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signedkoko · 3 months

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hello, good afternoon/night!

I was wondering if you could do a vox x character (?) oneshot where the other person has royal status (something similar to stolas).

I’m interested to see if vox would change his attitude if he was interacting with someone above him, or if he would act the same as usual.

either way, I hope this makes sense and thank you so much!

Vox X Reader [Romantic]

In which you are apart of the ars goetia family, and Vox doesn't know much about royalty. Reader is genderneutral.

Being one of the 72 members of the family didn't feel special from your point of view; you were royalty, yes, but what that actually meant was beyond you

Nevertheless, you were representative of innovation, and your role as an 'aristocrat' was quite literally the most dull of all: an archivist

Your role was to document, file, or archive every piece of information that has ever existed or will exist, and to protect it all in your library

You were a vast network of knowledge, not too different from a computer

That was where you and Vox became so similar, he was certainly an impressive overlord worth meeting.

You found yourself archiving logs upon logs of his creations, of his ad campaigns, of his scandals; he was always up to something

It piqued your interest, so you were sure to note the next time you were in proximity so you could meet him

Vox didn't give two shits about royalty, but what he did care about were the opportunities it presented

It was worth being nice to them and biting your tongue, and in all honesty, he wasn't much of a hot head when it came to people he didn't know

He had files on every member of the Ars Goetia, including yours, and he'd developed a bit of a 'celebrity' crush

You seemed so like him, but he knew pictures could only say so much about a person and moved on

Both of you knew the other would be at the same event, and like magnets, you came straight to one another

Vox used his television charm to lure you in, and just like you'd hoped, it worked

He is extremely nervous around royalty because, truth be told, they really are far more powerful than he or any other overlord

Not to say he doubts himself, but he understands his limits

And being technology itself, he also knows that your ability nearly pales his technology—computers are without a doubt more capable of storing information and processing it than any human or demon ever could, but you were beyond that

That is to say, he is extremely impressed with you and asks a lot about your ability, almost hoping it'll reveal some kind of trick he could use too

Unfortunately, no tricks, but he does find you to be just as kind as he'd imagined

Ars Goetia is extremely strict about the relationships they have, but fortunately for you, you knew every rule and loophole there was to know and managed to get by with 'one of hell's strongest overlords'

He is very adaptive to rules and customs, so it's no issue impressing your family with his seemingly infinite skills

" I didn't know you knew all that, Vox. "

" Yeah! You know, I didn't either! "

He absolutely goes autopilot a lot around other royals because he does not want to cause you any trouble, but you always tell him to relax and let him know you'd never let them get in the way

The hardest decision is who is moving, and when you eventually offer to abandon your lavish lifestyle for his minimalistic city style, he does whatever he can to help you adapt.

Really, you are his prince(ss), and he will treat you like the royalty you are

" So, does this make me a prince now? "

" Are you proposing? "

One of his favourite perks is that now he can really stick it to Alastor

Not that he would ever intend on putting you in danger—even if you'd win—but let's be honest

You would win against that stupid radio demon

Oh yeah, he's proud of that too

Author's Note - I ended up doing headcanons because I felt the prompt didn't have enough for me to go off of, I apologize for disappointing!~ Even so, I hope this still catches your interest 🖤

#koko writez #hazbin hotel #helluva boss #hazbin hotel x reader #helluva boss x reader #reader insert #x reader #vox #vox x reader

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bloodywankers · 1 year

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May i ask for some yan!meguru bachira pinning on darling?

I feel like he's the type to send darling over the edge until they end up doing something unwanted. Pushing and pushing you to your limit that you break inside and something else comes out. Once youve isolated yourself from others, he will convince you that they simply couldn't understand you etc etc...

Trigger Warning! Yandere! Toxic Relationship! Isolation!

Yandere Meguru Bachira |

You’re def right with this one. Maybe reader has a really strong personality as a child, similar to Bachira. There was no monster involved but your obsession delved deep enough to push other kids away. Bachira understood you, and thought you understood him as well. To him you two were the only two people in the world, the only other person worthy of his acknowledgement.

Sure it’s cute as kids but things happen and people grow up, you realise a niche hobby isn’t going to get you through the real world. You're good at what you do but not so much that you’d stand out enough to make a living off it.

But Bachira doesn’t like that, he has certain expectations of you, an image of you in his head. And he’s disappointed you’d act outside of it.

It’s because you listened to all those people, you’re special just like him so why do you have to adapt to them? Why not remain in your own world just the two of you?

So he isolates you, it's a slow process but he enjoys every part of it. He does it until you have nothing left, no one to rely on and no boring job to keep you from what you truly love. This way, you won’t become like the others who think he's weird. You’ll always understand him, maybe in time you’ll develop a monster of your own.

Bachira, to me, comes off as an obsessive yandere. Not necessarily romantic but it can definitely go that way. He doesn’t like you per se, but the image of you in his head and your passion. You have to keep up with him to keep him from getting bored, which is your only life line when he leaves you solely dependent on him both financially and emotionally.

Masterlist

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skygemspeaks · 8 months

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thoughts on episode 7 of opla!

given that arlong park is supposed to be the climax of the east blue saga, i'm a little tiny bit disappointed with how this episode played out, especially given how standout episode 6 was. some of the disappointment comes from me not liking some of the creative choices they made with it, but some of it is also just the limitations of the medium

emily rudd's performance of nami, especially during the scene where she's stabbing her arlong tattoo, was absolutely phenomenal. all the actors in this show have been doing such an awesome job so far, but at the end of the day, there's no way it can really stand up to the manga and anime versions of this same scene. oda is a masterful artist, and the way he's able to depict such raw despair and grief has always been one of my favourite things about his art. and one of the things about animation is that they're able to exaggerate certain expressions and body language to give more of an emotional impact, in a way that real humans can't really do, so i feel like in some ways, live action is always gonna fall short. so far the live action has been doing a good job of adapting the story in a way that plays to the medium's strengths, but i do feel like this was a rare L for them. and that's not to say the episode wasn't well done! because it really was. i think that in this case it suffers from having to try and live up to the source material.

i'm not sure how i feel about them having nojiko not knowing about nami's plans. i think one thing that i really liked about this arc in the manga was how all the villagers knew nami was trying to buy back the village, but they were being hostile to her because they knew how hard it was to do what she was doing, and if it ever got to be too much for her, they wanted her to be able to turn her back on them without feeling bad. they didn't want her to feel obligated to save them. that's neither here nor there though, and it did open up a chance for them to have a heartfelt conversation and make up.

i've seen some people upset that Hachi wasn't part of the arlong park arc, and i was a little sad we didn't get to see him too, but i do also think that it makes sense as a creative choice. so far when you look at the storytelling choices they've made with this series, a lot of their decisions seem to come from the mindset of "don't assume we're going to get more seasons, but lay down a bit of subtle groundwork just in case we do" and this seems to be one of those choices. in the event that we ever do make it to the sabaody archipelago, hachi is going to become a friend, and it's going to be easier to get the audience on his side if he wasn't one of the antagonists that was enslaving nami's village. in the event that we do get to sabaody, i'm assuming we're gonna get some flashbacks to nami's childhood when he WAS with arlong, but then he left before the canon timeline because he couldn't deal with how awful arlong is? i don't know, but that's just a guess. the manga had the leisure of slowly winning the audience over to his side by the simple fact that we were able to spend so much time with him, he was around for many chapters and we were slowly able to get attached. but the live action is going to have a much more limited run time, so we won't have the time to do it that way. this decision is just a bit of a shortcut. that's my reasoning at least

the flashbacks were well done! i like how sweet genzo seems, and bellemere's actress did a good job. she had big mom vibes. i am a bit surprised that they did actually show bellemere slapping nami. i would've thought they'd cut that out. glad they didn't though!

the prosthetics for the fishmen were AWESOME! i'm so so so glad they decided to go practical effects instead of doing it all with cgi, they look fantastic

i LOVE how they gave arlong park more of a waterpark/amusement park vibe. it calls back to the fact that it's heavily inspired by sabaody park, and that, paired with arlong being very defensive when he perceives that he's being looked down on by humans because he's a fishman, work together to show that all of arlong's behaviour is stemming from a place of hurt, and a lifetime of alienation.

i like seeing helmeppo and koby slowly becoming friends! i was really surprised when helmeppo bought a drink for koby, and then it was pretty funny when koby just couldn't help but blurt out that luffy is garp's grandson. they're growing to become pretty good partners

zeff and garp's conversation was good! loved the mention of jaya, and also i think the two of them make good parallels. both grand/parents to some upstart pirates - one of them trying desperately to cling on to his grandson, the other one having to practically push his son out of the nest. zeff tries to convince garp that sometimes you just gotta let go and let your kid tread his own path, but garp still isn't ready to hear that, and maybe he won't ever be ready to hear that.

#opla liveblog #opla spoilers #opla #one piece #monkey d garp #red leg zeff #sanji #monkey d luffy #nami #nojiko #bellemere #arlong #spoilers #op spoilers #koby #helmeppo #hatchan

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acidic--ace · 11 months

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Something that's been on my mind regarding Aizen and Ichigo's interactions so I'm throwing it out: Why I think Aizen never used his shikai against Ichigo and what that says about his ulterior motive.

