#they deserve the world and it’s not their faults that writers such at keeping characters personalities | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

bonefall · 1 month

Text

Mapleshade Discourse O'Clock

It's that time again!!! SO I just kinda want to jot down all of my various thoughts about it as a story and just generally weigh in about Mapleshade.

I like the idea of Mapleshade more than the actual Mapleshade that is used throughout the books.

She has a really good gimmick-- to haunt Applekin though the generations. I don't like how they turn her into a generic "cat satan" for Tigerclaw's Fury and keep making her appear as a vain lackey demon.

I like her characterization in Mapleshade's Vengeance the most, of all her appearances.

But, I don't think my reading of the character depicted in MV is what the author intended.

See, I like MV as a story with no hero. The only blameless characters are the kittens who drowned and Perchpaw, while everyone else is some flavor of selfish, cruel, or vengeful. Everyone thinks they're in the right, but no one truly wins in the end.

Nothing about it was noble. Every tragedy that happened was utterly avoidable. In the end, everyone bears some responsibility for the pain and suffering that happened the day those children drowned.

BUT I'm pretty certain that the intended reading was that Mapleshade would be the one clearly in the wrong the whole time, as she justifies her own actions like a villain does.

Especially knowing how poorly the writers thought of similar female characters like Squilf and Leafp lying about the three, or Nightcloud being jealous her crummy husband is acting strange around another woman.

I feel justified in assuming that when Mapleshade is not happy she's being cheated on, or when she refuses to correct Frecklewish's record knowing it's unsafe if her kits are revealed as half clan, the writer really does think you're not supposed to take her side.

Because women should just not have emotions about being cheated on or something, and lying is unspeakably bad even if the truth puts you and your children in danger.

But. Y'know. We can all use the braincell for a moment and see that this is fucking stupid

SO when the book goes on to have Mapleshade ignore all the warnings about the swollen river, show both ThunderClan and RiverClan being obscenely cruel to her, and then walk across that bridge while insisting in her head that the deaths weren't her fault, I think the implication is obvious AND SHITTY.

Ergo I reject it completely. I can see what the book wants to say, and I think it says something trashy.

In spite of how badly the writer wants it to be Mapleshade's fault the kittens died, I say it was the asshole who threw a bunch of kittens out into the rain for being mixed race, actually.

Oakstar had the power here. Ravenwing had some power as well, but he makes it clear it wasn't his suggestion to throw the babies out into the woods.

And when it comes to Bridge Discourse, it was at least the afternoon, raining heavily, and Mapleshade was trying to get to RiverClan Camp. A straight shot across the stepping stones.

I think it is ridiculous to imagine an extremely emotional parent managing three very scared children, attempting to get out of the rain and dangerous wilderness before nightfall, would be rational enough to realize a large detour would be safer.

MAYBE the distance from ThunderClan Camp to the Bridge is equal to the distance to the Stones. But the distance between the bridge and RIVERCLAN Camp is longer.

I hope this goes without saying; but Frecklewish didn't deserve the Dark Forest.

Even in Banana World logic where she was sitting on the bank watching those kids doggy-paddle. Do not fucking jump in to save drowning people if you are not trained to do that.

I'm dead serious, this is the first thing you learn in any kind of water safety course. They WILL panic, you WILL get dragged down, you WILL become another liability someone else has to save instead of helping your initial target.

And that isn't even mentioning this being a flooded river. That's POOL safety.

In spite of how I think Mapleshade was right to lie, I do think Frecklewish being that upset and angry was understandable.

You're entitled to your feelings, but not how you treat people. She still attacked Mapleshade and called the kittens a slur.

That's what makes her interesting, though.

I don't think she deserves the Dark Forest, but Frecklewish's anger is an interesting trait. I don't like how a lot of defensive interpretations of her character end up downplaying how she acted at the exile

why does a woman being rightfully angry suddenly strike people as "unsympathetic." Girls can also say things in fury they don't fully mean. OR girls can rationalize their unjustified, ballistic response post-hoc out of pride.

Idk let girls be mad. Admit they were wrong without deserving HELL. I don't like the woobification impulse.

It's not really a hot take anymore I think, but Frecklewish is definitely only in the DF because the writing team judges women characters more harshly. Oakstar threw babies out in the rain in fury, and Ravenwing didn't stop it. But somehow only Frecklewish, a normal warrior, gets DF'd.

But what really rattles around in my head about the whole story is the way that the in-universe culture is able to suddenly value ethics like peace, forgiveness, and tolerance when MAPLESHADE is ready to throw those things out, but BEFORE then, it's well established that Clan culture is violent, vengeful, and intolerant.

One of our earliest scenes is Rainfall snarling at Mapleshade that he loves the way Birchface and Flowerpaw drowned. He's threatening that he'll kill even more ThunderClan warriors.

Over in ThunderClan, everyone is itching for revenge against Appledusk for those deaths, even though it seems to have been an accident. Oakstar even hates RiverClan well into sequel books for this.

But then later on, everyone acts Shocked Pikachu that Mapleshade actually went and GOT revenge.

And like, let's be real. This is a battle culture. Yes, by OUR standards Revenge Is Bad.

But in these books, so full of war and clan conflict...?

What I'm saying is that I wish the books let Mapleshade be a little more "controversial" in-universe. Like some cats actually frame the story very differently, and you can learn a lot about a person by who they think the hero is.

And how RiverClan responds to the drowned kids bugs me a lot tbh

We just established over in ThunderClan that there are people who think the babies were born filthy for being HalfClan.

We know everyone there stood by and watched as Oakstar threw them out into the rain-- only Ravenwing even seemed uncomfortable.

AND we know very well that in a few generations, TigerClan will rise. Which openly executed a HalfClan cat and wanted to kill 2 apprentices.

We KNOW the bigotry in Clan culture is deadly and unfair.

But then they go over to RiverClan and Darkstar is sad these three kids are dead? And RC is furious with Mapleshade for that?

Again, YES, you and me with OUR morals know that this bigotry is insane and spiteful. What I'm getting at is that IN-UNIVERSE half clan kittens and their parents face extreme discrimination. Even within this book.

It's odd to me that Darkstar refuses to let Mapleshade bury their bodies, sends her away for the death of the kids while saying it's "not the season for losing warriors" to Appledusk, and it's meant to come across as delusional that Maple thinks her babies were buried dishonorably

I wish more women in WC got so pissed off at the absolute injustice of it all that they went on a girl rampage. Perhaps it's my own taste, but I like it a lot more when the villain isn't entirely wrong and there's several angles you can read the story from. If she didn't do what she did, she would have been the only one who saw any consequences for anything that happened.

Anyway in conclusion uhhh idk murder is wrong. But Mapleshade's allowed to do it because she's a silly billy. Her greatest crime was not killing Oakstar also

#bone babble #Mapleshade #Mapleshade's Vengeance

296 notes · View notes

allwaswell16 · 1 month

Text

A fic rec of One Direction fics in which a character had experienced abuse of some form in the past as requested in this ask. Please don't forget to leave kudos and comments for the writers! You can find my other fic recs here.

- Louis/Harry -

🧱 Run Like the Devil by benzos

(E, 143k, Supernatural au) Louis hunts demons; Harry's the strangest demon he's ever met, and he keeps fucking meeting him.

🧱 Saving Symphony Hall by @helloamhere

(E, 124k, omegaverse) “That’s the attitude,” said Louis, “I’ll tell you tomorrow. Tonight, I need to do some research. Zayn, give me your number. I’m gonna save our symphony.”

🧱 Hang there like fruit, my soul/Till the tree die by louloubaby92 / @louloubabys1992

(M, 111k, omegaverse) Louis knows he's a defective omega. He knows its also not his fault but it is what it is. He takes the world head on even when the world is unkind to him.

🧱 Give Me Truths by iwillpaintasongforlou / @canonlarry

(E, 110k, punk Louis) the one in which Louis falls in love with a fragile boy and tells him every beautiful truth in the world, as long as it makes him happy.

🧱 The Naked Truth by @larrysmomfics

(E, 80k, Naked Attraction au) The producers of Naked Attraction decide to do a 'Second Chances' edition of the show where past contestants who didn't find love on the show the first time can re-apply in hopes that the second time's a charm.

🧱 Here In The Afterglow by fondleeds

(NR, 88k, historical) 1970’s AU. In a tiny town in Idaho, Louis’ life is changed forever by the arrival of a curious stranger.

🧱 Shout It From The Rooftops by therogueskimo / @bravetemptation

(M, 70k, PTSD) Plagued by memories of the worst day of his life, Louis Tomlinson feels like he’s constantly living in darkness. Harry Styles might just be the person to bring him back to the light.

🧱 These High Walls by LarryAlways28

(E, 68k, omegaverse) Born to one of Seattle's wealthiest families, Harry was raised exactly as a Styles heir should be: sharp as a tack, witty, charming, and powerful. He was the ideal son - until he presented as an Omega.

