#monoukotori

[docholligay]

Honestly I'm glad that you got to experience this moment blind. Hughes' death is one of the most spoiled parts of FMA (if you Google his name the first thing that appears is his death rip) along with the Nina stuff, so it's cool to see someone truly watching it without knowing (because speculating is not the same as knowing)

I am so spoiler paranoid I won't even google the show! If I need a reference for painting, I grab one of the episodes! Because this kind of stuff has happened before when I've liveblogged something, where I think I'm googling something innocuous, and all of a sudden it's "CHARACTER NAME MAJOR SPOILER" and I am so glad I was!

I mean, I KNEW he was going to die, but I thought it was coming so much later in the show, and for me at least, it hit. I think the way it is done really hits home this idea that---life and death is not a matter of what we deserve. It just happens. Now, I can hear the argument that we already learned this with nina, but I don't agree. Nina is a plot point. She's never really a person. I was not emotionally compelled by her death. I was like, "Oh! That's shitty." I think I literally said, "I hope Ed has to mercy kill her." My emotions were not engaged.

But Hughes is a person to us. He is treated as a person by the story, and so he is given texture and ideas and flaws. We are allowed to have feelings about him. So when he's killed, along with the real detail work they provide in his death itself, it pulls on a string.

I am SO GLAD I was not spoiled for this. I think it does such an effective job of driving home that in all of this, you can do your absolute best and die anyway. The story takes pains to, without pulling a Nina, make Hughes a good guy. A guy who is really trying. And then, they kill him. Because life is like that. Life is not about what we deserve.

Anyway. Amazingly done. Please never spoil anyone for this who is watching it.

[floaromaxtowns]

Raki isn't all that thrilled TBH

@monoukotori's post sparked it

Reblogs appreciated!

[strelrena]

Writing prompt: "no friends" squad Brain & Ven's reaction when the other union leaders refer to them as friends for the first time

Ventus' side:

"Oh! So now it makes sense!" Ventus nods, planting a fist in his opened palm, "Thank you so much for explaining to to me, Skuld! You're so nice when it comes to this stuff." All that warrants is a chuckle from the girl seated next to him, "What's so funny?"

"Nothing," Skuld smiles at Ventus, before ruffling his hair, "I'm your friend! Of course I'll explain things to you!" And the warmth that spreads from Ventus' heart to the rest of his body is burning. He feels... Like he is glowing. As if he has been purified of his darkness, that all that remains is light.

When Skuld goes to retract her hand, Ventus grabs her wrist, and she looks at him with confusion, "Could you... Just... Stay with me?" He asks, before she gently places her hand back on his head, with the warmest smile he had seen her give,

"Of course."

Brain's side:

"... And that's how this works!" Brain's eyes sparkle with passion as he gets to his feet, pushing himself up off his chair, "Isn't it fascinating how much we've created? I feel like we've only just scratched the surface too! Imagine what else the data holds!" He swoons, grabbing the nearest book and holds it close to his chest,

"Yeah... It's really... Something." Ephemer is seated, looking at Brain with a... Confused expression to say the least. The light from all the screens makes Ephemer's face glow, only serving to emphasize his emotions. Brain's heart sinks as he stares at Ephemer,

"You... Don't really care do you..." He asks, deflating,

"No- I do!" It is Ephemer's turn to get to his feet, "I don't quite understand a of the technology stuff, but I know you love it! I'm always happy to listen to a friend info dump!" And Brain's heart stops. His eyes widen as he slowly backs up and away from Ephemer,

"Wh-whats wrong Brain?" The boy in front of him is obviously concerned, walking up to Brain with hands tentatively reaching out for him,

"Friend..?" Brain asks, feeling something wet on his cheeks, "I'm your friend..?" And the relieved smile on Ephemer's face, is a look that will be burned in his mind forever,

"Of course! What else would you be?"

[bluerosesburnblue]

Imagine: Ventus and Vanitas wincing internally every time Xehanort mispronounces x-blade but not remembering why

I love that. I mean Ventus does say “some kind of… X-Blade” when talking to Eraqus like either A. He thinks Xehanort’s talking about some kind of Keyblade or B. “Key” blade just sounds wrong to him

I’m also adding on: Marluxia and Larxene (and Demyx and Luxord) leaving every Organization meeting highly uncomfortable because something was off but they don’t know what

Xehanort realizing in the afterlife that he just embarrassed himself in front of half a dozen ancient Keyblade Wielders because he assumed that the X-Blade’s name was a pun and what do you mean it wasn’t???

Eraqus is never gonna let him live that one down in the afterlife

[completeoveranalysis]

I didnt remember exactly what happens in next chapters so I went to reread it and Yikes™. Good luck Nick

Me, staring down the upcoming chapters of Tsubasa:

[kurogabae]

monoukotori replied to your post “I'm happy Syaoran Li isn't a Tsundere in Clear Card anymore because...”

