#but it was a very specific set of circumstances

[theerurishipper]

I feel like people really underestimate the importance of Dick being the first Robin. Like, reverse Robin AUs are interesting and such, but I just hope people realize that in the context of canon, they would never work. The reason Batman and Robin ever works is because the first Robin was Dick Grayson specifically. Because Bruce would never have taken in any child if Dick's tragedy hadn't specifically happened to mirror his own experience. Dick Grayson was the only one Bruce truly saw himself in first, because the fundamental event that defines them is the same. And he sees the opportunity to help someone the way he was never helped, to make sure that Dick didn't go down the dark path he did. So, my point here is that the only one Bruce actually made the choice to take in, the only one who could kickstart it all, is Dick Grayson, because he is the only one with whom Bruce could immediately empathize and connect with.

This never happened with any other Robin. He took in Jason because he missed Dick, he took in Tim because Tim forced himself into the role, he took in Steph because he was trying to make Tim come back to being Robin, and Dick made Damian Robin. Of course, he loved all of them, and they all have their unique relationships with Bruce that are very important and inform their characters, and he does need them too. But he specifically formed this connection with Dick that made Dick the only person he ever considered taking in. It took a very specific set of circumstances in Dick's backstory that made Bruce commit an impulse adoption that just isn't really present in any other Robin's story. And the reason Jason or Tim or Steph or Damian or anyone else whom Bruce has taken under his wing even got that chance is because of the work Dick Grayson put into Bruce Wayne.

Before Dick, Bruce was reckless and didn't care at all about himself, to the point of almost being borderline suicidal. He was more brutal, more violent, etc. The reason all this changed, is because of Dick Grayson specifically. He was the one with whom Bruce opened up, with whom Bruce was forced to grow up, to take responsibility and learn to take care of both Dick and himself. Dick, to Bruce was the one who brought "color to their [his and Alfred's] monochrome lives." Dick Grayson's specific brand of happiness and joy changed Bruce for the better. Dick gave Bruce hope. This is true for other Robins too, but only because they followed the precedent that Dick Grayson set, only because they slid into his role (they have their own interesting relationships with Bruce, but this specifically is from Dick that other Robins carried on. A legacy, if you will). Dick Grayson turned Bruce into the kind of man who would become a serial adopter.

Without his influence, without his precedent, there would be no Batfamily, because Bruce would never have gotten to the point where he would be able or willing to take in someone else and care for them properly (It took living through his trauma again to get him to take Dick in lmao). Hell, there would be no Batman because Bruce would have gotten himself killed a long time ago if Dick hadn't helped him learn self-care. Dick knows Bruce best, because he understands him on a fundamentally deeper level than anyone else in the world. And he's the only one who can make Bruce open up at his rawest, most downtrodden state. He is the only one who can give Bruce at his lowest that kind of hope. There is no Robin without Dick Grayson. It's literally a tribute to his parents, using their colors and the name his mother called him. He created that identity as a symbol of hope. He helped Bruce become the kind of man who could and would let other people that he had to care for into his life. Without Dick Grayson, you can simply forget about any other Robin or the Batfamily as a concept even existing.

#DC #DCU #DC Comics #Bruce Wayne #Batman #Dick Grayson #Jason Todd #Tim Drake #Stephanie Brown #Damian Wayne #Nightwing #Red Hood #Red Robin #Spoiler #Robin #The Batman 2022 #Robin I #My meta #Meta #TL;DR Dick Grayson is the only one who is emotionally intelligent enough to be an emotional crutch to pull Bruce Wayne out of the darkness #And without him Bruce never would have taken in anyone else #This post is mainly about The Batman 2022 btw #I see a lot of people asking for Robin but they want Jason to be the first Robin for some reason #And that's interesting but Bruce doesn't need just a Robin. He needs Dick specifically #That's what's best for his character progression and it makes the most sense from a thematic perspective too #But that's for another post

[flightfoot]

I just recently saw some asks you were given about Chloé Burgeois and they made me curious. I know that you like her earlier portrayal, but what do you think of her in later seasons? Personally, I have come to at least appreciate what I think the show was trying to do, execution aside. Chloe was like Ramses in the prince of Egypt: Just because they had sympathetic traits and backstory doesn't mean that they would get better. They doubled down at almost every opportunity until it was too late.

