#duel parallels

[anthurak]

So ever since the first season of Hazbin wrapped, there’s been more and more people (myself included) discussing and analyzing the parallels that Charlie and Vaggie seem to have towards Lucifer and Lilith. However, I’ve also started seeing a bit of debate as to how these two relationships parallel; namely whether Charlie is the parallel to her mother OR her father in this relationship, and whether Vaggie likewise parallels Lucifer OR Lilith.

And what I think is so INTERESTING about this is that the more I’ve looked back over what we’ve seen of both Chaggie and Lilith/Lucifer, the more I think we’re going to have to recognize that the parallels Chaggie has to Lucifer and Lilith actually cut in BOTH directions. That Charlie parallels BOTH Lilith and Lucifer in this relationship, and that Vaggie likewise parallels BOTH Lucifer and Lilith.

Because when you start looking back at Season 1 and all the analysis people have done, you really start finding a LOT of strong evidence for BOTH interpretations:

We have stuff like Charlie being an extremely powerful (half)human woman who inspires the people of Hell through her singing just like her mother, while also being an optimistic dreamer who longs to help humanity just like her father. Or stuff like Vaggie being a fallen angel and victim of Heaven’s cruelty just like Lucifer, while also being a woman hurt and cast out for not wanting to be controlled just like Lilith.

Really, it’s actually funny just looking at the scene of Charlie’s and Vaggie’s first meeting and seeing the number of people reading Charlie as Lucifer and Vaggie as Lilith, and the number of people reading Charlie as Lilith and Vaggie as Lucifer, being pretty much equal.

Charlie finds and gives comfort and shelter to Vaggie just as Lucifer did for Lilith, and Vaggie falls for Charlie just as Lucifer did for Lilith.

And we can find that kind of duel parallelism all over the place with Chaggie.

Charlie is the taller of the pair just like Lilith and Vaggie is the shorter one just like Lucifer, yet Charlie is the super energetic, optimistic dreamer which seems to parallel more what we’ve seen/heard about Lucifer while Vaggie is the more cool, quiet and sometimes more cynical one which likely has more in common with Lilith.

We’ve gotten hints that Lilith has been working on her own plan to help her people which led to traveling to Heaven to cut some kind of deal, just as we seen Charlie attempting. Yet when Charlie goes to Heaven she winds up speaking out against them and decrying what they’ve been doing, just as Lucifer has. And as I’ve discussed in other posts, Charlie’s dynamic with Emily has some potentially VERY interesting parallels to Lucifer and Eve: Charlie gives Emily knowledge that was long forbidden to her (the truth of the extermination) just as Lucifer gave Eve the apple of forbidden knowledge.

And in this regard, Vaggie’s not-so-well-hidden jealousy of how well Emily is getting along with Charlie could easily reflect how Lilith may have felt about Eve getting so close to Lucifer (something we KNOW happened thanks to the finale), yet the entire big reveal of that episode is that Vaggie is in fact a Fallen Angel just like Lucifer.

Then we have the two iterations of the song More Than Anything: The first version between Charlie and Lucifer is all about just how similar Charlie is to her father, with Lucifer not wanting his daughter to be hurt just like he was, yet also RELATING so much to Charlie’s goals.

But then we have the romantic reprisal of the song later between Charlie and Vaggie, which has Vaggie paralleling Lucifer, which in turn hints to Charlie more paralleling Lilith.

Now one way of interpreting this could be that Charlie is meant to exhibit the traits of both her parents, ultimately representing the best of both of them. Which in turn could naturally lead Vaggie, being Charlie’s romantic partner, to parallel both Lilith and Lucifer in her dynamic with Charlie. The Lucifer to Charlie’s Lilith AND the Lilith to Charlie’s Lucifer.

Just to give an example of this dynamic from a different show, just look at Blake and Yang in RWBY in relation to Blake’s allusions to Beauty and the Beast. Because Blake is an allusion to both ‘Beauty’ (Belle) and ‘the Beast’, this has led to Yang likewise showcasing nods to both in order to compliment wherever Blake is in her development; in the early volumes of the show when Blake is very withdrawn, brooding and standoffish like the Beast, Yang is very upbeat, positive and trying to get Blake out of her shell just like Beauty/Belle. And in later volumes when Blake has become much more upbeat and optimistic just like Beauty/Belle, Yang has likewise become more brooding and withdrawn much like the Beast.

HOWEVER, I think there may be more going on with Vaggie’s parallels to Lucifer and Lilith than just being an extension of Charlie’s own parallels. Namely that a number of her thematic parallels exist INDEPENDENT of her dynamic with Charlie. Like we have Vaggie’s being a Fallen Angel giving her a parallel to Lucifer even before she met Charlie. And if it turns out that Lute has one of those hyper-repressed, homophobic ‘hate-crushes’ on Vaggie and they were kinda-sorta a ‘thing’ back when Vaggie was in the exorcists, then that also basically makes Vaggie the Lilith to Lute’s Adam.

