#and they can be later explored individually?

[acourtofthought]

Would you still consider it a celebration if Gwynriel’s book is next, bc it at least confirms endgame couples?

I will be very happy for Gwynriels and very relieved that it will help lessen the ship wars though I think I'll still feel disappointed.

I want Elucien to happen but I also adore Elain and Lucien as individuals so an Elucien confirmation isn't the entirety of what I want for them.

Az and Gwyn absolutely deserve a HEA and their own healing arcs but there is something to be said for the fact that right now, they are surrounded by love even without a relationship. Yes, they have their own internal struggles but they have a really strong support system, people that have their backs, that encourage them, that believe in them. Az and Gwyn both have their found families but neither Elain or Lucien do.

Elain and Lucien are regularly pushed to the side in favor of the other characters. I understand why that is, SJM has to stay on course with the narrative that they still need to find the court where they'll thrive, but in the meantime that has resulted in them being misunderstood by the others. It results in others speaking for them, the others not encouraging them or helping them find their powers. Hell, Feyre has known about Lucien's real father since ACOWAR and it's almost two years later yet she's still letting him wander around aimlessly thinking he has no place to go.

A Gwynriel book being next means we're going to have yet another book of Elain floating around the River House with no real purpose. Lucien drifting between Spring and the Human Lands while Tamlin remains depressed which means Lucien will feel the effects of that. Elain again not having the chance to have a POV on how she's feeling about the loss of her father, being made, Graysen's rejection, Az's rejection, how Nesta and Az believe she shouldn't be allowed to do anything dangerous. If a Gwynriel book takes 6-9 months, that means nearly three years will have passed from when Elain will have been forced into the Cauldron, given powers from the Cauldron that she still hasn't fully explored and hasn't been given help on training, a confirmed mating bond that remains unaccepted and unrejected, and we will have never had a single person actually ask her how she feels about any of that outside of Feyre's "you couldn't say a single word to him?"

I will be happy for Gwynriels but how can I personally be super excited when that means my two favorite characters will once again suffer for another 6-9 months without having the same support system in place that Az and Gwyn already do?

Gwyn and Az might not have romance yet but they are respected and loved by their friends and we've witnessed that on page. Meaningful moments, moments where their found family have gotten personal with them and asked them to get personal in response (though Az is kind of terrible in that area, we've seen Cassian and Rhys at least try).

Lucien has "friends" in Vassa and Jurian but we've never actually seen that connection, we're just told it's there so we have to assume it is.

And when he tried to open up to Feyre, she made fun of him.

Elain has "friends" with the wraiths but again, we're just told about it rather than witnessing moments that make us actually feel it. And yes, her sisters love her but they don't try to connect with her (Feyre only thinks of her as a pleasant companion).

And the IC, while friendly enough with Lucien, don't necessarily embrace him with any kind of true respect. There's always this underlying current of "can we trust him?", "what can he do for us?" And of course we know Az has issues with him.

The need to prove that both Elain and Lucien belong somewhere other than where they currently is starting to feel a tiny bit overdone to the point that it's a bit cruel, and while that to me would be a perfect time to end their suffering, I can only imagine what another book of that would look like.

#pro elucien #elucien #elain archeron #lucien vanserra

[zakuramochi]

If the JP fandom prefers the original versions of the characters from the webcomic, does that mean they preferred when France would SA others more, including minors? And when Russia was more abusive to the baltics? Or do they acknowledge those as bad too?

Also, is the JP side aware of the problems around drawing characters of color? Here in the West, there was even a short campaign of recoloring other's fanart that drew characters like Seychelles with too light skin. The JP side seems to draw her with light/white skin more often (not too sure), tho that was how she looked in the original anime and I think game. We also increasingly prefer to draw her with more "ethnic" hair rather than straight, even tho that's her canon design. The more progressive side of the EN side anyway.

This is just based on my current knowledge, but back then when these things were different in terms of how they were received (like how some comedians jokes from years ago are called out as problematic decades later), the JP fandom carried on thinking it was light-hearted portrayal. Now that times have changed, things like Russia’s treatment of others and France’s questionable antics are slowly being buried away and majority of the JP fans are exploring the deeper side of their personalities more and more lately.

Surely there was some racially insensitive material that were passed off as jokes back then, but that’s really not all the webcomic was. The webcomic focused on the nations more as ‘characters’ instead of ‘anthropomorphic representations’, and the way Himaruya gave them individuality as people instead of countries is why the older fans preferred that. I don’t know the best way to put it into english, but they appeared to be more ‘human-like’ back then.

Creating a series that generalizes a specific type of group can be quite tricky, and it’s hard to avoid the problems that come with political correctness. Alas, this is the path Himaruya chose. 😞

The mentality the JP side has with Hetalia (or any series, really) is that the author’s portrayal takes priority. It’s why you don’t often see fanart from JP making ‘corrections’, edits or additions to the original character design. If it’s the way Himaruya draws it, everyone will try to stick to it as close as possible out of respect for the original material. Fortunately Himaruya has at least been exploring more on different skin tones and body shapes in the recent years and the fans, true to form, are simply sticking to that interpretation. If the progressive side of EN has a problem with the way those characters are drawn, it’s really up to the author to make those changes.

In the end, we see them as ‘someone’s characters’ instead of ‘representatives’, if that makes sense.

#hetalia #asks #teatime talks #it’s probably this kind of talk that scares the jp side the most

[vaqro-a]

PREFACE : ㅤㅤㅤ ㅤi would like to state that i do not acknowledge the name that was formerly attributed to cole cassidy,ㅤ the one most often referred to as "the cowboy's dead / old name." ㅤㅤi don’t believe that the choice made by blizzard provides even the bare minimum in terms of restitution to their employees, ㅤnor do i believe that it takes sufficient measures against that terrible man. ㅤㅤhowever, ㅤi am aware that the former name connotes a recognition that he does not require ; ㅤfor this reason,ㅤ i have refrained from using it at any point in this or any of my pieces regarding this character, ㅤand i have no intention to use it. ㅤㅤin my canon, ㅤCOLE CASSIDY,ㅤwhile not the name he was born with, ㅤis the name he adopts and becomes his most recognizable alias throughout his life. ㅤㅤwith that out of the way, ㅤlet us begin dissecting the many identities of one cowboy.

carlos josé mendoza cárdenas was a boy that came from a joyful and complete home.ㅤㅤ he spent his childhood on his family's ranch, ㅤwhere he was responsible for the care of the sheep and cattle, ㅤrode horses, ㅤmade friends with the farm dogs, ㅤgot into trouble with his siblings, ㅤand received cuddles from his father. ㅤㅤon more than one occasion, ㅤhe slept off while resting his head on his mother's deep blue serape. ㅤㅤup until the age of twelve, ㅤthe sky appeared to be boundless, ㅤand each daybreak heralded a fresh opportunity for him to embark on an exciting new journey. ㅤㅤcarlos cárdenas died alongside his family.

what walked out of that massacre made his way to texas, ㅤand much like the case of many other orphaned children following the crisis,ㅤ no one really paid attention to just another abandoned brown child on the streets.ㅤㅤ soon enough, ㅤhe found himself working in a pork meat plant as a waste collector. ㅤㅤcassidy was the one he decided to go with when he needed a name. ㅤㅤcole came after, ㅤonce he was fired from the pork factory, ㅤwhen he signed theㅤ[  equally phony  ]ㅤdocuments required to get a job on the megafarm which he would work a few more years. ㅤㅤcole cassidy emerged through this process as a young man who was rough around the edges yet kind, ㅤwith fire in his eyes and a keen aim. ㅤㅤa sunset chaser, ㅤa leader of a criminal organization, ㅤa firearms dearler. ㅤㅤa rebel without a cause.