🧱 you're ripped at every edge, but you're a masterpiece by Valentia

(E, 50k, uni) The one where Harry is soft and pretty but doesn't see it and Louis just wants to love him the way he deserves.

🧱 elephant juice by @stylinsoncity

(M, 32k, uni) harry doesn't understand boundaries. louis doesn't mind at all.

🧱 With These Arms Folded by @taggiecb

(NR, 21k, famous/not famous) Harry Styles is living a peaceful existence in California as a very successful songwriter. That is until he receives a curious email one sunny summer morning, and his life almost immediately gets turned upside down buy a force that's bigger than any storm he's seen outside his window.

🧱 why take your life when you give it so willingly by we_are_the_same / @so-why-let-your-voice-be-tamed

(M, 19k, pirates) When Louis Tomlinson, Captain of The Rogue, ends up adrift at sea after Captain Cowell attacks his ship, he is surprised to find his enemy, Captain Styles, coming to his rescue.

🧱 vatican cameos by nightwideopen / @themarshalstale

(T, 14k, asexuality) sometimes louis gets sad and sometimes harry lets louis write on him

🧱 Just a touch of your love by @thegirlontheblackhoodie

(E, 12k, omegaverse) Harry is a touch starved omega trying to get through it on his own. Louis happens to be the only alpha around to realize it and offers to help.

🧱 You've Got A New Life (Am I Bothering you?) by LilyBlue28

(NR, 5k, omegaverse) the one where Louis is an omega who suffers from PTSD and is triggered one day. He doesn't know how to ask for help from his doting alpha, doesn't think he deserves it, and tries to handle it on his own.

🧱 I Don't Wanna Hurt Anymore by offwiththeirheads / @hazzabooween

(M, 5k, kidfic) Harry walks a thin line between breaking his best friend’s heart and fighting a losing battle.

- Rare Pairs -

🧱 Sugar, We're Going Down by sunsetmog / @magicalrocketships

(E, 131k, Louis/Nick Grimshaw) At 37, Nick has everything he could possibly want in life: huge success in business, a Bachelor of the Year award hanging in his toilet, piles of money, and a rather odd little habit of visiting a cafe with terrible service on his way into the office every morning.

🧱 It's You by happily_missy

(E, 56k, Zayn/Liam) Liam is a PA for a famous fashion designer and Zayn is their gorgeous new model.

#ficrec #1dficvillage #pastabuse #trackinghappily #trackinghome #tracksintheam #hlcreators #hljournal #1dsource #larry fanfiction #ziam fanfiction #tomlinshaw fanfction #weeklyficrec

110 notes · View notes

ohmotherwhereartthou-if · 6 months

Text

My Thanks, To You.

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday and I think that's mainly because I am blessed enough to have a wonderful family who comes once a year from all over for this one day in the year.

I have a huge family, and I mean HUGE. Thanksgiving day usually has about 20 people AT LEAST. And that's just from family members on my dad's side. If you read the blog's profile description (or can tell by the main point of the story lol), then you know I have mommy issues.

I have a very complicated relationship with her and while I was lucky enough to be given the literal best dad ever; all his love couldn't fully protect me from the deep unresolved issues I have because of my mom. Because of that, there is family I have on her side I haven't seen in years and that makes me very sad.

I am not trying to truama dump you guys, I promise that all of this has a point! 😅

This all goes to say that I know we all have different relationships and circumstances surrounding our families and thanksgiving. I want to tell you all, that I hope you have a wonderful day and if you're lucky enough; with your family. Whatever your relationship with them is, good or bad, I hope they don't bring you down and that you have some found family that can be there for you. As good family should.

Besides family, the other big thing about thanksgiving; is actually right in the name! Every year, before we sit down to eat; my family would go around and say what we were thankful for this year. It really makes you rethink/re-evaluate what you have, it always teaches me that we take a lot of what we have (no matter how little) for granted.

This year, I got more done in school; I reconnected slightly with my mom; I got to meet and spend time with my brothers (who I haven't seen in years); my new little sister was born; I got to celebrate my 20th birthday with everyone I love; and so much more.

One more of those things I am thankful for is YOU. Yes, You.

This year I got more active in writing and sharing my progress on OMWAT, that hard work was rewarded as I got to interact with so many of you. You guys read my story and blessed me with your ask's, sharing your thoughts with me, and just giving me so much happiness.

You guys are a blessing to me and I am so happy to have you guys in my life, you give me motivation to keep writing and trying to improve my creative writing skills. Seeing you guys interact with me and like my posts, it fills my heart with happiness. I don't use any social media besides tumblr because I don't like relying on it for self validation, but you guys make me feel a lot better about my capabilities as a writer than any teacher ever has. (You and that C you gave me, lives rent free in my head Mr. Vann)

I want to thank you all form the bottom of my heart.

You deserve the world and every single one of you is amazing.

I plan to write a thanksgiving short story with all of the RO's for all of you. I can't promise that it will be done in time for tomorrow but I will try my best. (I know the other two secret character ones are not done but... well, no butts thats my fault 100%)

I hope you all have a wonderful thanksgiving!

#omwat #authors note

40 notes · View notes

sunshinelivesforever · 6 months

Text

My Opinion on Calypso and Caleo in HOO

Alright, it's time to talk about this because I love the smell of fresh controversy in the morning. So today, I'm going to be expressing my opinion on the character Calypso and the ship Caleo in The Heroes of Olympus. Keep in mind that this is simply my opinion. Feel free to disagree.

I'll be honest and straightforward. I don't really like Calypso and I don't ship Caleo.

Sure, I get that it must've been hard for Calypso. She was cursed to fall in love with heroes who eventually had to leave. She was abandoned on an island with no one else for company just for supporting her father in a war, resulting in her missing eons of change in the world. She must've been really lonely and upset and sick of having her heart broken. But that's no excuse for her to be so mean, especially because she wasn't like that when we saw her initially. In TBOTL, she was so sweet. How can someone so soft-spoken and polite become so nasty? I was hoping that after she stops being mad we could get to see the Calypso we saw in the original PJO series. But apparently, that Calypso is gone. It seems like her entire personality was changed just to make her a "tough girl" (which isn't exactly the character's fault). It's just that so many writers assume that to make a female character strong she can't have any soft traits. But in TBOTL, Calypso was strong and caring and kind at the same time. So if you ask me if I like Calypso in BOTL, yes, absolutely. But if you ask me if I like Calypso in HOH and TOA? No, I don't.

I also don't like her relationship with Leo. Okay, maybe I'm a bit biased about this since I'm in love with Leo myself, but the whole thing just happened so quickly. We needed an entire book for Frazel, an entire book for Jiper, a whole dam series for Percabeth and you're telling me these two fell in love in the span of four chapters? Like, is falling in love really that easy? I don't think so. What Leo and Calypso have just doesn't seem deep enough for me. And their relationship is kind of toxic as well. Like in TOA, Calypso never tried to understand Leo or actually acknowledge his help. She acts as if Leo is worth nothing. I deeply dislike the way she treats Leo. And for Leo, I feel like he doesn't genuinely love Calypso. I feel like he wanted to go rescue her because he felt like he finally had someone who chose him, someone who needed him. Because for once, he wasn't the seventh wheel. The odd one out. The second option. Also, I kind of get the feeling that Calypso was there just so that Leo could get a love interest and not be a seventh wheel. But Leo deserved more than that. He deserved a different kind of love. He deserved coming home to find that he belongs, to find that there are people who care about him, that his friends need him. He deserved acceptance from his surroundings to actually not feel like a seventh wheel. He needed to find that coming back to life was worth it because he has friends, he has a family. I feel like just a romantic relationship can't give him that, especially one with Calypso, who knows nothing of his trauma and experiences.

So there you have it, that's why I don't like Calypso and don't ship Caleo. Please don't hate on me for this because it's just my opinion. Keep in mind that you can have a different opinion and disagree with mine, and that's okay.

Yours in demigodishness and all that, peace out. :)

#pjo #pjo hoo toa #percy jackson and the olympians #the heroes of olympus #the trials of apollo #pjo series #hoo #toa #rick riordan #leo valdez #calypso #caleo #anti caleo

25 notes · View notes

svtellify · 2 years

Text

the vacker legacy and their golden boy: fitz vacker

welcome to my new psychoanalyzing kotlc characters series! i thought i’d start with fitz because this particular reread of the series has brought up some interesting facets in his character i had previously overlooked. i’ll try to keep this objective (focusing on canon and what shannon has written) but i’ll also include some of my personal opinions about him in a separate section at the end, to keep my bias out of it.

