alright chat . it's time for "dissecting the inherent tragedy of transformers: botbots and the relationships in them":

toxic doomed yuri edition ( referring to these two ↑ )

(yes, i made this picmix myself 4 this. i have no regrets. also no tl;dr because you guys NEED to read this)

something i want y'all to understand is that it is Not about the idea that spud wasn't loved. he was VERY much loved by everyone, ESPECIALLY burgertron.

the whole point is that he sabotaged himself in the process of ruining someone else's life, someone who valued him and his word above others. he and burgertron BOTH let their ego get in the way of their personal lives, the only difference is that burgertron at least had the dignity to swallow his pride and apologise when it mattered most.

He gave spud a second chance because he loved him. because he recognised that he does deserve redemption, and above all else, he wants spud to know he cares, even if that means he'll never see him again, or they'll never be friends. (Even in light of the "sidekick" comment, i genuinely don't think he held any inherent malice in that statement. even if burgs was an egotist, he still loved him.)

the worst thing burgertron did in their relationship was be unaware, and im sure that despite his ego, he never meant for spud to get hurt. that's why he went out of his way to protect him, when he couldve just stood there and let spud get put on the back of a truck to never be seen again. it would have been easy.

but he didn't. he did the hard thing. the Right thing. he stood up for someone who never did the same for him.

Spud Was Loved. Spud Is loved. and sometimes love isn't going to look pretty, or manifest in holding hands and cuddling, and it isn't all rainbows and sunshine. it can hurt. it can be letting go of someone who you hurt by accident, who you never meant to harm, but it happened anyways because you made the fatal mistake of being oblivious.

And that's what Burgertron did. he let Spud go, because he understood they both needed time to heal on their own terms. regardless of if he's mad at him or not, he does still harbor positive feelings for him, and he stood up for him during times he probably shouldn't have. If he ACTUALLY hated spud, he wouldn't have stuck his neck out for him at bot prom. or believe spud when he was lying through his teeth in the games.

And that's what makes them so tragic. perhaps in another world, another life, they'd have been Actual good friends, who truly stuck by each other. maybe things would have been different.

But we'll never know that now, will we?

Thinking about Nana in Overture again… the way we can see her deep caring for others and how it stems from her own loneliness. How she tries to cope with her own self hatred by finding self worth in helping others, and how she is completely overwhelmed by Junna showing her kindness.

Her looping is both an incredibly selfish thing, taking control over everyone’s lives and determining them herself. But it also stems from her own self hatred of being a stage girl. While she is drawn in by the Giraffe and does some not good stuff (it’s not okay to kill your friends Nana), the cycle that leads her deeper into despair is her attempt at trying to help others because she genuinely cares about them all.

It’s why ultimately she is still a stage girl despite her disdain for everything that defines them. Because even with that desire unattainable she never stops trying to achieve it. Which is, under the messed up system of the auditions, what warps her genuine care (and definitely some iffy stuff) into an overpowering downward spiral.

Even still, through all her (many) mistakes it is not a sin to climb the tower.

Revstar is well aware of its characters many flaws and never fails to force them to confront them and grow, but I think it’s worth noting the auditions pray on their vulnerabilities. I mean they are literally put into a situation where they are forced to cut each other down in order to be the only one left. Alone. Basically the exact antithesis of what Nana wants, and yet she is coerced into fighting in them.

It’s in that sense that revstar rejects the “I’ll become a sinner for you” narrative. Because stage girls are not sinners. To have pride, to act selfishly, and to want to compete are not sins. It is when they are turned into motivators to hurt each other from the auditions that they become a sin. The critique of the top star system and harmful theatre environments is really at the core of all of revstar’s themes.

It’s why Nana’s revues with Hikari and Karen are so important in snapping her out of it. Hikari shows her that there are ways for a stage girl to attain happiness, it doesn’t all need to be suffering. They can be reborn. While Karen shows her that it’s possible to defy the system of the auditions. That all this time, day after day, she has been moving towards a stronger version of herself, and that her determination and will as a stage girl is valuable.

It’s her revue with Junna that forces her to face her fears of the future and moving on, how her loss shows her just how brilliant a stage girl can truly be.

Nana’s growth follows her journey to learn how to accept herself as a stage girl, and how she can move forward as one instead of rejecting herself. It’s why her conclusion has her debating between technical work and acting. As she loves both she wants to truly find what makes her happy and pursue it. It’s why she attends RATA instead of auditioning for New National, because she is finding the courage to follow her own path.

This was basically just a gushing about Nana post huh. Well I really like the way her story ties in with the themes, but also I feel like I rag on her a lot (you shouldn’t try to kill your friends Nana), but while revstar is well aware of all the characters’ short comings I think it’s really meaningful that it is clear how the top star system is harming them because of that and not that these teenagers are malicious and evil. There’s so much to get into on revstar’s critique of the top star system and Takarazuka, but I’m not well researched enough… maybe another time

Dick Grayson Reading Guide Part 1: Robin

I got a request to do a Dick Grayson reading guide, so that's what this is. This isn't going to be an exhaustive list of every issue he's in, just stories I think are good and/or important to read to get him. This website is good if you want to know every issue a character has appeared in, at least pre-Flashpoint: https://dcuguide.com/w/Chronologies

These won't be in publication order, but in chronological order for Dick's life. Due to the nature of comics published over many decades, some of these may have minor contradictions or differences in characterization, but they're all worth reading in my opinion. Some of these were unfortunately written by creators who many will not feel comfortable supporting. To that I say, there are ways to find comics second hand, or read without supporting particular creators.

Robin:

Batman: Dark Victory

This to me is the definitive Dick Grayson origin, though he doesn't show up until the second half of the story. That said, it is one of the best Batman stories ever written, and its version of Robin's origin has been repeated in several other tellings.

Batman Chronicles: The Gauntlet

This is a nice little one off story, chronicling Dick Grayson's graduation from training. Batman puts him through one last test to see if he is ready to hit the streets as Robin. It also leads very nicely into the next story.

Batgirl/Robin: Year One

This is actually two stories collected into one trade, with Robin's set first. It chronicles his first year as Robin after running The Gauntlet. Big themes you'll see are Dick and Bruce having a rocky start, and Dick balancing life as a normal kid with life as a vigilante. Alfred narrates, and offers a lot of introspection on whether being Robin is really good for Dick. Batgirl's story takes place next, and while Babs is the main character, Robin plays a major part in getting Bruce to accept her into their war on crime.

Teen Titans: Year One

This is the story of the first time the Titans met and teamed up, and shows their growing pains. It illustrates what each member brings to the table, shows the difference in their relationships to their mentors, and shows the difference between Robin with Batman and Robin with the Titans. Bruce comes off a little harsh in this one, which some might find off-putting, but I think it makes sense for his character. He's protective, and not particularly good at communicating.

The New Teen Titans

This is the oldest book on the list, and a classic. If you're fond of the 2003 Teen Titans cartoon, this comic was the blueprint for it. It tells the story of the reformed team when they're all about 19 years old. At this point, Dick has dropped out of college and is at odds with Batman. His leadership of the Titans provides him with even more opportunities for growth and independence, and eventually he sheds the identity of Robin to become Nightwing, in The Judas Contract (about 40 issues in). You can stop reading after The Judas Contract if you just want to see Dick's last days as Robin and transition to Nightwing.

Extras if you want more:

Lost Carnival: A Dick Grayson Graphic Novel

This is a nice young adult graphic novel that tells a story about Dick when he was still in the circus. The art is phenomenal, and this story shows that Dick already had a lot of the foundations of Robin, and Nightwing, before ever having met Bruce. His parents are actual characters too, which is nice. Dick is slightly older in this than he normally is before his parents die, and it isn't really canon, but it is good.

Robin & Batman

This three issue series is essentially a different take on Robin's first year. It could or couldn't be canon, it's a little vague. Some readers will be turned off by how militaristic Bruce is, and how angry Dick is. However, I think these are both accurate representations of how they would have acted in their earliest days as a team. Bruce wants to be a good mentor, but doesn't know how yet, and Dick is still grieving the loss of his parents. The art is also phenomenal.

Year One: Batman/Scarecrow

This story takes place during Bruce and Dick's early days, but they are a well-oiled team by this point. It chronicles their first encounter with Scarecrow, and has a lot of cute moments between Bruce and Dick. Not required reading, but absolutely a fun one.

Batman One Bad Day: Mr. Freeeze #1

This is the most recent comic on the list, and a very interesting issue. It showcases an encounter between Batman & Robin and Mister Freeze during Robin's early days. It isn't their first time meeting, but Robin is young during this story. It's set around Christmas, and is a wonderful character study of not just Freeze, but also the difference between Robin and Batman, and how Robin brings light to Batman's mission.

Batman/Superman: World's Finest #6

This is a single issue of Mark Waid and Dan Mora's wonderful 2022 series, that focuses heavily on Robin. Technically it picks up where the previous five issues had left off, but all you need to know is that Robin has been lost in time and Batman and Superman have to find him. It's a great showcase of Dick's skills as an older Robin, and features beautiful art by Travis Moore, using Mora's amazing Robin redesign. Fans of Dick's time in the circus should especially check this out.

Robin: The Bronze Age Omnibus

This will likely be the least approachable for some readers, simply due to its age. The Bronze Age omnibus contains a selection of Dick's stories as Robin from the 1970s, while he was in college. It is a product of its time, in that Dick's college experience is VERY 1970s, and concerned with the issues of the time. I think it's a wonderful lead-up to The New Teen Titans, showing Dick striking out on his own as an adult crimefighter, over ten years before Nightwing was even conceptualized.

For those wishing for even more Robin content, I would point you in the direction of the Batman Golden and Silver Age omnibuses, the World's Finest Silver Age omnibuses, and the Teen Titans Silver Age Omnibuses.