I can kinda see where they might have been going with that, it just doesn't work so well with Chloe, because well, Chloe's a kid, not an adult, and the ones who ultimately enabled or abused her, her parents, got lesser "punishments" than she did.

I've seen the kind of storyline you're talking about work, specifically with Simon from Infinity Train. But in that case, there hadn't been any higher authority figure guiding or enabling his actions for a very long time, he'd BEEN the highest authority figure around for years now, so there wasn't really anyone else who could be blamed for sending Simon down the path he was on, or for not stopping him from going down that path (Grace was about his age and had about the same amount of power as him). Also, notably, Simon was 18, so he was technically an adult at the point when he went off the deep end.

So yeah. That kind of storyline CAN work and be very compelling (hell from what I know of it, that's Walter White's storyline in Breaking Bad), but with the specific circumstances set up for Chloe in Miraculous, the execution doesn't work.

#ask #chloe bourgeois #ml crit

[ichihime]

Hi, what are your favorite IH romance tropes that they've got in canon?

hiya! at the risk of sounding like a bit of a wet blanket, i'm not too into assigning tropes to stories or couples or relationships bc it sometimes feels a bit reductive and limiting i guess?

that said, i can list some stuff about the IH relationship portrayal that i'm drawn to and enjoy:

i like how they have a shared theme of losing a parental figure at an early age. and even more specifically, blaming the having that figure return as a hollow to challenge their guilt and grief. these events set them on their own independent stories that allow them to be highly empathetic and understanding of one another's circumstances.

what's more, i think these events also help to shape the shared importance and concept of "family" that ichigo and orihime both have in common.

i love how protective they are of one another, and while this is simply part of their inherent nature as characters and they will extend this protection to others they care about, both ichigo and orihime consistently single one another out as someone they must singularly protect.

i love the progression of their relationship from strangers, to acquaintances, to friend of a friend, to friends, to trusted ally, to lovers! i think the progression of their relationship is very natural and realistic.

i like how their relationship also deals with a very real issue of communication, feelings of inadequacy, and the desperation of wanting to protect someone all on your own-- both ichigo and orihime learn that their way of going about things is not viable in the long term and both grow independently of one another AND together. i love their miscommunication and conflict in the HM arc, the question of "can they trust each other" being challenged by the villains and each time they come back with a stronger resolve and answer "yes. we may not fully understand each other because we're all fundamentally different people, but we have a bond that cannot be broken. so of course i trust you"

the portrayal of the feelings they have for one another is so uniquely tender and honest within the genre. ichihime is truly in its own league compared to other shounen couples!

i like how they share the same interests and banter with each other; that they can hold conversations as friends and still be romantic as well. its really important to me when it comes to the believability of a romance-- i need to believe they can be each others friend too!

i love how well their fighting styles complement each other in battle! they truly are like a sword and shield

those are just off the top of my head, but i hope that can answer your question!

[sonknuxadow]

a lot of people tend to portray werehog as like this super violent and feral monster and imo it often feels kinda off like people are just doing it for the sake of having an angsty werewolf story and no other reason and are ignoring the actual context of the werehog stuff . but one example of how to do something like that right in my opinion is how archie sonic did it . archie werehog was so good ive been saying this forever

#i think the thing about (some not all) more violent fanon takes on the werehog that bothers me #is that they make him out to be inherently dangerous and have sonic go around attacking people Just Because #and treat it more like his evil dark side rather than just sonic himself . you know . #but archie didnt do any of those things #werehog wasnt inherently dangerous it was just a specific set of circumstances that led to that one violent outburst #and sonic also had an actual reason to behave that way (dark gaia warping his perception) #and the solution to sonic acting like that was to accept it rather than try to control it #so good stuff all around they fed the werehog enjoyers very good with that one

[marypsue]

'No Archive Warnings Apply' does not mean 'Rated E for Everyone! Nothing that anyone could possibly find objectionable is contained herein!'

'Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings' does not mean 'Contains One Or More Of The Archive Warnings, something in here Will upset you!'

There are currently four Archive warnings. They are for Graphic Depictions of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con, and Underage.

I can write (I have written) psychological horror, or fics about abusive relationships, or other dark subject matter, or, hell, explicit porn, that hit none of these Archive warnings. They are all (correctly) marked 'No Archive Warnings Apply'. Because none of the content that the Archive warnings apply to is contained in them.

