A Grimmer X Runge Playlist

Found these in my drafts

I have questions regarding the post you made to answer redpiece99's question. They asked if Urasawa killed Grimmer because he didn't know what to do with his character. Very interesting post, by the way. In your opinion, Grimmer's death was a bad idea. Why? And what else did you not like about Monster's ending?

Sorry for taking so long to answer.

I have actually been asked a similar question before, but I couldn't find it in me to write a reply back then. It's a loaded question with a loaded answer. A very long, probably somewhat controversial answer, but I'll try. I am trying to force myself into speaking more on the internet, anyway. On the side note – I haven't revisited Monster for a while, so some of my facts might be off.

As to why I think killing Grimmer was a bad idea – in my opinion, it was a lazy solution, and lazy solutions are disrespectful to the audience, hence, a bad idea. I loved how, throughout the course of Monster, Urasawa kept leading all these different plot lines, like strings that were supposed to tie off, or lead to something meaningful, or interconnect in the end. But in the end, it felt like he just dropped most of those strings. It felt pointless, having followed all that. Grimmer's death felt like one of those strings.

I honestly don't even know where to start off and how to explain it. The most harmless example – before I finished Monster, I read some fanfiction. And in one work I read that Tenma became a member of Doctors Without Borders, and Runge started teaching at the Police Academy. And I thought that it was hilarious. I thought that the author just got this super silly headcannon out of nowhere, and it was very out of character. You can imagine my surprise when I found out that it was canon.

Now, Runge teaching at the Police Academy, I can kind of embrace that. Maybe he decided to calm down, settle in and have a life where he spends more time with his family, although I kind of find it hard to imagine. I used it in my own fanfiction, too, this idea fits into that imaginary scenario where Runge develops attachment for Grimmer, and in order to have a more peaceful life with him he decides to settle for a safer job. Risk free, safer job = higher probability of longer and safer life. It makes sense. Same works with the family concept.

Now, Tenma becoming a Doctor Without Borders member, that does not make sense to me at all. I refuse that reality. He does not HAVE TO become a Doctor Without Borders. He would NOT leave Dieter with a literal criminal or, like, whomever, just to live that lifestyle. It's not his lifestyle, and it's not his personality. He would not abandon a child who's already been abandoned and abused. In the end, Urasawa made Tenma into a travelling doctor just so Tenma would have an excuse to visit Johann from time to time. And to meet Johann's mother in the meanwhile.

And really, that's the main problem. Johann is Monster's main problem. Him and his dumb issues, dumb excuses, dumb personality. That's a whole other topic. Concerning this topic, the 'why I think Monster's ending was bad' topic, there are two main reasons for me that concern Johann.

Johann should not have survived the gunshot.

Johann cannot and shall not be excused, especially by means of blaming his mother.

Why on earth would Runge make Tenma save Johann? Why did Tenma obey, when the exact same thing got him into so much trouble in the past? Just so Urasawa could once again point out that all lives matter, and then deliver that special little idea that maybe, in a way, Johann is innocent, and then add that cute little plot twist of Johann escaping the hospital? Because, why was Johann kept in a normal hospital, anyway? It's not like he has poisoned a bunch of people the last time he was there, right? It's not like he committed an uncountable amount of crimes, so he should be kept in a prison hospital, right? And the trauma Johann encountered, man... so much trauma... like that time his mother gave Nina away to Bonaparta, and Nina had an absolute dogshit experience there, and then Johann appropriated Nina's trauma. Because he didn't know whom his mother actually wanted to sacrifice. What if it was him, idk?

Like, okay. He had to dress up as Nina so that his mother wouldn't know whom she was giving away. A creature trying to survive, alright, I get it. Still not a trauma. And then he killed a bunch of people. Just because. But he also has a split personality, where he's good. But he kills for absolute destruction. Because he's a monster. And he's kind of like a little kid. And he dressed up as Nina again to frame her, just like he framed Tenma. Very manipulative. But the dress he wears, it's like his mother's, when she decided which one of her kids to give away. And Johann, he just want to watch the world burn for some deep philosophical reason, but he's also kind of sweet, and he's diabolically clever, but also a baby. See what I'm talking about? It was so hard to follow this character, at least for me. And I guess it's a fun character concept – in concept! I hated the realization.

