#deconstruct builds. i don't know why i just do

[miraculouslumination]

"Check yourself before you wreck yourself" is unironically some good mental health advice, honestly

#Jean mumbles #Sometimes you get the urge to do something really reactive and unfounde #*unfounded #Like sometimes you just want to lash out at your friends and abandon everyone #Because why not clearly the list is long enough to justify doing it #But THAT is when you need to put up your own stop sign and be like A-BUT-BUT what are you doing?? #No actually what the hell are you thinking?? #WHERE is this coming from? WHO is making this call to the house? #Talk to yourself about this - any effort that you put in to deconstructing these behaviors will always be good #No matter how small it may feel #This can really help to solve and avoid a lot of conflicts honestly #It's a skill to build and that can be messy and take a while #But that's why you need to keep doing it #So yeah - check yourself before you wreck yourself #I don't know it's super early in the morning and I've had this on my mind for a while

[grntaire]

good omens is an allegory for queer deconstruction from an abusive fundamentalist religious environment.

i've talked about it on here ad nauseum, probably, but i haven't fleshed my thoughts out on it fully. this has been my interpretation since season 1, and season 2 just solidified it for me. so here goes.

it's about the choice that all queer people in an environment like this have to make, and both choices suck and end with loss.

choice 1: stay with your church community, your friends, your family, the world you've always known, but never be true to yourself. because they will never fully accept you if you are true to yourself.

choice 2: embrace your queerness, live your authentic life, and leave it all behind. you're torn from everything you've ever known, everyone you've ever loved. but it's what you have to do to be happy. aziraphale is stuck between choices. crowley never had a choice. his was made for him.

heaven are the church elders. the protectors. the ones who say they have your and god's best interest in mind, always. they don't. to them, hell are the blasphemers, who are both unworthy of redemption yet can only be saved by it. they are the arbiters of what is good and right and bad and wrong.

aziraphale's story is one of both learned faith and earned faith. learned, in that he's been indoctrinated his whole life. been to church at least twice a week since birth. earned, in that he's seen the good that the church can do–they feed the hungry, shelter the unhoused. how could people who do such good be capable of cruelty? and surely, when they are cruel, there must be some greater good to come out of it?

crowley was faithful once, too. he loved god. loved church. but he knew he was queer from a young age, and asked questions about it. not because he wanted to make trouble, but because he wanted to understand. to understand why something he knew about himself to be so innately true could be wrong. but the church didn't see it as that–they saw the embodiment of sin, questioning them. their authority, their virtuosity, the fibre of what holds their organization together, and he was cast out. was kicked out of his home, alienated from his family, his friends, his community. he fell. and he now sees the church for what it truly is.

as for aziraphale, he's accepted the fact that he's queer, but had faith that his elders had his best interest at heart when they spewed homophobic ideology. he never believed the ideology, not really, but he had to believe (made himself believe) that the people who spread it meant well. that they meant it out of kindness, out of protecting queer people from damnation. he wanted to believe that not everyone in the church was like this, that not everyone in the church thought all queer people are inherently people of sin. that is, until a mentor, someone he trusts, perpetuates it too. he's had moments in his past that chipped away at his faith: he'd stayed friends, or whatever you want to call it, with crowley, and crowley had tempted him into trying new things that the church wouldn't approve of. things that aziraphale loved. but this moment with his mentor is when his faith is truly shaken. it's the beginning of his active deconstruction.

and so he leaves. he leaves and finds crowley and they build a semblance of a life together with what they have. they're happy. he's learning that he doesn't need to go to church to be holy. that he doesn't need to be holy to be happy. that he's allowed to indulge in the things he loves without guilt and shame.

that is, until that mentor shows up at his doorstep, offering him everything he's ever wanted. insinuates that he knows him and crowley aren't just friends, and assures him that they can come back to church together. that they're going to change things in the church, and that aziraphale can help. that they need aziraphale to help. (they don't. they want a pious gayboy to help repair their image. it's performative activism at its finest). aziraphale is being offered his family, his community, everything back, and crowley can come too. preying on his wants and desires, manipulating him back into their control. so of course he says yes. they'll get to be together with everything they've ever known and aziraphale doesn't have to make a choice between losses anymore. (deconstruction isn't linear, and abuse is cyclical.)

but crowley makes it for him. crowley tells him no. he doesn't want that life and doesn't want to go back to those people who hate him so much. who hate them so much. crowley knows what the church is about and sees it for what it is. they're not about god, or moral good or doing what's right. all they want is control. it's about the optics of the organization. it's about influencing what serves them and their agenda, and crowley knows that aziraphale is just a pawn to them. ("Why would we go back to them, when they think that who we are is wrong? Is vile? They think us the embodiment of sin and you want to go help them with their PR campaign?")

but aziraphale doesn't know that, can't know it, and crowley can't make him see it. (aziraphale knows that they cast crowley out, that he was kicked out of his home. crowley never shared with him about what happened after. the nights on the street, the things he'd endured to survive.)

and so crowley kisses him. he kisses him to tell him not that he loves him, because of course he does. he kisses him to tell him "This is what you leave behind. We would never be able to do this there, to be this there, even if they say we could. Our lives are here, our safety is here. this is what you're giving up."

crowley has been through it and experienced their cruelty firsthand. aziraphale won't be able to see it until he experiences it, too. he won't be able to realize he's being played if he doesn't even know that there's a game happening in the first place.

i can't recommend watching the show through this lens enough. it makes aziraphale's story that much more heartbreaking, because there's this intense duality of indoctrination vs. deconstruction that lives within him constantly. (imo it's also the main difference between book aziraphale and tv aziraphale: book aziraphale is significantly further along in his deconstruction journey. it's why he's a bit more of a bastard. tv aziraphale is set back a bit further, which sets up his deconstruction arc beautifully across three seasons.)

it's why aziraphale has the ability to peel back layers of himself and his train of thought depending on the situation at hand–he literally has two trains of thought happening at once. the indoctrinated one, and the deconstructed one.

and when crowley kisses him, it's the first time in his existence that both trains of thought have been that present simultaneously. it's both trains colliding full speed with each other. it's why we see both livid, hesitant frustration and fierce passion and longing at once. it forced him to confront something that lived so deeply within himself that he wanted to bring to light on his own terms, but crowley was desperate. the kiss wasn't i love you, please stay. it was look at what you're leaving behind. we could've been us, we could've been this.

and i think that whatever happens in season 3, whatever heaven does that makes them finally irredeemable in aziraphale's eyes, it'll be a beautiful ending to his deconstruction arc. not that deconstruction ever ends, not truly, but for the first time in his existence, he'll be able to see heaven, hell, and the system as a whole clearly for what they are: a bunch of self-righteous dicks.

[if you're curious about religious deconstruction and what it means, this video by therapist and social worker mickey atkins talking about deconstruction in reference to shiny happy people, a documentary about the duggar family, is a good place to start. cw for pretty much all types of abuse imaginable, fyi.]

#here is aforementioned meta post lmao #i feel like i can breathe lighter getting this out of my system #cw religious trauma #good omens #good omens meta #thoughts #neil gaiman

[kaurwreck]

I saw your recent headcanon bsd post and honestly you really get the characters (or you get me <3 because i fully agree with them) especially the Atsushi and Dazai one which is practically canon for me. Do you have more Atsushi and Dazai headcanon you can share? I really love it when people talk about those two

I'm so glad the Atsushi and Dazai headcanon resonated with you! I call them headcanons, but they're canon to me; it's my sandbox and I'm building sandcastles.

I don't think I'm articulate enough to adequately express my thoughts about Atsushi and Dazai's relationship, so rather than try, I'm going to share more bulleted snippets of headcanons that hopefully relay the vibes if not the substance.

Atsushi is emotionally brilliant, but has the intellect of an idiot kitten. Dazai is intellectually brilliant, but has the emotional intelligence of an idiot kitten. Nevertheless, Atsushi is NOT self-aware, in the slightest, while Dazai is excruciatingly self-aware. They would devour each other in the wild but are a bonded pair in captivity.

At least once a week, Dazai loses Atsushi at the store and then doesn't listen to the intercom when he's called.

Dazai thrusts himself into the thick of villains and conflicts because the narrative will not let him die, but he can't move it forward from there. Atsushi can and is compelled to, even, because it's the only way he'll survive.

In 55 Minutes, Atsushi indicates that maybe all skills come from elsewhere and are imposed upon us. In that way, he's drawing a parallel between skills and the cultural, societal, temporal, familial influences that construct our understanding of our existence. He's also saying that perhaps what Dazai and Kyouka have going on with their otherness and inability to control their skills is kind of what happens to all of us, just in different ways. This is why he is the protagonist. He does not see separation. He sees people and he sees the constructs and frameworks that people build around themselves, but which they can also deconstruct and rebuild. Dazai isn't convinced he's a person, but Atsushi guilelessly and unwaveringly looks at him and sees a person anyway. He has that effect on others; he did the same thing to Kyouka, and Lucy, and Akutagawa, and even Ango when Ango aimed a gun at Kyouka and Lucy. Worse yet, they see reflections of their personhood in his eyes. It's intoxicating, and enlivening, and frustrating, and terrifyingly vulnerable. Dazai experiences it as absolution. Atsushi experiences it as obvious.

Dazai tries to give Atsushi shaken baby syndrome when Atsushi annoys him, even though Yosano keeps telling him that Atsushi's too old.

Chuuya and Atsushi unabashedly want to love and be loved, it's second nature to them, albeit in different ways. But Akutagawa and Dazai convinced themselves they were perfectly fine not loving and never being loved; up until they met someone who everyone loves, which is so, horribly vexing to them because they're so different and unique and no one understands them and yet here they are, vying for the attention of someone who seems to know something they don't. So, they cope by loving those they love in ways no one else does. Which is to say: like freaks.

Dazai gets involved with Atsushi and Akutagawa not just because they need mentorship or for Atsushi. He's there in solidarity with Akutagawa. Dazai is there because he needs someone who understands the reality of the idiot situation that they got themselves into because they're idiots. Dazai and Akutagawa were both supposed to die young and in abject misery. And yet here they are. Being yanked around by objectively unreasonable people who seem to think they know better. Worse, Dazai knows that he and Akutagawa want to believe them.

Atsushi and Dazai are cat-coded, when the others run it activates their predator instincts.

dazai is so afraid of feeling; he doesn't think you can survive emotion, he thinks emotions exist to trick you or destroy you and that others' expressions of emotions are disingenuous or naive; emotions burn him terribly and he can't imagine it's any different for everyone else. and if it is, then that just further evidences that he's not human after all, that he wasn't built to survive in a world that hurts him so terribly. it's why he's so certain kunikida is going to get swallowed by his ideals. it's why he raised akutagawa in pain and neglect and why he was so disgusted by akutagawa's lack of emotional control. it's why he can't hold onto chuuya for longer than it takes chuuya to fall asleep after corruption. it's why he slapped atsushi and demanded disassociation from him when atsushi started to panic about what he'd done to naomi and haruno. but fyodor is what it looks like when you succumb to that, and chuuya and atsushi and oda are what it looks like when you don't, and as much as dazai thinks he's capable of loving anyone, he loves atsushi and chuuya and oda, all of whom grappled with their own humanity and then elected to be human anyway. and as much as he thinks the others are deluding themselves, and as much as he still believes he's right about humanity's insincerity and insipidity, and since oda asked him just before dying over his own fruitless emotions anyway (although it began before oda asked), dazai has decided he would rather fiercely protect the outcasts who refuse to see their own futility than exert any energy proving himself correct. and if he can bully a reflection of himself in the process thereof, then all the better.

Dazai lies and claims Atsushi is his son for Father's Day discounts. It's so obviously untrue and outlandish that store clerks are too distressed by his thick face to call him out and so he gets away with it. Atsushi plays along because he wants the discounts too.

#bsd #bungou stray dogs #bsd atsushi #bsd dazai #bsd headcanons #sskk #skk #shin soukoku #soukoku

[sublimecatgalaxy]

LIZZZ MY LOVEEE

Let’s get some Spencer Reid 😩😩 maybe like flirtatious bickering? Like reader’s doing something and Spencer’s like “you’re doing it wrong” and readers like “no” and he’s like “yeah” and they’re like “then show me how to do it right” : D love you!! AND THE NEW THEME OMG

Oh my god guys look who it is. My baby. Who comes up with the best request ever and some of my favorite things I've ever written have been requested by DIS BABY. Also congrats, you're my first Spencer requester!

"Spencer." I call out, spinning around in my rolling chair, careful to not disturb the growing tower of cards beside me. He looks at me with wide, curious eyes, cheeks reddening briefly before he takes a step of acknowledgment closer to me. "Why are you stalking me?" The teasing smile on my lips makes a bashful one slip across his face, hands clasping in front of him as he motions past me.

"Not stalking." His tongue clicks, feet carrying him to the table where he looks down at my growing tower. "You're doing it wrong." How am I building a card tower wrong, doctor? I bite back the snarky comments but instead hold my hands out to him with a shrug.

"No I'm not."

"Yes you are." He nods, not willing to compromise and instead just lowers himself down onto the seat beside me and rests rests his elbows on his knees. He leans towards me, nimble fingers rubbing against his sharp jaw.

"Then show me how to do it right, Reid."

He does.

He spends the next thirty minutes deconstructing the tower that I've built out of pure boredom and built a masterpiece in its wake, his own hands guiding mine on where and how to place the cards so they'll stay.

Of course he would be good at this, of course he would know, architecturally, how to build 'the best' card tower.

"Didn't you used to have issues with communicating with women." I ask, looking down at his hand that's still lingering on my own and he's quick to snap it back to his lap, almost as if he'd been burned by my touch.

"I used to have issues communicating period." He laughs gently, his smile making my chest warm with fond adoration, loving the way his brows knit together in confusion. "Why?"

