Random Thoughts

Just as the name says, plus rants if I ever decide to actually post

[iliveforangstpjo]

Masterpost Of Masterposts And Random Things

Because i decided to organise the crap on this blog (which i am currently procrastinating doing and is a pretty useless endeavor)

Masterpost Of Fics

Masterpost of My Attempts At Poetry

DC Basics Powerpoint by @imaginaryskeleton

Tags For Things (reminders for me):

#writing tips - literally what it says, not posts by me

#fic idea/fic ideas - for me

#analysis/meta - anything even remotely related to character analysis, analysis of anything, or characterisation

#headcanon/headcanons - exactly what it says

#art/cool ass art - art that ive found, anything that i think fits in the category of "art", which is a variety of things

#comic/comics - fan comics or comic panels

#rarepairs - ships that i want to happen, or need more fics of

#magical/magical elements - basically anything relating to this (All Caste Jason too)

#complexity/room for complexity - anything i think fits in this category, from analysis to ideologies to relationships

#playlist - song recs

#read later - posts i havent looked at but do want to go through

#fic rec/fic recs - basically fic recs

#snippets - snippets of fics

#advice - advice i wanna keep/come back to

IMPORTANT:

I have my own preferred characterisation of some characters, HOWEVER if i ever post something with a completely different characterisation than normal, i am just viewing the narrative through a different lense. It does NOT mean that is my opinion unless it is explicitly stated or heavily implied.

[mirrorcatcreditcard]

Ivan and Luka parallels and contrast

Topic one: their designated "partner"

(I am aware that IvanTill is not canon and that HyunLuka is a fragmented relationship. I use this to mean that when people are shown in duos, those are the two that are usually shown.)

Despite both partners being seen in the fandom as the one's teaching for "freedom," both are disillusioned about freedom and eternally trapped in themselves.

Everything about Hyuna and Till is the opposite and the same, AND IT MAKES ME ILL???

Till finds his freedom and happiness in looking back (Mizi). Hyuna finds her freedom is looking forward (the revolution and taking charge of her life).

They both lost a biological family member in different ways.

While reaching for freedom, Till is drawn to captivity because his light is in a girl who is too naive to know the horrors of their society. While reaching for freedom, Hyuna gets further trapped within herself and leaves stuff unsettled, thinking her life of forgetting it all can help her reach peace.

As children, both duos were always hanging around each other. Ivan followed Till and became a constant presence in his life. Hyuna pulled Luka around when he wasn't following her and (with the addition of Hyun-Woo) became close companions. Ivan and Luka also are the main ones to initiate physical contact (Luka suckling on and hugging on Hyuna and Ivan always sidling up to Till).

Their "partners" are freedom, but truly, they're just as trapped. They're "in-love" with people they think are disillusioned about reality. Their affection is for someone who will never put them first. Till refused to escape and chose Mizi over Ivan. Hyuna refused to stay close and chose herself over Luka.

The difference lies in the fact that Luka seeks to control his partner; Ivan seeks to remain at a distance and observe the beauty of Till, not influencing his fate because it is impossible.

Part 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6

[featherstorm2004]

Ooooh the Luka and Mizi parallels are real!!!

I always knew that there was some connection between the two, especially after Hyuna’s death but I could never quite put it into words. Now, we can see that Mizi and Luka aren’t all that different, they both pretend to be more innocent than they were in order for to survive and weren’t above manipulating either.

Which makes me wonder if perhaps Hyuna recognised their similarities and that’s the reason she took Mizi under her wing, even if subconsciously.

Which makes me really excited to see them interact in the finale! I know it’s probably more than likely that Mizi is going to kill Luka but I kinda don’t want that to happen. Not only because I think it would be a little anticlimactic after Hyuna’s live speech to Luka. But also because I think it would be more interesting to see Luka and Mizi be forced to work together in order to survive and protect the revolution. Whilst also reconciling with the fact that they’re more similar than they ever realised.

But that’s just my hopes and tbh I don’t expect Vivinos to ever be that kind to us, but I can dream.

[090425]

im kinda obsessed with hyuna rn and like. Just to be clear. I dont think it's right to interpret her sacrifice/words as just selfish or just selfless.

