#even if you are ultimately presenting a complex picture of him

[lttleghost]

literally the people in the BrBa fandom who like think its super important to focus somewhat on the bad things Jesse's done instead of just acknowledging those things tend to have misunderstandings on either how selling drugs increase harm (which while there's other complexities to parts of the drug trade, simply making and providing drugs alone does not increase the harm those drugs cause) or they have misremembered some of his actual actions as being more in his control than they actually were, and with some people it really feels like it comes from the stigma against addicts even if they think they're not falling into that

and like again this lack of understanding around everything relating to drugs and addiction especially, even from people that mean well, is the whole reason it's more important to focus on the good in Jesse and how he's the victim rather than acting like there's no one acknowledges his flaws and the bad things he's done, cause a huge fucking swath of people outside our little tumblr circles do and act like every single bad thing in his life as entirely his responsibility without aknowledging any way that the world worked against him or the abuse he faced and see him as less of a person because he's an addict

and like I do think if Jesse wasn't the type of person that sees his own flaws and ultimately tries to do his best to change and learn even in the terrible situation he's in that doesn't want that change to happen, and instead needed people to like... constantly tell him to be better, then yeah it'd definitely be much more important to focus on those flaws and the bad things he did... but that's not the case, even the one thing he plans to do that was awful AND fully his choice (trying to sell drugs to the rehab group) was something he snapped himself out of when he was able to concretely see a consequence he hadn't considered before, this doesn't negate that trying to sell drugs to the rehab group was wrong, but it does add complexity to how we judge that action playing into Jesse as a whole

like you can't just sit there and act like ur so smart for aknowledging a character written like a real person is complex without thinking about the greater social commentary you're getting across when you insist we can't simply aknowledge the bad things a character does and have to still really judge them on those things or say calling them a "good person" erases the bad they've done and not consider if what you're saying is like... useful on a wider scale in combating the stigmatization of characters like Jesse (especially surrounding drug selling/making/using drugs) or if you're just refering to "woobification" bullshit that isn't particularly prevalent in the wider world

#okay I'm not that great with words but i hope this is understandable #jesse pinkman #jesse brba #jesse breaking bad #jesse pinkman brba #breaking bad #el camino #brba #like okay i may not have given this one person time ebough to respond to the last few things I've said but #im so blown away by like me trying to be like hey with Jesse as a character for wider commentary its not a good stance #to focus on his flaws #even if you are ultimately presenting a complex picture of him #because of the stigmatization and demonization of addicts #and when i asked for examples of Jesse CHOOSING to do things wrong outside of se3 #a) i got the selling drugs to the rehab group which like YEAH DUH THATS HIS 'im the bad guy' bullshit im alrady aware of that and agree #but i also was presented with 'while the war on drugs is bad meth is also bad and he chose to make and sell meth' #which.... demonstrates a misunderstanding on how that works #AMD THEN..... THEN I GOT 'Jesse talked about and used drugs around Jane and was responsible for her relapse' #and... EXCUSE ME? did we watch the same show? maybe Jesse was naive to think he could keep Jane away from all that stuff but #HE TRIED HE TRIED TO PROTECT HER #like in that case it just feels like... ur blaming him for being an addict wether or not he tries to keep it away #from someone else at risk #which like goes into its stupid to simplify people into obly good and bad actions #and I'm just #fucking furious #meat.txt #this is my girlfriend don't touch him

[maleficentra]

The relationship between Ascended Astarion and Tav unfolds as a complex tapestry of emotions and dynamics. The term "obsession," often viewed as toxic, is given a nuanced perspective. The focus is on the idea that toxicity arises in relationships when one of the partners suffers. However, it is also pointed out that under certain circumstances and with mutual consent, such a dynamic relationship may not necessarily be harmful.

Particularly emphasized is that even Ascended Astarion, despite his elevated form, displays uncertainties and vulnerabilities. The newly acquired powers do not grant him the expected control, and he seems to lack clear plans for the future. Instead, Tav is depicted as his central goal and deepest desire. The uncertainty about whether Tav would stay with him without these powers sheds light on Astarion's deeply rooted fears and needs.

The emphasis lies in the understanding that the toxicity of a relationship depends not only on external factors but primarily on whether one of the partners is suffering. As long as Tav is comfortable with her role and Astarion's presence, the relationship could be considered happy and fulfilling. It is stressed that, despite potential power struggles, Astarion would not risk forcing Tav, as it poses the risk of losing her.

Overall, the concept conveyed is that Astarion's actions heavily depend on Tav's satisfaction with the situation. Even in the face of potential rebellion from Tav, how Astarion treats her is influenced by her consent and well-being. If she agrees with her role, it is emphasized that he would pamper and support her in their joint rule. The epilogue is presented as an indication of the absence of signs of abuse.

Some might suspect that Ascended Astarion's declaration of "I love you" serves only to manipulate Tav and lacks genuine love. However, frankly, one does not exclude the other; it depends on the chosen options. At the end of the day, he does express love—albeit less romantically than in the graveyard scene. Behind this love confession lies absolute desperation. He yearns for Tav to stay, not to leave, and he is willing to do or say anything to convince her to choose him. His aim is not to control her but to share everything with her.

There is even an option where confessing his love is almost painful for him due to fear, but he admits it: Tav is the person he wants—more than anything else. If he must declare his love multiple times or share intimate moments with her, it is inconsequential to him. In his own way, he tries, as he confesses: "I really tried with you, you know. In the only way I can." Thus, he even questions the love declaration himself: "Is this what you wanted to hear, or?" He is sincere but also uncertain about how to win Tav over. Every expression aims to make her happy and keep her, even if it means putting himself in a vulnerable position. Ultimately, he just wants to say, "Don't leave me because I love you." This portrayal of the relationship between the characters paints a multifaceted picture of emotions, uncertainties, and paternal approval.

#astarion romance #baldurs gate 3 #bg3 #tav x astarion #astarion x reader #astarion #dark urge #bg3 tav #ascended astarion

[brf-rumortrackinganon]

Is there a subject you have no interest in researching? All those talks about K's photoshopped picture bore me to death because I never see the editing anyway, so I couldnt care less about dissecting a picture. Also the whole surrogacy conspiracies about MM. Years after, it still hasn't amounted to anything, so when someone people brings it up, I'm like can we move on please? I would say I'm not interested in endless conversations about things that cant be backed up by receipts ultimately

I myself had to step away from other blogs, even here on Tumblr, websites, and forums because they keep rehashing the same things over and over, especially when it's a hate-fest gripe session about the Sussexes.

Contrary to what I may present here, I don't actually hate them. I think Meghan is a very complex person and the contradictions she presents in public are interesting to dig into. I think Harry is a fascinating case study of nurture vs nature, especially when you juxtapose him against William, Charles, Diana, and the larger BRF. That's where my interest in all this, so when the discussion gets reductive or becomes an echo chamber, I check out of it.

A quick PSA interlude here: What also makes me check out faster than boredom is all the names people call Meghan and Harry. I get it, it's fun for some people, but it's not my thing, I don't keep up with it, and sending asks with those nicknames or fake names or insults-disguised-as-jokes, it's a surefire way to not get your ask posted.

I do like to try and give everyone the chance to chime in but there are just some topics that bore me and when that happens, I stop posting those asks and save them for later.

As for what I will and won't research, I honestly can't tell you. It really depends on the day, my interest, and my mood. If something captivates my attention, down the rabbit hole I go. If it doesn't catch my attention or I lose interest, it gets mothballed for later. Like the timeline series - it's on hiatus at the moment because I've lost interest. I've done October 2017, it's ready to go into November 2017/engagement bonanza, but I'm discovering a lot of broken links in my archive - suggesting that those were all stories scrubbed when Meghan/Sunshine Sachs was cleaning things up for her new royal duchess image, and that's made me lose interest.

I'm with you on the surrogacy rumors. (The kids exist. It doesn't matter how they came to exist. The BRF acknowledges their existence. Let's move on.) I agree about the photo-editing mess (it's Kate's own picture that she edited and they're not the currently-reigning monarch so why should we care) and I'm probably not going to post on it anymore.

#ask #brf

[operationbeifong]

Hey there, Beifong family enthusiast!

Who's your favorite Beifong? And who do you ship them with?

First of all, I already love you to the 'yue' and back for this ♡ Ty, I'm virtually holding your hand rn!

