#crazy how nature do dat

[kero-verdade]

can't believe Alchemy of Souls is coming back tomorrow I missed u bby girl

#it's really been three months good lord #my life has changed drastically since the last time they were on my screen #crazy how nature do dat #alchemy of souls #mine

[clown-owo]

Obsessed with the reviews on this coal power plant I drove past

#og post #‘crazy how nature do dat’ it’s not nature buddy #‘I wish it was nuclear’ five stars #I feel disingenuous for not including the negative reviews but they’re just not as funny #and I can only add 10

[austinsastrology8991]

Mars Aspects, how you like to WIN

if you win,i dont win so i gotta turn my loss into yours, becsuse we can't all be winners. i didnt change my mind, just chose a better outcome, whats your choice?

Mars aspecting sun - winning at all costs, they appear like a winner, but the means and ways they go about it are so in your face, you become impressed but simultaneoulsy concerned. but thats what gets them off. they turn the expression show dont tell, into show and tell everybody. which gives them more enemies, but also makes em more fierce. also flambouyant just to throw their enemies off lol. mars aspecting moon - they like to win behind closed doors. they want you to belive in them, simply becsuse they believe in you. its what gets them emotionally secure i guess. the security of winning. but its just confusing becsuse for example we watching tv on da couch, and your trynna pull a funny. sit down we still love you we just tired. but if you put them in there place expect a tantrum. mars aspecting mercury - basically death note. intellectual competitors/debators always playing the chess game of anything; "whats the best move here" also super entertainign speakers, can talk super fast and aggressively. also very into learning, they want to dominate the intellectual sphere. they wanna argue with everyone but no one wanna bite back lol. also > can't catch deez hands

mars aspecting venus - agrresively charming. there charisma just exudes from there aura naturally, people just laugh at these guys so easily, because they just are likeable with it. also people love it when they are angry, they just fall for em harder. but they dont like to get angry becsuse theyd rather just be charming mars aspecting jupiter - so much movement, they move like the "wacky waving inflatable arm tube man" - family guy. but seriously the way they move peopple just cant believe they move like dat, they move so strangely but hypnotically. also so much energy these guys can do a million sets in da gym and eat the whole fridge. they just got way too much energy and it shows... they also just get really lucky w competition, victory just lands in their lap lol. mars aspecting saturn - these guys are always striving to be da best at whatevrr there mind is set on. if they gotta goal, then whatsver is obstructing there path better move or they gonna trample all over it/ya. kinda intimidating. but this usually sets them back, but in the end only makes them stronger/ more fierce. because to them the fear people have of them is also getting in there way lmao. unless it works to there favour... basically control freaks and they only care about their agenda, but will pretend to have your interests in mind, just to get there ends. mars aspecting uranus - these guys are the true psychopathic freaks, everyone i know with this aspect is sadistic and also enjoys getting hit. people stay away from them, because they know they just wanna hit them lol. even when they acting nice, after like a week they show their crazy psychotic side, and everyones like yeahhhhh idk about you. but they dont mean harm they just view violence as intriguing i guess.... they like to win by fighting everyone and anyone lmao, but its play fighting, unless you try them... they really are the psychopaths; extremely calculated and precise with there attacks. they think they doing you a favour by attacking you lol. mars aspecting neptune - idk why but they always getting sexualized, probs because they are an easy target, and there submissiveness gets people going like "i can hurt them and they will literally just apoliogize :D" i feel bad for these lot, but there forgiveness really does shine through, i guess they dominate through submission... go figure. they like to win you over with their pure hearts <3 mars aspecting pluto - they literally do nothing and everyone is intimidated lmao. you can just tell these guys will not just kill you but torture you and enjoy it lol. thats why they always acting like they are not a threat, because they are begging for someone to challenge them, but they are so bad at acting innocent, everyone can tell they are a wolf in sheeps clothing. its all or nothing with them. but they choose their prey very carefully... they like to win at all costs no matta the price.

#mars aspects #astrology aspects #astrology observations #astrology notes #astrology placements #astrology #astrology community #astro observations #astrology blog

[chiiyuuvv]

📽 NOW PLAYING.. XIKERS

@chiiyuuvv on tumblr . please do not steal works

💿 = full length 📀 = drabble 💽 = soft thought/hour 📳 = texts 💾 = request 🎉 = birthday 📟 = suggestive 🎧 = personal fav ⭐ = a hit (over 75 notes) 📌 = headcanons

All works are fluff unless stated otherwise

🎤 IMAGINES

🎬 kim minjae

▶️ car drive 💿

bestfriend!minjae takes you out for a drive after noticing how cooped up you are in your room studying for exams

▶️ astraphobia 📀💾

boyfriend!minjae comforts you during a storm

▶️ walk home 📀💽

classmate!minjae decides to take you home against your will

▶️ ramen 📀💾

you pick a fight with stranger!minjae over a new flavor of ramen

▶️ comfort 📀💽💾

anon has a dream where bestfriend!minjae comforts them after being diagnosed with bpd

▶️ photo booth 📀💾

boyfriend!minjae feels like he's just fallen in love all over again when taking silly couples pictures with you

▶️ sakura 📀🎉

it's like nature was responsible for you meeting stranger/boyfriend!minjae

🎬 park junmin

▶️ sick 📀

boyfriend!junmin makes you breakfast after discovering you woke up with a fever

▶️ jealousy 💿💾

classmate!junmin gets jealous when he finds you talking to someone else

▶️ birthday present 📀 dash of angst! also my birthdayy

you get a life sized teddy bear for your birthday

🎬 choi sumin

▶️ the street rapper 💿

you make friends with stranger!sumin when purchasing new paint

▶️ get up 📀💾

you learn that giving a kiss to boyfriend!sumin makes him want to leap out of his chair

▶️ fever 📀💾

you learn that boyfriend!sumin has developed a fever during his sleep

▶️ sugar rush ride 📀💾

boyfriend!sumin watches you go crazy after giving you a bucket full of cotton candy

▶️ massage 💿

bestfriend!sumin gives you a massage after you slept weird during your sleepover

▶️ his perfect world 📀🎉

you take boyfriend!sumin to your house and vise versa

🎬 ham jinsik

▶️ music Dat- Park 💿💾

bestfriend!jinsik confesses to you through song

▶️ feels like a dream 📀💽

inspired by rocco's song, feels like a dream

▶️ the claw of success 📀💾

classmate!jinsik helps you get that plushie that you've always wanted, but under one condition

🎬 choi hyunwoo

▶️ movie 💿 first ever post!

you run into stranger!hyunwoo, who so happens to have the same movie taste as you

▶️ lunging in love 📀💾

you fight over bestfriend!hyunwoo for the controller

▶️ sleeping 📀💽⭐

bestfriend/boyfriend!hyunwoo has a history of hitting milestones when you're asleep

🎬 kim junghoon

▶️ "..I'll just have to kiss you." 📀💾

childhoodbestie!junghoon convinces you that he's okay with his newformed scratch

▶️ concert confession 📀💾

friend!junghoon confesses his love for you on stage

▶️ workout 📀💽

you help out boyfriend!junghoon as he's working out

▶️ cinema 📀💾

boyfriend!junghoon comforts you during a sad movie

▶️ why so jealous? 📀💾📟

you're jealous about boyfriend!junghoon's new video, and he isn't sure why

🎬 park seeun

▶️ pranks 💿

you decide to get your revenge on bestfriend!seeun after he pranks you

▶️ wake 📀💾

boyfriend!seeun doesnt want you to leave the bed after his exhausting practice

▶️ convenient store 💿💾

bestfriend!seeun drags you out to the convenient store

▶️ truth or dare 💿🎧 not mine!

bestfriend!seeun gets red at the thought of you looking through his phone **note this is written by @lil-elle! it was originally my thought but handed over to her. Her writing really gave my idea justice, and im so in love with it &lt;3

▶️ wet kisses 📀💾📟

you refuse to give boyfriend!seeun his kisses after he misses dinner

🎬 jung yujun

▶️ library 💿🎉

classmate!yujun builds up the courage to talk to you

▶️ kdrama and kisses 📀🎉

boyfriend!yujun scolds you for staying up too late

▶️ academic rivals 💿💾

academicenemy!yujun isn't jealous when you won the award.. he's jealous about something else

▶️ no need to hide 📀💾

idol!yujun is relieved when his fans enjoy your presence

▶️ chapstick and kisses 📀💽

boyfriend!yujun lends you with kisses when you run out of chapstick

🎬 hunter

▶️ picnic 💿🎧

bestfriend!hunter decides to take you out for a picnic

▶️ kissable 📀 very first request!

you do a tiktok challenge with boyfriend!hunter

▶️ shooting star 📀💾

you learn something new about the stars with boyfriend!hunter

▶️ period 📀💾⭐

boyfriend!hunter comforts you while you're on your period

▶️ paris in the rain 💿🎉🎧

bestfriend!hunter takes you to his hometown to celebrate his birthday

▶️ clingy 📀🎉

boyfriend!hunter gets clingy

▶️ kissy 📀📟⭐

boyfriend!hunter gets kissy

▶️ imagine if we were dating 📀💽🎧

bestfriend!hunter demonstrates what he would do if he was your boyfriend

▶️ snowy bomb 💿💾

bestfriend!hunter gets worried when he hears something exploding on your side of the phone

▶️ christmas presents 📀 from tiny event!

you awake to find boyfriend!hunter decorating your christmas tree

▶️ rainy kisses 📀💾

you unknowingly comfort boyfriend!hunter

▶️ taking the extra step 💿💾🎧

you dance with childhoodbestie!hunter at prom

▶️ "my sunshine" 💿💾

classmate!friend!hunter cheers you out of your sad mood

▶️ hunter thoughts 📀📌

▶️ imagine if we were dating

🎬 lee yechan

thank you @yzerpoz for finding my two works!

