#Getting zuko vibes over here

[dutchlines]

Macaque character analysis

I haven’t come across any long ones yet (in general) so here we go. I feel like there is not enough talk about Macaque in how much depth he has as a character, especially in the final episodes. And I specifically want to talk about the scene where he fights Sun Wukong in the specials.

Let me be clear first. Sun Wukong is an absolute powerhouse, he’s never overpowered that quickly – not in the novels and not in the Lego series. But his sworn brother, Macaque, is also a force to be reckoned with – at least in the novels. They fight on earth and continue to fight in the celestial realm, the underworld all the way to the monastery where the Buddha resides. In the novels he’s like the complete other half of Sun Wukong (He is the Macaque king, but allegorically speaking he is Wukong’s darker half), but in a way no one recognises the difference between the two monkeys. Except for the Buddha. Macaque got beaten by Sun Wukong in the novels as he tried to flee.

I read somewhere that Macaque is weak compared to Sun Wukong. That he got annihilated by the king in under a minute. And while I know that is shown and told, I have a different few on the “weak/strong” statement. Hear me out. Beware of the long loooong read. Buckle up!

We’ve seen in the first season that Macaque has much more in store in terms of power and wit. But even there he didn’t show his full potential. He uses that energy to quip and taunt Monkey King, because he knows Monkey King isn’t giving his full power and attention in this fight (because of MK’s presence). And he immediately knows. So instead of using full force, he provokes the king. Macaque didn’t have to use his full power because he had Wukong already pinned down and MK was in no shape to fight him as well. And that was not even the point of this whole battle. Macaque had no intention to fight Wukong to death (also for the fact that he got a second chance at living, like you don't throw that away, but we learn that later on). He’s smart and cunning. He would be less quippy and more focussed in a high stakes battle. But he actually enjoys himself in that fight. He just loveeees getting on Sun Wukong's nerves. He's not scared of the Monkey king at all.

Until, of course, it bites him in the butt when he gets beaten by MK. Now I know that in this fight he has taken MK’s/Monkey King’s powers, but I think it was just a mild bonus (taken from the fact that he already has all of the same abilities as Sun Wukong [at least in the novels]). Because he had an opponent who was pissed off. And you know emotions distract you from battle, it weakens you. Sun Wukong was basically fighting two fronts, his anger and Macaque. Now I don’t think Macaque could have won that fight – as it was almost to a standstill when Wukong caught the shadow monster’s fist (although he was struggling there), but Macaque could have struck a blow or two.

Cut to the specials. He helps the gang by getting the not-mayor. Instead of being a cold bastard who only looks after himself, not getting dragged into another fight with the LBD, he returns with a hostage. You would think at first that he couldn’t give a damn. What could he possibly gain from fighting LBD again after just being freed from her grasp? His whole motivation for the chase and confrontation with the gang: his freedom. He could lose that again if he were to confront her again. In a way it would make more sense for him to just leave and let everything play out (he couldn’t give a sh*t about it before as he said when he shattered the fake rings). That’s also why he didn’t help when Monkey king fought the LBD and not-mayor and just watched from a distance in his hawk form (but also because he’s scared). There wasn’t anything to gain for him. He wouldn’t get a thank you from Monkey king. Bonds would not be melted and restored. He still wouldn’t be accepted, still wouldn’t totally be trusted (well maybe by MK, but that’s a different analysis for another time). And he doesn’t expect that. He sees himself as unredeemable. He believes him to be the villain in the story. So why help?

But he goes out of his way to help. Because he knows what’s it like to have LBD crawl under your skin, to be controlled in a way. Yet she didn’t possess him completely – there was no need for that, his oath to her was already enough to take control over him. And then she controls him even more when she mingles her spirit/energy in his body close to the end of episode 8 (s3), giving him her powers. So, he knows what’s it like. And seeing Wukong in this state… I’d like to think that he still has a soft spot for Wukong. Remember season 2? He lingers in the past. So he helps the gang. But he’s never seen himself as a hero, always the warrior. And MK knows how to play Macaque his heart strings. He had listened to Macaque’s story in “Shadowplay” and remembered. MK is not stupid either (though it might seem so from time to time). So MK pulls Macaque over the edge by asking him to be the warrior (I bet you can get Macaque to do everything if you keep calling him a warrior. It’s adorable). And Macaque, not even reluctantly but full heartly accepts.

Macaque knew the stakes. He knew what roll he had to play in the specials. A distraction. To keep Monkey King busy. Then why use all of your powers to keep him at bay? Again, Macaque is smart. Taking the defensive position asks a lot of energy. And being the distraction and keeping someone busy (who’s being possessed) requires to be on the defensive the whole time. So no quips, no taunts. Full focus but also not using up all your energy in the fight. Because Macaque doesn’t know how long it’s going to take for MK to retrieve his staff. Or how long he needs to distract Wukong. And Macaque needs all the energy he’s got. So he just uses the bare minimum. And if you want to be a distraction you don’t need full power to be a distraction. You just need to be in the way. But quips won’t work this time with Wukong. Talking doesn't overcome the possession. And Macaque knows that. But he also doesn’t use his shadow clones to pin him down, he doesn’t use his staff (even if it might have worked for a few seconds). It’s just himself fighting. Only when he realises Wukong is about to obliterate him with his laser eyes, he uses his giant shadow mech.

But I also like to think that he doesn’t want to hurt Wukong, as Wukong was not himself. Again, as I said earlier, Macaque feels empathy for the ones who got taken over by the LBD. That’s also why he’s the first and the only one to leap forward to catch the little girl as LBD got rid of her body. How he cradles her and brings her to safety.

Macaque doesn't want MK to go though the same stuff as he had with the Monkey King. He warns MK in the previous seasons about Wukong and how Wukong treats other (he also warns Tang). And his warnings feel sincere, because we've seen him act when he want to get under Wukong's skin. He approaches things differently; with humor sarcasm and sly smirks. But his warning to MK (and Tang) are full of emotion. He might be a theater kid, but hurtfull emotions and trauma's are hard to act as if they were fake.

It turns out he was right in a way. I believe he cares for MK, because he sees himself in him (sort of). He sees some one who looks up to Wukong and wants to be around him. He was that guy too in the past. But he knows from experience how Wukong can be. And it turns out he was right, in a matter of speaking. Wukong continued pushing MK away, not listening/paying attention to him all the way through season 2 and right before the season 3 specials (even though it might have been the right course of action) and sometimes even dismisses him. Mei even calls him out for it.

We know that Macaque is able to be empathic. So it isn’t strange to me that he might feel the same way for Wukong who is possessed. He knows what’s it like. How horrible and frightening. He doesn’t want to fight Wukong, especially when he’s not himself. At that moment Wukong was a mirror to Macaque. Someone who’s freedom got stolen and was forced to do things he didn’t want to.

Counting this all together it makes sense for Macaque to be beaten by Wukong so quickly. He knew his role: distraction. But his feelings also may have gotten in the way. And Wukong was really going all out, with no control over his own body, no boundaries. His power was almost limitless. But that doesn’t undermine the strength Macaque has, he only uses his power differently, from what we’ve seen so far.

--

The season finale ended with Macaque smiling as Tang spoke of redemption. Now Macaque isn’t quite there yet, but his redemption is in the works. And I, for one, can’t wait to see how his redemption is going to unfold.

Dang, this made me feel things. Maybe I’m looking into this wayyyy too much. And maybe this took way to long to make. I just love him okay!

God I love these series. I can't wait for season 4.

#lego monkie kid #lmk season 1 #lmk season 2 #lmk season 3 #lmk macaque #monkie kid #lmk sun wukong #lmk mk #lmk spoilers #six eared macaque #liu er mihou #lmk special #character analysis #My love for edgy antihero is insatiable #Getting zuko vibes over here #What do you guys think? #I love this bastard so much #both monkeys btw #lmk why don't you just rip my heart out?