"Who's your favorite Beifong?" Now that.. requires a huge @$$ long answer, babe! Grab a coffee and seat down. ☕️ — I have three different answers to this, organized by category, because I can't simply just choose one Beifong, so.. ◇ My favorite based on "emotional attachment" is definitely Suyin (kinda of an unpopular choice). I simply can't help but love every aspect of her, she's so beautiful, bright and collected - I love how against all odds she overcame her traumas the healthiest way she could, rebuilt her whole life, never gave up on reconnecting with the people she loved and missed after all, etc. I have an immense amount of respect for her - she's the personification of growth, maturity and forgiveness. And I love that for her for many reasons! Her adult self reminds me a bit of Sokka in a way, that probably helped to establish my "emotional attachment" towards her as well! ◇ My favorite based on "complexity and strength" would be obviously Lin. Lin is the character I validate and understand the most too, I enjoy analyzing her whole story and personality. I'm a Psychology student, so it makes sense to me that I loved her instantly and so much (apart from being a Toph seed), she was presented to us as the typical tough character ofc but I was amazed how many layers she turned out to have, how profound and complicated her traumas, choices and path turned out to be. I love and respect Lin for reasons that are completely different from Su (they are completely opposites). Lin's psychological strength (physical too, ofc), courage and endlessly emphaty always get me. I would fight anyone just to protect her! ◇ And of course, my number one girl.. Ultimate Favorite in the entire franchise.. the ORIGINAL Beifong; TOPH!! I don't even think I need to explain myself on this one, do I?? Everything I listed about her daughters comes from Toph Beifong and even her imperfections are kinda perfect to me, she is one of the most brilliant characters in the franchise hand down. In fact I believe their daughters inherited a lot of Toph's values, beliefs and characteristics. They are her legacy in a way, probably part of the reason I love them so much too. But anyways.

That's my favorite Beifong; TophLinSu!♡

"And who do you ship them with?" That's piece of cake! For Su; Suyin/Baatar Sr. ◇ For Lin; Linzin & Kyalin, maybe Linzumi too — I do think Lin & Tenzin are soulmates who could never be though (This is actually a can of worms, 'cause I have A LOT to say regarding this entire ship!). ◇ And for Toph; Tokka yesterday, Tokka today and Tokka for always!♡ I can't actually picture Toph with anyone else, for some reason. I tried (with her other love interests and all).. But It's just not it for me. Kanto we've never even seen & Satoru was more of a simp - nothing against it but it kills the mood for me that he's a fanboy who'd spend their whole relationship praising her & kissing the ground she steps on, not into that for Toph (or any human being) in a relationship. — While with Sokka (even tho it was just a childhood crush & he was a bit older) I think they were a perfect match for a future relationship; They were opposites in the right amount, but also pretty similar (in terms of sense of humor and some values). I love how they completed each other in their dynamic, how Sokka was so kind, supportive and understanding - they had a real profound bond and he was always offering to help her out (if needed) or trying to protect her, even tho she hated to be treated like that; he was her exception. And Toph genuinely respected him (jokes apart) & would consider his opinions, even embracing his stupid ideas. It was simple and sweet. Not to mention the fact that Sokka would never pick fights with her (not that I remember), whenever Katara would ask him to intervene in their fights he'd be like "Nah, leave me out of this" and I do think that that's what intrigued Toph, he would listen to her & validate her feelings since Day 1. Then we cut to TLOK; at Yakone's trial when Sokka is giving that sentenced speech and start praising Toph for developing the Metalbending skill by herself; his facial expression immediately changes to something more affectionate (genuinely smiling at her), then Old Toph telling Korra about when she taught Aang earthbending and feeling the need to mention what happened to Sokka that day (should've been insignificant, but she kept that memory from that day) and then Suyin & Lin's small details or characteristics that were related to Sokka in ATLA (Like their usage of adapted metal swords to fight, Su's collection of meteorites, how Sokka was always praising Toph for inventing the Metalbending and later Su building a whole city out of it where Toph's achievement would be praised and immortalized for once and all, not to mention Su & some members of the family looking like Sokka, I'm pretty sure that was purposely done by the creators in a way to keep Sokka's design, idk & it makes me the happiest that it was done in the Beifong family). It's impossible not to acknowledge the impact Sokka had on Toph, they truly loved each other and loved being around each other. Romantically or not, canon or not - it's impossible for me not to ship them.♡

#STOP I WROTE AN ESSAY #i knew it would happen tho #suyin beifong #toph beifong #beifong family #lin beifong #tokka #q&a time #ask reply

[supremechancellorrex]

I've been hearing a lot of people say that Ozai in the Avatar: the Last Airbender cartoon isn't supposed to be "developed" because he's a "symbol". My problem with this is that a character can both be well-developed and a symbol at the same time, so why choose otherwise? "It makes sense because he's supposed to represent" doesn't justify leaving the writing a little loose.

In the cartoon, Ozai is hardly a character to sink your teeth into. You can surmise and speculate things about him, but ultimately every discussion was more about Zuko or another character overcoming him and how satisfying that was than any character depth of Ozai himself. On the Day of Black Sun, Zuko and Ozai's confrontation is less an argument and ideological battle with layers between two human beings and more an extremely developed character yelling at an evil cardboard cutout.

The Problem With Ozai

Zuko: "It was cruel and it was wrong."

Ozai: "Lol."

Zuko: "We need to replace this era with an era of peace and kindness."

Ozai: "Lame." (*scowls in annoyance, tries to leave*)

Zuko: "Stay or I'll cut you." (*waves swords*)

Ozai: "Fine. Whatever. Go on" (*proceeds to sit back down and wonder if he's having spiced fire rice cakes for dinner*)

The way the cartoon presents it, Ozai just was a bit too a moustache-twirling villain and that's even considering his actions. It's not even him being morally bankrupt or sadistic, but that his entire character only exists on the surface level. Him being "superficial" and "ruthless" isn't even a character trait because he has no real character beyond "I'm arrogant, selfish and evil". Even some of the worst dictators in human history from Hitler and Stalin to Mussolini and Mao have more complex 'psychological depth' than Ozai, despite committing the most evil and awful acts against other human beings.

I got they want to reflect the toxicity of the Fire Nation with him as a symbol, "fear" and "ruthlessness", but these are symptoms and the result of an ideology, and Ozai and this ideology need a bit more than "The Fire Nation's ideology is that they're superior, share the greatness and just kill people". We never see Ozai really talk about this ideology, how he is *civilising* the other nations (well, besides, setting them on fire). Why does he think Fire is superior? Why does the Fire Nation? We can speculate it's the unity of the Fire Nation and its industrialisation, that maybe the Fire Nation thinks they have better tea ceremonies and cleaner cities, but none of the Fire Nation characters really talk about this. Sharing their 'greatness', how?

And, of course, we know and the show know their 'greatness' is a lie and farce really, but for their citizens to buy into this farce realistically for 100 years, sending sons and even daughters to die for it, presumably working in factories endless hours to keep up war production like that giant drill, one would think the smokescreen would be a little more convincing than a couple lines. Yes, in the Headband, they show the kids are taught a warped version history with the Air Nomad army, but what is the unifying ideology of the Fire Nation exactly? And how does this reflect Ozai? Beyond ruthlessness and being a smarmy jerk?

And this brings me to a scene I have quite a problem with. The War Meeting flashback in Sozin's Comet Part 1, essentially Ozai just goes from 'How do we quell rebellion?' to 'We will destroy their hope by killing them all with fire'. Hehe, well, I mean, why even talk about "destroying hope" when they'll be too dead to despair? Of course, Sokka says after hearing that literally "I always knew the Fire Lord was a bad guy, but his plan is just pure evil". Then they throw in an Ozai baby picture to pretend they have some nuance, and then blah, blah, Energybending turtle appears out of near nowhere.

A Better Ozai

(I want it noted how hard it was to get a decent gif of cartoon Ozai, especially in his Pheonix King regalia. That is how little people care about or are interested in him. There is more Daniel Dae Kim gifs from the live-action than the cartoon version)

The funny thing is Ozai burning the Earth Kingdom could have worked if they actually gave him character arc in the cartoon. Have Ozai start out believing he can civilise the Earth Kingdom, who he views as inferior and needing to be kept in check. We see in the show Earthbending is banned in Fire Nation colonies and annexed territory, but they should also show him introducing policies to ban certain styles of Earth Kingdom dress, specifically their green national colour dress, and customs, forcibly *civilising* these territory with authoritarian laws. Earth Kingdom children have to go to Fire Nation school to be indoctrinated in how their cultures and homes are inferior, and told to report on their parents.

