I Think It Would Be A Lot Of Fun If Rick Were Forced To Help Birdperson Raise His Daughter One Way Or

i need somebody to remember me

yeah, i see where you're coming from. season 5 was a MESS, it was the weakest season in terms of episodic adventures but also horrible to serialization and the storyline. i see what they tried to do but it was so rushed i didn't feel anything at all besides maybe anger? their toxic relationship deserved an actual discussion about it, not some half assed metaphor with crows or something. i think they didn't want to be too sappy but when you're literally discussing the basis of their dynamic you kind of need to assert that it goes both ways and not just Morty being unhealthy clingy to his grandpa.

also, i don't want to judge too fast the fact that Morty lost his assertiveness because the creators did say it's going to be one of the main storylines this season, so I'm hoping the dive more into Morty's character and his codependency. i dislike his characterization in season 5 as well but overall i really like his development. he became smart and clever enough to survive most situations and I've been noticing how recently they try to treat Morty more like a kid than a horny stupid sidekick. most of his actions makes sense once you think that he's 14 and extremely traumatized to the point of no return, he literally have no choice now but to embrace his life of adventures and ocasional murder, but he still feel adolescence emotions and honestly I'm glad. i really disliked Morty in season 1, honestly, because of his passive role, and while his relationship with Rick became more complicated over time, Morty still his own person even if deeply dependent on someone.

youve made very good points about rick's new passive role and i agree, although i dont think they try to make rick redeemable. its never going to be a perfect family and hes always going to intoxicate the people around him with his crazy bullshit, but the message they tried to convey, at least in season 5 and 4 (and keep talking in season 6) is that they choose rick even with his fucked up self. instead of making rick double down to a regular grandfather, they just made the whole family interdimensional fuckers while rick doubled down to be more loving towards them. which its not by any means a good or normal thing, but the word family has been used a lot in the latest seasons and honestly, if i had to pick, the new family dynamics overall was what saved season 5 to me. choosen family, considering they all had their opportunities to walk away but still they decide to stick close to each other. its not a healthy dynamic, they are all horrible people (especially rick) but i think thats kinda the point.

and yeah, they fucked up big in season 5, but s6 seems so refreshing and new that i really do think they are going to fix this stuff that left bitter tastes in our mouths.

your analysis is very good as well!! i tried not to think too hard about the last season's flaws but i guess some things we have to adress, it was a shit show. i remember distinctly thinking "oh season 6 is out? ill watch ironically because rick and morty has becoming so bad recently" and then i was positively surprised. im aware things can go really bad this season but im hopeful

ok but rick prime was conceptually a genious move by the writers, i think. i know jack shit abouy writing but hear me out

our s6 C-137 rick is not the same as season 1 or s2 rick, he has matured, regressed, getting softer, angrier, older. it has been a commom complain by the dudebros that rick is not that badass emotionless characters that he was before, because in the latest seasons the writers are trying to explore how miserable and lonely the smartest man in the universe really is. he’s not a god anymore, hes a pretty fucking sad dude that tries desperately to stay in control, and that has been getting on some fans nerves, apparently

some people really miss nihilistic asshole rick. but instead of regressing his character, they decided to create prime rick.

prime rick is everything C-137 tried to be. he’s funny, unhinged, heartless, brutal, and the list goes on and on. he’s what we thought season 1 rick was. and i think thats genious because now not only we can explore this new contrast between two ricks, but also is a huge opportunity for more badass cool fights

at the same time that we can keep developing c-137 rick as a character, we can also have a heartless, god-like amazing (prime) rick that was what we had in season 1 and 2. it’s a nice throwback, especially because so far this season seems so much similar to the first seasons, except now our perception of the smith family has changed drastically. and now that we got this far, we can finally see them by old lights

it both pleases the character bunnies such as me but also brings in renewed philosophical tropes to the nihilistic tone enjoyers that also made a huge part of the fanbase. the dudebros can have their rick back

in season 4 and 5 the writers seemed confused with what they wanted to do with our beloved rick and morty - are they regressing or evolving? are they serialized? are they episodic? - and while i think s5 suffered more with pacing issues due to this indecision, i think they finally got the tone right. this season is so promising!! we only have 2 episodes so far (another one tonight) but i already have the urge to re-watch them, such a thing i didn’t have every since season 3

not to mention an “evil rick” being our next villain right after “evil morty” is so damn cool, especially because prime rick is evil because he doesn’t gives a damn, while evil morty is evil because he grew up in a system that does not give a damn. evil morty wasn’t the real evil, he was a product of it. and now we are facing the true evil himself, and i cant wait!!

so, overall. good play on the contrast, rick and morty writers, yall rock.

