#and if his relatives look the same that clearly isn't the case

[canonicaly-ace]

the implications of all of kalaya's descendants looking like suvi is fascinating to me

#like the obvious thing is they all look like Eursulon's glamour #but the implication at the end of the children's adventure was that Eursulon chose a glamour that looks like suvi #and if his relatives look the same that clearly isn't the case #so I see two options: #1. Eursulon's glamour looking like the girl he would end up considering a sister is a coincidence (which is kinda beautiful in its own way) #2. suvi is a pretty far removed descendant of kalaya's maybe with the mentioned ex husband??) #like some branch of the family stayed in Umora and over the generations the spirit qualities disappeared but the resemblance stayed #worlds beyond number #the wizard the witch and the wild one #Eursulon #suvirin kedberiket

[sarnai4]

Opening Up

About opening up...Dagur kinda doesn't. (Spoilers ahead)

This is something I've seen some fans talk about where they say Dagur would reveal personal information easily. I see where they're coming from with this. Looking at Dagur, I'd expect that too. He's outspoken, emotional, unrestrained, etc. He seems like someone who could randomly say, "I had a good cry today," and it wouldn't be anything surprising. HOWEVER, that changes for me when I look at the proof from the show. If Dagur was half as open about things as this would imply, then we wouldn't be forced to speculate so much about his past and the things that have happened to him. In another case of me spending too much time studying Dragons (probably. Still worth it), I tried to collect all the examples of Dagur sharing information. They have something in common. Each time, there's a specific reason. I'll go in chronological order.

In "Enemy of My Enemy," Dagur tells Hiccup how revenge can make you do things you didn't think you were capable. This was an interesting moment of really getting to see how the villain we saw Dagur be wasn't who he always was. It even shocked him how extreme his actions became. This has the potential to be some heavy stuff, but he didn't just outright say it for fun. He said it because he saw Hiccup going down that same path. This isn't, "I can't believe the things I've done and really need someone to talk to." It's, "I see you following in my footsteps and they led me in a terrible direction. I don't want that for you."

It takes Dagur F.O.R.E.V.E.R. to admit he didn't kill Oswald. Even as a good guy, he doesn't say it easily. In "Family on the Edge," he implies that something Heather said out of the sent her adrift, killed their dad, and tried to kill them list wasn't true, but he doesn't just say it. He writes it in the letter, admitting that and how he was worried that the other Berserkers wouldn't follow him otherwise. If he wanted to do it for emotional release reasons, he could've just said the first time or even told her way back when he thought they were on the same side. Rather than that, he puts it in a letter so that her final relative won't be quite as bad as she thinks he is.

In "Searching for Oswald...And Chicken," Dagur has two moments. First, he tells Heather how he's spent most of his life in varying stages of existential crisis. (Just wow for that. Wish we had heard more about it because that is quite the emotional load he nonchalantly dropped) Again, this clearly isn't to get something off his chest because it's not even something he brings up again. He just tells her so that she'll have proof he knows what is meaningless, hopefully getting her to stop throwing herself in harm's way to find Oswald. Later, he tells Hiccup he keeps anger, frustration, and rage to himself. This also isn't to share so much as to prove he can keep secrets and deserves to be trusted with the location of Vanaheim.

Then, we have "In Plain Sight." There, we find out he used to get bullied. He waited until as much of the last moment as possible to tell Fishlegs and Snotlout this. They had already flown from the Edge to Berserker Island and were literally walking down to meet Ansson. So, I don't think it's him wanting to share sensitive information. It's him knowing they're about to be there with the bully and since Ansson doesn't care about playing nice, it's going to be obvious that he used to bully him. This is just softening the blow a little by telling them first. Didn't really help, though, since they still laughed at him being called "Dainty." (Not cool even though I get how weird it would be to hear someone call him that)

Unless I'm mistaken, that's everything. I don't think there's another time when Dagur reveals something personal. Each of these had some deeper purpose. This is why I don't believe Dagur would start speaking about his past traumas without a prompt. Now, I'll say I do enjoy having him talk about this in stories and I support other writers who do. I just believe it takes a little nudge. He's not going to sit down next to someone and talk about his time in jail. He has literally never spoken about his time in jail in the entire show except the first RTTE episode to say that he spent 3 years thinking about Hiccup. So, it actually leaves a lot of room to be creative with what his past even has first, then what situation would get him to spill the beans.

#HTTYD #RTTE #Dagur the Deranged #Past #Trauma #I think most can agree he has PTSD #We just don't know the specifics of why and I want to know #Heck we still don't know why he sent Heather adrift #I need answers😭 #He's winking because he knows his lips are sealed forever

[random-thought-depository]

I was watching Columbo last night and thinking about this post I once saw about how Tumblr likes Columbo cause it's pretty close to being the closest thing possible to a left-wing cop show and how true that is. Columbo's adversaries are always rich people who think they're clever and underestimate Columbo's intellect cause he isn't rich and he has working class coded mannerisms, clothes, and tastes. This got me thinking about whether an equivalent character could be written today (for something set today, not a period piece) and what they'd be like. I think it'd be tricky cause of how the relationships between class, policing, and partisanship has changed.

For example, it feels like the character/archetype Columbo is most clearly written in reaction against is Hercule Poirot. Or maybe Poirot's knock-offs, in the same way a lot of fantasy isn't so much written against Tolkien as written against Tolkien's imitators, I'm not really into detective fiction so IDK. I think a modern equivalent of Columbo would have to be centrally written in reaction against the archetype of the "gritty" Dirty Harry style cowboy cop who steps on toes and breaks rules but gets results. I think actual Columbo already had some of that in it, but for a modern remake it'd have to be much more central. I'm not sure what that would look like. Though one thing I can picture relatively well is, like, I could totally see one of remake-Columbo's cases pitting them against a murderer who's exactly that kind of cowboy cop but written as a villain.

Also...

An important part of Columbo's character is he's smart but he superficially fits a rich person's stereotype of what a stupid person looks, sounds, and acts like, and this causes his adversaries to underestimate his intellect. I think the tricky thing with a modern equivalent of Columbo would be giving them a persona that triggers similar contempt in people who live in nice five bedroom houses regardless of whether that particular nice five bedroom house has a thin blue line sign or an "in this house we believe" sign on its nice lawn. I'm not sure what that would look like either. One idea I had for is a modern equivalent of Columbo might be a woman who has big breasts and a big butt and is "thick," i.e. has a body type stereotypically associated with strippers, porn stars, and fanservice characters, specifically because of the negative stereotypes associated with that body type - @who-canceled-roger-rabbit, I think you might appreciate this idea!

#Columbo #writing ideas #random stuff

[transhawks]

A Thin Veneer: BNHA 374

As dedicated readers of BNHA and meta for BNHA meta would know, the way characters drawn and depicted, the way certain scenes are framed, all of that is crucial to points Horikoshi makes about his characters, the plot, and the themes he wants to convey. Something to note is expression and how people are drawn. On the subject of Hawks, we know from in-text reactions to him that he is seen as conventionally attractive, and typically has a cheeky or happy-nature in his expressions. It's alone or in tense movements that we see something else.

What we do have is faces that break the Uncanny valley, like the famous image pre-"attacking" Best Jeanist, or getting confirmation about the raid where he very much show-cased his heteromorphic side, or the frightening image of him from Jin's pov as he was shrouded in shadows and looked very much like a predator.

What's consistent in these images is 1. Hawks was in control at of himself when he makes those faces 2. They usually don't *take* away from him in terms of find him "palatable" even if he's frightening. And there's a point to this.

Hawks isn't unflappable; there are plenty of moments where he loses his facade and cool, and we can argue those faces were truer to his inner nature than the bubbly cheeky personality he puts on a lot of the time.

But facially, it's interesting that he was so solemn as a child, and when alone and comfortable with himself, he seems to be mostly blank-faced and not very expressive. Perhaps that is the "default" Keigo.

Why all of this talk of faces and how Hawks is drawn? Because with 374, something has changed, and it means something very heavy is coming up with Hawks in the future.

First off, let's read about a certain trope

If a character is deranged or has just lost it for a moment, one eye is drawn as being very different than the other. Commonly, the Mad Eye (or its iris/pupil) is much larger than the other. Can also double as an unspoken Oh, Crap! moment. For extra effect, may be paired with Twitchy Eye.

Consistently, Dabi has been shown to be drawn with this trope time and time again. It's featured in promo art, in his battles, and this example up top. Dabi is clearly mentally unstable, openly and not unlike his friend Twice. The "Mad Eye" trope is meant to be a visual indicator of mentally instability. There's nary been a time where we've seen Hawks drawn like this. Even when he was drawn smirking before "killing" Best Jeanist, the eyes were the same.

It's interesting that his expression and eyes were relatively stable through out the process leading up to killing Bubaigawara Jin. But in the same panel where he kills him (right in the image above), half his face is obscured. Still, there's still an element of control here. I, and many other meta writers, have written about how control is a specific element in Hawks's character. His skill is in his technique, where he lacks in pure power, his skill in using his quirk in extremely adaptable and creative ways shows that he has an intense amount of control over it. And essentially his quirk is in that - controlling feathers do the various things they're capable of (sensors, listening devices, controlling their movements, flexibility, hardness, etc).

When being in control is so crucial to Hawks's quirk functioning, and being out of control so crucial to his narrative (the frequent caged bird references), it's interesting that most of the time Keigo is control of himself, even if he isn't in control of his circumstances. It's what made the HPSC make him a spy and what makes him, in my opinion, an interesting character.

By interesting, I don't mean "good" or "bad", moral or immoral or amoral, etc. I mean interesting in that he's complex and there's still mystery to him. It's very hard to understand Hawks because Keigo's story and personality are layered and presented to us in a way that it's difficult to get a full picture.

So what do we see in this chapter?

Keigo losing control.

He's been remarkably poised this war arc. He started by immediately trying to assassinate AFO without hesitation: While he's had emotional moments, one of the most striking things is that in earlier chapters against AFO, he's been repeating something that shows where his mindset is:

This whole fight Hawks has been telling Endeavor to keep a cool head, to not be provoked, to regain control of himself. He also keeps trying to play the circumstances - delaying so heavy-hitters like Enji can get a shot in, making sure everything it together.

Something else to notice is Hawks is wounded over the left side of his wave, and there's blood drying over his eye. However, there are numerous pictures of him in this state where his eyes are open at the same time or half-closed and there's no indication that he can open more than other.

As you can see here, this is Hawks with the blood over his eye in various expressions. Even when stressed, his expression never gives us indications of the "going mad" trope as the most recent chapter does. Thus, whatever is going on cannot be explained as due to his wound - it hasn't been shown before.

Why make so much of a single panel?

Because it's important.

We have Hawks, known for being very in control of himself and who tries to be in control of situations around him, and we have heavy build up by Hawks being the one to remind Endeavor to not lose it.

