#(her main complaints were about how much they worship her which i completely agree with. its weird and gross)

[spartan-officer-brasidas]

It seems like a few of you agreed that Ubisoft mishandled the Gods in more than a few ways, and I’m still mad about it so I just want to go through and explain how they were so poorly represented. I will concede that there are more than a few ‘right’ ways to represent a God and it all comes down to your own interpretation of the Gods and their myths, but I think in general, Ubisoft really fell short. My personal interpretations come from my major in Classics and my worship of the Greek and Roman pantheons, so my opinions on this will reflect those interpretations but feel free to have and share your own!

Let’s start simple. Juno. Juno is a really interesting Goddess, both in religion and in the games. I, personally, don’t do anything special for Hera/Juno/Uni, but I know that she is an incredibly loving Goddess and is remarkably loyal to her husband and those she holds dearly. Now, I think Ubisoft did Juno okay, only because her loving and loyal nature can make her a fierce enemy, and I think Ubisoft showed that well. She, from my knowledge, is a main antagonist in the series, and given that “modern” Rome is a part in Ezio’s story, that makes sense. Juno was NOT a supporter of the foundation of Ancient Rome. She made several attempts to keep Aeneas from getting to Italy and she is openly not a fan of Aeneas, given his Trojan heritage and his role in Rome’s founding. Basically, her being an antagonist makes sense and I don’t think it really devalues her as a Goddess at all.

This is, unfortunately, where the praise ends. I’ll just go in order, so Persephone is next. Persephone is, perhaps, the biggest victim in this mess Ubisoft created. I would like to first clarify a few things regarding Persephone as a Goddess. How you choose to view her relationship with Hades doesn’t really matter to me—that’s something only you can decide, but there are a few aspects that are important to consider. First of all, beyond the initial kidnapping and drama with that, there’s not too much suggesting they had a rocky relationship. There were a few minor hiccups, but nothing major. And two, going on Ancient Greek standards, Hades did nothing wrong. Now, kidnapping is bad, we know this. Except, Hades didn’t really kidnap her, per se. He asked Zeus for her hand in marriage and Zeus agreed. Hades actually did the “right” thing, though in a twisted way that really isn’t acceptable in today’s standards. All that said and done...all I can say is what was Ubisoft thinking? I mean, Persephone is routinely a benefactor for heroes *who come to her* and she is mostly portrayed as incredibly benevolent. The fact that Ubisoft made her a borderline tyrant with a unreasonable desire for total order and control and made her relationship with Hades one of the worst depictions I’ve ever seen is upsetting. It’s tragic, really. I almost feel like I have to personally apologize to Her whenever I think about what they did to her.

I’ll keep Hermes and Hekate short and sweet because they got off a bit easier than Persephone did. All I have to say is both Gods are insultingly shallow in the dlc. Hermes is blinded by his love for Persephone, and while he definitely did pursue her in the myths, he didn’t dwell on the unrequited feelings—he is a powerful God of many things, he doesn’t need to dwell on it. And Hekate was given the short end of the stick between the two and she became the backstabbing friend. We honestly don’t learn much about her at all and she’s made to be extremely unlikable, which is not the aura given from the Goddes Herself. It’s a shame what happened to these two.

Now we will move to Hades. My biggest issue with Hades is actually the whole issue with continuity between Jupiter/Zeus/Tinia being the same but Pluto/Hades/Aita not being the same, but alas, Ubisoft totally butchered his character as well, so I can put aside my grievances about the continuity. Hades is portrayed as this chaotic antagonist who really only has his own benefit in mind which is...an extremely confusing interpretation. I mean, Hades is, IMO, the least chaotic God out there. And even more so, he isn’t a vicious leader like they make him out to be. Sure, he maintains order in the Underworld with an iron fist, but that’s just the issue. The Hades seen in Odyssey is...not that. He doesn’t maintain order at all, and yet he’s doing something with a very aggressive iron fist. He’s power hungry, angry, and violent, and all of that goes unchecked until Kassandra/Alexios rolls around to stop it for the time being. The Hades I worship isn’t like that at all, and I don’t think the Ancient Greeks viewed him that way either, though I can’t say for certain.

Charon is next and I don’t have too much to say about him. He’s just so forgettable in my opinion. Charon is the ferryman of the dead, so I suppose he’s not supposed to leave a lasting impression, but he takes on the role of maneuvering you through the Underworld—a job he, historically, doesn’t have. His job is to take you across the River Styx and then be done with you. It’s a relatively minor complaint really, but I would’ve liked to see his character fleshed out a bit more.

Down to the last three, and Poseidon is up. The issue I have with Poseidon is kind of a personal one. Poseidon, while not one of my primary deities, is one of those that I frequently turn to and worship more frequently, so naturally his rather bland portrayal was disappointing at best and insulting at worst. I personally don’t think he gets much character development at all, which is unfortunate because Poseidon, as a God and in the myths, is incredibly complex. He’s a great asset if he’s on your side, but he can also be a very formidable foe, and they seem to want to show those two sides but they really fall short on both. Now, this could be related to the fact that of the three dlcs, Atlantis truly felt the most rushed. You have hardly any time to really take in the story and the whole thing just seems like one big after thought, and Poseidon, unfortunately, took the hit with that. Also, he just passes judgement and in a way rule over Atlantis over to a mortal, which I get is important to the story, but why? That’s so not how things are done.