I hope you found this list helpful, and I will begin working on a Nightwing reading guide soon.

like not to get overly personal, but i did find the ascention ending very powerful and satisfying, as someone with an extensive history of sexual abuse

this is a bit more of a personal reflection than of an actual analysis of character regarding the ascention ending but it does mean a lot to me on an emotional level. and please, this is all my subjective thoughts, this read is deeply personal, and depending on your veiw, canon divergent. if you veiw the ascention ending as horrible and icky and abusive, that is a fair read. i understand why you feel that way. that is personal to you.

i know the standard read for astarion is that he is sex repulsed due to his trauma. if that is what resonates with you, i am glad you can find solace in that narritive.

for me, i am hypersexual in response to my past. so that has heavily influenced my read (as an aside hypersexuality and sex repulsion can often go hand in hand, but it seems the signs of astarion's hypersexuality are often ignored in favor of his sex repulsion, so i will be doing much of the same here.)

i do think astarion is hypersexual, using his sex appeal to secure some kind of a relationship, only finding value in his sex appeal, ect ect, all very relatable experiences.

playing through his romance, what stuck out to me most was not his lack of or disgust for sexual desire, but a deep sense of feeling loss in the wake of his impending freedom. if you are fortunate enough to escape abusive circumstances, you are probably familiar with the feeling of a lack of direction in what comes next. his diffuculty in making personal choices.

when it comes to either ending, keeping in mind the theme of choice, you either

a) trust him, and let him male the choice

or

b) make the choice for him, and he trusts you

this is obviously the simplest possible way to put it. 7000 unlives are on the line, and astarion's past is clouding his judgement. the ascention ending is dark, extremely so, epecially taking into consideration astarion's emotional state after word. (here's a post i made on that)

his newfound power simply has the side affect of perpetual sensory overload, causing astarion's emotional states to become more exaggerated.

and this is where i'm going with the hypersexuality thing. darker sexual fantasies can be a way to exersise control over previous traumatic events. as person who struggled with similar things, seeing astarion own those feelings was cathartic. he isnt without desire, his desires now are so painfully clear. though he's manic, he remains tender in the turning scene, tav's comfort in the situation is important ("please be gentle" vs "let it hurt"). he's indulging his darker impulses while maintaining a healthy relationship with it.

in another post i talked about the omission of certain lines not changing if astarion was ascended or not. on a meta level it probably just wasn't possible due to cost or time crunch, but on a textual level you get the experience of astarion showing growth in relation to sex. he has the same reaction to the drow prostitutes, learning what he does and does not want from sex. he has the same reaction if tav gives their body to haarlep, telling them they shouldn't have to "put up" with it. he's mad with power and totally possesive, but he's still making personal progress. it is oddly dissonant, perhaps even a flaw, but it gives the supposedly inhumane ascended!astarion a very human representation.

the ascention ending is a vicerally selfish ending, but in a fantasy it is nice to indulge that.

Hey so I'm interested in writing for bartkon week, but I like doing frankly excessive research on characters before I try writing them...and honestly I don't really want to read all of SB94, impulse and YJ just to get a handle on what I'm doing, that's a lot even for me. I know some general stuff about the both of them, but not to the point where I'm like "Ah yes, I understand the soul of the matter" So I was wondering if there were like any specific arcs or points of characterization that I could read through to get the dynamic right?

shfkjdsfd ngl, I'm the worst person to ask bc my romance with BartKon didn't even start with BartKon....... it started with Clark/Bart from Smallville 😭😭😭 I'm exceptionally weak for Kryptonian/Speedster romances, but whereas Clark/Bart was the gateway, Bart/Kon is where my heart resides. And I don't ship any other Kryptonians with Speedster. Literally just Clart from Smallville and BartKon from the comics. Just giving you context so you don't think I'm some subject matter expert with a phd in BartKononomics ...... I am just a lady in her thirties who has carboard boxes full of sb/imp/yj singles cuz Clart made her Feel Things when she was a kid and she decided to Do Something about it (aka read comics).

BUT TO YOUR QUESTIONS!

If you want a high level overview of the ship, @radioactive-earthshine's KonBart Manifesto is a great place to start. It has the ship's Best Highlights, and really sums up why there is a small but dedicated fanbase to it. Dedicated enough that I broke my near-ten year cold turkey of mainline DC comics because my main man Bendis put BartKon back on the map while I was living my life blissfully unaware that DC had even hired Bendis to begin with and that the Diamond distro monopoly died. I was shocked. Still am. Two things I never thought would happen in my lifetime.

Now to understand the soul of Bart and Kon.... you're gonna have to look at that things that don't really have Bart and Kon on the same page. Part of the reason why BartKon Speaks to Me is because their relationship progression over the year directly ties back to their individual growth as characters.

So reading material 1: In Impulse, Bart starts off as the speedster equivalent of a feral bobcat, but slowly progresses into an empathetic, understanding, and an overall Good Man. Much of his story deals with the harsh realities of simply growing up different. Running theme of Imp fandom is that Mark Waid created and wrote an autist with ADHD without meaning too, and by Allah he sure did. It's fascinating because Bart harbors both grief and rage due to his predicaments, and the adults in his life are incredibly unkind (even if they are well-meaning), so Impulse has always been, in my understanding, the slice-of-life that really helps Bart to come of age into a Man and a Great Hero. You don't have to read the whole series, but if you can read at least the first twenty or so issues, you'll find yourself rooting for the little man and see how he shines in terms of empathy, understanding, love, and dealing with unresolved rage/grief/loss.

Reading material 2: Superboy is a trick and a half because it deals with issues of child neglect, grooming, the allegory of child star exploitation, and so on and so forth. The BartKon implications are There, but the reason why Superboy is incredibly important is because Superboy as a character is more than just his parentage. Contrary to popular belief, Geoff is NOT the main man in this story. Reading even just the first twenty issues of Superboy will show you Kon was failed by most of the adults in his life, and Superman is NOT his villain. Or the root of his daddy issues. Bro didn't even have a name until much later. If you wanna know who Superboy REALLY was before the Geoffian Era, you can read the first twenty odd issues. If you wanna go earlier, you could read his parts in Reign of the Supermen, just to get an understanding as to why he HAD to be the way he was during this time.

Reading material 3: I do not recommend reading all of YJ 98 for the BartKon bc YJ 98 is hijinks fun. It's GREAT reading for absurdist and comical situations, but only really works with context from Impulse and Superboy to get to the BartKon heart of it all. Not to say YJ 98 wouldn't give you the BartKon goodness, it sure does, but the soul doesn't come together if you don't get how Bart evolved in Impulse and how terribly Kon was treated in Superboy. You can read really anything in YJ to have fun with the group, but if you wanna fast track, you can read the last twenty or so issues and Titans/Young Justice Graduation Day.

Reading material 4: The Geoffian era..... I wouldn't wish Teen Titans 2003 on my worse enemy. Funniest thing is that at the time, I was just starting to watch Smallville. In love with Smallville!Bart already, I embarked on my Superboy journey.... had mixed feelings, so I stuck mostly to the 90's content. Ended up reading impulse a decade later, but long story short.... the Geoffian Era set a Tone and Direction for Bart and Kon that never sit well with me. There IS story there, if you are interested in reading about Daddy Issues, Masculine Identity, and a shit ton of other stuff that really pulled Kon away from his roots and made him more of a Emotionally Tortured Super. If that floats your boat, you may enjoy it. You can read a handful of comics from this era. Just know that in the end, he suffers anyway, just in an ugly ass outfit. The only real bit I'd recommend forreal forreal is when he dies. His whole arc in the Geoffian Era really just tells us he doesn't know how to live and thus he... dies. It's sad bc the writers before him despite having tortured Kon relentlessly, never really made him so...... hopeless.

Reading material 5: Flashpoint.... Bart dies, but I personally did not feel much for him because Bart didn't feel like Bart in the end, but yeah, he kicks it. This is where I pretty much kicked DC to the side too, minus the mistake that was reading RHATO. You can read Kid Flash Lost if you'd like.

Do not read New 52.

Reading material 6:.... my main man Bendis. No you do not have to read all of YJ 2019, but BartKon reunion and then Bart's explication as to WHY he found Kon is all you need. Bendis, despite the hate he gets, actually shows that he has great love for the YJ line. BartKon especially. The bald headed demon proves yet again that he care not for the world, only for his faves, which I'm cool with bc BartKon are me faves.

I know. A lotta reading. Those numbers I gave you.... you can also just read half of what I said kjdhgkhd Googling also helps! I know it's not always feasible to read so many comics, and I'mma be real, the Tone for many may not entice you either. Impulse feels like a slice-of-life to me, but YJ's an absurd shounen, and Superboy is the saddest book you'll ever read that is absolutely hilarious when you can accept that 90's writers just Did Not Care. Geoff hates Bart and Kon. New 52 is not real. Bendis actually loves BartKon a LOT, so you can just read their tidbits and find peace in the fact that Bart Allen, the loneliest fucker in existence, found his Kon El, who is the saddest fucker in existence. Something something, I will find you even if God wants us both dead. And God (editorial) did. I don't know how Bendis pulled the shit that he did, but he put a decades old rarepair back on the map after the Geoffian Reign. And Geoff hates Bart and Kon.

Happy Reading/Googling/Researching!!!!

"Hunter should have gotten to kill Belos" I get the instinct and I think his desire for revenge was an important part of his development this season (learning that the things that happened to him were wrong and he's allowed to feel angry about it and want justice) but ultimately for the future showed that Hunter isn't happy when he's seeking revenge. He's angry, unlike himself, so wrapped up in his own grief that he can't reach out to the people he loves. Hunter never needed revenge. He needed a support system, closure for his loss and the promise of people who love him and a future where he can finally be who he wants.

His powers provide closure for his loss (flapjacks sacrifice wasn't for nothing, he'll never forget his first friend who's now helping him out from beyond the grave, always a permanent part of him), has a support system (first the hexsquad/Nocedas and then Darius and Eberwolf) and knows what he wants (his speech at the end of thanks to them). Whatever happened with Hunter after the scene in the detention pit where he's finally able to admit how much his friends mean to him is inconsequential, because that was the crux of his arc.

Hunter doesn't like revenge. I'm not even sure Caleb and the golden guards were ever anything other than a figment of Belos' imagination (although I love the golden ghosts concept for fanfic purposes) meant to represent the one thing that could make Belos feel guilty. And then he bullheadely ignores them, because he refuses to ever admit that he could be wrong.