And yet....

This is not like anything we've seen from him so far. The mere sight of Twice alive again, the knowledge that what he did was for naught, heck, All For One is provoking him just on that basis:

"Time to learn how it might have turned out if you hadn't made his death your top priority back then."

Hawks's extrajudicial assassination of Twice became a viral moment, and don't forget it was drawn that way in the same time Japan had started undergoing protests for police brutality in 2020 due to viral videos of local beatings going viral amongst Japanese social media and twitter. Hawks has had to face immense scrutiny and criticism over his choice to kill Twice for the past few months, and his reaction to it has been to publicly apologize that he couldn't find another way to deal with him and to privately tell Best Jeanist that he admired the person he killed and wishes to be like him.

There's been no real show of regret, no reflection. And suddenly, with the appearance of Twice once more, we see a crack in this veneer:

Hawks's first words at the sight of the man he killed is to scream that the clones have to be killed immediately. Hawks's first expression at sight of Twice is one not of collected focus, nor even his usual anger or frustration.

He's drawn as if he's fucking crazy.

Horikoshi doesn't do panels like this for nothing. The way the panel beautifully lines up with one of Dabi's back covers, and the fact it's the first time Hawks has been drawn with the "mad eyes" trope is significant. It's showing us that Hawks, for the first time that we know of, is losing control of himself. And for a character whose narrative has been about controlling what people think and know about himself (and letting others do that for him), that's elemental to breaking down all we know of him.

This panel promises to show us another side of Hawks, a side he cannot hide away, or charm and joke his way out of. Naked, raw, and with no ulterior motives to control the situation, this face promises that we might finally hear what Hawks thinks of his actions and the reaction to them.

#hawks #bnha 374 #my meta #takami keigo #bnha #bnha hawks

[mooshorange]

It's time for the post long awaited by nobody, my little look into what Hyde actually is. This post ties rather nicely into my other one on Jekyll's reliability as a narrator in the book's final chapter so if that takes your fancy then you should be able to read it here (if I've inserted that link correctly). This post will be entirely comprehensible without looking at that at all, but it might be of some interest if you want to hear more about my thoughts on that.

Anyway, the question of what Hyde is sounds pretty simple at first, but a lot of people would give very different answers if asked. It's something that can really get quite complex in the way that a lot of seemingly simple things in the book can due to how much is left unsaid. If the story was entirely from Jekyll's point of view, it would be a lot clearer, but I honestly think the speculation and interpretations are part of the fun.

A very common interpretation of Hyde is that he is simply pure evil. I say 'a', but even this has its layers and will differ depending on who you ask. Hyde could be all the evil parts of Jekyll or he could be all the evil things in the world or something inbetween these two. He could even be some other form of evil. This is what Jekyll says he is so this one works more on the basis that he is relatively reliable in his statement of the case. This one usually works on the idea that they have become separate personalities, though interestingly, interpreting Jekyll as the pure good counterpart of this is less common. When Hyde is pure evil, Jekyll is frequently still morally grey and relatively unchanged. I just think that's kind of fascinating.

This next one is less common, but it links well to the pure evil interpretation so I'm putting it second. This one is Hyde as the parts of himself that Jekyll dislikes. I am, personally, a pretty big fan of this one. I just enjoy it. You may think it is the exact same as Hyde just being evil as those are the parts Jekyll dislikes about himself, but I view it as different. Evil is a very vague concept which will differ depending on who you ask. Morality is a complex subject with no clearly defined correct answers. This allows for those grey areas a little more. Hyde can include the parts of himself which Jekyll views as evil or simply dislikes for other reasons, but which may not all be considered bad by everyone. It means that Jekyll's statement is what he believes to be true, but may not actually represent the truth, which I find rather interesting. The complexity and the self-loathing of this one just really appeal to me.

One very, very common view of Hyde which I see quite often on here is that he's just Jekyll in a different body. This one sees Hyde as a mask more than a separate identity and means that Jekyll's explanation is largely false. Anonymity can make people do weird things, a fact internet users can understand well. Perhaps that's why I see it so often online. I also think a lot of fans of this one dislike Jekyll, which is understandable. I have more complex feelings about this one. Sometimes I like it, and other times I don't. It's rather hard to explain so I just won't, for the time being. This post is going to end up long enough as it is.

So, onto my next interpretation. I've seen a few people talk about Hyde as Jekyll, but affected by the drug in the way that people act different when taking real-world drugs. This one is very similar to the last in that everything Hyde does comes from Jekyll but isn't necessarily something he would do if he could fully control himself. Things like him losing his self-control, being overly aggressive, and gaining an increased dependence on the drug frequently come into this. This means that Hyde is technically Jekyll in a different body, but he isn't fully controlled by Jekyll-Jekyll, if that makes any sense at all. Different people will mix and match parts of this in different ways. I like elements of this one. I'm not overly big on drug analogies and things. It's just not for me. However, I do quite like the idea of Hyde being Jekyll with no impulse control. Everything coming from him, but only some of it being things he actually wants.

Since this post is getting quite long now, I'll make this my fifth and final example. This is a combination of a few of the things above, but I want to give it its own paragraph simply because I really quite like it. This is the idea that Hyde begins as just Jekyll allowing himself to indulge in the things he doesn't think he is allowed to like and slowly splits off and becomes his own person. In this interpretation, Hyde grows beyond what Jekyll wanted him to be and becomes evil rather than just cruel and shameful. I just really like this. The idea of Hyde starting out as some small indulgence from Jekyll then going out of control. The idea of Jekyll no longer wanting these things, but being unable to stop Hyde from going too far. That just gets me. This one can work with Jekyll being honest in his statement, but also leaves room for him to be lying in sections as well. It's the one I kind of went with in my head when reading the book (before I had been a Hyde=Jekyll kind of person, but reading it for myself changed my mind a little).

There are many, many more ways to think about what Hyde may or may not be. I could also go into much more depth on each of the ones I listed here. Perhaps I'll dedicate a post solely to one of them in future if the mood strikes me. There's no way for us to really know what Stevenson wanted us to think of Hyde as. Even if you assume Jekyll is a reliable narrator and take everything he says as truth, it still leaves room to interpret that in different ways. I don't think it really matters though. As I've said before in other posts, the way the reader can view the text to reflect their own ideas and experiences is what makes it so appealing, even after all these years. If you have any particular thoughts on Hyde's nature, please feel free to share them in the comments, tags, reblogs, or whatever. I'd love to hear them. I always like to see how different people can take the same words in such different directions.

#J speaks #Jekyll and Hyde #The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde #Robert Louis Stevenson #Edward Hyde #analysis #drug mention #The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

[lunyzare]

On Izuna's Personality

Information from databooks: From older databooks we know he's devoted, peace-loving and loves training with Madara. In the newer databook it is stated he's self-sacrificing/devoted, harmonious/balanced.

Information from manga: There's not much information about him in the manga, as he barely appears in it – he's on like five pages, eight or nine if I'm being generous and count the unreliable narration of Itachi and Obito, and the only flashback he actually talks in is Hashirama's, so let's look at those pages.

Chapter 623: Izuna, if I'm not mistaken, firstly appears in this chapter on the faithful day on the river, where Madara awakens his Sharigan. Here, I have to remind that this entire flashback is from Hashirama's perspective, not from Madara's, therefore we cannot tell for sure how exactly Madara's family found out he's meeting Hashirama. The reason I'm mentioning this is because often, people assume Izuna was watching Madara and/or was told to watch him just like Tobirama was, and while it could be the case (both families had the same idea of following Madara/Hashirama, so maybe they also both found out about their meetings the same way), we truly cannot be sure.

Izuna here likely followed his father's orders/wishes and went head to head with Tobirama, who, according to the databooks, was his equal on the battlefield.

In the manga panel linked above we can see Izuna looks quite calm as he surveys his opponents and refers to Tobirama by his name, and Tobirama reciprocates.

Chapter 624: On the first page of this chapter (the panel down left), Izuna again looks very calm and also focused as he's about to clash with Tobirama. Interesting to note that Tajima's face looks very focused and calm as well, while both Butsuma's and Tobirama's faces look almost enraged, especially Tobirama's face.

The difference between Izuna's focused and still relatively calm expression and Tobirama's enraged one is more clear on the second page of this chapter. I believe Izuna is biting his lip which is the first sign of any emotion that he displayed so far (that and his widely opened eyes as he focuses on his opponent). Even as the fight between him and Tobirama continues (the first panel), Tobirama is still the one whose face is way more expressive, he clearly grits his teeth in battle rage.

Small but cool detail: The first panel shows both Butsuma and Tajima looking down at their sons. It's cool Kishi not only thought of telling us that each of them would be unbalanced if their son died in front of their eyes, but he also showed us. No one will convince me Kishimoto isn't an amazing writer/artist when he clearly cares for small details like this...Anyway, back to Izuna.

Now this and this page are the first pages where Izuna visibly shows any emotion, both times it's him being surprised. Showing surprise when an opponent unexpectedly attacks you is normal in the Naruto verse, other characters do it as well – it's a way of keeping the reader invested in battle scenes – that means the first page doesn't tell us much about Izuna's character, however the second surprised reaction does.

The second time Izuna is surprised, he's surprised because his brother admitted he is weaker than Hashirama. That means Izuna admires Madara greatly. It's also in character for Madara as he likes to boast about his abilities, so Izuna not seeing fault in him is very likely. Izuna's disbelief is clear on his face. (This is also the second time he says anything and I love how the animated version made Izuna's voice softer when speaking to his brother.)

Later, when Madara awakens Sharingan, Izuna is clearly elated.

So far it seems Izuna shows any kind of emotions more freely when he's interacting with his family.

I don't know if I should count this page, because Izuna was just mortally wounded here, but I will mention that there is a difference between the manga and anime version in this scene. In the anime, when Hashirama makes the offer (or should I say a threat?), Madara makes a slight move towards Hashirama as if he was about to agree, and in that moment Izuna stops him, implying he sensed the movement and stopped his brother. In the manga, there is no visible movement on Madara's part. We only get a close up of his face, but here's the thing: only we, the readers and by extent Hashirama, can see that. Izuna at this moment is looking down or is perhaps on the edge of passing out due to pain. Madara made no movement and Izuna couldn't see his face, which means Izuna had to guess that Madara was considering Hashirama's offer through other clue. So...what was the clue?

Looking at canon characterization of Madara, he is often vocal when he doesn't like something or when he doesn't agree with something, so the fact that Madara was quiet, might have told Izuna he's considering accepting the truce.

Another interesting thing is that Madara respected Izuna. How do I know? He listened to him, to his advice. He also clearly tried to keep his oath to him to protect the clan (and perhaps that was the reason why he stayed in the village for so long even after overhearing the conversation between Hashirama and Tobirama). These behaviors show both brothers likely knew each other very well, trusted and respected each other deeply, and of course loved each other too.

