Flowey’s Trauma Metaphor

A study of character designs between generations in Disney/Pixar’s Coco

As a world builder and character artist whose dream career is character design and animation, I am constantly observing very closely how Disney designs its characters in its animated films–especially characters that are supposed to be related, or who are supposed to represent a certain ethnic group, such as the Polynesians or Mexicans. And to see how much work the character designers put into Coco is truly heartwarming. What we get to observe on screen is true dedication to the craft, combined with a desire to honor Mexican culture by faithfully portraying them. Notable among their designs is the oft-celebrated Mestizo type, a blend of European and American Indian bloodlines that characterize most Mexicans today. Prior to the Mestizaje movement, purer Spanish bloodlines were desirable, with a goal to “water down” Indian bloodlines by marrying their women to Spanish men. Thus we see among Héctor’s generation a lot of very strong Spanish traits, making Héctor, who retains strong Amerindian features, stand out all the more, and contrasting him yet again to Ernesto, who was considered a paragon of manliness in his day. While Ernesto did live to see the Mestizaje movement begin, Héctor died beforehand. He unfortunately did not get to see his mixed heritage become celebrated to the point of being the preferred look for a “true” Mexican. But the result of the Mestizaje movement can be seen in his descendants, who all display common traits of Mestizos.

If you’re interested in studying body and facial types and their variation between bloodlines, I strongly suggest giving Cedarseed a visit. She’s a Lebanese artist who studies people and body types, and her comprehensive chart should be considered invaluable to character artists who want to portray a people or culture as accurately and respectfully as possible.

As for who’s who in the Rivera family tree, there’s a bit of controversy about that. During production, the name of Berto’s wife was Gloria (this name is listed on the digital dailies, during one of which she’s said to be Luisa’s sister). But the only officially published family tree available to us gives Berto’s wife’s name as Carmen, with Gloria being the name of his sister (that same book also refers to Berto’s wife as Gloria when quoting her lines in the film). This has led to some confusion as to which tia is Berto’s wife and which is his sister. I myself refer to Elena and Franco’s daughter as Gloria, in accordance with the family tree. The purpose of this image is to compare traits between Elena, Franco and their three children. Enrique looks more like Franco, while Berto looks more like Elena. Gloria is a pretty even blend of the two. Franco also gave his cowlick to at least two of his kids. Interesting to note is that the shape of Enrique’s face is definitely a throwback to Héctor. This supports a popular fanon idea that Miguel will end up looking quite a bit like Héctor when he grows up. I think Miguel will end up looking a lot like Enrique, but Héctor’s traits will also be quite pronounced, given how much Miguel takes after him in personality.

some arcane stuff again!

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Severus Snape

This is an Anti Snape rant. I was to preface it by making it clear that I appreciate Severus Snape as one of the most interesting, important and well written literary figures of our time and possibly in history. I respect anyone who says that Snape is their favorite. That’s perfectly fine. Harley Quinn is one of my favorite comic book characters. She’s bubbly and funny and intelligent and strong…that doesn’t mean I don’t recognize that she’s criminally insane and that her relationship with the joker is in fact terribly abusive from both sides. These multi-dimensional characters become our favorites BECAUSE there are so many sides to them. Harry Potter happens to be a series where nearly every primary character is several layers deep. To quote my own personal problematic favorite; “The World isn’t made up of Good People and Death Eaters.” - Sirius Black, Order of the Pheonix, Chapter 15, Percy and Padfoot.

 Snape is a bad person. I don’t care what he did to “redeem himself”. You can die to save the world, that doesn’t mean years of verbally and emotionally abusing children just didn’t count. I know plenty of people who served in the military and fought for the country but they abuse their families…does it not count because they fought a war? 

 FACT: Severus Snape was interested the dark arts from an early age.

 FACT: Severus Snape had other friends besides Lily Evans. 

FACT: Severus Snape provoked James Potter and Sirius Black, often spying on the Marauders to try and find out Remus Lupin’s secret and also hanging around with Slytherin Pure Blood Supremacists who bullied other students. He was not an innocent unpopular kid that the big, mean popular boys picked on. He wasn’t. Stop victimizing him. He was just as much at fault as they were. 

FACT: Severus Snape created his own spell by the age of 15 that was potentially lethal and used it on James Potter…reason? Well, James pantsed him….

are…you…kidding…me…?