This show has also rarely (if ever) championed revenge. It just hasn't. On a petty scale, yes, characters are allowed to get intentional and unintentional revenge. But this show is fundamentally very big on restorative justice and sticks to it's guns on this theme even when traditional western storytelling would deem a punitive approach the most satisfying. Because punitive approaches historically are bad at inducing change and growth (which is what this whole series is about)

It would've been a whole other can of worms to have the extremely kind boy that is hunter succumb to his most belos-like instincts (bc Belos thinks he's getting revenge for himself and for (his own, twisted idea of-) his brother for most of the series, I think) in the final minutes of his arc that's otherwise been dedicated to healing.

I get it. It's one of those things where, because of human nature (but also western nurture) and the general trends of stories like these. We want Hunter to kill him. But I honestly don't think that was ever on the cards, no matter what I may have wanted/thought before. It makes sense in retrospect to me. And it feels like this was always what the crew had planned.

Again, you don't have to like it. It's okay to like vengeance in your stories! I love a good old fashioned vengeance storyline! (though I think it's wrong to say that toh is a story that, based on what we knew before WaD aired, promoted or venerated vengeance). But I don't think it's fair to act like the writers are unintelligent for this decision. They're not. They're just coming at the scene with different priorities

One thing I've noticed is how some people are always villainizing and demonizing Runaan and Ethari, seeing them as nothing but the worst, most awful parents in the show. Saying things like "they don't deserve Rayla or her forgiveness at all." They don't love her or even care about her at all," "she was never important to them." "She deserves better parents who actually love, appreciate, and defend her." While I admit, in all honesty, that I've enormously condemned both of them for the choices and decisions, how they contributed to Rayla's losses, sorrow, and heartbreak, but I feel that it's way too extreme and way too harsh.

But I also believe that they've been obviously hurting and suffocating from the brutality of their horrendous punishments for their own failures. Because I feel that Rayla will be incredibly unforgiving towards them because at some point, she'll have to deeply process and sincerely express all her harsh, angering, heavy, resentful feelings towards Runaan and Ethari. Maybe during these two years, Rayla has probably convinced herself so deeply that they never loved her nor cared about her, and even if they're effortlessly apologizing to her, pouring all heart and soul into every single apology, her mind tells her things such as "disregard every apology they made, do not believe them nor trust them." "Why should she believe them if they never believed her?" Something along those lines.

Just wanted to give my own speculation because, yes, Rayla's had her mistakes, but Runaan and Ethari had even greater failures and bigger wrongdoings. Because I know that the show will address Rayla, not only confronting her own true sentiments towards both of them, but Ethari and Runaan being hit where it really hurts them them the most: with the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

This is in no way me hating on them. I adore Runaan and Ethari, but I don't want the show to let them off the hook for how they technically abandoned Rayla because they need to be held accountable and responsible for what happened.

In your honest perspective, BTQ, how do they even go about reconciling and repairing their relationship with Rayla? I genuinely hope that there can love, acceptance and forgiveness again, especially from Rayla. It'll be very hard for her, but I believe all 3 of them will overcome this. I have faith in them.

Apologies for the long post. Much love, fam.

Hey, thanks for your honest thoughts. I think we might have different perspectives on the idea of atonement/forgiveness/redemption, but that's okay. Since you were kind enough to share your thoughts, let me return the favor!

At the heart of my perspective is simply this: the more catholic we are in trying to shame and guilt people into admitting they messed up, the less likely they are to ever admit out loud that they were wrong (even if they want to). And that fear of rejection, of being shamed, keeps real change from getting started.

We get to be mad when we are hurt. We get to advocate for ourselves, to defend ourselves. And Rayla might have some feelings about her dads that she wants to yell at them about. But maybe she doesn't. Maybe she's not even looking back, or maybe it's been resolved and we'll see it in a flashback with Ethari or something. We don't know yet. She hasn't really spoken on the topic, and it might take her a while to do so.

The issue of intent should matter, too. TDP is a hopepunk story, and that carries certain themes that I'd love for more people to look for and enjoy:

resilience - as forgiveness or growth

imperfection - familiar to everyone, messier options and solutions

earnestness - folks are just folks, no evil masterminds

good and evil - not a state of mind but a series of choices

community - everyone still cares for their group/others

As we wait for S5 (and the rest of the series) to drop, it feels a little risky to me to pin so much personal expectation on it to deliver extremely specific emotional rewards like this. S5 was written, gosh, maybe a couple years ago? I don't know exactly, but it's been a minute, and we just got S4 - and its expectations - last November. Animation is a really really long process!

I'm content to wait and see what happens next. TDP doesn't work for me, and they don't have to do what I want, and it's too late to make any S5 changes now anyway, so I will take what I am given and appreciate it for the story it is, actually. I love this show, and I respect the people who work hard to create it. And there's really nothing more I feel I need to add to that, so that's where I'll stop.

Okay, I lied, one last thought! Bahaha.

Rayla already knows what it's like to be mistrusted by her dads. She did get angry at them about it.

For about 10 seconds.

Ethari confessed, and Rayla forgave them and had tea with them, snuggled up safe and sound, at home where she was loved.

It wasn't a big deal. They talked about it, they were honest, and they found a way to move forward together as a family. It took 3 panels - a single page - of BH to address it.

If there is a next time for confrontation, it will probably go at least a bit differently, if for no other reason than Rayla is several years older and has matured as a person. But this is her precedent for conflict resolution with Runaan and Ethari, specifically.

If everyone wants it to work out, it'll probably work out. If someone wants to be Right, or to be a Victim, or to make Drama, then that'll probably happen instead. But I covered my expectations up in the hopepunk stuff, so that's what I'm expecting from anything similar: everyone will at least want to resolve their grievances.

This is just going to come off as me hating on Sansa, but if anything makes me believe that George would kill her off it would be the fact that she's had such little growth over the series in terms of actually learning/being taught politics. I always see people greatly overestimating her intelligence and accomplishments so it's hard for me to believe she's meant to outsmart LF. We only have two books left and she isn't even questioning him yet. She definitely could get that development but it would be weird for George to wait until the last two books to do so. I think it's more likely she has a part in it instead of being the sole reason. Her story has always seemed more about showing others plotting and adding suspense because she doesn't fully grasp the situation rather than being actively involved herself. That's just my thoughts on it though.

While GRRM has talked extensively of the lack of the 5 year gap with respect to Arya and Bran (He mentions in interviews of specifically wanting an older Arya and Bran Stark) IMO, the character most affected by the loss of the gap is Sansa, who really needed that time jump and off page development because the author has not written in an organic growth over several books for her.

Which is why I felt that even the Alayne TWoW sample chapter comes off as sudden, jarring and out of place with a newly confident Sansa flirting with Harry and talking about how much she loved the Vale and felt alive there. Seems to be a bit of a disconnect with how her last AFfC chapter ended. Still, I do think that with two books left, Sansa will start quickly connecting the dots - she has to for GRRM to wind up the LF character and plots there.

I do think GRRM intends for Sansa to take LF down, even if she ends up dying in the attempt. Sansa's been closely connected to the character since book one, there's the parallels between Sansa and Lysa (mirroring the parallels between Arya and Lyanna), the Sansa/Catelyn connection wrt LF and LF being one of the important human antagonists of the series. Sansa is an important POV character that keeps the reader connected to Littlefinger until GRRM decides that his story is done.

Which is why I am in the minority of opinion that it's Sansa and Ladystoneheart that are going to end up meeting/interacting through the Riverlands/Littlefinger story, first because I really, really want Catelyn/LSH to have a role in taking down LF (Revenge is a dish best served cold and I love vengeance!) and secondly in interviews GRRM has hinted at there being some kind conflict brewing between Emmon Frey and Littlefinger over being Lord of the Riverlands.

The Vale is closer to the Riverlands than Braavos and Arya in the Riverlands would be a retread of her ACoK/ASoS plot when she has more plot important things to do in the North - IMO. I am listening to AFfC right now and even Brienne's story there already feels like a retread of Arya's narrative themes in the Riverlands.

That said, if Arya does end up going back to the Riverlands for whatever reason - for ex. when she is helping/leading Northerners fleeing the Others or to figure out the food situation for the starving North - it could also be here where she and Sansa settle their differences after a reunion with LSH.

What do you mean, it's an Indy line?! 🤩 (you know I love that blorbo too, I forever will, but don’t answer this if you don’t want to of course!)

my Indy nerd ass opening this ask like

Put most of it under a cut cause, well, it got stupid long and if no one actually reads this I won't blame them lol - My blog tittle is 'fortune & glory' which is a line from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. I think it's maybe one of my favorite lines in the series because it, to me, displays how Indy wants to be seen, and shows the growth he goes through.

I think a lot of people forget/don't know that Temple of Doom is actually a prequel to Raiders. So when they watch it they go, "Oh wow this scoundrel never learned a thing opening God's Most Special Box and watching all those Nazi faces melt and he just left Marion again! What a cad!" But that's not true at all cause, in terms of story time-line, none of that has happened to him yet! So when Temple of Doom starts he is a brash, cocky, over-confident man.

He tells Short-Round at one point early in the film that everything they're doing, everything he's about, is for 'fortune & glory'. I think even his relationship with Short-Round early on is a great plot device demonstrating how much he changes as a result of the things that happen in the film. At first he seems kinda nonchalant, 'idk I picked this kid up, it's whatever, he's sorta useful' to literally risking his life to save him because he realizes they are important to one another.

But that's very much how he wants to be perceived. A swashbuckling, bravado machine, unburdened by the frivolity of emotional baggage. Which becomes even more poignant when we learn that his Mom left him at an early age and his Dad was largely uninterested in having a child. You could also argue that he is in search of his 'fortune & glory' to get the attention of his Dad.

But, by the end of the film, after he's gone through unimaginable horrors, he is changed. He has learned that there is far more to life, and to the field in which he has decided to dedicate his life, than his precious 'fortune & glory', and ultimately becomes a better person and I think establishes more of the growth we see from Indy in the other films. We still see him put on his mask of 'fortune & glory' but ultimately we know more and more that it's a mask and one he isn't so good at hiding behind anymore.

