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oneatlatime · 6 months

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Bitter Work

Life took me out at the knees for a couple of weeks but I'm back! I'm hoping this is a nice restful episode after the relentlessness of The Chase.

I have to say, Toph's nicknaming skills are on point. I never would have thought of Sugarqueen, but it fits perfectly.

This is me. Every morning.

Full nose plant from Appa.

And the beat up Sokka quota is fulfilled. Very funny Toph, but completely uncalled for. If someone had catapulted teenage me 50 feet into the air while I was trying to sleep, it would have been fully justifiable homicide.

Aang is always trying to run before he can walk. What was Iroh always saying to Zuko about basics? Aang needs that speech too.

I was really on the ball in my post about how airbenders aren't homicidal, actually. Rock is a stubborn element. Yay me!

Aang earthbends = Earth bends Aang.

Seriously, how did he mess up that badly?

Cozy.

Thank you Zuko for the incredibly obvious exposition that's somehow completely in character. Interesting to see that Iroh and his son had brown hair, but Zuko seems to have black hair. More hair variety in the Fire Nation than I thought.

Tangent time! I love the contrast in social intelligence (I guess that's the term?) in this scene. Zuko wakes Iroh up with an infodump, some bad tea, and then gets straight to discussing strategy. Iroh's first actions are to compliment the bad tea, then dispose of the refill in a way that won't hurt Zuko's feelings (probably not necessary, as Zuko seems to be the type that's oblivious to all things other than the task at hand when he's focused). Iroh, injured and awake for all of 15 seconds, jumps straight to actions that help look after his nephew. And Zuko is trying! That's why he made tea! But still, he doesn't even ask if his uncle's feeling ok. Zuko has such a massive gap in his education - he can probably reel off the specs of all Fire Nation battleships, but he doesn't know how to be a human person. Contrast that with Iroh, and especially Katara, who makes friends and connections with such aggressive forwardness that she's at times more steamroller than teenage girl. It's funny how privilege plays into this too - Zuko comes from probably the single most privileged (on paper) family in the world, yet it's the children of the impoverished water tribe who have the more well-rounded education/socialisation.

"She's crazy and she needs to go down" go a full belly laugh out of me.

"What if I came at the boulder from a different angle?" Jesus I was REALLY on point with my post about the airbenders. Credit where credit is due, this show has such good writing/worldbuilding that viewers have picked up what Toph is laying out in this episode already. Also a little bit of stealth character work in there - since Toph is putting into words what we've been thinking this whole time, she now reads as trustworthy. This show is so good. So thought out.

Maybe it's just VLC being weird, but methinks Katara is having some trouble with her eyeball.

Katara STOP BABYING HIM. This is why I don't like Aang having a crush on her.

Honestly it's refreshing to have Toph giving it to Aang straight, no softening the blows.

I really like this texture.

Sokka's club is a giant bottle opener. Or at least a multitool.

ROCK SUITS

wait

ELEMENTAL FASHION

oh this is going to be haybending all over again.

They are totally going to have to nerf this girl. She could defeat the Fire Lord right now.

Earth beats water tribe

Someome who knows more about tea than I do: Why are both pots necessary?

"requires peace of mind" well that's out. Sorry Zuko, we'll have to get you a taser instead.

"So we're drinking tea to calm down?" "not it's to get the nasty ass taste of the sludge you brewed out of my mouth. I mean yes." For what's looking like an extended training montage, this episode is far funnier than it needs to be.

I pretty much don't notice Zuko's scar anymore (it's just part of his character design) then every so often a certain frame of animation will come out of the blue and remind me that this kid's missing half his face. I don't know if it's intentional on the part of the animators, but his scar is prominent this episode.

So it sounds like bending lightning actually corresponds with how lightning in our world works. Neat.

In an absolutely Shocking turn of events (pun absolutely intended), Zuko fucks it up. Fucking shit up: the autobiography of a Fire Prince. Has a nice ring to it.

Toph I know you go hard, but maybe apply a sense of proportion to this?

It kind of looks like Aang's about to be run over by a giant scoop of caramel ice cream.

Toph is such an interesting mishmash of bluntness and emotional intelligence. I don't think I've seen a character like that before.

Zuko being self aware for once! Everything always does explode in his face. Except when he's being the Blue Spirit. Seems he's more capable then.

It's a tragedy that this boy wasn't around for the emo movement. He would have single-handedly sustained Hot Topic.

Zuko going "WHAT TURMOIL?!?!?" is like Katara going "I'M COMPLETELY CALM!!!!!" last episode. Also got a laugh out of me.

"I'm as proud as ever." OF WHAT?!?!? What could he possibly be proud of? He's a homeless fugitive with a stolen horse bird and a half-dead uncle that he can't even properly brew tea for. The self-delusion is strong.

Is pride the source of shame? Honest question, I don't know.

There's a surprising variety of trees in this part of the Earth Kingdom. Where Zuko and Iroh are there are fluffly hardwoods, probably deciduous; Toph's training ground is ringed by cartoon pines.

This whole bit is too cute for words.

"Now come back boomerang" This is a training episode, it's not supposed to be this funny!

Are there voice acting awards? Like voice acting oscars? Sokka's actor needs one. Or several.

I should have waited to answer the ask about airbenders and just copy pasted Iroh's speech here. Except for the water = change bit. That doesn't make sense.

What can I possibly say about Iroh's speech? It's the thesis for this show in a single paragraph.

Pretty.

Are characters' eyes a different shape this episode? Aang's eyes change colour all the time, but everyone's eyes seem more cat-like.

I do love me some constructive bullying.

Sokka is so refreshingly self-aware while still totally oblivious. He is meat and sarcasm, but he's so much more!

"Have you got any meat?" He said that in an Irish accent.

"You're gonna pull my fingers off and I don't think the rest of me is coming!" Do you ever come across a sentence that is so obviously an innuendo that your brain trips over itself trying to decipher it?

Sokka's hair must be so fluffy. It's got so much volume.

Why can't he go get Toph? I think being stuck in a hole outranks avoiding an awkward encounter.

FOO FOO CUDDLYPOOPS

"You must not let the lightning pass through your heart, or the damage could be deadly." Foreshadowing?

