#and has thus created many misunderstandings

[hana-no-seiiki]

well now that your ocs have been brought to my attention I can’t stop thinking about them 😭 so that led me to think about if justin and reader were dating before, doesn’t that mean everyone was trying to kill him too?

I answered this thrice and every time it got deleted for absolutely no reason.

Tumblr. Why?

I’m not mad anymore just tired 😭 This happened to my Batfam x Deadpool reader + other drafts too wtf

Thank you for your curiosity over my babies though anon! It gave me the motivation to write this several times over lmfao

warnings: mentions of dick size, tons of justin (yandere ex & jock) slander, slander towards filipinos cause i hate my fellow countrymen sometimes, attempted murder, cheating (by reader)

[ previous ask for context ]

So, Justin is pretty smart. He knew what he was getting into from the beginning. He knew the risks. He knew that he’d potentially get killed.

His archetype is morseso based on the bad boy who’s smart rather than the usual jock. I’m thinking of making someone else the himbo or even making a bimbo/thembo but we’ll see.

So, despite his grades being rock bottom due to the Yan! Faculty, Yan! Student Council, and Yan! Rich Students teaming up to end his academic life, they can’t change his wrinkly brain.

Justin prepared every meal of his (male wife material fr fr) and shared them with you to squash any attempts at poisoning.

He got buff(er) and attended Aikido + Boxing lessons to help defend himself when he’s apart from you.

Did I mention he’s like, the tallest, buffest dude in school? (Which isn’t a huge achievement in a school set in my universe’s version of the Philippines.)

( Fun Fact: Midnight Darling is set just a little south east of The Guest is God )

Canonically speaking, my character design sketches of him is just the genderbent version of the mc. Albeit his fashion sense included less b l a c k and is leaning more to the basic sports for brains guy style. So he technically is on equal footing with you in everything if not excels more.

But he’s unfortunately late to the party.

And he gets slandered to hell and back every single day.

I mean, if they can’t kill him in the physical sense, might as well emotionally damage him til he breaks, right?

Your poor goons had to pull a lot of strings and delete so many goddamn posts about him. Many rumors and articles were about his appearance, his terrible grades and how he’s definitely not worthy of you. A lot of those posts shit on his dick size.

Your goons mostly did it for your approval, they couldn’t care less about him. They also made sure to destroy the social lives of those that questioned your decision to date him. Sure, they sooner want him dead and all, but arguing against the decision of your being was utterly disgraceful. Horrid to even think about doing.

In addition to all that, you had to publicly cheat on him just to lessen some of the blows. He has received so much footage of you being with someones else that people have begin to add that he likes getting cucked to all the rumors that has piled up.

And don’t get me wrong, most if not all your harem are down bad masochists, but it still hurts seeing you with someone else.

Yeah, Justin would have already lost his sanity with the shit he has to deal with everyday if he were anything close to normal.

#plot twist: reader’s cheating escapades are actually just them beating up students in compromising positions #and them being horridly declined simps moan a lot in the process #and has thus created many misunderstandings #hns.ask💌 #midnight darling #yandere #yandere x reader #yandere oc #yandere original character #yandere oc x reader #yandere original character x reader #tw.yandere #yandere imagine #yandere headcanons #yandere fic #yandere harem #yandere college #yandere harem x reader #yandere various x reader #harem x reader #various x reader

[celestialtarot11]

Astrology Observations 🧎‍♂️‼️

Hi friends! Today we’re just doing a general post for the astrological signs 🤭✨ Please enjoy and share! Your feedback is always appreciated.

Earth sign energy is heavy and dark, not negative, but they are very connected to their roots, ancestors and past lives. They carry lots of baggage from the past to heal in this lifetime, and thus may feel they lived through many timelines and cycles. They can feel similarly to Scorpio that experienced tons of transformations.

Libra moons can be indecisive in relationships, not because they have a bad sign placement but because they care a lot about people’s feelings. Sometimes too much to their detriment. They’d rather keep the peace than to rock the boat, but that’s what causes tension. Libra moons just need more confidence and security in their choices, and focus on themselves 🧘

Cancer Venus from a young age experienced misunderstandings from the people around them. Cancer venus wants a close community and people who understand their emotions, but in an emotionally unavailable society they can feel neglected and lonely. Its why cancer venus develops walls to protect their heart. They still care, but it takes them a long time to open up.

Virgos remember little details of everyone and hope they can do the same for them. They essentially give what they need and Virgos need attention and someone who creates quality time.

Gemini venus crave communication and mental stimulation in their connections. They love to learn and interact with people. Gemini Venus can also experience lots of isolation or periods of alone time because they aren’t finding the right people to connect to. They’d rather be alone than to have surface level interaction and filler conversations.

Leo + Aquarius pairing in a chart can indicate the native is truly unique and unforgettable. They strive so much to be themselves that it inspires others to do so. Some may even idolize the native, and others can get jealous because the native has qualities they wish they had. The native basically inspires others to get a personality 💅🏻

Mercury 8h can be so funny. We can get picky about what personal info to leave in the outside world. Even the idea of leaving behind our birthday info can irk us 😭 why? I think being in the spotlight or being perceived can be difficult for us.

Adding onto that, mercury 8h can channel spirits, occult knowledge, spirit guides, etc. when they tap in, they TAP in. They did not come to play 😍 All they need is a good meditation sesh and they’re good to go 🧘 all powered up.

Jupiter 8h can go through so many endings and terrible situations and still somehow come out stronger and better. They take their healing and growth seriously, and I think Jupiter 8h people have big hearts, so they always reconnect with that energy which is what carries them 😤

Cancer + Leo in a chart makes someone mystical, ethereal, private, yet somehow well known. There will always be an aspect to these natives to hide to protect themselves, and yet their Leo side will try to guide them out their comfort zone.

Aries rising females always knew who they were since birth 🤭 they could’ve photographed a lot, dressed up a lot, and it’s iconic. Since birth they knew! Aries rising females can be human rights activists too, because they have strong opinions, perspectives and believe in empowerment. Aries rising females may also be into modeling, because since a young age they were surrounded by cameras and people who thought they were beautiful ❤️

Aquarius rising children always look upset in their pictures or they have that thousand mild yard stare 😭 help #me

Sagittarius rising children always had that mischievous look on their face in every picture, or they looked incredibly angry. They had no issue letting their true selves out 😤

Pisces women tend to move far from their home town or childhood home. Lots of them have dreams of living far away from their roots. I think its to discover who they are and rebuild themselves after going through a lot. They physically need to disconnect from toxic environments to heal.

Gemini sun women are like teachers in many ways. Especially when they’ve healed a lot. They can be a teacher to the siblings around them or people. Many turn out to be motivational speakers because they have so much wisdom to share.

Thank ya’ll so much for reading 💗☮️ feel free to like comment and reblog to support the blog 🧘✨ Have a great one!

Paid Readings ✨

#astrology community #devi post #astrology #tarotcommunity #divination #tarot deck #tarot #witchcraft #tarot reading #astro posts #astrology notes #astro notes #astro observations #pick a card #pick a pile #tarot community #pick a picture #astrology observations #tarotdaily #tarot readings #pick a card romance #pick one

[headspace-hotel]

"New (old) perspectives on self-injurious and aggressive biting" published in Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis / Nine Inch Nails- The Hand that Feeds

I was troubled to see a trend of claiming that Autistic people who do not support Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) are a group of "low-support-needs" autistics who are monopolizing the conversation and taking resources away from autistics with higher support needs—I think it is misunderstanding.

Individual positive or negative experiences with ABA are irrelevant here—the fundamental core of the therapy is behaviorism, the idea that an autistic person can be "treated" by rewarding "desirable" behaviors and punishing "undesirable" behaviors, and that an increase in desirable behaviors and decrease in undesirable behaviors constitutes successful treatment

In researching I found that ABA practitioners have published statements condemning conversion therapy. They refer to an unfortunate historical association between ABA and conversion therapy, but it is not association—ABA literally is conversion therapy; the creator of it used it to try to "cure" little boys that were too feminine.

ABA is considered "medically necessary" treatment for autism and the only "proven" treatment, in that it is proven to create decrease in "undesirable" behaviors and increase in "desirable" behaviors.

