the pickiness of Virgo, and Scorpios in Western are often very artistic, relationship oriented, and scared to ‘tip the scales’ more like Libra... then Sagittarians are often very deep and tend to have troubled pasts and demons more like Scorpio. It’s not that Western placements are untrue, but my theory is that Western is showing us the physical world since it is showing us the sky as it is from Earth, but Vedic is showing us the non-physical. Sorry Libra, you got the rant xD

🔮SCORPIO risings- like maself- are very very almost dangerously deep thinkers. The thing is, having a Scorpio Sun or Moon can make you very deep thinking too, but the thing about Scorpio rising is that this mode of deep thinking is initiated in their IMMEDIATE, environment, because that’s what the rising sign is about. They don’t have to get emotional to do this, and don’t have this inner fire to pursue deep thinking like Scorpio Sun would, they just do immediately and instinctively and it can be very crazy making for us. We can zone out at the grocery store thinking about something super dark or something dark that happened from the past and really get trapped in our own bubble there. A lot of the Scorpio risings who relate to that are probably Swati in Vedic astrology- Swati struggles with this because Swati is the ultimate middle Nakshatra, so it is always attuned to the hidden world and ‘space inbetween’.

💕SAGITTARIUS risings (heart emoji because I think Sagittarius risings need love, especially if you’re Jyeshta in Vedic) tend to be very secretive. They will do the ‘normal stuff’ like go to school/work, do normal every day stuff but they’ll often not fully divulge what’s going on emotionally (which is why to me it makes sense that Sagittarius becomes Scorpio in most cases in Vedic). I’ve noticed Sagittarius risings often don’t show up to social events either for mysterious reasons- they won’t really explain why or it’ll seem mysterious in nature but they won’t show up, and people tend to miss them/worry about them because of it.

✨CAPRICORN risings... okay hear me out, I have observed that they are quite adventurous, but in a very refined way. They aren’t all over the place trying to travel and try new things and be cray like the stereotype of Sagittarius, but they are wanting to try new things in a very sophisticated and planned out way. They are often super creative but their creativity always has purpose- like making a bookmark to use for the book they’re reading, or doing an artwork with the clear intention of giving it to someone, or putting it in a certain place on the wall they want to fill. Always with earthy, rich purpose.

🌟AQUARIUS risings, I’ve noticed are really good at knowing how to get a rise out of people and also knowing EXACTLY how people are going to react to what they’ll say or do. They are comfortable saying controversial things and speaking up about their opinions partially for this reason- if they already have the social and emotional awareness to know how people will react to their behaviour, they don’t have to be afraid of anything that comes their way as far as backlash goes because they already anticipated it! Smart cookies O_o

💫PISCES risings - aww man, I love you guys 💕 I’ve noticed a lot of Pisces risings tend to feel like outcasts in this world. They can feel very isolated and alienated and the infamous ‘charming awkwardness’ Pisces can have definitely comes from this feeling of being the ‘local weirdo’ lol. Pisces risings are amazing at bringing ideas to life as well, if they have an idea, they can explain it to you to a degree that they can make you feel like you BOTH had that idea and both have an emotional connection to it. Definitely relating to how Pisces will often become Aquarius in Vedic.

So that’s the end of my post on my observations about the Rising signs 💕 Subscribe to my YT Channel for videos on Astrology :)

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRlHfp9V-Re62OmTwh5SROg

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fanficmemes · 3 years

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Hm, I dunno how the rest of the server thinks but I personally don’t think boning Geralt is monsterfucking, or even a monster. Yes, he’s technically not human, but in practice there doesn’t seem to be any difference. Physically his only real inhuman trait is his eyes and otherwise he’s very conventionally attractive. His abilities aren’t particularly monstrous either, and in fact quite benign. He’s faster, stronger, with better senses and can see in the dark, and none of it is to an extreme that could make it scary. That’s more superhero than monster. And behaviourally he’s very much not a monster either. I mean he’s got what, an increased libido and childhood trauma? He’s a mercenary? Nah, that’s not monstrous.

(For the record this is no shade on Geralt, I love him very much. But… okay, here we go)

I don’t even think Geralt takes on the role of the Other in the context of the story, which monsters tend to be. His role is that of the Outcast, yes, of a character alienated from society, but from a narrative perspective he’s not meant to be foreign and Other to the viewer. He’s just not a monster. Like for example he’s conventionally attractive, but his beauty is not meant to unnerve by positioning it in contrast to the danger he poses, scary in how you feel drawn to something that also scares or repulses you, or even scary in how you don’t want to give into the temptation of what he represents even though maybe you aren’t repulsed at all and know that’s wrong.

And even from a pure sex perspective, and what is involved into monsterfucking specifically and what makes it appealing… Geralt also doesn’t fall into any of the categories, except maybe some minor ones. Like for example there tends to be a lot of kinky and very unconventional sex in monsterfucking related to the nature of the monster, both just for fun or part of larger themes. But other than some BDSM and the unicorn thing, Geralt does not have particularly monstrous sex. In fact I think it's pretty typical for a mature rated series, there's not truly transgressive about it in the way monsterfucking often is. And there’s a difference between non-monsterfucking sex with a vampire, even if it’s a little kinky, and monsterfucking sex with a vampire that’s all about getting it on with a vampire specifically it’s all about whether or not that fang at least scraping against your jugular. Or if you’re banging one of the fae (or in a fair folk orgy) what does that involve? Is it about a pretty guy and some bondage? Or is it about what makes the fae so alluring and scary, such as mind control, the idea being owned and enslaved, the incomprehensibility of their alien logic, of being killed horrifically for a misstep and the terror and thrill from that danger.

I mean I would argue sex involving Hannibal, a normal human, would be far more akin to monsterfucking than sex with Geralt because Hannibal is a monster in behaviour and the sort of themes his character and any relationship involve match with what makes monsterfucking so interesting. Themes of pleasure through consumption and death, the violation of the human body, the act of cannibalism used as both horror and eroticism, the thrill of terror, danger contrasted with attraction, being corrupted by desire for something you feel ashamed for wanting because it’s immoral, ect ect.

(Of course this is only one side of monsterfucking, specifically the stuff that draws primarily on the “scared and horny” aspect. There’s also the more emotional side of loving the monstrous, or at least attraction, of seeing beauty in it and how that relates to our own feelings of being monstrous and unconventional. Not to mention the catharsis of giving in to the monstrous, of letting temptation win and the liberation that involves. But Geralt doesn’t particularly appeal to those parts either because he’s once again not particularly monstrous)

If anything I would argue that Geralt is the male equivalent of a cute monster girl, being a rather conventional and human character we’re told is supposed to be deviant and scary. That is, we’re told he’s monstrous but unfortunately the canon material at least never really has Geralt take on aspects of true monsterhood beyond perhaps a little “and man was the real monster” stuff, which is also rather conventional and never really followed through, more Geralt’s personal fear that is used for internal reflection and character development rather than an actual thing we see on screen. Which is also not bad, but it’s not the transformation into true monsterhood I’m looking for, or even really about straddling the line between human and monster.

Which isn’t to say Witchers can’t be monsters for the purpose of monsterfucking in fanworks! It’s just that it would probably end up being tagged something like monsterous!Witchers or monster!Geralt because that would be enough of a deviation of canon portrayal to necessitate the tag.