Thing is- it's both. I think Hyuna perfectly encapsulates the messed up and contradictory nature of self sacrifice, it is selfish and cruel as much it is sn act of love and selflessness. One doesn't negates the other.

And although i reblogged posts about Hyuna in the new comic since they bring uo very good points/interpretation, i don't agree with the take/implication that Hyuna couldn't carry Jacob's legacy or even the take that she saw other as selfish (wheres the source??? I dont remember that?? Correct me tho). It's more complicated than that. Hyuna and Wiege as whole represents humanity in a very down to earth way- both embodies the message of living in spite of everything, embodies the joy and love in midst of sorrow.

I feel like it's a disservice to Hyuna's character to say that she couldn't carry that legacy. Yes she couldn't forgive herself or Luka, but she still carried humanity's legacy through her kindness and compassion and love. Yes, her act of sacrifice also carried and stemmed from resentment and revenge and selfishness. They both coexist and that's what makes her character so good. She is human throughout.

She could only pass the legacy to Luka because she carried it too.

While reading this comic, my impression is that her narration, her words carried kindness and gentleness, and that's what makes it cruel and a curse. Her death will destoy, but ultimately change Luka. She died to destroy Luka and more than anything force him to walk on his own and take all the sorrows, joy,kindness, cruelty and love. To live. To forgive. "Everything... begins from there"

She is sincere in her last words, she truly hopes that Luka can forgive himself for them both and to carry her legacy and find his own answer.

She died not only to take revange o Luka, but also because she knew that only by hurting Luka she would make him understand. Because that's the only language he knows.

So uhh my hot take here is to not boil her down to "self sacrifice dead wife" or "luka's hater" but rather as her own being, a complex and contradictory human with blurred love and hate and above everything else her own character.

Don't take her words fully at face value, but look for the subtext too. See the contradictory nature of her character. Just like how Sua and Ivan are also contradictory in their salvation.

The Hyuna we see in Wiege and the Hyuna we see in the comics and the Hyuna we see everywhere else is all true version of her. She is like a mosaic, multiple different parts making a bigger picture. Don't let one distract you from the other. Let's analyze her resentment and selfishness without mischaracterzing her or ignoring her compassion and kindness. Both coexist in love and in her.

Thanks.

[iliveforangstpjo]

You described this amazingly well! And ot can be applied not JUST to hyuna's contradictory nature but to other emotions and characters too!

[bachiraaaaa]

me reading fanfics that portray luka as a villain: luka is a VICTIM he has been traumatized and de-humanized since he was a small child, every aspect of his life and personality is controlled by his owner to the point where the only time he feels any ownership of himself and his life is when he's on stage, and he is trapped in the same system as the others where he's forced to either essentially murder his opponent or die himself and the fact that so many people seem to think he's just fundamentally evil rather than a product of the environment he was raised in is APPALLING

me re-watching round 5: GET HIS ASS MIZI!!!

[iliveforangstpjo]

alien stage is really great at handling the complexity of the characters

[shakingparadigm]

I think the matchup between Till and Luka can hold a lot of meaning within it, and I'm not sure if it was intentional but the way their personalities and levels of experience contrast can bring to mind a kind of "out with the old, in with the new" concept that's so commonly seen in media.

There's something so fantastic about Alien Stage's character design and how it manages to successfully portray Till as young despite certain aspects of his design suggesting otherwise. Till's grey hair and prominent eyebags are significant examples, along with his relatively tall and gaunt figure. These features are commonly used to signal that a character is of old age, weak and jaded. Despite this, Till is the youngest of the cast and has the fighting spirit to match, debuting with the most energetic and eccentric performance in the season. His magazine nickname "black sheep" emphasizes that Till's style is unique and a standout amongst the rest of the contenders. An erratic, more modern kind of style that becomes both a point of contention and attraction to the audience. He represents the "new", messy and full of youth, sharp lines and pure energy. An eccentric avant-garde way of art that challenges the reigning status quo.