I feel like they did a very good job carrying that narrative through all the films, even DoD, which sees Indy again shifting into the swashbuckling, bravado machine but we know he is processing the loss of his son and ultimately still Loves Marion deeply and it hurts him to be separated from her.

just to add: There are, of course, criticisms to made about Temple of Doom, both culturally and thematically. A lot of people are put off by how 'dark' the subject matter is, and it ultimately did help usher in the PG-13 rating. I would not ever try to defend some the cultural aspects of the film, but thematically it's also interesting to know Spielberg went into making ToD after an accident on the set of Twilight Zone killed two people, including a child. (I have not listed their names here as I do not wish to have this come up if people serarch for them on this site as it would be disrespectful imo because this post in general is not about them) The themes we see in ToD about children being endangered and then, ultimately rescued, becomes a little clearer I think when viewed through that lens.

okay i just rewatched the last two episodes of utena, which i think helped me collect my thoughts like... a tiny bit.

anyways i just wanted to get my feelings down really quick, aiming for the broad strokes with my impressions on things, blah blah blah. so big warning for utena spoilers under the cut

okay god so. first of all i loved it. extremely fun show. really cool and interesting. it's got that Older Anime Swag i can't get enough of. easily one of those things where, if i'd watched it when i was younger, it would've seriously restructured my entire brain chemistry. also probably would've realized i liked girls way sooner

there is. A LOT. worth talking about. i don't want to make a massively long post though. trying to be like, as straightforward as possible. not just because otherwise i'd talk forever, but also i honestly don't wanna get into the guts of things TOO much, when im still processing my personal feelings on it, plus i still gotta watch the movie

so i'll just say for now, to me, utena reads as like... something similar to a coming of age story, but not exactly. like a weird divergent cousin. i feel like a lot has to do with themes of like, trauma and how that stunts growth, one's inability to grow up beyond things that happened in our pasts, like death or failure, or even just the fact that you were at some point changed... or actualized, like, made to become aware of reality.

even moreso than growing up or adulthood, the idea of the Revolutionizing the World, which i think v deliberately at first sounds like 'change the world (in a broad, conceptual sense)' but this is something that is like... unattainable. impossible. eternity and miracles. perpetual purity, comfort, safety, a fantasy. even with the prince's sword, akio cannot open the gate. he cannot attain the power of eternity or miracles to become what he once was

if it cannot break its egg shell, a chick will die without being born. we are the chick and the world is our egg. if we cannot break the egg, we will die without being born. smash the world's shell for the revolution of the world.

a lot of my intense interest and confusion over the last third of the show was... character motivations. what did akio want? what was his goal in trying to bring utena to him, but to undermine her desire to become a prince? he wanted the sword of a prince but not for utena to wield it. he said something in the end about... how the power of revolution was too much for her, how it was up to him to decide what to do with it.

and a lot said about how she cant accomplish her goals 'because she's a girl'. she can't hold the sword, can't become the prince, can't save anthy, because she's a girl. and im not saying that's NOT a gender thing, like... obviously, in part. but i fought against that reading a little and came to the conclusion that it's not about being like, a girl as in female. it's about being a girl as in child, or rather, the same girl who wanted to stay inside that coffin, and who arguably never left.

that's a big theme brought up again and again, especially later on... living death, to remain in your coffin: the shell that is your world, and your resting place if you are never able to leave it. cowed by the truth of reality, of death and tragedy and loss and pain. so you stay inside the shell and are never really born. everyone at the school is inside of a coffin, both of their own making and in the grander scheme, because for them, the school is their world

and that's why it's so important that anthy leaves. akio is fighting to open the rose gate, to attain the power of revolution, but i don't think he was able to get it because revolution isn't really what he wants. he wants to go back, to live in the past, to be what he was instead of what he's chosen to be, which he can't fully confront, and so he is stuck and stays in his coffin, the planetarium, the school. living through this fantasy story over and over again but unable to ever break free because of the simple fact that like. he cannot see beyond himself, i guess. as opposed to anthy, who recognized that utena did achieve the power for revolution... by helping anthy out of her coffin. allowing anthy to finally be born...

that's a thing too... i think one of the main things that's really subtly brought up throughout the anime, is this idea of selfishness and being unable to see beyond your own perspective and vision and expectations of the world. and that means an inability to see others clearly. that was a huge thing for anthy and utena near the end. that scene where utena is holding anthy on the roof... and they confess to each other their true feelings (?); i don't know if that was dream or reality, but i believe it was the truth. anthy taking advantage of utena's inability to see beyond herself in order to lead her to this point, and utena's inability to recognize anthy's pain (or even, rather, her ability TO forget anthy's pain) for what it was, and that she really needed from her friend.

there's a weird element i haven't wrapped my head around yet... to do with anthy and her being a witch, the swords she takes for her brother/prince, and his willingness to say that it's what she chose for herself, so she (must?) enjoy being the witch who suffers. maybe it's part of his inability to grow... that he can't take responsibility for anthy's pain (and death?) entirely, though her sacrifice was for him... and it could be part of what had akio lose sight of things

the gate doesn't open for akio, who does not truly crave revolution, only a power he no longer has, and in his way he's gotten so muddled and has grown so (unconsciously?) defeatist about things that he's lost sight of what might have been driving him in the first place - love and a desire to save his sister

but utena, who sees anthy as a child and instantly feels all of her pain, recognizes it, maybe even as her own pain reflected back, weeps for a witch and the door opens for her. and the door is not a gate to power, it's a coffin, with anthy lying inside... waiting to die, or waiting for nothing at all... but-

oh ohhh oh... it's like... akio says something about like, without power you always have to depend on someone else? you can't do anything on your own? maybe a resentment for his tie to anthy even. but like. anthy could never break out of her shell without utena opening the coffin for her, and bringing in the light to help her see the sort of world that waited beyond. she says something like 'don't be afraid of this world where we can meet'...

in an attempt to wrap up, i guess for now i might say... utena is trying to say something about connecting to others, being open to life, but accepting that it includes pain and tragedy and loss. there are things that can and will prevent you from ever truly like... evolving beyond your first stage. becoming your true, entire self. alive, "adult", willing and able to confront the world (beyond your world)...

mm... yeah. i think writing this out has helped me figure out things just a bit. and obviously this is my own interpretation of things, but for now it's what feels right for me, alongside all the meanderings and musings.

gwahhg... movie time i guess. aaa!!!!!

A Court of Fey and Flowers rant-MAJOR spoilers for the ending

Is Rue a bad guy??

To clarify, I don’t mean Bad Guy as in villain, I don’t even mean bad guy as in malicious. I mean bad guy as in selfish and delusional to the point of tearing apart courts and almost restarting wars to suit their own twisted views of how the world should be.

Before I dig into this: I like Rue, I like Oscar, I think this is an interesting character. And I know Rue is a fey and, like the rest of the cast, should be expected to behave in a way that is selfish and self-serving in a way that humans wouldn’t be able to pull off. There’s a certain carelessness for others that fey embody, an indifference for life and limb even within one’s own court. We’ve seen that since the start. But MAN does Rue take it to the extreme here!

Delosso de la Rue got the Court of Wonder to nix the engagement between the Goblin Princess and Prince Apollo. Why? Because they didn’t love each other.

A huge theme for this series has been how magic and love are important and intertwined. I know this is in part because the players are human and can’t pull off the true depths of fey indifference for their fellow being, but also because the fey they’re playing are deliberately different. BINX and her court are closely tied to the material plane and know the consequences of not allowing exchange between the mortal and fey realms. Andhera grew up desperately lonely and turned his desire for friendship and love into a weapon. The Lords of the Wing are ride or die for each other in a way most would find alien, especially given how easily their infatuations with others can wax and wane in an instant. Captain Hob embodies the devotion a person can have for a group, and the desire to protect and uphold that group. And Rue...

*sigh*

Delosso de la Rue is very much a neglected child, someone whose position in the family has always been tenuous. They mask themselves and hide their true nature because they fear the backlash of showing their true colors, the loss of status that would come if their nontraditional beauty was revealed. It’s only their millennia of work and reputation, their bonds between the various courts, that keep them from being shunned when they reveal their owlbear form. It’s this work that has prevented them from pursuing a romantic relationship, and it’s the reveal that allows them to try to start a romance with Hob. But it’s also where things go off the rails.

Rue doesn’t know how to love. Rue has built up an image in their head of a romantic relationship, and how a romantic partner, a spouse, should be the missing puzzle piece that completes a person, a soulmate, their one true love. This is a fairly common problem, but one most people grow out of with time and experience in real relationships. But Rue hasn’t had that chance. Rue has kept hidden, deliberately denied themself opportunities to learn and grow, and kept the idea of ~LOVE~ on a pedestal.

This is understandable, and could be easily forgiven. Unfortunately, since this is a show, a D&D campaign with a schedule to follow and beats to hit, their personal growth and relationship trajectories are all on a deadline.

I desperately wish the season were longer so the players could fully explore their relationships and the consequences of their actions. As it was, they finished the plot portion of the adventure and then just kind of slapped a Happily Ever After sticker on it with some speeches about Friendship and Love and Home. And if it couldn’t be longer, I wish the players could be braver about NOT letting things be wrapped up in a pretty bow where everyone goes home friends.

As it was, Rue declared themselves to be the architect of Hob’s humiliation, the destruction of everything he fought for. A war was fought, and won, and that win provided leverage for the betterment of the entire Goblin Court, a chance to bring the Court of Wonder down from their utter domination and force them to negotiate as equals. A marriage pact to guarantee a place for Goblins in the Court of Wonder, so they couldn’t be brushed off and ignored. Many many MANY such pacts and marriages have been made before this, and many more will be made in the future! You can see them being negotiated between the Lords of the Wing, the Goblin Court, Hob himself!

And yet, it was this ONE marriage that Rue saw fit to annul. This one massive peace treaty sealed with a ring that they decided to cockblock. They had no skin in the game. They weren’t friends with either party. They weren’t even closely aligned with the Court of Wonder. And yet! They stepped in, threw their weight around, and SOMEHOW got the whole thing called off. (And oh I wonder how they managed that, with the Court of Wonder at a disadvantage and the entire court not wanting the treaty, how did Rue of all people have the sway to demand an end to it? How did they have the power to say no when an army could not?)