This is so goddamn well thought out that I’m gonna agree w this

#asks #discord asks

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joganpie · 3 years

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A bit of Plo Koon

This is for a friend who has fallen into The Clone Wars cartoon and entered the hell of stanning a minor PT-era Jedi. So here’s a little bit of extra Plo Koon content for you.

(And if anyone wants to jump in with canon or fanfic recs for Plo Koon, I thoroughly invite it.)

First of all, I’m sorry to tell you this but a lot of Plo Koon’s most prominent modern content is from The Clone Wars cartoon, in part because Dave Filoni was a huge fan of the character.

And by a “huge fan” I mean that he actually cosplayed Plo Koon to the premiere of ROTS. (Sidenote: That’s Giancarlo Volpe on the right as Kit Fisto who was also a director on TCW, as well as ATLA and GLTAS.)

Dave also apparently campaigned various “Plo Lives” stories to George Lucas:

TFN: Do you have a plan for why Ahsoka doesn’t appear in Revenge of the Sith?

Henry: Hmmm. Are you asking about the ‘theatrical’ version of Revenge of the Sith or the ‘Special Complete Perfect “Plo Doesn’t Die” Edition’ Revenge of the Sith? Psssst... You guys have no idea how powerful Filoni is getting at the Ranch.

Dave: There is some truth to what Henry is saying. I once pitched George the idea that Plo had a parachute and that he bailed out of his fighter before it crashed. Then George said he would only continue the scene and make Plo’s death more painful, I think his parachute was going to catch fire and he falls on something sharp. I even pitched Plo being added at the end of Return of the Jedi as a Blue Ghost but that didn’t go over either. As for Ahsoka’s future... I have ideas, even outlines that answer your question very specifically.

But yeah, multiple people have joked that he’d try to sneak Plo into an episode any time he could.

Actually, returning to the concept of Plo Koon and Kit Fisto working together, that’s actually an established thing that has happened a couple times, and it does show up in TCW as well. (And yes, they are shipped.)

There’s also a tie-in for the 2003 Genndy Tartakovsky series, Clone Wars Adventures, which has a teamup with these two in issue #6 that is about Kit and Plo dealing with a prison riot. The characterization of Plo is a bit more violent and angry than in TCW, with Kit having to talk him into giving one of the prisoners a second chance, but he is pretty badass. (Also, I like the Saesee Tiin story in that volume in particular, to rep another minor Jedi character.)

If you want good, extended TCW Plo and Kit content though, what you really want is the Clone Wars: In Service of the Republic comic, and I can easily say that it’s my #1 recommendation to you as a fan of TCW and Plo Koon since it is a tie-in story to the cartoon.

No, seriously, if you want more TCW!Plo Koon content, you want to read this comic. There’s a running gag about Kit and the clones trying to guess Plo’s age. I feel like I don’t need to say anything else about the story.

However, Kit Fisto is not his only Jedi Bromance.

In Jedi Council: Acts of War we get his friendship with a Jedi named Micah Giiett.

This one may be an odd one for you coming from TCW though because it was released in 2000, which was after TPM but before AOTC/ROTS, and some of what is presented in this comic (as well as some of the other comics from the period which I share) doesn’t quite mesh up with what we see in the rest of the prequels regarding the worldbuilding. I wouldn’t put it as a must-read for the story either, but there are some sweet moments between Plo and Micah and it’s an interesting read to see how they extrapolated the universe out from only what we see in TPM.

Which also leads me to another point, which is that after Micah died, Plo Koon stepped in and helped finish training his padawan-- Bultar Swan. Who is a huge badass herself and I am Forever Haunted by the fact there seems to be no actual content of the two interacting because this fact seems to have been the product of retcons but PLEASE, I NEED IT. (There is exactly one fanfic in the universe about these two grieving Micah and it’s less than 500 words but I owe this author my life just for it existing.)

She’s also listed as his padawan in the most reliable of canon sources: Gurihiru’s illustrations for the Star Wars English-Japanese Dictionary

Now here’s where I admit that my reading of the Republic comics is a bit fuzzy because of having limited access to them and reading the series in bits and parts over the years.

With that said, on the subject of masters and padawans, I don’t think current canon/TCW has established any clear lineage for him but in legends continuity Plo was trained by a wookiee named Tyvokka. Some of that relationship is in the focus of the “Stark Hyperspace War” story in Star Wars (1997) #36-39. (Also, baby Obi-wan and Quinlan is nice too.)

Plo also has a bit of a role in the “Emissaries to Malastare” story in Star Wars (1997) #13-16, in which they give him Special Font to make him really cool and mysterious. (Also, a fun Depa & Mace teamup in that story and A’Sharad Hett, the Tusken Jedi.)

In more modern comics, there’s some nice little appearances in the Clone Wars- Battle Tales, especially issue #2 which has him rescue the Wolfpack.

Beyond this, he absolutely shows up in the background of a lot of things because he’s a cool and recognizable alien, as well as part of the Jedi Council, but he doesn’t really have much of a role beyond exposition.

This is focused on the comics, but that’s the part of the EU (outside of TCW) where he’s gotten the most chance to shine. He hasn’t played any substantial role in any of the PT-era books I’ve read, let alone video games or other media. (Playing as him in Lego Star Wars doesn’t count, although I do appreciate it.)

He does show up in a couple of James Luceno’s books in particular, but not in a particular substantial role. I saw Cloak of Deception mentioned when I was poking around to see if I was wrong about this, but that really does seem to be about it when it comes to his book appearances.

(They also visit his homeworld, Dorin, in the first Fate of the Jedi book: Outcast, and while that’s Post-ROTJ EU and while I can’t recommend the series as a whole, the first book does have some sort of interesting stuff about his species/planet.)

I’m also sadly short on fanfic recs since I don’t regularly read a lot of Star Wars fanfic except for when I’m needing a very specific niche filled and I haven’t really gone looking for a lot of Plo fic. (Outside of the time I scoured the internet for Bultar & Plo content.)

I’ll end by making sure that you know about the existence of the “Plo’s Bro’s” gunship.

As well as the fact he adds the Wolfpack symbol to his gauntlets later in the war.

BUT ANYWAYS. WELCOME TO MINOR JEDI FANDOM HELL.

#plo koon #clone wars #I appreciate Plo Koon #sorry it took so long I had some things to take care of #and I kept getting distracted reading star wars comics

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ravenadottir · 3 years

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how do you think the islanders high school prom nights went?

oh nooooo! don’t make me suffer thinking about proms!

ok, um, let’s see.