[ssreeder]

Hi again! I loved the new chapter!! It made me stare at my ceiling existentially for an hour (every chapter does) and we finally get Ara oh god. Im kinda an Ara hater. I’ve always kinda hated her but she was slightly redeemable? Until in itf where we get her POV and she purposefully made Zuko’s life a living hell. That’s when i became a full fledged Ara hater club member. But it still so hard for me to fully hate her cause yk she’s a victim too.

Anyways, she’s a super compelling character and I change my mind every chapter if i hate her or not. So I got bored again and made this . Have a good day!!!

Haha her POV was very much like *hair flip* “yeah I tried to destroy him but it proved to be a lot more difficult than I thought, but I did try.”

She’s really an interesting gal right there with a moral compass that is just constantly spinning in circles. Hopefully she can find some solid ground to stand on and eventually build herself a new life… we’ll see haha.

Thanks for this I adore it!!

#omg omg omg the vibes of this are amazing #seriously ara for the longest time is just like I didn’t do anything wrong #until she realized she does EVERYTHING WRONG haha #like girl can’t even breath without hurting someone #I love the red background and the figures behind her #she is drawn so well #I love this #ara is one of the characters I enjoy watching people flip flop over #she’s getting better / THAT BITCH / awww she’s a victim / SHE ALMOST KILLED ZUKO / but she’s sad…. / KILL HER #I never know what I’ll get #I mean I will say there are people that have rode the ara hate train from liab all the way to ITF & I respect it haha #same with jet damn it they hate him haha #it’ll be interesting how and where she goes from here #*shrugs* idkkkkkkkk #could be good could be bad #we won’t know next chapter because I’m going to kill Jee or bato off so they won’t stop talking #fucking dilfs #all of them #ok anywayyyy thank you for this #your art and asks mean so much #seriously I’m giddy smiling skipping throwing up all the normal things someone does when getting fanart #I LOVE YOUUUU THANK YOUUUU #liab #ITF #fanfic art #lilywriter

[nickeverdeen]

Avatar The Last Airbender characters seeing you cry

Includes: Aang, Katara, Zuko, Toph, Sokka

(let me know who else should I add)

Aang

When you start crying, buddy doesn’t really know what to do

Aang would try to cheer you up even if it meant making fool of himself

You can vent to him, he’ll listen

Aang would feel very bad to see you sad or upset

Considering Aang is a great listener you can vent about any kind of stuff to him

Probably some positive comments

“Don’t worry, everything will be fine! You’ll see tommorow!”

Katara

Just like Aang she’ll listen to whatever you have to say

Katara is probably the best person in this group to comfort you

She’ll try to fix your problems for you

Katara is very understanding and empathic so it won’t be much of a problem for her to understand your situation

Katara would definetly remind you that they’re all here for you

“Feel free to talk to any of us next time, Y/N, we’re here for you”

Zuko

Zuko would have one of those comments like “that’s rough, buddy”

He’d try his best to listen and understand

He’s very empathic towards you

Zuko can be sometimes a great listener so feel free to vent to him about any kind of stuff that’s bothering you

He’d definetly be awkward from the beggining

“What’s wrong, Y/N?”

Toph

Let’s be honest, she’d first have the vibe “stop being a baby”

Toph is not much help in this situation

Toph will try her best to listen to your troubles

She’d get slightly annoyed if you’d cry about something small and stupid

But if it’s not some small ad stupid matter she’d do her best to comfort you

Probably punching you softly while saying some she’s hoping comforting comments

“You’ll get over it, it’s fine”

Sokka

Unlike his sister he has no idea what to do at first

Probably sits next to you and somehow tries to physically comfort you

Sokka would definetly say some stupid jokes in order to make you laugh or just in general to cheer you up

He would maybe signail his sister that he needs help if none of his methods would work

Jokes are the medicine from his point of view

“Ah! Gotta you! You laughed!”

#headcanons #avatar the last airbender #atla aang #aang x reader #atla katara #katara x reader #atla toph #toph x reader #atla zuko #zuko x reader #atla sokka #sokka x reader

[demeterdefence]

LMAOOO this had me peeved im truly sorry for the essay but this got me heated

there is this whole thing in media now where a victim of abuse - domestic, romantic, any kind - will inevitably get some kind of power over their abuser, and use it as their moment to "forgive" the abuser. it's meant to show how little power the abuser has now, and how healed the victim is

i am not against forgiveness in media and i'm not necessarily against this particular trope - i'll use avatar the last airbender as an example, and point out how zuko (who starts off as the antagonist in the story) works to redeem himself following his actions, and is forgiven once he's made actual amends. he then goes on to forgive his sister for her abuse, and not because she's doing better or she feels sorry for it - zuko realizes his sister is also a product of abuse, that she's been warped by the abuse, and she didn't have the support that zuko did. she's not going to get better; she will always be twisted and cruel. zuko forgives her because he sees her as a fellow victim, and he has no hate for her, only grief and pity.

arguably that's the same narrative rachel is trying to set up here with kronos, considering how the last few chapters have hammered on about how cruel and mean oranous was and how abusive he was, and how of COURSE kronos ended up so bad because his dad was so mean!

EXCEPT. THIS DOESN'T WORK BECAUSE WE HAVE NEVER SEEN ORANOUS AS A VILLAIN.

he's mentioned at best maybe three times, and certainly he's given shades of evil, but nothing that exclusively focuses on kronos. all we get is the generic bad guy vibes, but he's out of the story faster than we have time to process. if rachel wanted us to feel bad for kronos, having his so-called abuser just kind of wander in for a panel or two does not achieve that pity.

so this is really just hades (looking like a jesus figure seriously rachel how on the nose do you have to be) forgiving a being that, for the entire story, has been nothing but abusive and cruel. he swallowed two sons, he killed his wife, he abused hera, he took chomps out of his kids, and he put the world in danger. he tried to kill hades' wife. he kidnapped hades' future daughter. he has shown no remorse, no regret, nothing but cartoon villainy.

forgiving a character like this just ... hand waves all the harm done. like "sorry your dad was mean to you, here's a cookie." none of his other victims get the choice to forgive, and i'm willing to bet a fair few do not want to! you can argue this is hades' choice, but ultimately, it demonstrates rachel's utter inability to follow a narrative line to the end. she wanted to set up hades' as a powerful redeemer able to move past his abuse, but all she did was ditch kronos at the last second, unable to complete any storyline because she never thought it through.

#anti lo #anti lore olympus #also his outfit is stupid! i said it!!!

[burst-of-iridescent]

atla live action thoughts: episodes 3 & 4

SPOILERS AHEAD

tw: opinions

things i liked:

jet, you beautiful, beautiful man. had me twirling my hair and kicking my feet fr i NEED this show to get a season 2 just so i can see more of him in the ba sing se arc please netflix

but looks aside, sebastian amoruso DELIVERED on the performance. the softness, the vulnerability, the charm, the intelligence, yet also the ruthlessness beneath it all? KILLED IT.

the moment between him and katara where he tells her to remember her mother as she was alive and not just her death was absolutely lovely. “remember the sunrise” made me very emotional

on that note, can’t believe jetara fake marriage is canon now lmao

i am SO here for desi omashu. i love the vibe and aesthetic of the city and again the visuals are STUNNING. live action repping the south asians better than the original ever did i’ll be honest

shameless fan service but “MY CABBAGES” being so fucking dramatic had me dying

of all the things i expected from the atla live action, secret tunnel and omashu being lesbians wasn’t even on the list but i’m not mad. hilarious that they turned the cave of two lovers into the cave of two platonic siblings though

jet, omashu and northern air temple arcs actually meshed together better than i thought. the NAT episode never sat well with me in the original so i’m glad they moved them to omashu instead.