However, as time goes on, Ozai becomes increasingly disenfranchised with the war, as colonised Earth Kingdom citizens continue to resist, Earthbend and continue banned cultural practices in secret. He feels rising disgust at these people's Earthbender stubbornness and 'backwards' practices, resisting engaging in and conforming to Fire Nation's 'superior' cultural practices, science, and education. How dirty they are, so unFire-Nation, he thinks more and more. He begins to unravel in his hate and think to himself things like how "You just can't take the root edge out of people, so I should burn the root to the ground. Make the world clean, pure and Fire Nation".

If they showed Ozai in the cartoon shifting from the standard position of his father Azulon to an even more extreme and horrifying position over time, reacting in all the worst ways to whatever the world throws at him increasingly and increasingly, his turn as the Pheonix King could have been far more chilling. Azula isn't the only one who has to go "crazy" due to the Fire Nation's twisted teachings. It would have further emphasised the cycle of toxicity in the Fire Nation that Sozin set in motion.

Imperialism and fascism is often driven by a number of things in conjunction, commonly economics, but also vain pride, fear and discomfort; pride of your own nation at the expense of others, as well as fear and discomfort of others, how 'different' they are, their 'weird illogical customs' diluting the 'pure culture of yours' that you understand, their 'strange appearances' changing the face of the culture you know, that you like and think is the greatest and should be eternal. They could be spies, enemy agents of chaos and degeneration. They need to be 'civilised' or 'exterminated' to silence conflict and bring order, this 'dark horde' of backwards people who just can't ever be allowed to be 'in charge'. I think a weakness here is that Ozai is never shown to show any discomfort, he's just so confident and evil about everything, but if he were to reflect the dark face of the Fire Nation, a people they say aren't wholly evil demons, he does a bad job showing the twisted human face of evil and it makes him irrelevant in a way as a character with the themes other than "Defeat evil guy".

Lessons Taught Improperly

Now some would try to defend Ozai in that Avatar: The Last Airbender is a kid's cartoon, but I would say that makes it more important when discussing real-life issues. What is the point of lesson if it is taught improperly? Sometimes that can do more harm than good.

Avatar includes a number of mature themes, including the genocide of Aang's entire people and Gyatso's skeleton. Judging by the Tibetan influences in Air Nomad culture, a real-life people who have also been genocided, I think it is necessary and good practice for even kid's shows to make sure the lessons on real-life evils like the concepts and systems of imperialism, colonialism and nationalism are taught well. Because otherwise you get an inaccurate picture of what it is and how it actually works, and what is the point of that?

Stories want to impart lessons on things being "bad" as a message, but often I think they fall short in getting to the point of why they happen. I wonder if that makes them a little pointless in a way, because the reasons why characters/people and nations do things is both important to good writing and real life. If you aren't taught it properly, how well can you recognise it in your own country? And if you can't, then hasn't the lesson failed to be imparted?

#avatar legend of aang #avatar the last airbender #atla ozai #fire lord ozai #fire nation #imperialism #colonialism #air nomads #atla aang #atla gyatso #air nomad genocide #prince zuko #fire nation royal family

[emyluwinter]

I just realized something. So you know how in sleeping beauty the 3 good fairies gave aurora 3 gifts. Flora gave beauty, Fauna gave song and Merriweather gave sleep. Malleus seems tied to the 3 gifts by fixing the stadium in chapter 5 (SONG) and he restored Vil's youth in chapter 6 (BEAUTY) and so I have the sinking suspicion that in chapter 7 he's going to give someone the "gift" of sleep. Thoughts?

Hello, honey!(ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧

Ha ha.Welcome to the Big Brains Club!

OOOOOOOH. My dear, I HAVE A LOT OF THOUGHTS! And all this is just my guess.

To be precise, Merriweather was supposed to give "happiness", but due to Maleficent's intervention, she had to change the "curse of the great witch".

Technically, she could not "remove" him, but only changed the conditions to avoid the formal death of the princess. What is very interesting, it turns out that someone's spell used for the curse can be changed by a third-party magician?Or magic contains a formula that, with proper strength and experience, can be changed.This is very intriguing! I hold on to the statement that magic is similar to complex formulas that magicians need to either visualize or clearly represent it when using magic. Remember the same sigils. (Yes, I have read Atelier of Witch Hat many times) If the formula is made incorrect, the spell will not work as originally planned.

WHICH IS POSSIBLE….will it give a chance that someone will be able to rewrite Malleus' spell if he uses his power to the fullest?But this probability is small. A curse, as well as a blessing, as far as I can understand correctly, require the observance of certain conditions. And if these conditions change, the ultimate goal is likely to be changed.

In the introductory lines of Malleus at the announcement of the game, there is the phrase "I'll show you a true happy ending"

Please forgive me if I may not be accurate in phrases, due to differences in languages. (Because translating from Japanese to English and then also into Russian will definitely play a role that can change the meaning of words.) Add to this that I use a translator.

There are a huge number of analyses, theories and guesses who will be cursed. Because looking at this huge sh*t…Forgive this huge spinning wheel that Malleus carries with him as a staff. (Boy, if it's made of wood, it's already heavy enough!If you add all these mettalic parts to it, then you won't even need magic to kill someone with this thing!)

We can safely say that this action will definitely be in the history of Chapter 7. Namely, a scene with a finger prick and the imposition of a very powerful curse. I don't know if anyone knows A. Chekhov's phrase "If there is a gun hanging on the wall in the first act of the play, it will definitely shoot in the last one"

This principle is also called "Chekhov's gun"

The principle of dramaturgy, according to which every element of the narrative should be necessary, and non-essential elements should be removed; there should be no elements in the story that deceive the expectations of the audience by never playing a role in further events

So what do we see? We are literally given information about the hostel of the Diasomnia bit by bit. Even the feeling creeps in at times as if we are hiding this information on purpose. As if they want to present something big. And definitely tragic and with the presentation of a serious topic. Because we are nearing the Final!This story.

Who will be cursed and how it will be served so far we can guess. But!There are certain "targets" for this development.

Silver will also have to play a very important role. Because as some players might have noticed, he and have Yuu /The prefect has parallels. It is possible that Silver has something similar to Yuu in terms of the fact that their power is associated with dreams. Yuu - sees what will happen next in dreams. Over time, their dream studies give a clearer picture of the future event. Someone is talking about the theory of the time loop, but I tend to think that Yuu has the gift of foresight like Merlin. Silver, for example, can walk in other people's dreams?We were never told what he "sees" in a dream. There is a theory that Mickey saw Silver in Yuu's absence. Which might be a good explanation. With sleep, there are also many parallels or meanings as lethargic or many others. If you think about Silver, there's even less information than I can remember right now….

Don't forget that Idia and Ortho will be involved in this chapter! Which intrigues even more! This pair is very strong magicians. And it is quite possible that Idia will be a local psychotherapist with a lecture on how to accept that everyone's time is not infinite and the life cycle ends sooner or later. And no matter how hard the loss is, no matter how you resist it, it's impossible to change even with such powerful magic. So that Malleus could "grow up" in this regard. That despite all the strength and power, even he has something beyond his control.

It is quite possible that something may happen to Yuu and Malleus will have to use this trick with a dream and a curse.

(Can I remember for a moment that Malleus was one of those characters who did not use magic on a student without magic and generally treated them quite kindly?Thank you.)

One more moment!

If you remember, the three fairies had certain color palettes. Which lead me to think about the composition that CAN be used in the plot.

Flora is Red. Fauna is Green. Merriweather - blue (light blue?)

And now remember the main characters. Their stones, or elements of clothing or the whole palette as a character. Red is our Duo Adeuce. Green - Diasmonia. And blue are the Shroud Brothers.

I'm sorry, I can talk about this endlessly. But these are just my guesses, so we are just waiting for the announcement of the chapter. I think it will happen in December.

Because as far as I understand, the Twst EN server is very keen to catch up with the Japanese. It would be very logical for one of the final chapters to be released on both servers. Or in the English version a little later to keep up with the main plot.