a blackwatch agent. 

cole developed a remarkable aptitude for performing undercover work as time passed. ㅤㅤthe cowboy was a true chameleon when it came to adopting new identities, ㅤinfiltrating new areas, ㅤand obtaining information from a diverse range of individuals, ㅤdespite what appeared to be his natural inclination for being loud and brash. ㅤㅤin the same way that he was one of the best marksmen on the ground, ㅤgabriel reyes relied on him as his eyes on the field for the purposes of reconnaissance and surveillance.ㅤㅤ this kind of operation certainly required a lot of different fabricated identities, ㅤand for a man who already had to craft himself anew, ㅤit was simple to develop something that held traces of himself but was yet far enough from the baseline to avoid being compromised. ㅤㅤit also gave cole the opportunity to write and perform other stories,ㅤ experience different lives, ㅤand a way for him to get a glimpse into what the small kid who lives inside of him may have grown up to be.

among other names, ㅤcole cassidy is also known as :

JOEL MORRICONE ㅤㅤdenotes himself as a coffee drinker, white hat wearer, and pundit for hire, ㅤwho was born in mexico but raised in the united kingdom. ㅤㅤhe takes a deep interest in both criminal activity and political matters ; ㅤㅤhe maintains his own blog with weekly updatesㅤ[  whenever feasible  ],ㅤ  and he also contributes columns and thoughts to an independent newspaper.ㅤㅤ joel had been in what seemed to be an endless relationship with bernard baldwin, ㅤa much older baker from los angeles ;ㅤ nevertheless, ㅤafter joel lost his arm, ㅤbernard broke up their relationship. ㅤㅤsingle and recovered from the physical and emotional trauma, ㅤjoel now is doing a significant amount of travelling throughout the world to report on the proliferation of the null sector and many other unsavory activities.

BRUNO LEONE ㅤㅤis a single, ㅤitalian young man. ㅤas a result of his brother enzo's untimely death in vienna while closing his photography studio,ㅤ bruno was unable to complete his education and so never received his diploma.ㅤ bruno was forced to abandon his studies as a result of the impact of the loss of his brother,ㅤ who represented everything he had to offer in the way of a familyㅤ[  mother being an addict who overdosed when they were eighteen, father having walked out when the twins were two  ]. ㅤㅤbecause he is now saddled with debt,ㅤ bruno is forced to take odd jobs in order to make ends meet and continue living his life.ㅤㅤa memorable occasion was eight years ago, ㅤwhen bruno was fire from his job as a waiter for mouthing off against his manager ; ㅤhe had only got the job a month prior but had no patience for pushy employers and the snob clientele of the establishment.

MAVERICK LOGANN ㅤㅤis a bounty hunter and contract killer, ㅤand his place of birth is unknown. ㅤㅤa man who appears to care about very little, ㅤif anything at all, ㅤother than the amount of money in his pocket. ㅤㅤas a hired assassin, ㅤit would appear that he specializes in sniper and long - distance kills. ㅤㅤa vicious individual who does not like to have his boundaries tested yet appreciates a job well done when he sees it.

JEROME MCGINNISㅤㅤ is a skilled tradesman who is married to courtney and is a father to a beautiful daughter called alicia.ㅤㅤ a canadian citizen who resides in quebec with his wife and daughter, although the the majority of his time these days is spent away from home due to job obligations.

CARSON REEVES ㅤㅤis a fitness trainer and is currently single.ㅤㅤ grew up in wales as the son of a mexican immigrant mother and a welsh guy for a father.ㅤㅤ his parents got a divorce when he was a child.ㅤㅤ although he never attended college, ㅤhe did participate in badminton and rugby while he was in high school but was never good enough to play professionally.ㅤㅤ possesses a vicious temper and spends entirely too much time on the couch watching television and drinking beer on the weekends.

JEFF WAYNE ㅤㅤis a prominent american socialite. ㅤㅤbecause of the omnic crisis, ㅤjeffrey "jeff" wayne was an orphan and had to go through a number of different foster homes before finally settling down with carmen and reagan wayne. ㅤㅤafterwards, ㅤhe was raised in a life of plenty and luxury by his adoptive parents, ㅤwho provided him with everything but the love and attention he so desperately craved as a child. ㅤㅤmet his girlfriend, ㅤbrianna, ㅤwhile he was in college studying economics and philosophy. ㅤㅤshe passed away in a tragic accident not long ago.

#META. #there it is. #i could elaborate on which situation cole uses each name but i think i am leaving this one as it is. #and they can be later explored individually? #idk. thoughts #but this was also an opportunity to clear up on the name thing and where i stand with it #anyways now i can do adult things like house chores and food <3

[toxapex-lore]

I’ve been wondering something about Rayne’s world. Is it like another dimension, or a different universe entirely? I remember reading that she traveled between worlds. How does she do that?

Also a semi-related question. Do Legendaries in that world function the same as in other worlds? Like do they fulfill the same roles, or do they differ in any way?

Lastly, are Legendaries in your universe(s) immortal? I know that Rayne killed a bunch of them, but would they have died eventually anyway, or are they functionally immortal and can only die by a deliberate act? Is there a special technique you have to use? (I’m not planning on killing any of them I swear)

Sorry if that’s too many questions, I started thinking of more and more as I wrote this XD

What is Rayne’s World?

As a pre-warning I’m going to apologise for my blatant misuse of the word ‘Universe’. I know what it means, and the space and physics loving side of me hates that I’m misusing it, but I cannot think of a better term to explain it, so sorry in advance.

Okay, so to start with I’m going to explain what I consider Universes and Worlds! A Universe is a collection of Worlds (and some inbetween space, such as the Distortion World, Ultra Space, etc) and each Universe only has one Arceus and Creation Trio.

A World, however, is more comparable to the ACTUAL definition of universe - like the one we live in! The Pokémon, Pokémon Mystery Dungeon, and Poképark games would all be three separate Worlds for example! Furthermore, Pokémon Diamond and Pokémon Pearl would always take place in seperate Worlds, due to conflicting events.

Basically, if something would count as an alternate universe or alternate timeline, it’s a new World! If you’ve seen my Toyhouse, Canon Compliant and Hydra’s World (or as we’re calling it here, Rayne’s World) are both different Worlds in the same Universe, whereas Gods and Servants is another Universe entirely!

How does Rayne travel between Worlds?

Well, to answer that, I’m going to have to talk about another character entirely, as Rayne’s story does not begin with herself.

It begins with a Hisuian Decidueye, partner to the main character of Canon Compliant’s events of Pokémon Legends Arceus. This Decidueye is called Tansy, and after the events of PLA, she was frustrated that Arceus did not send her Trainer back to the present, and decided the reasonable course of action would to be to fight Arceus to show them that they were in the wrong.

This did not work, and Tansy was killed by Arceus after a hard battle. Impressed by her strength, however, they decided they could use her to help subdue rogue gods in others Worlds. Tansy was reborn as an Alolan Decidueye, and given a blessing so that she could not truly die - she would instead travel to another World when she was either killed, or subdued the rogue god in that specific World.

