I’ve always imagined there being an episode of VAT7K where team radical hears of this fortune teller and spends the episode seeking her out and when they get to her she reveals in a dramatic way that someone is going to betray the team (a lot like The Oracle in the Pjo musical) and that ends the episode.
So next episode we see team radical is on edge and suspecting each other to be the traitor of the group. Obviously it’s Hugo, but he freaks out and just kind of fires back every time someone says something about him (“How do we know Nuru won’t steal the totems for herself once we complete the quest? I bet Varian has something to hide”) and he does it in a way that just kind of fans the flames.
Varian is the only one not acting like this because he is CONVINCED the traitor is him. At this point in their journey, his past as The Alchemist is still hidden and he intended on keeping it that way until this whole debacle. Now he has to watch his whole team fall apart and accuse each other of betraying the team all the while knowing he’s the one who betrayed them.
The last straw is when they’re sitting around the campfire and someone accuses Yong. That’s when he finally snaps and is like “It’s me, okay? I’m the traitor!” Then there’s this whole dramatic lament he does about his past and how he’s a terrible person for not telling them and he understands if they don’t want to help him anymore. Nuru and Yong are understandably shocked, but Hugo? Hugo just sits there quietly, trying to figure out what that weird feeling in his chest is. It almost feels like guilt, but no. That can’t be. Hugo doesn’t feel guilt. If anything, he should feel relieved that his secret is safe.
Eventually, Nuru takes Varian’s hand and smiles softly at him. She tells him he’s not a traitor for keeping this from them, for trying to hide something he isn’t proud of. She says everyone in the group betrayed each other by turning on and accusing one another the way they did. They’re all traitors to each other, and they should all learn to do better.
This is the turning point where I believe Team Radical officially becomes a real team. Before this they were just a group of kids with their own interests in mind, but now they’re a unit. There’s a new, unspoken level of trust and unity between them and it shows in the way they handle the rest of their journey. I think this is also the point of the show where Hugo starts doubting his mission just a bit. It’s not enough to make him want to back out (yet), but it is when the first seed of doubt is planted in his mind.
Sorry for the ramble I’ve just had this idea for so long and had to get it out somewhere 😭
the pipeline of fixating over some thingy
How do you feel about VATSK as a concept? I’ve noticed a lot of people in the fandom like it but have things they would change, so I want to know your opinion
the concept itself is something i genuinely really am Deeply intrigued by (i'd have to be if im at this level of fixated on it) and generally i absolutely love it
i DO have a habit of fixating on things that have a base concept that simultaneously lets me add my own takes to it. i like being given interesting concepts and then building off of them. i'll admit that with vat7k- it's probably the most intense it's ever been LOL.... kind of sick in the head about it
that all being said, i do certainly have things i would change both in terms of the initial concept the storyboard artists created and what some of the fandom likes to do. here are some off the top of my head:
retcon the 7 kingdoms as they appear in tangled the series. like it wasnt a big deal within tangled's story but i think these kingdoms need to be better fleshed out and have a stronger form of identity. there is no way i can accept nuru's kingdom just being Generic European Kingdom, for example. i probably would change hugo's kingdom too and focus on heavy industrialism instead of just "scary warrior women" (to be fair to vat7k, the concepts dont seem to use the 7 kingdoms in tangled as the base anyway lol but just in case... im saying i would change them)
bloodline does not equal inherent similarities. with both varian's mother being an alchemist like him and his mom's side of the family being inventors too... it implies there might have been a trope im not super fond of. instead, i prefer the idea that varian has to learn that there is no inherent, birth-given truth that makes him who he is. his family became inventors because of the environment they live in, not because of something in their blood. i like the idea that the more he learns about his mom (and the unsavory parts about her), the more he fears he's becoming exactly like her (which culminates at the end). credit again to the concept- it seems like that was the idea with ulla, i would just want to make sure that notion is consistent throughout the story
hugo's character (in regards to some aspects). ive talked about it many times before but while i love most of his character there are a couple things i'd change about him. namely the idea he's flirtatious and the idea he is greedy in the typical thief way. i think he is far too emotionally repressed and distrustful that he'd ever (even casually with intimacy) want to do anything like that (this includes all forms of affection, including platonic friendship). i also think that while his longing for Finer Things and Wealth is present- it doesn't take the form of coveting precious jewels and treasure. he would more quickly be drawn to a device with top-of-the-line material than a golden crown. this kind of ties in with my whole take that he is ever so pretentious and particular about things- but that's also a sign that deep down he just genuinely has a strong spirit and sense of self, i just dont think he realizes this and considers himself a bad person, but doesnt really care if hes stuck being bad (lie). he is also, yknow, incredibly intelligent with a brilliant mind that makes him stand out to other thieves. this is important, and something varian can see quite clearly
varian's past is a big plot point. credit to the fandom this time, it does seem like this is generally accepted as something that should happen even if the concept doesn't seem to really talk about it at all. i would definitely want to delve more into the trauma varian has and the guilt he carries with him and how that works with hugo- someone also holding guilt and trauma. not to say the others would have nothing to do with it- they would! it's an important part of the story, for me, to depict how these characters handle trauma and a past they're not proud of (and even scared of)
💫To Be A Man💫
Thrilled I get to post my part of @ghostsharkpress ‘s transology zine before pride month ends. Our prompt was to recontextualize a formative childhood cartoon through the lense of transness/gncness.
These are thoughts I’ve had spilling around in my head for a while and seeing how important Treasure Planet was for me as a kid I thought it would be perfect. I always struggled with the fact I don’t really have any older male guide or figure to learn myself from so as a kid I tried to mimic the masculinity of shows or my peers. Growing older and wanting to step out of boyhood has really been a journey of self discovery and self worth and I’m really proud of the person I’m becoming.
"you're the writer, you control how the story goes" no not really. i wrote the first sentence and then my characters said "WE WILL TAKE IT FROM HERE" and promptly swerved into an electrical fence.
i’m so glad earth only has one moon, if there were more i’d have to pick a favorite and that sounds too emotionally taxing to even fathom
Oughhhh this song is so them
That's not fair.
(If you want to see me vent I'm on tiktok, @cryingbard)
Every time someone makes a “whos stronger varian or hugo” post a fairy fucking dies
i think owning a physical copy of i saw the tv glow would cure me