(apologies for how long these are going to get, i’m having a little too much fun with them!)

now.

fitzroy avery vacker.

it’s no secret that sophie is infatuated with him from the moment she meets him. but that’s sophie. this is about fitz (and while i do mention the love triangle situation and how it develops, it’s not really about the ships - that deserves it’s own moment to shine.) it’s also important to remember that the series is from sophie’s perspective. this is an unreliable narrator, and it shows us fitz through sophie’s eyes, but also through the other character’s eyes.

from the start, we’re told that fitz is the golden boy, the youngest telepath to manifest in the elven world and an incredibly powerful one at that. he grows up as a part of the vacker family, which is quite possibly the most powerful family in the lost cities, regardless of who the councillors are. all the elves grow up with money, but fitz grows up with status. what sets him apart from biana is how this status evolves between the two of them as the vacker legacy itself unravels.

in the first book, fitz is, from a writer’s standpoint, boring. he’s too perfect, never making mistakes, and busy being handsome and smart. obviously, given that the series is from sophie’s point of view, it makes sense that her gateway to the world remain untainted, regardless of her feelings for him. where we really start to get to know fitz is in exile. we get to see that perfection shatter entirely, and as a writer, it’s beautiful. fitz is ugly when he’s mad, shouting and screaming and blaming everyone but himself - outwardly. it’s no secret that he thinks highly of himself as the golden boy of the vacker family, and it’s hard to imagine that he doesn’t place some of the blame on himself for not being his dad’s first choice - or being able to fix alden.

still, his anger is a remarkable facet of his personality - and just what makes him a great foil to keefe. we’ve all seen his temper flare up in exile, blaming sophie for the memory break going wrong.

fitz isn’t used to things going wrong - as i’ve mentioned in other posts, he’s a creature of perfection of habit. he’s used to being the best, and while he admires sophie’s powers and her strength, that doesn’t mean he necessarily knows how to accept it with grace. in other words, he’s never been second best.

despite all the kids being young, fitz is the oldest of sophie’s group at the time. and his reaction shows his age, but not his maturity. he’s quick to blame and reacts without thinking - his anger brings out parts of him that he normally doesn’t reach for. fitz is always the one who prefers plans and thinking things out, and rarely do we see him like this. as a reader, it’s easy to hate him for this reaction - because we know that it’s not sophie’s fault. and the rational fitz is supposed to know that too - and he does.

kind of.

fitz’s greatest weakness as a character is that he doesn’t grow from this outburst. it’s not the first, and it’s not the last either. he’s a prideful guy - and with reason, he has a lot to be proud of. he’s not the best at apologizing either - it’s a cycle, where he gets mad, has an outburst, and apologizes with gifts to fix things.

this wouldn’t be such a big deal, i mean all of us have different love languages, right? but there’s a constant in the people he gets mad at (neverseen and related villains regardless. that’s justified anger, even at alvar, although that’s a little more complicated) and it’s:

1. sophie 2. keefe 3. dex

starting from the last, but not the least, dex. even after it’s revealed in (i believe) lodestar, that dex used to eat alone in his alchemy sessions and the vackers weren’t necessarily the nicest to him, snobby over their status in the elven world etc., we see him get mad at dex for hesitating over the situation with alvar. it’s particularly interesting, considering we never really see fitz bond with dex, just dex tell sophie that he’s going to be nicer to the vackers now that he understands them better. this is apparent to be a little more one sided in their interactions, and it gets worse with the reveal that alvar has “forgotten” his memories. fitz is ready to condemn him, but when dex isn’t, it upsets him.

remember, alvar was a part of the group that kidnapped and tortured sophie and dex. his supposed crush and his friend. and yet, both of the victims are feeling a little more kind hearted than fitz, who is alvar’s brother, yes, but it’s also been made clear that he isn’t as close to alvar as biana is. and yet.

as for keefe, his reasons for hating keefe make sense. and they don’t. if anything, he should be able to understand where keefe is coming from, especially since he *does* seem to be aware of keefe’s feelings for sophie. and despite the fact that they’re supposed to be best friends, he’s the least sympathetic to keefe’s situation. he’s betrayed, of course, they all are, and he’s angry about it, because of course he is. that’s normal - and it all adds up. where things get weird is when we realize that fitz doesn’t know that much about keefe. sophie’s the first one up to his house and keefe even says he doesn’t bring friends home, but it’s clear that he’s never talked about it with fitz.

fitz also has a tendency to not take keefe seriously, which the other characters all do an extent, but they know when to take him seriously and when to not. but fitz misses a lot of keefe’s growth and he still sees keefe as this weird kid that skipped a grade and likes to play pranks. keefe’s a shell of the person fitz knows at this point, and this is something they both need to come to terms with.

fitz’s pride comes into the picture here, manifesting as willful ignorance. he doesn’t know about keefe’s situation because, quite frankly? he didn’t want to sympathize with dex either. he’s a proud guy and this is GOOD characterization but. he kind of looks like a jerk.

in regards to sophie, these scenes sum up both how he feels about her and why i think they’re not good together:

i’ve talked a little about fitz and perfection and why he sees sophie as perfect even though it feels like he shouldn’t - and i don’t want to rehash all that so i’ll leave a little link to some thoughts i had regarding a scene in stellarlune, so you can check it out here. warning: stellarlune spoilers. the non spoiler version here: fitz craves perfection. his world was always perfect, and so was he. he’s the golden boy, after all, isn’t he?

what makes it so hard to have sympathy for him, after all i am an eldest daughter in an indian family with gifted kid burnout and a queer identity crisis - i know pressure lol it’s all i’ve ever known - is that he simply can not let go. he expects that painful level of perfection from himself, and it’s sad that they can’t have a little fun with the chandelier incident. he thinks that sophie would expect that kind of perfection from him, and for that reason, he thinks the problem is his levitating.

obviously lol, it’s not, but the boy but he also expects that kind of perfection from others, and thinks that others ALSO want that perfection, as seen in how he handles the news that sophie has found out who her genetic mother is.

more on THAT later. i doubt i’ll be able to stay objective on that scene so i’m saving it for the end of this little piece. (which is not as little as i was hoping, but if the people are interested, i could do a part two where i answer questions instead of just winging it!)

the second scene’s literally from the next page, but his pride and focus on perfection converge in on telepathy. sophie’s better than him, and there’s this undertone that this bothers him. he’s losing - and perfection always wins. here it is again - sophie’s ridiculously strong mental barriers. the point of trust.

part of the reason the sophitz relationship was doomed to fail from the start is the emphasis fitz places on their abilities. but we’re cognates is a cry for the little boy who wants his place back as the best, and sophie is his return to greatness. it’s not a bad thing when done right, but fitz can’t see past that. his sense of trust is misconstrued and believes it means sharing everything, never mind the fact that sophie’s a part of a rebel organization with thoughts planted in her head that could change the world. literally. the black swan planted them there.

(is the humor helping? i feel like we’ve been bashing fitz a bit for his lack of growth and i would apologize because i do think he’s a valuable character and a well written one at that, but a bit unlikeable when it comes down to it.)

he’s had his trust broken and people have hidden things from him, but in the grand scheme of things, alvar’s betrayal is the one that cuts him the most deeply. keefe’s hurts, sure, but i could argue it’s for love triangle related reasons, more than their supposed friendship instead. (i will, actually. that’s a part of the love triangle analysis - and if you think this is long...) but nothing is really earth shattering in the sense that it deeply warps his sense of identity. he’s been hurt a lot, and he’s a traumatized kid, but he reacts with less maturity than his younger sister - and a lot of the other (younger) characters at times, which can be frustrating to see when the solution is right there.

and here we are. the most painful scene for me to read - and i haven’t even gotten around to rereading legacy yet. so. legacy spoilers ahead.

this is my warning - i’m not cutting fitz as much slack for these scenes even if i understand where he’s coming from. he’s wrong. it’s as simple as that, and i *will* explain why, but if you still believe sophie and fitz should have ended up together and plan on reminding me of that, i respect you, but please just stop reading here.

for context, this is right after sophie finds out that oralie is her genetic mom and fitz is waiting at havenfield and tries to guess why she’s so upset. or that she’s figured out who her parents are. it becomes apparent shortly that even he doesn’t know which he’s doing.

“I get why you’re not ready to talk about it YET.”

this is supposed to be a small sentence to show how understanding he is, and it would be, if it wasn’t for the glaring YET at the end. he still expects sophie to talk about the subject sometime, and with him. but it’s weird that he’d be so relieved about it - considering how UPSET sophie is at the moment.

i tried, you guys, i really did. did i mention i was a hardcore sophitz shipper when i first started the series? only the first three books were out and i was in middle school minding my own business and even got through exile mad at fitz but hopeful.

it was my second readthrough before neverseen dropped that had me, you know, rethinking things. and now, at 19 (yeah okay that makes me sound old but you know the books have been out for a while now so), it’s easy to see why. sophitz is every little kid’s dream come true. your crush likes you back and it’s all as magical as you thought it would be. except it isn’t, because we tend to only see the good in people we like. sokeefe is the slow burn because it takes time to build up to a relationship and it’s not going to how you think it will.