However, Tansy eventually stopped enacting Arceus’ will, and yet the god was not ready to lose out on her strength just yet. Tansy’s corpse had remained in Arceus’ realm, and so they decided to make an artificial soul to inhabit it and use its power. A soul that had Tansy’s skills and her blessing, but none of her personality, only a desire to make sure the gods did not step out of line and cause major problems. This being, now inhabiting inside of Tansy’s repaired body, was sent out into a random World to wake up. Initially, they did their job very well, but eventually became jaded by the amount of rogue gods they saw, and decided the obvious solution was to kill all of the gods before they turned rogue.

As I’m sure you will have guessed by now, this being was Rayne, although she is fully unaware of her origins. As far as she knows, she woke up in a field with amnesia, and has always been able to travel between Worlds either through death, or killing the ‘correct’ god.

However, after she became determined to kill every god in the World that we know as Hydra’s World, Arceus limited her blessing, and she was no longer able to travel between Worlds. Instead, she now returns to that same World, after a period of a few days to a few months.

Legendaries in Rayne’s World

Short answer to that; the Legendaries & Mythicals in Rayne’s World are actually recruited from other Worlds, and although they typically have the same powers as the others of their species, in their new World they are expected to be doing the jobs of multiple gods.

Long answer: there were eight gods who travelled to Rayne’s World (a Meloetta, Shaymin, Landorus, Tapu Fini, Hoopa, Celebi, Jirachi and a Yveltal), as well as Lilith the Darkrai, the sole known survivor, due to allying with Rayne. Furthermore, there have been three gods born (a Marshadow named Darci, a Jirachi named Goose, and a Hoopa named Currant) and a single demigod born (Sotis, Rayne’s child), making the total number of divine beings thirteen.

The Jirachi, who is called Shallot, is currently sleeping, but their job was to take the light from Luci’s corpse (a Necrozma who assisted Rayne during the mass deicide, and later betrayed her) and redistribute it. However, some of that light was already used up, leading the world to have shorter days and winters of darkness.

Shamin, Landorus, Celebi and later Goose are in charge of making sure enough plants are growing in the world for food, as winters are extremely cold and lack sunlight, easily killing the majority of plants. Additionally, Landorus is in charge of making sure storms do not become too destructive.

Tapu Fini is in charge of making sure the seas do not become too violent, as well as currently holding the objects housing the souls of Treasures of Ruin to prevent them from reincarnating - their seals did not last forever, and they eventually broke free, causing a lot of death and destruction to a world that is already very sensitive to that. The reason why she was chosen to be the holder of them is that none of them can get access to their element underwater, so they are unable to reform their bodies!

The Yveltal, Mara, and her son Sotis, are effectively performing the role of the full Aura Trio by ensuring both life and death stay in balance, rather than just death, as they normally would as Yveltals. It is their job to monitor how many have died, prevent unnatural revivals or gaining of immortality, and in the worst case scenario deliberately revive Pokémon to avoid their World from completely dying out - humanity is already extinct, as well as a few Pokémon species, and the population is very low in general.

The Hoopa, named Allium, and his daughter Currant, are in charge of obtaining any objects someone may need from another World! Furthermore, if you want to leave this World, you will need to talk to Allium and convince them to use their rings.

As an adult, Darci uses his powers to both deliver messages between the gods, as well as explore the world, both surveying the state it is in and bring anything he finds worrying up to the others, and trying to find items that may be useful! She also provides Z-Crystals, as her body naturally forms them!

Lilith, both due to not being fully trusted due to her past (although is she is trusted far more than Rayne, due to her genuinely being kind, and as far as the other gods are aware, never actually killing another god, only helping Rayne and Lilith plan) and causing nightmares as a Darkrai, does not officially have a job. However, she is often the one the other gods elect to talk to Rayne, as they are close friends.

Meloetta basically works as the overseer of both the gods, making sure no one is having any interpersonal issues (which is very common, unfortunately) and that they are both doing their job and not abusing their powers against mortals (something Rayne has made clear that she will not tolerate). Basically she’s their manager!

Overall, they are doing a LOT more work than they typically should be doing - either by covering domains related to theirs, or a much larger territory than they would usually. It is apparent that the gods are stretched thin, as their World is far less habitable than others, but fortunately the remaining Pokémon have adapted to these harsh conditions!

Legendary/Mythical Immortality

Arceus and the Creation Trio are the only ones who are truly immortal in every sense of the word, as they are less living beings and more part of the Universe itself, and need to uphold its order.

However, Mythicals and Legendaries lifespan range from long-lived to immortal to being able to revive themselves! They are all able to be killed, but how difficult a task that is depends on who you are killing, especially if you need them to stay dead.

Generally, Mythicals tend to only be long-lived, and will eventually die by natural causes, whereas Legendaries are immortal and have to be killed by outside means.

You’re correct in that some of them do need a special method to be truly killed though! Victini, due to being the Victory Pokémon, is very hard to kill in direct battle, as that is a situation where there is a winner and a loser. However, indirect confrontation, such as poisoning or natural hazards, would circumvent that issue!

Furthermore, Xerneas and Yveltal have to be killed twice to avoid them simply reviving themselves, by destroying their tree and cocoon respectively.

Most of them, however, only require you to be strong.

Thank you for asking all of these questions by the way! It’s nice to know what may need elaborated on explanation wise, and all of your questions I have genuinely thought about before!

#general thoughts as I type this: #yes there is something Extremely Wrong with Tansy’s Arceus. god simply does not care about individuals - only the big picture. #(they’re also not used to being directly disobeyed) #yes the gods in Rayne’s World know it’s Bad. they’re trying their best though - it’s hard to convince other gods to help #Especially Since the individual guilty of killing the last set of gods is still living there herself - even if she’s retired #and later reformed #I don’t know what role Marshadow is meant to fill other than ‘copycat fighter’ so Darci’s role is more based on his personality! #he likes exploring and fighting… capable of both travelling the world and defending himself if needed! #the immortality status of gods Varies. I need to work out the specifics for all of them. but I’ve had thoughts on a couple! #it’s rare to hear of a god being killed though - most of the time it’s their own recklessness. They can get overconfident in being stronger #than mortals. But rarely it is due to someone deliberately killing them… very worrying… #oh god who do I tag for this #oc lore #hydra’s world #tansy (oc) #hydra/rayne (oc) #mara (oc) #sotis (oc) #shallot (oc) #darci (oc) #lilith (oc) #i think that’s the majority who got major lore mentioned? #OH ALSO: meta wise Rayne originated as an AU of Tansy! hence why they’re still connected - even when she did become her own OC… #I’m so very glad I got to talk about those two… love them both so much...