Does that mean they're G-rated family-friendly Disney fluff? Fuck no! And if someone's been misled to think that 'No Archive Warnings Apply' means 'Inoffensive To Everyone, You Can Show This To Any Given Five-Year-Old', they are going to have wildly incorrect expectations going into those fics, and may not be prepared for what they find. Which isn't fair to them as a reader or me as a writer.

'Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings' just means literally exactly what it says on the tin. The author chose not to use the Archive warnings. It might contain content that they'd have to warn for. It might not. Some authors are personally opposed to the whole concept of trigger tags and warnings, and simply refuse to use them even in their most G-rated inoffensive fic ('Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings' was, IIRC, partly a compromise for these authors when the Archive was being designed). Fics that get imported from other sites en masse for preservation are also automatically slapped with this label, because nobody has time to go through each and every fic to see if they contain content that would fall under the Archive warnings, and the authors aren't always available to do it themselves. (Sometimes the authors have moved on, or are uncontactable. Sometimes the authors are literally dead.)

'Chose Not To Use Content Warnings' is the 'No Lifeguard On Duty: Swim At Own Risk' of the AO3. It doesn't mean there's a ripcurrent out there that will drown you if you set foot in the water. It means you have to judge your own strength as a swimmer, what the shoreline looks like, and what risks you're willing to take.

Unlike the 'Gen/Teen/Mature/Explicit' rating system, which has some overlap and some significant wiggle room for interpretation, the Archive warnings are incredibly clear about what they cover and what they don't cover. Please don't read into them any farther than what they say on the tin. Providing that kind of context is what the ratings and additional tags are for!

#saw a post lads #I am not getting into whether the Archive warnings are sufficient as they are or if we need additional Archive warnings #just that the ones that we currently have are very very clear and for a very specific narrow set of circumstances #and trying to use them in other ways is only going to lead to people being confused and frustrated! #please do use the ratings and additional tags in conjunction with the warnings! that's the point!

[chocodile]

Finished some more toy customization! Here’s the little house I repainted for @kwillow​‘s Ambroys. I love the Rococo-esque sculpting on the Towns series houses--perfect for a 1700s noble prettyboy horse--but they definitely need a bit of paint to bring out that detail. :) For reference, I’ve included what the house looked like prior to painting under the cut:

Most of the furniture is either standard Sylvanian furniture or generic dollhouse furniture, though I did partially repaint the vanity set.

#sylvanian families #doll customization #calico critters #calico critters custom #doll custom #art dolls #crafts #others' ocs #ambroys #verse: amaranthine #It takes a very specific set of circumstances for someone like me to voluntarily buy a pink dollhouse vanity set #and that circumstance is 'Ambroys'

[qserasera]

kim dokja didn't gift yoo joonghyuk just one but TWO special swords and like

for the second sword once yjh receives it, kdj sees him and says 'i saw yjh scratch some marks on the ground with the sword and stood up. i could tell he was in a good mood'

me: 😭😭😭😭

#IM CLIMBING UP WALLS #how did i forget this....also kdj didn't even give the specially commissioned gift he made for yjh yet to beat off yjh's depression #THEY are........i am feeling very normal about them #the reminder that yjh drags the end of his sword around the ground when he's feeling happy AGHHHHHHH #ALSO #I FORGOT kDJ ESPECIALLy tells yjh he set up the circumstances of a competition because yjh offhandedly mentioned that #he wanted that one specifically sword #AGAIN CLIMBING UP WALLS...why r they like this #qserasera rereads orv #orv spoilers #joongdok

[novelconcepts]

Good looking out, Taivan, for helping in my ever-expanding search to gay up my entire office.

