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madwomansapologist · 5 months

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like a virgin, like a prayer | shan yu

Navigation | More Shan Yu | AO3

synopsis: It's been months since you had agreed upon being his lover, and weeks since you truly became it. Now all you can think is about how much you want Shan Yu. All the time, in every way. And so does he.

warnings: smut. consensual/non consensual voyeurim. strip tease. exhibitionism. public nudity. public/non public masturbation. loss of virginity. gentle sex. oral sex. blood. size kink. shan "i will make it fit" yu. praise kink. creampie. age gap. kidnapping. shan yu (i need to respect my wife) x reader (just fuck me already, please). yandere!shan yu. female!reader. in this house we hate the misogynist version of Shan Yu in Mulan (2020).

A bird of prey. That's what he truly is. More than a warrior, than a strategist: Shan Yu is a watcher. He analyzes, observes. And when he find a focal point, he don't let it be. Just like his falcone, it's on his nature to watch when no one knows they're being watched.

And you're the object of his desires and curiosities. You're the mistery he can't seem to unravel. Every little thing you do, from the way you look at people to the things you say when you're alone with yourself, facinastes him.

After all, that's how he meet you. Watching you when you thought you were alone. That's how he fell in love. Watching your soul echoing through the woods. Apparently what people say is true. Old habits die hard.

Shan Yu wanted to get drunk on every aspect of you. The way you walk like you don't have time to waste. How you do your hair on the mornings. Which clothes can steal your interest when you're walking on a village. How sometimes you will randomly look at this sky, breath in, and come back to your routine.

He likes to know who you're when there is no one else around. Your reaction to the book you're reading when you're alone bellow an ash tree, how silence seems to restore your energy, how you can be really mad over little, insignificant things. Shan Yu wants to see you with no filters.

It's not his fault that he wants you whole.

Even thought you're his prisoner — now you wholeheartly agreed to be his bride —, you're a free spirit. He can see that by the way nature works on you. Shan Yu can take you from others, if it was on him no one would ever deserve the privilege of your presence, but there is a limit for the things he can take from you. And he would never take swimming away from you.

After your classes for war strategic, his guards make sure that you won't be bothered by anyone feeling stupid enough to mess with what belong to Shan Yu. You can have your fun for how long you desires, the only thing he asks is for you to eat from time to time. So for a couple of hours, is just you and the freedom water gives you.

And him, of course.

Watching from afar. It's like you're a deity. Shan Yu is on his way to conquer China, but if you asked him to conquer the sea it would be yours. It already is. He will just make others surrender to you.

The thing is that now you're aware of him.

Maybe at the beginning you weren't, but now you're familiar enough with the weight of his careful gaze. You can feel it burning your skin. Instead of being the object of his gaze, you feel like the watcher. Shan Yu observes you, just as you observe him. You like to play a little game: you put yourself on his place, and imagine what he's thinking about.

When you take care of your skin and he is so quietly doing nothing on the other side of the room, you like to imagine Shan Yu is trying to learn what to do if you ever ask him to help you. When you choose new clothes and you feel his eyes lingering on you from other side of the path, you like to pretend he's picturing you on them. When you read and he's hidden into the woods, you imagine him taking notes of what book he should gift you next. And when you're on a lake, you want Shan Yu to imagine you naked again.

Just as when he first meet you.

You don't swim without your clothes anymore, and you do it to make sure that his imagination will work on your favor. You ain't sure why, but him imagining you is way more interesting than him seeing you. To picture him picturing you is your little, constant sin.

But you would prefer if he joined you.

You miss his touch. Don't matter how long it have been since you were next to him, you miss Shan Yu. You always want him close to you. And when you miss him, the memories of your first kiss comes to haunt you.

It was an trap, one that his army fell right into. Usually the Hun army travels to battle, but this time it happened inside the camp. Kids, old people, workers that have nothing to do with that war: everyone was in danger.

Shan Yu knows you can fight, you train with his army, but that doesn't mean he will let you go with him to any battle. The thing is that this time he couldn't control the situation.

You wandered towards him, a sword in your hand and courage on your chest, knowing that he was doing the same.

Shan Yu kicked a man's legs, breaking it. His sword cut his throat open, but a scream came to his ears. When he turned, Shan Yu saw your sword passing throught a open chest. With blood staining your face, you let the body fall and looked at Shan Yu. "You're hurt?"

Shan Yu marched towards you, the world burning behind him, and pulled you by your waist. He almost took you off the ground, you supported yourself on him, and brushed the blood on your face. When he kissed you, it was like there were only you two in the world.

You felt his.

And now you want to be his. In every way. You'll never think that way if Shan Yu was a man from your village. You'll never be respected if you layed with someone before wedding them, don't matter how much you love one another or how bad you need to do that. That would never, ever happen.

But he isn't a man from your village. You're not there anymore. And you don't want to wait any longer.

When the camp was set close to a region filled with thermal water, you had an idea. Ond that you were too eager to ignore. Too hungry to not consider.

The guards walk you to a certain point, warning you that when the ring beels you'll have ten minutes to get there before they went looking for you. Feeling his gaze burning your skin, you did the rest of the path.

First you took your shoes off. You touched the water, it was so warm. So perfect. You carefully held the hem of your dress, pulling it out slowly. Step by step you dive into the water. With water brushing against your collarbone, you sat facing where you knew he was.

That was your invitation for Shan Yu to join you.

So you waited.

And waited.

But nothing happened.

Frustrated, you imagine what else would made him get of his secret place and just do something already. You closed your eyes, bite your lips, and then you found a answer.

Shan Yu makes you feel shiny and new. Free, but also owned. In control, and also controled. Shan Yu makes you fell like you have nothing to hide. So you didn't.

You weren't sure if he could see your fingers from so far away, so you made sure to keep your face still. You wanted him to see every fraction of a different expression. As your fingers pressed against your clit, for a second you felt like your moans could echo throught the whole wood.

After you came, your body shaking from pleasure and adrenaline, you dive into the water. You felt suddenly so embarrassed. Embarrassed for liking it so much. Embarrassed for not being even a little bit ashamed of what you just done.

You set a trap for him. Now it's with Shan Yu.

At dinner, you finally saw him. In a tent with all his generals, even when discussing important matters you could sense his eyes lingering on your skin.

"How long will we stay here?" You took a sip from your glass. "In this village."

Shan Yu breathe in before answering you. "Three more days."

You pouted. "What a shame. I liked this place. The woods here are so calm. And so lonely."

Shan Yu suddenly stand up, not worrying about excusing himself. You said something to the generals and asked one of his adivisors to take care for the rest of the night. Shan Yu was faster than you, but you saw him heading towards your shared carriage.

"Hey," you closed and locked the door. Shan Yu stopped in the middle of the room, his hands pressing against his head. Behind him, you put your hands on Shan Yu's shoulders, massaging his skin. "You're feeling unwell?"

Shan Yu sighed. You could feel his determination melting into your touching. It was a key to make him act as you wanted. All he wants is to be loved by you, and if you show him this love... "If only knew the things you do to me."

You bit your lips, controling the smirk. "Are you mad at me, my sun?" You practically purred.

Shan Yu turned to you, his long hands holding your face. You felt so safe. So perfectly fine around him. "No, my moon," Shan Yu kissed your forehead. You almost felt guilty by teasing him so bad. "Never at you."

"Then I don't understand," you put your hands on his. "Why are acting this way? Maybe I can help you."

Shan Yu touched your forehead with his, and you closed your eyes. His breath was warm against your skin. You kissed his thumb.

"Drink with me."

You didn't knew if Shan Yu was asking or demanding. Either way, you nodded. You sat on your shared bed, and watched him serve you both from his personal wine.

"You told once me about a bad experience with a matchmaker," Shan Yu opened the bottle. He gazed over you for a second, then went back to the wine. "That made me wonder."

"About what?"

Shan Yu may be a lot of things, but he isn't a coward. He didn't fear your answer or your reaction, he wanted to hear the truth. So he asked for it. "You we're promised to someone?"

That wasn't what you were expecting to hear. "Yes," you admitted. "When I got old enough, my parents made a deal with his. We didn't got married because he was called to serve the emperor."

Shan Yu sat in front of you, handing you a glass. You took a sip of it, and hated the taste. Shan Yu like his drinks strong, but you prefer them sweet.

He caressed your feet, resting close to his thights. "Have you laid down with him?"

You tried the wine again. It was horrible still, but at least it had alcohol in it anyway. "Not with him," his fingers brushed against your legs. "Not with anyone else."

Shan Yu squeezed your skin lightly. "It's my duty to honor you, my moon." There were a different fire on his eyes. Something almost palpable. "Just as it's my duty to satisfy you."

"What you mean by that?" You knew exatcly what he meant.

"You're so young. It's normal for you to have needs. Desires," his cold fingers made to the sensitive spot behind your knees. "For you to want more from me."

"Is that why you are so nervous?" You drank the rest of the wine and put the glass on the floor. "Because you want more from me?"

Don't matter what, your words keep on surprising Shan Yu. You will never stop to amaze him. "Yes, my moon."

"If you want it so bad," you smiled. "Then take it."

Holding your legs, Shan Yu pulled you closer. He carressed your face, his fingers so cold against your skin. When he kissed you, all your worries and fears just disappeared. It was impossible to feel anything but love and lust.

His kiss moved to your chin, your cheeks, your earlobe. When you flinched, you felt his smile against your skin. Shan Yu kissed your neck, your shoulders, your hands.

Looking at you, glaring deep into your soul, Shan Yu made something burn inside you. You looked away, so he held you by your chin.

"Don't do that," Shan Yu brushed his fingers against your lips. "Let me see you."

"I don't know what to do," you revealed.

"You don't need to anything." Shan Yu carressed your face. "Come here," he tapped his thights. "Let me take care of you."

You crawled towards him, sitting on his lap. You supported yourself on your knees, your hands on his chest, not wanting to put all your weight on him.

Shan Yu grabbed your waist and pulled you down. He came back to kissing you, this time his hands wandering throught your body. One found a home on your hair, the other squeezed your waist. You put your arms around him, letting he get deeper into your mouth.

Shan Yu pulled the string of your clothes, revealing your body once again for him. His fingers brushed against your collarbones, circled your tits, held your hips. "The gods must envy your beauty," he whispered into your mouth.

He laid you down on the mattress. You felt weighless. So small in comparison to him. His hands went down your spine, nails scretching your skin lightly, and grabbed both of your legs. He opened them, and you never felt so exposed before.

One thing was to undress for him. Other was for him to undress you.

"Breath in," you did as he said. Shan Yu kneeled between your legs, and it was almost impossible to think. "Breath out," once again you behaved.

As his face got near your sex, his breath made you close your legs. He hold them, opening you for him again. He warned you with his yellow eyes.

Shan Yu licked you slowly. You trembled bellow him. His nose brushed against your lips, and you bite your fingers. He was so calm, so patient. His licked your lips, sucked your clit, used his tongue to stimulate you whole.

When you whimpered, Shan Yu got eager. He pulled you by your hips, getting you even closer, and his hands went up to your breasts. You moaned his name, and for a second he almost lost control.

He bite your inner thights, and then licked it. Your breath was already a mess. His tongue wandered through your tummy, your chest, your breasts. Shan Yu grabbed your hand, taking it off your mouth.

"I will hear you," he demanded. "Don't hide yourself."

You held him by his forearm. "I want you," you moaned. "Please."

Shan Yu could've cum just by the look on your face. "It will hurt," he said. As if you didn't knew. "You don't need to."

You put your legs around his hips, locking him with you. "Just fuck me already," you were the one demanding now.

You had seem him shirtless before. At training, after a battle when blood stained his body, when he went to sleep. But to see him whole... that made you lick your lips.

He was big. So big. You almost regret ever doing that. But his cock also made you salivate, so you pretend that you weren't scared. You wanted him inside you. You wanted Shan Yu to make you whole.

Even if it hurts.

Shan Yu slid his cock on your lips, and you felt yourself getting wetter. So warm. It twitched against you. When he started to enter you, you closed your eyes. This time Shan Yu let it pass.