By the way, I said "one of the final ones" for a reason. Because as far as we all know well, there are not 7 dormitories

….there are 8 of them.

All dormitories have their own history, which means that the last chapter will not be Chapter 7. And the eighth…

By the way, if you flip the figure eight, you will get an infinity sign.

Oh, how much symbolism can be taken from this!

In addition, Maleus may well not be the "main villain" of the whole story. You see, it may be so…that someone is pulling the strings from afar. From a safe place, seeing the whole picture in your palms clearly and clearly. Waiting for the fruits of the seeds planted by him to ripen.

And yes….you understand correctly.

I'm talking about Director Crowley.

He is a Phantom Blot. We saw his initials on the merch being sold. And this is definitely not just an important detail.

Well, we can only wait for what awaits us next~

(AND TOBOSO HERSELF SAID THAT MALLEUS IS HER FAVORITE.)

Thank you more for the question and for giving me your time!

#twst #twst analysis #twst thoughts #twst theory #san talk #san answers

[antirepurp]

I know it's supposed to be dubious which ending of ShTH is canon (but I think we all know its the true good one, it's the only one where Shadow fully remembers everything and unless the Black Aliens return later then they are all dead), but alot have extremely good ideas and concepts for future storyline.

My favourite are 'ARK protecter' and 'Ultimate Hedgehog' endings. What would happen to the storyline if Shadow stayed on the ARK? How would that effect the story of 06? Or even Forces since Shadow wouldn't have been around to fight Infinite the first time around?

And Shadow getting all 7 Chaos Emeralds just to prove he's stronger than Sonic, what's the game plan? He doesn't say anything about planning to save the world or even planning to taking it over so was his plans just to beat up Sonic and prove he could?

afaik the canon ending of shth is the 11th one you have to unlock, the other 10 are more speculative "what if" cases that exist for character exploration purposes. i don't think the canonity of that is very dubious since only one of the total 11 ends has you fight a unique boss and lets you go super while at it, though i guess you could make arguments for the pure hero endings if you wanted to. the rest are imo much too final in where they leave shadow, with semi-hero/cosmic fall endings implying that he either remains on the ark alone or kills himself, pure dark/GUN fortress endings either pinning shadow as the universe's ultimate overlord or have him destroy the earth, and so on. some are more difficult to continue from than others, but in most of the cases the picture shadow has of himself is incomplete and thus not a productive point to leave off the game that is about shadow and him finding out who he is. in a way you can only get the complete version of shadow by playing reaching every one of these endings - which then culminates as you get access to the 11th ending where shadow can finally find peace. it's hard for me to say much on this yet because i still have 5 more endings to reach, but i wouldn't be surprised if any one of the 10 routes could serve as a basis for the true end (though i somewhat doubt it's presented as such, sounds like making an already ambitious and complicated game even more complex)

that said i agree that the different endings pose interesting possibilities for AUs and the like, and im kind of surprised that more people haven't jumped into the meat of this game and picked a path to continue from, especially with the cosmic fall endings that i know would absolutely feed into some folks' thirst for angst. even as thought experiments in isolation from the later games i find the concepts they present delightful to consider and elaborate on

#speaking of i may have began writing something out of the cosmic fall endings #which was going well until i had to start writing dialogue and ate a whole pizza and got sleepy

[roobylavender]

i don’t really agree with the idea that ra’s can be swapped out for talia in terms of damian’s upbringing and nothing would change about the story bc he’d be near exactly as abusive as morrison wrote talia to be like.. no.. that’s just misunderstanding ra’s as a character which frankly a lot of people do. ra’s is emotionally abusive but there are still specific patterns to that behavior. he wants the people at his side to genuinely believe in his vision and abide by it and act upon it, it’s far more complex than him being a physically abusive person who would brutally train a child with no remorse or regard for that child’s well being. current canon esp in the last year has led to this belief that talia grew up cold and pressured to take upon the role and be the perfect weapon but she didn’t. she and ra’s were implied to have a relatively fine relationship as she grew up and things only began to shift once bruce entered the picture and became an influence on talia and her loyalties

when the idea of losing talia to bruce began to veer into reality, ra’s became more possessive and insistent in what he wanted talia to do to ensure she would remain on his side. but even then when she ultimately left him for good to move to metropolis the retaliation that ra’s took out wasn’t on her, it was on bruce. he respected her attempts to break out and do something on her own terms, and that’s not to absolve him, i’m simply pointing out how he’s capable of respecting the people he cares about so long as they don’t go directly against him. so when you toy with the idea of ra’s killing damian’s adoptive parents (which is something i believe he would do. they’re an obstacle to his family after all) and thereby choosing to raise him on his own you have to remember that damian is ultimately a child who will possess little to no tangible worldview with respect to what ra’s is preaching (unless his parents are conveniently environmentalists and he’s a genius child which personally is a boring cop out)

so damian is this relatively unexposed kid whose parents suddenly die only for a man to present himself as his grandfather. ra’s pulls the strings to let it all show in the paperwork and damian goes home to one of his bases. and i think the first thing ra’s would do is teach damian about the world. about the way he views it but in the simplest terms understandable to a child. and he would pull damian into this world of scholarship and travel and athleticism not out of cruelty but out of love. bc there is genuine love that ra’s has for bruce and talia even if he eventually abused it. he was overjoyed when they were going to have damian. and he can still be overjoyed and engrossed in the idea of having a grandson to call his own and to teach his philosophy to even if ultimately what he would be doing is projecting his own desires onto damian. he can hope for damian to be the one person in his family who stands by him and understands him and follows him and it can be tragic bc we know his worldview is ultimately wrong and what he’s done isn’t right and damian needs to be rescued asap. but it would all be punctuated by love that would frankly be so much more interesting to explore bc the real crux of ra’s as a character is that he is incredibly proud and lonely and loving in all of the most heartbreaking and potentially unforgivable ways possible. he holds onto people too tightly without understanding why they might want to let go. and there’s no better person to explore the breaking point of that behavior through than a completely unaware damian who ends up on his doorstep and genuinely believes he’s going to live with a grandfather who loves him in all of the right ways. and love him ra’s does. just without telling damian all of the ugly truths it took to get him there

#ra’s al ghul #personal essays #i am genuinely. a gazillion times more interested in exploring ra’s as the emotionally manipulative person he is #than as some crazy guy obsessed with immortality and body swapping and beating a child into obedience #like he genuinely is character assassinated a lot and it’s not brought up nearly enough when the storylines with him could be so cool #bc again i keep emphasizing it but i DO think he would love and adore and poor everything of himself into damian #but it wouldn’t change the fact that it would all be backed up by a lie #it wouldn’t change the fact that he would be hiding damian from his own parents #it wouldn’t change the fact that rather than trying to make amends with bruce and talia he would look to a child to give him solace #it wouldn’t change the fact that when damian finally found out the truth he would be devastated #bc ra’s could be someone he genuinely grows to love. and all of it would be mired in lies #idk it’s just. way way juicer to me than your standard omg let’s train damian to be a super soldier 🤪 shtick #damian in general to me is boring sorry we’ve already established this he really is just my oc atp #i should clarify i mean this as a concept like who he was created to be. it’s boring it’s racist it doesn’t capitalize on the lore etc #but i mean i have no regrets about that bc my take on him is informed by what the al ghuls are actually like. not character assassination ☺️ #the al ghuls are genuinely so cool and people’s criticism of morrison should extend to the way their lore was bastardized as a whole #if we are being real. like everything he did with utterly bland utterly boring utterly unimaginative #and i want batman fans to FREE themselves. go back pick up a book from the 70s or 80s it’s just #so much more fun and anointed with depth. bride of the demon literally apex of ra’s characterization #along with that one batman chronicles issue eight story the prison #he’s soooo complex like do i think he /deserves/ forgiveness no but bruce and talia do ultimately pity him in some form #and if there was a way to make him powerless and keep him alive and change him they would pursue it #anyway i am getting away from the point here ig what i am trying to say is the al ghuls are packed with so much love and more writers #ought to explore it. instead of making up fucking. demon magic lore or whatever the fuck #like they’re already fucked up in so many ways idk i genuinely don’t believe you need to add to the pit lore to explore them as people #i just realized the stories i recced for ra’s characterization are from the 90s lmao. oh well. they still banged #talia al ghul #damian wayne #dc

[kylesvariouslistsandstuff]

EIGHT CRAZY NIGHTS is such a confounding movie.

