#they have a really interesting dynamic in this run

[absolutelynotsanebaby]

I like to think about what Morro's dynamic with the ninjas could be in a timeline where he A) didn't die and B) developed into being. Able to be on friendly terms with them lol

Kai: EVENTUAL mutual respect but I doubt they like each other. At least not normally. If you think destinyduo would ever be normal, you are wrong. Constant bickering, constant competition, constant sparing. Ironically, because of all that, they know each other very well, espicially their fighting styles. Their rivarly will NEVER die. They work together well, funnily enough. You know that one post that's like "throw darts at it all you like but you still put their photo up on your wall"? Thats them to me.

Zane: really chill, actually. They get along pretty decently. Don't play though Zane would constantly mess with Morro but Morro would never be able to figure out if he's doing it on purpose. They could have some really interesting conversations post Ice-Emperor.

Nya: it'd start off really rocky but I think they'd come to an understanding of each other. At the base personality, they're not all that different from each other if you think about it. Morro would bring out a side of Nya that would terrorize random criminals in Ninjago City I think. Twin elements, wojira duo.

Jay: he'd make Morro blow a FUSE if they ever talked for more than like 5 minutes. You think it'd be Kai that rountinely piss Morro off the most? WRONG. it's Jay. Essentially, in arguements with Morro, he'd run off Loonely Tunes logic so Morro would never win. Ill advised to make them work together something WILL blow up.

Cole: similarly chill dynamic with these two I think. I like to think post-dotd Morro would be on some solo vigilante shit and somehow Cole would get wrapped up in that so they sorta bond through that and ghost experiences. Morro did help him out during dotd, I think that'd matter to Cole. They're friends.

Lloyd: woo boy. This one's interesting. For the longest while it'd be extremely distant. Very tense. I think a lot of their dynamic would be cold pragmatism on Lloyd's end and Morro silently trying to make things up through action. Trying to prove himself, not even asking for forgiveness. It'd take a long time for their relationship to become on more traditionally friendly terms. After that though Lloyd is going to make so much fun of him, all the time. Morro has to grit his teeth abt it lmao. Loser.

Anyways this was late night thoughts with me goodbye.

#shoot me in the head if any of this is wrong or idk #lego ninjago #ninjago #morro ninjago #morro wu #zane ninjago #kai ninjago #nya ninjago #jay ninjago #cole ninjago #lloyd ninjago #i casted aside my sandstorm goggles for this post are you guys proud of me #blah blah

[ceruleanskies48]

Jealous Mizu

It’s Day 5 (Banter) of @taimizuweek! Like many in the BES fandom, I’ve been thinking a lot about love triangles since the creators have been unrelenting in their teasing of a Mizu-Akemi-Taigen love triangle. In particular, recently I’ve been thinking about jealousy. Although some ship the trio as an endgame throuple, “love triangle” typically implies an unstable arrangement that can be leveraged to create juicy drama through sparking feelings of jealousy, betrayal, and abandonment. 

While I personally don’t like the idea of Mizu suffering from such negative emotions, thinking about Season 1 through the lens of love triangles has made me realize that perhaps we have already seen inklings of jealous Mizu through her banter with Akemi. 

In particular, I’ve been intrigued by the moment in Ep. 4 when Mizu tells Akemi that she “begs to eat trash.” On first watch, this seemed really harsh (is Taigen really “trash”?), but I just figured, Taigen’s station is way lower than the Shogun’s son, and he was Mizu’s childhood bully, so she has reason to think poorly about him. Upon further reflection though, I think this moment actually shows some romantic jealousy on Mizu’s part.

In the episode before this, she left Taigen a very flattering letter that showed that she greatly respected him (and did not actually think he’s trash). She left him her the broken blade, took his scarf, and told him they’d meet again. Shortly before Mizu and Akemi’s conversation, Mizu fantasized about Taigen when seeing the male prostitute and swordsman kiss. And in the cut scene right before they talk (https://www.instagram.com/reel/C0KFcvrRedc/), she was looking at herself in the mirror and wondering if she could be considered sexually appealing. 

In light of all of this, I think the reason she so venomously chastises Akemi is that, on some level, she felt like she had a special connection with Taigen—even a potential romantic one—but feels threatened upon learning that Taigen’s fiancée is the beautiful, high status, and extremely feminine princess Akemi. Who could compete with that? There’s a tinge of injustice in her voice, like, why do you have to go after *this* trashy dog (whom I have conflicting feelings about but have begrudgingly come to see as sort of being *my* trashy dog), when you could have anyone else? Insulting Taigen is probably also a way for Mizu to suppress her own burgeoning feelings.

This comparative dynamic also comes up in the forge scene, after Mizu hops off of Taigen. For a moment, she feels a possible romantic connection to him, and it seems like she’s about to reveal her gender to him, but then he brings up Akemi. Mizu seems to believe him—that his boner was due to thinking about Akemi—which makes her confess instead to watching Akemi being taken away. I imagine in that moment, Mizu tamped down any hope she might have for a spark with Taigen, reminding herself that he’s in love with the beautiful Akemi, with whom she could not possibly compete. 

Mizu’s jealousy also comes out in her not-so-subtle jabs at Akemi and Taigen’s relationship. When they first meet, she tells Akemi that Taigen seemed more upset about his hair than his broken engagement. Later, even when she’s trying to bring Akemi and Taigen back together (and hyping up Taigen as a potential "great man"), she tells Akemi that Taigen BELIEVES he loves Akemi very much. For such a straightforward person, such veiled language stands out. She's a wingman with a conflict of interest.

Mizu is not the only one feeling tinges of jealousy. Akemi explains that she wanted to meet Mizu to see what power Mizu has over Taigen to make him run away from her. It’s interesting to see this comparative dynamic between these two women, who in many ways could not be more different, yet who are brought together by Taigen, who notably is their only topic of conversation in Season 1 (sadly Akemizu Season 1 doesn’t pass the Bechdel Test, but I imagine that’ll change in future seasons).

As the writers further develop the love triangle in subsequent seasons, I’m curious if we’ll see jealousies intensify and who will be jealous of whom.

