#But that alone is enough said

[questionablealibi]

Doodles before i go to sleep! + A peek on my narrator's out-of-bounds form or what else you call it ^^ i had fun doing these!

Info-dump just past this "keep reading" line! Give it a look-see if you'd like! It offers some explanation behind some of the doodles here:

• Narrator is built different, to put simply. He can see clearly through his glasses despite the fast bouts of coding speeding across his vision a mile a minute. So if Stanley or some human being were to put on Narrator's glasses, all they would see are fast blurs from the game's codes. (See fifth /5th/ doodle)

• Narrator has an Out-Of-Bounds Form! (I like calling it that it's nice to my ears) He's big and gooey (like the inside of a lava lamp!) And supposed to be very starry sometimes! He also appreciates tiny (read: literally) kisses from Stanley.

• In case some missed it in one of my posts' tags - (My) Narrator indeed calls Stanley dear, darling, etc! It started as an ironic thing Narrator would do and a thing Stanley would frown at, but it got so frequent that they got used to it over time and just accepted it.

• (Not related to the doodles but a tid bit of information about Narrator) He doesn't always physically accompany Stanley through the Parable :) he only does when he feels like it or when either of them need a moment. Or when Stanley insists enough.

And that's all! I may delve into more serious tones for TSP doodles and art sooner than later, maybe. Soon ;)

Thanks for stopping by! Take care <3

#the stanley parable #tsp fanart #tspud fanart #tsp narrator #tsp stanley #tspud narrator #tspud stanley #tspud #stanarrator #Alibi! #Stanley always tries to fluster narrator #It rarely ever works #At least thats what hes been thinking #It actually works #Theyre not exactly 'lovers' per se #But theyre teetering the line that separates ^^; #its complicated #All they know is that they need each other #But that alone is enough said

[redysetdare]

enough stories about how someone learns to truely be happy through love. i want a story where someone is desperately seeking out love thinking it's the only way to be happy only for them to learn by the end that happiness is what they make of it and they don't need love at all to make it.

#aro #aromantic #ace #asexual #aroace #loveless aro #loveless #non-partnering #nonpartnering #non partnering #nonamorous #aplatonic #enough of amatonormative tropes in media!!! enough 'you're miserable without love' stories!!! #less “you're too focused on ambitions to make you happy that you dont let yourself fall in love” #more “you're too focused on finding love to make you happy that you wont let yourself live” #more “there is so much more to life than love and so much more that can bring your happiness if you just let yourself experience it.” #maybe I should write this story #and when i say love i mean all love. not just romantic love. #which is why i tagged aplatonic too #while i mostly see this trope in terms of romantic love i think there's something to be said about #telling stories where people are perfectly content alone too #it doesn't have to be sad or pathetic to not have friends by choice. they dont have to be a miserable person to not have friends #i think we need more variety in stories where it shows people just content in their lack of love or relationships in all shapes #not everyone wants a family not everyone wants friends not everyone wants a partner not everyone wants love #some of us are content without. that should be explored without the need to fix it.

[tatretot]

this hat was made for scar specifically 🔧

#goodtimeswithscar fanart #ethoslab fanart #goodtimeswithscar #ethoslab #hermitcraft #i have so many doodles that i cant get to look ok enough to post let alone finish HELP #if i post doodles maybe i can post more! i said. i gotta learn to draw quicker! i said. #proceeds to spend weeks on each doodle. 👁️👁️ someone come put me in a hydraulic press RIGHT NEOWWWW #my art

[kagekitsuneoflight]

It’s kinda funny that Jason is, in every sense of the word, the most normal Robin. Unironically, there wasn’t anything uniquely special about him before he was Robin. He was a street kid. His dad was a goon (which makes sense for Gotham. It’s a goon breeding ground) and his adoptive mom was a girl who fell in love with the bad boy, got disowned by her upper middle class parents and adopted her boyfriend’s infant son. Even his biological mother isn’t anything special! She was just a doctor who ended up becoming corrupt.

Jason Todd was no circus kid who could do an impossible signature trick. He wasn’t being scouted by some evil hidden organization.

He wasn’t the rich boy genius who lived next door.

He’s not the son of a supervillain (as lame as cluemaster is, he still *counts*).

He’s not the secret son of Bruce Wayne.

And he’s not a metahuman, nor did he led a whole organization of teens to fight when Batman couldn’t.