Now we have Aita. So for those of you who don’t know or haven’t figured it out by now, Aita is the Etruscan God of the Underworld. I’ve already explained my main issue with him, and how he and Hades should be the same, but honestly, that’s the least of the crimes committed against him. In my opinion, Ubisoft has completely striped Aita of his Godhood. All of the other shown deities have this natural feeling to them that Aita lacks. He seems so lackluster standing next to Juno and he’s reduced to this scientist role, which—don’t get me wrong—is neat and powerful and all, but this is the Etruscan god of the underworld! Why should he linger in the shadows of Juno when he could be an equal to her, all things considered! I know the Etruscan gods/pantheon are not as widely known, but that doesn’t make them less godly, and what they’ve done to him is upsetting to say the least. I would love to see some other Etruscan gods, like Tinia and Uni, and I would like for them to be treated with the respect they deserve. More people could know about this fascinating culture and religion! Is that too much to ask?

Finally, we get to Aletheia. Now, she is a bit different in that I don’t know of many myths surrounding the goddes of truth, and it’s totally possible that she may solely be a representation of truth more so than a character in the myths. Aletheia’s story was...anticlimactic. I honestly don’t think her story got resolved at all. Ubisoft left me feeling like there was more we needed to know about her, and they also implied that she isn’t exactly a good guy. I mostly just want more from her. I think if they play on Juno being related to her, they could really make a very good story, but as it is, Aletheia got put on the back burner, and that? That is unfortunate.

This is already a very long post, so I won’t continue, but I would like to mention that characters like Adonis, the Greek heroes, Elpis, and Atlas received similarly disappointing treatment from Ubisoft. Let me know if you want me to make a post about them! I encourage you guys to share your own thoughts on this! Different perspectives yield different reactions and I’d love to see y’alls, so feel free to share! I will remind you that these are living Gods. Part of why this was so upsetting is because I research these gods as part of my studies and because I actively worship many of Them. Seeing Them reduces to these characters was...not the greatest feeling in the world. It’s important to separate the characters from the myths and even the myths from the Gods themselves, but what Ubisoft did was make a character that loosely relates to the myths—not the Gods Themselves as well. Just as Zeus is so much more than his myths, Persephone is more than the character Ubisoft gave us, so think critically when absorbing content about religious figures. All Gods of all religions are deserving of respect, and Ubisoft did not do a great job with that. I can only hope they will do better for the Viking Gods.

#ac odyssey #fate of atlantis dlc #me talking #i tried to tone down my anger #hopefully it worked lol #i also tried to condense some of my grievances #for yalls sake #long post #please tell me if the keep reading didnt work

[wingedweasel]

My thoughts on Disney Remakes

Get ready for a loooooooooong post. Sorry. 

So let me start by saying I don’t have Disney+ and haven’t seen Mulan yet, so I’m only going off of what I’ve seen in trailers and the reviews of other people - both who liked it and those who didn’t. Warning, spoilers if you haven’t seen the animated or remakes of Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, or Mulan.

My opinion is that it seems like Disney really doesn't understand what to do with these remakes. 

With Beauty and the Beast, they tried something different and added/changed some things hoping that it would make the story more enjoyable but kept it generally the same, and people didn't react as positively as Disney wanted. In The Lion King, they went the exact opposite and made it a shot for shot remake, and people still didn't react as positively as Disney was hoping. Now with Mulan, it's a completely different story and people are still not happy with the end product. 

I don't think it's an issue with the audience being unsatisfied with everything no matter what. There is a little bit of that, make no mistake. There are people who will be unhappy no matter Disney did. However, I think it's more of an issue of Disney not realizing what people liked about the originals and enhancing that and failing to commit. 

Beauty and the Beast tried to be more ‘real’ in bringing in PTDS and references to war, death, illness, and grief over losing a loved one, ramping up the sexism, and making Gaston more of a douche, but I think it would have been a better story if they made it more real/dark. One of the easiest things would be to make Gaston more of a threat and his followers either more blind in worshiping him - more cult like if you will - or having him have to work harder to get them on his side. The animates version had the almost cult like mentality of how the people of the village treated Gaston. If he said jump, they would have started jumping before asking how high. It was easy for him to get blind followers into charging the castle to kill the beast. 

In the remake, there were times where, while Gaston was able to talk his way out of a problem, his anger or manipulative actions were kind of just waved away or people were only accepting of him and his desires due to peer pressure - which makes a good foil to the Beast before he was cursed. It could have been something the Beast could have recognized and wanted to changed because he sees that acting this way is really bad, wont get the girl, and doesn’t want to be like Gaston (or making it a teaching moment for Gaston if you want to give the villain a possibility of redemption, either works). Another thing would have been to capitalize on the fact Belle is just as much as an inventor as her father and/or she is secretly the one who makes gadgets the village uses and likes or what her father is going to sell. That way it shows she is smart, resourceful, and would be respected if only she just wasn't a gosh darn woman. At the end, when it’s revealed that Gaston is a bad guy and that Belle is the one who created everything, she would be able to get the respect and acceptance of the village she should have had all along. Instead she gets belittled for being able to read and is a senseless romantic because she like Romeo and Juliet? What? Honestly, I don’t think if she ever returned to the village and tried to encourage and teach the little girl to read again, she would have been just as dismissed as she was at the beginning. Her life wouldn’t have changed in any way if she did go back to her ‘provincial life.’ 

People know this story, as I said, so changing it up a bit with the background things but still making it about the message of it's the personality that makes a good person and how you overcome people not believing in you the focus would have made it better than just Gaston having PTSD, Belle wants to teach girls to read, and a potentially hidden gay character. In short, they could have made this a completely different movie and I think people would have been happy with that. Instead, they started to make changes, doubled back, and we got some lackluster kinda pro-feminism...thing. Also, get a singer for musicals. The singing wasn’t terrible, but still actual singers should be used in musicals more often. 

