She/her - Writer (ao3 @AgraAFTERdark), yapper, bottom feeder. Sometimes i serious but mostly i shitpost.
258 posts
Latest Posts by agra-can-u-not - Page 3
People who hate gale and refuse to think critically ab his character really be pmo
It's the smallest thing maybe but it's funny to me Sunrise on the Reaping has given me another reason to dislike Gale.
Thinking of Madge on reaping day, wearing her nice dress and Gale giving her shit for it. Like she has a choice. Like she has say. Like it's her fault who she was born to. It's such an interesting example of class vs culture wars. This idea that the people up the road who have a nice house are the enemy and not the faceless people thousands of miles away who profit on their poverty.
Thinking of Maysilee who was very conscious of the way she dressed. Who liked looking nice and dressing up. Who is Madge's aunt that she never met. Who Madge heard stories of growing up about her moms twin sister who always loved fashion and knew the importance of masking and the power of how you present to people. Don't let them treat us like animals.
And when Madge lifts her head and says "I want to look my best if I go to the Capitol" and Gale has the audacity to scoff at her.
It also speaks to how quickly history is lost. He probably doesn't even know her aunt died in the games. Doesn't care. You never ever ever know what hurt people are carrying. What their history is. What their familial struggle has been. Don't punch down. Don't punch sideways. Don't even punch up. Break the chain and destroy the person holding the reins.
Justice for mylo!! They could never make me hate you.
I find Jinx's relationship with Sevika to be fascinating given her relationship with Mylo. Mylo was Jinx's older brother and all he ever did was shit on her at every possible chance. He made her feel like shit all of the time. He blamed her for every single major and minor inconvenience. It was so bad that she still hears his taunts in her head years after he's died.
Now compare Mylo's treatment to Sevika's. It's pretty identical. Sevika is constantly bringing down Jinx and shitting on her. She sees Jinx as below her and she resents her because despite her flaws, she is favored above Sevika by Silco. This mirrors how despite the fact that Jinx always fucked things up as a kid, Vi always viewed her as faultless and instead took it out on her other siblings. Mylo and Sevika both have to do double the work just to stay in Vi/Silco's good graces because of Jinx, and no matter how much effort they put in they'll never be desired in the way Jinx is. Both Mylo and Sevika make sure to complain extensively about Jinx while in private and front of Vi/Silco. Sevika personally gets joy out of shit talking Jinx directly to her face.
But this is what makes their relationship so interesting. Because while we see Jinx was deeply bothered by Mylo's shit talking as a child, she isn't even slightly phased by Sevika's shit talking. She straight up doesn't care and doesn't take a single thing Sevika says to heart. She knows Sevika is just shitting on her for the sake of shitting on her. She knows Sevika is full of shit. I think that's really compelling and I also believe it speaks to how much Jinx's confidence and self image has grown in the few years it's been.
This is so facts, and this kinfa touches on why i dont totally love the addition og isha. I should, right, bc omg cute kid, but she feels like too much of a plot device to supposedly “fix” jinx. The way Vander usually fails to acknowledge Mylo and Clag kinda sucks. Ik its bc we judt didnt get to see em much in canon and it surely happened, just off screen, but its sad.
I feel like I need to talk about this scene. It bothers me not just for personal reasons but for plot reasons as well. I briefly touched on why I despise it so much but I'll elaborate properly, hopefully without being too repetitive.
The girls both quote Mylo that Vander is "their dad too", and yet mention of the boys is completely absent. But it has to be absent, or we might have to be reminded of the entire reason the girls' brothers are dead to begin with: Jinx and Silco both. Because Jinx accidentally killed them, because Silco abducted their dad. And let's be real, Vi and Jinx never had a single meaningful conversation about anything in s2. Everything they went through, all the changes they made, all the people they lost, amounting to a Disneyfied reunion with their werewolf dad. Add the extra layer of irritation of adding Isha, as if she belongs there, as if she's some sort of cheap replacement for the brothers they lost.