It burned. Your insides ache, and it's been just the beginning. He was so thick. After a few seconds without moving, Shan Yu tried again.

This time you whimpered. "Fuck," you cried. "Wait, I..."

"As you... wish," Shan Yu moaned against your neck. You were so tight. So warm. You would be the end of him. "Stop squirming."

"I'm sorry," you cried. You tried to move away from him, but Shan Yu held you in place. "I hurted you?"

He groaned. "No, my moon," he whispered. Shan Yu strucked the skin of your hips, trying to calm you down. He could already smell the blood. "Far from it."

You held his hands, trying to not get lost on your mind. "I don't think it will fit," you whimpered. "It's too big."

You really were trying to made him go crazy, weren't you? "I will make it fit."

After a few seconds, you nodded. Slowly, Shan Yu did as he said. He made it fit. And by doing that, he reached a point that even through all that pain made you roll your eyes. You tried to forget about that burning pain and focus on his cock pressing against that sweet point.

When his fingers brushed against your clit, you held him closer. Your nails digged into his back, and your teeths into his shoulders. Shan Yu didn't care about the pain. All he did was to hold your head as he moved slowly.

"I think I..." You couldn't do anything but to feel, and you felt so much. You were drooling. "Fuck, Shan Yu..."

"You were made for me," Shan Yu whispered into your ears. "Made for me to love, for me to fuck you."

Not a word he said made to your brain. You couldn't hear him. You couldn't do anything but to feel tortured by how he kept on hitting that spot again and again. If you cry, it won't because of the pain.

When you trembled, it was like you died for a second. The pleasure hit you in waves so much stronger than you. Maybe you cried his name. Maybe you screamed it. Maybe you bit your lips until they bleed. You don't know. All you know is that it was so good.

With you shaking bellow him, Shan Yu came inside you. He groaned like an animal, and maybe at that moment he really were one.

"I think I drooled over you," you chuckled as you cleaned his shoulders with your hand.

Shan Yu held your hands and kissed them, looking deep into your eyes. "What do you need?"

"A bath," you carressed his lips.

Shan Yu watched as his cum got mistured with yours. Your used cunt glowed. Such a pretty sight.

He took you into his arms, your legs around his hips, and lift you from bed. You giggled, once again feeling so weighless around him.

"Then I shall bath you," he said softly.

And it feels like home

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#madwomansapologist #prisoner/bride au #shan yu scenario #shan yu fanfiction #shan yu fanfic #shan yu mulan #shan yu x reader #shan yu #shan yu fic #shan yu x you #shan yu x y/n #disney classics #disney villains #disney animation #disney movies #disney villain scenario #disney villain x reader #disney villain

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mar-im-o · 2 years

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The Watcher's hands weave threads of green and gold and red throughout those Grian loves.

And in those threads the Watchers tie souls. Souls bound in love. Souls bound in pain. Souls bound between one another. Some try to fight it--insisting that they are not soulmates, that their soul belongs to another, but it's a tiresome, futile effort to reject the manipulation of the soul.

Not that Grian thinks so.

He's seen how the others react as they try to reject their soulmates. Scott thinks of Pearl constantly, dotes on her well-being, obsessively calls her to him under the guise of toying with her. Martyn sobs for Cleo. BDubs panics when Impulse is too far from him.

The Watcher's threads are strong.

But not to Grian.

"We're not soulmates," he insists one evening, the harsh words riding on the breeze rushing pass their base and off into the ravine.

He's perched atop pointed dripstone, watching lazily as Scar puts the Jellie pandas to sleep. His friend looks up at Grian with a start, brow quirked in a teasing glance. "Oh?"

"Yep," Grian goes on. Clipped wings help him leap from the cake and onto the perimeter of the Jellie Sanctuary. "Big B's my soulmate now. Just so you know."

Scar snorts then turns back the Jellies, feeding one bamboo. "Well, alright then!"

Grian squints. "Seriously. I'm leaving you. Big B and I are running away together."

"Right."

"Far away," Grian says, placing emphasis on the distance as he looks to the sky, pretending not to be drinking in Scar's every reaction. "We're gonna build our own ranch in the mountains. Farm goats."

"Sounds nice."

"Without you."

"Just remember to eat," Scar says with hum, scratching beneath a Jellie's chin. "I'll try not to get us on Red!"

But the red has already infiltrated Grian's soul, shown through a burning in his cheeks. He puffs them out in frustration (a little more bird-like than he'd prefer) feathers at his back fluffing in a similar response as he jumps into the sanctuary.

It spooks the Jellies and a few grumble in response, the one nearly tipping Scar's chair backwards. Scar rights himself with a laugh, finally meeting Grian's eyes.

And he's fine. No hidden jealousy, no subtle longing. Nothing. He's...

He's fine.

Grian puffs up a bit more. "Do you not care if I leave?"

Scar finally seems to register Grian's tone and sobers. He tilts his head, full attention on Grian.

Finally.

"Do you want me to?" Scar asks, and Grian feels like he could explode.

"YES!! We're soulmates! We should be doing what the others are, shouldn't we? Being alone should sound miserable!"

Scar just offers a confused chuckle, looking around the sanctuary as if the Jellies could help him escape. "Well it doesn't sound fun but I don't own you, G. If you want to leave, you can leave!"

"But--" Grian fumbles for words, trying his best to soothe a soul that won't calm. He ends up just crossing his arms. "This isn't how the game goes. Everyone else--they want to be together, they're obsessed with each other. Why aren't we?"

"Because we're not them?" Scar guesses. He's clicked off his brakes so he can move closer to Grian, offering a hand. "Why do you want to be?"

Grian looks away from the open palm.

He doesn't know. He doesn't know why this is so important to him, why he wants to see Scar get worked up and angry and insist that they're meant to be together. He doesn't know why this has him panicking.

Everyone else--their soulmates are their everythings, but no matter what Grian does, Scar's attention can easily find something else. Does that mean he doesn't care?

"Gri?"

Grian sniffs. "You do care, right? About me? You like being soulmates?"

Scar laughs, a bit more genuine in his surprise. "Of course I do! Did you think I didn't?"

"Maybe?" Grian shrugs and, finally, places a hand in Scar's offered palm. Familiar fingers wrap around his, and he's happy to let the sensation calm him. "I just don't get why it hasn't affected us like everyone else. Guess I figured something was wrong."

"Something wrong--?" Scar shakes his head and tugs an unsuspecting Grian forward, the man squawking a bit as he falls forward and into Scar's lap. Scar immediately traps him in a hug, pressing their foreheads together.

When he speaks again it's with a fond smile and a faux British accent. "'I am in your service until you lose your first life'."

The anger disperses at the poor mockery and Grian snorts, making an attempt to shove Scar away. "That's borderline offensive!"

Scar only pulls Grian closer, a teasing glint in his eye. "'I don't want to see him go! I just can't let him go!'"

"Alright," Grian laughs, and he gives in. He melts in Scar's arms, wings a curtain of feathers separating them from the Jellies. And they're alone. And they're together. And Grian is putty in Scar's lap, sturdy arms holding him close. "What's all this then?"

"Proof," Scar says, voice normal again. "And accent practice."

Grian shakes his head. "Needs work. And proof of what?"

"That we're soulmates." Scar's hand moves from Grian's back to his chest, plucking the ethereal thread between them. "The Watchers didn't tie this, Grian. We did. Back when this all started."

"I don't--"

"If we aren't like everyone else, it's because they're all new to this! They've never been bound to someone else before. But we have." Scar's fingers roll into an open palm pressed firmly over Grian's heart. He can feel his heart race at the sensation, and Scar's follows. "We're soulmates, Grian."

And Grian collapses. Tears which threatened his eyes spill and he shifts to wrap his arms around Scar, chests pressed together so that two synced hearts might combine. He buries his face in Scar's neck and Scar holds him.

Scar holds him.

"We're soulmates," Grian whispers to the wind and the evening stars.

And a loyal partner whispers back: "We're soulmates."

#pov i can fix them i can make their relationship better #grian can also be soulmates with big b tho #poly rights #anyways #mcyt #grian #gtws #double life smp #double life #dl smp #trafficblr #scarian #desert duo #fic

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oshiawaseni · 1 year

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A post about the time Hawks made Kacchan really, really jealous.

When I watched this scene in the anime I found it amusing as hell. Kacchan’s behaviour felt kind of strange/off though, but after I saw the panelling of the scene in the manga recently, it only seems even more funny and bkdk driven. His behaviour also made more sense. I’ll breakdown the scene and go into some of Kacchan’s deeper issues after.

They meet with Hawks after he helps them bring down villains. Izuku is star struck from the get-go and nervously greets the rank #2, who likewise recognises him from the sports festival.

Hawks tells Izuku he's heard about him from Tokoyami... then backtracks and says, "No, actually... (even without that) I would have liked to have worked with you, too, but..."

However, before he can finish explaining himself... he feels a "sakki", meaning bad feeling or literally "killing intent." (But the anime didn't show this part of their interaction! or how noticing the sakki interrupted Hawks' speech. So this is another one of those little flavourful nuances anime watchers(me) missed out on)

sakki (殺気 The individual kanji are pronounced satsu and ki, respectively, but due to Japanese grammar rules, the -tsu in the former is dropped and the consonant in ki is geminated, turning it into sa- + -kki.), which is primarily used by practitioners of Ninjutsu; "Killing Intent" is the most literal translation, with "Bloodlust" as a close second. The Chinese equivalent is sha qi - x

Which is kind of funny, considering Katsuki's soon to be revealed hero name which also had “Satsu” in it. Dai Baku Sasshin Dynamight. (Great Explosion Murder God Dynamight)

Hawks turns to the source of the "sakki"... and it's Kacchan staring bloody murder at him, challenging him! After the stuff Hawks said, it feels like Kacchan is even more annoyed at Hawks for taking a special interest in Izuku, by saying he wanted to work with him (despite being so busy he left Tokoyami in the care of his sidekicks). I think in Kacchan's mind this means a scenario where Izuku would have been with Hawks at his hero nest instead of with Kacchan at Endeavour's agency... 👀 How territorial! I think Hawks also noticed something was off and taunts him, just for fun. 🤭

Also, this is only a funny coincidence, but after Hawks says something that feels like he's wanting to 'take Izuku away,' Kacchan just happens to say “About before, I got in faster than you." It could mean absolutely nothing, or it could be the slightest nuance for "I was here first. Deku's already been mine since childhood, so back off.” Like an inside joke Hori made for himself, knowing he was writing bkdk to become the main canon couple in the series.

I'm /hj ofc but… you never know! It's wild that Kacchan is even this hung up on what Hawks did in the first place, so I might be trying to make it make more sense! understandably, right?

When Hawks leaves, not only is Izuku swooning over him again... now Shouto is too! Kacchan can't stand it! I don't know about you, but if Kacchan's intense reaction is only that Hawks showed them up, it’s a severe case of the punishment not fitting the crime. Not to mention, it began when Hawks started chatting up Izuku about getting him to intern with him and got even worse because Izuku went full fanboy mode LOL

Later at the agency he’s still filled with rage from their meeting, making up an insulting nickname for Hawks that can loosely be translated as “smiling birdbrain” (Hawks wears a carefree smile on his face and Katsuki doesn’t like it. He thinks he’s being smug - which he was, but only just a little… so again… punishment ≠ crime which is why we can theorise there was something more to his jealousy.)

Lmaooo listen. Think of a really possessive boyfriend who can’t stand their lover checking out other people and commenting on how attractive they are. And you've literally got how Kacchan feels about being a hero in front of Izuku.

Kacchan's gotten jealous like this before, when Shouto declared war on Izuku at the start of BNHA. That's how he got involved with the Todoroki family drama, because his jealousy drove him to follow them sneaking off alone together. And again in the third movie, at the very end, when Kacchan's boyfriend stayed back to say goodbye to Rody, and he glared at them the whole way going up the escalator lmao

Jealous Katsuki "needs Izuku's attention on him always" Bakugou has three modes: “Why aren’t you looking only my way you shitty nerd.” “Forget this other bastard, what about me??? I’m ‘sugoi’ right?!!” and our fave (😂) “Just keep your eyes on me, shitty Deku!”