▶️ sleepover 💿

you play a series of truth or dares with bestfriend!yechan

▶️ cut 📀💾 mentions of blood

boyfriend!yechan nurses your bloody finger

▶️ realization 💿⭐

bestfriend!yechan realizes that he's been hiding his true feelings for you

▶️ arcade 💿🎉

you decide to play a few games with stranger!yechan

▶️ strawberries and kisses 📀🎉

you sneak into the kitchen with boyfriend!yechan to get a handful of strawberries and kisses

▶️ true 💿💾 based off of descendants headcanons

you meet the stranger/bestfriend!yechan that encourages you to audition

🎧 HEADCANONS

⭑ TAGLIST

#xikers #xikers fluff #xikers drabbles #xikers imagines #xikers fanfic #xikers fanfiction #xikers x reader #xikers scenarios #xikers soft thoughts #xikers soft hours #xikers headcanons #xikers reactions

[thewhiskersonkittens]

Drive In

Pairing: Pete “Maverick” Mitchell (Present Day) x Female Reader.

Summary: After unsuccessfully navigating the crazy world of online dating apps, you meet Pete “Maverick” Mitchell and agree to go to a drive-in and perhaps you have finally met your perfect match.

Warnings: Fluff, romantic, some profanity, toxic dating app horror stories.

A/N: This was requested by Anon. Hope y’all enjoy! :)

Back in the day, Maverick considered himself to be quite the Casanova. It used to be so easy, come so naturally. Maybe because thirty years ago he was a lot younger and his jet black hair wasn't fading. His body was still firm and taunt, in his line of work it was a major priority to keep in shape, but his face had become worn, the skin around his green eyes now had wrinkles.

"You're still a very good looking man," Phoenix told him when she, Coyote, Payback, Bob, and Rooster was helping him make his dating app profile.

All eyes were on her when the aviator quickly added, embarrassed:

"Respectfully speaking, of course, sir!"

The guys chuckled while Maverick tried to hold back his amusement.

Coyote let out a low whistle.

"Ooo, Phoenix got the hots for Captain." He teased.

"I do not!" Phoenix defended. "And I swear to God, if this gets back to Hangman, I'll kill you."

She shot a death glare at Coyote, that made him straighten up quick. She shot the look to all the guys meaning business.

Maverick patted Phoenix on her shoulder to assure her it was OK.

"Thank you, Phoenix. I appreciate the compliment."

He held up his phone and returned his attention back to the profile.

"Are you guys sure this is the right thing to do?"

He wrinkled his brow. The whole process seemed so unnatural to him.

"If you filled out all the questions honestly the algorithm will try to bring you the best possible matches." Bob commented.

"But the algorithm doesn't get it right 100% of the time." Payback added, looking at Maverick. 

"What do you mean?" Maverick asked.

"He means there might be a dud or two," Coyote answered.

"But still the odds are in your favor." Phoenix encouraged.

Maverick sighed as he closed the app and pocketed his phone. He was tired of thinking about it for now.

"There used to be a point in time when I could just sing to a woman in a club as a way of flirting."

"Sounds lame," Rooster finally chimed in.

Maverick gave him a pointed look.

"Lame, huh?” Maverick chuckled, the memories coming back to him. It all seemed just like yesterday but also a lifetime ago.  “Guess who was my wingman?"

***

You were two seconds away from throwing your phone across the room. You'd do it, too, not caring if it broke, the only thing was you knew how much you needed the damn thing.

Stupid dating apps. After trying a month without them, you were having zero luck dating out there "in the wild" so, reluctantly, you downloaded the toxic app again, damn well knowing it would all still be the same old bullshit. If it wasn't some fake bot, it was just the same losers over and over you matched with. You were going to pull your hair out if another dude sent "wyd?" at 11 am on a Wednesday.

You wanna know "what I'm doing?", Chad?! You thought. I'm at work at this time, that's where I am! Why aren't you doing the same?!

You didn't even want to think about how you basically had the same conversation over and over with these guys.

"Hello, beautiful baby gurrl. Good mornin!'"

"Hi, there. Good morning."

"How you sleep last night?"

"Just fine, thanks. HBU?"

"It could have been better. I'd rather be waking up next to you, babyyy."

" ... "

"Send me a pic?"

"No."

"Why not? You shy?"

"..."

" Hello?!"

*incoming unsolicited dick pic*

"You like dat? You like what you see? ;)"

" ... "

"Dat could be alll yours and more! You wanna come over later?"

"I don't think so."

"Why not? It's not like I'm gonna kill you..lol"

"...."

"Sooo...you gonna come over or...I could come over there?!"

"No. I don't even know you! I just met you five minutes ago."

"Don't waste my time! Ya know, a lot of girls like what I got. You're lucky I'm even giving you the time of day!"

"..."

"..."

"K. Go text one of them then."

" ... "

"Man, fuck you, bitch. Your loss! I didn't want your ugly ass anyway. LOL."

You sighed. Why was trying to find your person so physically and mentally taxing? Some of your friends actually had good luck on the dating apps but it was just not working out for you. You thought about all your options: keep trying the apps, try in person again, hell maybe even switch teams?! The best option was the idea of becoming an old, single, crazy cat lady. At this point, it sounded like the most peaceful choice.

You were laying on your back on your bed with one arm slung over your eyes, trying to block out all your frustrations.

Your phone next to you vibrated, signaling you had a notification.

Oh great, You thought. Can't wait to see what this one's got to say.

You picked up your phone, punched in your pass code, and opened the app.

Pleasantly surprised was an understatement! You had matched with the most handsome man you'd ever seen on any app ever.

He was definitely older, much older you were sure of it, but the age gap didn't bother you. He only had a few pictures but you saw he had dark hair, green eyes, perfectly chiseled nose and jawline.

Captain Pete "Maverick" Mitchell, USN.

As good as he looked, you couldn't help but have reservations. Living in San Diego, you had been on a few dates with military men before. They could be just as shady as the civilian Joe Blows, if not even more. Plus, he was way too fine looking to still be single. You tried not to judge. Divorced? Widowed? Perhaps he was looking for a last minute fling before his next naval cruise?

Your phone vibrated again and you saw he sent you a message.

"Hi, nice to meet you. I'm Pete Mitchell. But everyone calls me Maverick or "Mav".

"Nice to meet you! I'm Y/N." You typed back. "Cruise to any where fun lately, sailor?"

"What gave it away? The picture of me in my dress whites?"

"Not a bad picture, I must say." It was true. Technically he was old enough to be your father but he was still a smoke show. Silver fox, indeed.

"Ha, ha! Thanks. Ah, no fun cruises. I was recently called back to North Island for work."

You told him what you did for a living and you found out he was career military. A naval aviator for over thirty years. You kept chatting back and forth for the next two days and exchanged numbers. On Friday night Maverick called you.

"Look, I'll be honest with you, Y/N." Maverick explained. "This dating app thing...it's not really my style. My kids put me up to it. They said I needed to get out more and this is the way people do it nowadays. I just don't know..."

"Kids?" You repeated, slightly surprised he never mentioned it before. "You have kids?"

Maverick chuckled. "I'm sorry, I guess I should rephrase that. They're actually a squadron of Top Gun graduates I train. I call 'em my kids even though they're all about thirty-something years old."

You exhaled a sigh of relief. "Oh, I see."

"Anyway," Maverick went on. "How would you like to go out with me tomorrow night?"

You were pleasantly surprised again. Most guys you encountered on the apps were either one extreme or another. Some wanted to come over right away and others it was like pulling teeth to get them to actually take you on a real date.

"Is that OK with you?" Maverick asked.

"Oh, yeah!" You said. "Yes, that would be great! Dinner and a movie?"

"You read my mind," Maverick confirmed. "I was thinking I take you to the drive-in. They're doing an 80's movie theme night."

"Drive-in?" You repeated. You hadn't been there in ages. Maverick must have misunderstood your tone because he went to explain:

"Yeah, it's where they have a big outdoor projection screen and you pull up in your car..."

You burst out laughing.

"Pete," You started. "Come on. I know I'm younger than you but I do know what a drive-in is!"

Maverick laughed at himself.

"Sorry. Of course you do."

"That sounds like fun, Pete. Let's do it."

***

You knew you were breaking your own rules by allowing Maverick to pick you up but you felt like you could trust this man. Your jaw dropped when you saw the forest green vintage race car pull up in your driveway.

"She's a '56," Maverick explained as he helped you into the car. "She can go from zero to one seventy in about six seconds."

"Wow," You said, resting the bouquet he just gifted you in your lap. Out of curiosity, you ran your fingers along the dashboard. You'd never been in a car like this before.

Maverick started the car and began backing out.

"I usually just ride my motorcycle but this seemed more appropriate for the occasion."

You smiled. "I guess you have the need speed on the ground as well as in the air."

Maverick turned to look at you then as he shifted the car into drive and you weren't exactly sure how to describe it. It was like a mixture of surprise, curiousity, and a touch of sadness.

"Did I say something wrong?" You asked, concerned.

Maverick shook his head.

"No," He assured you. "It's just...so funny and...kind of weird you said that. 'The need for speed'. I haven't heard that in a long time. I had a friend I used to say that to. A long time ago. It was like...oh, what do you call it? Something that you and one other person knows?"

"An inside joke?" You suggested.

Maverick smiled. "Yeah," He agreed. "An inside joke."

"You don't talk to that friend anymore?" You asked.

"Oh, I do." Maverick replied. "I sure do. It's just...he's not here with us...physically anymore."

"Oh..." You realized and you felt a twinge of gulit in your stomach. This wasn't the best way to start off a date.

As if reading your mind, Maverick took one hand off the wheel and softly brushed the side of your cheek with the back of his hand. His hand felt callous, the result of decades of working on all sorts of aircraft, but it also felt strangely comforting. The feeling guilt in your stomach dissolved and felt something like butterflies replace it.

"It's OK, sweetheart," Maverick said and he really meant it.

After dinner, you two drove in the drive-in. A triple feature of John Hughes movies were playing. You and Maverick laughed when Kelly LeBrock turned Bill Paxton into a talking blob in Weird Science and cheered as Judd Nelson pumped his fist in the air at the end of The Breakfast Club. The final movie was Sixteen Candles and you couldn't help but sigh when Molly Ringwald finally got to kiss her dream guy.

"This is one of my favorite movies," You said.

"You like the romantic stuff, huh?" Maverick teased and you laughed.