Maybe it also speaks to why Jinx doesn't come off as even half as unwell as she was in s1; her hallucinations were Mylo-heavy and they might have to be brought up if she was still having chronic episodes. But no, her replacement family of a small child basically heals her.
I personally feel the complete omission of Mylo and Claggor is disgraceful and downright lazy (but that's s2 in a nutshell). They were Vi and Jinx's brothers, Vander's sons. The loss of them is basically irrelevant in this entire season outside of ep7, where not even Ekko shares a single word with either of the boys, who only get three lines each, who only talk at him. It's like saying "hey look they're alive here, how nice" before pushing them to the side again to make more room for timebomb.
Yes I'm biased because Mylo and Claggor are everything to me, but it's still very much a flaw in the writing not to even mention their names whatsoever. It's not as if their being mentioned would derail the story - it could be sprinkled in when/where necessary, to be touched on. Their presences were still felt throughout s1 long after their deaths but they're irrelevant easter eggs in s2. But seeing as how their were basically two whole writers left in the room for s2, it's not all that surprising either.
Broken record that I am: Mylo and Claggor deserved better.
Omggggg 😭😭😭
Day 31: The Last Drop
past and present
I ADORE them. Mylo haters in 2025 in insane tho 💀 like this whole show is about how its nobodys fault, itd the system thats in place, and yall want to blame the desd poor orphan kid that was mean to his sister a little??? Hell nah. Its like yall have never had siblings
the way claggor looks at powder makes me so sad 💔 also the way vi looks at mylo like ‘you ready to run?’ MY HEARTTTTT.
POV: Your short king is being veryyy clingy rn
Their height difference here makes me giggle 🤭
Incorrect Arcane Texts
Arcane incorrect texts pt.2 baby
Courtesy of pinterest
Incorrect arcane texts pt.3 bitches
Arcane incorrect texts pt.4 mfs
Incorrect Arcane Texts pt.5 cuz yas
here are my stupid and dumb Carmen & Player friendship head canons:
Carmen rarely uses Google. If she wants to know something, she asks Player and he looks it up if he doesn't know it. This habit formed in the early days after escaping V.I.L.E, and Player never corrected it bc he thinks it's funny.
Player refuses the play board or card games with her because he knows she cheats. No one else believes him because she never gets caught and no one knows better than Player that underneath it all, Carmen is actually a mischievous bitch. Shadowsan knows she cheats too, but who is he to call out the skills he taught her?
They frequently start phone calls that last hours long in which they don't actually say much, they're just chilling in each other's company.
The others won't always know she's on the phone with him until she responds to something he says and they're like "Dude. How long has Player been here?"
They're both good liars but can't seem to lie to one another.
They play Minecraft :)
And Stardew Valley
Player keeps score of every time she does something reckless.
Carmen will be like, "Hey, I'm not reckless! I always think things through!"
And Player is like, "Oh yeah? Care to explain your actions on March 22, 20--"
"--Shut up."
Carmen started the habit of info-dumping about geography and Player picked up on it to support her.
Player speaks French ❤️
They gossip in French together.
Carmen learned French from France whereas Player learned Canadian French.
das it
I wanna put Ekko in my pocket. He is literally the main reason Jayce had any chance of turning Viktor from his global takeover plan. He is the MVP. He is the icon. He is the moment. He is the reason for the season.
OUR GLORIOUS KING EKKO CAN DO NO WRONG
JUSTICE FOR MYLO SHOUT IT FROM THE ROOFTOPSSSDDD
Agree on the case of Vi, thats my GOAT and she was done hella dirty in s2.