The Lion King suffered for opposite reasons. It seems as if Disney saw that people didn’t like the changes they made to Beauty and the Beast, and went “Okay, not changes at all!” A shot for shot remake should only be done if you can make it interesting. You get bonus points for getting original actors, settings, and crew. Update the technology and it usually becomes better. This should have been an easy A+ since The Lion King did all this. However, it didn’t because it was too real - in a bad way. I haven’t seen the remake of the Jungle Book, but I have heard good things about it because of the way the characters were designed. They were interesting to look at even if they looked more realistic and not as cartoony as they could have done. The Lion King should have gone this root. The characters here were a bit bland looking. They’re just lions, which cool. They hyper realism of the CG was an interesting thing to do - in theory. The hyperrealism in something like Beowolf made it eye catching and was almost a character itself. In The Lion King, there wasn’t a whole lot of variance between everyone. All the animals all looked the same as one another. Sure in nature animals tend to have little variance within their species, but in movies 0 especially a kid’s movie - characters need to stand out from one another to be easily identifiable. Some of the quirks of the animated version could have been used to do this. Make Simba’s mane more reddish-orange, Scar’s mane should have been black. Some of my favorite characters were the lead hyenas. They all had a unique look - it didn’t hurt that Whoppi Goldberg was Shenzi. Now everyone is the same. Also, the mouth and facial emotes didn’t really work with the hyper realism. If they had made the facial features ‘looser’ and a bit more animated, it would have helped convey the expressions so much more and when they started singing, it would have looked more ‘natural’ for them to be doing so. 

Nothing was really changes story-wise; they did add some dialogue and minor things like that, but not a whole lot else. It probably could have gotten away with making more alterations to the story - either by adding scenes or changing backstories or things like that - and people wouldn’t have been as mad as with other movies (as long as the changes made sense and added to the plot and weren’t changes just to be changes).

Now Mulan, on the other hand, seems to be split 50/50 sor far. It’s only been out for a short time, so not a whole bunch of people have seen it - myself included - but looking at reviews, it looks like Disney say the hate The Lion King got for being a shot for shot remake and went, “Fine, we’ll change everything!” And they did. I mean, they kept the general idea of a young woman taking her father’s place in the army to fend off an invading force and she somehow defeats the big bad (I think? I heard something about the Emperor fighting the big bad? I mean, it is Jet Li, so he has to have at least one fight scene, so...). I will say that from the previews that I have seen and all the reviewers agree that the movie is very pretty. It has gorgeous cinematography and the set design looks amazing. There were some other positives that a lot of people toted like even though Mulan has a love interest, it really isn’t that big a thing, and the fight scenes were very well choreographed, and some character interactions that were quite funny - things like that. Important things to be sure, but some of the biggest complaints were that Mulan in the animated version was shown to be resourceful, cunning, and proved that a woman could save the day just a s successfully - if not better - than a man (although why she had a fan when she went back to being a woman, I don’t know, but whatever). In the remake, it seems like strength and fighting prowess is all that is needed to be a hero. 

Apparently, Qi is a thing in the movie and if you have more of it, it allows people - men - to be good fighters and do more athletic things better than those without it (I guess?) Women who have it are apparently shunned, which is part of one of the Witch’s backstory. She has Qi and uses it for dark magic...okay? Do some men not use it for evil? Is every woman who has it eventually turn evil? Speaking of the Witch, she is super more powerful than the main baddie. She is physically more powerful, has Qi, uses magic - some of which she uses to shapeshift? Like, why do we need another baddie? She should be the main villain. One reviewer said it would have been a great twist if she was just pretending to be the main guy using her shapeshifting powers and we only find out right at the end. Now that would have been cool. We get a strong female villain who plays off of the gender restrictions of the society and turns everything on its head by going, “I was a woman the whole time! All those things you said a woman couldn’t do, well, I was doing them and you didn’t have any complaints then!” Instead, we get another movie where the villainous woman is second to the villainous man simply because of gender stereotypes. Hell, even if the man was just pretending to be the main baddie and acting as her puppet would have been better. 

I guess because she really isn’t the main villain, she gets to have a redemption scene and save the hero, but was that really necessary? Couldn’t she be bad and stay bad until the very end? Why not? Anyway, she sacrifices herself to save Mulan, and it’s supposed to be an emotional scene which causes Mulan to find her inner strength and gives her a power boost to defeat the baddie. 

Mulan also doesn’t have a lot of cunning in this remake, apparently. She’s more physical than the animated version, but...wasn’t the point of Mulan to show that you needed more than physicality to save the day? The thing that I’ve seen most people complain about is this. In the animated version, Mulan and the other soldiers are given the task to climb a pole wearing heavy weights (I’ll Make a Man Out of You is one of the best songs ever, fight me). After a montage of her failing physical tasks, she is only able to succeed climbing the pole through her smarts. Not because she suddenly got supper buff and could lift herself up the pole. Yes, she gets physically stronger and becomes the best at everything during the finale of the song, but that just a result of training. You start off really bad and then become good. I believe what made this scene so powerful was that she was held back by the belief that she wasn’t ‘cut out’ for the army. She had to overcome her own mentality before she could start to be a better soldier. She does that by using her brain to find a different way to climb the pole. 

In the remake, the task is to climb steps up a mountain carrying buckets of water. It’s not an easy task, as everyone fails, but apparently, she just keeps at it until she is physically strong enough to do it? No more effective way of carrying the buckets than just T-pose while holding them out to the side. Like I said, training makes you stringer. Practice makes you better. This is obvious. You get stronger the longer you work your muscles. There’s nothing special about that. Yes, the men were probably comparatively physically stronger than her, but they all struggled too. What’s the lesson here? Just keep at it and one day you will be big and strong? Okay, cool I guess. That’s something that is helpful, don’t get me wrong. Dedication and hard work are important. Being physically strong is one aspect of being a soldier - especially during the time period the movie is set in, but it’s not the be all end all. That’s what made Mulan stand out: she was at such a disadvantage she had to find a different way of doing things to succeed. Then the training kicked in and she became physically stronger. 