#12daysoftaimizu #bes #bes mizu #blue eye samurai #mizu #mizu bes #mizu blue eye samurai #mizu x taigen #taigen blue eye samurai #taigen x mizu #taimizu #akemi blue eye samurai #bes akemi #love triangle #taizu #taigen bes #taigen #meta analysis #banter

[nordickies]

What were Sweden, Norway and Denmark like during the Viking era? I'm just curious what your thoughts are on that, as someone who is more familiar with the England-side of that period of time.

I have personally started to lean towards the idea that maybe they didn't do that much in the Viking Age! I think there was a "generation" before them who played the role during that time. Norway, Sweden, and Denmark were perhaps born once the petty kingdoms started to be unified, so the 8th-10th century. That means they would have been children by the late Viking Age, spending most of their time in their respective countries rather than living the "Viking lifestyle" we associate with the period. Perhaps their elders took them on journeys every now and then, but they were still just literal children

I don't know if anyone else agrees with this, but to me, it's a fascinating idea. Also, there is potential for some angst; imagine what a hell of a standard that must be to live up to. Their elders were notorious and highly feared Vikings, who ruled many parts of Europe and traveled half the planet. When the state structure and power dynamics between their countries started to change, it was the youths' time to take over. All three were probably clueless as to what they should do. And the growing influence of the Papacy probably affected them a lot, they were gullible youngsters seeking any sort of mentor in their lives, after all. I think the fact that they weren't running things during the Viking Age gives them interesting motivation to try and find their place later on, and live up to the past glory of their elders (or the supposed glory they have imagined in their head)

But that's just my thought experiment, I think there's so much interesting stuff regarding the Viking Age, that you could easily write an essay! I don't really know where to start with the introduction; the time period lasts for centuries, after all. I can't help but recommend @ifindus blog regarding this topic specifically. Their takes are top-tier and helpful if you seek to learn more about the Viking Age and how that could affect the Scandi personifications! I feel like I'd be just repeating the same points here because I basically agree with it all. But if you have specific questions or ideas you'd like to explore, feel free to ask more!

#hws nordics #headcanons #very basic rundown: sweden did trade. norway did exploring. denmark was just bossy ig #tagging you out of the blue findus i'm sorry. but using the opportunity to recommend good content <3 #sorry if my answer isn't satisfactory. i'd need to write an actual essay for such a broad idea. maybe i can explore more in smaller pieces!

[literary-illuminati]

2024 Book Review #28 – The Dead Take The A Train by Cassandra Khaw and Richard Kadrey

Oh I wanted to love this book so very much. On paper it’s basically made for me – incredibly messy fuckup of a heroine, cosmic horror through the idiom of wall street corporate sharks, grimy and gory urban fantasy full of knifing people in back alleys, the works! For the first fifty pages or so, I thought I was in love – which just made the disappointment as the wheels came off all the more bitter.

The book follows Julie, ‘barbed wire magician’ (it’s at least as unpleasant as it sounds), professional monster hunter, and all-around personal disaster. Her life takes a turn for the even messier when a) her best friend/comically oversized unresolved crush shows up at her door begging for help running from her abusive husband and b) unrelatededly but more or less simultaneously, her ex-partner-and-also-boyfriend, looking up to clean up embarrassing loose ends on his rise up the elldritch corporate ladder, baits her into trying to summon a guardian angel from a sabotaged tome and ends up releasing a metaphysical parasite that starts murdering its way through the city’s occult underground. From there things just get messier.

Drilling down as much as I can, my issues with this can be summed up as it feels like a first draft. There’s stuff there on the page – character arcs, relationships, bits of scenery and action setpieces, even themes! - but it’s all just..there. Exaggerated line sketches no one ever went back and turned into full illustrations. It’s most painful with the characters – every one of them is a caricature, precisely and exactly what they first appear to be with the same beats hit again and again every single time they appear on screen. Which more or less for the quirky supporting cast but like – we get multiple chapters from the perspective of the aforementioned abusive husband, and something like a fifth of the book is from the POV of the sleazy corporate striver ex. At no point does either one get the slightest bit of nuance or pathos – Tyler’s chapters in particular end up reading like bad SCP field reports, with so much self-destructive instituional backstabbing and betrayal it all ends up being slapstick.

Sarah the love interest gets a special anti-shout-out here. Like, I know I’m just picky about and have a low tolerance for romances, but I swear – the single most important dynamic in the book in terms of both wordcount and narrative signposting is her and Julie’s romance, and it is just So. Bad. Every single scene she’s in is dedicated to rubbing your face in how fragile and traumatized and selfless and adorable and good-hearted and damaged she is, and the entirety of the romance is essentially one of those jokes about how lesbians will spend six years living with each other awkwardly waiting for the other to ask them out but stretched across 400 pages. I spent half the book patiently waiting for any hint of hidden depths or surprising twists to her character, but nope! Just a perfect domestic angel.

The setting actually has something of a similar issue. It feels like an exaggerated pastiche of urban fantasy, assuming the reader is already familiar with all the tropes and conceits and making only the most perfunctory possible gestures towards exploring or justifying them. This can absolutely work, but if you’re doing it you kind of need to use the genre as the background or setup for something else that the book is actually about – deconstruction or satire or character study or Wacky Hijinks or something. When what’s gruesome action and drama is supposed to be the star attraction, the grounding and verisimilitude of the world is actually pretty key.

A really tight, tense plot could have absolutely redeemed the whole but, well, nope. The literal entire plot hinges on Tyler, in the course of one conversation several drinks in at a crowded bar, baiting Julie into looking for a particular type of tome from a particular store so she’ll try the ritual he had swapped out with one to curse her – but then also that he didn’t know what the ritual he swapped in actually did. The big evil wall street law firm has a corporate culture that should have collapsed about 48 hours after it was founded, and absolutely nothing about it makes sense for a place with lasting institutional power. Everyone’s morality and perceptiveness changes as the plot requires. The pacing feels like they had to pull a happy ending out of their asses at the 2/3 mark and shove the rest of the book into a sequel. It’s just, it’s bad!