Luka's appearance does little to indicate his true age of 30 years. His looks can simply be described as angelic, almost cherubic with his light blonde curls and soft features. Even as a child who was most likely the oldest of his batch, he was short-statured and incredibly fragile. There's the factor of Luka's hair and how light blonde is a color most commonly associated with youth and childhood, eventually fading away as one gets older. Despite Luka's soft and innocent facade, he is the eldest and most experienced of the cast. Solemn, almost hollow, and with little of the vibrance and energy expected of his looks. The fact that Luka retains his almost porcelain appearance even as a full-grown adult is a testament to not only Heperu's experimentation, but also of Luka's association with constance. He almost never changes, presenting a state of purity and perfection that has been honed to its absolute peak. From the garden to the 49th stage to the present, his image has never faltered. Dressed in pure, flowing white, his style is classic and traditional, with smooth, enveloping tones and elegant movement. His performances are displays of tact and grace that are delicate in execution but immense in impact. Luka represents the "old", or rather the constant. Unchanging, a performance that extends from the previous season (which, in an extremely fast-moving and trend-obssessed society, may be considered "old") to the next, aiming to reign for many more years to come.

The conflict of the Challenger and the Champion is one that commonly involves the idea of opposites. Luka and Till seem like two completely opposing forces, one as the serendipitous symbol of perfection, and one who comes crashing in, wielding chaos. Luka is the comfortable constance, catering completely to the audience, while Till is the change, catering completely to himself.

Of course, another common theme within this type of conflict is the hidden parallel, the "we're not so different" dilemma that brings one party to a sense of unease. It's become increasingly clear that Luka and Till have very similar upbringings, the major difference being what their guardians choose to present to the public. Experimentation, biological alteration, torturous practices and performance against their will. An extensive history of abuse is what lies underneath their stage personas, and while Heperu makes sure to keep this secret under wraps, Urak allows for Till's suffering to be known. Shock value, spectacle, anything to put the eyes on an unruly pet who wants nothing more than to be left alone. Heperu's methods, while more discreet, are no less diabolical.

Much sacrifice is required in order to reach the level of talent that Luka and Till have developed, and despite the imbalance it seems as though they are the only two people who can understand each other's extent of self-sacrifice.

There's another layer of "I'm just like you" that began to surface during ROUND 6, where Till's sharp edges softened in clutches of alien control. His parted hairstyle, the chains near the shoulders of his outfit... quite the familiar ensemble indeed. Almost like a dark mirror of Luka, but not quite. Not yet.

As of now, it's unsure whether or not Till will succumb completely to this loss of control, manufactured into a copy of his greatest opponent. However, judging from the very little that has been revealed about ROUND 7 so far, it seems that the passionate and fighting Till will make a resurgence.

The final round is now underway, and no matter who the winner is (or if there will even be a winner at all), it's sure to be an absolute spectacle.

[yellowbluemoonshine]

Alnst Songs Small-Analysis:

You've probably noticed by now. The songs in Alien Stage have a certain theme and the characters that fit that theme sing those songs. I'll touch on this a bit in this analysis.

My Clematis; MiziSua & IvanTill

In the original, it's about the love between MiziSua. They're the only two in each other's worlds and they idolize each other. In addition, IvanTill also sang the same song. I don't know if it was done on purpose or by accident, but IvanTill seems more reluctant in the song. Here, Ivan uses the phrase 'My god'. Unlike Sua's smile, Till gets uncomfortable. And in the official art, we see Ivantill's picture as broken hearted and looking away from each other. This is another clue that symbolizes that they don't understand each other at all.

Sweet Dream: Sua & Luka

Originally sung by Sua. Sung by two characters who have completely lost hope and wish everything was a dream. Sua and Luka, who are like dolls, with angelic voices and beauty. Both of them have never dreamed of escaping, they completely give up and focus on the best things in the situation they have fallen into. In the official art; Sua's happiest moment and world is Mizi. For Luka, his happiest moment includes Hyuna and Hyunwoo. As a method of escaping reality, they tie their lives to those people and dissociate themselves from the rest. The helplessness of both of them also symbolizes the helplessness of humanity. That's why the song has the opening atmosphere.

Unknown Till The End: Till & Mizi

There is no need to say much about this song. It is a love song written by Till for Mizi. In another version, Mizi and Till sang the song together. Why Mizi? He probably sings it with Mizi in Till's mind. As you know, he wrote the song for him.

Black Sorrow; Ivan & Mizi

Ivan's dark love. More than a one-sided love, this love wears him out to death. He feels helpless and left behind. For him, his love for Till is very painful and both sets him free and imprisons him. Mizi also sings the same song after Sua's death. Her love, which was her hope in the abyss, becomes trauma and pain for her. She feels abandoned by Sua.

