Thoughts?

I think about Miraculous a lot

[miraculousvn]

Miraculous Bonds VA Reveal Video is Here!

Please enjoy this video showcasing the voice actors casts for all of the roles in the visual novel!

Continue following the blog for more updates on the visual novel in the future. And follow our NEW YouTube page for more video updates!

[chippa-thoughts]

So excited to play Kagami, Ms. mendeleiev and Mireille!

[aokane-eldarya]

Thomas ASTRUC : “In season 4, it will be a bomb by episode. This is the equivalent of the impact of a Cat Blanc episode in each episode.” Sebastien THIBAUDEAU : “All your certainties will be upset. And it will also be the season of the episode 100, it will be necessary to watch it.” - Translation of a French interview -

Interview made by Damien Mercereau for “Le Figaro”

INTERVIEW - Meeting with the creator, the executive producer and the writers of the tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir on the sidelines of the broadcast, this Sunday morning on TF1, of the finale of season 3.

After a first introductory season of the Miraculous universe and a second season in which Ladybug and Cat Noir were able to deepen their learning of budding superheroes, the third season was the testing of the heroine, Marinette Dupain-Cheng. In the heart of Paris, this shy and clumsy junior high school student has become in spite of herself Ladybug, an assertive superheroine. At her side, handsome Adrien Agreste, humble and sensitive, turns into a very confident and enterprising Cat Noir. Both don’t know who is behind their costume.

Together, they fight Hawkmoth and Mayura and their army of super-villains. New miraculous and new powers have appeared in season 3 broadcast since last April on TF1, strengthening the potential of heroes. In parallel with this struggle between good and evil, the series also relates the tormented life of a small group of Parisian junior high school students, their friendships, their passions, their first love stories, their joys, their sorrows… In the middle of all this, there is Marinette’s unconfessed love for Adrien and the fact that each of them becomes closer, respectively, from Luka and Kagami.

A few days ago, we met Miraculous’s masterminds in a Paris office during their writing workshop… of the season 5 : Thomas Astruc, the creator of the series, Sebastien Thibaudeau, writing director and executive producer and screenwriters Mélanie Duval and Frédéric Lenoir.

LE FIGARO : What was the general idea of this season 3 of Miraculous?

Mélanie DUVAL : Very familiarly, we wrote the episodes telling us that Marinette was going to have hard times. She begins her school year by losing her place in the class. She already had Chloe as an enemy, she ended up with a second one, Lila. The love of her life is coveted by another … She is overwhelmed!

Thomas ASTRUC : It was a season focused on Master Fu (the guardian of the miraculous, ed) and at the same time a test of Marinette. To pull our characters up, we have to agree to make them fall very low. Many things happen, shaken up and end in the final. The series could have stopped there with this bittersweet end. Nothing is predictable in Miraculous.

Is there a real chronology to respect following the episodes?

Sebastien THIBAUDEAU : Each story is an entry point, we give back all the necessary information for a non-initiate to the universe of Miraculous to understand.

Thomas ASTRUC : There are seasonal chronologies. The stories of the first season must precede those of the second one, which themselves must be before the third one. But each season has a particular taste with, in its first episode, an overview. In the middle, a set that can be viewed in almost any order where each episode will bring new information. And in the end, a last episode where all the pieces of the puzzle fit together. This is a serie that you can watch many times, you will always discover something new.

Sebastien THIBAUDEAU : In the first season, we had tested things like showing Chloe who plays to dress up as Ladybug. This started the development of her character. Gradually, we began to sow elements that made sense later.

How came the idea of the episode called “Cat Blanc” that shows what would happen in the future if the two heroes fell in love with each other?

Thomas ASTRUC : This is an episode that required a year of writing work and we finally see only small bits of what we had originally imagined. The TV channels had validated the first version (TF1 in France, Disney Channel in the United States and Gloob in Brazil, ed) but we had decided to review our copy. It is extremely rare for authors to make such a decision, but for us it was not good enough. We still did not have enough control over the world of our characters to be able to write it correctly, we had to take our time.

Sebastien THIBAUDEAU : We wrote flashbacks that I did not believe. They did not fit the mentality of our characters. We stopped everything to start from scratch with the initial idea : what would happen if Marinette and Adrien were together and if Adrien knew that Marinette was hiding from him that she was Ladybug ? It took us an extra week. Once this work was done, we were able to focus on the present of the heroes and disseminate plots of our flashbacks. We still have scenes that we loved but were not used for lack of space. Initially, Cat Blanc was a season 2 episode but it finally took place at the end of season 3.