Today in 'things Zuko thinks it's acceptable, nay, expected, for parental figures to do' - attempted murder as a teaching method! What went on in that palace?

Is this the closest Sokka's come to dying?

He's earthbending the air! Doing air but earthlike. You know what I mean.

I thought she was levitating.

Toph is so smart. She does the airbender thing and comes at the problem from a different angle. Telling Aang to stand up for himself doesn't work? Fine. Let's bully him into standing up for himself. And it works!

This episode's MVP is Sokka's patience.

"You tried the positive reinforcement, didn't you?" uhhhhh sure!

Appa getting vengeance for Sokka. Nice.

Theatre kids.

I wish Zuko would just have the breakdown he's obviously hurtling towards so we can get started on the rebuilding arc. Every time I think he's a rock bottom, he keeps digging.

Luten is Katara. Let's not read too far into that one.

Final Thoughts

I defy any episode from this point on to fulfill the Beat Up Sokka Quota as thoroughly as this one did.

In a lesser show, the 'Aang learns earthbending episode' would have had Aang & Toph as the A-plot, and Sokka & Katara doing something completely unrelated as a b-plot, and probably no Zuko at all. Sokka does have his own thing going on this episode, but the fact that they managed to weave in both water tribe siblings so organically is so satisfying. Of course a team member struggling to learn a new skill would seek out his friends. Of course his friends are in the area, observing the lesson to varying degrees. It feels so much more real to have the characters who aren't 'useful' that episode still there, rather than conveniently absent.

Zuko was very Zuko this episode. He's correct that he needs more training for his inevitable next encounter with Zuko jr., but Iroh is also correct that Zuko is a bundle of issues held together by a different bundle of issues. Not to jinx it, but I thought I detected a hint of self-awareness from Zuko this episode, although it seems to have occurred despite his best efforts to suppress it.

Iroh's Zuko-wrangling skills were sharp this episode, despite being injured. And his wisdom was off the charts. Zuko was also not as annoying as I usually find him, and unlike in Zuko Alone where I found his quieter self to be out of character, it fit this episode. Maybe he's turned over a new, quieter, leaf? I loved "she's crazy and she needs to go down" both as a joke and as a statement. Shared blood doesn't trump someone's actions, and I'm glad to see a show meant for kids acknowledge that. Although, given that this show has no problem depicting objectively BAD parents and families, I can't say I'm surprised.

In a testament to Jack de Sena's skill, Sokka get a soliloquy this episode and pulls it off flawlessly. Kudos to the animation team for making Sokka's face fit the words so well. Double kudos for whoever had the balls to approve 'stick Sokka in a hole and put an apex predator on his head to force self-reflection' as a plotline.

There was a lot of exposition from a lot of different characters this episode, but it's mostly unnoticeable. It just makes sense that that's what they would be talking about at that point in time.

I think I said it above, but I'll say it again: the worldbuilding in this show is phenomenally well done. How do I know this? Because I was able to construct most of Iroh's monologue before watching this episode, just by paying attention. This show rewards focus and attentiveness. (Almost) nothing that Iroh said was not something the audience has already observed for themselves. Not heard, but observed. That 'show, don't tell' thing.

This episode was way funnier than it needed to be too. Not just the obvious stuff like *inhales*

FOO FOO CUDDLYPOOPS

but tiny one-liners buried mid-conversation and character interactions too. Momo turning into a reed didn't have to be there, but it was, and it was funny. It wasn't exactly restful, but it was a relief to have an episode that really didn't move around after The Chase.

What I like most about this episode was that it went farther than it had to. This was a training episode. It could have been just training. Anyone familiar with training episodes would expect just training, and be satisfied with just training. But Avatar said 'nope, we'll do better than that' and organically incorporated a heap of character stuff, worldbuilding from multiple perspectives, humour, multiple characters undergoing self-reflection, the next step in the domestication of Zuko, what I'm hoping wasn't a heap of foreshadowing, and pretty backgrounds as the cherry on top. They didn't have to go so hard, but Avatar always goes hard. I like that.

#atla #avatar: the last airbender #avatar the last airbender #bitter work

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blinkpen · 4 months

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nother lil life update!

appointment with housing admin lady got rescheduled to tuesday, but that's not too big a deal since that is the soonest day they could officially open up that apartment for me anyway, so if the answer was going to be yes, rescheduling when i get the yes to said day, doesn't delay the move-in, except by like, maybe, one more additional day of just. going back to get/move my stuff? so i am Unbothered and maintain the same level of cautious optimism leaned optimism as before

and again my stress level is way lower now knowing there is likely a light at the end of the tunnel (hell that a tunnel even EXISTS now) and mom is, at least for now, sobered by the intervention of other adults for whom going

"ummmmm but the very existence of trans identity is a personal attack against me and my beliefs bc i believe their existence is blasphemous they stole the rainbow from christians and desecrated the noah's arc story that's why i'm so mean to [not my fucking pronoun] whenever anything remotely close to the topic of gender comes up, asking nicely to so mach as -gag noises- humor they/them is a deliberate attack on me first, and forcing the queer agenda on me, so i get to attack back with full venom unloaded and vote in favor of making queer peoples' lives more difficult if not impossible, so like, i'm the victim actually? [not my fucking pronoun] needs to stop being so entitled and unholy and learn to deal with Different Opinions and stop Undermining me"

will not fucking fly and she can't make inflict Power Word: Guilt Trip to make them crumple away the way she does to me to instantly win and make the argument stop so she is now not pushing buttons and keeping her toxicity to herself methinks bc "ah fuck, an actually benevolent authority figure nobody in town would question is looking at how much my grown but wingclipped and disabled child's mental and now physical health has deteriorated to life-threateningly poor levels and looking in my direction while Knowing details i cannot possibly spin in my favor to outside observers; the only people who'd swoop in to take my side would only make me look worse by association, though i'll probably still refuse to think about The Implications of that, so i will Be Mask On now about it if nothing else"

like she got a stark fucking reminder i think of the fact she is a mean person who publicly boasts about being mean because she thinks its funny and also equates being smart with being cynical and therefore if you're aggressively cynical you're automatically smarter than whoever you are talking to or about, and is the kind of person who literally owns a "leftist tears" coffee mug, while claiming herself a Good christian just because she didn't kick me out for being queer like the Bad christians do, but like, she can still give me shit for being queer as much as she likes and if i stand up for myself i'm an ungrateful little bitch, those are her Vibes,

