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angelgoeslewd · 3 months

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Omegaverse Alpha!Chuuya, Dazai, and Ranpo Headcanons

⚠️ warnings: 18+ concepts and scenarios, Minors DNI! Omegaverse, GN!reader, mentions of heats and ruts, slick, knots, and sexual/explicit scenarios.

[Fyodor and Nikolai here!]

Chuuya

ARE U READY TO BE THE WORLD’S MOST SPOILED OMEGA??? :D ‘CAUSE BABY- YOU ARE!!!

Chuuya knows that he can be very absent in your relationship, both physically, mentally, and emotionally. But that doesn’t stop him from always trying to make up for it!!! Unlike OTHER ALPHAS-

Chuuya is honestly probably the best Alpha you can have. He’s very sweet!! He worships you, he’s caring towards your needs, sympathetic to any issues you have, will absolutely spoil the shit out of you, protective in all the right ways, very stable financially — the list goes on and on. However… it is extremely hard to break down his walls and actually GET to the point where you two are in a committed relationship. Between his trust issues and being a literal executive for the MAFIA- he isn’t the type to fall in love very fast or very easily. He wants to be. He romanticizes love to an extreme; but he cannot bring himself to actually relax and let down his walls in order to experience it. Basically, you gotta fight for this boy, but it is oh so worth it.

I know most people probably think you have to manage dancing around his outbursts and anger issues but honestly? Those are for people who Are Not You™️. You do have to talk him down from crushing the Alphas who mention you in the wrong sort of light to death, however.

They end up dead anyway. Yeah you really kinda have to be morally grey to date this man. And that might be a deal breaker for some. While I see a lot of fics talking him out of the dangerous life of the Port Mafia and having him settle down, I really don’t see that as a viable option. One, I firmly believe that Chuuya sees his place in the Port Mafia as one he’s earned, all by himself, without relying on anyone and proving himself worthy. The emotional ties to his job alone make it hard for him to even consider leaving. Two, even with all the danger, Chuuya prides himself on being able to keep you safe despite all of that. You will never be taken. You will never be used. He keeps you close enough so that you are technically protected, but far enough removed that you cannot be a pawn in this sick twisted game that Mori plays. And… it’s kinda stable for him. For you. A generous income that leaves you leaves you flush and living lavishly beyond your wildest dreams. He can’t give that up. So really, you have to be ok when he ends up having to murder a few people for his job. Not that you would know about it first hand. And he’s never malicious. He has his own moral code that will never be broken.

Heats???? Ruts??? This man will shower you in whatever you want during that time. No matter what, he will always be there for you. Uninterrupted personal time with Chuuya. His Omega always comes first. He is such a generous lover too. He’ll knot you as many times as you wish. He’ll make you breakfast in bed and make sure you hydrate. Loves eating you out until you’re begging for his knot, ass up and face down. Give you all his clothes for the nest you make. He’s so in tune with his Omega that his ruts will line up with your heats very early on in the relationship, so you might want to invest in child-prevention or otherwise both you and him will be looking at parenthood. 😳 He wouldn’t mind that. Considering how long it would take for you to get to that point… but he wouldn’t let you know that.

Dazai

Honestly, I love this man ok? He was my first BSD love and he’ll always have a place in my heart because of that. But my god. He is an absolute horrible Alpha.

Dazai himself is very guarded. He loves to have an air of nonchalance, but that’s all it is. An image. He is a fortress of walls that will never truly come down, unlike Chuuya, who eventually lets you in fully. Considering his past and his experiences, being able to break through a few of those will be a victory. Dazai, on the other hand, needs a partner who is okay with never truly knowing his own desires. A partner who’s ok with always being held at an arm’s length, because Dazai feels like if he loves you too much, something bad will happen.

Not only the emotional distance, but a physical one too. Dazai loves to be touchy, but at home, he also needs time to regenerate his own physical stimulation. It might be strange to some that he seems more affectionate and physical in public, but Dazai wants to trust you. He wants to feel comfortable enough to not always be what he feels like he should be. He might come off as cold or even uncaring, but he just needs time, no matter how much he loves you. And trust me, it will pay off.

And we also have to consider his job. Unlike Chuuya, who’s rather stable in his self-image and work life, Dazai almost is like Ranpo in a sense, where he feels like something bad will happen if he’s not available to ADA at every second of the day. Unlike Ranpo, Dazai cannot shirk these feelings or his duty, even though he basically goes in and does absolutely nothing all day. Mentally, he’s there. Thinking up solutions and plans without speaking a word of it. He needs to be there to get ahead, to minimize casualties, no matter how much Kunikida helps out. There will be many times you spend a heat alone, or Dazai will have to rush out to go to work during one of them.

Buttttt that’s not to say he’s a selfish lover. He is, in fact, a very, very good one. Not only through experience, but in creating a sort of intimacy that makes you feel like he’s all there. Even if he isn’t. Which, again, is sort of shady of him. 🙄 But honestly? His dirty talk is top notch. During the heats that he goes to work, he’ll talk you through the time that he isn’t there. Much to your embarrassment.

Dazai’s favorite thing is to feel you clench around his knot. He loves making you so horny that all you can do is beg him to knot you and scream his name or his title. It’s a moment that he can just forget everything, his past, his current situation, and just be with you. He loves being your Alpha and does wish he could be a better one, but that’s just not him. 100% keeps a pair of your slick stained panties in his pocket. Disgusting man.

His ruts will take a while to line up with yours. It’s a combination of both problems — physical and emotional distance. Feeling like he can even sort of trust you will cure that. He’s super restrained during his ruts though. Even if you’re in a long relationship, the only way you can notice is by his heightened scent, which he loves to blockers to suppress, because he’s stupid like that and feels like it interferes with his investigations (yes and no. it’s not very helpful if someone can smell you a mile away, but it’s also because Dazai likes to keep an air of mystery AND distance between any sort of work and personal life, in his own strange way. Stops taking them if it helps create a connection he can use) and the fact he just randomly wants to knot you at all times of the day. He doesn’t even seem that serious about it though — just like “oh! popped a knot in you! sorry!” and does that 10 more times until you catch on.

“Dazai… are you in rut???” “…yeah.” absolutely ridiculous mind game for no reason other than it’s Dazai.

Seriously, if this man is your Alpha, I’m sorry. He makes you jealous accidentally a lot because he has Omegas fawning over him, that he gives crumbles of attention for validation, but his secretly super possessive and HATES when it happens to you. Seriously. One Alpha hits on you and suddenly you’re covered in hickies and claim marks, rubbed so hard with his scent it almost stinks and you can’t get it out with ANY SORT of laundry detergent.

Ranpo

again, if this man is your Alpha, I’m sorry. I am actually less sorry than if Dazai is your Alpha but I’m still sorry.

Ranpo is childish. He has absolutely 0 clue on how to be a proper Alpha, despite Fukuzawa trying to teach him, but unlike someone like Kunikida or Sigma, has probably little to no desire to learn. That isn’t entirely true, especially with how earnest Ranpo is to want to learn with you, but honestly, he gives up very quickly.

He can be very selfish with his pleasure, but that’s mostly to your gain, to be honest. At least you have 0 emotional hangups when it comes to Ranpo. 🤷‍♀️ that’s all I can say.

He also has 0 embarrassment. He will fully scent you, partially undressing you to get to what he wants, like a breastfeeding CHILD, in the middle of the office. If you smack him away, he’ll be fully confused. Like “whaaaaat? I’m your Alpha. I’m supposed to do this.” NOT HERE, IDIOT.

Mouths your neck and your scent gland whenever too. Like just leans over in meetings to do so. You, as his Omega, almost have to leash him, your Alpha. It’s a bit of an unusual dynamic, but fits perfectly to Ranpo.

He will end up growing up a bit when he enters a relationship with you; however, that will take a lot of time. Your relationship probably starts off really casually too. Ranpo will most likely just offhandedly ask you on an outing, then he’s considering you his significant other, his omega, without it ever truly being discussed. “It wasn’t obvious? Why would I ask you out if I didn’t want to be with you?” Please teach him how to properly enter a relationship. Or at least discuss with him the standards of dating. Fukuzawa will give you a bonus. Just please.

Now, it’s very widely accepted that Ranpo is autistic/asperger’s syndrome, and I headcanon him as that as well so a little on that from another Aspie!!! Ranpo doesn’t always catch on to what is and isn’t socially acceptable. He has a tendency to sometimes be sexual in times that aren’t always the best, but if you tell him nicely, he’ll understand and back down. Usually with a nod and taking mental notes. You need to be very verbal with this man because he will not catch on in any sort of way. If you want a gift, ask him for it! If you want time alone, ask him. Seriously. You need to tell him or he’ll just keep doing his little routine.

He has stimulation problems. You might need to carry around headphones or some sort of fidget toy because he sometimes gets overwhelmed in public by all the information he’s taking in. He’s used to it, but that doesn’t make it better. If you let him sit on the couch with a weighted blanket and just sit with him in silence on the other side, he will eventually jump your ass after a while and cuddle up under your arm. He will probably not leave your side for the rest of the day, refusing to talk to anyone but you.

His libido is finicky, it jumps between hyper sexuality and almost completely disappearing, even if he wants to pleasure you. His ruts show that. Unlike most Alphas, they aren’t always timely, and show up randomly. It makes it hard for your heats to line up with his ruts. They rarely line up, and sometimes when you’re in heat Ranpo is completely disinterested and would rather be working on a case. Early on, he most likely will ignore you and them, not out of animosity or a lack of care, but just because he’s really not used to being in a relationship. If you give it time and practice, certainly after expressing your need, Ranpo will take care of you through them. Whether it’s eating you out or knotting you properly. He can finger you with one hand while working on his phone or laptop with the other, a skill he didn’t even know he had.

His ruts on the other hand… he’s very needy. You will have to call out of work for a week or two. He wants to be touching you at all times. Don’t expect to leave the bed at all. Actually, just plan on being on his knot the whole time. If you have to get up, even for a drink of water, expect him to be right there behind you, arms clasped around your waist, begging for you to come back to bed. His scent gets so heavy. He just wants to be comfortable and the only way he feels comfortable is with you. You might need additional call out days for how weak your legs will be afterwards.