It’s also good to note that in the animated version, she never relies on her physical strength to do something. Sure she is super awesome at the end of the training montage, but that’s all we see of her being physical. She uses smarts to defeat the army, the previous method of climbing the pole to get inside the palace, and deception to knock out the guards. No epic parkour, no breaking down walls, just her brain. In the remake, it seems as if strength is the be all end all. Mulan is supposed to be a role model for young girls and an example of why you shouldn’t listen to stereotypes. At least, she is supposed to be. And she is - in the animated version. Here, it seems as if the message is forget about being intelligent. All that really matters is that you be physically strong. I mean, even that hot mess of a movie Hercules taught us that this is wrong. You need more than just muscles to be a hero. Being able to fight isn’t what makes you a hero (it’s certainly part of it, obviously). You need a good heart and a good head, not a six pack. 

With all that said, it looks like the Mulan remake suffered from trying to not be Mulan. It went too far in changing things. It added things that it didn’t need to add, and took out things that helped make the animated version well liked. The love story that wasn’t? They took out Shang, but added another love interest? Just keep Shang. Looking back, and even at the time I first saw it, it’s amazing to see the hero is a woman and she doesn’t need to rely on a relationship to reach her goals. The added bonus of having Shang was that he os believed to be the first LGBT Disney character. He respected Ping and thought him a friend before the big reveal and no one can convince me otherwise the looks Shang gave Ping during the training montage and after Ping gives Shang some encouragement right before they march out to the meet the main army are anything other than Shang thinking “Damn, I want some of that.” Add in the fact that he starts to act all flustered when he returned the helmet just shows that he had feelings for Ping, but now that Ping is actually a girl he can act on those feelings (this is both Ancient China we are talking about, not 2020...where being LGBT is still not always accepted...). 

Okay, so what does all that mean for the Mulan remake? Beauty and the Beast wasn’t the best because it didn’t go far enough with its changes, The Lion King didn’t have enough changes, and Mulan had too many changes? Not exactly. Mulan, as a story, can work with being completely different from the original animated version. It probably mostly does. It’s more than like going to be a success on Disney+. But if any movie could have been a shot for shot remake, it should have been Mulan. Hell, making it not be a musical and adapting the story to account for that could work. It was the lessons that made the animated version so well liked. Also the humor, Eddie Murphy makes a great side kick. You have the yearning for ‘more’ and the feeling of not fitting in that Beauty and the Beast has combined with the self-doubt and acceptance despite origins of The Lion King. You have a kickass female hero who breaks all the gender rules of her society and saves the day by using her brain and not a sword. No magic to save the day - the ancestor spirts being the only mystical thing about the movie. Mushu isn’t overtly magical and he doesn’t really help do anything except be a convenient Zippo light two times in the movie - it could be argued that he, and magic in general, is a source of conflict since the other spirits all want to bring Mulan home. Also no stupidly forced romance subplot - or worse a love triangle. The remake just doesn’t have any of that, really. It’s basically just another action movie with the added flavor of a woman pretending to be a man in the army. It’s almost a ‘chosen one’ narrative since the aspect of Qi looks to be a major plot point - and source of conflict. There’s magic - and oh by the way, there’s a phoenix attached to Mulan for some reason...? - and what looks like a romance subplot (one where the guy isn’t Bi boooooooo). Mulan could have been shot for shot and would be successful. It can also be successful by making changes, but not many. We like Mulan the way it was. If you need to make changes or updates to it, fine, but don’t make the story so unrecognizable that it becomes a different movie. Mulan doing a whole bunch of fancy martial arts before literally beating the big bad and an evil Witch who turns into a bird are things we don’t want and the story doesn’t need. 

Disney needs to stop messing with the original stories. We liked the old animated versions for a reason. Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King were two of the biggest box office hits and two of the most popular Disney movies today. The were huge successes and are still talked about 20+ years later. These remakes are just meh. 

If Disney does change the story, change it in a way that emphasizes what was liked about the original. Otherwise, make it into a different movie and - more importantly - call it something else. 

#Disney #Mulan #Lion King #Beauty and the Beast #remake #rant #film review

[aforgottenballad]

Feelings on Sally Face Episode 5

Under a read more for obvious reasons, includes heavy spoilers and potentially triggering subjects. 

Disclaimer: I might miss-remember some parts of the story or have missed a piece of lore that would settle minor complaints. I am however disappointed in the ending as a whole and in some of the very harmful tropes included in it. But I’m also just some dude online with an opinion, and you can stop reading at any time. 

Rant under cut. 

Alright ya’ll. I’ve had a couple days to digest the ending to Sally Face.  While playing, I genuinely enjoyed some elements of the game. The chapter started on a dark but nearly hopeful note. Neil and Ash were still working to bring the cult down. It seemed likely Sal would be resurrected. Todd had apparently escaped the hospital, and that had potential to be either a very very good or very very bad thing. Maple was possessed by whatever fucked up the souls of the other apartment tenants, but hey! At least her and Neil weren’t in on the cult like so many fans predicted. Unfortunately, this series has a way of getting darker and darker as it progresses.  First thing that bugged me was the lore drop about how the cult was founded.  A Native American tribe. Right. Because why wouldn’t Indigenous peoples be in a story without being part of some mystical occult backstory, portrayed as mysterious historical props who worshiped something dark and evil instead of being portrayed as human beings. 