Somewhat disagree on the take with Cait. I still like her character but i understand why many dont. Her src was never about becoming a dictator- it was about making a hard, “lesser evil” typa choice in the face of no better options (talkinh sb gassing the undercity rn). BUT what she did was still a terrible abuse of power, and by the end of the show, shes still at a place where shes justifying her actions. Im añl for complex characters, but they need to receive complex consequences. The narrative does not properly punish cait for what she did like it seems tp punish other characters , leaving her gray morality feeling unearned.
Mylo got too much hate over nothing, vi got so much hate over nothing, caitlyn got so much hate over nothing, and those are just some off the top of my head
I am so sad at the sheer lack of media literacy in this fandom.
mylo was a teen orphan who was struggling
vi watched everyone die and it’s easy to blame when your in pain. She didn’t take jinx away from a loving father, it was an abusive situation.
caitlyn was manipulated constantly and giving every hurdle and piece of propaganda that Ambessa gave her.
these are just to name a few, so many characters are hated for one aspect of their complex characters and it’s simply sad.
Mylo my baby he deserved sm better by the fandom 💔💔
non papercarm
most of my non papercarm art is just shitposts but sometimes you get cool thinsg (mostly me bashing my head against the wall thinking about mummys girl carmen)
Great tutorial!!!
How you make your art?? Its sososososo Pretty<3
Pls tutorial?
the long awaited tutorial honestly do you guys hate me be serious
plus bonus speedpaint because i have NO REAL PROCESS and feel i did not properly illustrate how I draw. truly… i just black out and then suddenly there is a drawing in front of me. i dont even remember making this tutorial. anyway ,speedpaint
Ik ur prolly busy and this doesn’t sound fun so feel free to ignore 🩷
Shadowsan’s reaction to papercarm? I can picture Paper Star teasing him because “ha I stole your daughter”
haha paper star you are banging my daughter
HELLO everyone i apologise for my absence i started uni again and am SWAMPED good. GOD .i genuinely do not have any time almost at all for drawing i havw so many assignments,,,,…… but i will try so hard to get stuff out when i can…. sorry everypony
Ahahaha i love this
i made another one……
to clarify i think most of the characters join in the smash or pass game at first but then gradually stop playing but Vi and Jayce keep it up the entire time 😭
also i made this template myself so i’ll post the blank version in case anyone wants to try
Incorrect Arcane Texts pt.5 cuz yas
Words cannot describe how much I love them with the entirety of my heart and soul 🫶 maybe in another timeline they're all happy together and having fun doing silly little things like drawing together, or playing fun little games together, silly stuff like that ✨ (this is real episode 6 never happened Isha is alive trust me)
Also platonic doesnt have to equal sibling. I hate when ppl insist “theyre siblings!!” When they wanna counter a romantic interpretation of any pairing. Like…do yall just go around considering everyone u interact with platonically as ur sibling??? Cuz thats kinda weird. I think just leaving haymitch & maysilee up for interpretation wouldve been fine
why does maysilee being a sister figure diminish the relationship? for me it’s beautiful (i don’t think every relationship needs to be romantic) and it doesn’t weaken the care at all. maysilee and louella and lou lou are in the same field, i don’t get how that’s a problem.
I never said it did, but the problem is that Haymitch and Maysilee DON'T have a sibling relationship. Nothing in book builds up to that, and then he throws this line in - in a very specific moment at that, as if SC wanted to make sure she shuts off a ship that was popular for the last decade.
If you want to read Haymitch and Maysilee platonically, that's fine, no one will arrest you for that, but if SC wanted a sibling dynamic between them, she failed. With Louella and Lou Lou she hadn't spell out for reader that he sees them as sister figures, you know why? Because the text defends itself with those dynamics. The moment you have to spell out for the reader, what you want to achieve is the moment you failed.
(That's also the reason why Haydove doesn't work for me and we all know you're here bc of that, anon, but that's another story ✌️)
Agree SO MUCH, So many times over!! The only thing id change tho is have haymitch’s mentors be a pair of unknown viktors in lieu of wiress & mags. Like you said ab haymitch being close to burdock, it feels quite fanservicey. We already know quite little about this world and its characters. It would do well to expand it.