" In China “wearing a green hat” (戴绿帽子 or dài lǜ mào zǐ) is an expression that Chinese use when a woman cheats on her husband or boyfriend because the phrase sounds similar to the word for cuckold. This apparently dates back to the Yuan dynasty when the relatives of prostitutes were forced to wear green hats "

oh wow. so it’s kinda like a scarlet letter type of thing for infidelity. that’s fascinating. thanks for the info! this is good to know for myself since i am trying to write more original content and i would hate to do something like this without meaning to.

[docholligay]

Rose and Scar are very dear to my heart because they were the first non white anime characters I saw in my life. I was the "he just like me fr" meme for them when I was little, so I am very happy that you find this man fascinating

He's a mess and the fact that a brown anime guy from the early 2000s is allowed to be messy and complicated and morally gray without being demonized AND staying as a fairly handsome bishounen (as opposed to the scary brown man stereotype) feels like a miracle in retrospective

I HAVE ONLY SEEN TO EPISODE 23 OF THE ORIGINAL ANIME PLEASE DON'T SPOIL ME AND ALSO BEAR THAT IN MIND.

Flashbacks to childhood me clinging to Fievel Mouskewitz and producing the largest stretches you've ever seen to explain why a character was Jewish, actually. (At my big age it just becomes, 'because I said so' but solidarity) It's so funny how seeing a sliver of yourself will make you insane about a character.

I think when this show is at its most ON is when it asks us to hold multiple things about characters, and Scar is a fantastic fucking example of this. He's a tragedy, he's a nightmare, he is a victim and the cause of half his own problems. He's not wrong, he's driving himself away from his people--who he loves! But he can't separate himself from revenge long enough to love them. He's letting himself be powered by hate, it's so understandable, and so tragic, and if he could let himself love his people more than he hated State Alchemists, what could he accomplish?

(This isn't even getting into what is going on with him religiously. Talk about stuff I privately rotate in my head at all angles. Fall of a sparrow ass shit as he's plotting some abstract suicide. Amazing.)

I LOVE all this about him. I will be SOOOOOOO disappointed if the show ends up coming down on either, 'Scar is a villain' (untrue) or "Scar did nothing wrong' (also untrue) because I think going to what you're saying, in addition to not being demonized he is ALSO not pedestaled in that awkward way that can happen in shows (and fandoms) sometimes where the brown character can't ever do something shitty, isn't allowed to be wrong*. It's dehumanizing from another angle. They don't do that! Scar is a fucking PERSON trapped in this fucking nightmare society and he's doing the same thing as Ed and Roy: Continuing to follow the path a younger self put him on and refusing to see any and all offramps. SUNK COST BAYBEEEEEE. (They should just rename the anime this)

There's things I want for a character NARRATIVELY and things I want for a character PERSONALLY, and on a character level I want Scar to do the same thing I want Roy and Ed to do personally: Stop! Just stop. You can't fix it, you can't avenge it, you can't do jack shit, but you can walk away. You can do something else. You can live a life and do better but also I fucking love that Scar is produced with incontrovertible evidence that his people are still there and I would argue still need him and is still like, "ANYWAY. Uh, continuing my insane journey for reasons" He will not let go of his own personal watch! It's a slow-motion tragedy!

(Narratively I sort of think all three of them could die and it would fit their current trajectory, and depending on how dark you wanted to get with it I could see a lot of paths to that. Narratively I will accept a lot of answers assuming the writing supports it, but if I had to end this show tomorrow there might be a pile of bodies. On the other hand, I am sometimes a sucker for a hard-won healing. Not an easy one! But I could really enjoy a well-written version of Scar where he DOES decide to bury his brother, finally. And be something for Ishbal. It's hard, and it sucks. It's a fucking miserable grind back toward being obsessed with life instead of death, building instead of destroying, but I think it could be REALLY satisfying for his character. Now, am I sure this show has the chops and willingness to do that? Eh, not really, so I'll just have to see what it gives me)

ANYWAY WOW YOU DIDN'T ASK FOR ANY OF THIS. SORRY. In conclusion, I'm not even sure I "Like" Scar in like a....dollie way but Jesus christ every time he is on my screen I am so interested in what is going on in his head. I love him in the same way I love like, The Green Knight movie. I am fascinated I am compelled I bet his character is INSANE on a rewatch. I still remember my reaction to the first time he showed up i was basically Jay from Dogma: Who the fuck are you?! Why did you just explode that guy's head?? What a ride.

SHUTTING UP NOW SORRY

*If you're a fan of brown men's wrongs I really recommend Interview With the Vampire. 2/3 leads are brown guys and they (all three leads) suck absolutely while being utterly captivating. My favorite is actually probably the biggest fucking dick in the whole show, he was tailor-made for me, love him. Fucking asshole.

[bluerosesburnblue]

Ah, mi response was assuming latin was Brain's first language and thats why he is so fast to make fun of the wayfinder trio's names lol, sorry I didnt make it clear

Ah, no, it’s cool. My original post was about Latin being everyone’s second (or third, etc.) language, but I also know that almost nobody knows what a “lingua franca” is, so sorry if I was unclear there! I still appreciate your response. It’s so good, and I really appreciate you clearing things up for me.

Besides, it’s led to a “Brain just speaks every language” headcanon and now I’m very attached to the idea