Not to mention we have the strong potential for things like Vaggie and Lucifer bonding over their shared experiences as fallen angels, as well as parallels drawn between Vaggie’s hiding her past from Charlie and Lilith’s own secrets.

All in all, while I think it’s still too early to call where exactly the story may be going with these character parallels, I do think we should be expecting and keeping in mind that Charlie and Vaggie seem to be paralleling BOTH Lucifer and Lilith in fairly equal measure.

#hazbin hotel #hazbin analysis #hazbin theory #charlie morningstar #vaggie #lucifer morningstar #hazbin lilith #lilith morningstar #chaggie #lucilith #character parallels #relationship parallels #duel parallels

[transmascutena]

Episode 25 // Adolescense of Utena

#i never realized just how much the movie parallels the second saionji duel from the show but now i'll never stop thinking about it #aou is just anthy speed running her character development #revolutionary girl utena #parallels #utena and anthy #m #adolescence of utena

[heartslobbf]

hater alert! far too many people say that juri’s character arc ‘isn’t about her being sad about being gay, it’s about being sad about unrequited love that happens to be gay’ and. well. that is not true and by saying that you are completely flattening the brilliance of juri’s character arc which literally culminates in her being able to accept her own lesbianism despite her unrequited love, despite all her shame and self-loathing, despite this pursuit by Some Fucking Guy to try and ‘save’ her from these feelings. like if you think juri’s entire character is just ‘sad about shiori’ how do you appreciate even a modicum of the emotion packed into that final juri duel. it is both about shiori and, even broader, her lesbian identity and what that means to her intrinsically as a person, removed from romantic relationships and just purely as like. you know. Who She Is. the idea that even when juri’s locket is cut from her neck she is still a lesbian that’s still who she is and she cant change that and, crucially, she doesn’t want to even as she is agonised by these feelings. that’s why she forfeits the duel!!!! she’s clocking out she’s quitting she’s saying no!!!!!! this is me and ive got to be ok with that this is me and i can accept that this girl might not love me and i can keep living despite that. like. god im so normal arisugawa juri im so sorry that no one understands you and your intrinsically unapologetically lesbian storyline like i do

#ok got that out of my system now (rewatched ep 29 duel too many times) #revolutionary girl utena #rgu #idk i just see that argument so much and it makes me so sad #bc i get where ppl r coming from there r a lot of unnuanced ‘sad bc gay’ narratives out there #but juri’s whole arc is about actively challenging and deconstructing that idea #and it deals with the sadness that comes with being closeted with knowing youre gay and not really liking that about yourself #and eventually she does accept and embrace that aspect of herself but CRUCIALLY she doesnt do it via romantic validation #in fact she does it in the face of like. All Opposition Ever #no one says hey juri if you were gay that’d be totally fine actually haha #ruka tries to save her from her lesbianism!!!!!!!! like!!!!!!! #it is juri and juri alone who makes this resolution and that is just So Fucking Important to me #shes so. she is the queer character of all time to me i literally dont care no one else will ever come close #LIKE!!!!!!! THE CASTLE WEEPING ON HER WHEN SHE MAKES HER CHOICE!!!!!!! #accepting that part of yourself and having the symbol of matrimony and heteronormativity WEEP over you #no one ever validates juri’s choice to accept her queerness but she keeps making that choice #and her in episode 37…….. god i just might keel over and die girls when juri utena touga parallels…… #anywayyyyyyy love and light i love juriposting #shut up daisy

[tatooineknights]

#Anakin Skywalker #Luke Skywalker #star wars #swedit #starwarsblr #kenobi #obi wan kenobi #kenobi spoilers #obi wan kenobi spoilers #movies #film edit #mine #esb #empire strikes back #duel #nice parallels here #but also the fanboy in me has always wanted an aotc anakin and esb luke duel for the funsies

[sixofclovers]

half-a-witch's duel animatic

#the owl house #toh #hunter #willow #huntlow #kind of #u can take it or leave it I just rly like their parallels :) #animatic #animation #golden guard #phewwww its done #soc art #I say duel its more for fun and training lol #listen.............they both just get it........and respect the others abilities #Ill admit poses could be more dramatic and timing is a bit shitty at times but I like the end result! learned a lot

[saionjeans]

hot take but “vermin” is a pretty fascinating episode. especially after seeing the climactic buildup of the last episode with utena refusing to fight her best normie friend. “wakaba flourishing” is an incredible episode because wakaba is a character we’ve spent so much time with thus far and yet whose psyche we still don’t really understand. an episode that elucidates her anxieties, especially with regards to never being prioritized or being seen as “special,” is immediately followed up by “okay.... now who tf is this random bitch lmfao😭” which actually serves to drive home wakaba’s point even harder!