Trying to find a way to fix SotR, a short essay by yours truly.
(Mind you, I'm still reading this book but it doesn't matter - we all know how it ends, not only due to reading Catching Fire, but also because this book is almost offensivly predictable in most aspects. So, these are not my final thoughts, but my proposition how the book could be improved in my humble opinion.)
First and foremost, don't make Haymitch a narrator, except for the epilogue. Because Haymitch brings nothing new to the table as POV: he's a boy from the Seam, half-orphan with one sibling who he loves very much or at least we're supposed to believe that because he struggles to find a fuck about anything else than Lenore Dove alas, all we've already seen. We know this perspective. Instead, give us two narrators: Maysilee Donner and Lenore Dove. One for describing the games from the inside, and give us a peek into Capitol 24 years prior to the og trilogy, and one to let us finally take a look into districts when the game is on. Especially since, as someone pointed out, 2nd Quarrel seems like a moment when the anger in districts started to slowly outweight the fear of Capitol - because this time they took almost fifty children, and it's both horrifying and, against Snow's wishes, makes them realize for the first time that the numbers are on their side, not their opressor's. This would also fix the problem of us not knowing much about Haymitch life before the games: because Lenore Dove is part of this life, so what would she do in this scenario? Try to help Abernathys by taking over some of Haymitch's duties in the household? Spent time with their mutual friends, when they're forced to watch the games, so at least they could have emotional support while doing so? Also, having Haymitch as the narrator of the epilogue, outliving both POVs who told the story of the quarrell, matches him being the only survivor of the arena.
Having Lenore Dove as POV could avoid adapting the Covey as some sort of noble savages, who live sort of outside the system, and are so much more aware than others. The Covey we know from TBOSAS are just a bunch of young people who were forced to live in one place, with no adults to take care of them, and by the end of that book they took another blow, losing their unofficial leader. Show us the real Covey, two middle aged, lonely men raising a girl, who clearly romanticizes Lucy Gray - which in itself tells us, how dear her memory is held. Seeing Lucy Gray through Lenore Dove's eyes could even serve as a good commentary on glorification and dehumanization of inspiring figures: something we can currently see with people thirsting over Luigi instead of focusing on his case, and even with the weird woobification some people do to Bisan ("if Bisan die, we riot" etc), as if she isn't reporting on mass genocide for people to focus on the entire situation, not her. It was something only briefly touched upon in the og trilogy, and it was seen from Katniss' perspective, when she was the subject of that, so, unlike what we actually got, it would be something new in SC's commentary.
Don't retcon Haymitch's personality. Let him be cocky and arrogant, it doesn't automatically mean he's a bad person. Hell, he was like that through three books and readers loved him, so it's not like it isn't even a safe option (and SotR chooses safe options for itsplot through and through). Moreover, it's a possibility for another commentary: sexism. Because Maysilee is rude and confident too, but she's treated like a bitch, while Haymitch is a loveable rascal. By keeping Haymitch's original personality, the book would allow them to be each other narrative mirrors - different backgrounds, different lives, but similar personalities. Show us both how differently they're treated back in D12, and how differently Capitol approaches them because of their gender, when they say similar things.
Bring Chaff in. If you don't remember, who Chaff is, don't worry - Suzanne Collins seems to forget as well! Anyways, Chaff is the victor of 45th Hunger Games, and Haymitch's friend, who lives in D11. He could be very easily vowed into the plot by assuming that usually every tribute has their own mentor, so D12 this year gets three: Mags, Wiress and Chaff (and none for Louella, as she still dies in this version before they arrive in the apartament). Not only for the development of his and Haymitch's relationship, but also to give his character some depth. I think Mags and Wiress' relationship with Loose Cannons was actually one of the bright points for the book, so Chaff having interactions with both LC and the other two mentors could work well.