So, what do we know about Izuna? We still don't know much, but it does seem he was very devoted – to his family and his clan. He cared about his clan's safety. His desire to keep them safe and to make sure Madara and by extent his clan wouldn't be deceived could have been stronger because he was also the head of his clan, therefore the clan was his responsibility too. The manga also showed he was willing to sacrifice himself for the good of his clan.

He was clearly very calm, focused and collected, rarely if ever showing emotions during battle. Even Madara, a very skilled Shinobi, shows emotions (raging from absolute boredom to absolute excitement) during battle.

As for the other characteristics mentioned in the databooks: Peace-loving and harmonious: We don't know nearly enough about his character to say this with certainty, and it's important to note (once again) that this entire flashback is from Hashirama's POV only. But he did give Madara his eyes to protect the clan, so it's pretty possible he wanted peace and harmony for his clansmen.

Loves training with Madara: Again, nothing in the manga (beside Itachi's and Obito's narration) suggests this, but given the fact Madara loved to fight and loved testing his abilities against Hashirama, it's likely he would have trained with Izuna as well. Also, how else would they teach Izuna to fight if they didn't train, right?

Now...why the heck did I write all of this? One of my reasons is that I wish to write more fanfiction about Izuna, and I like to stay as close to CANON characterisation as possible.

The biggest reason is that I'm tired of the quite honestly terrible interpretations of his character.

He's either the definition of a monster with no heart or a cute fluffy creature who's super in love with Tobirama. Both interpretations lack depth, although the first one at least acknowledges Izuna as a warrior.

I was also quite confused when I found out that many people seem to believe Izuna and Tobirama parallel each other? And while yes, both of them are younger brothers of reincarnations of Asura and Indra (Hashirama and Madara) and while they were, according to the databooks, equals in power, I see no other similarities between them? Even if we say they parallel each other, then...in what? We know nearly nothing about Izuna, so how can we even make this claim?

And from the little we know about him (and from what I've written above), they seem to be very different, but maybe that's what the parallel is supposed to be about.

In any case, this was my attempt to define Izuna's canon character.

#izuna #izuna uchiha #madara #madara uchiha #naruto meta #anti tobiizu #uchiha izuna #uchiha madara

[mariana-oconnor]

The Solitary Cyclist pt 1

This one I know I like, but also I get it mixed up with Copper Beeches. I think they're kind of similar?

Many startling successes and a few unavoidable failures were the outcome of this long period of continuous work.

Watson protecting Holmes' reputation here. He only fails when it's unavoidable, you know.

For this reason I will now lay before the reader the facts connected with Miss Violet Smith, the solitary cyclist of Charlington, and the curious sequel of our investigation, which culminated in unexpected tragedy.

Ah, that's another reason I get this mixed up with Copper Beeches, they are both called Violet and my brain has a tendency to switch off after first names.

This is why I always get Barry Manilow and Barry White mixed up. They are both called Barry, they both sing, my brain decides they are the same person. I know one of them's dead. Don't ask me which one. Genuinely.

Also, we are being prepared for tragedy.

And yet without a harshness which was foreign to his nature it was impossible to refuse to listen to the story of the young and beautiful woman, tall, graceful, and queenly...

A flattering description this time, and a very determined Violet. Holmes is setting aside a case for a millionaire for this. I'm not sure it's entirely for the reasons Watson is suggesting here, though.

It was vain to urge that his time was already fully occupied, for the young lady had come with the determination to tell her story, and it was evident that nothing short of force could get her out of the room until she had done so.

She will clearly take no shit. I like her already. (Well, I already liked her because it's one of my favourite Holmes' stories, but you know what I mean.)

“...so ardent a bicyclist must be full of energy.” She glanced down in surprise at her own feet, and I observed the slight roughening of the side of the sole caused by the friction of the edge of the pedal. “Yes, I bicycle a good deal, Mr. Holmes..."

I really like this exchange because yes, she's surprised, but she immediately follows his train of thought and isn't put off by it. It's a neat way of establishing that she's clever and not easily thrown.

Also, Watson follows the logic, too. He's learning!

Also, hands up all of us who are a little bit sad that it's the wear on her shoes that singles her out and not the dreaded 'bicycle face'.

It's period appropriate, you're missing a trick with the terrible Victorian medical science here, ACD.

"You observe the spatulate finger-end, Watson, which is common to both professions?"

Such a complimentary way to describe the fingers of the woman whose hand you just grabbed without consent.

"There is a spirituality about the face, however”—he gently turned it towards the light—“which the typewriter does not generate. This lady is a musician.”

I assume this means he turned her face towards the light. He's really just getting all up in Miss Smith's business, isn't he? Also the idea that musicians just glow with spirituality is wonderful. What does spirituality as a facial feature look like? I'm imagining a glow, but that's at least partially because light is referenced and partially because I come from the western Christian tradition of halos and radiant beams of holy light.

“My father is dead, Mr. Holmes. He was James Smith, who conducted the orchestra at the old Imperial Theatre. My mother and I were left without a relation in the world except one uncle, Ralph Smith, who went to Africa twenty-five years ago, and we have never had a word from him since."

Hmmm... a mysterious relative in Africa.

(I am now realising that much like with the other stories I remember the gist, but not the steps of how we get there.)

"When father died we were left very poor, but one day we were told that there was an advertisement in the Times inquiring for our whereabouts. You can imagine how excited we were, for we thought that someone had left us a fortune."

People have got to stop believing that notices in the newspaper will bring them fortunes. Let me guess, it's going to turn out your Uncle Ralph was a Nigerian Prince?

"There we met two gentlemen, Mr. Carruthers and Mr. Woodley, who were home on a visit from South Africa. They said that my uncle was a friend of theirs, that he died some months before in great poverty in Johannesburg, and that he had asked them with his last breath to hunt up his relations and see that they were in no want."

I absolutely believe and trust these people. There is no way this is a scam at all.

“Mr. Woodley seemed to me to be a most odious person. He was for ever making eyes at me—a coarse, puffy-faced, red-moustached young man, with his hair plastered down on each side of his forehead. I thought that he was perfectly hateful—and I was sure that Cyril would not wish me to know such a person.”

Aw, Violet Smith, you too can join in with Watson's judgemental description club. Although you do start with the 'making eyes' at you bit, so this comes across as a little less straight up judgement based on appearance and a little more informed by his personality. The last bit is kind of weird, but I guess Victorian. Of course your boyfriend gets a say in who you know. I think a little more is coming back to me now though.

"What I wished to say was that Mr. Woodley was perfectly odious, but that Mr. Carruthers, who was a much older man, was more agreeable. He was a dark, sallow, clean-shaven, silent person; but he had polite manners and a pleasant smile."

It is a truth universally acknowledged that the nicer ones who hang out with the worrying ones are, in the end, always worse.

"He inquired how we were left, and on finding that we were very poor he suggested that I should come and teach music to his only daughter, aged ten."

Ah, yep, it is a lot like Copper Beeches. I'm contemplating whether it's worse here that they're doing this all privately or worse in the Copper Beeches where Violet Hunter is hired through an agency and it still does nothing to help her. Probably Copper Beeches.

She's getting £100 a year from this suspicious widower, which is £10,000 a year. Not exactly a fortune, but she's also getting food and board for the week.

As soon as the text is telling me he's a widower, though, I'm absolutely looking for him to be trying to scam her into marrying him. Convenient lack of wife and a suspicious interest in the young woman? It's all very Jane Eyre. (I don't think he has a wife in his attic, though.)

"The child was a dear, and everything promised well."

This Violet lucked out on the child front. At least the child she's caring for is not a psychopath in training.

"He made odious love to me, boasted of his wealth, said that if I married him I would have the finest diamonds in London, and finally, when I would have nothing to do with him, he seized me in his arms one day after dinner—he was hideously strong—and he swore that he would not let me go until I had kissed him. Mr. Carruthers came in and tore him off from me, on which he turned upon his own host, knocking him down and cutting his face open."

That's a little bit more than just 'making eyes' at you, Violet. You really buried the lede on this one. But he gave Mr Carruthers the opportunity to be a knight in shining armour. Oh dear. It's really not hard to look like a good guy when you're in direct comparison with someone that rapey.

"The road from Chiltern Grange is a lonely one, and at one spot it is particularly so, for it lies for over a mile between Charlington Heath upon one side and the woods which lie round Charlington Hall upon the other."

When was pepper spray invented? Does she have a hat pin for stabbing? She should get a nice sharp hat pin.

He seemed to be a middle-aged man, with a short, dark beard. I looked back before I reached Farnham, but the man was gone, so I thought no more about it.

GHOST CYCLIST

"I mentioned it to Mr. Carruthers, who seemed interested in what I said, and told me that he had ordered a horse and trap, so that in future I should not pass over these lonely roads without some companion."

Oh I bet he did. I just bet he leapt at the chance to offer you more help.

“The horse and trap were to have come this week, but for some reason they were not delivered, and again I had to cycle to the station."

Hmmm? That is very odd. Almost as though no one ordered them.

"I slowed down my machine, but he slowed down his. Then I stopped altogether, but he stopped also."

This image is hilarious. Also what's going through mystery man's head. Clearly he's not trying to be subtle. It's all got a very scooby doo feel to it.

It's good to see her taking the initiative and actually trying some things out, though, including the trap that is never sprung.

“Oh, it may be a mere fancy of mine; but it has seemed to me sometimes that my employer, Mr. Carruthers, takes a great deal of interest in me.”

Yeah, super Jane Eyre vibes.

“Well, at least he is fairly well-to-do. But he goes into the City two or three times a week. He is deeply interested in South African gold shares.”

Gold, you say? I smell motive. I smell a great deal of motive. And South Africa is where your estranged dead Uncle used to live, correct? Whose death and last living status have only been told to you by these two men who both appear to be interested in 'wooing' you?

"One more point. What sort of a menage is it which pays double the market price for a governess, but does not keep a horse although six miles from the station?"

These are the kind of little Victorian details you just can't pick up on in the 21st century. I certainly don't know what the going rate for a governess was in 1895. Although I probably could have guessed that not having a horse when you're six miles from the station is a bit weird. I guess they never take the kid anywhere.

“No, my dear fellow, you will go down. This may be some trifling intrigue, and I cannot break my other important research for the sake of it. On Monday you will arrive early at Farnham; you will conceal yourself near Charlington Heath; you will observe these facts for yourself, and act as your own judgment advises.

Ooh, Watson goes alone. And he's to act as his own judgment advises? That seems... risky. He's liable to just tackle the man to the ground. Which would solve the identity problem, I suppose. That is something to look forward to. I wonder if Watson will spot all the wrong things and completely ignore the things that Holmes wants to know.