#taivan #I’m out of the funko game except for very specific circumstances #I can’t stress how fast I slammed purchase on these guys #LOOK at them. look at their little MASKS #I’ve got a custom damie set on the other side of my computer it feels like nice symmetry

[literallyaflame]

so basically “the gifted kid” is a smokescreen for increasing and/or affirming white privilege/white supremacy?

i’m not the right person to explain this at great length, so i won’t, but—intelligence testing has a long and complicated relationship with classism and racism. gifted (and other sped) programs rely on that testing.

that’s as far as i’m willing to explain as a non-expert, lmao. if you want to know more, there’s about 573857 pages of research/opinions/documented personal experiences available for you to sift through, both within and outside of ‘academic’ circles. here’s an excerpt from the abstract of a case study on the topic:

“We show how gifted and talented status meets the criteria of white property interests and is defended by recourse to law and policy. Efforts to improve identification of students for gifted services reveal that the implicit operation of these Interests is an important reason why identification practices favoring white and middle-class children have been resistant to change. Dismantling underlying white property interests in gifted and talented identification is a necessary, though not sufficient step, toward a more just educational system.” [DOI]

i haven’t read this case study in full—i’m just using it to point out that this is a prominent, ongoing discussion. in my opinion, this should be a much larger part of the “former gifted kid” conversation, but alas

#i was a poor kid and i only got shuffled into GT because of a very specific set of circumstances #my teachers were resistant to it lmao #all the kids they nominated themselves were white AND well off AND often had parents’ with good social standing #and because it was an overwhelmingly white & well-off bunch #it was a shitty environment for anyone else #by the end of it the kids who didn’t ‘belong’ didn’t pursue the advanced track in high school #meanwhile the kids in sped were basically getting tortured and the kids in between were subject to all kinds of nonsense #i can’t imagine looking back at all that and thinking ‘wow. the real evil is that i was held to a higher standard’ #like yeah it kinda sucked and i valued my academic abilities way fucking more than i should have #but #in hindsight i’m one of the lucky ones #*parents why the hell did i make that possessive smh #clearly my gifted education was worthless anyway /j

[bookwyrminspiration]

Hello! What do you think would be the fallout if Sophie went as far as to kill another person, either in self defense or with murderous intent? (I.e. a neverseen member.)

How do you think this would go onto affect dear Sophie, particularly in the camp of guilt and all that. Do you think she would crumble or would is serve as a start to a much darker path, one of corruption and loosening morals?

I think Sophie's storehouse fire gives us a solid guide to anticipate how she'd handle killing someone; we see her make a split second decision, act, justify her actions and resolve, then realize her friends disagree and start panicking a little while reminding herself why she did what she did, and then ultimately just trying to move on because she doesn't have time to dwell. What's done is done.

My guess is that's about what would happen if she killed, say, Gisela. On the battlefield she's like "there's only one way to truly end this" and then she one track mind stabs her throat out before she has time to panic. And Sandor's trained her well so she doesn't flinch from the spray of blood. And then her friends don't ever look at her quite the same, and they're quiet when the battle is over and they all go home. Because they understand her reasoning, but she still just took someone's life.

But this time, I don't think her friends would really try to argue with her about it, and they'd try to be really gentle in their conversations. Because they are risking her sanity if they make her feel guilty. And Sophie can't be fixed if she breaks. No one can be fixed if Sophie breaks. So they'd let her justify it to herself and convince herself it was the right thing to do.

That would only last so long, I think, before her doubts and horror catch up with her. Because even though she may have been entirely justified, killing someone fucks you up; she's only 15. And she never chose this. Her friends chose to fight (Marella/Wylie less so), but Sophie was created in the middle of all this. She can't leave it behind like they can. And she'd also be aware her sanity is on the line and that there's no one to fix her, so she'd keep trying to push it out of her mind an reaffirm her actions, but this isn't the kind of thing you can repress forever; it will come back.

I think out of the kotlcrew, she's most equipped to kill given her upbringing, her increased exposure to violence and human horrors. I don't think she'd become corrupted, but perhaps would turn in on herself? Because no one treats her quite the same, they're all always watching, she's always anxious and hollow and shaking, and so its just easier to be alone. keeping herself busy so she can't think about what she did.

I think she'd do that for a while, but it would get to be too much trying to ignore it; it comes back. she has to face it and it's sink or swim. either she faces it and comes out the other side better for it, or she's lost to it and fully crumbles. I believe she could work through it, she's resilient and best equipped, but it is a significant trauma her species is specifically not made to process

She'd feel guilty, but would reflect and conclude there was literally no other way to stop everything, and I think that feeling of lack of choice would really help. Forced by circumstance and lessen how much it feels like it was her choice. Like yeah, she did have another choice technically, but realistically? Someone had to. And she'd be really glad it was her and not one of her friends dealing with it, which would make her feel a little better.