((edit: it became a bible, as per usual...))

bobby. i can imagine cupcake being nervous to ask a girl to go with him to prom, rehearsing his “promposal” several times in the mirror, and joking about something related to proms that would light up the mood. i picture him with a really cute and shy girl that had her eye on him during chemistry class. and yes, i think he used the chemistry hook to ask her to be his date. he probably did weird worm dances, got the stage for ‘paisley cuddle’ for a three songs, was elected ‘class clown’ and got a good night kiss in front of her house when dropping her off, afterwards.

carl. i don’t want to sound too mean, but if carl went to his prom, he didn’t go with someone. he was too awkward and didn’t pick up the courage to invite the girl of his dreams. he had the corsage bought, but deep down he knew he couldn’t ask her. i must add here, he had a close friend that ended up spending the party with him because they were that connected. carl didn’t have fun, didn’t find the meaning of friendship and danced with his friend. he was too worried about uni applications and his future, and couldn’t wait to run for the hills. his entire high school experience sucked, and his prom wasn’t different. maybe one liberating song that set him free was “gives you hell”, where he didn’t feel like holding back and really let all the weird alien moves out. after that, he left. for good. this is why i think when he tells the story to mc she’ll find a way to throw a prom just for him, with his friends from the villa, where he’ll be picked up in a limo and dance awkwardly, but freely, with true friends.

chelsea. this girl had fun on her prom, had a really cute guy taking her, the most gorgeous corsage she put together herself and gave it to her date the day before, so he could bring it when picking her up. chelsea had a close group of friends in school and danced the night away. if i know my bra well i think she was in charge of the decor, and you can bet your ass she talked her way into making everything pink-toned. all the blush and millennial pink you can imagine, down to the punch and the tablecloths. she organized everything related to the decor while bonding with a different person in charge of the rest. i can only imagine she had tons of fun at the night of the prom, being taken there in a pink limo. if her date didn’t do it, she would do it for herself, don’t at me!

gary. gary went to this prom, but i don’t reckon he took a girl. at that point of his life he was still “villain” looking, like he said, and i don’t think he had enough confidence to ask someone to go with him. what i do believe is that dicky was there with him, with a six pack and a playlist on his car that would be “infinitely better than whatever those fucking nerds are playing in there, mate!”. they would go in but not stay too long. i don’t think gary was a class clown or a sportist, despite of him playing football early on. he must’ve left that aside while focusing on robotics, so he was pretty much invisible. at least i think he defined himself in those terms. but they would drive somewhere gary adores, like the mountain, to watch the shipyard, have the beers, the music from the car radio and just talk and make fun of the popular kids that listen to ed sheeran. they would stay up all night, making plans for the future, since gary has his forklift license and is more than ready to start working. “cheers, mate.” besides the usual arctic monkeys, i think the song that best illustrates his prom is “mr. brightside” by ‘the killers’. “you know you’re gonna have to come back later for the car right, rennell?” “yeah...” “i’ll come with, you pussy. no need to be so sad.” dicky completed, pouting and draping an arm on gary’s shoulder as they walked home, ties untied, jackets and shirts open.

henrik. this kid couldn’t wait to wear those suspenders, beige pants and white shirt. he definitely had matching boutonniere with the corsage he got for his date, and his hair down. because whenever he hits the dancefloor, he lets his locks down and everyone knows that means the party is about to start. it wasn’t difficult for him to invite the girl he likes and she didn’t even blink before saying ‘yes’. i think he drove there, his friends on the back, singing along to "heroes” a cover by ‘the wallflowers’. i see henrik laughing while spinning a girl in place, catching her, goofing around with his friends while having the time of their lives. he already knew what he wanted to be, and everything was planned out. he drove everyone home and had his first night out with the girl he took to the prom.

kassam. i think kassam did his best to follow the protocol and asked a girl to go with him, got her a cute corsage and planned out the limo bit with his close friends. but i think it truly hit him that everything was going down when he put his jacket on, at the store. he saw himself on the mirror and realized what prom was, to him. it wasn’t just a party he would probably get laid after. i think he partied extremely hard that night, took some stuff, lost control, danced like an absolute asshole and probably ruined the night for a couple of people. it wasn’t smooth or tranquil like he thought it could be, and i really think he regrets lots of things he did that night. except for one. he decided to be the life of the party in different ways.

lottie. her “year 12 formal” was probably the first time lottie had real fun in her high school experience. like priya said before, i think lottie had some control issues and that stops her from seeing the full picture. ending your school experience usually opens your eyes for bigger things, and that’s where i think she really enjoyed herself for a long time. of course she wore a black dress and black and white corsage, if any. probably the first time she dyed her hair, not only a couple of streaks. high heels and black lipstick but just as gorgeous as she is today. maybe not the same level of confidence as today, but she was on the right path, i’m guessing.

lucas. i wanted to say lucas was the prom king, but that didn’t happen. he definitely didn’t know what to do while having a girl linking arms with him. he always felt like an outcast because of his previous experiences in school. always moving away, never staying too long to truly bond with his peers. so prom wasn’t exactly a fun time for him. it was though, the moment he realized he could do anything he wanted, not only conform to what his dad expected from him. the moment he realized that was possible the punch tasted different, the music became more fun, the dance moves weren’t so rehearsed and awkward, and he could truly appreciate what that night represented. i do think lucas wasn’t as smooth as he is today, so you can expect very boring tuxedo+shoes+tie combo, and not a lot of jazz going on with his ride. the whole point of getting a limo is to share it with your friends, but if you’re there for only a few months, then i don’t think there’s a bond strong enough to make you sing along to songs while picking up a girl. truth is, school wasn’t the best time for lucas, and just like carl, i don’t believe his prom was either.

marisol. she had to conform to a dress even though she wanted to rock a suit. at that point marisol already knew damn well who she was, but she couldn’t come out yet. i don’t think she had a very open relationship with her parents, and had to hide it for a while. what i do think though is that she took a girl, and changed into a suit at the dance. her closest friends knew about it and supported her, helping her hide her secret until the time was right. but that didn’t happen that night. she gave her date her corsage, and danced the night away with all of them. i even think her first sexual experience with a girl happened that night. awkwardly but very fully loving experience.

noah. i really think noah had a long term girlfriend by the time he graduated from high school, and she was the lucky girl he took to prom as his date. he asked her in the most traditional way, getting to her by the lockers, after class, possibly proceeding to take her to the library, finding the aisle with his and hers favorite books, then asking her there. the whole shebang of corsage and tuxedo, but no fancy limo bit or big gestures. just what he could afford. his dad took them to the dance and they entered the room being greeted by his closest friends. i do think noah was somewhat popular among the boys, because of his swimming, and the girls because he was so sweet and caring, besides hot! definitely popular enough to get some votes for prom king, but not quite there. i also believe the night of the prom could’ve been the first time he had sex. i could be wrong, but in my head, teen noah would’ve waited for a night as such, knowing what it means to him and to his girlfriend. not a lot of dancing but a lot of talking and watching as his crazier friends would let go and pull off moves no one should.

priya. it wasn’t the most fun she had in her life, that’s for sure. she mentioned a couple of times about her life in school and how hard it was to fit in. i don’t think big things happened for her back then. she tried her best to conform and become friends with people but it wasn’t in her, and eventually, those friendships would crumble. she probably had a date, a boy who asked her, and a couple of close friends, but didn’t feel like that was the fantasy prom she pictured for herself. i can see her wearing something discreet, because the priya we know and love blossomed later in life. besides, it was 2007/2008. emo phases were ending, but the alternative hairstyles were still here. if she had one of those or not, it’s up for debate. but her family doesn’t seem the kind to forbid her from having a haircut of her choice, so… you know what that means for her fashion choices back then! she did have a good time after a while at the dance, but it took her too long to realize it only depended on her. i think she danced, but didn’t really let the beast out. “not the greatest party i’ve been to, and definitely not my hottest look. but i guess no one’s prom is perfect.”