He’s the most regular boy to ever enter become a hero in Gotham. He wanted to do good things for the sake of doing good. He grew up poor with regular parents, where bad things happened to them. The kinds of things that could happen to *any* person living in Gotham.

There is nothing about him, pre-Robin and as Robin, that makes him Not Like Regular Kids.

His dad was a goon (who, depending on the run, was either killed by Two-Face OR. Just sent to prison and killed in prison! Which makes his backstory even PLAINER-) and his mother was a drug addict with cancer. Jason ends up homeless, and almost steals the bat mobile tires. The only thing that makes him stand out from any other tragedy befallen kid in Gotham is the fact he was bold enough to do that, get Batman’s attention, and continue to be bold enough to go against a crime lord (who was apparently his grandmother, the most interesting person in his family, but since she’s almost never brought up, she’s likely no more significant than a one-issue villain in the crime lord power hierarchy). Batman realized that Jason wasn’t going to really stop, and honestly he kinda grew on him, so he decided to adopt Jason, and eventually allow him to become Robin.

There just isn’t anything amazingly special about his backstory. The few moments where something could have been done to make it more interesting (like his biological mother) but ended up taking the most boring option. You can’t do much of anything now to enhance his past without upsetting much more well established canon, and not without making people wonder “well if his grandmother was such a big name in crime, why hasn’t she been brought up before?”

Jason Todd was a wonderful Robin (providing that he actually has a writer who likes him). He has a golden heart, he’s the voice of reason. He’s everything that a Robin needs to be for Batman. But compared to everyone else, he was nothing special. In a way, his lack of Not Like Regular Kids makes him stand out in a much more subtle way.

As if someone asked the question “Do I need to be someone special to be Robin?” And the answer was “You don’t need to be someone special, you just need to be brave, like Jason Todd was.”

#jason todd #robin jason todd #seriously they could have made anyone his biological mom. to add drama. to add spice #but they instead said ‘well. he’s a simple kid’ #everyone else is some delicacy food at a dinner table. and Jason? Jason is like. tomato soup. #HOWEVER. i will NOT forgive the disregard of making Jason stand out from his siblings more. #everyone has a specific niche that they noticeably can excel #or like. a very specific villain is like ‘YOU. i want to train YOU to be MY sidekick.’ #or or. the backstory alone is enough to make them stand out. #Jason gets uh. crime? he’s good at killing people. #which isn’t even consistently his Thing by the way since no one knows where to put him on the hero to villain scale #if only there was something he could have that no one else does! #\*i stare long and hard at the All Caste and Magic* #shut up kage #edit: I’m so!! CLUEMASTER. ITS CLUEMASTER.

[f4llingstrr]

to this day I still wonder what the director told colin morgan that made him say the "how long have you been training to be a prat, my lord?" line the way he did

#it still haunts me #the line alone was already homoerotic enough #but the way he SAID IT #i need to know what was going on in colin morgans brain #merthur #merlin #arthur #arthur pendragon #bbc merlin #colin morgan

[aroaceleovaldez]

i stand by that a better, more sensible, and more intriguing plot for TSATS would have been, instead of retconning literally everything:

Bob is dead (because he was very explicitly absorbed/killed by Tartarus Himself in House of Hades, alongside Damasen), and nobody is going into Tartarus to save him. He made his sacrifice and is gone. However. Remember how the Titans, including Bob, were just kind of kicking around for several years? Particularly. On a cruise ship full of mortals. And Bob happened to be kicking around in general for an extra year versus all the other Titans. And he mythologically sometimes has a mortal demigod son who partook in the Calydonian Boar Hunt (Dryas of Calydon). Yeah.

So turns out, Bob/Iapetus leaves behind a demigod (demititan?) child. And because Nico was pretty much his only friend, he named Nico his child's godfather. And while he's not being left in charge of the child, as a son of Hades and godfather to this kid, Nico is duty-bound to fulfill Bob's last will and go find this like 2 year old to make sure they're safe. So Nico has to undertake this very unusual quest (that raises many questions, such as "demititans are a thing?" and "DOES THIS MEAN THERE'S POTENTIALLY MORE-?!" and "SHOULD WE BE CONCERNED ABOUT THIS?") and is kind of freaking out because. He's the son of Hades! He's notoriously bad with living things, and animals, and definitely small children! Even if he does find this kid and assure they're safe, he is the last person who should be undergoing any kind of quest involving even potentially having to babysit. Fortunately, his boyfriend is the human embodiment of sunshine and calmness and good vibes, and also once helped a nymph give birth, so he feels Marginally More Confident in theoretical demititan babysitting and offers to come along on this Epic Journey of Figuring Out What In Hades' Name Is Up With This Demititan Baby Business.