[jademight]

Happy birthday to the best Hulk adaption <3

#;ooc tag #listen is it melancholic as fuck with weird transitions and vibes? yes. #is it the best exploration of bruce and hulk as separate individuals and why there is a hulk? also yes #since its the era of sequels decades later the fact can we get hulk 2 #I know this will never happen but let me dream #A BANA HULK SEQUEL WHERE WE TRULY EXPLORE THE HULK SIDE OF IT ALL??? MAYHAPS EVEN DIP INTO A LIL FIXIT???? #I dreamed a dream..... #the fact that mcu hasn't done joe at all and just skipped to Professor angers me so much #fracture his psyche again and make him a mobster in las vegas you fUCKERS #anyway I'm over at pete's blog still. not writing mind you but I'm there

[mcnuggyy]

Thinking about how some of the rainbow factory gangs base forms would look wayyy different if they didn’t have the strict views on beauty they adopted from humans…

#specifically Elly and Clay… #they probably have the most drastic changes later on in their character arcs #basically a lot of them would not be skinny lol #hard to find that right balance between they live in a society with specific beauty standards AND can meet those standards with #shape shifting but also have them feel like individuals and give them a variety of body types to fit them but still be stereotyp. attractive #ykno what I mean #like hev is the only fat one for a reason #and as their views on humanity infiltrate the rest of the group their forms start to change to reflect their true inner peace and love #and finding beauty in ‘flaws’ and the ‘human’ #it’s complicating but I think it’ll be an interesting thing to explore! :-] #especially with Clay who feels the most dysphoric and changes form the most and doesn’t truly feel like ‘Clay’ until making some big changes #to the form used #the rainbow factory #ocs #callate guero

[mothmanchronicler]

everyone is arguing abt bughead vs jabitha today but i'm pretty sure he loves both of them (in a most unfortunate way)

incoherent thoughts abt this in the tags but the conclusion is that tabitha deserves a happy ending

#sometimes you literally cannot help the emotions someone drags out of you !!! #i have an ex that can still make me feel the grief of our break up years later #i'm not in love with them anymore and i'm happily dating my fiancé but like ??? sometimes pain and love are seared into your essence dude #also i think it's a better narrative choice because it creates a very emotional/intense choice for tabitha to make #and maybe this is wishful thinking with the rvd writers but jabitha choosing to stay together in the end would be ... #bittersweet? realistic? #a true picture of loving someone so much that you choose them even when it hurts both of you? #and on the flip side- if bughead got back together? WOOF #i won't stand here before you and lie that i didn't enjoy bughead (it's fun to watch tender loving toxic relationships sue me!) #and yeah i'd enjoy the whiplash insanity that a bughead reunion would bring to the show for the drama #but i think bughead is not good for either of them!!! at least where they stand as individuals now #specifically thinking abt jughead lying to his loved ones still #and betty's refusal to like face her traumas with open vulnerability ? #and also both of their for some fucking reason life long aversions to therapy #but there's def more reasons that bughead not matter how much they love each other are doomed to an unhealthy relationship unless #there's a major shift in both characters (not even pretending to hope that rvd will ever explore mental health in a good way lol) #and you know what? i would love to watch that but for jughead tabitha is the chance of a healthy relationship imo #long story short betty and jughead both lack a sense of indentity in ways that hurt themselves and each other #i can't elaborate on that yet but i know it's true lol #all of this ignoring that i'm almost entirely convinced that jughead's love will be tabitha's literal demise #tabitha loves this broken little man with all of her heart and i'm wondering if that's a healthy relationship for her #i want to know more abt what jughead envokes within tabitha that she feels makes him worthy of such love #actually i just want to know more abt tabitha's life before riverdale #i'd like a list of her exes as well thank you #just!!! her devotion to jughead #i really want to know more abt it and her own relationship to that devotion #i'm very high and i'm thinking VERY hard abt the canon ships #don't even get me STARTED on barchie and varchie #ps jughead is gay i'm just thinking and saying words for fun

[soggypotatoes]

how are people out here painting wings in flight for real

#im stumped lol #if im gonna be a pigeon artist i need to figure this shit out #im not so into painting individual things so ive laid down the colours where i see em #which is limited bc im mostly using posca for the bird so. not a lot of colours. but im happy with it rn #you just cant like.. see that there are individual feathers... for the most part #maybe i should lean into it? make it more suggestive and abstract? but how do i do that? #i was talking to a friend about this the other day #i asked her how she knew when she was done - as a digital artist #bc when i did digital i suffered bc i never felt like anything was done.. when there were so many ways to edit and redo #she said that she will be able to see the flaws but she decides that it's done anyway and she can work on that flaw later in a different dr #*drawing #i was SHOCKED my dudes #i could Hypothetically finish up the rest of the painting and decide that the wings dont look how i want them to and thats chill #and next time i paint wings i can further that exploration #but. no way i cant do that. not when there are wings that dont look right. no.. #ed mumbles

[neverendingford]

.

#tag talk #the whole “egg prime directive” thing is so dumb. like.. yeah sure if you go “hey you're trans” then yeah you're dumb #but like. you can encourage people to explore and interrogate gendered life experience without being an idiot and assuming gender experience #the prime directive shit gets read as “protect questioning eggs” or whatever when imo it should get read as #read as “don't assume someone's gender journey is the same as your own (you dumb idiot)” #anyway I think this is why I've really avoided explicitly queer spaces online. tangentially? sure I love that shit #but the amount of blind shortsighted people making assumptions. ughhhhh #I always have to remind myself to keep it specifically hating what people do not what they are because it's easy to just drop into #drop into being like “ugh those dumb trans people” when I'm literally one of those dumb trans people. but like. idk. #every time I go on trans reddit I regret it because I just leave five minutes later like “wow everyone is stupid and I hate them” #genderqueer struggle when everyone is like “being trans is about these five things” but you don't match because you're a separate individual #and it's like ahh cool thanks for defining the transgender experience in such a way that it marginalizes trans people. #this will have no negative consequences whatsoever #sorry I'm really mad I just finished an argument with someone and made the mistake about caring about an online argument #sometimes people need encouragement to break out of their gender restrictions. sometimes you can be the one to validate someone's questions #done just stand back and watch someone struggle and say “oh it's for the best if we don't interfere” #anyway. I'm gonna go play some minecraft

[cherrypikkins]

@dimiclaudeblaigan asked for a tutorial on how to begin drawing. Good news! If you can draw a funky looking stick man, you have already started!

I think that stick people are a great starting point for artists because of the things you can learn from them that will be important later on.

If you are able to draw a circle and a couple of lines, you can easily put together a stick person.

Congratulations! You have started to draw. :)

A stick person is a very minimal artistic representation of a real life person. It is simple yet recognizable, and is widely used in art, media, and signage.

But what can a stick person teach us about drawing people that look more like… well, people? Lets have a look!

By simply adding a few more lines, we can add a pair of eyes and a mouth. Maybe even a little triangle nose! Or half circles for ears. We can now draw a face, which provides a basis for all sorts of expressions.

These simple additions can allow us to explore the wide range of human emotion and individuality.

This may seem like the basics of the basics. But that is what we want! In order to get to the point where we are able to draw complex, elaborate representations of humans and objects, we will need to start with simple shapes like lines and circles and build our understanding from there.

For instance, lets give our stick person some cool new features, such as hands and feet. I chose little squiggly circles to represent hands, and triangles to represent feet.

We can go a step further and modify the body of the stick person to include shoulders, hips, elbows and knees. These parts of the human body are quite complex in real life But here, all we need to do is add a few simple lines and dots to our stick person.

The lines provide some additional structural elements to our stick person's body, which are the shoulders and the hips. The dots indicate the points of articulation - elbows and knees, the places where the arms and legs bend!

Now we can use our stick person to show us an even wider range of human movement, action, and expression.

Our little drawing of a human being is evolving! All it took was adding a few more lines and shapes here and there.

By elongating some of the existing lines and making the head an oval instead of a circle, we can give our stick person proportions that resemble that of a real life human.

