yapping

main personal • TF, LOTR/ROP, soulsborne • 26 #cosmic//yaps

[bashcrandicoot]

“I don’t know what my goals are, no. Thanks for asking.”

[titsay]

[lustcannibalism]

ok I endured it. now what!!!!!!!!!

[lustcannibalism]

[maxxie-or-smth]

you've met me at a very "yeah i'm trying to work on that" time in my life

[cosmic-razor]

deleting all of my shitposting bc I reread & only saw insufferable cringe

[eri-pl]

Sauron's original allegiance

As we know, many (if not all) Maiar serve more than one Vala. Melian is mentioned with two at least, but I keep forgetting which of Irmo, Vána and someone else. Olorin worked with Nienna, famously, but seems more directly employed by Manwë, and there was some mention of Varda, and his name and MO if not the book itself suggests Irmo too.

Was Sauron really only serving Aulë before his betrayal, or was Aulë simply the Vala most willing to take the shame?

Sauron invented necromancy. I've seen it said that Morgoth taught him, but we never see Morgoth doing necromancy himself. Seems like a Sauron thing.

I'm not pointing fingers, but Námo isn't very talkative, he wouldn't talk to the Noldor chroniclers about his fallen Maia.

Aulë would. He talked much with the Noldor, and I think that after the dwarf incident he's very humble (somewhat confirmed by the book when Melkor's bullying discourages him from doing anything bigger), and willing to admit a mistake, or a perceived mistake.

Also, Sauron and his shapeshifting. Not a very Aulë thing. I think Oromë would fit the best. Also, association with big canines. And all the monster lore.

Tbh if I worked with Oromë, and then fell to evil, and repented, and was asked to go back to Aman... I can see why this was so hard to Sauron.

Oromë is explicitly said to be unforgiving, even in the published silm where the Valar don't have many faults. So, the thought of meeting him, after betraying him personally, and using his lore for evil (and getting beaten by his dog, which was quite humiliating)... Ouch.

Ha! Investigative journaling 💯, Oromë, I found your dirty secret!

Also this would explain how Sauron knew so much about Huan! Also, Sauron and Huan being sort of ex-colleagues is hilarious.

Plus I feel like being tied to two more Valar makes it easier to imagine Sauron's personality as more than just "control freak". The fatalism and theatricality he got from Námo. The vengefulness and joy of the hunt he got from Oromë.

Also, not about Sauron, but Ossë: why did Aulë, of all people, help him (why besides: Aulë knew the feeling and related to Ossë, because the dwarf incident)? I think that, just as the shallows are between the land and the sea, Ossë was tired both to the Vala of the land and the Vala of the sea.

He was simply closer to Ulmo, or maybe Aulë didn't want to claim the credit for the Maia who actually came back. I think Aulë would be the source of many of Rumil's information. He was the Vala who talked the most to the Noldor.

... Yes, this is an Aulë appreciation post. He is so humble and I love him.

[huffslove]

The nightmare swirls and churns unending

[vrawliney]

Coffee break sketch! Val came to Vox’s studio to chat with him during a break between shoots <з

[keikakudom]

mfw i have to go to my stupid baka job in my stupid baka afterlife

[ferithtolkienesque]

The Silmarillion fandom is genuinely insane. Like, you hang out on tumblr, read fic on AO3 and you think, yeah. Lots of people have read the Silmarillion. It’s Tolkien. Everyone’s read Tolkien. Barnes and Noble has a whole bunch of the HoME and also a bunch of books by people writing about the legendarium. This is mainstream, surely.

But then you actually touch grass and talk to normal people. Not even that, you talk to people who self diagnose as hard core Tolkien fans. And. None of them have read the Silmarillion. The Silmarillion is famously a book that nobody reads.

And yet. On AO3 The Silmarillion and Other Histories of Middle Earth has more works than The Lord of the Rings. Think about that. That’s baffling. It’s ridiculous. Like I realize that LotR fandom is split a bit by the movie, but still. The Silmarillion has almost four times as many fics as the LotR movies. Everybody has watched the movies!

I need to know what percentage of people who actually read the Silmarillion went on to write fic or draw fanart about it. Because it must be insane, surely. Like, I’m pretty sure the Silmarillion wins some kind of record in this department.

Thinking about the fanfic bell curve where on one end you have “Perfect, needs no improvement or elaboration” (LotR sits here) and on the other you have “So bad it’s no fun to even think about” with the middle being the fanfic zone. But I think there may be a secret fourth Silmarillion option. Which is a book that is perfect* but simultaneously non existent. It’s not even a real story! The language is super pretty and deeply incomprehensible (especially to people who, unlike me, were not raised from early childhood on both the Bible and classic literature). And it’s more of an outline and an abstract painting of cultural and world building vibes (not cultural and world building facts and information) than an actual narrative. There are story hooks galore. There are vivid and fascinating characters, but their lives are glossed over and you only get one or two paragraphs of prose that will reorder your brain chemistry and haunt you forever. There are countless more characters who only exist as names, the implication of whose existence is fascinating. All of this is deeply frustrating, both to casual readers who just want a Normal Enjoyable Book, and super fans who want All the Lore. But it is catnip to anyone who engages in transformative work.