"Yeah, I know it's cliche," You said. "But I can't help it. I'm such a sucker for it."

"Nothing wrong with that," Maverick told you. "Just between you and me...I'm a romantic myself."

He leaned in and kissed you and you couldn't help but smile against his lips.

When the two of you parted, your eyes fluttered open and you said:

"I know we just met but I feel so lucky to have found you. I was about ready to give up. The apps were driving me crazy."

Maverick rolled his eyes at the mention of the dating apps.

"I don't get them either," He said. "But I saw your picture and...I don't know. I just...thought you were really beautiful and I'm glad I met you, too."

You felt Maverick take your hand in his.

"If it's OK with you, would you see me again?"

You smiled and answered by kissing him again.

"Sure, I'd really love that."

#top gun #top gun maverick #top gun fanfiction #pete maverick mitchell #pete maverick mitchell x reader #maverick x reader #fluff #reader insert

[team-heavenly]

A Comprehensive List of Potential Chapter Titles Provided by Me

Thought up at 11 PM. For funsies. This list will be much safer in terms of thematic material (refer to this post and this post). Rated T for swearing, references to (mild) drugs, alcohol.

Are the vast majority of these memes and references? Yes, yes they are. (Bonus points if you can identify where they come from!) But it’s less about creativity than comedic value. So... take this as you will.

There is no official total btw, I’m just listing as many as I can!

Y yo a ti

Do not pass GO, do not collect $200

I won't hesitate, Bitch

IT LOOKS LIKE YOU FUCKERS HAVE COME TO A STANDSTILL AT FOGBOUND LAKE

i Amn just....... a little creachure

None pizza with left beef

lol Get stickbugged

Is this Loss?

Goddammit where's Lucky Luciano?

It's the Great Pumpkin!

Snoopy and the Red Baron

Luke, I am your father

Make it so

Flim-flam shabam

What is love?

Baby don’t hurt me, don’t hurt me, no more

HEY NOW, HEEEEY NOW

How can a river catch on fire 12 goddamn times?

*Pink panther theme*

Let's-a go!

LET'S GO LESBIANS LET'S GO!

Let's GO GAMERS!

Why are you like this

Honey You Got A Big Storm Coming

I'm THE KING OF THE WORLD!!

you and what army?

Let's see how far we've come

Have some choccy milk

No, this is Patrick

Carmen Sandiego?

NOOOO MY COOKIE!

To die. To sleep, no more.

What an absolute mad-lad

Looks like you're going to the Shadow Realm, Jimbo

MY EYES!!

mY LEG! MY LEGGGG!

*Roblox death sound*

*Lego Star Wars Death sound*

*Wilhelm Scream*

Some-

-BODY ONCE TOLD ME-

You wanna be sleeping with the fishes, kid?

The U.S.S. Enterprise

Never mind that

And to your left you can see me, ruining everything

If you forgot, then it wasn't important

Calvin and Hobbes

Elmo and friends

Marty! Marty, we have to go back!

I challenge you to a duel!

Pokemon! Gotta catch em all!

It's you and meeee. I know it's my destiny!

Team Rocket is blasting off againnnn!

Ha! You better have burn heal!

I like shorts! They're comfy and easy to wear!

The Top Percentage of Rattata

Take the breadsticks and run

November 5: Destiel Election edition

The 21st Night of September

bRING OUT THE CRABS!

It's over Grovyle, I have the high ground!

69? Nice

Let's have a champion time! *gets pummeled to death*

Falling from cloud 9

The River Styx

Nooo, don't steal the Time Gears, you're so sexy aha

mrow? Mrrrp?

Corphish, those pincers are HUGE

Yeah can I get uhhhh-

White Mocha latte frapiatto espresso triple shot

Good tea. Nice house.

It's Pon Farr night at the Vulcan Nightclub

YOUNG MAN. THERE'S NO NEED TO FEEL DOWN

Back at it again at the Krispy Kreme

Look at this photograph

Cuz Everytime We Touch, I get this feeling

*Cinemasins ding*

I was there, Gandalf...

Do Not Cite the Deep Magic to me Witch

WELCOME TO MOE’SSSS!

Hey this isn't a leaf stone

Are you high?

What in tarnation-

Been up since 2 am

When in Rome...

Do you know what you've just done?

Where's Waldo?

Allergic to sunlight

The imposter......

The Great Glacier

Sky Tower

The Voidlands

Once upon a dream

Holy shit that's so many deer-

LOCUUUUSTS!!

It started to rain!

You! What year is it

*Lightsaber noise*

*Darth Vader breathing noises*

The Riker Maneuver

Now close your eyes...

For my next trick, I'll need a volunteer

What's 8 ÷ 4 + (7 - 2)?

Country roaaaads

Take me home, to the place I belong

WEST VIRGINIAAAAA!

Welcome to the 74th annual Hunger Games!

My name is Jared, 19

YOU LOSE! GOOD DAY, SIR!

Miracle whip

Alcremie

Pecan soup

Operation Yellow

"Do you remember?" "REMEMBER WHAT?!"

I hope you die. I hope we both die.

Hand in unlovable hand

Annnnd there she goes

Now go see a Star War

Cat no banana

Leg-bouncer

42

Are you fucking possessed?!

Japan is a small island nation with limited natural resources

Crazy frog

Episode IV: A New Hope

hsSSSSSS-

Dat you?

Surf's up, dude!

NFTs crashed lol

Shhhh! Quiet! We're in a library

I Will Never Again Be Human (And That's Okay)

Hi my name is Hero and I'm an alcoholic

Pull the lever, Kronk!

WRONG LEVERRR!

Oh, yeah. It's all coming together.

The Macy's Day parade

*Calls Dusknoir babygirl*

Dig it in there, Mr. Spock-

There's coffee in that nebula

ACAB

Save the bees, plant more trees

Pokerus? Haven't heard of her

The Secret to End All Secrets

Fucking hell, dude

IT'S FUCKEN WIMDY!!

Tell me what you want, what you really really want

Level 7

World 5-8

OFF WITH THEIR HEADS!

Arson

I have a Bad Feeling about this

Trust no one, not even yourself

And I'm all out of gum

Shall we dance?

Can't have shit in Apple Woods

Gengar hates u

Dorothy, Sophia, Blanche, and Rose

Let me call an Uber

Warp core breach in 3 minutes

‘Tis but a scratch!

A scratch? Your arm’s off!

The government owes me money

Crying and screaming and throwing up

Comrades!

Take a shot every time someone says "the planet's paralysis"

The Three Sacred Treasures

Lake Bikal

In Soviet Russia-

Capitalism

Communism

Adele's "Hello"

Spyro: Year of the Dragon

Another soulless Marvel film

I Have No Memory (of this place)

The Return of the King

Road work ahead? Uh yeah, I sure hope so

Four Score and Seven Years ago

Y E E T

Sacrificing your rival to the rain gods

Bede is a lil' bitch

BITES YOU BITES YOU BITES YOU-

you're an idiot <3

Bitch u thought

no <3

Top Ten Greatest Hits

Just keep swimming

HERE'SSSSS BRUCYYYY

Are we.... You know.....

Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme

AGH!

XXXXXX

y = mx + b

Pangea

The sacred texts!!

smh

Under the sea

The GAY CAR!!

Father, I Crave Violence

*coughs*

WATCHOO!

Gesundheit

Pass me the aux

Guzma and the real Team Skull

*dies*

Facing God and Walking Backwards into Hell

Sitting on a throne of lies

Aren't you a wiseguy!

The Future Trio is GAAAAAY!!

Drop the Mic!

Wherefore art thou Dusknoir?

TFW Decoy Orb gets reflected onto you

Blorbo from my shows

Dugtrio's a terrible dad

Developing PTSD

You know! For kids!

This is so sad, Chatot play Despacito

Unown J

Bro I just Live Here

CITIZENS ARREST! CITIZENS ARREST!

Throwing Gravelerocks in glass houses

It is..... Green

Wonder Gummis galore!

For every Roselia, there is an Iron Thorn

Ingo?!

Garlic. Butter, even.

Space. The Final Frontier.

IT BURNSSSS

Not in front of the Klingons

*points at Dusknoir* GAY

Qwerty

uwu

Apocalypse Now

Lemon-lime soda

The Dimensional Scream Strikes Again

It's Drifloon Friday!

Apricorn Balls

War is War and Hell is Hell

Out of Touch Thursday

Jesse. Jesse we have to-

Mecha Tyranitar

You Get Framed in a Witch Hunt

The Gang Goes to Therapy

Freudian slip

Occam's razor

Murphy's Law

Do Androids dream of electric Mareep?

Sleep deprivation

Well... Wynaut?

The Deplorable Word

Turkish Delight

I'm just a poor boy, nobody loves me

Ah Shit, Here We Go Again

Into the Woods (2015)

Zero Isle West, 72F

The wildest Crossover AU

Lemonade IS NOT SPRITE, DAMMIT!

ROYGBIV

ERROR 404

Volo Breaks the Dimensions (because he can)

Q

Remember to take your meds

Hydrate or diedrate

Super Smash Bros. for the Wii U

Leroy Jenkinsssss

Fuck this, I'm outta here

We don't get paid enough for this

SHOOP DA WHOOP!!

Fuck it, Nyan Cat in 2020

I’MMA FIRING MY LAZOR!

Au revoir!

Spinda's cafe gets robbed

Boop! Got your nose!

Time Gears? In my possession?

Fire types rule, water types drool

Let's take ibuprofen together

Gouger

This is Not a Place of Honor

Arceus yeets you into Hisui

These Ginsengs don’t do shit

I AM THE SAND GUARDIAN, GUARDIAN OF THE SAND

Texas

Florida man

Jake, from State Farm

Never Eat Soggy Waffles

Can we be honest?

Oops! I did it again

Kilograms of glitter

Lil Nas X

Getting Friendzoned

LIPSTICK IN MY VALENTINO WHITE BAG?!

7-11

And there is no Queen of England

Make sure to like and subscribe!

The Down with Cis bus

*ploink*

It’s puce

Am I alive or barely breathing?

Just so you know...