Does the story of Cat Blanc annihilate the possibility of a love relationship between Marinette and Adrien?

Thomas ASTRUC : The episode Cat Blanc does not close the possibility of a relationship between them but it shows how delicate it would be. They are both heroes, the villain wants to steal their miraculous so a romantic relationship would be like dynamite. It is to be treated carefully, it could not happen anyhow or anytime. A priori, as long as a villain is looking for their miraculous, it will be complicated… Since the beginning, we know that if they know their respective secret identity, it would be enough for one or the other to have a negative emotion for to be akumatized and give Hawkmoth what he wants. With the episode Cat Blanc, you now know what would happen if they were in a relationship.

In the episode “Timetagger”, you gave us another projection of the future of Ladybug and Cat Noir…

Thomas ASTRUC : The future is not fixed - that’s what the episode Cat Blanc could demonstrate. But we can afford to assert certain things because we have a very long-term vision of the series and we know where we want to bring it. Time travel is often double-edged. A child will consider this phenomenon for the first time while a teenager or an adult will have other references like Terminator, Back to the Future, Doctor Who and be more critical. Paradoxically, a child will understand things more naturally.

Frédéric LENOIR : We master the universe of the series so it’s easy to play with our characters and to confront them to different situations. We seek above all to build stories that are interesting and understandable.

Thomas ASTRUC : We think that what children do not know, they learn. When they are confronted with new things in Miraculous, we become their first explanation. It does not matter if they do not immediately understand some winks, they can understand them later. The names of the protagonists, the costumes of the superheroes, the places … There are a multitude of small clues to dig which are full of cultural information. For example, the story of Master Fu’s girlfriend in “Backwarder” is a tribute to the grandmother of our screenwriter Frédéric Lenoir who is a former resistance fighter. We called her Marianne Lenoir.

What values do you wish to convey through the episodes of Miraculous?

Mélanie DUVAL : We are sensitive to the impact of pop culture on young people. We are very careful not to show in the series some things that could have a bad influence on their imagination. I remember having hated this figure given here or there to the class-nerd abused by his comrades. In Miraculous, we have the sportsman, the nerd, the good friend, the nuisance… But nobody is abused. We show a kind of ideal where the big sporty can be the best friend of the intellectual. And facing a negative character like Chloe, the question is not going to be how to make her nice, but rather how to react to her. Her friend Sabrina is abused but she did not say her last word.

Thomas ASTRUC : This degree of submission to the bad person is something that we have to deal with. But to achieve this, we must first establish the basics, show the facts and behaviors. Sabrina’s problem requires time to be effectively settled.

Frédéric LENOIR : If you approach and solve a problem too quickly, you may treat it too mechanically and theoretically. Our principle is to approach each theme in a constructive and rewarding way. We go over what should not be done because we strongly believe in what has to be done. Our characters also believe in it. We always try to go to the light.

Sebastien THIBAUDEAU : We are careful to show things that are right, to convey good values and this leads us to have long philosophical debates during our writing workshops. You can spend a whole day thinking about the meaning of an episode. When we meet parents who tell us that what we tell their child is good, we are really flattered.

What is waiting for us in season 4?

Mélanie DUVAL : This is the season when the characters really take control of the series.

Thomas ASTRUC : In season 3, Marinette suffered and in season 4, it will be a bomb by episode. This is the equivalent of the impact of a Cat Blanc episode in each episode. Everyone will be flabbergasted. She has new responsibilities and she is maturing. At the site level, after the Grévin museum and the Saint-Martin canal, we will visit the Swan Island.

Sebastien THIBAUDEAU : Season 4 is the one that surprised us the most. All your certainties will be upset. And it will also be the season of the episode 100, it will be necessary to watch it. And a special episode will wait before the release of season 4. Many events will mark the year 2020.

[chippa-thoughts]

Will Marinette reveal her identity to her parents?

Y'all, if Marinette goes travelling around the world to find lost kwamis you reckon a season 4 plotpoint might be that she reveals her identity to her family (maybe even Alya) so they understand the importance of her quest to travel around the world? Why else would they allow their 14/15yr old daughter to explore the world? And is she going alone?!