Ranpo is apologetic though and will bring you painkillers or a heating pad. You probably could talk him into a massage every now and then. He knows how much you give to him, and struggles with sometimes feeling like your relationship is one sided. It is, in a way, but Ranpo gives back tenfold with how absolutely pure his love is for you. He’s loyal and will never entertain any sort of attention from any other Omega. He shares all his snacks and candy with you and tries to show you his love in little ways, like remembering your favorite flavors or something you mentioned you liked.

Ranpo isn’t the best Alpha, but he is a good soul. He tries and though he has his struggles, he really is there for his (and your!) best interests at heart.

Praise him. Praise him during his rut and you will be there for another week. It drives it crazy and ends up lengthening it for an extended amount of time.

#bsd #bungo stray dogs #bungou stray dogs #bsd dazai #bsd dazai osamu #bsd chuuya #bsd chuuya nakahara #bsd ranpo #bsd ranpo edogawa #bsd nsft #dazai x you #chuuya x you #ranpo x you #🍩 of bsd #dazai x reader #chuuya x reader #ranpo x reader #angelic songs #omegaverse!bsd

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lordadmiralfarsight · 7 months

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Revolution fetishism is a horrible political view, especially in this context

Okay, rant incoming, partially related to recent events, but also to earlier thinking on my part.

There are, on the Left, a fair few people that romanticize or outright fetishize the concept of Revolution, of violent popular uprising to wrest power out of the hands of a corrupt elite and give it to the people. Very romantic, very righteous (self-righteous pretty often), very good and nice and sexy. And by the grace of revolutionary fervor and ideological purity, everything will be better after.

Except no.

See, a lot of this romanticization of Revolution comes, to my knowledge, from my own country of France. We have romanticized our Revolution a fair bit, and honestly, looking at the first part, fair. A serious go at giving women rights, a no-cause divorce, abolition of slavery, privileges thrown out, equality between people proclaimed loud, enfranchisement given to minorities ... in 1789. A LOT of good and progress, especially for the time.

But then it got fucky, VERY fucky. The Reign of Terror, under the caring leadership of Maximilien Robespierre, was a fucking nightmare on Earth, caracterized by mass executions on political basis, and by this I mean anyone that opposed Robespierre got beheaded. Political plurality? You mean anti-revolutionary sentiment ! Unacceptable, kill everyone.

A rumor of the time said the Place de Grève was covered in a layer of blood that was ankle deep. Is that an exageration ? Yes, certainly. But the fact it got to that point should tell you something about how intense the murdering was. And that was just one square in Paris, there was the rest of the country to consider too.

But surely, after Robespierre fell victim to his own system and was executed, something better emerged, right?

No. Sweet mother of fuck, NO.

What followed was roughly 70 years of political instability and violence, warfare and civil war, several dictatorships, including attempts to restore absolute monarchy, that undid most of the good brought by the first part of the Revolution. And finally, France stumbled onto political stability in 1870 when the temporary 3rd Republic, that was supposed to wait until the presumptive heir to the throne (who wanted an absolute monarchy) croacked did what temporary things do best and became the permanent system (until its fall).

This was not thanks to the Revolution. It was pure randomness.

Did the French Revolution bring good things? Yes, it did. In its first part. The second part brought chaos and misery for multiple decades. And it took a lot of work and efforts to bring back what the Revolution, the peaceful part, had brought in.

And far too many people on the Left fetishize and romanticize the whole thing, as if we couldn't have had the first part without the second, as if the progress and hope and betterment somehow needed the chaos and murder that came after.

Yes, there would have been a period of conflict, European monarchies would not have accepted quietly a realm the size of France doing away with monarchs. But did we REALLY need the political purges ? Did we REALLY need the paranoia ? Did we REALLY need the massacres ?

But you will find people that answer yes, and say the spilled blood somehow made it pure, or good. And those same people are looking at what Hamas is doing and are cheering. These people don't celebrate the first part, the progress and hope. They claim to be, but they aren't. They celebrate the Terror. They yearn for the unjust "popular tribunal" AKA mob "justice". They dream of executing political opponents or anyone they think is "bad" on light or even absent charges.

And That's why they cheer for Hamas rockets and massacres. That's why they sing when Israeli children are murdered. That's why they attack Jews that don't live in Israel. Because they hope to vicariously live this period of unchecked violence.

Know who was celebrating the RIGHT part of the Revolution ? The Israeli working with Gazan to build understanding. The Gazan protesting against Hamas. The Israeli Arabs risking their lives to save the lives of fellow Israeli and of foreigners, regardless of skin or creed. The Gazan trying to improve things in their homes against the wishes and efforts of Hamas.

Know who IS celebrating the RIGHY part of the Revolution ? The Israeli protesting the way the IDF is bombing Gaza. The people decrying the hypocrisy of blood-thirsty leftists. The people calling for Peace and working to make the political change to allow it.

But the Robespierres of the time, drunk on their own self-assurance, condemn and insult them, claiming that blood must be spilt. But it doesn't have to be. The French Revolution started relatively bloodlessly. It didn't need some great orgy of violence. Oh it wasn't clean, but it was far cleaner than the armchair Robespierres would like it to be. Because it didn't need to be.

And that's my point, really. The people fantasizing about and fetishizing the Revolution always dream of torrents of blood washing away the injustices, of seas of corpses forming a fertile ground upon which progress can grow. But that horseshit. All you get with that is, like the Place de Grève, a sinister place that stinks of rot and death, and flocks of scavengers gorging on your crimes.

All you get is a chance for a Napoleon to arrive. Or Stalin's USSR that so casually carried on with the crimes of the Tsars. Or Polpot who murdered 25% of his population.

If you look at the French Revolution, the right lesson to learn is that you need to know when to stop, and that's before you get to indiscriminate killing. Because once you get to that point ... people that thrive in those settings get in power and perpetuate them.

And to apply that to the situation in I/P ... knowing when to stop means realizing that Israeli are still humans, that Gazan are still humans, that their lives have worth and should be protected, that supporting child killings when it's done by "brown people" is not anymore alright than supporting child killings when done by the IDF. And you people should very well consider the possibility that people inside the IDF are doing all they can to reduce Bibi's ability to order war crimes.

And you should recognize that there are efforts on the part of the IDF, sometimes token efforts, sometimes more than just that, to limit the number of dead civilians. Point me to a case where Hamas did the same. Point me to a case where they tried to get Israeli civilians out of the way instead of targeting them.

Hamas is not a Revolution you want to succeed. It's not about being free. It's about killing. This isn't a "glorious revolutionary action", it's a prelude to the wholesale slaughter and ethnic massacre they dream of. It's a tiny window into their ideal, blood soaked world.

Violent revolution should be a last resort, when there is no other option available, when the system is so utterly broken and shattered that nothing can move, and it should be stopped as soon as the system is unfucked enough to negociate. The I/P situation is not at that stage. Look at how much efforts the fascists of both sides have to invest in maintaining this. Look at how much time and money and efforts they have to invest to keep each other in place. And despite this, people of both sides reach for peace, argue and protest for it, even at the risk of their very lives (especially true in Gaza).

And if you refuse to consider all this, if you insist on following Robespierre, remember this : La Veuve came for him too, in the end.

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bibibbon · 2 months

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MHA chapter 416 (rambles)

Ok so this was like mainly a conclusion chapter for many characters and I guess I like that we are getting clarity on what's going on with some of the characters.

This chapter definitely gives me some very mixed feelings I feel like it's one of the best chapters horikoshi has produced in a long time if we exclude whatever is going on with Izuku and shigaraki.

There are still some things I definitely do dislike in this chapter which are:

The overall dismissal of izuku in general by other characters. Like no offense but I feel like we should of seen more people being worried for izuku instead of dismissing their worry and being like oh Iam not putting my faith in him or something because what do you mean you're not worrying for a 16 year old who has to fight an insane psychopath killer?!?? I still hate how momo dismissed this like wasn't 1A's whole objective when it came to getting Izuku back in the vigilante arc was because they were worried and scared for him?!?!? What happend now it makes no sense?!?!? Also i still hate momos atrocious hero costume

Ochako and Toga's character conclusions?!?! Like excuse me what's going on where is toga how is she not in the picture at all if the whole point was that she sacrificed herself for ochako and layed their dying next to her now she is nowhere to be?!?! People just accept it and are like oh well she has been defeated no need to worry but you do realise that she can probably cause damage if she wanted to right?!?? Also Ausi deserves better because what's going on with her she was so out of place and somewhat irrelevant when it came to this arc like seriously hori did her dirty. Also who is next to ochako in that plane ?!?! Am I speaking to early and that could be toga or someone else

Monoma deserved better. Oh did monoma deserve more screentime to shine and actually do more instead he got injured and knocked out offscreen which is such a shame. I really wanted to see more of him

Lady nagant's take on izuku?!?? No offense but Iam sick and tired of characters having some wild takes of izuku. One minute it's oh he sees the good in everyone and he is a saint to the next which is oh he is a puppet who follows instructions to a letter and does more than he should. I still don't like kudo and his views whenever it concerns midoriya it seriously infuriates me. However, now that kudo is gone guess it's lady nagant's turn to take some of the role because hey is she saying that his pain is a good thing and that izuku has a morally grey view of villains which I cannot lie hasn't been proven at all. Don't get me wrong I love that idea but I think like everything in MHA it just has a horrible execution and I can't bring myself to like it. Lady nagant deserves better characterisation then this

This chapter was a 50/50 when it came to the character if Eri. I absolutely adored her interaction with Kota and I find them absolutely adorable also at least ectoplasm is doing something and didn't let the girl run into the battlefield which is good enough (bare minimum). However, it still feels all icky that the heroes used her or well tried to utilise her anyway even if it's with good intentions or whatever the fact that they tried to make her heal aizawa but she lacked energy so she couldn't or whatever. Her lacking energy also feels like somewhat of a horribly introduced plot point because wasn't the whole problem she had when she came to UA was that she had a lot of her quirk built up and shouldn't the power in her horn be enough rewind aizawa into a week back in time like ?!?!! She couldn't be lacking that much energy it makes absolutely no sense to me. Also dam it's sad that Eri is out here being the only one worrying for izuku. They deserve better

Hawks and tokoyami. They deserve their win section I love them and their dynamic just wish the series could of given us more when it came to them seriously the wasted potential the wasted dynamic and tensions get me

The ending of the chapter?!?! Why is izuku in his uniform what happend?!?! I still don't get how they're merging into one person or one entity with different and same memories. Also why is this all about shigaraki like they're sharing memories so why aren't we seeing Izuku's memories this feels iffy to me. The dfo truthers have risen but tbh I don't see how this can benefit izuku in anyway and why does izuku have to watch the shimura family murder. Also if izuku is in his uniform does that mean he has become part of the memory did they do some space jumbo thing where they time travel and now they're changing fate and reality or some shenanigans like that?!??? The kotaro and tenko parallel hit tho that was good but other than that this whole Izuku's Nd shigaraki fight falls flat it's really such a disappointment and disaster to me.

