#you know a character interpretation can be in the middle right guys

[olderthannetfic]

As someone who's been wondering why there've been so many senseless, needless arguments online about a hypothetical derth of purity in fiction and how it affects people negatively (it doesn't), now learning from several friends who are teachers (with the oldest being a uni professor) that Gen Z (27-11 yo) and Gen Alpha can't read, have poor media literacy, and soley seek fiction to reaffirm their own worldviews without curiosity and with judgement (and a lot of it). I say this as someone who is Gen Z. I'm only 26 years old, but I'm also a TA right now while I'm in grad school. it's not just the middle school and high school students. College students who should be able to do simple literary analysis cannot. Sure these issues (puritanical thinking, absent/poor parenting, lackluster curriculum, etc) have always existed, but with this in mind, it absolutely makes sense why there's so much dumb discourse over things in media that anyone with sense could separate from reality. Even simple things that you learn in elementary school at 6 years old, like "just because the story is focalized through a specific character, doesn't mean they're correct/the protagonist≠morally righteous/you're not always supposed to agree with the POV character or main characters." Maybe it really is the case that, sure some people are being deliberately obtuse, but there are also others who probably don't know.

I've seen it explained to people in fandom and on tumblr with popular series people have read or seen. No, you're not supposed to think Light Yagami is a good guy or a hero. "L is the straightforward hero in Death Note the whole time" isn't clever. It's the main text. No, you're not supposed to agree with Eren Jaeger or military fascists. "SNK is pro military and pro genocide" is just inaccurate. All the characters exhibiting those traits are killed to signal the flaws in their rhetoric. It's actually really unambiguous in that regard, not at all subtle. No, x shoujo/YA fantasy/Ya romance isn't advocating for middle school or high school girls to date men in their mid-20s. Teen girls have always fantasized about adults they find attractive, and these stories (made for and marketed to teen girls) fulfills that desire while protecting them from the possibility of that reality (an adult returning their feelings). No, it's not weird that mythological gods (but I see people mostly complaining about Greek and Egyptian ones) are related. It's purposeful. They're all related concepts and personifications of nature, which is all connected. Get over yourselves. No, it's not weird that gothic stories have incest in them. It was a common practice among aristocracy and nobility all around them world (so, not just a "white people thing"), and it typically symbolizes the decay as social norms. If you feel discomfort, then the story was successful.

On the one hand, sure. It's purity culture, ignorance, misogyny, etc. On the other hand, do the people who harp on about these actually know how to interpret stories? I'm often told "They can't read" as an explanation by others. I'm starting to think it's true, and I don't know how to combat that as someone who may be an educator down the road myself while also being involved in fandom.

--

I'd say it's about 50/50 the usual The Kids These Days scaremongering and a genuine shift.

Reading comprehension can be taught. I was taught to analyze passages in school. Students have to be open to learning, but it's not like some critical language thing you need to absorb before the age of two: a college student who's actually interested in getting better can perfectly well do so, possibly with some help or possibly just with experience.

Plenty of it is anxiety about being wrong and immoral and hurting people too. It's fundie thinking where listening and engaging means capitulating. Lots of people do slowly get over this. Many will calm down about it if they ever get the anxiety meds they so desperately need. Some would probably benefit from ceasing to self harm via social media doomscrolling or exclusively consuming attention span-destroying, FOMO-inducing garbage.

...I say as I answer tumblr asks instead of getting out of bed to start my New Year's resolutions.

[lietpolski]

on the mischaracterization of norway, a mini character analysis (because i feel like people are tired of me going 'oh, i like canon norway so much more than fanon!' without explaining myself)

before anyone starts barking at me, you can prefer fanon interpretations! that's 100% fine! the point of this post is to discuss what canon nor is actually like, because i feel like most people don't even know that there's a difference between canon and fanon

a) on seriousness

i feel like there's a big dissonance between the serious, solemn norway portrayed in fanon, and how he acts in canon! don't get me wrong, he can be serious, but he's also a silly guy! he has a sense of humour and he likes to tease and be kinda mischievous!

some examples from the manga that i feel show this! (there's a lot!! this is a recurring character trait!!)

b) on being cool (he's not) (not even a little bit)

point being that he's a loser and a weirdo and strange and awkward and shy and, unlike how i usually see him in the fandom, not suave at all :,) examples (image order is right to left):

c) on his relationship with other characters

this is gonna be a quick point because tbh it deserves its own post haha but 1) dennor like each other!!!! it baffles me that people act like they don't! norway teases him a lot but he clearly cares!

also a good place to add an explanation as to how nor uses the words "bro" and "brother"! hima has said that his use of the japanese "anko" is meant to resemble a regional japanese accent where the word is used how "bro" would be used to refer to a classmate or friend! it's not meant to be nor thinking of denmark as an actual brother

2) he and ice are silly together :) he calls him just to ask a single question and hangs up on him. he threw him a surprise birthday party right in the middle between their 2 birthdays! he's not just an overbearing older brother, he's genuinely warm toward him!!

#long post #SORRY I CANT PUT IT UNDER A KEEP READING it breaks the image stacking :( #also sorry for ranting again thanks for bearing with me hahaha #ive been meaning to talk abt this for so long because hes my favourite character #btw the colouring of the manga art at the top was done by my best friend shoutout to her <3 #hws norway #maia talks

[yns-world]

art imitates life, life imitates art

part ii of the euphoria au!outer banks series

part i part iii part iv

title: art imitates life, life imitates art

pairing: euphoria au!rafe cameron x reader

summary: lexi's interpretation of your relationship with rafe was very...interesting.

words: 2.3k (this is the first long fic i've written in literal years...i'm not even exaggerating either 💀)

warnings: toxic relationship, slight dv, mentions of murder, attempted murder, rafe cameron as his own warning, euphoria craziness

a/n: it makes my heart overflow with so much love and appreciation when i saw everyone's reactions to the first part of euphoria au!rafe 😭😭 i can die a happy woman knowing that someone said that i wrote rafe in a canon way 🕊️

fem reader, racially ambiguous, any size reader

italics = scenes in the play

Y/C/N = Your Character Name

R/C/N = Rafe’s Character Name

Lexi peeked behind the curtain, astonished at the full auditorium. She still couldn’t believe the number of people who showed up. Seated near the front was Maddy and her gang. While Cassie and Nate sat further away in the middle. Rafe and Y/N sat a few rows behind Cassie and Nate.

Lexi walked on stage, her nervous jitters noticeable but she still kept a smile on her face.

“Our Life is a lot more complicated than adults would make it seem. We’re going through our most important developmental years, this is the time where our personalities shift and form. This is also a time where we experience our most memorable relationships.”

Actors that represented Maddy, Cassie, and Y/N entered the stage, laughing and walking in sync. 

“Is that supposed to be us?” Maddy scrunched her face in confusion. “I don’t even look like that.”

Lexi continued her narration.

“During these fleeting high school moments, we solidify friendships and create new ones.”

While the three girls are talking in the prop hallway, a tall, blonde actor treaded on the stage, making an exaggeration of biting his nails. He kept his gaze down and bumped into Y/N’s character. 

“The girls swore that they would never let a boy come between them, but it seemed as though Y/C/N had other plans. It’s almost as if her plan all along was to let a boy come in between her and everyone else.”

Maddy’s and Cassie’s characters were visibly heartbroken and betrayed as Y/C/N gazed lovingly up at Rafe’s character, not paying her friends a second glance. 

Cassie turned her head to glimpse at Y/N but Y/N kept her eyes glued to the stage.

“But was the relationship worth it? Y/C/N cut off her friends to have more freedom with her new boy toy-- or so she thought.”

The backdrop changed to a classroom and Y/C/N’s phone rang and rang until she finally picked it up and put it on speaker.

“Where the fuck are you?! I’ve texted you 57 times! Why aren’t you answering me?!” R/C/N spat accusations left and right, but Y/C/N just rolled her eyes before hanging up mid-sentence. 

A couple chuckles were heard in the audience, some even from Cassie, and Rafe visibly tensed. His jaw was clenched and his grip around Y/N’s hand was tighter, almost to a point where it hurt. 

“You call it love, but I call it Stockholm syndrome. You’re not the sweet, innocent angel that everyone believes you are. Sometimes I think R/C/N could’ve been normal if he hadn’t met you.”

The scene switched to Y/C/N’s room, where Y/C/N and R/C/N were in the middle of another fight. 

“WHY CAN’T YOU OPEN YOUR FUCKING EYES?!? ALL THE GUYS SEE YOU AS A SLUT.” 

“You’re so fucking crazy R/C/N! I wasn’t even flirting with him! And don’t you EVER call me a fucking slut, you psychotic piece of shit!” Y/C/N jabbed her finger in R/C/N’s face with each word. R/C/N tried to smack her hand away but Y/C/N reacted quicker and slapped him across the face. 

The scene went silent and the actors remained in their places. R/C/N’s hair fell over his face, covering his expression. Y/C/N didn’t move an inch. 

A hush fell over the audience. Some dared to sneak a glance at Rafe and Y/N but one look at Rafe’s fuming face scared them back into place. 

“This is absolute bullshit. This is what she fucking invites us to? She’s supposed to be your fucking friend.” Rafe started his heated rant and Y/N knew all too well what came afterwards.

“Shh baby, it’s okay. She doesn’t know what she’s talking about. She never had a boyfriend before, what would she know?” Y/N brought Rafe’s hand to her lips and planted a reassuring kiss on his knuckles. She then reached her hand behind his head and began massaging his scalp to ground him.

After a few beats of stillness, Y/C/N broke out of her daze and carefully approached R/C/N.

“I’m sorry, baby. I was scared.” Her voice was soft and calculated. 

R/C/N slowly raised his head to look at her and was frozen to his spot. He didn’t try to move when Y/C/N brought her hand to rest on his red cheek, the same hand that hit him. 

If anything, he leaned into her touch and closed his eyes. 

“Puppy Love” by Paul Anka started playing in the background. 

They called it puppy love

Oh, I guess they’ll never know

How a young heart really feels

And why I love her so

Silent tears rolled down R/C/N’s face. 

I cry each night

My tears for you

My tears are all in vain

“You made me hate myself. Sometimes I wish I would’ve just dated myself.” R/C/N whispered, his voice thick with tears. He still leaned into Y/C/N’s hand.