"You just seem uncharacteristically close." He suddenly becomes aware of the lack of space between us and takes my observation as a chance to move but my hands quickly reach out to stop him from rolling away in his chair, enjoying his closeness.

"Sorry." He mutters, eyes flickering down to look down at his hands in his lap. "I find it easy to be comfortable around you." His confession makes my heart swell with pride, happy that after all the years of being sort of more than friends, we've finally bridged that gap where he's no longer awkward around me.

"That's kind of sweet, Spence." My bottom lip juts out in a dramatic pout and I finally manage to pull an awkward groan from him as he pushes my chair away from him.

"Yeah, yeah."

"No, it is." I clap, reaching out to grab his hands so I can pull him into a loose hug. He doesn't push me away nor does he make any sort of complaint, just rests his hands against the small of my back and tucks his chin into my shoulder. "Progress!" I whisper with a huge grin, patting his back gently.

"Still don't like hugs." He mutters but doesn't make any move to actually move, he just stays where he is, heart pounding against his ribs.

"You like me enough to like hugs." That's what does it. He's immediately rolling away from me, shaking out his arms and rising to his feet with a tired smirk, his eyes rolling in denial.

"Shut up."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o- Taglist: @bubblebuttwade @rafelover2405 @leslienjazzy @sorceresss @grxnde-dwt @alex–awesome–22 @bunnietoof @niyamar1e @serialghost @plantlungs @geniusohn @akaliltimmytim @lilaalouuxx @xshariex @elliotsbeigeguitar @elle4404 @lelieja @srhxpci @joselyn001 @taysirene @spinkspanther @thedivineuphoria @peter-maximoffs @tsukishimawhore @poohkie90 @szlaco @distantsighs @nstyles4299 @wolflover384 @givemefoodandlovesstuff @vane28282 @yeswhatever33 @amirrahfranson @vvaalleennttiinna @f-mu @yaspillz @jeyramarie @skylievin@abbybarnes17 @jointherebellion215 @visiondaddy @steezysimfinds @its-ya-gay-boi-luigi @crunchytoenailsyum@glizzymcguirex @beth123lg @melovesmut @rafecameronswhore @ariianelle @write-from-the heart @vampviolets@haylee-e @honee-chai-tea @lokiandbuckywife

@officiallyunofficialperson@heyaitsklaudia@rosepetalsparks @bluetreecloud20 @scenesofobx @double-shot-of-tequila @1dluver13xx @colbysbrocks @iamasimpingh0e @loveshineslikethesky @id-3-kbro @diorsitgirl @errorfound101-allideasburnedout @neverwillknowme18 @ellyskey @taylors-folk @loversjoy @myaloveee @thyris-is @lagataprrr @aaaaslaaaan @witxhy-lexx @minjix @luvroseee @tee-swizzle @savageneversaw @admiringlove @hysteriahall @piceous21 @starlightandfairies @igotmajordaddyissues @drewstarkey-wife1

#spencer #spencer x reader #spencer reid #spencer reid x reader #criminal minds #criminal minds fic

[dynared]

“I'd also argue that the IDW style writing in Earthspark is extra-insular because it's not just a mandate to keep with evergreen concepts, it's also now a moral issue as it was with many of those writers, to keep the franchise away from "chuds" and undesirables that probably bought Energon Universe comics like crazy.” Sorry if I sound overly nosy, but would you mind expanding on this??? I only recently got back into TF (with my only previous experiences being YEARS ago when I was a kid and didn’t even know who Shockwave was) so I’m a little out of the loop

Let's describe this so that it doesn't come across as a GriftTube rant or an apology for other writers.

IDW's comic writing was very insular, in that it was written almost like fanfic was. In fact, many of the writers, most infamously James Roberts, got their start in fanfic (Roberts having written the notoriously weird, tryhard novella Eugenesis), and were more than willing to import their characterizations from fanfics to the official comics, most infamously Star Saber, who was reimagined from a standard Autobot leader/single dad with an adopted kid into a religious fundamentalist of the worst kind, because that was the characterization Roberts used. Most of the IDW writers did not have a high opinion of the Japanese Transformers material (the hows and whys are their own articles, but the short version is - the fan wiki had a hate-on for the Japanese material and those fanfic writers were in that same circle). Most comic companies flat-out say this is a bad idea. Marvel Comics, in their submission guidelines for Epic Comics, call the phenomenon "Writing a comic about a comic", namely that your work is only of value to a specific section of fans who are already engaged with the material, and who want to see the material altered in such a way that it appeals to their biases (in this case, the writer's big anti-Japan, anti-super robot sentiments, and the desire to deconstruct Cybertronian society as Simon Furman laid out in Marvel).

This also included a lot, a LOT of gay romance. Roberts and other writers were clear why, they wanted to write romance, the character line was mostly male, so you were getting gay romance. This spiraled into a lot of issues with a focus on gender identity (after a very, VERY poorly received Arcee comic where she was essentially driven insane by a transition from male to female), and sexuality.

These comics sold horribly but built a very dedicated audience, the sort of audience that would probably have read fanfics breathlessly. So much so the writing started to leave a lot of openings, poorly described items, and loose plot threads that fanfic writers could build off of and write their own interpretations of, as a fanfic writer will often do when they want to get their audience more involved. But in terms of selling comics, they were poor sellers, to the point that an attempt at a combined shared Hasbro Universe, via the comic crossover Revolution, tanked, icing Hasbro's plan for one for nearly 7 years (with the Energon Universe trying again with a much more measured, controlled attempt and the film producers promising a GI Joe/Transformers crossover film).

The problem is that a lot of the criticism of the stories (we don't want to read about Transformers romance endlessly, you treat characters poorly, these crossovers make no sense) was often interpreted by the writers and the fans as "We hate gay people and trans people, we want stuff blowing up", and the writers who were supportive of such issues, doubled down, dismissing their critics as a small number of prejudiced malcontents. Some of the writers and fans of the writing of IDW also went on to help with other animated shows like Cyberverse, the War for Cybertron Trilogy, and Earthspark, most notably Nick Roche and Mae Catt. Both have been adamant about how important representation and life lessons are to their writing, with Catt out-and-out bragging on Twitter that she had two female characters kiss because she knew it would annoy people.

"I AM THE GAY AGENDA!"

Catt discussing her goals for EarthSpark on Twitter/X

All the shows I have just mentioned were also commercial failures. Cyberverse toys still clog toy shelves in discount retailers, the War for Cybertron series did so poorly that when the same writing team proposed a sequel based on the Legacy toy line, Netflix turned them down, and the Q4 reports show Earthspark was a commercial failure with many theorizing the only reason it's getting a Season 2 is because Hasbro wanted something on the air for their 40th anniversary, instead of having nothing in media besides comics until Transformers One comes out in the fall of 2024.

This leads to the final part of this explanation. The new comics from Skybound have seen fit to ignore most, if not all of IDW's contributions to the franchise, more focused on lots of action and basic but effective and strong characterizations serving to re-introduce the characters to people who have never read a Transformers comic or haven't watched Transformers media for decades. This is quite the opposite of Earthspark's focus on identity and life-lessons that were designed for the more insular fandom. And the criticisms of Skybound from the internet tend to focus on that, that they're appealing to an audience that didn't want what IDW was giving, so they're prejudiced. The thing is that the sales numbers don't lie, with many retailers pointing out that Skybound's take on the Transformers outsold comparable IDW releases 10 to 1.

I really hope all that helps clarify things. Like I said, I think that the writing being done essentially by fanfic writers, for fanfic writers created something that casual or non-fans were not going to engage with, but the fear that their critics were prejudiced in some way caused many of the writers to double down on those same habits, even when it's clear that the back-to-basics storytelling of Skybound is attracting far more readers.

#transformers #transformers skybound #energon universe #idw publishing #transformers idw #earthspark #transformers earthspark #rambles

[linkspooky]

Hi! I saw your tags about Tara in Teen Titans comics--I'm only familiar with the cartoon series. How do your feelings about Tara compare in the show vs. the comics? I ask since I noticed you mentioned that Tara never really cared about BB, which I think is obviously changed in the show, and I wonder how you feel about that.

They're both good? They're both good! I think one thing people forget about comic book characters vs. adaptations of comic book characters, is that comic books were always intended to be a collaborative medium that builds on itself through the work of multiple authors and interpretations. Thus, you can have multiple versions of the same character who have the same core but don't really have to be exactly the same. This is why it is kind of silly when people get upset animated adaptations make changes from the original source material because that's kind of the point, in a collaborative medium, you're going to get another author's take on the same character.

Since you asked I can give you an analysis on the core ideas of Teen Cartoon Terra vs. Comics Terra, and also her relationship with Beast Boy in both versions.

1. GWEN STACY

So, I once talked about how Terra was always intended by her creators to die, but that's not necessarily offensive or fridging her character because Terra's still a character with a lot of narrative agency. Terra is the main character of her story, it's just her story happens to be a tragedy. That is true for both versions.

Before the start of the story her fate is sealed. This is what you call doomed by the narrative. George Wolfram and Glen Murakami have both given interviews explaining as such. Albeit, for different reasons.

Comics Terra was essentially made to deconstruct a lot of comic book tropes. I lovingly call her "Asshole Kitty Pryde." From conception she was going to be the spunky new kid with mutant powers who joined the titans at fifteen and immediately became friends with everyone... except she was evil all along.

George’s strength was he also understood the characters 100 percent as I did so there was never any question. He knew. We had talked enough about the characters to know we were exactly on the same page with them. So I said, “Everyone keeps complaining that we’re like the X-Men” and the X-Men had just gotten Kitty Pryde. I said, “Why don’t we really screw around with them completely?” — this is the fans — “…and make them think we’re stealing Kitty Pryde only she’s gonna be bad from Day One.”

Of course this is where authorial intent differs from like, what actually ended up happening in the story. Worlfram's intent was to always make Terra have no reason for her actions, the tragic backstory she feeds the teen titans is kind of embellished and made up, she decided to become a mercenary all on her own, she wants to work with Slade and is even trying to seduce him. However, Terra still comes off as horribly tragic despite their intentions and other authors have since then picked up on their subtext.

Like, I genuienly think the intention was to just write her as pure evil, but instead what they got was writing her as a bad victim. That is, the kind of victim that presents incredibly unsavory and unlikable reactions to their abuse instead of either being kinder than their abusers, remaining pure and chaste like Cinderella or just waiting to be saved. Terra's not a passive victim nor is she waiting for sympathy, she hurts people the way she has been hurt, she maipulates the way she has been manipulated. Terra's been beaten down and now her goal is to come out on top. I believe the reason why she came out this way has a lot to do with Perez and Wolfram sticking to their guns and never giving her a redemption arc.

The very first time we see her, she’s trying to blow up the Statue of Liberty. It’s just that all the fans assumed because we went out of our way to make her cute — but not too cute, with the buck teeth and everything — everyone would assume that she was gonna become good by the end and that was never the case.

First thing, we made a promise that day that we would never renege on our view that she’d never become good. It’s sometimes hard to do that with characters you like. You want them to become good or something like that. But we never liked the character enough—because we knew what we were doing with her—we never allowed ourselves to fall for the character. Because that’s bad. That’s bad storytelling. You’re doing what you want as a fan at that particular point, not as the creators. The fans had to accept what we were doing and not do the same stories that they had read 14,000 times before. You know, at Marvel, Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch were villains who became good guys and I could go through a whole list of ’em.

Their commitment to the bit meant that Terra’s story became what was essentially Greek tragedy at that point. Terra was always fall and because of that, Wolfram and Perez dedicate a lot of time in the story showing the audience exactly what all of her flaws are and why those flaws are the reason for that fall. They committed to their creative decisions when writing this character, which is why Terra ends up being such a strong character, especially for the time. Of course there were female villains, but they weren’t really allowed to be complex victims to the degree that Terra is, have her entire range of negative traits, have her flaws fully on display and then still have it be a tragic ending when she does not get saved. 

Gwen Stacy was always going to die, and Terra was never going to be redeemed. I do not believe either of those cases are fridging because sometimes characters die in fiction, and sometimes they contribute more ot the story dead than they do alive. Terra’s the first real loss for the Teen Titans, it also came on the cusp of a time in DC where teenage superheroes and sidekicks started to die (Cough, Cough, Jason Todd). Under the Red Hood and Judas Contract are such effective and lasting comic book storylines because they are such tightly written tragedies  yes... both of them depict a bad victim who does not get saved (even though that is the whole point of both arcs). 

Terra is in fact, probably more comparable to Under the Red Hood Jason than she is Gwen Stacy because she is number one a teenager with problems who probably should not have been made a superhero in the first place, and two a trauma victim who copes by manipulation and violence to try to reclaim control of their lives. But, to bring the Gwen Stacy comparison back. Gwen Stacy was always going to die, Terra was always going to die, but unlike Gwen Stacy Terra is not anyone’s love interest she is the protagonist. Peter Parker fails to save Gwen because the Green Goblin attacked her, she was killed to hurt Peter Parker. Terra pulls the arena down on herself and buries herself alive in Samson and Delilah-esque fashion at the end of her own personal tragic arc. 

To get to the real differences between the two characters though, characterization wise, I think both versions start with the same central concept, this is a troubled teenager who should never have been made a hero. 

Terra is a deeply troubled teen, however the way she copes in both versions are wildly different, almost opposite. I like to say cartoon Terra has like, at any moment five different personalities, while comics Terra has no personality. 

2. Runaway Girl

To elaborate on this, cartoon Terra’s entire character revolves around how unstable her sense of self is, due to never having any stability in her life. The cartoon is actually very purposeful in showing in both imagery and metaphor Terra’s splintered sense of self. The first few lines of dialogue introducing her are this. 

“She’s not in trouble, she was leading it into a trap.”  “Question is, who is she?” Slade: “Don’t get too attached my young friend, I saw her first.” 