the freedom fighters were RIGHT OUT OF THE ANIMATION. casting directors absolutely killed

love that they showed resistance movements within the fire nation and azula being part of rooting them out. it’s a nice nod to the deserter, since i’m guessing they’re not including that episode

really glad to see that the atla live action is following the tradition of having weirdly unnecessary zutara crumbs in every iteration of the story because what in the om shanti om was that zutara scarf moment. 10/10 no notes

having one of the earthbenders transporting iroh be angry over losing a loved one because of iroh’s siege of ba sing se was a really great change. i’ve always thought the original glossed over the true extent of the damage iroh did, so having him come face to face with what he’d done in the past was a great way to add some complexity

“how dare you beat up that child!” everyone go home seeing zuko being beat up by a random old lady is the highlight of this series. really love that they were just running around throwing things at each other that was major book 1 zuko/aang fight energy lmao

SECRET TUNNELLLLLLLL

leaves from the vine instrumental was 100% to inflict emotional damage and it fucking worked. the scene between zuko and iroh at lu ten’s funeral was so beautiful & then to have it flipped around at the end when iroh says “everything i need is on this boat”… fuck you for this netflix i didn’t need these tears today

things i disliked/am conflicted about:

not a fan of what they’re doing with katara’s character. they’re toning down a lot of her rage and fierceness, and boiling her down to “trauma over mother’s death.” in the original katara didn’t freeze jet and splash water at him because he tried to fight her, she did it because she was hurt and pissed off! there’s no way animated katara would’ve just run away from jet without sending a water whip at his face first. i’m concerned for how the pakku fight is gonna go tbh

bumi my guy, what did they do to you 💀 this series seems hellbent on having everyone remind aang that he ran away which doesn’t work when a) you already changed aang actively running away to him just going off for a break and b) you’ve made that point! the original omashu episode was about bumi teaching aang to look at the world differently, here it just weirdly feels as though he’s punishing aang by venting all his anger and despair on him?? that’s NOT what animated bumi was like & they didn’t even have the two of them go sliding down the delivery system in the flashbacks so adding it in at the end felt very out of nowhere. they didn’t even genuinely seem to be FRIENDS

having aang immediately figure out it was bumi was… sigh. can we please not do the thing where characters already know everything it’s giving me trauma flashbacks to the percy jackson show

jet’s plan feels more reasonable here than it did in the original. i get they’re trying to show that he didn’t care about the collateral damage to innocent people and that’s bad, but idk him wiping out an entire town unilaterally felt more extreme than a few bombings.

heavily dislike what they’ve done with zhao. i know they’re trying to show him clawing his way to power but that’s more of a long feng move than a ZHAO move. it’s important that zhao always holds more power than zuko and that he has an overinflated sense of ego from the start for him to fulfil his narrative purpose of serving as a warning to zuko of what he might become.

i like seeing mailee but why are they in this show? it feels as though they’re cardboard cutouts there for fan service instead of being actual characters

overall i liked these episodes better than the previous two & i do enjoy how action-packed and visually pleasing the show has been so far.

overall rating: 8/10 for episode 3, 7/10 for episode 4

#atla live action #zutara #i put these two episodes together since they felt like a two parter #also yes i gave into the urge to binge

[aangarchy]

My younger cousin (16) watched tlok season 3 for the first time. Here's her opinion of the characters

Korra: "is it bad that she got more attractive to me when she was suffering?" Me: "idk, maybe?" Her: "... i'll talk abt it in therapy don't worry"

Asami: "i'm so confused is there something between her and Korra???" Me: "you know i'm not gonna tell you" Her: "yeah i hate it when you do that."

Mako: "alright he got more tolerable this season i'll give you that"

Bolin: "and he got worse. So sorry" Me: "but the lavabending?" Her: oh yeah that was cool. He still sucks tho"

Tenzin: "now THAT is Aang's son right there. That shit was bad-fucking-ass."

Bumi: "again, now THAT is Aang's son. THOSE are his children. Not the shitty adults we saw last season"

Kya: "a lesbian?" Me: "doesn't get confirmed til the comics" Her: "oh for FUCKS SAKE"

Jinora: "i love her i cherish her she's the smartest and most powerful character in this show she beats everyone else"

Kai: "he reminds me too much of my brother and i don't like that"

Ikki & meelo: "they're still annoying i'm so sorry"

Lin Beifong: "she needs therapy"

Suyin Beifong: "of all the characters i expected, i didn't think Toph would get the messiest. Like not one but TWO baby daddies? Man. Suyin is cool as hell tho but she does give awkward soccer mom vibes"

Opal: "does she have more personality other than 'sweet cute girl for bolin to bang?'"

Zaheer: "best villain this universe ever produced only for him te become absolutely pathetic in the end bc bolin pushed a sock into his mouth. They should have kept him stoic and scary. He was so cool until that exact moment and they HAD to have a dumb bolin one liner. I'm so mad about this if you couldn't tell"

P'li: "sparky sparky boom WOMAN. A win for feminism."

Ming Hua: "i still think young Katara would beat her in a fight and i'd pay good money to see it."

Ghazan: "i have a rlly good joke about him" Me: "ok shoot" Her: "he's mista Lava Lava" *burts out laughing*

Lord Zuko: "ngl i screamed when i saw him on screen maybe i do like his character"

Varrick & Zhu Li: "HOW MANY CHARACTERS ARE IN THIS SEASON JESUS" Me: "and we haven't even gone over the president yet" Her: "oh my GOD"

#atla #tlok #the legend of korra #avatar #avatar the legend of korra #lok #korra #asami #asami sato #korrasami #mako #bolin #opal #suyin beifong #lin beifong #tenzin #bumi #kya #zaheer #p'li #ming hua #ghazan #jinora #kai #kainora #ikki #meelo #varrick #zhu li #zuko

[oneatlatime]

City of Walls and Secrets

I am also once again saving the commentary for a rewatch.

I still think rock trains are neat but their inefficiencies hurt my brain. The friction! They should at least install dynamic braking.

That's big. This show has really confined itself to the hinterlands so far, so this is really novel. I had no clue anything this big existed in the Avatar universe.

Complete nitpick time! Given that earthbending is a thing that exists, why bother making things out of stone with individual tiles like this?

Single most threatening musical sting of the whole show so far goes to an overly smiley tour guide.

Wow! I hate this lady already!

"Oh, Ba Sing Se has many walls! There are the ones outside, protecting us, and the ones inside, protecting us from smelly poors!"

"In case someone brings home a lady friend!" Do you know your nephew AT ALL?

Both Iroh and Zuko are right. Life does happen everywhere and without your permission. But, the city is also remarkably prison-like.

He got them jobs in an afternoon. AN AFTERNOON. Stop it Iroh, you're making me feel inadequate.

Once a fuckboy, always a fuckboy. This particular leopard can't change his spots, no matter how he tries to dress up his actions in a new law-abiding veneer. I feel sorry for Smellerbee. Her faith in her leader isn't exactly being rewarded.

So... is there a law on the books that makes being a firebender illegal in Ba Sing Se? Because the head-in-the-sand vibe I'm getting from Judy makes me think that the average citizen doesn't even know there's a reason to dislike the Fire Nation. Iroh and Zuko could probably bend as openly as a waterbender or an earthbender could here.

This whole being handled thing must be dredging up some pretty nasty feelings for Toph. This is specifically what she left behind.

Speaking of precisely targeted torture, Judy is engineered to be as irritating to Sokka as possible. Man of action versus Lady of script.

What a productive use of time! What an exemplary case of turning over a new leaf!

Iroh buddy I have news for you regarding the ingredients of tea.

That's like the nicest thing a member of the Fire Nation royal family has said all year.

How to get Iroh's ass in gear: Step 1: Make insulting tea. Step 2: There is no step 2.

I thought that little thingy in the background was one of those electricity things.

The attention to detail in this show is stupid. There's a moving reflection of the carriage in the water as it goes past.

Hi forbidden city!

Ba Sing Se has a morality police?