Also the prose starts at fun and evocative and keeps pushing into Lovecraftian levels of adjective-addiction, and neither the A-Train nor the dead are actually at all important to the story.

Just, argh. This could have been good! The first 40 pages were a really fun schlocky monster-of-the-week story! The first ritual summoning the Proctor was basically perfect! I wanted to love this!

#book review #urban fantasy #horror #the dead take the a train #Cassandra Khaw #Richard Kadrey #sff

[punkeropercyjackson]

Ben 10 rewrite-fix-selfship thangs by me and my little sister @mayameanderings we did agesssss ago but am only posting now since my friend @franollie is re-entering the fandom!

My s/i's name is Solana Cristalina!!!He's half Petrosapien,half (afro-dominican) human,transmasc genderfluid and bigender,audhd,super bubbly,chaotic,physically incapable of not running his mouth,a pastel punk femme,a mom friend and has a mean streak that's mostly funny but sometimes angsty or played for coolness against villains!His design is meant to look like a half white black person because that's what i am but since he's made of crystals,his colors reflect the primary light of whatever scene he's in(Hobie Brown moment).His eyes glow in the dark and he's strange looking but not enough to not pass as human!

His dad,Diarius,raised him on Petropia for the first 5 years of his life but decided Earth was safer for him and so he started being raised by his mom,Mariana.He had his own special debut episode in Classic called 'Crystal up,Sunshine' and Mariana is a Bruja who mentored Lucky Girl!Gwen on her and her son and daughter's summer jewel collection travels after Solana had his adventure with Ben and Gwen and became basically like siblings with them even though he was only in a few episodes for that run.Him and Kevin met the same year but at their school where Solana was a Special ED kid and Kevin was in a club/support group for troubled kids.He sat in front of Kevin and he was like 'This shiny kid is gonna blind me' which led to them talking and Solana was like 'His edge is going to cut me' /irony.They befriended eachother nonetheless before Kevin dropped out as he's implied to be homeless in canon and Solana was upset since he was his only friend but they reunite in the show itself with the exact quote 'Holy shit,edgy kid!!!' and 'Holy smokes,shiny kid!!!' but it dosen't end well just yet since Kevin was an antagonist at the time

Kevin is black monoracial but mixed etchnicity-His mom is mexican and Devin's american.He was taught to seperate his blackness from his latinohood and he grew up disconnected to his blackness due to almost no other black people around and becoming best friends with Solana was the start of healing journey og embracing his afrolatino identity.He participates in both black latino and black american culture since he's half both!!He used to feel guilty about falling under stereotypes but now sticks it to racists by being way better than them and loves himself for who he is!He has fang grills by Omniverse and his redemption arc in Alien Force isn't relient on romance despite Kelana being a big part of it

The Tennysons are white latinos with Abuelo Max being an argentinian inmigrant based purely on vibes and Verdona was latina too(poc swag transcends solar systems.Next question‼️).Gwen is a lesbian and dating Kai,Julie,Ester and Charmcaster and the last one was her first love and there was so much unnecessary gay drama that could've easily been avoided if Gwen wasn't such a loser when it comes to romance and her and Ben's character development sticks instead of keeping them static characters for the sake of unfunny comedy.Ben and Rook's obviously a thing as a plot that's not really a plot twist since their dynamic is the same as in canon but intentionally romantic

They're also all trans and autistic

Kai is recurring in Alien Force and respectfully written as navajo instead of only existing for Ben and having a fucking feather in her hair and is an official member of Team 10,as is Julie who's also not a Ben love interest but a girlgeek that has a sibling-like relathionship with him and has Ship pre-debut as she gets her own special like Solana that dives into her backstory.Ester's way more prominent too and yet another member and has quiet bpd due to childhood trauma but is helped with it by her friends and girlfriends

The last additions to complete Team 10 to make it fit it's namesake are Charmcaster,Albedo and Alan.Hope is still technically a villain but a dear friend to everyone on the gang who regularly spends time with them and helps on missions,Albedo got a fullon redemption arc and Alan was pretty much adopted/taken in by everyone since he dosen't have parents

Solana and Ben are a 'i'm mean to you because i love you' typa beat,Solana and Gwen are soul sisters who bond over everything and on the same level to eachother as him and Kevin are and Kelana in Classic was Kevin actively trying to make Solana worse but Solana is such a nice person that it dosen't work,in Alien Force they get to be proper longterm friends with crushes undertones and in Omniverse they basically act like they're dating already but are still complete oblivious.They develop all throught the franchise and don't get together until the final series:Ben 10 Forever

Ben 10 Forever takes place in Ben's young adult years and is a darker,more complex story to reflect it.This includes Solana dying when he saved Diarus' life in a battle in episode 1 but being ressurected with Petrosapien resources and having trauma from it and Diarus has survivor's guilt.He was always afraid something would happen because he just dosen't trust most human's and blames himself moreso because he feels he should've been there full time,even though he wasn't neglectful and visited all the time with him and Mariana just being long distance

Kevin having mimic powers and Solana being crystalline=They're a reflection of eachother

Mr Smoothie is Team 10's hangout and Solana has a job at a thrift store and convinced Ben to be hired alongside him

#ben 10 #ben 10 classic #ben 10 alien force #ben 10 omniverse #ben 10 forever #solana cristalina #kevin levin #ben tennyson #gwen tennyson #team 10 #julie yamamoto #kai green #ester omniverse #albedo #rook blonko #charmcaster #alan albright #kelena #lucky girl's girls #diarius #mariana cristalina #benrook #real self shipping hours #💌 #summerposting

[fernhelm]

opinions on the black sister relationships? i love your character posts sm!

i’m blowing you a kiss!

i love thinking about them…sorry this took so long, i was busy lounging and watching killing eve. i might type up something about the dynamic between the three of them, but i broke them down into pairs here.