Said by the Titans and then Slade. Even in the first lines introducing her, not only is the question of who she is asked, but Slade immediately tries to claim her from the titans. Later on in the show, the way Terra acts around the Teen Titans as a group, the way Terra acts when she is with Slade, the way Terra acts when alone with Beast Boy, the way Terra acts when alone with Raven are all wildly different versions of herself, to the point where it’s hard to believe she’s the same girl sometimes. 

This is even apparent in the first episode before Slade even gets to her. Terra insists that she enjoys sleeping outside, she enjoys running from place to place, she doesn’t really want a place to stay for the night, she’s presenting herself as some sort of self-reliant and worldly traveler instead of what she really is, a homeless runaway kid. Terra is attempting to appear calm, cool, and responsible and she is absolutely none of these things, and she’s pretty transparent about it too. She cool girls herself so people will like her. The second she is alone in Beast Boy and loses control of her powers for 30 seconds, she immediately crashes, starts berating herself and her self esteem sinks to the bottom of the ocean. 

Trust, is something constantly brought up again and again with Terra’s character though I would say Terra despite literally being the main character of an arc called the Judas Contract, despite betrayal being the one thing she is known for... always sees herself as getting betrayed first. Which is why she overreacts to the perception that Beast Boy broke a promise to keep her powers safe in the first episode. Terra doesn’t trust people at all. Though, to trust people and form healthy relationships with them, you actually have to be a fully developed and well-rounded person which Terra is not. Terra is basically a foster kid who has been through several families before this, waiting for her current one to dump her. She has interanlized the idea that there is something wrong with her that makes this rejection happen, but she doesn’t know how to fix it, or how to be better the kind of person that can have those healthy friendships so she dedicates herself into hiding those flaws instead. 

Terra: You don’t belong with the Titans. Terra: You don’t know anything about you. Slade: On the contrary Terra, I know everything about you. I’ve been watching you for some time. I know why you’re always running away. I know your secret, little girl.

This is also why she runs from the Titans to Slade. It’s a question I see commonly asked about cartoon Terra, if she’s meant to be more sympathetic than comic books Terra why does she willingly go to Slade instead of staying with the Titans? Which is a silly question, because you might as well be asking why do grooming victims get groomed? Why don’t they just know that groomers are bad people?

Teenagers are not grownups. Especially not Terra, a bastard child rejected by her parents who has been on the run for however many years. Terra is a teenager and a severely underdeveloped teenager at that, and she has learned to survive on the streets yes, but that’s not really the same as learning to be a functional person, who can have healthy relationships with people, and control their emotions. Children actually require parents to nurture and teach them and raise them up to be more functional adults, and they also require the stability adults in their lives provide them. 

Terra goes to Slade because he is an adult who is promising to be there for her, and give her control and stability which are things adults in her life have failed to give her. She can’t trust the Titans to give her these things because they are children one as Slade needles her into believing they cannot understand or help her, and two the way Terra has lived her life up to this point a transactional relationship with Slade makes more sense to her head than the found family the Teen Titans have based on love and trust because Terra is a stranger to both of those concepts. 

Terra is also someone who has little control over her life in general, which is why cartoon Terra is so passive in comparison to comic book Terra. In the episode Betrayal itself, Terra keeps her foot in the door about the actual betrayal the whole way, and seems to change her mind on what she wants several time. Because Terra has five different personalities. Ginger Terra, Sporty Terra, Posh Terra, Scary Terra, and Baby Terra. Terra doesn't have a cohesive sense of self so she's entirely reactive, she just does what she thinks will keep her safe in the moment. Terra wants safety and control of her powers so she goes to Slade. Terra feels guilty about what she does for the Titans so she tries to run away from Slade for the moment. Beast Boy asks her out on a date, but because Terra's betraying the Titans that night Terra says no. Five minutes later, Terra says yes. She is constantly changing her mind and contradicting herself like this.

Which is where we get to the greatest contradiction this episode, Terra betrays the titans and clearly feels guilty about it,b ut instead of say telling the Titans what she did or coming clean she just runs away. Which is where we get to the extremely subtle imagery of Terra in a house of mirrors.

Terra can't face her reflection over and over again, because she can't face herself, because she has no sense of self. She doesn't know why she does these things, but she's done them now, and she's stuck with those choices.

Terra: Beast Boy, I'm so sorry. I never meant for any of this to happen. Beast Boy: Then why did you let it? Terra: I don't know okay, I don't know. Slade he helped me. He saved me from myself. He said I owed him. Beast Boy: So, it was all just a game. You were just pretending. Terra: No. You said you'd be my friend no matter what, remember?

This is also Terra's most honest display of remorse, and the exact moment Terra gets rejected, crying and begging for forgiveness for what she's done and after that is the point where she goes full villain. Terra goes from baby Terra, to Scary Terra. A lot of who cartoon Terra is born from fear of moments like this where she is rejected. Terra was the one who tricked Beast Boy and Beast Boy is rightfully upset of course, but in Terra's mind only able to see her own hurt feelings Beast Boy is the one who broke the promise to her. Terra internalizes the fact she cannot be forgiven at that point and seeing no other recourse goes full villain and insists she feels no guilt, she wanted to destroy the titans to begin with, it was all a lie. The complete inversion of how she acted in the betrayal episode. Terra is manipulative, spiteful, hungry for power and yes she's capable of being all of those things but one important thing is.

The second, the second Slade starts mistreating her and beating her Terra immediately wants out. It turns out it's not power or control Terra wanted at all with Slade, but the idea of safety he provided her. The moment it becomes unsafe for her she tries to leave again, because Terra is a child desperately seeking safety in a world that feels unsafe for her, and she'll find it by crushing people she perceives to be a threat if she has to.

That is Terra in a nutshell, she doesn't feel safe anywhere, or with anybody. She has no stable foundation. She is the human embodiment of the tower card in Tarot. No matter how hard she tries to trust others and trust in return, because those are basic human urges we all have, she ends up falling down. It's interesting for a character who is so famous for betrayal, how much of her arc shows she clearly wants to be accepted and trusted by others, and gets hurt at the idea of their rejection. Even the day she literally betrayed Beast Boy before taking him out on a date she asks him this.

Terra: Do you trust me? Beast Boy: More than anyone I've ever met.

I would say Terra's inability to trust doesn't come from the fact she's a bad person or a bad victim, but because she doesn't have the tools to form healthy relationships because of how seriously neglected a child she is. A part of the tragedy of Terra is because Terra cannot save herself, because she is a child. Just like how the Titans have such difficulty saving her, because they are children too and they're not really emotionally prepared to save a person as morally grey and as in need as Terra, and the only adult in the situation is Slade who is there to take advantage.

Transitioning too. Comics Terra, while cartoon Terra has too much personality, Comics Terra has too little. She was written to be a sociopath, and that's not really my term that's how the writers describe her though I can dig up evidence she shows clear signs of being capable of having attachment to people. I'd say rather than a sociopath she's more written as an enigma. Terra's motives are spurious, her actions are inconsistent, she seems to be driven by spite. She is an incredibly angry kid with a chip on her shoulder who seems to be capable of anything.

Cartoon Terra is trying to play along with other peopel's expectations to her, while comics Terra rejects everyone's expectations. She loathes cute teenage girl superheroes. She finds dressing up in costumes and fighting crime to be ridiculous in the first place. Though, I would say despite saying she clearly hates the titans, literally the next panel she displays some affection for Kid Flash.

Comics Terra isn't completely unfeeling, she's capable of forming connections to people, she has a fondness for Geo-Force her brother, Kid Flash, and sort of for Beast Boy she just never fully forms relationships with them.

Terra's not really even maintaining much of a cover with the Titans, because both with Slade and the Titans she is a rude, belligerent raunchy kid who is trying to constantly get into other people's faces. Terra is all of those things, she just when she is alone with Slade also pretends she is an adult, in an adult relationship with him. (Cough, cough, grooming victim. A victim of sexual grooming in this sense too).

Terra's written to be a sociopath yeah, or at least her writers tried too but I'd say she's more a character who the audience has little to no idea what is going on in her head. A lot of her is left ambiguous. Considering her backstory though, the rejected bastard of a king, someone who is working as a mercenary at fifteen, she clearly has not had a good life. Just like cartoon Terra she is lacking a sense of self.

However, instead of eschewing her agency, Terra takes her agency from other people. Cartoon Terra is good at manipulating when she wants to be, but Comics Terra sees the world in terms of every relatonship is transactional and based on manipulation, the world is winners and losers, the world is about who is on top and who is on the bottom. Terra lacks no real goal, or purpose, no friend, no home no loved ones she really only wants to crawl up on top of others if she has to.

Which is exactly why she gets into a relationship with Slade. Comics Terra seems to think her and Slade are equals, and that she is manipulating and using him as much as he is using her. The tragedy in this case arises from the fact that you know, Terra is a fifteen year old girl and Slade is three times her age.

There's an entire chapter where we follow around Terra montiofring people with contacts, and she's going about the titans daily lives just, telling Slade how much she hates them the whole time, but then she stops to ask Garfield why he's constantly being rude to other people and seems genuinely interested in listening to him talk about his feelings.

Terra's only out for herself, she is out to define herself and not let anyone else tell her who she is and who she should be. Terra's selfishness makes sense though considering the situation she is, she's either made to feel nothing like how she was with her family, or she is being sexually groomed by a guy three times her age. Her response to that, her extreme self interest and only caring about her own survival really is her way of fighting back against a world that she sees as trying to wear her down.

And that's a key part of her character Terra is a grooming victim who is also a bad victim. She's being groomed and her way of reclaiming her agency is to insist she wants sex, she wants to hurt people, that actually she's the one manipulating Slade. It's all Terra trying to assert control in a situation where she has none. I don't know if you know this, but a fifteen year old can't manipulate a guy in his fifties who has been doing this for years. Terra also, projects a lot of her hate for her situation and her lot at life at the Titans.

They did not do anything wrong to her, but at the same time she's pretty cosntantly unhappy with them, she complains none of them like her, she complains about their lack of trust, I believe that's less Terra trying to infiltrate them and more Terra herself either believing she cannot fit in anyhwere or as a person who only believes in transactional relationships and manipulation just not understanding how family works.

Terra also acts like dangerously unstable at all times, there's a point in the comics where Beast Boy gets way too aggressive with his flriting, that he full on triggers what resembles a PTSD response in her and she tries to bury him alive.

At times like this when Terra is made to feel she's either not the one with the power here, or being looked down upon she asserts herself with violence to desperately try to regain control. It is not healthy by any means, but it is still the behavior of someone who is coping incredibly poorly. Terra relies on fear and control to make herself feel safe at times like this, because she's not been shown love early on in her life and by this point she genuinely does not understand it. And also I cannot emphasize this enough as a victim of sexual grooming, Terra is pretty much not ever safe, or in a situation where she has bodily agency or control.

Terra in the cartoon dies in a heroic sacrifice, whereas Terra in the comics dies because she loses control of her power and essentially suicides. If anything the tragedy here is that Terra is someone who never learned to be a girl properly, nor was she appreciated as a human being and because of that she formed her entire sense of self around her powers. She is a child, and never having been allowed to be one, and not knowing how to live in this world, form relationships with people, trust and be trusted she dies as a child. Terra once again has nothing solid to build herself on, and because of that the tower falls down.

3. Terra and Beast Boy

In the cartoon Terra and Beast Boy are clearly meant to be in a relatoinship, in the comics Terra claims to have hated him all along, but arguably she could have been fond of him.

In both versions the relationship is entirely wrong headed from the start. A lot of it has to do with Beast Boy's flaws as a character. I wrote on and on how immature of an individual Terra is, and Beast Boy as the youngest on the team shares many of those immature and selfish traits. IN the comic itself that seems to be the reason why Beast Boy and Terra are paired together, they are the closest in age, she is the new girl and the trope Terra is made to deconstruct is the cute comic book love interest.

Comic book Garfield is almost more immature than cartoon Garfield, and on top of that is a full blown male chauvinist. A lot of people do not like Wolfram/Perez Beast Boy, I kind of love him because he doesn't understand woman's boundaries and thinks he desperately needs to get into a relationship and makes them uncomfortable because he sees his flriting as harmless to them... you know like a teenage boy. Unlike most characters like this that appear in media, this quality of Beast Boy's is something that gets called out on all the time.

Terra and Beast Boy do have something in common in that they are both outsiders to the group, they are the youngest so no one takes them seriously, they are almost always stuck together, there's a scene where they're both getting tutored by a tutor Garfield's rich father hired and they're both such ADD kids no one wants to be there. She does have at least one genuine moment of connection like this one.

Their immaturity is what makes them the most similiar, but they go about the inferiority they feel towards other people in opposite ways, Terra sets out to try to prove that she is better than other people by asserting herself, while Beast Boy tries to bend over backwards to win their love.

Terra sympathizes with Beast Boy because they share the same root cause of the issue, but they cope in opposite ways and because of that she looks down on him as just another kid. Which is something Terra is desperately trying to prove she is not. Terra genuinely does go out of her way to kiss him which shows this conversation at least affected her, she has moments of being genuine around Beast Boy, but I think this and every version of Beast Boy is too immature to ever reach her. Because to return to the male chauvinist aspect of Beast Boy's character, not long after this scene he full on triggers Terra by coming on way too hard to her.

Beast Boy wants a girlfriend, to validate his feelings, to make him feel special when he feels like he is the only kid, and the one most often left behind in a group of adults. He tries to make Terra into his love interest and Terra does not want to play that role at all. There are moments where Terra is genuine with Beast Boy, and he might have been able to reach her, but Beast Boy is so obssessed with the image of Terra he has built in his head and the idea of having her he's never able to even come close to her.

Beast Boy cannot understand Terra with any sort of nuance whatsoever, because she's a woman who doesn't really want to play along with any image of her in his mind.