But I continued. I really enjoyed playing as Ashley and getting some insight into her character. I enjoyed the task of planting the C4 in the temple... catacomb... thing. We get to see Travis again! I was excited that a lot of us were right about him being indoctrinated but also working to fight the cult from the inside. We knew he had some good in him after all. 

When Ash tries to resurrect Sal, we get even more insight into her character, and unfortunately a lot of it is “Grieving, distraught, and full of self-blame”. I want to hug her.  Sal’s spirit is apparently revived by those pyramids, and he can dimension warp. We meet Jim, or what’s left of him, and he doesn’t give a fuck about anything anymore but agrees to help Sal anyway. This is, narratively speaking, weird as hell. His entire character arc for four episodes was “Loved his family so much he sacrificed himself to save them”, and suddenly he’s just some glowy dude attached to Magic Spirit Tubes who doesn’t give half a shit. I guess it makes sense as a way to wrap up why he’s been able to drift between worlds but... if he doesn’t care about any of that anymore why help Sal? And what about Rosenberg? Is she like Jim, or do we just have to assume she’s magical because her family helped found the cult? (Explained in an easter egg later on, because this game doesn’t just drop its lore. Not even the CRUCIAL lore. You have to achievement hunt for it.) Sal can enter various doors in the House In The Void to step into alternate realities, and this was my favorite aspect of the game. Each door has a different art style, and I really liked seeing these alternate realities. Steve probably worked the hardest and longest on drawing out and coding these scenes. I genuinely applaud the man for the work put into this endeavor I’m assuming all by himself. 

Meanwhile, Ash tries to unbind Larry’s soul from the tree house he died in, which doesn’t work. Did we ever find out why his body was never found? No? Ok that seems important.

After each puzzle, Sal’s body is restored a little bit at a time, but even after turning on all the pyramids and solving the mysteries behind all three doors, he can’t make it back to the “real” world. So Ashley kills herself. Or tries to. Because apparently that’s the only way to complete the ritual, and also because she feels really bad about not unbinding Larry’s soul and about not fixing Sal. Again, I want to hug her, but I have to watch her hurt herself instead, cause Steve doesn’t let us have nice things.

Okay, so this is a gorey game. We know. But one of the BIGGEST no-nos suicide prevention networks will tell you when consulting them about mental illness and suicide in media is NOT to show a graphic suicide in progress. Steve is aware a lot of his fans are A) Young teens to young adults B) Struggling with mental illness. 

His main character suffers from depression and anxiety and this fact has resonated with hundreds of fans. It’s irresponsible to purposefully include a graphic suicide attempt, but he did it last chapter, showing a gunshot suicide’s aftermath, then he did it again with Ashley. Call me a wiener if you like, point out the graphic scenes from earlier in the game and call me a hypocrite for not being upset by that, but you have to admit the Spongebob-close-up-shot look to those scenes have a totally different feel. Speaking as someone who actually has a pretty thick skin, but is concerned about the fans who might be in a worse place or who could be as young as 12, that was fucked up. 

Anyway, Ash’s attempt doesn’t take, because she’s struck by magic lightning, which infuses Sal’s soul into her. Now her arm is one of those stretchy sticky hands, but with bio luminescence and the ability to kick cultist ass. I actually thought this part was really cool, and was super ready to go on a cultist smacking spree. But again, we can’t have nice things and before we get to do anything badass we have to look at gruesome imagery again. 

You get to see Void Larry, who is now old and a wizard or something, but first...

Surprise! Maple and Neil are dead! Not just dead, but hung up from hooks covered in blood! And naked! 

Hey?? Hey Steve????? You know how they’re both POC?? And that lynching imagery is EXTREMELY NOT GOOD?!!????

“Two white people are hung up with them” YEAH? WELL WE’VE NEVER SEEN THOSE CHARACTERS BEFORE. THEY’RE JUST RANDOM PEOPLE.

I’ve seen people arguing “The white characters go through terrible things too” but it’s still really fucked up that by the end of the game, every. Single. Person of color. In the game. Has died. Gruesomely. It’s a gorey, dark, bleak game, and white characters die as well, gruesomely; but not all of them. None of them that are named are shown strung up, naked. That’s fucked up. That isn’t okay. 

There are also a total of three gay characters in this game. One is Todd, who goes through the standard “bad bad stuff” the game is used to, is the white one, and he survives. One is Neil, one of the aforementioned people of color who died horribly and who only really existed to be Todd’s boyfriend and therefore a source of angst for Todd when he dies. The third is Travis, another man of color, and an abuse victim, who dies to fulfill his character arc as an abuse victim, which is also really shitty to see over and over again as an abuse survivor. 

Look, I know Steve pulled a lot of inspiration from old TV shows and horror series that probably weren’t all “politically correct”. I know it’s always been kind of an edgy and dark game. I know Steve probably didn’t think about the repercussions of all his narrative choices. But I also know he actively ignored some people offering to educate him on issues he has no experience with. I know he worked hard on this game, by himself, but we as fans have paid him and waited for years and it isn’t selfish or ungrateful to be hurt and disappointed. He knows his audience is diverse, he knows a lot of us were attracted to the game because of a gender nonconforming main character, a main character who struggles with mental illness, a cast that isn’t 100% white and conventionally attractive. Of course he didn’t need to change the plot for us! It’s his game, his vision, but the least he could have done is research how to not actively hurt and alienate a good portion of us.  I don’t think anyone is bad or racist for still finding solace in the characters and in what the story was before this, I’m not attacking you personally, whoever is reading this. I, personally, still have loads of Sally Face art in my queue, I still have active role plays going on, my Sal wig is sitting like 8 feet away waiting for the next time my friends want to take cosplay pictures. I still enjoyed playing the game for the most part. Without this game I wouldn’t even know most of my current friends. It’s just really shitty how it ended like this, and a lot of people I talk to daily either feel too sick to even talk about the game anymore after seeing people like them treated like trash by the narrative or try to focus on the good things they got out of just being part of the fandom but don’t feel comfortable supporting the developer anymore. 