bella & cissa ♛

i made a webweave here that basically sums up my thoughts on bellacissa. i do think cissa thinks she’s a fanatic and completely bonkers, but she’d defend her anyway. narcissa appreciates that in their patriarchal fucked up family, bella is carving her own path—she isn’t docile or ladylike at all. so cissa takes some vicious pleasure in how unleashed bella is. conversely, bellatrix has a deep-seeded jealousy FOR narcissa, who is at least able to play the part of the perfect pure blood woman in a way bellatrix never could. my vision is that druella has contempt for bella but pays a lot of attention to narcissa. once druella is dead, bella sees narcissa as both her baby and her mother in a way, and she resents both. but i won’t get into bella here she deserves her own post.

bella & andy ♞

the hardest relationship for me is bella and andy. my belief is that these two are one year apart in age, like irish twins. we know from dh that they’re basically identical. I think they were pitted against each other a lot. they both end up teaching each other how conditional someone caring for you can be. it’s obvious that andy leaving really wounds bella (as evidenced by the ferocity with which she wants to kill ted and tonks), so there is a degree of power andy hold over her emotionally. bella is both the terrorist and the protector in the home. she goes after both her sisters, but it’s with the ultimate goal of making them strong enough to face anything that’s thrown at them…andy doesn’t want to change her or save her—she knows all the dark, evil parts of her and grapples with all the times bella showed her tenderness or turned her rage against someone else for her sake. i think they can read each other’s body language perfectly, but don’t understand each other’s minds at all. once they’re older they fight all the time, verbally if not with magic, and it would start with bella making some pointed jabs to get her attention and andy curating a biting response without looking up from her magazine and just like that they’re dueling. but once it’s over and they’re panting on the floor, bella would kick her leg and they’d smirk at each other a bit. or one of them would storm out. i do think that andy did bella’s hair for every event they attended between the ages of 8 and 16. huh, i guess i have more to say about them than i thought i did.

andy & cissa ♝

narcissa spends years stepping in the footprints andy has left behind. before she figures out who she is, she’s just a ghost of andy. she learns all her best defenses from her. i don’t think andy feels very bad about leaving her behind. i don’t think she’d try to convince narcissa to go with her either. she would miss her so much, but she’d grieve her like she’s dead. i don’t see her as a person who holds on to a lot of regrets. and she’s in love! she wants to run away and forget every bad thing that ever happened to her! is that a crime? narcissa thinks it is. growing up andy was her strongest ally, and she takes it as the ultimate betrayal when she leaves. similarly to regulus, she looks down on andy and maligns her whenever her name comes up, but it’s a cover up for how hurt she is. andy knows all the reasons that narcissa thinks she’s trapped in the life she leads, but she still thinks ‘if you want out, get out.’

daughters 1, 2, 3 ♙

fairy tales often follow a 1 2 3 format because it’s easy to remember a moral lesson tied up with a bow when it comes in a set of three (three billy goats, beauty and the beast, the peverell brothers). it goes bad bad good. so it’s super interesting that the ostensibly “good” one, andy, is the middle child. she is bookended by two death eater sisters. which raises the question: what went wrong (or right) with her? and for the others too—narcissa in canon is primarily draco’s mother, but giving her andromeda AND bellatrix as sisters raises all kinds of questions about her upbringing and interpersonal relationships. bellatrix chases and scolds narcissa at the beginning of half-blood prince, and she’s not particularly scary at all. the terrifying evil bitch who killed sirius calls her sister cissy? three sisters who mean vastly different things to harry, but we never get the three of them in a room, so so much is left to the imagination. lots to play with. good things come in threes!

#a #3 sisters meta

[thecarnivorousmuffinmeta]

So I was reading your meta about why Tom/Minerva wouldn't be a thing or work out in the long run past a date or two, and thought I'd take a stab at how Tom and Alphard did make it work in your and Vinelle's fics.

Alphard's high tolerance for relationship shenanigans

Tom might care about his partners (he wouldn't start a relationship in the first place if he didn't), but he's often bad at letting them know, and also pulls a lot of obnoxious shenanigans/is pushy in general, which can drive off many potential partners. Being in a relationship with Tom means having to put up with a lot.

So Alphard is one of those people who can tolerate this. Maybe part of it is just his natural personality, but I feel like Walburga being so domineering during their early childhood (she's like this in their early adulthood too, and I doubt their dynamics have changed that much) also plays a major role. Alphard's still capable of being assertive and stubborn over things he finds particularly outrageous, but his default reaction to things he doesn't like is to give up after his first few attempts to change it fail, and just grumble and despair to himself in a corner. So when first-year Tom comes along beating him up, Alphard just goes with his well-practiced response of letting the other party have their way and getting it over with already.

He's also introverted and uncharismatic, which means he doesn't have much of a social life and gets lonely as a result. So having a boyfriend who values him for his thoughts and he can have a deeper connection with is something Alphard really likes, so even if said boyfriend is sometimes being negligent or pulling/having pulled crazy stuff (ie constantly beating him up in the past), it's still better than nothing. The fact that he's gay which massively cuts down on potential romantic partners, and would make him stigmatized if he got outed doesn't help. Neither does his massive crush on Tom. (Lily's more charming and doesn't have the orientation issue, but she's still lonely and without deep connections. In any case, she also displays the same high tolerance for less-than-stellar boyfriend behavior)

Minerva, who probably has a better social life and isn't so lonely, would be less tolerant of all of Tom's baggage.

2. Alphard already being aware Tom isn't all sunshine, and in general gets to see past the facade more

He's in Slytherin, and they're dormmates to boot, which means Alphard is getting a front-row seat to Tom being a horrible menace to their housemates (and him). Nonetheless he still finds things to admire about Tom, and though that could be kickstarted by teenage hormones, a good chunk of that attachment must come from Alphard himself or the crush wouldn't last so many years. Alphard is already at the point of being able to accept liking Tom while still knowing he does unpleasant things. So if you drop the revelation of Tom doing worse than just nasty school bullying onto their heads (ie the basilisk and horcruxes), Alphard will still be in for a shock, but that's less for him to process than Minerva who only gets the shattered charming perfect facade of Tom to work with.

