#brilliant post

[thesnadger]

I have a question about this image of Xanathar's Thieves Guild.

Why does he have sexily lounging elf boys?

I ask because I cannot imagine a beholder being attracted to anything other than itself. Does he just understand Sexily Lounging Elf Boys to be a status symbol, and he wants anyone who visits to know he can afford Sexily Lounging Elf Boys?

Maybe I'm the asshole here for assuming. Maybe these boyfriends are master tacticians here to advise Xanathar, they happen to like wearing leather pants and no shirts and I should be less quick to reduce them to sex objects.

I don't care, I love it, this is all I can think of every time I see it:

#dnd #xanathar #long post #i feel in my bones that an early draft of this image had some typical frazetta-esque bikini girls here #and then a brilliant and heroic artist said no-- shirtless dudes #described in alt text

[wherewolf]

the responses i’ve seen to shiv’s ending seem very quick to write her off as just another sad victim of the cycle, which isn’t without truth BUT!!! that is not even remotely the summation of shiv’s story.

i don’t think she votes yes to “save kendall” or to try to finally set her brothers free. and i don’t think her main concern was that ken was becoming their dad. she absolutely noticed and didn’t love it, but that was not her motivation in betraying him. she was thinking about herself.

it’s tempting to make a martyr out of her as she is the only female child and we see her suffer the onslaught of misogyny that comes with that. but to make her into a saintlike figure who got beat takes away the power and intelligence behind her decision.

at this point she’s stuck between two non ideal choices, but she recognizes that they have accidentally made her the single most important player in the game. because while she can’t have the outcome she’d prefer, she has the power to decide the fates of everyone else. the written off lone woman now holds in her hands the fate of every man in her life.

so she thinks about the long term benefits of both options and realizes that one side leaves her completely without any leverage.

her brothers have proven to her multiple times in the last few days alone that they will cut her out and walk all over her the first chance they get. siding with them leaves her nothing to bargain with. she would just have to hope that ken would actually take care of her. and that level of vulnerability is not only unacceptable to her, it’s stupid. and shiv fuckin roy is not stupid.

so she thinks about the other side and about what she actually wants for her life. and against her better judgment, it’s becomes unfortunately clear that she wants tom. the way she wants him is not altogether loving or even good but it is necessary to her. she sees relationships as having winners and losers and she chose this man specifically so that she could be confident in her ability to win. except now he’s grown some balls and made himself unavailable to her.

she may not like the way her husband is evolving but she already placed her bets on him, so she’s sure as hell not losing to him now. there’s also a part of her that feels intrigued by this new man she’s married to. it’s interesting to have a sparring partner in him instead of having to looking for excitement outside of their marriage.

so for maybe the first time ever, she processes what tom has said to her and thinks about what he actually wants.

he needs her to prove that she cares. he needs to know that she is capable of sacrifice. if she can’t find it within herself to do this for him, then she will lose him, and by extension, she will lose.

siding with tom gives her the opportunity to once and for all make a grand-stand gesture of love, but more importantly, it creates leverage for her. never again will he be able to hold the moral high ground over her head. never again can he say she doesn’t love him. never again can he call her selfish or uncaring. above all, he can never betray her again, because she just removed all of his moral justification for turning on her. he doesn’t realize it yet, but she’s just taken back all the power in their relationship. just in a more subtle way than she’s used to operating.

and just like that, she has the ceo of a multi billion dollar company in her pocket, while situating herself as the only descendant of logan roy to still be playing the game, having removed her brothers from the equation permanently. she may still be far from the top but she’s creating a path for herself to climb.

so yes, she’ll let tom play king for a day, and she’ll have his baby and say “congratulations,” and play the gracious wife, but tomorrow is a new day with lots of room to maneuver. and when her husband puts out his hand, she’ll place her own on top. but she won’t grasp it because she doesn’t need to.