I LOVE THE CONTRAST BETWEEN THESE TWO IZUKU'S. I also adore his relationship with eri I wish we got more of them!!!

#mha critical #bnha critical #mha #hori is a bad writer #horikoshi critical #izuku deserves better #bhna critical #bnha #midoriya izuku #shigaraki deserves better #shigaraki tomura #mha 416 #bnha 416

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elffees · 4 months

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Frontiers of Pandora made me realize how much I hate Jake S*lly

So I watched a No-Commentary lets play of Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora and have a lot of thoughts.

Disclaimer #1: I am a WOC, but I am not indigenous. I absolutely encourage indigenous peoples to add onto this post and share their thoughts.

Disclaimer #2: There is going to be an abundance of Jake S*lly hate in this post. I just ask that if you are a fan of Jake, and still choose to read my post, that you do so in good faith and out of genuine curiosity. Please don't read my post with the sole intent to shoot it down.

Overarching Problems with the Avatar Franchise

Okay so, time to actually get into the post.

To start off, the entire Avatar franchise has problems. Regardless if it's the video games, comics, movies, or what have you. Ableist tropes, racist tropes, misogynistic tropes, my god there are a bunch. These problems with the franchise have been talked about for literal decades now though, so I'll link a few of their pieces here.

Native Media Theory's critique video

"Avatar: The Way of Water" and the Question of Indigenous Representation

Native News Online's article about JaCam's horribly ignorant comment and ATWOW

Avatar: The Way of Water or How NOT to Make Indigenous Futurism Movies

Old, New, Borrowed and Blue: Compulsory Able-bodiedness and Whiteness in Avatar

Avatar's Approach to Ableism Misses the Mark

There are hundreds of other sources from all areas of the internet. It would be impossible for me to list them all. Fortunately, they're very easy to find if you want to know more.

What I want to talk about is the game Frontiers of Pandora that just released in December 2023, and how it changed my perspective on the movies, at least the first movie since I have yet to watch the second.

Frontiers of Pandora

(I will try my best to be as spoiler-free as possible, but there will be segments where I'll dive into them. I will put a warning ahead of time.)

Just so we're all on the same page, I'll briefly summarize FOP's premise.

Spoiler-Free Summary

As an infant, the playable character, an unnamed Na'vi, was taken by a project group of the RDA known as "TAP", The Ambassador Program. You are not alone, a significant number of Na'vi children, all from the newly introduced Sarentu Clan, were taken as well. It's made clear in the opening that TAP's initial goal was to raise Na'vi children and teach them human culture to "bridge the gap" between their two peoples. And then once ready, they would be sent back out into Pandora to serve as "ambassadors" for Na'vi-Human relations. You were to be mainly taught by Alma Cortez, TAP's Co-founder and a skilled xenobiologist, who notably spends more time in her Avatar body than in her original one.

As time passed and relations between the Na'vi and the RDA became more hostile, the taken Sarentu children were taught to use human weapons. Heavily implied to be trained to fight against other Na'vi to defend RDA resources, instead of the original intention to serve as "peaceful ambassadors".

The player's journey starts when the character is a teenager, around 16 to 18 years old. The final battle in the first movie causes a massive uproar to all RDA facilities, including TAP's. The administrator and founder, John Mercer, ordered the entire program and building to be abandoned. Part of that abandonment is ordering the execution of the playable character and all of the other Sarentu children.

Your character, and some of the others, are saved by Alma, who killed the soldiers that were assigned to kill you. Then, seemingly acting on impulse with no solid plans for your survival, put you and the others into a cryo-induced coma. With the plan that you would all be woken up when it was safe.

There is a misunderstanding and long story short, the Sarentu children do not get woken up until 16 years later. Your revival is when the game is officially put into the player's hands.

Just from the premise, it's clear the plot is based off the real life horror of Native American Boarding Schools. (I'm really curious how Indigenous viewers feel about this portrayal. I've tried to look up perspectives, but have had difficulty finding any. Probably because the game is so new.)

The Sarentu were taken as children, physically and psychologically abused whenever they interacted with Na'vi culture in any way, were told daily that the program was "for their own good", and were generally viewed as "property" owned by TAP and John Mercer.

We learn later in the game that in the early days of the program, the children suffered conditions so grotesque that the oldest of them admit to repressing the full events of what happened to stay sane. What we were already told about their upbringing is repulsive to hear, so to find out that there was more that was so traumatic and horrible, the characters can't even bring themselves to remember it let alone talk about it...

Basically, your character's backstory is fucked up. Very much so.

After experiencing all that, once your character wakes up from cryo sleep and rushes to the outdoors for the first time in approximately 32+ years, you get to the heart of the story.

Frontiers of Pandora is about the playable character reclaiming and rediscovering a culture that's been stripped from them. The character has the help of a predominantly human resistance group (known creatively as "The Resistance"), but the majority of the game is the character meeting and getting to know various Na'vi clans. From the Aranahe in Kinglor Forest, to the Zeswa in the Upper Plains, to the Kame'tire in the Clouded Forest.

And throughout the world, there are remnants of your character's lost people. There are Sarentu artifacts scattered all over the map where the character can regain lost knowledge from their Clan's way of life.

Fortunately, there are still Na'vi from the other three clans that have personally met the Sarentu before you. And they are EXTREMELY eager to tell you of their experiences with your people and how they used to interact with each other. There's even a character who is heavily implied to have known the playable character's mother, a fact we only learn after he playfully requests we gather ingredients and make a unique dish, not knowing until after we've tried it, that we were just taught how to make a meal our mother used to. A quest you don't expect to evoke tears until you're already crying.

You have the ability to use human weapons and wear human clothing if you wish, but that is optional. You can, and many players have, opt for a "full Na'vi playthrough" where you only use Na'vi weapons and dress in Na'vi attire (You can even dress in Sarentu-specific attire for full immersion!) There are no choices, so you can't choose to not interact with the Resistance, but you can spend as little time as possible with other humans, only needing to return for quick updates before going back out into Pandora with other Na'vi.

I say all this to say, the game is heavily about the Na'vi and reclaiming one's culture after it's been attempted to be destroyed. Watching this journey play out made me realize the potential Avatar has, and helped me better understand my biggest gripe with the movies. It's Jake Sully.

The Whitest Savior to Ever Whitely Save

After finishing the FOP playthrough, I decided to rewatch the first movie to see if I'd feel differently about it. And boy did I!

I could talk all day about how the tiniest similarities got to me. I laughed watching the ferocious pack of viperwolves, after seeing players frantically try to outrun them in Kinglor Forest. The harrowing climb up the ikran rookery, and thinking about the Sarentu's own sinking self esteem as they struggle to prove themselves to their eventual bonded. Even the floating mountains as the characters in the movie weave through them and Trudy uses them for cover, connecting it to all the times I've seen FOP players and ikrans rest on them or gather resources from their peaks.

The comparisons are endless.

But the biggest contrast and glaring stain is Jake's entire character.

Like Jake, the Sarentu (the playable character) has to learn how to maneuver a world they are not used to. Unlike Jake, it's clear the protagonist actually develops an appreciation and love for the world around them.

RELATIONSHIPS TO OTHER NA'VI

Even overlooking the WS trope for a minute (which we will touch on!), it comes across as though Jake only begins to side with the Omatikaya after enjoying the adrenaline rush of their way of life, and falling in love with Neytiri. But we never see Jake actually bonding with any other Na'vi besides her in the first movie.

He grows into calling them "brother" and "sister", and has a few throwaway lines of knowing of other Na'vi, but we don't actually see him develop any positive relationships with anyone other than Neytiri (who is very much given the Love Interest Angle where majority of her scenes are about Jake or have Jake in them. Even during her father's death scene, Jake made an appearance!!! Go away for a millisecond I am begging!) Even his supposed arc with Tsu'tey is rushed as all hell, and only happens because Jake ~miraculously~ becomes Toruk Makto. A feat that makes the Omatikaya gain respect for him en masse, despite them just calling for his death after learning he played a major role in the destruction of their Hometree.

In comparison, the Sarentu not only gets to know the culture, customs, and day-to-day lives of the Na'vi they meet, they also get to befriend them.

Now since I've watched a let's play, I haven't seen all that the game offers. But I have seen a lot of side activities in the Kinglor Forest.

Your character bonds with the other Sarentu children and with members of other massacred clans. They also create relationships with members of large clans: from as monumental of events as helping expose a corrupt olo'eyktan and bringing a shamed tsahik back to power, to as intimate as attending as funeral / "letting go" ceremony for a deceased ikran, to as simple as helping restore a weaver's low self esteem. Your character not only helps stop the RDA, but they also truly develop connections with other Na'vi. More than one!

Obviously, there can't be a full exploration of Jake simply making friends in a film because there just isn't enough time. But we could've seen him bonding with at least a few other Na'vi besides his love interest. For the franchise and sequel to be so Na'vi-focused, it wouldn't have hurt the first movie to detract some screentime from RDA characters, and give it to more Na'vi who we could've continued on with.

RELATIONSHIP TO THE WORLD AND TO EYWA

Another gripe I have with Jake's character is that he seems to hardly appreciate Pandora's wildlife or the Na'vi's connection to Eywa.

