Lykak

i swallow your heart and it crawls right out of my mouth. you swallow my heart and flee, but i want it back now, baby. i want it back.

gentan is……an excellent ship

The bad taste gang might come for me over this post, but the fact is that BNHA and MP100 have some overlapping themes, and that’s one of many reasons why they get compared. BNHA’s treatment of those themes is shallow and unwittingly cruel, but is supposed to be read as positive. Meanwhile, MP100 approaches those themes with hope and compassion

Both BNHA and MP100 explore themes of value as an individual and in society—value judgments of who is average, who is extraordinary, and who is inferior. From the very beginning, BNHA asserts that people are not of equal value, but anyone can improve themselves to meet or exceed the average and become valuable and worthy. I don’t like that one bit—it assigns worth to each individual based on their level of mental and physical ability. It seems like a positive message at first glance, but upon further inspection it’s just desolate.

BNHA asserts that if you physically can’t conform to norms, the only acceptable route to happiness is to do the impossible and exceed those norms. MP100 asserts that if you can’t conform, you are still no better or worse than anyone else, and the path to fulfillment is treating yourself and others with respect.

MP100 answers the question of who is worthy and who is not with the idea that nobody is special—not in a positive way, or a negative way. (“If everyone is not special, maybe you can be what you want to be”.) In the end, whether your ability level in one area or another is within the bell curve, or if it’s at the extreme edge of the range of human experiences, you are good enough to value yourself and be valued by others, but you are not superior, either.

What makes Midoriya different from the established norms around him is something that he must change about his nature as a person. What makes Mob different is his powers and his neurodivergence, and while he’s insecure about both of these things and afraid of the way they manifest in combination (reaching 100% and having a meltdown), the narrative shows that those are neutral qualities and he can do whatever he wants with the hand he’s been dealt in life. (“Mob, Mob, What do you want?” “Mob, Mob, whatever you want!”)

Midoriya’s happiness relies on meeting and exceeding the social norms set for his body and future—gaining a quirk and becoming a hero. He has to change to be treated with any respect. But Mob’s happiness relies on learning that it is okay to be who he is.

Another theme is power: in BNHA, the pursuit of power is treated as something noble and admirable. In MP100, power is treated as something that only immature, self-aggrandizing, destructive people seek; or, in Ritsu’s case, power is something that people seek when they feel helpless and unsafe. But that’s another essay unto itself.

i really cancelled johnny depp after those allegations and thought of him as a monster and i’m so fucking ashamed rn. i didn’t even go watch the crimes of grindelwald bc he was in it and i love the harry potter universe. i hated him so much, was so disappointed, and now i’m just disgusted w myself and this whole situation bc i supported the woman who is the actual abuser and talked shit about the real victim. i’m incredibly sorry johnny, it’ll never be enough but i am

Mija, serve your brother.

He is a year younger than me. 

We are children. My dad calls me to go outside with him to help fix the car. He needs me to find him a wrench in the garage. The garage is always filled with spiders and he knows I’m afraid. My brother is not. He’s inside playing video games. He doesn’t have to help look. He never has to help look. “You’re better at finding things.” 

Practice makes perfect. 

Mija, serve your brother.

My maternal grandma comes up to visit. The house is still a mess. I juggle honors classes, caring for the baby, caring for my brother, the bulk of the chores. Something had to give. My grandma looks at the house and then at me. “I could just beat you!” She growls. Nothing is said to my brother.

Later, she is helping make dinner. She brought a chicken and wants to show me how to cut it properly. I don’t want to. I’m tired from all the cleaning. She threatens to kick me. My mother says nothing about it. Just “You’ll have to learn to cook for when you have a husband!” My brother continues to play with his toys. 

I drop my honors classes.

Mija, serve your brother.

We’re in high school now. The washing machine has broken. It’s been broken for weeks. We’ve run out of money and can’t afford to go to the laundromat. My dad arranges for his sister to pick us up and take us to his parents house so we can use their washer.

I’ve done my own laundry since I was 12. I wash, dry, and fold and then put them in my hamper. I then decide to go on a walk. I come back hours later. “Thanks for leaving me with all the work!” My mother snaps. My brother is playing with our cousin.

I will not serve my brother. He can serve himself.

I put myself through college. I want a STEM degree. My days revolve around homework, notes, clubs, work. I no longer have time for all the housework. I will not sacrifice my education, my glimmer of a chance out of this nightmare. 

My brother lives on Youtube. He stays on Netflix until the sun rises. He is glued to the couch with the Playstation controller in his hands. Dishes are crusty. The laundry goes undone. The trash piles.The cat shits behind the chair because the litter is too dirty. He doesn’t want to pull his weight around the house.

My parents vent in frustration. 

“Why is your brother so lazy?”

a character: (is gay and wants revenge)

me: character design has peaked...there is nothing better than this