I recently watched a batch of deleted scenes, of which I wasn't aware of until rather recently. I had once listened to its director, Seth Kearsley, talk about the picture on a podcast as well. Fascinating stuff all around about its production, and all the ins and outs, how they went about their decision-making, etc. Seemed like it was a fun movie for many of its crew to work on, and they seemed to be treated well too. RARE for an animated movie of this caliber, it seems.

It has gone down, almost notoriously, as being considered one of the "worst" animated movies ever...

Weirdly, when I was 11 years old, I was lowkey OBSESSED with this movie. I didn't even know it existed until it was out on DVD, and when I watched the whole thing through, I was hooked for some reason. Maybe it was because it was, at the time, a good-sized 2D animated feature that wasn't set in the past, a fantasy world, a sci-fi setting, or anything like that. EIGHT CRAZY NIGHTS wasn't IRON GIANT nor EL DORADO nor SPIRIT nor TITAN A.E. nor TREASURE PLANET... It wasn't like LILO & STITCH from the same year either, which is also a contemporary story, but that has aliens in it! And was family-friendly. This was set in the present, it was more for adults, it was just people being people with *some* cartoony elements (such as cute anthropomorphic deer and some of the exaggerated, if not demeaning character designs), it was even really semi-realistically gross in some parts (and not in the sort of, say, exaggerated REN & STIMPY way), it could've easily been a live-action Happy Madison production. But it wasn't. Many of the movie's detractors feel it should've just been done in live-action.

The movie is inspired by the Whitey character from one of Adam Sandler's comedy albums, and sometimes I feel the movie could've worked better with him as the main character and Davey a complex deuteragonist. Going through the deleted scenes, you could tell the crew went through a few ideas of just how far they wanted to push the exaggerated, cartoony stuff. What kind of jokes they thought could work or that they could get away with, etc. Certainly a cartoonish decapitation of a kid, and a monkey that explodes into a gory mess would've easily landed this thing an R rating, but they weren't going for that ultimately. You have this weird mix of a very dark and often mean movie, but it's also PG-13 and it doesn't go too far so it's more accessible to kids and still fits the bill of being a "warm holiday special" kind of movie. I do gotta give props to the filmmakers for wanting to make a big, mainstream Hanukkah movie in a sea of gazillions of Christmas movies, no matter the end result.

And yet... It worked on this fellow when they were 11 years old, so Sandler, Kearsley and his crew must've done something right! I can quote most of this, that's how obsessed I was with this movie circa December 2003-January 2004. With holiday money or something, I literally bought the VHS of it. We had it on DVD as well, but I bought a VHS for myself because back then, I did not have a DVD player in my room... So, a tape it was. It came with the live-action short A DAY WITH THE MEATBALL, starring Adam Sandler's bulldog at the time, much like the DVD.

So yeah, I find it a fascinating movie to this day, not because of its battlefield of tones (life itself is tonally uneven, too) or some of its truly strange sequences such as the one where the product placement all comes to life in the mall, but because of its history and also... The visuals are quite nice. IRON GIANT animation team involved (the boy Benjamin kinda reminded me of Hogarth anyways, of course I made the connection at a young age), and even the songs I find amusing. They got Alison Krauss to sing on at least one of them, so that's a plus. Some of the eleventh hour rushed stuff, such as the declining animation quality on the townspeople during the Bum Biddy bit, is fun to spot too. And I do overall like the premise of this movie; a relentlessly kind man who is overlooked by his community Odd Couple-ing with a total asshole who had a tragic childhood, in a sort of blah and miserable blue-collar town setting, some heavy stuff that this movie that - with more tact and less poopy jokes - could've really handled well.

I hate the term "guilty pleasure", but this could possibly be that for me. That's what I like about "bad" animated movies of the '90s and early '00s, there's usually something very interesting going on in it, whether it's through the seemingly-confused storytelling or the idiosyncratic choices in the visuals. I think with a slew of cheap live-action movies, those are indeed efforts at the end of the day, but with an animated movie... There's a lot more to it, and that it's a miracle one of these things even gets finished, let alone released. In live-action, it's just they shot a bit and did some post... With an animated film like this, a lot happens along the way, no matter the end product. It's easy to say "it's all negated by the script", but I think it's more complex than that... And that's part of what I find appealing about EIGHT CRAZY NIGHTS to this day.

#Youtube

[ot3]

I read someone’s theory that part of if not the entire reason why Kristoph killed Zak was because of his inferiority complex directed towards Klavier.

(Here’s the post so you can read it yourself: https://www.reddit.com/r/AceAttorney/comments/39i05a/apollo_justice_the_big_bads_motive_spoilers/)

What’s your opinion on that? I personally don’t know if I’m sold on this theory entirely but I really wanted to hear your thoughts on it as I find them and this unfinished plot point fascinating. I think there could be something there about the strained relationship between the brothers but from what I remember I don’t think it’s touched upon in the game itself?

i think it's an interesting theory but i think it's just that: a theory. until we have anything more to go on wrt the gavin brothers it's pure speculation. although it's obvious that kristoph cares a lot about his image/presentation, i don't think it's automatically tracks to translate that into an inferiority complex specifically regarding klavier as his motives. this person is assuming kristophs motives and then working backwards to interpret events through that lens and it's not a bad interpretation by any means but it doesn't fully make sense. especially because it's relying on the DD explanation for black psyche locks, which, as mentioned, i take with a grain of salt

some points of contention with this theory to me:

klavier seems to be to some degree under kristoph's thumb or subject to his will, as evidenced by the 'you're out of control' 'whose control? mine? or yours?' back and forth. this isnt mutually exclusive with kristoph having an inferiority complex regarding him but it does, to me, suggest that kristoph has enough influence over klavier at present time that he has means of gaining ground on klavier that don't center around the gramarye case.

following from that, nothing about killing zak gramarye does anything to raise kristoph's status or lower klavier's. if his clout and reputation were the ultimate concern here. we could say that he just sort of snapped and his temper got the better of him, yeah, but it still doesn't quite track for me

on a similar note, klavier has been out of the legal world for the past 7 years focusing on his band. he hasnt been doing any cases. his reputation is primarily as a musician, with his legal career coming secondary. if kristoph wanted the trial to be a blemish on klavier's career, that happened. it didnt elevate his own status but it got klavier out of the picture in court. meanwhile kristoph's reputation as a defense attorney continued to grow, and he maintained a position on the bar association. i can't imagine kristoph feeling super jealous of klavier's success as a musician and it seems that in terms of actual level acclaim kristoph is winning.

did kristoph try and win the gramarye trial specifically to fuck over klavier, or because he knew he could fuck over klavier? was klavier the victim, or was he a tool in this process? its entirely possible that the trial was not about klavier even a little bit and klavier's presence as the prosecutor was just a measure of security against kristoph's grift being found out.

kristoph seems to have just. more going on with him in general. he seems to have some connections to the criminal element given that he was able to identify a forger, shell out 6 figures for a forgery, and get his hands on some presumably extremely illegal and extremely potent poison. the man seems to be involved in a criminal element completely outside of the context of his relationship with his brother

and on a more meta level, it is really just too simple. that's not the kind of mystery shu takumi writes. if you look at his body of work you can see an increasing level of - and i say this with love - convoluted nonsense begin to weave its way into the storytelling. his work and character backstories get increasingly more complex and twisty as he writes more stories. compare the kind of stuff happening in the DGS duology to the stuff happening in the trilogy. the thing he worked on closest to AA4 was ghost trick, which has a Lot happening in it. although an easy explanation may make sense i can not in any sincerity believe it was what was intended.

the kristoph stuff is so uniquely frustrating to me because there is exactly enough there for me to be incredibly interested in it but not nearly enough there for me to even begin to guess where it was going. so pretty much no fan theory will ever be able to satisfy me.

#ace attorney

[incorrecttowerofgodquotes]

Ciconia Theory: A Fight that Harkens to the Future

Ciconia Chapter 1: Battle Standard Festival features a fight between the two main characters, Miyao Mitake and Jayden. This is framed as simple play fighting between two friends, however, could this fight lead into something more important?