During Iknimaya, once he creates the bond, he refers to the ikran as "mine", despite the numerous times Neytiri has said no creature on Pandora can "belong" to anyone. It is a mutual bond based on respect, not taming a pet. Despite this lesson, Jake clearly still viewed it as such. We're not even told if the ikran Jake bonded with has a name, not in the film anyway. I had to find out through google that he named it, simply, "Bob".

And in the finale when connecting to Eywa, Jake asks for her help in the final battle. But while doing so, he's still uncertain if she's even "real" or "actually listening". Even now, he continues to doubt Na'vi beliefs (despite it literally being Grace's dying words!!)

In comparison, the Sarentu's journey up the ikran rookery to form a bond... it's emotional to say the least.

There is a desperation in your character's voice. Not of impatience, but of declining self esteem. A worry that you won't be chosen because you will not be deemed worthy. Because you are not Na'vi enough due to your upbringing. As you go up, an Aranahe character that guides you, Eetu, tells you of his experience and how calming it was. And that makes the character more nervous because of how stressful it's been for them so far.

But then you finally get close enough to approach. The ikran finally allows you to, and you meet eyes and...

I do not know how they managed to capture care and affection so perfectly but they did. The journey up the rookery is intense and nerve wracking. But once you get chosen, you the player IMMEDIATELY knows (just like Eetu said) because the ikran looks at you as though she's already prepared to give her life for yours. Many players have expressed that this segment legitimately made them cry because of how palpable the bond is.

And then Eetu says that she has placed full trust in you. And you know he's right because you can feel it. You can see it. But then he says now it's time for you to place full trust in her, and he "helps" you accomplish this by pushing you off the cliff!!!!! And it's scary! And terrifying! And you call out for her to help and you're still falling!! But then she catches you, and the next thing you know you're experiencing probably one of the most heartwarming scenes of the entire game.

The Sarentu is not yelling commands such as "shut up and fly straight". It is truly a psychological bond. You are not an owner and she is not a vehicle. You are not a tamer and she is not a mindless beast. You fly together as one. You are one.

Connecting to Eywa is also an emotional experience. Whenever the Sarentu connects to the Tarsyu (their clan's method), they're able to communicate with their ancestors, specifically the founder of the Sarentu, Entu. Sometimes in depth and sometimes only vaguely. But whenever a connection is made, the Sarentu walks away with something gained.

In comparison, it's debatable if Jake experiences anything at all when he connects to the Omatikaya's Tree of Souls. I suppose this can be left up to lore though. Maybe he just doesn't feel anything because he doesn't have Na'vi ancestors? Maybe it's because his kuru is artificially made and not naturally born? I don't know! The possibilities of why are endless, and probably answered somewhere in bonus Avatar content.

What my issue is, is that Jake doesn't seem to care whether he has a connection to Eywa or not, despite Eywa being a pretty significant part of Na'vi culture overall. If he's able to feel something when connecting to her, he has no reaction. And if he isn't able to feel anything, he still has no reaction over missing out on something significant to their way of life.

When the Sarentu children connect to Eywa for the VERY first time in 32 years, there is an air of both anxiety and excitement. One of them even voices that they're worried Eywa and their ancestors won't accept them for not being raised like "true Na'vi" (as you can see, this is a reoccuring theme in the game. Who can be referred to as "true Na'vi"). After the connection is made, there are mixed reactions. But at least there are reactions. Jake has none.

(Please note again: I am only referring to the 2009 movie in this post because that was everyone's first intro into Avatar. I am not referring to any comics or books or etc. that may dive deeper into these topics. If they do, great! That doesn't negate how lackluster the movie is. As the original source material, it should be able to stand on its own, and it clearly can't.)

"The Savior The Na'vi Needed" I Guess

I've already linked articles above about how inappropriate it is that a white actor + character "is the only one" that can help these "poor, defenseless, and naive" Indigenous / coded characters of color "defeat" colonization. Many many many people have have touched on this problematic storyline. It's very disturbing.

So speaking not from a Doylist perspective, but from a Watsonian one, Human Marine Jake is still an immensely odd choice to be Eywa's + the Omatikaya's Chosen One.

It's implied Eywa "chose" Jake because he'd be able to save Pandora. But the Omatikaya were literally going to DIE had Eywa not called on all of the animals to come to their aid. They would've lost following Jake.

The only thing he managed to do that was unique was unite the clans. Which he only accomplishes due to the lazy writing of becoming Toruk Makto. The implication that no Na'vi in generations EVER considered just jumping on Toruk's back. Or if there were other Na'vi that tried it, that none of them ever succeeded, but Jake, who is still new to the world and animals of Pandora, would know how to expertly bond with a creature as ferocious as that, better than every other Na'vi since Neytiri's grandfather.

Not to mention the absolute amnesia everyone gets once he does. His former betrayal is completely forgotten about, never to be mentioned again.

Neytiri no longer cares that Jake massively lied and used her, because he's Toruk Makto.

Tsu'tey no longer cares that Jake knowingly mated with his betrothed and spied on their people's way of life, because Jake's Toruk Makto.

None of the other Omatikaya (who are terrifyingly written without any individuality whatsoever) care their Hometree was just destroyed and their Olo'eyktan killed due to Jake's betrayal, because he's Toruk Makto.

It all just gets washed down the drain, like the sheer chaos Jake's actions caused no longer matter. Because he's Toruk Makto, the Chosen One. No further action required. No heartfelt apologies, no intimate discussions, no anything.

Jake jumps on Toruk, and that's that.

So not only were they actively losing following behind Jake's leadership, but he was only able to rally the clans due to shoddy writing choices. So WHY did Eywa choose this specific man, who was just actively working against her, to be the one the Na'vi are supposed to follow??

On top of all that, the implication of the Omatikaya needing Jake to survive is... dubious to say the least. It is not only literally racist, but also incredibly infantilizing to the Na'vi. The implication that they couldn't have come up with effective strategies without being ordered around by a person who's initial goal was to help destroy them.

"In siding with the ‘natives’, Jake and Grace play a central role in what can essentially be deemed as a form of anti-colonial resistance. What is crucial in this telling for the fight for Na’vi tribal and ecological survival is the ways in which anti-colonial resistance becomes legitimized through the ‘other’ becoming human." [...] "The Na’vi, like other colonized peoples, are denied of their own agency, and resistance only becomes valid and possible within a colonial paradigm of acceptability. As a result the Na’vi become dependent on Jake, the white, male, human, ethnographic anthropologist as saviour, leading them to a freedom in which he had helped threaten in the first place. [...] The Na’vi come to exist suspended by space, time and tradition and the role of Jake and Grace as anthropologists too occupy a place in colonial history that play into both liberal and much more conservative agendas." (Why Avatar is a Truly Dangerous Film)

Neytiri Should've Been the True Lead

Rewatching the first movie after Frontiers of Pandora, I not only had a much greater appreciation for Pandora, but much more distaste for Jake as the leading character.

While watching, I found myself thinking at SEVERAL points, "This would've been so good if Neytiri had been the focal protagonist." And the longer the film went on, the more the feeling settled in.

As the daughter of the Olo'eyktan and Tsahik, who better to lead her people to victory after her father's death? (You could argue Tsu'tey since he was supposed to be Eytukan's successor anyway. Either are valid options!) Neytiri's great grandfather was the last Toruk Makto, who better to become TM of their generation than one of his direct descendants? Neytiri holds great respect for Eywa and was destined to be the next Tsahik after Mo'at, so why couldn't she be the one who Eywa guides all of Pandoran wildlife to follow behind?

Just why oh why do all of these important roles in the narrative have to belong to Jake?????? Why couldn't they belong to a Na'vi character themselves?

This is not to say Jake should've been completely erased from the story. I do think him having some relevance still would've been fine, especially given he's a disabled man. I just wish his role had been that of an ally, a side character, or at most a deuteragonist second to Neytiri. Because there is weight in gaining insider information from a privileged ally.

I just wish that Jake hadn't been the lead character who's POV we follow. I wish it had been from the perspective of one of the actual Na'vi characters that were being oppressed.

BONUS: FOP Just Solves A Lot of the Issues I Had with Avatar

White / Human Saviour

Explained above.

Random Chosen One

The Sarentu playable character helps out, and is invited to help, not because they were spiritually chosen by "a deity they don't even believe in" unlike Jake. The Sarentu helps simply because they want to. Full stop. They see the injustices the RDA is enacting against Pandora, and simply choose to help put a stop to them. Because it is wrong.

That's it.

It's 1000x more admirable in my opinion. To choose to help rather than being a Chosen One destined to do so.

You can argue that since Jake seems to not even believe in Eywa, that he does help based on choice alone. But like I covered earlier, he only does so after he's deemed the Na'vi (or more specifically Neytiri) worthy of being saved. Not because they have the inherent right to live as they wish. No, he didn't consider them worthy of helping until after he decided they were.

The Conflicting Ethics Behind 'Avatars'

I don't know much about all of the side quests in the game so if there are any other avatars, then I don't know about them. But based on what I've seen of the main storyline, FOP handles the dubious topic of 'avatars' much better than the movie does. Because personally, I've always found the concept disturbing.

"At least in other white savior movies, they don’t sugarcoat the whiteness nor did they reward the whiteness with the ultimate prize." [...] "Apparently as a reward for being such a good white savior (that was originally a double agent for Colonel Scarface to get operational intel on them so the army could blow their magic god tree to Hell), Jake gets permanently transformed into one of the Na’vi via his Avatar." "Just imagine '8 Mile' if Eminem beat Sam Wilson and the rest of the Free World at the Shelter so badly, Future [...] took out his fairy godbrother wand and turned Rabbit into a brother. That’s the kool-aid that James Cameron is essentially selling." (Battle to the Bottom: The Blue-faced White Savior ‘Avatar’ Is Even Worse Than ‘After Earth’)

The concept of 'avatars' (in the way Avatar writes them) has always freaked me the hell out. Especially when Jake begins referring to humans as "the Sky People" as though he wasn't one of them just the day before.

FOP handles this subject much better in my opinion because the character of Alma, who is the Sarentu's former teacher at TAP and who is the current leader of the Western Resistance, has great attachment to her avatar body. To the point where many Resistance members have never seen her in her original body.