Also, being dormmates means that Alphard in general gets to spend more time observing Tom, which combined with his perceptiveness means he knows Tom as a person rather well, maybe better than Tom knows him (Tom spent several years not paying attention), dirty secrets aside. Even the less observant Abraxas manages to see more of Tom by virtue of his position than Minerva.

3. Tom's actually interested because of circumstance and the mystery/newness factor

Tom is fresh from all the crazy stuff that went down last year and in the summer, and while presumably still having a mental breakdown has gotten some of it out of his system. He's still unhappy and restless and wants to do something to distract himself, but he probably wants it to be something less, uhh, exciting than what happened earlier. (I'm assuming what was described in OOI is also canon to TMWWBK or other fics)

And then while going through his usual kicking housemates in the stomach so they know their place routine, he notices Alphard's choice of reading material. Come on, there's no way his stupid dormmate actually understands that stuff, right? He's probably just being pretentious and wants to make himself feel smart. Nonetheless, there's nothing lost if he asks, and then when Alphard doesn't give the expected answer he gets curious. Isn't this exactly the kind of harmless pursuit he wanted? (Alphard, meanwhile, sees what's happening and decides to deliberately bait Tom into following up) One thing leads to another when Tom realizes Alphard himself has some pretty interesting thoughts sometimes, and then they're friends and romantically involved.

This also seems to be the case for other fics where Tom gets romantically entangled with someone. More than even intelligence, Tom seems to need that other person to have hidden depths or a mystery that he can pursue. Bonus points for them being evasive, which eggs him on. Minerva, as a known factor that he already gets the gist of, just doesn't interest him enough.

4. General romanticism and Alphard's willingness to commit

So you said Tom's romanticism makes him want to skip the dating stage and do relationships in an all or nothing way. Either they commit or there's no relationship at all.

And Alphard, who isn't exactly swimming in other options, is quite attached to Tom, and does have a dramatic streak himself, is willing to take the plunge. The fact that it's a taboo relationship (both same-sex and a pureblood seeing an apparent muggleborn) and they have to see each other in secret, demanding a higher level of commitment, just amplifies it.

5. The blood purism and societal issues thing

This is the part where it doesn't work. Well, those two have other things going for them, and have enough of an established relationship and care for each other that they try to work around this issue, but it never gets fully resolved in the canon and near-canon timelines. The blood purity debate is one of those things that comes up every now and then, and always ends with them deciding to call it quits because neither party is convincing the other anyways, and don't they have more productive things to do with their time?

So Tom of course struggles to get anywhere in the wizarding world as himself, and concerned, Alphard tries to help by giving him financial support, which often is turned down. Alphard might think it's just Tom being too proud to accept handouts, and that is part of the reason he won't take substantial gifts unless Alphard gets smart about it, but it's also a matter of principle. The issue is the wizarding world being built on nepotism and closing its doors to outsiders, and Tom only managing to do well with his insider boyfriend's help kind of proves the point.

Alphard is better about understanding muggleborn issues than most purebloods, but he isn't muggleborn himself, and there's still a remove between watching something happen to a loved one and experiencing it yourself. So he's aware of Tom's struggles to get anywhere in society legitimately, and acknowledges it's unfair, but the same tendency towards resignation that helps him put up with Tom's nonsense also works against him here, in that he gives up on the system changing too easily. For him, yes, the system is broken and there's a lot of things that could be done better so muggleborns don't get screwed over, but it is what it is, and it's not like they can actually change things. Tom, of course, refuses to accept this, and this tension eventually leads to Alphard being unable to prevent the Voldemort thing because he can't fully get it.

So that's at least what I got from analyzing things. Please let me know if I missed anything significant or got something wrong.

This is a truly beautiful post anon, I love it, but unfortunately confirming or denying anything would be spoilers to a lot of things..

Look, @therealvinelle, ship thoughts!

#harry potter #harry potter meta #harry potter headcanon #harry potter shipping #tom riddle #alphard black #tom riddle/alphard black #alphalord #meta #headcanon #opinion

[oodlyenough]

rogue!

well i really enjoyed that! felt like a classic MOTW doctor who episode, in a way that none of the others this season really have (except maybe space babies... except i uh. did not like space babies lol). i think it makes sense that bringing in two new writers (women! hooray) would stick pretty close to the formula, and i think it worked well. as much as i love the experimental episodes, the formula done well is still a very good formula. that's how you get 60+ years of tv.

the one-off romantic interest for the doctor who tragically gets sacrificed to save the day shtick felt refreshing because it was a man this time, and also because it's in a season where the doctor and the companion haven't had any ship tease stuff themselves lol. also the kylie song playing reminded me of astrid, who had a very similar arc. wonder how intentional

i also liked ruby's subplot of bonding with the one girl, she felt very Companion in this episode

i thought the bridgerton cosplay angle was pretty hilarious and i enjoyed it. i haven't really been paying much attention to the "it's a tv show!" theory -- mostly i find it... more enjoyable to not create theories for myself on doctor who bc there's a 99% chance i'll be wrong and get disappointed -- but i have to wonder if that being the plot of this episode helps or hinders that idea.

also this. really felt like it was meant to be episode 2 of the season. sorry. i know i've been in a "devil's chord got swapped in its order" conspiracy theory this whole season. but space babies leads to the doctor meeting carla again and then we flash back to that conversation here. to prove her identity ruby only references TCORR and space babies. the 6 month jump in devil's chord and the obvious finale tease at the end of it, which was notably missing from this episode. i feel like rtd could personally pinky promise me these episodes weren't swapped in their airing order and i'd still be skeptical

overall, i feel like we've had a pretty enjoyable run of episodes. i've liked just about every episode, with space babies being my least favourite. 73 yards / dot and bubble / rogue is a really strong three ep run for me, had a blast with all of them for different reasons.

however, with only two episodes left in the season, i have to say fifteen and ruby as a team tardis feel quite... generic? they're both extremely likable in the role and i enjoy both characters and the dynamic they have. but there's not really any tension between them, i feel like we skipped so much of the getting-to-know you, i don't feel that ruby has any big character challenges to overcome which means there's not really a lot of growth opportunities for her development either. it's such a shame because this was always the RTD1 era's biggest strength. i think a lot of it is the reduced episode count, but i'm still surprised we haven't seen more of that characterwork that is usually his bread and butter.