#🐺 #shivy’s gonna be just fine #okay this ended up being a very long post but #i feel like someone needed to point out her wins #also i’m fully aware that remaining in the toxic world of the family business is not a win rly but #i think her ending is being interpreted as powerlessness #which it is NOT #she chose her spot. she’s calling shots #she may not have won today but she sure as hell didn’t lose #let’s not work so hard to sanctify her that we remove everything about her that makes her such a brilliant character #succession #shiv roy #siobhan roy #scn #tv

[junemo10]

Merlin: *Sneaks into the castle at 2am after fighting a magical evil*

Arthur: *turns around in a swivel chair* care to tell me where you were?

Merlin, hiding magical object behind his back: uh I was… with Gwaine!Tavern nights you know…

Gwaine: *also turns around in swivel chair* Care to- *keeps spinning* wait- help I can’t stop-

#I would like to think ARTHUR and all the knights are sitting in swivels chairs waiting to be mentioned as an excuse only to turn around #the fact that Arthur and Gwaine stay up waiting for him too #SORRY IM #so sorry #BASED ON FUNNY POST #BRILLIANT #I got the idea from I post I saw a while back -> #source: incorrect stranger things quotes #merlin #merthur #arthur pendragon #bbc merlin #gwaine #merthur incorrect quotes #incorrect merlin quotes

[comradekatara]

katara’s role as the show’s narrator is so underrated because no one really seems to understand just how deeply katara is impacted by the nature of stories, with regards to their craft, their promulgation, and their cultural significance, so they don’t truly register the sheer metatextual brilliance of having her be the resident storyteller of the narrative itself.

the first thing atla establishes about katara is that she is someone who is fueled by dreams and fantasies, and believes in a return to a world where “all four nations lived together in harmony” (which is obviously an illusory ideal, as there was always geopolitical strife even if it wasn’t as overt as the devastating imperialist project they are now subject to), described to her by kanna’s stories about the old days.

katara is someone who indulges in fantasies of adventure and heroism, projecting these ideals onto both herself and others. she is an idealist in the truest, purest sense of the word, and what is an idealist if not someone who tells themselves stories about a more beautiful world to survive?

it’s no coincidence that the episode where katara successfully scares everyone with a very compellingly narrated campfire story is the same episode that she must contend with her heritage, the ominous lacunae in her stories, the pitfalls of her own naive idealization. it’s also not a coincidence that the story she tells was first told to her by her mother.

katara grew up hearing stories passed down to her from kanna and kya, and those stories gave her hope and brought her the possibility of happiness in a bleak, cruel world where she was ultimately alone. there used to be people like her, said the stories, and they were brave, and they fought til their final breaths to hold onto their culture, their love for their people, their humanity.

well that’s who i’m going to be, says katara. someone who fights, someone who cannot be knocked down (because there is no one else left to take her place), someone who will never cease to have faith in the capacity of others for good, for truth, and for justice.

stories are her heritage, they are her culture, they are how she defines herself and how she understands the world around her. stories are how she copes, how she survives; they are all she has left to cling to. and sometimes they are reductive, and sometimes they are outright false, but that’s okay too. she grows, she adjusts her narratives, she learns to leave room for more grey in her neat tapestries of black and white. stories can define a tragic past, but they can also pave the way for a better future. she keeps telling stories.

#i could sunlit garden this girl so easy (probably what hama was thinking) #katara #analysis #kanna&katara #katara&kya #hama&katara #this is also what makes the southern raiders so brilliant as the apotheosis of her arc #but that’s for another post #(one that I’ve probably made before lbr) #everyone in atla has a sunlit garden / mythmaking event / whatever you wanna call it #but katara is the QUEEN of narrativization #and you do not get katara at ALL until you get this #fyi. #anyway i love her so much that i nearly teared up writing this. it’s whatever tho

[bloodaria]

Hannibal + the wounds of Christ

The hole in his right hand - Jack The hole in his left hand - Hannibal The crown of thorns - Will The hole in his right foot - Hannibal The hole in his left foot - Jack

#hannibal #nbc hannibal #hannibaledit #will graham #hannibal lecter #jack crawford #m* #hoow brilliant is this though. will IS a christ figure but his body doesn't belong to him #he's literally torn in two opposing directions; between jack and hannibal #he suffers for both their causes #saw a post loong ago which said a similar thing which i got inspiration from but it mentioned only the foot wounds and not the hand wounds #i. made a mistake that's jack's left hand #oh well i think the analogy is still intentional

[drbtinglecannon]

I'm rewatching Glass Onion after literally just finishing it like you do, and the way that Lionel is supposed to be a brilliant scientist but didn't solve a single piece of the puzzle box himself was such a good detail, I noticed it the first watch but on the second it's got even more depth to it.