Primal Dialga tramples you to death

*Minecraft villager noise*

The Llevan Polka

Futurama

I’d have two nickels

Salt n’ Vinegar

*distant screaming*

Everybody dance now!

E = Mc^2

Spooky scary skellingtons

But y tho?

Fist bump!

The Hindenberg

Did you know? A Wailord is less dense than air!

I am a Gummy Bear

...To be continued...

Go Imagine those Dragons

Don’t forget to floss!

Just take the L, dude

Trans your gender

Uhhhhh...

Shoving your sins under the rug

Going to Purgatory

Lemme think about it- NO

The One With the Whales

Fallout: New Vegas

Annnnd that’s all, folks.

#ok that's all I got. my brain is tired. #mod post #pokemon mystery dungeon #pmd explorers #explorers of sky #randomizer #sillies

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

Gimme dat dirty janitor and his big hands and his growly voice. Gimme dat angry fucking and resent. Gimme dat sheer aggression!

Gimmie gimmie gimmie!!!

You honestly do excel at the meanest of these characters. I don’t know if you do anyone meaner than Bucky. But you’re not doing the same thing over and over like that anon claimed. Why even say that when it’s easily disproven? Just with Bucky, there’s maybe the hardest version of him as a damaged person who rapes and murders a nature photog in siberia. There’s the story of his escape from his life as the WS and the family he makes, where he’s conflicted with his past but learning how to be a person again. The delusional one who takes over a troubled womans life. And then there this current Bucky, who’s sleazy and abusive, but in a way that’s common enough with awful men. So they aren’t even bad in the same way every time.

You haven’t just written very dark fics. This current one with Loki ( I’m a couple chapters behind but), he isn’t evil. He’s more of a jackass. But he seems to have grown feelings and is slightly conflicted and , I think, vulnerable at times. Still a pervert, thank god, but it’s not exactly the same portrayal of him at his worst like in other stories, proving anon way off base. I could take any character you’ve written for a handful of times and show different portrayals of them.

Can I just say I love your enthusiasm for the dark stuff? Whether its dark dark or dark crazy or dark sleazy…all the dark stuff. I’m a weirdo who finds the dark stuff comforting, as strange as it sounds. Every character has a variations of it that might be particular to their personalities. Steve might lecture and punish you for failing him, Thor is going to mislead you with his geniality, Loki’s going to look down his long nose at you and its going to seem like foreplay, Lee Bodecker might trick you into or just tell you straight up what kind of obscene things he’s going to do to you and have no shame about it, belly and all, lol. That was a haphazard explanation, but I think you know what I mean. Anyway, that’s enough about that. Just wanted to point out the obvious.

Not haphazard at all. I truly appreciate this message and everything you've said. The time and consideration of sending this is beyond. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!

I understand what I write is for a very select audience and I'm at ease with that. I only hope people aren't coming around just to be unhappy bc it's not productive on either side.

And thank you for reminding me of aol the wonderful adventures we've gone on TOGETHER ❤️ I enjoy so much being able to share my fics with yall.

[sailorbunglejuice]

Yo does anyone really hate how teen dramas are based EXCLUSIVELY around high school? Like, secondary school is really fuckin shit no cap. Basis of all my trauma, insecurities, shit like dat. And i was so excited cuz id be bingin shows like victorious and icarly (which obvs were crazy ass premises for bein nickelodeon shows lmao) and be hyper excited for crazy stuff to go down. But nah, just long, grey hours of being forced in a classroom in a subject you dont like, teachers who dont like you, and people who are annoyin af. But producers were like "yo, THIS is where all the ideas and moneys are goin".

I personally never really watch reality dramas, mainly cartoons, anime, adult swim shows, sci fi, underground movies, that stuff. I just dont see the appeal in somet as mundane as family issues, or workplace shit (unless its a comedy lmao) and DEFINITELY not school stuff. Like secondary school is so borin my dayz fam. None of that crazy shit happens ever, not even in college rn (college in the uk is the last 2 years of high school). Most people are focused on revision and schoolwork cuz everyones failing and if your not failing youve got ur job. If u dont got ur job ur being normal and doin shit like hobbies, hanging out w ur mates, shit like that. We dont really have en masse parties every week cuz those take the piss. Like a 600 quid speaker got broke at a motive i was at and we all got kicked out lol. And were not that focused on doin drugs all the time cuz thats expensive af, even if u want to. Were all poor lmao.

We do talk about it alot, sure but like, i think its cuz life imitates art to a degree. Weve always been doin taboo things, but because the skins lifestyle is practically glamourised people wanna do it more. And no lie, its fun. But all the baggage attached being glamourised to... naurrr man. I know mates who are recovering from bein addicted and on tt theres ppl talkin about the health issues they got from that life. Yo like i was w people who were practically about that shit and after that sesh i never talked to them again cuz they scared me that much (was fun tho, chillin in the woods at 10pm). Eh moderation n tingz ig.

Nah u know what would be great - shows based around teens, but not in high school. Like all i wanna do is get out of college and go to uni somewhere else cuz ded city and shit place init. Its like handcuffs, even tho im in like 3+ hours most days. I just think to myself on how, compared to shows like euphoria, skins, sex education (not even a bad show just for comparison), movies like Tekkonkinkreet, city of god, smoke signals, books like wonder all hit DIFFERENT. Like DIFFERENT DIFFERENT. It is mad. These are all media which talks about tweens, teenagers, young adults but completely seperated from school. Not in the unrealistic sense either, grounded to reality, whether it be in a realistic or surreal sense. They also connect to me more and make me more interested than a majority of these high school shows out here.

For example, smoke signals, a story about two indigenous boys from the coer d'alene reservation who travel across phoenix when one of the kids dad dies to get his ashes. That movie was insanely good. INSANELY good. I felt such a connection and my nerdy ass was analysing motifs and themes real time because the composure is so good. Themes and emphasis circulate around the nature of memories, dreams, stereotypes, culture and much more in the realms of the indigenous community in the US. Its been a year since i watched but i need to watch it again. Like as someone who has had a pretty shit upbringing, been kicked out by mum, have estranged my dad for ages until i came to live at his, the concept of what makes a family, how you see your parents compared to others or the culture really hits home, especially bein 2nd gen zambian uno. Like the emphasis on parenthood and the righteousness of parents is WILD.

Another movie i also wanna talk about is city of god too. Way more darker and grittier than smoke signals, taking place in Brazil instead of the south. Its a movie about the coming of age of many youths, specifically an aspiring photographer and an evil ass villain growin up in the favelas of rio de janeiro. It explores the cultural issues of gentrification, gangs, drug abuse, crazy ass shit which is exposed to kids at a young ass age. From what i remember its narrated from the photographer, and it makes SOOO MUCH sense bro. Like the dramaticisation of characters, the loose ends, how some characters fizzle out of the story, fizzle in, even the mindset of some really reminds you that this is comin from the eyes of the few who did survive - the photographer. He literally wants to be a journalist bro, like ofc hes gonna sensationalise. Whereas the thing in euphoria, whilst it was kinda cool with rue narrating everything, especially cinematography wise, kinda didnt make much sense as it went on. Like how u know about cals childhood girl, how (hate how he got an episode and not his sister or somet). Nate defo didnt tell her lmao.

What constrasts greatly with skins n euphoria n i think what breaks euphoria is how w skins, these guys are all a friend group, at least from what i know only watchin 1st gen. Whereas with euphoria its a weak link tyin all these guys. Euphoria falls in that sense cuz these guys arent really that close and are too different to be close. Not really in personas but like, maddy in season 1 literally just knew rue cuz she od thats it bro. If they were a close friendship group i think it wouldve worked way more. Like, call me crazy, if nate was established as a mate to rue who became a massive dick as we see in season 1 it would make a lot of sense as to why rue knows so mucha bout him. Hell it would probably clue us more into why hes so villainous (love that word). Cuz in city of god, for example, the photographer was in close proximity to the lil dice (my ass finally looked up his name 😂) by literally growin up on the same neighbourhood as him and even having so much respect as to have him photograph his gang.

Man u dont understand, my fav parts in euphoria was when the girlies were having fun and just bein themselves bro. Like the maddy kat and jules trio is something so beautiful even tho short lived. Hell, its so weird how theres the lack of proper proper friendships in euphoria. Sure u get banter and them acting cool, acting sexy, but never really acting stupid or dumb, or bein embarassing around each other apart from say jules and rue in season 1. Like even adults do that, and it shows the comfort ppl got around each other. Like jules and kat knew each other from summer camp or some shit, SO MUCH couldve been done with that. Couldve been that she was a mate of kat as well as rue, the bridge between rue and maddy, cassie, kat, that type of ish uno. Theyre both pretty alt as well, couldve had an episode of them finding their people. Euphoria is hole nother hellhole i will rant abt when i care but thats just one example.

I just find it dumb how this is really wat teen life is reduced too. Sure we have sex, do drugs, party, get into bad things but not ALL the time. And i kinda hate how that is what determines "fun" really, nowadays. Most of me and my mates times is spent in waterstones for gods sake 😂 there are some good shows which are pretty balanced on all aspects like on my block, and it shows that makin teen dramas about teen life really works. Brings in a more diverse array of backgrounds, knowledge. Yo id kill to be in a writing room for a show. Thatd be sick

Anyone whos made it this far, proud of you, u now know what my mates have to sit through lol.

#personal rant #just ranting #rant post #rambles #rambling #tv shows #dramas #teen dramas #smoke signals #city of god #euphoria #skins

[commentaryvorg]

Digimon Savers Commentary Episode 42 - The Burst Mode of Tohma’s Determination

In this episode, Tohma goes to protect his family from the Royal Knights’ attack and his father’s own stubbornness. Many Norstein family issues are aired out and explored, leading to Tohma and his father finally beginning to understand each other.

The nicely short recap focuses entirely on Masaru’s issues in the last couple of episodes and doesn’t even bother mentioning Dukemon. I approve.

Anyway, with Masaru having headed off to another world to prove his dad’s not a mass murderer, we catch up with the invasion in the human world. Royal Knights are casually disintegrating entire skyscrapers with their attacks. I’m still sceptical as to how much good this is doing in terms of destroying the entire planet, which is what would need to happen if Yggdrasil is actually telling the truth about only wanting to avoid the collision. Doesn’t really seem like it to me.