#litg noah #litg gary #litg lucas #litg carl #litg kassam #litg henrik #litg bobby #litg priya #litg lottie #litg marisol #litg chelsea #litg #love island the game #litg s2 #litg season 2 #love island the game season 2 #queue #group asks #prom

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bluedemon1995 · 3 years

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31 Resolutions-Happy New Years! Better late then never right? I wrote way too much and then had a killer headache so sorry it's not on time. To make up for it, I added a bonus! Hope you enjoy and please let me know what you think! Also this one is so long that I’ll add the link if you want to finish reading there!

Pidge was sitting at the table at the NYE gala and for the first time in a long time, feeling unsure. It started off well enough. She was dressed up, wearing a green and black gown that Veronica had assured her was stunning. It hugged her body and yet, didn’t make her feel uncomfortable or self conscious. She wore shiny sandals that reminded her or ivy and some jewelry that some of the Olkarion refugees had made for her. She was even feeling good about her hair and makeup. She felt that she still looked like herself but maybe a more shined up version or even more adult version.

The girl MFE pilots and Romelle all got ready together, having a few pre-drinks and even hiring a driver to take them to the gala. End result, when she arrived at the gala for the first time while attending an event like this, she was feeling happy and relaxed. And while her mom wasn’t happy that she declined a few invitations from some other officers overall she was letting her be because ultimately Colleen was just glad that she was in attendance. But what made today special was that Pidge knew she was getting another opportunity to enjoy her friends and family before everyone dispersed and went back to their own lives.

But that comfort was short lived because over the course of the night, what started as a small look or comment turned into blatant rudeness and what felt like an outright attack on her. Which Pidge was sorely unprepared for. While in school as Katie, she was used to being an outcast and the nerd. But she wasn’t outright bullied because well, no guys were interested in her and she was pretty low on the totem pole. Then at the Garrison she was a guy and while often ignored she wasn’t picked on. Then she found Hunk and Lance and well, no one said shit to her.

But thinking back to when she walked in with the girls and met up with the MFE pilots and the paladins-minus Coran. Everyone greeted each other warmly and introductions of the new people were made. Keith introduced a few new Blades- the males: Linus, Titus and a new female-Amoza. If Pidge thought Acxa was intimidating, Amoza was ten times that. Apparently, they were hoping to see Earth customs firsthand and make a few contacts. They all entered together and grabbed drinks and stood around to mingle. But one of the first things Amoza said to Pidge was inquire why she was so small, if she was a kit.

That comment made Pidge flush and stammer, which probably provided her proof, but she was just unprepared for that comment especially after feeling so mature. Thankfully, Keith interjected, joking that she didn’t want to make that mistake. He gave her a warm look, that made her flush, and when she averted her eyes from his gaze she noticed that Amoza was staring at her. Pidge looked to Veronica but she was arguing with Lance and Hunk and Shay were closely talking. And it didn’t look like she was impressed with her. Getting lost in her thoughts, Pidge lost track of the conversation. Tuning back in, she realized that Amoza had somehow managed to turn everyone so she was on the outskirts of the group. Sighing she glanced around the room looking for an exit strategy.

Spotting her parents, Pidge excused herself to go and say hi to her parents and Krolia. Both Keith and Matt quickly followed however, with Keith asking if everything was ok. She nodded while avoiding his eyes. She didn’t want to seem immature so she just jumped into the conversation. Later, as others mingled she found herself standing with Keith off to the side of the room. As always, she felt herself relax and again feel that strange comfort and familiarity that she often doesn’t find with others. And when Keith asked what she was drinking and she explained it was some new drink that was a version of sake he asked if he could try it. Shyly nodding he took her hand and guided it to his mouth. Pidge felt that his eyes were on hers and she couldn’t break it away. Then the announcement came for everyone find their tables. When she turned she looked up only to find Amoza’s gaze steadfastly on her.

Shaking off that uncomfortable feeling both headed to the table with Keith’s hand in the small of her back. Which was nothing unusual except that her lower back was uncovered due to the dress. As they made their way to the table, Pidge could feel the heat of his hand and that his thumb rhythmically move up and down. As they approached the table of 8, she quickly surmised there was a problem. Sighing she looked around frantically trying to keep her cool. Shiro, Curtis, Hunk, Shay, Lance, Veronica, and Amoza…they were short a seat. As they get to the table, she can feel herself start to panic and she turns looking for a seat close by at a different table.

Keith catches up and quickly sees the problem, frowning, he questions, “Amoza, I thought you were seated with the Blades?”

The young and beautiful alien looks up in surprise. “Oh sorry, I just assumed as your partner, I’d be seated with you. My, um, how do you say, mistake.”

That said she didn’t move. An inch. Pidge had started at the word partner…was Keith in a relationship with the alien? Why didn’t she know about this. But why wouldn’t he? He was single and attractive, and so was she. And tall. Strong.

So many thoughts started flying through her brain that she unintentionally took a step back, slightly twisting her ankle in the unfamiliar heels. She let out a quiet, “Ahh” when Keith’s hand turned into an arm support for her. Adjusting quickly to the added weight he bent his head, murmuring directly in her ear, “Hey no worries, I got you.”

Pidge felt her eyes tear and for a moment everything was blurry. Quickly blinking, she tried to straighten and looked around, “Hey, no problem, I’m fine. I’ll just find another seat. Go ahead and sit Keith.”

She moved away and looked around, right into James’ concerned face. Their eyes met and he stood. “Katie, I’d be honored if you sat at our table. None of us have dates, so we have the room. I mean if, you don’t mind sitting me and a bunch of unruly MFE pilots.” Smiling he reached a hand out to her.

Filled with relief, Pidge nodded, “Sure, thanks James.”

Just as his hand held hers however, Keith interrupted abruptly, “No need Griffin, Amoza should really be with her teammates.” Lacing his fingers with Pidge’s he continues, talking directly to her, “C’mon, like I’d, or um, WE would let you sit anywhere else.” Tugging on her hand he urges her back towards the original table. Now speaking to James-his gaze on the other man standing, “Appreciate the offer but Pidge is ours.”

Pidge starts to move back when she hears James say, “Well, I think she works more with me now so that’s debatable. I’d even go so far to say mine, but sure, you were part of her first team. I understand you have some history there.”

Pidge’s eyes get large and she makes eye contact with Veronica who pretty much spit her wine out all over Lance at that comment. Lance howled, torn between laughing and being bad at getting wine over his suit-loudly, which was a nice distraction. Because Keith had already turned and moved towards Griffin to reply. Pidge quickly pushed Keith towards the table, “Not now! Please.”

He looks down at her and pulls her arm so they are practically embracing. He looks over her head and stares at James, “We can talk about this later Griffin.”

“Looking forward to it, Kogane.”

“Keith, everyone is staring, let’s just sit.”

He nods, turning to the table, “Amoza, do you know where your table is?”

“No, can you show me?”

He nods, “It’s on the perimeter by the entrance doors, two from center.”

Amoza stares at him, then at her. Veronica interjects, “If you’d like I can walk you over now, I just see that Acxa has arrived and I’d love to say hi.” Standing, “Let’s go.”