Their cartoon relationship is much less destructive, but really suffers from the same fundamental problem. Both the episode "Terra" and the episode "Betrayal" feature Beast Boy trying to make Terra a promise that he cannot keep. The first time he promises to keep her powers a secret, he actually keeps that one but the perception that he's betrayed her is what makes Terra run. The second time Beast Boy promises to accept her no matter what she does, only to reject her when she is openly weeping and apologizing at his feet out of remorse.

Like, if you wanted to save Terra. To convince her to turn back to the side of good there was never a time more ideal than that but Beast Boy spits in her face. Because while he's a hero he's also a fifteen year old boy feeling hurt and betrayed. This is Beast Boy's Orpheus turning back to look at Eurydice moment.

Terra: Beast Boy, I'm so sorry. I never meant for any of this to happen. Beast Boy: Then why did you let it? Terra: I don't know okay, I don't know. Slade he helped me. He saved me from myself. He said I owed him. Beast Boy: So, it was all just a game. You were just pretending. Terra: No. You said you'd be my friend no matter what, remember? Beast Boy: Slade was right, you don't have any friends.

Beast Boy's attraction to Terra is sort of instant and a kiddie crush, but any relationship they might have had is broken by the time Terra runs away at the end of their first episode together. Afterwards Terra has already betrayed the Titans, and Beast Boy is clinging to the girl Terra appeared to be the first time they met.

Beast Boy doesn't really fully comprehend Terra, which is why the literal last episode of the series is Beast Boy stalking Terra all day long and insisting that he knows her best, and he knows certain things about her and acting confused when she tells him that she was never that way, she never liked sleeping outside, she wasn't the girl he thought she was.

I went to great length to show how Terra's emotional immaturity results in her constant flip-flopping and contradiction, but Beast Boy shows the exact same behavior. Beast Boy in the cartoon tries to play roles to Terra that he is not emotionally mature enough to play. While at the same time. The first is he tries to be the one protecting her, the one guaranteeing her stability. In the first episode he is the one who stays with Terra and calms her down after Slade triggers her into nearly causing an earthquake.

At the same time by the end of that episode he's unable to make Terra stay because she's so hurt at the idea he betrayed one secret. Beast Boy is also the same person who one episode ago told Terra that she didn't have any friends to her face when she was crying and apologizing and just left her there, and the very next episode gets angry when the titans say Terra is irredeemable. Beast Boy that was you. You said that, to her face.

Beast Boy: Terra, you're our friend. Terra: I don't have any friends, remember?

Beast Boy wants to act like a hero saving Terra, but he's not that great of a hero, nor is he emotionally mature enough to do that. Which is why we get this behavior of Beast Boy, first reaching out to save her, and then resorting to victim blaming when he feels like he can't save her. He jumps between I am Terra's best friend, I know she was there all along, to just Terra doesn't have any friends. Terra you wanted to do these things, it was your choice. There's no consistency in Beast Boy's actions, because Beast Boy doesn't really know what to do he is vulnerable and desperate, because a person who he cares about has hurt him, and is also hurting.

Beast Boy is once again trying to put Terra into a simple and easy to understand box. He is acting like the hero of the story, and she flips between his villain and his love interest when that's not the case. Terra's more focused on Terra herself, she cares about Beast Boy but she's also just trying to survive. Beast Boy is a little bit too focused on his relationship with Terra, and like the validation he wants to get from her that he can't look at Terra as a whole person, or realize from an outsider's perspective she's a kid in dire need of saving. Well he does at times, but like I said he flips between advocating for never giving up on her, and victim blaming her because Terra is not easy to understand and he cannot make up his mind.

Terra is the main character of her own story and Beast Boy doesn't know how to comprehend her that way, or set himself aside to look at things from Terra's perspective because he's fifteen and stuck inside his own head with all those adolescent feelings and hormones.

In both versions, I think Beast Boy mistakes what could have been a strong friendship for romance because he is obsessed with getting into a relationship without really understanding what that entails. Beast Boy not being a good boyfriend at fifteen is actually perfectly understandable, the whole tragedy of the Judas Contract in general is that just like Terra is too immature to save herself from her situation, the Titans also just being kids are too young to save her.

They also both try to jump into a relationship without building a solid friendship first, because they both need love and stability and have no idea how relationships are supposed to work. It's like they both fell in love with the people they were when they first met and the relationship never evolved. They are similar and there is a connection, but rather than the things they have in common bringing them together, it drives them apart.

#beast boy #tara markov #terra #teen titans #teen titans meta #tt meta #new teen titans #terra markov #terra teen titans #garfield logan #bbterra #beast boy x terra #judas contract #metasks

[traegorn]

Regarding the anon that wants to unlearn light=good and dark=evil. It's also important to look at this from a political/racial perspective. This unconscious bias contributes to racism and colorism, and identifying those biases in yourself and in society is a step towards getting rid of them.

Here's some topics to look into in addition to searching history/accounts of racism and colorism: the skin lightening industry, the black-white doll study, why people were upset about the casting of rue in hunger games, race and perception of innocence, what beauty filters do to your face, what most or all people look like when you google image terms like "angel" / "beautiful person" / "cute kid"

The reason why I didn't talk about this stuff in my response was because I thought it was pretty clear that the original anon was already aware of why they need to deconstruct it to start with.

They already took that step.

But having that rational understanding doesn't necessarily help someone deconstruct the emotional associations they have with light and dark. That's why I went with emotional touch points they might be able to find in their life to build new connections. To draw new, emotional metaphors from.

It's not just about deconstruction, sometimes it's about constructing something new at the same time too.

Knowing the rational and logical answers doesn't always get us to where we need to go. Like referring to things and dark and light or black and white magic have an obvious effect with race and politics, but people who have lived their whole life have built in non-political and non-racial associations on that paradigm. That's why people are so resistant to changing their worldview on this stuff. They don't just see things on the external effect they have, but their own personal emotional associations that have nothing to do with those things.

For a person to make those changes, they have to address both. That person came to me knowing those labels were harmful, and wanted aid in building new associations. That's why I offered the answer I did.

They're not drowning anymore.

They've been pulled out of the water.

Now they're asking how to swim.

#witch #witchcraft #witchtok

[melonteee]

See, I disagree with you saying that "we KNOW the Marines are unfixable from the inside" because I'm like 90% sure that the series will end with the Marines having been fixed from the inside. With like, Fujitora as the Fleet Admiral and Koby and Smoker as Admirals.

I would be honestly shocked if Oda would have Koby say something like "I want to become an Admiral" at Enies Lobby and then not follow through on it. That's Koby's dream. That's as important to Koby as the Straw Hat's dreams are to them. The Marines are obviously still going to exist as an organization after the Final War, even if the World Government doesn't.

My personal theory is that Akainu learns about Imu and snaps, ordering the entirety of the Marines to defect from the World Government in a coup. Then the Marines fight the Straw Hats, the World Government fights the Revolutionaries, and the Blackbeard Pirates fight the Red-Haired Pirates. Blackbeard kills Shanks and steals Imu's Mythical Zoan, and the ultimate final battle is Luffy vs 3-Devil Fruit Blackbeard.

Nah I truly believe the marines will be taken apart and rebuilt. When it comes to these world government workers, or anything connected to the world government, we can see just how broken everything is.

I see no possible way the marines can be fixed from the inside at this point, nor do I think Oda would head in that direction. At this point, One Piece is RAPIDLY heading towards the direction of tearing down the world government entirely, and the marines ARE part of this system due to working for them.

What I CAN see is Koby deconstructing the marines and building them back up anew, but the marines are ROOTED in unethical means and power hungry domination they label 'justice'. That 'justice' term, especially, needs to be radically destroyed and changed. The fact remains that so long as Koby is blind - wilfully or not - to how the marines operate, he CANNOT fix it from the inside. Right now, Koby is part of a power hungry system he's become susceptible to. The marines are now being hunted by the common person due to the Cross Guild, and they're complaining "Well now we have to look out for ourselves!! These people don't appreciate us at all!"

When, of course, the citizens we've SEEN hunting down marines are simply innocent people who have no other choice. These are people the marines COULD'VE and CAN help, but being lap dogs to the world government means they're not going to.

Koby, as ONE person, cannot fix this system. He cannot take what has already been establish, and re-establish it without completely tearing it down. The marines need a complete reform and a COMPLETE overhaul, and while I believe Koby CAN be part of that, he NEEDS to break away from thinking the marines are "just" or "good" as a whole right now.

This is why when Fujitora immediately turned around and went AGAINST the marines after seeing the horrors of the celestial dragons, I cheered! Fujitora understands this is NOT a just system, this is NOT something to work under, and he'd rather turn and fight it than continue being part of it. I'm hoping, at some point, Koby has this realisation, and it's why I'm PRAYING something similar also happens to Smoker who ALREADY has one foot out the door.

I would also be shocked - MORE than shocked - if Akainu EVER turned against the world government. This man is BUILT as a man who absolutely hates pirates, he's BUILT as a man who sees HIS justice, the MARINES justice, as correct. I think it would be totally out of character and completely insane if Oda just turned Akainu on his head and made the marines fight against the world government. After all, the revolutionary army is why that exists.

The marines are fundamentally broken and we KNOW they are, they've helped weave history into what the world government wants it to be upon their command, and they've participated in the genocide of numerous islands and peoples. This is NOT fixable.

They need a complete breaking down before they can even BEGIN to be changed. The world must be restarted anew in One Piece for there to be complete freedom, the systems that be must be shattered, and the marines are part of this. Koby can help, but as he currently is and with the beliefs he has of the marines, he's yet another solider propaganda piece for the marines to use.

#ask #melonask #op spoilers

[bluiex]

To expand on Scar not noticing Grian is a vampire.

Scar is constantly doing things like walk him home if they hang out too late and it's dark (followed by Grian stalking Scar home in the shadows to make sure he gets home safe which is on the one hand super annoying but it's sweet his human cares about him.)

Grian may be cold and dead but he has soft jumpers and fluffy hair and Scar's always hugging him.

Scar puts together charms and stuff for Grian to have in his house or about his person to protect him. (Pearl is beyond annoyed at how many times they've had to somehow deconstruct and dispose of these things from a distance so they don't hurt them, but the ones that aren't dangerous to vampires and are general protection things Grian makes full use of.)

(I'm not sure what the circumstances would be but Pearl and Grian siblings yes)

Scar doesn't find that many vampires to kill nowadays it's weird. The ones he does encounter all run in fear of him nevermind the old powerful vampire who's scent clings to Scar now and they'd be mad to hurt this hunter he must have developed a reputation ("I'll take your word for it, Scar.")

Grian's got a silly little hunter who just wants to keep him safe, and hes been watching Scar enough to know he's getting special treatment here.

And maybe Grian takes advantage of that one day. Scar's strong, really, and this enemy of Grian's is an issue, maybe if Grian just nudged everything together so that they walk right on into their lair.

Scar gets hurt. (And Grian goes feral mode and slaughters every vampire in that building while Scar's in and out of consciousness)

--

"I thought you could- fuck, stupid, I'm so stupid."

"Grian you didn't know-"

Grian laughs miserably, "I did know. Why do you think we were here, Scar? I set us up! I didn't think!"

Scar stares. Grian takes a moment to collect his thoughts.

"I didn't think you'd actually get hurt. Fuck. I'm so sorry, Scar. You weren't meant to get hurt."

"Grian..."

"God it's my own fault for getting so attached it's. This is all my fault. I'm so sorry."

Scar watches Grian's lips move, sharp fangs a lot more apparent than before. And his dark void eyes have specks of red in them. He reaches up, stopping Grian from talking. "They got you..." Scar says. Of course Grian was got, of course Scar wasn't enough-

Grian shakes his head, "I was already... long before you were born. It's been nice, being a person with you. I'm sorry"

Grian is a vampire. And he has his guard down. And Scar knows he should take advantage of that, should feel betrayed, something. Grian seems to be expecting it too, he has his eyes closed and he's not... moving anymore, he's just waiting. Waiting for Scar to kill him because that's what Scar does, but this is Grian and he can't.

sorry for turning this amazing, wonderful, so good thing: and adding a little angst cuz i just cannot help myself (but fr dude dude anon dude, this is fucking amazing)

Scar can't kill Grian. This whole time he was being lied to. Scar felt a little bit used in that moment. But he isn't angry, he feels nothing but adoration still toward Grian, this just.. makes everything oh so difficult now.

"Take me to Impulse please.. he'll patch me up." Scar says quietly, the implication of this being read loud and clear by Grian with the way his face contorts into something heartbroken before composing themselves enough to pick Scar up carefully and get him to Impulse.

Scar didn't want Grian helping with his injuries like all the other times before.

Scar needs time away from Grian, to think. Rethink everything. His and Grian's relationship, his job as a hunter. He was told they were monsters, ruthless killers who have on compassion for humans. But Grian just threw all that right out the window these last few months.

#bluie gets an ask poggers #scarian #scarian vampire au #scarian vampire hunter au #long post

[paytato435]

Chapter 4: Spider's Web

Inspiration

Donnie agreed to go with Casey and Leo if Casey agreed to help him work on the Turtle Tank. Since it had nearly been crushed in the subway tunnels, Donnie hadn’t been able to decide how to “improve” it. To be perfectly honest, it would have still run just fine; the only things that really needed repairing were the shields, but simply fixing the machine didn’t seem to interest the soft shell. Instead, he had completely deconstructed the vehicle and put it back together again- thrice.

Casey had no idea what Donnie was going for with this obsession, or how he had time to work on it at all with his college applications, scholarship essays, etc, etc… but perhaps that was why he had asked for help.

“We’re taking it apart again,” Donnie told Casey when they walked into the garage.

“Again? It’s not going to be done in time before dinner,” Casey groaned.

“Not with that attitude it won’t!” Donnie cackled, tossing him a drill. “But in all seriousness, it doesn’t have to all be done tonight. I just can’t stand looking at her right now.”