Overall, i think she could do it. I think she could kill someone (in this I'm imagining Gisela) and work through it to be okay in the end--but it would be hell in the process and irreversibly change her and all her friendships. And would take a lot of time, which she may or may not have.

#kotlc #sophie foster #quil's queries #nonsie #shannon seems to be hinting that sophie will kill gisela #so. I suppose we'll see if I'm right or not #sometimes I understand the characters! sometimes shannon pulls a 180 and i'm like wtf was that #but I think murderous intent sophie would have to be a very specific set of circumstances and would be a different series #i can imagine a way it would happen. but it would so radically alter the story it wouldn't be what it is now #would still be a good story! just not the same one

[derrygirlstrash]

Erin and Orla might’ve both had crushes on James it’s just that Orla never repressed it because they never saw a problem with it and so was able to just let it pass and get over it while Erin repressed it, it blossomed against her will because she kept denying it until it was impossible to any more and well, we know what happened next.

#derry girls #erin quinn #james maguire #orla mccool #james x erin #erin x james #james x orla #orla x james #Jerin #Jorla #listen this isn’t my headcanon because I’m pretty set on ace/aro spectrum Orla and they’re only with someone #in very specific circumstances in my head #but I mean - it’s certainly possible that the only difference between the two cousins #is that Orla isn’t so lost in their own sauce like Erin so they just didn’t bother denying to themselves #kinda fancying the English boy while Erin was like “BACK JAMES THOUGHTS BACK FROM WHENCE YOU CAME” #and it backfired tremendously #so one day they discover Anna’s puppy love crush on James and Michelle’s like #“wow what is it about your family that you’re all into HIM of all people” #and Erin points out that Orla never liked James #and Orla corrects her like “Yes I did #and Erin is like *squints*

[lacrimosathedark]

Hey Bat fandom, can we like, stop pushing for BatJokes in mainline comics?

EDIT: DISCLAIMER FOR CLARITY: I am not attempting to criticize people who ship these characters. It is strictly a critique of the concept of a reciprocal romantic relationship between these two characters being canonized and people wanting that specifically. I am not shaming anyone for enjoying or entertaining the idea of this pairing.

Look, I’m far from the last person to say there’s nothing there; I literally have a whole word document dedicated to evidence for the argument that Joker is in love with Batman (which I made out of spite because I mentioned it in passing and my cousin thought I was crazy heck you man I’m right).

And honestly, I love Elseworlds where it could be moderately plausible. The Telltale games, for example, put a truly fascinating spin on their dynamic that makes reciprocation believable, even likely. White Knight does this pretty well too. And Lego Batman makes it fucking adorable.

But here’s the thing, those are Elseworlds. All of them, Joker shows his inherently redeeming qualities. In Telltale he’s basically led astray and you can, in essence save him from becoming a psychotic mass murderer we know the Joker as. In White Knight, he is extremely mentally ill, but is temporarily “cured”, and while still a manipulative bastard, shows a great deal of love and compassion and determination to make things right. These set up Joker to be much more morally gray than he is in most media. Lego Batman is accurate but also cutesy and sanitized, so Joker is very much a precious little bean instead of...y’know...an insane murder clown.

If the Arkham games have one strong point, it’s nailing this relationship. Joker is absolutely in love with and attracted to Batman. And while Bruce is obsessed with Joker to extreme and unhealthy degrees, he feels no affection for him whatsoever. He doesn’t like the Joker.

Which is my point. Joker, while not entirely lacking redeeming qualities, is inherently irredeemable. He’s the definition of a psychotic mass murderer. And everything he’s done to Bruce specifically cannot be ignored.

The biggest things that come to mind are The Killing Joke, A Death in the Family (as well as the N52 shitshow that was Death OF the Family), his BatCat Wedding bullshit, and Joker War. But that’s not even half of the things he’s done to cause him grief.

And look, I’m not saying Bruce doesn’t have a kind of intimate connection with Joker. He most certainly does. But intimate is not inherently loving. Remember, he basically accidentally created Joker when the man tripped or jumped into that vat of acid trying to escape Batman. And Bruce has an extremely severe guilt complex. So Joker is, and always will be, Batman’s responsibility.