Amoza finally stands, giving Pidge a look that clearly was not filled with love or New Years cheer. As they sit, she looks down, at her painted nails, thinking, I never stood a chance.

Keith leans close, “Hey, um, sorry did you want to sit with Griffin?”

“Huh?”

“It’s just you look a little sad, I’m sorry if I spoke for you. I, just, you belong here with m-us.”

“No, Keith don’t be dense, of course I want to sit here. I just feel bad that your partner had to leave.”

Lance interjects here, “Yeah, what’s with getting a girlfriend and not even telling us! C’mon you could of sent a message!”

Now it was Keith’s turn to say “Huh?”

Lance rolls his eyes, “Um yeah hot alien who said she was your ‘partner’.”

Keith shakes his head in the negative, “No! We aren’t dating. She’s still new to the language I’m simply training her. And the way it works is during training with the Blades is they are supposed to stay with their trainer. Nothing more, so stop.”

At that reply, Pidge lost track of the conversation but felt so relieved that she took her glass of wine and took a healthy drink. Damn, what was going on with her???

The rest of dinner went by fine but Pidge could swear she could feel the alien’s eyes on her. And she was right because each time she turned or looked, she was staring. And somewhere along the line, Keith had his arm draped across the back of her chair and was pretty attentive to her overall, which was only adding to the confusion on Pidge’s end. Which let to a little too much wine at dinner.

Getting up, she excused her self to the restroom hoping to get a handle on herself. As she was washing her hands, she looked in the mirror. Her face was flushed and her hands were shaking. Sighing she wished things could just be easy. Lately, she had found herself thinking of Keith in very unplatonic ways and their phone calls and messages started to become more frequent. She thought Shiro had said that Keith was thinking of staying on Earth for a while and that led to some pretty fun daydreams on her end. But apparently that information was incorrect and she needed to adjust.

Just as she turned to head for the door, Amoza stalked in. She looked her up and down and stated, “Human, I want to inform you that Keith will be my mate. We are perfectly suited and my father is a very powerful man on my planet. I get want I want.”

Pidge blinked, what the hell?!

Suddenly angry and less self conscious, she replies instantly, “Well, alien, I’m thinking Keith has something to do with this and it’s up to him who he will be with. You may think you are perfectly suited but I know we are. That’s what years of fighting side by side do. And I don’t need my daddy to get me a man. I can do it all on my own so fuck off.”

Pushing forward she storms out of the bathroom, only to see Veronica and Acxa listening at the door. Pissed at herself for losing her temper and pissed at the alien who thought she could push her around Pidge looks at them both. Not sure what to expect she’s surprised when they both grin and Acxa replies, “You stop girl!”

Veronica laughs, “I think you meant, you go girl. And I second that, no one has that right and I’m thinking she’s an alien gold digger or hussy.”

That was enough to make Pidge laugh and readjust her mood. The girls walk with her back to the table. “Didn’t you guys have to go to the bathroom?”

“Nope, just wanted to check on you and be sure you had backup if necessary. Acxa saw Amoza leave right after you. We wanted to be sure she didn’t ambush you but a few people slowed us down.”

Feeling calmer, Pidge nods, “Thanks for the backup.”

The rest of the night progressed similarly with Amoza trying to get alone with Keith or trying to put Pidge down but everyone was quick to stop it. But nonetheless it was exhausting trying to keep up her guard. Pidge finally found Matt, “Hey, I’m gonna go, I got a room up stairs and I need to get out of here.”

Matt nods, “I’ll come too.”

“No, no!! Please stay. Tell everyone good night and I’ll see then at the breakfast buffet.”

Matt nods, kissing her cheek. “Be careful, love you and Happy New Year.”

Pidge strides out of the ballroom, stoping at the stairs to take off her shoes. They are killing her and she just doesn’t care anymore. She goes up one step when she hears her name being called loudly. “Pidge, stop.”

Looking across the hallway she sees Keith jogging up to her. With her on the step they are almost eye to eye. “You are going to miss the countdown.”

“It’s okay. Go find”

“No.”

“Keith.”

Both can hear the yelling and the countdown, when Keith tentatively slides his hands on her hips and slowly around her. Pulling her closer, his one hand is splayed on her lower back and the other is on her neck, all the while maintaining eye contact. “Happy New Year” with those words he lowers his mouth to hers. Foregoing a typically tentative first kiss, this kiss was all heat and passion. Pidge’s mind swam and she automatically opened her mouth to his demand. And demand it did. The kiss stole her breath and made her realize that this was what she was missing from her life. How did she survive without Keith’s kisses??

She heard a moan and absently realized that was her! Pidge has no idea how long they kissed but when they stopped her shoes were on the floor, she was pressed up against the stair railing, somehow Keith’s leg was in between hers and she was essentially riding his leg. Her hands were tangled in his hair and both were breathing heavily.

Keith brushes his nose against hers, “So, my New Years resolution is to stop being afraid of rejection and to reach out to those people I need. I’m going to communicate better. That said, I have come to realize, that I need you Katie, so much. And I’m tired of pretending otherwise, I want more than friendship, a lot more. So, I gave my resignation to the Blades and am opening a mechanic shop. I told Shiro I’d freelance for him and the paperwork just got cleared. So I’m officially a consultant for the Garrison and I’m looking for a house. I was hoping and praying, that maybe you’d like to…well..be mine?”

Pidge’s eyes filled with tears, “Quiznack! Of course. Shit Keith that’s the best New Years resolution and let me say, I will also make that same promise. I have come to realize I’ve had feelings for you too and I was too scared to tell you. But, never again.”

They both smiled and kissed again. Upon hearing a whistle and the comment, “Hey isn’t that the Green and Black paladin?” They both decided to adjourn to Pidge’s room and relax.

Bonus

Next day….

Keith was in the gym going over his mourning routine. He had about 40 minutes before he needed to wake Pidge up for the breakfast. He was hoping to be done in 20 so they could have a little time before meeting up with everyone. He couldn’t wait to tell Shiro the good news even though he figured he already knew.

With that he turned to see his blade team walking in. Acxa smiled, “You look very happy.”

Keith grinned, “Yeah I feel it too.”

She nods, stating quietly, “Just so you know, there will be money exchanging hands. We have quite a large pool of money on the outcome. So there will be many questions at breakfast.”

Keith laughed, “You know what, I don’t even care. I’m that happy right now.”

Amoza walks up to him and states, “When do we leave?”

Keith nods, addressing the whole group. “So, I was going to tell you this later but now is good. I’m not returning, Acxa will be your leader and I’m staying on Earth. But if you ever need anything please don’t hesitate to reach out. And you know what, I’m done for today, so I’ll see you at breakfast. I’ve gotta go see about my girl.”

He leaves before anyone has a chance to say anything.

At breakfast, the room quiets down fast when Amoza storms in and growls, “You should rethink this. I have offered for you. If necessary, I am willing to battle for your hand. You definitely deserve better than that kit.”

Keith frowns, “That is uncalled for. I’ve never considered us anything other than coworkers. What the hell?”

Pidge grins, “I’m game! How do we battle for Keith’s hand? I haven’t really kicked ass in a while.”

Colleen shoots her a frown, hissing, “Do you SEE how big that alien is? I don’t want you hurt!”