If this was a pattern that Oscar had established I could live with it. Revel in it, even! Rue the saboteur, Rue the wedding assassin, Rue who manipulated courts and families and alliances from behind their facade as the number one event planner, all to provide unhappy couples with a chance at freedom. But no. It’s just this. One. Marriage. This one time they pick and prod and decide that this must not be, because Princess Gribalba and Prince Apollo

Do!

Not!

LOVE each other!

Truly, this one bond must not be forged! Truly, this one union above all others must not come to pass! Truly, this loveless relationship is the only one that matters enough to require intervention!

Rue, you absolute child. You brainless infant, suckling on the teat of fairy tales, being spoon-fed candy pink hearts labelled LOVE, digesting the saccharine swill and crapping out your own version of Happily Ever After to force down other people’s throats. You don’t know what love is! You feel it by its absence in your own life, but you do not possess the emotional intelligence to learn the shape of it, to measure its depth. You simply see the same void in others, and instead of letting them try to grow together to fill the empty places, you tear them apart and declare the endeavor doomed before it begins.

Which is my main nitpick: political marriages, by nature, tend to all start out loveless. This doesn’t mean they will stay that way! Getting to know one another, finding common ground, building a life and a home and family together is the desired outcome. As audiences we tend to focus on the initial meetings (and titillating, sexually fraught wedding nights,) but there’s a whole lifetime after the honeymoon.

To decide that the relationship is doomed because the parties who step into it do it for reasons that aren’t True Love is such an immature and naive take. For such an immature and naive decision to come from a fey who purportedly has been around for centuries, intelligently and cleverly managing events between every court is just...insane to me. Especially when one of the first things Rue does is challenge TWO people to marry within a week.

Which leads me to my conclusion: Rue acted thoughtlessly and carelessly, out of selfish desire to force their own views of love and marriage onto others, and in the process wrecked the hard work of Captain Hob, whose first love is his Court and his Duty. This was not addressed satisfactorily in the campaign, Oscar and Brennan caved to the internal and external desire for a neat and tidy conclusion with no loose ends, instead of being bold enough to say “Nah, these two have real feelings for each other but need some serious work before they can be happy together” and leaving the campaign with their future a question mark instead of a <3.

Ironically enough, the desire for True Love and Happy Endings prevented both characters from actually getting to achieve those things. And that is a bummer for such a good story.

Can i rq hcs on how kakashi shows his love and how far would he go for his s/o?

How Kakashi Shows His Love

A/N: My first request ☆〜（ゝ。∂）& GN reader

Kakashi would show his love mainly through spending quality time with his s/o.

Going over to his apartment, letting you into his intimate and private space is a huge show of trust.

His apartment is small and bare. It’s a subtle sign that people are not welcome, you can’t have too many people around with one chair! The only time people (his former teammates, Minato and Guy) visited was to get him out of the small box.

He enjoys reading Icha Icha with you either reading beside him or with your head lying on his chest listening to his heartbeat while you nap or watch TV.

Outside of the extremely rare emotionally raw moment when confessing his love or talking about his past, he’s more of a show don’t tell kind of guy. Verbally he likes to tease you all the time, he’s like a kid with a crush pulling pigtails.

He’s a private person with a guarded heart. Even in a stable and healthy relationship, he won’t hold hands in public or openly show affection. Firstly, to protect you. He’s an infamous ninja who has many enemies and he just wants to protect you. Secondly, he is a bit embarrassed, even though the man reads porn in public- a chaste kiss on the cheek will make him blush.

He likes giving you random dog-themed trinkets. No rhyme or reason- one day there is a pug plush (which looks suspiciously like a certain canine summon). Next, it’s dog glitter stickers. Random and a bit chaotic❤️.

Kakashi has lost so many important people in his life, his father, Rin, and Minato just to name a few. He is a man defined by his loss and tragedy; seen by how much time he spends visiting graves. It would take a long LONG time for him to let somebody in. Even as friends (even Guy his best friend had to borderline stalk Kakashi into accepting challenges). Becoming romantically involved would take years of patience, trust, and a lot of growth and healing on Kakashi’s part (basically a slow burn, hurt/comfort, 100k+).

It’s safe to say that if you are with him, he’s not going to lose you. It would destroy him and might lead to him seriously considering going down his father’s route.

He will defend you until his last breath and if you’re not a shinobi, good luck with your new self-defense training! As much as he wants to, he can’t be there 24/7 to protect you, he has missions to go on.

He’ll ask his friends to train with you and to keep an eye on you if he is out of the village. Guy will challenge you to various things, Asuma will offer to play shogi with you and Kurenai will take you out for tea. His friends will become yours too.

You mean the world to him! 🥰

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Understanding Scorpio Energy

Scorpio season is the perfect time to delve into the energy of this intense and transformative sign. Understanding this energy is particularly important if you have strong Scorpio, Pluto, or 8th house signatures in your chart, or if you are experiencing a transit involving any of these areas of your chart. 

At their core, Scorpio and its ruling planet, Pluto, are about the evolution of the soul. This evolution requires uncovering the shadow aspects of ourselves and bringing them to the light of conscious awareness so that they can be transformed. It is the process of making the unconscious conscious.

As such, Scorpio represents not only the soul’s unconscious desire to evolve, but also the ego’s resistance to that evolution. And this resistance shows up primarily as emotional attachment: attachment to the known and familiar in the form of a person, a belief system, a job, a place, a thing -- anything. The challenge of Scorpio revolves around the two opposing forces of soul evolution and ego attachment. 

This energy often shows up as being “forced” to let go of emotional attachments through painful experiences, such as loss, abandonment, and betrayal. It can be the experience of holding onto something too tightly or too long until it is ripped away by forces beyond our control.

Scorpio is the most intense sign and its themes are no walk in the park. But the beauty of Scorpio is that the soul can evolve faster through it than through any other sign -- it’s just more painful. Luckily, Scorpio is gifted with the tenacity and bravery that’s required for this tough work. 

Scorpio is often thought of as secretive and mysterious because it deals with what is hidden, buried, and suppressed. These are the kinds of things that most people don’t want to look at or talk about, which is why this sign is related to the taboo.

Because Scorpio is all about evolution, it is also associated with insecurity because evolution is, by definition, an insecure process. It is uncomfortable and destabilizing. It requires letting go of control, which Scorpio fears greatly (yet at the same time demands). Some Scorpios can be desperate in their seeking for security (which is why this sign has a reputation for possessiveness and jealousy). But the true security they seek will never be theirs until they learn to let go.

Scorpio has been described as the sign of the spiritual test. It reminds us we cannot reach higher consciousness until we do the hard work of transforming our lower consciousness. This involves going deep within to dig up and look at what we would rather not see, but must. Scorpio will not tolerate “spiritual bypassing.” The legend of the phoenix rising from the ashes of destruction and death, reborn and transformed, has been used to symbolize the highest expression of Scorpio energy. 

The soul needs relationships to evolve, which is why this sign has a lot to do with relationships -- particularly intimate ones, which hold the greatest potential for soul growth. Scorpio desires deep soul union with another. The primary way this sign evolves and becomes more powerful is through merging with others. Scorpio also deals with forces outside the self, which often means other people. Becoming like another via association and/or being infiltrated by another are Scorpionic themes.

The merging nature of this sign makes power dynamics a central theme as well. These dynamics often play out in areas related to sex and money. While Scorpio is associated with the underworld/hell, its opposite sign of Taurus is associated with heaven and the Garden of Eden. As with all opposing signs, both need the other in order to come into balance. Scorpio needs to develop the self-sufficiency of Taurus so that they don’t habitually get lost in someone or something outside themselves. 

As a fixed water sign, the saying “still waters run deep” has been applied to Scorpio. Their emotions run deep and they want to go deep. They cannot be satisfied with the superficial. Their innate drive to delve deep down and pull back the layers is what makes Scorpio well-equipped to do the transformational work that’s required of them (it’s also why this is the sign most associated with psychology). 

The quest of Scorpio has been associated with the myth of Hercules and the nine-headed hydra. Hercules must search for (introspect) and awaken a sleeping hydra (the unconscious shadow side, which would be so much easier to leave alone, undisturbed). The monster is furious to be awoken (the pain and terror that awakening provokes). Hercules attempts to slay the beast by chopping off its heads. But with every head he chops, another two heads sprout up (the many facets of the shadow) and the monster becomes stronger and stronger (we cannot transcend our shadow by fighting against it).

In dismay, Hercules drops to his knees (surrender). Suddenly, a flash of insight dawns upon him (higher guidance) to reach down into the mud underneath the creature, lift it out of its rootedness, and hold it up high in the sunshine (lifting the shadow out of the depths and holding it up to the light of conscious awareness). When he does this, the hydra shrivels up and dies in his hands (the transformation of the shadow). This story is so beautifully symbolic of the Scorpionic quest for inner transformation. It can be said that anyone on the spiritual path is on the journey of Scorpio.