Y/C/N wiped his tears with her free hand and leaned up to plant her lips on his. The light focuses on them as their kiss lasts for a few moments, before the entire stage goes black.

The audience is quiet, still trying to process what they just saw. Y/N glimpsed at Rafe out of the corner of her eye and his gaze was focused on the floor. Tears stung in the corners of his eyes but he was quick to wipe them away; but not quick enough for Y/N to notice. 

“Rafe….” For the first time, Y/N didn’t know how to comfort him. She had no words to offer him. She retracted her hands off him and placed them in her lap; she was scared to touch him, to break him further.  

This isn’t who she was, right? This is just a show of theatrics. None of this was real. 

Various degrees of self-awareness, disgust, and sadness flashed across Y/N’s face in a matter of seconds until she wore a common face of fury. 

“That Lexi bitch had no right to make a play about real people, she didn’t even fucking ask.” Y/N thought. “She has no fucking clue what the fuck she’s talking about.”

Just as Y/N was about to get up from her seat, Rafe grabs her wrist and pulls her back down.

Rafe applied more and more pressure onto Y/N’s wrist as the seconds passed. The two were dead silent, staring back at their reflections on stage. 

Is this how the world saw them? Was this really them? 

Maybe out of ignorance, or maybe out of pure denial, the couple was glued in place, unable to move a single muscle. But their rage was a silent one, a terrible storm waiting for the perfect time to strike.

The lights return back on stage, this time lighting up Lexi who stood on a prop football field. 

“R/C/N and Y/C/N certainly had an unusual form of love. It was a deadly love, a love that could kill you if you weren’t too careful. Interestingly enough, no matter how much R/C/N showed his devotion, it was never enough for Y/C/N. She was always looking elsewhere.”

The light shined over Y/C/N flirting with some random football player. They cracked jokes and Y/C/N laughed a little too loud and a little too hard. She threw her head back and placed her hand on his firm bicep.

“God, you’re so funny! I never knew you were such a jokester.” The football player reveled in the attention, getting high off her compliments. 

Simultaneously, a light shined above Lexi, who stood on the other side of the stage, by the fake bleachers. Next to her was a furious R/C/N, who had a brick in his hand.

A heavy blanket of silence fell on the audience, a silence so loud that you could hear the actors breathing into their mics. 

Everyone knew what this event was referring to, but no one dared to speak a word of it. 

Instead of the usual anger that Rafe wore throughout the entire play, a cheshire-worthy smirk graced Rafe’s lips, a low chuckle erupting from his throat as he waited for what's next. 

He locked eyes with Lexi, daring her to say the next words. 

Lexi was about to fold under his scorching stare, a stare that only saw red-- but she had a show to run. 

The show must go on. 

Lexi cleared her throat, and spoke each word while maintaining full eye contact with Rafe.

“Nature versus nurture, a debate as old as time. In this case, was R/C/N always this crazy or did Y/CN create this monster? Was R/C/N born this way or did she groom a killer?”

As soon as that last word left her mouth, Rafe was already out of his seat and half-way down the aisle before anyone else could react.

“Y/N, put a fucking leash on your mutt!” Maddy jeered. 

Initially, Y/N was going to try and stop Rafe but Maddy’s comment put a halt on that plan. Instead of trying to put a lid on the atomic bomb that is her boyfriend, she let him roam free. Rafe always was her greatest weapon. 

“What good did leashing your boyfriend do for you? Oh wait,” Y/N laughed, turning to Cassie. “You lost your boyfriend to your best friend.”

“Let me at this whore!” Maddy struggled against her friend’s restraint. 

While Maddy, Cassie, and Y/N were thrashing it out in the seats, Rafe was already on stage and cornering Lexi. 

“You think you’re real smart, huh?” Rafe wrapped his hand around her throat and pushed her against the wall. He brought his mouth to the side of her head and whispered in her ear. “Do you wanna know how I killed that son of a bitch?” 

Lexi’s eyes were turning red due to a lack of oxygen, and her attempts to claw at his hand were futile. 

“I had him in my hands, just like this.” Rafe applied more pressure to her throat. “I squeezed until his eyes popped out of his sockets.”

But before he could go in for the final kill, Nate pushed Rafe off of Lexi, who collapsed onto the floor and tried to catch her breath. 

“You’re a real fucking pussy, Cameron. You’re nothing but Y/N’s bitch.” 

Rafe shoved Nate back.

“At least I’m not fucking the whole school. Who knows what kind of STDs you got?”

That was all it took to rile Nate up. The two boys threw punches that rang through the entire auditorium-- everything was audible, the fist-to-face contact, the cracking of jaws.

While the boys were breaking each other’s bones and the girls were clawing each other’s faces off, the police were called and arrived at the scene. After a few attempts to break up the fighting, all the perpetrators were escorted outside, placed far enough apart and with plenty of enforcement to prevent another altercation.

As the police were taking statements from the witnesses, the main group sat on the curb of the school-- bloody, bruised, and beaten. Each person lost in their own thoughts and regrets until Y/N finally spoke up. 

“How did we end up like this? We’re unrecognizable.” Maddy and Cassie remained silent, only sending each other glares.

“It’s all his fucking fault,” Nate gestured at Rafe, who sat a few feet from him. “You should’ve never come to this fucking town.”

“Rafe’s not completely at fault.” Lexi defended. “You still would’ve slept with Cassie regardless if he came to East Highland or not.”

“I don’t want to hear you fucking speak, you sick bitch.” Y/N groaned, holding her head in her hands. The conversation fell into a beat of silence before Cassie spoke up.

“In a sick way, this is like a bonding moment for us.” Cassie noted, looking at the group.

“What. The. Fuck. Cassie.” Maddy was so over Cassie’s bullshit, but Cassie continued.

“No matter what happens, we’ll always come back to each other, It’s like we’re all connected.”

Rafe scoffed while Nate just shook his head.

“This crazy bitch.” Nate muttered under his breath.

“Who wants to get something to eat?” Y/N asked, still holding a tissue to stop her bloody nose. Her question was so out of the blue that everyone thought they hallucinated it, until she repeated herself.

“I’m starving. It’s up to y’all, but I’m getting some food.” Y/N extended her arm to her boyfriend-- who had a black eye and bruises littered all over his face-- but he was quick to help her up to her feet. 

“I’m going.” Rue answered, appearing out of nowhere. 

“Me too.” Jules added, wrapping her arm around Rue’s shoulders. “Why not?”

Maddy looked at her friends and shrugged. “Fuck it. Let’s go.”

As the group began walking away and discussing possible food options, Cassie, Lexi, and Nate rushed to catch up. Meanwhile, Lexi strayed a few paces behind everyone else.

She took in the sight in front of her-- a group of teenagers, surely flawed, yet they still have so much to experience. 

Cassie is right. Lexi thought. We are all destined to be intertwined, for better or for worse. 

Lexi would be sure to start working on the sequel of her play when she got back home.

a/n: if you enjoyed reading, please consider reblogging and tipping, they help my account more than likes :)

DON’T BE A GHOST READER!!!!! let me know your thoughts, opinions, ideas, etc in the comments!!! i love talking with y’all <333 

like i mentioned in the previous post, don’t hesitate to send me any ideas/requests for rafe or euphoria au!rafe <3 (just read my request rules in my pinned post before you do)

i have an idea for a sequel to this specific oneshot but idk….lmk if y’all want me to write it 🤭 (spoiler: the sequel might include the euphoria au!pogues….but y’all didn’t hear that from me 👀)

#yns world #outer banks #outer banks x reader #outer banks imagine #obx #obx x reader #obx imagine #rafe cameron #rafe cameron x reader #rafe cameron imagine #rafe x reader #rafe outer banks #rafe x you #rafe cameron x y/n #rafe cameron x you #euphoria au #euphoria au!rafe cameron #euphoria au!rafe cameron x reader #euphoria #euphoria x reader #euphoria imagine #outer banks au #obx au #cassie x nate #maddy x nate #jj maybank #john b #pope heyward #jj mayback x reader #john b x reader

[koivoid]

so am I insane or am I insane

I have a new theory to share with you guys:

I am like 90% sure that Teacher is Teruko’s brother.

(sunlit-haru also made a cool analysis post about this theory here! Go read it, it’s great!)

firstly, their skins tones are extremely similar. As you can see from the image they’re very close, with Teruko’s skin tone being slightly warmer. Teacher is also closing his eyes in all of the appearances he’s made so far, which could be intentionally hiding more similarities they might have. (Same eye color, perhaps!) Another thing to note is that none of the drdtalt character’s names have been revealed, which could potentially confirm the connection between the two. Although, Teacher may have a different last name, but he could still be related to Teruko, as Teruko mentioned that her brother was adopted by another family; he could have taken his adoptive parents’ last names instead.

In the most recent QNA with the DRDTDev, they confirmed that Teruko’s favorite color is red, because of association.

Although this could be referring to Mai, it could also apply to Teacher, as red is one of the prominent colors in his color scheme.

And while I’m on the topic of Mai, Teacher’s appearance also parallels Mai’s. They both have red as their main “bright” color, and more importantly, their hair styles are similar. As shown in the image above, they both have hair sticking out on one side and a braid on the other. They also have similar bangs (the middle part) but that’s more of a stretch, as other DRDT characters have them too. Though I should mention, Teruko has these bangs too. In fact, her post-ch1 hairstyle looks pretty similar to Teacher’s, with the hair sticking out on the right.

now, you may ask, “why are you comparing Teacher to Mai?? What does this have to do with Teruko?”

You see, Teruko has flashbacks to two different people.

Of course, Teruko remembers Mai’s appearance. She even has a flashback of Mai smiling at her at the beginning of Chapter 1’s deadly life. But she doesn’t remember this mysterious “his”’s face at all. Mai seems to have been in Teruko’s life pretty recently, so she remembers her; but what about the other person? Surely she would remember everything about the only other person she cared about? Well. Perhaps she doesn’t remember him because she hasn’t seen him since she was, say, five years old? When he was adopted into a different family?

Then what about Hope’s Peak? After all, Teacher wears an ID from HPA. (Thanks to weightedblankettt for deciphering the text!) Min mentions a teacher in charge of the DRDT cast’s class in the bonus episode, and he’s also implied to be the receiver of this letter hidden on the DRDT website:

So if Teruko ever went to HPA, wouldn’t she recognize him?