and being that way, makes it hard to defend yourself as totally innocent of any wrongdoing and victim-blame someone most people in town know, by contrast, as "the borderline mute Always a Hoodie n Headphones kid who spends a lot of time just wandering around town for the heck of it and seems a bit touched in the head/lost in their own little world, but is unfailingly friendly if you do try to talk to them for whatever reason, and will sincerely ask if they could be of any assistance to anyone who enters their cone of vision who seems to be in a pickle" once they start developing what seems like a wasting illness and an aura of hopelessness they didn't have before and finally show up at the hospital looking like they're about to drop dead from what is clearly several months of physiological stress and self-neglect and they don't even have their meds handy because you locked their disabled ass out in retaliation for leaving for one single night because you wouldn't stop screaming at them about how their gender thing is blasphemous and [checks notes] eavesdropping in on them while they shower to make sure not even their anguished crying and muttering to themself even in there isn't saying anything you don't like??? what the f-

even the crusty old farmer i know who i guess probably would go "not sure i like that but whatever" about transness otherwise enters "now what makes you think that makes [not my pronoun but i forgive bc its not done Maliciously] less of a person, what makes you think that's okay" mode over that

lol, said the frog, as a human hand scoops it out of the water just in time, and places it on a nice log where it may recover from the sting, while pointing to the sinking scorpion suggesting they go to therapy instead of stinging everyone around them and going "but i'm a scorpion so that means i am not responsible for my actions and nobody is allowed to expect better of me" lmao,

okay that went from a life update to me venting a bit? but. i eared that i think, it helps keep my grounded, hoenstly.

anyway we gotta send my doc a fruit basket or somn

#cw for discussions of transphobia and all that

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troutfur · 9 months

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Okay weird question but I always love finding out: what are your favorite non Canon and weird ships?

Gay Jayfeather ships are some of my favs because he reads to me as bisexual for no particular reason, but pairing him with another guy almost always runs on thin evidence at best or just pure yarn spun from thin air. Kestrelflight, Berrynose, or Foxleap specifically would all have an interesting dynamic with him, methinks. Contrasting tempers in similar yet different ways.

With Kestrel it's a naive and very sweet guy that is just determined to befriend the prickly and aggressive one and slowly coaxes the niceness into the surface. With Berry it's all about Jay keeping him around because he's funny-annoying to him, so while it has to be in small doses he enjoys the companionship. And with Foxleap it's about him bringing a more playful side in Jayf that also gets annoying in too large a dose but in moderation serves to keep him grounded.

I'm also a sucker for polyam dynamics, which is why I made it default within my lore reworks. Lionblaze/Honeyfern/Berrynose, Goldenflower/Tigerclaw/Frostfur/Lionheart, and Hollyleaf/Willowshine/Kestrelflight/Jayfeather are favs.

#warrior cats #wc #warrior cats au #jayfeather #kestrelflight #berrynose #foxleap #lionblaze #honeyfern #goldenflower #tigerclaw #tigerstar #frostfur #lionheart #hollyleaf #willowshine

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rhodeys · 3 years

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✨ COLORING GIFS FOR RAINBOW SETS ✨

hello!! so this ask had just been sitting in my inbox for days, and since i finally got some free time (and an incentive) i thought i’d put together a general coloring tutorial - especially for those who are interested in rainbow sets, or just want to get freaky with their gifs, hehe.

photoshop: cc 2021, but tbh this tutorial is compatible with most versions of photoshop for: beginners / anyone with a basic understanding of adjustment layers and brush tool (optional)

the tutorial will show how you can: (1) enhance colors in a neutral/washed out scene (2) change the overall color of a shot (3) make the colors bolder/stronger (4) convert the dominant color to another color

in other words: i rarely save my psds so this is what we’re stuck with

usually, when i’m making a color set, the first thing i do is open the hues/saturation layer and pull the saturation to a 100. this gives me a pretty good idea of the colour palette i can work with. and since this shot is more on the dark side, i brightened the gif a bit, and then moved saturation to a 100. this is what i get:

now that i know the dominant colour is yellow, i can drag the saturation back to 0 and start working on the actual coloring! i go to curves, and brighten the gif a little. most of the time, the white and black points (the first and the third inkdropper) does wonders in color correcting your gif. buut, marking the white point of for this gif would remove what little yellow we have, so i just did a manual adjustment until i was happy with the result.

(since he’s a poc, i used a brush tool at 35% capacity over his face on the curves layer mask. it’s soft, and barely noticeable, but it stopped him from looking lighter, which would become a problem once we move on to the vibrance layers. basically, the lighter the subject, the more susceptible it is to being affected by color enhancing layers.)

next, i go to the yellow hue/saturation option, and increase yellow saturation to 50. i usually don’t do this much, but the yellows are very very light in this scene, so we’re enhancing the colors wherever we can. i also lowered the intensity of the reds using these settings:

the reason i’m reducing red saturation is because - remember the dominant color on his face was red/yellow? - i don’t want my vibrance layers to end up reddening his skin too much. we already tackled a portion of this when we used the brush tool with curves, but this just ensures that the final product doesn’t have his skin looking too yellowy/funny, hehe. this is my gif after the saturation settings:

honestly, the difference is minimal, but now we have an actual color to work with. now it’s just a matter of enhancing that color. at this point, his skin may also look washed out, but the color will return once we get started with the vibrance/color layers.

now, i open the vibrance layer, and - this is always dependent on the gif, btw - drag the sliders around until the colors are bolder. this is my gif now:

the yellows are much more evident now, and there’s a bit more color in his face - so yay! at this stage there’s really no need for selective coloring - so i’ll just add a brightness layer and another vibrance layer:

and voila!! mans lookin good

changing the overall color of the gif is a fairly easy process. i think one thing to look out for is if there are people/a lot of skin that would end up being affected by the coloring – unless there’s minimal movement that you can use a brush tool for.

loki is more or less a silhouette in this shot, and all i’d need to do would be increase the contrast between him and the fog, and slap on a color. this can be done one of three ways: selective coloring, color balance, and gradient map. i’ll be using selective coloring here because i felt that worked best and it’s also an adjustment layer i’m most comfortable with.