He responded with SO MUCH irritation at Hawks simply because Izuku’s fanboying over somebody that’s not him.

Poor Kacchan has to compete with all other heroes for Izuku’s affection because he’s an otaku that grew up worshipping all quirks. 😂

Meet Katsuki Bakugou: From the age of four, he was told by family, doctors, teachers, hero loving society and the next door neighbour's cat that his quirk is the embodiment of excellence. What a guy! He will go far in life so we should let him do whatever he wants, it’s fine! He can be my sidekick! In a world where a person's character and value are measured by the power and usefulness of their quirk, Katsuki was the king.

Then there’s Kacchan: Grew up alongside this shiny doe eyed shitnerd who was always watching him, walking behind him, telling him stuff like he's sugoi and his quirk is so cool and he is so cool and wouldn’t it be cool if he also got a quirk as strong as his... And years later, Kacchan is (unsurprisingly) triggered that his Deku is reacting to everyone else and their ‘inferior’ quirks in almost the exact same way that he does with him. He has the biggest LOVE (ONLY!) ME DAMNIT vibes with Izuku! good lordt

The main issue Katsuki encountered after entering U.A and the world of pro heroes, was suddenly not being the obvious choice for best anymore. His usual status of being society’s king was completely upended after his world opened up to people like Iida, Shoto, Enji and Hawks. Something that was so effortless to him before, now required a lot of hard work, if he was going to rise above even the outstanding.

And I think a big reason he feels insecure around other talented people is because a part of him will always want to stay the coolest and strongest in Izuku’s eyes! That’s why Izuku acknowledging others sets him off a little. He knows what Izuku’s like… but he still wants to be the coolest to him, unquestionably sugoi and stay Izuku’s #1.

And sometimes it’s almost like, unless Izuku is the one doing the praising and fanboying Katsuki and only Katsuki, there's just no meaning to any of it for him.

＊* .•° ✿ °•. ❀。• *₊°。 ❀°。 ೋღ

It was only ever Izuku.

Growing up, surrounded by admiration from people who never dared to stand up to Katsuki... ultimately, it was only ever Izuku who valued his own set of principles and stood up to him when he was wrong. Because Izuku... was always honest with him, about everything. He let Katsuki know when he didn't approve of his behaviour, which meant the times Izuku did praise him was something that could be trusted. It didn't feel like the empty praise from everyone around him who only saw him for his quirk. It didn't feel like a lie.

Katsuki eventually realised the reason Izuku faced him was because Izuku genuinely cares. He saw all of him and despite intimately knowing his weaknesses and flaws not once did Izuku stop believing in him... so before Katsuki knew it, Izuku became the only person whose attention and approval actually meant something to him.

Can you blame him, though? Izuku’s the one who has been faithfully at Katsuki's side his entire life, sharing his dreams, believing in the best of him, gently encouraging him to do better than his worst, teaching him kindness of the heart and heroic sacrifice and finally… what it means to love someone so fiercely, you could give your everything and call it by their name.

Katsuki’s forever hero who always comes running to save him, no matter what. His one and only constant. How could he not become completely intertwined with him and fall hopelessly in love?

#bakudeku #and the only hero he can forgive Izuku's fanboying for is All Might because Kacchan simps him too🤭🤭🤭#kana writes #jealous Kacchan #possessive kacchan #he can’t help it 😭#he’s in love with him 😭😭#Kacchan loves deku #deku loves kacchan #tsundere Kacchan #bnha meta #op

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royal-confessions · 2 months

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“The reactions to Elisabeth’s rumored boyfriend is so weird and very shallow. Just because nobody in her family has married a commoner doesn’t mean she won’t end up with one.” - Submitted by Anonymous

“The way most comments about Elisabeth’s boyfriend is about his looks. Some even go to the extent of saying it must be false because there’s no way she would fall for someone who looks like that. Whether the rumor is true or not, why does it matter what he looks like? Are y’all blind? She’s lovely and all but she’s no great beauty. And she seems like a very smart down to earth girl who knows that someone’s pedigree is not the most important thing in the world.” - Submitted by Anonymous

“Most royal watchers are shallow af. Nicholas Dodd suffered so many insults just because people don’t deem him worthy enough for Elisabeth. She’s not even that good looking herself. Would you rather she end up with an aristocrat who doesn’t have the brains and only gets by with his family history and his looks?” - Submitted by Anonymous

“Seeing people’s gross reactions to her supposedly dating a commoner, I sincerely hope Elisabeth marries one cause some people need a dose of reality.” - Submitted by Anonymous

“I wish the rumors about this Nicholas Dodd is not true cause that guy deserves better than the ridiculousness that comes with dating a future queen.” - Submitted by Anonymous

“I don’t like the press invading Elisabeth or any young royal’s privacy. Imagine being that Nicholas guy- strangers on the internet calling you ugly and making fun of your looks, “journalists” assuming you’re from a rich family when all signs point to the fact that they are very much working class, people saying she should be with someone with blue blood. People can be cruel.” - Submitted by Anonymous

“When are we gonna stop acting like Elisabeth is the fairest of the land? She’s not even mid. Why are people mad she was rumored to a guy they deem ugly?” - Submitted by Anonymous

#princess elisabeth

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mrstsung · 1 month

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Hc time!

Shang tsung hcs

This is cary hiroyuki tagawa shang tsung. Mk11 and or 95 movie

🐍💚🐍💚🐍💚🐍💚🐍💚🐍💚🐍💚🐍💚🐍

There are Things i feel shang tsung would totally do or is willing to do.,most definitely. However whether or not he acts upon said things. Is context sensitive and depends entirely upon the relationship between you n him.

*An example. Shang i hc,doesn't initiate hugs at first to strangers,he will accept them wholeheartedly if you initiate. But he wont outright hug you,if he doesn't know you. But if you're the type to hug people,he will indulge. Give him time. A least a couple of weeks to get the feel of your vibes soul .

Scenario example. You greet him for the first time. You bow,handshake,and even hug him. He won't initiate a hug. He bows first,then a handshake. As proper greeting. If you hug him he will oblige,but he won't be the first one to outright hug as a greeting. But over time,he may greet you that way.

Hugs and other close proximity forms of affection are kinda intimate. He won't say no per say. But he won't be the one to initiate them until he feels comfortable with you enough. How long is various,who knows with that man. A couple of weeks should be enough. But it could be a few days. Or a few years. Or a few seconds. Who tf knows with that man.

He is absolutely touch starved tho(you can't convince me otherwise). That's why he allows it. But he's awkward ok?*

Again shang tsung is context sensitive as a character. But that's what makes him fun af to write. Endless possibilities,but he has a formula,method to his "madness",etc.

But here is more random hcs of mine of shang tsung:

Shang tsung would totally shapeshift into other characters to try to "sway your opinion of them" to get you more interested in him,joining him,etc. Whether you actually fall for this is all depending on you.

Like i said with the initial reaction to physical affection. He won't say no. But he may be flustered a bit by it. But once the ice is broken so to speak,over a period of time. He will initiate. And oh boy,this man is grabby grabby hands.

Shang tsung loves to pepper his lover in kisses. Especially from Behind.

Shang tsung absolutely CAN'T STAND STAYING DIRTY. like kombat is kombat,blood is blood. And shit happens. And you're gonna be messy. He is no stranger to this. But staying that way? For days?! Hell no. He NEEDS to bathe at some point or another otherwise he'll be grumpy af and not happy at all. A day or two without it,fine but that's the most he will feel comfortable with. Other than that he will be a a foul mood till he showers.

Shang tsung absolutely loves spicy food,but a reasonable amount. Unlike a certain thundergod . His fave spicy meal is a pork or beef noodle soup. He tends to eat it on special occasions,like lunar year or during tournaments.

He lives on an island so most of his diet would consist of seafood,tropical fruits foreign and domestic,and light but flavorful meals. But heavier foods he tends to only eat like i said during special occasions or on occasion. His fave fruit btw is melon,pineapple,mangos and peaches. And coconut. But not just for food but for hair,body care,etc. Very versatile. So if you give him any gifts,fruit is such a simple and sweet gesture to him.

Shang tsung really likes watching you. Not in a creepy way. But in a "i admire you,like a peice of art" kinda way. Like looking at a beautiful sunset,like he genuinely loves watching you. He's a people watcher definitely. But you,he just admires. Both up close and afar.

Shang tsung if he likes you. Like Genuinely loves you,is interested in you or wants to pursue you. NOBODY,NOT EVEN THE GODS WILL STOP HIM! also a surefire way to know. Is he kinda becomes mother hen around you. He starts saying things like "take a coat dear,or you'll catch a cold" or "ugh,let me do that/get that for you. You'll hurt yourself" "ugh so helpless" then proceeds to do it anyways because he care. He may seem nagging to those that don't know. But that's because those that do (more likely raiden) will see that shit and go *poggers* . Another way you'd know is he lets you do things that require "in close proximity" like tending his hair,helping him bathe or put on his armor,making him tea and bringing it to him. Pouring his wine. He trusts you with his well being. So yeah....he likes you. He loves you. Otherwise you wouldn't even be allowed to breathe in his direction that close.

Shang has a slightly softer bed than most that he grew up with(this man is over 500yrs old. So he's old old school chinese. However i feel shang tsung even for his time was kind of a progressive man. So traditional yes but not a bigoted dick ok?). Shang tsung was spoiled by the soft and silk beds in outworld when he got to be able to sleep in them. He has to have a ton of pillows and blankets. But he still prefers a slightly firmer bed. More like a medium firmness perhaps. I see shang tsung overall loving luxurious things. Of course this was all earned from his fights from tournaments past,rewards from his service once as shao Kahn's courtly mage,and even stolen profits that kollector gave him as tribute to offer for both being a mole and to keep his head and soul in tact.

Shang tsung likes soft light ambiance while sleeping. Sometimes he'll have a soul lantern nearby. But if you dont feel comfortable with that. He'll make them something more soothing. Like butterflies or fireflies. And the sounds will be more pleasant. Or he can silence them if that's better. The ocean waves and natural nature that can be heard throughout the island is soothing enough.

I hc shang tsung just has a natural aura of both absolutely calming energy and absolutely terrifying energy. He can either make you feel in absolute danger but too scared to move. Or....he can lull you,calm you,soothe you,and put your mind at ease. If it's genuine,this works wonders if you have anxiety(like moi). If he isn't genuine,and it's a means to an end. All the more to spread his influence. However.....you're special....so it's not likely the latter unless you're an enemy. But you're his beloved...so count your blessings.

Speaking of which,if you're his beloved nobody in their right mind would harm you. Or their souls would be absolutely taken.

Also shang tsung could read me anything and I'd be happy. I feel most people agree. Also i hc he loves books and loves to read. He loves to sniff books. I know weird. But yeah. You ever smell a good book? Like an old book? Good shit right there.

Shang tsung smells like incense,old books and scrolls,and some other indescribable scent. Something that is sort of an aphrodisiac that is very enticing. What that is specifically depends entirely upon the individual. And it can change or vary depending on the person and if he wants it to be something gentle and inviting. Or something horrible and terrifying(he literally smells dangerous) or he will have a smell that will absolutely make you randy. Either way that man's natural cologne is intoxicating af. He doesn't really need any perfumes,those are for you my dear. Not him. Tho he may use them on occasion if he needs to feel...."cleaner" flesh pits,alchemy,and the trials of kombat are no joke honey.

I may write some more,maybe specific things. But for now enjoy.

🥰💚🐍

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to-be-a-dreamer · 5 months

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Okay so this post has gained a lot of traction and I've seen some questions in the tags and also a few other posts talking about the same thing so I just want to clarify what I mean when I say "Please don't reduce Lizzie's character and death to an extension of a man's" and similar things. (Just for some clarification before we start: I don't think this is some huge issue that we need to have a big fight about, but I have seen some people talking about it and I wanted to put in my two cents)

I know no one is doing this because they're misogynistic. I know there would be similar reactions if any of the men had the same arc over the season. I know people are telling the truth when they say the connections they're making between Lizzie and the male characters aren't because she's a woman. I know no one is thinking about her gender when they're saying these things and that is what bugs me, I think.