OR HECK.

WHAT IF THERE'S A TIME SKIP?

What if we get an older, season 5 Ladybug who's graduated and old enough to travel the world on her own?

EDIT: YES! Or perhaps in the end, she will just use the horse miraculous!

What do you all think?

[your-luckiest-charm]

When I watched the scene in Puppeteer 2 where Marinette admires the wax figure of Adrien, it reminded me so much about that one scene from The Little Mermaid where Ariel is admiring the statue of prince Eric. xD

[coffeecomicsgalore]

I know all signs lead to the Adrigami/Lukanette ships sailing at the end of Miracle Queen, but what if it was implied just to stir up drama. I know how unlikely this sounds.

I saw a post about Adrien giving heart eyes to Marinette during the hair down scene and then again during the piano scene and it made me think.

It made me think of a different path for Adrien.

We all know that he hesitated with the Kagami kiss because he still has feelings for LB. But what if it was because of Marinette?

What if during the hair scene, he realized there was something about her that made her look differently to him? Her hair down caused a dramatic shift in his awestruck scale. Literally stopped laughing to admire it.

I mean looking back in that episode alone, but at least throughout the first part of the episode, he was focused on her.

His notification bar showed that Marinette posted a picture on her feed. He then liked it and made this face.

When she was at the hotel, Adrien pleaded to help her out:

Watched her as she cleaned up the trays:

And pleaded her to stay:

It's like the momentum of emotions were falling on top of each other.

We could even argue that all those emotions, along with the crowning glory of her hair being down, caused the romantic piano music to come from his heart.

I'm even going to go as far as saying he probably, unconsciously held her hand as they ran out of hotel to make sure she stayed with him.

And bonus: During the ice cream part, he gave her heart eyes when they Andre talked about their flavors:

But then was so upset when she left.

Yes, he decided to go towards Kagami at the end of Miracle Queen, but it is most likely because he thinks Marinette is with Luka, and who does Marinette sit with at the Sienne? Luka.

Remember, in the end of Stormy Weather 2, he thinks Marinette doesn't like him in that way because Luka is in the picture. So there is no way she could have written the love poem to him.

Both lovestruck crazies think that they don't have a chance with each other.

So right now, Adrien just goes with the flow with Kagami because he thinks Marinette is taken by Luka.

Once he continues to think about it, he'll realize that he has fallen for Marinette and will go out of his way to make her feel important.

There may not be any Adrigami ship. He may decide to not bother being in a relationship because his heart cannot make up its mind between Ladybug and Marinette. And he'll realize it if he continues to hesitate with Kagami.

[nyanbinary-chatnoir]

*Miracle Queen Spoilers*

OKAY OKAY SO

THE LADYNOIR HUG

AM RIGHT, OR AM I RIGHT. Probably the best scene (IN MY OPINION) from the episode.

The way she looks at Chat…just god I love it. He’s holding onto to her shoulders, getting her to focus. Because we can’t change what happened, lets take a moment and focus. Saving Fu from Hawkmoth, and their friends being underneath the control of Miracle Queen.

WE HAVE LADYBUG PULLING HIM IN FOR A HUG. Me screaming at my computer. (Also knowing now the last few episodes she’s been intiated a lot more contact. Leaning on his shoulder and the hug from Chat Blanc. Saving him from Hawkmoth and tossing aside Mayura.

Chat Noir is caught off guard. Ladybug thanking him for always being there for her.

Kitty is still surprised but

THAT SOFT LOOK IN HIS EYES KILLS ME. Going on to tell her in the Eng dub, “Always, Little Bug.” French dub he says, “always, my buginette.”

Chat Noir then  proceds to wrap his arms around her, patting her softly on the back, allowing her to hug him as long as she needs.

Which I think is so sweet of them. Both of them have their eyes close, and Chat’s allowing his Lady to hug. He doesn’t pull away until she does, allowing her that comfort she needs until she is good.

and im just so soft for them and their dynamic. <333 this scene means so much to me. and just having it…god. I love them.

[chippa-thoughts]

Felix is a Metaphor

Just like the Bakerix episode was a metaphor for interracial marriage, a lot of people picked up the fact that Felix is a metaphor for harassing/mistreating women. So let’s dive into it, shall we?