enhancing the contrast comes first, and since the brightness/contrast layer didn’t work as well as i’d hoped, i opened up the exposure layer and put in these settings:

and i get this:

now that loki is much more prominent against the fog, we can move on to the coloring. since i want it to be pink, i’m gonna open the neutral selective coloring, and use these settings:

just make sure your selective coloring is on “absolute” because it colors your gif independent of the original gif and makes your colors more strong, whereas ‘relative’ colors your gif relative to the original gif – which doesn’t work all that well for color sets. (read: makes it look ugly)

i got the color, but methinks its still a little too dull, so i’ll add a brightness/contrast layer to make the color pop

and done!!

animation gifs are much more easier to color because the colours are easily isolated, which is just chefs kiss when you use selective coloring. for this one, i just want to enhance the blues / reds, and remove the magenta tone so that the colours are more vivid. first, i increase the contrast:

it’s sharpened the colors a bit, and reduced the dullness:

now, because i want to enhance the blues/reds, and reduce the magenta, i’m going to use these settings in my selective coloring layer:

i didn’t want to make the red too bright, since red has an annoying tendency to pixelate, and lowered the magentas just enough so that the three of them still have a bit of color on their face. now the blues:

now that that’s done, all we need is to brighten up the gif. i’ll use curves for this:

i selected my white point (the white inkdropper) from the white part on baymax’s face (which i just realized makes no sense bc his entire face is white) which immediately brightened up the gif and erased the excess magenta.

if you want, you could still make it brighter by selecting your white point a little towards the shadows in baymax’s face - but methinks this gif looks fine by itself ehehe

this one will be fairly easy - especially for a shot like this where it’s just blues and black - and will only require selective color and some brightness layers. so, i want to make this a violet gif. the very first thing i’ll do is open up selective coloring and enhance the blues:

idk if this is a thing others do djsajskl i feel like they do, but i do this because i’ve always found it easier to do color convert when the colors are enhanced - so, the more enhanced my blues are, the easier it is to convert to violet. this is what i have now:

now it’s time for violet!!! yee!!!

i increased the magenta in the whites because the highlights in the cloud were looking VERY white, and would end up looking very weird once i increased brightness. so this is just for…. consistency

now we can get on with brightening!! i open up the brightness/contrast layer and use these settings:

and another curves layer, where i’ve intense-ified the dark parts (the grey slider is at input: 27) and lightened the rest (the white slider is at input: 220)

(i just feel like it makes the coloring look crispy)

and tada!!!

i hope this helped! i’m still in the learning process when it comes to coloring, but if you have any questions/clarifications, please don’t hesitate to reach out!

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joshuas · 2 years

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you are one of my fave blogs! so i like to send random asks to my fave blogs sometimes. if you have a chance out of your mutuals/friends do you see as seventeen members or who do you see best suited for each member? you don’t have to reply to this! it’s very random!

hi anon!! <3 thank you so much for the compliment hehe and i'm really sorry for the late reply </3

these are who is best suited for my mutuals!

@leech4ns x lee chan: i mean it's pretty obvious - she biases him but that isn't the point. sol has a very, very loving and caring personality but i could totally see her teasing chan (affectionately) from time to time all the while just being a complete simp for him. also... chanwife <3 other than that, i just think their personalities work well together and that they'd pretty much be an it couple, thank you v much <3

@seungcy x mingyu: lucy is super chaotic whjkhdjksdjn and mingyu is just the type of guy who would be able to handle her level of chaos (which we love obvi). he'd kinda be the peaceful one like idk the otp trope that's like "chaotic w a soft spot" = lucy and the "normal and peace-maker" = mingyu. mingyu's also got a really flirty personality and i just think it'd be really cute how flustered he'd be able to make her <3

@hannietonin x jeonghan: they just make sense. in an ideal world, they’d embody the trope of e2l in a lawyer au bc <3 jeonghana <3 also their personalities just would work well together - jeonghan would “annoy” hana and she’d get brainrot but be a tsundere wbk she likes him and he knows it too. she’s also the only person i could see being able to handle his personality lol hewjfhdjk and his bull <3

@ohoshi x hoshi: not to be cliche and list everyone w their biases but.... IDK i think cora’s just v welcoming of chaos and w her taurus alignments and hoshi’s gemini alignments, they’d work v well together <3 they’d be a chaotic duo but they’d also just be a very fun duo and i love that for them <3 idk it just makes sense :)

@woozi x jihoon: at this point i’m just putting people w their biases but there’s honestly a reason why they bias them bc i feel like they just work well together <3 as for yza, she’s really talented and has a similar work ethic to woozi who is also incredibly talented so i feel like their personalities would work quite well together. just an it couple imo <3

@kimsmingyu x dk: YOU GUYS JUST HAVE SIMILAR VIBES WHJEHEJ you’re both super fun to be around and lich rally would have so much fun and cause so much chaos together that it’d just be a crime to not match you w dk <3 funnyman chaos duo couple methinks <3

@soonhoonsol x vernon: you guys would just work really well together <3 i think you’re both quite chill but also driven and v v talented so you would just be that super cool and v well fitted together duo hehe <3

@000png x jun: i just think you two have a v similar vibe and that spontaneous sense of humour. also v friendly and v well loved by your friends <3 you’re just very personable which is contrast to jun’s shyness but that’s what makes you two work so well :)

@koishua x minghao: to me, you both give me v aesthetic and calm vibes <3 i don’t know you very well yet but imo you’re both trendsetters hehe and very level-headed and can come off as intimidating but really soft and funny once you get to know you both, which is why i think you guys would work really well <3

@husbandhoshi x joshua: i think we all expected this ngl HJHEHJKEHHW but you’re both really domestic and super kind with a little bit of a chaotic streak (him... moreso). but i just think you guys would be a really cute and sweet duo who sometimes make fun of each other affectionately wjhejdhsjs but it’s super cute anyway <3

@januarystars x wonwoo: i don’t think any explanation is necessary bc i’ve told you about this lots but you’d be a quiet but really sweet duo <3

@h6ngs x seungkwan: okay but i just think you guys would be so much fun ngl. you’re both funny and quite personable and i just think that would make you so iconic and hilarious <333

@decembermoonskz x seungcheol: it may just be the fact that he reminds me of chan but <3333 i just think it Works <3

#sorry for taking so long #also i'm sorry for forgetting people / not including i am running on like four hours of sleep at this point whjwewhjk #asks <3 #anon #tag #also thank you for being so kind with your ask - there have been asks for tag games like this where they haven't been phrased the best </3

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sokkastyles · 3 years

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I was talking about this to my cousin, and I feel like there's this misconception in fandom (especially for this who don't ship) that zuko and katara yell at each other a lot even as friends. Post TSR, I can't think of a single moment where either of them have lost their temper at the other?