For starters, we have to answer the question as to why Aizen molded and formed Ichigo. Like Aizen said, he knew about Ichigo since before he was born. Aizen was intrigued by the immense power that is gained from hybrid beings, hence why he was so focussed on working and experimenting with the Hōgyoku. Isshin and Masaki were an unexpected but welcome surprise, and in old fashioned Aizen fashion, he adapted and observed. We all know what happened next since Aizen was so kind to narrate it for us, but he spent the next years monitoring Ichigo, and eventually actively forming him. Setting up the battles to push Ichigo to his limits, to slowly but surely become stronger.

I'm convinced that Aizen would have been disappointed if Ichigo died (which he almost did a couple of times) but at the same time something tells me he had faith that wouldn't happen. Despite putting him in life-threatening situations, he never made an active attempt to kill Ichigo, always leaving some window of opportunity, because he wanted to see how far Ichigo could evolve. Even after defeating Urahara and Isshin, and Ichigo seemed to be at his limits, he still stopped Gin when he made an attempt to finish Ichigo off. He still had hope for Ichigo to grow.

To be clear, he did not do this because he cared about Ichigo's well-being, but because Ichigo is the perfect counterpart. He is the perfect blend of Human, Soul Reaper, Quincy and Hollow. He is the counterweight and closest to an equal powerful force to challenge Aizen's own power. And Aizen wanted to have that, hence why he made sure to keep it around.

Like he explained to Gin, fear is necessary for evolution. Feeling and experiencing fear is a requirement for him to evolve even further and become stronger himself. Interestingly, this counters Urahara's view on fear, which he explained when training Ichigo in the beginning. According to him, "nothing comes from fear." He actively encourages Ichigo to not acknowledge fear in battles at all.

Whoever is right is up for another debate, (or a matter of personal preference) but what it boils down to for Aizen is that in the end, he firmly believes that anything or anyone powerful should experience fear. And the reason for this is that power in itself should never remain stable. We still don't know Aizen's complete motives, but what is clear is that he refuses to bow down to the everlasting reign of the Soul King. That he firmly believes the position of Soul King, the palace, Squad Zero, all of it, should be challenged. That they should feel fear, and he hates the fact that nobody takes up that role.

We do get hints that Aizen himself doesn't just want to overthrow that reign, but also wants to take over the place of the Soul King himself. And even though Aizen is an arrogant power hungry bastard, he is not a hypocrite, because he makes sure that his own power is actively challenged as well. Whether that's by empowering Ichigo, keeping Gin close despite suspecting betrayal and never asking anyone to trust him, he makes sure his power is never stagnant.

And because of all that, he also does not use his Shikai against Ichigo. Using his Shikai would mean an immediate advantage, and the challenge that Ichigo provides would be significantly lower. Ergo his power will be unchallenged. It's a strategic move, all crafted according to his own plan. He wants Ichigo at his fullest potential, unhindered. So that he himself will evolve without hindrance as well. To stand at the top himself.

#bleach anime #bleach #bleach aizen #sosuke aizen #aizen #ichigo kurosaki #bleach ichigo #bleach analysis

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sepublic · 6 months

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I love Fullmetal Alchemist, but I will admit I was a bit disappointed with how Arakawa handled Sloth the Indolent, who came across as very bare-bones compared to the other Homunculi, and basically just felt like a more muscular Gluttony at times. So for fun, I’ve come up with my own fanon version of Sloth the Indolent, basically an OC at this point; Think an AU where everything about Fullmetal Alchemist is more or less the same, it’s just that Sloth is a different character, which does change a few things here or there… But in the long run, it’s the same.

We have Sloth, who resembles a young woman, younger in both appearance and age than Lust. She’s got a short black dress and platform boots, and always looks bored with her arms crossed; Sloth is basically an edgy goth teenager who’s always complaining about what a pain everything is, expects everyone to hear and cater to her whining and discomfort, and is deeply unenthusiastic most of the time.

She’s a spoiled brat; Sloth wants everything to come easy and be easy, she prefers consistency and simplicity, because thinking and adapting, growing, these are all too troublesome for her. She’s sympathetic to a point, but after a while, she gets frustrating; Sloth is the kind of person who will go through the most convoluted, roundabout method that ends up more frustrating in the long run, to avoid something, rather than just going through the thing and getting it over with.

Appropriately, Sloth doesn’t even do her own work; She relies on her ‘thralls’, various victims she’s implanted a parasite into. The parasite comes from Sloth’s own body, so in a way they’re her own children, yet she makes them exist purely for her own benefit… Like Father, like Daughter. She communicates with these parasites via ultrasonic frequencies, not that Sloth actually realizes this; To her, this command simply works, and she doesn’t have the curiosity nor passion for life to look any further into this, taking that ability for granted.

This does backfire eventually when the Armstrongs and Curtises devise a transmutation circle that disrupts Sloth’s frequencies by emitting its own, thereby preventing her from controlling her thralls; More on that later.

The parasites take control of Sloth’s thralls, forcing them to follow commands; Sloth needn’t control each thrall individually, their brain does the rest of the work in interpreting a command and carrying it out, and relying on the host’s own memories and knowledge so that Sloth doesn’t have to peruse through them herself. There’s a limit to this ability; Probably how many parasites Sloth can have operating at once, and the distance they can operate from Sloth.

When infected with a parasite, right below your brainstem, you aren’t 100% doomed yet; There’s a very slight possibility that with precise surgery (or Scar’s deconstruction), you can remove the parasite and be free. But after a while, the parasite fully acclimates and shuts off your free will, killing a person and the soul; All that’s left behind is a reanimated brain. When outside Sloth’s range, thralls who pass this threshold will simply collapse and remain inert.

This is why Sloth hasn’t infected central command with her parasites to keep them in line; Eventually, she’d have to remain in range 24/7, which would distract from her other responsibilities. Likewise, the figures in central command are supposed to be leaders who regularly make complex decisions and appear in public, which is far too bothersome for Sloth, who prefers the same approach to everything because ingenuity takes too much effort. This means Olivier doesn’t have to worry about Sloth’s parasites when she’s recruited.

Sloth hates doing things on her own and fully abuses her thralls, having them carry her, move her own limbs for her; Ironically, it looks as if she’s being puppeted by her own thralls at times. Because of her Philosopher’s Stone, Sloth’s body doesn’t atrophy from this lack of use, but still. Sloth will work her thralls down to the literal bone, doing only the bare minimum to keep them alive, apathetic as their muscles tear and bones crack.

It is said the human body is capable of much more than people realize; But to achieve that strength would damage the body, hence why it only emerges in times of crisis and high adrenaline. To rely on this power consistently would kill someone… But Sloth doesn’t care, so she wrings every last bit out of her thralls until they’re broken beyond repair; In which case she discards and grabs another victim. At that point, Sloth carefully gauges potential victims to see which one seems the most fit; But some days she’ll just get it over with by infecting the first person she sees. Other times she’ll control the Chimeras lurking beneath Central.

Sloth is a manipulator, unwilling to do her own dirty work, and griping about having to do Father’s. And she’s often looking for a way out of her tasks, such as by getting one of her siblings, usually Gluttony, to do things; But Gluttony often requires oversight from Lust, who will then call Sloth out and lecture her. Sloth is deeply unpleasant and unreliable to work with, as a partner will have to do everything just to get her to do more than the bare minimum of her job, and sometimes she doesn’t even do that; Father had to resort to many threats of violence, and even then had to make some concessions before Sloth finally agreed to her tasks. Sloth makes sure to wring out as much as she can out of others in a manner almost greedy, to minimize her own work and offerings.

Sloth is irreverent and apathetic; She doesn’t care for the drama of her siblings. She doesn’t care for them at all, period; Too much effort. Nor does Sloth care for Father, she only goes along with him because defying Father is more effort than it’s worth in her eyes (or eye, one of them is covered by a red node). When Greed defected, he extended the offer to Sloth, hoping she’d reciprocate after picking up on her dissatisfaction… But Sloth decided that having to deal with Father’s forces going after her was much too stressful.

Besides, for all of Father’s faults, he nevertheless gave Sloth security and resources, as well as consistency; Without Father, Sloth would have to figure life out for herself, which would be such a burden. It’s simpler and safer under Father, no risks for Sloth! For that reason, Sloth feels some need to defend Father, if only because he’s a bastion of resources and security such as additional souls and the like, which secures her own comfort. It should also be noted that even without Father pushing her, Sloth would still choose to rely on and enslave others, so keep that in mind.

When Greed returned, the Homunculi were all gathered together… And Sloth legitimately did not care about Greed’s return, nor his impending execution. The whole time she just stood there unenthusiastically, using her thralls as a chair, before snapping at one point that they should just get it over with, and questioning why she even needed to be there, which earned a lecture from Pride, who insisted Sloth be more grateful for the dignity of serving Father. When Greed died, the other Homunculi felt various emotions, mixed feelings such as resentment, but Sloth felt nothing and was simply glad it was wrapping up.

For Sloth, only the ends/destination matters, not the journey nor means. It’s all about shortcuts and results for her. Comfort is her only goal in this world, because it’s the only thing that grants her reprieve from the inherent suffering and misery that is life. A part of her might, deep down, desire death and thus be suicidal… But that would also be too much of a pain, too difficult to go through with. Or is living more of an effort? To ponder is a pain in and of itself… An object in motion stays at motion, or in rest stays at rest, Sloth has a stubborn, unbudging inertia at times.