Ruler of my heart; Luka, Mizi, Sua & Hyuna

A song written by Luka for Hyuna. Luka and Mizi sing it together, thinking about the person they fell in love with. Apart from these two, Hyuna and Sua also sing this song. I think there are two reasons why Sua sings this song. One is that Mizi was probably imagining Sua when she sang it with Luka. That she sang it with her. The other reason is of course Sua's love for Mizi.

As for Hyuna; Since this song was written for Hyuna, it was expected that she would sing it. Also, according to a theory, Hyuna started humming the song herself when she heard Luka's song. As you know, she loves Luka too.

All In: Hyuna & Till

A song sung by Hyuna. The theme of the song is rebellion for freedom. Till and Hyuna are two characters fighting for their individuality and freedom. They want to live for themselves and are the only characters who fight against the aliens who captured them. No matter what, they never give up and have a rebellious nature. This is the biggest thing these two have in common.

Love And Peace & Drunk and Party: Hyuna

I put these two songs side by side because it shows the two sides of Hyuna. One is about Luka, who she still hasn't stopped loving, and their past, which hurts her. The other side is about her side who wants to forget everything and have fun, and Hyuna, the leader of the Rebellion Group, singing it as hope for them.

Cure: IvanTill & MiziSua

The song sung by Ivan and Till. It's about the love they feel helplessly and painfully. It's also sung by MiziSua. The biggest difference between the two songs is that Ivan and Till never sing a single lyric together throughout the song. They sing it as if they're singing two separate songs. Besides, MiziSua's lines are either one after the other or they sing it together because their feelings are mutual, unlike IvanTill.

Blink Gone: Till, Luka & Mizi

Sung by Luka and Till. The song is about living in the moment and not dwelling on the past, and that we can lose people we love and care about in a blink gone. This song is also sung by Mizi. So what do the three of them have in common? Mizi lost Sua in a blink gone. Till lost Ivan in a blink gone. Luka lost Hyuna in a blink gone. Oh in a blink gone, they all gone.

Wiege: Luka & Hyuna (HyuLuka)

A lullaby-like song sung by Luka and Hyuna. They sing as if they are both childhood versions of each other and comforting each other. At the same time, they sing for all the children in Alien Stage. About their innocence. The reason why the song revolves around Luka is because Luka symbolizes childhood and infancy in the series. Bonus; Luka is the only person Hyuna sings with, and the only song Luka sings in a more equal and balanced role is with Hyuna.

Nowhere: Ivan

Ivan's individual song. This song shows Ivan before he met Till. A song written in a depressive tone about a child who doesn't belong anywhere, who is unloved, who doesn't exist. The song shows Ivan's depressive and self-hatred side.

Take my hand: Hyuna

Hyuna's individual song. Although there are many different opinions for this, the song was written for Luka more than anyone else. Hyuna, who calls Luka her weakness, calls him her strength in this song. Unlike the previous songs, she is now more at peace with her past and love and sings in a hopeful way. And she tells Luka not to give up and to fight. It is a hopeful song that both consoles him and saves him, and tells him about her love for him in the most beautiful way.

-- For now, thats it. Its been a while since i wrote a post but here i am. Maybe i will write more later.

[plagues-and-poisons]

thinking about the archetypes in alnst again. how they were assigned these things that don’t really fit, but get punished when they act against them. even their songs are for these personas, not for the singers themselves.

sua is the innocent. she is dressed all in white, and her hair is short, and her eyes are big. she exists to be sweet, to act as a counterpoint to the violence. she lives only as a dead wife lives in flashbacks.

mizi is the superstar. she is colourful, desirable, present. she is only seen as the focus of others, with nothing on her as an individual. she balances sua with her vibrancy, and luka with her reticence.

hyuna is, of course, the party girl. she is lawless, a rule breaker, alive for the sake of living. her only emotions are laughter and fun. she is not allowed to form bonds, to even feel. she is at the club, but the club is no more a part of her than the clothes she wore on stage. she weights sua’s innocent with her wildness, makes mizi tame in comparison.

till is the angry one, the passionate one. he doesn’t care about anyone else, except when he cares too much. he would turn the world on end for himself, but he would uproot it entirely for mizi or ivan. he cannot just lie in the grass and be content; he must always be fighting, be angry.