Proceed with wholesome epic shenanigans quest of Nico and Will scurrying around trying to locate this random OP baby while Nico has an existential crisis about the nature of his powers because he doesn't want to let Bob down! Both for Hades Kid Honor Reasons and because Bob was his friend! But what if he's destined to fail this quest just because of who he is? Because he's simply not built for hanging out with the living/mortals? And Will reassuring him that He Will Probably Not Traumatize The Weird OP Titan Baby And It'll Be Fine, and simultaneously getting a peek into the weird other life Nico leads hanging out with immortals much more than the average demigod, which Nico considers his norm. Bonus shenanigans of both of them getting caught off-guard and culture shocked from where each other's respective worlds (Nico's mostly-immortal versus Will's mostly-mortal) cross over and learning to navigate those for each other - Nico finally starting to make some mortal connections and get glimpses at modern mortal American life, and Will trying not to get his brain literally incinerated while Nico's happily casually catching up with some of his old friends who happen to be literal gods.

#pjo #riordanverse #nico di angelo #will solace #solangelo #long post // #LISTEN I JUST THINK WE DONT NEED TO BE RETCONNING THINGS WHEN THERE IS A HIGHLY INTRIGUING MYTH RIGHT THERE #listen. *listen.* Iapetus in myth has a demigod child? and we're in the series? that's all about demigods? #and had titans running around for 4 years? some primarily on a giant ship mostly full of mortals? #and Iapetus himself was running around for closer to like 5 years? #I AM JUST SAYING. that is enough time. and the right conditions. that there are perhaps demititans now. #that alone is a fascinating plot set-up that ties in basically all previous series inherently and has a reasonable starting point #of *course* Nico would be named Bob's child's godfather! #of *course* Nico would consider it a very important personal duty to see out Bob's final will and go on some quest about it! #and under those conditions it makes *perfect sense* for Nico to want to bring Will along! and that he would be very helpful on said quest! #bringing along a lot of skills and abilities in areas that Nico lacks! that are crucial for a quest like that! #also then immediately the plot becomes Will reassuring Nico about his powers being cool and not evil and him being spooky is okay #while Will is also trying to not literally have his brain melt cause Nico's casually introducing him to a trio of death gods or something #forgetting that Will cannot look upon a god's true form #and Will's dragging Nico across the US while Nico is struggling to keep up cause Will forgot that Nico's not American and not from that era #its cute! it's interesting! it immediately begs the question of a next-gen series focusing on a main cast of demititan kids #dont go back to Tartarus that's lame and overdone and ruins a ton of stuff. dont retcon everything that also ruins a ton #give us the fluffy roadtrip comedy that they clearly wanted to write instead anyways #you can even keep the elements of Nico feeling out of his depth and Will constantly on the verge of death. except it makes sense this time. #and it's kind of funny cause Nico's just freaking out over babysitting and it highlights how much tankier Nico is vs Will #even just in casual interactions. yeah Nico can casually look upon a god's true form. dont worry about it #meanwhile Will is slowly collecting sunglasses the entire trip and layering them up for whenever Nico introduces him to another deity

[blueseint]

one thing i love about sz/sz is the clear distinction of themes and the way both of them view each other and just mixing it all. I can enjoy my fair share of possessive zoro when it comes to zs but it's more about thinking about how his devotion towards the rest of the crew (pre relationship) fuels his feelings towards sanji and the need to make sure he knows how important he is for him, how he would follow him anywhere sanji wants. Zoro would do anything as long as it made sanji happy imo (it can totally turn a little bit weird, we are talking about ZOSAN of all people. Zoro would definitely say some insane shit like cutting his chest open and giving sanji his own heart in case he is hungry or something like that)

And don't get me started with sanji's need to make sure zoro feels loved all the time, not just with food, but through quality time (no matter how little it is, his free time would definitely be reserved for zoro) he would think his actions are his way of saying "i understand how lonely you must have felt" after kuina and his years as a pirate hunter which later on turns into a "i want to give you a piece of what zeff and the rest of the baratie staff gave me". Sanji would be SO sweet with zoro once in a established relationship, and zoro would feel a kind of love he never knew existed, and that realization alone is enough for him to bow to never let anything bad happen to sanji, not because he thinks sanji is weak but simply because its what he deserves. Seeing sanji happy makes zoro happier