Undesirable behaviors for an autistic person might include things like stimming and talking about their interests, desirable behaviors might include eye contact, using verbal speech, playing with toys in the "right" way.

The BCBA behavior analyst code of ethics does not prohibit "aversive" methods (e.g. electric shock) to punish undesirable behaviors

The code of ethics only discusses the consent of the "client," not the person receiving the treatment

Many people will say "my child's ABA therapist would never make them repress harmless stims, give up their interests, use electric shocks...They understand the value of neurodiversity and emphasize the consent of the child..."

But consider...if nothing binds or requires an ABA therapist to treat stimming as important, nor restrains them from using abusive techniques, nor requires them to consider the consent of a person being treated, what protects vulnerable people other than luck? The ABA therapist still has an innately unethical level of power over a child being "treated."

Furthermore, consider: can a therapy built on the goal of controlling the behavior of a person who cannot meaningfully consent to it, especially without hard limits or protections on the kinds of behavior that can be coerced or controlled, ever be ethical?

I found many articles that discuss teaching "compliance" in autistic children, treating "compliance" as a reasonable goal to strive for without qualification...

The abstract of the above article struck me with a spark of inspiration. Biting is an undesirable behavior to be controlled, understandably so, since most would feel that violence should not be allowed. But I was suddenly reminded of the song "The Hand that Feeds" by Nine Inch Nails, which is a play on the saying "Don't bite the hand that feeds you," meaning don't lash out against someone that is kind to you.

But doesn't "the hand that feeds you" implicitly have power over you through being able to give or withhold food? In this case, kindness can be a form of coercion. Thus "biting the hand that feeds" is used in the song as a metaphor for autonomy and resisting coercive power. The speaker asks the audience if they have the courage to test the benevolence of their oppressors, or if they will remain compliant and unquestioning even though they know deep down that it isn't right.

Likewise the article blunders into something unintentionally poetic when it recognizes that biting is an innately possible behavior in response to "aversive" stimuli or the "removal of reinforcers." Reinforcers and aversives in ABA are discussed as tools used by the therapist—the presentation of a preferred food would be a reinforcer, for instance (and is often used as such in ABA).

The journal article considers biting as a behavioral problem, even though the possibility that someone may bite can never be eliminated. Contrastingly, "The Hand that Feeds" highlights the coercive power behind the ability to control your behavior, even when that control appears benevolent and positive, and argues that "biting the hand that feeds you" is not only a possibility but a moral imperative.

Consider: In what circumstances would you bite someone? To defend your own body? To defend your life? Are there circumstances in which biting would be the reasonable and the right action to take?

What authority decides which behaviors are desirable or undesirable, and rewards or punishes compliance or resistance? Who is an authority—your therapist? Your teacher? Your caregiver? Any adult? Any person with the power to reward or punish?

In what circumstances might compliance be demanded of you? In what circumstances would it be justifiable not to comply? What authority decides which circumstances are justifiable?

Can you imagine a circumstance where it might be important for a child to not comply with the demands of an adult? For a citizen to not comply with the demands of a government? Which authorities demand compliance in a right and just manner, and which demand compliance to things that are evil and wrong? Which authority has the power to differentiate the two? Should you trust them? Will you bite the hand that feeds you?/Will you stay down on your knees?

#analysis #power #authority #aba #applied behavior analysis #aba tw #abuse tw #nine inch nails #music #psychology #autism #actually autistic #psych critical

[steveyockey]

Some would rebut that “Oppenheimer,” being a Hollywood blockbuster with serious global reach (whether it will play Japanese theaters remains uncertain), will be many audiences’ only exposure to the events in question and thus might “create a limit on public consciousness and concern,” as the poet, writer and professor Brandon Shimoda told The Times. A corollary of this argument: The crimes committed against the people of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were so unspeakable, so outsized in their impact, that Oppenheimer’s perspective does and should dwindle into insignificance by comparison. For Nolan to focus so exclusively on an American physicist’s story, some insist, ultimately diminishes history and humanity, even as it reinforces the Hollywood hegemony of the great-man biopic and of white men’s narratives in general.

I get those complaints. I also think they betray an inherent disrespect for the audience’s intelligence and curiosity, as well as a fundamental misunderstanding of how movies operate. It’s telling that few of these criticisms of perspective were leveled at “American Prometheus” when it was published in 2005, that no one begrudged Bird and Sherwin for offering a meticulously researched, morally ambivalent portrait of their subject’s life and consigning the destruction of two Japanese cities to a few pages. That’s because books are books, the argument goes, and movies are movies — and this perceived difference, it must be said, reveals a pernicious double standard.

Because they seldom achieve the narrative penetration and richness of detail of, say, a 700-page biography, movies, especially those about history, often are hailed as achievements of breadth over depth, emotion over intellect. They are assumed to be fundamentally shallow experiences, distillations of real life rather than sharply angled explorations of it, propelled by broad brushstrokes and easy expository shortcuts, and beholden to the audience’s presumably voracious appetite for thrilling, traumatizing spectacle. And because movies offer a visual immediacy and narrative immersion that books don’t, they are expected to be sweeping if not omniscient in their narrative scope, to reach for a comprehensive, even definitive vantage.

Movies that attempt something different, that recognize that less can indeed be more, are thus easily taken to task. “It’s so subjective!” and “It omits a crucial P.O.V.!” are assumed to be substantive criticisms rather than essentially value-neutral statements. We are sometimes told, in matters of art and storytelling, that depiction is not endorsement; we are not reminded nearly as often that omission is not erasure. But because viewers of course cannot be trusted to know any history or muster any empathy on their own — and if anything unites those who criticize “Oppenheimer” on representational grounds, it’s their reflexive assumption of the audience’s stupidity — anything that isn’t explicitly shown onscreen is denigrated as a dodge or an oversight, rather than a carefully considered decision.

A film like “Oppenheimer” offers a welcome challenge to these assumptions. Like nearly all Nolan’s movies, from “Memento” to “Dunkirk,” it’s a crafty exercise in radical subjectivity and narrative misdirection, in which the most significant subjects — lost memories, lost time, lost loves — often are invisible and all the more powerful for it. We can certainly imagine a version of “Oppenheimer” that tossed in a few startling but desultory minutes of Japanese destruction footage. Such a version might have flirted with kitsch, but it might well have satisfied the representational completists in the audience. It also would have reduced Hiroshima and Nagasaki to a piddling afterthought; Nolan treats them instead as a profound absence, an indictment by silence.

That’s true even in one of the movie’s most powerful and contested sequences. Not long after news of Hiroshima’s destruction arrives, Oppenheimer gives a would-be-triumphant speech to a euphoric Los Alamos crowd, only for his words to turn to dust in his mouth. For a moment, Nolan abandons realism altogether — but not, crucially, Oppenheimer’s perspective — to embrace a hallucinatory horror-movie expressionism. A piercing scream erupts in the crowd; a woman’s face crumples and flutters, like a paper mask about to disintegrate. The crowd is there and then suddenly, with much sonic rumbling, image blurring and an obliterating flash of white light, it is not.

For “Oppenheimer’s” detractors, this sequence constitutes its most grievous act of erasure: Even in the movie’s one evocation of nuclear disaster, the true victims have been obscured and whitewashed. The absence of Japanese faces and bodies in these visions is indeed striking. It’s also consistent with Nolan’s strict representational parameters, and it produces a tension, even a contradiction, that the movie wants us to recognize and wrestle with. Is Oppenheimer trying (and failing) to imagine the hundreds of thousands of Japanese civilians murdered by the weapon he devised? Or is he envisioning some hypothetical doomsday scenario still to come?

I think the answer is a blur of both, and also something more: In this moment, one of the movie’s most abstract, Nolan advances a longer view of his protagonist’s history and his future. Oppenheimer’s blindness to Japanese victims and survivors foreshadows his own stubborn inability to confront the consequences of his actions in years to come. He will speak out against nuclear weaponry, but he will never apologize for the atomic bombings of Japan — not even when he visits Tokyo and Osaka in 1960 and is questioned by a reporter about his perspective now. “I do not think coming to Japan changed my sense of anguish about my part in this whole piece of history,” he will respond. “Nor has it fully made me regret my responsibility for the technical success of the enterprise.”