this girl isn’t just some random brunette nothing, she doesn’t even have a valid claim to touga’s heart. we’ve seen kozue, tsuwabuki, shiori, and wakaba establish significant ties to their black rose counterparts in the first arc, but keiko has never actually articulated any thoughts of her own until now, merely parroted nanami’s sentiments. of course, keiko feels similarly about touga as nanami does, but on a far less profound scale. keiko's obsession with touga is tangential; he embodies a role that she desires proximity to. nanami’s obsession with touga is ontological: he has made himself her entire world.

but of course, the people who have the most claim to touga within a black rose [psychological] framework, nanami and saionji, cannot actually fight in a black rose duel. they do fight their rose bride duels with and through touga, but it is imperative that only non-student council members fight with the black rose. so instead of nanami or saionji in that elevator, with good reason, it’s keiko. someone who has never been abused by touga, who has barely even exchanged a few words with him.

and touga is, for his part, largely absent from this episode. keiko’s primary relationship in the episode is between her and nanami. nanami is the true focus of this episode, her constant fear that she will not be “vermin” externalized through the bullying of/lashing out at those she deems unspecial. and in this way, nanami mirrors wakaba, as she clings to touga as wakaba clings to saionji, their prince, their shining special thing whose proximity elevates them beyond the “vermin” of ohtori.

touga may be special within the walls of ohtori, but nanami is special to the narrative. who else gets entire episodes dedicated to their mishaps and struggles completely extraneous to the ongoing dueling plot? she may be the narrative’s punching bag, but she is nonetheless focalized by it in a totally unique way. so in an episode that ostensibly focalizes touga, it feels apt that nanami once again entirely eclipses him.

keiko and the rest of the student body constantly establish that nanami is only special via her proximity to touga, and nanami believes it. but all along, that was never actually the case. nanami doesn’t need touga to be compelling. in fact, touga is primarily compelling through his role as nanami’s brother/abuser. nanami is fed a lie her entire life: that she could only be worthy as long as her older brother shone his light on her. that without the attention of that special, shining boy, she was nothing, nonhuman, vermin. but when she finally pieces together the implications of that lie and the violence of its consequences, she resists. she wants to to surpass her brother, who she once was, everything.

the real truth is simply that she’s been worthy all along. and anthy steps across the threshold, beyond the gates of ohtori.

#damn nanami how come you get two black rose duels? #even the non-nanami episodes are stealth nanami episodes bc nanami is everything!!!!!!!!! #but of course you also gotta tie it back to anthy or you’re missing the point. so #also sorry for saying ‘random brunette nothing’ I love brunettes brunettes are my friends my family myself even #I am just responding to the framework the show establishes #also. the wakaba/nanami parallels. I think they can be in lesbians together who’s with me #nanami #touga #keiko #wakaba #anthy #saionji #analysis #manalysis #u #also I just love the use of the word vermin #truly so kafkaesque

[asalesbian]

blooming rose of deepest black -> duelists

"That stance, it's the same stance Miki uses." "That stance, it's just like Juri's back then." "Her attacks, they're..."

#rgu #rguedit #black rose arc #utena musical #blooming rose of deepest black #my gifs #mine #parallels #weapons cw #you’ll never guess which of these duels i couldn't find in an hd promo video kdjhf wakaba forgive me...... #anywayyy sooo charmed by the musicals <3 the staging? 10/10 a+ love a fun little mirror/callback fight #some other highlights: akio & mikage pushing people around to direct them. student council looming over wakaba during her breakdown. #everything anthy and mamiya had going on. shiori and juri fighting each other as much as they're fighting utena. #wakaba joining nanami's cowbell song and the implicit comparison that invites you to draw between nanami>cowbell and wakaba>saionji

[bigkickguy]

engineer hangout doodle! I just think they would hang out for hours and build and repair stuff they love They seem like they could be pretty chill friends without external stress stuff and dueling rivalries

#kickdraw #shineshipping #yugioh #kaito tenjo #yusei fudo #yugioh zexal #yugioh 5ds #im like 95% sure the 5ds team garage is not fucked up interal exposed brick wall - but its been a while since my last rewatch #they would be the most chill parallel play squad - until dueling comes up at least #sorry had to fix something had to repost haha

[yoshifawful64]

CINEMATIC PARALLELS

#(the parallel is that they’d each had an argument with their BF/gay crush but then had a heart-to-heart through a duel— #—and came to an understanding there so now they’re perfectly happy and content with losing that duel) #sharkbaitshipping #thunderstruckshipping #yugioh #shark #getta taira #ryoga kamishiro #reginald kastle #zexal #sevens #started rewatching sevens and i just finished this episode again. god i’m obsessed with it