*I am aware that not anyone who is a fan of the silm thinks it’s perfect

[canonicallygay]

i was going to give him an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other but let’s be real. they are all devils

(close ups under the cut)

guys i was struggling so much to give them devil horns. they have too many things on their heads already 😭😭

[pinksartdump]

[voxtopics]

I love that Vox has so many little character-defining tics.

Whenever he's feeling really pleased, it seems, Vox likes to hug himself:

...huh...wonder what's behind that?

He also likes to climb onto tables:

Once I get up there...I'll feel a little better about myself, maybe?

And leap into chairs:

This man is just so physical, I can't. This bi disaster. Iconic.

Let me know if you've noticed any other quirks about Vox!

[cosmic-razor]

I love this analysis! *chefs kiss* OP

To add, when Alastor teases Vox in the don’t you forget reprise that he’ll ‘lose his marbles in act 3’, he just rolls his eyes and watches for Al’s reaction.

Vox has NPD with bouts of psychosis and severe delusions of grandeur. He is absolutely aware he WILL always need someone to pull him back from the figurative ledge. Vox was biblically humbled when he was alive, so it makes sense he’d want assurance it won’t happen again, and I think he wanted that person to be Al bc he saw them as equals and therefore ‘safe’ for this to happen without judgement. But Al does judge him, he mocks him and draws attention to it as it’s shameful for (in Alastor’s opinion specifically) for a demon to have problems with self-sufficiency.

Vox rolls his eyes and grimaces bc he knows it’s true. He WILL need help at the end and whilst he’s aware of it now, he loses that perspective the more unwell he gets. Not once in the show does Vox refute he relies other people, he’s touchy about it, but he knows he needs at least someone there to ensure he doesn’t go completely mad and lose it all like he did when he was alive.

After Val kisses him and rips his head off, Vox snaps back to himself and justifies it by saying he ‘got a little carried away’. He seems equally shocked, satisfied and relieved that Val and Vel ‘came to his rescue’. He instantly asks how his approval rating is and while they l roll their eyes Vox makes his monitor face small and seems sincerely worried he will lose his followers. I really like the Vees being found family who genuinely care for each other, they’ve could’ve just left him alone after all

What a goofy little guy!

[cringefailvox]

val reaches for vox and vox slaps his hand away. btw

[cosmic-razor]

This topic has been beaten to death but I have stuff to add bc I love their dichotomy as a trio

Val is arguably the REAL ‘backbone of the Vees’ (Vel would like to believe it’s her but I disagree) but they absolutely work best as a team.

Vel is more than done with Vox after about Ep4, but Val isn’t, and he doesn’t throw a tantrum anytime Vox shoves Alastor in his face (despite being well within his rights to), or when he ignores/belittles him with insults and sarcasm; Val digresses about his feelings and appreciates Vel calling out Vox’s bullshittery, he says he doesn’t want to ‘break up the band’; he earnestly screams at Vox that he doesn’t want him to kill them all, kisses him before ripping his head off to stop him from spiralling further into psychosis. That’s unconditional love. Loving when it gets scary, loving when they’re unable to see reality, loving when everyone would tell you not to.

Val scoops up his megalomaniac boyfriend and lesbian bestie like lapdogs, and confidently tries to skaddle them to safety despite knowing they look lowkey ridiculous having FAILED miserably?? *Val and Vel could’ve just left??* They didn’t despite knowing Vox could’ve and would’ve gone all the way to be a god and ditched them?? Despite knowing Vox is an unhinged psychopath and doesn’t deserve anyone to come to his rescue?? Yet both Val and Vel come back; Vox is their partner, their responsibility and they know it.

Imho THAT’S why Vox needs to rely on them, he will always need someone(s) to pull him back from the edge, people who genuinely care about HIM, not his goals or ego or anything that Vox thinks matters but doesn’t. I find the concept of them being ‘weak’ bc they ‘need each other’ to be interesting, as when the chips are down that becomes their biggest strength; it would be if they were the protagonists.

I do not envy ANY character who harms or kills 1/3 of the Vees in future seasons, I fear the other two would be savages

[moomooofdoom]

@prince-liest said if i drew huggies then id get a drabble and i am not immune to bribery especially when i was gonna draw it anyway

So here's Vee hugs! I need them to love each other forever okay.

You can read the fic HERE

[frostwing213]

We're leaving! And Im taking my insane boyfriend and cool lesbian with me!