#one piece #op zosan #op #zosan #sanzo #idk where this came from #but like... so many stuff w possessive zoro and weak? sanji. im fine with it as i said but i hate when people think thats all there is wthe #also a friend sent me a message a while back saying 'i just want to see zoro being LOVED and i know sanji can do that' and my goddd #that message alone was enough to fuel this view of them #im a definitely sz/zs enjoyer. More is always better #but its difficult to find good zs sometimes. Kudos to anyone writing/depicting zs with a very devoted and goofy zoro

[carnivalcarriondiscarded]

here have a Lights Out meme(?) before i go to bed <3 Wally is showing off a neat party trick to his newfriend <3

og:

#this has been in my mind for several days and im finally tired enough to execute it #this is... technically noncanon to the au i suppose... #wally Wouldn't touch fire again he learned his lesson #but also. at this point in the 'story' (said nebulously) Does He Really Care #wally: hey frank check this shit out *lights himself on fire* #frank - softly but with feeling: what the fuck... #home: *tired creak* #wallys had his Nothing In Life Matters (depressed) phase #now its time for Nothing In Life Matters (manic) phase #wh lights out au #scribble salad #theyre having so much fun i prommy (lying) #i really need to portray more of the au than just the Frank And Wally Alone In The Studio portion #even if it is the most fun. To Me. #they're entertaining... i feel like im playing with dolls...

[thunder-sea]

Spoilers for Fontaine Act 5 and previous archon quests!

-

What's really sad about Furina is that she has been seeing what is a god in human terms. She sees them as perfect, unmovable deities rather than beings who do make mistakes, therefore trying to become 'perfect', lovable, and unmoving herself.

She hasn't had the chance to actually meet/get to know the archons like the traveler has, hence why she has such a naive worldview of what is a 'god', while we know them as imperfect (and sometimes silly) beings.

The archons we've got to meet have had little knowledge on how humans work, made mistakes that would affect their own living, have made enough bad decisions to start a civil war, have had their own people doubt and hurt them, have cried, have tried to lay low, have been beaten, have felt heartache, etc etc...

This whole demanding act that Furina put upon herself was sometimes unnecessarily harsh on herself, because archons are more human than she thinks.

#genshin spoilers #fontaine archon quest #fontaine archon quest spoilers #fontaine spoilers #archon quest spoilers #genshin #genshin impact #genshin furina #furina #gi furina #when our sweet peach said that her crying was her hydro overflowing... #i was thinking 'oh bby girl venti would cry over not being served alcohol. it's fine to be stressed' #thoughts #idk if people are missing the point of this post? #I’m saying Furina’s worldview is inexperienced and she therefore didn’t give herself enough leeway that other gods would give themselves #It is absolutely understandable how she acted and she is a perfectionist as well as somewhat of a people pleaser #She was put into a position without divinity with little knowledge and so much stress was put onto her since she didn’t know how to act #I’m saying if she did know how other gods acted maybe she would’ve allowed herself to cry publicly and maybe take alone time a bit more #But that’s the thing- she didn’t #That’s what’s so sad. Her perfectionism and people pleasing was doubled and she wouldn’t allow herself to be her view of ‘ungodly’ #or even allow her people to eventually accept their god as maybe a little bit meek. They certainly put more pressure and anxiety on her. #I feel for Furina. It definitely wasn’t her fault. She is who she is and any human w inexperience would behave the same way

[lesbiradshaw]

one of my favorite things about bradley is that while he so desperately wants to be like his father— enough so that he spends so much of his life trying to emulate him through style, music, profession, etc.— narratively he really is more like maverick. maybe not in the exact way that he flies, because we all know maverick is notoriously a daredevil while bradley is decidedly not, but even that has its own parallels with how ice and jake upon introduction immediately point out the flaws in their piloting styles (i heard that about you. you like to work alone. / that’s just you, ain’t it? waiting for just the right moment that never comes.). their methods are different, but both on the ground and up in the air, the two of them are always competing with a ghost. fathers that they can barely remember, whose legacies one way or another made it difficult for them to make it where they are in their careers— even though their fathers are such major motivators for why they chose aviation in the first place. they both have spent a lot of their lives on their own because of that and when it comes down to the final mission for each of their movies, they’re both shown being doubted as the right fit— once again by ice and jake (it’s nothing personal…but with regard to maverick…is he the best pick? / he’s not cut out for this mission. you know i’m right.). at the end of the day they manage to pull it off, but they have to overcome the obstacles that have plagued them for a majority of the movie. it’s not just the obvious scene callbacks that tether them as characters, it’s who they are at their core.