ivan is the loner. he can’t get close to anyone unless they hurt him, cannot find a way around his own barriers. he must always sit in the shadows while the others love. he is not good enough for their light, so he shies away from it as if it burns. he stands on the other end of the stage. he casts no shadow, for all he is exists in the negative space of the others’s light.

and luka is the playboy. he winks and flirts and blows kisses from his empty heart. he unsettled the others, plays around with their lives — it feels like he’d throw them all away for a good time. that’s why he wins, is that carefully cultivated air of reckless abandon and carefree song. and it’s why he acts as hyuna’s counterpoint: their personas match, but neither of them really feel that way. he drowns himself in this, until he forgets who he actually is.

[hoarderheart]

This shot really struck me deeply because so far it’s one of the few scenes where he doesn’t come off as cold, distant, or just generally disinterested with the things happening around him (especially of things outside his performance). His intentions have always been quite a debate in the fandom, but one strong argument for his actions is that they’re done to survive. His coldness almost seems like a stage persona to keep himself alive. It’s one way to keep calm and keep moving in such a distressing situation, when panic means death. When panic should be a wielded like a weapon instead of a weakness. And yet…in this moment, even though there’s a gun pointed directly on his head…I think he’s the softest, most openly vulnerable we’ve ever seen him. In the shadows of the cold, harsh stage lights, there’s warmth, and you can see it on the blood rushing to his cheeks.

[muchanmocha]

Where Wiege leaves us is so interesting because it actually manages to swap Mizi's and Luka's roles in the narrative.

Luka is the one left with Hyuna's legacy, not Mizi.

Hyuna's legacy is one passed down from Jacob, whose words and actions were instrumental to Hyuna's recovery and strength.

We see a scene where Hyuna is trying to console Mizi and we don't know what was said here but it's likely all things that had helped her when she was going through the same things Mizi is now.

But Mizi was unable to accept her words.

And where does Wiege end?

With ominous music as Mizi starts breaking down.

In-fking-credible.

[atrophiedemotion]

escapism vs reality in alien stage

in this post (elaborated greatly by geo's tags as well) i mentioned a big sua/till parallel i noticed (but didn't go into much detail because i didn't want to derail the post lol), and i wanted to go into more detail on that and the overall reality vs fantasy theme alnst has going.

sua & till both use their love for mizi as a form of escapism. sua's love for mizi and the weight of her knowledge of their universe causes her to create a safe (fake) bubble for her and mizi to exist in & makes it as perfect as it can be before they're out of time. till uses his love & admiration for mizi as a beacon of hope, as motivation to go on despite how horribly he's treated in day to day life. mizi is the brightness in both of their dull lives.

this view of mizi as a hopeful, optimistic sort-of deity sheds light onto an entire theme of alien stage, escapism vs reality. it also shows that mizi & ivan, in this specific instance, are antitheses of each other.

mizi, as a character, symbolizes hope and escapism. she is the only character out of the main four that didn't understand the exact conditions of their world due to how she was raised. she does not fully grasp how horrifying the alnst universe is until she watches sua die, which is the inciting incident for the entire series. escapism isn't possible anymore, but hope is still there when she gets rescued by hyuna and joins the rebellion.

ivan, on the other hand, literally symbolizes truth and the reality of their world. since he was born he understood the cruelty the segyein are capable of and knows exactly where he stands in the world. he is seen to be fatalistic and even nihilistic. his death, which he sees as an inevitability, is the second inciting incident (the one where everything goes to shit chaos afterward). it is a brutal reminder of the truth of alien stage to both the characters and the audience.

sua & till actively seek out mizi as solace in their pain, and they both actively avoid ivan (in their own ways) and the connections he has to reality.

sua avoids ivan because, well, he's mean to her, but mostly because he's not even trying to be mean, he's just objectively right and she doesn't want to hear it. he is a reminder not only of the cruel world they live in but her own 'twistedness'. he reminds her that she is not solely the fantasy she's created with mizi, but someone with unavoidable knowledge of the inevitable (as well as someone who is willfully keeping this information from an unknowing mizi).