*SPOILERS FOR FELIX AHEAD, PLEASE WATCH THE EPISODE BEFORE READING THIS IF YOU DO NOT WANT SPOILERS*

⚠️ Also, I understand this may be a sensitive topic for anybody who has been a victim or knows somebody who has gone/is going through this sort of thing at the moment. So please be wary of this while reading. ⚠️ Also please note, whenever I say “women” or “boys” or “men” it’s just a generalization. The terms are fluid for everyone, but because Felix is a boy and Alya, Rose, Juleka and Ladybug are girls, my terminology is mostly stemming from that. None of the terminologies are meant to be malicious.

PRE-THOUGHTS: AS SOON AS the episode synopsis for Felix dropped all those months ago, I had the biggest hunch it would be taken in this direction because of who gets akumatized: Alya, Rose and Juleka. It said they were coming after Felix which meant he did something to upset them and I could only assume it was going to be a metaphor for mistreating women.

THEN THE TRAILER DROPPED and my suspicions were only moreso confirmed.

------------------------------------------------------------ ALRIGHT, LET'S DIG INTO IT. ------------------------------------------------------------

1. THE "VICTIMS"

Alya, Rose and Juleka are our beautiful, personable and lovely women who are akumatized as a result of Felix being manipulative, a liar and verbally abusive.

These are all the traits of the type of guy (and there are women who are like this too) who see women as objects, or as trophies to "conquer."

They start off looking like a nice guy - saying all the right words to make you feel good about yourself. Quite literally, they may be pretending to be somebody they're not. They may be impersonating someone else and lying about who they are just to impress you or put you at ease.

Only to reveal his true colours later on.

His words hurt them and they are left feeling disappointed and betrayed.

The fact that all 3 of them are akumatized could represent a situation where a guy has played multiple girls at once.

-----------------------------------------------------------

2. HAWKMOTH'S WORDING

The words he uses to akumatize people are usually a hint to the meaning of the episode.

In this case, 'the boy you thought was your friend' could be switched out with 'the boy you thought who liked you/flirted with you,' again, tying back to the description that boys like these always come off nice, or seem like your friend at first... until they cross the line.

Then this was their reply:

This is the kind of thing you would say to a boy who's played you or used you - otherwise, I don’t believe Alya, Juleka and Rose would get so easily akumatized over one mean video. I believe they were specifically akumatized as a demonstration to fulfil this underlying message.

Imagine a group of exes getting back at their abusive ex-boyfriend together.

-------------------------------------------------------

3. NAUGHTY GIRL

I believe this was intentionally a piece of dialogue to represent when guys like these make promiscuous comments towards women such as referring to them as a "bad girl," in need of "punishment" (if you understand that innuendo).

Many people have come to critique this as ‘toxic phrasing’ which implies that the boy will assert his dominance because the woman is ‘asking for it/she deserves it.’

It's a common phrasing guys like these will use to flirt and 'get in,' but as the Trio of Punishers express: this is just terrible.

---------------------------------------------------------

4. NO, MEANS NO!

And finally, this scene perfectly and ultimately captures their underlying message:

Let's go through it frame by frame:

Firstly, Felix grabs LB's hand in a manner she is startled and uncomfortable with.

Guys like these will often touch you or hold you unexpectedly or without permission, or, in ways that may make you feel uncomfortable. They often just help themselves to it, usually under this twisted mentality that 'you want it' or 'it must feel good.'

Ladybug in this scene represents women who face this situation and are startled, shocked, or taken aback by the sudden affection.

Look at the way she has clenched her fist - she's being protective of her hand now.

And this part:

Again, reiterating the idea about how guys like these tend to say things you want to hear. They'll seem nice, they'll seem like they care... but all they 'care' about is getting your guard down so they can slide in.

In more specific situations, guys might actually say they 'love you' because they know it works.

And Ladybug lets her guard down for a second because, in reality, it does sound nice at first.

And she has a bit of a gleam in her voice.

Then ooof Cue this twisted music, to match his twisted mindset.

The fact he trails off after "let me..." is to insinuate that real-life situation where guys want what they... want 👀

Then he starts advancing on her.

Look how uneasy it's making her. It's to simulate these real-life situations as I keep mentioning.

And backs her up into a wall.