She probably wouldn’t. She had prosopagnosia. She can’t recognize people by their faces. So there’s a very low chance that Teruko would recognize her brother whom she hasn’t seen in years.

In conclusion, Teacher is most likely the other person that Teruko struggles to remember. This would help explain the parallels between Mai and Teacher—the braids and the red in their color palettes—because they were the two most important people to Teruko. And of course, the only other person we know of that is significant to Teruko is her brother.

Now, in the end, this is all speculation, so take it with a grain of salt. I might be overthinking some of the above points, and Teacher and Teruko could have nothing in common. If I do end up being wrong, I’ll do art requests and draw whatever cursed things you guys want…

anyways, please do feel free to add onto this post! I’m sure there are some things I’ve missed. I’d love to hear other people’s interpretations!

#danganronpa despair time #drdtalt #altdrdt #teruko tawaki #mai akasaki #teacher #I am indeed as they say. “cooking” right now #pretty proud of this theory! 👍 #I typed half of this at 12am so ignore any grammar mistakes lol #drdt spoilers #drdt

[magicwhiskers29]

I can't believe I haven't talked about this before, but augh, I've been rotating stuff about the Beast at Ichor Mountain and Audrey in the brain -- namely how I think you can draw some interesting parallels between the King of Hearts and Audrey.

Firstly, to get it out of the way, the nomenclature Audrey Redheart. Who is the beast at Ichor Mountain? The names clearly link our two suspects, and I think it's interesting that Audrey is one of notably few characters to actually have a given surname, in this game. Miriam doesn't. The Bard doesn't. Heck, none of Hala's family do, because they don't need a surname to remind you they're all related. (Iirc, Audrey may actually be the only Wandersong character with a surname!) So why Audrey?

Why Audrey, the character who gets referred to by her epithet, the Hero, more than her name anyway?

Because it's important, of course. For one, it gives Audrey a stronger sense of identity, specifically of the identity Audrey worries people won't care about her for. Audrey tells us her own surname, clearly indicating that she thinks important you know exactly who she is. But also, and more importantly for what I want to talk about, what it means.

It identifies red as Audrey's colour, suggesting a sense of strength. And I don't specifically mean physically -- rather, because it's paired with "heart", I'd interpret it to be implying strong emotions which, yeah, tracks. Audrey is angry throughout the game just as much as she's smug or entitled. I think it's even that anger that defines her more, because the haughty attitude is an act to play up being the Hero, whereas her anger at the Bard and Miriam for interfering comes from a very genuine place of fear.

Contrast this to the King of Hearts, who's established to be represented by pink, along with a lot of the rest of Ichor Mountain. Or, namely, the outside of Ichor Mountain and the core. At the heart of the mountain is the Overseer's palace, pink like him. And he was initially kind, the kind of happy-go-lucky guy we see the Heart Fairy to be, presumably. A very different kind of strong emotion. So he's the heart of the mountain. Okay, then he must be the "Beast at Ichor Mountain", right?

I think the phrasing of this act's name is interesting. It's not the Beast of Ichor Mountain, or the Beast on Ichor Mountain, but the Beast at Ichor Mountain. It's incidental. The beast isn't necessarily a native; they're just there, the beast who's found themself haunting the mountain named after the blood of the gods.

So I'll ask again. Who is the Beast at Ichor Mountain?

Well, it's Audrey. The King of Hearts is scary. He chases you down, fights against you, snarls at you, and enacts horror movie tropes on you, but we know what he's supposed to be like because we meet the Heart Fairy -- the next Overseer of Hearts. And we see this in the King of Hearts when the Bard sings to him, and it works, somehow it works, to start calming him down. The Bard, ever the bleeding heart, does what they do best, and offers the King of Hearts their heart and soul in the form of a song, and it works!

Until Audrey cuts him down. Audrey, who's decided to devote herself to a mission that has to go against what her heart says, because we know her motivation for ending the world, and it's not because she believes in the cause, cuts down the King of Hearts in the middle of a mutual display of unconditional love and compassion. Audrey, who sat there at the heart of mountain finally confessing that she's being Eya's champion to end the world and finally escape being Audrey Redheart, a nobody, and promised right there to give compassion a chance and face her struggles rather than clinging to more than just a self-sabotaging, but a world-ending lifeline, kills the King of Hearts.

Audrey only allows herself to be vulnerable without her sword. She needs it to feel important and powerful, and only allows herself to feel things about her mission, and process things about herself, when she can't just go slicing through hoards of monsters to earn some surface-level adoration and praise from people she never stops to make an actual connection with. So when she gets it back... She can't return to being Audrey Redheart, someone who maybe could have fitted in on Ichor Mountain had she listened to the Bard and continued to follow their example. She has to be the Hero, even if that's the hero who becomes the beast at the mountain.

And because this is Wandersong, let's do a little musical analysis.

04:46-05:10, specifically. Why? This is the mash-up of the Heart and Hero motifs. Overpoweringly, we can hear the Hero motif blaring on guitars in the foreground, but also the sure and steady Heart motif from the Heart Fairy's theme in the background. The Hero motif is stronger because Audrey is clinging to it, absolutely, but also because two people are using it. And they always have been.

The Hero motif is first used in the prologue to be just that, a theme for the Hero. But then the Bard reclaims it in Chapter 2 for "I wanna be the Hero", and also "I'm going with you". These are the times the player is going to first notice it, because it's shown to them so clearly! It's only associated with the Hero, and Audrey, again later on, because it's a concept, not a person. It's a concept any character can cling to, and unlike the Bard, it's Audrey's whole identity. It becomes her motif by force.

So in this piece where it's used, it's Audrey, or more accurately, the Hero, vs the King of Hearts. And the music already shows us who will win. We've discussed which motif is played stronger.

So who is the Beast at Ichor Mountain? She's the one who takes her sword in hand and tries to slice her way through the heart of Ichor Mountain.

#Wandersong #Wandersong spoilers #audrey redheart #wandersong audrey #audrey wandersong #king of hearts wandersong #Whiskers rambles #Long post #Analysis

[alexjcrowley]

I am sorry but I need to say a couple of things about Brad Bakshi, even though I haven't finished season 3 yet. I am not attacking anyone's characterization, let your headcanons and interpretations thrive, but I want to share my take because sometimes it's like I watched a different show.

I either find takes that are "Brad is a lovey-dovey tsundere" or "Brad is a fuckboy, no attachment, he doesn't do feelings". And man, I do not agree with either. It's something in the middle for me.

First of all, Brad is way more caring than some people give him credit for and I will prove it.

He may be an asshole, but he is completely self-aware of it. Poppy, Ian, even David think they're good people, even whan they do or say very questionable things, Brad knows he is being a bastard. He never hides it, never tries to put up an "holier than thou" act, never tries to make people believe he is a good guy. He doesn't try hiding that is an asshole because deliberately acts like one. He wants to be seen as an asshole. He goes out of his fucking way to prove it.

Turning himself in at the end of season 2? "Oh, but it gave him street credi-" it's pretty convenient he wanted street credit when going to jail could also be beneficial to Jo. Otherwise he could have straight up done inside trading himself way before Jo put herslef in trouble.

The whole animal thing? The fact that he was a mouse? Let's pretend for a moment he actually filled it randomly, he happened to get mouse by mistake. Why do you care so much people do not associate you to a mouse? If you're an unforgiving asshole, it will show even if a random test (that people will probably soon forget about) gave you mouse. Look, let's say I make Donald Trump fill out this test and he comes out as a mouse. I will not stop thinking he is a piece of shit! If the test was so meaningless he filled it out randomly (or so he says), why does he care so much about Jo's opinion on it?

Brad is a performative asshole. He does his job in the less nice way possible, but he never sabotages others just because. He tries with that whole buscuit thing, but that's the most damage he causes to someone and it's thrashing a piece of biscuit and give an evil speech that just hans there. Rest of the show? He always ends up helping out people, if not out of kindness, out of understanding every cog needs to fuction properly for the whole Mythic Quest machine to work. He doesn't go out of his way to damage other people, the worst he does? Mean comments. It's performative. It's all performative.

And you know how I know that? Breaking Brad. The Kate story tells us one thing: Brad is a naturally caring person. Kate was a pig. Not a dog, not a cat, not a turtle, not even a fish, animals we are used to consider as pets. Kate was a pig, an animal considered dirty, ugly, ungraceful (fat, but I will not talk about Brad's ED here), the word "pig" is even used as an insult, plus the pig is famously known as the animal you can kill and not waste a single part of it.

A pig is the perfect animal to impart a lesson of cruelty. You don't feel sorry for a pig. And what does Brad do, with this wretched creature? He names her. Zack doesn't, Zack tells us he was on board with killing the pig, it's Brad who can't do it. Zack doesn't care and Brad cares too much, even when he knew Kate's fate was doomed from the start. Right there, you have a character who, despite being taught to be cruel, can't help but care.

"Oh, but this happened when Brad was a kid, he hardened as he grew up" okay, then how do you explain him begging Zack? The thing is, I do believe Brad wanted to get more out of Mythic Quest and was angry bis brother tried to destroy it, I am not saying "Brad is caring because he doesn't want to lose his job", that's fairly normal. The point is, Zack asks him to beg for it, and Brad does. I have seen characters in more desperate situations refuse to plea, but Brad does it. With less resistence than I would have imagined. Instead of being like "I would never beg you, I will not submit myself to this humiliation, I'll find another job", he grovels. He puts his pride second for a company which he will leave the moment his friend Jo (and if I say colleague instead of friend it's even crazier!) is in danger.

Quickly compare it to David asking a whole company to walk out when he gets fired.

Brad is a performative asshole. He didn't have it in him, he taught himself to act and speak like an asshole, and he learned the part well, but his heart is not in it. If you watch Succession, it's like Kendall, he is not a killer. He can pretend to be killer, but he is not.

So now it seems like I said people who view Brad a repressed lovey-dovey tsundere are right, but just wait, i haven't finished yet.

The thing about teaching yourself to be someone else is that first, some habits stick, second, what doesn't stick, you try harder to make it so.

What I mean is, precisely because Brad is a caring person, he tries very hard not to seem like it. It means that if someone shows him kindness, Brad will refuse to accept it twice as hard, because he is fighting towards a natural instinct to show kindness in return.