“She looks great though,” Casey pointed out. And he was right. The tank had never looked better. Donnie had gone all out on the tank’s design too. Each exterior piece had been repainted, waxed, and buffed. There wasn’t a scratch on her.

“But it’s just… the same!” Donnie growled.

“You say that everytime and then you put it back in the exact same way,” Casey reminded him, looking at his reflection in the tire rims. “Do you want to redesign it?”

Donnie looked stumped.

“Maybe you should plan out what you want before you actually, you know, make the tank unusable? What if we need to take it somewhere?”

“That…" Donnie looked around the garage for the answer to his problem. Seeing nothing to help him, he slouched.

"I am completely stumped, Junior," he admitted, dropping his head.

"You're stumped?" Casey had never seen him so defeated.

"Yes, stumped. Don't go bragging to the others, but I have no idea what I'm doing," Donnie grumbled, tapping his foot in frustration.

"Now that is a first."

"Wow, that must mean a lot, coming from the future boy."

Casey pinched his lips together. He needed to really keep his walls up around Donnie. Out of everyone here, he was always asking the most questions. He was infinitely curious, and didn't seem to know when to stop asking.

"I'm sure you'll come up with something cool," Casey encouraged. "Maybe you need to work on something new. Set this aside for a bit until inspiration hits."

"Inspiration… that's it!" Donnie grabbed Casey by the shoulders.

"You gotta tell me what I build in the future!"

"You told me not to do that," Casey pinched his eyebrows together in confusion.

"Past Donnie didn't know what he was talking about," Donnie turned up his nose. "But future Donnie is a genius! It would be foolish not to learn from the best!"

Sometimes Casey forgot that Donnie's ego was just as great (if not greater) as Leo's.

Donnie looked at Casey expectantly.

"You want me to just, what? Tell you everything you did over the course of twenty years?"

"If you had a list in chronological order that would be best."

Casey sighed. Oh boy he did not want to have this conversation.

"Donnie… I can't just give you everything. First of all, if you had a list it's long gone. I didn't exactly bring everything here with me."

"You didn't? Why not?"

"I don't know, maybe because I didn't plan to come here in the first place!" Casey burst out, frustrated. "You don't need help from your future self, Donnie, you are literally him! You're smart and can figure your way out of whatever rut you're in."

Donnie sank back a little, looking a bit hurt.

"I'm sorry, I'm not here to solve your problems, I'm just… stuck here."

The statement sat in the air like a rain cloud, its ominous presence daring Donnie to try and argue against rain. Sometimes, not often, but sometimes Donnie made Casey feel like an exotic creature or prophet- if he could just pick him apart in the right way maybe the secrets of the universe would just come spilling out. But Casey wasn't that; he was just Casey. He just wanted to keep the little bit of life before to himself; nobody could understand it the same way he could. He was put off that it would be anything different to someone else. The future had not been kind, but Donnie seemed to see it as a gold mine of opportunities. 

Donnie took a deep breath.

"You don't think me having access to my future self's technology would be a boon to us in any capacity?"

"That's not my point," Casey told him. "I don't know what it would do."

"It seems straightforward to me!"

"Our circumstances are different now. If I gave you the information for this stuff, which is limited at best, by the way, you'd just have more questions because there'd be no context for what anything would be made for. Sure, giving you a design for a new tech bo could be useful, but you don't need one that specializes in taking out only the Krang."

"So you do have some information?" Donnie's eyes sparkled.

"I have had enough," Casey answered.

"I'm sorry I can't help you with the Turtle Tank. I'm going to get ready for dinner."

"Hey wait-"

Casey put the drill down and turned to face Donnie.

"What?"

The softshell shifted uncomfortably. "I'm sorry."

"Okay."

Casey felt a little bad leaving the conversation there, but he didn't know what else to do. It wasn't as if he could help Donnie get out of his block. If there was some tech they really needed that Casey just so happened to know Donatello had in the future, he'd let them know about it, but not before. He wouldn't give that up just because Donnie was having a bad day.

Or maybe a few bad days. It did take awhile to disassemble the tank, after all.

Casey found himself directionless again. Leo was still watching tv, and even though Raph had come out to join him, Casey kind of wanted some time to himself. If he were in a movie, this is where the script would cut to the next scene.

But Casey's life wasn't a movie, no matter how fucked it was, so he decided to do the thing anyone would do when they were waiting for something to happen:

He went to his room to doomscroll on his phone.

-

Tamanegi

Raph knew from the jump this was a bad idea. He didn't even just have a feeling. He couldn't believe Leo had just decided to go to Big Mama's for help and expect everything to go fine. Not only that, but he was probably going to end up dragging Hueso into it too if something did go down at Run of the Mill. What was Leo thinking?

Of course Raph was going along. Just because Leo was the leader now didn't mean Raph wasn't the oldest anymore; he still had a responsibility to look after his family.

He just hoped this Synth guy was worth the trouble.

When they showed up to Run of the Mill, it was bustling just as usual. Ok, that was a good sign. Nothing seemed to be suspicious yet. But Raph wore his no nonsense face anyway. He wasn't about to let his guard down.

"Wait, I just realized, this is the first time Casey can actually eat the pizza here!" Leo pointed out as they sat down.

"You've adjusted?" Raph asked CJ. He had noticed the kid had started branching out from plain sandwiches and oatmeal, but he was afraid CJ might still have hang ups about pizza. Not liking pizza seemed like a fate worse than death. 

To his surprise, the kid gave a small smile and nodded in response. "That's awesome! Wait until you try the armadillo meat pizza!"

Casey's smile fell into a look off horror to show that maybe he wasn't that adventurous yet, but Raph let it slide. He would appreciate it soon enough.

Synth was five minutes late, Raph knew because Raph counted.

The bobcat that Leo had described clopped in with an unusual gait, like he didn't quite know how to walk right; even for a person with cloven feet. He looked around the place cautiously, more like a snake than a feline, before his eyes found the massive snapper.

Raph was a little glad he seemed more uneasy seeing an extra turtle at the table. He didn't want the yokai to think he had all the cards, even if he was sincere.

Leo waved the blademaster over, and he clopped his way across the room and into the booth beside Casey. Leo and Raph sat across from them. The yokai was lucky to be sitting as far as possible from him.

"Okay… on a scale of 1 to 10, how well do you think that grindstone actually kept Big Mama from listening in on our conversation?" Leo opened after Hueso had taken their orders.

The bobcat immediately squirmed in discomfort, which Raph did not take as a convincing reassurance.

"Is that why you brought the big guy?" Synth asked, flitting his eyes quickly over to Raph and back to Leo.

"Maybe," Raph propped his elbows on the table and leaned in a bit, demanding the attention back to himself.

"Synth, this my brother Raph," Leo introduced. "Raph, this is Synth."

"Nice to meetcha," Raph grumbled. "But if anything funny happens tonight, you'll be lucky if you walk out of here on both of your legs."

Leo gave him a concerned look, but didn't say anything. He was probably wondering where the big softie had gone.

Raph wished he could loosen up a bit too, but his perspective had changed a little since he'd been kidnapped by giant pink aliens. Or maybe it was when Casey had first appeared. Or maybe he just wasn't used to Leo calling the shots yet. Either way, his role was to act as the gatekeeper; he was not going to let anyone near his family that shouldn't be.

The message came through crystal clear; Synth looked like he was about to try and leave while he still had his legs.

Leo sighed.

"Don't mind him. He's just very protective. A big sweetheart, I promise."

Leo batted his eyes at Raph and made a stupid face, but Raph didn't let that break him down. If anything, he scowled harder.

"Right," Casey stepped in. "Where we left off, you all but admitted you're not happy with your current employment. Would you like to elaborate on that?"

Raph was surprised to hear Casey speak up, and so confidently too. He kind of sounded a bit like Leo.

Synth turned to face Casey, and seemed to relax a little at the prospect of having something different to talk about.

"Y-yes. Well, I wouldn't say I'm unhappy… or perhaps it'd be better to say I'm just uninspired. The money's too good for me to consider workin' anywhere else. But I'm an artist. If I'm making the same shit everyday I start to lose it. But Mama's got ears everywhere; if she heard I was moonlighting or doing anythin' off task she'd put me in a cell or worse."

Worse needed no further explanation. Even the people Big Mama claimed to have a good relationship with seemed to end up in her arena at some point.

"So you want to help us?" Leo asked hopefully.

"In a manner of speaking, I do. But there are a lot of steps to consider if you're going to get me to make anythin' for you."

"Like what?" Leo crossed his arms.

"Firstly, if I make you swords, Big Mama'll be pissed."

"That kind of seems like a big issue," Casey noted. "How are we supposed to help with that?"

"I did some thinking, some research, and I've come up with a solution to many problems in the Hidden City," Synth explained. "So while it is a big ask, I think you'll find the reward worth everyone's while."

Everyone waited for him to say what he thought, but he held back. Raph thought he looked unsure.

"You're asking strangers for help with something that could get you into serious trouble, and there is a very high chance Big Mama knows exactly what you are up to," Raph pointed out. He did not like where this was going.

Synth looked up to the ceiling as if he could find an answer there. When he looked back down, he seemed to find his answer on Leo's face, because it was only then he had the courage to speak.

"The second problem I have, has somehow, ironically blessed me with a solution. You see… I'm kind of cursed."

"Great, you're cursed too. Leo, Casey,have we heard enough? I think we've heard enough we should probably go."

"But we ordered pizza already!" Leo complained.

"I nearly forgot about the curse," Casey mumbled.

"You know about my curse?" Synth turned to Casey, surprised.

"Aha," Casey made that 'oh shit I said too much again about that future' face. "Yeah, about that…" the kid ran his fingers through his hair and gave a nervous smile.

Leo made a gesture for Casey to knock it off, but Casey put his fist over his lips.

"So, Synth has a curse that enables him to tell when anyone is lying," Casey squeaked.

"And how do you know that?" Synth bristled.

"Other than by the fact that your question is an attempt to test my honesty?" Casey asked back.

"You don't have to lie to him," Leo pointed out. "You just don't have to tell him!"

Casey frowned.

"I'm not afraid of telling people I'm from the future Leo, I'm afraid they'll think I'm crazy for saying so."

Synth's ears twitched.

"There it is again, your ears are twitching!" Leo pointed.

"I'm just surprised," Synth rolled his eyes. "That is twice now that what you've said is unbelievable," he gave Casey a suspicious look. "It's why I wanted to have this conversation in the first place."

"What do you mean?" Casey asked, clearly dumbfounded.

"You told me that he-" Synth pointed over to Leo. "Was the greatest ninja the world has ever seen. I could use the greatest ninja the world has ever seen… or two," he added on, glancing over at Raph.

"For the record, Casey's a ninja too," Leo smiled. Raph couldn't help but notice Casey's eyes sparkle at that. Raph didn't want to ruin the moment for Casey, but he wondered just how exactly he was supposed to be a good ninja with a chainsaw as his primary weapon. It wasn't exactly… subtle.

"Whatever. You know he's the greatest ninja ever, and that was a true statement."

"Well yeah, but it's just an opinion right? Even if I believe it, doesn't mean it's true for everyone right?" Raph asked. Facts and opinions were easily confused.

"That's true," Synth nodded. "Leo himself was lying when he said he was the greatest ninja ever."

"Hey! That's not true! I am the greatest ninja ever."

This time Synth's ears flicked to lay flat against his head.

"You really need more confidence in yourself, my friend," Synth chastised him before taking a drink of water. "That lie really hurt to hear."

"So what's up with this curse? It doesn't seem related, or even like a problem at all," Raph asked, redirecting the conversation.

Synth sighed. "Yes, it seems rather useful at first, but the world is not so black and white. Ironically, it seems some lies are meant to be told. There are things I wished I'd never known because of this power. And when people know I have it, they want to use me to their advantage."

Synth turned to give Casey a grave look.

"For you to know about my secret makes me wary of the future. Should I be concerned?"

Casey shook his head. "In the future we were close allies. I don't want to risk saying more, but your secret is safe with me. I don't know anyone else who would dare share it."

Casey gave a pointed look at Leo.

"What, me? No no no, I would never!" Leo turned and bowed his head to Synth. "Your secret is safe with me."

Synth turned to Raph next.

"You admitted this in a public space where anyone could hear you," Raph pointed out. "I don't know how useful my word is, but you have it anyway."

Synth looked like he wanted to die as that realization washed over him. Raph didn't get the impression he was very smart. And this was coming from the 'smash first, ask questions later' guy.

"And then there is the matter of how the curse works itself. Are you familiar with it?" Synth looked over to Casey.

Casey shook his head.

"Swords talk to me… well, any blade actually. Swords are straightforward. They don't care much for nuance, they take sides one way or the other. It's a simple way of thinking, but they are always decisive. They are also tremendously awful gossips."

"Wait, so swords gossip? They tell you whether or not someone is lying?" Casey asked.

Synth nodded.

"I've yet to hear them steer me wrong. And they have told me all about your situation, Leonardo," the bobcat looked at Raph's brother with… unease? Irritation? It was hard to tell."

"My situation? What's my situation?" Leo already looked upset, like he knew he was in trouble.

"That kitchen knife you call a katana-" Synth pointed to the blade on the back of Leo's carapace. "It's quite the tattle-tale. And word's getting around. If you keep treating blades that way it will end very badly for you."

"You mean they'll keep breaking?"

Synth shook his head. "Worse. They'll bite back."

"Bite back? That's silly. It's a tool-"

Synth slammed his paw on the table.

"Don't be so arrogant!" the whole restaurant turned to look at him. Suddenly self-aware, he sank back into the booth quietly.

"A ninja's weapon is more than a tool…" Casey spoke up. "It is your closest ally, literally."

Synth nodded. "It seems you've learned a bit from me."

"I must have," Casey agreed, but he was looking at Leo when he said it.

"The long and short of it is- you take care of your blades, and they will take care of you."