And I don't even want to talk about how it was lightly hinted that Johann became the way he is because of his mother. He did not become anything, he was. He is worse than just a psychopath. And there were enough of these funny allowances throughout the Monster that I was kind of closing my eyes on, like Grimmer's son dying because his father didn't smile at him quite right, and then Grimmer's wife left him because he didn't grieve quite right, and every Bonaparta-programmed kid having very serious problems with relationship and families just because they weren't showing their emotions quite right – that's not how it works. A lot of people don't show their emotions quite right, and they still have relationships and kids. Or how Johann possess this special kind of eugenics-bred charm, the magical charm, I would say, and he actually might be possessed by demons or maybe he's actually the devil, who knows. All that – alright, I'll bite. Not the Johann justification part, and all the Johann-related plot holes. Nina turned out just fine. I don't understand why we couldn't have a proper good ending where Johann finally got what he wanted himself – a bullet in the head, Tenna tried his best to raise Dieter without that DWB shindig, Runge kept being a detective because, by that point, that's what he is... it would be good if Grimmer stayed alive, too.

Concerning that, in the ending, why did Runge, Suk and Vardemann got together to give a hearfelt speech before Grimmer's grave, on some kind of anniversary? Where did they bury him? Are they friends now? I guess they are. They were working together on clearing Grimmer's name and became friends, I guess? It feels absurd. Everything feels absurd.

tl;dr: I think Monster's ending was absurd, out of character, and despite the strange sugar-coating, it is a bad ending. It's like covering rotting meat in a confectionery glaze. It's inappropriate, and, in my opinion, not in Monster's spirit. For me, it ruined the whole work.

Playing dumb (on purpose)

Some stuff I did a while back. I love these guys! Love them. Wish there was more content with them, but I always fall into the same trap with these rarepairs, don't I?

The first one is a straight-up redraw, and the marshmellow sketch is also a variation of that photo in the down right corner (obviously):

ew dump

A gift for @3aloe3, because she wanted some Maxwil, and who am I to not give her what she wants?

Did you make the Fish 'n chips Tommatt comic?

No, I did not. I believe you're thinking about @uiiyru's tommatt comic. It's still on Tumblr, as far as I can see. We are not the same person.

Hello! Firstly, I'd like to thank you for making me love Grunge through your fic "So Much to Say"! I've already left comments but I had to say it again. And I love your art too! I've seen you love Tenma/Gillen as well; what do you like the most about this ship?

Hello! Thank you, I'm glad you liked my work. As for Tenma/Gillen, yes, I do like this pairing, but I haven't been actively shipping anything from Monster for a while, so it's hard for me to tell 😦 I can't really pinpoint what I like about their dynamic in particular. I have been thinking about how to answer this question for the past few days, but I've come to realize that I can't say anything definitive.

Well, I like Gillen. More than Tenma, actually. Canonically, Gillen became really devoted to Tenma. And I have this thing in my head, where if I feel like the character I like wants another character, I must make it so my favourite character gets what they want (same thing with Runge/Grimmer). So it all boils down to me thinking that Gillen wants Tenma. And I think he would be capable of treating Tenma well. The fact that Gillen got divorced three times tells me that he's better off without women, too. And if Tenma adopted Dieter (he should have had), I find it funny that Dieter would probably hate Gillen with all his heart, despite Gillen making his best effort to appease the boy. However you look at it, I find the dynamic amusing. Even in the "Doctors without borders" scenario, I think Gillen and Dieter would make amends over them both wanting to see Tenma, missing him, while the other is always away, somewhere out of the country. The dynamic should always involve Dieter, unless it's Gillen and Tenma during the time when they were both studying in the medical university.

I will not describe all the stages of grief I went through when I realized what happened and what remained of Voltron, and what was left for these two characters in particular.

I have almost finished watching Voltron in 2023, and this is a hopelessly dead city. I can see all the horrible things that went down in this city. I am simultaneously relieved and saddened by the fact that it's 2023 and the city is long, long left by all its bitter inhabitants. I will not stay here for long, myself. But I will say is that it's a shame that there is practically no Slav/Coran content, when there's so much potential for this ship. Also, people should've known what they were signing for when they began watching Voltron. The protagonists have been stupid and/or inexperienced from the start. This is a show about protagonists stumbling and failing miserably as they go, because they have no idea what they're doing, bringing more trouble onto themselves by being stupid and/or inexperienced, but still managing to pull through by some unimaginable stroke of luck or by somebody else's sacrifice. They are not written badly, it's just their character. The only one who knew what he was doing, Lotor, got murdered for letting his guard down and wanting to do the right thing for once. I find it extremely fascinating. This is how things work in real life, and this is not a kids' show. This is a bitter adult show. It got itself an entirely wrong target audience by drawing too many space asses and letting Shiro pose as a serious character, even for a second. It's tragic, what happened, really.

What a sad, dead city.