Quackers

Have started rewatching Merlin and re-realizing what a mess I am

[allthingswhumpyandangsty]

"If you use em dash in your works, it makes them look AI generated. No real human uses em dash."

Imaging thinking actual human writers are Not Real because they use... professional writing in their works.

Imagine thinking millions of people who have been using em dash way before AI becomes a thing are all robots.

REBLOG IF YOU'RE A HUMAN AND YOU USE EM DASH

[clonerightsagenda]

Frankly Lucy seems more excited about the potential return of her terrible emotional support ghost than getting gifted a romantic necklace.

[alcorianight]

In all fairness to Lucy, the skull at least sometimes helped with cases. That jewelry did nothing. She's a very practical agent

[alcorianight]

Has anyone thought about Jason Todd and Aladdin? Cause I was rewatching the animated movie and I was thinking that they're kinda interesting together.

Like they have such a similar origin story, and they both end up getting absorbed into a family of extreme wealth, but they'd probably have such different opinions about everything.

They both have a soft spot for kids and a very daring attitude and skills that get them recruited by men who want help with something.

But then Aladdin is ashamed of his "street rat" status and I feel like Jason would own it. I think they'd both probably struggle with suddenly being surrounded by immense wealth but Aladdin would probably have an easier time adjusting because he'd be able to make a difference as a Prince (Also Jasmine would definitely want to support him in those efforts). On the other hand, Jason gets adopted by Bruce and while they can donate to charities and stuff, they can't actually change the system in a meaningful way. And to top it off they still have to maintain a ridiculous level of wealth to continue the Batman stuff and maintain a halfway influential position within Gotham.

[foxes-in-love]

[alcorianight]

[alcorianight]

A big part of why I like Jason is probably just second sibling solidarity.

[alcorianight]

I want to see Lucy visit her sisters on vacation, but she takes the skull with her. I want no one else to be able to hear the skull. It would be comedy gold.

If the skull insults one of her sisters, you know she's going to immediately reply with "____ isn't [insert insult here]" which becomes even funnier if literally any of the sisters overhears this. Or if he suggests murder (as he is wont to do), she might reply with "We can't just kill everyone we don't like."

Or, if the skull compares Lucy to them, claiming she's not as pretty or ladylike or whatever, Lucy would definitely list all the worst qualities of said sister back.

(Because this is what siblings do. We defend as much as we destroy confidence ♥️)

But even if she holds her tongue in front of everyone, she's putting up with his comments in private and talking to him when she thinks no one can hear her and her sisters either think she's lost her mind or is talking to Lockwood or George and wondering what conversations she has with her coworkers.

Even funnier if one of them finds the skull.

[tsaronie-cheezecake]

Quill kipps: evening TONY

lockwood: evening quell keeps

Quill kipps:

[daydreamerdoodles]

The one time Jason spends the night at the manor and Bruce just happens to accidentally eat his cookie.

Obligatory click for better quality

You do NOT have permission to repost my art.

Meme reference under cut

[alcorianight]

The whole non-existent love triangle with Lockwood, Lucy, and Holly was kinda peak comedy mixed with Othello to me. Like Lucy is immediately jealous, Lockwood misreads that completely and responds by telling Lucy all of Holly's virtues, Holly's just trying to do her job and not be perturbed by 35 Portland Row's everything, and George is just suffering because Lockwood and Lucy can't figure this out at all.

And then, the skull keeps trying to encourage Lucy to kill Holly in a fit of jealousy that mirrors Iago trying to get Othello to kill Cassio over presumably sleeping with Desdemona. Although, the skull's not doing this for power, he's just got a unique experience where he gets to play an active role in this soap opera he's watching.

(I think I also remember a scene where Holly is about to meet Flo and Lucy's just kinda thinking, "well there's no way Holly would have a better reaction to Flo than me," but then Holly's just totally chill and Lucy's kinda seething. I personally believe that one of two things happened. 1. George informed Holly before she met Flo or 2. Holly spent enough time with the trio to have absolutely no expectations about anyone they interact with because clearly that won't be a normal person.)

[alcorianight]

One thing I loved about Lockwood and Co. is just. The girls are pro brute force and the guys are all about proper technique. (Not all girls and not all guys but like, yeah).

Like it's Lockwood and Kipps that are finicky about proper stances and rapier technique (and iirc they both fenced (and Flo kicked their butts cause she's a legend)) and then there's Lucy and Kat who are just like "Look at that conveniently placed heavy object. Imma hit someone with that."

And it's great to me because I feel like in most works of fiction girls have to have exceptional technique and training to be on par with guys in fights, and then Stroud just flips the script. It's great. As a girl I appreciate other brute force girls.

[bithablu]

I always think it's funny when fictional girls aren't more into brute force. Most women I know were taught early that anything is a weapon if you're desperate enough so Lucy and Kat's behavior is completely justifiable. It once again shows that Stroud just knows how to write female characters.

[worldofkaeos]

Stroud is a genius at female characters. He knows their struggles, its like he's been in our brains before. And there's also George who's all about the importance of research (except he throws flares like a madman) and then Holly. Holly throwing flares and being kind of deranged and totally changing Lucy's view of her. Whatever it is, totally adore the characters!