Someone finally lends Brad a helping hand? For the exact reason he feels like he wants to take it, he'll turn it down. It's not that he is not touched by that care, it's that he can't afford to show it. That's the whole point of the performative assholery, repressing his natural responses.

I see a lot of someone pays Brad a compliment and he blushes because he doesn't know how to take it, but to me is like no! He doesn't blush! The whole point of fighting his own instincts is that he doesn't show his feelings. It's not that he doesn't know what kindness is so he reacts to it like a caveman would react to a computer, he knows exactly what kindness, care and affection are and he deliberately avoids them.

To me Brad doesn't do feelings because he doesn't want to. Brad fights his natural instincts because they're very strong (so he is lovey-dovey on the inside), but, at the same time, that fight implies a lot of trained resistance to his nature (Brad doesn't want to do feelings).

Being an asshole doesn't come natural to Brad and that's why it's so difficult for him to act kind: because being an asshole is not a random trait of his personality he may be willing to change, it's a carefully crafted mask he doesn't want to get rid of.

It's the difference between explaining something to someone who doesn't understand it and someome who doesn't want to understand it.

And one last thing (because you kidded yourself if you thought this wasn't about Braddavid).

I get that, especially at first, especially to keep that mask on, even if Brad had feelings for David he would take a long time before admitting it and I can see him reluctant to put a label to the relationship, because that would be admitting that he cares.

But let me take you back to Brad begging his brother to leave Mythic Quest alone. The moment he senses David might slip up from his fingers (for whataver reason: David might have found somebody else more emotionally available, is growing tired/sad of Brad's emotional distance, etc.) Brad is Back On. Brad is putting the effort to verbalize his feelings, is putting a name on the relationship and, one day, he'd even be willing to put a ring on it. He is "Everything I’ve ever let go of has claw marks on it" coded and you can argue you with the wall.

(Plus, I feel like, exactly like his performative assholery mainly comes from mean comments, he may not be very affectionate when it comes to words of affirmation, but by his behaviour you can tell he cares. He is all about quality time, acts of service and gifts he diguises as not gifts. He tries to be subtle, but he can't help revealing in someway he cares about people).

If Brad could beg his brother, one the people he hates the most in the world, to let him have Mythic Quest for a while more, he could surely find the courage to tell the person he loves that he loves them. "But his pride-" he flushed his pride down the toilet when it became an obstacle to him. He came back to his old company as a janitor, which sadly many people do not considered to be a valuable job, especially since he used to be the Head of Monetization before. He had none of that "oh my God, this job is not well paid or respected enough for my previous standards" crap. He is way less prideful than a lot of people think. Getting where he wants to go, obtaining what he wants to gain is way more important to him than his pride.

Last note, this man in possessive. And I don't necessarily mean in a toxic, abusive way, but you can't deny that he is. He wants to own people, he probably rarely calls in favours from them because he gets high on how long he can own them. The "Everything I’ve ever let go of has claw marks on it" comes back into the play, this man is jealous. Again, of course this was about Braddavid, shame on you if you didn't catch it, but I have seen too many "David is too affectionate, Brad is aloof and cool" and I don't buy it.

Brad may not be into PDA, and he may not show it with words, but when he is in a committed relationship he is committed. He may say it's casual, but this is just like Kate. No matter how many times he tells himself he won't get attached to a person and that every relationship ends, at the end of the day, if he truly cares about that person, he won't be able to kill the relationship like it was nothing and go on with his life. I cannot imagine him breaking up with someone because "oh no, I am getting too involved", that's the whole point, he cannot do that, or he'd be a killer, he would have been able to kill Kate and let go of Mythic Quest and let Jo end up in jail. Even if he did break up with this person, it wouldn't come natural to him and he would an absolute wreck, haunted by the memory of this person like he is haunted by the memory of Kate.

It's the duality here! Brad's all about the duality, nature and (self) nurture fighting one against the other. And I have mainly found stuff in which this duality is not shown.

If you made it to this point, thank you for indulging me in overanalysing this character, have a wonderful day.

P.S. I forgot to mention, Brad totally watches those animal predators video for desensitization. Because he couldn't kill Kate so he teaches himself to be insensitive to animal cruelty. The kid who couldn't harm his pig is not watching animal on animal violence for kicks and giggles.

#mythic quest #brad bakshi #david brittlesbee #braddavid #character analysis #meta

[oscconfessions]

way too many people on here think that. "Media for kids = doesn't have to be quality/can be hot shit".

"It's for kids it doesn't matter", really? I don't want to go on the "kids are smarter than you think" yada yada. So instead I'll take a cabby from III 14. For all you know some kid might try to imitate/say what Bot said to a irl disabled friend of theirs. . And Yes I know you an adult know it's bad, BUT A KID MIGHT NOT!  "They should do their research" their a child! They like III and they might go "Well Bot from III did that and told Cabby to do that and Cabby ended up happy so I'm doing the right thing!" Especially when the media at hand tells them "Hey this is a perfectly okay thing to do". 

If it didn't matter then why were we all demanding II's writers change it? 

If  media for kids isn't important, why do people care about incorrect/stereotypical portrayals of minorities in it? Why should media for kids have episodes about more serious topics?

(((Before anyone interprets this wrong I'M saying we should care about this)))

And second of "it's for kids no wonder it's gonna be bad" is also such a crappy take. 

 (I've been on a scooby kick) Remember that Velma show that was literally made by a transphobe (Which was most likley made to own the left, it's a can of worms. Tldr: show is bad). Well if were going by age rating it should be the creme of the crop for scooby doo media! But it isn't! . Mystery inc (which albeit is Aimed at older kids, I'll give you all that) is regarded by all of the fandom as the best in the franchise. And (in many people's opinion) what's cool scooby doo(Aimed at kids) is the funniest one (even if all the characters look like seth mcfarland drew them, I'm being srs it's funny God watch it) If all media for kids is inferior to media for adults why isn't the fandom obsessed with Velma?

You all whine about how object shows have turned into corporate slop(which is a different argument and a whole other case of worms), but then you go "Oh they're all just meaningless stupid things for kids it's not that serious". 

Oh and don't get me started on how you guys act when it comes to media analysis/Fandom discourse. "It's for kids it's not that serious" Or "it's just a silly show" God forbid people feel emotion about a media that's for a age group younger than them. God forbid they care for something that isn't some "serious" and "important" masterpiece. I've seen people say "there's barely any analysis in the osc" Why should people analise things that are for kids? They're not as deep or Worthwhile as things for adults! 

I'm not saying you can't have object shows as your own fun little "turn my brain off" for a second thing, I'm just saying you all should stop acting like assholes about people who care about this media in a way different from yours. 

Before you go "What's the point it's just fictional". What's the point in any media analysis in that case! So many people cry "the osc has no media literacy/none of you understand the osc deeper" and then they say stuff like this. 

Look if you want to dismiss all fandom discourse go for it, but if your sole argument for that is it being for kids I will turn into the animaniacs reddit mod character 

God I'm sorry If I turned into every middle aged man cartoon reviewer. I'm not saying you can't just ENJOY things from time to time (not having some old guy in a room of action figures scream into my ear "DESPICABLE ME 2 ISN'T A GOOD MOVIE! IT'S NOT A DEEP PEACE OF ART" is nice. 

And I do believe some things can just be fun! I love just a fun Cartoon. But don't act like every single thing that isn't directed towards adults fits into that category. Also don't act like simple cartoons can't have genuine moments and love and care put into them, something dosen't have to be serious like HFJONE to have a serious topic/well writteen bit here and there.

I'm not saying object shows are fucking hamlet or Shakespeare or "Pan Taduesz"(the poles know). I'm just saying degrading all media criticism/discourse abt object shows because there for kids is an extremely stupid statement. 

I'm gonna fucking say it Tacomic discoursers Pro/Anti I fucking love you all, people act like your just "stupid idoits" But I know 90% have acctually HAD to analize II you've had to pay attention to small things to things most would find un important. (You all shouldn't be getting that petty over it) But still!

(This all also goes to the people saying I was never good, no one (from my knowledge) was unironically comparing it to Shakespeare. It was just a well written series and you're not ready to accept the fact that something you liked has writing issues. The only reason you're so shocked is because you were watching it as a kid and YOU thought you were watching high class art. But just because it isn't some Masterpiece in writing  mean it doesn't have ANY decent writing. Media dosen't have to be a to be a masterpiece to be worthy of being good. I don't know how to tell you this but enjoying some critically also had the word ENJOY in it, You don't only have to be critical of it because it's not some DaVinci art)

To end this corny long ask all I have to say is this

"It's made for kids" isn't a way to throw away all the criticism towards it, "it's made for kids" doesn't mean it's should have no quality control, 

"it's made for kids" dosen't mean you should undermine the effort and love put into it

(OH MY FUCKING GOD THIS THING SOUNDS LIKE A 10 YEAR OLD ON A FORUM POST WRITING A MANIFESTO I'M SO SORRY TO WHATEVER MOD HAS TO TAG AND READ THIS, this thing is mostly likely a ramble but this trend of saying "it's made for kids" unleashed some evil cartoon reviewer persona in me)

your apology is accepted-📻

#confession #/ii #/ii/cabby #/ii/bot #/one #/ii/taco #/ii/microphone #/ii/microphone/taco

[blacktobackmesa]

Circus Peanuts - a Half Life VR but the AI is Self-Aware Minific

It's the middle of the night, and one eldritch horror calls another to talk about that clown cartoon. Canon to the Streamman fanfiction continuity, but exists on its own.

Written as part of my personal NaNoWriMo challenge to work on fiction for an hour a day.

“You’d tell me if I was like Caine, right?”

“...whu?”

“I–I  know it’s late,” The caller stammered. “Sorry. I saw you were up from your Discord… thingy. The… fuck, I don’t know works. Words. The green dot.”

“Status. The status thingy..”

“Yeah, you can tell I just woke up, huh? It’s nothing. Sorry–”

“No, no, don’t hang up,” the recipient cut in. “Commit to your bit. You wanted to ask about Cane’s.”

That made him laugh. Victory. “No, not Cane’s. Caine. The ringmaster guy.”

The recipient’s eyebrows furrowed for a moment, then raised to the brim of his bonnet. “Talking about the clown show?”

“Yeah, way to not make me feel goofy about it.” 

“Fuck. No, that’s– didn’t mean to sound like that. That’s a real question. You mean the teeth from the clown puppet show.”

“Yeah, that. That’s the… wait, puppet?”