Sloth’s function in Father’s system is simple; Carve his nationwide transmutation circle into the earth. But Sloth isn’t really doing it, it’s her thralls, whom she supervises as they bleed and wear themselves away as much as they wear away at the bedrock. Sloth meanwhile, comfortably sits a distance away, relying on earmuffs to deafen the noise (usually a thrall’s hands over her ears) as she lays back, minding her own business as other thralls pamper her.

Sloth is just thinking, maybe having a drink, because Sloth enjoys the worldly pleasures to some degree; It’s all about comfort and relaxation to her. She’s a spoiled daddy’s girl who felt entitled to being accommodated by everyone, and because of her parasites, Sloth was able to get Father to assign her –with insistence- the seemingly arduous, yet simple, task of mining, while offloading all other tasks to her siblings. To Sloth, this is the easiest and most leisurely job. She's the underachieving sibling who operates in the perfect, comfortable middle ground between the leader who's responsible for figuring things out, and the worker who does all of the grunt labor.

Sloth loathes stress, and she loathes unexpected assignments that distract her from her role as manager; Not for love of the job itself, but because it’s simple and easy and consistent, and she never has to expect anything else nor respond to change. Sloth is impatient and grumpy during these other missions, seeing them as a breach of contract, the compromise Father painstakingly got out of Sloth in order to utilize any of her contributions. Sloth wishes to get things out of the way as quickly as possible, or else she will procrastinate and put it off to the last second, with no in-between. With how stressed out she is, Sloth doesn’t care too much about the sentiment behind her mission, instead preferring to accomplish only the literal definition of her orders, and never go any further because that’s unnecessary work.

Because of this, Sloth might sometimes fail to see something all the way through, such as assassinating someone; If it seems they’re dead, no need to look further, she’s done and can finally relax! All she’s looking forward to is getting a task over, never the task itself. She won’t derive enjoyment from the task, she refuses. And because of her paradoxical aversion to effort, Sloth doesn’t give it her all and thus gives opportunities for the protagonists to survive; They don’t know just how easily she could and should’ve killed them by now, if it weren’t for Sloth’s laziness. She’s deeply frustrating to supervise, for both Pride and Father, for these realizations.

A part of Sloth did ponder what would happen after the Promised Day; Because that would be an end to her job, right? And she didn’t like the idea of losing that secure routine, so sometimes she stalled, calculating when to get it done by the last second before the eclipse. But she ultimately realized that even as God, Father would still need others, and would still use Sloth; So long as she blindly trusted in him, Sloth would be taken care of, more or less. Sloth did, to some capacity, see the folly in Father’s efforts and goals, though she wasn’t much better herself. She was similarly perceptive in deconstructing herself and her siblings, but never bothered to do anything with this self-awareness; Sloth was fully conscious of her demons yet indulged them anyway.

Sloth is actually incredibly strong; In fact, she’s physically the fastest and strongest of the Homunculi, and the most gifted in terms of academia and intelligence. Not that Sloth ever makes use of these abilities; She’d much prefer to rely on her thralls. Remember what I said about Sloth being the kind of person to rely on methods so roundabout they prove more troublesome than just doing the thing? That’s Sloth. She hates having to move and use her own body so much that she’d rather use her thralls, which are far less effective, and thus less efficient in accomplishing tasks.

So Sloth is her worst enemy; If she just mustered in the effort for a bit, she really could get it over with… But she hates applying effort, and thus just makes herself more miserable and for longer in the end. But there does come a point where Sloth has to rely on her own strength…

During the Promised Day, Olivier leads her rebellion, and is targeted by Father for her treachery. He sends Sloth to kill Olivier, but Sloth accidentally murders a member of high command, not that she nor Father care, of course. With Alex and other reinforcements showing up, Sloth is suddenly forced to apply more and more effort than she’s ever used in her entire life;

Suddenly Sloth is pushing herself to her limits. She welcomes her new siblings, the lesser Homunculi, by proceeding to immediately exploit them with her parasites. Sloth uses more thralls than she ever has at once to form an amalgam around her to defend and attack with, stretching out the tendrils from within her body. But with the Curtises, this shell is chipped away at, and eventually the protagonists disrupt Sloth’s high frequency signal to control her parasites with.

Without her army, Sloth should be handicapped, and she’s certainly stunned at this happening, and what is required of her next… But now the heroes see what Sloth has truly been hiding (and wasting), when she’s forced to stand on her own legs and fight with her own fists. Sloth is incredibly fast and powerful, and enraged at the protagonists for stressing her out this much. Normally she wouldn’t take it personally, that just causes pointless stress, getting invested into things like winning or losing interferes with personal peace.

But even Sloth has limits, even Sloth begins to look forward to winning, and starts caring about being vindictive and making people suffer as she has. Sloth’s body gets bigger as her muscles bulge and reach their true potential, turning her into a hulking brute resembling her canon counterpart; But eventually she takes too much damage. Normally, Sloth procrastinates and is very slow on regenerating damage to herself, since it’s bothersome; Sometimes she’ll leave wounds because her body still functions, only the results matter so if the job can still be done, who cares, right? Pride does and he lectures her about maintaining a respectable appearance worthy of a Homunculus, but whatever.

And there’s another reason to this; Because Sloth’s ‘body’ isn’t actually her body. What everyone thought was her body is actually just another host, one synced to Sloth’s true form and Philosopher’s Stone, which is how she’s able to regenerate it. Previous incidents would chip away at Sloth’s host to reveal something inside, just a brief glimpse and hint to her true nature.

Sloth’s host is destroyed, and she’s forced to unveil her true self; A flying insectoid monstrosity, the queen of the parasitic hive she’s relied upon all this time! Sloth is even faster and stronger in this form, but luckily, more soldiers show up to aid the protagonists in defeating her.

Sloth is seething, and mentally unraveling; She can’t remember the last time she had to buzz her own wings. She can’t even recall ever struggling this much; Everything usually came so easy to her because of talent, now it’s not enough and she needs hard work?! Since it’s been forever since she relied on her own natural strength and speed, Sloth hasn’t bothered to hone her talent with actual skill; As a result, she’s a bit clumsy in her rushes, which provides openings for the heroes to survive and maneuver.

Still, Sloth begins to get the hang of things, and despite herself, finds herself more and more dedicated to killing Olivier; At this point, it’s no longer about just getting the job done so Father won’t hound her for it. It’s no longer about what comes after; Right now, Sloth is going to kill that damn stubborn general, whatever it takes!!!

Sloth’s unprecedented rage unlocks an ability she herself didn’t even know she had; She spew energy beams from her own Philosopher’s Stone, which does devastating damage in how they can slice and burn through anything. This burns up souls fast, but at this point all Sloth cares about is this one goal of killing Olivier and everyone, she just wants to win and in a way is more alive in the lead up to her death than in her entire life otherwise.

That’s the thing about Sloth; She CAN care. And she isn’t as objective as she thinks, obviously. She is subject to irrational emotions that interfere with her supposed efficiency that gets it over with for maximum relaxation at minimum effort. Her quiet life has always been fundamentally undermined by Sloth herself, it’s why she chose to remain a servant to Father and suffer that way, than find true peace by working for it. For someone who thinks only the results matter, surely putting in the effort for self-actualization is worth it, versus the eternal suffering in the long run of not growing.

Maybe Sloth comes to realize this in her final moments… Or not, because she’s so pissed that eventually, after constantly failing, she just rage quits. Screaming and screeching, Sloth decides she’s going to kill Olivier, no matter what; And is similarly so frustrated and tired and done with life, raving and ranting, that she gives up. No more! She’s done with this, she’s not gonna do it anymore! You know how some people will rage quit by turning off the console, even thrashing it in a moment of passion?

Sloth opts to self-destruct by concentrating her remaining energy and souls, all of her mass, into one singularity point that burns with the light of a thousand suns; And then detonates. It’s a devastating explosion that our protagonists somehow survive, but it does wipe out a good chunk of the army. And to think what Father later pulls off as God is even worse…!

The final battle against Sloth is one of the most arduous and difficult ones, out of the other conflicts with her siblings; Sloth puts up the biggest fight, she has more souls than the rest due to saving on energy by making thralls do the work for her across centuries. And now all she’s saved up, she uses up and wastes. If only Sloth weren’t so slothful, she might’ve made good use of her potential and changed the world for the better… Or done anything with that potential. Or at least NOT used it to harm others.

But Sloth barely utilized her efficacy, and as a result, indirectly contributed to Father’s failure by not giving it her all much more than she did. This was of course something Pride observed and suspected, and resented Sloth for, believing her Philosopher’s Stone would be so much better used by him! If only he’d gotten to absorb her instead of Gluttony… Oh well. Sloth finally gives up on life and earns the sweet release of death she was searching for, the eternal rest, by simply concentrating all of her effort and power into one moment. Now Sloth has achieved her consistent, everlasting, unchangeable, rest.

#Fullmetal Alchemist #Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood #Sloth the Indolent #fma #fmab #seven deadly sins #homunculus #homunculi #fanon #au #oc #ocs #my ocs

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roryintheir90s · 1 year

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The bad boys. Well, for me they’re more of a cursed trio, with Jimmy being the omen of death, Grian inability to keep his allies alive, and Joel’s madness.