#could make a whole post off icemav/hangster parallels alone likeee #you’re everyone’s problem. you’re not flying fast enough. i’m sorry. you give em hell. #you can be my wingman anytime. bullshit. you can be mine. chalked yourself another kill. that makes two. #i cant believe people are trying to rewrite history about maverick and jake being the tethered ones #their personalities dont need to be exactly the same for them to be tethered #as oomf said they share the same arc and ice and jake both have the same position in that as well #ice and jake aren’t just their rivals; they’re foils that represent the path to the navy maverick and bradley were unable to take themselves #anyways #icejake mavbradley r soooooo important to me i could think about them all day #icemav #hangster #sereshaw #top gun maverick #tgm #bradley rooster bradshaw

[mewtwo24]

Something about Hua Cheng's expression here is killing me--I know this is supposed to be a delicate moment of reassurance but the pure hater energy radiating off of him is just immaculate

#tgcf #hua cheng #xie lian #hualian #words cannot express how much I love hua cheng being a hater #hua cheng in this pic is that energy when you keep spamming the A button when an npc you don't like won't stop talking #like his face when lang qianqiu keeps going on and on about his parents meeting an untimely unjust and grisly end #is so 'it was hundreds of years ago and it wasn't even gege's fault for fucks sake grow up' #'leave my goddamn wife alone he raised you with love and diligence' #'you had your bloody revenge what more do you want. figure it out far away from us.' #spoken like a true ghost king who slaps eming every single time it expresses a single inconvenient emotion he has #every day i have to resist the urge to gush about hc he's just hilarious and peak every single time i love him #no notes just banger after banger after banger #that's the face of a man who was orphaned as a child and clawed his way through life to survive and keep his loved one alive + well #a bastion of unmoving strength for 800 years #unmoved by the whining of a young man born with everything and mourning the loss of his innocence way past his expiration date #10/10 hua cheng you've done it again #hc said 'oh? a traumatic life event? we have several dozens of those git gud' #and honestly i mean that with no malice i just feel like lang qianqiu is old enough to start parsing the world in a more nuanced way ;;;;; #as much as xl thought lying to him was the best outcome hc was right--the truth d o e s matter--and not just to absolve xl #its also about giving lang qianqiu closure and moving on. about qi rong facing the consequences of his actions #so much of what is wrong with the heavenly court is the obsession with maintaining appearances over being sincere #and so much of what hc adores about xl is that xl was never really interested in those empty words and empty sentiments #he truly wanted people to prosper and live well no matter the cost to himself

[cerise-on-top]

Easter with König

It's another holiday, which means I'm going to make my favorite fictional Austrian go through the holidays as well. First was Fasching, now it's Easter! If I have to celebrate it, then so does König, except he gets to have a better time doing it!

I wouldn’t be surprised if you’d meet his family during Easter. It’s a tradition of his to go to his parents’ home during that time for a visit and a chat, he only sees them maybe twice a year, so he can appreciate having a small get together with them. He normally gets along well with his parents, but he’s lost most of the contact he had with them ever since he hit his mid 20’s, but he does look forward to seeing them. Naturally, he’d take you along for the ride, regardless of whether you actually know German or not. He can play interpreter for you, it’s not a problem for him. But if you know German already? All the better, that way his parents and you can just talk to each other with no problems. He does hope that you’ll get along with them, they did play an important part in his life when he was younger.

König genuinely hopes that you will like the traditional Osterjause*, though. He’s loved Easter for that reason, and for the freshly baked lambs, but mostly for the best Brettljause*. In fact, he’s probably called his mother two weeks before his visit to let her know what kind of meat and sausages to get for him and you as well so that there shall be plenty to go around. If you’re not from around, then you likely don’t know what a “Gsöchts”* or “Schweinsbratn”* is, but he will assure you that it’s something delicious. König could rave on and on about that one farmer’s “Hauswiaschtl”. In fact, if he can, he’d love to go to the farmer’s market on Friday with you just so he can get you something to eat. Not above grabbing some Bauernbrot* and Krenn* either while he’s at it. Mans needs his Krenn when eating his Osterjause. Although it will have been a while since he’s seen everyone, he will introduce you to all the farmers there since he knows a good chunk of them growing up.