“Cartoons are picture puppets, y’know?.”

“We can unpack that later,” the caller decided.  

“Was it a dream or just night thoughts? Or something else?”

“Dream.”

The recipient crossed one leg over the other and curled his finger around an imaginary phone cord. “You wanna tell me about it?”

“Mm. I don’t remember the whole thing, but I’ll tell you the important stuff.”

The recipient waited for a moment as his friend got his thoughts sorted. 

“We were playing something together, the whole team. There were some parts where it was streamed? But other times that wasn’t part of it, and it was hard to tell who was the host. But I must have gone through the wrong door or something, and I ended up in the Amazing Digital Circus. The place, not the… the cartoon. I mean, I guess it was in the cartoon, since it’s about the place. It really depends–”

“Did that matter?”

“What?”

“If it was the place or the cartoon.”

“I don’t know.”

“Keep going.”

Yeah, he could practically hear the eyes rolling. “Alright. Well, I was there. The team wasn’t. And I was kind of in Pomni’s role– you know, the jester girl. But she was there, too, so it was more like I was just the new guy after her.”

“It’s your self insert fanfiction.”

“Fuck, yeah. That’s… that’s legiterately what it… that’s not a word. Literally, legitimately what it was.”

“Be cringe and free.”

“I wasn’t free, though!” He almost laughed. “That’s the whole thing about the circus, you’re stuck there. And that’s why Caine does the adventures, right? He’s… I mean, there’s lots of ways to interpret the pilot, but that’s what I figured: Caine does the adventures so that the people trapped there have something to keep them occupied and fulfilled and all that. He’s not exactly, uh, sane about it, but he’s not trying to hurt them, he just doesn’t understand what it’s like to be them, he knows they need something to interact with and just makes shit up so they have something to do with their lives–”

“Ohhhh.”

“You get it?”

“Yeah. That’s fucked,” he confirmed. “Now breathe before you pass out.”

From the sounds on the other end, that’s just what he did. 

“So whuhappen?”

“It’s a little fuzzy,” the caller went on. “We had some task, but it changed through dream logic stuff. Something like finding keys in eggs. But my brain wasn’t fully locked into the dream logic, so whenever something changed it just fucked with me real hard. I was just freaking out about being stuck there, about not being able to go back home, what would happen to my kid and my apartment and…”

He trailed off. 

“And what?”

He took a deep breath. 

“You guys,” he finished. “What would happen to you guys if I was gone. That’s when… this is the part that fucked with me, I guess. At some point, even though they still looked and sounded like the cartoon characters, my brain decided that the circus characters were the Science Team.”

“Oh, cool. Was I the bunny?”

“Was–” he wheezed a little. “I don’t know. That’s not important.” “It is.”

“No.”

“Yuh-huh.”

“No, it wasn’t– it wasn’t a direct, one-to-one thing. It was more like the concept. The concepts got crossed. It wasn’t… I didn’t Kin Assign you guys.”

“Boo.”

“Ignoring that. It was around that time that Caine kind of disappeared from the dream, and I didn’t even notice until I woke up. Instead, I had to be the one who set up things to do to keep the circus team busy. And when I got into that, my mind kind of… stopped being about being trapped. The dream kind of morphed, the way dreams do. By the time I woke up, it wasn’t even about being trapped in the circus anymore. It was brainstorming for next week’s stream, just inside the circus. It happened so smoothly.” 

There was a lull in the conversation. The caller seemed out of steam. The listener continued to twirl their invisible phone cord.

“You wanna play Carnival Games for the Wii next week?”

“...No, Benrey. Not really.”

“Why?”

“...I don’t know. Motion controls.”

“You use VR legiterately all the time.”

“Heh. Maybe.”

“Maybe yes?”

“Look, just… thanks for listening.”

“Mm. Thanks for talking.”

#hlvrai #hlvrai fanfiction #gordon streamman #the amazing digital circus #hey circus fans! hope you don't mind me using your main tag.

[tobi-smp]

I think part of the problem of the finale, on a conceptual level, is that it seemed to have tried to find the middle ground between the two farthest opposite extremes of the fandom interpretations of dream and tommy's relationship without realizing that there is no way to mix them without poisoning the batch.

You know that old saying about how the middle ground between decency and genocide is still murder?

There's been quite a few posts insisting that this was a "win" for both dream apologists And tommy apologists, but what that fails to understand is that dream apologists have always been arguing for the merit of their little guy, emotionally invested in a fictional character's reputation to the detriment of all else, while tommy apologists (while not Without that mindset) were largely concerned with the portrayal and understanding of abuse.

There's no world where an abuse survivor who saw themselves in tommy's story sees the finale tell us that tommy was responsible for his own abuse, that there's an action a child can take to make them Deserve it, in a "softer" and more "understanding" light than you'd see from dream apologists in regards to tommy (insisting the problem was that he just didn't know better) and Not feel disgusted or devastated.

Creating a situation where dream apologists believe they've always been right but walk away liking tommy's character a little more will not create the inverse with the other half of the fandom. because most inniters Loved c!dream but were appalled by the abuse apologia. I don't care if dream apologists Like tommy, I care if the narrative validates their beliefs that victims can Earn the trauma they receive, and that having earned it makes the abuser more sympathetic (if not the Real victim entirely).

You can't do a Little abuse apologia to please both sides and play every angle. Either you isolate and hurt those affected by abuse or you don't.

#dream smp #fandom critical #dream apologists on this post will be blocked on sight #I will not read what you have to say

[t-nd-rfoot]

🔥 + jake, my beloved!!! (For the emoji headcannons)

GATHER 'ROUND Bonfires with Jake Headcanons

Jake is a fire man! Oh no, sorry, not that kind of fireman...

Pairing Jake Seresin x reader

Theme fluff

Word Count 569

Note Honestly, had so many interpretations for this one!!! There was ‘cooking with Jake’, ‘Jake eating spicy foods’, even ‘Hot summers with Jake’ 🫣 but once this idea came to mind (as basic as it is huhu) I just could not stop thinking about it!!! Had a lot of fun with this one, I hope you enjoy it 😌

If you enjoyed this, please reblog! Reblogs are the best way to support creators (writers, artists, gif makers, everyone!) on this platform. Share the content, share the love!

Everyone currently stationed at Top Gun knew that bonfires were the Dagger’s special way of celebrating, well…anything

Successful missions, birthdays, family visits, milestones, etc.

Even if there was nothing specific to celebrate, there was one wherever they went (off base, of course)

But no matter what the occasion—or whose occasion—it was guaranteed that Jake was man to set it up (lol)

So technically, bonfires were really more Jake’s thing than a Dagger thing, but they were more than happy to partake every time

His favorite thing about fires was how they were fit for nearly any occasion or location

At the beach? Bonfire after some dogfight football

Even before they started playing, he asked the local lifeguards if he could set one up

Penny keeps a stash of driftwood that would end up on the shores for whenever he wanted to set one up

In the snow? That’s what fireplaces are for

Everyone knows not to sit in his “prime spot” in the living room whenever the fireplace was lit

(That prime spot being on the floor in front of the couch by the windowed wall so that while you were on the couch, he could sit in between your legs and feel the enough heat from the fire to warm him but not feel stuffy)

Backyard party? He built a fire pit at home

It was the pride of your backyard, knowing how much work he put into building it

“I want to make as many memories as we can around this, so this is for you, too, as much as it is for me,” he told you when he proposed the idea right after moving in

And true enough, many moments were spent there, even if it wasn’t always lit

Middle of the afternoon? “I just got a new grill, let’s bring out some beers and make it a barbecue!” and he would proudly wear his “Hot Stuff 🌶️” apron while he cooks

Late at night? “Honey, where are the—?” you hand him the outdoor blankets and the s’mores kits before he can even finish

He’d even ask Rooster to bring a guitar to play some songs for everyone as the night unwinds

From childhood to now, many of his favorite memories involved some sort of gathering around an open flame

Camping trips every summer with his family

Parties he attended in high school

You guys even lit a small one—just for the two of you—at the end of your wedding reception at the Seresin family ranch after the last guest left but you guys didn’t want to end the night just yet

Heck, the first night you stayed over!!!

There just so happened to be a storm that night which caused the electricity to go out

But since he lived in a small apartment then with no fireplace, he looked for some candles to use for emergencies and placed a few around the room

And he used one to set on his kitchen counter where you both sat, taking turns trying to roast marshmallows on toothpicks over the single tiny flame

It became a sort of tradition every time he got relocated and moved into a new place

After dinner on the first night, you guys would turn off the lights, light a single candle, and roast marshmallows before going to bed

Needless to say, bonfires were Jake’s special love language

That wherever a fire was lit, was where his loved ones would be

Disclaimer I do not own Top Gun: Maverick or any of its characters. Please do not copy my work or translate without my permission

Edited layout

#top gun maverick #top gun maverick fanfiction #tgm fic #jake hangman seresin #hangman seresin #hangman top gun #hangman fanfiction #hangman x reader #hangman imagine #hangman fic #jake seresin fanfiction #jake seresin imagine #jake seresin x reader #jake seresin fic

[generalzar0ff]

Most of this was drawn in September of last year, but I decided to finally complete it!

So, here are the penguins of Madagascar and their lemur friends as humans!

I know this has been done to death already, but I wanted to provide my own interpretation. I’ll provide my design choices for each character under the cut, if anybody’s interested!

Skipper: I do not want to throw shade to anyone, but most of the human Skippers I’ve seen are either too young, too skinny, or too muscular. This guy may present himself as an authority figure, but let’s face it: this guy is your average middle-aged man with a fascination for cool spy stuff and repressed bisexuality. Trust me, my dad knows all about it. Anyway, I gave him a tacky nautical flag shirt, mostly because i couldn’t find any high-quality “hawaiian shirt with wwii planes” patterns. If it weren’t for King Julien’s design, I would’ve given Skipper aviators.

Kowalski: Typical nerdy guy. When I was showing a work in progress of the penguins, a friend of mine suggested that Kowalski’s hairline should be extra receded, and they were right. I know that this is the simplest design, but that’s because this guy just doesn’t seem the type for style. More of a practicality and formality guy. I suppose now’s a good time to mention that each of the brothers has an element of orange around their feet, cuz, well, the penguins have orange feet.