Synth pointed at Leo. "You have not been holdin' up your end of the deal, and for that the steel is sufferin'."

"Well yeah, that's why I want actual swords, this is clearly not working!" Leo rolled his eyes.

"It's not about you!" Synth snapped. "The damage is already done. It's not so simple as I make you new swords. For one, they would probably scream at me until I went deaf if I intentionally made a sword for you. They are pissed. The same would go for any premade swords I give you. Same for teaching you anything. They hate you. Your first step is to win their trust back."

"How do I win their trust back?"

Synth pulled something out from his bag; a small sheathed paring knife. He set it on the table.

"While I was working earlier, I had some conversations with my swords about our situation. While they may hate you, they are willin' to reconcile this matter for their own benefit too. We'll get into that in a moment."

Synth unsheathed the paring knife and immediately winced, as if the action pained him. He turned the blade over in his hand until the reflective surface caught Leo.

"This is Tamanegi. He has somewhat reluctantly agreed to help us."

Synth resheathed the knife and slid it over to, of all people, Raph. Raph lookedndown at it, but did not move to pick it up. They had not agreed to anything yet.

"Like I said before, I can't give you the knife, Leonardo. You shouldn't just expect it to work for you either. Give that to your youngest brother, Michelangelo, and help him where you can. When Tamanegi trusts you, then we can talk about your swords again."

"Wait, how do you know Mikey's name?" Raph asked.

"The gossiping, Raphael. They tell me everything."

"That's suspicious as hell. We don't have privacy in our own home?" Raph growled.

"Not as long as your brother continues to treat knives this way."

Raph glared down at the knife on the table. It was the fanciest paring knife he'd ever seen; not that he'd been keeping track.

The ones Mikey had at home had plastic handles, but this one was a part of the blade itself. It was heavier too. Mikey would probably get a kick out of it, at least.

"But speaking of privacy, we need to revisit the first problem. Many years ago, when my father was young, the Battle Nexus was an honorable place. The champions were brave warriors from all over the world, not just playthings of Big Mama's design. The swords of my forge and I have been laboring without honor all my life. My second ask is that you help me restore the Battle Nexus to its former glory."

"That's quite the ask," Raph pointed out. "Do you even know what that would mean?"

"It would mean destroying Big Mama completely," Synth said,  leaning in and speaking quietly. "As long as she is in charge, everyone in the Hidden City suffers."

"She is the majority shareholder of yokai suffering," Leo pointed out.

"This is ridiculous Leo, we can't take out Big Mama! She hasn't even done anything to hurt us… lately," Raph argued. "We'd just be causing trouble."

"Hasn't done anything to hurt you? Are you ignorant? The woman has her spindly hooks in everything she can. She hurts thousands of people either by her deals, imprisonment, her own whimsy…" Synth trailed off.

"We're heroes, Raph." Leo reminded him. "I don't think our responsibility ends at topside New York."

"This is more trouble than it's worth," Raph insisted. Saving all of the Hidden City of the largest and most influential crime boss for a pair of katanas? This was ridiculous.

"How would Leo even fight Big Mama without his swords anyway? This isn't a fair trade."

Synth nodded wisely.

"I will make you a pair of katanas before then, if you promise to help me. I can risk the time and effort to make them if I know my future outside of Mama's influence is secure."

"You would be putting a lot of trust in us," Raph warned.

"It has nothing to do with trust. The swords will hear your conviction themselves," Synth shrugged casually.

"I need your word that you will help me," he faced Leo, his face serious. "My family has made weapons for the Battle Nexus for centuries. It is my responsibility to restore their traditions. I have looked for many ways to do so, but it isn't until now that I've been able to come up with a solution. This means everythin' to me."

"Sure, we'll help you," Leo agreed too quickly.

"What? Leo! This is dangerous-"

"Then don't go," Leo shrugged.

"You know I can't let you do this alone!"

"Then come with me!"

"Leo!"

Leo scowled.

"Let's at least think this through some more."

"There is no hurry," Synth assured them, raising his hands defensively. "Just take your time with Tamanegi for now. Discipline is often its own reward."

That was the first thing out of Synth's mouth tonight that Raph didn't hate.

"What do you think Casey?" Raph asked curiously. "You're supposed to know this guy."

"Wha- me?" Casey kind of jumped. "I don't know if it's my place to say what we should do-"

"But this was your idea," Raph reasoned.

"Well yeah," Casey rubbed the back of his neck. "I think that principally, it's the right thing to help him. But it would take a considerable amount of risk. In the end, I think it's up to Leo."

"Do you think it's worth it?" Leo asked him.

"Synth makes the greatest swords in the world. It's a great deal in the long run," Casey nodded.

Synth's ears twitched again, and when he looked at Casey, Raph could tell he was amazed by the kid's sincerity.

"I make the greatest swords in the world?" he asked, nervously.

Casey gave him a huge smile. "Of course you do! Without your help-" but he cut himself off. He looked back at Synth with that ghost face. The facade had been cracked for just a moment.

Needless to say, the silence following was agonizingly awkward.

"Well," Synth finally sighed. "It's a pleasure to hear such praises from you, Casey. But I suppose I would be better off not knowing whatever you're holding back from me."

Casey gave a sad nod. As much as it could be helpful, the kid had told them over and over how dangerous his foreknowledge could be. It was a bit frustrating sometimes, hearing all his cliffhanger inducing thoughts. It eventually wore out all the curiosity Raph had of the future. It wasn't worth bugging him over.

"I'm not asking this because I want an answer," the bobcat explained in advance. "But you must know that I wonder what became of the Battle Nexus in the future. Are we working toward the future you are from?"

"Well actually…" Leo started to say, but Raph kicked him under the seat.

"Do what you want," Casey answered. "The future is made by what we do today."

Synth seemed satisfied with that answer.

-

Dinner came and went. Phone numbers were exchanged, and once they had gotten through the serious bog, the conversation lightened.

As it turned out, Synth was another one of Liu Jitsu's many fans, and he was eager to hear all about what had happened to him after his disappearance from the Nexus all those years ago. Raph almost forgot about Casey’s warning hours ago: that Big Mama might have heard them. That she could already know everything. In his head this wasn’t a good idea at all, and he’d remind everyone later when they got home.

But then something perfectly normal happened: Sunita came in to visit her dad at work. She waved at the boys as she came in, and it looked like she had brought some flowers with her. Her dad came out from the back of the restaurant and he took the flowers from her happily. It was cute; Raph wondered what the occasion was. On her way out, she took a moment to stop by and say hello.

“Sunita! It’s been a minute!” Leo smiled at her. “You still hanging out with April?”

“Hi guys! Yes! We’re going to the library tomorrow. One of our professors has already assigned us reading.” She made a gagging face. Their term didn’t start until next Monday.

Sunita’s eyes moved over to Synth and Casey, and Leo caught her look too.

“Sunita, this is Casey and Synth. We just met Synth today, but April’s told you about Casey, right?”

Sunita’s eyes lit up in recognition.

“Oh yeah! Hi Casey, nice to meet you!” she held out a slimy green hand and Casey shook it without hesitation. He smiled like… ok he probably already knew her already. Time travel was weird. Raph tried not to think about it.

“I heard you and Mikey are starting high school this week?” Sunita asked, raising a gooey eyebrow. “That should be interesting. I’m still going to college classes in disguise.”

“We’re going to try it out,” Leo shrugged. “I’m sure we’ve dealt with worse.”

“My dad’s real nervous about it,” Sunita admitted. “Even though I’m going as a human, he’s worried someone’s going to rat me out, and he’s all like: ‘humans are evil! Don’t trust them!’ and all that.” Sunita glanced over at Casey and bit her lip. “Sorry, he’s not… he doesn’t think…”

“Oh it’s fine!” Casey waved his hands. “I’m sure he’s just worried about you.”

Sunita nodded. “Well, I hope it all goes well for you,” she encouraged Leo.

Leo put his hand over his heart and smiled.  “Aw, thanks.”

“You guys have a good night!” And then she was gone.

Soon after, it was time to go home. Raph had eaten enough pizza that he felt like he was approaching a food coma; he was very ready to get some well-deserved shut eye. The party walked out and said good night to Synth, who quickly disappeared into the shadows of the overworld. Leo drew his sword, and a portal was soon shimmering and urging Raph onward. Pizza supreme he was glad nothing bad had happened.

He stepped through the portal, with Leo immediately behind him, and started to walk to his room, when he noticed Leo hadn’t closed the gateway. He turned, and saw that CJ had not followed them through. Leo looked through the portal, but the kid was nowhere in sight.

“What the hell?” Leo stepped back through the portal. He poked his head back in, concerned. “He was just with us, where did he go?”

Raph pulled out his phone and dialed CJ’s number, but it went straight to voicemail. Where had he gone?

“Donnie!” Raph called up toward the lab. Donnie poked his head out, looking tired and frustrated.

“Raph!” he yelled back.

“Do you have one of those tracker thingies in CJ?”

Donnie jumped down to the main floor and looked at Leo, who was still on the other side of his portal, walking up and down the street and peering back into Run of the Mill.

“You lost him?”

“He just disappeared! We had eyes on him not three seconds ago!”

Donnie groaned.

“He was very adamant that I not track him. He told me so like… a million times.”

“But let me guess, you did it anyway.”

“Scoff. I do believe in some levels of privacy Raphala. (Though maybe not anymore.) I do have his vitals though.” Donnie tapped at his wrist tech. “He’s fine.”

“Oh good," Raph's expression lightened.

“But unconscious.”

“Nevermind," his expression darkened again.

Leo popped back into the lair. “Guys I can’t find him anywhere!”

“Given the fact that he’s already unconscious, I’d wager he’s been kidnapped.” Donnie theorized.

“What!” Leo started to panic. “How does that even happen! He was just here!” He grabbed Donnie’s hand and dragged him through the portal. Raph followed them closely behind.

“We have to find him!”

-

Spider's Web

Casey was about to follow Leo through the portal when he felt something itch at the back of his neck. Ok, maybe not like an itch, but like something gooey had just crawled up on him. It was a horrible feeling really. Instinctively he went to scratch it off, but it wouldn’t let go.

It only took a second, he didn't even have time to react. He was suddenly yanked by his free arm and more of that ooze crept over his face- he couldn't even scream. He struggled as best he could, but it crawled up over his body as if he were sinking into jelly.

“I’m really sorry this was how we had to meet, Casey,” came Sunita’s voice. Where had she come from? Casey remembered when they had shaken hands. Had she… hidden herself on him?

Ew.

“I’m really, really sorry.”

To her credit, Casey did think she sounded sincere. But he was also rapidly losing consciousness so he wasn’t really in any place to forgive her.

-

The first thing Casey noticed when he came to was the kick of carpet under his shoes. Then the pressure of clawed hands gripping tightly to his arms. He was being dragged somewhere. When his eyes opened, he saw a familiar pattern pass him by in the runner beneath him. His eyes darted to either side and confirmed he was back in the Grand Nexus Hotel. Well, he wasn’t exactly surprised.

The bellhops pulling him hadn’t yet noticed he was awake. If he could twist out and take them by surprise, he might have a chance to break free. But just as he was about to pick up his feet, double doors swung open in front of him and he was carelessly thrown into a large room.

He heard Big Mama shout in surprise and disgust. “Idiots! What do you think you’re doing throwing our guest?” Casey looked up and watched as the bellhops stepped back into his space to pick him back up, but Casey scrambled away and to his feet.

Glancing around quickly, it looked as if he had been brought into Big Mama’s office. The woman herself was seated behind a massive, black lacquer desk. The double doors he had come through were swung shut and bolted behind him. He was trapped. As he continued to take in his surroundings, Big Mama continued to wring out her staff.

“And look at his arms! Honestly, I’m going to have you on probation if you can’t behave properly. We’re civilized yokai. I expected much more from you.” She turned to face Casey. “I’m really sorry for the way they treated you sweetie. Please, have a seat.”

“I’m good, thanks.” He didn’t know how he’d said that, honestly. His brain had gone from zero to one hundred when he’d scrambled to his feet, and now he couldn’t rest on any one thing. His adrenaline had kicked in and he was just waiting for the first opportunity to get out. One of the yokai standing by the door had his hockey stick. If he could somehow get that from him…

“I brought you in to talk, Casey. I’m not here to hurt you,” Big Mama’s voice made him jump. “I heard everything, I have friends all over. But believe me, I’m not the eensiest upset.”

Casey did not believe her.

Big Mama stood up from her desk and approached him. Casey took a careful step back.

“More than anything, I’m curious about you,” she cooed. “A child from the future; you’re very valuable. I’m sure the psychics in Witchtown would lose their minds over you.” She gave him a mischievous grin. “But why would I sell you to them when I could have all your little secrets myself?”

Why couldn’t he keep his damn mouth shut? Ever??? Raph had been right. They probably should not have met up in a public pizza parlor.

“I’m not telling you anything.”

“Of course not; what’s in it for you, anyway?" Big Mama giggled. "Your freedom? Your friends? Your… identity?”

“That’s not a deal, that’s blackmail!”

Big Mama smiled mischievously in response, spinning away and leaning against her desk.

“Why are you so upset?” she teased. “You all seemed far too eager to dispose of me. If anything, I’m being generous.”

“I’d rather die.” He meant it. Truthfully, he didn’t see himself knowing anything particularly useful to her personal situation, but the things she could learn about his friends, his family- she would never have that.

Big Mama rolled her eyes. “You’re no fun. You’re just as stubborn as that red turtle.” She gave him a quick glance over from head to toe. “But you aren’t just keeping these secrets from me, are you? Unfortunately for you, it’s much harder to hide mystic energy from me than it is from your friends.”

Shit. Had she really…?

"I… I don't know what you're talking about."

"Ooo… you are not a very convincing liar, are you honey? That's not going to work out for you in the long term, is it?"

Big Mama snapped her fingers and two more yokai appeared at Casey's side. 