I DIGRESS. this next excerpt is where i get really upset because fitz just does not listen. he pushes and he pushes and he pushes and god, you would think he’d get it.

things he gets points for: not lashing out at her immediately and holding back on his anger

things he does not get points for: well, you’ve read the scene too, right?

sophie says it best: he. just. wasn’t. listening.

and he also takes it upon himself to decide for her, who it is, even though sophie is clearly so very painfully obviously distressed. i mean, for anyone in his position, this is a major jerk move, but you know, it’s fitz, so he’s going to keep it perfect.

and just when we think he’s finally understood, just as i was thinking he’s getting better at reading situations, he brings up the matchmaking thing.

y’all, he acts like her not being matchmakable is a problem for both of them, even though it technically doesn’t affect her the way it affects him. she’s said it herself, that she has reservations about the whole thing, and it’s not even something she considers her future to be.

“you don’t want it either - you know you don’t.”

they might both be telepaths, but fitz projects himself onto sophie a lot because of that. it gets worse after they become cognates because it’s an even greater honor and they’re doing it together.

but they’re not the same. nowhere near it. it’s this scene that made me realize that fitz hasn’t been seeing sophie - he’s been seeing her potential and everything she could be, and that’s why he’s so fixated on the matchmaking lists. of course, matching with the most powerful elf the lost cities has ever known would restore his family name. it would be perfect, really, the most powerful elf and the second most powerful telepath the lost cities have ever known, matched together.

i could say more about him claiming that sophie’s privacy is less important than her future, as if the two aren’t one in the same, but i’d like to overlook that and pretend it’s just his entitlement and his view of matchmaking as the be all end all creeping in and nothing more.

so.

that was a lie.

“I… don’t think you’ve thought this through. But of course you haven’t. It’s late. You’ve had a long day with lots of huge stuff. So… can we just agree to not make any decisions right now?”

the way he’s so sure she hasn’t thought this through is a double edged sword. not only does it show a kind of possessive edge over her, where he’s constantly speaking for her and OVER her, it also shows us how he’s convinced it’s still about him.

fitz. my buddy. my man. listen to the girl.

he doesn’t bother giving her reasoning a chance and steamrolls ahead with his own, which we know sophie hates anyone doing. i mean, look at her argument with keefe in nightfall - she’s not going to stand for people speaking over her or for her. she doesn’t want their protection.

what’s wrong with this scene is that fitz writes off everything sophie is feeling and saying, and the key word here is ruin.

ruin.

instead of being understanding to sophie’s upbringing and her unique situation, he can’t look past his own return of the king (a lotr reference, shannon would you be proud even if i’m slandering your character?) to elven society. in fact, it says a lot that he sees her as the vacker redemption arc even when sophie herself has mentioned - to us and to HIM - that she doesn’t feel like she fits in with elven society but only if she plays by his rules.

(feels a little like objectification, ngl, and that doesn’t sit right with me.)

he’s blinded by his status, his pride, and perfection, and that, right there, is his biggest downfall.

not the conclusion gif i was looking for but y’all this is long enough let me keep this brief.

(HAHA YOU THOUGHT i am incapable of being brief)

fitz is an incredibly consistent character when we get down to it, and he’s not as complex-ified as the other characters are. well, not the way the other characters are. biana’s arc is about improving as a person and getting stronger, dex’s is about overcoming internalized prejudice, keefe’s is about chosen family and trauma, etc. fitz’s character arc is almost backwards - from a writing standpoint, this would be a really cool villain origin story. not that fitz is a villain, but over time, rather than his character becoming a better person, he starts out perfect until that perfection crumbles and we get to see the perfectionist that so desperately craves a return to his old normal, with everyone in this new normal. he’s trying so hard to fit into old clothes, outgrown shoes, and slip back into his old memories.

as a love interest, no. i could go further about his “interest” in linh being driven by her same power, but i have no doubt that matchmaking would still be of great interest to him, so i’ll leave it at that.

I DONT HATE FITZ. not as a person, nor as a character. i don’t see him as the most likable, but you guys, he’s not a villain. he’s a teenage boy who needs to work through his issues before he gets anywhere near sophie, but he’s been through a lot so i’m trying to cut him some slack. he’s an incredible asset to the kotlc team and his need for a plan tends to keep them from getting themselves in more trouble. he’s helped sophie improve her abilities vastly, and indirectly, pushed her to become better. quite literally, the story would not exist without him. we need fitz as a character because he makes the story what it is, but as an individual i just think we wouldn’t get along.

-k

(any questions are appreciated and i would love to have some canon discourse! i know in the quest for more diversity in the kotlc characters, discourse tends towards that, understandably, but i do believe there’s a lot to be uncovered in canon and i would love to talk about it more! yes, more than 3,219+ words about it LOL)

173 notes · View notes

la-pou-belle · 11 months

Text

normally I would just put this in the tags of a critical post to keep it concise, but sadly rbs have been turned off! I guess dogpiling sucks when it happens to YOU, right? anyways,

just wanted to say that, yeah, it's proper fandom etiquette to tag things. even if they are only mentioned and then later confirmed to not actually be happening in the fic. That said ,, and before we forget, it is not a REQUIREMENT. Just as it's not a requirement for fic writers to post and share their products at all. Just as it's not a requirement to read and consume then. When people provide completely free services (like, say, writing, editing, and publishing and entire novel), and it's entirely up to you on whether or not to consume those services, it's a little weird to make extra demands, no? And especially to inflate these demands to the point of character assassination; not only dogpiling on the author, but all of the authors fandom friends, leading them to delete all of their soc med and hard crafted works in the process.

so you didn't like someone's fanfiction. and it was POPULAR fanfiction! that sucks. But arguments about transphobia, racism, pedophilia, etc. have already been well disputed in the very post I can't reblog, and I think it's abundantly clear that the author should not be punished for following established canon (i.e. Claw's canonical torture of children and Toichiro Suzuki's openly proclaimed eugenicist goals in taking over the world for "superior" ESPers) to a logical conclusion and for adding a layer of realism to the work.

It's not their fault you, quite frankly, didn't think very hard about what you saw and understood in both S1 and S2 of mob psycho. it sucks that it makes you uncomfortable. But it's not a stranger's job on the internet to completely wash their works of anything that reflect messy and uncomfortable reality to coddle you, a voluntary consumer of their media. And a fan writer absolutely should not be punished for producing a canon-universe work, when you yourself are a fan of the canon. The fan author, very obviously, does not condone transphobia, racism, pedophilia, or any other accused thing, just by depicting it in their freely made and voluntarily consumed fanwork. Just as ONE, very obviously, does not condone the torture of children, or child abuse, just by depicting it in Claw's organization and in Shou and Toichiro's relationship.

All of what I've said is about Side Quest, but it's absolutely disgusting that for some reason, the backlash over that specific fic went over mere criticisms of the work to harassing the author. Not only this, but to use the final chapter of Side Quest, and all of the produced fan art within it, as a blacklist of Twitter handles and social medias to then ALSO harass the authors fandom friends is purely unacceptable behavior. If you want an author to tag their works better, simply ask them to do so; do not harass them and their friends. If you want your "fandom" and "ship" to stay alive, you MUST learn how to dislike things normally and respectfully; otherwise, how can you expect people to continue to produce novels for free? At a minimum, you need to recognize that your fellow fans are real, live people and do not deserve targeted harassment, and if you truly believe them to be dangerous, contact a moderation team and avoid their fanworks.

on a personal level, I'm offended that you think I, and many others who genuinely enjoyed Side Quest, lack media literacy. I've always been a fan of canon compliant and divergent fics that follow canon implications to their logical conclusions, especially when that involves recognizing the problematic and uncomfortable aspects of reality. You may have watched mob psycho uncritically, but I did not, nor did I read Side Quest uncritically. I'm frustrated that these projections have led to more of my little joys and favorite thought-provoking fic becoming inaccessible to me, but mostly... I'm sad that these authors shared their works while not fully understanding how uncritical, reactionary, and ungrateful their audience truly was.

#side quest #kintsugi #silvercistern #mp100 #spicychibi #honestly the world is literally on fire and you guys cant find a better use of your time?#kintsugi was 100k words of PERFECTION and on a personal note. im pissed that you guys are interfering w my little joys.#touch grass. call a legislator. read something else. GET BETTER MEDIA LITERACY YOURSELF.#i spend so much of my day to day doing climate advocacy and organizing and i cant even enjoy updates bto my favorite works #or to reread them #yes. my tags are me personally venting.#xan talks a lot #serirei #mp100 fic

49 notes · View notes

baobhanlore-art · 10 months

Text

So Vivzie just tweeted this and I have thoughts that won't fit well into tweets so here I am

For starters, the criticism of fanfiction isn't targeted towards the queer aspects. In fact I've found that some of the most extreme critics of fanfiction culture are also queer people. From the fujoshi fandom that causes an extreme rise in MlM shipping but largely for fem gazey smut, the unrecognised untagged unhealthy relationship tropes, to the misogyny often within these works, stories like these come with many issues.

The criticism of writing feeling like fanfiction, especially towards Helluva Boss, is that the elements of the stories people heavily critique feel unnecessary, tropey, and derailing from consistency.