I've already run out of patience with the city and I'm 7 minutes in. I haven't even made it to a commercial break yet!

Their house is cute but the veranda is so substantial that it's probably really dark inside. Also there's a pumpkin hood ornament on the roof.

I don't think you can stop there for a month. Have you guys forgotten the now-doubled ticking clock? Eclipse and comet?

Oh ok we're doing 1984 now. Damn. This show goes places.

I stand corrected. Everyone knows about the war and would be appropriately non-welcoming to firebending. But not openly. This could be like one of those Bugs Bunny bits where he traps someone in societal rules. If someone told a firebender not to bend, all they would have to do to get the guy off their case would be to ask why they aren't supposed to be firebending. What's the guy going to say, because there's a war on?

Shout out to Pong for doing the Gaang a solid and providing the only useful info since they've arrived.

There is something very Gollum-like about Jet, crouched in laundry on a roof in the dark, talking to his stolen spark rocks.

Sokka. Feet off the artwork.

Time for Toph to weaponise her oppressive upbringing and out-fancy the fancies in the name of ending the war.

Aang can master an element in a couple of months but a qualified expert declared manners to be beyond him.

I just realised that Sokka and Katara don't have a last name.

Sneaking into a Bear's (JUST Bear's) birthday party may be the single least violent infiltration attempt in the show so far.

Smellerbee is very articulate, and it's rare that this show spells out its themes so obviously. No metaphors, just "you're obsessed. It's not healthy." And Jet still doesn't get it. Maybe Smellerbee should have tried metaphors.

Normally glowy green stuff is bad news, but all of Ba Sing Se's green lighting is surprisingly cozy.

Sometimes, rarely but sometimes, Zuko has to put up with a lot of nonsense.

A raise? Did I miss a timeskip?

Busting in to a local business, yelling about the enemy, pulling out a lethal weapon: How to Look Sane, A Guide by Jet.

Customers, amirite?

I guess the Bei Fongs are too minor as nobles?

"You don't know what I had to do to get seats this near the bear!" but I want to.

I know this guy's voice from something.

Momo ghost plan. I want it.

Pretty funny that the busboys plan works better than the fancy ladies plan. Goes to show you should always play to your strengths.

Get de-wheated punk.

I'm not sure I've rooted for Zuko this wholeheartedly since The Storm.

Jet be like.

Judy is not good at her job. Like really not good. Her insistence on getting out of there before they cause a scene caused the scene. Nice going!

The music slowing down when Judy's face falls is really effective.

You ever get the feeling that it should be Aang who ran away to the circus rather than Ty Lee?

Actually a travelling circus would be a great way to be, and remain, an incognito airbender. Aang should have done that rather than frozen himself. Ok I'm not sure how much say he had in that, but you know what I mean.

For the first time in his life, Zuko has people take his side. It's too bad that it's based on a lie, but it must feel nice.

I would have preferred if Zuko had a clean win against Jet - they're both great with swords, but I thought Zuko was better - but an assist from the funky hat police works too.

I'm getting some funky vibes from the funky hat police.

Bye! I won't miss you!

The face on the guy on the left is the funniest part of this episode.

Now these are some funky hats.

I know this scene is supposed to be scary and tense and action-packed, but I can't get over the fact that the king just did a drive by. They carried him in one side and out the other. This concludes the King's presence at his Bear's birthday party. He's a very busy man, you see.

Long Fang's title keeps getting fancier.

Brain washing crops up quite a lot in kids' cartoons. This is not the first time I've seen this plot beat.

Forget the Fire Lord. Forget the Fire Nation. Long Fang just threatened Appa. Long Fang has to die now.

The Judys are replaceable. Given everything else this city seems ok with, they're probably disposable too. Yikes!

Final Thoughts

This episode was probably the most expository I've seen this season. Maybe even the whole show. It was a big infodump with barely any humour. Actually that's wrong; there was humour, but not to my taste.

Jet is infuriating as usual. I think the writers are going for the villainous decay trope, because smooth-talking season one Jet hasn't reappeared once.

I feel really sorry for Smellerbee and the archer guy. I wonder if they even wanted to go to Ba Sing Se in the first place.

Once again, for the third episode in a row, Zuko is one of, if not the, most reasonable character. Season one shouty Zuko is gone. Is this what I think it is? Has Zuko really turned a corner? If so, I'm liking (rather, disliking less) this new Zuko. This is good. I'm also surprised, because in my experience, if you want to domesticate someone, you don't put them in a customer-facing role. That will have the opposite effect and make them turn feral.

Iroh is having too much fun. It's good for him to have something of his own going on. I think he's been in Zuko wrangling mode 24/7 for the last two? three? years, so he definitely deserves to pursue his own interests for a bit. But I can't see Zuko being a tea boy for long before he's back to needing wrangling.

What's the long term plan though? Are Zuko and Iroh going to live the rest of their lives in Ba Sing Se? Are they waiting for something? Are Iroh and Zuko functionally dead, with Lee and Mushi taking their place?

I will give the show credit for finally coming up with and antagonistic force that Aang & company can't just bend or talk into submission. Bureaucratic tomfoolery covering for authoritarian censorship and information suppression and re-education was not something I'd ever have expected in this show, because it's a little too much like the real world, if you know what I mean.

I don't like seeing our heroes unable to triumph, so this episode was kind of uncomfortable to watch. It felt off the whole way through, which I credit to that creepy music box tune that played throughout. The soundtrack of this episode was a cut above what I usually hear in this show. I noticed it more than I usually do, and I mean that in a good way.

As someone who'd be lucky to pass as a busboy, upper class intrigue and social games stuff doesn't do it for me, so this wasn't an episode I was going to enjoy anyway. I preferred the B plot with Zuko and Iroh, for the sheer absurdity of the concept. Imagine you're in 1950s London, having barely survived the Blitz, and you come across Himmler working in a pub. It's so odd that it almost wraps back around to normal again.

I didn't find this episode very enjoyable. I don't like the forced inactivity that's been imposed on the Gaang. The humour was not to my taste. The worldbuilding was substantial, but - probably thanks to Joo Dee, whose name I've definitely been misspelling - it felt inorganic, like a lecture. Which the writers do lampshade by making Joo Dee sound like one of those audio guide things you rent from tourist attractions. But lampshading a fault does not make a fault go away.

Thanks to what happens to Jet, I know that the people of Ba Sing Se don't dare even think about the war, for their own safety. But after spending more than half a season being shown every type of refugee and victim of war in other parts of the Earth Kingdom, I could not bring myself to give a flying fuck over Pong's concern for keeping his house. The city is frustrating, the officials are frustrating, their priorities are beyond frustrating. Zuko was right when he said he didn't want to make a life there, although I did find the lower ring where Zuko and Iroh are to be far more comfortable than the high ring where the gaang is.

This episode makes me want to bite something.

And still no Appa.

#atla #avatar: the last airbender #avatar the last airbender #city of walls and secrets

[adragonsfriend]

Reading Darth Plagueis,

by James Luceno.

Ok I finished this book. It was a wild ride, here are some highlights, (anything in quotes, " ", is in fact, a direct quote). Spoilers, I guess.