[alcorianight]

He really is amazing at character voices. Like Lucy felt more relatable than a lot of female protagonists I had read at the time (if I had a nickel for every book I read where the fate of the universe literally hangs in the balance and the main female character was more concerned about which guy she should date, I would be filthy rich). She was self conscious about her appearance and she definitely experienced jealousy over Lockwood when Holly was introduced (which was honestly so funny in retrospect) but she was also more focused on her job than romance. And she didn't obsess over drama (also pretty sure Lockwood was their resident drama queen as he should be). She just felt more complex and more like a real person to me compared to a lot of other books

Stroud made all the characters great though. They were all complex and multifaceted and it felt like we really got to know them in the books. I love how Holly seemed sane and George seemed responsible and then they were just as insane as Lockwood and Lucy.

[alcorianight]

One thing I loved about Lockwood and Co. is just. The girls are pro brute force and the guys are all about proper technique. (Not all girls and not all guys but like, yeah).

Like it's Lockwood and Kipps that are finicky about proper stances and rapier technique (and iirc they both fenced (and Flo kicked their butts cause she's a legend)) and then there's Lucy and Kat who are just like "Look at that conveniently placed heavy object. Imma hit someone with that."

And it's great to me because I feel like in most works of fiction girls have to have exceptional technique and training to be on par with guys in fights, and then Stroud just flips the script. It's great. As a girl I appreciate other brute force girls.

[alcorianight]

Look What You Made Me Do has so much Jason Todd energy

[the1crazybat-deactivated2025030]

Jason Todd Writers

One thing I hate seeing in the comics is how Jason's planning side has been erased so quickly. In Batman under the Red Hood we see a Jason who spends years of his life planning how to take control of crime rings without Batman even realizing it. This man spent years planning every little detail of his big comeback! Jason Todd doesn't rush in like a bully! He plans each of his movements, each of his missions is calculated!

But no! "Jason Todd must be the one who's pissed all the time! The one with anger issues" when we all know that the member with the biggest anger issues is Dick!

Jason has managed to thwart so many security systems! Don't tell me that he did that without having planned in advance how many cameras there would be, how many guards etc...

Please writers, stop writing Jason as a brainless brute and give him back his planning side😭😭

[alcorianight]

THIS! I get all Robins (and teens) do impulsive things sometimes, but I honestly think Jason would have been dead ten times over before he met Bruce if he wasn't half the planner he is. Because he had to be smart and observant and pragmatic and strategic when he was on his own and that shouldn't be taken away from him.

Also, the characterization of him just killing people for funsies is bizarre. Because 1) he wouldn't have issues with petty thieves and thugs when he knows what it's like to need to steal to live and 2) he has canonically been shown to have very deep thoughts on the morality of killing. Like he will cite philosophers and their books because he can read (and I feel like writers forgetting that kinda makes them like the shitty Gotham elite that no doubt looked down on Jason for being a charity case). And, if you like All Caste Jason, one of the things he learns from Ducra is that "to give someone death is as intimate and private as giving him life". So yeah, he's got thoughts on who he kills. It's not just "oh, they did one bad thing so they should die." (That also feels like a really stupid perspective for someone who has lived with the reality that the people where he grew up had no choice but to be part of a gang or something to make ends meet. Jason is someone who knows, first hand, that a lot of those "goons" are also just trying to support families.) I firmly believe that his kills should be based on protecting someone else. Protecting someone who can never feel safe until the person who harmed them or their loved ones is dead.

[alcorianight]

I did not realize this got so long, so rambly word vomit under the cut

I do think more attention should be paid to the absolute horror Jason must have felt after coming out of the Lazarus pit like a foot taller and built like a damn fridge.

Like he died at 15, tiny, still small due to malnutrition and then the leading theory is that the Lazarus pit cures that and beefed him up. For one, that's gotta mess with his motor control a ton, especially when you consider that normal growth spurts cause a period of clumsiness (think jarring steps, toe stubbing, knocking your elbow on doorknobs or whatever), so a total body overhaul -Lazarus Edition™ - might be enough to keep him from even walking properly, let alone fight skillfully and gracefully.

Even if you say he got his coordination back from training or comic book science meant the pits didn't fuck that up, being small was probably a major part of his identity. Consider Jason before Bruce. He was tiny, but still resourceful and strong enough to jack tires. But being tiny was useful. Being tiny meant more hiding spaces were available. It meant he was unassuming. It meant people's eyes skipped over him. It meant avoiding attention. It meant safety.

And sure, Jason probably complained about being small when he was Robin. Probably even dreamed of being big as a street kid because being big meant having power, but being big on the streets meant being noticed and he knew that. It was something to dream about when he was older but not what he needed then.

I've also seen people headcanon that Jason is claustrophobic from the coffin, and I kinda vibe with that, and being bigger also screws with that because things feel so much bigger when you're small. If you think about it, elevators and the like probably felt a lot more spacious when you were a kid. So not only has his body been drastically changed without his consent (and I haven't really touched on that here, but also consider how it has to affect Jason Todd (who champions consent and autonomy and personal safety of the little guy) to have experienced nonconsensual body modification first hand like that) but it can actively cause him more mental distress.