By this point, we have managed to add more complexity to our stick person simply by using our ability to draw lines, circles, and other basic shapes!

These basic ideas are the building blocks that will enable us to create more complex shapes.

The next part may be a considerable step up if you are absolutely new to drawing, but I have decided to include it in order to show you how complex objects like the human body can be built from shapes that are a bit more complex than circles and lines.

For example. Two ovals and a rectangle can be combined to create a cylinder.

Six squares can be combined to create a cube, or a box. Here, each square is distorted slightly depending on which way the cube is facing.

Note that the back faces of the cube and the bottom of the cylinder are hidden. These shapes allow us to visualize that which should not normally visible.

A sphere from all perspectives can be represented by a circle. But we can make it more like a sphere by adding lighting and shadow if we so desire.

Cubes, cylinders, and spheres are examples of 'solid shapes' because they consist of 3 dimensions.

Lets see how these solid shapes can be used to compose the human body.

By stacking three cylindrical objects, we can create a torso. Two spheres have been added to form shoulders, while a smaller cylinder forms the neck.

An arm is an alternating sequence of spheres and cylinders connected together. Note that the hand has been simplified for this example.

We can apply these solid shapes to the rest of the body to give us a more recognizable representation of the human form. It doesn't even have to be perfect. And just like that, our stick figure now has a silhouette that is unmistakably a person!

In the above examples, notice that we kept the stick person at the beginning while building up the shapes and solids around it. This is because the stick person serves as a guide for positioning the body and its various parts -> also known as posing.

You can do the same thing to everyday objects! Here, I drew a wine glass by stacking these three dimensional solid shapes.

The cup and its contents are two ovoid shapes that were cut in half. The stem is a very thin cylinder shape. The base is a cylinder with a slightly wider bottom.

Solid shapes help inform us how objects and parts of the human body may appear from different perspectives.

For example, a sphere can be used to demonstrate how the human head appears when looking up or down, turned to the side, or tilted at an angle.

With these examples, I hope I have managed to convinced you that if you can draw a circle and a couple of lines, you can draw a person! You just have to train your eye to recognize the simple shapes within complex objects. Try it with everyday objects as well! Or even your favourite media! A drawing subject can be as simple or as complex as you envision it to be.

Once you have mastered that, there are many aspects of drawing you can explore from here that may require you to seek additional resources or a fellow artist's advice.

Last of all, remember that drawing is an iterative process. Even if you draw something correct the first time, you will need to draw it again and again to get it right all times! And by making small changes like the ones we explored in this tutorial, your drawings will gradually transform!

I hope what I've demonstrated here are enough to provide the basics of how to get started with drawing objects and people, and also to help refresh more experienced artists. :) Hopefully I didn't go too off topic with what was requested, and let me know if there are any more questions I can answer.

Cheers :3

#tutorial #art

[willowser]

in a way that i think katsuki can be flustered by intimacy, i think shouto is just plain as day curious.

situations like when you're pressed up against each other on a busy train car, leaning into a familiar touch rather than the unknown, i think shouto has no qualms about being so obvious. you glance up at him shyly, heat burning down your chest, and he's just looking at you, open and unashamed.

so close that you can see him catalogue you, explore in ways he maybe never has before; eyes flitting over the width of your nose and the curve of your lips and your each individual lash. just learning, in the most innocent and interested manner, the new bits of you he'll think of when you're not together.

i think in moments like this that could be deemed romantic—two people in their quiet corner, staring so deeply into the other's face, a breath apart—he's easily engaged, but i don't know if he realizes the significance of it. why it means what it means and why it will affect him uniquely, later on. all the lines you're crossing.

that's also why being kissed by him comes as a complete surprise to you, because i don't think he's planning any of it. he just wants to know, is all, and there's plenty to figure out, with you.

#✿ thoughts: shouto #waaahhh i think about shouto kissing you by surprise so much actually LOL #surprise to you both #it just HAPPENS #bc you're there so close and he's just CURIOUS #he could do it and he wants to and so he does akfahahfaa #it's probably not a deep kiss #more of a press of his lips to yours than anything but he WANTS IT #woof #bye bye bye #i actually think shouto isn't flustered by intimacy and romance bc he simply doesn't register that's what is happening LOL #i think he could more affected by it the further you two go on #later in your relationship he can finally pick up when you're making a move on him and he's like ' oh :3' #LMAO

[farfromharry]

Summary: lando’s tired and falls asleep in your arms

Lando Norris x reader

w/c 650

━━━━━━━━━♡♥♡━━━━━━━━━

The first day of winter break was usually spent asleep the whole day for Lando. He was taking the opportunity to recover from a long, draining season and everyone around him understood.

Never before had he been in a relationship though that lasted until winter break.

It was understandable that you didn’t know about his tradition. When November 28th approached, you wanted nothing more than to spend the day celebrating all of his achievements and his new found freedom. You were excited about being able to spend a few weeks in his presence where he didn’t have to work all the time.

You had been excitedly telling him all the things you wanted to do for days now, and he didn’t have the heart to turn you down. He was just going to have to suck up the exhaustion.

That morning you woke him up barely past 7. It took a few attempts to get his eyes to flutter open, and when they finally did all he gave you was a sleepy smile.

“Ready for breakfast?” you asked, twirling individual curls of his around your finger after her buried his head in your neck.

He hummed.

Throughout the entire meal he could have fallen asleep. It wasn’t that you were boring him with your conversation, he would listen to you for hours even on a bad day, but he could barely process what you were saying.

All day long as the 2 of you explored and went through your exciting itinerary he shook off sleep so he could make you happy. And for the most part he didn’t think you suspected anything. You believed his white lies of ‘resting his eyes’ behind his sunglasses while you took a brief break in your plans to grab a drink together.

By the time you made it back to the hotel to start getting ready for dinner, he didn’t know if he could keep up his act much longer.

You were about to rush off to your room to pick out something to wear when he grabbed your arm.

“Can we just have 5 minutes? Wanna love you for a bit,” he muttered. That would be his excuse to take a quick breather. There would be no way you could resist when he was giving you those puppy eyes.

Your heart fluttered and you beamed. “Of course.”

Despite not being tired yourself, you let him lead you to the couch for a little. He got himself nice and comfortable in your arms, head on your chest and practically laid completely on top of you.

You were too caught up in your own thoughts of what you might wear to feel his breathing even out and his body go slack. He’d fallen asleep and you hadn’t even noticed, not then or not when you began to talk to him either.

“I was thinking…” Your rambles about the plan for dinner had gone completely unheard by the man, but of course you didn’t know that. “What do you think?” you asked.

A beat of silence passed, which you assumed was him making up his mind. When you didn’t receive an answer after another few seconds of quiet though, you weren’t sure what was happening.

You frowned. “Lando?”

You were careful when moving to look at him and you were glad as soon as you caught sight of his peaceful face. It made you warm inside to know he could find himself so relaxed in your arms that he could fall asleep— even if you were unaware of the exhaustion that had been looming over him all day.

Despite how excited you’d been previously about a fancy dinner, just the 2 of you, you weren’t going to wake him up now. You had no problem letting him get the sleep he needed and then sharing a midnight feast of room service later on.

“Sleep well, lover.”

━━━━━━━━━♡♥♡━━━━━━━━━

#formula 1 #formula one #lando norris #lando norris fluff #lando norris x reader #lando norris x you

[breelandwalker]

I keep seeing "Signs You're A Witch" type posts popping up in the tags and ohhhh I'm so tempted to start a fight.