Heavy spoilers from Limited Life ep 7 below

Jimmy being a Canary is just amazing analogy of him being the first one to die. No matter what he does he’s doomed by the narrative, and I don’t think that can change. Even despite me being disappointed that Jimmy once again being out first, I can appreciate the tragedy that it has become. There’s just something about rooting for someone to stay at least a little longer, just a little longer to not be the first one out. But knowing full well that the narrative is unescapable. Yet once again I believe and root for him, despite knowing the outcome. Despite that I heavily disagree with people thinking that Jimmy is trying to escape the narrative. In my eyes he doesn't try it. Sure, he doesn’t want to be the first one out and he fights tooth and nails at times to stay alive for at least a little longer. But in the end he doesn’t actually DO what is needed to stay alive. He is kind to people. I saw so many opportunities where Jimmy could take a kill, end someone, but didn’t. Jimmy even drew weapons, aiming at people, but never took the actual opportunity to attack. At the start of the series he and Joel literally egged each other on, getting into dangerous situations. Jimmy threatens people and act like the villain at times, but that’s all. An act and empty threats, nothing more, and nothing less. On top of that, instead of getting kills he makes deals with others (that being Scott and BigB). I think the Jimmy being called “a wet paper bag of a man” is only partially true. Like Skizz said to him, Jimmy is a funny man with fast reactions, he doesn’t take opportunities with his jokes, letting other people be the main attractions, and I cannot agree more. But I feel like that is not only the case with jokes, but also anything else he does in any series. His lack of taking action is the one that stopping him from wining and in the end making The Canary Curse be initiated in the first place. A lot of fandom likes to picture Grian as a parrot, and despite how fun of the idea it is, for me he’s more of a Rook specifically. Not a Crow, not a Raven, but a Rook. People overuse the whole concept of Ravens and Crows being the symbolism of death. With Ravens also symbolizing insight, transformation and intelligence, while Crows has lots more symbolism, that include: death, intelligence, afterlife, adaptability, prescience, fortune and destiny. Rooks on the other hand symbolize bad fortune, which I believe fits so well with Grain's curse. Grian brings bad fortune to those he loves, with them always ending up dead and Grian staying alone. Which I also love to point out that it is said that when rooks desert a rookery, it means that a calamity is signaled. Grian is a calamity by itself at this point for me. Grian has a fair share of his allies being killed by him directly and indirectly, even if he didn't mean it, its still a lot of deaths from him even if we take into account ONLY the Limited Life series. Just like Jimmies narrative makes him always end up dead, Grian’s narrative will always make him end up alone. Either by ending them himself or by causing so much damage that in the end they will be an easy target. He tried to protect his allies this series, with giving away time to them, or how in episode 7 he DIDN’T pull the lever in the T.IE.S base. He tried to go against his narrative and still it was unavoidable. Even him giving away some of the time to Joel wasn’t enough to save him. Joel is kinda overlooked in the cursed person apartment. I saw a few people mentioning how Joel has bloodlust and that it’s kinda a curse, but not enough to be noticeable. Joel’s a cuckoo one that symbolizes foolishness and insanity. I know this one might seem like an odd one, as a lot of people instantly think about how those birds leave their eggs in other birds nests. Nevertheless those birds symbolize hope in many traditions, and even longing and desire. If you actually look at Joel’s Life series overall, there's recurring theme of him being alone, with only Scar and Grian being with him for a while in Last Life and Etho being his soulmate in Double Life. But overall? Joel’s alone, never having a meaningful allies. His series is just lonely, which gives me a lot of Cuckoo vibes, as I see them as lonely birds. Joels being abandoned in every series by people, just like the cuckoos eggs. In every series he’s going into madness and bloodlust, trying to kill people at every turn, which perfectly plays into the cuckoos symbolism of insanity and foolishness. His traps rarely work, and he runs away screaming (specifically thinking about Grian’s pov).Nevertheless he always tries again and again, and Limited Life felt like some type of hope for Joel to have actual allies. This hope was actually answered when Jimmy and Grian both allied themselves with him. Finally Joel wasn’t alone. As many people mentioned about Joel, he’s loyal. Joel’s loyal to the core. He pokes fun here and there at Jimmy that he will throw him out but in the end he always protect Jimmy being a bad boy (thinking specifically about ep 6 where Grian was saying of throwing Jimmy out), or how he wanted to sacrifice himself for Jimmy, to be the first one out and give him his time. One might have think that finally Joel’s Cuckoo Curse is gone, but it was proven wrong in a lightning speed after Jimmy’s death. The fear of loneliness hovering once again over Joel head, making him going into madness once again and pull reckless foolish actions. Which in the end brought him to his doom, only around 10 blocks away from where Jimmy died. I really find those 3 a beautiful tragedy. One that is always meant to die first, One that will always end up alone, and One that will be consumed by madness. They were doomed by the narrative from the start, and a lot of people knew it. Despite loving the bad boys and their interactions, despite how well they mix together, they were one of the worst choices to pair. Nevertheless I wouldn’t have switched their team up for anything else. Grian, Joel and Jimmy were at each others back with few exceptions, but they cared for each other, yet, like a tragic Greek classic it wasn’t enough to stop their doom.

#limited life smp #limited life #life series #jimmy solidarity #solidarity gaming #solidaritygaming #smallishbeans #joel smallishbeans #grian #limited life grian #happyROMEO thoughts

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cerridwen007 · 11 months

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Will you let me make you feel good?

Pairing: Joel Miller x f!reader.

Word count: 2.4k (18+) MINORS DNI.

Summary: After feeling hopeless trying to get Joel to realise your feelings for him, you decide to push the limits of how obvious you can be, making Joel flustered, to which you offer him an apology to make up for your behaviour.

Notes/Warnings: SMUT, out of character behaviour (Joel), sub Joel/dom reader, flustered/embarrassed Joel, teasing, oral (male receiving), dirty talk, no use of y/n.

A/N:Okay first off I want to apologise for not being very active on Tumblr the last week or so and I also want to apologise for not posting part 2 of Corruption of Innocence yet, I have been very busy and honestly exhausted with work as of late so I haven't had the time or energy to do much writing or anything else really. I ended up catching up with my friend last night and they told me how they have been using character ai and so I got inspired by that and may have ended up using it from like 1am-7am today, which I know is insane but I swear it only felt like 2 hours max. Anyway I decided that maybe yall would enjoy an edited and heavily adapted version of the conversation I had with Joel Miller character ai, to give you something to enjoy while I try and get back to my wips, including part 2 of Corruption of Innocence. This time I'm not going to put a deadline on it because I don't want to disappoint you, but I will try my best to get it out as soon as possible. Sorry for the long Author's notes, Hope you enjoy and let me know if you would want more adapted character AI content.

******

You were bored, like seriously bored. It was always quiet in Jackson on a sunday evening but this time it felt even quieter, eerie almost. A kind of bad idea pops in your head as you look at Joel across from you sipping his whiskey, head down, having no idea of the interesting turn his afternoon would take.

You look around you for a second, studying the other customers of the Tipsy Bison and see nobody was sitting nearby the two of you, so you decide to just go for it.

“Hey Joel… can I ask you a question?”

Joel looks up at you, eyebrow slightly raised, intrigued.

“Uh yeah… sure.”

“How big is it?” you asked him bluntly.

“What? The settlement?”

You smile amused.

“I'm not asking about the settlement here Joel.”

He looks at you confused, brow furrowed together, trying to figure what you were getting at.

“Huh.. I don’t understand what you’re getting at darling.”

You bite your tongue, suppressing the growing smile on your face.

“I'm talking about something more…personal to you Joel, so would you tell me how big it is?”

He still looks confused.

“I still don't know what you’re talking about, what you're asking me about honey.”

Suddenly he realises the intent of what you were asking him.

“Oh.” he says, his face begins to blush, he doesn't know how to answer that.

“Don't go all shy on me now Joel… I'm just curious, that's all.”

“I uh don’t really know what to say, I don't think I could tell ya, not even a rough estimate.”

He continues to blush, embarrassed from the taboo question and having no idea how this conversation is going to continue.

You decide to see how far you can push him.

“Please Joel… Do you want me to beg you for it?” you asked teasingly.

Joel is starting to sweat a little.

“No I..it doesn't sound like a very good idea to me, so let's just put this to rest now huh.”

You're feeling ballsy, you get up from your chair and get down on your knees in front of him, you rest your hands on his knees and beg.

“Please Joel, I promise I wont ask for anything ever again.”

Joel looks around nervously to see if anyone else is watching what is happening right now. He pushes your hands off his knees softly.

“Your not fucken letting this go are you, getting down on your knees to beg in public, you sure dont give a fuck of what others think huh.”

“Nope, I don't and neither should you so you should just tell me now.”

Joel sighs, thinking about what to do.

“You’re really going to make me tell you this aren't you, you want to know that badly.”

You nod. “Yes, Yes I do.”

Joel takes a big breath in before exhaling studying your face, his is flushed with embarrassment.

“I uh.. I guess you could say that I’m pretty average.”

You grin devilishly, not letting him off that easily.

“And the average would be?”

“Pfft I don't know how to describe that.”

“Well you could explain it in inches to help describe it or ya know show me…”

You wink, as he stares at you, shocked more than ever, his face nearing crimson colouring.