While Jayden and Miyao are consistently portrayed as being on the same side, specifically as partners, the ending of the novel implies that the two are actually on opposing sides, or at least, parts of them are. Will they end up not just fighting as friends, but as enemies?

The fight starts off explaining just how a fight between Gauntlet Knights would go. A complex mind game in which the opponents seek to corner each other and single mistake could cost you, very similar to a chess game, one that the Three Kings bring up quite often.

Then, when the two are continuing their opening moves, Jayden makes the comment that Miyao thinks he could win in an endurance contest. That as long as Miyao doesn’t give up and stays on alert, he can stretch the fight on long enough that Jayden will eventually make a mistake or give up himself.

However, Jayden himself is always thinking despite how he presents himself.

And in a sneak attack he set up by observing his surroundings, he catches Miyao off guard and gains the upper hand. His bio specifically states he’s always looking for new ways to catch his enemy off guard.

But Miyao prepared for this. As partners, the two know each other more than anyone else could (well besides family). Miyao knows that Jayden will always eventually focus entirely on him and he uses this blind spot to set up his final resistance, one that’s noted to have the ability to take himself out. But Miyao also knows Jayden will protect him above all else

I believe Jayden’s ultimate goal is to create a world where he and Miyao can live happily judging by his words in the game’s final scene. During the final clash, Miyao may pull a Batman Gambit that puts himself in danger and in protecting him, Jayden has to throw away his chance of winning.

However even then, the fight may not end up going in Miyao’s favor.

Jayden and Miyao's scuffle ends with Jayden’s win simply because he can reach farther than Miyao. The simple difference between these two, height, is what let’s Jayden win the battle.

But Miyao points out in a fit of sore loserness that he ultimately would have been the winner. A single punch wouldn't actually have the power it does in this friendly fight. Battler stated in Umineko that even a single pebble can defeat the opponent if used correctly, however at the end of the day, it's still just a pebble.

Jayden (or whoever the overarching enemy against Miyao is) will eventually lose because they become too hung up on the little details, failing to see the larger picture.

#ciconia liveblog #ciconia #ciconia no naku koro ni #miyao mitake #jayden ciconia

[hyperfixatinator]

Project Shadow Theory Thing: the Silvquel Part 1

A continuation of my last post regarding this theory here. I'll also add a link to where this whole theory begins to make it chronological here. I split this sequel into two parts because it got too long and I reached the picture limit.

Quick Recap: I believe that Gerald Robotnik created another Ultimate Lifeform hedgehog after Project Shadow was shut down, and that this 2nd lifeform is Silver the Hedgehog.

For this post, I'll dive into some observations about Silver that may help support this theory. I'll use as much evidence from the games as I can, but this is still just speculation.

Silver Wasn't Born in the Future

Well, "born" as in brought into existence. There are a couple things that conflict with Silver originating from the distant future.

By all accounts, Silver shouldn't exist. Silver being born in the distant future would mean that these numerous and drastic changes to the past should've affected how he came to be. It's already a huge stretch to say that his hypothetical family tree remained exactly the same after preventing the world's destruction in 06, but to say it stayed the same every time he goes back is absurd. This goes for him being artificially created in the future as well.

Even IF he came to be created in every single timeline, he shouldn't be the same Silver every time. If the events leading up to Silver's future dictated Silver's life, he should be a completely different person every time, with no awareness of previous timelines or time travel adventures. And yet, he recognizes Sonic and friends in Rivals 2 and every appearance onward.

Believe me, this time stuff is hard to explain in a way that makes sense. Silver not only existing, but staying completely the same despite frequent drastic changes to the future, suggests that the future has no bearing on how he came to exist at all. Because he was instead created back before Sonic's present time.

Remember that the farthest back Silver has ever gone was 10 years before the events of 06. Even then, his life was never rewritten. Every other time period he came back to was the Modern present, where Sonic is a teen.

We've never seen how far back in time is too far for Silver. At what point does it begin to affect him? And in what ways?

(Actually, there was an instance where something changing in the past also changed parts of Silver's life, but that's a topic for part 2)

Silver's Gloves

Many fans have had at least a passing curiosity as to how Silver's gloves work. After rewatching various cutscenes and gameplay, I think I finally figured out what they do. I've gotta say, they're more complex than I gave them credit for.

Firstly, I'd like to take a look at the circular markings on Silver's palms.

They're always there, right? Constantly emitting light, even when his powers are inactive. The line connecting the glowing circles to the cuffs shows that the two are connected in some way.

Especially when you consider that the glowing marks disappear when the cuffs are off, as shown by his nutcracker outfit.

I'd also like to make it known that in Sonic Forces Speed Battle, Silver is still able to use his psychic energy while in this costume, without the cuffs.

So if the cuffs aren't giving Silver his powers, then what are they for? I've heard some people say that they're the same as Shadow's inhibitor rings. What if that was true, but not the whole truth?

Let's focus our attention to the cuffs in Sonic 06. I specify 06 because there's actually a key detail that changed between how they looked back then and how they now present themselves in later games.

This was Silver whenever he wasn't prepared to fight. Look at how thin the line patterns on the cuffs are. The ones on his wrists are still glowing just the tiniest bit, but the ones around his legs are just dark.

Now look at this screenshot taken just seconds after the previous one. This was Silver as soon as he saw Sonic, or "the Iblis Trigger". The lines on all of the cuffs are much wider and brighter than before. Physical patterns in metal don't just get thicker and thinner because of light.

These aren't just patterns. This is the cuffs opening and closing. These are vents.

I believe that Silver, like Shadow, has difficulty controlling his chaos energy without these devices around his wrists and legs. But Silver's cuffs are adjustable, whereas Shadow's aren't.

Shadow's inhibitor rings help him to conserve his chaos energy, but they're kind of basic in design. They limit his chaos energy usage, but he can't change that limit. If he needs to release more power, he needs to take the rings off entirely.

Silver's cuffs, on the other hand, are adjustable. They can open and close to varying degrees depending on how much power he needs to conserve or use.

This is also why the markings on his hands never dim like the cuffs do. The cuffs not only assist in the flow of his chaos energy, but also in directing it. They constantly keep a portion of his energy focused in the hands and legs in preparation for immediate use. When the cuffs are off, the energy is no longer being drawn to his outer limbs, so it's then distributed throughout his body instead.

It's not that the cuffs being closed or off prevents any energy from escaping at all. Otherwise, he wouldn't have any abilities while playing as him in the nutcracker outfit. Not having the cuffs on just means that his body could eventually build up more power than he can expel, and that his energy is harder to channel externally.

Anyway, to sum it up:

Silver was created in the past, not the future.

Silver and Shadow both have rings/cuffs around their arms and legs to regulate they're chaos energy flow, with Silver's being an upgrade in functionality.

Both of these potentially point to Silver being designed as a later version of Shadow. This isn't mentioning Silver's power rivaling that of Shadow's, and at one point even surpassing Sonic's. Strength like that must come from somewhere.

I'll be covering my thoughts on that in part 2 of the Silvquel.

#sonic the hedgehog #silver the hedgehog #shadow the hedgehog #theory #project shadow #stay tuned #part 2 is on the way

[leon-anna]

Headcanon time!

Okay so I know we all joke about anakin and sand. But what if anakins hate for sand semblances something deeper. like maybe sand is anakins emotions and his inability to control them. Maybe the sands of tatooine and the lakes of naboo are a picture of the dark and light fighting in Anakin. A fight truly between vader and Anakin.

his raw emotions irritate his skin and make sores that appear as his sudden bouts of rage. they're messy; sucking people into his inner turmoil as in padme on mustafar. it's coarse and unyeilding it ultimately controls him such as when he cuts off windu's hand. it's also rough; Anakin couldn't even maintain a balanced relationship with padme because of it.

he tries to fight it by thinking of the beauty of the things he most loves and that's when when get the most tender moments with him. but saddly the jedi order frowns upon the expression of affection, which in turn makes him repress his good emotions and instead replace them with negative ones: becoming overly protective and even possessive.

And in the scene where Anakin says the infamous line to padme on naboo it's his subconscious mind finally relaxing and simply allowing his feeling to flow through him in a more positive form. It's Anakin actually showing how he feels. Anakin being himself.

And I also think sand could be a picture of the ever present passing of time and Anakins inability to stop it.