#Letters from Watson #Sherlock Holmes #The Solitary Cyclist #long post

[pinksilvace]

Fern guides their mutuals and followers through Cats 1998 as if we're all sitting on the same couch watching it and I'm shouting out stuff (2/?)

MASTERPOST

Character Wiki Pages

This time around, we're getting to some of the character songs!!! Jennyanydots and RTT ahead:

5: The Old Gumbie Cat

Okay, first off, I'm obsessed with the staging here... literally every kitten and kitten-adjacent character is paying attention (Plato and Bill Bailey are in the back upper-left of this shot) and then you've just got. Alonzo and Cassandra. Two characters that famously do not care about some other members of the cast. Why is this so funny

These faces also get me every time... the perfect image of bewilderment and regret

Anyway, this is another example of the kitten characters literally being lower than the others. Coricopat and Tantomile's ages and how they're presented tend to vary wildly from production to production (they kind of do their own thing), but aside from them, I think the only adult cats on the ground are the aforementioned Alonzo (who's there because of Munkustrap), Cassandra (who's there because of Alonzo), and Asparagus, though the camera notably never focuses on any of them. Everybody else is either standing or elevated à la Bombalurina, Demeter, Skimbleshanks, and Jellylorum.

One of my absolute favorite things about Munkustrap across productions is how he moves. He and Skimbleshanks come to mind as the cats with the most distinct affects (aside from examples like Tugger, who has clearly manufactured his mannerisms to an extent). I'm not sure what to call the aesthetic of this motion, but I'm obsessed with it.

And, gosh, Michael Gruber's voice is heavenly.

Skimble's cute little gesturing at her!!! Even when I was little, I was under the impression that these cats would get along. I don't know if it was because of the character acting, the fact they're both ginger tabbies, their similar ways of directing folks around, or what, but I've never seen a version of Skimble and Jenny that I didn't think would get along. It's no wonder they're so commonly shipped.

These are all (female) kitten characters playing the role of the mice, which brings us to one of the biggest questions anybody who gives this show too much thought will ask: what is the Jellicle Ball? Obviously, there's a number named that later on, but is it just a dance number, or is it the entire show?

I tend to see and agree with the interpretation that the Ball takes place over the course of the whole show, as Jellicle cats of every kind are invited and encouraged to attend. If not, then I think it would be a bit surprising to see so many cats with collars - and, we can infer, owners - showing up this early, even if the goal is to be there before Old Deuteronomy.

In that case, we reach the question related to this segment: what does this look like from the cats' side of things? I'd always thought of it as the classic "when there's too much [x] for words, you sing" principle of musical theater, wherein songs are used for emphasis and the things that happen during songs are either not literal or heavily exaggerated, but I know some folks also think of each number in Cats as a rehearsed piece, which is canonically the case for one of them.

Realistically - as much as any of this can be considered realistic - I imagine it as a combination of the two. Jenny and Skimble's numbers might very well be rehearsed. Tugger's probably isn't.

The fact that the mice are all portrayed by female kittens, which is a relatively specific demographic of the characters, makes me think (story-wise, not practicality-wise) they were specifically chosen for the roles of the mice.

The way Skimble copies Jenny's movements here reminds me HEAVILY of how Tugger copies Mistoffelees' movements during his number at the end of the show... alright alright I'm getting on board with this one

A few things with this bit:

1 - Pouncival is reprimanded #1

2 - I love that '98 used actors generally representative of the characters' ages. A lot of casts - post-revival US casts specifically come to mind - tend to have Jennys and Jellys that seem exponentially younger than the ones portrayed here, and with a title like "The Old Gumbie Cat," there's an expectation that Jenny, at least, should have a sense of age about her. This isn't a dig at other casts or anything - those actors still do a phenomenal job - I just really like this presentation.

3 - I've posted about this in short spurts before, but this song/poem might just be my favorite to analyze. I wrote my first-ever college essay about Jennyanydots. Part of what makes me love it so much is how much meaningful exposition it gives, but it's also one of the more prominent examples of Eliot's bigotry seeping into his poetry, and an example of how the staging of Cats actually reduces it.

I'm far from the first to point any of this out and I am far from an expert, but let's dig into some lyrics:

She is deeply concerned with the ways of the mice— Their behaviour's not good and their manners not nice; So when she has got them lined up on the matting, She teaches them music, crocheting and tatting.

To address the behavioral issues of the mice, Jenny introduces hobbies to them - namely, music, crocheting, and tatting (another sort of fiber art relating to lace creation). An argument can be made over the practical labor of crocheting and tatting, but music is often associated with leisure - time away from work, or time spent performing for the leisure of other people.

Depending on how one looks at this, this passage could point in two directions. These skills could have been used to familiarize the mice with work commonly associated with being dainty and ladylike, with the hope the mice would become much the same. They could have also been introduced as a way for the mice to perform highly detail-oriented work for somebody of higher standing: Jenny herself. Either way, this passage rings with a mildly classist tone.

As she finds that the mice will not ever keep quiet, She is sure it is due to irregular diet; And believing that nothing is done without trying, She sets right to work with her baking and frying.

This one is a bit more straightforward. The wording "irregular diet" implies, to me, that access to food (and/or "good" food) is the problem here, i.e. lack of access to food prevents the mice from holding a sense of propriety about them. While these lyrics do not make a judgement about that, they do potentially make an association between food insecurity and unruliness, which, again, rings with classism.

She thinks that the cockroaches just need employment To prevent them from idle and wanton destroyment. So she's formed, from that lot of disorderly louts, A troop of well-disciplined helpful boy-scouts, With a purpose in life and a good deed to do— And she's even created a Beetles' Tattoo.

The first two lines from this verse are extraordinarily direct; I don't think I have to explain how the idea of "going to work and getting a job will prevent unruly tendencies" is rooted in bigotry. What makes this bit even more specific is the last line about the Beetles' Tattoo. For those unfamiliar, I'm fairly certain this is the kind of tattoo this line references:

So, not only does the Jennyanydots of the poem seek out employment opportunities for the cockroaches; she does so with what can be interpreted as militaristic intent, thinking it will give them "a purpose in life."

I don't really feel like going into how all of this connects to ideas irl, but you get the gist. So, how does Cats make all of this better?

It plays everything completely straight.

No, seriously.

The troubling bits of Eliot's original poetry come through, in large part, the use of metaphor; in Cats, the cats are actually cats, the mice are actually mice, and the cockroaches are actually cockroaches. All of these characters are literally different species at different spots on the food chain, but that's not the best part.

The best part is that the mice are portrayed by the female kittens and the cockroaches are represented, principally, by the male kittens. Rather than mice or cockroaches, this performance can be used to represent how Jennyanydots corrects the behavior of unruly little girls and unruly little boys. Combined with other lines from the poems and alternate productions, such as those about her cooking for the mice, she becomes much more of a maternal figure.

What about the Beetles' tattoo?

That's the name of the tap number. That's all.

Yes, many of these implications remain in the lyrics, but it just goes to show how important careful staging is and what a difference it can make. Isn't it just so cool?

First-time viewers may be thrown off by the cuts in this number. The original VHS release couldn't handle a very long runtime, so this is the compromise :(.

I've always loved this little lean Cassandra does.

Pouncival is reprimanded #2

6: The Rum Tum Tugger

YOU NEED TO KNOW THAT THIS MAN IS JOHN PARTRIDGE. YOU NEED TO SEE HOW GREAT HE IS. I WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT HE PERFORMED IN CATS FROM 1989 TO 2005. AT AGE 18 HE EARNED THE ROLE OF ALONZO, THE DANCE CAPTAIN, IN THE ORIGINAL UK TOUR.

I've never seen another Tugger move quite like him.

I'm pretty sure Pouncival is the one doing the backflip here

AGAIN. I LOVE THAT THIS JENNY HAS SOME AGE TO HER. I LIKE THAT SHE WALKS HUNCHED. I LIKE THAT MUNKUSTRAP IS HELPING HER UP.

For fic reasons, I've previously had to keep track of Pouncival during this song, and if I have to know that he disappears between these shots, so do you.

Also, I'm not adding images for it because I'm running out, but the amount of wingmanning Plato does in this number is unreal.

This is the part where, were I actually sitting on a couch with my non-Cats mutuals watching this, I would look over at all of your faces to see your reactions to somebody treating the Rum Tum Tugger like this. Usually, nobody cares :(

^^^This is my second-favorite bit of choreography in the number. The idea of Tugger intentionally tripping up Pouncival and Tumblebrutus just to mess with them is really funny to me. He's literally playing around with the kids. Why do I never see anybody talk about this

^ This is my favorite bit of choreography in this number because nobody I show this to, whether they enjoy the experience or not, ever forgets it.

They

And the little sequence of looks they do...

Welcome to my favorite character detail in this number. "Is it-" yeah it's alonzo catsthemusical. We're talking about him again. My friends are tired of hearing me point this out every single time but I LOVEEEE that the characters rubbed the wrong way by Tugger are the older cats, who are sitting at the back of the stage, Munkustrap, who is standing in the back because Tugger is his cringe middle schooler brother, and Alonzo, who is as far away from and above the front of the stage as possible without physically falling off the set.

I love when Tugger hates him back. I love when Tugger doesn't acknowledge him whatsoever because he doesn't think about him whatsoever. Bonus points for monochromatic siblings enjoyers, since Alonzo here then gets to take on the perspective of "my bestie's cringe middle schooler brother is dating my middle schooler brother and it sucks." There's no losing here.

These two are literally me. Ignore the crotch. Sometimes I think about getting a cat and then I remember "I'll leap on your lap in the middle of your sewing" and I'm like haha yeah no... no can do sir...

THE THOUGHTFULNESS THIS SHOT GIVES TUGGER!!! I know he'd normally be going through the audience but the fact the director said "hey what if Demeter is having a Moment and this curious cat snaps her out of it" is mwah. Chef's kiss

yeah.

Literally, how did I ever watch this number without paying attention to Pouncival

I no longer have picture privileges but there's also a little detail near the end here where Tumblebrutus nudges Skimble and Asparagus to make sure they're paying attention. These two kittens <3 <3 <3

#fern muses #fern's 1998

[neverwritewhatyouknow]

Hi, so, I agree that we're unlikely to get even a token reference to Hanukkah or Magen David pendant in the movie. I assume that if they'd kept any references to Nora being Jewish in the movie, the powers-that-be would've publicized it to deflect criticism about casting a non-Jewish actress. Since that didn't happen, my guess is that Jews just Won't Exist in the RWRB movie 'verse.