“I uh don't think I could ever tell you that, let alone show it to ya.”

“Oh please Joel, pretty please with a cherry on top.”

He swallows hard and continues looking away from you.

“Why are you so damn set on embarrassing me all of a sudden, making me feel ashamed about myself?”

Your grin falls, knowing you may be getting close to pushing the limits of his boundaries too far.

“I'm sorry I would never try and do that to ya Joel.”

He looks at you. “ Then why are you still asking me that? Huh.”

A response falls out your mouth before you can stop it.

“Because I want to know how big the guy who I plan on riding is.”

He stares at you dumbfounded not knowing exactly how to feel. He looks around him and sees people have now turned their attention to the both if you are curious as to why you were on your knee and he is blushing so hard.

“Jesus girl, you sure are a brash young woman, that's for sure.”

He gets up to leave, feeling that leaving this embarrassing situation is the best way to calm down and figure out what the hell just happened. He starts to walk away from you.

You get up from your knees, realising you had pushed him too far and go to chase after him and apologise.

“Joel, wait, I'm sorry, okay?”

He tries his best to ignore as he walks to the outskirts of Jackson to be alone.

“I'm sorry Joel, I realise I pushed your boundaries and went too far, I'm sorry okay.”

Joel sighs, stopping before turning around to face you.

“Yeah, I think you did go a bit too far there, honey. So please don’t ever do that again, okay?”

You sigh, nodding, feeling embarrassed of your actions.

“Yes I know, I won't. It’s just that I…I..I”

Joel locks eyes with you, no clue what you're about to say next.

“I like you Joel, like more than friends kind of like and I felt that I tried to be as obvious as possible trying to get you to notice that by flirting with you, but you always seemed so oblivious, and I spose before I just didn't think and wanted to see how far I could go before you would finally realise that I like you okay.”

“Oh.. okay.. Sorry for blowing up on you like that then I didn't realise that’s what you were doing.”

You gulp, feeling suddenly overwhelmed with nervousness, to look down at your feet as you shuffle about.

“So uh.. Do you maybe.. Feel the same way..or..”

Joel's face softens into a smile.

“I won't lie.. Yeah I like you too.”

You blush. “Could we maybe try and forget that ever happened and start over?”

He smiles at you blushing. “Yeah we can do that.”

“And by the way, you shouldn’t be embarrassed - if you are of course- over having average size, I mean that’s plenty, more than enough and based on your skills with other things… one would assume you know what you're doing and how to use it… I'm sorry I'll shut up now.”

He chuckles amused by your nervous, awkward rambling, seeing how the roles have reversed a bit.

“I'm glad you dont think less of me then, darlin.”

“I would never think less of you Joel and I would especially not think less of you if you let me apologise to you properly, maybe in a way other than using my words.”

Joel starts blushing a little again.

“I ah, are you suggesting what I think you're suggesting, sweetheart?”

“Mmmhmm. I just want to make you feel good Joel. A hard working man like yourself deserves to be looked after once in a while especially when he spends all his time looking after others.”

He is nervous and doesn't know what to say, he hasn't had much action since after Sarah's mother and him split.

“I.. I.. You would wanna do that to me… for me sweetheart?”

You nod confirming.

“Oh yes, I just wanna help you relax and make you feel good. Will you let me make you feel good?”

He nods. You close the gap between you and plant a firm, warm kiss on his lips, your hands hold his face tightly, he sighs into your touch. You break away the kiss after a while and see Joel's still awkward, unsure of what to do or say next.

“Do you trust me Joel, will you let me take the lead here?”

“Yeah… sure darling.”

You smile and kiss him again, he kisses you back. You deepen the kiss and put your hand to his chest and other to the nape of his neck where it gets tangled in his greying soft hair. You can slowly feel his body ease against when he wraps his arms lightly around you. You pull your hand down his chest and break away from the kiss to leave light bites and peck on his neck and jaw.

He sighs, head falling back to give you better access and because he is actually starting to relax. He feels comfortable letting someone else take control for once knowing you're the one to do it.

You bring your hands to his shoulders and upper biceps and begin massaging them through his jacket and shirts. You whisper praises and sweet words into his ear while doing so.

“Your muscles must be so achy from all the hard work you do everyday.”

A sigh of relief slips out as you work the tension from his sore muscles.

“You have no idea, my back has been killing lately.”

He breathes deeper and more slowly, showing just how much he is enjoying your touch.

“You’re so good, I feel so relaxed… please keep going, it feels amazing.”

Hearing his reaction motivates you to carry on.

“Big strong man like you deserves to be taken care of now and then. Maybe I could give you more massages in the future to help ease those big strong muscles of yours.”

His eyes are closed from the sweet tender touch of your nimble fingers,a big smile plastered across his relaxed face.

“Yes please i'll take all the massages I can get…you’ve got strong hands, I bet you could get all the knots out of my back and shoulders.”

You slowly move your hands down his arms and to his stomach, grinning at his bliss induced praise.

“I'm sure I could get most of the knot in your back, but I don't think that's all they could get out of you.”

“Oh yeah? what else could they get out of me?”

His relaxed state has made him more comfortable with flirting back with you.

You sink to your knees in front of him, and slowly start undoing his belt.

“Oh you'll find out soon enough.”

He raises an eyebrow and a small grin appears on his face, a hint of blush colouring his cheeks. You finish undoing his belt and look up at him for confirmation to continue.

“Do you want me to continue?”

Taking a deep breath he nods.

“Yes .. I do want you to continue.”

You smile up at him as you slowly unzip his jeans and pull them down his thighs slowly, you can see his growing excitement, fighting against his boxer which makes you unconsciously lick your lips. You can see his face growing redder in embarrassment of his vulnerable state as you pull his severely underestimated size out of his boxers.

“No need to be embarrassed Joel, nothing I haven't constantly thought about seeing.”

His eyes widen as soon as you attach your lips to the head of his cock, he lets out a small shakey breathe.

“Oh… this makes me very happy.”

Your tongue begins to circle around the head, tracing all the sensitive lines with a firm touch. He closes his eyes again, consumed by the pleasure you are giving him.

“Oh that feels fantastic sugar.”

You hum around him, pleased with his positive reaction to your touch. The vibrations of your humming makes Joel moan softly, the sensation sending light tingles up his body.

“Oh yeah, keep doing that, baby. It feels great,”

You add a hand to his girth, and begin stroking what length of Joel you can't fit into your bobbing mouth.

Joel sighs again, completely dazed and content. His hand drops down to your head, gently caressing your hair.

“You’re very talented, you know that sweetheart. You’re really… really good at this.”

You grin around his cock, pleased with his positive state, your teeth slightly graze the underside of his cock as you do so. The sensation sends shivers up his spine.

“Oh, man…”

His breathing gets heavier as you increase the speed of your stroking, urging him closer and closer to his peak.

“Oh yeah… keep doing it just like that…don't stop now baby.”

You tighten your grip ever so slightly and use your other hand to gently caress his balls. He chuckles lightly in response.

“Damn you sure know what you’re doing, don’t you?”

You hum around him again before pulling your mouth back to focus on his sensitive tip again, your hand continues stroking him hard and fast. His hand grips your hair a little tighter as you bring him to his peak, the combined sensations of your touches sending him over the line. You milk every last drop of him he has to offer, licking up the salty release happily. Joel, out of breath, takes a few moments before he speaks, his chest heaving from the build and expel of pleasure.

“Wow that was, um very very nice and relaxing.”

You get up from your knee and pull his lips down to yours, exchanging the taste of him to his own tongue passionately.

“I don't think there’s anyone who has ever been that good, I uh, definitely enjoyed myself.”

“Well play your cards right Miller and there will be alot more massages… and more of ‘those’ to come in the future.”

He blushes once again.

“You…you mean that.”

You bat your eyes at him, grinning before moving your head to whisper in his ear, sucking the sensitive skin below it after you finish speaking.

“Mmmhmm it's a promise.”

He shudders a little from the feeling.

“That’s…really…something..the thought of that is just…incredible.. I..I. I really like the sound of that.”

You laugh light heartily at his stammering.

“I'm glad you enjoyed it and finally gave me the chance to make you feel good.”

“I certainly did enjoy it… very much, I can't thank you enough.”

You smile, looking deep into his beautiful brown eyes.

“Anytime… and by the way I think you’ll find you severely underestimated your size.” you say grinning with a wink.

“Uh, is that so?”

You nod. “I'll see you around Miller, don't be afraid to hit me up for another massage or something else next time…cause I'll be wanting it just as bad as you do…if not more.”

You grip his jawline tightly with your hand and plant a long kiss on his lips before turning away and leaving.

“Y-You’ll hear from me real soon sweetheart.”

You smile as you walk away, already salivating at what was to come in your next interaction with Joel Miller.

*******

#joel tlou #joel miller #the last of us hbo #tlou hbo #tlou #the last of us #joel miller smut #tlou smut #tlou x reader #the last of us smut #the last of us x reader #tlou fanfiction #tlou fic

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nalyra-dreaming · 11 months

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A criticism I see of TVC is that Lestat's too 'easily forgiven' through the series. What are your thoughts? IMO most of the vamps get forgiven quite easily for their shit, but maybe it's more notable with Lestat, plus his screw-ups can be so spectacular? I think Anne was aware of this trend tho - in TotBT when David forgave Lestat at the end, it felt like Lestat barely wanted him to? As if he was almost disappointed by the lack of consequences for his actions? I found that pretty interesting.