Later in the story when things begin looking up for the Na'vi and for the Sarentu children, Alma starts using phrases such as "our resistance" and referring to lost Sarentu artifacts that have been reclaimed as coming "back to us", and other like-minded words. And when she does this, she is IMMEDIATELY called out on it.

Alma is not Sarentu nor is she Na'vi, and although she plants her consciousness into the body of a lookalike, she is still, first and foremost, a human. And no matter how much she may try to forget that, how much she may wish to distance herself from the crimes of her people, the characters do not hold her hand and allow her to do so. The game makes it known that while she is doing the right thing now, she has no right to cram herself into a culture and people by jumping into their skin and playing pretend.

[ SPOILER WARNING ]

And the way this arc is resolved? By Alma losing her avatar form and being forced to confront the truth of who she is, a human that was complicit in the oppression of the Na'vi, most specifically the Sarentu.

The Sarentu do not get on their hands and knees and kiss Alma's feet for the ways she's helped them (now). No, SOME of them let her know they appreciate the good she's done, but that ultimately, there needs to be distance. That they are still their own people and need to rebuild without her interference. This clearly hurts Alma, but like an actually good ally, she respects the boundaries made and eventually backs off. The separation is a peaceful one.

[ SPOILER END ]

Alma does not become their Chosen Hero after she defects from the RDA. She is not given a standing ovation. And she is not even given a "thanks" from all of the Sarentu, some of them proceed to hate her guts. The reactions towards Alma, a former RDA member who defected to aid the Na'vi's survival, are wonderfully and realistically mixed.

Because, like the character So'lek says at the beginning of the game, the Na'vi are not a monolith. They are not all the same, nor will they all have the same views.

Various Na'vi characters in FOP have diverging opinions on the Human Resistance group. Some support them, some don't want to come within 10 feet of them. And both POVs are framed as valid by the narrative.

On the other hand in the 2009 movie, any Na'vi character that didn't immediately grow into liking Jake was ultimately punished by the writing.

Neytiri disliked Jake in the beginning of the movie, but as soon as Mo'at names her his teacher, a switch flips and all animosity is gone. She is still tough on him, that's just who she is, but it's clear any true ire is immediately washed away once she is given the role of 'teacher'. In comparison, Tsu'tey spends half the film irritated and distrustful of Jake. (And rightly so given that Jake is literally an RDA plant!!)

Like I've already said, Tsu'tey undergoes a blink-and-you'll-miss-it "arc" where once Jake becomes Toruk Makto, all negativity anyone held vanishes. Except Tsu'tey's timing is clearly too late, because the writing punishes his earlier animosity by killing him off in the final battle.

The same can be said for Eytukan, who was the one to suggest tying the avatars up after Jake reveals his initial goal. Eytukan's animosity is also punished with death, with him dying during the destruction of Hometree.

(It can also be said that these characters died both to punish them for their inability to "appreciate" Jake at a quicker pace, and to simply get them out of the way so Jake could become Olo'eyktan of the Omatikaya. Because how else could the White Human Savior become the leader of the people, if the leaders that were already there didn't "get out of the way" to make room?)

Conclusion

If you couldn't tell, I wasn't Avatar (2009)'s biggest fan my first time watching. For numerous reasons.

It wasn't until watching a playthrough of Frontiers of Pandora, that I realized a lot of my ire was towards Jake specifically (although there are many problems with the franchise as a whole), and if the story had just not been told from Jake's POV, and had been told from the POV of one of the Na'vi fighting for their home (Neytiri would be my first choice, Tsu'tey second), then I think I would've at least been able to enjoy it. It's hard for me to even watch Avatar (2009) because of how rampant the issues are in that movie. Or I suppose because of how central Jake is.

I wrote all this just to air out my thoughts. But if you're similar to me and felt like Avatar (2009) was "off", then I do suggest you take a look at Frontiers of Pandora and still see if you feel the same.

All this isn't to say FOP is the perfect game, mind you. It absolutely has flaws, ones that others have touched on and that I've noticed myself. But even with it's flaws, I'd take it's misgivings over Avatar (2009)'s atrocious ones any day.

#babbles #frontiers of pandora #anti jake sully #avatar frontiers of pandora #neytiri shouldve been the main protagonist #anti avatar #anti avatar 2009 #jake sully hate #post is moreso... pro FOP neutral Avatar anti jake?#tw*w isn't really included in this because i still have to finish it #also im not a hardcore Avatar fan so please forgive me if i mess up the terminology #long text post //#im trying to make sure this doesnt end up in any pro 'js' tags as much as possible #bc as much as i hate Jake its not like i want to shove this post in his fans' faces

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crowncrown · 11 months

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MORE GENLOSS BRAINROT LETS GOOO

!!!MAJOR SPOILER WARNING!!!

Generation loss’s ending is so incredible I can not STAND IT OH MY GOD I need to write out my thoughts before my brain explodes because I haven’t been able to think about anything else since.

The first episode was an absolute curveball to everyone who’s been keeping up with the spooky ranmail and everything and I’m not gonna lie I was a little nervous about what this show was really gonna be when I was watching it. But the thought process it took behind every detail to make something so goofy actually be horrifying once you understand the context of the next two episodes WAS BRILLIANT. Every piece of the puzzle just adds more and more to the storyline and it makes me want to dissect every detail of the vods for hours.

But I think the most bone chilling part of this-very intentionally I must add- is the final sequence. We witness every one of the characters sacrifice themselves for GL!Ranboo and GL!Slime isn’t any different spending his last breaths being killed by the wire creature (for lack of better words) to make sure Ranboo hits the finish line. But as soon as you feel any level of triumph you realize that Slime is just like Sneeg in the episode before sacrificing himself to ensure the show goes on.

Because it was never about the hero.

Ranboo isn’t special. He’s just another pawn in the game with the illusion of being the protagonist to make it more interesting for the desensitized viewers watching these people die over and over.

He was never meant to win.

And then that leads to us.

The audience.

Given the illusion of choice.

Do you publicly execute this man? Or do you let him live to be tortured the rest of his miserable existence until he is inevitably killed by Showfall for breaking the rules. If you spare him, is it a fate worse than death? We fight with this moral dilemma, trying to decide if it’s our decision whether people live or die.

But he’s a murderer! He killed people and showed no remorse! Showfall metaphorically whispers in our ear that he earned this fate for the terrible actions he committed. But was it him? Did he have any control over the actions he committed throughout the show or is he a victim?

He begins begging to be let go. To just escape from this snare he never asked to be trapped in the first place. The audience heavily leans towards letting him live because maybe being alive in this horrible show is better than the execution. But he knows that was never an option for him. He watches as a cartoony figure jokes about his demise and a audience poll decides his fate. And in that moment he realizes his choices were never his own.

So he gives up.

Begs to just be put down because being part of the cast means he will hurt more and more people the way he’s been hurt. That he will be the cause of more and more pain, and very likely more murderers.

And the audience decides death is the best route for him to take.

Maybe he died believing this is his fault. That the audience decided he should be dead for the horrific things he chose to do. But did he ever really choose?

His story was a tragedy before he could even pick up the pen.

And then there’s Showfall. Once again the ever present voice in our ear. Whispering that we are just the same as he is.

You just chose to murder a man. Is that not any different than him killing the innocent to progress in this game? Showfall now has the audience in the same grip as the man in the guillotine.

Your story as an audience is a tragedy long before you will ever pick up the pen.

#crown drabbles:)#genloss brainrot #genloss #generation loss #ranboolive #looking way too deep into things because it’s late at night #Ranboolive is rotting my brain

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godspeedmajortom · 2 years

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Man, Dros is such a tragedy.

He was 16 when Operation Death Blow landed. He was a half-trained kid put in charge of full adult soldiers and teens like himself, told to be the voice of the Commune to the Military as the entire force of the world bore down to destroy them. It's a super fucked up situation that no one could ever be prepared for, let alone a sixteen-year-old. No sane person could expect him to rise to that challenge. Even in the best of times, I would not entrust a teen with being a commissar. But it was the turning point of the war and the communards were desperate, so here's this idealistic kid who just wanted to do his best to serve the cause and his city.

When the bombs started to fall, he got scared and ran away. Running away from horrible imminent death is a perfectly normal response for a human being! But he wasn't supposed to be just "a human being." He was supposed to be a Soldier and a Commissar and a Leader. Instead, he was the Deserter.

In his extreme survivor's guilt afterwards, he never rejoined any of his fellow communists. Why not? Sure he was ashamed of his cowardice and feared punishment for deserting his post. But it's not like if he'd stayed at the Sea Fortress, he would have made any difference in the outcome. His inframaterialist superpowers weren't going to un-jam the anti-aircraft gun. If he'd met up with any other communists, given their desperation, they would have forgiven his desertion and allowed him to join their unit. Maybe if they had won the war he could have gotten his court martial later. But of course, survivor's guilt brain wouldn't let him imagine forgiveness. He must be Tormented and Punished for his Crime. Moreover, he feared what the world was doing to the communists: rounding them all up for execution. Again, pretty reasonable thing to be afraid of!

If you're a communist choosing to forsake your entire community because you fear the consequences, is communism really your highest ideal? The logical resolution to Dros' cognitive dissonance would be to say, "My actions don't match what I claim to be my ideals. Therefore, communism isn't actually my highest ideal, something else (self-preservation) is." Instead, Dros convinced himself that "living to fight another day" really was the best thing he could do for communism. This approach made some sense for a time. Less so once every other communist was dead.

But it was a useful rationalization for a guilt-wracked idealist. It soothed his fear of exposing his past failure and his fear of dying. It let him think he only put his life before communism that one time and never again. It let him convince himself that he was ideologically pure and ignore how meaningless that claim is when he never let his ideals come into contact with actual society for 40 years. Being in self-imposed exile, no one could ever tell him otherwise. He would always be Right and always be Atoning.

His tragedy isn't that he deserted all those years ago, it's that he never let himself be Seen after it. The only thing that would have let him move past his guilt was the forgiveness of others, which he denied himself through his isolation. So instead, his failure and inability to move passed it became his identity.

This guy. What a frightened mess twisted with guilt and trauma. What an absolute withered wreck of a human being.