Yeah, honestly, when people say that all they would do is yell at each other I just have to laugh because that’s literally the opposite of what we see of them on screen.

I mean, we’ve seen them argue, but never without any reason, and they actually manage to work it out in a healthy way and their relationship becomes stronger as a result. And that’s actually a sign of a healthy couple. If you’re afraid to disagree with your significant other or you can’t resolve fights in a healthy way then that isn’t a good thing. Obviously you don’t want to argue all the time, but no relationship is going to be always without conflict. The key is in whether you’re able to resolve it, and I’d argue that Zuko and Katara actually provide one of the best examples of that.

And the anti discourse around this annoys me in particular for two reasons. One, people insist that a strong female character has to be tempered, and because Katara is a character who does get angry and lose her temper and feels things very strongly, people feel like she needs a man to hold her back. Which she does not.

As for Zuko, because he’s an abuse victim people act like he’s too damaged to have a healthy relationship and he would just not be able to control himself emotionally, which is also false because he had like, a whole arc of learning to control his temper and changing himself and getting rid of toxic behaviors. Like, that happened in the show.

The one scene I can think of after “The Southern Raiders” where Zuko loses his temper at Katara is in “The Ember Island Players.”

This kinda turned into a meta about that episode so whoops.

Zuko complains about his portrayal in the play and Katara teases him, and he shouts at her but it’s without any of the volatile nature of some of the ways he took his anger out on others before.

He doesn’t seem like he’s really angry at her, and look at her face. Look at how much fun she’s having! Katara, the girl who worried about being seen as too serious. Look at how natural she is with him. It comes across more as good-natured ribbing (dare I say...flirting?) on both their ends, even though both of them are upset about their portrayals. Katara isn’t fazed by his dramatic reaction and he’s immediately forced to eat his words. Which I think is an important aspect of Zuko’s arc of learning to control his temper and realizing that he doesn’t need to take everything personally. He’s forced to live with his own embarrassment, which fits with the theme of learning humility. We’ve seen him do the same thing several times after joining the gaang, where he initially gets angry but then makes a conscious effort not to overreact. Which isn’t always easy, but he’s trying.

And part of it is also that he feels safe with her, despite his long face. He knows that she’s not really being mean. Katara can be mean even to people she loves, but she’s transparent with her emotions.

Contrast that with the way Zuko was with Mai, who he could never figure out. Mai always encouraged Zuko not to show his emotions and he predictably exploded because he was feeling things and he didn’t know what she was feeling or what she wanted from him.

This episode is actually another really good example of how well Zuko and Katara do get along and are able to resolve conflict even in a situation where both of them are upset and dealing with their own individual issues. Even though she made fun of him for it before, Katara is empathetic when she realizes what is really behind his anger, which is that he misses Iroh and feels guilty about the way he treated him.

And it shows how well she knows him. She knows that he can sometimes do hurtful things that he regrets later, but she also knows that he loves Iroh. She knows this because this mirrors her relationship with Zuko. I mean, the relationships literally echo each other in this episode. She’s been in Iroh’s position, he hurt her and then sought her forgiveness (and she was also there when he betrayed Iroh. She is in a position both to understand and know that his regret is sincere and to reassure him that he can get Iroh’s forgiveness, as she also forgave him. That’s why she’s the one to comfort him outside Iroh’s tent a few episodes later.

It’s also kinda funny that they are so close in this scene because the scene right before this one is the zutara crystal caves parody. They go from moving away from each other, embarrassed at the idea of being a couple, to very close in a matter of minutes. The lady doth protest too much, methinks.

This is also right after Aang walks out in a huff, because of the whole stage zutara thing. Like? I wasn’t supposed to ship them here?

Aang and Katara argue this entire episode, and when Katara tries to comfort him about his anger at his portrayal in the play, he takes it out on her.

Katara: Relax, Aang. They're not accurate portrayals. It's not like I'm a preachy crybaby who can't resist giving overemotional speeches about hope all the time. [Everyone looks at her.] What?

Aang: [Turns around and sits down. Sarcastically.] Yeah, that's not you at all.

I remember having a really visceral bad reaction to the way Katara is treated in this episode that I couldn’t really articulate, and at the time I didn’t realize how much it had to do with shipping because I had no idea what the fandom was like when I was watching the show. I described it to a friend as Katara being treated like “the girl” of the group. Even though there are two other girls present, Toph is one of the boys, and Suki is in an established relationship with Sokka so she’s not a threat. But Katara is Aang’s love interest, and their relationship status is uncertain, so she’s treated like a source of conflict for Aang. I was able to pick up on this even though I didn’t feel particularly negatively towards the Kataang relationship at the time, but in hindsight this treatment of Katara is so tied with Kataang that it’s hard to avoid negative associations with the ship itself.

Katara spends a lot of time this episode trying to comfort Aang, who spends most of the episode angry at her for things she didn’t do and can’t help. She also has to deal with seeing a version of herself onscreen that is racist and misogynistic, but who is there to comfort her? Aang, Sokka, and Zuko all get upset about their portrayals, and are allowed to vent and be comforted, but Katara is punished for it and then told that she is like that, and mocked. She has to comfort Zuko, too, but at least she gets to mock him as well and give him a little bit of what she has to put up with. And he’s not the one who yells at her while she’s trying to comfort him, that would be Aang.

If this episode was supposed to be anti zutara and pro kataang, it certainly did a poor job indeed. Even in this scene where they all look at her and fall silent when she says she’s not a sappy crybaby, and it’s supposed to be a joke because “haha, women are irrational, amirite?,” and then Aang responds sarcastically, the blocking clearly places Aang and Katara in opposition to each other, with Aang facing away from her and Zuko between them and the closest person in the group to Katara. The intent was obviously to make the audience worry for Aang that Katara won’t reciprocate, but it actually makes Katara and Zuko look like the more appealing relationship if you are looking at it from Katara’s perspective.