If you look at it from the right prospective it's a simple metaphor for a very complex character.

#i just love anakin #anakin needs a hug #headcanon #star wars #vader #anakin x padme #the clone wars #Skywalker #anakin skywalker

[financialinvests]

#car #cardealership #cars #loan #Money

[arpov-blog-blog]

Damn Fani Willis is one no tough prosecutor. Nathan Wade has been working on the case since the Special Purpose Grand Jury. No wonder he has been paid so much more than the other 'Special Counsels she hired...."When Fulton County, Georgia, District Attorney Fani Willis spoke at a historically Black church in Atlanta last Sunday, she gave a full-throated defense of Nathan Wade, a private lawyer whom she appointed to lead her 2020 election interference case against former President Donald Trump – and with whom she's accused of having an affair.

She lauded him as "a superstar" with "impeccable credentials" who is uniquely qualified to handle the complex prosecution, leaving unsaid that Wade was at best her third choice for the high-stakes job. Willis, unable to find someone in the DA's office with the stature and credentials needed for the case, turned to at least two other legal heavy hitters in Atlanta before settling on Wade, as set out in "Find Me the Votes," a new book about the investigation into the alleged conspiracy to subvert the 2020 election.

Willis initially approached Roy Barnes, the former governor of Georgia and one of the state's premier lawyers, to serve as the senior counsel on the case.  But he turned her down.  She then tried Gabe Banks, a former federal prosecutor and highly respected Atlanta criminal defense lawyer. Banks also wasn't interested.

Neither Barnes nor Banks wanted to plunge into such an all-consuming case at the expense of their lucrative law practices, as laid out in the book. But the two were even more concerned about the inevitable threats that would come with such a politically incendiary case. Barnes declined to discuss his conversations with Willis, but nodded to those concerns in an interview: "Hypothetically speaking, do you want a bodyguard following you around for the rest of your life?" Banks declined comment.   

Ultimately, Willis turned to Wade, who had been a friend and mentor over the years and whom she told colleagues had the toughness to handle the scorched-earth legal tactics that Trump's lawyers and their co-counsel were likely to employ in the legal battle.

Wade was not brought on to be the lead courtroom lawyer in the case, a source close to the case said. It was always anticipated that he would play a more behind-the-scenes role — organizing the sprawling investigation, running the grand jury process and hammering out immunity deals. He is always a presence in the courtroom, with natty attire that includes colorful pocket squares and occasionally ascots. But he generally defers to deputies for courtroom arguments.

Wade's reputation as a lawyer in Georgia presents a mixed picture because there is no doubt that his resume is thin when it comes to criminal law. He had no experience trying complex felony cases, let alone a multi-defendant racketeering prosecution like the one he is now in charge of.

His criminal work appears to be limited to relatively minor misdemeanor and traffic cases that he handled both as prosecutor in the Cobb County solicitor general's office and later as a municipal judge in Marietta, Ga. Those cases almost always ended in plea deals rather than trials.

"He was a super competent judge; he was timely, efficient with the docket and respectful," said Holly Waltman, a criminal defense lawyer who practiced before Wade when he was a judge.

In private practice, his bread and butter was civil litigation, contract law and family disputes. By most accounts he acquitted himself well with those kinds of cases.

There is one group of Atlantans who have seen Wade demonstrate his legal abilities at great length: the members of the Fulton County Special Purpose Grand Jury, who in the end recommended that Trump and 18 other co-defendants be charged with election conspiracy. Wade ran the grand jury process for Willis over more than six months, guiding the jurors through hundreds of hours of testimony, thousands of documents and a thicket of legal and evidentiary issues.

Interviews with some of those grand jurors indicate they were impressed with Wade. One member of the panel, the only lawyer among them, told CBS News Wade was "in command" and "highly skilled."  The source, who asked not to be identified discussing what occurred inside the grand jury room, described Wade as a deft performer in front of the grand jury.

"He had a lightness of tone when that was appropriate and was very serious when it was time to be serious," the grand juror said.

Wade was also impeccably prepared, according to the source.  On more than one occasion, he demonstrated that with recalcitrant witnesses.  A critical witness for the grand jury was Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffesnperger, who received the Jan. 2, 2020, call in which Trump pressured him to "find" the 11,780 votes he needed to overturn the election.

When he was questioned by the deputy foreperson about whether he felt threatened when Trump told him he could be committing a "criminal offense" by not reversing the results of the election, Raffensperger bobbed and weaved and avoided answering the question. Wade leapt up from his chair to do cleanup. In his hands was a copy of a book Raffensperger had published the year before that recounted the infamous phone call with Trump.  Wade turned to the relevant page and began reading out loud: "Now President Trump is using the power of his position to threaten . . . me with prosecution if we don't do what he tells us to do." Wade asked Raffensperger if he'd indeed written that. Raffensperger said he had. Wade then asked if he stood by those words. The secretary of state said he did.

Underlying the accusation against Willis is that she showed favoritism toward Wade at the expense of her constituents interests and the administration of justice.  But there is at least some evidence that Wade was subjected to Willis' same exacting standards — and even wrath — as the rest of her team.

"Find Me the Votes," recounts a scene from February 2023 when Willis asked for a presentation of the evidence in the case from her prosecutors. Wade and his deputies presented a PowerPoint of the charges they were contemplating bringing against Trump and his alleged co-conspirators.

Willis was underwhelmed and she let Wade and the others know it, letting loose with a string of profanities.  "No, y'all aren't even close," she told them. "This is f****** terrible. Get the f*** out of here." She then brusquely walked out of the office by herself, leaving Wade and the rest of his team shaken.

But in her remarks last Sunday, Willis made it clear that she had no misgivings about hiring Wade and raised the idea that those who criticized her for it were motivated by race.

"I appointed three special counsels, as is my right to do. Paid them all the same hourly rate," Ms. Willis said. "They only attacked one."

Willis went on to openly accuse her detractors of racism, of attacking "this lawyer of impeccable credentials."

She ran through the resume of "the Black man I chose," noting he has served as a judge, private attorney, prosecutor, criminal defense lawyer and special attorney general. Willis wondered aloud, "I'm just asking God, is it that some will never see Black man as qualified, no matter his achievements? What more can one achieve?"

[clarks-letterman]

Wally anon: lollllyeah, very valid question I just don't happen to use it dhdhd.

And it's always ridiculous howwww bad it frequently is + how it would be much easier to make one of the straight characters who already give off ~vibes~ queer but nope just poorly written stereotypes in most cases. 🙃 Oh yeah 5 has some terribleee writing between them. Like, I get Sam was estranged & all but the writers needed to try harder to sell that they are literal.actual.sisters. instead of just Melissa & Jenna's chemistry. It's wild when you think about how much Sidney & Gale are c o n s t a n t l y butting heads from out the gate & it has lead to them having one of the. most complex final girl dynamics in the entire genre. But there's such a disconnect between Sam & Tara. 💀 Not hot either, huh? I think it was just a matter of coincidence, collateral damage & all that, since Michael is ~evil/a force of nature~ like how most of the deaths in Kills could've been avoided if people had not gotten in his way. 👍 (a different kind of knife fr 🍆) Absolutely agreed. It's grown on me a little over the years, but H20 is still the ultimate version of Laurie to me with Ends coming very close for having a more ~natural~ presentation of her trauma. Gives you a few ideas @ "take it," with him filling you full of his own meat, huh? 🤭

MTE @ the lizard (& yeah, I do believe you're right @ the transformation, they were really cutting some corners there dkdbsk). But, yup, we should've just got one. really good antagonist cause while I can see pieces of both of them that work, the movie was undeniably overstuffed, especially when considering the deleted MJ sub-plot like whyyyy so much going on it. (Ooh, okay, will do. Thanks for the heads up. 🤭) Uh oh. That doesn't sound like a particularly resounding endorsement lollll. It seems like Tom keeps getting screwed out of getting something reallyyyyy juicy to sink his teeth into (the innuendo in that statement is already obvious). Idk if it's cause he has such a ~baby face~ still or w/e, but he needs a new agent fr to find him more daring material. But, yeah, I feel you. We need a villain that is entirely. Tom's, not attached to Tony in some way or brought in from another universe, completely just tied to him & specifically him. Oh, that'd such a hot idea. You knowwww he's almost been caught using it so many times cause the increased sex drive makes him insatiable & needing. to stick his dick into something. It's the easiest thing for when he doesn't wanna go through the trouble of finding someone else & the legs on his tip makes him cum soooo hard that he'll be left leaning back & panting. 😮‍💨😮‍💨😮‍💨 Yesss. I perfectly picture it cause you know Thor has such an ego (& a good reason for it cause you know it is h e f t y) that he refuses to concede to a machine & would keep pounding Peter until he told him his hammer was better. 🛠 Exactly, exactly. It just makes the sounds of him slipping inside you wetter & sloppier than usual & makes it feel better when his dick is stretching your walls. 🫣  And, even then, as previously covered elsewhere, he feels most comfortable naked, so you know he'd be ready & willing for you to slip everything off. 👀