Don't shy away from romance. Not because of fanservice reasons, but because it can compell the narrative and give the story another layer. With prequel like SotR you obviously need some parallels to the source material, but you can twist them - and Maysilee and Lenore Dove are perfect for that. Whether you like Gale or not, Lenore Dove is Gale of this story, even in the og book, no matter how SC avoids this comparison bc people don't like Gale. She already shares emotional connection with Haymitch, she lives life similar to his, she despises the merchant families from D12 (her constant criticisms of Maysilee...), she's open in her hatred for the Capitol - but in the end, all she could do in SotR was to sing some songs, unlike Gale, who was the first one to push for resistance in D12. So show Lenore Dove as this initially strong person, who gets challenged by reality, and it turns out that she isn't as tough as she thought of herself. On the opposite side we have Maysilee, or Peeta of this equation. A merchant kid, conventionally attractive (pale, blonde etc), with implied not-so-pleasant family life (her comment about her mother choosing clothes for her and her sister implies some sort of lack of control of her life even in her household) - but, unlike Peeta, she's angry. And she doesn't try to appeal to people, she bares her teeth at them, which they don't even expect of her, giving her proper looks and cool attitude. The romance doesn't have to be outright spelled out to readers, it can only be implied that Haymitch and Maysilee's trauma bonding is getting into territories dangerous for his relationship with Lenore Dove. Just don't throw that damn sibling line out of the blue and let readers decide for themselves, how they read it. Having said that, I believe that Snow would definitely frame this version of Haymitch and Maysilee as romantic to get on Lenore Dove's nerve, as in his head she's merely a Lucy Gray's proxy.
NO PLANNED RIOT PLOTLINE. We already had that in CF, and it clearly wasn't in Collins' head while writing about Haymitch's games in there for one obvious reason: Capitol would never let Mags or Wiress or Beetee live, if that was the case. Sure, those characters still should provide the tributes with some informations that would be useful later in the plot, but the entire idea of Newcomers is about these kids grasping the reality that they outnumber the enemy. Let them use this and decide to ruin the arena as the one last hurrah from them because they know they're going to die, so might as well show Capitol that they're here. That they matter. We had small act of defiance in the very first book with the berries, but everything after that was some sort of greater secret scheme - so let's go back to the roots, and let the tributes be the initiators. Let their riot inspire the rebellion, be the first spark and the start. Leave. The. Agency. To. The. Tributes. Bonus gain? Avoiding of accidental ableism by retconning Wiress' autism-coded behavior and Mags functioning despite implied stroke as the effects of Capitol torture. Not everything has to be the evil caused by the Capitol! Mags entire arc in Catching Fire was so moving and powerful because it was a woman so old, she couldn't even talk anymore, yet she still decided to save people.
ENOUGH OF THE DAMN RETCON JUST TO SHOW THAT EVERYONE ARE CONNECTED. Yeah, D12 is small, the Seam is even smaller, so it's obvious Burdock and Haymitch knew each other and were probably friendly, but WHAT IS THE POINT OF MAKING THEM SUPER BESTIES, WHEN HAYMITCH NEVER MENTIONED ANYTHING ABOUT IT IN THE OG BOOKS? While it's obvious that he could influence Katniss through that the moment he started to care about her winning? How come that Katniss never knew anything about the Covey, if it was still alive and well with her dad apparently having more than one Covey relative? (And how big is Covey anyways? I feel like SC doesn't know either). Just stop with the fanservice ffs. And yeah, Effie totally was in D12 for the last 24 years. Totally. Apparently, Katniss is just an idiot who doesn't understand what she sees.