Talk about compartmentalization. That episode, by the way, doesn’t find its way into “Oppenheimer,” which knows better than to offer itself up as the last word on anything. To the end, Nolan trusts us to seek out and think about history for ourselves. If we elect not to, that’s on us.

#WOE WALL OF TEXT BE UPON YE #I thought this piece was really good 😭 #and I thought the Oppenheimer movie was pretty good 😭 embarrassing! oh well #reading #oppenheimer #I just think this writing in particular is making a lot of points generally about film viewing that I’m like yeah! YEAH! #all the ideas around respecting the audience’s reading capabilities like YEAH

[ludoka]

On Sunday I watched the movie "The Dragon Pearl" with my mom and it has this scene where they open a secret passage with light reflected on a gem:

Which reminded me that in The Avatar: the Last Airbender the firebenders and sun warriors use a similar mechanism:

So I was thinking... What if Pandora was a key?

Let's imagine that the original legend spoke of a powerful Wizard who amazed people with his magic. He also helped people with it. There were thousands of rumors about said Wizard, but the one that resonated the most was that of his eternal youth. The man always looked young for his age, which led people to believe that he was immortal. Many, guided by these theories, turned to him in search of eternal youth. The Wizard always refused to tell his secret, until the people's insistence made him give in. He told them that it was thanks to magical waters. Thus, the magician allowed only a select group of people to have access to those waters. This caused quite a stir. Many people begged and demanded that the Wizard allow them free access to the waters. Some even went so far as to commit violent acts in order to scare and extort the Wizard. These damning acts provoked his anger. It is said that using his magic, he enclosed the power of the waters in a gem and hid it from the world. This did nothing to stop people. But rather the opposite. They called him selfish and persecuted him to reveal the location of the gem. He never told them. And to teach them a lesson, he cursed all the citizens and then disappeared. He never told anyone about the gem that was named Pandora. So it was lost, forever.

This is a fantastic story created from rumors, misunderstandings, superstitions and ignorance.

The real story is that the "Great Wizard" was actually an inventor who scammed people by pretending to do real magic.

The "magic waters" are actually hot springs. The guy found a couple of ponds hidden in a cave and kept the secret to himself. Just because he liked to enjoy them in his privacy.

When rumors started and people started asking, he decided to take advantage of this situation. He invented the story of magic water and allowed only people who paid him a lot to enter the cave. Some of these people were not trustworthy and began to lead others into the waters. They also scammed people to get them there. When the inventor realized this, he decided to hide the place.

He sealed the cave with an intricate lock that could only be found with a gem.

When people found out about all this they began to harass the Inventor. Out of spite, the man hid the gem and left.

Pandora has two functions:

First: It works as a map. Inside it has an old map that indicates the place where the hot springs are. This map is only seen when you put the gem in the light.

The second: It works as a key. The gem has to be placed in a specific place and must be illuminated with the light of the Moon. The reflection of light touches the lock and opens it.

Magic may exist in the world of MK. But the greatest attraction, in my opinion, that manga has is the ingenuity and the artifacts they use to create the illusions. So I like that Pandora follows this resource. It's fun and interesting.

It is also interesting to imagine how they find the gem. Maybe Kaito asks Akako (in a way that tries to be subtle but fails miserably) if she has ever heard of said gem. She would tell him no, she knows of the existence of many other magical gadgets that can work in a similar way but she has never heard of Pandora. Which would make sense, since Pandora is not a magical item. It's a scientific invention (or something like that). So the Witches never heard of her.

I am in favor of Hakuba being the one who finds out about the real existence of the gem or knows its location. Only he doesn't know his real function. How, his family owns this really ancient gem that has a very fanciful legend. But he notices the details about the moon and the light in the gem and questions if that's not what KID is looking for. Which begs the question "Why would Kuroba want that specific gem?" "Did he really believe in the magic he supposedly possesses?" "Or is there something else you're not seeing?" All of these questions end up with him keeping an eye on Kaito and trying to discern why that gem. Which bothers Kaito because he feels their gazes even more insistent and annoying.

I don't know, it's fun.

#dcmk #magic kaito #magic kaito 1412 #kaitou kid #kaito kid #kaito kuroba #akako koizumi #hakuba saguru

[utilitycaster]

1/2 What I find gets glossed over so much for "pretty lesbians kiss" with regards to Laura and Marisha's characters is that they consistently, across all main campaigns, create characters who really Do Not Understand each other. Like, it's most obvious with Vex and Keyleth (which is why it's so baffling to me how popular that ship is, Vex basically cringes every other time Keyleth opens her mouth and barely tolerates her for the majority of the campaign), but it's clear with Jester and Beau too

2/2 too, especially in regards to their relationships with their respective fathers and also Jester's relationship with Artagan, that they have drastically different viewpoints that aren't really compatible. Anyway, it's somewhat interesting that, while their characters Do Not Understand each other in equal measure across all campaigns, they are outwardly much closer in each subsequent campaign. Do you have any thoughts on this or have had any similar observations regarding this?

Hi anon,

I definitely do have thoughts about this. I don’t think it’s been intentional, per se, that their characters have never been entirely aligned but they’ve become closer (ie, I don’t think that they planned for their characters to be at such odds in Campaign 1, to be friends in Campaign 2, and to be romantically involved in Campaign 3). I also should note that while I agree that Vex/Keyleth is a uniquely terrible ship that deeply misunderstands both characters; and while I vastly prefer both Beauyasha and Fjorester to even a hypothetical in which Beau and Jester took the time to understand each other and a believable and compelling romance could conceivably develop, I do actually enjoy both of those as non-romantic dynamics very much. Part of the problem with Imogen and Laudna is that, at least thus far, the problems with it as a romantic relationship are the exact same problems with it as a platonic relationship. It's flat and uninteresting no matter how you slice it.

As for why this has happened: I think Marisha and Laura’s chemistry with each other as scene partners is unexceptional among the cast. That doesn’t mean it’s bad - everyone in the cast has baseline good chemistry - but it has never stood out to me. Like, I have never personally had strong feelings about any romantic ships between Laura and Sam’s characters, but they do often occupy similar thematic spaces (selfishness/selflessness; a desire to be liked vs. a desire to be yourself) and I have always enjoyed how they’ve played off each other and looked forward to it, and I don't feel the same about Laura and Marisha. While it’s hard to pin a theme on Laudna (more on that later), Beau and Keyleth (and for that matter Patia) all engage with the expectations of one’s family, and that doesn’t have a natural “in” with what Laura usually does (or vice versa). I will also note: many of the best scenes between Laura and Marisha’s characters, and that includes in Campaign 3, have been arguments. The gnarlrock stands out as one of the only interesting Imogen and Laudna interactions (as well as, to be honest, one of the only interesting Laudna and Delilah interactions); Vex yelling at Keyleth in episode 1x45 is one of my favorite scenes in the campaign; and when I think of Beau and Jester I think of Beau’s irritation as Jester gushes about the plot of Tusk Love, and their quietly growing distance due to the disagreements you brought up about Artagan and their fathers (while still remaining good friends, just ones who don’t agree on everything and don’t need to) in the latter half of the campaign. The lack of conflict between Imogen and Laudna is not just uninteresting from the general grade school premise of "stories need conflict"; it's also depriving them of their strongest source of chemistry as actors.

As for why it’s so widely shipped across all three campaigns; I really suspect a major factor is simply that Ashley was frequently absent so this was the only F/F PC/PC option, week to week. There really is no other good explanation for Vex and Keyleth, a couple so terribly unsuited it verges on the dynamic of a 90s straight sitcom of a man who hates his hot wife. I used to be more generous towards that (ie, wanting an F/F ship between PCs even though it had no redeeming qualities other than being an F/F ship between PCs), but my patience for anyone claiming the cover of Campaign 1 norms ran out some time ago; we’ve been living in a fandom environment that overshot in trying to correct for the assholes during C1 for far too long.