Years ago, this was seen as the 'classic' move in shows, films and even cartoons to 'get' ladies. In fact, there's even a name for it in Japanese media called "kabedon" - the ‘wall push/wall slam/wallpin’ whatever you call it. 

But in this day and age, we realise it is showcasing some sort of ‘toxic masculinity’ where the guy is advancing dominance over a woman who:  a). does not ask for it b). did not give consent.

But many new media forms are also using it ironically or satirizing it as a way of being subversive.

To heighten her discomfort, Cristina Vee adds these sounds and mumbles of discomfort.

And this frame is given a second or two for us to soak in.

The diagonal angle reinforces how twisted this is, Ladybug is shown to be helpless, startled and her limbs are spread against the wall, overshadowed by Felix's body.

This is how it used to be. The show is making a statement for how wrong this is.

She expresses her first "no."

And look at how disgusted and uncomfortable she looks.

But he ignores her refusal and keeps going, signifying men who don't respect other’s wishes.

And then our favourite moment:

punches him

Because Ladybug represents this forward movement with women.

This kind of behaviour should not be tolerated and no woman (and even man) deserves to be treated this way.

The staff behind Miraculous express their attitude towards this through Ladybug when she exclaims:

They want to tell you that "boys" like him are not worth your time. You should not have to put up with people who cannot respect personal boundaries and try to violate yours. Ladybug represents the idea that you deserve so much more than a guy who is manipulative, shallow and tries to weasel their way into your affection with cheap tricks.

The best part is, Cristina's comment about all this:

Felix is meant to represent the "bad boy," who thinks he's so suave with women when in reality, he's just a player, a cheat, and as Cristina says: not worth it.

----------------------------------------------

5. ENTITLED

One extra thing!

This line reveals one of Felix's key characteristics: he always gets what he wants. He thinks he's entitled. He gets away with everything. Hence why he thinks he can treat women the way he does.

-----------------------------------------------

Let me know your thoughts on this!

[marichat-miraculousladyblog]

so can we just talk about the fact that Adrien straight up said in Chat Blanc that he always felt like Marinette was more than “just a friend”

he always felt there was something more than “just a friend”

He always felt that there was something more than “Just a friend”!!!

HE ALWAYS FELT THAT THERE WAS SOMETHING MORE THAN “JUST A FRIEND”!!!

that means that everytime he said this

and

that means that there was something inside home that told him he was lying. and it shows.

i mean...

come on!!

you can’t tell me that this boy

was oblivious this whole time!!

yea, he’s in love, and he’s always felt that. thanks for coming to my Tedtalk.

[fictiondotcom]

LOOK AT THE WAY THEY’RE LOOKING AT EACH OTHER

this was just a split second and pretty lame quality BUT!!! I’M LIVING FOR THIS!!! LOOK AT THEM LOCKING GAZES!!!

[cassiestephensart]

Double date gone wrong. 

(For whichever combo of pairing suits your fancy. I’ve been thinking about this for weeks.)

Buy the artist a coffee?

—

Please do not repost!!!!

[kisilinramblings]

I hope we get to see something similar happen in the show eventually, but for now I’ll enjoy your comic, OP ^^ Btw, that first panel is GORGEOUS! Great work!

[daemurae]

“You know, I’ll be really happy for you and Adrien if it works out. And if it doesn’t… I’ll be here for you. “

[ydotome]

Loveater “Heart Hunter” - Miraculous Ladybug S3 - Episode 23

[ydotome]

Luka Couffaine “Viperion” - Miraculous Ladybug S3 - Episode 23

BONUS

[lllluka]

LUKA IS A METAPHOR. (MARINETTE & FINALE ANALYSIS.)

Now that I’ve watched Miracle Queen again, fluidly, with proper subtitles, I’m actually very satiated with the ending. This episode gave us a lot to think about as viewers. Things that we maybe didn’t immediately see.

Here’s my hot little over-analytical take. 

 “Even when life doesn’t give you what you’ve hoped for, 

                                   the true gift is life itself.” 

Keep reading

[shaniartist]

I’m so tired Luka.

listen- i’m love square all the way but I cant stand seeing my girl Marinette breakdown like that. the most optimistic, loving and strong character on the show is crying- so hell yeah I’m glad Luka was there to comfort her!  

did i cry while drawing this? maybe.

[the-bluespirit]

[wildpokemon]

Kwami Buster in a nutshell

BONUS: my favorite screenshots