There’s also massive armies of Knightmon, Armour-level (so, basically Adult) Digimon who all work for the Royal Knights, I guess. The narrator – narrating over something that’s not actually recap, which is rare – tells us that they’re invading every city around the world, but I kind of doubt that, too. There’s only like seven Royal Knights that we’ve seen, and even with much larger armies of subordinate Knightmon, I doubt there’d be nearly enough to get to literally every human city ever.

Still, one of the cities they definitely are attacking is Yokohama, naturally. MirageGaogamon, Rosemon and Ravemon are working to fend off the attack, effortlessly taking out individual Knightmon, but the numbers are tough to deal with.

In amongst the battle, Tohma gets a call on his DATS earpiece from Yushima, who’s still hanging out with the Norsteins.

And then there’s an unusually early opening! As this episode’s title already spoils, Masaru’s not gonna be the only one of the crew getting Burst Mode. There’s this one shot near the end of the opening in which only ShineGreymon is seen in his Burst Mode, which might make you think this is one of those (very common in Digimon) times where the most central main character gets to achieve a higher final evolution level than everybody else. But actually, this shot’s misleading! Fair and equal evolutions for all our main cast in Savers, even though this is much less of an ensemble cast and Masaru really is much more the single main character than in any other Digimon series.

We cut back in at an airport, which is having a very rough time of it in the Knightmon’s attack, with flames and destruction everywhere. And yet, one very foolishly reckless plane is trying to take off: the Norstein private jet.

Yushima:  “The man is crazy! He’s planning to take off?! After all I went through to stop him!”

Evidently, Yushima called up Tohma and asked him to come here because his father was about to do something extremely stupid and needed to be protected from his own stupidity. I also appreciate the acknowledgement that Yushima, having promised he’d take care of Relena in Tohma’s absence, didn’t just sit back and let this happen and did try to stop it, but in vain.

A Knightmon shows up in front of the plane’s cockpit, smashing the windows and effectively blinding the pilots. Gawappamon (I do not know why Kamemon is still only in his Adult-level form, more on that later) is there to take out the Knightmon, but the damage is done and the plane careers off the runway, unable to take off. (Which is probably for the best. Better it gets attacked now when it’s still on the ground than while it’s in the air.)

Inside the plane, Franz Norstein, Tohma’s father, is not pleased.

Franz:  “What the hell are you doing?”

What do you think the pilots are doing, Franz, you must know full well that there’s a Digimon invasion going on, including at this very airport. Someone’s very used to always getting his way no matter what.

A worried Relena staggers her way out of the back section of the plane that’s being used as a makeshift hospital room for her.

Relena:  “Father, what happened?”

Franz:  “Stay inside!”

[Relena winces at his shout]

Franz:  “I mean… it’s dangerous.”

Franz is stressed out enough that he snaps at her and kinda freaks her out, then realises his mistake and tries to explain how he meant it in a softer voice. He did mean well and warn her out of concern for her safety, but he’s not great at showing it, especially at a time like this. Not the best at dadding, this man.

Relena:  “Father… why are we leaving for home so suddenly?”

Relena doesn’t listen to his warning and staggers further towards him anyway. I don’t blame her for just wanting to understand what’s going on and why her father’s even putting them in such a dangerous situation right now. Evidently he didn’t bother to explain his Big Important Norstein Reasons to her.

More attacks shake the plane, knocking them both to the ground. Franz gathers up the fallen Relena in his arms, desperately crying out for someone to help them.

Someone does come and help them: MirageGaogamon – or, in other words, Tohma. The big dog-knight effortlessly takes out all of the Knightmon flying around the airport, making the place safe, for the time being at least.

(More points on the using evolved Digimon for transport chart! They really are getting the hang of that at last. But still not evolving him specifically for transport, since MirageGaogamon was already evolved fighting elsewhere.)

Tohma watches with this bitter look on his face as the doctors stabilise Relena in her hospital bed on the plane. She would never have been hurt at all if his father hadn’t been so stubborn and foolish.

Tohma:  “No matter where you run off to right now, the situation will be the same. Please stop exposing Relena to unnecessary danger.”

Franz:  “I must return to Austria and protect our manor.”

That’s Franz’s reason for the reckless attempted take-off, apparently. As if protecting his manor is worth risking his daughter’s life, or as if he even could protect it himself against Digimon whom he has no way to fight. Someone’s sense of Norstein responsibility is extremely strong, to the point of overriding all common sense.

Tohma:  “You *know* that flight take-off is currently prohibited!”

Franz:  “That can be fixed just by mentioning the Norstein name.”

Franz, you absolute moron, it’s not about some arbitrary rule that you get to break because of your power and influence, it’s about the fact that if you take off then you’re going to freaking die because of the turbulence and the Digimon. Franz is clearly extremely used to being able to do whatever he wants and can’t quite grasp the idea of a situation so far beyond his control that he literally can’t.

Tohma:  “That’s not what you should be saying!”

Franz:  “You dare to challenge your own father?!”

Tohma, who kind of hates the Norstein name and everything that comes with it, really cannot stand the way his father is willing to wave it around in order to put Relena in danger, and snaps at him. Franz snaps right back by continuing to cling to his unearned authority based on titles – he’s Tohma’s father, so what he says goes.

Gaomon:  “Master…”

Gaomon’s here too, and though he’d usually be a good dog and keep out of things like this, even he can tell his master’s getting rather concerningly worked up about this.

Tohma manages to calm himself just a little and tells his father that more Digimon troops might arrive, so they should take shelter.

Franz:  “Take shelter? Don’t be stupid. I’ll have another jet prepared to take us home.”

It’s very rich that Franz insists the suggestion to take shelter and not put themselves in more danger is being “stupid”. What does Tohma mean, Franz should change his mind and admit he was in the wrong.

Tohma:  “I just told you, you can’t do that!”

Franz:  “Then you’ll act as our escort.”

Franz really is being very entitled about this. Tohma, one of the few people in the world with a Digimon partner capable of fighting off the waves of Knightmon, happens to be here and happens to be his son, so obviously he gets to make use of that for his own purposes. Tohma doesn’t get given a say in it; it’s his duty as a Norstein, obviously.

Tohma:  “You are really…”

Tohma’s getting absolutely sick of his father’s entitlement to ordering him around and controlling his life like this. He’s grimacing and shaking in barely-suppressed anger and sounds like he’s very close to snapping out some sort of insult.

Franz:  “What? Don’t you at least want to protect your sister’s life?”

And again, here’s Franz, using Relena in order to emotionally exploit Tohma into staying and helping when he otherwise wouldn’t. If he wasn’t putting Relena in danger in the first place, Tohma wouldn’t have any reason to want to do this.

Tohma:  “Then… Then, what about you?”

Franz:  “What?”

Tohma:  “What have you ever protected so far?”

Tohma’s anger here isn’t even specifically focused on this one instance of his father being like this. This particular incident is hitting all the sore spots and turning into a reason for him to let out all of his long-bottled-up frustration about everything his father’s ever done – or rather, not done, as he feels.

We move into a flashback. Little Tohma stands forlornly in his house in Japan, which has been emptied of furniture, holding a funeral portrait of his mother. He’s about to move out to go and live with his father instead.

Franz:  “Let’s go.”

Little Tohma: “Okay.”

Tohma mumbles this reluctantly after a pause, obviously not wanting to leave his home and the memories of his mother behind at all, but what can he do?

On the way out, in the hall, he glances at a wooden beam into which is carved some lines and writing, marking his height at different important days in his life. It’s a cute little ordinary-kid thing that he did together with his mom! Aww. Based on the highest-up birthday listed here, Tohma is currently only six years old. Ouch, that’s young to lose your mother. (This is how I knew to cite that age during episode 15.)

Seeing this, Tohma perks up just a little and heads outside to his father, seemingly wanting to show him and share this cute family thing with him, perhaps something they can start to bond over?

Little Tohma: “Dad, wait a…!”

But his father’s already getting into the car and doesn’t listen, too busy and grown-up to care about silly little sentimental things like that. Tohma’s face falls in disappointment.

…Also, something I can’t believe I only just picked up on while writing this: little Tohma tries to call him Dad here. Yet, every time we’ve seen in the present, Tohma calls him Father. Tohma really did want to have a closer, more personal connection with his father, but Franz’s demeanour and unwillingness to engage forced him to make the whole thing more formal and distant. Gah.

Later, in Austria, inside the gigantic Norstein manor, little Tohma sits awkwardly on a chair in a hallway as he overhears an argument in a nearby room between his father and his grandmother.

Franz:  “Why, Mother?!”

Grandmother: “This isn’t a joke. I have no obligation to meet that child.”

Franz:  “He’s my son! He’s *your* grandson!”

Grandmother: “Only through blood. That boy cannot be called a true Norstein.”

Credit to Franz – and a sign of the way he really feels about Tohma that he’s very bad at showing – he really does want to introduce his mother to his son, just because Tohma’s his son. Never mind anything else about those rules of noble pedigree that says he’s not a “true” Norstein because he’s half-Japanese, which Franz’s mother is very insistent on sticking to.

Something to note is that this conversation must be actually happening in German, and we’re just getting translation convention here – Franz might know Japanese, but there’s no way Grandmother Norstein would stoop to speaking some foreign language in her own home. So I suppose, for little Tohma to be listening in, he must already be fluent in German. Which makes sense; he’s a genius, and his mom might have encouraged him to learn it, because of his heritage.

Little Tohma couldn’t manage to sit still and just listen to the argument; by now he’s peering in through the doors to the room, and his grandmother notices him there.

Franz:  “Tohma!” [he clears his throat] “What are you doing over there? Don’t you know how to greet others?”

Since she’s awkwardly seen him now, the best Franz can do to salvage this and make it seem polite and proper (and to not be an absolute dismissive dick to his son, which he doesn’t want to be) is to have Tohma introduce himself to his grandmother anyway, despite her wishes.

Little Tohma: “How do you do, Grandmother?”

