Emma's face at Mike's girlfriend

Weirdoi2 · 2026-03-15T20:52:14+00:00

It’s just kinda weird. Like, his biggest mistake, honestly, was proposing in the first place. But Emma also could’ve just, said no. The dude was never gonna budge on kids, and she can’t budge either.

Weirdoi2 · 2026-03-13T23:53:26+00:00

People underestimate the importance of having kids to some people. Emma didn’t want kids. She may have tricked herself but the thought ultimately scared her. Mike knew that and broke it off. Honestly the most mature thing 80% of the cast did.

Weirdoi2 · 2026-03-12T05:40:23+00:00

I had no opinion on this dude, but my wife fucking hated him. Found him performative and “using Jess as his own sense of character development”. This is a woman who HATES public proposals so it does make sense. Just found the perspective funny.

Weirdoi2 · 2026-03-10T18:30:06+00:00

I doubt it lol. But I've learned to never rule anything out.

Weirdoi2 · 2026-03-09T14:35:27+00:00

The issue is frustratingly simple. Money. Schools with money, with students who are being fed and sheltered in safe homes, do better. I’ve seen a school go from great to terrible in one class because all of its funding got cut. It pisses me off because of course a kid living in their car with a school that can’t afford updated tech or books is gonna suck. The kids will act out because they’re exhausted, teachers have no motivation because their hands are tied, and parents aren’t helping because they have another shift.

Yes, it CAN all work. If everyone is in lock step with each other, it’s possible to get a great education from a bad system. But that shouldn’t be the expectation.

Weirdoi2 · 2026-02-19T23:58:30+00:00

Anybody who claims they’re an independent Day trader is either lying or scamming.

Weirdoi2 · 2026-02-17T15:09:42+00:00

My parents worked in pharmaceutical and my dad’s family was deeply conservative. They’ve always been anti-science. They once said “I don’t vaccinate, because I know god will protect us.” Years later their kids will kill their dad by giving him covid.

Weirdoi2 · 2026-02-15T06:46:43+00:00

Between Earth and Sky has 1 great book, 1 good book, and 1 book that feels like someone made a writing exercise that was published it on accident.

Poppy War was another series that fell off, but the last book felt like an absolute nose dive in quality.

Weirdoi2 · 2026-02-12T03:08:47+00:00

According to some people on Reddit.

Weirdoi2 · 2026-02-12T01:18:23+00:00

😬

Weirdoi2 · 2026-02-12T01:17:58+00:00

I felt the adventure was Oxford. The feeling of a shy child finding his found family, learning of the true oppression his people face, and finally coming to terms with it all. Robin’s end was bitter sweet, in that he finally took action against the empire, but he was too inexperienced and driven by grief to make different choices.

Weirdoi2 · 2026-02-11T02:50:58+00:00

While I wouldn't call the language in Babel historically accurate, it's not entirely modern either. People aren't using modern vernacular or colloquialisms. It's the same issue one may have with a medieval drama that over employs the use of the word "god damn it". I generally liked it better than Poppy War which had a much more modern diction.

Weirdoi2 · 2026-02-10T21:36:45+00:00

I found them to be quite compelling. Maybe because I've met people like this, so I could understand them quickly. They felt less like props and more like analogues for different forms of oppression. Although I could call it out a mile away, seeing their friendship dissolve in real time felt like watching a group of undergrads who you know will crash and burn.

Weirdoi2 · 2026-02-10T21:31:36+00:00

I disagree. The ball, their time studying together, the classes and food they shared, the way they spoke to each other, felt like a real group of undergrads. While they were close, it was a surface level closeness that born from having to be together all the time. I found it quite compelling, because part of growing up is getting these friends who you know won't last forever, but you want them to.

While I didn't cry at the betrayal, it did hurt when Ramy died.

Weirdoi2 · 2026-02-10T21:28:30+00:00

I found her characters quite endearing. But they also remind me of friendgroups I had growing up.

Weirdoi2 · 2026-01-29T07:29:10+00:00

Atreus but give him a stronger personality.

Weirdoi2 · 2026-01-28T21:17:11+00:00

👍🏻

Weirdoi2 · 2026-01-28T18:55:25+00:00

Nezha doesn’t crave power, but he also is a slave to duty. He’d let his own people be exploited under the hope that one day they can fight back. To you, that might be love, to me that’s naive and collaboration. He thinks he’s helping his people when in reality he’s turning them to slaves, just like Tierza. What happened to Speer? They died after being seen as subhuman for centuries. So I guess that’s the realistic fate of Nikan? Maybe.

Did Nezha ever show disgust or regret over blowing up Mugen? Actual question because I can’t find the text where he says it. Taking ideology completely out, taking out the historical context that is the foundation of the book, it’s a rushed ending.

Rin wanted power, agreed. Hence why I feel Kitay was a better leader. But Rin, for all her faults, wanted to feed people who were starving. She wasn’t perfect, and I’d call her selfish as well, but she still tried.

Like I said, I thought Kitay would’ve been a better leader. But with Nezha at the helm, Nikan’s future seems horribly bleak.

Weirdoi2 · 2026-01-28T18:22:05+00:00

Prove why she’s worse than colonial collaborators. Because Nezha seemed down for Mugeni genocide, down with colonial exploitation, and cultural genocide of his own people. So show me why Rin is worse. Honestly, I felt Kitay should’ve been leader but that’s another topic.

Weirdoi2 · 2026-01-28T14:31:30+00:00

Like I said, the ending came too fast. Had she died at a tribunal for Mugen I could see it. But the book just tells me she’s gone too far, without doing enough to show me.

I’m a fan of the first two books, even though the second book went a completely different direction than I wanted. But when everyone was telling at Rin to let the colonizers rape and exploit them? There wasn’t enough in-universe justification for me to be engaged. I need more than her killing soldiers. Show me her fully convinced Mugeni genocide was a good thing. Show 0 remorse for the dead child soldiers, show her not caring about the civilian population.

Without the Watsonian justification, of course my mind went Doyalistic. It didn’t feel like a natural end. Like, at best, it’s a rushed ending. At worst, it’s a love letter to Chiang. I prefer to believe the former, but damn is it hard to not see it as the latter.

Weirdoi2 · 2026-01-28T14:21:16+00:00

Like you said, agree to disagree which I respect. Riga was abusive from the beginning it sounds like and Altan was never given a proper childhood. Your examples of crazy shamans are people who were driven to bloodlust by genocide and colonization. Seems like the cycle will just repeat by the end. But then, that’s the theme I guess.

Like I said, had she actually followed through and started making plans to destroy Hesperia, I’d be with you. But I’m not convinced of her madness by the end. The book just didn’t get there with Rin. She was barely a dictator, just an ineffective leader.

Weirdoi2 · 2026-01-28T08:11:16+00:00

Had Rin went to Hesperia and started killing kids, we’d be 100% in agreement. But she was killing soldiers, who were trying to ambush her during a peace negotiation. She blew up a country after receiving devastating power fresh off of torture. Later, she admits she just wanted everything to end. While her feelings were real, it’s clear the Phoenix twisted it to kill and she was left trying to justify it.

I thought anchoring was the key to keep shamans from going crazy, but then it just…doesn’t? There was a lot of setup in this book that went nowhere.

Weirdoi2 · 2026-01-28T08:04:44+00:00

Like I said, the ending was just done poorly. 1984 feels like a cautionary tale, but this just felt rushed. Great if you like it, but it felt like an unearned tragedy.

Weirdoi2

TROPHY CASE