Anyway: I don’t know why exactly things fall so flat in Campaign 3, in the sense that these characters were, as far we know, supposed to be designed as friends. I don’t want to keep harping on it but given Laudna’s directionlessness I wonder if that lack of lived-in backstory extends to their time together. At the very least, if they did plan out what those two years looked like in any depth, it has not come through in the story, either through their words or to an extent their acting. The relationship really only makes sense as mutual security blankets; but I don’t find that remotely interesting. Which brings me to the final points.

I’ve been trying to tread carefully around the term “roving slash” not in the least because I think it unfairly condemns queer relationships after quite literally centuries of mediocre and tacked-on M/F relationships that occur simply because one is a man and one is a woman and not because there’s any romantic tension or reason for them to see something in the other. With that said, I’ve found that there’s a lot of fandom popular F/F pairings that fit a very specific mold of each other being the only one who understands the other - but in a bland and flawless way, as victims of circumstance who expect nothing of each other except to be there, and not as people who can uniquely relate to each other’s flaws. It is an idea of romance as something without conflict. [I will note as an aside, however, that this idea often exists simultaneously with the incompatible desire to tell queer stories based in oppression. There can't be any stated desire from these fans for conflict for the characters, internal or external; but I also think that they secretly want some third character to represent a nebulous, problematic force. For all the hate piled upon, say, Percy in his interactions with Keyleth, or the current wave of hate towards Orym, I think they want those characters so there is something to demonize and to further set apart how pure and wronged their ship or their favorite character is; and, as always, to take away the agency - which comes with responsibility, which comes with fault - from women.]

I can’t stand that. As others have recently put better than I could (and we’re talking Cronenberg and Tolstoy here), stories need conflict, and the fandom culture of characters being effortlessly good, and going from traumatized to completely unchallenged, and endless softness is unbearably dull to me. Even things claimed to be held in the highest regard, like recovery, must hit the most pinprick target by fans with this mindset and anything else is a failure. It’s exhausting. For Imogen and Laudna’s relationship specifically, I’ve found that the repeated comparisons of past Laura Bailey Character Romances - both of which are my favorites for their respective campaigns - really puts the flaccidness in her Campaign 3 romance in stark relief. With Percy and Vex, there is a sense that if he does not take the mask off when she calls him darling, it will close a door. I also don’t think it’s a coincidence that they only come together romantically after she has faced some of her own inner darkness with Saundor, and he has defeated Orthax and the party has helped kill Ripley. Similarly, with Fjord and Jester, when Jester asks “would you do anything to get them [his Uk’otoa-granted powers] back?”, there is a palpable sense that were he to have answered “yes”, it would have meant something. And they, too, only commit to a romance once Fjord has done all he can to sever his ties to Uk’otoa, and Jester has begun to slowly explore expressing negative emotions. To compare it to Imogen and Laudna’s noncommittal total lack of narrative tension (maybe we should harness it! Maybe we shouldn’t! Doesn’t really matter because we’ve stated there’s zero stakes either way!) just accentuates the Mariana Trench-level drop in quality.

That digresses a lot from your original question, and so I think what I want to get at is that I have shared these observations. However, I feel that the characters’ differences were well-handled in prior campaigns and felt organic and interesting. I don’t know why it’s so lacking in Campaign 3 and I don’t think my speculation here would be helpful to any argument; I just know that it is exceptional only in its dullness.

#answered #Anonymous #cr tag #long post #i had to kill darlings for this (extended metaphor + self-indulgent song reference + more ship comparison) so know it could have been longe

[aeroblossom]

more on albedo and rhinedottir

what is transmutation, if not rebirth?

okay. i think i figured out the motive behind rhinedottir's creations, among other things.

bear with me and my poor explanation, i'm also really bad at linking sources lmao. do correct me if i've gotten any details wrong. much of this was possible thanks to conversations with a friend of mine!

rhinedottir's reason for creating durin, elynas, albedo and everything else was to find the meaning of life itself.

i'm gonna try and make it as simple as possible to get, i hope.

so, back in search in the algae sea, during the third orthant - cater gives us a riddle, to which the answer is 'love'. some discussion upon alchemy and the orthants with my friend later, we decided to match the stages of alchemy (in rene's given order) to the order of orthants we travelled. that makes citrinitas corresponding to love. the third orthant is also the one of the soul. love and soul.

so here's an idea i've had for a long time. one motive for rhinedottir's actions may be that she was trying to recreate someone dear to her through albedo. someone she loved - be it a family member, lover, anything. with my friend, i discussed how rene quotes aleister crowley's poem regarding the womb of pan, which is essentially a void where all souls originate and/or return to in the time of rebirth. durin and elynas both speak about how they existed in some empty darkness before rhinedottir called them forth - but not albedo.

albedo's earliest memories, he says, are of traveling with rhinedottir. so.

'primordial human project'. rene's search led him to primordial humans. he tried to become one and failed. it involved dissolving himself to be reborn.

'primordial human project' - consider, albedo is not an original creation, but a reborn being.

the rebirth of someone dear to rhinedottir whom she tried to make a primordial human.

why? because albedo is her last ditch effort at saving the world - just like rene. like how citrinitas corresponds to the age of glory for empires and their subsequent collapse with the coming of the stage of rubedo, rhinedottir - khaenriah as a whole - knew its end was destined, and they must have known this. she asks albedo to reach the far side of philosophy and create a better future for them all.

think about it. societal collapse is imminent, your country is crumbling, the end of the world is near and everything feels so utterly doomed. and you know it. you know you're doomed. she must have known of the world formula, must have known rubedo must follow citrinitas.

in the hexenzirkel trailer, she sounds just somewhat reluctant when it comes to being called a mother. you know what this reminds me of, who she reminds me of? ruan mei. ruan mei, upon learning of the infinitely transient nature of life, sinks into emptiness. she can't show love to the creations she's made with her own hands. she knows so well how short, and thus meaningless their lives are. she fears forming attachment - she dissects the scientific meaning of attachment in her character trailer instead of seeing it as something people just do.

rhinedottir must thus have attempted to flip the last two stages of alchemy to prevent their fate, yeah?

if everything is truly meant to end, if it's all destined to fall from rise, what is really the point?

most hoyoverse games are about fighting this sort of nihilistic thinking. the character of otto apocalypse makes it abundantly clear. otto's character takes great inspiration from friedrich nietzsche, whom many people misunderstand for a nihilist. however, nietzsche's philosophies were actually staunchly against nihilism.

rene tried to save the world because he wanted to believe it has meaning. it troubled him that the rise and the fall are void of purpose, he wanted to save it because he believed there was a point in its existence.

rhinedottir is no different. there is no force greater than love. and guess what?

in wagner's play 'the ring' - the dwarf alberich steals the rhinegold from the rhinemaidens. the rhinemaidens tell him there's nothing greater than love in the world. and what does alberich do?

he denounces - wouldn't you know - love.

like rene, rhinedottir became the scapegoat for the cataclysm for her deeds.

i've expressed previously that the primordial human rhinedottir was trying to create through albedo may possibly be the third descender. one who descends.

so, then,

that may be what dainsleif means when he says "we will defy this world with a power from beyond", no?

[side theory :: i once came across the idea of the twins being meteors. the rifthounds induce corrosion on you, making you bleed. gold corrodes. and gold on the earth is also theorized to be extraterrestrial, ie, it came from meteor impact. so then, what if the twins are the source of azosite, or any other such materials derived from gold, that khaenriah now prizes?]

so, tldr : rhinedottir, amidst a world rapidly approaching its doom having learned of the world formula, seeks to prove it wrong, to prevent it, undo it - she tries to fight back against collapse by finding meaning itself. there is nothing more transient than life itself, and thus she sought to prove that there is meaning in something as short lived as that. i'm shaky on albedo being a life reborn, but i do believe it's not impossible. he could have been somewhat dear to her that she tried to make attain the status of primordial human - descender, even - so as to undo the laws of fate.

(some screenshots of the discussion, NOT in chronological order)

#rhinedottir #albedo #genshin lore #genshin theory #rene de petrichor #ruan mei #fontaine lore #this took me a while but i cant say im happy with it #i pray to god my point came across #greatest of thanks to my friend who helped in making this #🏷

[pokemoncenter]

On Time Travel

Before I begin, I wish to state very clearly that this is not to be taken as fact or a dedicated primer on the subject. This is my own attempting to sort out the information I learned from Bill on the subject, by writing it out in a clear form. There may be mistakes, inaccuracies, and misunderstandings in this text.