sad there's only two episodes left though, i've had fun with the season

#doctor who #dw spoilers

[welcometogrouchland]

[ID in ALT] I've made posts before about Talia/Dick co-parenting Damian moments (will never happen but let me dream) and this came to me in a vision. Took me ages to finish for some reason 😭 and then even longer to post

#dc comics #dc #damian wayne #dick grayson #talia al ghul #batfamily #dc robin #nightwing #anyway. yes im a self-indulgent ''dick as damians secret third parent'' truther #like i DO think it's way more complex and nuanced than the schmoopy affectionate fan portrayal of it #they're brothers they're father and son they're partners they're the dynamic duo except only in past tense etc etc #but consider! I'm not immune to schmoopy affection in fanworks. it compells me despite itself #anyway it's technically not that crazy when it comes to dick and damian. they hug! often! at least they did #it's not as big a leap to these types of scenarios #also talia ''somewhat absent for complex reasons on both her and damians part but very loving and loved by her son'' al ghul #you will always be famous to me #son of the demon origin...bwahhh #anyway. someone made a comic kind of like this/like a post i made abt this topic #but way funnier bc dick and talia starting trying to beat each other up #so go look at that as well #anyway. it's been a somewhat difficult few weeks so I'm. desperately trying to take it easy #i got some reading with me (first vol of kevin smiths GA run that i found second hand and jaimes BB run vol 2!) #so we'll see how far i get through those. considering there's demons in my head telling me to re-read things (LET ME OUT!!!) #when i finish GA and BB i do plan on rereading robin 2021. as a treat to myself #it's a run I've really warmed up to as time went on #I'm keeping up w/ the current b&r run even though it is. admittedly very slow w/ some weird dialogue #i read it for the damian content more than anything. also nikas back so that's neat :] #idk I have a feeling that after absolute power shakes out we might get some more creative team switch ups #so if anyone at dc is interested in taking over the reigns on b&r...that could be very neat #mine

[turtleblogatlast]

Man “Battle Nexus: New York” was a great episode but I do have one major gripe with it.

Like. Raph being paired up with Ghostbear? Makes sense. Works great. Works amazing, even.

Mikey being paired up with Meatsweats? Yeah that checks out!!

Donnie getting…Hypno…? I mean. I guess Donnie doesn’t like magic so it kindaaa works but Kendra would have been a much better choice to me personally. Maybe Big Mama didn’t wanna include a human or something…

And Leo getting…uh…one of the Sando Brothers???? Of all villains? Nah let’s be real, his main villain is more Big Mama herself (or Leo could be considered his own worst enemy lmao-). Hell Hypno would have probably worked better here considering their shared love for magic tricks and stuff, but Carl Sando????

#rottmnt #rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles #battle nexus: new york #nah this will always be baffling to me #like no joke big mama really is Leo’s main villain so it makes sense that she’s not paired with him #given that she’s running this all #but giving him ONE of the Sando brothers?? not even both??? #outrageous #hypno or even warren would have been better here tbh #at least there’s some basis there for both and either option would have been so fun #not that what we got WASNT fun it def was but the sando bro was the weak link because no one cares about him #and I would have killed for a Donnie Kendra forced team up 😭 #Donnie also could have worked with Stockboy ig or hell even Repo tbh? #but Kendra is the much more interesting and fitting choice here for him imo #honestly though this post was made because I do NOT understand the choice of CARL SANDO #both of them together are forgettable enough #separating them gets rid of the one thing they even had #I remember watching and being like who tf is that #he’s got some funny moments but man anyone would have been better 😭 #going back to Kendra and Donnie because I LOVE their dynamic #the result of their team up could have ended exactly the same as canon #only instead of Kendra not knowing chess it’s instead her and Donnie arguing about what the right move would be #and they never actually make a move because of it

[sysig]

Bitter breakup rivalry (Patreon)

#Doodles #Wander Over Yonder #Emperor Awesome #Commander Peepers #I dunno lol I just wanted to draw Awesome being pathetic and insulting Peepers and maybe immediately regretting it :) #As much as I think their relationship dynamic could go very well I also think it could go very poorly >:3c They have a lot of potential! #Awesome trying to get too close too fast to manipulate him before he's proven a useful asset would basically be a death sentence hehe #Especially if he tried to flex about it - he definitely has physical might over Peepers but honestly I think that'd just piss him off furthe #Like ''You think you can just sling your weight around and intimidate me? Hah! Who do you think I work for?'' #Even with the equivalent of a peashooter I think Peepers could take him on ♪ I mean heck he beat the Potted Plant with just his hat #He's very resourceful! Out of necessity but hey it just means he's practiced! I think he could MacGyver his way out of most confrontations #Plus y'know - Awesome is already kinda pathetic haha ♪ He gets a bruised /ego/ and he goes home what would a smack to his face do #That said he was there for the Battle Royale - I think he's aware of his intimidation factor :) Intimidation is also charisma! Haha #I think a fight between them would be interesting Especially if they brought feelings into it but even just a slugout haha #Awesome's really fun to pose I definitely would've drawn more of him being dramatic if I hadn't run out of room #But I mean so is Peepers! They're so fun to draw ahh <3 Look at his shoe/knee contact! Flat foot on the ground! I'm so pleased! #Only took a very cartoony style to finally get me to work on contact points haha ♪

[kirnet]

When I think about rebuilding the Jedi order after k2 I can never imagine atton and the exile as part of it. They might be involved, sure, might be present on teaching. But how can two Jedi killers become Jedi again? How can you claim a philosophy that you almost destroyed and that also destroyed you. I imagine they haunt the temple more than anything, a warning of what not to become, together in their own alienation.