And then Katara and Zuko spend the rest of the finale getting closer while Katara and Aang argue and then wordlessly play kissy face in the last two seconds of the show.

#zuko #katara #zutara #anti kataang #anti maiko #ember island players

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throne-of-games · 5 years

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Thoughts on 8x04

Ah, shit here we go

Sansa crying over Theon’s body, giving him the direwolf pin, I AM CRYING

I also really liked that we got a shot of Jon watching Sansa mourn Theon

My thoughts when I first saw Ghost in this order: BABY BOY! Christ couldn’t someone have washed him a bit at least

Okay is it just me or did Jon’s speech sound so hecking odd?! Like not even the speech itself but the way he was talking? Was it just Kit with early onset laryngitis or does Jon just really hate giving public speeches? (If it’s the latter, can’t really fault you there, cause I’m right there with ya buddy.)

I think the way they did the burning of the pyre scene was nice, each character sending off the person they had a connection with i.e Sam and Edd, Jon and Lyanna, Arya and Beric

So looks like Dany has started a bit of a PR campaign with the legitimization of Gendry and I have to admit, she’s on the right track here. Making it a public spectacle, starting off with the whole you’re dad sucks and tried to kill me spiel before finishing with but I’m making you a lord because I’m the queen and I can.

And I absolutely love that they have Sansa understanding exactly what just went on there because if anyone knows how to play the game it’s my baby girl

I thought it was kind of funny how they kept showing Dany sulking in the corner during the feast

“I don’t really want anymore.” Lmfao jesus Bran, you need to take your whole weird cousin at the family gathering you avoid because he’s continually talking about how time is a social construct and nothing is real and you’re all I just asked you to pass the peas can you not aesthetic down a notch

Omg Tormund forcing Jon to drink and saNSA PLAYFULLY ENCOURAGING HIM WAS THE MOST PRECIOUS GD THING IN THIS WHOLE EPISODE AND YOU CAN QUOTE ME ON THAT

I highkey liked that Arya didn’t really give two shits about being at the feast because it’s just so her to not want any praise for what she did and I just—I love her.

Oh my GOD the jealous Sansa in this episode was way too gd real and as soon as she walks out Jon looks after her and this is just prime fic material right here

This Jaime/Brienne/Tyrion/Pod drinking game scene was real cute and funny up until that virgin quip then it was just cringe as hell. CRINGE I TELL YOU!

I thought it was interesting to see Dany’s reaction to the love Jon receives from the northmen and how later on she pretty much says she’s never not been adored by her people before and it’s a really tough pill for her to swallow. Whether you’re a Dany fan or not, it’s easy to see how very out of place she is in the North and in Winterfell. It’s not a strike against her, it’s just a basic fact that she doesn’t belong there while Jon very much does belong in the North and I think this scene did a terrific job of highlighting all of this.

And then we get this ominous shot of Varys side-eyeing Dany while she side-eyes Tyrion and Jaime as well as Jon enjoying the feast with his people until she seemingly can’t take it anymore and promptly leaves the feast. I almost feel bad for her. Almost.

Lmao Tormund crying over Brienne. Funny, but once again: the horse is dead guys, time to quit beating it!

Okay so I was actually enjoying this Sansa and Sandor scene until he fucking brought up what Ramsey did to her like that and now I really want to reach into my fucking screen and strangle him.

The look on Sansa’s face when he says she’s changed is honestly heartbreaking. It’s like in that moment she fully realizes exactly how much she’s been forced to change and all the trauma she’s gone through and just how fucking cruel the world turned out to be and I just—I need a minute.

Ah, Gendry and Arya. First off—Damn, boy didn’t wasted any time did he? His eagerness was cute but it felt a bit cheesy to me. As for Arya’s response, I think it makes total sense for her to answer the way she did. She might love him or what have you but since season one she’s always wanted to be a lady warrior and not someone’s wife which is valid as fuck. She’s right, it isn’t her. It doesn’t mean they’ll never cross paths again or that they don’t love each other. Arya’s basically just the Westerosi version of a modern millennial woman.

Jaime and Brienne—You sound quite jealous!! I’m not a huge shipper of it but I think it’s cute and honestly it’s funny to see people who actually claimed they were strictly platonic (sorry wut?) eating their words but the whole thing was a little awkward. But maybe it was meant to be considering it was Brienne’s first time

We can, I’ve just told you how. Jesus, Dany was a bit manic this whole scene but that line and the absolute drain of emotion we see on her face? Uh oh.

Sansa says hey maybe we should let the soldiers rest a little before jumping right back into another war, Dany somehow hears betrayal in that, goes to KL anyways and loses majorly. When will people learn to listen to the Queen in the North?

Not really digging that look Jon gave Sansa. I guess you could interpret it as Jon knowing Dany doesn’t like Sansa and he wants to keep her from harm at Dany’s hand so he’s trying to get her to keep a lid on it around the lady with crazy eyes and dragons or something, I have no idea. With that being said, D&D can have season 7-8 Jon. I will only be keeping season 1-6 Jon. Thank you.

Lmao did anyone else notice Jon moves the dragon chip to where he’s going and Greyworm moves it away?! Funny as well as dubious.

That look Sansa shoots Brienne when Tyrion mentions Jaime...she knows her friend just got some good good

I absolutely love that it’s Arya telling Jon all the hard truths. We don’t trust your queen. She’s not one of us.

We didn’t get to see the reactions of Sansa and Arya finding out about Jon’s parentage. Disappointed but not surprised. Although I liked that they showed the contrast between Sansa and Arya reassuring Jon of his Starkness and Dany rejecting him as the last of her Targaryen family because of his claim.

The old Sandor/Arya team is back together and you know what? I aint mad. I wish Arya would have told her siblings she was leaving again though but it makes sense why she didn’t. I headcanon her and Sansa had a really emotional goodbye scene wherein Arya leaves her with a dagger and gives her a quick lesson on how best to use it and Sansa makes Arya a beautiful Stark cloak so she can have a piece of home with her where ever she goes.