He couldn't do anything without following Miles, and Miles was a dumbass. Canonically, a manipulative dumbass. Who so thoroughly whipped an actual clever scientist into being his lapdog that didn't do anything without first being led or prompted.

Duke's mom figured out the box in a simple glance. And the genius scientist needed to be told.

#glass onion #glass onion spoilers #knives out #i wanna write about small moments that clearly displayed each char early on. i just loved that scene so much bc the mom was BRILLIANT in it #tc posts

[daisyswift3]

So I think I may have cracked the code. Listening to Clara Bow w this context in mind from the 4th, 9th, and 10th 🎃 messages makes the lyrics cut even deeper and explains the purpose of the anthology.

What Taylor is essentially saying is that above all else she is proud of her humanity. “Human. Human. Human.” “Flesh and blood.” Unlike some ppl in Hollywood like greedy big suits (cough SB^2 cough Big Machine cough) she’s managed to keep her humanity intact and didn’t let these negative experiences corrupt her or turn her bitter. She was able to find peace and courage in spite of it. And she’s saying I am abt to come out of the closet and while I am hopeful I’m also a little fearful. But isn’t that an amazing thing? Because being fearful, sad, furious, insecure, hopeful—these experiences are unique to humans! “Your heart beats red and hot and furious in your chest.”

“And most importantly, they will know about the human heart.” THIS is the purpose of the anthology. This is why she released 31 (13 backwards) songs for her fans to dissect and decode. Bc she wants them to understand that she’s not a god. She’s a flawed human just like the rest of us.

I think there’s a very good chance that THIS is what her movie is going to be about. Her journey out of the closet and all the hardship that came along w it and helping other ppl to understand the human heart. And I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a memoir that was released w it—“the professor said to write what you know.” And it makes sense too why the manuscript lyrics match perfectly w the all too well short film. Bc they’re talking abt the exact same thing!! She has a relationship w a much older man, experiences heartbreak, heals, and then writes abt it in a book—the story of us AKA the manuscript.

And this is why 🎃 kept referencing the story of us. I couldn't make sense of it a few months ago but now in hindsight it all makes perfect sense. Message in a bottle was probably a red tv vault track for this reason too. Bc the message in a bottle is the manuscript. The puzzle pieces really do all fall right into place.

#taylor u fucking crazy brilliant woman #this is literally the whole ‘fucking story’ #it literally just clicked for me that this is why she had the film references at the end of the manuscript #idk that i’m gonna survive the movie #thank you 🎃 anon for sending these beautiful messages and giving more context to these already incredible songs #i can’t believe i get to be alive to witness this i am actually in awe #ik none of this has happened yet but i just wanna say that i am so proud of u already taylor #we’ll be here every step of the way #pumpkin #clara bow #kaylor #closeting #ttpd #the manuscript #all too well #all too well short film #all too well 10 min version #post malone #message in a bottle

[fixing-bad-posts]

[Image description: A tumblr text-post, edited blackout-poetry style to read, "this post is an admittance to trans being brilliant couldnt make this shit up".]

---

this post is an admittance to trans being brilliant couldnt make this shit up

#fixingbadposts #fixing-bad-posts #blackout poetry #trans #transgender #trans is brilliant #trans pride #trans positivity #queer

[mizgnomer]

David Tennant's red carpet look at the EE BAFTA Film Awards - February 2024

for Tennant Tuesday (or whatever day this post finds you)

#david tennant #tennant tuesday #I am a huge fan of this suit #what a gorgeous pattern #baftas #ee bafta film awards #he wore it well #stuff i posted #yet another brilliant Joshua Kane design