(also, at the same time they obligy our rick to confront his worst, “regressed” version, we also have our morty confronting his regressing version too, hence the second episode A Mort Well Lived. something tells me they are going to really deep dive into their development this season)

((they really seems to be making this parallels to season 1 and 2, ANOTHER EXAMPLE BEING THE WHOLE FAMILY BURING THEIR BODIES IN THE BACKYARD LIKE THAT SCENE WAS SO COOL I LOVE THEIR FOUND FAMILY SO MUCH WHAT IS THIS))

"i lacked the courage to die for my ideals, and it wont happen again."

c!Techno’s character arc is not about changing his ideals, but slowly becoming better at them, and it’s not something you see much in storytelling, especially in characters with defined political ideologies. It’s awesome, unique, and honestly? Really freaking valuable.

If Sanji ever hits a woman, his character is ruined forever

How I, as a woman, came to enjoy Sanji's chivalry trait even if I dislike it.

Now, notice how I said "chivalry" and not "pervet", because I actually quite enjoy his morals, but i fucking loathe his gags with the nose blood and all. This perverted size I do my best to ignore and at the very least tolerate, because I honestly believe Sanji's good character traits surpass this goddamn bad bits.

(This is going to be a long long essay, because I’ve been thinking about that Black Maria fight again and I wanted to give my two cents to his character development in detriment of my calculus exam tomorrow which I haven’t studied one bit. Also there’s going to be no images because I don’t fucking know how Tumblr works I’m new)

So, about his chivalry and the whole "won't hit a woman thing".

At first, I was very pissed about it. If it was in any other piece of media, not hitting a woman (as much as its a double standart) it's not exactly bad per se. It's not something I would applaud but rather think it's a failed flex of the writers to show themselves Oh So Manly and So Full of Outdated Morals. Regardless, not all that much of a bother. In real life, not hitting a woman is a thing and its not a bad one, since not every woman is able to GG combo a 6 foot tall jerk. And depending on how close your fictional world is to real life, this chivalry becomes more and more justified.

But One Piece is not your everyday fantastical fictional world. It's a whole ass big planet that keeps on moving with its own rules, physics and culture. A world a lot bigger than our own that expends to metaphysical standards. In One Piece, even if regular woman are shown to be a tad weaker than most regular man, its not by a lot when these randoms could die to an actual strong character to the same swing of a sword.

However, when Oda shows strong, powerful characters, they are so regardless of their gender. And One Piece has some STRONG female characters. I mean painfully strong. In a planet so big as theirs, its not a surprise woman has taken some Big Girl Pills. I don’t think it's up to discussion that woman can be seen as deadly powerful in this world as man.

But as refreshing as it is, this gender roles in One Piece come crumbling down once you add this chivalry shit.

Because when you have big women villains that can eat a whole island in two seconds, or women that can murder a whole army with one move, having a character refusing to fight feels demeaning. It’s like you are underestimating these powerful lads that can literally kill your nakama. What, you don’t think they can actually do damage to you, you fucking prick?

And it’s contradictory, to show these woman so strong and yet be seen so weakly by characters you were supposed to like. It feels demeaning to them, and it feels demeaning to you, a 12yo that was starting to really like see these woman achieving so many big things.

And Sanji is one of those characters you were supposed to like. Because he’s funny, strong, kind, a good cook, a good friend, a person you would love to know in real life. But still, he has this flaws that ick you so fucking much, flaws that get more and more evident as the story progresses.