Rico: I really hope you guys get the energy that this guy listens to nu-metal. Since human beings not infused with cartoon animal wackiness cannot regurgitate convenient items, I decided to give human Rico a bunch of pockets from which cartoon HUMAN wackiness can occur. His outfit is also a bit more military-like than the others, what with the bomber jacket, cargo shorts, and combat boots. I also gave him what is essentially the boss floss from Splatoon 3’s amiibo gear.

Private: According to Penguin Lore™️, they’re all brothers, but Private is adopted, hence why he’s a bit younger [but not a child!] and I gave him a different hair texture and skin tone. His shirt has an icon from his favorite show, a Lunacorn. I also made his blue nail polish match its eyes. I take honor in the fact that a friend told me “I have several transmasc friends who look like this”.

Maurice: A lot of people who draw TPOM gijinkas don’t even draw him, which is a shame, because I love Maurice. Even more offensive is that some people don’t even depict him as an old black man, which goes against everything I know to be true in my heart. Anyway, he seems like the type to enjoy autumn/winter gear, so I gave him a big ol’ trench coat, as well as a scarf that looks like his fur puff. And the newsie cap just felt right.

King Julien: Here’s where all the flashiness went! According to an actor whom I have a personal vendetta against and thus will not name, Julien’s accent is Sri Lankan, so I took inspiration from their traditional clothing for his outfit, albeit more “cunty”, as today’s kids call it. It was imperative that this man has his toes out for obvious reasons, so I gave him sandals. I honestly have no good explanation for the leopard print leggings other than it came to me in a divine vision. Or something. The sunglasses mimic the color of his eyes!

Mort: Look, it was really hard for me not to just draw Molière from Atlantis: The Lost Empire, since his design is already kind of what I imagine this fellow looking like as a “human”. Admittedly, I’m not too proud of this design, but i think it gets the job done. His outfit purposely clashes: a matching hat and sweater, but with sweatpants, and he’s not even wearing shoes! I know the original Mort doesn’t have any purple in his design, but I felt like its inclusion made him look a little weirder. And then there’s his eyes. Yeah.

Hope this wasn’t too long, and thank you to anyone who read this portion of the post!

#my art #gijinka #humanization #tpom

[sadspoookyboi]

BATFAMILY AS FOLKLORE SONGS

i’m honestly shocked i’ve haven’t done this one. this one is a little different tbh, usually i just do characters and maybe lyrics but this time i did actually did explanations and i was watching the long pond sessions so i could get accurate notes on each song. DISCLAIMER there’s a lot of run on sentences and i hope it all makes sense, peace and love-ssb✌️🫶

the 1: steph and tim, i see this as being from both of their povs. i think a relationship between them wouldn’t work long term it would’ve been fun if you would’ve been the one

cardigan: dick/babs, i know that all writers have their own opinions on who is the “other woman” but timeline wise it’s kori so i see this as being from babs pov bc she goes back to him no matter what

the last great american dynasty: The Wayne’s, i feel that after Bruce adopts his kids and starts collecting others he starts kinda shifting what the wayne’s are where as when he grew up it was about image, poise and galas he starts to change and all he cares abt is if his kids are comfortable i had a marvelous time ruining everything

exile: jason and bruce, even though this song is like two lovers fighting i think it can be interpreted as jason being upset after tim becomes robin and it took you five whole minutes to pack us up and leave me with it and i can see bruce’s pov of being fed up with giving jason the chance to do the right thing but him not doing it like you’d get your knuckles bloody for me second, third and hundredth chances balancing on breaking bridges, i couldn’t turn things around you never turned things around

my tears ricochet: damian and talia, “it’s a song about greed. it’s a song about how somebody could be your best friend and your companion and your most trusted person in your life and then they could go and become your worst enemy who knows how to hurt you because they were once your most trusted person.” Taylor Swift long pond sessions you had to kill me but it killed you just the same this whole song and specifically this part and the quote reminds me of when talia made and had a clone of damian kill him i didn’t have it in me to go with grace and you’re the hero flying around saving face you hear my stolen lullabies

mirrorball: Stephanie, i’ve never been a natural all i do is try i know everyone is like this is dicks songs it’s not he’s the natural however i feel stephanie is put on this pedestal for being independent but she’s not and i feel like she morphs herself into a different version of herself depending on who she’s with “we have mirror balls in the middle of a dance floor because they reflect light they are broken a million times and that’s what makes them so shiny. we have people like that in society. they hang there and everytime they break it entertains us” Taylor Swift long pond sessions

seven: damian and jon, it’s a song abt besties idk 🤷🏻‍♀️ past down like folk songs the love lasts so long

august: kori/dick, IM SORRY DICKORI/ KORI STANS! to me when writers write this love triangle they write babs as the one, she’s smart and sensible and someone to settle down with while kori is written as a fling and something that is just someone who’s there in the moment and that’s what august is about it’s about this girl who was seen by this guy as a fling while she is truly falling for him and from everybody’s pov she’s this bad girl and temptress while all she wants is to love and to be loved

this is me trying: tim, they told me all my cages were mental so i got wasted like all my potential, tim is often now written as this happy go lucky character and i think that in red robin he’s fighting some real demons but in the newer runs he’s fighting to make it through the day or insecurities about his position in the family or as a superhero or even as bernard’s boyfriend and i feel like it’s just so real like no other character is going to compare to me when it comes to that and when it comes to his position in everyday life he is the definition as wasted potential he is crazy smart and charismatic but he just hates school and hates studying i was so ahead the curve that the curve became a sphere

illicit affairs: bruce/ talia, bruce and talias relationship is not healthy but i do believe that they both or at least bruce loved the other person and i feel like it shouldn’t even be described as an relationship because it seems like a means to an end

invisible string: the entire batfamily, definition of right place at the right time

mad woman: cass, in the comics and fics cass is often written to be a crazy, feral woman and i think that it’s a narrative constantly written about women and i feel like men are written as traumatized while women are not written or perceived with that tone they are written as vindictive or crazy

epiphany: babs and jim gordon, epiphany is written paralleling WWII to the pandemic and i think the perfect parallel in comic book history is babs and commissioner gordon fighting the same fight but taking different paths or routes and aaron dessner describes the song as comparing taylor’s family history and hero’s of today and i feel like that’s the perfect way to describe it

betty: babs/dick/kori, i already described my thoughts twice but i feel like dick would maybe take more accountability

peace: bruce/selina, imma be honest i don’t know if it’s canon that bruce doesn’t do relationships bc of batman but it’s fitting and i feel like it’s probably that even in relationships with other heroes is a conversation to be had bruce truly can’t give selina peace, he cannot promise stability or a promise of staying alive or not being over tabloids as he’s the richest man alive all these people think loves for show but i would die for you in secret

hoax: duke, duke is the one character that i can’t really get a read on but as the newest member of the batfamily i feel like there’s still this feeling in him that’s like i have this new family and i love them but at the end of the day i want my parents my parents that raised me at the end of the day he’s a boy who wants his parents. i also feel like he’s still trusting of people and he reaps what he sowed everytime

the lakes: tim/bernard: tim always has an exit plan and it’s always escaping by himself to be by himself and i feel like it’s the same no matter who he’s with but when he met and started dating bernard he finally found someone to escape with and exit the hero world for im setting off, but not without my muse

batfam (taylor’s version) is coming so lmk what albums you guys want next🤭🤭

#batfamily #bruce wayne #batman #dick grayson #nightwing #jason todd #red hood #tim drake #red robin #stephanie brown #spoiler #cassandra cain #black bat #damian wayne #robin #duke thomas #signal #barbara gordon #batgirl #jim gordon #comissioner gordon

[found--family]

💖💜💙

i hope the folks planning on resurrecting Supernatural [re:jackles] are taking notes on what's happening in the 9-1-1 fandom and with this Buck character right now. i know next to nothing about this show, but i do know that 'Buddie' is a major mlm ship between two guy friends and that this guy Buck - a strong macho man in his 30s - has just been canonised as BISEXUAL! with a MLM kiss! after SIX seasons! the subtext was there all along but the network was not on board, by the sounds of it; a change of network saw this queercoded middle-aged male character finally set free. no more subtext, no insinuations that could be interpreted one way or another, just undeniable beautiful text. 

i'm thrilled for everyone in the 9-1-1 fandom and for this positive queer rep in media! here’s hoping other shows will take note - namely Supernatural. Dean has 15 seasons of queer subtext under his belt and he would now be in his mid 40s. it’s never too late to canonise a queer character. characters are never too old to realise they’re queer. this is such an important message, and while i can’t speak for the buckgirls i can say that queer deangirls have been relating to his queercoding for almost 2 decades, including 15 seasons of bi!Dean and 12 seasons of Destiel. seeing a character like Buck come out as queer after SIX seasons (i’ll keep saying it, it’s fucking amazing) is such a win not just for queer folk but for good storytelling; i know there were likely obstacles in finally getting here, and it would be great if queer characters could come out whenever they want instead of struggling against tptb, but six seasons has given the show a wonderful amount of time to delve into Buck’s character and journey with him through various plotlines. as a fan of the slow burn for romance, and a good amount of time for character development to play out, i love that there’s six whole seasons of Buck backstory to delve into for the leadup to his bisexual canonisation.

happy bi day Buck, may you inspire more creative control to cater to the characters instead of some suit in an office who’s never even seen your show and doesn’t care about your journey and narrative freedom. today is a great day.

(the first gif is Buck’s first mlm kiss. the second gif is a moment from a gay comedy called Looking that many people have pointed out perfectly encapulates how a Destiel kiss might play out on screen.) 