Even if there wasn’t all these hurtful tropes packed into the game, and yes, even after unlocking the epilogue, the game just feels cold. It feels rushed, probably because of how much time went into the alternate dimension gimmick. I wish Steve had at least consulted people over the script. It felt like not only did he pour all his work into experimenting with the mixed media, he also just took whatever expectations the fans had and went somewhere completely different just to have his story be “unpredictable”. That isn’t always a good thing. Plot twists, downer endings, dark and scary imagery, all of these things can be done beautifully, but in this case it felt like he just wanted the series to end. The game didn’t subvert expectations, it fed into the harmful stereotypes and tropes all the fans were so hopeful it wouldn’t. 

...On top of not making any sense unless you’re able to 100% all the puzzles. And even when you do, it feels like all the bad stuff happened for no reason. The ending doesn’t conclude anything. Even when you unlock the epilogue, all it tells you is that a third of the world has died and that the main cast haven’t accomplished much besides “Trying to help”. Sal and Todd have powers now, but that isn’t elaborated on much. Larry’s spirit is missing, if he even exists in any plane at all anymore. It doesn’t even mention what’s going on with Ash.  It just feels like nothing mattered. 

#sally face #long post #analysis #sally face spoilers #chapter 5 spoilers

[roslinadama-sinequanon]

Christmas in Connecticut-Part 5

A little more Sharon and Andy heat between the sheets....

“Hmmm…Mind if I get rid of this?” Andy’s voice was warm against Sharon’s ear, his fingers tugging at the clip that still held her hair up.

“No, no,” she sighed. “Whatever you want.” With Andy thick and deep inside her she didn’t really care about much else.

He snapped the clip and tossed it aside, his fingers delving deeply into the tangled silky mass. “God I love your hair. It’s always so soft. And you always smell so damn good.” On that last word he gave a gentle but sharp nip to Sharon’s earlobe causing her to gasp and shove her pelvis hard against him.

They lay on their sides face to face on the big soft bed, their bodies still damp and flushed from their bath. Sharon’s knee was bent and thrown over Andy’s hip. It was the way they made love late at night after a long hard day at work or long lazy Saturday mornings when they hadn’t caught a case, sleepy, slow and sensual, their bodies moving languidly against each other.  

One of Andy’s hands continued to lovingly stroke through Sharon’s hair while the other lay on the curve of her hip his fingers digging in firmly to hold her in place while he thrust inside her. Strength and tenderness. It was an intoxicating combination. And although making love this way didn’t allow for the deep penetration or the hard forceful thrusts that drove her wild, there was an intimacy and romance in being face to face with Andy that Sharon found extremely seductive. She loved to watch his eyes, hard, dark and shining with desire suddenly soften to a rich warm caramel when he finally took what he wanted and began rocking inside her. She loved to watch his face tighten with agonized bliss each time she squeezed her inner walls around his pulsing shaft or ran her thumbnail over his flat male nipple, knowing she was responsible for giving him that sublime pleasure.

But even more than that, she loved the kisses. There was just something about kissing while making love that gave Sharon a feeling of being adored and cherished in ways that went far beyond sexual pleasure. Jack had never been much of a kisser; he’d been all about the main event. But Andy liked to kiss her and he was damn good at it. He caressed and massaged the back of her neck, holding her head to him while they shared long soul deep kisses, his lips gentle then firm, teasing then fierce, his tongue both demanding and sweet. And when they came up for air, as they inevitably must, their gazes locked and Sharon’s fingertips traced over the planes of his beautiful face in the same way his traced over hers.  

She had his cheek cupped in her palm when he gave her a long, slow smile and tucked a few strands of damp hair back behind her ear. Dear God, Andy Flynn’s smile. Nothing had ever affected her in the way that sweet, sexy smile did. It had the power to brighten her day, lighten her mood and even tear away at her resolve.  It was a smile that could both seduce her and melt her heart all in one instant. And it was infectious. She couldn’t help but smile back at him while he ran a thumb over her bottom lip.

“God I love you Andy.”

 His grin widened at her breathless, heartfelt sentiment.

“And I love you.” He pulled her thigh further up over his hip for deeper penetration, as if determined to show her just how much. With Andy, sex had always been about more than a physical release, it was a genuine expression of his love, of their love.

With my body I thee worship. Sharon had heard those words a hundred times before but until Andy she’d never really lived them. No one had ever worshipped her in the way Andy did, completely and fully, body, mind, heart and soul. And she’d come to worship him the same way.

Clinging to him now, arms and legs wrapped around his torso, fingers digging into the muscles in his back she ground herself into him with frustrated little whimpers. Heeding her call Andy slid a hand between their bodies, his fingers slipping into the warm wet heat where they were joined to begin a circular rhythm over the swollen nub of her clit. That always sent right over the edge. Almost immediately she began to tense, urgent mewling little cries muted against his lips as she rose higher and higher finally shattering in climax.

It took only a few tight squeezes from her orgasm to send Andy right over the edge. Gripping her rear in his big hands he pulled her hips up flush to his and with a deep groan into her ear his erratic thrusts seized and she felt him flood her with his own release.