Matt laughs, “Seriously mom, you have no worries. Pidgey is totally badass.”

Krolia stands, “There is no need for a battle. Keith, hand me your blade.” Keith passes it over immediately, “Little one, please take this.”

Pidge takes it, holding it in her hand. Krolia continues, “Please say Knowledge or Death and hold the blade in a fighting stance.”

Pidge nods, standing and instantly mirroring Keith’s fighting stance with the blade and says clearly, “Knowledge or Death.”

The blade instantly glows and transforms into Keith’s preferred weapon. But then the blade glows even brighter and slowly transforms into a weapon that is better suited for Pidge, lighter and more balanced for a smaller fighter. As the room is filled with gasps, all of the Blades kneel and with a fist over their hearts reply, “Knowledge or death.”

Pidge looks to Keith who looks just as confused. Krolia speaks up again, “Thank you. You may pass the weapon back to Keith. This is proof that even the blade recognizes you as Keith’s true mate.” She smiles and reaches out to squeeze Pidge’s shoulder.

Pidge sits down, “Wow, that was intense. I wonder how that does it? It actually felt lighter when it changed for me. I wonder if I could“

Keith grins, and kisses her on the mouth, “Later, we have all the time in the world remember?”

#katie holt #keith kogane #kidge #kidgemas 2020 #keith and pidge #pidge and keith #keith x pidge #keith

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hotforhandman · 4 years

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Are the Villains “right”?

Okay, so I was scrolling through the bnha spoilers tag whilst procrastinating work and I’m really not living for the vibes there. My biggest issues fall into two main camps: “this arc is going to be the end of the League”, and “Villain stans are hypocrites with no reading comprehension for condemning the Heroes’ behaviour”, and I believe both of these statements can be addressed simultaneously, whilst also giving me a convenient excuse to not write. So without further ado,

Part 1: Themes

Right from the very beginning of the series, literally the first line, one thing is made blatantly clear: This series is not going to be about good guys and bad guys. “All men are not created equal” is not a line that implicates an inherent divide between good and evil, unless you’re an actual eugenicist. And pretty much every important character is designed to criticise a different aspect of the established system.

Izuku: The Quirkless are worthless. Not explicitly, but... everyone knows it.

Bakugou: If you have a good Quirk, you are praised and treated as special, and as a consequence you’re never expected to learn and grow as a person.

Shoto: Dedicating your entire life to becoming strong to the detriment of your own health is the best way to climb to the top.

All Might: You don’t have to worry about anything. A Hero will save you.

Shinsou: If you have a Villain’s Quirk, you’re going to be a Villain, no matter the quality of your personality.

Kirishima: If you’re not flashy, there’s no point even trying.

Hawks: Similar to Shoto, if you show natural promise then it’s acceptable to groom you as a weapon.

I’m sure there are others that I’ve missed. Each of these characters’ individual developments have been focused around them overcoming these ingrained ideas and growing and succeeding despite them - with the exception, perhaps, of Hawks. So if several of the major Hero characters are designed to illustrate and criticise the established system, what about the villains? I guess if the Heroes are stories about people succeeding despite what the world tells them, then the Villains are stories about what happens when they don’t.

Spinner: Mutants are second-class citizens and should be treated as such.

Toga: If your Quirk is considered to be bad or gross, then you should be punished for wanting to use it.

Twice: The world won’t make space for your special needs.

Magne: If you don’t fit the mould of what people want you to be, you won’t be respected.

And Shigaraki: It’s not our responsibility to help you. If you weren’t saved, that must mean you’re not worth saving.

The one thing that both the Heroes and the Villains have in common is that they are tools to show the audience the flaws in BNHA’s society. It’s canon that Quirks appeared suddenly, and though by the time BNHA is set in, society has tried to adapt to fit it and is making some progress towards being functional, it’s clear that it has a long, long way to go, because it’s failing so many people. (Draw some parallels to real life, hm?). BNHA’s overarching themes of individual worth not being more important than collective good and how rules and structure created in good will can result in a lot of pain and abuse are, first and foremost, exemplified in the characters themselves. I like to tell people who find Shigaraki’s motivations vague and uncompelling that Shigaraki doesn’t need to have a point, he is the point, and this is exactly the reason why.

I also believe that this is primarily why for Horikoshi to end the League here would be, frankly, terrible writing. We have engaged with the LOV more than pretty much any other Shonen villain group I can think of, almost any villain group at all. We’ve seen them develop as much as we’ve seen the heroes develop, especially in Shigaraki’s case, and to have Shigaraki only be their ‘first-year villain’ or whatever would be disrespectful, wasteful, and thematically inappropriate. To have a more classic, pre-developed villain whose villainy seems to stem from some inherent evil characteristic like AfO or Overhaul would ultimately defeat the story of how the worst villains are created by flaws in the system, not born.

Part 2: Fan Response

Sometimes I can’t believe I still have to reiterate this to people, but it is possible to stan a character whilst simultaneously recognising that they are flawed, often critically so. When did we move from adoring villains to saying if you like this character you must be an inherently bad person because of this list of bad things they did?

The thing is that the vast majority of ‘opinions’ on fan blogs are... poorly thought out and shallow, to put it lightly. When it’s 2am and I’m answering an ask about my opinions on x plot point, it’s not gonna be well thought out and thoroughly researched. I’m probably a bit tipsy, kind of tired, and just typing out whatever my initial response is. And really, if I reblog a bit of art with the caption ‘Shigaraki did nothing wrong’, do you really think I’m being serious? A lot of what we say is hyperbolic and meant to either be funny or to evoke an emotion, not because we actually believe it.

That being said, the League in particular, I believe, resonates with a lot of people in the current political climate. A group of outcasts with characteristics considered undesirable by the wider population coming together and genuinely caring about one another whilst they aim to completely eradicate the system that hurt them? As an angry, marginalised leftist in a society that seems increasingly determined to wipe my chances at a good life out without blinking an eye, hell yeah that resonates with me. Being able to crumble the cripplingly complex and morally vile system I live in to dust and starting over is one hell of an appealing power fantasy. Does that mean I think murder is okay? Obviously not. It’s a fantasy. If there’s one place where I can live out those fantasies without consequences, it’s here. In fiction. And so it seems really stupid to me to be confronted with the idea that if I like a fictional violent radical I’m accused of condoning murder and kidnapping.

Part 3: Are the Heroes right?

So a lot of the posts I saw that aggravated me were framed like 'how can the villain stans think Miruko and Gran Torino's behaviour is worse than Shigaraki's?', but like... who was saying that?

I feel like certain people's views of the heroes versus villains debate falls under the same fallacies as a lot of political arguments- that is to say, if I'm criticising one side, I must be defending the other. Which is... just blatantly untrue. When we say that the heroes' consistent dehumanisation of a man who is, first and foremost, a victim of significant grooming and abuse throughout his life, is gross and cruel, and that this attitude is mirrored in an awful lot of the hero-villain interactions implying a certain level of empathetic alienation and lack of accountability, we're not saying they shouldn't be trying to take Shigaraki down. Of course they should, he's going to decimate hundreds of thousands of innocent lives. But, like, does that mean they're exempt from all criticism? Should we be excusing the cruel and dismissive attitudes of the heroes and ignoring the behaviours of their side that lead to further 'villainisation' of marginalised people just because they're responsible for saving lives? No. Because once again, one of the key themes of BNHA is that neither side is perfect, and neither side is right.