💖💜💙

#dean is bi #let him be free #spn posting #911 buck is bi #thoughts #spn reboot #can i also just say: it's so good to see a character who wasn't written explicitly as the queer character yknow? this isn't some #teenbeat coming of age drama with a queer character reveal in season 1 and a queer ship canonised in season 2 #we're talking SIX WHOLE SEASONS of character development - watching this guy grow and how his #relationships with others change and evolve over YEARS of storylines. it's unknown whether buddie will #be canonised but that's secondary. this is a huge milestone for queer characters and bisexual (male) characters #moreover in a show that isn't made for teens or centred on queer identities. this guy was allowed to BE #and honestly that's more than what castiel. castiel was killed off for his queerness and then they #killed dean too rather than let him be queer. but with 911 - the show is ongoing! it's not an endtimes reveal #it's going to be allowed to exist in the narrative moving forward meaning everyone who saw the #queercoding of his characters for SIX whole seasons is seeing it come to fruition. the meta was there #and it's not belittled or ignored or criticised or condemned but embraced and celebrated and rewarded! #it's never too late #for characters or long-running shows to be allowed to be true to their narrative #destiel

[thawthebeez]

hey guys. tumblr user thawthebeez back at it again with yet another haikyuu essay B) the topic of today is one that i see NOBODY talking about which is crazy because this motif is (in my opinion) one of the main foundations of the kagehina community.

now may someone please explain to me why the HELL nobody ever talks about how whenever Tobio expresses an insecurity of ANY KIND, Hinata is ALWAYS the first one to swoop in and tell him not to worry about it?

yes, we've all established that Hinata Shouyou is the #1 Kageyama Tobio understander. we get that. BUT THIS IS ONE OF THE MAIN DISPLAYS OF THAT AND I'VE SEEN LITERALLY NOBODY SPEAK OF IT EVER.

i'm pretty sure there's an instance of it in season 2 (either that or my brain just made it up) when Tobio is a little worried about his and Hinata's quick attack not really working out but Hinata tells him "nah you'll figure it out eventually" or something along those lines. i'm not going to lose my shit over it because i can't find it but if you know YOU KNOW.

a part that i COULD find from season 2, however, was this:

here we have Tobio explaining how talented of a setter Oikawa is- how he's so much better than him- and it's clear that this is something he's insecure about given his facial expression.

THEN we have Hinata's INSTANT response:

and it blows Tobio away because WHAT

because, to paraphrase a little, Tobio basically just said "yeah oikawa can make any spiker look good no matter what team he's on" to which Hinata replied "yeah but that team wouldn't be Karasuno" which is essentially "Karasuno is strong enough as it is" BUT- if ur crazy- " dw he wouldn't take your spot babe" (<- which probably isn't how it's meant to be interpreted because they just finished talking about The Team That's Stronger As Six thing so like... context clues. it's probably not the insane interpretation).

ANYWAYS boom there it is. Tobio expresses insecurity, Shouyou swoops in and goes "Ermmmm Actuallyyyyy🤓" WHICH IS SO FUCKING ENDEARING ON IT'S OWN BUT THE FACT THAT IT HAPPENS MORE THAN ONCE AND AT SUCH A CRITICAL POINT TOO

the critical point in question being:

(context: Tobio just came back from his training camp in Tokyo and is a little frustrated because he's gotten so used to playing with other prodigies like himself so to go back to talented-but-not-prodigious players is a bit of a switch for him. don't get him wrong tho he loves this team to DEATH it's just a little different that's all. hashtag number one Tobio apologist right here)

SO THERE'S THIS! and it goes without saying that Tobio is DEEPLY insecure about his late middle-school days and being referred to as a king. Tsukishima adds a little salt to the wound and while I didn't take a screenshot of it Tobio makes this look of absolute HORROR after he says what he says

(which, side note, shows a lot of a character development within Tobio. especially since I've been flipping between season 2 and 4 a lot looking for these clips. Tobio didn't even notice when he was acting kingly before but he realizes it INSTANTLY now which is so so so good for him yayyyy character development!)

this also leads fantastically into my next tangent which is

TOBIO FUCKING APOLOGIZES!

now, admittedly this isn't entirely related to my thesis but i absolutely ADORE talking about this scene and i genuinely think it is one of the most prevalent displays of character development within Tobio because i feel like he tends to get overshadowed by all the other characters (especially Hinata, which i'm not upset about in the slightest like it makes perfect sense and if Tobio got all the attention all the time the show would be soooo unbalanced)

but I feel like a lot of people skip over Tobio's overall development over the course of the show. I mean compare s1 Tobio to s4 Tobio THAT IS NOT SAME PERSON ANYMORE. he grows so much over such a short period of time (which is another essay I could write. something along the lines of "Explaining Why Tobio And Shouyou Need To Be On Separate Teams Actually Because Character Development Purposes" because the amount of people i've seen on tiktok complaining about kghn being on separate teams and how they should just be on the same team forever makes my blood boil violently) and it's so refreshing to see Tobio's growth especially as a big Tobio enjoyer.

ANYWAYS back to the main thesis.

So Hinata steps in IMMEDIATELY here. literally cuts Tobio's apology off because HE HAS NOTHING TO APOLOGIZE FOR. he was expressing his thoughts whatever that's fine he could have done it in a nicer way SURE but listen the guy still has a LOOOONNNGGGG way to go but still, nothing to apologize for. it's just growing pains, y'know?

now the quote "What's wrong with him being the King again?" appearing here isn't the first time we're seeing this. Hinata has ALWAYS been confused as to why calling Tobio a "King" is a bad thing. literally from day fucking one Hinata was like "nah dude I think that title is cool" WHICH, AGAIN, TOBIO BEING INSECURE ABOUT SOMETHING AND SHOUYOU REASSURING HIM THAT IT'S TOTALLY CHILL HELLO?????

LITERALLY FROM DAY ONE SHOUYOU HAS BEEN DOING THIS. THAT MAN MAY THINK TOBIO'S AN ASSHOLE SOMETIMES (and he kinda is) BUT NEVER WILL HINATA INHERENTLY HATE A PART OF HIM. and i don't think they realize it here nor do i think the realization comes soon after but at some point there will be the realization that they love each other. every single part. fucking Tobio probably realized it way back in junior high but that's a tangent for another time.

now this line.... this one right here...... oh my god i can be SO NORMAL ABOUT IT.

the main reason why Tobio had this look of HORROR on his face after he yelled at everyone was BECAUSE HE KNEW THE ENDING. he knew that yelling at them would have consequences (if it weren't for Hinata stepping in thank god). HE'S SEEN IT ALL BEFORE. in his final year of junior high he yelled at his teammates to run faster and jump higher and be better AND THEY LEFT HIM!!!

so Tobio yelling like this instantly makes him afraid that he's just ruined the entire balance of the team. he thinks he's going to be left behind again because he yelled and everyone is going to leave him BUT!!!!!

BUT SHOUYOU IMMEDIATELY JUMPS IN AND SAYS "idc what u say honestly if i don't like i'm just not gonna listen" OR, TO TRANSLATE "i'm not going anywhere regardless of what you say"

Tobio's biggest fear is losing this team. I literally do not need to explain why. that man would fucking DIE for this team (if you really need an explanation just to go the end of the Kamomedai match when Tobio admits that he's upset they lost because he wanted to play with that specific team more).

and for Hinata to essentially say "you could literally be as kingly as u want and i simply would not care, pal, i promise you i am NOT going ANYWHERE!!!" which has got to be SO FUCKING RELIEVING FOR TOBIO.

(also something something "nobody was there" / "i'm here" something something "doesn't matter what kind of toss goes up if you send it my way i'm hitting it" something something they're soulmates or whatever they are literally bound together by the universe they were destined to be together and it's a crime that universe kept them apart for so long and now that they're together they will always BE together two peas in a pod literally inseparable they are hot glued and duct taped together.)

and then there's this. i mean at this point you already know what i'm going to say like you get it by now but again IT MUST BE SO RELIEVING TO TOBIO to know that shouyou thinks his biggest insecurity is cool. that shouyou thinks that it's not something to be concerned about. that no matter what, no matter how much a King he is, they're not going anywhere.

SOMETHING SOMETHING "you drew stars around my scars" IF YOU EVEN CARE

and just the fact that it's always ALWAYS shouyou to do this. the fact that there was dead silence before shouyou spoke up. the fact that it's ALWAYS HIM there to understand Tobio (someone who has been misunderstood for as long as he can remember) GOD THEY DRIVE ME INSANE.

anyways thank you for being a witness to this madness👍

#i know kagehina day was like 3 days ago LISTEN #i'll be there on hinakage day i promise #but again the fact that this is not as commonly talked about as it is is WILD to me #also the “Hinata and Kageyama need to be on separate teams actually” is an essay i think i will genuinely write at some point #just one more tiktok of people saying “noooo the boyfriendsss they need to be on the same team” and i'll do it i'll fucking do it #THEY CAN BE BOYFRIENDS AND BE ON DIFFERENT TEAMS PLEASE UNDERSTAND!!!!!!!!!1 #they needed to be on different teams in junior high for obvious plot reasons #they needed to be on the same team in high school for character development reasons #and they NEED to be in different teams going forward so they can continue to motivate one another #THEY ARE EACH OTHER'S GREATEST MOTIVATORS #there is nothing they love more than playing against one another like did you SEE the adlers v. jackals match HELLO #even when the adler's were LOSING tobio looked like he was having the TIME OF HIS LIFE #and you could tell that Hinata loved it too. not just because he was finally making up on that “i'm gonna beat u one day” promise #if they end up the same team forever they will just never feel that joy THEY NEED TO BE ON DIFFERENT SIDES OF THE NET I PROMISE #a net is not enough to stop a red string of fate #anyways #volleyball guys #wahoo another essay for the haikyuu tag!

[gege-wondering-around]

Chris and Derek are a goated duo

I feel like we - if you think the same of course - were robbed of a very powerful and amazing duo - just so you know I'm gonna analysis both characters simultaneously and how they evolved be the two faces of the same coin.

Character analysis:

Both Derek and Chris have a strong sense of justice and duty despite the way they showed it in the early seasons and have great strength in their own fields, that be in combact with weapons or claws.

They are both very family-guided or have a lot of interest in their own families, that being staying in the family business or fighting for their own family and pride.

They both ends up being the only one left - in a generalize measure - of their own families/clans and brings changes to their own after being faced with another prospective that 'lets everyone lives'. And they are both willing to take the risk - whatever it might be - to save others' while being already severely injured.

Both have being 'teachers' to their respective 'young ones' and did fairly well somehow. Chris had Allison and she turned out to be very strong and leader-like, while derek had Isacc, Boyd and Erica and despite the fact two of them died, Derek managed to still teach them something rather valuable about being werewolves.

How they evolved to 'the coin':

throughout the seasons they ends up being the only one they can rely onto when something new comes up or when they need to get information or help to deal with something.

And don't get me wrong, they have other people too, but you remeber it too that Chris specificly went to find Derek in the middle of Brazil and was the only one who remotely knew something about Derek?