———

“At some point, probably when he was focused on murder, a rock or other projectile had pulped a large area of his lower back.”--Plagueis

Yeah man that always happens to me too when I’m focused on murder

———

Me thinking, *Plagueis is way too normal for a sith,* about five seconds before the narration goes *Plagueis was hungry. he thought about eating the eggs of some sentient lizards and also the sentient lizards themselves, but restrained himself*

———

Plagueis, a banker: nOt all mUNns R bAnkErS u kNoW

A pirate who wants a bribe: be better for you if you were some financial wizard

Plagueis, a literal wizard:

———

Captain La (the random pirate): how do u know my name

Plagueis: *truthing* I sliced you ship’s systems,

Plagueis: *lying* it’s not like I’m a telepath or something

———

*at the evil rich people party*

"Republic senators, at least those that weren’t present, would be subjected to ridicule—"

I love how the narration says "subjected" like Bail Organa would give fuck about some assholes making fun of him

———

Plagueis in a business meeting as hego damask:

Repeats himself multiple times conducting experiments in trying to force suggest to a resistant species

His assistant: bro what r u doing ur making us look bad

———

omg young Palpatine is so Anakin coded. Genuinely he throws tantrums it’s perfect

———

Tag this accidental baby acquisition some random dathomiri lady just handed maul over like a sac of potatoes

———

Sidious, about to gaslight, girlboss, gatekeep, mansplain, manipulate, and threaten to manslaughter Nute Gunray within an inch of his life all in the span of a 2 minute zoom call: *wearing his Sith cloak on their holocall* what is up my guy? did u get the rare collectible bird I sent u anonymously a while back?

Nute Gunray: uhh…yes…um… its very nice…who are you and why r u hiding in that hood bro?

Sidious: it's the traditional clothing of my Order

Gunray: ur a cleric?

Sidious: "Do I seem like a holy man to you?"

Me: the only holes I see here are in your logic, morals, ability to feel compassion, and *waves hand all encompassingly* vibes

———

Dooku: if one more Jedi dies because of the indolence of the republic, I’ll leave the Jedi and refuse to look back

Palpatine: *listening attentively*

———

Plagueis & Maul: (separately) gloat about being Sith Lords to people they’re about to kill

Sidious:

Sidious: these idiots cannot keep a secret to save their lives—

———

Plagueis ACTUALLY believes Sidious is about to appoint him co-chancellor. what an idiot.

———

Padme shocking both Sith at every turn during the Naboo crisis is sending me

———

Oooh Sidious' murder rant is incredible. He's like Plagueis you manipulated and abused me, now i'm gonna kill you so I can go do that to other people without you hanging over my shoulder. It's like the evil but still cathartic version of Zuko's speech to Firelord Ozai.

———

Dooku: That zabrak guy was definitely a Sith. There has to be another one, probably the master

Sidious, standing right next to him in a shadowy warehouse wearing a black cloak: “how would one even begin to know where to look for this other Sith?”

———

“For an instant, Palpatine perceived a touch of his younger self in Skywalker”

This book needs to stop. Maybe consider pulling its punches sometime. The only mark of disapproval I have here is that this is portraying Obi-Wan as an asshole for the five seconds he’s present

———

Bad news, the book did indeed stop. I have been gravely injured, but also greatly amused. The experience of reading this book is just constant vacillation between *wow so Sith Lord, so scary, so evil* and *Plagueis, my guy, that is the dumbest ideology I’ve ever heard. maybe if you took a nap (for the first time in 20 years) you’d finally say something that made sense*

I will also confess that I was taking detailed notes about Plagueis for an AU idea I have that I will not be starting for at least another year because I am married to BHOT and I refuse to be like the rest of you sorry fucks with 17 wips (ignoring that fanfic is in fact the only genre of writing I do not have at least 17 wips in)

#star wars #star wars legends #darth plagueis #james luceno #darth sidious #chancellor palpatine #darth maul #count dooku #anakin skywalker #long post #star wars yeeteth

[roslynwrites]

you’re such an incredible writer, so i only imagine u read extensively too. i’ve noticed ur ao3 bookmarks are empty, but i’d love to get a list of your favorite titles whether it’s zutara, other fandom or traditionally published works.

I do indeed read a lot. The past few years I have read much less fanfic and have focused on original stuff, but I have actually been able to read a few fics in recent times because my brain didn't want to write, I did have a bit of Zutara burnout I think so no Zutara recs here (yet).

But if you, like me, enjoy some Dramione, then, for starters:

anything by phlox (Slowly Toward Desire is my favorite)

Amateur Cartography by worksofstone

A Darker Blue by skitter (legitimately cannot believe this fic didn't blow up, one of the best Dramione fics I've read and that fandom has a ton of good shit, so like. wow. skitter also has a Zutara! I have not yet read but it's on my list and I'm already sure I will love it)

Lights Out by Phoebe

I used to read every pairing under the sun in HP but as I said, haven't read as much fic lately, but two others are Blood & Gold (a Tomione, by the legendary ObsidianPen) and The Wilderness (Luna/Ginny) by speechwriter. If you try nothing else on this list, try The Wilderness. That fic is high art. It blew my entire goddamn mind, my god. I also highly recommend anything by PacificRimbaud (esp. the Paneville)

*cracks knuckles* now for some original stuff:

The Liveship Trilogy by Robin Hobb altered my brain chemistry

Scholomance Trilogy by Naomi Novik. I mean, okay, I worship Naomi generally, so I was shocked to discover it took me a while to get into these. Read the first, thought 'meh', came back to it again later, liked it better, second and third proceeded to BLOW me away

NK Jemisin's Broken Earth trilogy. In case you want a nice dose of a darker twist on Earthbending and an exploration of prejudice.

Juniper & Thorne by Ava Reid for your Gothic horror needs

Lost Boy and Alice, both by Christina Henry. Dark fairy tale retellings, so you know I'm there. She does them so well.

The Burning series by Evan Winter. It has dragons and a dual-sword wielding badass, in case you need those itches scratched

If you want some good published romance (I tend to like fanfic for pure romance stories tbh so I'm usually pickier here) that has some fanfic vibes, I enjoyed Act Your Age, Eve Brown by Talia Hibbert

If you want dark Zutara vibes, my go-to rec and one of my favorite series is The Poppy War trilogy (I will never get over #rinezha)

I wouldn't say I adore The Legendborn Cycle series, but I still like it, you can tell the author has roots in the fan/fanfic scene I think, and again, I think it has some Zutara vibes. Tracy Deonn 100% had to have been inspired by Zuko for her character Sel, I'm convinced. And her take on the Arthurian legend is really unique and creative.

#answers #recs #this is kind of an unorganized hot mess but #hope it helps someone!

[struggling-author]

Hey what are your avatar otps besides azulaang?

oh umm… I wouldn’t call them OTPs since that is exclusively Azulaang, but my bi Azula headcanon lives in a variety of ships. Azutara, Azuki, Maizula… not Tyzula tbh because that feels like… imbalanced? and not Tophzula because they are menace-besties but not romantic, but with any of the other girls I think it could be great. Azutara has the enemies to lovers from Azulaang but with more spice and less forgiveness, they‘d tear eachother apart first but that makes it even sweeter if they eventually fall in love. Azuki is kind of different because Suki is more rational and holds less of an emotional grudge, it‘d be difficult for Azula to earn her trust but she would not be openly hostile to her unless necessary. I imagine this one could only happen if Azula is already in the middle or post redemption though, because Suki would not put up with any EtL shit. I guess that is exactly why it intrigues me too, I feel Suki would be more willing to give Azula a chance, more than Katara for example, but at the same time it would be impossibly hard to win her trust and I‘d like to see if Zula can manage it. Lastly Maizula, and I prefer this one over Tyzula because I feel Mai is more capable of holding her own against Azula in a relationship. It’s a complicated version of childhood friends to lovers and I‘m kind of here for it. No idea how it would work though lol.

Aside from Azula ships, I think Zutara is pretty cool and works well alongside Azulaang. Kataang is kinda cool in theory too, but I don’t like shipping Aang with anyone except Azula, it feels wrong 🤷‍♂️ The only other Aang ship I can imagine liking is Zukaang, but I don’t talk about it much.