Fandom in general, but especially the MCYT fandom, has always had issues with the way we treat women. We have a tendency to reduce them to one or two characterizations (kind, mothering, vengeful, etc.) or to their relationships with men, things that aren't inherently bad things for a character to be. The issue comes from when that's the ONLY thing they ever get to be. They're not allowed to be as complex as the men. Again, I'm not at all saying that anyone is doing this on purpose, it's just a pattern that fandom culture as a whole seems to struggle with.

And when you have an issue like, that the answer isn't to ignore the gender aspect and treat all characters the same. You have to intentionally combat it. You have to take the time to deliberately give the female characters complex characterizations and interesting storylines outside of the men. It's equality vs. equity, you know?

If you've ever done research about writing POC characters, you've probably heard people say something like "Don't just write them like you would a white character because you might accidentally enforce stereotypes and biases you didn't even know existed. You have to be aware of those things so you can intentionally go against them." It's kinda similar to that in my head. You can't just say "I would do the same thing for a man" and be done with it because men and women have been treated very differently in fandom spaces and if we want to change that, we have to be intentional about how we write them.

I don't think there's anything inherently misogynistic about connecting Lizzie's death to the Canary Curse or Joel's revenge arc, but I would like her to also have her own character lore and a connection to the Watchers that isn't about a man. In a fandom space where women are constantly defined by their relationships with men and with a character who had as tragic a story as Lizzie, I would love for some of her lore to be about her and her alone. Connections to Jimmy and Joel are awesome! I love reading them! But I don't want that to be the only thing about her, even if that's what you would talk about if she were a man. She's not a man, she's a woman in a space where women are often mistreated or only seen as extensions of men. So even if you genuinely would say the same things about a man I just want you to challenge yourself to dig a little deeper with her character and find ways to give her something that is wholly and truly her own.

She had her own plans for revenge that went horribly wrong and ultimately led to her death! Even in her vengeful anger, she held a soft spot for Pearl because she remembered how she saved her in Session 1! She was forgotten and ignored by almost everyone! She tried to cheer herself up by doing something harmless and fun and that led to her being punched and then murdered for no reason! She wasn't even angry at Jimmy when he accidentally murdered her because she felt like it was her own fault! She tried so hard at everything she did and it still wasn't enough! She knew no one would come to save her from the caves! The only thing she asked of anyone was for them to come to her slumber party and still only one person showed up for her! She was forced to turn on her own husband to complete her task! She tried to make it up to him and it led to her being out of the game! No one even gave her a funeral when she was gone! She was forgotten and ignored in both life and death! There is so much more to her than being motivation for a man or breaking a man's curse, even if those are big things that happened.

Again, I'd like to make it very clear that I'm not angry about the way Lizzie has been treated, I'm mostly joking whenever I say things like in the original post. It's mostly just a feeling of "Come on I know we can do better than that!" And in the past few days I've seen a lot of people do some really amazing things with her character! So much amazing art and fanon lore! This isn't even a huge issue anymore because a lot of people have begun to explore her individual character now that the excitement about the Canary Curse has died down. This post is just an explanation for people who were asking questions or weren't sure what people meant in some posts from earlier in the week.

#i hope it's very clear that this isn't an attack against anyone it's just some observations about fandom as a whole with a focus on lizzie #i know it's truly not that deep especially for the life series #but this is a huge issue in almost every fandom and I've had thoughts like these about several different female characters #ldshadowlady #secret life spoilers #secret life #secret life smp #life series #trafficblr

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dreamerinthemoonlight · 4 months

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Klee's Day in Sumeru

Also known as the Worst Idea in the History of Teyvat

Thanks to my family for helping me with the concept and execution

CW: Fluff, Klee-typical chaos, maybe a little angst

A/N: This is just a little bit of fun while I try and recharge from my long fic. probably not my most eloquent work, but right now I just need a change in pace. This is also half HC and half fic in a weird sort of way

Characters: Klee, Albedo, Tighnari, Cyno, Alhaitham, Kaveh

Who the hell came up with this idea?! not me.. ok totally me and my family. was very interesting conversation

So... I can only see this happening if Albedo came to teach a class on alchemy and couldn't find a Klee-sitter

Someone decided that after the Good Hunter Stove Incident, Kaeya would not be the best person to Klee sit and Jean is just too busy and very boring. So to Sumeru, Klee goes

Klee is extremely excited and of course promises to be on her best behavior

But still, Albedo is taking the most explosive child known to Teyvat into a great, big forest. He had an inkling starting out, but it could prove to be a bad idea

Spoiler: Tighnari has no hair by the end of it

The trip started alright. Klee is a really good kid and very wholesome.

Both Klee and Albedo were very interested in the flora and fauna, all of which is completely foreign to both of them

Unfortunately, Klee has never seen a rishboland tiger and decides to go pet the kitty cat. After all, it looks like a big version of the cats in the Cat's Tail

When it tries to scratch her, she lets loose one of her treasures and sets a small portion of the forest on fire

Tighnari, being the wonderful forest watcher that he is, comes to the rescue

Klee then receives the worst scolding she's ever gotten before.

Tighnari tries to be gentle, because Klee is obviously just a child, but the menace just set a portion of a rain forest on fire (a part of Tighnari is secretly impressed)

He offers to baby sit because he takes one look at Albedo and his frazzled look and decides that there is no way Albedo is up to handling an explosive-loving child in such a green place

After a few days of instructing Klee on the dangers of the forest, he brings her to Sumeru City to meet Cyno, Nilou, and the others

Once again, Klee promises to be on her best behavior and this time she's determined to do it

Cyno, surprisingly (or unsurprisingly) adores her. She canonically plays TCG so they play several games, though he's saddened when she doesn't understand his jokes

On the fourth day of Klee's visit to Sumeru, Tighnari turns her back over to Albedo

It might have been the worst thing he could have done

While Albedo does his lectures, Klee wanders off. She ends up finding a supposedly out of the way place to start tinkering with her treasures

It doesn't take long for a few inquisitive Kshahrewar researchers to find her and decide to help

Klee is super excited because most people try to curtail her explosive making. The researchers seem to be more enthusiastic than she is, so she happily follows them to a lab where they get to work

Not long after, Klee and the scholars have made the biggest jumpty dumpty the world has ever seen. It's also the most unstable jumpty dumpty the world has ever seen

While the researchers are recording their work (as researchers do) and Klee is smiling so gleefully, it goes boom, destroying a several rooms in the Kshahrewar Darshan.

Thankfully, due to some magical shielding one of the smarter scholars set up (shielding made in case of more explosive experiments and research topics) and a clearing of near by rooms, no one was seriously injured

Alhaitham and Kaveh are the first on the scene--Alhaitham thanks to quick reaction time and Kaveh because he was heading in that direction to start with.

Alhaitham, one of the most calm and collected people in the Akademiya, lets loose a string of blistering expletives, before going on a lecture. Every now and then Kaveh nods his agreement.

He stops when he hears Klee crying and realizes that there's a kid in the corner.

Even the serious and logical Alhaitham softens. (such is the power of Klee) He goes over and awkwardly wipes away the dust from her face.

"What happened?" he asks her, trying to tone down his voice.

A situation so far out of his expectations has him on his metaphorical heels. After all, what the hell is a scarlet clad kid doing in a Kshahrewar lab and what the hell is exploding.

Klee explains, through hiccups, that Albedo was doing something and she was bored and that the researchers were helping her build a new and improved jumpty dumpty recipe.

At this point, Cyno and Albedo had reached the origin point of the explosion.

Cyno starts interrogating the researchers while Albedo checks Klee over for injuries.

When Albedo is sure she's alright, he pulls her in for a hug.

"You have to be careful, Klee. You could hurt someone."

"The nice people said it was OK. That I could build the biggest treasure ever."

Albedo just sighs and looks over at the cowering researchers. "You shouldn't talk to strangers, Klee."

"But everyone in Mondstadt is so nice."

Archons save me. She's just too innocent.

Soon, Cyno comes over to the two visitors.

"I'm sorry for the trouble," Albedo says before the Mahamatra can speak. "Klee loves making treasures, though she almost never sets them off inside."

"The researchers are taking full responsibility. They said they approached Klee while she was tinkering with something and asked her if she wanted help building something bigger. I, personally, am not going to blame her for the recklessness of a few researchers."

"Thank you so much."

"If you'd like someone to watch over her, I can do so. I don't mind taking time off if it prevents the demolition of buildings and the destruction of more forest land."

"Please. I still have several more days of lectures and I don't have the time to watch her."

"Then I'll speak to Lesser Lord Kusanali. Perhaps the Lesser Lord would like to meet such an interesting young lady. Would you like to meet the Dendro Archon, Klee?"

"Dendro Archon? Like Lord Barbatos?"

"Mhmm."

"Please, Big Brother Cyno!"

The last few days go without a hitch, with Klee spending most of her time learning Sumeru children's games from Cyno and Nahida.

Eventually, however, it is time to return home, where the dreaded solitary confinement awaits a wayward, wholesome pyromaniac.

#So so fun #Klee is an adorable chaos gremlin #Sumeru would NOT survive prolonged exposure to Klee #Then again Mondstadt barely survives #The good hunter stove certainly doesn't #Klee #Cyno #Tighnari #Albedo #Alhaitham #Kaveh #genshin fic #klee-centric #genshin impact #genshin #teyvat talk

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skotiwolves · 3 days

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I get the idea of everyone wanting an emotional reaction last week with omega being taken back to Tantiss, and while I also wished there was one, it doesn’t really make sense in my mind

They’ve already been through Omega being taken. While I don’t believe Hunter and Wrecker are completely desensitized to her now being taken there for a second time, I think there’s just an understanding to get to work. To put their anger, their frustrations, to getting her back, not to sit around and fight about it with Crosshair

Besides, that already happened in “The Return” when Cross and Hunter had their fight

“You let Omega be taken to Tantiss” and most of Crosshair’s point in that conversation, while directed at Hunter, is now all true for him, as well. To rehash that again isn’t necessary writing-wise. Both Hunter and Cross have grown since that point and Hunter finally trusts Crosshair now. To shove each other around and get in another pointless argument is counterproductive plot-wise, character-wise, and as watchers of the show

Also pretty sure that Crosshair gave them the run-down of why it happened. Im sure he mentioned that he didn’t want her to do it, but that she insisted. All of them know Omega, her choice to go and the guilt she carries is not a surprise to any one of them

And we don’t see them not react. Wrecker reacts as accurately as he can, as he was just knocked unconscious from the Marauder blast and was probably awake for 5 minutes when he heard the news

Hunter, on the other hand, seems to hash it out in the Juggernaut scenes, especially when the stormtrooper flew over the side and Hunter slammed him into the wall. How aggressively he drives, almost carelessly, to get rampart off-world so that they can get coordinates. He’s their best bet (as far as we know now), and Hunter is going to put that desperation and determination to work to get his little girl back

It is entirely possible for something to happen off screen or for it to be an understood for the viewers. It’s also entirely possible for characters to talk off screen *gasp*. We don’t have to see every little interaction or emotion—that would take away the fun.

#I’m NOT an expert #im jusf spewing my two insignificant and probably incoherent cents at 1am #I’ve just seen a lot of people up in arms about this stuff specifically #sometimes things happen off screen !!#sometimes things are done the way they’re done bc the writers expect the watchers to understand what they’re getting at !!#(which feels like a little too much hope for some media consumers nowadays #but I digress)#we’re not going to see EVERYTHING #I get that it felt like a big scene. and it was! but we’ve already been through this #they don’t have time to mope around. they don’t. and they know that. so they got to work #they got to work because they KNOW omega needs them #and they’re in a MUCH different position now than they were when she was first captured #tbb #the bad batch

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bunbeeplays · 1 month

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The Lemon Legacy: Generation 1, Chapter 50 - Telling HR (The H Stands for Hilary)

Oh. Word spreads fast, I guess. They should probably tell Xander's family before they hear it from someone else.