**

“You did lock the door, didn’t you?” Sharon asked. They lay in nude in post coital bliss, the rosy glow from the fire creating shadows over their still entwined limbs.

“I think that’s the third time you’ve asked me.”

“I don’t want to get caught in flagrante delicto again.” Her lips trailed over his sandpaper jaw, down to the small scar on his neck where they’d removed the blood clot. It still chilled her to think how close she’d come to losing him.

“Doesn’t that mean naked? We weren’t naked. Well, you weren’t.”

“No, it doesn’t mean naked. People just assume that. The proper Latin translation is “in blazing offence” but most times it’s used as a euphemism for being caught in the midst of sexual activity--which we were. And you’re missing the point.”

He chuckled. “I like it when you go all sexy librarian on me. But we have nothing to worry about. Even if I hadn’t locked the door, they won’t be back until later. They’re going to stop to eat at one of the bar and grilles we saw on the way back from ski slopes. They wanted to give us some time alone”

She lifted a brow. “Really? Was that their idea or yours?”

“Does it really matter?”

“I guess not. So we’re on our own for supper?”

“Just you and me baby.” He gave her a lascivious wink that made Sharon laugh. “You okay with that?”

“More than okay.” Her voice gave a little hitch as Andy softened and slipped from her body. Until Andy she’d never had that feeling before, that little twinge of sadness each time he withdrew from her, like she was losing a small part him. That thought had her pressing her mouth against his chest to muffle a soft laugh.

Andy rolled onto his back, pulling her with him so that she was draped over his chest and asked, “What are you laughing about?

“Nothing really. I was just thinking that each time you slip out of me it‘s like I’m losing a little part of you. “She cupped a hand over his now softened groin, still damp from their joining. “But I didn’t think either you or Joltin‘Joe here would appreciate being referred to as “little”.

Andy laughed at her cute little smirk. She‘d been pretty amused when he‘d told her his nickname for his cock. She hadn‘t been surprised that he‘d chosen a baseball player, however, the fact that it was Joe DiMaggio, a dreaded Yankee and not a Dodger had been surprise. DiMaggio had retired before Andy was even born, but he’d had five things going for him---he was great, he was Italian, he’d been married to Marilyn Monroe, he was his Nonno’s favorite player and, well, it just seemed to be a name befitting that piece of his anatomy. Even Sharon had commented more than once that he was pretty good at jolting her world.   “You‘re right. No man or cock wants to be referred to as little.”

“You don’t have anything to worry about on that front. There’s nothing little about you, or Joltin Joe, Andy,” she purred.

“Keep you satisfied, do we?”

“Oh yeah, no complaints here.” She snuggled into him toying with his crisp chest hair.

“So, you’re not disappointed it’s just us for supper?”

“Not at all. I love our large and loud brood but it’s nice to have a little quiet “us” time.”

“I couldn’t agree more. That’s why I made reservations at the Inn for just the two of us.”

“Mmm…” Sharon’s eyes were growing heavy. The massage, the time spent in the Jacuzzi tub and Andy’s lovemaking had left her completely satiated, her body entirely relaxed. And the heat from the blazing fireplace was making her sleepy. “Do we have time for a little nap?”

Andy glanced at the clock. It was still early. “Yeah, go to sleep sweetheart. We have plenty of time.” She smiled and snuggled in, but Andy didn’t sleep.  His stomach clenched with nerves. What happened tonight would irrevocably change their relationship. Oh God, what the hell was he thinking?

TBC

#sharon raydor #andy flynn #shandy #Major Crimes #christmas in connecticut #shandy love #Shandy Christmas

[tinymixtapes]

Live Blog: Bass Coast 2017 (a.k.a. Space Toast)