Oh and I have to give a shoutout to Sokkla, I don’t particularly vibe with it but they’re the sister ship to Azulaang and I do see the potential of the two genius strategists, so if Aang didn’t exist I would definitely ship Sokkla instead. Nothing but love to the comrades over there. 🫶🏼

edit: totally forgot this but I actually also love Tylaang aka Ty-Lee and Aang, it just has absolutely no fandom so it’s hard to get the ball rolling. I just feel they would be such a wholesome bubbly cute ship, and I dig the Ty-Lee airbender ancestry theory so she‘d love to learn all about airbender customs and they‘d have so much fun and probably a huge family 😅 anyway I think party of why I ship this is just because I think these two deserve the world and it represents my wish for them to be totally carefree and happy. you can also add Azula and make this a throuple, I think that would work because you have Tyzula as the polar opposites and Aang in the middle to bridge the gap.

speaking of throuples I enjoy the idea of… Azutaraang? (Azula/Katara/Aang) but it is very difficult to make work. The only way I can see it is if Azula and Katara fall in love first because nothing good could come of them fighting over Aang. or maybe I could see like a stranded on a deserted island AU where the three of them have to work together and learn to rely on eachother… idk, difficult but not impossible.

Oh and I love Zuki too (Zuko x Zuki) …damn I guess I do have quite a few non-Azulaang ships. anyway this is essentially a bodyguard AU and it’s actually my favorite Zuko ship (sorry Zutara) not much to say about it cuz I’ve barely engaged with it, but I love the idea and think they would just work really well together. I also can see this as a throuple with Sokka again. I don’t really vibe with Zukka on their own but if you add Suki then I love it, because Suki deserves two good boys and it’s more fun for everyone involved if those two good boys are in love with eachother too.

final edit hopefully: Sokka Azula Aang is good too, for the same reasons listed for Zuko Suki Sokka, I swear that’s it now. goodbye lol.

#azulaang #azula #aang #aang x azula #avatar the last airbender #atla #azuki #azutara #maizula #zukaang #sokkla #tylaang #zutara #zuki #azutaraang #tyzulaang #sokklazulaang #if I didn’t know the ship name I just made them up #no idea for sukka x zukka #but that

[low-budget-korra]

Let's talk about Avatar Studios

And what the hell is going on

1) I already talk about the risks of a new Avatar following up Korra so I won't go much further on this here. The problem is this new show already have to face 3 problems

1. Technology. Like, if it really will be 100 years after Korra, makes sense that the Technology will evolve a lot but more technology also means less mystic shit and the fandom love the mystic shit in the Avatar World.

Transform Avatar in some sfi looking show can be bite the ass of Bryke. A lot of fans already complain about Tlok modern world because there's less mystical stuff because of it, now imagine a Avatar where the technology evolve during 100 years.

2. Repetition. For the technology not evolve this much, something have to happen to the world, something that Korra wasn't able to prevent. So then we would have Roku - Aang arc all over again. The children of the Krew will be important to this new Avatar? It's tlok all over again. We will have modern sociological and political discussions? It's tlok all over again. We will have the classic hero journey, where he have to beat the bad guy at the end of the show? It's tla all over again

3. Characters. Tla characters are hella charismatic and the structure of their show help each one of them to develop. Tlok characters were able to sold themselves just with charisma since the storytelling structure of Tlok didn't allow the show to focus on each of them so their development is more off screen. The characters of the new show will have to match the charisma of the previous shows and not sound repetitive. I don't wanna look to a character and think to myself "oh, this is just like Katara". If they want to give us a new show, then give us truly new characters.

2) As a lesbian Poc I understand, respect and agree with the choice of bring more diversity to Avatar Studios but recast the cast is a wrong decision storytelling wise and c'mon...Dante did a stellar job as Zuko (just like the rest of the cast with their respective characters) so if he wasn't half asian he would get recast too? They were all also responsible to give life to your beloved characters, I wouldn't discard them like that.

Storytelling wise, each actor brings something new to a character, this can be good or bad. What if the interpretation of the new cast feels too different for the fandom to buy it? It's more than just a voice. Think about the Joker, James Bond, Superman....all have multiple actors playing the character and every actor brought something new with them, and because of that some are loved like Ledger and Daniel Craig and some are hated like Jared Leto.

Also, I don't want the new cast to just imitate the og cast, that would be disrespectful to their talent. They should simply just keep the cast if the actors wanted to go back and voice their characters and with the new upcoming movies and tv show, then they would search only for native and asian actors to play the new characters.

3) They are taking too much unnecessary risks because a new Avatar will divide the fandom just like Tlok did in 2012 and the fandom can also don't vibe with the new cast work(and I didn't even coment on the rumors they can change the animation style). Both of these things can flop Avatar Studios projects especially in a world were they have to compete with Rick and Morty and Arcane among other young adults cartoons.

So their job is to please the fans and please the main audience that can become a fan after the new projects, but too much changes can make the old fans go away, we saw that happen before with other franchises. And again, they will have to compete for audience with excellent Young adults cartoons

They should do the safe, conquer the fandom first and then start to taking risks and expand the show to newer audience. If they tried to please both all at once, they can ended up pleasing no one

#the legend of korra #korrasami #avatar korra #asami sato #avatar #legend of korra #tlok #avatar the last airbender #the last airbender #avatar aang #katara #zuko #azula #toph beifong #sokka #tenzin #mako #bolin #lets talk about #avatar studios

[unorthodoxx-page]

So what made you decide where to put each turtle?

So, in the story the placement is meant to be ‘random’, but here are some of my character relationship reasons.  LONG ANSWER BELOW!

Leo 

His placement was one of the easiest to figure out.  I feel like his character is loose enough to fit in with the Gaang on a peer level, but also experienced enough to act as a more adult figure in their group.  Katara and Aang definitely look at Sokka as an older figure, but not an adult.  Leo sort of fills that missing Adult roll even if they don’t realize it.  

Raph

Raph and Toph was also easy.  Raph just gives off the vibe of Earth.  Stocky.  Strong.  Settled.  He doesn’t question his decisions as much after the invasion.  He’s also the perfect older figure for Toph.  Everyone older in Toph’s life is overprotective and controlling.  Raph gives Toph the space to be a kid (a dangerous kid) without smothering her.  I also felt like they would play off each other well.  Leo would’ve been a terrible influence on her if he landed there (I can already here “We’re not going to take it!” music playing as they take over the manor lmao).  As it stands, Leo’s just (slightly) peeved that Raph’s acting so brotherly with her lol

 (”I already have a sister,” Leo mumbles, “I don’t need another one.  Especially not a know-it-all younger one.”  “That’s you,” Raph sighs, “You literally just described yourself.” 😂🤣 )

Mikey & Donnie.....and Azula and Zuko lol

So Mikey and Donnie weren’t that difficult either.  I believe Donnie and Azula was the first ‘pairing’ I decided in my drafts.  Leo doesn’t have the compassion (or maybe patience is a better word) to deal with either Zuko or Azula.  Raph might’ve gotten through to Zuko, but Zuko doesn’t need another supportive older person in his life (if that makes sense).  

As for Azula, she wouldn’t respect Raph, because he can be easily manipulated through his emotions and gentle nature.  I also think she would find an antagonist in Leo.  Like, I just picture them fighting like cats and dogs.  She would see his laidback demeanor as a cover to hide his intellect.  She could never fully allow herself to trust or open up to him.  Sort of the same for Leo.  Azula’s nature would rub him the wrong way.  

I also see Leo getting frustrated with Zuko’s stubbornness about his Nations participation in this war.  He might feel some sympathy for both the siblings, but it wouldn’t be enough for him to stay.

Mikey though, has a big enough heart to try with Zuko.  He doesn’t push the boy, but he’s also not needlessly vague (sorry Iroh) like Iroh is.  He’ll push when he can, but the most important thing for me was the support.  He gives it so easily to Zuko and I think it’s something Zuko needs outside of family.  Mikey’s character also manages to find the fun in any situation, which is something Zuko is lacking as well (even though he fights it).

Azula, however, needs someone who can potentially see her as a monster, and still love her.  I personally feel like a lot of people want to change who she is, and I don’t think that’s what she needs.  She already believes herself to be a monster, so you’re only confirming that for her if she needs to change to be accepted.  Donnie however, takes people as they are.  He wouldn’t see a need to change her.  He would just try to understand her and get what he needs from the Fire Nation, which is something Azula can respect.  