Don’t get me wrong, I love OP, I have a tattoo of One Piece, Sanji is one of my favorite characters. However, I stopped reading for a while before WCI because, even though the story is amazing, I was getting really bothered with this whole woman situation. At some point, a trait that was exclusively Sanji’s that I was willing to ignore seemed to take this whole world by storm

Because the story portrays Sanji as dumb for not fighting woman, but at the same time, quite noble. And it pissed me off so much it took me four years to read One Piece again. Mainly because I wanted to catch the Wano arc finished, but also because I was so done that I could only pray this sexism situation got better over time and it was only a weird phase of Oda.

AND OH BOY HOW IT WAS

Recently reading WCI, I remembered everything I loved about Sanji, why I enjoyed his smile and his brains so much, and why he was one of my favorite characters ever. It wasn’t just uneducated 12yo me that was overlooking issues, Sanji is genuiely a good guy. Believe me, I’m 20, a woman in STEM that deals with sexism every single day, I’m plenty educated now.

Speaking of which, this is already very long and I really should study for that calculus exam but now I’m getting heated up.

Because WCI touches and highlights the best parts of Sanji, and fuck you if you disagree (... /j)

It called for my attention how Oda kept talking and hitting themes surrounding “humanity” in Whole Cake Island, and finally some things fell in place for me. 

This chivalry of Sanji is a character trait, that even if annoying sometimes, is still a character trait meant to be seen perhaps as a flaw, but also as a product of his humanity and kindness.

Because the world in One Piece doesn’t think the same way as Sanji. Luffy would kick a woman, he won’t give a single damn fuck, and we are supposed to like Luffy plenty! Even if Oda has his lows in how he deals with the perception of woman in One Piece, this double standard morality is exclusively a Sanji thing.

Not only is a Sanji thing, but also a Zeff thing.

That scene particularly stuck with me, where Zeff says that if Sanji would ever hit a woman, he would kick Sanji’s ass and then kill himself. When Sanji asked why on his good mind would he do that, Zeff responds “It’s the price a parent has to pay. Don’t become something I hate.”

And oh, OH, what a line. Because after hearing from his biological father he would be embarassed if the world ever discovered a failure was his son, it must have meant a lot for Sanji to hear Black Leg Zeff (the best person he has ever encountered besides maybe his mother) declaring so proudly he was Sanji’s parent.

It gives not only a reason for Sanji be one of the only characters with this mentality, but also justify why he is so strongly convict with this morality. He doesn’t want to be a failure again. Not to Zeff. And he doesn’t want to live in a world where he’s too ashamed to look his father in the eye.

And, in a vacuum, this scene must have felt like a cheap excuse of Oda to not change the character. But combining with the whole Whole Cake Island (ha, whole whole), this shows exactly what type of person Sanji is.

Because, as I said before, his chivalry is a product of his kindness and humanity (such a thing his brothers doesn’t have), but also is a mark Zeff left for him. Screaming without actually screaming that Vinsmoke Judge is not Sanji’s real father, because his actual dad made sure to raise well. To make him become a good person by his own ideals. Sanji has Zeff’s ideals because Zeff is his dad, and in result, everything about Sanji is a direct contrast of his biological siblings.

Also, uniting everything together, knowing damn well where his chivalry came from, it’s safe to assume that if Sanji ever loses that sense of morality, it would be a big bad thing. As in bad, bad thing.

Rather we like it or not, his morality is strong and tied directly with his humanity. If Sanji ever hits a woman, if he loses this sense of right and wrong, it means we lost Sanji as we knew him - a kind hearted boy, a strong chef, a strawhat that would die for his friends.

So in Wano, when this “happens”, it feels like Oda warning us.

If Sanji ever hits a woman, you all better be shock in terror.

I don’t know if I misjudged Oda when I was 16, or if he was indeed telling a bad story before realizing and fixing it, but Wano feels like a redemption arc. Because above all that, we also have good LGBTQ representation that felt almost surreal, and one of the best One Piece arcs ever told in terms of story, but also, good Sanji moments, reminding us all of the person he is and who he became after WCI.

And for those who says this means Sanji won’t get character development ever, I present to you: Black Maria incident.