You know these two love their shower woohoo!

Well, apparently Ophelia takes her phone into the shower with her, because Becca calls her with a very urgent question. Of course she tells her to say yes!

Talk about multitasking!

Newly discovered neat freak Xander helps Ophelia out with laundry.

Xander: Why do you have your initials on all your clothes labels? What are you, ten? Ophelia: I used to do my laundry at a laundromat and I didn't want to accidentally take someone else's panties home. Sue me!

Ophelia: Now that things are official, we should probably tell Hilary and Hector, right?

Xander: Definitely.

Ophelia: It's going to be weird to look my boss in the eye and tell her I'm dating her brother.

Hilary is managing the restaurant while their parents are away but she can make time for her baby brother.

Hilary: Alexander, what a surprise! You don’t have a shift today. And Ophelia, hello.

Xander: Hey, Hil. Can we talk?

Hilary: Sure. Is it work-related?

Xander: Sort of.

Ophelia can’t help but feel awkward. This is not only her boss, but her boyfriend’s sister. She doesn’t know how to say it.

Ophelia: Xander and I have started seeing each other. Romantically. Like, as a couple. That date.

Xander: Smooth, babe.

Hilary takes a second and nods.

Hilary: I see. Thank you for letting me know. Obviously Hector and I don’t discourage workplace relationships, as it’d be a bit hypocritical. I trust you both to keep things professional.

Ophelia: Of course. Thank you.

Hilary: Okay, that was my reaction as your boss. Now, Xander, as your sister, let me just say I’m thrilled for you two. I’m happy you found someone good for you. Come here.

It’s kind of weird getting a hug from your boss, but Hilary actually gives great hugs.

Xander: You don’t seem that surprised.

Hilary: That’s because I’m not, Alexander, I was just trying to be polite.

Xander: So you knew?

Hilary: I figured you were seeing someone, since our parents say you’ve been spending the night elsewhere half the time.

Ophelia: Oh. But you didn’t know it was me?

Hilary: Not until I was helping Mom with housework the other day. I was doing Xander’s laundry and found a thong with the initials OL on the tag mixed in. Doesn’t take a detective to crack that case.

Ophelia: Oh my Watcher.

Hilary: Don’t be embarrassed, dear. I was young and in love once too. But now that it’s out in the open…

She turns to her brother.

Hilary: Alexander Amir, stealing a woman’s underwear? You were raised better than that!

Xander: I didn’t! I must have grabbed it by accident!

Hilary: I'll choose to believe that. Oh, Ophelia, we were going to go to the Spice Festival this Friday with Hector and the kids. Would you like to join us?

Ophelia: That sounds fun but I don't want to intrude on family time.

Hilary: Oh, nonsense. We'd love to have you.

Ophelia: Thank you, I'd love to go!

Xander: I know you met the kids already but I can't wait to reintroduce you as my girlfriend. Jace has been asking me since he was a toddler why I'm single. According to him grown-ups are all supposed to be married.

I think Hilary ships it.

Hilary has to go tell the chef to actually cook and not just stand outside on the sidewalk, so she leaves the lovebirds alone.

Xander: Well, that went better than I thought.

Ophelia: Yeah, we really lucked out.

Xander: Looks like the hard part's over.

Ophelia: Yep. So now that we don't have to stress… Haha, you got in trouble, Alexander Amir!

Xander laughs as she blows a raspberry at him.

Xander: I don't want to hear it, Ophelia Marie! You probably snuck that thong into my stuff!

Ophelia: When do you think I can meet your parents?

Xander: I called them this morning and told them because I didn't want to wait, but we can probably have dinner with them the day after they get home. They're going to love you, I just know it.

#The Sims #The Sims 4 #The Sims 4 Legacy #The Lemon Legacy #TS4 #The Sims 4 gameplay #sims 4 #generation 1 #ophelia #xander #hilary #miko #technically lol

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coraniaid · 8 months

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Most of the notes I made for myself while watching Passion were complaints or criticisms, but I do think it’s worth saying up front that I honestly love this episode. For all its flaws I completely agree with the popular critical consensus on this one: I think it’s a genuinely great episode of television. One of the best parts of the high school seasons and quite possibly the highest peak the show has managed to hit so far.

In a lot of ways it picks up where Innocence left off. Both episodes lean heavily into the metaphorical reading of the newly soulless Angel as an older boyfriend who turned out to be a creep after Buffy slept with him (“Don’t tell me,” says Joyce early on. “He's not the same guy you fell for.”). Both episodes work very hard to show us that Angel is not redeemable – first with the Judge last season declaring him “clean” of humanity, now with Angel killing Jenny. But Passion hits a little harder, I think, because there’s no counterpart to that rocket launcher scene. The good guys don’t get to enjoy even a partial victory here.

Other thoughts:

I think this is a surprisingly good episode for Joyce, in a way we don’t typically really get until Season 3. It hits the right balance between showing that Buffy and her mother struggle to communicate but that this doesn’t mean they don’t bother deeply care about each other. Buffy’s concern for her mother is paramount throughout the first half of the episode (and Giles’ insistence that she can’t tell her mother about being a Slayer is more than slightly hypocritical, given that we’ve already been told that his parents always knew about him being a Watcher).

Of course Joyce herself isn’t perfect – she doesn’t know the whole story, and yes Angel only tells her that he slept with Buffy because he knows Buffy well enough to anticipate Joyce’s reaction – but however bad The Talk goes it doesn’t feel like this really had as much of an impact as Angel would have been hoping for. It doesn’t seem to have really damaged their relationship. I believe Joyce when she says she loves Buffy “more than anything in the world” even if (she thinks) Buffy’s trying to shut her out. And I think this particular conversation, and the way Buffy can only say “you’re not” when her mother suggests she’s “grossing her out” is the sort of thing Season 5 is calling back to when, three years from now, Buffy will tell Giles that “my mom is gone … and I loved her more than anything … and I don’t know if she knew.”

(I think the shot of Joyce hugging Willow when they get the call from Giles is a nice touch too. That whole scene from Angel’s perspective is so good, isn’t it? The whole framing device with his voiceover too. It should probably be kind of cheesy, but it’s not. Maybe it helps that I just think Angel is a really fun villain.)

Speaking of that scene: everything between Willow and Jenny is so sad knowing what’s coming up later. I remember being slightly surprised, back in Season 1, that Willow didn’t seem to immediately warm to Jenny despite their mutual interest in computers (“how come she’s in the club?” she protested in Prophecy Girl). But I think the show has done just enough by the halfway point of this episode to make it seem credible that of all the Scoobies Willow in particular would be hardest hit by her death. (The juxtaposition of Willow being excited and eager to take over Jenny’s teaching responsibilities at the start of the episode and then how somber she looks when she is taking over for her at the end is particularly good.)

It rankles slightly, in the way I’ve complained about before, that the script still reduces Jenny to “Giles’ girlfriend” at times and that one of the reactions to her death – by somebody who knew Jenny! – is “poor Giles”. Nobody even thinks to suggest that Angel might have killed Jenny for some reason other than hurting her boyfriend. Equally Giles seems unnecessarily dismissive of Buffy’s concern about the fact that Angel has been sneaking into her room at night at the start of the episode. But the scene with Jenny’s boyfriend attacking Angel in the factory (after the rather complacent advice of “you mustn’t let Angel get to you. No matter how provocative his behavior may become”) and then Buffy coming to save him, giving up the chance to kill Angel herself to pull him out of the fire, is so good I’m almost persuaded to overlook it.

And the mere fact of Jenny Calendar’s death itself – despite the weird retcon about her past and the fact the show insists she betrayed the Scooby Gang while showing us she didn’t, despite the fact they bury her under a name she never used in the show, despite the fact that after this season ends Jenny’s name will only be spoken on screen twice, despite the fact it establishes the precedent that will later be used for any number of increasingly questionable ‘shocking’ deaths in the Buffyverse – despite everything, it’s still utterly heartbreaking.

Jenny isn’t the first recurring character the show’s killed off, but she’s the first recurring character of any significance (with apologies to Jesse and Principal Flutie). Or, I suppose, technically she’s just the first recurring character of any significance who dies and doesn’t get better. The first recurring character who won’t be coming back. The first recurring character that Buffy and her friends show any sign of missing. And the first recurring character that the audience will care about losing.

I just think this episode could have been even better if the writers themselves cared about Jenny Calendar at all.

#btvs #buffy rewatch 2023

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blackjackkent · 3 months

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OK, loading up the map in preparation to go hunt down Gortash, and I notice something veeeeeeeery interesting.

Wyrm's Rock waypoint no longer exists.

The quest journal also indicates that invading the Iron Throne and rescuing Ravengard et. al. was the point of no return on any possible alliance with Gortash, not that we were going to take that anyway.

So I'm going to take this to mean that probably everyone in Wyrm's Rock has been given orders to kill us on sight. We need to go there, however, because Gortash is hanging out in his office there waiting for us.

So this is a shame... for them. >:) Time to chug a hill giant potion and Get Down To Business.

Called it.

It looks like we basically have to fight every Flaming Fist between Basilisk Gate and the door of Enver's office - as well as their big metal buddies.

Combat highlights as we work through the fortress:

This is our first time trying to fight a Steel Watcher and goddamn do they have a lot of health. (206 HP on Balanced Difficulty) But they take a fist or a trident or an owlbear claw or a greatsword or a hamster to the face just as well as anybody.

We're trying out Jaheira's new build, which is super fun and allows us to summon a dryad until long rest to travel and fight with us, raise fungal zombies out of dead enemies, and turn into an owlbear and rampage with more or less the same rage mechanic that Karlach and Minsc have. Team Juggernaut now officially includes all four party members. :D

They do however also do this when they start getting low health:

This definitely complicates the fight somewhat as it means they need to be finished off at range. They also start making the most incredibly anxiety-inducing noise once this condition is activated. O.O

The bright side is the damage from the explosion also hurts the Watcher's allies; one of the Fist got completely finished off this way.

Sent Jaheira running into the backline as an owlbear and she got this incredible low growl in her voice and went "I go hunting..." I love her.

Apparently her enrage mechanic, which can make nearby creatures Frightened, is also indiscriminate and could make our team afraid as well. I don't blame them but this does mean I need to be somewhat careful with her positioning. XD

Apparently killing a Steel Watcher triggers something called "Pursuit Protocol" which means for 20 turns every Steel Watcher in the city is hostile. This seems not particularly relevant to Hector's situation but I guess might be relevant if you were doing multiplayer and had split the party.

The somewhat nice thing about this team composition is that I've managed to reach a point where almost no one is using spell slots for anything significant. This is probably somewhere near the exact opposite of an optimal party setup, but it does mean short and long rest usage is basically entirely dependent on when the team gets too battered to continue. Which takes a while. XD

These are, however, definitely not easy fights. That self-destruction protocol really is quite devastating when it goes off, particularly combined with the fact that the Steel Watchers seem to be centered around CC skills. Their fundamental strategy seems to be "trap enemy in place and then explode on them".

I completely forgot I had given Karlach, many many moons ago, the Aspect of the Honey Badger, which auto-rages her as a reaction when she's Frightened, Charmed, or Poisoned. This is the first time I've actually seen it proc and it startled me. XD

(I did have to restart this fight once because I did some poor opening strategy before I understood how the Steel Watchers worked. o.o; RIP Tragically for Team Juggernaut, who excel in close quarters, range is very important here, so I don't really get to test out Jaheira's owlbear form. Better strategy: lots of zomber summons, Minsc throwing Nyrula, Hector opening with Stagger Flurry of Blows so he can back out after doing damage, and Karlach taking potshots with a crossbow. Boo keeps getting flattened immediately so we imagine him squeaking encouragement from the sidelines)

Look at me using Strategy and entangling the door where all the Fist are trying to come out of. \o/

This is actually a really hard fight jfc. Five watchers plus adds is no joke.