"It's on his right ankle," she sneered.

The yokai grabbed him.

"Hey! Stop-"

Big Mama just smiled.

While one of the yokai held him still, the other pulled his pant leg up, his sock down, and Casey felt his stomach drop.

"Please don't," he choked.

"Take it off."

The yokai unstrung a small black ribbon that was tightly tied around Casey's ankle. As soon as they did, Casey's skin turned a scaly emerald green.

The yokai handed the ribbon to Big Mama, who inspected it carefully.

"Give it back!" Casey snapped.

"Not yet, darling," she giggled. "Not until you tell me why a handsome little turtle such as yourself is hiding from his own family."

________

Previous Masterpost Next

Notes: Oops he a turtle! This will be expanded upon next week eeeeeheeheheheheheheheeee

So this was my plan all along muahaha. Cass Apocalyptic Series got me by the throat and I had to put a different spin on turtle Casey. I saw this sweet boy and I thought "let's fuck him up a little bit. Let's make his life miserable, and this time there's no peepaw coming to make him feel whole again." Casey is alone and his story is finding meaning in the new life he has on his own terms. And he a turtle. turtle turtle turtle turtle...

#rottmnt #casey sas au #snapper and stinkpot #rottmnt casey jr #rottmnt fanart #rottmnt raph #rottmnt leo #rottmnt au #rottmnt fanfiction #rottmnt sunita #rottmnt big mama #casey is a turtle #turtle casey

[viralvava]

You know, I can't help but feel as if the games already had a compelling character arc for Richter that the show just blindly ignored in favor of making him more like Trevor, which defeats the point of making changes for the sake of creativity.

You have this hotshot hero, best of the best, at his total prime and everybody loves him, but there's a darker side to him, an existential insecurity about the implications of his role, and what happens if he's fulfilled it; Where does he go next? What else is he good for? Is Richter a soldier who's come back from the battlefield and is suddenly expected to just go back to living a normal life?

And that creates the setup for his fall from grace when Shaft exploits those emotions, which could lead to a compelling humbling arc where Richter ultimately comes around and triumphs over his demons and arrogance to do the right thing. There are still consequences, like the Vampire Killer rejecting him, but that sets up Bloodlines and Portrait of Ruin, and eventually, things heal when Julius steps up for the War of 1999.

It's just such a very distinct and fascinating way to deconstruct the legendary hero, so you'd think Netflixvania would be all over that with its darker tone, but it just makes something up. So I don't really buy the excuse of "There's not enough to work with," at least in THIS aspect of adapting the Richter era.

im really hoping that by 'making him more like trevor' you mean making him more like netflix trevor, but i wouldnt actually know much about that since i cant stomach even 5 minutes of the first nfcv ^^'

richters character arc is indeed incredibly interesting, being one of the most well-defined and intentional arcs of any castlevania character, considering his multitude of little accidental parallels with trevor or not -- in fact, i feel like if you wanted to adapt ANY castlevania plotline into something faithfully, richters story across rondo and sotn would be the best, because of how much youre already given and how clear-cut it is in comparison to someone like, well, trevor, who is most likely so strange in curse of darkness because he needed to act as a bit of a plot device and the writers didnt think too much about whether or not his actions might conflict with characterisation given and informed by an nes game -- this goes for arikado, too, as for why hes so very Like That in aria of sorrow.

... but this isnt about them, oops. youre right that its something that would, assumedly, work well for a tv show format, especially under the guise of adapting and building off of the original material in ways that wouldnt work with a game series of castlevania's genre. however, they obviously didnt want to do that, for whatever reason, which would likely be because netflix castlevania just doesnt much care for making something truly and genuinely based off of castlevania. theyre just not interested in it, for whatever reason, which would be fine if it wasnt the thing they were supposed to adapt 😭

#akumajou dracula #sorry if this wasnt too good i dont know if im the best person for this hshshs #you might get something more comprehensive out of my beloved mutuals though

[lemonhemlock]

The posts you reblogged about the fantasy elements of ASOIAF and it's comparisons with other fantasy books is so timely because I've been meaning to send you an ask about this very topic. I think a lot of the disconnect between people who unironically stan house targ and see them as the heroes, saviors, having this magical bloodline that makes them better lol vs. the rest of the fandom that clearly....does not is because of the series itself and how it is viewed within the genre.

So, I do believe that this is obviously a fantasy series and has been marketed as such, but what Martin ended up actually producing in the five books he published is basically a grimdark, edgy historical fiction series with some magical/low fantasy elements. I fundamentally see ASOIAF as a historical fiction work in the realm of The Accursed Kings, or even Phillippa Gregory if we want to get low brow lol, just WAY more gritty and with fantasy/magical elements thrown in as plot devices to spice the story up and to also prop up the greater socio-political and human family drama that is the true center of the story.

I know people say that the magical elements i.e. Bran's importance, the fight against the others, prophecy, etc. will be ramped up and gain more importance in the last two books....but Martin hasn't written them? So I'm not gonna judge this series based on unwritten material and the fandom's headcanons as to how or why this magic will be supposedly important. Martin's most magical figure, Bran, has some of the least chapters and hasn't had a chapter in two decades lmao. Fire and Blood, outside of dragon riding and some witchy characters, is pretty much historical fiction as well with very few and sparse magic to speak of.

I don't mind this at all, because I find the historical fiction and human drama vastly more interesting and have always been neutral at best re fantasy as a genre. But anyway, I think this is why there is such a gap between the subsections of the fandom because some are purely analyzing this as a magical series where it's really historical fiction with low magic/fantasy elements.

I kind of agree with some of your points, but I tend to look at it a little differently. I do agree about it generally being low fantasy, with plans to pump up the fantastical elements in the last two books. And, honestly, I sympathize with your take on just having five books published and being unable to judge a series based on plans that haven't seen the light of day yet. I think that's a reason for these heated debates, namely that we've been left in a pretty awkward point in the plot - the magical elements are ramping up, but still haven't been placed at the very fore, the majority of the Westerosi population either don't believe magic exists (anymore) or that it's pretty irrelevant to their daily lives etc,

...which in turn makes the political machinations stand out, more than they do in many other fantasy works.

On the whole, though, I would argue against calling it historical fiction, as the narrative takes place in a realm that doesn't exist, with a climate that would be impossible on planet Earth, with unexplainably stagnant technology.

I also don't really interpret ASOIAF as grimdark. Again, it's a tempting assessment to make based on the awkward point we are in the narrative now, but I don't think the progression of the series is going to be Nolan's-Batman-gritty. I think that we're fully in deconstruction mode right now, but that the ultimate goal is to pick the pieces back up together and build something better and more hopeful, get to the core of what makes these tropes so transcendent and appealing in the storytelling canon. What does a good king actually mean anyway? Why do we yearn for chivalry and courtly romance? Why do we keep coming back to these kinds of stories, why are we so attracted to the medieval aesthetic that makes all of this possible? What does it truly mean to be a hero? How can we genuinely help our fellow man? How does hope prevail when we are faced with the horrors of this world and the otherworld? Essentially, what does it mean to be human, which is the best and highest theme one can explore through the medium of writing.

#how is the accursed kings series anyway? is it worth a read? #any saga consisting of 700+ pages per volume is quite the commitment #asoiaf #grrm #ask #anon

[demdifferentstories-29]

20 Questions Game

Thanks for the tag, @bronzeagepizzeria <3

How many works do you have on AO3?

68!

2. What's your total AO3 words count?

734,052

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Currently, I really only write Doctor Who aside from a handful of other one-offs I've written, but I literally have at least a hundred WIPs/ideas in my drafts.

Fandoms that I have tons of ideas for are Broadchurch and Jessica Jones (TV series), which I hope to get around to publishing. But I have a fair bit of range hiding away haha.

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

In descending order:

Broken-Hearted (cross-over with Broadchurch; multi-chapter; completed)

Braids (one-shot)

Desperate Measures (multi-chapter; completed)

Exes and Ohs (one-shot)

A Lesson in Romantic (AU; multi-chapter; completed)

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Pretty much as soon as I can! I appreciate engagement so much and I want to make that known to commenters. Plus, I love a bit of banter and discussion where prompted - it's a delight!

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Oooo, boy. Probably Happy Together? Or maybe the first chapter of Sunburn? Violet Hill was also pretty sad. I love me some dark, heavy stories that fuck up my beloved blorbos.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Although I haven't updated in it in quite a while, I've written a fair bit of the sequels for the A Lesson in Romance universe, and, boy, have I made those two have a (mostly) happy life together.

In terms of published stories, I think Study Buddies would take the cake or one of the many TentooRose pieces I've done. The former is very classic, high school sweetheart vibes with just enough angst dashed in, and I tend to keep the latter sweet, fluffy and horny.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

I received some very intense 'constructive' criticism whilst writing A Lesson in Romance - like I'm talking extremely long paragraphs pretty much deconstructing my writing and questioning my content. I was young at the time, it was my first multi-chapter Doctor Who fic, and the fact that this person also pretty much outright told me how I should write my story pissed me off a bit, so I, in the most polite way possible, asked them to stop reading my story and leaving these comments.

Aside from that? I've really only had one sort of bad comment since then, but I opted to not reply.

9. Do you write smut? If so what kind?

Oh, you know I do ;) I currently only write F/M; have explored M/M in the past so I'm down to write queer smut if the inspiration ever strikes.

I'm not really a fan of overly kinky stuff that is, say, explicit/specific (e.g. BDSM), but I don't mind stuff that is vaguely/lightly kinky (i.e. I tend to include voyeurism in my stories, but it's generally accidental). I mostly write either very horny or emotional, intimate stuff - I'm a sucker for the feelings associated with the couple.

It honestly depends on what kind of story I'm writing! But as of recent, I've been mostly producing first-time, emotion-heavy smut with a good serving of horniness/wantonness to build up the tension.

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

I've written two - Broken-Hearted and Fobwatched (if you've been waiting for an update, I promise I think of her often... I'll revive her one day). I'd say BH is crazier, as it does entwine itself with the Human Nature storyline from Doctor Who, but Fobwatched has also had some pretty wacky moments!

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not to my knowledge, and I really hope not! I have, admittedly, been a bit fearful of it in recent months.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Again, not to my knowledge! But I'm always open to that conversation if people are interested.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Back when I wrote band/music fanfiction (please forgive me for my crimes), I had started drafting out a fic with someone, but it never went anywhere and we didn't communicate very well either :,)

However, I have been beta-ing the lovely @quite-right-too's fic Dona Nobis Pacem, which has been a lovely collaboration <3 I'm so proud of Cody's work and highly recommend you read it if you haven't!

14. What's your all-time favourite ship?

It would probably be DoctorRose! I've never really been more enthralled with a ship before, and the fact that the special interest is still going strong three years on is a pretty good sign. I also tend to come back to Ellie and Alec from Broadchurch quite often.

In the past, I was a hardcore Reylo fan, and I've always enjoyed random, niche ships within my realm of interests (i.e. Evey and V from V For Vendetta; Jackson and Lisa from Red Eye; an array of ships from my horror movies because I love being delusional).

15. What's a WIP you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

Look, I'm quite stubborn in my belief that, ultimately, I will finish all my drafts, but I can say that the drafts from when I first started writing Doctor Who fanfiction have been quite difficult to work on because my writing has changed so much since then!

There are also maybe a WIP or two that I have written purely for myself and will never publish. I will probably take these to my deathbed lol.

16. What are your writing strengths?

Hm, I've always been complimented for character accuracy, which I do think I have down pact - writing characters like Ten and Rose have gradually become more comfortable for me over the years and I feel like I know them quite well by this point, which is really surprising considering I've never done a proper rewatch of the show since finishing it aside from some scenes/particular episodes!

I've also always been very anal about detail in my stories - I love including the most unnecessary shit in my work!! Do you need to know what Rose had for breakfast? No. Are you gonna know anyway? YES!!! I just love making my stories feel as organic and lifelike as possible.

I've been working really hard on scenery recently, which I've been getting compliments on! I have aphantasia, so this is something I've put a lot of energy and focus into as I've come to realise it's pretty important for readers lol.

And, not to brag, but I do think I write some pretty banging smut. It's taken ten or so years of practice, but I got there in the end.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Eh, I feel I'm not super great at coming up with like... proper action/plot. Like I can do circumstances and events quite alright, but coming up with something like... say, escaping from a villain/bad situation, I've always felt pretty shit at accomplishing. However, I always try to improve.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I only speak English, so it's a bit daunting! But I just use Google Translate and consult others where possible. And, as Niyati has mentioned in her own post, I recently used her technique of writing from the non-speaker's perspective and it's been a welcome addition to my skills! Shout out, girlie <3

19. First fandom you wrote for?

It would've been 5SOS, but those fics are long gone - I deleted them from Wattpad, and the iPod that the original drafts are on doesn't work, unfortunately.

I also wrote about other bands that I listen to - Asking Alexandria, Of Mice & Men, You Me At Six, Pierce the Veil, and Bring Me The Horizon. I still have most of the drafts, but I deleted all but four of them from the internet lol (the ones that were deleted were unfinished works).

I don't write about these people anymore as I did come to realise, Wait a minute, it's kinda weird and gross to write about these people like this lol (no hate on anyone who does). But I'm always down to chat about my sordid past haha.

20. Favourite fic you've ever written?

I would have to say "Come, gentle night, come" as it's probably the most amount of effort I put into writing. I think it's my best smut and cherish it deeply!

Tagging: @quite-right-too, @deardiary17, @insomniac-101, @metacrisisdoctor

#doctor who fanfiction #tenrose #doctorrose #timepetals #ao3 author #20 questions #tag game #thank you for the tag niyati <3

[heretherebedork]

But he's talking to him in the rain. What is happening that ends with this? It's still raining in this moment and they're talking. What is going on?

I can't even begin to make a prediction or a guess because none of it makes sense unless we start making some strange theories... so I'll try that.