But I was curious about something in one of your recent posts about how, in order for the for the film to convey Nora's Jewishness despite Rachel not being Jewish, it would have to rely on stereotypes like Hanukkah or a necklace, etc. (I don't have your post right in front of me, so my paraphrasing might be slightly off.) My question, I guess, is how that differs from the book. Admittedly, it's been a few years since I've read it, but to the best of my recollection, Nora's Jewish identity relies largely on stereotypes, such as her very stereotypical Ashkenazi appearance, a necklace at the NYE party (I think), and the Hanukkah reference. I think that's it. Which was enough for me when I read the book--just the existence of a queer Jew on the page was so validating for me as a queer Jew--but, at the same time... If the movie *were* to rely on the same token references to Nora's identity--which, as you pointed out, are kind of the very low bar/lowest common denominator cultural signs representing Jews in media--then does that really make Nora's identity in the book Great Representation? I'm not terribly invested in the entire discourse of good vs. bad representation, but I'm just curious what you think about the difference between using those specific cultural signifiers in the book vs. the film, independent of the casting of a Jewish actress. Like, if the film had cast a Jewish actress--say Kat Graham, if we're looking for a Black Jewish actress relatively close to Taylor in age--and then only had her wear a necklace and make an offhanded reference to Hanukkah, would it still seem like they were relying on stereotypes to convey her Jewishness? Is it relevant here that with the other minority characters, most viewers can readily identify that the casting is book!canon-compliant, while they probably wouldn't automatically read a Black actress as Jewish without very basic cues?

(On a different topic, I just wanted to point out that Greg Berlanti has done this before. I'm not sure how much creative control he had in RWRB production, but he directed and was deeply involved with creative decisions for Love, Simon. Not sure if you've read the book/seen the film, but in the book, Simon's friend Nick is Jewish. In the film, they cast Jorge Lendeborg Jr., a Dominican actor who isn't Jewish to the best of my knowledge. The film then very clearly erased the character's Jewishness by having him make a joke to Simon about the time they got tipsy on Manischewitz at their other friend Leah's... I think it was a Seder. Anyway, Leah is *not* Jewish in the books, which the Jewish author of the series has confirmed, and actress Katherine Langford isn't Jewish to the best of my knowledge, but what does Katherine Langford have? Whiteness and wavy brown hair, the stereotypical physical markers of Ashkenazi identity! So. Anyway. Just wanted to point out that Berlanti/his production company have done this before: taking a canonically Jewish character, casting a non-Jewish actor of color while hoping no one would notice the erasure of that character's Jewishness, and in that particular case, just... faffing Jewishness on the character who ~looked more stereotypically Jewish, even though the actress wasn't, and hoping that would appease viewers, I guess. I don't know how other viewers felt about it, but I know that it really got under my skin at the time. And it felt like a slap in the face that they just assigned Nick's Jewish identity to another character. I almost would've preferred if they hadn't bothered making the other character Jewish because it didn't actually feel like real representation to me, just a throwaway line/joke, probably to avoid criticism, or maybe to appease the Jewish author. But, hey, Berlanti got a visually diverse cast, so why should he have spent the extra time finding a Jewish Latino actor for Nick??? /sarcasm. But, yeah, it's starting to feel like a pattern in media, and it just pisses me off so much because they could be casting non-white Jews! That would be really great to remind non-Jewish viewers that not all Jews are white! But instead... this.)

Anyway, sorry this is long and rambly and kind of rant-y, but I'm glad you're talking about this. I know you get a lot of hate, so I just wanted to say that I appreciate the attention you're calling to this. I often don't feel secure enough in my own Jewishness to critique antisemitism in media, so I really respect what you're doing here.

Hey Anon!!!!

You win the award for the longest ask I’ve ever had. It’s a good award, don’t worry, I love when people have a bunch of stuff to say.

I’m gonna try and answer this in parts by paragraph, but if I skip something just lmk.

1. Totally agree. They know that people, or at the very least, one person is very vocal about it and they’ve had so many opportunities to say something and haven’t. I’ve contacted them via social media and email, they’ve been silent in all the ways. While Casey has been very vocal about literally everything else, and the director (who blocked me when I called everything out and told him that Rachel was receiving antisemitic hate) is always posting RWRB stuff. So, they’re aware and vocal, just not caring.

2. My feelings on this, is that in the book, Nora is Jewish and any description of Hanukkah and her physical characteristics are there to show that she’s Jewish, because it’s a book. We can’t see it, there has to be some sort of description. Did Casey do the bare minimum and rely on stereotypes? Yes. Not harmful ones, per say, like I have dark curly hair and would go home for Hanukkah, but it’s clear the CMQ doesn’t know a lot about Jews in general (I have another post on that and about how Nora’s book rep is fine, but when looking at it from the movie lens, is a little stereotypical and can border on offensive by giving her the rich Jew trope). BUT, that said, Nora in the book, in my opinion, is solid Jewish rep because she was Jewish on every page without it being constantly brought up. I would say that given what we normally get, Nora was pretty good rep. And given what is known of CMQ’s background and present, and the lack of Jewish education, Nora was fine. Could there have been more or better or different stuff? Absolutely. But at least Nora was a person and not a caricature, you know?

3. If the actress was Black and Jewish and they had her wearing jewelry to signify it, it would fit the character more than throwing it on a non-Jewish actress and saying “look we made a Jew.” It becomes less of a stereotype and more of just a symbol. But even if they didn’t have any of the signifiers, just having a Jew onscreen would be representation enough. Would people instantly think she was Jewish if she didn’t “look Jewish?”Probably not. But she would be, and that’s what’s important. The same way that if a character (beyond RWRB) was any other minority, they wouldn’t have to parade around with a gay flag or a trans button or a T-shirt that says they’re Indigenous. Just the existence would be enough. And if they then relied on some of those signifiers, as long as they aren’t harmful or done purposely to make a drastic big deal, it wouldn’t be forced, it would be much more natural. But just relying on stereotypes is different than a little cue in. A Jewish character played by a Jewish actor wearing a Magen David… that’s power, that’s common, if handled right, it’s basic in a usual way. Is it a little stereotypical since not all Jews wear one? Sure, but it’s not a bad symbol. A Jewish character played by a non-Jew wearing one… that’s a stereotype, that’s using our most important and well-known symbol to make a Jewish character beyond anything else. History lesson for those who don’t know: During The Holocaust, Jews had to wear yellow stars on their clothes so people could instantly recognize them as Jews. So if a Jewish character (played by a Jew) is wearing one, fine, it fits, it could clue the audience in if they would have no other way of knowing but it’s not needed because their existence is enough. If a non-Jew is wearing one, it feels like you’re saying the star that was used to mark our death is the only way we can exist as alive in your production. Tell me if that was all a rambling mess!!!!!

4. No. I did not know that. I saw that movie, but never read the book, so I had no idea that he was supposed to be Jewish. Which is basically exactly what’s about to happen to Nora. Here’s a little thing I feel like people don’t know about good ol’ Greg…

He’s not Jewish. His partner isn’t Jewish. They’re raising their kids Jewish (his kids technically are Jewish via egg donor, but the raising in faith would make them Jewish regardless, I bring this up not for the kids themselves but for the fact that Greg is kinda… taking the parts of Jewish was he wants and leaving the rest.). He says he grew up in an area that was massively Jewish and Italian and said “I’m not sure that I knew if I was one or the other until I was 9 or 10.” What the actual fuck, Greg??! What?!! No. That’s not okay. He was raised Catholic and was an alter boy. He knew as a kid that he wasn’t Jewish religiously and he the way that he twists being Italian and Jewish together is just… wrong. He treats Jewishness like a toy, like a coat to put on and take off. He said he always felt enthralled and comfortable around the Jewish faith (that it was the faith he felt the most comfortable in beyond their (Catholic) faith) and that’s why he’s raising his kids in it, but he and his husband don’t want to convert, that’s fine you don’t have to, I guess that’s up to you. We’re a great religion and community, please raise your kids Jewish, if you’re serious about that. BUT the issue comes with the fact that he wants only the good parts of being Jewish, and won’t look at the bad parts— the hate, the antisemitism, all of that. We’re a toy for him. He says that since his son “thinks he’s Jewish” that it took pressure off of him actually being Jewish. His exact words are “At some point, I’m going to have to make that transition.” Being Jewish to him is a chore, something he’s reluctant to do, but he says he has to, like a child dragging their feet to do their chores. This is different from a convert who felt such a strong pull and wanted to be a part of the community and family. What Greg is doing is not that. He’s putting on a show. He’s letting people think he’s Jewish for clout, he likes that it gives him a Hollywood edge, a diverse credit, but he can still say that he isn’t Jewish when it comes down to it. They do Shabbat and keep traditions and that’s all fine, he said he went to Israel and it was profound, okay. But notice what he still refuses to call himself, what he literally laughs off being known as… A Jew. He doesn’t want to be Jewish, he just wants to reap the benefits. He’ll talk about his Jewish identity while saying that converting is something he’s going to be forced to do. He only talks about Jewish in terms of faith, and he purposely sought out a Jewish egg donor for his children which he said was “not an easy thing to find, by the way.” to keep things kosher in the eyes of religion. I wonder if since the faith was what brought him in and he seems really set upon the fact that Jewish = religious, if he doesn’t even think about the fact that Jews are more than that. He claims as a child he didn’t know if he was Jewish or Italian, while being actively raised not-Jewish, is that a man who has a grasp on the full extent of what it means to be a Jew? He’s definitely raising his kids in the most Jewish ways he’s knows, zero issues with any of that, but the way he talks about things and the way he acts just feels so much like he’ll take the cool parts of being Jewish without the rest. It feels almost like a fetish. He’ll take the benefits of being Jewish while also actively celebrating all the Christian holidays too (in his own home, not just with family), and all the while refusing to even take the idea of conversation seriously (as he says it’s “pressure” and a “transition” and something he’ll have to do someday.) He plays the role of the “Jewish” Hollywood executive to get ahead, but when it comes to standing up for Jews in his productions, he’ll erase them because he’s scared of the backlash that comes with putting Jewish characters into stuff. He wants the happy parts of being Jewish, the place that felt comfortable for him. I’m glad he feels comfortable and welcomed into Judaism, truly, but just wanting the happy parts and not facing the reality of what it means to be Jewish feels wrong.

He’s also a hypocrite. He received some hate mail after making a show with Jewish characters, with his exact words being “I chose to make the hero family of the Jewish faith— and we chose to dramatize it in a lot of ways.” and then asked how to be an advocate. Note: he claims that he experienced “antisemitism first hand” due to this hate mail. I think he experienced people being antisemitic and Jew-hate, and likely it was thrown in his direction. But… if you’re not Jewish and you’re openly non-Jewish, your experience of first hand antisemitism is going to be way different than a Jewish person’s. It’s not going to impact you the same way, it just can’t, you don’t have the lived experienced. *cough* I’ve nearly died many times *cough* He then said all this, before doing exactly what he said he would, reverting back to what he knows… Which is not having Jewish characters and using them basically as pawns.

Greg Berlanti is not an ally to Jewish characters. It’s genuinely really sad that his kids will grow up without that Jewish rep, all because of him. So far he’s done it twice, once for a boy, once for a girl— exactly like his kids.