You get it 🤤

Yup, the disconnect is why I have to be like 🤔 By anyone who's even wanted to get between them cheeks tbh. And what is this special punishment he has reserved for them? 😳 omfg I knowwww @ AoU. I unpopularly would classify him. more of the villain in that over Ultron cause he just...ignored. all reasoning & common sense to make that mfer, yet n o b o d y takes him to task for it. This conversation is really bringing back each & every thing I can't stand about that character & only. him as far as the OG team is concerned cause the movies let him get away with soooo much! 🖕 (Oh, do tell @ Mysterio having a possible crazy kink) Ugh it's suchhhh a crime Peter & Pietro never met (& how. bullshit Pietro's death was) Yup. Plus, getting to watch both Tom & Jake get reallyyyyy angry with their characters dealing with their complex feelings over Tony would've been 🥵  (Yesss, you get it & you know he'd be gulping it just so he could keep getting more ~material~ to test 🤤) Ah, kinda clever title there. (Well, you know I support you exploring this idea cause short!top!Peter supremacy >>>> + the mental image of him just having a firm. grip on your shoulders with his muscles flexing while he's plapplapplaping away at your hole is 😮‍💨😮‍💨😮‍💨)

Gonna make you feel pregnant even if it would be impossible. 🤫

Not surprising to hear. People regularly do a lot of stupid shit & that intensifies during the holidays. What all do you have to do in the ER?

The best actors are. 🙌 Care to decipher those blanks for me? 🫣

Fingers crossed. Idk if I'll manage to watch for myself before the year ends cause I have a few things to catch up on. But yeahhh, religion only really tends to work for me in media when there's some form of commentary being made for similar reasons. Doing more than just praying for sure. 👀

sdbdksk your reaction to Percy Jackson.

yeah like i don’t mind responding to this but they do be lengthy sometimes😭

Yesss ugh like they have potential but just make them “friends” and render another character gay, which isn’t an issue, but the queer-designated character ends up being worse than if they bothered to add the nuance to the two characters that worked better. Like, I get that Sam would drop everything and make sure she’s okay, because they have history and grew apart. That’s not any reason to ensure that she’s okay, but when they reunite, that’s where all the problems start. Tara is mad at Sam and she never really has a talk with her that changes that, she just gets attacked and then Sam’s by her side to make sure she’s safe. It makes the scene later when Sam’s like “you really think i wouldn’t trust my own sister??” after seeing her tied up in the closet feel less earned, because Tara kinda would have every reason to be behind ghostface. She’s openly mad at Sam, who was withholding a secret related to one of the original killers sooo. Exactly, they want Tara and Sam to be the new Gale and Sidney but it doesn’t work at alll. Even with Sidney’s fleeting time in the movies until her absence, they still had a better dynamic (even in 6 when Gale’s putting herself in danger and “keeping Sidney safe”.) I dunno… I like my cute little princess pookies to be deadly and big. True, but if that was the case I might as well be throwing myself to him🫣 Yeah I like that Laurie finds closure as the trilogy progresses, and it does feel as good as H20s by the end. Exactly! He could track me down and give me that meat raw🤭 he doesn’t have to get the cook to do anything fr

Yeah I really hate how little we get of Peter and Gwen as a result. It felt like a response to the negative reaction of the first movie from fans, until 2 ended up being so bad they just cancelled 3 sksjsk. Tom said in a recent interview that he needs a new agent lol, and HE DOESSSSS. The movies he’s getting aren’t the worst, like his talents still shine through but the actual quality of each movie/show has been so meh or bad. Cherry was good to me but ik critics didn’t like it, same for the devil all the time. Decent, but not great or really outstanding. Same for the other Disney projects he’s in. I’m happy to say he’s losing his baby face (sad and happy. I love it for being so mf adorable but also woof he looks even better🫣) So true @ the villain. He needs his own, Mysterio was good but not his and same for the Vulture. (I don’t even wanna talk about green goblin. I hate to say that I am a hater of his. Not the actor tho, Willem is great but the character is just… and it’s made even worse that this isn’t even MCU Peter’s green goblin, it’s a rehash of someone else’s.) Peters heightened sex drive + the fact that he gets no bitches canonically is so funny to me. I feel like you would hug him and he’d be leaking already. Maybe just over stimulated from the spider suit on a particularly horny night patrol. Thor has two hammers, and one is definitely bigger than the other🫣 I know Steve could’ve lifted both sksjs Thor having more stamina than Peter (I wonder, could he go days at a time because he lives for thousands of years and therefore time compared to a human like Peter would mean he can last much, much longer. Even with Peter’s mutated dna? Sorry i’m gonna cut myself off because i love genetics😭) He could totally sell it and be rich… but he’s keeping it just to use on you because🫣 I know Wally just has that look of eagerness when he can strip everything off and do whatever he wants naked, no boundaries in the way of sexual stuff and he can just flip from watching tv and w/e to tugging it with ease🤭

Yeah I don’t like itttt but maybe it’ll be done better in the next trilogy. Maybe. Ohhhh i see he has some competition. Well, call me Nathan Drake because I’m exploring Uncharted territory first🤭 the punishment probably involves a sore throat for Christmas. The present, if you were nice, would been his ass or him using his dick sweetly like candy canes sksjsj. Instead, he’ll be rough with it like coal, since coal’s kind of outdated… So true about Tony. He caused the conflict and recklessly endangered everyone. If it’s getting you that riled up, let’s talk about the characters we do like lmaoo. I mean Peter having a weird kink and exploring it and Mysterio being like “oh my god my eyes!!” Like he’d be the only one to see it, and maybe Peter takes advantage of that but I could also see Mysterio exploring stuff in there that’s unconventional😶‍🌫️ HOW DOES THE FASTEST PERSON ALIVE GET SHOT?!???? By guns no less?! Not even a tank that covers a lot of ground so maybe he would get hurt. Bullets. Mf bullets. Anyways Pietro and Peter became besties (and maybe more. i could see pietro having love at first site when he joined the team) Oh totally, I’d love for them to have some complex, messed up feelings that they take out on each other in both anger and desire. Peter wants that dad figure back and look at the dilf right there😳!! And oh, he knew Tony? Even better for him, but Mysterio’s angry at Tony so it’s like hatefucking type of stuff eventually😮‍💨 He’s chugging it like crazy because Peter shoots out so much (how else does he have enough webs to swing around all of new york??😶‍🌫️) Technically, he wouldn’t be short for me… still a few inches taller😪 so I’m the shorter one, but I get the image!! Those muscles just doing their thing as he’s stark (haha stark) naked and going at it at your hole.

Oh i bet, they’d go till you are actually pregnant😮‍💨 might take a long time butttt

So, because I’m still working to getting my degree + license in med school, I’m basically cleaning the equipment and prepping it for usage and shadowing doctors/nurses in the ER if they’re affiliated with my college. (The hospital that the ER is attached to is right next to the college and they have this whole program, it’s pretty sick .. literally) Its mostly just to help get field experience and ensure a job later down the line when we can actually do all the things we need to be licensed to do. (unfortunately, no extra credit for all that time being there😪)

Maybe over uh… dm?😉 I don’t want to get too crazy on these posts lmaoo

Yeah I won’t have much room to speak with the blood of christ pumping through his dick- and make the bread really hard (bad joke?)

ITS SO BAD AND IM NOT A PERCY JACKSON MIDDLE SXHOOLER. … i was into warrior cats okay😭 i returned to the books a while back for nostalgic purposes and the continuity errors of basic appearance is CRAZY

#wally anon