Here comes all the Sansa betrayed Jon and told Tyrion!! posts. If that’s what you’re going to claim then you best drag not only Jon for telling Sansa and Arya but Dany for asking Jon to keep a secret like that from his family in the first place.

Sansa not wanting Jon to go south and getting defensive when Tyrion implies that Jon wouldn’t stay in Winterfell is everything. She loves him so much. Ugh. Someone help.

“You’re afraid of her.” Sansa hitting the nail on the head, per usual.

The ghost scene. We’re not gonna talk about it. WHERE’S THE REAL JON?! WHERE IS HE?!

Tyrion is sure trying to push this good queen Dany narrative. Methinks the lady doth protest too much.

Later, Rhaegal. It was nice knowing you. (Not really so much though.)

Lmfao Euron’s smile was the creepiest/most unintentionally funny thing I’ve ever seen. AKA me reading all the leaks earlier.

Jesus, Dany has like eleven men left, no ships, and is now one dragon less. Should have listened to Sansa and held off for a bit, maybe?

Varys tells Dany she’s making a huge mistake and is putting thousands of innocent lives at risk. Her response? This is my destiny, I will serve it no matter the costs. Am I surprised? Not a bit. Will the antis find a way to justify even this? You bet.

Have you considered the best ruler might be someone who doesn’t want to rule? Why yes Varys, yes I have!

They’re not getting married Tyrion, drop it already. Jeez, you’re worse than the antis.

Poor Brienne. She’s reassuring him that he’s good, that he’s worthy of honor and redemption and although it’s something he’s been chasing after for a while now he ultimately chooses to reject the idea that he’s deserving of it. My eyes are all wet now.

Lmao Tyrion and Qyburn. You surrender! No, you surrender!

Oh, Missandei. I knew it was coming but that didn’t make it any easier to watch. And Greyworm’s reaction was fucking brutal. Christ.

Overall? This episode was bad. Like unquestionably bad. Like wow, I thought the last episode sucked but I guess D&D are eager to outdo themselves. I stand by my claim that the showrunners are flying through this season because they just want to wash their hands of the show already and uh, I mean I can’t really say I’m surprised.

#sfw #jonsa #jon x sansa #game of thrones #got spoilers #sansa stark #bran stark #arya stark #jon snow #brienne of tarth #jaime lannister #tyrion lannister #anti daenerys

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somedaynotsoon · 7 years

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Eehehee, you're darned good at this! Now I've gotta find another one...let's go with Meloetta. ^^

Meloetta has two forms, both of which are equal in quality.

I don’t know the names of the both of them, so partways because I think it’s funny I’m going to refer to them by color and by no other designation.

Meloetta’s non-red form has a dress style of an opera singer, complete with showing off a ton of one leg but not the other. It invites climbing on the part of one in small enough of a stature that climbing is a) possible b) very difficult because of how gigantic the leg is in comparison. The climb should, obviously, be made more difficult by slow, deliberate dance steps, which shake the mountain. One would suppose that once the ascent is successful, climbing along the inside of Melo’s dress would be easier, rather than staying on the outside and risking being flung off. Seems correct to assume that the song pokemon would be gentle towards the small and helpless, and probably not hold a grudge.

Compare and contrast Meloetta’s non-green form, which sports a dress best described as “covering nothing.” Thankfully, Melo either doesn’t have parts or is wearing some killer nylons. If the latter, methinks that upon discovery entrapment at the bottom of a foot within them is a distinct possibility. Plus, she’s got a show to get back to. I’m sure it’s a sign of affection to be danced on by the more active and wild of the two forms.

Edit 4/23 “The T-shirt edit” - Meloetta is too stylish for tees, but sweaters? That’s super fair game. Melo’s obvious favorite sweater for both of its forms would have to be one of the ones which show off skin. Keyhole, or backless. Catch her in those, and you’ll have a more...distinct time, when you’re climbing up to get attention, shall we say.

#meloetta #pokemon #dom/sub #playful domination #feet #body exploration #clothing entrapment #playful #asks #strawbunny-slime #g/t #g/t writing #giant/tiny #unaware

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dorotheian · 6 years

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So finally I can put my own two cents in on what I saw in Last of the Jedi.

I understand why people would be put out by it. IMO, it’s between a rock and a hard place: multiple perspectives, not enough time—barely enough to round it all out at the end (I kept wondering when the endpoint was going to be), and relying on a thematic/mythic approach that slides over certain cause-and-effect holes. But since when has a Star Wars movie not relied on all the dominoes being lined up just so? And is simultaneously trying to show what happens when the dominoes aren’t stacked neatly? It’s taken almost too far. I’m just gonna accept that the timescales were VERY generously stretched.

Poe’s and Finn’s sides of the conflict were comparatively—perhaps equally—weak. Rey carries the movie; but she’s not even doing that much until the end. Poe and Finn are much more active. Rey has the luxury of time and contemplation which they do not have: they, like the Resistance, are moving in “real time,” getting messy, making mistakes, living on a wind and a prayer and the conviction that if they follow their inner compass, it will all turn out right.

The heroes are contrasted with their leadership. Rey/Luke, Kylo/Snoke, Finn & Poe vs. Leia and Harlo; and right up at the end, it’s Hux/Kylo (Hux is doing his best to knock out Kylo—to be continued). ALL of these leaders are deeply flawed, and I think the movie was attempting to explore those flaws. The flaws of too much experience, and too little; of long service, and temporary roles; of not recognizing one’s place, and struggling to impose an unnatural chain of leadership and command (Harlo and Hux).