But this simple acceptance of her nature allows her to open up in small ways.  Sharing a book she hates, constant mentions of Zuko, allowing herself to be taught chess, requesting information on his behalf, etc.  

I mean, he argues with her.  No one in the show does it willingly.  It’s why she’s so bad at it lol.  It makes for fun character interactions though.  

It’s just, out of all the brothers I thought would look at Azula and simply say “ok” was Donnie.  

Hoped that answered some questions!

#Rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles #avatar the last airbender #atla #atla fic #rottmnt #tmnt #a tale of sprits #CrossOver #crossover fic #crossover fanfic #crossover fanfiction #atla fanfiction #atla fanfic #question #question and answers #Ask memes #rottmnt Donnie #rottmnt leo #rottmnt mikey #rottmnt raph #Donnie #raph #leo #mikey #azula #sokka #katara #aang #toph #zuko

[erisenyo]

Hi yes a question from the audience: Zutara blood bending bdsm??? Can you elaborate on that? (Sorry if this is weird. I just know I won’t see it if I reply on AO3 and I am desperate to hear the details of this idea)

Lol you got over here FAST. Absolutely I can elaborate on my like, one true vision for Zutara, which is more of a vibe than any kind of coherent story idea.

This would be something set in/around/after Zuko joins the Gaang of course, Zuko taking this risk joining them, being on edge, and being very aware of Katara's power in particular (and maybe more aware of her own strength than she is, even, since he has broader context).

And I have no idea how it would come about, but Zuko would be kind of scared, kind of awed, kind of into Katara's power, and the bloodbending in particular, like starting morbidly fascinated and going from there. And there would be this thread of Katara simultaneously exploring and understanding and embracing her power/bending/sexuality all at the same time (my fave combo lol).

I think it would be more of a submission/dominance thing than the sadism/masochism side. Zuko willingly giving his body to her to bloodbend on, and all the trust that it requires, and him wanting that trust even if he isn't entirely sure of her yet and pushing himself to it anyway because that's what he does is push himself regardless of his current reality, and being all scared-exhilarated by it the whole time because someone controll your body with bloodbending is probably horrifying, but if you're giving yourself over to it instead of fighting (if you're making yourself relax and give in and submit)...

And he's an adrenaline junky so he wouldn't be able to stop coming back, because it would be this total rush mixed with like a shared secret and this tenuous-growing-stronger connection when he's just walked away from his prior life, and telling himself it's helping someone too (because Katara would be working through her bloodbending is evil baggage, and isn't helping her by offering up his body the perfect excuse).

Basically I think Zuko would be hard from go if only from the adrenaline, but Katara's bending would be inside him and in his blood and where is all that blood going, and, well. They'd dance around this like, kinky D/S stuff for a while, maybe never touching but edging more and more openly into something sexual, Zuko being the one getting stripped bare and vulnerable but it and also the one getting this sexual and larger gratification from it, but only as much as Katara will give him.

And meanwhile there's Katara recognizing and owning and mastering her power, and realizing how much of her power in the situation is her bending vs just herself, this simultaneous exploration and risk in pushing Zuko and realizing she likes it, or at least likes having that kind of power over him specifically. And add in all the baggage of Zuko being on his knees for someone and vulnerable to bending in particular, and Katara might start off angry and suspicious but it wouldn't stay that way.

And...that's what I've got haha. More vibe than fic, I regularly mourn the untapped kinky potential of bloodbending, and totally unrelatedly, can I direct you to a deep delight of the blood by eruthos over on ao3?)

#asks and answers #ddanieldemi #Zutara #Truly I am rambling #Such a huge part of Katara's arc for me is about like facing and owning her anger and her impact on the people and world around her #And her own power and confidence and what it means to act to feel better vs actually drive impact and change #And the fact that there aren't more kinky fics out there marrying that to some fun d/s smut is a mystery to me

[highfantasy-soul]

Moments I loved from NATLA Episode 4 - Into the Dark ❤️️❤️️

Aang and Iroh interacting more - love that they're not friendly to each other, per se, but it builds a foundation that makes their later respect make sense

The Earth Kingdom being harsh with their 'fallen foes' is nice to seed in here as in the animated version (season 1), most of the 'bad' stuff was relegated solely to the Fire Nation

The Earth Kingdom is no pushover and it's nice to see that early

Sokka defending his dad "My dad would have never done what you did" even after he commiserated with the Mechanist about his dad 'not valuing' what Sokka could bring to the table.

Though Sokka is frustrated that his dad doesn't see "him", he knows his dad is an honorable man doing his best and when Sai tries to use him as an example of 'doing the wrong thing just to survive', love that Sokka calls him on it

SECRET TUNNEEELLLL!!!

Like them introducing this now - all old buildings have secret passages - it's just a law

Teo's "its time to fight!" attitude - love it. He's so ready to stop cowering and wants to hit back

Flopsy statues!!!!!

Rolly ball throne? Nice touch

"Bumi? BUMI!!" :D

"You did 🤨" Love how Aang keeps his "I'm just gonna say the truth and I don't care if that's 'not allowed' I'm gonna do it anyways because your social rules are stupid" attitude

Katara's water pouch!!

Love the shake in Jet's voice as he tells Katara "I am nothing like the firebenders"

Katara's assessment is shallow on her part, but the core has a ring of truth - no, freedom fighters aren't the same as their oppressors, but when you start harming your own people to hurt the enemy, then you really have lost sight of what's right and wrong - why you're fighting.

FREEZE JET'S ASS!

I love Jet, especially this version of him, but yeah, no touchy

And Katara is absolutely right: Jet might have helped her through her block, but her power, that's all hers.

What are you going to do, Zuko?? What choice will you make!!??

Love that we're getting this choice of his here in Omashu

Bumi's puns 😭 kill me now - though very canon accurate

Like the vibe that everyone just has to laugh as to not anger him - there's less of a whimsical madness vibe to Bumi here and a more serious - yeah, this guy is our leader vibe that's quite unsettling

The tonal shift with Bumi did give me pause, but I like how the writers kept the jokes, the games, his eccentricities, but shifted the vibe to make them darker

In the cartoon, whimsy might work, but if you think about it realistically, that leadership style would NOT work during a war - a 100 year war, at that.

HIPPIIEESSSS!!!!

Sokka getting into that maraca - you let your little musical heart fly

"What are you doing here?" "We're doin' what we're doin'" :)

Oma and Shu lesbian supremacy!!!

Always get chills when this story is told

Lol Sokka's "There's no such thing as angry spirits." Right before the episode where they're kidnapped by an angry spirit XD

Love the switch up of the rocks not really being the path out - keeping us animated show fans on our toes as to what the lesson will be this time

Everything about the Earth Kingdom soldier's interaction with Iroh - all of it is just so good.

The cartoon glossed over Iroh's warmongering past - but he did do terrible things that hurt so many people. No, 'it was war, I was a soldier' is not an acceptable excuse (we didn’t accept it with Jet, so why the double standard for a ROYAL MILITARY GENERAL??)

The funeral scene

Leaves from the Vine

Zuko offering a soft and kind memory of Liu Ten instead of just talk about him being a soldier

Zuko sitting next to Iroh so he won't be alone!!!!!!!!!

The conversation between Katara and Sokka in the cave where she talks about how Jet helped her and Sokka how Sai helped him - then Katara reminding Sokka that when he was forced into a leadership position for the Southern Water Tribe, he didn't have anyone to help him through that

The concept of us all needing people to help us through our journeys is so important and really comes around at the end of the episode and just through the entire series

BADGERMOOOLLLEEE!!!!

Is it bad that all I could think about was how cute it was the entire time it was on screen?

Dallas Liu is so. Freaking. Good. At. His. Stunts!!!!