In The Circus, I do not fault the idea of a queer character having a childhood crush on a same sex friend. The problem is more to do with how it stunts the desperation Blitz has to keep his business alive, since he's no longer just sleeping with some rich guy but an old friend, and the sudden unexpectedness of their situation. It's also a common trope where the live interests actually knew each other as kids so it feels overdone and generic.

In Exes and Oohs, the mafia setting feels completely bizarre considering the intense bigotry and classism within the world. Not only that but the daddy issues, fridged mum, forced marriage and overall unrealistic depiction of the mafia is very common in fanfiction written by teens who do no research and just want the aesthetics.

Secondly, there are plenty of straight works that have a similar label attached to them. ACOTAR and TOH both have writers who originally wrote fanfiction and they didn't develop out of the negative habits within fanfiction writing. Therefore their original work feels like fanfiction. Riverdales "I'm weird, I'm a weirdo" speech was heavily critiqued for sounding like a fanfiction line.

Thirdly, a big reason for being compared to fanfiction is the unfinished feeling of the scripts. I've already pointed out in a previous post that some of the dialogue in Western Energy felt like it needed to be cut down by an editor. And most people agree that the situations and logic aren't often very well thought through, such as how the aging machine could have just been reversed or how DORKS should have been killed off. The scripts feel like loose first drafts that could use additional edits. Fanfiction usually doesn't have an editor or even a beta reader, I've seen more "no beta we die like *insert character*" tags in many of the fandoms I read for than "beta" tags.

If people critiqued the owl house for feeling fanficcy because it had a diverse cast in a highschool setting with a quirky MC, I'd agree it's a bad descriptor because it's directly the queer and neurodivergent stories that are being attacked. Or if Murder Drones was labelled as fanficcy because it has an edgy teen female MC I'd say it's unfair because a lot of girls genuinely act like that and deserve to be represented and have our stories told. But most of the criticism about Helluva Boss to do with its LGBT rep is less to do with its inclusion and more to do with people feeling it's falling into yaoi tropes. Not the fact it includes queer stories.

This is something We Are Not Alive said recently that such with me, but just because it's an indie project doesn't mean we have to settle for subpar writing. There are loads of indie productions you can support! Murder Drones, Lackadaisy, the animated Anne Frank movie, and these are just some of the more popular ones!

And I wish people would stop weaponising every single argument to try and defend issues in Helluva Boss. The fandom says "of course it has issues" then cries when we point that out.

#helluva boss blitzo #loona hellhound #octavia helluva boss #helluva boss drama #helluva spoilers #helluva boss #helluva boss millie #helluva blitzo #helluva stolas #helluva critical #helluva boss critique #helluva boss critical #helluva boss criticism #vivziepop #vivzieverse #vivienne medrano #vivziepop critical #vivziepop criticism

32 notes · View notes

danpuff-ao3 · 1 year

Text

2022 Standouts - Yet Another Rec List

Okay, LISTEN. There was lots of greatness to be had in 2022. This is not my fault. This is all of your faults. This is what you all get for having so much talent and passion for fandom!! Some of us are overly excitable and chatty and can't shut up!!

In fairness, one can never spread too much goodness and positivity. If I talk about the same fics, the same creators, and make new lists every other day, it's all born out of love and appreciation, which the world could use plenty of! And with that said, these are all my own opinions and preferences so please keep that in mind!

So...here we go?? Should I do a Top 22???? That seems fitting.

1.) Post Mortem [fic, Snarry, E, 17k] by @inarticulateimbecile. I'm still dying over how fabulous this is. The characterizations, the dynamic, the descriptions...chef's kiss, truly. This might be one of my new favorites. (Also this Snarry art they did as a runner up, though all of their art just does things to me.) (I really would have thought art would have been their mention on this list, but no, they had to go be a great writer, as well!! Rude of them, really.)

2.) Slipping [fic, Snarry, 11k] by @bluesundaycake are you kidding me???? This is fabulous. Gritty postwar story that is too real with our hero, Harry, not "living up" to his potential, and not having the happily ever after he so deserves with a bittersweet, hopeful ending. Just lovely.

3.) The Lover and the Boytoy [fic, Drucius, Snaco, Draco/Snape/Lucius, E, 10k] by @fleetingdesires. Why the heck are my friends so talented?? This is offensive. And like...I clicked it for the Malfoycest?? And I left with Snucius feels?? What the heck. Just ??? Brain melted, all I can say.

4.) Clip, Ravel, Cleave [fic, Andromeda/Bellatrix, Andromeda/Ted, E, 15k] by @vdoshu. It was hard to narrow it down to one doshu work because wow they've done the dang thing this year!!!! So much great variety, but this one really blew me away. However toxic and dark the sisters' relationship was, I was rooting for them and heartbroken for them. What a beautiful, dark, sad story.

5.) Wind and Cardamom [podfic, Angelina/Hermione, G, 5 minutes] by JocundaSykes (fic by Arsenic). All of Joc's podfics are truly so, so good. Her voice work is always amazing and I easily can (and have!) listened to her read all day. Nothing like having a good fic read to you while doing chores, let me tell you!

6.) Lover's Flight [poem, Snarry, T, 200] by PinaNaponi (@vulnerasanenturmyprince.) My dear Nina is another case of "stupidly talented friends" and "hard to narrow down", but since I've waxed poetic about some of her other works recently, and in other lists, I figured I'd shed some light on this lovely thing. It's an adaptation of Goethe's "Elf King."

7.) Compulsory Figures [fic, Snarry, 6] by @liladiurne. Listen, my lovely Lila has arguably "better" works, and more "literary" works, but...her smut speaks to me, okay? I read this and was like "Ooooh, Lila can be FILTHY." I'm obsessed with it. Even back when it was just an idea and she was brainstorming it, I was obsessed. In fact, I was grocery shopping with my partner and being useless because I couldn't stay away from our DMs talking about said idea! Then she actually wrote and posted the dang thing and !!!! Obsessed.

8.) Some morning cuddles and coffee [art, Linny] by @luendland. Lu's snarry art is great, but they also do other ships (and characters) too and equally as lovely!! This Linny one speaks to my heart. It's so warm and lovely and gives me all the feels. I do digging for it to fawn over fairly often!

9.) Alphard's Favourite [fic, Sirius/Peter, Sirius/Alphard, M, 4k] by @thistlecatfics. Another top tier fic from Blackcest Fest! Not a ship I ever had interest in but oh gosh. The complicated characterization of Peter, the screwy interactions between him and Sirius, the way Sirius acts out as a way of dealing with trauma. It's such difficult subject matter treated in such a realistic manner. Not "good", not "easy", not "romantic", just that gritty, awful realness of how trauma impacts us, and how we don't always handle it in perfect, ideal ways.

10.) Untitled Harrymort Art [art, Harrymort] by @mrviran. I have no words. This isn't even my ship. But good golly is this spicy hot!! The corset! The sweat! Voldemort's smug, amused, mischievous little grin! Those red eyes and the red string!!!! Wooooo boy.

11.) Death and the Snarry [art, Snarry] by @necromanticnoir. This is another case of "I expected one thing from this creator, but my top choice for them is another??" Great writer is Noir, but also artist???? Multi-talented folk are killing me, I stg. And like...I need more Snarry versions of Klimt works, truly. So gorgeous!

12.) even the stars admire you [art, Snarry] by @acydpop. Speaking of Snarry versions of Klimt, THIS GORGEOUS THING. I'm so obsessed. Look at those colors!! Look at that embrace!!! Oh geez, I'm having feelings.

13.) Tom Riddle: interview with @phantomato [podcast] by @fanficmaverickpodcast. ChaosBlue is a great host and listening to writer interviews is always such a treat! And hearing what Phantomato had to say here was super fascinating, and made me much more intrigued by the Tom Riddle/Voldemort character!

14.) Snape's Hungry for a Snaco...[podcast, Snaco] by @careofmagicalshippers. Every episode of this podcast is great. Megs and Nathan are charismatic, hilarious, passionate hosts and listening to them chat is always such a fun time. Even guest episodes, even when Megs or Nathan is out, they have such interesting people to talk to and such interesting ships to talk about. This Snaco episode in particular spoke to me! (Especially since they went into it intending to cover Snack, but moved onto Snaco fairly quickly...I don't blame them!)

15.) When the Rose and the Fire Are One [ficbinding, Snarry] by @witchyficbindery. The fic by perverse_idyll is just stunning, as all of her works are! I believe earlier this year I was chatting about how I'd love to have fics on my shelf and what I imagined they might look like. And I thought "this fic would have to be STUNNING, just visually stunning." And midway through this year, I saw this post about an actual ficbinding of this fic! And...I was correct. And completely blown away. This cover is more gorgeous than I could have imagined. All of witchyficbindery's bindings are so, so outstanding. I can't imagine how they do it! But this one is the clear standout to me.

16.) 22 femslash recs from 22 years [rec list] by @consistentsquash. Squash always has the best recs, I stg!! Writer crushes I've had, but reccer crushes?? Such good taste, and always such good things to say. And this list especially is great with lots of gems for wlw content!