And I think, coming out of the pit, the memory of his death still fresh in his mind, and stuck in the League of Assassins, maybe being small would have been comforting. He could still access all the same hiding places he would immediately clock. And while the image of a big man hiding somewhere clearly too small for him might be funny, it's also heart wrenching because he's lost so many safe places in a single moment.

Of course when Jason does go back to Gotham he's learned to use his new body and the fact that it makes him intimidating as hell, but I think there's another negative there as well. Because as Robin he comforted people. No Robin is ever soft but they are all almost definitely better at comforting victims than Batman (maybe not Damian, but he's a baby which is simultaneously more and less comforting) and a big part of that is because they're kids. Kids just aren't as intimidating as giant ass adults and I can imagine that this probably messed with Jason when he first got back to Gotham and tried to talk to the street kids or the working girls because those are groups of people who are going to be suspicious of men built like a goddamn fridge. He can't come up to them like he did as Robin, and I'm sure over time he's won their trust and they find him a symbol of safety, but the first few interactions have to hit hard because it feels like he doesn't belong in a place that's been his first home. That somehow he no longer fits right where he always did before.

I also can't imagine how disconcerting it must be to not recognize your reflection for like every part of yourself. Like, this one time I had makeup done for an event (not my idea) and it was so heavy that I didn't recognize myself and I felt so uncomfortable with that and that was just my face. My hair, my height, my build - all of that was still familiar, comfortable, but can you imagine being unable to recognize even that? And if he avoids mirrors to avoid seeing his reflection, he might not even be able to recognize himself in pictures and videos. (There's a fanfic with this idea and it definitely inspires this post because I honestly never considered this before and I thought it was so well written and such a good point that we don't pay enough attention to. You should totally check it out if you got this far.)

The last point I have for this post has to do with his relationship with Bruce. So typical timeline (I think) for Jason is he dies at 15, crawls out of his grave about 6 months later, is catatonic for 3 years, and then spends a year mentally present training with the League of Assassins on his world tour or whatever. I am fuzzy on the details here but basically from his birthday, Jason can't be older than 19-20 when he comes back to Gotham (I think 19 is the accepted age) but mentally he's 16 and for some fucking reason DC artists like to draw him like he's over 30. THIS IS A PROBLEM! Like this is an extremely fucked up 16 year old kid that should be trapped in a 19 year old's body but instead it's so much worse because (and I've seen someone describe him like this before) he's actually trapped inside the body of a 35 year old divorcee AND THAT IS NOT OKAY! Like even if we're gonna say that the Lazarus pit alters the body to peak physical health that would be like 22 or some shit. Past 30 is not a physical prime. You can be fit for sure at 30 but that doesn't change the fact that your ability to build muscle and heal and whatever else are probably better in your early to mid 20s and hey guess what that's still younger than Dick's accepted age (or maybe about the same (I have stayed up too late writing this to keep proper track of numbers)). But Jason looks older than Dick more often than not (the Gotham Knights game will never be forgiven for whatever the fuck happened to Jay's character design).

Okay sorry for the sidetrack, but Jason looking older is gonna fuck with Bruce because Bruce is gonna have a real hard time seeing his tiny, malnourished, never gonna top 5'4 Jaylad in this giant hulk of a figure, especially when the age is so off. Like imagine you have a kid who goes to college and does a ton of internships or research so you don't really see them for 4 years, you're still gonna expect your kid to look like they're 22-23. If they look like they're 35 you sure as hell are not gonna pinpoint that as your kid. So Bruce sees Jason and it makes sense that he doesn't think that's his kid BECAUSE THAT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE HIS KID! (I'm ignoring the moral differences in this post) So Bruce doesn't see a kid when he looks at Jason but Jason is mentally 16 and, despite everything he says to the contrary, he sees his dad when he looks at Bruce. Jason doesn't see an equal, someone who is just another adult. This is his dad, an authority figure in his life, someone whos opinions and words hold power over him whether he wants them to or not. But Bruce can't see that. Because Bruce doesn't see a kid. He doesn't see his son. He sees an equal and that's tragic because you're always supposed to be your parents' baby. Even when you're 50 with your own family and nearly adult kids, you're still gonna be your parents little baby. Because parents see their kids at all the ages they've ever been and it's the fact that Jason doesn't have someone who looks at him and sees him how he was when he was 2 and 7 and 10 and 13 and 15 when he still feels 16 that makes this so sad. Because no one's been his parent for long enough to really build that and Bruce can't see Robin!Jason in the Jason that came back.

Wow, uh, I'm really sorry to anyone who reads this. This really got away from me and it's super unorganized and I just kinda word vomitted all over this. This was just supposed to be about how his body was different. How did Bruce end up in this?

[alcorianight]

I have no idea why booping is so fun but it is. Please boop (spam if you want). Reblog if you're okay with spamming boops

[dilhhindustani-deactivated20240]

Reblog or like if you're okay with mass bopping

[mylifeingotham]