Under the circumstances i will not be thank u

A common quibble I have with a lot of KnH meta analysis is that even really good posts will end up saying Maomao has low status and little power.

It's actually very relevant that she does have considerable privilege in the setting. She's actively trying to stay ignorant about it.

Obviously she isn't royalty, but even from the first light novel, Maomao was hiding the fact she's literate and educated-- out of pride to not share her increased wages with her kidnappers. She also tried to stay hidden when she made that warning about the lead powder, not wanting any credit for that. Plus, she's very aware that her adopted father's nephew is insistant on claiming her as his daughter, she lays it out in Season 2 that challenging him directly is "refusing to run anymore."

Not only is she significantly more empowered than most of her peers at any given point, she is usually running from it.

Her issue is never wanting to be dependant on others, or have others be dependant on her. She doesn't want to communicate her feelings to anyone. She never wants to ask for help. She never wants to feel like she owes anyone.

Maomao is not submissive. Maomao is not beheadable. She insists she is, because that's emotionally easier than having to accept the mortifying ordeals of "You Need To Talk About Your Feelings" and "Your Actions Have Consequences."

the fact that she is the Madame's granddaughter is where this all came from, it is the only reason Fengxaing wasn't thrown out into the streets after she couldn't work and had run the brothel's name into the ground. this absolutely saved Maomao from a life on the streets, but it also put her in an incredibly precarious position. because she didn't "earn" her privileges, they were tenuous from what I can tell, and subject to the whims of others.

maomao knew how to walk the line between not seeming favored and therefore, a threat. all while being just important or connected enough to keep herself secure. it's a survival skill that has served her well, and we absolutely see it on display with her dynamic with Gyokuyou, just important enough to be kept around but not too important to be made an enemy.

This is what Roerich's paintings look like:

And sometimes, you become fat. Something happened (puberty, change in diet, change in ability, anything) and someone who was once skinny is now fat. This doesnt make you a failure. It just means ur fat now. Its okay. You didnt do something wrong.

Edit: the title for this comic is “Puzzle Rat” this one’s a few days late due to having a lot of doctors appointments sorry it’s  just 9 pages, and about some rats… it’s more symbolic than anything really

Robert Hainard (1906 - 1999). Colored woodcut. September 24th, 1983.

They return from the country, and their mom is surprised when all her children hug her at the station. Even Peter, who thinks he’s all grown up. Even Edmund, who went away surly and withdrawn. She doesn’t know her children haven’t seen her in over a decade.

They miss their dear Cair Paravel, but they absolutely do not miss its chamber pots. Indoor plumbing is amazing.

It takes a while to remember how modern technology works, though. How many heart attacks did the siblings give their parents or the professor because they walked into a dark room only to turn on the light and find the children sitting there in the dark. (They were by the window! There was still plenty of light from the sunset! They would have gotten a candle in a minute!) The kids sheepishly remember oh yeah electricity is a thing.

(Edmund has a new electric torch in Prince Caspian. He was so excited to get that torch. Almost more excited than you’d think a kid his age would be, and his parents expect Peter at least to tease him, but the siblings all agree light in your hand at the touch of a switch is terrific.)

Suddenly getting really high grades in some subjects and terrible in others. Their grammar, reading comprehension, spelling, vocab, even penmanship? Amazing. History and geography? They don’t remember anything. One time in class Susan forgets Earth is round and wants to die.

Also they can never remember what the date is supposed to be because Narnia uses different months and years. They can estimate time really well by looking at the sun though, and Edmund at least can always tell which way is north etc without thinking about it (again, using the sun)

Okay but how many times did they go to pick something up or reach something and realize they are so much shorter and less muscled than they expect? It’s a common sight to see Peter climbing on counters to reach a top cabinet, grumbling about how he’s High King this is demeaning. (No he never takes the extra five seconds to grab a stool. He will climb that shelf.)

Peter and Susan being delighted because they are no longer almost thirty. (In a few years Edmund and Lucy will tease them about being old and their parents will not understand.)

Lucy doesn’t have to deal with periods anymore for a few years yet. Susan might not either. Heck yeah

Lucy loves to climb into her siblings’ laps and be cuddled. In Narnia she eventually she grew too big, but now she is small and snuggleable again. Peter is her favorite, and if she’s upset, he’ll tickle her and tell bad jokes until she’s smiling again, but really she loves cuddling with all her family. She grew up without her parents; how many times did she just want to crawl into her mom’s lap and her mom was a world away? Imagine the first time she realizes she can now. Or, imagine one day, a cold and grey sort of day, when the rain is pattering against the windows, and it sounds like the rain on the windows of the Professor’s house, that first day they went exploring. It sounds like the day they played hide and seek. It sounds so like the rain on the windows of Cair Paravel, that if Lucy closes her eyes she can imagine she’s back there, having tea and chatting with Mr. Tumnus before the fireplace of her room, and soon the rain will stop, and they will go out on the balcony and wave to the naiads and the dryads and the mermaids, who have come out to enjoy the rain and visit one other on the banks of the Great River winding past Cair Paravel down to the sea.