17.) Traid/Threesome recs [rec list] by @sitp-recs. Liv is a Queen Reccer, truly! This one is especially nice with options for Drarry+ ships, and non-Drarry ships, and a few bonus moresome fics! Lots of good stuff on this list, and more for me to check out! (RIP my TBR, fr.)

18.) The Bravest Man [fan-comic, Snarry, T] by @ac1d6urn. Acid is such a very skilled creator, both as a writer and an artist! The story, the characterizations, the art...all so stunning and perfect!

19.) Snitches and Songs [fic, Snarry, E, 50k] by @lizzy0305. When I tell you how PUMPED I was to see when this story was posted. Lizzy fic? Check. Severus sings? Color me intrigued. 'Magical tattoos'? Sign me UP. Then...I spent ages waiting to read it because I'm weird and like to "save" things that I know are going to be good. And I was right to save it! (Also: I should have read it sooner!) (Please don't expect my brain to do logic, because it will not.) What a gorgeous and enjoyable love story this was! My plan is to give this one a reread soon, actually; with luck, in January! (And I'll have the time and energy to do so!)

20.) A Life Worth Remembering [Snarco, E, 22k] by @writcraft. When Writ first reached out to me, I had to be like "okay, self, be cool. Don't fangirl and scare them off, okay?" Turns out, Writ is a lovely human and hearing they were coming back to Snarry had me just plain ecstatic!! And while Snarco isn't always my jam, I did know how invested they were in writing it, and couldn't resist checking it out! And I'm so glad I did!! One, because Writ's work is always fantastic. Two, because...I was sold on Snarco???? Maybe???? Or as close as I get to being sold. Geez Louise. It's such an interesting tale of de-aged Snape, the memories he lost, the established Drarry, and how they all come together. Their dynamic as a triad, and the individual pairs that make it up (Drarry, Snarry, and Snaco), and the individual people are all so lovely and well done!!

21.) Obedience Lessons [Snarry, E, 7k] by @likelightinglass. Um, how many times have I read this story this year? Too many, probably. (Is there such a thing as too many? Who knows.) ANYWAY. A/B/O with Alpha Harry and Omega Snape???? Yes please and thank you. All the kink and spiciness that I love. 100% did it for me (multiple times.)

22.) The Afterlight [Snarry, E, WIP] by @perverse-idyll. Good golly. Can I tell you how overjoyed I was when PI first posted this???? New PI Snarry???? All of my hopes and dreams coming true, awesome. And it's only 4 chapters in (out of ????) and so far, so GREAT. Postwar, death themes, gritty realism, A+++ characterizations, dark and spicy Snarry dynamic!!!! I don't often read WIPs (my patience is nonexistent, and not knowing how things end is bad for my anxiety (let's please not talk about my undying love and need of spoilers)), but this is totally worth it. I'll wait forever and a day for this fic if I have to. PI has been among my favorite authors for YEARS and for good reason. Characterization and relationships always so on point and exactly what I want and need. Not to mention gorgeous, stunning, unforgettable prose. The words that strike right through the heart, and burrow in to live there forever. Genuinely, PI's work is always stellar, and I already feel in my bones this will be a favorite. It's already the WIP I most look forward to update emails for! (Not that I have many, in fairness.) (Again, I generally steer clear of WIPs; no offense WIP writers. It's for my own good, I swear!) Side note: PI is another excellent human who I so appreciate knowing. Thanks for always taking time to listen to my babbling, especially knowing how busy you always are!

#danpuff recs #2022 fandom #fic recs #art recs #podfic recs #podcast recs #ficbinding recs #poetry recs #rec list recs

86 notes · View notes

baka-rina · 10 months

Note

Did you also find that what happened to Original Katarina was extremely unfair ? I mean Maria did seduce her Fiancée and Keith (even though it wasn't his fault) ruined the harmony and happiness between her Parents, and than she gets exiled for just fighting back ? And she isn't even given one chance of victory like Mary! She is treated so unfairly and than also called a Villainess just because she wants Geordo to stay to his Promises!

Did you also find that what happened to Original Katarina was extremely unfair ? I mean Maria did seduce her Fiancée

I never thought it was 'unfair' I guess because it was an otome game scenario and they are usually highly dramatized and hyperbolic for entertainment purposes, you are not supposed to take them seriously, so i never did. It was a game and the characters are archetypal for the genre.

and Keith (even though it wasn't his fault) ruined the harmony and happiness between her Parents, and than she gets exiled for just fighting back ?

again, their 'miscommunication' was non-sensical and so forced that it only happens because the 'writers' needed it to happen for their game scenario.

And she isn't even given one chance of victory like Mary! She is treated so unfairly and than also called a Villainess just because she wants Geordo to stay to his Promises!

Well, she is the villainess! That is her appointed role in the game. And it is a Otome game, love conquers all!

I look at the 'real' characters in the light novels / manga / anime are not a reflection of the game, but rather the game is a highly dramatized version of them and their lives, written by someone who really doesn't like Katarina and so wrote her to be unredeemable and wanted her to only meet bad ends, lol. The scenarios are quite simplistic and cartoony - to fit a typical formulaic otome game.

Perhaps, someone has their own mind-time slip / reincarnation / isekai situation to our modern world and created the game. I mean Sophia / Aachan managed to also mind-share, so it's possible and would fit better in that the game reflects 'real' life, rather than the characters are part of a game world brought to life.

So mysterious hater hates lovable Katarina who everyone loves, dies and gets reincarnated and grows up to make an otome game based on their remembered 'other life' not knowing that that game would influence our Katarina when she 'awakens' in the fantasy world becoming the lovable Katarina they hated.

I think the characters in the 'real' world are fully automatous and live within their world and react as they would and are not connected or tied to the game.

As for the original Katarina personality (spoiled brat) that was replaced, well the spoiled brat never grew up to become villainess Katarina. Our Katarina is the OG Katarina, when she bumped her head her 'modern world memories' awakened and so she was made aware of possible futures (though the game) to be able to navigate with some foreknowledge and we get the story we have. She does have both her OG memories and her modern memories.

So, I don't think OG Katrina ever truly existed as she was in the game, it was basically a smear campaign / revenge against her by a bitter rival (very in keeping with the game, a true villainess, lol).

Our Katarina died, and the fantasy world she lives in was created for her 'afterlife' and patterned after her favorite game. If so, then OG Katarina also never existed, as our Katarina is living out the game character scenario and thus changed the course of the story by being herself.

IF we are to take it that OG Katarina existed as she was in the game, it does seem as if she grew up to become a horrible person. In the Side Story, Katarina 'awakens' at 15yo instead of 8yo and it seems she made life miserable for all around her. I don't think she deserved to be rewarded for her bad behavior, and so I don't blame Jeord breaking off the engagement after finding true love. Why should he tie himself to a miserable horrible person for something that happened when they were 8yo over a scar that no longer exists?

Did she deserve exile or death?

Well, in two routes she bullies and harasses and gets striped of her rank and title, which eventually leads to exile because she continues to be a nuisance afterwards with her villianess actions. Exile seems generous (could have just imprisoned her). It's a monarchy, they make the rules.

In another route, she bullies and harasses Keith to the point he loses hope and his temper and kills her, and he is punished.

In another route, she tries to kill Maria with a knife, and Jeord kills her defending Maria... and then he goes into exile.

I believe in karma, we get back what we give and OG Katarina seems to have been horrible to everyone, a completely spoiled and entitled girl who tried to crush the spirits of anyone she didn't like or thought were beneath her, so I have little sympathy for her. She wasn't written to be redeemable or sympathetic, imho :)

#bakarina #hamefura #hamehura #katarina claes #hamafura talk #my next life as a villainess #destruction flag otome #my next life as a villainess side story on the verge of doom #otome game no hametsu flag #queue baka

22 notes · View notes

foxgonyoom · 1 year

Text

S4 spoilers (+ S3 spoilers and commentary in tags)

I know we kinda basically just got season 4 and I do wanna appreciate the stuff that's in it and focus on that because the cast did a really good job but I gotta get this out or I'm gonna screech.

If in the future the writers do continue the trend of Nezha getting beat up by the current baddie and prevented from doing his forking job at least give it ANGST.

Like maybe have him feeling insecure about being unable to do his job, or just desperately fighting with everything he has to try and stop the villain even when he's basically been crippled and fighting anymore would basically just get him killed.

But also have the other characters NOTICE. Like maybe that could be an obstacle to MK moving on from past villains getting free and recognizing that those instances weren't really his fault. Like he looks at Nezha fighting to do his job and protect people but as a result of the deity being constantly slapped over the head with incapability when it comes to preventing the advancement of villains throughout the ENTIRE TIME HE'S BEEN IN THE SHOW, he's neglecting his own health just to try and keep others safe and not nearly fail his duty again. And MK just feels so FROGGING guilty about it, cause he's still trying to get over the blame he places on himself for what happened with LBD and Azure Lion and the other villains, or if he's moved past that by season 5 it's because he feels he could've helped somehow.