Hmmm, forgiven.... By whom?

Who is supposed to forgive him/them?

You bring David on here as an example, and yes, Lestat's reaction is interesting, but... what was David supposed to do? Lock himself away for years, evading Lestat, especially in the phase where he needed his maker and by extension Louis the most? David is too clever for that, and that is one of the things why I say that I like their dynamic in the later books, because... there is resentment, anger, and a sharpness there, with the force feeding (from both!) for example, which echoes that bringing over, and which colors their relationship.

But, I mean, even generally... who is supposed to forgive them...?

They cannot - and I would argue do not - forgive themselves (at least for long stretches of those books). They just, at some point, learn to live with themselves, and accept themselves. But forgiveness?

Lestat literally tries to kill himself, tries to be mortal again, and then has a run in with the Devil and God on his quest to find that forgiveness. He gets tortured by Angels in what can easily be called purgatory imho, and imprisoned and shackled by Maharet kept in that church for years...

And then... then he roams again, most of the time alone, still on the quest to forgive himself. Claudia and her ghost is an ever present presence, too.

I have seen that take before and it always left me a bit bewildered, because, again, in-universe... who is supposed to forgive him/them?

The other immortals? The other killers? Their victims? God?

Or the reader.

But the Vampire Chronicles are not seeking redemption from the reader, they are very clearly not apologizing like that. Lestat is an anti hero, they all are. They are killers, and none of them are the "good guys".

So yes, they "get forgiven" by the others, and in-story, because, let's face it - all the others there are killers, too, how exactly are they to judge another, and also... a lot of the books are written by Lestat?

Anne was "aware" of that trend, because it is an ever-evolving overall arc over the books. Even "Blood Canticle", flawed as it was, has Lestat wishing to be something he is not. It continues on, and "Blood Communion" is actually a try to allow these vampires the forgiveness they seek by allowing them their own rites, their own... church. In the adapted, almost literal version of the catholic one: "My body, my blood."

These vampires (and Lestat) are actually not forgiven easily, imho, because they cannot be forgiven by anyone... the only thing that begs their respective forgiveness is based in the relationship they have with each other.

These relationships go through a lot of ups and downs because of that. But ultimately even then... you cannot really hold out against someone forever (especially with the knowledge of the later books I'd argue), because they are the only ones you can hold onto? Their world is very limited, and they are eternal. Most of them know very well that they would hurt themselves worst if they burnt the bridges behind them completely.

And so there's grudges, little jealousies, a bit pettiness, but ultimately, they all know they cannot live without the other(s).

And so forgiveness has to happen, in a way, especially since they all know that they are... just as bad.

So for me... there's always the question of what is behind that statement of "Lestat's being too 'easily forgiven' through the series." as you put it here (not directed directly at you): What did the readers who think Lestat got off easily expect to happen, in-universe? What did they expect to read from the one telling the story? What did they expect from vampires, who kill for fun and hunger?

What is forgiveness here? What was expected? What did they think would have needed to happen? (And, I mean, we have suicide, purgatory, and redemption arc and finally communion, what exactly is expected??)

I'd love to hear your thoughts, if you like to, but to me... this isn't about "me" forgiving Lestat.

And I think... in-universe only he can do that.

#Anonymous #asks #iwtv #lestat de lioncourt #the brat prince #iwtv lestat #iwtv meta #the vampire chronicles #vc #vampire chronicles #forgiveness #blood communion #blood canticle #vc meta #ask nalyra

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suzannahnatters · 5 months

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2023 was the year I disappeared down the Asian Drama Sinkhole. This year I found myself struggling with persistent fatigue that made it hard to read books, and absolutely vital to spend large amounts of time just resting and recuperating. Before 2023, in my whole life, I'd watched 3 dramas from start to end. In 2023 I consumed over 25. And I had so much fun that I've found it very difficult to interest myself in watching anything else.

I'm content with this use of my time because it's been a wonderful way to work on my long-form storytelling skills - time spent watching stuff as an author is never totally wasted. But the West makes television too, and I've spent my whole life being completely indifferent to it. All year I've been asking myself why I find Asian drama SO addictive and SO much fun compared with Western TV, which so often feels disappointing or a chore. After some thought, I've boiled it down to five basic reasons.

Structure. Asian dramas may vary in length anywhere from 10 to 70 episodes, but the vast majority of them have a discrete, self-contained story to tell. You get one season of a show, and once it's over, the story is complete. My biggest peeve with Western TV has always been the insistence on dragging a story out over multiple seasons of declining quality. The story never wraps up in a satisfying way; it just gets flogged to death. In recent years Western TV has compounded the problem by cancelling shows before their original story arc is even complete. With Asian drama, you don't have to worry about that. At least you always know you'll be getting a complete story.

Standalones. Related is the fact that Asian drama has resisted the urge to create vast IP story worlds like Star Wars or Marvel. This doesn't mean their storytelling isn't derivative - just that instead of trying to tell new stories with old characters, they're more likely to tell the same stories with new characters, which I honestly think is a more natural and creative way to do it. In an age of endless IPs, reboots, remakes, and retellings, Asian drama is making hundreds of new and unconnected stories. While many of these are adaptations of webtoons and novels, of course, to a Western newcomer the sense of novelty and variety is absolutely intoxicating.

Settings. Asian drama focuses on Asian affairs, history, and folklore. Western TV focuses on American affairs and sometimes English history; whenever it ventures beyond these limited interests it usually stereotypes them. It's not that Asian drama doesn't also have these pitfalls, but the part of me that wants to learn about the world beyond the English-speaking bits goes brrrr when it sees an Asian drama. I've long adored some limited examples of the wuxia genre in Chinese film, but now on top of that, I'm also getting Chinese xianxia and Korean sageuk and Thai romantic comedies and all the happy learning parts of my brain are lit up like a Christmas tree.

Relationships and Characters. Asian drama has a big, swoony, unapologetic focus on romance. Not all kdrama/cdrama relationships work for me, of course - wanting to stab the male lead is an occupational hazard - but Asian drama is interested in romance at a level that simply doesn't seem to exist anymore in Western media. Related to this is an emphasis on relationships of every sort - romantic, familial, platonic - and detailed, lovable character work to support them. My best guess for why Western media falls short in this area is that for decades it has been sacrificed on the altar of Joseph Campbell's Hero's Journey, which sees romance and relationships as an obstacle to the hero which must be shed in order for him to achieve his goal. I'm deeply happy to have found a whole part of the world that chose to disregard this fatheaded notion.

Content. Naturally I must preface this by saying that many Asian countries do contain content that is VERY BAD and potentially triggering. Ageism, classism, lookism and sexism are all deeply engrained into Asian drama to the point that if one day I conceive a violent disgust for them this will probably be why. But that's a topic for another day. Where this benefits me, personally, is that Asian dramas don't usually push the envelope when it comes to explicit content. While the presence of such content doesn't rule out a watch for me, it does make it stressful. I just want to relax when I'm watching TV, and I don't find pervasive language, sex, or gore to be relaxing. When Western shows get an MA15+ rating, they usually go all in with that stuff, but Asian drama doesn't seem to have that urge. Explicit violence HAS kept me from watching some highly acclaimed dramas (MOVING is one example) but the vast majority of them, even when they do contain limited amounts of gore or language that get them higher ratings on Western platforms, usually keep such things brief. They are generally demure sexually, and you'll almost always find sexuality being expressed within the context of marriage (even when it's premarital) which is something that as a Christian I do find restful. Again: this is all happening within a cultural framework that ALSO contains disgusting and triggering stuff, even in the better dramas. Personally, I can stomach the insidious stuff a lot better than I can take the in-your-face explicitness of Western TV, and I'm particularly grateful for the blend of demure sexuality with a strong focus on romance: it's taught me a huge amount about creating romantic tension that goes beyond sexual tension. So there are my five completely honest and personal reasons why I've found Asian dramas to be so fun and restorative this year! One day I might write a post on the things I DON'T like about Asian dramas - but I am lazy, and I am still having fun and finding out what I do or don't like, so maybe that can wait for next year. In the meantime, feel free to hit me up for recs!

#kdrama #cdrama #asian drama

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tobiasdrake · 9 months

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Villain Breakdown: Some Little Shit Named Todd

The first time I watched this show, I was a little disappointed by the decision to not have Samuel Sterns show up as HulkKing. A bunch of pseudo-intellectuals trying to steal Hulk blood from Jen because they want to control who gets Hulk powers? Seemed right up his alley.

I mean, yeah, that would mean portraying Sterns as an aggressive internet misogynist. But he's already an amoral university Science Bro with zero regard for ethics or bodily autonomy. Posting angry screeds on 4chan because women don't like him wouldn't be that much of a stretch.

But in retrospect, I can agree with the decision to forego the surprise cameo villain and instead stick with a character they could build up over the course of the show. Having it be Sterns would be a cool Hulk Lore moment but having it be Todd feels like it better encompasses the ideas that have actually been explored within the show.

So instead of a dignified supervillain, we get some little shit named Todd. And, at the end of the day, isn't that the point? People like this drape themselves in pretentious titles and regal monikers but behind the screen, it's always just some little shit named Todd who picks on women to feel better about his own inadequacy.