Naturally, he’ll be drinking a few beers here and there as well. He’s Austrian, it’s in his blood. Will have you try everything off the plate, from the Nuss* to the low-fat Karree*. Loves having you with him and will actively try to involve you in any conversation there may be so that you get to talk as well. Again, it might be a bit awkward if you don’t know any German, especially since he’s not the most reliable translator, but you’ll get by somehow. His parents have been curious about you for a while now anyway and have been wanting to meet you.

Although he claims to be far too old for that sort of thing, he wouldn’t mind looking for an “Osterkerberl”* with you. It’s a nice tradition that he used to love as a child and he wants you to experience Austrian Easter with him, so he likely asked his mother to hide one for you somewhere around the yard so you can go find it. She won’t give you any clues as to where it could be found. It’s childish, but it’s a lot of fun. In fact, if König were to ask her to prepare a Kerberl* for you, then chances are she prepared one for him as well, for old time’s sake. And then the both of you, two fully grown adults, will run around the yard, looking for the basket. Once you found it, you had to admit it was rather cute, filled with a few hand painted eggs, some colorful chocolate, a baked lamb and some crafted chicks and bunnies. Clearly, his mother put in a lot of thought into what goes into such a small basket. In fact, even the “grass” was made of edible paper, it seemed.

König would feel somewhat stupid, looking for a basket of all things during Easter, but it did remind him of his childhood, so he wouldn’t outwardly complain. Besides, you walking up to him, all happy with your little basket, does something to him. The sight was just too adorable, so he’d likely ask you, the master sleuth, to assist him in his hunt. Once you’ve both found them, you’d return back to his parents’ apartment and continue just chatting while occasionally eating a bit of the Jause*.

_________________________

Osterjause - Food that’s been prepared for Easter. It usually consists of meat, sausage, cheese, tomatoes and horseradish.

Brettljause - Same as Osterjause except it can be eaten at any point during the year.

Gsöchts - Geselchtes - Salted and smoked meat.

Schweinsbratn - Schweinebraten - Specifically prepared roast pork, eaten cold in this context.

Hauswiaschtl - Hauswürstel - A hard sausage.

Bauernbrot - A special type of bread.

Krenn - Horseradish.

Nuss, Karree - Types of meat

Osterkerberl - Osterkörbchen - Easter basket, a basket filled with easter themed food. Sometimes has a gift in it as well, mostly for children.

Kerberl - Körbchen - A basket

Jause - In this context it refers to the Osterjause.

#cod #cod x reader #könig #konig #könig x reader #konig x reader #I wrote this a week prior to posting it and just put it in my queue #I am not back just yet I just wanted to post something for another big day for König #I think he wouldn't drink as much during Easter. maybe three beers at most #also he gets along well with his family because I said so. I want the big guy to be happy his childhood was rough enough as it was #I sort of miss looking for the baskets in all honesty. that was always so much fun #it's a shame that I'm too old for that sort of thing these days. I also want a chocolate bunny in a colorful basket!! #if König was real I'd drag him around like a doll to all the places I don't wanna go to alone. and that includes seeing my family #we'd just sit in the other room and play UNO together until we get to leave because we don't wanna talk to anyone #König is good because I get to imagine what it would be like to go literally anywhere here with him #if I had cared about Call of Duty during my high school years I likely would have thought about attending my graduation with him as well #König comforts me in that way. at least I'm not alone in wanting nothing to do with other people while being forced to socialise every time

[mellarked-katnisseverdeen]

So I think the comment being made with the Capitols outrage over the baby bomb is mostly about how the fact that this is Katniss and Peeta, after they've fallen for their star crossed lovers act, demand treatment for them they wouldn't for any other tribute.

It's why a Victors QQ is logically so stupid. The Capitol gets away with killing these kids because they have convinced the populous they aren't real or suffering. But they get attached to those who DO win and they become part of their lives, and through all the post-games pomp, the victory tour and the like, they are MADE real to the Capitol. Albeit in an...extreamly shallow way whitch is still a problem and dehuminizing in it's own way. But they are living people to them at that point in a way they aren't before the Games.

I don't think if say, for an example, Katniss went into her first game pregnant, that there would be half of the outrage...because Katniss was still not real to them. It might be tragic, but it would not get the same backlash.

After Game, the Tour, the wedding hype though? She IS at that point. And THAT is the source of their anger, I think. Still wrong on many, many levels.