And maybe there could be an episode where they work through it together, like Nezha reassures MK that the shit that went down ain't his fault and he couldn't have done much to prevent it in the first place, and MK helps Nezha realize that he won't always be able to protect people on his own and that's ok and it doesn't define his worth or skill, and we can finally get more of the fucking found brother content that a decent chunk of the fandom has wanted since we got a tiny little nibble of it in the frecking S3 special.

And then in an episode following that one it could show them getting the opportunity to take a breather or the group forcing them to take a break because the two bois refuse to relax for insecurity-related reasons (MK wanting to make sure a demon doesn't even get the chance to nearly end the world again, Nezha also wanting that but just being a workaholic in general).

But yeah if Nezha can't get a win in battle then at least give him angst over it and a break he fucking more than deserves at this point holy shit-

#lego monkie kid s4 spoilers #lego monkie kid s4 #lego monkie kid spoilers #lmk s4 spoilers #lmk s4 #lego monkie kid season 4 #lmk nezha #lmk mk #mk #monkie kid mk #nezha #prince nezha #monkie kid nezha #lego monkie kid nezha #lego monkie kid mk #qi xiaotian #lego monkie kid qi xiaotian #if he can't get a win at least give him angst #literally everything he's done in the show has been for the purpose of protecting others #when he was protecting the map #when he was chasing after Wukong to make sure the fire wasn't reforged #even when he got sucker punched into ice when Wukong got possessed #literally five seconds before when Wukong charged at him his first instinct was to warn MK to dodge #he literally said “Boy! Get back!” and was then immediately turned into a fucking miniature ice spikes biome #HE'S JUST TRYING TO KEEP THE PEOPLE SAFE GODDAMNIT #AND THE CLOSEST THING HE EVER GOT TO A BREAK WAS WHEN THEY WERE EATING NOODLES AFTER BEATING LBD #THE ONLY INDICATION OF HIS IN INVOLVEMENT IN THIS INSTANCE BEING A FAR-IN-THE-BACKGROUND FIVE SECOND LINE #AND HIS FACE CRAMMED INTO A 10X10 SQUARE OF PIXELS IN THE BACK #WHICH WAS A MOMENT SO MINOR I DIDN'T EVEN NOTICE IT WHEN I FIRST WATCHED THE EPISODE #JUST GIVE HIM A WIN OF SOME SORT ALREADY HE DESERVES IT

52 notes · View notes

fandomsoda · 1 year

Text

Alright SU progress report 1 (spoilers ahead)

Got through episodes 1-29

Overall experience?: I’m having fun, it’s alright, I like it. It’s keeping my attention enough for me to be able to solidly binge it.

Favorite character so far?: Uuuuuhhhh Idk probably Amethyst.

Ships?: No strong opinions yet

Thoughts on lore/overall show atmosphere?: The show’s gorgeous (at least the environments are) and the lore seems neat even though you’re very… thrown right into it. I don’t think it does a good job establishing the world, episode 1 just kinda happens and you get no context, no explanation, no one’s gonna tell you anything unless you’re watching with someone, and I do not think that is good writing. Pacing seems a bit too fast, I know the show has a shorter individual episode run time but it felt like things really weren’t built up enough. Things often just kinda happen and very few scenes are given the proper weight I think they deserve.

Individual character opinions:

Steven?: He is… something. He becomes way less unbearable, but early on he’s very difficult to watch. I never really hated him as I know he’s a young, inexperienced character and he’s supposed to be a tad annoying, but god the second-hand embarrassment! I also feel like he is dumbed-down way too fucking hard. Like it often feels like the writers have a vendetta against him with how shockingly oblivious and idiotic they make him at times, it is so frustrating. He’s way more likable later on, in exchange for feeling unnoteworthy. He’s the titular character, the generic starry-eyed protagonist, and I don’t really care that much. He bounces off of everyone well, but doesn’t have a lot going for himself individually.

Pearl?: I like Pearl, she’s fun, responsible, and resourceful. A mom friend if I’ve ever seen one and often pretty endearing, if overbearing at times. It’s a very basic archetype but it works.

Amethyst?: I like her a lot. Her attitude is fun, she is VERY pretty, and she’s often funny and interesting. However often she can come across as an asshole and her antics can wind up not fun so- yeah.

Garnet?: Garnet definitely has her moments but I do not like how robotic she acts. She feels like she should talk more and express more, and her only super expressive moment being her lashing out and being cruel to someone/thing who could not hurt her does not sweeten the deal.

Greg?: Massive shrug, has his moments but can also suck.

Lars?: Fun to watch, easy to emphasize with, kind of an asshole though.

Sadie?: (just gonna sum this up in the advice I’d like to give her) Girl I understand your pain and you deserve better so LEAVE HIS ASS.

Connie?: She’s neat. Her getting her eyesight cured did leave a bad taste in my mouth, though. Not her fault, however.

Lapis?: I like her a lot and I wish she stuck around for longer. I feel like enough time wasn’t spent on her story, and the scene of her gem getting healed went by too quickly and happened too suddenly.

Additional tidbits, giggles, and jokes:

wound up calling who Lapis was going to be given me already associating that gemstone with water

After observing how even the normal human world feels like it’s on something in this show and everyone seems like they’ve got something wild going on, I coined the term/saying “on some Beach City shit”, something to refer to when something/someone has the certain brand of weirdness Beach City does.

that’s all for now, having fun but not blindly loving the show, please don’t kill me.

people who wanted to be tagged directly: @dinosaurzzz @everydaygremlin

#text post #soda’s su saga

25 notes · View notes

dyaus-pita · 1 year

Text

If there is one net positive to 3Hopes' existence, it's that it confrims that not only is KT responsible for most of the writing issues of 3Houses, but that KT is fundamentally incompatible with the themes and messages of FE in general.

While Houses did have a lot of KT devs on staff for Houses, it was IS staff that served as director and producer. Hopes was almost entirely a KT production, with Kusakihara only being credited as an illustrator and "consultant/supervisor" this time, KT staff in the director and the producer roles, and two of the writers being replaced. IS basically had almost nothing to do with Hopes; this is very apparent when you compare how the characters, themes and story are handled compared to other entries in the series (the Elibe and Tellius games in particular) and even Houses. I've written about issues I've had with how Houses handled its anti-war and anti-prejudice messages, but there was an actual attempt at communicating said messages. Compare how the relics and the Nabateans are framed in Houses vs Hopes. In Houses, the relics and crests are ultimately the product of human sin and folly, with scenes like Hilda noticing and being repulsed by how her relic seems almost alive existing to draw your attention to it. The big secret Claude learns at the end of his route is not that Rhea was responsible for crests or relics, but that they are the remnants of her family, and she lied about them not to control humanity but because she wanted to protect what was left of her race and couldn't bring herself to kill people for simply being related to her victims. It was not an accident that Rhea turns out to be the one person in Fodlan who understands more Claude's desire for people to live without hiding who they are more than anyone. In Hopes, not only is the nature of the relics and crests completely ignored, the game seems to go out of its way to imply that the Nabateans deserved what happened to them or are equivalent to the people who genocided them for power, which is extremely fucked up.

In fact, the morals of 3Hopes in general are very fucked up, because the messages it communicates basically seem to be the following:

War is a Good Thing to help the common man, and should be the first option. As long as you have a Good Reason, the devastation and death caused by it can be handwaved.

Power and authority should be completely centralized on one "enlightened" autocrat. They shouldn't have to listen to their people because they know best and therefore should be free to do what they want.

It is fine for the enlightened ruler to use religious organizations as puppets to indoctrinate people and lie to them to support your warmongering. It is not ok to lie to people to prevent bloodshed and protect the last members of a genocided race.

The ends ALWAYS justify the means. As long as a ruler SAYS they feel bad, it's completely ok for them to treat civilians as expendable.

Because invading countries is good, defending one's country is bad, and if someone dies trying to stop you, then it is their fault or the fault of their inferior culture. They should always roll over and let you do what you want. Offering surrender is optional.

It is perfectly fine to destroy another country's culture or system of government to impose your own culture's, because yours is obviously better and you're doing them a favor anyway.

If a continent has had a history of other countries trying to conquer them, then they're racist for keeping you out when you attack them for sport. Why should you have to put any effort to understand them?

A true friend will do whatever you say and want and will ignore their own morals and interests. Feel free to lie to them or abuse their trust.

All the social, international, and political issues in the world can be laid squarely at the feet of one person or religion. It doesn't matter what they actually say or do, the fact they exist at all is tyranny and lynching them will fix everything.

Ethnic cleansing is perfectly fine as long as you want their land or personally don't like them.

Humans are great and perfect and should be free from the divine, except when they face the consequences for their actions. In that case, humans are helpless and the divine should always bail them out.

All foreigners want to subjugate you. Their attempts at peace actually mean they want to infiltrate your culture and destroy your traditions so they can rule, so don't trust them. It is much more acceptable as long as they suck up to the culture of a native though.