Because I cannot see this man loving the guy who paralyzed his almost-daughter, tortured one of his best friends, brutally murdered his son, mind-controlled his eldest son, attacked his entire family, nearly killed his fiancee, and stole pretty much everything from under him while terrorizing his city.

Give them a different history, sure. Find a way to redeem the Joker, even better. I’m a fan of Elseworlds where they can have mutual romantic chemistry.

But it just doesn’t work within main comics. They don’t express mutual interest. And Joker has repeatedly expressed “love” with abuse. It has no potential to be healthy with the canon we currently have.

#BatJokes #sort of #Batman #Bruce Wayne #Joker #not really anti but not not anti #I like BatJokes in a very specific set of circumstances and there only #Anti-BatJokes #also sort of #but in case people want to avoid this I'm adding it

[askteamspirit]

Serra:

“From what I’ve been able to find in my research on what happened to me, there are only a handful of these things; remnants of the portals that once bridged our world to the Distortion world.

They aren’t the only way to channel Giritina’s power, but for sure they’re the most powerful”

“They’re something that came up in that research as well, but the way they were written about… made it seem like there might not be any left”

( @asksavel )

#askteamspirit #pokemon #pokeask #the asks #very very specific circumstances meant I had to set this before the end of Lucky’s first life hghhbsdsd #least I can take advantage of that :p #asksavel #lucky #sylveon #beholder #serra #mawile #Chrono #Prime

[ace-trainer-risu]

love javert seeing a mean old man pinned under a cart and slowly being crushed horribly to death and going "aha! this is the perfect chance to bait that so-called madeleine into performing an act of incredible heroism and bravery in front of everyone in order to prove that's he's like super ripped, thus proving it's maybe possible that he's that other super ripped convict I saw that one time. ITS THE PERFECT PLAN." Like. Is it though?

#If i was javert I would simply...not do that #because it's a really weird thing to do #also look not to nitpick but there were like ten people standing there right? #couldn't they just...............all lift the cart together? #like sure only ONE super ripped guy could do it alone #but couldn't ten people doing it together do it pretty easily. idk. i just think. #this seems like a very odd and extremely specific and basically unnecesary set of circumstances #what was javert planning to if there wasn't suddenly an opportunity for madeleine #to prove that he's fucking ripped. that he's absolutely jacked. that he lifts bro. #i think this was.....a bad plan actually #les mis letters #les mis #javert: i heard that madeline is ripped. that he has a six pack. #[glares suspiciously] #squirrel posting #risu reads things

[labyrynth]

um…question for any of y’all that listen to the magnus archives…if a person is hypothetically very prone to heebie-jeebies…is it like…manageable? or is it going to make this purely hypothetical person afraid to walk down the hallway at night;;;

bc it sounds interesting but. i am. nervous.

#moi #tma #the magnus archives #for reference #i can better handle horror that is more easily divorced from reality #i guess? #or like… #if the horror is like…easily contained? #like the horror is more on a realistic scale or setting but also it’s happening Way Over There and not Over Here #see also: the horror has already been taken care of (it’s dead or managed or subdued or sealed or whatever) #so like #example of easily divorced from reality: alien #we don’t have space travel and also this specific circumstances were unusual #and the scary thing was handled (no i will not be considering alternate endings at this time) #example of easily contained: the thing (it’s more or less contained and also is Way Over There and isn’t going anywhere) #COUNTER example to easily divorced/contained: Us (i think that’s what it was called?) #specifically because it just so happened to be set. in the town i went to college in. #and that is very distinctly NOT Way Over There #it’s not even kind of Over There. It’s Right Here. SPECIFICALLY Right Here. #um. forgive me if my examples are kind of limited in scope. i don’t. partake in a lot of horror. #i only watched alien and the thing bc they were assigned for class. and i pointedly did NOT watch Us #bc i read the first line of the synopsis and went ‘that’s where i am currently living 🙃’ #look i just wanna be able to turn off the lights and not have to high tail it to my room #bc i’m scared of The Creepies Coming To Get Me #i am a complete wuss 🥺 #but tma sounds interesting

[squigglywindy]

What’s the hospital equivalent of time out

put cake there

…Restraints >:)

It’s a joke please don’t come for me

#THIS IS A JOKE #We do not restrain people except under a very very specific set of circumstances