Mass murder is wrong. So is systemic cruelty towards the oppressed. You don't have to approve of one to criticise the other. So next time you see one of those posts and jump to the conclusion that villain stans have no reading comprehension, pls remember these points.

Anyway, that's my little rant. Sorry.

Tl;dr, villain stans aren't stupid or glorifying murder, we're just capable of criticising more than one type of bad behaviour.

#league of villains #bnha

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…Look, I know nobody really cares about Overhaul’s characterization, but I spent enough time puzzling over wtf is his deal while I was watching the anime that I may as well make a post about it. Especially considering how he’s come up in recent chapters in relation to Twice and Hawks, one thing that strikes me about Overhaul is that he wants to be normal, and to accomplish that, he tries to change the world instead of himself.

On the surface, Overhaul’s goal was to establish himself and the Hassaikai as the rulers of the underworld using the anti-quirk serum, thereby repaying the “debt” he owed the Hassaikai boss for giving him a home, but I think there’s more going on.

Overhaul’s goal was to eradicate the belief that human lives have inherent value. He planned to do this by destroying quirks, since he perceived them as the basis of people’s belief that they matter.

Since Overhaul’s dialogue is confusing, here are two other translations of his lines:

“Because people are endowed with these things called ‘quirks,’ they can dream. Dream that maybe they can be someone that matters…they’re all sick in the head! So wipe that smile off your face! Thanks to the power of that girl you were trying to save, everything you’ve worked so hard to cultivate…has just been reduced to naught!” (Ch152, mangastream)

“The diseased…have been given quirks, and that lets them dream. Thinking you can actually become something is an illness of the mind. It’s funny! With the power of that girl you’ve come to save, everything you’ve worked to cultivate…has now gone to waste!” (Ep74, Funimation subs)

Basically, people want to matter, and they use their quirks (symbolizing individuality, and human deviation more broadly) as proof to say they do. So when Mirio loses his quirk, Overhaul’s reaction isn’t, you’re cured, you’ve been purified, you’re normal now. His reaction is, now you are worth nothing, you are a good-for-nothing deku, the illusion of value your life held is gone, everything you held dear was actually a lie.

I think that’s why Overhaul can use his quirk with impunity without seeing the hypocrisy. He essentially views people as infected mice infatuated with their own disease, but he knows better! He knows everyone is worthless! So he’s the only one who’s immune to this mental disease of ~being special~, he doesn’t get any delusions of grandeur, he’s the only one great enough to change the world—etc. When Shigaraki removes his quirk, Overhaul’s illusions are torn away the way he was expecting from Mirio.

But Mirio stands up to Overhaul and asserts that he still chooses to find value in his life without depending on whether he has a quirk. That’s the underlying reason why Overhaul is repulsed by heroism: it’s built on the ideal that people matter, their suffering is bad, they deserve to be saved, and so forth.

These are concepts Overhaul resoundingly rejects, for reasons never explicitly stated, but I think a fair interpretation is to say Overhaul’s noticed that he’s different from other people, and he’s afraid it means there’s something wrong with him. This fear is on par with an existential terror, so he can’t acknowledge it directly, but it drives him to go above and beyond to prove he is a normal person who does belong in the Hassaikai, specifically, and in society more generally.

First, for context:

^^ Regardless of how the yakuza are in reality, in Japanese pop culture their image is two-faced. They can be chivalrous gangsters (honorable criminals who offer shelter to outcasts and uphold the vestiges of samurai culture) or they can be villains (relentless hypocrites who prey on outcasts and commit staggering violence). Even down to the clothes they wear, the boss and Overhaul embody these two yakuza archetypes, and accordingly, they can’t coexist.

At the core of their power struggle is what it means to be a yakuza, and whether Overhaul belongs as one.

This reaches its climax when Overhaul tells the boss about torturing Eri, and the boss tells him it’s time for him to leave the Hassaikai. Overhaul puts the boss in a coma because he can’t bear to be rejected and branded a deviant for his cruelty (“straying from humanity,” “soulless heresy,” “how little do you think of people?”). The boss pretty much outright tells him there’s something wrong with him.

Overhaul never talks about why he thinks so lowly of people. It could be any tragic event in his life, whatever went down before he met the boss, sure, or even just the simple fact that his quirk enables him to disassemble and reassemble people like objects, but I think the answers are in the material Horikoshi emphasizes: in his relationship with the boss, whom Overhaul fixated on as a kid.

The feature that strikes me most in Overhaul’s relationship with the boss is the (lack of) acceptance between them. Overhaul seeks the unconditional acceptance the boss offered him as a child so intensely that I can’t help but think there’s a deeper motive: validation. The “debt” Overhaul feels is an imprecise label for his discomfort; he feels pressured to earn his place in the yakuza because, on some level, he recognizes that he doesn’t belong here among chivalrous gangsters. He consequently overcompensates, though going to such extremes just underscores he is different, but he wants to win the boss’s validation that badly because, without it, Overhaul feels like a freak. He’s afraid that there’s something wrong with him. This emerges most pointedly in his “germophobia.”

Given that he 1) literally breaks into hives and flies into murderous rage when he’s touched, 2) considers heroism and quirks to be a disease, and 3) breaks into hives multiple times purely from the force of his emotions—I think his phobia shouldn’t be taken at face value.

In some way, Overhaul is “allergic” to society. He doesn’t belong in this world, among these cultural values, which is why he seeks to change society.

“return humanity to normal”

^^ Overhaul wants to change the world to match his version of normal, and, remarkably, the fact that he believes it’s more feasible to change the world than to change himself says leagues about how immutable he believes his differentness is. By destroying quirks, Overhaul wants to make everyone the same: worthless. He resents that other people even want to be different because feeling like there’s something wrong with him is his greatest fear.

Shigaraki is Overhaul’s main foil, but…there’s a reason why Twice introduces him.

Twice (narrating): There’s no place for insane guys like me in society. As for the people who heroes like to save…yeah, they’re always the good, virtuous ones. Anyway, I finally accepted me for me and decided to make myself useful to the League of Villains because I wanna be okay with being me. What I’m searching for now is other people just as crazy as I am. The aimless wackos looking for a place to belong… [Overhaul debuts, complaining that he’s surrounded by sickness] Twice: (staring at Overhaul) But now those nutjobs are starting to carve out a place for themselves in this world. Twice: “Okay… To ask…or not to ask?!” Twice: Whether it’s us or the heroes, everyone’s starting to take on a different look nowadays. Knowing who you are is what really matters. Who you wanna become…what you wanna do… It’s real, real important.

Ch115, viz.

Twice’s narration frames Overhaul as someone who’s just as freakish as he is, and it foreshadows “a place to belong” as a key theme of Overhaul’s arc—a theme that Overhaul’s first flashback (to when he met the boss) cements. Overhaul wants somewhere to be accepted and belong precisely because he’s a “crazy wacko” with no place in society. Usurping the boss is Overhaul’s attempt to carve out a place for himself in the world, to fashion the Hassaikai (and society at large) in his image.