I see a lot of people disliking strongly how Sanji screamed for Robin’s help. But to me, it felt amazing to see Sanji actually trusting his friends. Because he won’t hit a woman, but he doesn’t need to die because of that. He has plenty of strong friends that can watch his back and do what he can’t do while he does what they can’t. 

Not only that, but him screaming for Robin specifically shows that he acknowledges the women on his crew are strong. Strong enough to fight for him, strong enough to handle themselves. And also shows how he trusts them. Trusts that they won’t die, trusts their power, trusts that he won’t need to save them because it’s his time to be saved.

Not to mention the whole sacrificing thing he has going on, but that one was plently adressed on WCI.

And you have all the right to dislike this character trait as long as you realize it’s, you know, a character trait. And one that holds a lot of simbolism. I eventually came to enjoy the weight this chivalry holds, but it’s up to you.

That’s it. Thanks for reading. I’ll definitely go study for that calculus exam now

I love the practicality of Luffys crew

Like from a tactical sense; Luffy as captain is immune to blunt attacks and is fairly adept at hand to hand contact being absolutely feral. His biggest (and most obvious) weakness is that he is susceptible to slashing attacks. So he’s got 2 choices, learn how to sword fight OR get a really good swordsman, so he picks up a guy who just happens to WANT to be the greatest swordsman.

Cool, next weakness of Luffys (from a capture/arrest/ damage perspective) is distance attacks. Yes he’s immune to bullets and cannon balls but a sneak attack or a bullet aimed above/near him would be a good choice, so he then picks up a sharpshooter. And not just any, this one is the son of a commander of an emperor of the Sea…who also happens to be the best sharpshooter.

Next Luffy is not the best at specialized hand to hand combat. Sure he’s able to carry his own for a long way but waves of marines means special forces and eventually even Luffy is going to run into someone who could pose a problem due to energy expenditure, so he picks up a cook who happens to be the protege of a captain who sailed the grand line and was renouned for his special fighting techniques (plus bonus long lost family powers)

Then to round it off, he picks a navigator who has fought pirates/marines her whole life, who can read the water and wind in a way that even fish men envy and who can provide you with the best path of escape each and every time. Not to mention she has some hand to hand combat skills + wind/weather powers to create some specialized sneak/power attacks

Just…from a marine/ tactical standpoint, I’d be shitting myself from just East Blue Crew alone. Not to mention a doctor from island of doctors who can speak to animals and turn into a giant monster, an archeologist who can read the secrets your government spent 800 years hiding and who grew up an assassin, a shipwright who not only trained under the man who built the previous pirate kings ship but who also doubles as an armoury whenever needed, an 8ft sword wielding skeleton who can summon attacks from hell and a literal rogue warlord who happens to be the strongest fishman still in universe (thus far) in a world that heavily depends on devil fruit users to keep piece. And that’s not including all Luffys allies over his journey…

Like damn…no wonder people dub him a 5th warlord. Half his crew alone causes a shit ton of damage (dressrosa, WCI) so I’m REALLY excited for Wano to be a game changer in how the world sees this little, goofy, but terrifyingly competent pirate crew

me in the past 3 days fr

dude perry the platypus is such a funny character to me because like. i’ll be thinking abt him and be like oh he’s just like an adult man he has a government job and he loves his family and he has a weird homoerotic relationship with his nemesis and he’s nonverbal. just an overall normal guy character. i love him im going to read 7000 fics about him now. but then i take a step back and im like. he’s a platypus. i’m going crazy over a teal cartoon platypus. what am i doing. but then i take another step back and im like oh shiiiiitt. he’s a platypus. what kind of experiments were they doing on him to make him evolve the way he has? what kind of training did he go through? man this guy has some trauma he’s a lil fucked up actually! and then i take ANOTHER step back and im like. this is literally about a phineas and ferb character

theory: sanji’s smile is the one piece.

cw cartoon gore

erm i love kenny and cartmans friendship more than anything else actual y.

the days i am really sad i try to cheer myself up remembering that nishinoya got a canonically tiny tiny little hand

it always works