And the first mention of the theme Zuko struggles with of compassion being weakness!

Sokka's little 'thanks!' as Katara saves him from the badgermole XD

Seriously, all the little touches in Ian Ousley's performance are great

Idk why Sokka assumed the badgermole was a man, that's clearly a dignified lady

The power of sibling love guiding the badgermole was a great alteration from the OG - if they can be controlled through music, they can definitely respond to emotions

Bumi's whole speech here - and his willingness to get crushed - is what brought me around on this portrayal of him

He's right: it's a game where you have to make impossible choices - you have to fight even when you don't want to (a much more poignant message for Aang than 'look at things a different way')

The power of friendship saves the day!!!

"You CAN rely on your friends - and that's the only way I'm going to save the world: with my friends"

"You think like a child" (derogatory) "Is that really so bad?" (genuine)

Bumi made Appa's whistle!!! 😭😭😭😭

One last time Zuko chooses protecting his uncle over capturing the Avatar 🥲

"Everything I need is right here on this boat" 😭😭😭

[Masterlist of my NATLA thoughts]

#natla #netflix atla #atla #avatar the last airbender #netflix avatar #into the dark

[jasontoddssuper]

My Percy Jackson headcanons/rewrite

Percy's a femme trans woman who's strong admiration for the other female characters is half fueled by gender envy and her type of femmeness is very distinctively tgirl.She's pastel punk,has zero tolerance for 'boys being boys' and physically transitioning(via Persephone gifting her Metamorphose,food that's been blessed by Aphrodite to give the eater their ideal apperance)boosted her self-confidence big time and she was into skating as a little kid but gave it up as the trauma set it as she grew up but got back into it as part of her healing journey.Sally is the most supportive mom any trans person could ever ask for and Thalia is the reason she went punk thanks to her being transfem too and helping her settle into her gender and she chose the middle name 'Amelia' so they could match(And her full first name was changed to Persephone as a thank you to the og)

She's bi but dosen't wanna date and wants to just vibe instead

Sharks and cats are her comfort animals

She's autistic and her special interests are blue,video games and kidcore,she has meowing as a vocal stim(insert catgirl joke here),she loves legos to the ends of multiple dimensions,her safe foods are blue food and McDonalds,she almost never stutters when she infodumps no matter for how long and she never once thought she could be autistic despite the unbelivably obvious symptoms because she dosen't fall under any stereotypes

She hates Poseidon and once held Riptide to his crotch for trying to get mushy with her

Big potty mouth

Was almost a Special Ed kid but Sally convinced the teachers to not put her in it after Percy had a meltdown over her mentioning the posibility of it due to how bad her internalized ableism was already.She regrets it to this day,mourning the friends she could've made

She's scared of older men because of Luke and he was never the hero of the prophecy,it was always her,and she was the one to kill him to avenge everyone,including herself,and save the world

Nico's crush on her faded when his own transness made him realize she is too and they spent the year between BOTL and TLO becoming found siblings and they help eachother with their hair(he's black too)and he's the one who got her addicted to McDonalds and she introduced him to Mcr and him to her Animal Crossing but everybody thinks it's the other way around.Persephone asked them to ressurect Hazel because she'd be one of the best choice's for the Seven and she helped her settle into her new world and taught both of them how to skate and now they call themselves 'The Dead Sea Siblings'

She's built like a DC Comics heroine back when they knew how to draw women most of the time-That is to say,curvy and busty but also thick in build with strong muscles so it's realistic

Was almost viciously protective of Tyson when everyone started bullying him for being a Cyclops and showered him in hugs and kisses when he cried about their treatment

Thalia gave her a pastel blue patches jacket which has the trans and dominican flags and a mermaid to represent Sally and her loved ones gifted her an assortment of different pins

She's an eldest daughter without eldest daughter syndrome because Sally knows how to parent and a Team Mom because she was raised by the mom of all time

The gods call her 'Young Persephone'

She was a Cartoon Network and Nickeloden kid who's faves were always Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends and Blues Clues and she had no clue what the hype around Zuko crushing was but finds him peak relatability now

Her favorite Disney Princesses are Tiana and Brandy's Cinderella and she thinks the Ariel jokes the Stolls make about her are annoying as shit

Her gray streak faded to white so she dyes it sea blue to not raise suspicioun in the mortal world

She loves indie media,be it comics or shows or games

Her and Rachel are the definition of 'Girl Best Friends' but unironically.They have matching friendship bracelets with eachother's names on them,hang out at the mall,Rachel spoils her with her dad's money,Sally thinks of her as a third daughter,Percy brings her trinkets she finds and they go to protests and do charity work together

She never goes to college and instead just becomes a McDonalds employee to give her little siblings special priviliges because school is too hard for her and she's okay with that by then

She owns a pair of blue strawberry earrings with pastel pink leaves

Persephone and Sally fall in love over the course of Persephone's visits to her in Hoo to check up on how she was doing without Percy and this culminates in her plan to kill Hades succeeding and becoming the solo ruler of the Underworld with Sally as her consort and wife.Percy is now a junior and her,Nico and Hazel are siblings squared

Her,the rest of the Seven,Grover,Thalia,Clarisse,Nico and Reyna are known as 'The Second Argonauts'

#she's so me-coded #percy jackson #persephone jackson #latino percy #bi percy jackson #autistic percy jackson #persephone pjo #thalia grace #sally jackson #anti luke castellan #nico di angelo #black big three kids #hazel levesque #nico percy and hazel #tyson pjo #rachel elizabeth dare #brotp:watercolors #the second argonauts #rr crit #pjo #hoo #the anomalies #part kryptonian percy #hydro #per-el #symbiote!percy #nigerian rachel dare #persephone x sally #letters from summer

[the-badger-mole]

Uncharted Waters: Fallen

“It was a total accident,” Lily said with an incredulous laugh. “There had to be three or four of them, looking like we were the tastiest meal they’d seen all week. Then Chong,” she slapped her friend on the back, “played the sweetest note anyone’s ever heard.”

“Sweet note!” Moku snorted. “He accidently strummed his strings. It was a terrible noise in all that echo.”

“It was enough to get those beasts off of us,” Lily laughed, “so as far as I’m concerned, it was the most heavenly sound I’ve ever heard!” She slapped Chong on the back.

“That’s amazing!” Katara said. “Who knew badgermoles liked music so much?”

“Ah, it’s not so surprising,” Chong said, demurely. “Music touches every living thing. We’re all just vibing to the same universal jam. All I did was remind the badgermoles of that.” A murmur of agreement rippled through the musicians.

It shouldn’t have been a shock that badgermoles called the tunnels home. After all, according the legend, it was the badgermoles that taught Oma and Shu how to earthbend. It explained much about their experience in the tunnels. The badgermoles were responsible for the ever shifting tunnel layout, not the ghosts of the tragic couple. They must have been responsible for the screaming Katara and Zuko had heard in the cave. They shared a shudder over how close they had come to encountering the animals, and without the benefit of the musical stylings of Chong. The soldiers being caught first was an unbelievable bit of good fortune.

“I’m just glad you two made it out,” Chong said. “I was wondering how we’d manage to ask the badgermoles to go look for you. It was a wild time trying to communicate we wanted to get out in the first place.”

“How did you get out?” Hua asked. “Did you find badgermoles, too?”

“Um…” Katara and Zuko glanced at each other, and then turned away immediately, faces beet red.

“We…we um-“ Zuko stammered.

“We found the path,” Katara said.

“Glowing green rocks,” Zuko added.

“O-our torch went out-“

“It just went out. I’d set it down and it went out,” Zuko explained hurriedly, his voice oddly high. His shoulders were hunched so high that all that could be seen was the top of his head.

“And we just followed the path out,” Katara finished with a nervous giggle.

Read the rest of the chapter here

#atla #zutara #uncharted waters #THE YEAR OF CONTENT!!!!