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REVIEW | My Thoughts on Monster (anime)

MENTIONS: monster spoilers, deathnote spoilers

You know how after you finish a really good anime and there is this overwhelming feeling of loss but also satisfaction? That feeling that gnaws at you to keep researching and watch analysis videos of characters and plot? That's exactly how I feel about Monster. It is one of the most well-crafted, well-paced stories I've ever come across, and this is not just across the manga and anime medium, this is across all mediums; books, shows, movies that I've ever come across with. It's one of those stories that if I didn't make a blogpost about it to get my thoughts down, it'll linger in me for longer than considered healthy hahhaha. PLOT I can't even begin to describe just how amazing this plot is. Seemingly unrelated events and arcs slowly intersect with one another until the finale where everything becomes clear on how they relate to one another, what motivates each character and why certain events turned out they way they did. I'm pretty sure I finished MONSTER in five days and at points where the story introduces so many seemingly unrelated plots, I felt emotionally invested and curious to find out how they relate to the bigger picture. MONSTER is amazing in the way that it exceeded my expectations in how they relate and fit into the larger puzzle of the story. Cliffhangers after cliffhangers, so many moving parts, places and events, different timeskips into the past and future, it was laid out in a way that I, who tends to easily tends to get lost in complex plots, was able to, for the most part, keep up with every revelation in the story. That is true mastery, to tell a complex story that can be digested for the larger audience. Yes I admit I did look up some wikis and videos to confirm or search for a more detailed explanation of the plot at times, but I'm so surprised at how well the plot was able to tie loose threads together so perfectly in the end. But also to leave vagueness where it needs to be left to allow the audience to ponder on the larger themes and concepts covered: nihilism vs. love, identity and morality, genocides, brainwashing, humanity etc. How does a story balance resolution and irresolution so perfectly? I can't help but call MONSTER's mangaka Naoki Urasawa a true genius. Also the use of picture books as a story-device adds another layer of dread and horror. Picture books and children represents a sense of innocence so for that to be subverted and used as a way of brainwashing or manipulating children, as well as clues to later on unveil the author, was tastefully done. CHARACTER The feelings I have towards the characters....are inexplicable. There is growth and development for every character, even the ones that only exist for one arc, I couldn't help but empathise and feel sorry for them. Even someone like Eva, I honestly thought she was just gonna be some rich-spoilt nobody but then when Martin died, I couldn't help but hurt with her as she has shown that she now knows what is important to her yet the chance to be happy with Martin unfortunately slips away. The whole arc on Johan manipulating the child Milos and Grimmer finally being able to convince him not to suicide, mannnn the freaking feels. I don't really know how to describe this next point other than that even though the main characters are well-developed, the audience's emotional proximity to them is compromised because they are mainly used as a plot device. I guess in a sense, it could be considered a necessary sacrifice to craft a near-perfect plot.

The plot device that I am talking is that most of the main cast are used as partial foils to various aspects of Johan. Nina, that even though she underwent severe trauma and is considered the other half of Johan, she happily identifies with the name that is given to her by those who love her. She has hope that she will and deserves love while Johan processed his trauma through nihilism and a screwed sense of morality. Dr Tenma believes that all lives are created equal therefore tries his best to save anyone, no matter good or evil and thankfully sticks by that sense of morality until the end while Johan believes that death is the only equality that all humans face. I think because these characters are used plotwise as foils to Johan, it further amplifies his evil but also the tragedy of his character. Hence, I believe this is why out of everyone's favourite characters in Monster, MAL ratings show that Johan wins by a landslide compared to his 'good' counterparts. However, I can't help but wonder that is it due to his nature or nurture that he turned out the way he did even though his foils went through similar traumas? I think when talking about a great anime villain, of course it is inevitable that I end up comparing Light Yagami from Death Note with Johan. Johan, although commits much worse crimes in my opinion compared to Light (I literally felt at Episode 49 that I had lost all sympathy for his character when he catalysed orphans to suicide), by the end, I don't love him, but I feel so incredibly sorry for him. Light and Johan, are products of their environment that led them to a screwed sense of morality but the intent behind their actions are completely different. Light throughout his entire life is showered with praise for his intelligence, good looks by his loving family and friends but then fuelled by his boredom and grandiose sense of self, decides that he can play god. Johan throughout his life, continue to feel a sense of abandonment and lack of belonging and identity. As he is born of an experiment, he felt less than human, he was objectified by those around him. So when his mother and initially his twin sister (whom he considered to be his other half), in his eyes "abandoned" him, he internalises the belief that he needs to erase everyone that he has ever come in contact with and now that I think about it, he catalysed the children perhaps in his mind to bring equality to their fate and in a way, "end their suffering of being alive and abandoned". I guess in simpler terms, he is only repeating the cycles of trauma he experienced as a kid as E.g. one person with terrible parents continue to choose terrible partners. While Light craved attention born from his pride, Johan just wants everyone that he has ever involved with to die at the hands of their own evil and destruction. Basically he is saying "Ok you've abandon me? That's what you've chosen? Well then fine, I'll erase you in order to erase me if that's your wish".

In my opinion, Johan is a scarier villain but a much more tragic one at that, he has never known love and even when presented with love, he cannot process or express it. Anyone that shows him love, his foster parents, he doesn't know how to react to love therefore kills them, thinking that he's just protecting himself and his twin sister from another repetition of their mother abandoning him. His calm demeanour and expressions of emotions are completely void of any warmth, as he has never understood or internalised the warmth provided to him since the orphanage and the parental abandonment.

Light kills and feels the thrill of the kills, while Johan kills and feels nothing.

His screwed morality that he follows is simply what he believes to be the truth rather than something driven by anger or sorrow. Thinking about Johan makes me feel sad, this emotionless monster was born and created and has never known simple human emotions. This is why I guess out of all of the foils, Grimmer is the most interesting one. Even though both Grimmer and Johan survived their time at the orphanage, both in a sense, nameless,

Grimmer continues to hope that he will learn and internalise human emotions and in the end he did, he learnt what love is and therefore the sorrow that comes with losing his own child.

So therefore, once again, it brings me the question of nature and nurture, why does Johan use his expressions to become the monster yet Grimmer used his expressions to relate to those around him in hopes that he will regain his emotions? Grimmer died technically nameless but made such a huge positive impact on those around him... I don't know the answer to this but I guess the author probably intended it that way to make us wonder......

I must say, this is a very men-driven story, there isn't anything wrong with that, but I wished there were slightly more ....I don't know..... because Nina and Eva were pretty well developed.... but I don't know, something felt lacking in the women characters. SOUND I can't help but comment on the music first. It's so interesting, at first I felt like the music wasn't anything catchy or emotional but served the plot and scenes perfectly gave the desired effects well to support the emotions in a scene. But then as the episodes went on, the OP and the ED really grew on me. I must commend on Kuniaki Haishima, he managed to tie the main theme of the OP in every single bgm track, no matter what style. He manages to sneak it in as background cafe jazz music, in pivotal suspenseful scenes and as calm journey montage music. I think it was probably intended that there is so much choral aspects to the tracks, I think it's suggest biblical allusions as the anime covers so many biblical themes such as redemption and fate and identity. The orchestration of the tracks were absolutely incredible, I wonder if he had an entire orchestra at his disposal and many tracks were live-recorded? One thing I must say is that I wished that if he used live instruments and voices (or really good sample libraries), he should stick to live voices rather than use synthy vocal or string pads, it sounds a bit jarring as so much of the work displayed complex and intricately crafted orchestration so when I randomly heard midi voices, I felt like it didn't quite go with the rest of the instrumentation of some tracks. Although, I must take into account that this anime was created in the early 2000s so resources were more limited compared to now. Incredible voice-acting, I wonder if the voice actors experienced any psychological damage from how much they had to express anguish and pain in the characters. Man it's so dark, it must have taken an emotional toll on them I think, at least for me I think I would have suffered. ANIMATION Amazing angles and use of camera and framing throughout the entire anime. The realistic style suits the dark themes of the work, Even though there were so many time-skips, memories, fragments of memories, it was so clear visually distinguishable for the audience. One thing I'll say is that i think the dark colour palette, limited the physical traits of the minor characters. Sometimes I did find myself getting a few characters confused because their hairstyles and colours were so similar. Overall, incredible anime. Mannnn, I'm gonna have to watch a few chill anime after this one just to recover from the psychological damage that Monster has done to me.

Hyakinthos

Hyakinthos was a Spartan prince, most prominently known in Amyclae with a decent cult following. there are a couple of different people listed as being his parents, but the most popular is King Amyclus and Diomedes. if Amyclus was his father, that would also make Daphne, another of Apollo’s lovers, Hyakinthos’s sister. it seems like he would be quite simple, he has a relatively small story with one of the earliest written records from Hesiod. in this version there is no love rival, just an accident. written in the 7th century BC, it was merely one, albeit long, sentence.

”. . ((lacuna)) rich-tressed Diomede; and she bare Hyakinthos (Hyacinthus), the blameless one and strong . . ((lacuna)) whom, on a time Phoibos (Phoebus) [Apollon] himself slew unwittingly with a ruthless disk.”

however, the most famous version, and one that most will know, comes from Ovid’s Metamorphosis. written somewhere between the 1st century BC and 1st century AD, this sentence long story grew to be paragraphs long. in which Ovid describes the love Apollo and Hyakinthos have for each other — which was the ultimate demise for the young prince. with parts of it coming from the perspective of a mourning Apollo, Ovid writes how Hyakinthos was turned into a flower with “ai, ai” written on the petals to express Apollo’s sadness. and the version that we all have come to know including betrayal and jealous rage from Zephyros (the West Wind), is hinted at in Pausanias’ “Description of Greece”.