But if Lucy looks out the window, all she’ll see is the rain over London, so it’s not only a cold and grey sort of day, it’s a lonely sort of day too.

Susan and Edmund are playing chess in the living room (and they must have studied with Professor Kirke, thinks their mother, because they certainly weren’t that good when they left). Lucy goes over to Edmund, and oh dear, thinks their mother, now he’s going to call her a baby and be horrible to her, but instead he picks her up and puts her on his lap without even taking his eyes off the chessboard; it’s simply a matter of course.

“Doesn’t the rain sound familiar?” says Lucy in a solemn, wistful way.

Their mother doesn’t know what that means, but her siblings must, because Susan says, “Yes, Lu, it does,” and Edmund gives her a little hug with his free arm as she tucks herself under his chin to watch the chess match.

“hana” means flower in Japanese, faucet in Finnish

“kana” is a word for the Japanese writing systems and also a girl’s name (I think?), means chicken in Finnish

“risu” means small twig in Finnish, squirrel in Japanese

“sora” means (among other things) sky in Japanese, gravel in Finnish

“kasa” means umbrella in Japanese, pile or heap in Finnish

“himo” means string in Japanese, lust in Finnish

“kutsu” means shoes in Japanese, invitation in Finnish

“aho” means clearing or glade in Finnish and is the last name of a former Prime Minister of Finland, idiot in Japanese

“Henna” is a not-entirely-uncommon Finnish female first name, means weird in Japanese

the two names above have been combined and cause hilarious results

*watch with sound*

I was going to post this with a nice, slow contemplative track, but then this happened.

Not sure about skipping in the air, though…

This clip - where the swords are moving at more like realistic speed - actually includes some bodyguarding.

NB that if a two-handed sword is too heavy, say 5kg / 11 lbs and up (the one in this post is 6.6kg / 14½ lbs) it was made for carrying in processions, not for fighting; such swords might not even be properly tempered for combat use.

Despite their size, combat two-handers weren’t especially heavy, no more than 3.5kg / 8 lbs, while the OP and the one in the following pic from London Longsword, with their narrow blades, may weigh even less. It meant they were both fast and nimble; with the long grip as a lever and dominant hand as its pivot, a cut or thrust could change direction faster than an opponent might expect.

So while clever stuff like ducking in behind the swing might work, if it didn’t work, the not-so-clever person could be in a world of hurt. Even if the blade didn’t cut them (the edge might be out of alignment, it happens) getting a full-force wallop on the head, shoulder or arm from five feet of steel is something anyone with sense would rather avoid.

Those little spikes on the blade near the hilt (”parrying-hooks”) function as a secondary crossguard and on some swords - like the one on the right in the photo below - are much further along, with the ricasso section covered in leather for a better grip.

Holding it like this shortens the weapon by almost a foot for fighting at closer quarters, in a combat style that IIRC abandoned great sweeping strokes and relied more on the point, as if the sword was a spear that could also inflict cuts (as some spears can do).

The wavy (”flamboyant” / “flamberge”) edges didn’t make the blade cut better, or cause worse wounds, though you’ll see such claims made on the web * but they looked cool and the increased use of water-powered grinding wheels meant they were a lot easier to create.

Start with a plain blade, grind on the fancy edges, and there you go.

* If wavy edges were so much more efficient than straight ones, there should be a lot more cut-dedicated historical swords - sabres, katanas, scimitars etc. - made that way. And there aren’t. Indo-Persian swords with wavy blades or serrated edges seem to demonstrate swordsmithing skill and conspicuous consumption more than improving the weapon’s fighting quality.

This one has serrations on the back of the blade, where they have nothing to do with the cutting edge at all….

Another suggested effect is that the wavy blade or edge - especially on a sidesword or rapier - made parrying uncomfortable for those not used to it, giving the wielder an advantage. This is possible, but such swords are rare and unusual, suggesting the “advantage” if it existed at all wasn’t enough to make it popular.

I’ve got a private theory that a lot of the wavy-edge Zweihander / montante swords currently on display date from after such weapons went out of use, and were made (or older ones pimped up) that way as decor because it made them look more impressive when hung on mansion walls.

YMMV on that one.

They’re also still part of the equipment (regalia?) of the Papal Swiss Guard, and are carried on parade in a distinctive way.

Interesting detail: these swords have parrying-hooks, but they’re right up against the main crossguard with no room for a hand, so are no use for their intended function.