FACT: Lily Evans ended her friendship with Severus Snape because of his affiliation with these other students and his interest in The Dark Arts. She did not end the friendship in favor of James Potter. She didn’t even start dating James for AT LEAST another year after ending her friendship with Severus. He called her a racial slur and his friends physically attacked one of her friends. 

“I never meant to call you a Mudblood. It just-” 

 “Slipped out? It’s too late! I’ve been making excuses for you for years! None of my friends can understand why I even talk to you! You and your precious little Death Eater friends. See? You don’t even deny it! You don’t deny that that is what you’re aiming to be! You can’t wait to join You-Know-Who, can you? I can’t pretend anymore. You’ve chosen your way and I’ve chosen mine.”

“No, listen, I didn’t mean-”

 “To call me a Mudblood? But you call everyone of my birth a mudblood! Why should I be any different?” - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 33 The Prince’s Tale.

FACT: Severus Snape never got over his romantic feelings for Lily Evans and was angry that she married his school rival, James Potter.

“After all this time?”

 “Always.”  - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 33, The Prince’s Tale.

This is actually creepy. One of my biggest qualms with The Harry Potter Fandom as a whole is how infatuated people are with this quote. James and Lily died at age 21, a good 6 years after Lily ended her friendship with Severus and he’s still holding a torch for her? This isn’t love, it’s obsession and it’s unhealthy. He harassed her after she ended things, too. He threatened to sleep outside the Gryffindor common room until Lily agreed to speak with him (See: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 33, The Prince’s Tale). It’s not sweet that Severus was still in love with Lily after all this time. It’s scary. Severus’ patronus being a Doe is CREEPY, not a sign that they are soulmates.

FACT:  Severus Snape joined the Death Eaters BECAUSE HE WANTED TO ALL ALONG. Upon learning that Lily Evans had been targeted, he ran to Dumbledore, begging him to protect her. Only Her. 

“If she means so much to you, could you not ask The Dark Lord for mercy for the mother in exchange for the son?”

 “I’ve tried!” 

“You disgust me. You do not care then about the deaths of her husband and her son, as long as you get what you want?” 

Snape said nothing. - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 33 The Prince’s Tale

If Lily Potter hadn’t been on Voldemort’s death list, would Severus have switched sides? It didn’t have to be Lily. It could have easily been Alice Longbottom instead. Had Neville been The Chosen One, Severus Snape would have remained a Death Eater. He only became a double-agent to repay Dumbledore for protecting Lily.

After Lily dies, Dumbledore has to bribe Severus to help him keep Harry safe.

 “He has her eyes, Severus. Her exact eyes. Surely you remember the shape and color of Lily Evans’s eyes.”

 “DON’T!” Bellowed Snape. “Dead…gone…”

“You know how and why she died. Let it not be in vane. Help me protect her son.” 

 “He doesn’t need protection! The Dark Lord is gone-”

“He will return.”

 “Very well. But never tell, Dumbledore! I cannot bare it…especially Potter’s son!” - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 33, The Prince’s Tale.

Yikes, Severus. You loved this woman so much, or so you claim, but the idea of helping to protect HER CHILD, for whom she gave her life, is so unbearable to you because his father, who died trying to protect both of them, was mean to you in grade school? That’s…pretty messed up. 

FACT: 11 years later with a nice cushy job and protection at Hogwarts, Severus Snape continues to be a bitter adult man who is still not over his school yard crush, a woman who has been dead for over a decade and refused to speak to him for six years prior to that. He is in fact so bitter about it that he frequently takes it out on her prepubescent son.

Why? Because he looks a hell of a lot like James Potter.

 “-Mediocre, arrogant as his father, a determined rule breaker, delighted to find himself famous, attention seeking and impertinent -” 

 “You see what you expect to see, Severus. Other teachers report that the boy is modest, likable and reasonably talented. Personally, I find him to be an engaging child.” - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 33, The Prince’s Tale.

But Snape doesn’t only pick on Harry. He picks on many of his young students just because…well…Because he’s an asshole, really! Honestly, the man humiliated 13 year old Neville Longbottom in front of the entire class for messing up on his potions assignment and then attempted to murder the kid’s pet. (See: Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban, Chapter Seven, The Boggart in the Wardrobe.)

Not to mention this lovely scene 

Ron forced Hermione to show Snape her teeth. She was doing her best to hide them with her hands, though this was difficult as they had grown past her collar.

 Snape looked coldly at Hermione and then said, “I see no difference.” - Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, chapter 18, The Weighing Of The Wands.