[witchinatree]

i know the whole "do you think jon ever used his powers to Know what his parents looked like" thing is far more devastating than this but what if he tried using his powers to remember original sasha? jon and sasha always seemed closer than the rest, he picked her (and tim) to work with him and tolerated a lot more nonsense from her than anyone else (using his password to access his computer [161], debating his pronunciation of calliope [25], etc)

and ofc jon and martin became significantly closer as the podcast went on, but in the beginning he was cruel to martin when he gave a statement but accepting of sasha? idk i think their friendship was a lot deeper than we realized (ESPECIALLY since his first murder in season 5 was because NotThem provoked him about sasha) and i think jon wouldve used his powers to Know the original sasha, not sure if it wouldve worked though

so so sorry to distract from the post but can yall read the tags for me because i suffered immensely for this post

#they make me ill #sasha was so cool i miss her every day #i think we need more sasha content #idk i wish we got more of them specifically #THIS POST. HAS CRASHED. 4. TIMES. #i am trying to write about the magnus archives and its like “hee hee tumbeast ate your post” give it the fuck back? #it saved to my drafts after the 4th tag but this is pissing me off #every time i try to tag it as “tma” it crashes so im not doing that #just pretend i did ok #16 more times total of 20 every time i try to write tags it crashes #it wont let me write the archivists name im genuinely so serious #please help me please help me #im gonna sit here for a second and let it save as draft #6 more times #ur joking #total of 26 crashes over this one post #hate to distract from my incredibly brilliant insight but this is unusable #i think its okay again actually? #gonna try tagging with real tags wish me luck #jonathan sims #jon sims #sasha james #tma #the magnus archives #the archivist #notthem #notsasha #tma theory #tma spoilers #holy shit it worked

[paint-it-dead]

sooo *twirls hair* berserk has everything-

#berserk #guts #griffith #casca #farnese #charlotte #griffguts #gutsca #farnesca #chargriff #my posts #berserk manga #berserk funny #idk what else to tag bleghhh #anywaysss #thought this was funny sooo enjoy the product of a whole 5 min of editing(can yall tell im shit at it?) #*slams roof of berserk* this bad boy can fit so many confusing ships in it #im not 100% certain of farnesce but in the good version of it thats in my head they meet when theyre both leaders of their respective #troops/soldiers/mercenaries and they have a shounen homoerotic rivalry going on.... its BRILLIANT #also why does griffith make everything he's in extremely yuri?? it should be studied #must be the oscar françois de jarjayes in him

[bahrmp3]

[ID: 13 gifs from season 3, episode 1 “the search, part 1” from the tv series “star trek: deep space nine”, the gifs show benjamin sisko and jadzia dax in the wardroom. jadzia is seated while sisko is standing in front of a monitor.

1st gif: “you know, after jennifer died, i never thought i would see you this passionate about something again.” jadzia tells sisko.

2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th gif: the camera shifts to sisko, who has his arms are crossed in front of him and takes a couple of steps forward, the camera moves with him, “two months ago, i would have agreed with you.” he takes a seat, and the camera focuses on him. “then i went back to earth and i spent all those weeks debriefing at starfleet headquarters. and i… i used to get a thrill just walking into that building. i'd look around at the admirals and think, "one day, that's going to be me." "one day, i'm the one that's going to be making the big decisions."” sisko is slightly smiling at the end.

7th gif: jadzia laughs as she recalls, “curzon always thought that was very funny.”

8th, 9th gif: the camera cuts to sisko, “did he?” then back to jadzia as she explains, “what i mean is he could never see a set of admiral stars on your collar. he thought that just making the decisions would never satisfy you. you had to implement them – “

10th gif: a shift to show sisko listening to jadzia, “see the results, face the consequences.”

11th gif: “curzon always thought you were the kind of man who had to be in the thick of things -- not behind some desk at headquarters.”

12th gif: “he was a smart old man, wasn't he?” sisko gets up and returns to the monitor.