#Saw a post about this relating it to something else and couldn't handle it. Had to add my own 2 cents. #And no not gonna call out said post or talk about it. I am shaking even thinking about talking about that topic here. #It's painful enough to read let alone talk about #Everlark #The Hunger Games #Katniss Everdeen #Peeta Mellark

[fictionadventurer]

I went into Ruth expecting a dreary read. How could a Victorian "fallen woman" story be anything other than dark and depressing? So I was shocked right from the beginning to find a sweet, gentle, romantic story. The dressmaker's apprentice who sits in the coldest, darkest part of the workroom because that's where there's a panel painted with flowers that remind her of her country home? How could I not adopt her as a favorite character? Ruth's innocent, romantic outlook on life gave us some beautiful descriptions of the scenery of both city and countryside, and my imagination went on overdrive to create very vivid images of the story. Even the love story, which we know is going to go very wrong, starts out sweet, with a kind, charming love interest who only shows flashes of just how wrong his character is going to go.

Even after Ruth's fall, the story is so gentle, putting Ruth among kind people who are willing to risk and sacrifice a lot to help her. And then the story gets almost too gentle--after some initial struggles with depression, Ruth resolves to bear her troubles patiently and work toward virtue, and her sweet, too-innocent character gets flattened out into someone who's just Good. Life just goes on, with things generally going well, and every potential turn toward drama results in someone deciding to be reasonable, which can make the story drag.

But, in a story like this, the lack of drama becomes the plot twist! It is refreshing to see characters who don't always jump to the worst conclusion or take the worst action, who pause and consider the whole story and act like decent human beings.

And in the places when the drama does kick in, it's good drama. Painful drama. It's also (especially in the last section of the story) melodrama. There were sections of the book where I was rolling my eyes at the cookie-cutter Victorian path the story was taking--but then there'd be one line or one moment that would just stab me in the chest because of how beautifully specific it was to this story. Just enough to elevate it from something bland to something unique and fascinating.

I often had the thought that this book could be about a third of its length without losing anything--yet it should also be just as long as it was. If the story cut all its repetitive musings about Ruth's regret, and used that space to develop the side characters and and show the plot instead of telling us about it, it would be a much deeper story. I found myself wishing Gaskell had reworked this one later in her career--the way that North and South was a more skillful reworking of the issues explored in Mary Barton. In a way, she sort of did in Wives and Daughters, with the story of Molly the quiet innocent getting tangled up in the intrigues surrounding her headstrong, flirtatious stepsister Cynthia serving as a more layered, personality-flipped version of the story where headstrong, sheltered Jemima gets tangled in the story of quiet, sweet Ruth and her past romantic intrigues. (The doctor at the end of the story also feels like a proto-Mr. Gibson).

Yet I'm still fascinated by the themes specific to this story. Contrary to expectation, this "fallen woman" story isn't about sex, or gender, or how unfairly women are treated (though it does touch on that in the end). It's about sin. It's not questioning why Ruth's behavior is considered a sin or looking to dismantle the society saying that it's a sin. It comes from the Christian perspective of saying that sin is real and harms people--so how are we going to deal with that?

The story shows lots of people struggling with temptation, failing, and dealing with the consequences (or harming others with the consequences). Sin is always a case of either not caring enough to do the more difficult, good thing, or a case of "the ends justify the means", where people rationalize their bad behavior as something necessary in this specific case. It always leads to harm, but some people--and some sins--suffer greater consequences in the eyes of the world, whether or not they deserve it. I wish the story had developed and resolved this theme better in places, but the raw material there is fascinating food for thought.

This book is Gaskell at her preachiest, but also Gaskell at her kindest. It explores deep, difficult issues in a very loving way. As a story, there are ways it could be better, but I'm very glad I read it. Perhaps I'm making a point to be kinder to it because I know it's the type of story that today's readers tend to judge harshly. But amid my issues with the story, there are some lovely images, some great messages, and some wonderful characters that going to be living in my heart for a long time.

#elizabeth gaskell #ruth #(i should find out if there's a subtitle for this book because it'd be nice to have a less-generic tag for it) #this should have been like four separate posts #but i spent long enough rambling through this so i'm leaving it as is #as a book i'd say it just barely makes four stars #it's a story that i like better when i'm not reading #because there is a lot of food for thought #the story itself has a lot of great points when you're not trudging through the latest chapter of 'an entire year passed' #the imagination can distill it into the best parts and there's a lot that's vivid #also the pro-life thing! #how did i forget that? #the moment that mr. benson said 'you're confusing the sin with the consequences' i'm like 'slap that on a pro-life sticker! #the fact that the baby is always treated as a good! #that alone is worth the price of admission

[worstloki]

people just ignore Thor was a feral child, huh? like his life goal was probably to demolish another race at age 12 and he was probably begging to go to war and attempted to murder their father for not letting him via telepathy that he didn't have.