Bill created the Time Capsule system in 1999. This system only allows for the transfer of Pokeballs up to three years into the past, and only within the Kanjoh region. The reasons for this are energy- The further something is moved in time, the more energy it takes. The further it is moved in space, the more energy it takes. And most importantly, the more mass it has, the more energy it takes- The other two are more workable, but the mass-energy requirement increases exponentially.

A single Pokemon in its Pokeball can be sent three years across time with the electricity a Pokemon Center has. Something larger, such as a Machop outside of its ball, would take an entire city's energy for a week to make the same trip.

An adult human would take enough energy to power all of Galar for a hundred years, and they would likely cease to exist in transit. We will get back to that part.

Time is not a straight arrow that can only move one direction. It is simply another axis of movement. We all move through time at one second per second, without accounting for relativity, from past towards future. However, as it is a single axis, movement can be achieved along that axis in both directions. Thinking of it as a fourth spatial dimension can help visualize it. Time's ongoing nature is not an inherent aspect of time, but of the beings that interpret it this way.

According to the Many-Worlds Interpretation, there are near-infinite timelines. Anything that could happen in multiple ways, happens in every possible way in different timelines. Thus, as time moves forward, time branches into infinite possibilities. However, according to Bill, there are two important notes to that.

First, it is not only forward. Time actually branches out in both directions. It branches backwards, such that 'every possibility that could lead to this moment' is a branch. Furthermore, there is a principle he calls 'path of least resistance'.

The same way water moves in space according to the path of least resistance, he says that time follows its own path of least resistance. To move from one instant to the next, things that would require too much change or a change of information cannot happen. Thus, when sending a Pokeball back in time, one does not actually need to worry or account for alternate timelines- By sending things backwards in time, it will branch into the timelines where the reception is possible, by following that path of least resistance.

However, the greatest problem of this is information.

By following the path of least resistance, things that did not exist in the recipient era cannot be sent there. Not just objects, or creatures, but information itself cannot cross the gap. Knowledge would be forgotten, or be scrambled. Discoveries cannot be made.

The key principle to understanding this is that there is no omnipotent, intelligent force overseeing things. Time does not have a guardian which keeps the timeline in order. It is simply a matter of energy- The energy to overcome the 'path of least resistance' to cause a paradox with information does not exist in our world, and possibly not in our universe. Thus, time itself will 'correct' the paradox, by forcing it out of your head. This is because forgetting it is 'possible', and so it would be slid into a timeline where that forgetting does happen.

If forgetting was not possible- If there is simply too much information to be forgotten, that there is simply no way it could possibly be lost- Then there will be no timeline that can receive that time travel. At which point, the outcome is...

Either total cessation of existence, or perhaps something else. A non-timeline. Either way, once this occurred, that information is lost to us, as surely as if it fell into a black hole.

... This is all I could understand. I hope any of you can understand this as well.

#pokeblogging #pkmn irl #unreality #science with sophora

[1-lightofjustice]

Using "Sibling Title" in Romantic Relationship Is NOT Incest

You know, interacting with majorly English community about Asian media made me realize that English doesn't have any "sibling title", something that was so common in Asia (and perhaps other continent too cmiiw), thus I noticed some of them have a little difficulty on perceiving what "sibling title" actually meant. Combined with shipping war and incest allegory, many misunderstanding are created. Somehow yesterday I happen to stumble upon two of them in almost the same moment so I wanna make this post to vent my frustration.

First is this :

The segment that they meant is when Kota called Izuku "nii-chan" and Ochako "nee-chan" after Ochako's speech.

Yes, Kota called Izuku "Big Brother" and Ochako with "Big Sister". But really, even the translator clearly explained in their translation that "nii-chan" and "nee-chan" are not only title for older siblings but also title/name for a young teen or 20-ish boy/girl (overall people still in youth). Other people on twitter (X who?) pointed out that Kota means those title in relation to him and not to Izuku-Ochako, which is true, Kota may think of Izuku and Ochako as his big brother and sister at that situation. But even if he's not, he will still use "nii-chan" and "nee-chan" titles toward Izuku and Ochako because that's the title that was correct from person on Kota's age to people on Izuku/Ochako's age. Of course, that doesn't mean Izuku and Ochako are bounded by sibling/familial relationship in any form.

For example, this is a "7 years old" kid Conan ("a young boy" in disguise, for complicated reason) called 18 years old Heiji and Kazuha with "nii-chan" and "nee-chan" while at the same time helping them to hook up. He didn't really think of them as his brother/sister like in personal level, but he still used "sibling title" because that was the appropriate ethic for him.

Next is the example in broader sense, but the point is still because they are "brothers", there's no way Gilgamesh and Enkidu have romantic relationship.

let's pretend it's not completely bizarre to input arabic perception on a story with a language that way predates arabic, with different time, culture, and setting. Let's use arabic now. Brother in Arabic is "akhi", derived from Akkadian "ahu", the language that was used on 12 tablet Epic of Gilgamesh standard version ("Ses" is Hittite/Sumerian version).

This is the excerpt from Epic tablet by Andrew George, when the word "ahu" is used to described Gilgamesh and Enkidu :

The thing is, "ahu" may meant brotherhood, but they don't necessarily mean bounded by familial forbid-to-marry relationship. The word "ahu" can mean brother of same social standing, close male associate, or the proof of companionship, for example King Tushratta used "brother" (ahu in akkadian, shesh in sumerian) to Pharaoh Egypt which they have brother-kingdom relationship. Of course they are not "family" with each other and their family can marry each other.

Even if, as the commenter said, translated into arabic, "akhi" is not meant for strictly brotherly relationship. The word itself means "brother, close male friend, male associate". In fact, there's webtoon in my country (Muslim majority) that has female lead called her love interest "akhi". And this is her pray so God can make her meet her "akhi".

Translation : "There has been 6 years passed but I still haven't meet "akhi". Please God lead him to be close to me"

Of course when the female lead called her crush "akhi" she doesn't mean that there's familial feeling from her to him that prevent her for wanting to marry "akhi". And readers from my country completely expect her to still call her husband "akhi" even after marriage.

Those "sibling title" are not and never strictly platonic. Those are title for almost-familial-but-not-really attachment, usually to emphasis social construct. It just, I don't know the exact term but I call it "polite endearment title". When it comes to romantic relationship/marriage, even with "sibling title" there will be no incest feeling involved as long as the couple are not bounded by blood of close family, share the same mother's milk/wetnurse, nor raised together from before puberty (the latter may depend on situation).

P.S : I wonder, do English users find it weird if we Asian use the exact same title for sibling and for romantic partner? Like, you guys know that Korean fangirls called their idols that they want to date/marry as "oppas" in the same word as they call their "oppa" in home, right? I am Javanese, I call my blood-brother "mas", and I expect to use that word for my husband too, like my sister who called her husband "mas" even though she's older than him.