Theory 1: Tien doesn't realize he's experiencing hearing loss when he starts talking and can actually hear all of them in the rain. This feels unlikely to me but is possible depending on what the show is doing with the soulmates deconstruction that it's been playing with on and on. But also somehow feels out of place. I just don't know.

Thoery 2: Lomfon can hear normally but also hear Tai and Patts in addition. This would also, of course, flip the entire concept on its head and turn everything inside out. But in a lesser way, for me, than Tien joining them all in the rain. Lomfon seems to the exception to a lot of things. But this also brings up a lot of world building questions I'm not sure I want to ask.

Theory 3: Tien and Lomfon are yelling in the rain but aren't really talking to each other. This is the most painful theory I've got. That, yes, they're both shouting and looking at each other but they're not hearing each other. This set up to look like they can understand each other but they can't at all.

Also, what about the keychain?!

(I am now certain that the keychain came from Tien. The entire story of this show and their deconstruction/reconstruction of soulmates appears to be focused on how thinking about destiny or fate in your love will hurt that love so Lomfon thinking of the person who gave him the keychain as his first love and smacking Tien's hand away from it actually fully points towards the idea that the keychain came from Tien and that if Lomfon didn't have his own ideas so firmly wrapped up in his beliefs that he would have realized who it was from... but that's just a theory. A BL deconstructing soulmates theory)

#la pluie meta #la pluie the series #la pluie series #la pluie #bl drama #bl series #thai bl #thai drama #thai series #thaibl #asianlgbtqdramas #asian lgbtq dramas #thai bl series #thai bl drama #theories wild #what about the keychain!?

[minthe-lover]

Chapter analysis 218

Now I don't fully mind this chapter, I really do like the hypnos and I think it's a decent transition chapter to the next big plot points.. sort of kinda.. my reactions are mixed.

To start on a very positive note, I fucking love hypnos. This is sarcasm done decently well, along with him calling hades out on his shit is what I desperately needed. Also... I fine it pretty fun that he's just casually dicks out the whole time.

Now I think it's just a problem with the webtoon spacing but this episode that like... a weird completely blank panel before the title that isn't really on any of the other episodes but again that's a generally small mistake that's not that big a deal.

Now my biggest problem with this chapter is that it has ANOTHER GOD DAMN FLASH BACK. Like jesus even single flash back we get makes me think that season 2 should've ended right after the trail and we should've had season 3 be the ten year time skip, then have a fourth season with all the current shit. Like I went back and counted, out of the 12 episodes we have depending on how you count its either 5 or 6 episodes with out flashbacks... and there are three episodes that are ALL flashbacks.

If a story has a timeskip but then spends half the time after it to have flash backs.. you shouldn't have done that timeskip. If y'all want to see good time-skips read land of the lustrous. It has multiple massive time skips from anywhere from a month to ten thousand years but it works cause of how to ties into the story. Each time-skip is used to amplify the Main characters isolation, memory loss, and to show the stagnation of the immortal world they live in. The only flash back the land of the lustrous has is a few panels during exposition of event that happened before the story starts, and it never has flash backs to the timeskips.

In Lore olympus the time skip is used to... be able to have romantic moment between the important plot shit. It just feel clunky and makes each episode feel like each one should be done better... the suspense it would build for the kronos plot if done in order, seeing the progression of Persephones powers, seeing hades and Persephone grow apart from each other. Just... it would have been so so much better.

Now to another thing I really didn't like about this chapter is just.. how hades doesn't have his priorities straight. Hades is supposed to be you know focused how kronos did alot of fucked up shit, but he's worried about wine and hypnos using a doorway to go a realm. Like hades, your more worried about getting paid then not having an hr department.

Though again Hypnos calling hades out on his shit along, along with his general vibe and look is a great change of pace. It doesn't feel like lampshading.. tho it's honestly probably what it was for, to have Hades mess up acknowledged but then ignored.

That and also.. I really hope we get more of Morpheus mainly cause of the trans representation... that was never mentions in the story. Like christ when scrolling through the comments I saw two calling Morpheus a 'genderswap'.. so it's clear that even people who have knowledge of the original greek morpheus just think this one is a women and not a trans women.. and it sucks cause this representation sucks.

Another main problem is again.. the fertility powers that are just a catch all. Why is the tree persephone grew more connected to her fertility powers and not her plant ones? why is just being near the tree enough to give kronos a bunch of power? It's very much just a catch all power that can just be... anything. Also it's really sucks that the fertility powers never really tie into the whole "deconstruction of purity culture".. it's almost never mention to her sexuality in any way.. like the closest they get to that is apollo but that plot has been shaved down and ignored to basically nothing.

Another thing that is really annoying me is how serious scenes are undercut by goofy faces. Which really terribly shown in this episode... like we see hypnos be imprisoned and like have this honestly AMAZING shot of hypnos being inside kronos rib cage like a prison. Like that really cool idea that could have been a completely terrifying panel... but then rs gave hypnos one of the "funny" faces.. tat just completely ruins it. Especially taking into account that he is canonically being fucking tortured. Please please someone redraw this panel and make it look more serious.. cause holy shit I love and hate this panel so much.

Now I don't fully mind the while child god thing... yet, Its really to early to form any opinions on it till we actually first learn who it is and see how it's dealt with but having the big important plot point lead into a "harhar persephone hot joke" just... the pacing the clash in vibes is just bad.

Again this chapter highlights how bad the transition after the kronos fight was, instead of having a scene catching up with these characters we get persephone admitting to basically ignoring eros... Also like damn eros good job as stealing my insult about her outfit before I even thought of it!

The outfit itself just clashes with her outfits before, Persephone has been shown to prefer longer tight dress, sweater and similar things. This just... isn't it, it feels off and the whole banana purse thing looks odd.

I'll talk about the whole sex conversation with the next chapter.. what I wanna cover is just how.. they talk like a teenage rom-com that's desperately trying to keep a pg-13 rating so talk like middle schoolers who get nervous by just saying the word sex. It just feels.... off..

#anti lo #lo critical #lore olympus critical #anti lore olympus #anti lo art

[longclawshilt]

Me seeing the ask game: *cracks knuckles* Let's go.

I hope you don't mind answering all of these 😅.

1.

6.

8.

9.

10.

12.

13.

16.

20.

21.

22.

24.

25.

Have a nice day!

I won’t answer all of them haha. I had no time to write that much plus I wanted to actually give hOt TaKeS.

8 common fandom opinion that everyone is wrong about

I’ll start of by saying that I’m not one who wants to police other people’s interpretations of the text. BUT I will say this: Jon is not a below average swordsman! He’s not even average. He may not have many on page feats, but he’s only been in less than a handful of serious fights and they were against middle aged men with decades of experience over him. People like to bring up his loss to Mance, but this fight was against a man who managed to unite the wildling tribes under his rule; Mance is a highly skilled warrior.

Remember, Jon is 15-16 years old when most of these fights are happening. So he’s still young and growing. People will also say “oh, but Jaime Lannister was a god at that age”. Honestly, who cares? How many characters are comparable to Jaime at any age? It’s such a dumb comparison. I’ve even seen people argue that a 13 year old Peck is better than Jon and huh? Jon hasn’t won over any knights….because he’s not encountering them in the first place.

It’s clear that GRRM holds Jon’s skill in high regard. I mean the first Jon POV chapter established him as a noted swordsman. It also clear that Jon isn’t meant to be the warrior type. He’s a deconstruction of the archetypal fantasy protagonist. GRRM has chosen to build his political skills, so he’s not putting much of a focus on how well he swings his sword. That doesn’t mean though that he doesn’t have any skill at all. Just that it’s not the main focus of his character. But I think this fandom generally has the most wretched discourse when it comes to this stuff. Like people on Reddit this past week tried to argue that Brienne is overrated…Brienne, of all people. It’s just insane to me that people think they know more than the guy who wrote the damn books.

13 worst blorboficiation

Has got to be Kevan Lannister. Not so much on tumblr, but it’s a disease in some of the other communities. For whatever reason, he’s quite beloved. And this is rather strange because he is very much complicit in the corrupt Lannister regime. And as far as we know, he’s also fully supported Tywin in everything (which includes legitimate war crimes). He has his moments where he is shown to actually care for family members (e.g., Lancel, Tyrion), and that makes him a delightfully complex character. He’s also really funny. But we shouldn’t ignore his really bad traits. I’ve had to suffer a bunch of “Kevan Lannister is the best guy ever” posts on Reddit, and it’s absolutely maddening. That’s not to say that we can’t like “bad” people! Heck, Cersei is one of my faves. But it’s weird how certain characters get a pass for doing problematic things (e.g., Kevan or even Bobby B), and other characters get lambasted for the most tame things imaginable. It’s just the hypocrisy that’s annoying.

16 you can't understand why so many people like this thing (characterization, trope, headcanon, etc)

Powerscaling lol. It can be fun, but the people who engage in these discussions can be so tedious and boring. Tiktok and Reddit are full of this. “Who is the greatest fighter”, “who is the best warrior”, “this is why prime Robert low diffs Barristan Selmy”, and it’s the same old arguments every time. I think we should get more creative with powerscaling if we have to do it. Like “who has the best 🛌 skills”. Let’s at least argue over something fun, damn.

22 your favorite part of canon that everyone else ignores

This is going to be twofold:

- On tumblr? Easily Jon’s relationship with magic. In fact, people on here will go out of their way to argue that it’s actually not important to the plot, which is absolutely bonkers. Beyond warging, there’s a lot of weird magical stuff going on with Jon that should be put under the microscope. And I’d even argue that Jon’s a pretty special warg and cannot be compared to the other Stark kids (even Bran) because of how his powers manifest. Ghost is also obviously one of the most special animal familiars in the series (maybe even THE most special one), but no one ever talks about how special he is. A lot of people seem to believe that Jon will be KiTN, but it’s insane how we don’t talk about why it’s magically important for him to rule the North, considering his deep connections to Northern mysticism, religion, and lore.

- Elsewhere: the parallels between Jon and Bran. They’re essentially the same character base split into two (Seoman Snowlack, Frodo, King Arthur, Paul and Leto Atreides, Odin, etc). Both arcs parallel each other and are heading to the same destination, but the details will be different. This is getting to my last point, but I firmly believe we’re getting an ending with both King Jon and King Bran. I like to think of them as two competing but complementary sides of King Arthur’s tale. Jon is the one that is true to legend, as he follows the archetypal hidden prince-to-king trope. Jon is essentially “what if Arthur actually went on his hero’s/knightly quest?”Bran is the subverted one, where young Arthur gets a little detour; so “what if Arthur didn’t go on the hero’s/knightly quest but instead had to take up a job as a part time wizard?” Both will end up kings, just as Arthur did, but it will be different versions of the legend.

- Also: WTF is up with the Watch/Wall? What magic was used to build the Wall and who built it? Why can’t dragons cross? And why can’t wights cross either? What magic dictates that? What’s up with the Nightfort? Why does one only need to say part of the vows to open the gate? And what’s up with the NW vows? Why do they give Lightbringer vibes?! Is the NW Lightbringer? The NW is directly credited with the ending of the Long Night so was the last hero a member of the original group? Who was he? What happened to him after? If the last hero inspired AA then did the NW (and their vows) inspire tales of his flaming sword? And why did the relationship between the Watch and the CoF fizzle out? When did it fizzle out? And who are the LCs whose tenures have not been recorded? Why did they only start recording in the 600s (iirc)? What other history has been lost over time? Who was the Night King? Where did his half-human children go? Need that old man to answer these stat

25 common fandom complaint that you're sick of hearing

Several people will block me for this…but King Bran. Look, I get that Bran isn’t the most popular character out there. But so many people convinced themselves that he would die in that cave or he would amount to nothing which is very, very strange. And it also doesn’t help that a lot of the complaints reek of ableism.

GRRM obviously considers Bran to be central to this series. He is the first viewpoint character (and potentially the last one). He is the most magical character in the story. The scene that birthed ASOIAF came about because of Bran. It’s also said that GRRM considered writing the books through Bran’s POV but decided against it pretty quickly.

Anyone who paid attention to Bran’s story would know that we’re going to get some huge payoff to his story. In fact, I think it’s safer to assume that kingship has always been in the cards for him. I think most of us Bran stans thought he’d be KiTN (actually some of us over at Westeros.org thought he’d end up as the final Lord of Harrenhal). I never once considered King of all Westeros but I’ve had time to think about it ever since the show ended and I’m like, “duh!”. It’s thematically relevant and sound for Bran to end up king. We’re about to enter into a winter apocalypse but Bran’s direwolf is called Summer. Not only is he the representation of summer (which means renewal, rejuvenation, etc.), but he’s also fashioned after the Fisher King. He is also the second coming of Brandon the Builder - who constructed castles all over Westeros, not just the North; and if legends are true, this happened after the Long Night. He’s following after the footsteps of the Last Hero, and is the only other character apart from Jon who is actually fighting in the front lines against the Others. He’s going to be super important!

I can understand some of the questions people having regarding King Bran, mainly those of a political nature. But we’re left with two books. And two books is plenty to move the necessary pieces for Bran’s crowning. Hell, did people expect that Dany would be Queen of Meereen as they started reading ASOS? Most didn’t. A lot can happen in two books. A lot can happen in a singular book. GRRM has enough time to set up a scenario on which Bran is the only one left to rule.

I personally think that the apocalypse will essentially destroy Westeros as we know it, leading to the creation of a new kingdom(s). D&D botched the GoT ending so people have a hard time seeing the thematic weight of a boy who represents summer rising to kingship, but the books lay enough groundwork imo. And I think ACOK shows us that Bran, despite his age, would make a wise ruler. So I’m all for King Bran. Not only is it thematically sound, but I love the idea of a disabled kid rising to power at the end since we don’t see that in a lot of fantasy.

#asoiaf #ask game #jon snow #bran stark #kevan lannister