#like kirnet is not a Jedi she will never be one again. she will create them but she cannot become them #I think she really starts to understand what kreia must have felt like then… god #like I also imagine bastila and juhani there. that they’re instrumental to bringing order #and mical and visas and Brianna… bao dur a bit harder bc of malachor #but the I wish all of them had died/ I killed them all dynamic. I’m gonna go run into traffic #ramblings #I’m so interested of the tragedy of everyone gets to heal and ascend to greater things except for the person who made it possible

[dirtytransmasc]

modern got au in which asha is a "teen parent"

or more accurately, asha and theon have a much larger age gap, 10/15-ish years, type of age gap (she's at least 18/19 and theon's only like 4/5), and in a series of freak events, their lives are turned on its head.

their brothers were dead. their mother and father were ruled incompetent, the former left a shell of herself after the loss of her sons, no longer able to care for her remaining children, the latter was never a father to begin with and he didn't seem to have any wish to become one now.

she was an adult by law, meaning she was free from the hell that was the system. her kid brother - the one who smiled at her for seemingly no reason, the one who crawled into her bed when thunder rattled the house, the brother who held her hand on their rare family outings - was not.

she couldn't leave him there, even if she wanted to, even if it would make her life so much easier. she wouldn't abandon him like the rest of their shitty family. he was blood for fucks sake, she'd die before she let's him get taken away from her and given away to strangers to be used and exploited or treated like a shelter puppy to be pitied and fawned over.

cue asha fighting for custody of her baby brother, doing whatever it takes to be deemed a suitable guardian, and the two of them taking on the world together.

more thoughts:

they have to find an apartment cause they can't afford to keep their family home. moving into the cheapest place they can find with only the stuff they can fit in asha's truck, sharing an air matress and eating off of a coffee table while watching movies they rented from the library.

asha cleaning her brother up before his first day at his new school, trying to get him to look suitable, but not really knowing what suitable means for a kid going into kindergarten/first grade

theon comforting his sister when she gets overwhelmed with it all, doing his best to ease her tears. the night ending with them both curled around each other, just two scared little kids trying their best.

asha fighting anyone she has to to keep custody of theon, whether it be the social worker, the judge, people who called cps to report her. she doesn't care, no one will take away her baby brother.

asha taking theon to work with her (she works in a boat shop cause she already knows what she's doing) and having to keep him entertained while she works so they don't get sent home.

their first christmas/birthdays by themselves. theon putting together gifts at school (finger paintings or paper mache or something of the like) and asha cherishing it forever. asha spending all the money left to her name each time to get him something nice so eh can feel like a normal kid.

theon doing sports in school (little league or something) and asha making sure she goes to every damn game, being the loudest in the stands.

asha getting more and more used to being physically affectionate with her brother at time goes on. before everything she'd tense up when he'd hug her legs or hold her hand, but now she scoops him up like a rag doll, ruffles his hair, kisses his forehead, without a second thought.

{I'm so normal about them I swear}

#I just think the spin on their dynamic. with him being so much younger than her. the only bit of family she has left. completely dependent- #on her. all of that. would be so interesting #it puts her in this position where she needs to learn to be softer and gentler for his sake instead of just all tough and mean to survive #and just imagine them together #she has to be a parent. she's gotta bathe him. feed him. clothe him. put him to bed. put him through school. deal with bullies. talk to- #his teachers and his friends parents. she's gotta be the 'teen mom' who everyone's always judging and staring at. #all while she's working and finding them a place to stay and learning to be an adult and coping with the loss of her family #and theon's just a kid. he's gonna have bad days. he's gonna throw tantrums. he's gonna need to be held. he's gonna get sick #and he's coping too. his big brother's are dead. his mother essentially died with them. his father gave them up. he's too young to really- #understand any of it. he just knows they're gone. #they're gonna struggle. but they're gonna make it #and maybe they run into some familiar faces along the way #maybe theon is take from her briefly and we meet the starks (maybe they offer to lend her a hand while she gets herself together) #maybe the shop she works in is run by our man davos who is always willing to help out someone. especially kids. in need (he lets theon come #to the shop and lets her take time off to attend to his events. etc.) #idk. I got a lot of thoughts and no time nor brain power to right this #asha greyjoy #theon greyjoy #yara greyjoy #got #game of thrones #asoiaf #a song of ice and fire #my beloved squid babies #asha being a good big sister has my heart #she's trying her best ok. she's struggling but thats ok. she's giving it her all and that's all that matters. #theon is our baby

[see-arcane]

Mina's incredible (and underrated) detective prowess would be very useful I bet. Put her on the helm Integra, Van Helsing praised her brains as being above everyone's including himself for a reason.

I honestly can't guess what the chemistry between Integra and Mina would be. Integra doesn't really click with me as a classically heroic character, for all that she does focus on saving humanity from the undead via Alucard and her forces, being the Boss Lady etc etc. She's miles away from being as insidious as an Amanda Waller, but...

The hotel. The fucking hotel will never leave me.

Yes, the order went directly against 'soldiers of the enemy,' but those soldiers had been lied to about who and what they were charging into. Which was obvious even without being a fly on the wall to know their higher-ups had fed them some BS to march them into death and win their own power grab from Millennium. She didn't tell Alucard to 'make it quick' or even just to 'neutralize.' She told him to search and destroy. Folding to Alucard's egging and negging to seem like a Worthy War Commander in the grand scheme~ of the plot

She's not heartless, exactly, but she is arctic and surprisingly quick to breeze past the loss of lives that aren't under her direct care/command. While she might respect Mina's abilities and investigative skills--I wouldn't be surprised if Mina could intuit Millennium's endgame well before the climax could happen--Integra inherited none of her ancestor's warm regard, supposing Abraham van Hel(l)sing had any of the original's tenderness in him (50/50 considering this takes place in aggro horror territory). We can't even say if this universe's Mina played any big role in cornering Dracula; she might just have been a targeted damsel.