#disco elysium #disco elysium meta #disco elysium spoilers #disco elucidations #iosef lilianovich dros #the deserter

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ladytesla · 3 months

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The Great Faerun Baking Show (part four)

Hi, remember me? Wasn't in the best headspace for a bit, but now I'm gonna try and follow through with all this.

For those of you who are just stopping by, I had a horrible idea a while ago and this is the result. I have no idea what's going to happen or who's going to win. I’m just going to roll a D20 ‘bake check’ for everyone and write out the results, including what everyone rolled so y’all know I’m not cheating just so my druid boyfriend can win. The person with the lowest total score (out of a possible score of 60) goes home.

We've got the main 6 companions, Jaheira, Halsin, Minsc (and Boo), Minthara, Dammon, and my tav Medora (who y'all can just pretend is Alfira if you don't want someone else's tav in the story, since they're both female bards)

Week One, Cake Week: Star baker was Karlach, Minthara went home

Week Two, Biscuit Week: Star baker was Halsin, Shadowheart went home

Week Three, Bread Week: Star baker was Wyll, Jaheira went home

Week Four: Pies and Tarts, or "Ammunition to Throw in Dribbles' Face"

Signature: Wellington

Astarion: Lamb wellington. It was quite dry, and the fake blood garnish was in poor taste, but it was at least edible.

Dammon: Vegetarian wellington. He miscalculated how much moisture the veggies would have, and his wellington turned out quite soggy.

Gale: Bream wellington with veggies. He tried to bring in some Waterdhavian flair to his recipe, and it worked really well for him.

Halsin: Vegan mushroom wellington. It was very badly misshapen and the puff pastry was somehow charred at one end and underbaked at the other.

Karlach: Chicken wellington with cherry sauce. The flavors were lovely and incredibly well balanced, and earned her a Hollywood Handshake.

Lae'zel: Curried monkfish wellington. The flavors were so unique and the bake was so well executed that she got a Hollywood Handshake.

Medora: Venison wellington. She got distracted by Halsin's biceps and burned it to a crisp. The oven even caught on fire, which caused more than a little panic until Gale used magic to put it out. The wellington-shaped charcoal briquet found in the oven was unable to be judged.

Minsc: Pork wellington. The puff pastry didn't puff whatsoever.

Wyll: Traditional beef wellington. The problem with classics is that you have to execute it absolutely perfectly. And he did! And got a Hollywood Handshake to boot.

Technical: 12 Egg Custard Tarts

We only had one tie this week, and scores scattered all across the board. Worst to best:

9. Lae'zel 8. Halsin 7. Karlach 6. Medora 5. Astarion 4. Dammon 3. Minsc 2. Wyll 1. Gale

Showstopper: Designer Fruit Tart

Astarion: He used all citrus fruits in his tart, which worked well with the chocolate custard he made. It was noted that he's relied on citrus and chocolate before, but the judges were hardly complaining.

Dammon: Once again the resident blacksmith has proven that he has quite the eye for detail, as his tropical fruit tart was perfectly precise and artfully decorated. He earned a Hollywood Handshake.

Gale: Created a lovely fruit mosaic tribute to his former 'friend' the Netherese Orb. Unfortunately that might have jinxed the tart, as he tripped and dropped it on the way to it being judged.

Halsin: Again, he'd harvested all the berries himself for his tart. Cloudberries, mulberries, sea buckthorn... he tried to find berries most people might not know about. The pastry case was a bit crumbly, but otherwise the presentation was lovely.

Karlach: Her tart had red fruit, red custard, and red tart dough. While the flavors were all right, the presentation was very much lacking. But as we know, Karlach is very unapologetic about presentation if something tastes good.

Lae'zel: May or may not have used fruit from the astral plane that causes hallucinations. To her credit, she didn't know said fruit causes hallucinations in istiks. The fruit provided a lovely light blue color to her presentation that hadn't been seen before, and once the judges didn't think their hands were melting anymore, they admitted it tasted quite lovely.

Medora: She started out rough this week, but managed to pull through with a tart featuring stone fruit like peaches and plums. The salted caramel drizzle on top really tied everything together.

Minsc: Noel Fielding played a joke and pretended to kidnap Boo. Enraged, Minsc instinctively threw what he had with him at the host... which unfortunately meant his tart sailed across the tent and hit Noel in the back of the head. Unfortunately, that meant said tart was unable to be judged. They both profusely apologized to each other and let Boo eat as many crumbs as he wanted, though.

Wyll: Apparently Duke Ravenguard enjoys a good fruit tart, so Wyll used all of his father's favorite fruits in the design he made. It was beautiful, and very well-balanced in flavor.

The Results:

Our star baker AGAIN this week, with a whopping 55/60, is Wyll!

And unfortunately, due to throwing a tart as well as his score of 22/60, Minsc (and Boo) have to leave the tent.

Feel free to play along in the comments! How would your tav or favorite npc compare?

Next week is Underdark Week. Have your antidotes ready.

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evernkillian · 1 year

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Bungou Stray Dogs Fanfiction Recs | Fyozai Edition; Part 1

Standard Rec Lists Disclaimers Apply: Please for the love of God read the tags and Author's Note/s, This is NOT the ultimate rec lists or whatever, the fics below are my cup of tea.

Also, I tried my best to make the Quotes I included spoiler free but if you think it is just tell me!

(Also: Fyozai as in, Fyodor Dostoevsky / Dazai Osamu)

(also I have more fic recs! Here)

🍄🍄🍄

1. The touch of winter by Scarlet_Nin (@scarlet-nin )

Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings | 3k Words | Complete

Summary: The clatter of a knife hitting the floor the only sound in the room.

“Breaking into my bedroom, have you no shame? Not only that but cleaning out the blood will be such a chore. You truly are a Demon.”

“The kettle calling back to the pot, I see.”

Dostoevsky lowers the gun, a silencer preventing others coming to rescue, a parody of a smile spreading across his face. Another precise shot makes the knife slide across the room out of reach.

“But cleaning should be no trouble for you, you’ve got so much experience on your hands.”

“I wouldn’t mind cleaning up blood if it’s yours.”

They share a smile. It’s like looking into a mirror, they find, each seeing the same darkness in the other. A longing to break, to hurt, to spill life onto their hands—

!!! This fic is what got me into Fyozai. Like!!! The Tension!!!! They keep referencing each other as 'Rat' and 'Cat' and honestly!!! *Chef's Kiss* Also usual Fyozai talk about demons, gods, philosophy, etc. There's a telepathy thing going on (courtesy of being geniuses and their habit of reading each other) that I absolutely adore. I love the writing style, and in this particular fic it emphasizes the way they're similar to each other. Which I really love. Anyway!! My favorite Quote:

That horrible twisted mind equal to your own.

The pride at seeing how you could have turned out had you not listened to Odasaku’s last parting words, it makes you feel better about yourself.

2. warmth by orphan_account

T | 740 words | Complete

Summary: Cold as ice and white as snow.

That was all they knew about the new Port Mafia Executive.

But a certain someone knew more.

And he knew, above all, Fyodor Dostoyevsky needed warmth.

Short but sweet! Fyodor's the New Mafia Executive and Dazai pokes him. In usual Fyodor fashion, he thinks about abilities. AND!!! platonic touching!!! They're touch starved idiots and I love them your honor. Also my favorite quote:

Fyodor obliged, holding Dazai's hand. It was warm, but only when he was next to him. Otherwise, Fyodor knew, it was as cold as the ice he was born in.

3. mid autumn by yuki_MXIVo (@yuki-mxivo )

G | 3k Words | Complete

Summary: “But you tried to kill each other! How could you possibly be married!? You really tried to kill each other!”

“Yes?” Fyodor raises an unimpressed brow. “Romance is not the center of everything. You're surprisingly close-minded, I see.”

/// several months after the decay of angels case closes, Fyodor shows up at the agency seemingly out of the blue. He'd been thought dead.

MARRIED FYOZAI FIC I REPEAT MARRIED FYOZAI THEYRE MARRIED YOUR HONOR. I really love this absabnabanaan. Fyodor's Characterization is very... Human? Like as he thinks about the DoA, and stuff, and I really love it since most fics just show his manipulative genius side. Fyodor gave Dazai earrings *incoherent screaming*. Fyodor is exasperatedly fond of Dazai and it's so endearing to read. Relationship Reveal! Cause the ADA is there when they met- which is expected since Fyodor went to the Cafe Uzumaki. Russian Pet Names!!! I could rave about it more but no spoilers so!! Favorite Quote:

“We were nineteen,” Dazai sighs, dreamy, melting against Fyodor’s side, disgustingly saccharine in a way Fyodor can only pretend not to enjoy, “straight out of high school.”

4. Even through the Mist. by DeadDrabble (MisakillDatMonkey)

M | 3k Words | Complete

Summary: Dazai's mind has been strangely foggy lately. Are these limbos truth and reality or is he lost in a nightmare? Fyodor's cello sounds like the sweetest melody...

Or when Fyodor manipulates Dazai into taking his side to retrieve the book, using grief and ghosts of his past. Dazai's only hope resides in his will to follow the right path and his old partner.

This had me on the edge of my seat!!! Like holy moley!! Dazai doesn't know what's real and what's not and it's conveyed beautifully. Actually, Fyozai is not the main pairing, but most of this fic is about them. The manipulations!!! The mind games!!!

“See? You’re surprisingly docile,” the demon acknowledges, delighted. Dazai tugs on his hair a bit roughly. He looks back at the man through half-lidded eyes. He feels so bad, it feels so wrong, but he’s confident… He placed his trust in the right person, and it’s okay if he’s weak along the way. He can rely on those people. Even when he slips up.

5. I Offer A Prayer (To An Iceless Home) by Poetiicdissonance

T | 7k Words | Complete

Summary: Children grow into adults, and some grow into monsters. Monsters cannot love.

(But if it were anyone else, it would come quite close.)

u know that headcanon where Dazai hid in Russia with Fyodor between leaving the mafia and joining ADA? This is it. This is that fic. They're roommates! They talk about things. Deep things. About their Philosophies, ideas in life that they hold with an iron fist. They poked and prodded each other. It's a quiet companionship- and until now I don't know if it's the eye of the storm, or the gentle waves of a deep sea. This is so very. Very dear to me. I hold this fic gently in my heart. I cried, I laughed, I fell in love with them. Also no favorite quote since everything about it is my favorite.