13th gif: “he'd like to think so.” jadzia confirms. /end ID]

#startrekedit #trekedit #scifiedit #ds9edit #deep space nine #deep space 9 #benjamin sisko #jadzia dax #ds9 #ds9* #tv* #my stuff #* #** #long post #hmm i hate how this looks ngl? kind of wanted to make it longer ie when sisko was talking about prep for the invasion and then dax goes you #know? this life looks good on you #i love love love how you can see avery's stressing some words /big/ decisions etc brilliant mannerism imo #but also speaking of earth the scene with jake earlier in the ep of when did ds9 become home? i want to gif that as well #every mention of jennifer is so well done imo too like the mirror episode when sisko goes jennifer??? when “smiley” shows him etc etc #but also like i just told fra the laugh? the pause? the dax but not jadzia? 👌🏽👌🏽

[glitterslag]

ok this is my last one of these. maybe

#his mattress is on the ground bc he is a floorboy next question #rhombus one is particularly silly i love making fun of his synesthesia #pretty sure the lori pic is from a deleted scene but you can't tell me that wasn't the dynamic of that relationship #also love a cheeky lisa apologist post. womens wrongs etc #always gonna love and support the women of TD S1 and hate marty (affectionate) and feel... ambivalent at best towards nic pizzolatto #like thank you for writing the show but also i probably hate you #starting night country tonight and i'm excited to cement my hatred of him because i just KNOW it'll be brilliant and he's just butthurt #true detective #rust cohle #marty hart

[the-badger-mole]

https://www.tumblr.com/vampireapologist/742154547980648448/i-can-fix-him-good-for-you-i-can-be-the

I saw this and it reminded me of some of your takes on aang

No notes. This is a perfect breakdown of how Katara was treated, right down to literally being a metaphor for the entire people Aang lost. I just wish she had been able to dump the little creep and have the ending she deserved with Zuko

#atla #zutara #anti aang #anti kataang #i'm not blurring out the op's name because this is a brilliant post #it's not actually about atla or kataang #they might not have even watched the show for all I know #and isn't it just such a shame that something like this can apply to SO many stories?

[igniting-quill]

Can I mention the brilliance the RF Kuang did with Robin Swift’s name? No, not “Robin Swift,” but his original one. We’ll never know what his original name was. I was waiting, all 500+ pages, and on the last one with Robin’s POV, we get nothing.

But he gets his name back. After all his suffering, I’m inclined to believe that he deserves it.

#I can't stop thinking about this goddamn brilliant book #robin swift #babel an arcane history #babel rf kuang #rf kuang #babel or the necessity of violence #babel an arcane #babel: an arcane history #I ramble #a little less lol #igniting-quill #babel #my post #my posts

[akemi-snow]

KakaIru + Those Four Guys From Naruto

I'll assume you've seen the original versions with the canon couples. (I'd link it but have no idea what the OG really is). Now it's the gae version.

#kakairu #koteizu #Genrai #Naruto #Those two guys from Naruto #those two guys from naruto but it's not those two guys #genma shiranui #namiashi raidou #hagane kotetsu #izumo kamizuki #the funniest bit of this is that izumo's screencap isn't edited. Demon Possessed Izumo canon #Also funny that literally 2 seconds after that he's already putting his anger behind because he had a DUO battle tactic idea #Izumo: *is ready to falcon punch Kotetsu into another dimension after embarrassing him in front of 2 ANBU jonin* #Also Izumo: *includes his buddy his friend his sun and stars into his tactic ideas regardless because Friendship Means Friend* #Izumo is the embodiment of 'Just because I'm mad at you doesn't mean I stopped caring' #Also Izumo is currently on duty in that scene + dealing with Ko's lazy ass + just embarrassed himself in front of 2 respected jonin -> #and STILL had an idea for a killer top tier tactic right there. Brilliant baby. Smart boi. Intelligent cutie. Creative little muffin. I lov #Also this is in no way a diss to iruka. Iruka bby. Iruka my boy. Iruka my heart & soul since naruto 1st aired. i love u bby. #Kotetsu in canon: Wants to fight Izumo. Kotetsu as soon as Izumo wants to fight: NOPE *runs* #also gonna post the not gay version for the non shipper side of fandom. Not like I have more than 4 followers but in case it makes it out #It's just. I've seen The 4 Guys being shipped in PLENTY KakaIru fics. So I assumed someone might enjoy this lmao #also because i ship these 3. Everything gay I ship. I love me some non toxic masculine intimate friendship but I also love my gay sorry