I didn’t know any of this about Greg until this Anon pointed stuff out. But, oh boy, this is gonna be fun. Watch out, Greggy B. I’m gonna enjoy exposing you on your hypocrisy😘

Did I answer everything, Anon? Were things clear? My phone is on 5% so I’m typing super fast. Just tell me if I didn’t.

#rwrb movie #red white and royal blue #red white royal blue movie #rwrb cast #rwrb #red white and royal blue movie #nora holleran #casey mcquiston #red white royal blue cast #rachel hilson #Jewish #greg berlanti #love simon #talking with anon

[mythicaldrawer]

Okay! I've been hearing a lot of people agreeing with the theory of the AH (Ancient Hero) being Rauru and Sonia's son/descendant. As much as how much it is a popular theory, I personally don't believe this theory. And since I haven't seen anyone else come up with a different theory of who the AH could be or disprove the current theory, so I might as well give it a try. What I'll basically be doing is giving some of my own evidence of why I believe the AH isn't a son/descendant of Rauru and Sonia while also giving you my own speculation on who/what the AH may be.

We'll start with one of the more well-known evidence, the appearance of the AH. Looking between the AH and the Zonai we know of (Rauru and Mineru), we can see the AH is more canine-like while the two Zonai have more of an appearance of what I thought was a goat or sheep at first, but when I was doing some research for this discovered that the Zonai have more of an appearance of llamas and alpacas (Would make sense for the sharp teeth the Zonai have since llamas also have sharp teeth to use for fights.) and I'm pretty sure that llamas and dogs are two different animals. Alongside that, the AH has a greener skin color compared to Rauru if you look at their models side by side. And before you say "There might be other Zonai that look like the AH!". I hardly doubt that. Sure, there MIGHT be some that look like the AH, but since we only have Mineru and Rauru to go off by until we get to see more Zonai's, I'm saying that the AH isn't a Zonai.

The next piece of evidence is actually one that we see in both TOTK and BOTW, but mostly in BOTW. What I'm talking about is the tapestry of The Calamity from 10,000 years ago, where we first see the depiction of the AH. This is the part where it feels more solid in my opinion. The reason why is because one thing that people seem to forget about the tapestry is the princess from it. So, let's say this princess is also the daughter/descendant of Rauru and Sonia, if that is the case, that would make her a relative, or even sister, to the AH. If that were the case, wouldn't they look more similar to each other? If you look back at the tapestry, it is clearly shown that she is very much human (Most likely Hylian), with a light skin color and sprouting the same golden hair that Zelda has. If the two were related somehow, wouldn't one of them be the same race as the other? (Like the princess being the race that the AH is or the AH being a Hylian like the princess.).

Sure, you can say that "The princess could have come from another kingdom to be wed to the AH" or "The AH and Princess not looking alike doesn't mean they are not related" Which could be true. But this final piece of evidence is something that I have no doubt behind, and that's the titles that the AH and Princess hold. Recall the cutscene of Impa retelling the legend of the 10,000-year-old Calamity. "...by a warrior wielding the soul of a hero, and a princess who carries the blood of the Goddess..." Notice anything? The Titles. The AH doesn't have a title of royalty. If the AH was really the son/descendant of Rauru and Sonia, it would make him either a prince or the KING or Hyrule!? And yet, there is NO title of the AH being one. either being referred to as "warrior" or "hero". Nothing about him being a "prince" or "king". And for those who are saying "Well! Impa is the one retelling the story, and her recount of the legend might not be true." Which something I would agree with you on if it wasn't for King Rhoam saying the same thing during his cutscene at the Great Plataue where he said, and I quote. "...We also learned of a princess with a sacred power and her appointed knight, chosen by the sword that seals the darkness..." He referred to the AH as a knight, nothing about him being royalty. If the AH was in fact one of royalty, then the Ancient Shiekah would have given him the title appropriate for his status, but they didn't because he was only a knight.

God! That took a while to explain! Anyway, that's the end debunking part of this post, now on to my own speculation of who/what the AH may be. I'll keep this short because this post is already getting long.

So I think the AH is in fact of the Links that we have not seen the story of (Like Hylia's chosen hero) and was part of the Barbarian tribe that was in the Faron region long ago. One, being the Barbarian Armor set having red hair on it, like the AH. And two, the Spring of Courage is found in the Faron region, with Link being associated with the Triforce of Courage. Granted, this is all speculation, but it would be REALLY COOL if this was true because it also gives us some info about the Barbarian tribe that once lived in Hyrule before vanishing.

Right! Thats the end of my whole shpeal. If you have gotten to the end of this long post, thank you for taking the time to read this and I hope you have a wonderful day/evening/night!

#tears of the kingdom #legend of zelda #loz tears of the kingdom #tears of the kingdom spoilers #totk theory #loz totk #the legend of zelda #legend of zelda theory #fan theory #theory #speculation #totk spoilers

[bengiyo]

I Told Sunset About You Rewatch Ep 2 Stray Thoughts

Continuing the rewatch for the retrospective, lets pick back up with my favorite crybaby boys. Coming back to ITSAY I'm floored again by just how fucking good the score, sound mixing, cinematography, and the editing are. This was the first Thai gay drama I watched that felt like it believed in its talent and trusted them to carry the scene. The shots are patient, and the story is so legible. It's not doing any slapstick to make sure you laugh in case you're getting bored. It makes you sit up and take notice.

They really had Bas dropping Oh-aew off at his romantic rival's house.

Once again loving the almost-Japanese approach to depth of picture with these static shots where they let the actors move about the frame. I just love seeing people act and exist relative to each other in the same space. I love having details to focus on at every level.

Teh's mom was very correct that Teh needed to not just blow off school.

Hoon may tease Teh sometimes, but he still got that boy a plane ticket. Makes me sad that Teh has so many hangups about his big brother.

Frustrates me to no end that Oh always viewed Teh impressively, and yet Teh has such an inferiority complex.

Billkin has multiple angles, and those dimples. It's not fair.

That's right, Tuty. Nothing gay better happen on your watch! Keep it up, you homophobic pup!

PP plays the shift in Oh to relax around Teh again really well this episode. He's so charming when he's not tensing. Billkin responds well by having Teh pretend he isn't a sap.

Man, this talk of boobs on the saleng is also worrisome foreshadowing.

Also, hilariously, there were so obviously on a trailer for most of that.

I just really love the shot of them running down the ramp to the pier.

Smile really was just so good as Tarn. I really liked her, and she's so lovely to watch this time too.

I feel the need to state very clearly here again that Teh did genuinely like Tarn. We know he had been flirting for two years. Even if he's brightening up and his blue is coming through loudly again because he reconnected to Oh-aew, he is still trying to be good to Tarn.

Truly the leitmotif of Skyline is unparalleled.

Oh, Teh, he doesn't even know why he's jealous of their oldest friends.

I also don't think any other show has used text chats and IG better than this show. Texting someone at the table with your friends is so real.

Teh is just so pouty with Oh. Just no effort to shield his feelings.

This boy is still being salty as shit about this at school the next day, and now is going across the damn city to sneak into their school because he doesn't feel close enough to Oh.

Absolutely incredible that he says it so plainly that he was jealous of their friends because he didn't feel like he was the BFF anymore. Teh is unreal.

Whoever was in charge of lighting for this scene where Oh and Teh talk at Oh's school? You did an incredible job. PP looks amazing.

I get so anxious every time we get to Teh trying to help Oh flirt with Bas. I think he was serious at first, but it gets complicated so quickly. Also, I remember being this age and any slight form of physical contact being so, so much.

The MoRaoYuLok chemistry workshops really paid off. They feel like dudes who've been around each other forever.

Hold fast, friends. Teh is about to do something to provoke Bas.

It's interesting that only Bas looked at Oh after Teh's admission. The rest of them focused only on Teh. Bas immediately schedules a hangout with Oh.

And now it's these two knocking knees under the table. I'm going to go insane again.

Now, PP, you did not need to drink from that coconut like that whole looking at Khunpol.

That transition from Oh's and Bas's backs to Teh's and Tarn's backs gets me every time.

PP and Khunpol have great legs.

Teh posting Tarn on IG like, "After tonight, don't leave ya girl around me. Real playa fo' real."

But on the real, we get mad about the situation in IPYTM, but Teh misuses Tarn's feelings repeatedly here and again in this show after he gets jealous of Oh.

Truly incredible performances from Billkin and Smile on this kiss. I love that they got this on one take after falling on each other the first time. Contrast that with the athleticism required for the underwater kiss later and you appreciate that Boss only asked for what was necessary from his actors.

Teh can be so mean sometimes, and often Oh has no idea why Teh is suddenly being grumpy or petty. Poor Bas can read what's happening, but also has no idea what's going on.

Excellent timing on battery death there, phone. I always love Teh doing donuts to get some power back just to angst over Oh again.

We talk about Skyline a lot, but Lost in Translation is used so well in the background of this show.

Here there go again holding the shot and letting people act again. I love how they trust Billkin to play Teh's nervousness and anticipation in extended takes. Oh-aew's return is also timed perfectly with the song.

My goodness. Oh will be begging Teh to just tell him what's bothering him for years.

They really were determined to make PP and Billkin glow this episode.

"Don't give my time to others." I'm just gonna go ahead and lay down again.

Coconut scent got this boy telling on himself. This final scene is just so much. Many of us fake wrestled as an excuse to touch.

I gotta stop for now. I can't go immediately into episode 3, because this episode always does me in. Despite both Oh and Teh making progress with their respective love interests, so much of this episode ends up being about their forward progress with each other. Both of them are checking in or checking on with the other while basically on a date, and both are thinking about the other while with Bas or Tarn. There's just so much here about their need to affirm their importance to each other after all this time.

#i told sunset about you #ITSAY meta #thai bl #bl series #Ben watches

[litchihikxriclub]

ooh i've never heard of LHC before but it looks cool, i might be getting into a new fandom bc of your writing (again haha). anyway, i've got a meta/analysis question....how would you rank the kids in terms of who has the best/worst relationships with their family?

Yayyyy, another person joining us in the LHC pit! :D

No one here has had a very good childhood. Keikou is a disaster of rampant poverty, unsafe conditions, and parents who no doubt have to spend every waking moment working just to keep their kids fed and clothed. Even the most well-intentioned families on the list would end up at least a little neglectful just because they don't have the time or means to properly care for their children.

Also, disclaimer that a lot of them don't have explicitly mentioned family situations, so a good chunk of this is reading into their behavior/lifestyle for implications of how their home life might be.

. . .

"Best" Relationship

Tamiya — All around, Tamiya has by far the best relationship with his family of all of them. He has two parents who have his best interests in mind, a younger sister who he's close to, and a relatively stable situation overall. The inherent sacrifices and problems of their environment are still present, but at least his family is trying.