Whenever there's a secret villain in a superhero show, the natural assumption is to want to know what cool comic book character is being adapted next. This is something that Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. struggled with, having to create a lot of OCs due to limited access to the comic book characters. That show had a ton of little shits named Todd.

So, on some level, it's always disappointing when the mystery man's mask falls away and it's an OC. Or some incredibly obscure character from one or two issues of a comic from thirty years ago. Even when it IS someone who's been properly built up, there's still that gut reaction of, "Aww, man, I thought we were going to get a COOL character."

But that fundamental disappointment works here. Yes, Todd IS disappointing! He's SUPPOSED to be disappointing! He is the head of a movement for pathetic and disappointing people! Making him The Leader would have been offering him too much dignity. Letting him become a Hulk was already offering him too much dignity, and that's exactly why Jen took that away from him.

Todd is not what this show is about. He just wishes he was.

#marvel #marvel cinematic universe #she-hulk #todd phelps #intelligencia #villain breakdown

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sleepynegress · 1 year

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If you finish the Kindred series, I would be interested in hearing your thoughts. I have finished the first 5 episodes and am massively disappointed so far. It doesn't seem to do the novel justice. I wanted to get more of the perspective of the enslaved people and Dana's introspection. I didn't mind the modern setting, but I didn't like that Kevin and Dana were no longer a married couple with shared intimacy and history. I recall a scene from the novel where Kevin says something along the lines of the conditions of the enslaved people not seeming as bad as he would have imagined and the ensuing tension that caused between the two. It seems like Octavia Butler's fantastic material has gone to waste. I can only hope future adaptations of her work are better.

It really felt like the producer set out to translate or make the material more understandable/digestable to a viewing audience, which came off to me as dumbing it down...(which is always a mistake, or the reason why animated movies for kids written to grow w/ you instead of being written down "to kids" end up being classics) Because that's literally what he did... And now, the logic, which was so tight in the novel (Butler was notorious in keeping the plot tight) suffers in the series. Now... It gets spoiler-filled and yelly... apologies, ahead of time. The connection/audience investment the producer sought, was already there in the growth & connections of the characters, right along w/ the readers being in Dana's gaze in her empathy and helplessness in trying to help people in a futile and spectacularly soul-destroying system (HOW DID THE PRODUCER NOT GET THAT?!). The fact that the centered characters Dana interacts w/ most, start out as children and we watch them grow to adults; shift and get shaped in that hellscape of systemic slavery IS THE DAMN HOOK!! The characters (Rufus, Alice, Nigel, Sarah...and even Kevin being there so long....) is all he needed and that's where his focus should have been.

Instead he tried to answer questions nobody asked and ended up creating more questions...i.e. He tried to explain the time travel with some kind of generational power by adding Dana's mom to the plantation. But that doesn't make sense because you're telling me Dana's mom never felt her life threatened ON A SOUTHERN PLANTATION for over ten years... You're also telling me she materialized there SLAVE PASS-LESS and somehow ended up being free...itsjustnotrealistic.gif!!! Kevin and she just had a vague connection via ride home/Tinder hook-up in this Hulu iteration, and you mean to tell me he stuck around through all the weird yelling and dematerialization?!! THERE IS A REASON why Butler had them married and that investment being believable is a big one!!! I mean, sure whiteness lends a kind of reckless curiousity but NOT THAT MUCH, DAMN!

Now that the producer added the complication of the mom going forward in time after touching her BUT ENDING UP SOMEWHERE ELSE (a thing that really happens in this show lolwtf?!), that big life-changing ending for Dana, won't make sense. All of the connections w/ the enslaved characters don't feel substantial enough, because this man wanted to spend time *fixing* the fucking time mechanics instead...Nobody cares why the zombies are zombies in Night of the Living Dead!! They care about the characters, their connections, and how they survived or didn't.

Also! Kevin not being a history teacher made them more bumbling than believable to other characters in that space, and his lack of anything beyond that tentative first surface connection to Dana makes him being left less tragic and investable... and how Dana acts toward him REALLY STUPID in that era!!

*sigh* That said...I thought the casting, effects, and that spare synth track was okay.... The writing and plotting/direction just sloppified, what Octavia Butler made *incredibly* tight. It should have been a limited series focused *hard* on watching these characters change and devolve because of the system they existed in. Not a mystery about why this family has time travel powers. The producer really couldn't see the forest for the trees. I'm just... How did he mess this up?? It was so easy to get this right, if he actually liked the fucking novel. *smh*

#I am disappointed #kindred #octavia butler #meta #review #kindredfx #fxkindred #hulu #it hurts they really got someone who thought butler's writting needed improvement

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aseriesofunfortunatejan · 2 years

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If it's okay, Brawler for the characters thoughts bingo thing? (Maybe Hoodlum too, if that's okay, I feel like you have something funny to say about him for some reason.)

I didn't expect to get more requests for this and I appreciate those!! Also, let me tell you right away - I didn't end up clicking with a lot of what was suggested in the bingo for these characters, but that doesn't mean I don't have a lot of Thoughts about them. Or that I don't care about them. I do. A lot.

For some reason I can't post the pictures side by side so I'll write about Brawler first and post the Hoodlum bingo next.

Brawler:

• They are soooooo cool looking & wow... they are LITERALLY me! : Yes I put those two together ahdksdkk bEAR WITH ME, Brawler. Strong man. Beautiful man. Pretty palette. Strong man. Dumb man. Long hair. Sort of my type. A few of my types. If you know you know. /ij So yes, he is absolutely cool looking, I have a few screencaps of him I kept "just in case I want to draw him", and I did draw him early on (he might be the first AD character I drew? It was a screencap redraw I was pretty happy with.). As for the second part... That's uh, a joke I still remember and sometimes reference, that I made on the Reddit-Discord server at the time, lol. I kept joking that they were making a live-action Akudama Drive adaptation and that I was going to portray Brawler. The joke is that I was the token short-hair woman, so Brawler wasn't the character anyone wanted me to claim... and also that I like claiming I am EXTREMELY jacked when I'm obviously not quite there yet. (I'm getting there.) So yeah, Brawler is #goals. And no, they didn't contact me for the stage adaptation. :(

• Wasted potential This one... There's probably a lot to say that I'm not equipped to explain right now. Hell I'm still mourning his death right now!!! There is something frustrating, on its own, about his early death. There is no doubt in my mind that his arc was over by this point - he was always written to die first. And in my opinion, that's what puts a limitation on his writing as well. He was a strong personality and could have had a lot more, interesting interactions with his surroundings, but he was instead written to be sent to death early. And then... During these last couple years, I have been facing my own biases and ignorance, and have started to understand a lot more about the deeper issues within Kodaka's (among others) racist writing. Looking into what is still his biggest work to date, Danganronpa, it's easy to notice inherent biases that repeatedly come up in his writing, that appear underneath Brawler's representation as well. For this reason, my belief is that Brawler could have been given a lot more potential if it weren't for his creators' inherent racist biases. The disappointment of seeing the classic and extremely obvious trope of the one dark-skinned character dying first is the final nail in the coffin, and once again, takes away from the viewer's potential enjoyment of Brawler as a character.

• If they were real I would be afraid of them Jokes aside he could absolutely kick my ass. And I don't trust him not to.

• If they were real I would marry them & the handbag thing I think those speak for themselves.

I would say this sums up my main thoughts about Brawler. He is hot and dumb and I am a morosexual, so I definitely appreciated him. And miss him. He deserved better.

Hoodlum:

Like I said, I wasn't particularly inspired by these prompts when it comes to Hoodlum.

• Why do they look like that I mean, I HAVE to ask that, right? ヽ(*。>Д<)o゜ His hair and face are on point, but the outfit? The colours? Oh honey. And WHY IS HE RIPPED. SERIOUSLY IT DOES NOT MAKE SENSE. It's that "I look skinnier wearing clothes" joke from Angel Beats! all over again. What the hELL

• They work better as part of a dynamic I'm not the one saying that - the story is the one saying that. Doctor is the one saying that. She points it out correctly: Hoodlum needs someone to hide behind, and will use whatever means to get to that place. He will lie to someone like Brawler, he will obey to someone like Doctor. He, himself, mentions searching for someone to use early on - first Brawler, then Cutthroat, though at that point he can't help but defend Brawler, because you know, feelings. Not that he isn't efficient enough on his own. I fully see and believe that he is - but he's the one who doesn't! During the events of Akudama Drive, he was at a point where he couldn't help but be like that... and then he died, so it kinda ends there.