Always except everything you're told at face value if it's something that confirms your bias. It doesn't matter who it comes from or their ulterior motives, and you don't need to do research or try to understand the full picture because you are Right.

It is perfectly acceptable to inflame centuries old grudges so you can make war, especially if it allows you to help the people who wronged you less than a year ago.

It is also fine to sabotage another nation's diplomatic relations and use a neutral country's soldiers as bait, especially if your goal is to improve international relations. It's all the church's fault anyway.

It is NOT ok to leave an ally of convenience who clearly wants to either control you or conquer you later to die to end a war quicker.

It's a pro-war, pro-imperialist game, and reads more like the manifesto of a Japanese nationalist, right down to the victim complex and refusal to accept responsibility. Edelgard and Claude in that game are not so much characters as they are mouthpieces, and Rhea and the church are standins for everyone the devs don't like. It's not the plot holes introduced or the continuity errors and retcons that should disown 3Hopes, but the thematic and tonal dissonance to both the series as a whole and the entry that it's supposed to serve in the first place.

#fire emblem #3hopes discourse #three houses discourse #fire emblem three houses spoilers #fire emblem three hopes spoilers #japanese nationalism #fuck koei tecmo

39 notes · View notes

fictionaladoptionpolls · 11 months

Text

Kevin E. Levin

Age: 11 (nominally)

Home: NYC (Ben 10)

Likes: The X-Files, dogs, magical girlfriends

Dislikes: The law, the Omnitrix, car damage

Abilities: Several nouns followed with “absorption,” which the wiki thinks should count as distinct superpowers.

The Levin family household was poor, precarious, and probed by aliens. (Kevin’s mom and some Plumbers had fake memories of a Devin Levin implanted in their minds as part of a plan to manipulate the Plumbers; disruption of the Levin family was a byproduct.) Apparently unrelated to this, Kevin developed energy absorption abilities, which some people thought was freaky, which is possibly why his…stepfather(?) abused him. Anyways, eventually Kevin ran away from home and started stealing stuff.

(I don’t remember any of Kevin’s backstory from when I watched this series as a kid, TV Tropes is vague, the wiki scatters details across a dozen pages, and a bunch of Kevin-related stuff was retconned at least once.)

Anyways, Kevin ends up a delinquent urchin. He runs into Ben Tennyson, who becomes his friend, collaborator, and enemy in short order. (Shouldn’t have jumped straight from victimless warehouse theft to mass murder theft.) Accidentally absorbing a bunch of Ben’s alien watch’s energy, Kevin turned into a shapeshifting alien thing, and…you know, I’ll just show you what the submitter said about his backstory.

(NOT THE REBOOT) They put Kevin through so much. It’s like everytime the writers got bored, the just decided to put him through more traumatic events.they sent the mentally ill homeless 11 year old who didn’t understand his powers to adult space jail, where he suffered but found a mentor/father figure in one of his fellow inmates, who taught him how to control his powers. Later his mentor sacrifices himself,being killed by a guard, so Kevin can live and escape. He literally feels like it was his fault. I watch the show and I often find myself saying ‘oh, Kevin..’ like you would about a dog who keeps eating bees but doesn’t understand why it hurts. I think Ben 10 is anime enough to count, based the clear inspiration in storytelling and art style.

For the record, if I had to divide all animated series into Anime or Not Anime, Ben 10 would be borderline. That said, I explicitly specified an inclusive definition of “anime” in the bracket description…and Kevin is arguably the most anime character in the series. Once he gets out of space jail, Kevin becomes teen Ben’s Vegeta. Sure, he has a checkered past and used to be willing to murder people, and he still has a dark streak that puts him in contrast with Ben and Gwen, he’s trying to do good, and focuses most of his negative emotions on people who deserve to be hurt.

One neurosis that Kevin never seems to shake off his his self-loathing about the weirder expressions of his power. He sometimes gets physically mutated (especially when he absorbs Omnitrix energy), and that always fills him with a volatile mixture of aggression and depression. Also, he’s not great at thinking ahead. But once he learns not to hate people who aren’t himself, he means well.

Aside from Mx. NOT THE REBOOT, what does Tumblr think of Kevin?

I always felt kinda bad for Kevin, he had a rough life, and it seemed like even after he turned good he was always getting the short end of the stick. Like when he turned evil the second time, it was because he was saving the world.

So like, Osmosians are aliens in the first few series of Ben 10, and the Omnitrix takes DNA from the alien at the time it is first exposed. And they missed a huge joke that could have come from Ben trying to go for an alien only to turn into ELVEN YEAR OLD KEVIN while he is with both Kevin and Gwen.

I just think Kevin should get a pet rat and name it Argit, then train it to pick pocket.

(I know this profile is longer and more detailed than most. I had two reasons for this. First, I wanted to make sure anime purists gave him a fair shake. Second, and more importantly, I wanted to include that whole block of text without it being a significant percentage of the profile. It's currently 20%, which is…acceptable.)

#kevin e levin #ben 10 #ben 10 classic #anime child adoption bracket #profile

10 notes · View notes

mozart-the-meerkitten · 1 year

Note

Hello there! I have been a fan of the Wingfeather saga series for 3 years, (and the animated series since they where aired on YouTube) and I found your fanfics on Ao3 about a year and a half ago. I just wanted to tell you that I think you are an amazing writer, and a really great Wingfeather fan :)

One thing I was wondering, what exactly was it that made Artham your favorite character? For me, it probably would've been his dynamic. Or maybe the way he was written. I'm honestly not sure lol

Hi and first of all THANK YOU SO MUCH. I’m so happy to hear you like my stories and think I’m a good Wingfeather fan. Just, just trust me when I say that means a lot to me, I always feel like I'm not doing enough, so thank you <3

Okay so I’ve been ruminating on this question for a while, because it deserves a good answer and I love my boy a lot. (also I just really appreciated the nice comments and wanted to keep staring at the ask for a while) I am going to attempt to answer it tonight though!

So, first, Artham is just very much the kind of character I like. Tragic backstory? mentally ill? loyal to an absolute fault? loves children? kind? incredible fighter? He’s all of these things and many more and these are traits I love a lot in characters.

Second, Andrew writes him really, really well. He feels so human and so real, like he’s an actual person I could be friends with (and hug). His struggles remind me of my own- he gets better and then slides backwards, he tries so hard to help the people he cares about but doesn’t always know how to do that. He wants so badly to be with his family and to be loved but doesn’t feel worthy of any of that. I love, love, LOVE that he doesn’t lose his mental illness after his transformation. I was so scared that it was just gonna disappear in book three AND THEN IT DIDN’T and I was so happy, because that’s something that happens a lot with characters in media these days- their trauma/mental illness just magically disappears and that’s not how real life works! But Artham doesn’t have that happen even though magic is involved and I love that.

Related to that second point is that I find him both relatable and encouraging. I relate to his struggles with anxiety, depression, trying to cope with past mistakes, blaming myself for things I can’t control or fix… and I find it comforting that the books show that as Sara puts it, “even the noblest soul can be broken”. We are all broken, we have all made mistakes and fallen, even those of us with noble hearts and the best of intentions, and we can come out of that. We can go on living and still find love and kindness and support from people. It’s both solidarity and a reminder that there’s some good in the world, and it’s worth fighting for.

Idk, I just draw a lot of hope from Artham and what happened to him- which sounds silly because he’s a fictional character, but human beings often process real life experiences through stories so- I keep repeating this phrase to myself, it’s kind of become my mantra, “don’t give up before you get your wings”. Because, in book 2, Artham is ready to give up, he DOES give up, and it is at that very moment that he sees Tink and all of a sudden he has a reason to live again and he FIGHTS for it, and it turns out that he was meant to be there all along to save Tink AND to be transformed and have his mind restored. And I try to remember that because I’m going through a lot of crap and I feel like giving up a lot, but remembering that maybe I’m right where I need to be, maybe if I just keep holding on a little longer I’ll get my wings- that something good will come from this- and that helps.

So, uh, yeah. I could probably go on but I think that covers most of it.

TLDR: Artham is a character I love a lot because I relate to him and I love the kind of character he is (loyal, kind, brave, and somehow so, so soft despite everything). I’m drawing a lot of hope from this fictional character and his story. He is the best boy <3

#the wingfeather saga #the wingfeather saga tv show #peet the sockman #artham p wingfeather #thanks for the ask!#this got long and deep #if you read this whole thing then thank you for listening to me ramble :)#probably more of an answer than you were looking for but once I get started talking about artham I don't stop easily #he's one of my absolute top favorite characters ever #he's just below lucy pevensie and sam gamgee #with like zuko and rei from yukikaze #he is very very high on my list #loving artham wingfeather is a thing that can be so personal #(also just to clarify I don't mean 'love' in a romantic way I am hardly ever romantically attracted to anyone #but I do really passionately love characters)#ANYWAY #thank you again!#I love to talk about my favorite characters ask about them any time

12 notes · View notes