Kaneda — He mentions having an older mother who he "loves down to her wrinkly little fingers". My guess is that she's his only parent, and has both given her best effort to raise him and had to work herself half to death to do it. He also has an overall good relationship, but it's nowhere near as stable as Tamiya's family situation.

Dafu — In the same chapter of Bokura, he expresses fondness for his family as well. The lack of specific mentions (and his general loneliness levels) leads me to think that his home life is somewhat neglectful, but likely not on purpose. He probably has a "normal" household that doesn't have the time to pay much attention to him.

Kanon — We know next to nothing about her backstory. I get the feeling that she's better off than the boys, but how off her behavior is seems to hint at a highly sheltered childhood. I think her relationship with her family is overall decent, but her parents are the type of paranoid that means they've isolated her more than is healthy.

Yakobu — He also gives me "childhood neglect" vibes. My headcanon is that he's from a large family that's struggling to get by, and the sheer amount of kids to manage means that Yakobu had to stand out to get any attention. His relationship with his family isn't bad, exactly, but he definitely doesn't have a stable or reassuring home life.

Dentaku — Considering his single-minded focus on mathematics and his apparent lack of social skills or ability to form emotional connections, I see yet another neglect case here. It's likely that he's been encouraged to stick to only his academic skills (at the cost of a normal childhood) as that gives him some chance of a better future.

Raizou — All we see of his family is his dad, who's... well-intentioned, probably, but far from supportive or kind. I think he's a single father who's trying his best, but is also strict, harsh, and has very firm ideas of how his son is supposed to behave. He's also clearly one for physical discipline, which means Raizou is at least used to being hit.

Zera — And here, things take a massive turn for the worse! Zera absolutely despises his family, and the level of emotional neglect and abuse he's experienced is a lot of why he's Like That. He has divorced parents, abandonment issues from his father, and routine mistreatment from his mother. Zera knows he's not wanted.

Nico — We know he has the worst financial state of the kids, and his mother literally says "giving birth to you was the biggest mistake of my life" when he was in the hospital post-eye incident. And judging from his utter lack of self-esteem, it's not hard to guess he's grown up in an environment where his existence was treated like a burden.

Jaibo — Uhhhh... yeah. We know his dad is a doctor (and that Jaibo steals drugs and money from him), and Jaibo's everything hints at extreme sexual abuse. I don't think it's a stretch to assume he's had the most horrific childhood of the kids, and I can't imagine he has anything resembling a positive relationship with his father.

"Worst" Relationship

#Litchi Hikari Club #Lychee Light Club #Zera #Tsunekawa Hiroyuki #Nico #Ishikawa Naritoshi #Ichihashi Raizou #Kaneda Riku #Dentaku #Suda Takuzou #Dafu #Tabuse Katsuya #Tamiya Hiroshi #Yakobu #Yamada Kobuhei #Jaibo #Ameya Norimizu #Miharu Kanon #Most to Least #Analysis

[sarahlizziewrites]

OC Kiss Week - Day 7 - Sloppy

#ockiss23 - Day 7 - Sloppy - part 1/2 - 1,848 words

a/n - I am clearly having way too much fun with this story, because it became a behemoth lol. So I'm splitting it into two parts to make it easier to read. Look out for part 2 coming soon.

Part 1 gets a little spicy, but part 2 will contain mature content.

This is an AU of my vampire tale, Grey-Sky Lark, in which our protagonist meets Matthew before he is turned, in 1890.

I'm not sure what brings me in here. There's no appeal to be had from ale or wine, and the beast inside me is relatively sated by my recent meal of a debt collector who was threatening a young single mother.

Not my most ethical kill - not my least, either - but she was certainly grateful.

In any case, I left Reading after that. No need to stir up the local constabulary in search of a young black-haired man who drains blood for a living. Not when I could find a different town, lie low for a few weeks, find another meal, then quietly move on again. 

Going to a public house is hardly lying low, though. But there's something about the warm and inviting interior of this place - framed by the geraniums in the window boxes, the carved hop flowers in the door - that offers me something I didn't realise I'd been craving. No, not blood. Company.

The sound of chatter from inside draws me in. I pay for a small glass of red wine and pretend to drink it, watching the room from a small dark end of the bar. Clusters of men crowd around small, lamp-lit tables, pints of ale in their hands. Someone starts up with a fiddle in the opposite corner.

Company comes, unexpectedly, in the form of a bar patron speaking to me in Scottish Gaelic.

"Tha thu à Alba." It’s no far leap to say he’s handsome. Fair hair, blue eyes, and tall, with a dimple in one cheek when he smiles. He leans in a little closer than strangers should when he speaks, his voice a mutter over the sound of the bar.

My surprise must show in my face: how does this handsome stranger speak a near-dead language? And moreover - how does he know I speak it? Memories of my time many years ago on Islay return briefly to me, the feel of salt-sea spray on a wild Atlantic breeze; the clinging smell of burning peat.

"Ciamar a tha fios agad?" I reply. How do you know?

He has a slight hint of ale on his breath, and at his neck, over a pulse point, what smells like a dab of cedarwood oil. Smiling wider as he leans in again, as though to speak, I can tell that he is a little giddy with drink. A rising flush on his cheeks stirs the interest of something dark and forbidden inside me. A temptation that I haven't let myself succumb to in a long time. A dangerous game to play with mortals. 

He places a finger against my chest, gently pressing the brooch I’ve been using as a tie pin. A silver brooch, two hearts intertwined around an amethyst.

"Do bhràiste Luckenbooth."

"It's a good luck charm," I say softly in English, subconsciously lifting my fingers to the spot where the pressure of his is now missing. I feel silly, because if the man speaks Gaelic and knows about Luckenbooth brooches, he's probably aware of what they represent. "Supposed to ward off evil spirits."

"How's that working for you?"

I huff out a laugh, and a thrill runs through me when I sense his pulse flutter close to his skin at the same time. "Worse than you can imagine."

He offers the hand that leans against the bar for me to shake. "Matthew. Linguistics. Exeter." The fingertips of the hand that isn't shaking mine come to gently touch the back of my wrist, intimate and warm. He flatters me with eye contact and his full attention, pupils large in the dim around an iris of ice-blue. "You?"

I almost forget the question. His gaze, his touch, his smell - it's like warfare, and I'm outgunned. "Oh…I - um." I’m not normally like this. "I'm not a student." 

He spares half a glance back at a table in another part of the pub. "Listen, I…" he says, leaning in even more, as though divulging a scandalous secret. "I wonder if you can help me. You see, I have a bet on with my friend." He twists again, and gives a coy little wave at a young man at the table behind him, before fixing his eyes back on my face, somehow even closer than before.

"What's the bet?"

"He bet I couldn't get you to come home with me tonight."

Air leaves my chest as he levels me with a look from under light sable lashes, filled with a thousand promises. The sounds of the bar fade away, and all I can see, hear, smell is this man - Matthew - and his cedarwood pulse. 

Here’s where I should flee. Here’s where I should turn back, abandon the folly of seeking out company for the evening. 

But then his eyes flick down to my lips, and a different kind of hunger swells within me.

“How much is the bet?” I shift forward on my stool a little, submitting to the pull of his magnetic presence, my knees falling apart just wide enough for him to notice. He does notice, gaze dipping lower before dragging it back up my body.

“Five shillings,” he finally says. “A month’s worth of drinks.”

“Awfully confident of your abilities, aren’t you?”

A salacious smile forming on his face, he takes my hand from where it rests on the bar, gently turning it over in his hands so my palm faces up. I am still wearing gloves, but the touch is shockingly intimate nonetheless. “That depends,” he says, fingers lightly tracing the centre of my palm, before trailing to the inside of my wrist, indecent on bare skin below the cuff. “On you.”

Those blue eyes meet mine again, and I’m sure as hell not hiding it in mine that he’s already won his bet. 

In this dark corner of the bar, the far-too-intimate hand touching goes unnoticed, as does the way he fucks me with his eyes. And a good thing too - if he's kidding, he's putting his neck and his reputation on the line, and if he isn't, he's risking a lot for a thin-framed stranger who will leave town in a few weeks. And he's also literally putting his neck on the line.

One way or the other, the rest of this conversation needs to happen in private.

"Where's home?" I abandon my wine and rise to stand from the stool. He actually seems a little surprised, to his credit. I stand half a head shorter than him, and I tilt my chin up to look at him, a challenge. Our bodies are much closer now, edges of suits brushing together, heat of a body just beyond.

He blushes beautifully, as though he didn't expect his little thing with the hands to work, and lifts a palm to rub against the back of his neck. "Well, I'm from Bristol originally…oh, you mean," he stutters. Outgunned, indeed. "It's not far."

It's my turn to give him a look; a 'follow me', a 'worth a try'. I collect my coat and hat, turning neatly on a heel and out of the pub.

What am I doing? This is going to be messy. In the last several hundred years, I have let myself get close to precious few humans, because of what happens when I do. Inevitably, they get hurt. Or worse.

And if none of that happens, then they find out what I am, and they leave in disgust.

Not Matthew, not yet. He follows me into the darkened street, tailing on my heels like a puppy. His change in demeanour is, quite frankly, endearing, especially when he helps me put my coat on. Ever the gentleman, even if it is just another excuse to touch me. A sturdy hand leaves an electric trail up my back, lingering a little longer than is proper at the nape of my neck, and an unwelcome feeling that is more than simple attraction floods me. This is dangerous. 

“If I may,” he asks as we walk along the cobbles. “Just asking as a scholar. Where is your accent from? I can distinguish the Scottish, of course, but, as for the rest…” He tails off.

“The rest is to be learned later.” My attempt at diffusing the question ends up being flirty - I can’t help it. I can’t help smiling at him either, God help me, when he smiles with that boyish charm. He can’t be more than twenty, and I picture him at school, not more than a few years ago, athletic and popular.

Through a gatehouse, where Matthew speaks to the doorman, all locked eyes and smiles. To a dormitory, large enough barely for two beds and a long desk.

He must see me looking at both beds. "He won't be back," he says, gesturing to the one on the left. "He just, you know. Lost a bet."

Miscellany covers the walls and the shelves: to the unknowing eye, random junk; but presumably to Matthew and his roommate, fondly stashed treasures meant to invoke memories; trophies from nights out. Beer glasses, no two the same, evidently stolen from pubs. A crumpled opera playbill pinned to the wall. A policeman’s hat, pilfered. Books on every available surface; some, well-loved, by his bedside, musty, pale and frayed with age. A framed photograph of a young man - Matthew, perhaps a few years ago, squinting and grinning into the sun - in cricket whites, gripping a trophy. The trophy in question, on a shelf above. Stuck behind the photograph, half a dozen postcard-sized watercolours, an amateur’s determined attempt to capture the delights of a summer spent punting on the Thames.