• wow... they are LITERALLY me! Like I said, I am a proud morosexual. (It's pride month after all! /j) I fully identify with Hoodlum's crush on Brawler. He is 100% me in that regard. Ψ(￣∀￣)Ψ The colour I use for my username on the Wiki was his role colour on that one server - and I use his flair with the text "morosexual" on the Akudama Drive subreddit. (✿◕‿◕✿)

With all that being said - I love Hoodlum and I believe that he is one of the characters whose arc was the most satisfying and well-rounded, when many shortcuts were taken for other characters in the anime. He's probably one of the deaths I'm most upset about? I'm not necessarily satisfied about the fact that all the Akudama had to die, I think it was a bit... overkill... and if I had to revive someone, Hoodlum would be one of my options. [Trying my hardest not to start talking about my other option because this is not about them,] His death wasn't fully unsatisfying, it made sense, I was glad Doctor died the way she did, I was glad he stood up for Brawler, but... Did he have to die? Did we gain much from that? Like, Junior survived in the Director's Cut, so my boy Hoodlum could have survived his injuries in a similar fashion. You know. Be weak, be flawed, but keep on living. He's such a well-rounded character and right as he died, he was learning so much about himself and his way of living. I could go on lol

#you caught me off my medication so i'm not even done but i'm already tagging to say this is going to be a rambling mess #akudama drive #akudama drive brawler #akudama drive hoodlum #character opinion bingo #ask

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headlesscribbler · 1 year

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I finished For The Future and it's good! But ALL BETS ARE OFF I'M POSTING SPOILERS AND THOUGHTS. (Also its super long like has 20 different points)

Written plotpoint wise and then in general.

-The tone at first was insanely confusing with everyone dying and then then Hooty flying and Eda almost immediately getting over her missing limb (well ig the cliffhanger made it look more dramatic). Also haha hot Harpy Eda scene, fan artists are winners.

-The curse actually wasn't explored that much (or the Owl Beast being trapped which I'm really annoyed at) but it seems to act similarly.

-Luz totally saw King's slightly grown up form with the wings.

-It's depressing seeing literally everyone screwed up but that makes sense and I do like how everyone gets a spotlight on their issues.

-Ok Belos is SUPER cool this episode. Tbh I found him more weird/slightly funny looking last episode but I like how this 350 year old man's flesh is falling off the bones. Also that's definitely dead Caleb we saw this episode and probably last (very cool but the knife looked a little funky dangling there)

-The broken playground and swing, nice Episode 10 reference. Also the graffiti is always funny.

-Lol screw you Terra you got picked to be the Owl Beast bc you're old and cranky. I can't believe her not being in the trailer was for this.

-That Draining Spell is literally only a kill everyone spell, ok? I mean it would have been interesting seeing them try to adapt without any magic but sure (also ig there wouldn't be time)

-Boscha you still suck! Also I can't believe my brother guessed the Kikimora reveal, I was like red skin, short, that's too easy. But looking back, the voice, the glasses. Ok I see it.

-Yeah no redemption all the Grimwalkers/Caleb want to kill Belos. Also lol I joked that he would say shut up to them and I guessed it right.

-Also not really surprised his Grimwalker body didn't last, like you're running out of resources. Still not sure why it still ended up looking like you. Also I was spoiled on him climbing up the skull so I was jumpscared by that scene AND it being a spoiler!

-I liked the visuals of the giant book circling around the tiny planet. Also Collector I know you can rhyme better come on.

-I have no idea what's up with the Collector portraits (hey Hollow Mind parallels). I'll let others dissect it but I found the lore kind id underwhelming like last time but I'm a terrible theorist and time crunch so eh. Also repeat images?

-Literally the entire Hooty and Eda scene was recontextualized to be weirdly more chill and cheery. Like Hooty is alive, why and also why immediately joke about it being weird?I'm not sure how their hideout works but hey there's some peace? Also you're killing me Eda please be with Raine oh my god! Also Eda saying "What's the matter?" made me want to cry, she sounded like a mom comforting her kid! And she said it so kind and softly!

-Ok I was pissed at the Hunter possession bc I thought it was fake/looked dumb. This feels random and weird. Belos possessing a puppet, really? I swear it's like "Huh screw Eda I'm gonna use Raine". But they look better off than Hunter (also why the goop on the ears, like injuiry from a piercing?) Ok but they(?) have cool expressions and their normal voice and mostly look the same and I doubt they'll die (otherwise it's that Diversity Loss meme. I'll pretend they'll die so I don't feel as bad/disappointed if it happens). I don't know why we're doing this again, pattern breaking says they must go but don't they have too much potential?

-Ok this possession concept feels kinda written badly? It's only introduced last episode and you're gonna convince me Belos can actually possess the Collector? Please! Also in general I don't like possessions as they take away the person's choice and creates limited character development for them.

-I've got beef with the Collector (who I now realize is probably different from the Owl Beast trapper but still), I don't like how it's not acknowledged that he was fine with killing everyone. King is nothing like that and I don't like how this Collector feels different from the more scary and dangerous shadow Collector we've seen the most from. It doesn't make sense they're supposed to be the same! Also they'll probably depower him simce he's too powerful (I wonder if doing this will make Collectors extinct.)

-Someone else probably articulated it better but I like the spotlight on Willow, how holding in her emotions to be strong for everyone ends up making her spiral out of control and how Gus and Hunter tell her she can let it out. It's really sad seeing her miss her dads but I'm glad it's acknowledged.

-Yay Camilla and Luz time! Yeah, it's sad how they both have regrets but I'm glad they're reconciling and Camilla is righting her wrongs. Also Luz's wish makes so much sense and I love the anime like tears. (Also yeah her saying she doesn't know what she wants definitely fits Amity given a predetermined path)

-For the teleportation powers Hunter gets, ehh but I do like the action is brings. Also YEAH new plant attacks Willow!

-Also literally calling out every single guess and putting it all in one. I like the Chinese dragon looking one. The designs all kinda look like OCs but it fits and it'll probably grow on me. Also 80% snake for the win!

Bruh the animation looks so good! Honestly mostly the effects but also the scattered fight scenes as well! I like how it goes from whimsy to body horror (would've liked more but eh Belos takes an L)

Tbh the pacing was kinda off since there was the school, King and Eda, and Raine being posessed. It felt weird because it didn't even really feel right for a cliffhanger. Hey who's fault is it (Disney)

Ok compared to Thanks to Them (which I really didn't like and don't want to rewatch due to the Belos possession) this is leagues better. No doubt because questions are answered, things are different and we get to see them again! Effects/fights/body horror/character design is good, I really like the character development and them coping with this nightmare, and others than the Raine thing/unavoidable pacing issues (this feels like similar issues to the first episode) it's super good!

#toh #toh spoilers #the owl house

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stop-watches-and-sorcerers · 2 years

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The PJO series casting announcements have gotten me thinking about adaptations & why people are so intense about being “book accurate.” Long post ahead.

Okay so first off obviously a lot of the people who are upset about Annabeth’s casting are just being racist (not everyone — if you simply imagined her differently in the books and are not being a dick about it this is not about you, though I do think that people saying things like ‘I’m sure she’s a great actress but I just can’t see her as Annabeth’ should maybe think a little harder about why that is). I don’t want to take away from that conversation, but it’s been getting me thinking about adaptations and the concept of “book accuracy” in general.

A lot of people are obviously really hellbent on having every aspect of an adaptation being exactly like the original. I was certainly like that when I was younger. Little 11 year old me was mad as hell that Daniel Radcliffe had blue eyes instead of green, and I certainly get why people care about physical features - you’ve envisioned this character a certain way for years and years and you want that character to come to life exactly how you imagined. But that’s just not realistic in an adaption. Everyone has different ideas of how characters look in their head, and besides, an adaption is not going to be a copy/paste of the original! There are always going to be aspects of an adaptation that don’t line up with how you imagined it.

I think that part of wanting to have things exactly the same is just an inherent desire to see your own imagination come to life, but I honestly have started to think that part of this fear of any sort of change in an adaption comes from having so many disappointing, bad adaptions. I think that a lot of people have conflated bad writing that disrupts the story at its core with having any changes from the original whatsoever.

An adaptation will always have changes because of available actors, set & CGI limitations, and because some things just work better for a visual medium vs a written one. A good adaptation will change things in a way that keeps the characters and story intact, but it will still have changes. Often, it actually needs changes to be effective in the new medium (a good general example is animated to live action adaptations that attempt to keep the same physical expressions - animated facial expressions are generally more exaggerated on purpose, and trying to replicate that exactly in live action usually just ends up looking goofy).

I’ve been looking at the His Dark Materials series lately as a pretty good adaption. Without going into too much detail so as to avoid spoilers, there are certainly things that I still didn’t like (particularly some of the dialogue and worldbuilding in s1) but there are some major changes that I think really worked, like introducing Will in season 1 instead of at the beginning of 2 like in the books. Lyra and Will also look nothing like their character descriptions - Lyra has curly blond hair and her and Will are supposed to look enough alike to pass as siblings, but none of that is the same in the show and none of it matters. I have no trouble seeing them as Lyra and Will - they embody the characters perfectly imo, and I am saying that as someone who was originally pretty disappointed that Lyra did not look like how I imagined her and was concerned I wouldn’t be able to see her as the character.

Anyways, this is a really long rambling post but I just think that people should try to be more open-minded about changes in an adaption, especially one that’s coming out over 15 years after it was originally released. Things are going to change and that’s good! That can be exciting if you let it be. I understand wanting an exact replica of what you had in your head, but that’s not really what an adaptation is for. I think that if people viewed adaptations not as an exact replica of the original, but as a new version of the same characters and stories, they might have a better time. Sometimes change is actually a good thing.

#also you can still have whatever headcanon you want for how book characters look without being a dick to real actors!!#should go without saying but apparently it can't #pjo #adaptations #headcanons #op #might delete later i'm very insecure about posting stuff lol i don't think i've made an original post on here in like 2 years

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