#mha #boku no hero academia #my hero academia #midoriya izuku #deku #uraraka ochako #uravity #in defense of #izuocha #the epic of gilgamesh #gilgamesh #enkidu #gilkidu #saying “chan” is not “lover title” will open a whole new can of worm #so I'll leave it at that #Gilgamesh and Enkidu DID NOT call each other “brother” #Ninsun called them “brotherhood” in social standing and companionship #Enkidu SOMETIMES used “brother” when he felt vulnerable like on his deathbed #afaik Gilgamesh never use it in Akkadian nor Sumerian (cmiiw) #linguistics #language #cultural diversity #feel like rambling but I hope I get my point across #independent post

[fernsnailz]

i saw you mention that some of the idw plotlines for shadow were Not Very Good - im curious if you would expand on that? just what you think wasnt done well, how it could have been handled better, that sort of thing. i know some people have issues with his handling in the metal virus arc for example, but i dunno i felt it was in character? misunderstanding advice and being too proud to follow it, falling under his own hubris. he definitely could have been more fucked up about it when the arc ended, given his history with losing control but

i dunno!! i wanna know your more general thoughts

yeah sure! sorry this turned into another essay post because i have a lot to say lol

i don't think idw shadow's characterization is terrible, but i don't think it's very good either. i think idw does a decent job at showing that shadow looks at the larger picture of how the story events will affect the world he’s meant to protect, and his actions are usually in an effort to stop problems as quickly as possible. shadow doesn’t like to waste time, especially when people’s lives are on the line. i misspoke a bit when i said his plotlines where bad, because i think the general story beats he hits are okay.

the big issue i have is with how his dialogue affects his character. while i think most of shadow’s actions are in line with his motivations, there are multiple instances of his dialogue directly undermining or changing his characterization and motives.

the most notable (and talked about by fans from what i’ve seen) is in the metal virus arc: the whole “cowards run. i win” line.

more under the cut because i have Many Thoughts hhoough boy

ever time i see this line i cringe a little bit, but i’ve never really been able to figure out why. it's difficult for me to argue that it's out of character - shadow’s ego is something i would define as his greatest flaw, being present from the very beginning of his character. it has previously distracted him from his larger goals - for example, fighting sonic on prison island after being called fake, thus distracting him from rescuing rouge. however, shadow's ego doesn’t exist to prove he’s the strongest or better than his foes - it’s about proving he has a REASON to exist. he was created for a very specific purpose, to be the ultimate lifeform and protector of humanity. shadow has nothing left after his previous life was lost. so if he’s a failure, then what was the point of all that loss? what's the point of his final promises?

when reading the "cowards run" line, it re-frames shadow's ego to be about winning above all else. it's strange to read if you know shadow, ESPECIALLY when he later mentions he’s the best chance to fight off the zombots due to his immunity to disease.

because he’s RIGHT!! this is what he was literally created for - his immunity was a fundamental part of why he was created as a protector of humanity. this is his purpose!! and he's right to oppose sonic in this issue as well - technically, sonic indirectly allowed the metal virus to happen. shadow isn't wrong to be furious at him.

but then both of these beats are immediately thrown out the window with the "cowards run" line, because it turns this moment into another instance of shadow trying to prove that he’s good at fighting and better than everyone else. shadow is serving his purpose as the ultimate lifeform and he's standing his ground against sonic's morals, but that ONE LINE re-contextualizes these actions as a plot to prove that he's strong. it’s SO CLOSE to being good, but it fumbles completely with just four words!! shadow being the ultimate lifeform in idw reads (to me) as him needing to be the strongest physically, which is never what it was about.

personally i would have really liked to see a version of the metal virus arc where shadow actually WAS immune to it. there would finally be a purpose to the very specific disease lore regarding the ultimate lifeform, and it would force him to work alongside sonic and anyone else who was left standing. but to be fair they probably wrote him out to heighten the stakes and save us from more bad shadow dialogue

his lasting thoughts on the metal virus arc after this are... okay i guess. they feel vague as hell to me, but i think it makes sense for him to reflect on his mistakes in this sort of way since he always tries to learn from previous failures.

and we see how shadow's reflection on his failure here affects what he does in the next arc. during the chao race, he searches for dr. starline so he can attempt to stop any problems before they begin. yet despite being in reach of starline, he leaves the fight and joins sonic in trying to stop an avalanche. so even though shadow's character falters in some moments, the story seems to be actively working to improve him.

however, the biggest sin i think idw pulls with shadow is regarding his relationship with team dark. obviously i am VERY biased here because i love team dark and i want them to be friends, but some of these issues are just… oough. the line in idw that hurts me most is this one while rouge and amy are trying to help omega after he literally got torn to shreds.

shadow states that he has no desire to help omega after the robot almost died. i want to die

i can try to give this scene the benefit of the doubt: maybe shadow doesn’t see the need to help omega because he knows omega will be fine. or maybe he doesn’t think he can help omega because he literally has no clue how robots work. whatever it may be, shadow feels his time is better spent hunting down starline. but then why not say that? he's previously been able to communicate to team dark where he thinks his abilities are most needed, so why does his dialogue turn this into another moment of selfishness? why do they break 20 years of characterization and relationships just to turn him into a boring, brooding loner? these questions keep me up at night and i want to bite something

this scene really hurts considering shadow and omega’s relationship up until this point. every time i see this page, i remember that omega waited in stasis for 200 YEARS to save shadow in sonic 06. and sure, that was over 15 years ago and from a game most people act like doesn’t exist, but their relationship is important in modern sonic too - in forces, shadow is the one to go look for omega first after he goes offline while fighting infinite, and they work together to fight the zombots before both perishing. their bond and trust is there, whether they be friends or just allies.

it's strange because this is a line shadow says again later to sonic, but i think he's valid in ignoring sonic here due to their conflict over the mr. tinker situation and the release of the metal virus. sonic and shadow's relationship has been on edge since the start of idw, so shadow being uninterested in a team up makes sense to me. but why would he say the same thing to omega, an ally that needs help?

still, it's clear to me that the idw team is absolutely trying their best to make shadow work within the limitations they're given. despite shadow stumbling into the edgelord trope pit, characters around him will challenge his perspective and choices, causing him to rethink his actions. this is most notable in the chao race arc, which (aside from the ignoring omega part) is probably one of shadow's stronger stories in idw.

there is so, so much potential for shadow in idw. and it sucks, because the writers know his character and want to write him better! head writer evan stanley’s fan comic ghosts of the future has some shadow characterization that i love, and ian flynn is responsible for some of my favorite shadow stories of all time. most people cite the “sega mandates” as the reason for shadow’s lackluster modern character and. yeah. it tracks. very much so.

idw shadow feel so strangely out of place compared to the rest of the comic, at least to me. he feels like a remnant of the mid-2010s sonic culture where they were really leaning into sonic being a funny meme with no depth. but thankfully idw shadow seems to be improving, even if it's REALLY slowly.

so yeah uh in short. i think idw shadow should stop saying dumb shit and be allowed to have friends again

#please sega just let him have friends #sonic loreposting #the is very much just my personal opinion and read on idw shadow lmao #there are plenty of different reasons to like or dislike this version of him but they depend on how u interpret his actions and words #fernasks

[eldritch-spouse]

Need to know who The Betrayer is and I also need to top them immediately

[Ah yes, the true essence of this blog- "Who are they and how can I fuck them?"]

The Betrayer was a former siadar creator who defected from his kin and, as a result of misunderstandings and differences in ideals, created what we now know to be Hell, as well as the first demons to ever exist.

Heaven and Hell thus began their seemingly eternal war, as the deviant was naturally wanted neutralized by other siadar authorities. Although The Betrayer died before the siadar abandoned Earth and its annexes, Perdition did live on, transforming with the tides of time.

No longer is it a black and white story, the relationships between the surface, Eden and Perdition have drastically altered. That paired with the warping of history by various sources at once has lead to a muddled past at best, and a fickle image of everyone's ancestry built upon pillars of lies.

Little is remembered about The Betrayer. Not many will recall his name, his appearances, the circumstances of his death are equally clouded in mystery. It is rumored by the oldest demons that his very ashes forever coat the grounds of each Ring. But is that true?

[This is a work in progress, and it's development was interrupted due to me both needing more time to organize it properly (as it a very important element) and my life starting to speed up, demanding my focus. I will hopefully have painted a much clearer and more entertaining picture of this in 2024.]

#general tce #It's been a bit of a pain not being able to talk about this #but I genuinely don't want to spoil things as it would ruin what I have planned

[aimportantdragoncollector]

I don’t know if we can ask twice but now I’m curious on what your space Trioholders headcanons are :)

You're fine! People are allowed to send more than one ask, and you send this one before I closed the ask game. (I closed it less than a day ago.)

I'm going to base this roughly in the same universe as your space Trioholders headcanons, so Yoichi is a prince, Second is a space pirate, and Third is just some guy dragged into their nonsense.