While we're at it, stop making Capitol look stupid. I can buy Snow letting Haymitch live after the parade because he decided it's a better punishment to have him fear the unknown - but that's as far, as my suspension of disbelief can go. The Second Quarrell was supposed to be the biggest event ever held by Capitol until 75th games, yet there's a fuckup after fuckup. I know it's supposed to show us how neglected D12 is, but I think it could be done without making Snow look like a fucking idiot, who's apparently not feared enough by organizers, if they aren't afraid of screwing something up. That being said, the accident on the parade can still play out similarly to how it happened, simply because accidents happen, especially with 48 people in the chariots. I could make entire bulletpoint just about how badly Snow is written in this book for the sake of reminding people of Snowbaird, but not having Haymitch as POV during their encounter before introducing Lou Lou basically erases this problem. We still could see that Snow is not over Lucy Gray, and will be forever bitter about it without spelled it out in the most riddiculous way possible.
Remember the love triangle plot I proposed? It also helps with Haymitch as a middle-aged man still longing after his dead, teenage girlfriend. It's not romantic, it's creepy - and Suzanne Collins knows it too, because she makes sure to let readers know that he totally sees her in his imagination as if she grew old with him. While never letting that one teenage love go suits Snow, because he's an evil person who never develops emotionally, it doesn't suit Haymitch's characterization; moreover, it doesn't work as a narrative foil for Snowbaird, because Lenore Dove never decided to stay with Haymitch. She's dead, and it's not her ghost, only his fantasy of her. But where's Maysilee's place in all of this, if she's dead too? Well, that's kinda the point. Maysilee, the girl with whom he emotionally cheated with on his girlfriend, and also the first death for which he can blame himself. And when she dies, he promises himself that he'll never let Lenore Dove know the truth, that he will lie about what she saw on tv, especially after learning that Lenore Dove is the only one left for him, because his family is dead too - and then, Lenore Dove dies as well (in this version, still by Haymitch's unknowing hand, but I think it could be executed better), filling Haymitch with regret that he could neither stay loyal, nor save her. The geese metaphor would be fine, if SC did fact checking and knew that geese mourn for a long period of time but eventually can find another partner. Haymitch can still mourn the girl(s) he loved, but the period of mourning ends for him when the war ends, and there won't be any more dead girls like Maysilee and Lenore Dove. Of course, since I hate how Haymitch's entire mourning in the books was retconned into a single target, the girls are not the only ones he mourns, his family, Louella, Lou Lou, and the tributes from the next 23 years are also what haunts him - but his two love interests have a special place in the line because the regret of 'casuing' their deaths is mixed with personal regrets of very grounded teenage mistakes that couldn't reach any resolution. And when the war ends, the world in which his two biggest regrets died, ends as well, so he can finally heal with his family of choice: Katniss, Peeta, and Effie too (honestly, I think even SC believes that movies handled Effie better than her in Mockingjay). We don't need another romance in the epilogue, but we need the spark of hope that it can happen. Not necessarly with Effie, Asterid would be a reasonable narrative choice as well, but don't just leave this man who lived a lonely, miserable life still hanging onto his high school sweetheart. And, for the love of god, if you have to involve poetry, just don't choose the poem that tells you directly that he will never meet his lost love in the afterlife:
Even with all these changes, I think SotR would be a very unnecessary book, but miles more respectful for both the readers and the established characters.
Thanks for coming to my ted talk, I guess.
Real. I know haysilee got sunk with the “sis” comments but they were infinitely more interesting. They didnt have to be written as love interests in any manner but the sis stuff feels shoehorned…altho maybe thats the middle school haysilee shipper in me talking lol
Also i thinkn Lenore being a watered down Lucy Gray kinda hurt her. They are very, very similar, and it takes you out of the story if youve read both. When i pictured haymitch’s girl, i pictured a regular seam girl with simple dreams, and i cant help feeling that approach wouldve been better.
Additionally, idk how i feel about making lucy gray, lenore dove, and potentially even katniss all covey. I read somewhere that it showcases the poerr of culture as a resistant force to oppression, but it does also feel a bit insular snd chosen-one ish.
lenore dove doesn't haunt the narrative, she suffocates it.