Tohma nervously walks up and greets her, his gaze on the floor, because he overheard and knows full well that she doesn’t actually want him here. His grandmother lifts his chin to look at his face.

Grandmother: “His eyes are just like his mother’s.”

She doesn’t even greet him back. She just immediately comments – about him, not to him – on the physical feature of his that marks him out as not a true pedigree Norstein and the son of some foreign commoner. Being told you have your mother’s eyes is often meant as a compliment, but very definitely not here.

(Awkwardly, they’re literally not his mother’s eyes. Tohma’s eyes are blue, like his father’s, while his mother’s were brown like a Japanese person’s. It seems like the series’ artists finalised Tohma’s character design as someone who looked European without thinking about this relevant point for his half-blood heritage. It’s a shame; it would have been neat if he had blond hair and brown eyes to kind of reflect that. But, shush, please ignore what we can literally see here and focus on the narrative point of his grandmother’s words. I appreciate the spirit of the writers still wanting to go for this narrative point anyway despite that the character design had screwed them over on having it actually make visual sense.)

Grandmother: “I’m sure it must have been easy for you to mislead that young and ignorant exchange student.”

This is all we need to know about how Tohma’s mother and father met. She was an exchange student studying in Austria, and they happened to fall in love and conceive a child – out of wedlock, of course – despite that such a thing is very much not what a true proper Norstein should do in terms of creating offspring and potential heirs. Franz may have tried to do the proper dutiful Norstein thing, but he couldn’t help being driven by his emotions and his love. A little bit like another Norstein we know, really.

Of course, because a Norstein fathering a child in this way Will Not Do, Franz’s lover quietly took her baby back with her to Japan and raised him there. I imagine the Norsteins would have been quite happy to pretend this embarrassment had never happened, and Tohma would have grown up as a (relatively) normal Japanese kid, if things had been different. But then his mother died in that accident, forcing his father’s side of the family to awkwardly take custody of this kid they never wanted to be associated with.

Tohma’s grandmother finally looks straight at Tohma and addresses him directly.

Grandmother: “Listen closely. You are of the Norstein family, yet at the same time, you are not. You’ll do well to continue bearing that in mind.”

Geez, what a thing to say to a six-year-old kid who’s only just lost his mother and has been taken halfway across the world into a new home. If you’ve ever wondered how Tohma can seem full of himself sometimes and yet at the same time have such an inferiority complex? Yeah, this explains it pretty comprehensively. On the one hand, he’s technically a Norstein, which means that attitude of him being More Important than common people would be subconsciously ingrained into him no matter how much he doesn’t agree with it. But on the other hand, he’s not a “true” Norstein, and he’ll never be good enough for his family no matter what he does. Imagine growing up with that hanging over you from such a young age.

Little Tohma, almost on the verge of tears, glances to his father for any kind of support in this cruel disapproval from his grandmother – disapproval that he knows full well is because of his mom, aka the one person in the world he loves and misses dearly. And wasn’t his father supposed to have loved his mom, too? Surely he’d stand up for her?

Franz doesn’t. He’s twisted his entire face away from Tohma, not saying a word.

Seeing his father refusing to defend his mother against such insinuations, little Tohma feels very, very alone.

Tohma:  “I will never forget what you did back then. You insulted my mother, in the most despicable way, through your silence!”

And it seems like Tohma never let that go, for eight years. His mother was the one who raised him and loved him and was most important to him, so of course his first impressions of his father were horribly tarnished by the way Franz seemed to not even care about her. Tohma’s always been carrying that resentment towards his father. And similarly, remember how he brought up his father not helping his mother when she was suffering, presumably from money problems, when they were arguing in episode 34? Though growing up in the Norstein household with someone as uptight as Franz as a father can’t have been fun in general, all of Tohma’s most bitter feelings about it all revolve around his mother. She really did mean so much to him, even though he almost never mentions her to anyone.

Hearing this, realising his son still resents him for this, Franz grimaces and looks away.

Franz:  “You know nothing. Nothing.”

His words indicate that there was a lot more to his actions back then than simply not caring and not wanting to stand up for the woman he loved. It’s that he knew exactly how his own mother would react to such a thing. A Norstein isn’t supposed to care about some commoner, and he was desperate to not disappoint his own parent here any more than he already had.

And it’s very true that little Tohma didn’t take Franz’s point of view on this into account at all back then – but then, how could he have been expected to? He was six. Still, Franz acting like Tohma knows nothing at all of the Norstein family pressures he was under even now is maybe not quite as much the truth as he thinks it is, is it.

Gaomon gets their attention and pulls them out of the family quarrel by pointing out that there’s another squadron of Knightmon approaching outside the plane, just like Tohma predicted.

Franz:  “Do something, Tohma! Since you’re a Norstein, you should be able to do something!”

In his panic at the renewed danger, Franz instinctively clings to two things – his belief in his son’s abilities, and the notion that the Norstein name in particular makes somebody worth more than someone without.

Tohma rounds on him, scowling. Being told that he should be able to help because he’s a Norstein is the last thing he wants to hear right now, after the words of his grandmother’s that he was just remembering.

To his credit, Franz shrinks back a little at that, seeming to realise that that was not the best choice of words under the circumstances.

Doctor:  “Master Franz! Miss Relena is going into spasms!”

(Incidentally, though I’ve been calling Tohma’s father Franz since he showed up in episode 34, this line is the only point in the series at which we actually learn his name. I’m glad we have this, because it’d have been a lot more awkward wording-wise to talk about Tohma’s issues with him, and Franz’s own issues, if I didn’t even have an actual name to refer to him by.)

Yushima:  “Well, then. I guess it’s time to show them how serious I can be.”

Yushima, outside the plane and watching the squadron approach, does a Digisoul Full Charge and evolves Gawappamon into his Perfect-level form, Shawujingmon. I do not know why he didn’t have his partner evolved to his highest possible level earlier. Or, well, I do: it’s because the writers wanted to show off this form by having him evolve onscreen, even though he’s not important enough for a full-length evolution animation.

What I also don’t get is why we didn’t see Kamemon’s Perfect form earlier in the series, back during the ElDoradimon arc, where most of the main cast were already Ultimate-level and most of the Gizmon they were fighting were Perfect. That’d have been a much more appropriate point for it. And then maybe we could have got to see an Ultimate-level form for Kamemon here, like we’ve also seen Satsuma’s partner as an Ultimate? (Okay, yeah, I know, Kudamon’s a Royal Knight so he was always going to be that strong, but still.) It’d make Yushima feel a lot less awkwardly behind the times for someone who’s the Chief of DATS and therefore presumably supposed to be kind of a badass.

Still, even at only Perfect-level, Shawujingmon is more than a match for this army of Armour-level Knightmon, because of course he is.

Relena:  “Brother…”

Back in the plane’s makeshift hospital, Relena’s been stabilised, somewhat, but she’s still clearly in distress, grimacing and mumbling through her oxygen mask. She reaches out to grasp hold of Tohma’s hand as it rests on the railings of her bed. Tohma gasps – that simple gesture’s reminded him of another very important memory of his…

In the Norstein manor, perhaps a year or two later than the previous flashback judging by little Tohma looking a little bit older, Relena’s just been born. Franz and his mother hurry to consult with the doctors about the condition of the child, while Tohma lingers behind, watching from around a corner, obviously not properly allowed to be here even though this is his half-sister they’re talking about.

Grandmother:  “A girl?”

Tohma’s grandmother sounds vaguely displeased at hearing the child’s gender, despite that she herself is a woman and seems to be the matriarch of the Norstein family. I guess that ingrained sexism still runs strong enough that she was hoping for a boy regardless.

Doctor:  “However… both the mother and child were in danger during the labour process…”

Grandmother: “Very well. Do everything you can to save the child’s life.”

…But not the mother’s, apparently? I guess she can be sacrificed, in the name of bringing a new Norstein heir into the world. Presumably, after his, ah, mishap with the “ignorant exchange student” who was Tohma’s mother, Franz was married to a European woman of suitable noble pedigree, and since then they’ve been trying to conceive a child who can be a proper true-blood Norstein heir, unlike Tohma. That’s far more important than said woman’s life, right.

Grandmother: “She is a precious child who has finally been born into the Norstein family.”

Implicit in her words, which little Tohma clearly picks up on in some form as he listens from around the corner, is that he was never a precious child, and they never cared about him being brought into this family.

Sometime a little later, with baby Relena safe and sleeping (her mother presumably didn’t make it, because we never hear anything more about her), little Tohma heads into his sister’s hospital room to see her for the first time, while nobody else is around. He probably isn’t allowed to see her with others around, because he’s not Norstein enough, but how could he not want to anyway?

Little Tohma:  “So you’re Relena.”

The way he phrases this, like she’s so important already, even though she’s just a little sleeping baby, says a lot.

Little Tohma: “Everyone is worrying for you.”

Not stated but thoroughly implied in Tohma’s words: just like nobody ever worries about him.

I get the sense that he’s come here to see her not just because she’s his sister, but because he wants to try and understand what’s so special about her that makes her so much more important to his family than he is, even when she’s just a baby. After all, Tohma’s still pretty young himself, and genius or not, he probably doesn’t entirely grasp the Norstein politics and understand what it actually is that makes him “not good enough”.

Baby Relena, of course, understands all that even less. She begins to cry and wave her arms around, searching for some kind of human contact, and manages to grasp Tohma’s hand as he holds onto the edge of her crib. As soon as she does, she stops crying and chuckles happily.

Tohma stares in surprise. He takes his hand away, experimentally, and Relena immediately begins crying and reaching out for it again. Tohma keeps staring at her, like he can’t believe it. She wants him.

Somebody wants him.

Slowly, Tohma lowers his hand back towards his baby sister, and as Relena grabs hold of it, again she stops crying and becomes happy.

This is exactly what little Tohma needed. Someone who doesn’t care about any of the Norstein pedigree nonsense, and loves him unconditionally exactly the way he is. He smiles back at her, and there’s a kind of subtle determination in it. You can almost see him resolving then and there to do absolutely anything for this little girl.