Simple pleasures. A seemingly easy life. For a moment, I envy him.

Fascinated by his ephemerae, I hardly notice him come up behind me. I do, however, feel the jolt of something twisting in my stomach when he places his hands on me again, this time under the pretence of removing my coat. The feeling continues up my limbs, and somehow into my mind, clouding judgement I had once thought so reliable. 

“I don’t mean…” he begins, eyes darting away bashfully again. I have my eyes fixed on where his neck has escaped his collar, tendons and soft skin there flexing and twitching over a dry swallow. I’m desperate to kiss it, to taste the oil that he wears there, to mark that space, to feel his flesh give way under my lips, my teeth…

No, that is too dangerous. No teeth.

He starts again, looking directly into my eyes now, focus - or courage - regained. “I don’t mean to presume, but I hope I made my intentions clear earlier that I didn’t just bring you here to win a bet…”

I cut him off by weaving one hand into the short hair at the back of his head and drawing him in for an urgent kiss. 

After all, do I have anything to lose?

When he pulls back and looks at me with pupils blown wide, pink-slick lips parted around humid breaths and a sloppy, open-mouthed smile, I realise with a sickening clarity that the answer is yes.

#grey sky lark #ockiss23

[squealing-for-harusono-sensei]

Hirano to Kagiura Ch.11 Analysis: Then vs now

The fan translation of the ch.11 title is "For a long time now." I disagree with that translation. (Note that my Japanese is very limited and this stems from google and dictionaries.) The Japanese title is "前よりずっと." If one googles the entire phrase, the translation "Far more than before" shows up, which I think fit the chapter much better.

(It's understandable why they would translate it like that, though, even if it's entirely different meanings. 前 (read as 'zen' or 'mae') means (among other things) "before." より ('yori') in this context likely means something like "since." ずっと ('zutto') is likely where the disagreement stems from, as it can both mean "continuously" or "much more," among other things. Broken down, every single word in this title have several meanings. I'm trusting the "Far more than before" translation as 1) the fact that an online dictionary even has it as a phrase indicates that it's a relatively common phrase with a specific meaning, 2) it fits the chapter really well.)

What this chapter shows us is how much Hirano has changed since the beginning of the school year, even though he hasn't changed much on the surface. Or rather, how much the reason behind his actions towards Kagiura has changed. As much as I love the entire flashback about Hirano asking Hanzawa for help, I think there is one panel in particular that justifies the entire flashback's place in the chapter.

This is why Hirano did so much for Kagiura in the beginning. Hirano doesn't want problems, so he's avoiding conflict by making things easier for Kagiura. The descriptor Hirano uses in the original Japanese is 楽 ('raku'), the meaning in this context most likely being easy/without trouble. And the scenes both before and after the flashback shows different ways that this very much isn't the case anymore.

Before the flashback, there's a scene where Hirano thinks about how staying in the same room is easier for him because it would be harder to fix any problems between them if Kagiura had another room he could run away to. But there wouldn't be any trouble if Hirano didn't pursue a continued relationship with Kagiura. Staying with him IS the troublesome path, even if Hirano doesn't think about it in that way.

After the flashback is the scene where Hirano thinks about why he does so much for Kagiura and concludes that it isn't weird at all. Which is of course frustrating as he's clearly doing way more than one would normally do for one's roommate, but I do think that he has a point in so far as it's a natural progression for Hirano specifically. Because Hirano, despite his scary looks, is naturally a caretaker (most clearly shown in the vol.2 extra 15.5 "A story about a busy-body"). He's caring and when placed in a situation where he's supposed to take care of someone and that someone very clearly appreciates it a lot, of course it would end up like this, with him doing way more than necessary. It's not to make their time as roommates go smoother, it's because Hirano genuinely likes it.

But I think the last scene of the chapter shows just how much kagihira's current relationship doesn't fit Hirano's original goal of making things as easy as possible for both of them.

At the end of the chapter, Kagiura is studying in bed even though Hirano had turned off the light for them to go to sleep. The time is 10:15 PM. Kagiura says it's only to the end of the page.

Next page showed a clock showing that it's 5 minutes past midnight. Kagiura is still studying and Hirano is still awake worrying about Kagiura.

The first time I read the chapter, I had realized that Kagiura wasn't stopping at one page, but since I hadn't noticed the time on the first clock, I hadn't noticed that it had been almost 2 hours. Which also means that that's how long Hirano had been worrying about Kagiura instead of sleeping. So the whole situation is now causing both of them to lose sleep. That's pretty far from getting through it without trouble.

#hirano taiga #hirano to kagiura #hirano to kagiura analysis #kagihira #hirakagi

[chiakinotwaifu]

Nanami avoids all people, but the first time I went through sdr2 it was her tense behavior with guys that caught my eye. When Hinata is about to talk to her, she says "oh I gotta go" and leaves. The second time, Chiaki clearly tells him that she can't answer because of the game, but he won't leave her, so she leaves again under the excuse of "it's time to go." The third time, she throws him outright.

When Hajime asks her to go investigate together, Chiaki starts crumpling and doesn't say yes. She feels wildly uncomfortable being with him. She also runs away from Soda and Nagito.

For all that, she went quietly to parties with girls. Offered to play Tsumiki. So being alone with Chiaki girls was more than okay.

Then I was born with the headcanon that Nanami feels uncomfortable around guys because of bullying in the past. As we know, the male gender prevails in gaming, girls started to penetrate the gaming industry relatively recently and, according to the laws of the genre, through tons of scathing comments and discrimination. Chiaki may have heard such stereotypes from guys as she worked her way up, which made her distrustful of them.

This is also evidenced by her resentment of Hinata when he questions whether she really played TS, to which Chiaki replies that she "isn't like other girls." Such harsh reactions may illustrate that there have been plenty of such comments in her life.

However, she has a strong competitive spirit. Especially in relation to men, again. In Island Mode, she takes almost every sentence of Hajime as a challenge and proudly declares that she "won't lose. And Chiaki is a fan of authorizing her victory from her you can hear "I won" towards Hinata, as if she has developed a habit of praising herself after a victory. She encouraged herself, encouraging herself to prove that she was worthy of the title of gamer.

Nanami calmly ignores Kazuichi's insults, which demonstrates her "armor" regarding someone else's rude outbursts. Coolly and confidently engages in an argument with Tanaka, but blows her cheeks when Soda picks up on her ignorance of the murder case. She hates to lose.

At the same time, the word "girly" has a negative connotation for Chiaki, plus she mentions girls who pretend to be gamers, which to her is disapproving.

It's interesting that she calls Sonia in the artbook "the proper lady who is in every game."

The AI background added a special mysticism and surrealism to the concept of the Chiaki, but if she had been a human with an AI character, it would have produced a wonderful image. A psychological portrait of a troubled and careless teenager who has shut himself off from everyone else, living in his own world. Nanami doesn't trust guys because of insults and attempts to devalue her love of games, from which she has learned not to respond to insults, but is able to stand up for herself. She has a maximalist dislike of all things feminine. She is slovenly, sleepy, lazy, slow, passive, skeptical. Loves funny things like a skeleton mask. Enjoys walking around the military base, looking at weapons.

#danganronpa #dangan ronpa #danganronpa 2 #super danganronpa 2 #super danganronpa 2 goodbye despair #goodbye despair #sdr2 #chiaki nanami #nanami chiaki #chiaki #ultimate gamer #shsl gamer

[denimini]

Thanks for being one of the only sane people I’ve seen discuss the leaked video. First of all it’s obviously him. No convoluted theory will convince me it’s not. Everything matches too well, and edited fake videos?? AI?? These people have clearly no idea what they’re taking about. I work in 3d animation, and it irks me when people say that videos can easily be doctored or created. No tf they cannot be 🤣 that is professional level work that requires hundreds of hours to create something so realistic! Anyway whenever videos like this come out, it’s always real. I don’t know of a single instance when a leaked video was actually fake. So anyway - video is real - but this is my take. As a long time Jikooker, I was of course pretty stunned/shocked/heartbroken but after a good night’s sleep this is what I think: that isn’t Jungkook’s girlfriend. Watch the video. I don’t think I’ve ever seen something look more unromantic. We already know that JK is a very tactile person. He hugs his friends and is comfortable with physical affection, maybe because he grew up around 6 guys who never made him feel like men cannot be platonically affectionate. In the video he isn’t digging his face into her hair, kissing her cheek, nothing like that. He’s literally grabbing her and being cutely annoying. It looks like she’s getting her stuff to leave and he doesn’t want her to go - but in a platonic way. And she looks annoyed at him too - she pushes his hands off in the video. People who say that there is a romantic connection between him and the woman means you think Jungkook is the kind of guy to force his partner into having sex with him, and do you really think he’s like that? (Again, we don’t know him, but seriously…) Anyway my conclusion is he’s grabbing her like that because they’re not anything more than friends - possibly a relative, a cousin, or something, because if they were a couple and Jungkook was acting that way, that means he’s a MAJOR asshole. And I refuse to believe that that’s the case.

Either way, I’m just curious to see Jimin’s reaction, and also to see what will happen on his birthday. I have a feeling we’ll get clarity on this situation pretty soon.

Hi 👋

I definitely agree that this video is most likely not edited or AI, and it's a real one of two people in an apartment. Despite all that I've read so far in terms of the windows of the building, the layot of the flat, and whatnot, I still think this could be JK. Of course, it is possible that it's someone else with a dog in a similar unit (maybe even the same building) , but wouldn't it be too much coincidences?

As for the natura of the video, yeah, the behavior in it isn't inherently romantic at all. The guy is hugging the girl, following her around. Maybe, as you said, he is trying to stop her flow leaving. It is also possible that she is trying to do something, and he is just clinging to her/annoying her. I don't think whoever or whatever they're doing it is fair to interpret that the guy is trying to force her physically (in general or to have sex), as you suggest. To me, it looks like they're sort of playfighting. Maybe he's tickling her or trying to touch her stomach. Technically, it could be the man trying to feel her up a bit, but it sort of doesn't look like that to me.

Whatever it is, it doesn't look like it is with harmful intention on the side of the guy, and it is obviously done between people who are physically comfortable around each other. They could be just friends or fbs. Guys tend to annoy their girlfriends like this sometimes, so that's possible. We know JK is a very tactile person, especially when he is drunk, which the guy here could be, but I don't know if he will be this touchy with a relative. It's possible, but I could not tell.

Overall, the video could be interpreted in many different ways. It's really up to the person watching it, but nothing is impossible at this point.

I do believe more clarity is on the way. Either there will be new videos leaked or a statement of some sort, even indirect. There's also JM's bday, so let's wait, observe, and see. Personally, I believe that if by any chance JK and JM are together, they will do something to dispel the doubts, even if subtle.

#jungkook #jimin #jikook #kookmin