”[In the temple of Apollon at Amyklai (Amyclae) Nikias (Nicias) [painter fl. c. 320 B.C.], son of Nikomedes, has painted him [Hyakinthos (Hyacinthus)] in the very prime of youthful beauty, hinting at the love of Apollon for Hyakinthos of which legend tells . . . As for Zephyros (the West Wind), how Apollon unintentionally killed Hyakinthos, and the story of the flower, we must be content with the legends, although perhaps they are not true history.”

despite this seemingly clear-cut story, there’s a lot more than meets the eye with Hyakinthos. according to many historians the -nth part of his name is pre-Hellenic and comes from the Mycenaean era. another word like that would be Corinth — a pre-Greek polis that was destroyed and rebuilt. this leads many to believe that Hyakinthos was around BEFORE Apollo. he would have been a chthonic vegetation god — almost like the male equivalent to Persephone. this leads to a few different theories, but before I get to that, let me tell you the story of Hyakinthos as told by Ovid and Lucian’s “Dialogues of the Gods”. ═══════════════════════════

⊰ The Myth ⊱

Hyakinthos was a beautiful Spartan prince. he had many lovers, but the one that had eventually won his heart was Apollo. the god taught beautiful long-haired Hyakinthos how to play the lyre, how to use a bow and arrows, a little bit on prophecies, and gave him a swan chariot. the two were incredibly in love, but sadly, there was someone who didn’t like that. Zephyros, the west wind, was jealous for he too loved Hyakinthos. he had tried to woo him but it really was no match for Apollo. he watched the two men play again and again until he had eventually had enough of it. he ultimately created one of the most tragic love stories. like most days, Apollo and Hyakinthos were together, playing around and having mild competitions throwing a discus. Apollo wanted to show off for Hyakinthos so he could see just what a god could do. he threw a discus high into the air, clearing the clouds away and it disappeared into the sky. Hyakinthos wanted to impress his lover as well, so he chased after the discus laughing. Zephyros in a fit of rage at the two men enjoying themselves changed the course of the discus. as it came to land, the force was so strong that it bounced off the ground and smashed into Hyakinthos’s face. Apollo ran to his lover and tried every kind of medicine and healing he could think of. he even placed ambrosia on his lover’s lips but blood flowed freely from the wound. there was no way for him to stop a wound of Fate. in his despair, he turned Hyakinthos into a flower, but seeing that wasn’t good enough, he wrote his grief upon the petals. ═══════════════════════════

⊰ Symbolism From The Myth ⊱

Taking A Temple as mentioned before, it’s very likely that Hyakinthos was an older deity from the pre-hellenic period. something that many Greek writers did, was create a myth of how a deity began their worship in a specific place. we know the temple that Apollo was worshipped at in Amyclae was older than when his worship would have started. one theory behind this myth then, is how Apollo came to be worshipped over Hyakinthos at the temple and area; by killing the previous deity. it sounds sad, but it’s actually happened several times, and even with Apollo specifically. the most famous example I can think of would be at Delphi. originally the temple was in honor of the titan Gaia. Apollo came in valiantly and killed the Python (which is what gives Apollo’s priestesses their name) and inevitably took the temple over with his worship. what this doesn’t account for, is the fact Hyakinthos is still worshipped at the temple heavily, his and Apollo’s worship having mingled and being near inseparable. it is even said that upon his death and burial, Apollo said to give him (Hyakinthos) all offerings first. now, if you know a thing or two about Greek worship, the first portion of the offering was incredibly important, especially considering hero worship was probably closer to chthonic sacrifices in practice; though they were not considered to be ‘dead’. within my research so far, I have yet to find this happening somewhere else, but I will update this if I ever do. now all of this is unusual with the theory that this myth symbolizes one deity taking over. if that were the case, why continue to worship Hyakinthos? Duality some of you may not know this about me, but I am a sucker when it comes to duality, specifically with lovers. this myth may be a symbol for the growing season and harvest of the crops. while it may be a common motif, especially among the Greeks, I think it’s a sweet and somber story giving personification to an important aspect of Greek life. I also believe the duality is less about the exacts of what they rule over, but the way they were worshipped. the closest example I can think of also comes from Delphi with the duality between Apollo and Dionysos (who, shockingly enough, was the only other god historians believe was present during the Hyakinthia festival besides Apollo and Hyakinthos). as a hero, or simply for his chthonic aspect, the ritual and practice would have been far different than that for Apollo. while this isn’t exactly backed by anything I can find specific to duality, I personally feel a reason both Apollo and Hyakinthos were worshipped together in Amyclae is due to that duality between them. Hyakinthos would have been a chthonic deity probably for vegetation or agriculture, whereas Apollo here is a god of light (not the sun) representing life, health, and the ultimate grief. their worship in Amyclae was always together once Apollo was introduced (to some this hinted that they were possibly the same person representing a cycle, but most disagree with this theory). the duality is clearly a theme already for Apollo, and I think what happened at Delphi with Dionysos is the same for Amyclae and Hyakinthos. together they represent loss and mourning but also happiness and life — love. ═══════════════════════════

⊰ Hyakinthos Associations ⊱

okay, now that I have bored you all to death, let’s talk about some less heavy things. due to their worship being completely together, I would say that nearly anything related to Apollo can also be associated with Hyakinthos and vice versa. however, we love individuality in this house, so let’s talk about the things either associated with him through the various, limited texts we have and some UPG. Associations ➳ larkspurs/hyacinths ➳ swans ➳ bow and arrow ➳ summer! ➳ new spring growth ➳ chiton’s (they were offered to him by the women of Sparta) ➳ death ➳ rebirth/cycles ➳ chariot’s ➳ blood ➳ blue/purple/red colors ➳ discus (sorry) ➳ lavender ➳ lyre ➳ lapis lazuli ➳ amethyst ➳ black tourmaline ═══════════════════════════ Devotional Activities ➳ keeping a garden ➳ maybe even an indoor garden ➳ go to parks and feed the swans/birds ➳ archery ➳ sports ➳ making a chiton ➳ writing poems ➳ taking care of those around you ➳ growing larkspurs/hyacinths ➳ get a devotional journal ➳ create a playlist (sad songs for the most part) ➳ fall in love deeply ═══════════════════════════

⊰ Deity Or Divine Hero? ⊱

I don’t know if this question can be answered for a fact honestly. what we do know is that he was at least worshipped as a hero, that much can be said. anything further than that comes at a later time and from the outside perspective. a lot of ancient Greek writers didn’t write down certain things because they saw them as common knowledge. this doesn’t help us looking back now. what we can say, is that some of the offerings given to him were not common with hero worship and would have been reserved for the gods. this is according to Angeliki Petropoulou, a professor in ancient greek studies/religion, and the author of “Hyakinthos and Apollo of Amyklai: Identities and Cults. A Reconsideration of the Written Evidence” pages 153-161. Within this, she makes the argument that Hyakinthos has gone through ‘apotheosis’. this is the action of a mortal, usually a hero, becoming a god. note: ‘βουθυσία’ is a traditional oxen sacrifice.

“The βουθυσία for Hyakinthos, which is indicative of his new immortal status, should be placed on the third day too. Oxen are costly victims, the bull being the most “noble” sacrificial animal. After mourning for Hyakinthos’s death and making a propitiatory sacrifice at his tomb, they honoured him with a bull sacrificed as if to a god. Yet the geographical range in which he was regarded as god was rather circumscribed and did not spread beyond the borders of Lakedaimonia. The βουθυσία for Hyakinthos would have been instituted after the construction of the altar on which Apollo received sacrifices; for the only altar excavated, in an area filled with remnants of burnt sacrifices, is attributed to Apollo.”

so there you have it. most places will probably call him a hero, and that wouldn’t be wrong. others may call him a deity, which also isn’t wrong. I’ll tell you what I’m personally going to go with, and everyone can make their own decision based on the information listed through this post and the readings I’ll link at the bottom. no matter your conclusion, the relationship you have will be completely yours, and it’s ok! if anything, I encourage that over taking my word for it. ══════════════════════════ for me, I think I consider him a deity. I know that I heavily romanticize the story, and with Apollo being so near to my heart, him having a terrible love life hurts my soul. while I don’t exactly want to rewrite any myths, I won’t claim that they are married, I will say that I believe them to be happy. their worship in Amyclae was so intertwined and based completely around each other from the history we know, that, for me, it makes sense to also honor them together. I’ll leave you all on one more incredibly sad quote from Lucien’s “Dialogue of the Gods” (that I referenced from earlier).

”Apollon : Well, my loves never prosper; Daphne and Hyakinthos (Hyacinthus) were my great passions; she so detested me that being turned to a tree was more attractive than I; and him I killed with a quoit. Nothing is left me of them but wreaths of their leaves and flowers.”

it’s ok to cry, I do nearly every time I read that.

⊰ For Further Reading ⊱

➳Hyakinthos theoi ➳Apollo theoi ➳Hyakinthos Wiki ➳My Hellenic Research Google Drive this also contains the Sparta book I reference and a few others worth a read.

Mia Deserved Better: An Analysis of RE8's Themes/Symbolism

Foreword: I would like to thank @lepusrufus for posting about both Mia and Miranda, and at one point directly saying that Mia deserved better, which is a large part of what caused me to start examining her role in the canon story. Now, I will say that this post, like some of my previous explorations of Village (such as my attempt to determine Donna's age), will not be the best organized. My ADHD makes such things rather difficult for me. However, I have tried more than usual, and have broken up this "essay" into several distinct sections. Still, I am worried that my thoughts will not be as concise or coherent as they were inside my head.

Under read-more for length and spoilers for RE8: Village.

Introduction:

Village is, inarguably, about parenthood. Is it a horror game? Yes. Is it also science fiction? Also yes. But is it still, at its core, a story, and therefore contains imagery, symbolism, and themes? Yes. Now, you may be wondering what this has to do with Mia deserving better. My proposal is as follows: While Village is overall about parenthood, it is more about motherhood than fatherhood. Furthermore, Mia's background + actions from the previous game tie her story directly with Mother Miranda's, making their potential interactions massively important to the story... and could have served the theme beautifully. The missed potential in her involvement in the story is honestly a little bit absurd.

Now, let's examine each of the Four Lords + their sections, as the beginning of analyzing the game's theme.

Lady Dimitrescu + Castle:

Ah, perhaps the clearest (albeit unimportant) bits of theme within the whole game. We are immediately presented with another parent, with three daughters she loves very, very much. Initially they work as a team to capture Ethan, easily overpowering him. When they do split up, each still has dialogue regarding their family members. Each of the daughters expresses a desire to be like their mother/make their mother proud. Lady Dimitrescu herself gets very upset every time one of her daughters perishes, and delivers some important dialogue about this in her final confrontation with Ethan.

To paraphrase, Lady D says that Ethan has done something unforgiveable, caused damage that can never heal, and deserves to die before his daughter. That last part is interesting, in the sense that Lady D seems to believe that outlasting your own child is a fate so terrible that she would not wish it upon anyone, including the person who killed her daughters.

Throughout her dialogue and actions, Lady D serves as an important figure of a living mother. What do I mean by that? Well, the only other mothers we see in game are Mia and Miranda. The former doesn't show up until almost the end of the game (seeing as the "Mia" at the start is not actually the real Mia), while the latter does not have a living child, and her behavior has (presumably) changed quite a bit since that loss. As Ethan goes through Castle Dimitrescu, he watches (he causes) Lady D to go through what Miranda did all those decades ago. When we see her loss, when we experience her loss, it is something we connect with, even comparing it (as Lady D does) to Ethan's loss of Rose.