I love this sequence; it shows so subtly and succinctly just exactly why Relena is so incredibly important to Tohma. She gave him unconditional love when he needed it most, when nobody else in his family would. No wonder he went and devoted his entire life to getting himself a medical license and research degree, all for the sake of curing her. No wonder he pretended to participate in genocide to keep her safe when an evil man put a bomb around her neck.

In the present, Relena’s still holding Tohma’s hand. He puts his other hand over hers protectively.

Tohma:  “I will do something… for Relena’s sake. But I won’t be doing it because I’m a Norstein!”

No matter how he feels about his father’s approaches, he cannot ever say no to protecting Relena. But he can at least do so while making it clear exactly who he’s doing this for, and that it’s not about those Norstein ideals that have caused him so much pain.

With that, Tohma heads out of the hospital section, leaving Franz and Relena in there. Franz calls after him, in vain, and then looks back at Relena, wincing. Seems like Tohma’s words lodged somewhere.

Gaomon:  “Master…”

Tohma:  “It’s all right.”

Tohma says this without looking at Gaomon, speeding up in his exit from the plane as if to prove just how all right everything is by getting straight into the action.

No, Tohma, it’s not. You are clearly not okay right now, with all this baggage that’s being dredged up. Gaomon can tell. (Gaomon, talk to him about his issues! You too-obedient dog, you.)

Outside the plane, Shawujingmon is still taking out Knightmon but is beginning to get overwhelmed by numbers, so MirageGaogamon joins the fray to help out.

Tohma:  “Yushima-san! I apologise.”

Yushima:  “Hm? For what?”

Yeah, Tohma – don’t apologise when you’ve done nothing wrong! I like how Yushima points out that he’s got nothing to be sorry for. Apparently Tohma being around his father and subjected to those ridiculously high standards has made him feel like he needs to apologise for something as insignificant as, I dunno, taking an extra minute to leave the plane and come help because he was dealing with family issues.

After some more fighting, the Knightmon fall back as one of the Royal Knights, RhodoKnightmon, descends dramatically from the storm clouds.

(Guh, thanks to Digimon Frontier, my brain still can’t help but want to call this guy LordKnightmon, which is how his name was romanised in those subs, but nope, I am going to insistently make myself stick to what the Savers subs call him anyway, because Savers.)

RhodoKnightmon: “You will pay for laying your hands on my subordinates.”

[Tohma scowls]

Tohma:  “Let’s go, MirageGaogamon!”

MirageGaogamon: “Yes, Master!”

Yushima:  “Don’t! Tohma!”

Yushima can be seen taking notice in the background upon seeing Tohma’s uncharacteristically fierce and charge-in-headfirst approach. Tohma is not being himself, and Yushima, who’s good at observing interesting people and figuring out the gist of their issues, can tell.

MirageGaogamon, as ordered, simply zooms right up to RhodoKnightmon, who dodges his attack and counterattacks with a super-speed flurry of blows from every angle, sending MirageGaogamon crashing to the ground. That’s the sort of reckless mistake Masaru might make, but not usually Tohma.

Tohma:  “Damn it…”

Yushima:  (His composure is breaking… Just as I assumed, he’s agitated about something.)

Again, I like how Yushima can tell. Tohma’s getting too worked up by his family issues to be thinking straight right now.

Franz:  “I… I…”

Meanwhile, in the hospital section of the plane, Franz is also getting rather worked up with his own issues. He briefly flashes back to all the times Tohma’s snapped at him this episode, perhaps starting to realise that his son might have a point.

We move into another full flashback – this one from Franz’s perspective. It’s not long after Relena’s been born; maybe a few days or so? Long enough for the poor state of her long-term health to have been confirmed by the doctors, at any rate.

Grandmother: “Tohma shall succeed the Norstein lineage.”

Franz:  “What did you say?”

Grandmother: “Because of her weak body, Relena will not do.”

Thinking about this from Franz’s perspective, this has got to have been a slap in the face. He finally goes and does the Proper Thing instead of being led by his emotions, marrying, and conceiving a child with, a woman he presumably didn’t have any feelings for (and even if he didn’t, it’s still got to hurt that she died giving birth). And after all that, it turns out those efforts still weren’t good enough to produce a proper heir after all.

(It’s probably not a surprise that Relena’s so ill, when you think about how much the Norsteins seem to care about proper “pedigree” – her condition may be a result of the rather shallow gene pool available among European nobility.)

Grandmother: “Instead, arrange for a lady of suitable pedigree to become Tohma’s wife. Choose one that will prevent others from talking behind our backs.”

Even though a part of Franz might be happy that his son is finally being recognised, his mother makes it clear that Tohma’s existence is still a stain on their reputation, and he needs to make up for that and cover it up by giving Tohma a suitably pedigree wife. Clearly the “talking behind our backs” remark is referring to what other noble families will be/have been doing about Tohma’s heritage and Franz’s “mistake”.

(Also, imagine how this must have felt for Tohma. You’re a Norstein, except you’re not really. Oh, wait, except you are, but only because you’re the inferior back-up option, now have all these immense pressures and standards to live up to as we decide the rest of your life for you. Gah. It must have been such a relief for him when he ran off to medical school and then also joined DATS, just to be able to get away from all that.)

Franz:  “But Mother!”

Grandmother: “Understood?”

Franz:  “Yes…”

Franz’s expression wavers before he gives in and accepts his mother’s demands. Seen from this perspective, it reads as quite similar to the way Tohma has been protesting his father’s unreasonable demands, and has been given little choice but to accept them and go along with the Norstein Way. It’s not just Franz; every member of the Norstein family imposes these values and pressures on their offspring, until they learn to impose it on theirs in turn. It wouldn’t even be fair to say that Franz’s mother is the sole villain here, because although she’s never presented in a sympathetic light in this episode, she must also have grown up with those same pressures from her parents until she internalised it all. (Especially as a woman leading the family, which it seems like this culture is still vaguely sexist about.)

In short: the Norstein family is messed up as all hell, by its very nature.

As Franz, in the present, clutches his head and grimaces from his own issues and guilt, one of the doctors comes and tells him they’re ready to move Relena back to the airport so that they can transport her onto the replacement jet. (They’re still apparently going with that plan to continue trying to fly back to Austria, although I wonder if Franz would really be so willing to stubbornly insist that’s the best approach any more. But either way, they’ve at least got to move Relena out of this plane.)

Doctor:  “We must do this while Master Tohma is distracting them.”

Franz:  “Tohma…”

Franz mutters his son’s name like he’s worried, or perhaps proud, as it sinks in (not for the first time) just how much Tohma’s willing to risk himself and sacrifice for Relena’s sake.

Out in the fight, RhodoKnightmon gets in an attack on Shawujingmon, instantly devolving him, because of course. MirageGaogamon, while remaining evolved, is taking quite the beating from the Royal Knight too, ending up collapsed in pain on the runway.

Relena’s doctors emerge from the plane, wheeling her bed across the runway as fast as they can while RhodoKnightmon is hopefully not looking their way. Relena regains consciousness and looks over to see her brother rushing to the downed MirageGaogamon’s side. With all the self-preservation of a scared little girl who’s just desperately worried about her precious big brother (that is to say, no self-preservation whatsoever, but let her off, she’s very young), Relena climbs out of the hospital bed and starts running as fast as she can towards Tohma out of some frantic attempt to help him somehow.

Relena:  “Brother… No… Don’t go…!”

Or perhaps it’s not about helping him, but some sense that she’s being taken away in a different direction to him, and so she thinks he’s going to leave her and just wants to stay with him? I’m not sure if this is meant as a warning or as a plea.

Franz sees this from the door of the plane and rushes towards his daughter. One of the Knightmon sees a free target and fires an attack directly at Relena, who freezes up in fear as it approaches.

(Seriously, Knightmon, what a dick move. Of all the exposed human targets you’ve got here right now, you aim right at the defenceless child before anyone else?)

Franz desperately reaches out for his daughter as the attack draws close, but he’s never going to get there in time. He collapses before he can see it hit – and looks up to see Relena safely in Tohma’s arms, with MirageGaogamon kneeling behind them. Despite how injured he was, the good good dog managed to stand up and get there just in time to block the attack, because he would do anything for his Master’s precious sister.

Franz couldn’t do anything to protect his daughter – but Tohma could.

Relena smiles at seeing her brother safe (and is hopefully learning her lesson about feeling like she can protect him in a dangerous situation if that’s what it was, Relena that was sweet of you but please) and passes out in his arms.

Franz staggers closer to both of his children, and then he drops to his knees in front of Tohma, as if begging for forgiveness.

Franz:  “Even I… Even I have acted out of desperation. I always did everything in my power to protect the Norstein family’s name!”

Finally, after seeing what almost happened to Relena and having himself be powerless to protect her, Franz is willing to humble himself in front of Tohma and admit that he’s not perfect. Everything he’s done has also been out of a desperation to live up to those ridiculously heavy Norstein family pressures, but it’s hard, and he’s never been good enough at it, and he’s messed up his own son in the process.

Franz’s voice cracks with emotion as he says this, and he breaks down crying.

Tohma:  “Father…”

This is, almost certainly, the first time Tohma’s ever seen his father cry, or show any real amount of vulnerability at all. This is the first time he’s realising that his father has also been suffering under the Norstein pressures, just like he has. His father’s not such an unreasonable tyrant after all; he’s just a flawed, imperfect human being.

Tohma remembers himself, as a kid, crying alone outside the Norstein manor. We’re not shown why, but surely it must simply have been from all of the pressures put on him and the loneliness it made him feel – this probably happened a lot more than once. That image gets overlaid over the image of Franz crying here and now. Father and son aren’t so different after all. Tohma can understand what his father’s going through, because he’s been through the same kind of thing.

Tohma:  “Father. Please take care of Relena.”

[he hands Relena over to Franz]

Franz:  “Tohma?”

[Tohma stands up]

Tohma:  “I will protect you.”

That seems to be all Tohma needs – coming to some kind of understanding of his father as a person, seeing him be vulnerable – for his protective instinct to kick in towards him, too. Tohma may come across as logical and calculated on the surface, but he really is so deeply driven by the desire to protect those closest to him more than anything else.