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#bungou stray dogs fanart #bungo stray dogs dazai osamu #bungo stray dogs fyodor #Bungo stray dogs Fyodor Dostoevsky #bsd fyodor #bsd dazai #bsd fanfic recs #fyozai #fanfiction #fanfiction recs #fanfic recs #fanfic

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katkafe · 1 year

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HELLO, IVE JUST FINISHED WATCHING WEDNESDAY

because i am the biggest dumbest nerd when it comes to the addams family: ive made a crappy list of why wednesday is everything i hoped for and more and why it is absolutely fucking perfect. spoilers.

im not entirely sure on how to start slow with this one so im getting right fucking into it. enjoy reading the disaster of my thoughts on this masterpiece:

AMAZING CASTING. jenna is incredible as wednesday, catherine and luiz are the perfect morticia and gomez, i adored seeing christina ricci KICKING ASS. gwendoline christie was amazing as weems, fred armisen as fester???? lost my shit he was so perfect. i don’t think there was a single cast member i wasn’t amazed with.

no genuinely i loved all of the nevermore students

fell in love w enid so fast omg i was rooting for her so hard her arc was so awesome (her and ajax are so cute too)

rip rowan you would’ve loved wenclair

THING!!!: its not the addams family without thing, and its especially not the addams family if thing isn’t being a little shit stirrer the whole time. perfect beautiful i love him A++

THE WEDNESDAY/PUGSLEY DYNAMIC WAS SO ON POINT they literally have the actual best sibling dynamic

i now know that you have not lived until you’ve seen wednesday addams stuck in a love triangle. she is not a character that you would expect to have a romantic interest but now in my mind she’s just beautifully a-spec and probably demiromantic. yes obviously i love xavier.

don’t get mad at me but i don’t ship her w enid that much?? at least not romantically but hey i would not complain if we had a polycule or qpr!!!

also it was genuinely so cute to see wednesday making friends like. why was i sobbing so much when she hugged enid. holy fuck.

THE DANCE SCENE. SHES AN ICON SHES A LEGEND AND SHE IS THE MOMENT

i am referring to both her actual dancing and ofc “they couldn’t even spring for real pigs blood. its only paint.” so real.

cant even stop myself from mentioning that jenna ortega looks very hot covered in blood which happens a lot in this series. like almost every episode. jesus fucking christ i am so in love with her.

i am a huge edgar allen poe nerd so i fucking adored every little reference to his works. also the idea that he was an outcast is so real to me.

speaking of outcasts: ngl definitely could’ve come up with a better name, “outcasts” just made it sound weirdly like some awkward teen high school drama but you get used to it

wednesday’s visions were so cool??? i loved the whole goody addams thing their interactions were really cool and god i just was not expecting that at all.

ok tbh it was really weird that her name was goody, since “goody” is the puritan equivalent of “mrs.” (its short for goodwife) so idk why they did that but ok i’m still here for it

honestly in general they do a really good job of keeping you guessing. i was suspicious about almost every single character throughout the whole series.

in retrospect i should’ve known tyler was gonna be an asshole from the start cause. i mean. his name is tyler. no offense to my tylers, but be real when have you ever seen a tv show character named tyler that wasn’t a douche. i’ll wait.

i’ve typed tyler too many times and it no longer looks like a real name

episodes are nice and long but i obviously wish the series was longer, but it was super bingable and i’m probably gonna rewatch it 3 million times until the next season inevitably comes out.

not to be dorky but i loved how every episode title was a pun w the word “woe”

i have really horrible media literacy in the sense that i overthink EVERYTHING so to me like almost everything in that was beautifully executed symbolism and maybe it was but when i say i lost my shit when i noticed wednesday stand on enid’s side of the room and fsr thats the only example i can think of rn BUT STILL

overall 5 stars 10/10 show i cant wait for more i love the plot i love the characters i love the cast i will be recommending it to everyone ik and more

#wednesday #wednesday netflix #wednesday addams #jenna ortega #the addams family

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dragonfly0808 · 1 year

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In honor of it being winx 19th birthday, how would you rank the seasons?

oooooooooooohhhhhhh that’s a hard one…. I’ll rank up to 6 cause I stopped watching after that

1st- This was honestly going to be a tie between 2 and 3 but in the end 3 won out. It has a more interesting plot and introduces our lovely Enchantix but it’s also a little too Bloom focused and the ending… I never was the biggest fan of the ending if I’m being 100% honest, like… a 5 minute battle after ALL of that? But it did also have some of the best moments and my fave moments like the Crystal Labyrinth, Flora’s Enchantix, the whole Omega/Tecna plotline and more. Also since the entire Club is established at this point we get to explore their dynamic a bit more. Though Musa and Flora blend a bit into the background at times and we rarely get any Specialist moments. But overall, for me it’s the best to me.

2nd- Season 2. We get Darkar, Aisha’s epic introduction and her arc, little moments for all the girls’ Charmix. HELIA?! HELIA AND FLORA?! AAAAAA!!!! Sorry fangirled there a bit. I feel like we got to see a bit more of the boys this season so I loved that. Darkar is an epic, creepy villain and I feel like the Trix are still good in this season. Also Dark Bloom was lowkey iconic and I loved the pixies this season. For me seasons 2 and 3 are very close in this ranking. The only reason it’s second is because s3 has a bit more memorable moments and of course, Enchantix.

3rd- This might surprise yall but… season 4. I LOVE season 4. I love the Wizards, their dynamic and personalities, Anagan’s little weird flirting with Flora? Gold. It has a lot of unnecessary drama between the Specialists and the Winx but I can let it slide because of the great ideas. We get the Wizards of the Black Circle, the dynamic with Roxy as we get to see another young girl get her world twisted upside down. Then, we free the Earth fairies and… they want fucking revenge. And that’s awesome. The timeline makes absolutely no fucking sense though. I’ll be honest, this one is mostly here due to nostalgia (this season was my fave for a very long time) and ideas not necessarily execution. But this one will always have a special place in my heart.

4th- the one that started it all, season 1! The one where we get introduced to almost all of the girls the only season in which Riven actually gets to keep his development, it’s he best season of the Trix and… this one is probably the most coherent one when it comes to plot since the plot had to be simple since we were just being introduced to the characters and world. I love this season so much. The only reason it isn’t higher is mostly cause the others just have so much more going on that this one can fade a bit into the background but I still absolutely adore it. Also, I have a thing with insects so the Army of Darkness still gives me the creeps to this day just… no- ew

5th- Now on to where I personally feel the decline truly started, season 5. So, they returned the squad to school with no explanation and just… okay? Then all of a sudden Aisha have these cousins that have never been shown before and one of them is evil and has the Trix join him and… okay? And then… it’s just a mess of somewhat good ideas but this is also when they start making the Winx childish like, even more than they were in season 1. And I cannot remember anything about the boys this season, literally just that stupid amnesia plotline like- what?! Can we please just give Bloom and Sky a break? I actually liked the idea of them breaking up to give themselves sometime but no let’s just get fucking- I can’t even. This was just a weird season overall to me. I liked the concept of the oceans and sometimes it was done really well other times not. Also the Trix just… lose their impact

6th- now… wow… I like some of the concepts here, mainly Selina and the Legendarium but they were executed so fucking horribly. I adore the Bloomix designs like, I might even put them above Enchanitx they are so fucking pretty but the way they get it is just… such bullshit? And then the Legendarium could’ve been a chance to make up myths for other planets but no for some reason they are all from Earth? And then Daphne’s random ass plotline and randomly getting married and just what?! The only thing I liked were the designs, Helia and Flora having a conflict even if it was a bit stupid and Musa losing her voice. That’s literally all I can remember cheering for. And now we have a form unironically called Bloomix… remember when I said season 3 focused a bit too much on Bloom? Yeah… also I fucking hate the fairy godmother I’m not even going to look up her name. Selina had potential but then the Trix at this point are just pitiful. So yeah, this is when I oficially gave up on the series, I didn’t even watch the full final few episodes I just skimmed them.

And that’s the ranking! Also, Winx is now my same age, I feel fucking old ajjajajaja.

#winx club #winx rewrite #winx #winx headcannon #winx fanfic #winx headcannons #winx season 1 #winx season 2 #winx season 3 #winx season 4 #winx season 5 #winx season 6 #winx headcanons #winx ranking

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ribbondee · 2 years

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PMATGA: Betrayus and Stratos headcanons

BETRAYUS:

White Pac Worlders are referred to as "blanche", and it is basically the Pac Worlder equivalent of albinism. It is extremely rare, and only a few hundred known cases (including Betrayus and Dr Pacenstein) have ever been observed. The cause is unknown, although it could possibly be genetic.

When he's drunk, it can range from telling Buttler and Buttocks how much he loves and appreciates them, to going onto depressed rants about the war or his painful childhood.

("Mummy always liked Stratos best! WAAAAAAH!" Buttler: *is gently giving him pats on the back* "There there sir...")

When he's high, he tends to be giggly and find everything hilarious.

Whenever he's under the influence, sometimes he calls the Round House's hotline (I headcanon that there is one lol) and you can probably guess how that goes. ...then again he likely calls it when he's sober anyway just to prank call Stratos. Constantly.

Occasionally, he throws Netherworld-wide parties so wild and loud, they can faintly be heard on the surface.

When he cries, steam comes out. (yeah yeah I know we've seen him cry actual tears in the show, but I like the idea of crying steam better haha)

He can't use a Pacphone without help (not just because he's the Pac World equivalent of a boomer; also because his prosthetic hands do not register on the touch screen.)

He pronounces meme as "mee-mee"

He was bullied heavily as a kid for his lack of pigmentation, and that coupled with the parental neglect he suffered from/not being the favorite child has further contributed to his warped psyche. Another result of his childhood trauma is severely stunted emotional growth, making him the man baby that he is. Of course this far from excuses his actions, especially since he shows absolutely no remorse whatsoever.

His attempts to be 'hip and fresh' with the 'kool kids' always turn out horribly. (*Insert a Betrayus version of the how do you do fellow kids meme*)

I have a feeling that if PMATGA wasn't a kids show, he'd have a VERY foul mouth. VERY.