#people are like ''loki stabbed thor at age 8'' like im sorry but thor is older and im pretty sure he would've given loki the knife #Frigga was probably like ohhh you can wage war when your brother is old enough to go with you. can't let you two go alone! #and Thor naturally was like ''ok. i will Arm the Child'' #like for SURE Thor was the kid eating dirt while Loki just sat next to him looking very confused about it #Thor: Father said we are Part of Asgard and need to Eat To Grow and then one day will be Big Enough to Fight ! #he tries to feed Loki the dirt so he'll grow up quicker too but Loki starts crying and now Thor's forgotten about it and trying to calm him #Thor like no no don't cry i'll find us something else to get big with :( #carries him away and gets dirt all over them both because his hands were still dirty #fast forward the bros are sitting on the ground under a table monching on lemon cakes (or whatever) absolutely COVERED in dirt #they have left a dirt trail behind them so their hiding spot won't be effective for long #and also Thor doesn't think voices should get across what is clearly a sturdy table cloth so he's not sure how they were 'discovered' #Frigga: you cannot get dirty and go in the kitchens #Thor: LOKI WAS SAD. AND WE NEED SUSTAINENCE TO GROW MOTHER. WE MUST FEED. #Frigga: -_-'' #(Loki is still munching on a lemon tart. the same one despite the room change because he's eating it slowly while Thor reasons with Frigga) #(half of the words anyone is saying go over his head but he is enjoying the expressions being made)

[batvvvvv]

love these 2 with all my heart theyre crazy. infodump incoming

ivy and jon met in college about 18 years before the plot starts (ages 18 and 19 respectively) they were both like, intense and unsettling and as traumatized gay people do they kind of gravitated towards each other. jonathan broke his pen one time and asked pamela if he could borrow one and they just kind of ... never stopped talking. they've been inseperable since

jon was ivy's first friend not made out of neccessity, and pam was jonathan's first friend period. they are absolutely ride or die for each other.

they moved in together after a year to split rent, and despite still being Incredibly fucked up it was both of their first taste of normal life. or as normal as gotham can be idk. living the queer codependent best friends lifestyle !!! something almost like happiness

jonathan did sell drugs out of their apartment for a few months to make ends meet but that Definitely has no impact on his future later! haha! anyway

then they graduated! jon got a job in psychiatry and moved out; ivy stayed and took a job at arkham in the infirmary, where she meets harley. and while pam became more bitter and jaded at the horrible things she witnessed in arkham, jonathan got fired for tormenting a patient, spiralled completely into his obsession with fear and created the first version of his fear toxin. he was arrested and sent to blackgate (and then arkham a week later), then 6 months later ivy was arrested for blowing up a factory, and sent to blackgate.

they didnt speak for the next year and a half. jon continued to isolate himself and spiral, landing himself in arkham once or twice a month at a certain point, while pam got unhealthily fixated on taking down the corrupt in gotham, getting herself into her own fair share of trouble. both of them get to a breaking point around the same time-- forced to face their own actions and the consequences they bring.

so pamela escapes prison again and decides to lay low: gets an apartment under a fake name, and begins to plan her next operations more carefully. somewhere along the way harley moves in with her (after being ditched and left to fend for herself by the joker) and things are Okay !

jonathan's road to recovery (if you can really call it that he's still fucked up and crazy) is a little more explosive and insane but he ends up on ivy's doorstep, dripping wet and covered in blood, and asks to come in. despite everything she lets him stay! (i've written a fic for this that i'll share sometime if i can figure out how 💔)

and they've been keeping each other alive for the 15 years since! they're mean as hell to each other but also they would do anything for eachother. never underestimate the bond betw two fucked up and evil gay people

yeah i love these two so much . most annoying best friends ever !!!!!

#infodump #have i said that i love them enough times. i love them #two people who feel disgusting and inhuman find each other and at the very least they don't have to be alone anymore #shaking them violently #batman au #batman v #jonathan crane #pamela isley #scarecrow dc #poison ivy dc #technically ivycrow #but they are sooo incredibly platonic. gay and lesbian solidarity