But we got through in the end, with everyone alive and only one reset! I think I'm getting better at this game. :D

#bjk plays baldur's gate 3 #hector carlisle #def gonna back out and pop a long rest before going to deal with gortash though #yeeks #ugh we're probably going to have to do this AGAIN upstairs before we can get to him aren't we #shit #aight short rest then upstairs then long rest then gortash #can't afford to waste too many hill giant potions

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nevermindirah · 5 months

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dirah what are your thoughts on booker and buffy meeting. would they be friends? would they have fun death related stuff to discuss?? inquiring minds want to know!

Booker and Buffy!!!!

Ok first of all an essential fact to know about Buffy is that her formative trauma, before she became the slayer and got a whole boatload of new traumas, was that her dad left. Booker would meet her and immediately go Dad Mode Activate.

I'm picturing two different versions of the same scene, one when Buffy's 15, pre-show, when she's only just recently become the slayer, another when she's all grown up after the show is over. Booker finds himself in Southern California for some reason, one thing leads to another, here he is in an alleyway getting his ass handed to him. A tiny blonde person appears and ends the fight by causing Booker's opponent to disappear into a cloud of dust.

Booker's thinking oh huh I've heard about vampires, guess Andy wasn't making that up, maybe this is the slayer?

Buffy meanwhile is warily eyeing how the enormous gash down the side of this guy's neck seems to be healing itself up like nothing she's ever seen before. "What kind of demon are you?" is the obvious question, to Buffy at least.

Booker explains that he's just a regular human except for the immortality, she's like "weird", he's like "yeah", he asks if she's the slayer, they have a whole exposition dump banter thing to establish their respective universes' rules to each other's fandoms, it's fun and charming and made all the better by the fact that it's not written by Joss Whedon, entertaining all around! Buffy's a little put out that she's got nowhere near the world record on coming back from the dead. She died twice! That's a lot of times to come back from! Booker assures her that this is indeed an impressive number for a mortal and she's not missing out on anything fun by not having died more.

In the version with teen Buffy, Booker says, "I heard slayers were young but merde, you're way too young to be out here doing this. I feel like I should buy you an ice cream to thank you for saving me from possible double immortality."

Buffy makes some kind of joke I can't think of right now but she agrees she'd rather not have a destiny and yeah actually ice cream sounds great.

So they go get ice cream and they have a nice chat about what bullshit it is to be stuck with a supernatural gift-curse thing that turns your whole life to shit. Booker listens to her complain about how being the slayer is ruining all of her clothes and the old guy they assigned to mentor her doesn't get how much that matters to her. Her watcher doesn't get it and maybe Booker doesn't quite get it either but he cares that it matters to her so he listens and he says supportive things and when they part he gives her a nice big dadly hug and it's wonderful 😭

In the version where Buffy's a grownup, Booker offers to buy her a drink and they spend hours at whatever nearby bar commiserating about the various indignities of their respective bullshit destinies.

Buffy asks how old he is, then when her reaction to his answer is "huh you're the same age as my high school boyfriend" Booker gets to have a moment of WHAT, bc age gap discourse is silly in supernatural contexts but also she was sixteen and Booker is feeling very dad feelings about this kid who had to grow up way too fast.

He tells her about his kids and she tells him about her baby sister who's sort of her child bc some monks magic'ed her up out of Buffy's dna. As far as Buffy knows there's only ever been one slayer who gave birth and that didn't turn out super well, but now being the slayer isn't a one at a time thing, maybe being a mom is something she could do? If she wanted that? It feels like a lot to risk, and Booker tells her that parenting is so much scarier and harder than fighting bad guys but also it's the best damn thing.

They maybe play a drinking game about who's seen a weirder villain or had a more embarrassing (near-) death. Buffy's seen an impressive variety of weird demons but Booker's seen an incomparable variety of weird human nonsense and they have to stop doing the drinking game part before they both fall down.

Buffy asks Booker about historical things she always wondered if Angel and Spike were making up. Booker's first thought on Spike: "you willingly had sex with a Victorian?" Then she explains the aesthetic and the trauma bonding and he's like "yeah that tracks". Buffy teases Booker about the possibility that he might someday meet his immortal soulmate, a mystery person who might not even be born yet as they're having this conversation. "You might want to start thinking now about whether you'd be cool with that person affectionately calling you 'old man'." >:)

For those following along, this ask is a response to my tags on this post about coming back wrong except you're just fine it's everyone around you who's wrong now. Buffy didn't come back just fine exactly — Willow magic'ed her out of heaven and she was understandably depressed as shit about it — but Willow 100% "broke [herself] into shards and bloody bargains to get [Buffy] back". And this has gotten me thinking about Booker's mortal family, and especially Jean Pierre. Remember that sweet little kid who wanted his papa to take his favorite doll with him to war to keep him company? What might that little kid have done hoping it would bring his father back?

Immortality had Booker on its shitty destiny list no matter what his family did or didn't do in the hopes it would bring him back alive, but they didn't know that, and the kind of stubborn hope that borders on magic is especially strong in children. I'm imagining Jean Pierre fashioning a golem to go off to Russia and bring back his papa. Someone returns, but is it his papa, with his traumatized mind and mysteriously changed body, or is it some twisted version of his golem wearing his papa's face? And either way why can this seemingly indestructible protector do nothing to stop the cancer? Papa, why?

Well this sure took a turn. Booker and Buffy: friends! With a lot of terrible stuff in common 😭 but charming friend chats too!

#fandom friends #sebastien le livre #buffy summers #tog #btvs #mine

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bezea-time · 5 months

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Trigun

So... Hi.

This is my first ever post I make about Trigun. And it's me just generally ranting about my thoughts on all of the Trigun versions and on the fandom as a new Trigun fan that came to be one with Trigun Stampede.*some spoilers for all versions of Trigun in my ranting*

I first found anything Trigun related in August of this year when I randomly saw a Youtube short of Vash from Trigun Stampede, and I just clicked on it because I found it intriguing as the title of the short was something like "this anime has beautiful CGI" and that the comment section of that short seemed too devided between people praising the show and people writing "not CGI again, it looks awful", which is a reaction that I can understand as anime doesn't have a good track record with using the CGI style. But from the short alone, that had some scenes of the first Trigun Stampede episode, I thought it just looked fine.

And then I watched the show and I absolutetly loved it (and still do, lol). The animation is amazing, even if at first it was kinda weird before getting used to the characters' design and movements with the CGI.

When it comes to the characters, I think that Meryl and Roberto were a fun pair and a good point of view for the viewer to the weird and suspicious things going on with Vash, Vash was such a fun and sweet but also misterious and cool character and Wolfwood was amazing, especially his introduction (best one 10/10). His backstory episode had me in tears. And they even dared to make the animation on that backstory different from the rest of the show, being so beautiful and warm with baby Nico and Livio at the orphanage and then so trippy and strange when he gets experimented on... ahhh, that episode was just so goddamn good!!! (Sorry, got a little carried away....) And I love Meryl as the female protagonist and her progression throughout the episodes.

The only thing that I remember bothering me after watching it the first 2 times (I think?) was the aftermath of the reveal that Vash is a Plant on the sandsteamer, as I thought that after that the plot just speeded up too quickly and the audience (especially first time Trigun watchers like me) and the characters didn't get the proper time needed to compute and reflect on the fact that Vash is a Plant. Like ya, we got the flashback episode after the steamer one, but I feel like it would have worked better if that was shown later, because at that point I cared more about the characters of Meryl, Wolfwood and Roberto and their reaction to Vash being a Plant, and also how tf they found ship 3 and got there, than the tragic flashback between Knives and Vash.

But overall I still think that Stampede is pretty solid standing on it's own as a sci-fi space western story about 2 brothers and their complicated relationship and differing morals and goals. (I mean, it's still not finished but the point it's that I think that season 1 was pretty good despite obviously having it's flaws, and I can't wait for season 2, aaaa!!)

Plus, the CGI animation really grew on me as I watched the show. It looks amazing! Especially the fights. Best use of CGI on character design and animation in anime, imo.

Then I watched the Trigun 1998 anime adaptation. And I had so much fun. I loved the more day to day laid back adventures with the people of No Man's Land, and that then things with Vash started getting more misterious and complex. Also, I cried when Wolfwood died. (This man and his story sure knows how to make you cry... goddamnit I wanna give him a hug...)

But the problem with the 98 anime is that Knives is too much in the background for me to care that deeply about the conflict between the twins. The Gung-Ho-Guns, especially Legato, were more interesting and fleshed out antagonists than Knives, that can be described as cartoonishly evil in this version (like, it's not a bad thing, but he could have been portrayed as more sympathetic like his other versions).

Plus, the Plants part of the Trigun deal is really left out in this version. Like, the Dependent Plants don't even get personalized as they are shown and treated all the time as objects - they are never shown to unfurl. Though, I think this was because of sensoring issues from back then, but still, they could have put some body suit on them or something, idk. It's such an important part of Trigun and it was completely left out in this version. Though, they certainly didn't have a problem making Vash sometimes chase women kinda excessively. I mean ya, it was way worse in 2010 with Amelia in Badlands Rumble. But really, what was the need... though, compared to other anime it is very tame when it comes to this (and thank everything for that!), plus the headcanon that Vash just exaggerated these behaviours so he can make himself appear like any fool Human man helps with ignoring these scenes. So, ya... I still don't like it but it's not that bad as it could have been in this aspect.

But that aside, watching this anime really hit me with the nostalgia train of the 90s/early 2000s anime (yes, I was born in 2001 but reruns on TV exist, so ya... sorry if this is random but there are always some smartasses on the Internet that like doing the "how can you even know about it you weren't even born or you were just a baby when these shows came out", plus there are piracy sites to watch older shows on, lol).

So ya, I literally fell in love with Trigun 1998, and pretty fast. It really has a charm to it, not just because it has that nostalgic feeling for me, but also because Trigun 1998 (and the manga) is really quite unique with the way it does story telling, the jokes, the characters and their dynamics (at least imo) and it also felt like a breath of fresh air for me, considering that I was kinda tired of fast paced Netflix like shows and current action anime don't appeal to me that much. (Also, huh, pointing at my pretty big disappointments with MHA that made me reach the point where I actually ended up making 4 huge ass posts with my issues with the anime/manga on my other Tumblr blog. Hahaha, trust me when I say that all versions of Trigun are a gold mine of a story, despite having differences between each other and each one their own (pretty small, imo) issues. And when I say that Trigun saved me by giving me a very good mood in some of my free time, as I really reached a point where everything seemed too boring or annoying to me, until I found Trigun, lol)

And then I got to the manga... and holy shit, did it get me hooked to the point I ended up staying up until 4 a.m. for 3 days straight to finish reading all of it... and yes, from the Trigun manga's first chapter to the end of Trigun Maximum... I needed a lot of coffee to function in those mornings as I woke up 2 hours later everyday, haha, fuck sleep I need my dose of Trigun so I can know what happens next and then laugh and cry because of it!!

Okay, my hyperfixation aside, the manga is amazing and it's obviously my favourite version of Trigun, no question.

This opinion also seems to be true in most of the fandom. Which makes sense as it is the original material and the longest, and thus the most complete version of Trigun (lol).

But this is where I found something that kinda annoys me in the fandom. Like, don't get me wrong for the most part the Trigun fandom is pretty great (at least in the circles I found myself in), but there were some people that kinda really annoyed me (tho, this is more a me problem than necessarely a others problem, as I can just ignore these things and move on to my business, lol - but I'm a dumbass that sometimes complains too much, so here I am). And that is people that don't seem to shut up about how bad Trigun Stampede is because of the CGI and the fact that the story was changed and it isn't the same as Trigun 1998 or that it is not a continuation of it. And you know what, these people are valid in having these opinions, okay? I'm not here to police anyone's tastes, lol, despite writing this in this post in my blog.

But I'm also of the opinion that people that think this are being a little bit unfair to Trigun Stampede as it was obvious from the start that the show was gonna be it's own thing.