In Leia’s and Harlo’s cases... *sigh* Yup, they held onto that idiot ball. Leia’s displeasure should have focused more on taking away Poe’s command (if that plot point had to be there to begin with) than a stupid face-slap. If it is in character, a face-slap reveals Leia’s weakness as a commander in using such a crude and despotic crutch. Then Harlo was abrupt, condescending, and overly secretive. There was no need for her to hide her own plans except for extra drama in the late reveal. Admitting in private that she likes that hot-shot pilot in no way makes up for unnecessarily abrading him in public. Whether Poe is ranked as a soldier or not, Harlo made the mistake of treating Poe like a soldier when he is a fully actualized, free-thinking leader. It cost valuable time. It was a rookie mistake; she stepped in to an interim temporary role and held the reins too tightly. I sympathize, because temporary authority is a deuce to handle, but it in no way excuses her. Nor do I think Poe did right in undermining her; but he was making decisions in real time to save the Resistance. (Interesting parallel in Star Trek Discovery, btw.) I don’t like Harlo’s interpretation of Leia’s favorite saying: there’s no need to manufacture ignorance to spur creativity and faith. Creativity thrives on the facts. Faith does not rise on command. It can be encouraged as a culture but not manipulated or demanded in a battle. Leia, meanwhile, seems to have mellowed in her wisdom: she has grown cautious and withdraws her support too early. Nevertheless (in private) she trusts in and relies upon her fully grown, free-thinking pilots to make their own decisions. (Leia. Leia. Come on now. Show some class. You can’t have it both ways.)

Finn’s arc is plain messy. A cantina, again? OK, it’s a high-class one, we’ll call it a casino. WHATEVERRRRRR. How easy it is to hate decadent rich people; they’re dismissible stock villains. It was too convenient, too chancy. Why couldn’t we have gone to the Star Wars equivalent of Wall Street?!! That’s my main huff. I think Finn and Rose as characters were okay. I don’t like that Finn gets pre-emptively attacked so early in both TFA and TLJ. I wish Rose and Finn could have met a different way. Given in-universe reasons, I do understand Rose’s attack because Finn was acting twitchy and evasive, she’s apparently found other deserters, she’s a good soldier, etc.: she’s no dummy and she did the genre-savvy thing. It’s just genre-savvy to the wrong story. Finn, meanwhile, is canonically terrible at explaining why he’s doing what he’s doing—his first instinct is to make excuses and hide his real intentions (he probably learned that for survival on the Death Star, let’s be real) even if those intentions are good and sympathetic. He just assumes that nobody will listen to him right off. So I don’t blame Rose; I blame the writer who put Rose and Finn in that awkward situation. Rose doesn’t taser Finn because he’s black per se, but she is a bit quick to the punch, and that’s the problematic part. Real black people do get killed because they aren’t afforded the benefit of the doubt. In-universe, if she didn’t taser him right quick, she’s obviously a slacker at her job; if she does, she’s a racist bitch. There’s no good outcome to that situation. Oh, another thing I noticed: Finn doesn’t have time to enjoy himself at the cantina, but Rose can take all the time she wants rescuing the alien steeds? *rolls eyes* Yeah, knock that off. Spare me. It wasn’t funny. It looks bad. I will be disappointed if Finn/Rose is chosen as endgame over Finn/Rey. Fandom is of course free to do and enjoy almost whatever it likes, but I think that making that choice in canon would be cowardly.

Poe bought time. He didn’t have a mission to complete. Finn bought time, and did complete his mission. In terms of story impact, Finn has more. Both are equally mixed up in enjoyment and sensibility of plot. Are their plots racist? *takes a deep breath* Yes, kind of. In a “white women wield power recklessly” sort of way, and in a “white woman author wrote some insensitive situations” kind of way.

Now, onto Rey and Kylo. Despite my wishes, they got center stage. To my surprise...I’m okay with what they did with it. I think the directers put enough bait for Kylo and Rey to exist as a dark ship... perhaps unfortunately... buuuuuuut! I still think Kylo/Rey isn’t romantic. Rey is way more fond of Poe or Finn than she is of Kylo. (Personally, I like Kylo’s face, but I did not really need to see him topless? Not a sexy torso? It was plainly framed and barely romantically coded. Methinks it was restrained for a reason.) I like the argument that this movie is about Rey willingly becoming the bridge for Kylo to get out of the abusive hole he’s stuck in: not immediately, but someday. She sticks with her boundaries, and she respects the shaky place where Kylo stands. Rey will not throw herself or the galaxy away for Kylo. Rey will not give Kylo a free pass for his beliefs and choices. The ball is in Kylo’s park. He must see that empire is not the answer to peace for himself before there is any more cooperation. They have reached détente.

Luke carried on in his way like a grand old grizzled idiot. Kylo’s backstory reminds me more of Jason from the Jedi Academy books than anything. Be that as it may... I grasp in concept why Luke fell to the extent he did: he had a serious crisis of temptation and intent. But emotionally speaking, it’s a lot harder to accept. Why was he of all people susceptible to that temptation? I have only two plausible explanations. 1) Time, age, and possibly an inappropriate station for him—teaching seemed right, but it probably wasn’t really his thing for one reason or another; 2) he trusted the Jedi way and its biases too much, and misunderstood Force presentiments, partially incurring his own tragedy. (Kylo was set up, but he still made his own choices.) He trusted the Force more than he did his own knowledge of the people around him. And even acknowledging that on some level, Luke’s still susceptible to those prejudices! Look, if the Dark and Light are part of the same continuum like you say, why’d you freak out about Rey’s and Kylo’s being naturally drawn to the dark? Plain hypocrisy and superstition make Luke unable to keep a level head. Between them both, Rey and Kylo have a better grasp of the proper place of presentiments than either Luke or the Jedi Council ever did. Rey and Kylo both saw a future biased by their own perspectives. But, knowing the possibilities, they carefully acted on a new present independent of both their visions on a foundation of trust in one another. Both were right, but not completely so—and as it should be.

But I am glad Luke died the way he did; letting Kylo make his choice and rage and do his worst, but by also taking the consequences out of his hands. He made sure Kylo grasped the depths of his own brokennness, and kept Kylo from sullying his hands again. Luke chose to die like Obi-wan chose to die—in confrontation with their past, and falling not on their apprentices’ lightsabers, but at peace with themselves and the Force. It is not precisely self-sacrifice. They purposely make death their last lesson, their last gift of peace and hope, to their wayward pupils. Their life and their death are two things their apprentices could not spoil because Luke and Obi-wan chose in the end not to let them. In doing this, they reclaim ownership of their own choices and their actions, of their own burden of responsibility for the path that their lives took, and assert that these hold more power than their apprentices’ mistakes. It is not only acceptance and forgiveness, and a hope that their legacy lives on even after their death, but a confrontation and a refusal to let their apprentices continue to fall down the path of murder. They deny them this step of depravity.

Rey’s parents? Meh.

#star wars spoilers #probably the one and only essay I'll write on the subject

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