For the more visual side of symbolism, we can turn to Lady Dimitrescu herself. She is very tall, is visibly older than the majority of the Village cast, and has a fairly classic (old-school) motherly look. Everything about her reinforces her position as an example of a mother, especially when she's with her daughters and becomes such a strong figure of protection. Her height allows her to seem the caretaker for her children, even though they are scary/intimidating in their own right.

Donna Beneviento + Waterfall House:

Yes, the baby/fetus/monstrosity is part of this. No, it is not the only bit of thematic work in this section of the game.

To begin, you can find out that Donna is officially the adopted daughter of Mother Miranda. Her birth parents are dead, implied to be from especially tragic causes (more than is the norm when it comes to "orphan making"), and she has suffered greatly from it. We see that she has been seemingly neglected by Miranda, and is incredibly isolated. The tragedy of her loss, along with the consequences presented by it, are something to keep in mind further down the road, when we inevitably deal with Ethan's own death.

One of the consequences of the environment Donna was raised in is, arguably, her reliance on Angie. While interpretations of their exact relationship (aka how much control Donna actually has at any given point) vary, the two very clearly have something akin to a mother/daughter vibe. Alternatively an older sister/younger sister sort of thing. This shows in the way that Donna holds/carries Angie, as well as the contrast in their demeanors. Moreso, the fact that Donna gave a part of herself to create Angie is almost enough to make the symbolism nonnegotiable.

We also see that Donna has a strong understanding of family/family dynamics, through the way that she uses her powers to manipulate Ethan. She dissects his connections to Mia and Rose, taunts him with the lengths he's willing to go to save his child, then shows him a grotesque version of parenthood: The aforementioned fetus monster. Does the monster represent Ethan's fears, or Donna's?

What if the monster is how Donna sees herself, in some way, perhaps thinking that it's her fault her parents died? Bit of a stretch, but it's not a keystone of my theory, so I'm just throwing it out there. We could, however, go a step further and ask ourselves if Donna has noticed the way Miranda neglects her, and the fetus monster is how Donna thinks Miranda sees her. A baby, true, but grotesque, so terribly imperfect compared to her "real daughter" (Eva, obvs).

Regardless, the monster presents an ugly side of parenthood. It shows us the blood, the hunger (with the way it repeatedly attempts to swallow Ethan whole), the wailing. If Lady D shows us the love of parenthood, the bond, Donna in turn shows us the hate, the misery. Everything that one must endure to reap the rewards of family.

Lastly, we get one last bit of symbolism with Donna's death: We play a game with Angie. A childhood classic, hide and seek. Ethan chases her down repeatedly, stabbing away, seemingly only hurting the doll. But what happens when he kills Angie? It turns out that he killed Donna. You kill the child, you kill the parent. A reinforcement of the connection that comes with parenthood, along with another notch in Ethan's family-murdering belt (not saying that he's the "true antagonist" or anything, just keeping track for one of my later points).

Moreau + The Reservoir

Let's get the worst possibility out of the way: Moreau, weakest and sickest of the four lords, lives in a reservoir, where he is relatively safe. To defeat him, you have to drain the water, forcing him onto dry(ish) land. Paired with the main ideas of his section (which I will detail after this nightmare), one could theorize that he's meant to represent birth itself. Again, he's safe in his ("womb") water, and becomes vulnerable when he leaves (like a fragile newborn). Kinda gross, in my opinion, and also not a strong enough connection for me to care much about. It was merely an interesting (albeit horrifying) enough thought that I felt it warranted sharing.

Moving on to the big stuff with Moreau: He's a baby. Evidence: Whiny, has difficulty moving around, struggles to adapt to his growth, throws up a bunch, loves his mother very much, cries for his mother when he's in trouble, etc. Although Mother Miranda does not care for him, he clearly cares for her, and plays yet another role of an abandoned child (like Donna). Without Miranda there to protect him, he perishes terribly, crying out for someone who does not care to answer.

Hearing him cry out for Miranda, over and over, only for her to continue ignoring him is a key piece in the build-up to our confrontation between Ethan and Miranda. The game, in many ways, centers around the comparison between the two. In my humble opinion, Mia should have been involved in this comparison, as opposed to supplying the solution to the result of said comparison. Yes, I know that was a lot of words that don't mean much yet, but trust me, I'm getting there.

Heisenberg + The Factory

Ironically, of the four lords, Heisenberg is the most similar to Mother Miranda. In his massive factory, he is alone except for his numerous experiments, the results of decades of playing God. In comparison to Ethan + Mia, Heisenberg represents artificial parentage, or more accurately, the artificial creation of "life". While the others Lords also performed experiments, they used living subjects. Heisenberg instead chose to use corpses, which he then "brought back to life" with cybernetics + his powers, a somewhat futuristic version of Dr. Frankenstein.

Together, Miranda and him show a rotten side of parenthood (whereas Donna + Moreau showed us the uglier side of the children themselves). To put it simply, they are bad parents. They throw their "children"/experiments into the fray, uncaring, using them as pawns for their own greater gain. The most important part of this is that Heisenberg offers to "help" Ethan: By using Rose as a weapon. In his act of refusal, Ethan demonstrates one of several important distinctions between himself and Mother Miranda. Where she is willing to use her "children" (read: lives that she is responsible for) as tools, he is not.

Miscellaneous Symbolism/Imagery:

The old hag is one of my favorite parts of Village. She's seemingly nuts, has a crazy old lady laugh, wears bones that make soothing bone noises when she moves, and she draws lots of symbols in the dirt. If you look closely (I can provide screenshots if anyone desires, but it will take a bit of work to get them onto my computer), she's drawing one of the most iconic images in the titular village: The winged unborn. This symbol acts as the key you build up after every fight with a Lord, understandably called the Unborn Key (which turns into the Winged Unborn Key). Whether this counts as foreshadowing towards the hag's identity reveal is technically irrelevant, but I like to think it does.

In essence, you build up the key, this depiction of an infant, to progress in the game. The more wings it gains, the closer you are to your goal of rescuing your child.

The cadou itself is very clearly fetus-shaped. Furthermore, the only place within the human body that we know it ever gets implanted is in the "tummy" (thanks Moreau), aka roughly where someone's womb is/would be. Every infected person we see presumably had the Cadou implanted there (though I think it would be interesting if implanting it in different spots caused different mutations. of course, that is a discussion for another day). To become immortal, you have to "bear" a "child". Does it get more direct than that?

Mother Miranda gained her immortality in part for her grief at the loss of her child. She embodied the despair that Lady D spoke of, becoming an eternal source of anguish. Just as the loss of a child is a wound that lasts forever, so too would Miranda last forever (well, until Ethan comes along).

Mia is a loving mother, who puts up with the BSAA making her move across the world, deals with the complications of having a mold husband and mold baby, and has proved herself (see her section in RE7) to be an immense badass. Previously I had forgotten that, and even embarrassed myself in the comments of another person's post by implying she wasn't a tough, ass-kicking machine. Y'all remember feral Mia? People talk about "poor Ethan's arms", but sometimes we forget that Mia was one of the people who did a number on them. Furthermore, she's one of the only living people (from outside the village) to have any connections (pun intended) to Mother Miranda. They worked together, although possibly not directly, on Evelyn. If anyone in Village has a chance of really understanding Miranda's plight, or knowing the truth behind it, it would be Mia. Yet we don't see them interact a single time. Which leads me to the next section...

Conclusion On Theme + Missed Potential:

Okay, okay, so it's pretty obvious at this point that, as previously stated, the game's theme is parenthood. Every section has its symbolism, the story is very obviously about a man trying to rescue his daughter, etc, etc, but what's the point? Is there a lesson, or a more focused interpretation of the central theme? Let's take one last step back, and focus on something I've mentioned a few times now: The comparison between Ethan and Mother Miranda.

Recurring dialogue from Ethan, Alcina, and Mother Miranda all point towards the developers acknowledging that the characters are similar, but there's nowhere near as much conversation about it as I would like. Several times we have the antagonists ask Ethan how he's so willing to kill someone else's child, or prevent them from (essentially) doing what he's doing (aka saving his daughter). While Ethan responds with a mix of "well you started it" and "aghhh fuck-a-you, bitch", there's a much more solid, unspoken difference: Mother Miranda sends her underlings to kill, so that she may revive her daughter. Ethan kills (read: does the work himself) to get his daughter. The difference is much bigger, and more important, at the end of the game, when we realize just how far it goes. Ethan dies to save his daughter. Time and time again Mother Miranda has killed others for her work, but in the end she is stopped when someone willingly dies to stop her.

Where does Mia come in? Mia, the badass mother, the one who once worked alongside Mother Miranda, should have been the nail in the coffin. She is the one who survives, who lives on to raise Rose, she is the silent solution to Ethan's sacrifice. Miranda, you fool, what could you have accomplished if you had held onto your makeshift family? Through Mia (and Chris, to a lesser degree), his "loss" becomes a victory. There's a certain poetic justice that comes with Rose's full family being instrumental in saving her, when Miranda so readily spurned her own family.

Mia could have had an actual conversation with Miranda, their history giving the latter a reason to actually listen. I'm not saying that Miranda would have changed her mind/plans, but the conversation would have been a well-needed contrast to Ethan's "arggg what the fuck is happening, I only have two reactions to things. agg fuck you". Additionally, I feel that Mia (who was captured and had to endure who-knows-what) deserves the opportunity to be the one who points out Miranda's mistakes, who delivers the final "fuck you" to her. More than that, she's the one at the end who can say that hey, maybe she can understand some of what Miranda did. Was there anything her and Ethan wouldn't have done to save Rose? As much as Ethan is a foil to Miranda, Mia could (and should) have played a similar role.

When so much of the story and symbolism revolves around Miranda's experience as a mother, it only would have been fair to shine a light on her equivalent. Her better.

There's more I wanted to say/feel like I didn't properly get across, and I might add more to this at some point, but it's 5:40 AM right now, and I'm starting to feel like my brain is slowing down, so... Feel free to reblog/comment and add your own thoughts!