Plus, I kinda like the idea that Trigun 1998 along with the Badlands Rumble movie, Trigun Manga along with Trigun Maximum and Trigun Stampede are their own Universes parallel to each other, considering all the differences they have between each other. And also, I'm not really a fan of the opinion that some people in fandoms have that "the adaptations need to follow the source material/original perfectly". I mean, it's an adaptation, somethings are bound to be changed to fit a certain style or era. Also, I'm a fan of Doctor Who and superhero (DC and Marvel) comic books, so big changes are a part of the course in my favourite media, lol. The important thing it's keeping the core of the story and characters. Plus, certain things, like books and video games, need more changes to their stories and characters in order to be adapted to screen, so ya.

But anyway, the point that I'm trying to make is that I don't like how quick some people are/were to dismiss Trigun Stampede and how they critique it without even having watched it. Like, if some people watched it and didn't like it that is totally valid, but it really annoyed me how quick some people were to just shove it down without even giving it one chance, when I think that Stampede is one of the best things to come out in recent years.

Maybe I'm being a little biased because it was my first Trigun version. But I also think that too many people are being biased themselves based on the "It's absolute garbage because it's not like the original" mentality (and the original that they usually refer to is the Trigun 1998 anime, that is, ironically, pretty different from the actual source material too, lol. Okay, I understand that the 98 anime has the excuse of airing when the manga wasn't finished yet but still...). Also, this annoys me because it is a problem that exists with all the series and their fandoms nowadays, which is not giving the chance for a series to explore itself before they talk negativelly about it.

I mean, come on, Trigun Stampede has so much potential, let it flourish on its own without always being compared to it's predecessors.

Though, I also feel like that some part of these opinions/criticisms come from the fact that people nowadays are also kinda tired of remakes, which ya valid, but not all remakes are "cash grab garbage", and Stampede is really great and trying to do it's own thing. So, I think that it really deserves the praise and popularity it is getting.

But ya, despite these nitpicks of mine, I'm having a great and fun time with Trigun and it's fandom.

Never thought I would obsess over a character that is a Humanoid Plant Energy Reactor, lmao. Also, it really got me with all it's symbolism with flowers and religion. There is nothing more that I love than a misterious alien protagonist in a story with religious imagery and dealing with complex moral questions while also having the most bizarre and silly base premise and characters.

Also, Vash deserves all the love and hugs in the Universe!! This Plant-man gives me so many feelings. And he is so hurt. And doesn't allow himself to get too close to people, but he still helps them the best way he can, despite pretty much everyone being against him. Until, Wolfwood, Meryl and Milly come along. Aaaa!! The feels...

I love Trigun so much!!!

All versions of it.

So, anyways, thanks for reading my rant.

Love & Peace🤞🏻

#trigun #trigun stampede #trigun 1998 #trigun badlands rumble #trigun manga #trigun maximum #InaThinks

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apocalypticavolition · 8 months

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Wheel of Time Season 2 Episodes 1 - 3 Thoughts

In my reread - which I won't be doing today, or probably any day that a show episode comes out in the immediate future - this is the part where I'd have some sort of snark warning about spoilers to shoo away the viewers who might not have blocked the relevant tags for some reason. This is about the show, but I will be discussing a few things that will be spoilers to show-watchers only - and if you haven't caught up at all then obviously I'll be spoiling the show.

After seeing Apple TV's Foundation blossom into this beautiful and entertaining show that had almost nothing to do with its source material, I figured I could come to Wheel of Time's second season with an open mind. And hey, episode 1 of the show made me think that we were over the rough part. Yeah, I had to meet its plot changes in the middle, but if I was willing to do that, the show seemed to promise that I would be rewarded. After the three episodes released so far, I'm not quite sure. I want to love the show, but I'm not a show lover.

And yeah, it starts with the opening. Jordan's world is one in which evil doesn't prosper and makes no illusions about being an alternate system of morality that good guys just besmirch because they're meanie pants. Having a little girl pet a rape-and-murder machine that's purring at the prospect of human contact isn't a great start for me, and frankly there's just something about Ishamael in this scene that feels like Nandor from What We Do in the Shadows, which isn't a worthwhile comparison.

Nor does the new show intro excite me. The previous season's over-focus on the Aes Sedai felt to me like a mistake overall but the concept of the opening sequence was still strong. I wanted to see it change and evolve over the course of the eight seasons, but now we're just given a few seconds of a snake devouring itself. It's a major step backwards.

But these are quibbles. I know they're quibbles. If they were the biggest kinds of complaints I had against the show I'd move on. Things get a lot stronger from there, showing us some great TV! Let's break it down:

Moiraine and Lan: Moiraine is not taking being shielded well. This is a legit reaction. Her misery is clear and the bath scene is a great contrast. Lan's attitude isn't much better. It's well-acted, well-set, and seeing changes like Verin being folded into Vandene is good! Like I said, I get that it's TV, I get that there have to be changes, and this little change works. Heck, Bayle Domon showing up works. He's fun, Moiraine fucking him over is fun, it's good TV. It's a little frustrating that we still don't know what the poem is (I mean, I know as a reader but still), but that's all in good fun.

But I do have problems with the division forming between Lan and Moiraine. Not that it's happening at all, under the circumstances it makes perfect sense. However, the characters and narratives taking the stance of, "Moiraine is suffering trauma so she's allowed to be as cold to her best friend of twenty years as possible and he just has to take it" does not work for me at all.

Then there's the Fade sequence. In the next episode, Lan will apologize for not sensing the Shadowspawn coming, which raises the question - why didn't Moiraine sense them coming? She's shielded, not severed. Why did the first Fade go down so easily? Why is Lan so terrible at fighting Fades when he spent his whole life training to do so? At least Verin saves the day. Really, Verin is awesome in general and I have no complaints, she's everything she should be for this adaptation.

And then comes the double dose of cruelty. First we get a summary of how Lan and Moiraine met, based on the New Spring novel, but we leave out the coolest part, which frankly only does Moiraine dirty. Though, they do Lan dirty too by making the sexual assault he suffered something to laugh about as a funny cultural affectation instead of the rape that it clearly was.

And then things go downhill. Book Moiraine might have been cruel in setting up the transfer of her bond to Lan, but she didn't make it happen right away and she didn't explicitly tell Lan she never thought of him as an equal. Her behavior is abhorrent and unheroic and while Moiraine's always been on the utilitarian side of things, this is just more than I'm willing to deal with. It also only makes Alanna feel skeevier as a character, which is impressive considering all the rest of the stuff she pulls. And that's it. They're gone - and frankly, for show Moiraine all I can say is "good riddance".

Wondergirls: Egwene is overall good, Nynaeve starts well enough. I don't really like Nynaeve's getting to skip the novice phase taken away from her - I feel that Rafe's love of Egwene consistently tears down the characters around her and now that she's chiding Nynaeve that she should be happy I feel very vindicated in this belief - but I can live with it. Nynaeve choosing to suffer rather than address her block is good. The Aes Sedai politicking about how to train Nynaeve and who should be her mentor is great! Egwene's jealousy is in-character.

Nynaeve training with Alanna's Warders though, while impressive, feels like mostly an excuse to give those two a few extra lines. And Alanna feels genuinely skeevy in this incarnation; I had thought her advice to Egwene was just inappropriate metaphor until the characters clarified, and at that point I'm just wondering why Alanna is supposed to be a positive representation of polyamory if she's clearly trying to groom Egwene on the side. Like, at least Liandrin being a bad mentor and person overall is clear from her interactions with Nynaeve. Of course, much less about Liandrin is clear in general. She steals medicine as if an Aes Sedai wouldn't be able to obtain such things without question)

And then we meet Elayne. Book Elayne is a sweetheart, only stuck-up in the most basic of ways (taught to walk around with her nose in the air). Show Elayne makes several faux pas and doesn't seem to present much reason for Egwene to want to be her friend. "I haven't seen a soul", she says, surrounded by servants. She says she spent six summers in Tar Valon but her attitude screams six summers in Seandar. Sheriam at least seems like she's gonna beat some sense into her, but I shouldn't be rooting for that outcome, should I?

Meanwhile, Nynaeve follows Liandrin out of the tower and discovers her dark secret, a son dying of old age. At first my associate and I thought it was all going to be some kind of ploy to impress Nynaeve and influence her ajah choice, but it's all legit. I thought that Liandrin having a son was fine, but my friend is less convinced and there's something to be said for that. Liandrin's attitude doesn't scream, "son she's outliving", and it adds to the sense of incoherence to her character.

Elayne just barely manages to recover as a character during the drinking sequence when she chews Egwene out, which also sets her up nicely for her bullshit. Not sure what I think about the convenient drama of Nynaeve overhearing Egwene bitching about her, but at least it kind of goes places. It helps explain why Nynaeve's so vehement about the testing, anyway.

Her testing is... where things start really going downhill. The beginning is fine (though the whole "attacked by bandits" thing doesn't work for me at all for the Two Rivers - not in the last season, not in this one), and the middle is a good adaptation, but then we hit the end. The fake out's good, but then... Ugh. In the books, Nynaeve wills the portal back, but that's not what happens here. Further, Liandrin's motivations remain incoherent: if she's a Darkfriend working to bring about these peoples' downfall, Nynaeve's death (a huge loss for the Light) shouldn't be something she's this upset about. Like yeah, corrupting her would be more fun, but a win's a win. But the Shadow doesn't want wins in this episode. It wants to lose as hard as it can.

Sheriam is also a bit odd here but since she may not know Liandrin is Black I can buy her behavior as being generally shitty while covering for herself. I mean, "your grief is your own" is so unnecessarily cruel that it's clear that she's Black. That said, not sure why she's discussing arches with the girls when my impression is that the test was supposed to be something of a secret until the novice was ready to advance. Nor do I think Elayne is done any favors with her absolutely hollow condolences - Sheriam was more believable as a sympathetic ear.

Egwene confronts Liandrin, which leads us to yet another situation where somebody on the Shadow could easily eliminate one of the five ta'veren but absolutely refuses to do so because... it wouldn't be sporting? She then tries to save Nynaeve while Elayne talks her out of it, but makes absolutely no difference whatsoever (ah well, at least she isn't personally responsible for bringing Nynaeve back). Then Nynaeve... does come back. For no apparent reason. Apparently every other woman who entered this segment just killed themselves after missing the first door out. At least book Nynaeve forces the arch to reappear - show Nynaeve only forces the scenario to stop being scary and the arch shows up anyway.

Perrin: I thought that Marcus was the weakest actor last season, and while he's grown quite a good deal, it also feels like he's been given the least to work with. He's with mostly new characters bar Loial, who doesn't get the love and attention he deserves. Everyone in his sequence exists to push him along, and he doesn't have much going on just yet as he's reacting to what goes down. I do like how they're representing his power, and again combining Elyas and Hurin is the right sort of choice for TV, but I feel like Perrin was meant to be bouncing off of at least Mat at this point. His writing is very on the nose when he and the Shienarians are burying the Darkfriends, it feels very much like we're just being told what he feels instead of being shown it.

But hey, while the woman in the house horror sequence was not remotely something Perrin went through, and it was pretty changed, I honestly didn't expect it to show up at all, so I'm calling that a win for him. It's well-acted too, he doesn't have too much dialogue telling us how he feels so it works. That said, his place in the world gets a lot less certain as we go on - I assumed he was in the east like the books, but he seems to have crossed thousands of miles to go west considering what happens. Why are the Seanchan here? Why is Perrin where they are? This isn't a coincidence, it's blatantly forced.

Also sorry not sorry but the damane outfit isn't dehumanizing like it should be, it's just dumb. The damane in Perrin's arc is, as far as I'm concerned, named Little Miss Binky. Speaking of LMB, it bothers me a bit that she can sense all these channeler women when in the books the testing required the use of the a'dam. This is a random-ass village, there shouldn't be two sparkers. And Uno should not be fucking dead and no amount of Suroth's nail batons is going to make it okay for me (okay actually there is an amount but the season isn't going to run that long so same thing).