Also, example of this is when they were talking about the nogitsune while being imprisoned at the police station, they share their opinions about what to do with Stiles while possessed and despite having different povs they ends up working on it together, especially because they both wanted to save a life and not take one more.

And as they both were the 'bad guys' at the start of the show they surely did a turn around and became some of the 'best guys' who protects people whenever is needed, no questions asked.

Chris Arget passed from hunting down supernatural creatures to helping them killing the actually bad ones, and not killing regardless of being guilty or innocent of any crime.

Derek Hale went from ripping people's throats out almost without a second though on the matter, caring only about power and building a pack for himself, to actually caring for the people he ends up with and not caring about being the Alpha of the situation.

And so, they are opposite yet the same, their willpower leads them the same way but along different paths, they want the same things but try to achive them in two distant ways, they have the same start - as the 'bad one' to someone - but ends up regaining people's respect and love.

Most of the time, this 'two face of the same coin' has a bad interpretation, but I don't think it does right now. If the coin has to faces, no matter how different the faces are, how opposite they might be, they are still part of the same coin. They have the same roots just different branches, maybe different leaves but same fruits.

You might be doing something one way and I might be doing it the other, but if our goal is the same they we are part of the same thing deep down, casue what we are looking for and trying to achive is the same. We are just two different people, and the same goes for opinions, idea, ways of being/working/expressing yourself.

And sometimes you might need someone who does things differelty than you, despite having the same goal, cause maybe what you are failing to understand is what they are the best at and viceversa, so you need the other half of the information to find the solution.

Lastly:

If Chris is willing to kill to protect even if it means killing someone you also care for, then Derek is willing to take the risk, even only upon himself alone, to get back the people he loves.

The difference is: Chris is willing to make a sacrifice, Derek is willing to be it.

(almost all the time)

The goated duo:

So, I believe they are a goated duo that could easily take down almost anything or anyone if needed, when they worked together. That they evolved to be better almost together since I think they both learned something from one another.

They went from total enemies to best allies and they are both the best at what they do cause they basically saw it all. They hold such strength on their own that if they worked together - which they don't do on the field (from what I can tell from the show and the movie - they could probably hunt down the bad guys and be done with them in a few business days.

They would've been a powerful duo if only they had the time to be it.

#derek hale #chris argent #teen wolf #derek x stiles

[thatvalvefanatic]

Miss Pauling from Team Fortress 2 is confirmed to be a lesbian! A lot of people still don't believe it though so today I'm gonna show you guys all the information about it because I think it's cool :]

Cw: nudity (from Zhanna and Soldier in the TF2 comics, as well as Scout's mom in Meet the Spy (you'll see why that's important). Its not graphic but I thought to give a warning anyway just in case.)

The most direct acknowledgement of this is the fact Jay Pinkerton, a writer at Valve, said it in response to a comment on Pauling and Scout, saying Jay had a better idea for her, which was to make her a lesbian, but there were no female characters to ship her with yet.

Now you may ask "What about Scout? Didn't she date him?" After Expiration Date they may have gone on a "date" (date being Scout going on random jobs Miss Pauling has), but you can see in the comics that take place afterwards, they were never actually romantically involved.

It also comes off that way in Miss Pauling's voice lines towards Scout. (These are taken from the official TF2 wiki)

"Hey Scout. First, 'No' to whatever you're about to ask. I've got a job for you."

"Scout, Pauling here. Wrap up whatever you were bragging about and look at this."

"Scout, it's Pauling. Whatever stupid thing you're doing, stop it. I've got work."

"Scout, it's Pauling. I need something done quietly. Scout? Quietly."

"Engie, it's Pauling. Is Scout there? Cough if he's there. I've got a job for you. Not him."

Then there's the Teufort Reader, a page on the official TF2 website. It has ad listings from different characters. Both Pauling and Scout have listings for dates, but Scout enforces that the caller should be a woman while Pauling keeps who she is looking for genderless, meaning it doesn't necessarily have to be a man who calls. (I edited both listings onto an image, so that's why it's wonky looking lol.)

More examples (which is mostly my interpretation) of her possibly seeking future female partners (and ignoring male advances) is in her Tough Break voicelines. In some, she talks about going to many woman events which could be a hint at her sexuality, others she rejects male related stuff. Once again I copied these from the official TF2 wiki.

(whispering) "Hey, it's Pauling here. I'm at the Teufort Ladies Book Club and I'm the only one who hasn't actually read Belinda...so it's just about relationships, right? Guy meets girl, love stuff, happy ending? It's a good thing, right? I'm gonna tell everyone how it really, really brings the two as a couple."

[Scout: Oh, oh, and...(dice clatter)...not too shabby!] "Pauling here. I'm trying to teach Scout Gargoyles and Gravel. [Yeah!] Ugh, no Scout, there's no such thing as a Muscle Wizard." [Yeah whatever.] "No you can't beat an Orc by doing push-ups at it. Look, please, please put your shirt back on. Scout, stop flexing. Scout. Scout! Stop flexing."

"Hey did you know a gun show's a real thing? I'm at one with Heavy right now." [Heavy: Is perfect, this is gun.] Oh wow, what's the gauge on that? Yeah, Scout's been saying he's going to take me to one for years, but all he does is shove his stupid arms in my face. Anyway, I've got something for you."

"Hey's it's Pauling. Sorry for the noise, it's Ladies Night at the Cap Point, and I misunderstood what that meant." [Hey what's a nice girl like you doing in a place like this?] "I'm trying to get someone killed for money. Can you give me a second? Sorry about that. Anyway, take a look."

"He-hey, sorry about the reception, I'm on a ladies safari in the middle of a forest. Listen, a contract came in..." [I'm being mauled to death by a tiger! Ahhh!] "Lady, would you please keep it down! I'm on the phone!"

Another small example, once again more of my interpretation, is on a TF2 blog post from the website where the Administrator starts reading one of Miss Pauling's gun themed woman magazines. The blog post says:

"I found the answer, in all places, in one of the insipid gun-themed women's magazines Miss Pauling leaves lying around, where I stumbled on an article about self-improvement."

You could tie this to a historical context because the 60s and 70s had a rise in LGBTQ oriented magazines, many lesbian ones created in 1971 and running through the 80s. It's quite possible that Pauling would read them as Team Fortress 2 takes place around 1968 to 1973.

The folder Miss Pauling has in the Gun Mettle update is labeled "Scout's mom" meaning she has the nsfw of Scout's mom that Spy lays out in Meet the Spy.

Next section goes more into the comics. There are many panels that could imply Pauling's growing liking towards her new teammate, Zhanna. In this first image I think it shows where the liking began, from Zhanna talking to Pauling, making her blush in the last frame (which too could be embarrassment, but someone pointed it out to me as a possibility, so I decided to add it).

Next is towards the end of the comics. Zhanna and Soldier fight naked, covered in honey as a fighting strategy, and Pauling and Scout have caught them doing so. Scout is disgusted and leaves, while Pauling is interested and decides to stay and catch up later. Note how Zhanna is closest to them. Panels are edited to be side by side and cropped a bit for image space.

Next is towards later on when Pauling is calling the Administrator and Zhanna wonders what she's doing. Pauling then confides in her with her problems, afterwards saying she sees Zhanna as part of the team now after Zhanna gives her advice. She's comfortable around Zhanna.

A few pages later, Pauling's disgusted by Soldier and him being naked, meaning he was not likely who she was looking at.

Another thing is that people think that Pauling could've developed a crush on the Administrator in their time together over the years Pauling worked for her. She made comments on how Helen (Administrator) was not so bad when you got to know her and we also learn Pauling had trusted her the whole mission without knowing what Helen's plan was. Pauling was blindly following and trying to stay loyal to what Helen wanted because she thought Helen would have a place for her at the end.

In Richter Overtime's video on the possible TF2 comic 7 leak from 2018, there was a scene where Pauling allegedly kisses the Administrator. This is in no way canon, but just in case it is revealed that something like that is in the final comic, I just think it would be good to note.

Ashly Burch, Miss Pauling's voice actress, came out as pansexual in July 2022, noting that she has played many LGBTQ characters.

(Also she was a writer on Expiration Date. This means Pauling not liking Scout due to being lesbian could've totally been intentional! Along with her playing as LGBTQ characters, she's also written for them! Like Life is Strange and Mythic Quest.).

The Romana version of the official TF2 wiki has most of these points on Pauling being gay on it. I copied down the text from that section, but recently I found that Pauling's Romana page was removed from the wiki.

"According to a tweet by Jay Pinkerton, writer of TF Comics, Miss Pauling is gay.

This may be why she insists the Administrator is 'not so bad when you get to know her'.

Part of a voice line added in the Tough Break update has her discuss an interest in Ladies' Night while fending off a man: 'Sorry for the noise, it's Ladies Night at the Cap Point, and I misunderstood what that meant.' [Hey what's a nice girl like you doing in a place like this?] 'I'm trying to get someone killed for money.'

Another voice line excerpt from Tough Break, when she's at the Ladies' Book Club: '...so it's just about relationships, right? Guy meets girl, love stuff, happy ending? It's a good thing, right?'

No other Valve employee has either confirmed nor denied this claim to date (The tweet was made June 19, 2015), leading many to believe that Mr. Pinkerton's tweet was just a way to inflame the community. However, since Mr. Pinkerton is a lead writer of the comics and his word is trustworthy, there is no reason not to accept this at face value.

The tweet was made in response to a fan asking if Scout and Miss Pauling would become canon, and was preceded with Mr. Pinkerton stating he had "better plans" for her. This could imply that she may meet a love interest in an upcoming installment."

And finally, I'm taking this from someone else's post, but you can color-pick the lesbian flag colors off of one of Pauling's post cards!! (And bonus, you can color-pick the genderfluid flag off of her Halloween design!)

And that's it! That's all the information I have so far, compiled for everyone's viewing and reference pleasure :]

Please let me know if I missed anything and I'll add it! Thank you for reading, if you made it this far, that's awesome. I'll be updating this post occasionally to fix formatting issues, so don't be confused if things change! I hope I can be of help with your Valve lore and information. And if you haven't seen it, I have a list compiling all of Valve's queer characters!

#miss pauling #tf2 #team fortress #team fortress 2 #ashly burch #lesbian #lgbtq #queer representation #queer rep #lesbian representation #lesbian rep #valve #valve games #miss pauling x zhanna #queer #sapphic #lesbian coded #zhanna tf2 #administrator tf2