1. Yoichi is the prince of a planet of people with psychic powers, but he's an anomaly because he has no powers. All for One is the emperor of the local solar system and uses Yoichi's "weakness" as an excuse to keep him locked up in the palace. As a gift to his little brother, AFO and his doctor create a drug that is supposed to give Yoichi powers like everyone else. They can't be bothered to ask for Yoichi's consent before giving him this experimental drug. Well, it works, and Yoichi now gets visions of the future. Yoichi sees that his brother is planning to attack the peaceful neighboring planets and conquer the galaxy. AFO believes people with powers are superior and deserve to rule. Horrified, Yoichi flees the palace. (In yet another AU, AFO forced a power on his brother and it backfires. He never learns.)

2. Again, following your AU, Yoichi stows away on a ship belonging to Space Pirate Second. Although Second would argue that he's more of a rebel against the tyrant AFO who censors the information his people receive. Second smuggles in supplies and media. AFO thinks that Second has abducted his brother for ransom. (Despite a fair bit of evidence including a handwritten note, AFO refuses to believe Yoichi ran away without someone mind-controlling him.)

3. Second is exasperated at a stowaway but takes pity on Yoichi, believing he's fleeing a fascist regime like many other people. Initially Second offers to drop Yoichi off somewhere in the neighboring solar system, but then Yoichi gets a vision of Second's ship blowing up. Since Yoichi is new at visions, he thinks it's a structural flaw rather than realizing AFO is bringing enough firepower to destroy an army at them. Thus they take the ship to the closest mechanic.

4. Third was just minding his own business as a mechanic's assistant. Then an elite strikeforce of super soldiers (led by Gigantomachia) showed up to rescue their prince. Or they came to kidnap the prince themselves, if you ask Yoichi. Either way, Third ends up aboard the ship when Second flees the planet and he is NOT HAPPY to be dragged into this mess.

5. Second thinks that AFO is chasing after him for his rebellion. (AFO did not know who Second was before this.) Yoichi nearly tells Second the truth, but he's scared of being turned over, and the fate of the galaxy depends on him getting out word of AFO's invasion. Third overheard Gigantomachia accusing the prince of being a rebel and now thinks Second is a prince. Complicated misunderstandings ensue as this disaster team tries to make it to the nearest solar system to sound the alarm.

This AU belongs to @chaosverse-mainblog so you'll need to ask permission if you want to write anything in it.

#bnha #Trioholders #Ichiniisan #ask game #All for One #Yoichi Shigaraki #Second One for All holder #Third One for All holder #Three Weeks of Trioholders #5 headcanons game #closed ask game

[old-school-butch]

‘But you misunderstand my argument - I don't actually think Israel is a decolonization project - I was responding to claims that Hamas' action is some form of resistance to 'settler colonialism' which, since Judaism as a faith is indigenous to the region, is nonsense.’

Except it’s not nonsense at all. The Zionist project was conceived to be a settling of the European Jewry in Palestine initially. No other groups who make claims to their people having lived in a place in the past to justify this kind of state building are taken seriously, nor would they be. This would be like the Roma population going to north India and attempting to set up a state by displacing the locals. They are genetically and ancestrally tied to that land, so why not them, too? Shall we all go back to where our ancestors of a couple centuries, even millennia in many cases, originated from? Is that the logic we defer to to decide what is and what isn’t settler colonialism?

"The Zionist project was conceived to be a settling of the European Jewry in Palestine initially"

The struggle for Jewish self-government goes back a liiiiiittle further than that. Maybe you've not read the Bible but you can track a straight line between 'the LORD said unto Moses, go in unto Pharaoh, and tell him, thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, let my people go' to 'By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion." which happened when the Bablyonian Empire rolled into town. Another four? five? empires later you finally have the Hasmoneansn and Maccabeans self-governments weakening under Roman rule and finally the fall of the second Temple era. Which led to approximately another 2000 years of attempting to return to Zion. But Jews remained living in the area the entire time, the goal of Zion is self-government, to create a nation safe for the Jewish people.

"No other groups who make claims to their people having lived in a place in the past to justify this kind of state building are taken seriously"

What do you think is happening in Myanmar? What do you think Nunavut self-government is about in Canada? The idea of a homeland is pretty old, but modern American politics has an overly simplified view of land claims - either you can prove you were the first humans there ever or you're a settler/colonist who doesn't deserve to be there.

Except when it's about Jews in Israel. When I point out that by this logic Jews have an old erclaim to the region than the later Arabian colonizers, then I'm told the history is either too old and doesn't count, or not real because there's no documentation going that far back in history, or the (actually far more realistic) argument there are a number of ethnic groups and religions that can track extremely long timelines in the same general region because the story of human history is older than our ability to write it down. So I agree with your last point, that while there are obvious impacts of colonialism and conquest, it gets really absurd to imagine that the only place anyone really belongs is wherever they're from 'originally'.

Anyway, Israel has only recently hardened its stance and officially became a 'Jewish state' - 20% of the population are Muslim and many Druze, Bedouin, Circassians and Christians live within its borders. I'm not happy about this recent change and I'm sure those minorities are not as well.

I'd characterize the Arab-Israeli conflict as mostly religious in nature, at its core, not ethnic or even territorial. Islamism is a trans-national movement with the goal of creating a caliphate as a super-state, something the surrounding Arab states find increasingly alarming as they search for stability, but they are content to let it grow in Palestine as long as Israel remains the focus of their grievances. If Israel ever falls, do you think there would be peace in the region? I don't. Look at the wall Egypt is building on their border with Gaza.

[the-celluloid-correspondent]

Napoleon Review

A look at the military commander's origins and his swift, ruthless climb to emperor, viewed through the prism of his addictive and often volatile relationship with his wife and one true love, Josephine. 

I have been waiting since January of this year to talk about Ridley Scott, Napoleon, a biopic about the notorious French emperor who almost brought Europe to its knees. Outside of some alternate takes and different editing, it was relatively the same film.  This did not surprise me, as I could not see what changes they could have made outside of adding 10+ hours of footage and turning it into a miniseries. 

Napoleon is Ridley Scott at his best and worst. At 85 years old, Scott still knows how to make a stunning historical epic. The sweeping battles of the Napoleonic Wars are enthralling to watch on the big screen and are worth the price of admission alone. However, once the film gets outside of the battles you have a mess of a story that is riddled with all the standard issues of a biopic. Too much story to tell and not enough time to do it justice. 

Napoleon’s life simply can not be compressed into 2.5 hours as it is far too vast and complicated. Because of this problem, the film either glosses over or boils many of his greatest victories and defeats into simple, one-sentence summaries. I wanted to see how Napoleon ticked and how his relationships between his military cabinet, politicians, and the public changed throughout the Napoleonic Wars. How did Napoleon brew up his military strategies and what led him to war? These elements and many more are never explored outside of a sentence stated here and there. Thus creating an uneven film. 

However, the most disappointing element of the film was the short Frenchman himself. I understand this take on Napoleon was meant to tear down the mythological militant commander and show his true petty and egotistical colors. But I believe Scott takes this deconstruction too far as it makes you wonder how a pathetic manchild almost conquered all of Europe. The film forgets that Napoleon was a brilliant military strategist and a charismatic leader. They show these characteristics from time to time, but when he is a buffoon for the majority of it, it is hard to take him seriously. 

I am unable to tell if this was due to the writing, acting, or both. The writing was obviously off, but I can’t help but think Joaquin Phoenix was miscast. He does a fantastic job with the material he is given, especially showing the Napoleon Complex, but he doesn’t feel like Napoleon. He comes across as a pathetic manchild rather than a brilliant military commander who has an ego problem. Sadly, the same can also be stated with Vanessa Kirby as Josephine. Her performance is outstanding, but she does feel miscast as the film greatly misunderstands the divorce between Josephine and Napoleon. If you were unaware, Josephine was 6 years older than Napoleon. So they either needed to age Kirby, like they did with Phoenix, or cast an actress who is a similar age to Phoenix. They divorced not because she couldn’t have children, but because she couldn't have children anymore. She was 54 when their marriage ended, meaning that her childbearing days were long gone. Gone even before Napoleon became emperor. So to cast a 35-year-old Vanessa Kirby as a post-menopausal woman is an insult to many middle-aged actresses in Hollywood who could have shown how tragic their divorce was. 