I could name probably a dozen more times that Severus Snape abuses his position as a Professor and treats his students with disrespect and potentially damaging behavior, but we would be here all day and there are other points I’d like to move on to. 

FACT: Severus Snape was uninterested in the possibility of Sirius Black’s innocence and overjoyed at the idea of being the one to turn him over to the Dementors. 

“Two more for Azkaban tonight,” Said Snape, his eyes gleaming fanatically. I shall be interested to see how Dumbledore takes this. He was convinced you were harmless, you know, Lupin…a tame werewolf.” 

 “You fool.” Said Lupin softly. “Is a school boy grudge worth putting an innocent man back inside Azkaban?” - Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, chapter nineteen, The Servant of Lord Voldemort.

 Okay, look, Sirius did try to kill Snape when they were kids. That’s a thing that happened…although there are not enough details of The Willow Incident known in canon to explain exactly what happened and why Sirius would do such a thing knowing that he could have potentially gotten James and Remus killed in the process…but that’s beside the point. What really gets me is that not only did Snape want to have Sirius given the Dementor’s kiss, but Remus also.

 BANG! Thin, snakelike cords burst out from the end of Snape’s wand and twisted themselves around Lupin’s mouth, wrists and ankles, he overbalanced and fell to the ground unable to move. With a roar of rage, Black started towards Snape, but Snape pointed his wand straight between Black’s eyes. 

 “Give me a reason and I’ll do it, I swear.” 

…

“I’ll drag the werewolf. Perhaps the dementors will have a kiss for him too.”  - Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Chapter 19, The Servant of Lord Voldemort.

And it doesn’t stop there. Unable to get what he wanted and have his school rivals killed or imprisoned for absolutely no reason, Severus Butthurt Snape decides to just ruin Remus’ life instead and tells the entire school about his Lycanthropy - oh, wait, I’m sorry…did I say the entire school? I meant the world. 

“Amung these ‘eccentric decisions’ are undoubtedly the controversial staff appointments previously described in this newspaper, which have included the hiring of werewolf Remus Lupin.” - Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix, chapter 15, Hogwarts High Inquisitor. 

 …

“I know she’s a nasty piece of work though- you should hear Remus talk about her.” 

 “Does he know her?” 

“No, but she drafted a bit of anti-werewolf legislation two years ago that makes it almost impossible for him to get a job.”  - Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, chapter 14, Percy and Padfoot.

Two years ago, you say? What happened two years prior to this? Remus was working at Hogwarts and Snape outed him. 

No where in canon does it say that Remus ever did anything to Severus Snape, when honestly out of all the Marauders, he had the most reason to. Snape was always spying on them to get to him, after all. There is no reason for Severus to hate Remus enough to completely destroy his life like this. Only the fact that Severus Snape is without a doubt the biggest grudge holder to have ever lived.

FACT: Severus Snape is a war hero. 

Yes. He was. He was a key player in the defeat of Lord Voldemort, though not necessarily by his own choice. He was dragged into it by Dumbledore and by his own guilt, feeling this was the only way he could truly make amends for what happened between him and Lily when they were fifteen. 

So does begrudgingly becoming a double agent in the war as payment for Dumbledore’s attempts to keep Lily Evans safe for his own selfish reasons really negate every awful thing this man did from the time he was a young child to his guilt-driven ‘heroic’ death? 

No. It doesn’t. 

Severus Snape is a bad person. 

I’m writing out my headcanons about undertale metatextual metaphysics because I’ve been sharing bits and pieces of it by insinuation but haven’t clearly laid it on the table yet.

here’s the biggest contention that I want to make: we interact with undertale by way of a… proxy in the gameworld. but that proxy isn’t frisk, and isn’t exactly chara either. and that proxy isn’t specific to undertale.

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Coco Headcanons

It’s hard to see that the gangly youth is her grandpa. But sometimes Victoria could see glimpses of an old man in his eyes. Which would snap back into his cheerful chatter the moment he realizes Victoria is staring. 

Looking so young, most of the Rivera women dotes on him. Especially Elena after joined them and gave him a talking to. But when it comes to dealing with their peers that are being forgotten, Hector is their guide and rock. 

When they got a problem that’s out of their league, Hector always knows a guy (who may or may not be dabbling in something illegal or is annoyed at him).

Hector once helped Oscar and Felipe with a physics problem with his experience of driving a minivan off the flower bridge. All said in casually chipper tones.