Tohma:  “I’ll make sure to protect you. I won’t let them lay a finger on Relena, either.”

[he puts a hand on MirageGaogamon]

MirageGaogamon: “Yes, Master.”

I like MirageGaogamon’s “Yes, Master” here. There’s somehow more gravity to it than most of them, like he understands the resolve his master’s just come to and how important this is to Tohma, and he’s even more determined than usual to support him. Tohma didn’t even give him a verbal order, but he knows exactly what his master wants him to do. Good dog.

With that, he and Tohma turn dramatically to face RhodoKnightmon.

Tohma:  “RhodoKnightmon! You won’t get away with this any longer! With my name, Tohma Norstein, on the line… I will defeat you!”

It sure marks a turnaround that Tohma’s willing to dramatically swear on his name like this. I imagine this is a lot less about the family name in and of itself, given how much pain and grief that’s caused to both him and his father, and more about just Tohma himself. He’s being proud of every single part of him, his sister and his father, because they’re all his family, even if that family’s pretty messed-up.

RhodoKnightmon: “You will defeat me? Even as a joke, that’s quite insulting. Such a sin is punishable by death.”

Oh my god, more ridiculous Royal Knight pompousness. Yes, clearly, simply saying you’ll defeat a Royal Knight is such a terrible insult that you deserve to die for it. Get over yourself, RhodoKnightmon.

RhodoKnightmon flies at MirageGaogamon, who, despite his earlier injuries, blocks the knight’s ribbon-sword without missing a beat, before Tohma even begins to flare up with Burst Mode energy. I guess his partner’s new determination and resolve already managed to give MirageGaogamon a pick-me-up, even without the whole thing being charged through the Digivice into Burst Mode just yet.

But anyway, it’s Burst Mode time for Tohma, as if the title of this episode didn’t already give that away. Look at this unicorn dog-knight with fabulous hair. I think I actually like MirageGaogamon’s Burst Mode form distinctly more than his regular form, while for the other Burst Modes I’m kind of indifferent. Something about the different shape of his body is more appealing to me.

His animation also involves him dramatically pulling his new weapon out of the moon, which makes for some nice duality with how ShineGreymon’s Burst Mode animation has him pulling his flaming sword and shield out of the sun.

Also, as you’d imagine, we get Believer again, which is always a good time when we haven’t heard it since episode 38.

MirageGaogamon’s new moon-flail weapon shatters one of RhodoKnightmon’s ribbon swords. Then RhodoKnightmon’s attack of striking at super-speed from multiple angles, which did a number on MirageGaogamon earlier, is now something he’s fast enough to block every single strike from.

There’s not much else that’s interesting about the fight. It’s not quite won in a single attack, but it’s your pretty standard comprehensive victory brought on by a new evolution. RhodoKnightmon was never an interesting antagonist anyway, so I don’t mind. This episode was about the family issues, not the fighting.

As RhodoKnightmon disintegrates into an egg, a beam of light appears and carries it upwards towards the Digital World. All of the Knightmon’s eggs were just left here, but apparently Yggdrasil doesn’t want to let any humans get their hands on the egg of one of its Royal Knights in particular.

Later, Relena’s sleeping safely in a hospital bed in the airport building. It seems Franz has seen sense and is not about to try and risk her life again by taking off with her in another jet. Protecting the Norstein manor (as if he even could; he’s probably been humbled enough to realise how out of his power that is right now) is not worth that risk.

Franz:  “I see. So you’re leaving.”

Tohma:  “Yes.”

Franz:  “Will it be all right?”

Tohma:  “Set your mind at ease. Relena has already settled down.”

Franz:  “No. I was talking about you. Will you be able to come home safely?”

Aww, Franz. He’s very awkward and bad at showing it, but he really does love and care about both of his children. His strict Norstein upbringing just forced him to always treat those feelings like they were a secondary priority next to whatever he had to do to protect the Norstein family name.

It’s also not a surprise that Tohma initially assumed his father’s question was about Relena, because he is thoroughly not used to the idea that his father worries about him. He stares at his father in shock for a moment as the reality sinks in.

Tohma:  “It’ll be all right. After all… I am a Norstein.”

I am, again, going to assume that this is not about the lofty Norstein pedigree like his grandmother would have meant it. Instead, perhaps he means it in the sense that, well… being a Norstein messes you up, but that also means it gives you the resilience to get through any kind of challenge and still stay standing. His father must understand that too, surely.

(Something that might be worth noting is that we never get any sense that the influence of Tohma’s grandmother is still around in the present day. She may well have passed away by now? …Or, I suppose, maybe she’s just back in Austria, having not joined Franz on his trip to Japan to cure Relena through Kurata’s methods, because she doesn’t care about Relena enough when she’s not the heir anyway.)

Franz:  “I see.”

I kind of like this shot of both of them sitting side-by-side like this. They’re still both so awkward about this communicating and talking-about-their-feelings thing – but at least Franz is now making an attempt, which is significant progress from how he was before.

Tohma exits the hospital room, implicitly leaving his family’s safety in Yushima and Kamemon’s hands. He’s resolved to head out to the Digital World to help Masaru.

Which… is a bit of a sudden turnaround from the end of the previous episode, in which he promised Masaru he’d stay behind to protect the human world from the Royal Knights’ attack. This does somewhat smack of this episode transparently existing to get Tohma his Burst Mode before he can head off and join the real fight.

But it does make a certain amount of sense for him to join Masaru anyway. As much as they might talk about protecting the human world from attack, there’s just so many Royal Knights (and minions) that there’s very little that one person can do to help, even with an Ultimate-level partner. The only thing that’s really going to make a difference to the fate of the world here is getting through to Yggdrasil, so really, Masaru needs all the help he can get with that side of things. Tohma and the others may have been briefly swayed at the end of last episode by Masaru’s stubborn insistence on Doing This Alone because of his dad complex, but despite the legit argument about staying to protect the human world, following Masaru to help him really was always the best call all along.

Yushima:  “He’d rather face the danger than wait for it to come, is it?”

Perhaps that’s one way of putting it. Tohma’s new resolve found in this episode seems to have also come complete with nudging him to take a more head-on Masaru approach to things.

Overall thoughts

This really is nothing but a Tohma’s Issues episode, but it does still feel reasonably integrated into the plot, being wrapped up with the current crisis, which is nice.

And man, what a good Issues Episode it is. I am very glad to have this to cap off all of Tohma’s other issues and development that we’ve had throughout the series. It’s masterfully done – I love how all these flashbacks tell us everything we need to know to fully explain Tohma’s character and let us realise where every part of him comes from: his inferiority complex and perfectionism, his resentment of his father, his devotion to Relena, everything. All my analysis of Tohma in previous episodes has been done with this stuff low-key in mind in the back of my head, even as I’ve not mentioned it directly, because it’s just so vital for understanding what makes him tick.

I also enjoy that this episode shows us Franz’s issues and humanises him a lot, drawing parallels between father and son in terms of the pressures they’re under. This doesn’t excuse Franz for not having been a great father until now, but it’s for flawed human reasons and not simply because he’s A Bad Person. While he was terrible at showing it, he has always loved his kids, and at least he’s now admitted to his mistakes and shown willingness to try and do better. It’s still going to be awkward at the Norstein dinner table for quite a while, but they’ll be able to get somewhere.

RhodoKnightmon is admittedly barely a character, but also, who cares; he’s just here to be a Villain of the Week to give Tohma something to fight. At least the writing isn’t trying to treat him like we ought to be invested in him – see me side-eyeing next week’s episode.

---

[Dub comparison]

#digimon #digimon savers #tohma h norstein #franz norstein #relena norstein #the digivice old man

[brooklynislandgirl]

{Meme} {!!} – ❝What the Hell did you do? What the Hell did you just do?❞

A Bleak Spiral || Accepting

"Is...is not wha' it looks like." She's seen and read enough true crime to know that's what everyone says, even if in this case it is the honest truth. Sure, she can understand she looks rumpled ~she's been awake for four days~ and there is a severed limb in her hand. Her other hand is occupied with a knife of bone, likewise bloody. And maybe the craziest thing is that she's small and she is scrawny, but looking at the grime and slickness coating her...how can this be anything else? If she answers him, he'll think she's crazy. Worse than the way he thinks it now, staring at her as if she's the horrific thing to be afraid of. He must not have seen the fight or the nature of her very being. Not many people do, and the ones who would understand are hard pressed on a different battlefront. "I don't suppose...dat if I offered to buy you some coffee an' mebbe explain...dat you would considah coming wi' me, first....not screamin' second or...f'get you an' me were evah here?"

#swxpped #tbd|Alexsander Lovecraft #tbd|Alex and Beth #tbd|verse #tbd|location

[jaubaius]

“My beach,go home!”

Source

#seal #falsebay #reactions #crazy how nature do dat #funny #wildlife #southafrica

[tiny-panini]

Hi I do Science for a living and today was the fourth time this summer that somebody in my lab set their beaker of 95% ethanol on fire

It was also the first time any of us thought to smother the fire instead of dumping burning ethanol into the sink and dousing it with water

We’re all very intelligent here

#science #lab safety #lab safety who #i don’t even think we have a fire extinguisher #or a fire blanket #or anything on the off chance a big fire starts #but yeah it turns out #if you put a big beaker #over a small beaker #the fire goes out #crazy how nature do dat

[firehawkcultist]

https://www.forbes.com/sites/robinandrews/2019/05/31/mount-etna-is-erupting-right-now-and-its-putting-on-a-spectacular-show/#68334d9c336a

#worship the firehawk #nature #crazy how nature do dat

[pigeonsplease]

#crazy how nature do dat

[paracele]

Dando de beber al sediento

#crazy how nature do dat

[dailyfeedcats]

Who doesn’t like a kitten cleaning a prairie��dog?

#awesome #aww #cat #cathedral #catlady #catlove #catlovers instagram #catoftheday instagram #cats images #cats_of_instagram #catstagram #caturday #catwalk #catwang #crazy how nature do dat #instacat #kitten #kittens images #kitties images #kittiesofinstagram #kitty #kittycat #kittylove #reaction