till avoids confronting his feelings for ivan and confronting ivan in general because ivan confuses him. his feelings for ivan aren't cut and dry in the way his feelings for mizi are, because ivan is and always will be tied to pain and suffering for till (their first meeting in the auction shop, their miscommunication/strange relationship, the fact that ivan is the only one who sees him at his most vulnerable, etc). ivan's death forces him to confront these feelings (for ivan & about their world in general) but even then he's repressing them until he physically can't anymore.

mizi is escapism & hope, literally realized because she escapes. ivan is reality & a representation of the fate of alnst contestants, literally realized through his death.

it doesn't end there, though. sua & till are escapists running from reality (with diverging paths that are both narratively important in their own ways), while mizi represents escapism & ivan represents reality. along similar lines, but going a step further, hyuna & luka showcase these exact themes.

hyuna is the legitimate showcase of hope, of freedom. she is a free human (as free as you can get in the alnst universe) and the leader of a human rebellion focused on uprising as a race against the segyein.

luka is the perfect example of compliance within reality. he is now a two time alien stage champion and the definition of a pet, no matter how he actually feels.

hyuna & luka are similar to, but a step beyond, mizi & ivan. mizi symbolizes escapism, but she is faced with reality and must grapple it, while hyuna is freedom personified (albeit with demons of her own). ivan symbolizes reality, but he still yearns for something he thinks he'll never have, while luka completely shuts off those emotions because he knows they will only jeopardize his chances of survival.

the characters of alien stage perfectly embody one of the core themes of alien stage, the discrepancy between fantasy and truth, and the way those can coincide in a world.

[atrophiedemotion]

still not over till’s final line in blink gone being “leave no regrets” btw

[atrophiedemotion]

it's just. all of round 7 shows that till regrets a lot, and tries to repress it until it's too much for him to bear and he starts physically breaking down from it. that's how much he didn't want to think about ivan's death. only when he was too exhausted to put up a fight did his sadness and regret and grief all catch up to him.

but when he saw his beacon of hope, mizi, the hope overcame him and all signs of pain vanished. his love for mizi was shown to be like that throughout alnst, somewhat of a band-aid over the pain and suffering he goes through on a daily basis. mizi was pure, the embodiment of escapism/distraction from cruel reality for him (and also for sua imo).

but all of the pain and cruelty of the world is still there, it doesn't go away. his memories of ivan are still there, even if he represses them.

'leave no regrets', huh?

(this also delves into the whole theme of reality vs willful ignorance in alnst but that's a whole other post)

[radioactive-yuri]

okay. LUKA WEARING BLACK FOR THE FIRST TIME.

my general idea is that in alien stage, someone's always dressed for a funeral, and someone else for a wedding. mizi was dressed for a funeral in round 1, because deep down, she knew she was going to lose sua. sua was dressed for a wedding, because she knew mizi would live. same thing for till in black in cure (thinking mizi's dead), and ivan in white (knowing with his sacrifice, till could live).

throughout the entire series, luka has worn white. in round 3, in all the anakt garden flashbacks, because he always knew that hyuna was still alive. but hyuna died in front of him. for him. and now he's dressed in black. a heart crystal crushed across hyuna's chest, while luka clutches his intact one in his other hand. alive. dressed for a funeral.

[thatdisasterauthor]

Have you REALLY lost your scissors if you aren't walking around making scissor motions with your fingers in an attempt to lure them back out?

[mias-back-from-the-dead]

spellcasting with somatic compenents

[bungoustraypups]

this is a beautiful addition

[werewolf-transgenderism]

irritating as fuck when people get mad at Black people existing in premodern historical fiction/fantasy media. like first of all, you're racist. and second of all, you are acting as though Black people didn't exist in premodern Europe which is simply false. especially when we're talking about the Mediterranean, like what the fuck do you people think is along the southern half of the Mediterranean Ocean?? everyone's on boats, there are GOING to be interactions with Black people in Northern Africa, and there are GOING to be Black people in Mediterranean Europe. stop being stupid. your imagined homogeneous white European past is not historical reality, get over it you massive losers

[iliveforangstpjo]

Hello there can I ask you a question please

sure, go ahead

[strawberry-souffle]

guys i just noticed something

ivan showing till the way out

till showing the kids the way out

[iliveforangstpjo]

my daily dose of tragedy

(Also, i am SO behind on this fandom i DO NOT remember this in the slightest)