He cannot stand being touched, unless the person in question is a significant other.

He is bisexual, although it would be difficult for him to pour 100 percent of his love into someone besides himself (not only simply because he's an asshole. He just doesn't like people getting close to him.)

He was born on a Friday the 13th, AND during a full moon.

He is prone to night terrors and has been ever since he was little.

STRATOS:

The feelings of hatred Betrayus has for his brother isn't mutual. Stratos DOES still love his brother, hence why he allowed B's soul to be sent to the Nether Realm instead of destroyed for good. As we all know, that was a grave mistake (ba dum tss).

It pains him deeply to see how Betrayus turned out, and feels guilty for possibly having a hand in it.

He had an afro back in high school, and deeply embarrassed by the memory. He also went through a goth phase at one point (so did Betrayus, but he obviously never outgrew his).

Back when they still served as generals together, there was one night they both got wasted and sang shanties at the top of their lungs.

He never actually intends to give the Ghost Gang their bodies back being the liar that he is.

That being said, he more than likely has more to him than we've seen thus far, and it wouldn't surprise me if he had a few skeletons in his closet...

If there is anything that haunts him for the rest of his life, its his brother's screams and shrieks of agony as his soul was forcefully ripped from his body (that moment when you realize a character was basically executed for war crimes in a kid's show. Gosh I love it lol)

He is completely asexual.

He once let an F bomb slip on live tv; he didn't realize the camera was rolling. It became a huge meme just minutes after it happened much to his humiliation.

Stratos wasn't always the responsible one... once when their mother was away a teenage Stratos decided to throw a party at their house. It got out of hand VERY FAST. The house was covered in toilet paper, windows were shattered, someone spray painted a dick on the bathroom wall, and the bathtub was full of poop and vomit. Overall, the house smelled like a crude mix of puke, pee and pot. The neighbors called the cops, which is how Rotunda found out before Stratos could get things sorted out. It was possibly the only time Rotunda was ever actually mad at him. Also during said party, a very drunk Betrayus thought it would be funny to snort chili powder. He ended up in the hospital. Fun fact: It was actually Stratos who dialed 911 for his brother. Awww.

HEADCANON THAT APPLIES TO BOTH OF THEM:

They shared a room growing up, and it wasn't fun for either of them. One half of the room was decked out with posters and awards and was always neat, while the other was in constant disarray and the only noteworthy thing were a few Pac Pong trophies that nobody ever paid attention to, not even their mother. In the present day the room is still how they left it. Stratos' side is well cared for, while Betrayus' side is dusty...

#pmatga #pac man and the ghostly adventures #betrayus #stratos spheros #pacman #pmatga headcanons

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livelaughlapush · 1 year

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So I Just Re-Watched the Mortal Instruments: City of Bones Film and....

This Movie did not age well....

GIF by decisiontoleave

Like it is NOT Good. There some good things in it, and I actually like the film, but it is still NOT GOOD. But it does make me sad because, I absolutely loved the book, and they had changed so much, which is very disappointing. However the things that i liked still made me want to see more. Even though it wasn't exact, this was still going to be one of my favorite book franchises brought to life.

Yes, you can say this movie did bad, because it was bad, but there are many movies out there that are bad and do really well, cause at the end of the day Cinema is subjective. But one of things that i liked about the film were some of the actors. From Jamie Campbell Bower, to Lena Headey, to Aiden Turner, to Jared Harris, they were all so great. I'm not gonna lie though, Lily Collins either tried her best or just didn't try at all, because her acting in this film was rough, like i was getting high school play with her line delivery, the same with Robert Sheehan, it just felt that he was at some points trying to hard to seem nerdy, i hated his accent, and the actors who played Alec & Isabelle, the fact that they tried to make us believe that they were teens was hilarious.

The script was not the best, like some of the things that the people were doing and saying didn't make sense. Amanda the Jedi, pointed out herself, when she asked, why would this demon let this girl, who can see this weaponizing rune, in the club, and worse, why would he go into it and when Clary says "I don't remember anything she'd want me to forget," girl, that's the idea. And the music was definitely of its time, it was okay, that's it. The jokes were not clever and seemed a bit forced, but the ones they gave Jamie, he executed them pretty well. Many plot points in the film, were just to abrupt, the movie was much too long, some scenes felt rushed and forced. A lot of the romance was very corny, but Lily and Jamie had pretty good chemistry, so it kind of worked, and a lot the characters did not get enough development. The CGI is bad.

The main reason why I think this film did not do great, was because it was made much too late. This film came out in 2013, that was right when the Twilight Phenomenon was ending, and when Twilight ended, so did the YA Adaption craze, no really cared about it anymore, because at the end of the day it was all of the same tropes. Another thing that i think the movies got wrong was that it was clear they were trying to make the film more Twilight-esque, which is something that a lot YA films and books were doing, because Twilight was so successful. And the thing is many people think the Twilight films were horrible but they did amazing, but what the studio failed to realized was that this film, was based on books, that were based off of Harry Potter, specifically HP Fanfiction.

And yes the film, i think does a pretty good job at capturing the aesthetic of the books, and how like in HP, i think COB did an okay job portraying the fantasticalness of this discovery of a new world, which is something the Harry Potter films did beautifully. I know there was a show, but i did not like it. Now do I think that these books are perfect? absolutely not, but I do think they deserved, better quality then what they were given, film-wise? Yes!!!

I know the movie is not good, but it's fun and deserves a big-budget adaption, whether a film or a show. And I have a soft spot for this film, It might be because I love actors so much, so I actually wish that this movie got sequels; I want to that it had a bigger audience. Because of these books, this world has a rich lore that deserves to be told.

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a34trgv2 · 3 months

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The Problem With Bad Adaptations/Spin-Offs

In today's entertainment landscape, there's definitely a surplus of adaptations and spin-offs of pre-existing IPs. While some are very well crafted and more than worthy additions to the franchise, others are, to put it simply, not. This post will dissect why bad adaptations and spin-offs do more harm to the IP than good and what aspiring creators can do to avoid these missteps.

If you're assuming that this post is going to point to the executives who only care about money as opposed to quality, you're sorely mistaken. Executives need to be finance and business savy so that they can keep the company running. The real root cause of an adaptation/spin-off's shortcommings falls on the shoulders of the creators. They're the ones who went ahead with the creative decisions, they're the ones that put the whole thing together, they're the one's whose name is slapped under the director or creator's credit. The executives may care more about how the project rakes in profits, but it's the creator's responsibility to make sure it's entertaining to the audience.

You know how many fans of books disregard the movie with the saying "the book was better" regardless if the movie was good or bad? Well, this saying is most predominantly used for bad adaptations because when they fail, the original book is used as evidence to support fans criticism. While changing things from the source material is a given with adaptations, the adaptation should make for an entertaining retelling of the original story with well rounded and fully developed characters, creative would building and really good acting. Films like Percy Jackson and The Olyimpians, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day (what is up with that title being so long?!), and The Devil All The Time fail at all these essentials, and as such make for sloppy movies that don't do the books they're based on justice.

Like adaptations, spin-offs should be worthy additions to the original IP. Yet often, a spin-off is mediocre at best and absolutely terrible at worst. By haing a spin-off turn out bad, the creators inadvertently justify the doubts of naysayers who felt the spin-off was unnecessary. Planet Sheen, for example, could've been a really funny show that expanded the Jimmy Neutron universe and provide some more creative ideas. Yet because it turned out to be so unfunny and unfocused, fans of Jimmy Neutron were made correct into thinking it was unnecessary. This badly made spin-off is now a permanent stain on the legacy of the original IP and creators have no one to blame but themselves.

DreamWorks Animation has got to have the worst track record when it comes to their spin-offs and adaptations. With some notable exceptions such as She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, Dinotrux and the Dragons series, most of their shows are some of the worst cartoons ever made and do a great disservice to the original IP. Among them, Legends of Awesomeness is the worst offender and the pinnacle example of how NOT to make a spin-off. The animation is terrible, the writing is atrocious, the voice acting is very bad, and the characters are one note and annoying. The worst part about the show is Po and how he's completely out of character. Where in the movies he's a really nice guy with genuine love and respect for kung fu, the show makes him a lazy, unfunny and annoying cheat who lies and decieves his way to get what he wants. Unfortunately, DreamWorks Animation has not learned the right lessons as their recent spin-off, The Bad Guys: A Very Bad Holiday, was absolutely terrible and their new Megamind series looks, unsurprisingly, abominable.

To anyone who's tasked with making a spin-off or adaptation, here's the mistakes you need to avoid in order to make a worthy addition to the IP. Firstly, don't assume your audience is already family with the source material, because more often than not, they aren't. Second, familiarize yourself with the IP and understand why it worked in the first place and how to apply those qualities to your work while still putting your personal stamp on it. Third, don't make changes to the story or characters because you were told to by the executives or because you think it would be funny or more digestible for the audience. Before you make any changes, consult your head writer and actors and ask them what they think. Lastly, consult the producer on how to work around budgetary limitations. If you're given a set budget, don't use that as an excuse to make your work visually dull. This is especially true with animation, where you can tell they had a small budget based on how flat and weightless the visuals are. My advice when making a spin-off based on a 3D animated movie is to hire art and animation directors with impressive resumes and who can deliver quality animation even under limited budgets.

Making an adaptation/spin-off is hard, much like making any movie or TV show with an original story. That said, I think the creators of adaptations and spin-offs of established IPs have a responsibility to not only do the source material justice, but also make an entertaining product that reintroduces the IP to new audiences. When the adaptation and spin-off is mediocre or terrible, it angers fans and alienates newcomers. We could've had a whole new generation of fans of The Green Hornet by now. But because the 2011 movie staring Seth Rogan was so mediocre and underperformed financially, the IP was sent right back into obscurity with a reboot stuck in development limbo. To conclude, an adaptation/spin-off should be more than just an addition to the franchise; it should be a very good appetizer to an already great main course.

#reblog #share #like #follow #animation #dreamworks animation #kung fu panda #legends of awesomeness #megamind #adaptation #spin off #planet sheen #harry potter #feedback

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