We end Perrin's arc in these three episodes with him waking up in a carriage with Ishamael, being stabbed to death as part of the Shadow's plans to bring about-- No wait, that would be competent. Instead, Ishamael is super interested in Perrin's character development (why bro?) and lets Perrin escape with Elyas while the two ditch Loial (unforgivable).

Mat and Min: Being imprisoned at this point works based on where the story ended up, but Liandrin is just kind of a cipher throughout his story. She's clearly relishing the opportunity to be evil editing him out of the letters she reads, but this is about as evil as she gets beyond the wrongful imprisonment. Why does she give him cakes in the next episode? Why is he being kept alive for months on end? There's no clear motivation for her character - if she's being a villain, she should have offed him long ago. If she's following Tower procedure in some fashion, it should be clearer.

Mat manages to make contact with Min - no one noticed his efforts, which is fine, but it stretches credulity that none of Min's captors notice that her wall is suddenly damaged after this. They're great friends and I love this for what it is, or rather what it seems to be. It really helps their relationship - though not her characterization - that he's not interested in having her read his future. Shame, considering what she sees.

After some more time, Nynaeve's apparent death prompts Liandrin to set Mat free. He almost goes to help Egwene, but then decides to ditch her because fuck Mat's character, amirite? One actor ditched us so all Mats have to be shitty now even when it's a central facet of who he should be. Then he doubles back to Min - why is he doing things in this order, this is the least logical order - but it turns out that this whole thing is staged by Liandrin and that Min is working with her. What the actual fuck?

Rand: I'm not loving how little attention he gets in the first episode, but whatever. The main problem is that his motivations are obscured to us for such a long period, and we aren't really given a clue as to how he figured out this was an option in the first place. At first I simply thought it was weird that he'd go to Cairhien when he knows he's a time bomb and that being a nurse-type made sense considering his overall sense of altruism.

Really, most of the hospital stuff works in isolation. The soldier suffering from PTSD is a nice touch and it helps build up the Rand as Aiel foreshadowing that the show hasn't had much time to get to yet. I don't like that Rand is cheating on Lan with another teacher but TV shows I guess.

Then we jump into a darker Rand. He stalks the asshole orderly and assaults him, in part with the power (though this seems to be unwilling). I thought this might be madness coming on early, but the truth isn't much better. Of course, before we find it out we get to see Rand hook up with Lanfear. Book Rand was clearly compelled and overwhelmed by a hottie being interested in him, but this atmosphere is gone here as well. Rand took one look at the slippery slope and said, "Watch how fast I can get to the bottom!"

And meanwhile, Lanfear is bizarrely self-aware! "I pretend you're Lews Therin," she all but says. "Go ahead and think of other women while you're having sex with me, your crazy and obsessive stalker!" The Forsaken are cartoonishly evil people because only someone cartoonishly evil would sign up to work under Satan. They shouldn't try to argue that they're actually good guys and they shouldn't have healthy standards in their romantic relationships!

So Rand's secret plan was to get close to Logain, which just... Why is he here? He's a war criminal who had an army of loyal fanatics! Even with the severing, he's way too much of a risk to toss amid the general populace for exactly the reason we see: a young man who can channel goes to him to learn how to carry on his traditions! Logain being Rand's teacher might be a good way of combining book characters, and he's certainly an awesome actor, but there's not enough of this stuff.

Rand learns more about the hunt being called, which is just going to raise further questions. I will note "Queen of Illian" and thus have to ask: have they relocated Berelain in this show? Have they just gender-flipped the king? These books don't need gender flips like they seem to like doing with her and Farstrider.

Then Rand and Lanfear end up at a fancy party. There's no clear explanation for how they got in, nor why the royals would be confused about Rand and Lanfear's identities. She lives at the Foregate, people! He's renting a room! The foreign prince thing doesn't work in this context! Then Rand gets an awkwardly designed infodump about the cruelty of the royalty and the reveal that the Hunt is a fake. Presumably the whole thing is supposed to be a fake that isn't happening outside of Cairhien, but that's not actually clear - and after a long sequence of Rand's arc being well-written if objectionable for his hunting down a man and beating him half (?) to death to steal is job, it's just a low note.

But hey, we get to see Logain be psycho and Lanfear be psycho, so that's pretty fun. Not really sure where Logain's gotten the impression he's the descendant of a man that is most famous for having killed his entire family, but that's crazy for you I guess. Rand also burns down the inn, an incident which everyone treats as no big deal despite the general flammability of everything in the vicinity.

Closing Thoughts: The TL;DR of all of this is, "Just as I got comfy with it, it got weird." Rand is darker than he should be at this point, Mat continues to lack the loyalty that defines him, Moiraine is awful to Lan in ways that the narrative gives no hint it disagrees with and past and future sexual assault is on the table for him, Nynaeve loses the behavior that justifies her being special and just survives by fiat, Elayne is way too awkward and rude, and the Darkfriends pass up every opportunity to eliminate or properly capture Mat, Perrin, Egwene, and Nynaeve, all of whom should be high priority targets. This season started strongly and I hope it can recover from these hiccups, but I'm worried that little details will continue to fail to add up like this.

#wheel of time #wheel of time spoilers #wot on prime #wot on prime spoilers #wot on prime s2 #moiraine damodred #lan mandragoran #egwene al'vere #nynaeve al'meara #elayne trakand #perrin aybara #loial #mat cauthon #rand al'thor

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absolutebl · 2 years

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Hi, i have been bingeing on all your and i absolutely love reading about the BL world from your perspective, I have learned quite a bit from your posts.

I just want to share some of my thoughts and pick your brain on some things I would like to understand.

Started watching BLs about a year ago and I mostly stuck to the few korean BLs that were available and also some stuff from Taiwan and the Chinese bromances. I know Thailand dominates the BL industry but when I first started watching i kinda avoided because (a) their language kind of throws me off, I don't know if this is offensive but it is something i struggled with during the first few shows and even now that I am used to it I still need time to adjust every time I start a new video. Thai is very different from korean, japanese, and chinese which I am very comfortable with.

The second reason I hesitated (this part is where the actual ask is) was their acting style. Now, I am not a professional who can give any criticism on these stuff, my opinions are based on personal taste and observations.

My main ask is that do you think acting styles change based on culture, like a lot of thai BLs tend to favor the slapstick comedy. Because of that their reactions and emotions tend to be exaggerated (I don't mean this in a negative way, just the only description I could think of.) I have seen a lot of subtle and great acting and emoting from them but kind of big way of showing emotions tend to remain.

I don't know if that made any sense, my thoughts are not translating well at all. Any way i hope you get what I am trying to get at.

Have a nice day🤗🤗

Ooo, what an interesting question and lots to unpack.

I’m not going to turn this into a proper blog post just going to ramble.

I do go into language barriers in the BL producing countries a little here. BL Breakdowns by Country

Struggling with Thai Language

I actually really do understand this. It will depend on your native language, but it will certainly influence your enjoyment. I recommend studying the language a little and learning about it from a kind of cultural mathematical perspective, it makes it a lot more fun and interesting (and you’ll get the humor).

Here’s my linguistic starter post on Thai for BL watchers.

It always helps me become sympathetic when I become intellectually curious about soemthing, anyway.

So my brain is mostly southern British English trained (not so flat as American) plus a little Spanish. But I hear Thai as very tonal and occasionally quite high and screechy and full of ticks (repeated words) because of the polite particles. It took me about a year of continued exposure to just not hear all that anymore, partly because I was training my brain to translate and understand it.

Here’s my brain’s emotional relationships...

I really struggle with Mandarin, it all sounds very much the same to me, the words seem to run together. This is how I feel about French too.

On the flip side I find Korean extremely enjoyable and sexy, I don’t understand most of it, but I like listening to it a lot. This is also how I feel about Italian.

Both German and Russian always sound angry to me.

Most of the Scandinavian languages seem just comfortable and fun and friendly (and sometimes a little silly). (I grew up around a couple of these, in part.)

Japanese when spoken by men just seems preternaturally low in the chest, and when spoken by women too cute and girly. But then sometimes I just kinda like the way it rolls off the tongue, and a lot of the repeated sayings and politeness just sound adorable to me.

Vietnamese sounds very sad to me, almsot like a dirge.

When I turn off the part of my brain, or try to, or have been living in a place where I’ve stopped hearing English on a daily basis, I think English is (most of the time) a very ugly language: chaotic and non-formulaic, sometimes a little brutal sounding. But I love its flexibility and breath of vocabulary and nuance, especially for writing. (Obvs)

All of this is because of the culture and language of my various upbringings, also music tonality. What makes your trained happy music or sad music influences what we hear as happy, sad, aggravating, calming. How we express questioning, excitement, enthusiasm. Spacers and filler words (like um) and breath pauses. Body language (how close we stand when talking to each other). Facial expressions. All of this is going to impact your immersion in a different society’s pup culture and performance style from a linguistic perspective.

So I guess what I am say is, it is possible to get over, if you sort of flex your brain a bit in a new way.

Thai Acting Style

So (now) Korea film style is the most western influenced of the ones you talked about, with Taiwan and the Philippines following up. China is a little more reserved in many ways, and very married to 4 act structure, which can make it feel over long and narratively off-beat to a western audience. I’m not sure where your film consumption background is coming from, but if you like the Wuxia bromances (like Untamed etc) but can also take the Korean short form BLs, my guess would be you’re coming out of sf/f fandom of some kind with a tolerance for epics but also shorts.

You don’t talk about Japanese cinema, which is an interesting case (and most geeks having passing familairty with). It is the one that bridges the gap between the pretty atmospheric stuff, dark themes, but also some serious slap stick and pantomime action, which I suspect is what is turning you off of Thai BL. You might explore some of their stuff.

I talk about it here, the weeds of Japanese filming style in a not entirely flattering manner.

Also here in a history of live action yaoi in Japan

And here is something all about their (and BLs) darker traditions

You could try something like Cherry Magic, which combines softness and sweetness with slapstick, but isn’t quite as in your face a soem of the others. If that’s too much, try Restart After Come Back Home, His the movie, Life: Love on the Line, Old Fashion Cupcake, and Seven Days. All of these avoid the panto style over-acting and sound effects that are the biggest turn offs for most western audiences

So for both Japan and Thailand the love of pratfall, or physical comedy humor comes from their local historical theatrical traditions and variety shows. This can be seen by those of use who did not grow up with is as: childish, scenery chewing, or over-acting.

The addiction to carton sound effects, triple shots (where they repeat the same action from multiple angles, especially around intimacy) mostly comes from anime/cartoons which were tailored to the adult market for much longer historically in most of Asia. (If you think about the British pantomime tradition you will realize that many European countries do have this style of acting, it’s just been confined to the children’s sphere). Although there’s also American soap operas and movie comedies (like Bridesmaids, for example) or Spanish telenovelas that are very scenery chewing.

What you’re probubly responding negatively to is in part a slight feel of being talked down too, or catered to, or spoon fed (emotions, acting, expression, sound) as if you were a child. I still feel this sometimes. Equally, I get annoyed by the sexual restraint that then is coupled to this style, in Japan in particular, which also makes the romance feel downplayed. But that’s my upbringing rearing its head. And, like any other cultural tradition, you will either grow used to it after continued exposure, or just never learn to enjoy the taste. There are some flavors that are harder than others to adapt too if you don’t grow up with them, whether food, language, performance, or music.

That said, there are some Thai BLs that are a lot more gritty and serious, with more subtle and nuanced acting, especially now. Here’s some I think you might particularly be able to tolerate:

Not Me

Manner of Death

3 Will Be Free

He’s Coming To Me

Tale of Thousand Stars

I Told Sunset About You

Love Sick (actually I’d be intersted in your take on this one)

And *maybe*

SOTUS

Bad Buddy

My Ride

Until We Meet Again

Love By Chance

Also you might like Pinoy BL Like in the Movies.

(source)

#thai bl #thai langage #thai acting #asian cinema #chinese bl #korean bl #japanese bl #taiwanese bl #Not Me the series #Manner of Death #3 Will Be Free #He’s Coming To Me #Tale of Thousand Stars #I Told Sunset About You #Love Sick #asked and answered #just rambling #Until We Meet Again #love by chance

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