With those complaints stated Napoleon is still a very entertaining film. As previously stated the battle scenes are spectacular to watch and are worth the price of admission alone. The film is surprisingly funny with slapstick humor and some funny quotes, even when it's unintentional. I look forward to the 4.5-hour director cut as it will most likely alleviate some of the complaints that I have with the theatrical cut. However, even 4.5 hours does not feel like enough time to do Napoleon's life justice.

My Rating: B-

#film #cinema #movies #movie #filmmaking #filmmaker #moviemaking #moviemaker #cinephile #film is not dead #film community #film review #movie review #film critic #movie critic #cinematography #film critique #napoleon #ridley scott #joaquin phoenix #vanessa kirby

[odausten]

I tried to fight my inner demons as hard as I could but...

Why I think Wanderer would be a better archon then Kusanali

(By not a lore player, if you disagree with anything I say, please explain why, I would like to hear, trust me, I try as hard as I can to find at least one good thing about Nahida's character so if anyone has anything to say I would be so glad to hear it)

(Didn't mean to offend anyone)

(Unless you're Nahida)

So I come up with some reasons why Baladeer would be a perfect archon (based on personality, God criteria and official genshin writings and lore), why Kusanali is not supposed to be an archon at all (based on personality and archon criteria and on lore of other gods) and why having Lumine fighting sages and helping Wanderer to become a God would make the game and Nahida's character so much better (based on my opinion) and now I can't stop thinking about it

(Nahida is so selfish and noone knows it because of her acting like uwu anime cutie who cries for no reason all the time and saying that she likes hooman while girl literally manipulated her person just to make her believe in Nahida's views, used Katherine's body without her consent (and got it damaged, broke Katherine. (I care about her and her creator a lot, ok?) Saying that it's fine cuz she's a puppet (Katherine was showen as someone who's a living creature many times and even if she is just a souless puppet, she's still Sandrone's property), took away Scaramouche's gnosis with no hesitation even tho bro begged her not to (he was technically her enemy but taking away his heart was too personal, beating him up or anything wouldn't be.)

Listen..maybe I'm being too empathetic to a fictional charcater, but when she said she only kept Wanderer to use him, it was fine, if she killed him it was fine, but the moment when she talked about breaking his heart just to scare Dottore (she could've done the same with her gnosis, she wasn't about to actually break it anyway) really made me feel so so bad for him. Like I'm a bitch and I would bever do smth like that??

Another thing that people say is that "Scaramouche is evil" "he tried to take Sumeru away from Nahida" so is/did Barbatos?? Morax?? Ei even in her own quest was a bad guy (literally a part of Inadzuma quest was about Inadzuma needed someone more empathetic then Ei's puppet, oh, what a shame that Ei never made a puppet that was actually kind, understanding and incredibly good at politics/s)? Rukha too ig?? Archons are evil in one way or another, Scara said himself that their fight was an archon war (because Archons also fought each other for territories) And Nahida obviously lost (would have if traveler wasn't there).

We literally have 2 more canonical confirmations that Scara would be a good archon.

We saw how much he loved Haypasia and *cough cough*

"But those of this world who call such a being a "false deity" misunderstand the true meaning of the word. Shouki no Kami now understands countless things and shoulders unassailable might, and may be said to surpass mortals. If gods must love mortals, then Shouki no Kami, who grants failure in equal measure to humanity, loves them also. If gods must watch over humanity, then Shouki no Kami, who has borne witness to infinite love, hatred, partings, grudges, and maddening anger — thus does he watch over mortals".

Dide literally fits the "archon criteria" perfectly??? Nahida doesn't (expect for her loving her people but I already said why I disagree with that but I believe my point was too subjective to actually count it) I'm pretty sure I forgot some of my arguments but I'm too tired to write it anyway lol. In my personal opinion Sumeru would be better if we just fought Sages and then helped Wanderer become a good God, Nahida could be a better character since this way she would be allowed to be silly child

(I just realized interesting thing that both Nahida and Wanderer were created (most likely from irminsul) destined to be a God but not being able to achieve this at first, hey, maybe they both could be Gods, we got 100 updated about desert, no way a baby can handle it by her own + desert people were treated as less "human" then others for ages, Scaramouche would feel so much empathy towards them!

#genshin #genshin impact #scaramouche #wanderer #kusanali #nahida #kunikuzushi #sumeru

[flipping-the-coin]

Orion, what are some of the things you miss most about Kaon?

From the desk of  Head Archivist: Orion Pax Hall of Records East Trion Square Iacon

Thank you for your inquiry! It is not often I am asked to speak about my time in my second home. I urge all who read this document to set aside whatever prewar and wartime propaganda that has been fed to you regarding the people and culture of Kaon, as the stereotypes of Kaon are largely based in misunderstandings and prejudice. I became fond of Kaon long before I ever met my Conjunx, when I stumbled upon a collection of Kaoni graffiti that was posted to a forum on the datanet. Graffiti was largely nonexistent in Iacon back then; I had never seen artistic expression presented this way before and was fascinated by how beautiful it was. It inspired me to attempt to learn to draw myself, for a time, however I was quickly reminded of my function as an archivist and not an artist, and thus dropped that as a pursuit, but my interest in Kaon remained, and was acceptable per Alpha Trion to pursue as a specialty interest.

Megatronus later took me to visit many of the artistic works I remembered after we became friends. There was one, in particular, that we used to visit often that depicted the Pits Arena, with a depiction of fallen Gladiators covered in energon with only one standing, looking up towards the sky. Above it was written, 'Save our City.' Megatronus told me that it was one of the oldest murals in Kaon, created when the Arenas were first constructed, in protest of their function. He told me that it had been removed several times, but it was always recreated within a decacycle of its destruction.

Eventually, I stumbled upon the speeches and poetry of Megatronus online.  (I am well aware that everyone knows how that turned out in the end, but I would like to specifically speak on our early correspondences for just a klik.) I am afraid that my early attempts at truly understanding what Megatronus was saying were obscured by my lack of understanding of his dialect. He was quite patient in educating me on Kaoni glyph usage, and I become enthralled by the way that the mechs of Kaon use metaphor in their common language; a direct opposite to Iaconian standards that prefer direct, clinical glyphs to convey meaning.

Kaoni speech is simply different. Many metaphors obscure what is being said to those who do not understand the dialect, this was especially true for the Gladiator caste of Kaon. For example, in Iacon, spark merges are simply referred to as spark merges. If one were to wish to ask for one, They would use the glyphs directly referring to merging their sparks; "I wish to merge sparks with you." It is direct and clear. However, in Kaon, if one were to express this desire, they would use much different glyphs such as "I wish to taste your spark." or "I would give my spark to you." I found this sort of poetic glyph usage to be quite beautiful, and I do miss the dialect in my audials. Hardly anyone speaks Kaoni here.

Everything in Kaon was warm: the climate, the people, the fuels…. It was much less rigid than Iacon, and I found myself enjoying how little they cared about one’s caste or status. I enjoyed the informal nature of social gatherings, where boisterous laughter and jovial banter was common. The high grade wasn’t as refined, but there were many Kaoni specific beverages that simply were divine that have been lost, as well as many recipes that I am devastated that I never took the time to process and archive myself. 

There were many places of great beauty in Kaon, if one knew where to find them. Megatronus often took me to a particular abandoned mine shaft that had one particular branch that led to the most exquisite naturally formed crystal garden I have ever laid my optics upon. They glowed marvelously in the most exquisite shades of soft greens, blues, pinks and purples and created spires that twisted and merged into each other and the ceiling above them… I loved it there so much that that is where Megatronus and I performed our Rites and gave our sparks to each other. They were one of Kaon’s best kept secrets, and I will never reveal where they are located. I am unaware of whether they remain accessible in modern times. 

I stress again that Kaon was so much more than the propaganda would have one believe. This merely scratches the surface of the things I miss of the Kaon of old. I am afraid I would keep you all cycle if I went over everything. Kaon was special to me. It felt more like home to me than Iacon ever has.

Head Archivist,

Orion Pax

#maccadam #transformers #transformers prime #transformers prime au #two sides to a coin au #cybertronian culture #megaop #orion pax #worldbuilding #Orion Pax responds #ask blog #two sides asks