Rosita and Victoria would glance at each other every time Hector would tease Imelda. It reminds them too much of how Coco would sweet-flirt Julio even after they’re married.

Hector once told them the time he was recruited into an archaeological expedition in the Land of the Dead after he unintentionally became an expert in trying to dig his way out of the Land of the Dead and into the ground below the flower bridge. (He wasn’t able to scale the other side of the bridge because he was caught before he could try the climber’s ice axe.)

No one would say it but they all agreed Imelda became more relaxed and smiled more often when Hector became part of their home.

The one time Hector’s anger (at everything that had happened) reared its ugly head, they knew they should’ve seen it coming. Yet not one of them were prepared for it.  

He didn’t shout. Nothing. He just left. Imelda, who didn’t know yet what’s his deal, tracked him down to Shantytown and demanded to know what’s going on. Hector kept saying he needs space to think. But Imelda’s confrontational attitude boxed him into the corner, that’s when it came tumbling out.

Everyone felt helpless when Imelda and Pepita returned with no Hector. Just when everything was going so well. 

And have some tests too

A Case for Reed Richards’ Asexuality: Aphobia and Amatonormativity in Marvel and its Fandom

I have been thinking quite a lot about how fandom’s rampant aphobia factors into Reed hate, probably because I recently discovered that a Marvel artist had vilified Reed in the past over on Twitter by claiming that he is an asshole who thinks of his wife as “just a friend,” as though it somehow would make his love for her less valuable or important if he did. So I’m going to talk about the ways in which Reed has been coded as ace within Fantastic Four canon, and how he is troublingly framed as strange, abnormal, and Other both by official FF canon and fandom over this ace-coding. To be clear, Reed has never been explicitly called ace in canon, but there are moments where it’s been made abundantly clear that he does not experience sexual attraction and that he is fairly ambivalent about sex. 

It does bear pointing out that Reed DOES love his wife romantically—if you’ve ever read FF comics, that much is fairly obvious:

I love you, Susan. You bring light…and life…and joy…and meaning to my days. Now and forever.

Marvel Knights 4 #21

But the fact that he doesn’t behave like a stereotypical heterosexual man—in possession of a high libido, sexually aggressive, obsessed with sex, constantly sexualizing and hitting on and competing over women the way Ben and Johnny do, etc.—means that, in many people’s eyes, Reed’s love for his wife is somehow lacking and not really love. Personally, I think it factors quite a lot into people’s arguments that Reed is “abusive” for “neglecting” his wife, which he simply is and does not do in canon. The implication is that it’s because of his lack of sexual attraction and low sex drive – Reed “owes” Sue sex because he’s her husband, the thinking goes, and his failure to provide it consistently means that he is failing in his husbandly duties. The aphobic notion that aces are abusive to their allo partners because they “withhold” sex is, unfortunately, old and familiar, and it is coercive and, worst of all, encourages rape. Unfortunately, it’s not an interpretation of Reed’s behavior that hasn’t been encouraged in official FF media – take, for instance, this exchange:

Just think of the technological marvels that ancient spaceport might hold, darling!

[sighs] I can see a bikini doesn’t stand a chance with you.

Fantastic Four: The Animated Series: Ep 2x12: The Sentry Sinister

Discussion of aphobia below the cut.

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- Zaunites dying to help Piltover in battle while wearing enforcer uniforms, even though Piltover did nothing to earn it

- Silco, one of the few pro-Zaun/anti-Piltover characters from season 1, reduced into a mouthpiece for "forgiving those who wronged you" and letting go

- Jinx, one of the few anti-Piltover characters, becoming redeemed by sympathizing with Piltovians, being apologetic for killing Councilors, and feeling like she should die to allow her sister to be happy with her enforcer girlfriend

- Vi not having any problem with her Piltovian enforcer girlfriend gassing Zaun, and reduced to kneeling for Caitlyn's pussy in a prison cell, where she was locked for years as a child by an enforcer

- Jayce telling Viktor that his disease was never a weakness to be cured even though the disease was caused by Piltover polluting Zaun

- Ekko never calling out Heimerdinger's failings as a ruler nor Vi for joining the enforcers (even though he does in the game), and also risking all the Firelights' lives to help Piltover

- Sevika not having any lines in Act 3, never interacting with Jinx or reacting to Isha's death, and also risking her life to help Piltover, a decision which was made off screen

Snape smoked from age fifteen to twenty and then stopped but he started again after Harry decked that mountain troll in the girl’s bathroom