All that said, I think Integra would see Mina as another time-displaced bleeding heart with a few useful skills, same as Jonathan. Someone to be an ally at best, a liability at worst. So I don't see her handing over any reins or offering to be co-girlbosses any time soon :c

#Integra is a good character #but not my favorite #Hirano let her look cool a lot and stand imposingly and smoke cigars #she got to shoot a few bad guys including the Major himself! #but the lion's share of development and interesting actions were all Alucard's and occasionally Seras' #I think the story kind of fumbled a lot of her potential to be more than Boss Lady who has cooler/more powerful people do stuff AROUND her #rather than let her really do anything herself without somebody else being the driving muscle/energy #Mina by contrast is ACTIVE #even working within the constraints of being a young woman in the Victorian era #she is hauling ass and making connections and paving the road to victory against Dracula himself #all while having a massively open heart that takes in so many people #like the rest of the original Drac Attack Pack it isn't just the loss of Lucy that drives them #she and Jonathan and Van Helsing and the Suitors all lock down on Thwarting Dracula #because if they just sit back and do nothing then He Wins and Humanity Loses--they became the OG Vampire Hunter Gang out of necessity #and goodwill #whereas Integra kind of just inherits Hellsing and its mission with the same vibe as someone inheriting Dad's job #maybe if we'd gotten scenes where it shows how she's handling the toll of running things; the sacrifices made in blood and its effects #I'd see more chemistry in potentia between her and someone as dynamic as Mina #but as it stands #I think Mina would just be another new accessory #anyway #integra hellsing #mina harker #dracula #hellsing

[thirsty-4-ghouls]

“Hancock is bad with kids” “Hancock is bad with Shaun” no, well, maybe, but where I was getting at was, the objectively funniest dynamic there that I can think of is that Hancock does, indeed, not know what to do around kids BUT Shaun is super curious because of that and will not leave him alone. Hancock will be looking at sole like “I can’t handle this, i don’t know what to do, get your kid” and Shaun is just like “why do you dress like that? Do you still get sunburnt? Do you like lazer rifles? I like lazer rifles.” Like a cat that sees the person ignoring them and goes up to them for attention. And the funniest response from sole is something like “the sunburn question is rude, Shaun” and then they continue doing whatever they were before saying that.

#emma posts #fallout 4 oc #this is their dynamic. i have decided that #especially because his mom did something similar when acquiring a new dad #and also curiosity obviously runs in the family #I am building on these characters where canon left gaps #especially synth Shaun. obviously #I am not ignoring my youngest child 😤 #or my eldest but he’s dead now and it’s complicated #wait. is codsworth her kid? she made him and sees him as family #that feels different though #the mathison way is just pestering someone (especially with questions) until they at least tolerate you #well. not with EVERYONE. just people they find interesting enough #sort of. i don’t actually know how to explain who his mom decides to befriend/adopt #or reverse adopt. nick is her new dad and it’s not optional #she imprinted like a duckling. she’s in her 20s? doesn’t matter #Hancock is like ‘you’re a parent though and I’m not good with kids. should you really settle for me?’ and she’s like #Shaun will be great with you! the question is will you adapt’ #‘shouldn’t it be the other way around?’ ‘no. you’ve seen me with nick. this family adopts. even when adopted’ #he possibly feels some dread and she continues with ‘we’re family when we decide we are. But can the people we declare family handle us?’ #she is of course saying this increasingly ominously because she finds it funny. it is true though. everything she said. it’s true. #and it’s okay if he doesn’t see you as a dad. just that he accepts you as my partner. at least it’s that way to him and i. I know my kid.’ #her knowing her kid also makes her constantly concerned about him getting into something for having questions. She knows she has. #that’s how she met Hancock in the first place. Piper. I found something crazy. Piper I want answers #and piper was probably like ‘wtf is this blue?’ and sole was like ‘a story’ #so they got in over their heads trying to solve a mystery… sort of? #those two get into all sorts of shit that way #her imprinting was probably part (mostly) trauma. but it happened regardless #I’m making this reblog able now because people find it funny apparently and if that’s all i don’t mind

[elegyofthemoon]

wait actually this one post makes a good point i wish there was actually tags to separate between hsr and hi3 bronseele and on that note actually any of the overlapping characters alskdjfha but the search engine sucks ass on this website so you'll always have overlap either way i think :I

#LIKE !!!!! OK!!!!!! I DO REALLY LIKE BRONSEELE!!!!! BUT ALSO!!!!!! I LIKE HI3 BRONSEELE AND WISH TO LOOK AT STUFF FOR THEM NOT HSR!!!!!!!!! #whhhh i was running into the same problem with cocolia before too T _ T #and its fINE because i saw some servalia while doing so but whhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh T _ T come onnnnnnnnnn i just wanna look at hi3 stuuuuuuffff #ok maybe this is also like. the worlds sign for me to STOP JUMPING INTO THE TAGS INSTEAD OF PLAYING THE GAME AND STOP SPOILING YOURSELF #but T _ T #i could also just go bother my friends as well about hi3 but i also dont wanna be a bother #... so i decide to. bother? everyone???? by posting???? #illogical. #IT IS DISTRIBUTED ANNOYANCE #anyways point is: i like bronseele's dynamic a lot in hi3 #it actually made me appreciate the bronseele dynamic more in hsr bc i can see where it takes inspiration from #though i feel that the dynamic got switched around for hsr bronseele #but ill spare talking about that LAKSJDFALKSH #snow plays hi3 #i /guess/ im starting a tag on that its fine lmao #anyways if anyones interested i have plans to finish ch 11 and 11 ex tonight. #'but snow thats like 3 hours long and its near bed time' listen i am on a mission. the only thing stopping me right now is the fact that #i told myself i should finish reviewing (but am Very distracted) #and the fact that the game Also is like 'girl you need to STOP YOURE OUT OF STAMINA' #watch me down all these energy drinks (idk what they are) THEN TELL ME I NEED TO STOP #besides i had a pretty good day re: studying today and ive been doing good with my questions ^u^ #so im bout to beat the holy shit out of this exam. whether the exam likes it or not i Will Eviscerate You. #that and i need to recuperate because I was burned out pretty bad today but when i came back from getting lost (wandering around) for like #hours i did fine so weehee #break day and then we'll be in the long haul till tuesday myeheh