For anyone that needs to hear it, there is NO SUCH THING as being a witch without knowing it.

Being a witch is not a birthright or a genetic marker or a secret superpower or some hidden trait that needs discovering. Being a witch is a conscious personal choice that is entirely up to the individual. There is power in walking the path BECAUSE it is a choice.

There is no quiz or infographic or reading that can tell you whether or not you're a witch. It doesn't matter whether you've had an affinity to magic and nature since childhood or are only just discovering the craft later in life. It doesn't matter if you've read every book on magic there is or only theorized about what you might like to do. (And yes, you can learn about witchcraft without ever being a witch.) The only one who can decide whether you're a witch is YOU.

And just to be SUPER clear on the matter, ANYONE can be a witch if they want to. Things like gender, race, religion, and physical ability are not determining factors.

Do you want to be a witch? Are you willing to self-identify as one, even just to yourself, and practice some form of witchcraft?

Congratulations! You can be a witch!

Give it a try if you want to. The path is yours to enter or leave as you will, for as long as you choose to explore it.

#witchcraft #baby witch #witchblr #Advice for Beginner Witches

[elementroar]

Analysis behind the backstory and personal story arcs of A.B.A. and Paracelsus (part 1)

Sorry for the people who waited. Technical and real life delays and all that. On the positive, I happened to run into new resources in the past two days that have helped lining up the facts easier.

Anyway, I originally wanted to compress all the lore into a single post, but I find it’s so much more massive once you really dig into the analysis between the story across multiple mediums, the in-game animations and interactions etc. To make this more readable for you all and to make creating these posts faster, I’m going to separate them up into parts that focus on different facets of their relationship and lore as I progress through them.

This first part goes into their origins, and I hope this big post helps to thoroughly explain who/what A.B.A. and Paracelsus are, their backstories prior to STRIVE, and my own analysis sprinkled on top. I want to try to keep the info/lore dump minimal and focused, so if I mention a character without elaborating, I’ll leave a link but if I’m not elaborating more, it’s because they’re not relevant to A.B.A/Paracelsus' stories that much.

Related links:

Analysis of Paracelsus' initial bloodlust and its longlasting effects on A.B.A (Part 2)

This is the "Why ABA and Paracelsus can feel horny" lore/theory post

Flament Nagel - Paracelsus’ true form theory

The Red King and White Queen alchemical concept in A.B.A and Paracelsus’ relationship

The beginning with A.B.A.

First off, to introduce their individual origins, it’s easiest to start with A.B.A. She’s a homunculus, an artificial lifeform created by a scientist in his mansion, which was located in the mountains of a region called Frasco or Flask. But before she was ‘born’, her creator had been taken away by the military for his skills in creating artificial life, and so A.B.A. woke up alone.

Despite this, within the 10 years she spent alone in the mansion she was able to learn to read, write, and even create some alchemical magic (seen in some of her attacks in games before -STRIVE-). It’s assumed either she was created with a set of memories and skills, or she naturally learns very quickly. It’s probably due to reading leftover journals and research materials that she even learnt her creator’s name was Paracelsus.

Technically, A.B.A. could’ve left the manor quite easily, there was even a village not far from them. However, she understood that she knew nothing about the world outside and was scared to leave the safety of the manor by venturing outside to explore the unknown world. But she did yearn for freedom and to leave Frasco, so she took to fixating on keys, which she found fascinating in being able to unlock doors to different places.

In the last bit of her 10 years in Frasco, A.B.A would accidentally cross paths with the hidden the demon axe Flament Nagel (which she would later rename to ‘Paracelsus’ in honour of her creator, or just cos that’s the only other name she actually knew).

What’s a demon axe doing here anyway?

So what is Paracelsus? He is what’s known as a magical foci, which are objects or even people that get a soul or a collection of memories/emotions/desires attached to them, which eventually leads to them gaining sentience and often supernatural abilities. They draw from the Backyard, which is basically where the information that makes up all reality is stored in the Guilty Gear world, and also the source of magic. This is the origin of ‘demons’ within the GG world, like Paracelsus.

The story of how Paracelsus/Flament Nagel ended up in Frasco actually involves the ancient Nightwalker (technically not a vampire but he's basically a vampire without the bad stuff) known as Slayer.

Now Slayer is this incredibly old, incredibly strong vampire Nightwalker, who nonetheless is a very nice guy who doesn’t need to feed on regular people because his wife, Sharon, is a deathless woman that he can feed on indefinitely without worrying about her dying.

Because of his immense age (AFAIK he’s the oldest of the main GG cast) and overwhelming power (he always holds back in-game), he has very insightful observations of Paracelsus and A.B.A.

The following screenshots are excerpts taken from the English transcript (available here) translated from the Night of Knives Vol.2 audio drama CD (you can listen to it here), and are from the perspective of Slayer recounting his encounters with Paracelsus and A.B.A.

Sometime near the end of the 100 year long war between Gears and humans known as the Crusades, Slayer was roaming a battlefield and came across a mountain of corpses of both Gears and humans. In the middle of it was a wandering blood covered warrior that was swinging an axe wildly. After confronting the man, Slayer realized that it was the axe that was the true master, the man had already lost his mind and was under its full control.

That axe called itself Flament Nagel aka the Flaming Nail, or the Sanguine Gale. I'll still be referring to him as Paracelsus at this point in time though.

Now magical foci start off simple-minded, only repeating small word fragments, and evolve over time to become more intelligent and sapient. At this point, young Paracelsus was a demon axe who had just gained sentience on that battlefield. Hot-headed and hungry for blood, and wanting to prove his combat superiority, he challenged Slayer and got curb stomped. Slayer was disappointed in how primitive Paracelsus still was in mind and soul, so he left him there to rust.

However eventually, Paracelsus was picked up from that battlefield and was sent to the alchemist Paracelsus, creator of A.B.A. We don’t know if the alchemist knew what the demon axe was, or whether he even requested him specifically for research. But the alchemist ultimately didn’t let Paracelsus out, not letting him take control over him and hiding him somewhere in the depths of his mansion.

(Inaccurate information removed, updating with A.B.A.'s JP GG World entry from XRD)

It would be after A.B.A.’s 10 year long isolation that she decided for reasons unknown, to leave the mansion and explore the outside world. By pure chance, she comes across Paracelsus, who because kinda resembled a key, she immediately picked up and she fell in love with him and decided they were married from then on.

Becoming her key

It's always been known that Paracelsus has some form of empathic abilities, and that he could tell that A.B.A. was fixated on keys and assumed the shape of a giant key to entice her to wield him. This was also the first ‘manipulation’ that Paracelsus admitted he had done to A.B.A. during their heart-to-heart talk.

It’s been further clarified in this recent interview, that it wasn’t so much Paracelsus deliberately taking the form of a key to attract ABA, but because ABA had been so heavily fixated on keys that she saw Paracelsus as a key straight away. That image she had of him as a key seemed to immediately imprint itself on him the moment she touched him, because of his true nature as “an axe (that) transforms into the owner’s image” of what his wielder wants him to be.

Slayer actually did mention this was likely the case over 20 IRL years ago in the audio drama CD, when he observed Paracelsus behaviour with A.B.A. in their second encounter.