Twice’s narration also highlights how Overhaul doesn’t know who he is or what he wants, and consequently, he turns out to be a humungous hypocrite who can’t uphold even a single of the principles he professes. He double-crosses the boss, he isn’t sure if he wants to commodify quirks or eliminate them, and he can’t accept that he, like everyone, is worthless. He’s so afraid that there’s something wrong with him that he instead insists that everyone else is “sick,” everyone else is wrong, not him, he’s the only normal person. Unlike the LoV, who are more or less okay with being outcasts, Overhaul sets out to correct this difference because he can’t bear it.

…And Twice’s foiling underscores Overhaul’s lack of emotional attachments. It’s ludicrous to think Twice would ever lock Shigaraki away and then release him after Twice’s clones have toppled society. Overhaul’s interest in the boss is as a source of validation to help him repress his fear that he’s abnormal, not in the boss as a human person with feelings.

While fighting Deku and Eri, Overhaul recalls putting the boss in a coma. He follows up his flashback with these lines:

Overhaul: “None of you are looking at the big picture here!! What I’m annihilating is the world itself!! Its very structure!! So a pathetic little would-be hero driven by his emotions…reaching out for whatever petty sense of justice he stumbles across [meaning the status quo]…can’t stop me!!”

Ch158, viz.

The “none of you” is very telling—Overhaul is referring to the boss as well as Deku. He resents the boss, and his resentment of heroes is partly a sublimation of that—both Deku and the boss are driven by compassion Overhaul lacks, which disturbs him, so he needs to lash out and tell himself that his motivator, "logic,” is normal.

But regardless of the underlying reason, his most important motivators are that he doesn’t value human lives, and that he feels alienation because, on some level, he fears there’s something wrong with him for that. (<– the boss basically tells him so, by spurning him for being cruel.)

^^ When Deku delivers his final blow, knocking off Overhaul’s mask and sending him crashing to the ground, Horikoshi reveals Overhaul’s face for the first time. It’s a plain face; the mask hides no quirk-related anomaly; ironically, Overhaul’s "remedy” to his phobia (the plague mask, to stop himself from breathing the same air as others) makes him look like more of a weirdo than if he went without it.

His flashback here gives us a glimpse of what it is that inspires Overhaul. Overhaul remembers walking in the rain in the boss—a memory that prompts him to make a last stand…but also, a memory that causes him to break out into hives. Once you look, it’s clear he has no hives before he remembers it.

This is a positive memory, but it’s also an intensely negative one.

Because, deep down, Overhaul knows the boss will never thank him again. Out of buried resentment for the way the boss withheld his acceptance and made Overhaul feel like a freak, Overhaul made a point to trash everything the boss loved—he turned the Hassaikai into villainous bastards and carelessly offs the boss’s devotees, he followed through on his evil plan to use Eri as the base for his anti-quirk serum, and he, uh, put the boss into a coma. He even rejected the name “Chisaki,” the name of the strange man who tried to be a yakuza but whom the boss discarded anyways, and named himself after his quirk in order to “remake” himself into someone new. Clearly, like everyone else, he’s invested in his quirk as a crucial aspect of his identity –.–

But embracing his “true nature” isn’t enough when Overhaul knows that the boss will never accept him again, when he is still different, which is why Overhaul wants the world to change to match his views on humanity, so that he’s normal.

Another time Overhaul spontaneously breaks out into hives is when Shigaraki leaves him.

No hives when Compress and Shigaraki touch him to remove his arms. Overhaul seems to be in shock. But Shigaraki’s words finally penetrate.

“You should just sit back and watch!! Have a nice life!”

“I just want to repay the debt I owe you. So please, just sit back…and watch.”

It’s these words from Shigaraki that prompt Overhaul to break out into hives, probably because, by sheer luck, Shigaraki quotes Overhaul’s last words to the boss. Before putting the boss in a coma, Overhaul told him to sit back and watch—one problem with that being, obviously, that someone in a coma can’t watch. So (again by sheer luck) Shigaraki actually does Overhaul one better and fulfills his words better than he did.

Similarly, Shigaraki is stealing Overhaul’s life’s work—just like how Overhaul stole the boss’s life’s work, the Hassaikai—and Overhaul’s quirk, just like how Overhaul stole Mirio’s…but Shigaraki steals them better than Overhaul did. It’s Overhaul’s lofty ambition to use the quirk serum change the world, to establish himself as normal and at the center of his new society, that serves as the basis of Overhaul’s self-esteem.…and it’s Overhaul’s quirk that gives Overhaul his name.

By removing his quirk, Shigaraki strips Overhaul of the name he gave himself. He’s no longer Overhaul, and he’s not even the boss’s man “Chisaki” anymore—he’s the nameless child on the streets whom everybody shuns. The outcast, the reject, someone who can only sit on the sidelines and helplessly watch.

Overhaul’s arc ends on the contrast between them. Overhaul is introduced as the mature, more methodical villain who threatens to supplant Shigaraki as AfO’s successor, but the story unmasks him as an irredeemable, reprehensible hypocrite who can’t stand by anything. Shigaraki, however, proves he’ll stand for what little ground he ekes out, and he copes with his resentment over his outsider status by openly acknowledging it and bonding with fellow outcasts to forge their own home.

Ultimately, I think the core of Overhaul’s character boils down to 1) he doesn’t believe that people matter, 2) he feels intense alienation and isolation, and 3) he’s afraid he’s abnormal. How those three things interrelate, which of them is cause and which is effect, is flexible. I figure his hatred of quirks stems from one of these, probably (1).

Power is another consideration, one that I didn’t look at in my analysis since I think his thirst for power is his attempt to belong/alleviate his sense of abnormality by gaining status. And, though I think Overhaul is framed as a sociopath-like person whose lack of empathy is innate, I think there could be a solid characterization made for his extreme lack of empathy being a consequence of nurture, like he feels like a freak due to a childhood tragedy.

Miscellaneous Overhaul details;

Overhaul doesn’t seem to break out into hives when he touches dirty inanimate objects, like the floor; his phobia of “dirtiness” is focused on people.

His phobia is implied to have escalated or begun during adulthood. He didn’t seem to wear a mask as a kid, nor did he seem to break into hives before the canon timeline (Overhaul has no hives in any of his flashbacks, even when he’s cutting Eri or surrounded by gore).

Overhaul begins to wear his plague mask after a major argument with the boss over proper conduct for a yakuza.

Despite being Overhaul’s father-figure, the boss called him “Chisaki” instead of “Kai”—he might’ve been too traditional/stuffy to use Overhaul’s given name even when he was just a kid.

Mirio reminds Overhaul of the boss, which is why their fight gets so personal.

Overhaul hates Eri so much because they’re similar—both are “aberrations” who don’t belong. Eri is emphasized as a mutation who was rejected by even her mom, and the boss explicitly links their quirks…except that Eri has what he wants: the boss’s acceptance and a “normal” compassionate disposition, the latter of which he viciously leverages against her in order to punish her for it.

And also like…by virtue of being a young, little, helpless, sweet girl, meaning that she’s the perfect victim heroes always want to save more than anything, her life is disproportionately valuable to people, and that’s the sort of sentimental value Overhaul wants to destroy.