Honestly, Emira being a healer outside of illusions and only that is just. SO implicitly sad, because she clearly has Eldest Child syndrome and it was even kinda confirmed canon by Disney at one point! And you can see it with how Emira is always being a big sister to Amity, always trying to encourage and bring forth her best (telling her she can pull off the fire spell, advising Amity on her crush, healing Amity), while she also has to keep Edric in line, make sure he doesn’t get into trouble or harm; He definitely could’ve with Batric or eating snow, and canonically has with his fireworks!
So it’s no wonder that her worst fear in Grom was being stuck with Edric forever… She still loves and enjoys and appreciates him, but it really is suffocating and confining to Em how she’s defined by the role she has to play for her siblings; It’s almost adultification in that Emira had to be the mom and attentive parent for her siblings, not their actual parents! At most there was Alador but even he drifted away…
Which means I get the sense that Emira is just left wondering; What about me? What about my childhood? Why can’t I goof off and be the one who’s saved? I can’t blame her for being a bit selfish in that desire and fear. It’s no wonder she wants to be a troublemaker who can do whatever she pleases, because life is already hard and even being a natural prodigy has its expectations! Which then contribute to Emira’s saltiness when Amity feels the need to undermine Emira and Edric, because Em is already doing so much for this family as-is, almost as the forced central pillar/glue; Why can’t she goof off, doesn’t Amity know and appreciate that it’s NOT as easy as it looks???
Which could tie into the twins having to put in the effort to appear flawless; Not just in terms of talent but also their physical appearances, hiding their imperfections. Meanwhile Amity doesn’t need a concealment stone and so she kind of takes it for granted how the twins struggle in their own, meaningful, equally valid way… That isn’t to say she shouldn’t be frustrated over her own situation, but lording it over her siblings isn’t fair either. The twins also had to change their appearance.
There’s honestly something almost meta about Emira’s storyline this episode; Amity and Edric get their arcs and focus, while Emira has to focus on supporting them, getting the ball rolling by taking Edric’s concealment stone, which thematically sets up his storyline with Eda and King, and then healing Luz and Amity between battles. But then when all is said and done, when Emira sees that Edric got his little arc that culminates in a Bad Girl Coven T-shirt…
Well, SHE wants one too! And the hurried way Emira butts in, almost desperately; It’s like she realized that in her efforts to keep her siblings ahead, she got left behind and she’s trying to catch up before it’s too late! Trying to get that approval and love before the episode’s screen time literally runs out! I could honestly compare it to Luz, how they’re both so concerned with helping others and their growth, that… What about their story? Did they forget about themselves???
…Anyhow, I hope to TITAN that we get an Emira B-plot later this season. I wouldn’t be surprised if it would’ve happened in Season 3 instead, but it got cut due to the show being shortened. I’m still desperately hoping that if the writers gave Edric development this season, then they may as well have given Emira some later on… But I also have to wonder that we have seven episodes left. And later episodes might’ve been changed to focus on the plot more, to tie up loose ends and transition better into the Season 3 specials.
So it’s not looking good for Emira and purely by Disney’s fault. If not, I’m gonna be really sad for Emira, because she really is that kid who was born first and seemingly ahead of her siblings in everything, from wisdom to competency; Only to be left behind in making sure Amity and Edric aren’t! Edric got Eda and Amity got Alador, Emira deserves some parental love too! A part of me is hoping, without much evidence, that Labyrinth Runners will have an Emira B-plot; Since I speculated on that episode being about the coven tryouts, which Hunter mentioned as including a maze…
please support me on P@tre0n, it's the only reason i'm able to make and post so many little comics like this (it's 50%🔞 content tho, just a heads up <3)
Having a blorbo is SO wonderful bc you get free joy for thinking about them being happy but also free joy for thinking about them being miserable. No losing
I love bedroom scene Mira making blunt statements about Who She Is to someone she’s known for 6+ years. I love bedroom scene Mira deescalating by saying she’s acting crazy
I love post-train convo Mira again firmly Defining Herself and doing so according to the worst things she’s ever been, even though she hasn’t once lost her temper in the preceding runtime and her very slight aggression has been extremely controlled
I love fansign Mira with her voice pitched up and her emotiveness on for the fans because she needs them to look at her and see someone better than those worst things
I love train scene Mira being scared for her friend and scared of being lied to and scared of being unloved. I love train scene Mira having someone actually lash out at her and not lashing out back but instead freezing because she’s taught herself her first impulses aren’t safe
I love backstage at the Idol Awards Mira (over six years in!!!!) saying she knew this was “too good to be true”. I love Gwi-Ma attack Mira blaming herself and finally truly lashing out at someone in her own self-hatred as she isolates because she doesn’t get to have a family
I love the way trauma blatantly informs Mira’s characterization and they don’t need to say much more than “apparently, she’s the black sheep of her family”
More of my too specific headcanons because thinking about woke kpop really hard is entertainment to me👇👇👇
Working with Huntrix - every industry worker’s weirdest employment experience, doesn’t matter who you ask.
First off- all three idols, despite being easily the most recognizable people in all of Korea, are somehow insanely illusive. As in, you will see them on stage when they are supposed to be, but the moment they exit? At least 7 times out of 10 they will be gone without a trace. They come back just as fast of course, but it can cause a panic if Bobby doesn’t debrief the staff on this “quirk”. Unfortunately, due to balancing socials along with his millions of other responsibilities, Bobby is almost as hard to pin down as Huntrix themselves. Which leaves production crews and collaborators at the mercy of Huntrix when he isn’t there to explain their “quirks”.
Zoey is actually the easiest of them in person. Opposite to her levels of menace online, the maknae is the best of them on set, friendly and approachable by default. The only thing workers have to look out for is getting sucked into conversation with her, either because she’s curious about their job.. or they made the grave mistake of asking about one of the rapper’s fixations. Overall a pleasure though, even when she gets sidetracked.
Mira is mostly fine, once Bobby can convince newbies she’s not going to kill them for daring to breathe the same air, that’s just what her face looks like. The few times there’s been another choreographer working with them though, they learn very quickly that “choreographer” Mira and “idol” Mira are two very different people. Early on in their career, some pros would underestimate her, judging Huntrix for not having a shadow choreographer scripting with her. They evidently do not do this anymore, and Mira gets to (rightfully) run her studio like the navy.
Shockingly, Rumi is the one that blindsides new coworkers the most. Not that she’s hard to work with, just- not what you’d think “kpop royalty” would be like. One of the very first things Bobby and the older team members teach is “The Rumi Law”(named by Zoey and Mira). Basically, you have to forget she’s a world-famous celebrity and just let her help, because she needs to be a part of every single thing that goes into a production, no matter what. Setting up the speakers? Toss her a screwdriver. Working the lights? She’s up on the catwalk with a walkie talkie and her platform boots. Editing scripts? Photos? Schedules? She’s already in the office chair with a pencil behind her ear and 20 spreadsheets, color coded. Good news is, she will happily follow instructions from the staff who are hired to do those things, regardless of rank. That’s why “The Rumi Law” exists though, because otherwise newbies never dare to tell the lead singer of Huntrix what to do.
the professional visual aides will also be given to the public soon for this study🫡