Because A.B.A. never sees Paracelsus as a weapon, Paracelsus began to change to fit her ideal of what she saw him as, to become something more than just a weapon, and allowing Paracelsus to truly change and evolve physically and emotionally.

It’s important to note, Paracelsus isn’t bound to his wielder, and he doesn’t HAVE to allow this to happen either. Despite being dragged around by A.B.A. and acting like he has no autonomy; he actually has all the power to stop her from the start.

As Slayer notes, Para still has the power to completely take over A.B.A. 's mind and force her to do what he wants if he is truly unhappy. However he has never even threatened A.B.A. with this ability, and if not for Slayer knowing his past, no one would know Paracelsus actually can do this.

Whether consciously or subconsciously, Para was becoming more than just a demon axe from the moment he met A.B.A., and in his heart of hearts, he was begrudgingly accepting of his then situation-ship with her.

Fast forward to STRIVE and it's shown that he still continues to evolve to fulfill her 'vision' of what he is. When described as becoming more key-like, it's more obvious when you place both his old and new design side-by-side.

Notably, the blade part of his axe form has gotten smaller by STRIVE, just as he has sworn off violence and bloodshed by STRIVE.

It's even shown in how A.B.A. wields him., especially when Para partially possess or influences A.B.A. in his Muroha mode in the old games (mechanically this is the Jealous Mode in STRIVE). A.B.A. would wield him like a proper 'axe' blade-first in XX/ACCENT CORE. In STRIVE, since A.B.A. is now the dominant one in Jealous Rage mode, she doesn't wield him like an axe and now wields him by...bashing his head into people.

(Also I'll be going over the in-game animations and what they convey in a future post, don't you worry! You can view the comparison compilation here first.)

This even is shown in how A.B.A. uses Paracelsus as an actual key in her Overdrive "Keeper of the Key", which is a new move for her.

If we go further, I have speculated in this semi-crack theory that due to A.B.A. also interjecting her ideal of Paracelsus being her spouse over the years, that him actually 'reacting' to her advances now could also be an example of his evolution.

Even if he's trying REAL hard not to.

Hope this was an enjoyable read, let me know if you have any suggestions for improving readability or other stuff. Feel free to ask me questions through the inbox in the mean time that I'm working on the next part.

The next part is going to be analyzing and comparing Paracelsus' XX/ACCENT CORE Muroha mode to STRIVE's Jealous Rage mode, which has quite a bit of detail from comparing their effects on A.B.A. in in-game sprites/animations, plus how it reflects on the change in their power dynamics between games.

Edit: Part 2 available here

#guilty gear strive #a.b.a guilty gear #paracelsus guilty gear #long post is long #my analysis #arc system works #paraba #this is approximately a third or halfish of what I aimed for this week #character analysis #slayer guilty gear #daisuke ishiwatari #aba guilty gear

[aqualibr]

Random Astro Notes

Don’t steal any of this or at least give credit.

- People who lack air placements may be conservative and fixated on their own ideas. Individuals struggle exploring more than they know and lack objectivity.

– Moon square mars is an extremely tough placement to have. Anger is shown in an extreme way and more often than not it can become destructive. Emotions are repressed until they explode and harm others.

– If Venus is in Pisces it may showcase someone who pursues a fantasy and later becomes bored of it (doesn’t fulfill what they thought it would be like)

– 9th house synastry is one where you’ll learn to let go of control and be introduced to things you didn’t know before. It’s an experience you’ll never get twice.

– If you have Pluto in the 12th house there’s a huge chance there was a lost in your family before your mom was pregnant or before you were born.

– Cancer moons/mars are extremely vengeful. If they feel you’ve crossed them they’ll stick with it and try to destroy you over and over again until they feel you’ve learned your lesson. They believe they’re always the victim, so no matter what you say they’ll keep seeing you as their enemy.

– Between both mercurial risings, Virgo risings are better at communicating what needs to be said. Gemini risings, on the other hand, are better at engaging with an audience and keeping their attention.

– The degrees of your placements matter more than you think. If you’re a Virgo venus with a 9th degree you’ll be picky choosing your lovers and struggle with romance as a whole due to own insecurities but stick with foreign lovers and find beauty in imported things. This is because the 9th degree carries Sagittarius energy.

#astrology #moon square mars #synastry #astrology community #astro notes #astro observations #venus #virgo venus #venus in virgo #venus in pisces #pisces venus #pluto in the 12th house #pluto #cancer moon #cancer mars #mars in cancer #moon in cancer #virgo rising #gemini rising #9th house #tropical astrology

[nohaijiachi]

I got randomly recommended this video by YT and wrote a ginormous comment in response because I have no self control, apparently, so I thought I might as well also share my thoughts here in regard to whatever is going with THIS FUCKING SMILE

(under a cut to not clog y'alls dashboards)

(the first part of the comment here is a direct response to some of the ideas put forth in the video, it is very short so give it a quick watch for more context if you want)

Imo it's not necessary to look into overcomplicated theories that rely too much on off screen shenanigans to explain the smile, for how amusing the idea of them having swapped during the kiss is (like, the kind of stuff I won't want to be actually canon, but I'll be very happy to see explored in fan fics lol)

I think to fully explain that smile we have to take in consideration multiple factors:

This show is very purposeful in what it does and doesn't, well... show. That last shot is very long and I think the fact that Aziraphale's and Crowley's expressions in the aftermath of their disastrous break up is shown in such a manner tells us a LOT about the state of mind they might be at the start of S3, and the obstacles they'll have to face. Aziraphale doesn't immediately smile, rather he seems to look almost shell-shocked for most of the shot; it's clear (to me at least lol) that the quiet ride up the elevator is finally giving him some desperately needed time to fully digest everything that happened, because too much has happened in an extremely short amount of time, and we all know Aziraphale doesn't do well with speed lol.

But, for how much he can sometimes be a complete moron, he is smart, and all he needs are just those seconds of quiet to properly ponder on everything, on the choices made and the ramifications of said choices, and that's how we get to smile-- I'll delve into what I think Aziraphale is going through in his mind in more details later, because I also think it's necessary to focus a bit on Crowley's own expression, since the both of them are so intrinsically linked that the narrative cannot make sense without taking the both of them into account.

Crowley's expression is much more static and doesn't change the way Aziraphale's does; he looks profoundly tired in ways we've never seen him before. I don't think he's giving up on Aziraphale, and I fully believe the fact that he stood there and waited for Aziraphale to disappear in the elevator, the both of them sharing that last look, was a quiet message: He'll never give up on Aziraphale, he'll be there, waiting. But wait is all he can do for Aziraphale, now, because he can't follow where Aziraphale is going.

For how messy and full of heightened emotions the confession + kiss are, I think actually denying Aziraphale's request was a HUGE step forward for Crowley's character. He's never been able to deny Aziraphale, he always went back to him after every fight, and we all know how stupidly whipped for Aziraphale he is and how he'd empty the ocean with a spoon if Aziraphale asked him nicely-- But to actually put his foot down and say "no, I cannot do this for you" when asked to all but renounce the person he is now? Especially with how Aziraphale is all but begging him openly? That's a huge step, and something I think Crowley desperately needs to mature as a person (or, well, person-shaped being). We all love how Aziraphale has him wrapped around his little finger I'm sure, but we also all know that if they truly want to build a strong, healthy relationship they also both need to be able to keep their individuality and to put forth adequate boundaries about what they are willing to do for each other within reason.