[nettleshuttle]

this started out as a joke, but bro i don’t think it’s a joke anymore,,

(not a bad person you say-)

#yugioh #ygo dm #duel monsters #ryo bakura #yami bakura #danganronpa #very not sorry for the cursed parallel<3

[ballisterboldheart]

#cobra kai #cobrakaiedit #chozen toguchi #johnny lawrence #john kreese #terry silver #s.gif #ck spoilers #PLEASE tell me you guys get the parallels i'm trying to make here. it's driving me insane. #also. side note i know the johnny kreese fight has the track duel of the snakes #and i'm PRETTY sure there'll be a similar title for the chozen v silver fight but the tracks arent out yet :( #i wanted to make that the caption #but god. yeah. these fights. insane. #the fact that both chozen n johnny lose bc their opponent is underhanded? insane luv.

[ichayalovesyou]

Spock Amok Time: Cinematic Parallels between Spock's Nightmare and His Kalifee with James Kirk

If Spock Amok tells us anything, by it’s cinematography and emotional reactions, and fight choreography, it’s this:

Kirk is the epitome of Spock's humanity, the other half of Spock's soul. Even before they had ever even really met. He almost killed it, but never could, and never wanted to to begin with.

#and you thought they did a fantastic job with Quality of Mercy/Balance of Terror?! JUST LOOK AT THIS! #phenomenal immaculate showstopping amazing fantastic glorious #the shot for shot stuff gets a little shaky for the actual fight since there's no an-woon duel in the Spock Amok nightmare s #i had to reuse and reframe a little bit in order to have enough comparable footage #star trek #trek video #cinematic parallels #star trek tos #tos 2x01 #amok time #star trek strange new worlds #spock amok #snw 1x05 #spock #s'chn t'gai spock #ethan peck #leonard nimoy #t'pring #arlene martel #gia sidhu #jim kirk #james t kirk #captain kirk #william shatner #lar trek

[loadinghellsing]

the way they look at eachother during the final duel...

#i contribute #scene #hellsing #hellsing ultimate #alucard #alexander anderson #andercard #--- #im not crying youre crying #the way they look at eachother #through out the entire duel #there is so much emotion conveyed #and it hurts so much #so many parallels #so much symbolism #it hurts

[foxcort]

acotar & asoiaf au collection || The Archerons as House Tyrell.

"Growing Strong." // Hermas Tyrell of Highgarden, Lord of Highgarden, Lord Paramount of the Reach, High Marshall of the Reach and Warden of the South.

ft. Nesta Tyrell of Highgarden, first daughter and Heir of House Tyrell.

ft. Elain Tyrell of Highgarden, second daughter of House Tyrell.

ft. Feyre Tyrell of Highgarden, third daughter of House Tyrell, the Knight of the Flowers (secretly).

#feyre archeron #nesta archeron #elain archeron #papa archeron #house tyrell #acotaredit #acotarasoiafedit #pls think of the archeron sisters in varying maergery tyrell gowns and hairstyles #olenna's quick wit? that's nesta #and their words 'Growing Strong' kind of parallel the archerons growing strong throughout the series #also pls consider: feyre as the mysterious Knight of the Flowers who never takes off their helm and regularly puts men on their asses in a #duel or a joust lol idk idk it works somehow!

[jmeldog]

“The LORD said, “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground.” Genesis 4:10

#duel masters #duema #duel masters 2019 #this mel's art #owie the edge #I love my sons “Cain and Abel parallels” #where’s the other half of the parallel…? oh he’s… y’know……. he’s doing fine probably. #they really put Cap Lastname through so many horrors and little man just kept pretending everything was okay #I still feel a little insane that like? no one knows his brother is dead? he didn’t tell them? like ??? ever?????? #like yannow your twin brother who is the only family you have besides a computer mother who made you for the sake of saving their world #your twin brother who you were born to be at odds with over what was the correct way to save your world #your twin brother who died to protect you from aforementioned computer mother trying to kill you #your twin brother who you obviously miss and never wanted to fight in the first place #you don’t need to tell anyone or cry on anyone’s shoulder about that I guess #I think the reason he got stupider and lost his depth in King anime was because of that sevenfold curse thing from God in the Bible tbh

[supremeprince-bensolo]

Obi-Wan Kenobi: Part VI | The Last Jedi

#anakin skywalker #darth vader #obi-wan kenobi #obi-wan series #kenobi series #kenobi spoilers #ben solo #kylo ren #luke skywalker #the last jedi #tlj #star wars #starwarsedit #starwarsdaily #swedit #starwarsblr #parallels #master and padawan dueling #sorry not sorry for all the anakin/ben gifsets #there are so many parallels! #I love it #myedit