Asking Crowley to come back to being an angel when he's made blatantly clear for six thousand bloody years how much he despises Heaven is not a 'within reason' request, innit?

So, yeah, for how heartbreaking the break-up was, in a sense Crowley needs it. They both do. They both need time apart to figure their own shit out, dismantle all those unhealthy habits they had to adopt in order to be with one another as safely as they possibly could while still 'employed', and then come back together with a clearer mind and a whole deal stronger than before, both as individuals and as a couple.

And I think how tired and downtrodden Crowley looks in that last shot is a precursor to this process, just as much as Aziraphale's smile is... So, let me get back to our favorite angel and what I personally think is going on with him.

I think to properly contextualize that smile we need to look at not just the happening of those infamous last fifteen minutes, but of S2 as a whole, and what Aziraphale does in it.

So, what is Aziraphale doing during S2?

At the start he seems to be more or less comfortably settled in his current life; he's as happy as ever doing what he's always done, enjoying humanity's creativity with his books and his music and his food and drinks, seemingly content to be puttering about in his bookshop (which is a stark contrast with Crowley's homelessness and his kinda adrift and depressed attitude). Of course then Jim!Gabriel throws a wrench right into that, but imo I think there was a lot more going on behind the facade of Aziraphale's well ingrained habits.

Sure, he still has all of his familiar comforts and his routine, but from the moment we see him interact with Crowley I saw a deep restlessness emerge in him: The panicked look he launches Crowley when Nina asks him about his 'naked man friend', the way he speaks with Crowley with all those 'our' he uses, the blatant way he keeps reaching over and touching Crowley-- To me that suggests that Aziraphale is clearly not as happy as he seems to be on a superficial glance. He clearly wants more with Crowley, wants to bring their relationship to the next step, but because the both of them are so deeply entrenched in their unhealthy coping mechanisms and habits and their inability to openly communicate it doesn't even occur to Aziraphale to just... You know. Take the first step, actually say something about it. So he just keeps throwing bait after bait in the water, hoping Crowley will bite and be the one taking the initiative as he's always done, finally allowing Aziraphale to accept said initiative, this time around.

Of course, we all see that Crowley doesn't take any first step, which is probably something deeply frustrating for Aziraphale at a subconscious level. That's how we get the ball; sure, on the face of it it was Aziraphale's way to make Nina and Maggie fall in love, but... Was it, really? Let's be real, for how entirely believable it is that Aziraphale makes up the lie about Nina and Maggie's love to cover for their miracle is, since we've seen him being anxious around other angels, I don't think for a second that had Aziraphale just stopped and spent three minutes thinking about it he wouldn't have found a way to convince Muriel that Nina and Maggie were, in fact, in love, especially with how 'green' Muriel is about humans.

I fully believe that Aziraphale is not properly thinking during S2, period. He's frustrated by his inability to bring his and Crowley's relationship to what he wants it to be, and that frustration and single-minded objective is utterly obfuscating his thought process. There are plenty of moments he seemed almost manic, imo, which I read as another sign about his 'impaired' (allow me the term) state of mind as of S2.

So, yes, the ball: On the face of it something to actually turn his lie to the Archangels into truth, but deeper down, perhaps almost unconsciously, I think Aziraphale sees the ball as a way to finally make him and Crowley happen. That fact that he's taking pointers about romance from human literature is blatant, and obviously he truly does believe the ball will be THE way to make love bloom.

If you stop and think about it, the ball scene is terrifying. These people are being manipulated to play the perfect background parts to make, what is in Aziraphale's mind, the height of romance atmosphere happen. The fact we get a juxtaposition with Nina's "what the F is going on, am I losing my mind???" rightful attitude underlines this. And I truly believe Aziraphale isn't exerting said manipulation with intent, but rather doing so subconsciously, because he's just so fixated on the idea of having finally the perfect set-up to have Crowley as he desires that he is influencing everything around him. After all, we all know they both have the tendency of making things happen the way they want simply by thinking that's how things are supposed to happen.

And again, he's so manic and giddy when he asks Crowley to dance, his ass is not LISTENING. He literally needed a brick thrown through a window to snap out of it.

So, in the present we have an Aziraphale who , in his own way, is trying to take the initiative, come out with plans. There is a moment that I think might have slipped under the radar of a lot of people but that's frightfully important about who Aziraphale is at this point in the story, and who he will need to become: "I have a plan," Aziraphale said to Crowley during the stare down with the demons outside of the bookshop after the ruined ball; Crowley didn't even seem to have registered that sentence at all, because his mind is already projected forward and going a mile a minute about what to do to keep both the humans and Aziraphale safe in this situation.

Crowley, who loves to swoop in and save Aziraphale, doing what he's always done to keep his angel safe, even to the detriment of their relationship with one another... And Aziraphale, who adores playing the part of the damsel in distress in turn, is actually telling Crowley that *he has a plan*.

That's not something to take lightly, methinks. That's very much just another sign that Aziraphale's individuality is struggling, trying to emerge through Aziraphale's anxiety and doubts and fears and deeply ingrained habits. Aziraphale's cognitive dissonance in regards to heaven, and his shaken faith in God are huge motivators of his actions, and in the grand scheme of things the scant few years he had away from under the oppressive thumb of heaven is nothing. It was barely any time at all in the face of the eternity of an immortal life spent under that oppression, and yet we are already seeing little glimpses of Aziraphale's rebellious side struggling to get fully free.

I think these little glimpses inform us at great lengths about the evolution Aziraphale's character will go through in S3, and greatly explains that strange smile right at the end; in my opinion that smile isn't the smile of someone who's trying to convince himself that he's ok, or realizing that Crowley loves him (he knew already, they both knew and have known for a long time, their inability to properly express those feelings was their downfall, but I don't think either of them has doubted even for a second when it comes to how much they love one another). In my opinion that smile is the smile of someone who is steeling himself for what he envisions in his future; equal parts old-sedated anxiety and yet determination to actually enact plans he's surely concocting in his brilliant little mind. That's the smile of someone who has just realized that not only they can, but that they need to do something, and you can damn well be sure they won't be sitting and twiddling their thumbs waiting to be saved, but they'll be the one saving themselves and everybody else along with 'em, this time.

Just as Crowley needs to actually spend some time define himself as himself, and not just in relation to Aziraphale, Aziraphale needs to spend some time shedding all those fears and doubts that are weighing him down, and emerge the other side someone much more self-assured and ready to do what he thinks is right without all the hesitations that have indirectly been strengthened by Crowley; in a way, by allowing Aziraphale an out with his 'temptations', Crowley had been feeding into those hesitations, and had been holding Aziraphale back from fully maturing, even if not done on purpose, obviously. Imo is very important for Aziraphale's character that he comes to realize that he doesn't need those excuses Crowley gifted him to keep doing what he thinks is right, that he actualizes his own morality properly, and enacts on it.

I don't have the faintest clue about what is going to happen in S3, but I do fully believe the above paragraph is what Aziraphale and Crowley's respective character arcs will focus on. And once they'll come back together they'll be the most power couple that has ever power coupl-ed, and the Metatron will have no clue about what is about to hit him >:)

#good omens #good omens 2 #meta #I want Aziraphale to Fuck Shit Up in S3 #you think I was joking with that comic I drew some time ago? #I am NOT! #LET AZIRAPHALE FUCK SHIT UP HE DESERVES IT