Bass Coast 2017 (a.k.a. Space Toast) Active Mountain Ranch; Merritt, Canada [07-07-10-2017] by Alan Ranta on 07-20-2017 Last year, I was barred for life from entering the United States. As such, I was forced to sell my ticket to Burning Man and face the reality that I will never be able to experience that spectacle. Lucky for me, there is Bass Coast. Celebrating its ninth year in 2017, Bass Coast has invested over $100,000 in artists who produce installations over its last five iterations. That’s almost as much as the Polaris Music Prize has paid out over the same period, with the notable difference that Bass Coast has no corporate sponsorship. There were many interesting, often interactive pieces littered throughout the grounds, including a metallic monster drummer by the festival entrance and a giant set of playable mushrooms in the woods. This year marked my second trip to Bass Coast. My first was in 2013, the year it relocated from Squamish, which is actually on the coast of British Columbia, to the semi-arid tundra of Merritt, taking over the former site of the notorious and blessedly defunct Merritt Mountain Music Fest. There were growing pains. The stages were miles apart, which meant you spent most of the weekend walking across giant, bumpy fields and rarely running into anyone. Even though thousands were in attendance, it felt empty. Four years later, these cats have it dialed in. They abandoned the faraway barn to put a creatively designed Radio stage in the woods, around the corner from the open-concept Slay Bay, but for how close they were in proximity, there was little sound crossover. They also moved the food vendors, of which there was admirable variety and quality, much closer to the main festival entrance, forming an inviting line from the Cantina bar to far side of the main stage. The artisan vendors now line the paths through the woods, while the general store and the Brain, which hosted many worthy workshops and panels to enlighten partiers, were both located on the main path. The flow is now smooth and rewarding from one end to the other. The infrastructure at Bass Coast 2017 was top-notch. Not once did I run across a completely unusable shitter. For most of the weekend, they smelled like cinnamon. They only ran out of TP or hand sanitizer once or twice, and you should always bring those with you to festivals anyway. In addition to the helpful PDFs available on the Bass Coast harm-reduction webpage, which were written on the importance of foot care, hydration, and consent, and the looming public health crisis that is fentanyl, first aid and harm reduction were both easily accessible from the main road between stages. Furthermore, they had roving attendants mingling about to ensure a minimization of serious incidents, of which I saw none. Security was present and professional, yet pleasant. A drug dealer I met also was selling high-quality earplugs; if that isn’t the hallmark of responsibility, I don’t know what is. Photo: Caily DiPuma The whole vibe was joyous and celebratory. It felt like a safe space. For all of the beautiful bodies gallivanting about in various states of undress, hence the affectionate nickname Babe Coast, I only witnessed a couple of creeps. The artist-owned and -operated festival was founded by women who ground the festival with their work ethic and creative brilliance, namely DJ and curator Andrea Graham (a.k.a. The Librarian) and art director Liz Thompson. A boob-grabbing shit-show, this is clearly not. When HxdB of Greazus told guys who don’t get clear consent to get their shit together, it was one of the best uses of a mic by a DJ I’ve ever heard. With a small crew, I arrived at Space Toast (this year’s nickname due to the fest’s general theme being space, hence the x-wing fighter on the main stage and the UFO crashed into the Radio’s tower) on Thursday. This being early entry, the programming was light, but highlighted by a tag-team set between perennial BC banger Mat the Alien and the aforementioned Librarian at the Cantina. Essentially a bar, the Cantina hosted mood-setting music throughout the days, then repeated the sound of the main stage when that sublime monstrosity fired up at dusk, so if you didn’t want to brace the big crowd, you had your own spacious, licensed lounge to escape to. Space Toast really blasted off on Friday. Bass goblins HxdB and Patrik Cure, together known as Greazus, dropped their inimitable blend of rib-tickling beats at the Slay Bay, while festival curator Max Ulis and organizer Robbie Slade brought their fun and funky Sabota vibe to the main stage. Having last seen him perform with the Quantic Soul Orchestra back in 2003, British-born ethnomusicologist Will ‘Quantic’ Holland was high on my must-see list. He hit on all of his myriad funk, Latin, dub, and assorted worldly influences, though I was hoping he’d stick closer to the trippy, future jazz, after-party house he made circa Apricot Morning. Photo: Caily DiPuma BBC Radio 1 presenter B.Traits lured me to the Radio for the first time with her deep house explorations, but I couldn’t stay long because the Funk Hunters were hitting the main stage, followed by Longwalkshortdock, so I’d be setting up camp there for the rest of the evening. The Funk Hunters are fun cunters, as one of their fans pointed out to me. This Vancouver-based duo is pretty much a can’t-miss under any circumstance. They claim to be putting the soul back into electronic music; collaborator and tour-mate Chali 2na (Jurassic 5) would agree to that, and after catching this kitchen sink set, I would too. I’ve seen Longwalkshortdock live too many times to count over the past 15 years or so. Dave King has a style like no other, gnarly yet playful, and he’s a joy to watch. Unfortunately, he’s been battling some serious health problems lately, so this wouldn’t rank near the top of what I’ve seen from him, but he gave it all he had, as ever. I wasn’t expecting much on Saturday, then ended up having my brains blasted through the back of my skull. All I had on my schedule was JPOD, a fine beat chef whom I’d seen many times before, and his performance wasn’t what I was expecting. JPOD has been known to throw down entire sets of roots and gospel remixes at Bass Coast, playful deviations heavy on bass warbles to tickle whomp glands, but his early evening set this year started uncharacteristically mellow and stayed that way. From there, I caught some of Swamp81 boss Loefah’s bass in my face, followed by some slabs of heavy dub-laced wax from Baltimore’s Joe Nice, but it was Russian junglist Enei who gave me a bass lobotomy. I’d never heard of Enei before he dropped the best drum-and-bass set I’ve seen since Photek at the 2003 Tribal Gathering in Manchester. He spun science, a barrage of soulful, techy uptempo tunes that turned me onto the likes of Phace, S.P.Y., and InsideInfo, among others. He gave me the buzzing feeling of musical discovery that I haven’t felt in some time. Mid-set, some guy in a fur vest said he liked my bass face, so my ecstasy was apparent to strangers. Justin Martin (Photo: Caily DiPuma) I had to get back to reality on Monday, so I turned in early on Sunday, but not before seeing San Francisco dirtybird Justin Martin’s soothing yet re-energizing three-hour afternoon set, Brooklyn resident Doctor Jeep’s open-minded bass worship, and most of the Librarian’s sultry main stage set. Up-and-coming British rapper and current Gorillaz tour-mate Little Simz was the highlight of the night, though. Her intense style of soulful hip-hop worked well on the main stage. Her dedication to her next-door neighbor who never called in a noise complaint about her while she was honing her craft, about whom she wrote one of her most impactful tracks, will stick with me for some time. You can’t see everything. Among others, I’m sad to have missed Ora Cogan, J.Phlip, Special Request, Roman Flügel, and Call Super, the latter of which was a no-show, but this turned out to be something of a blessing in disguise as I would have missed Ben Tactic & Graintable altogether, and I dug what they threw down in his stead. It turned out that Call Super was accidentally flown to Salmo, but I’m told he arrived at Bass Coast a day later, and snuck in a surprise set on Sunday before Max Ulis’ solo selections. Even if you miss something, you’ll see something at Bass Coast. There may not have been the big-name headliners one expects from Live Nation festivals, but the breadth and quality of Bass Coast’s 2017 lineup was undeniable. Even within individual sets, it was common to hear someone throw down funky house one second and drum and bass the next. Regardless of what EDM is doing in the mainstream, the melting pot of styles and influences going down here will keep the fires burning for years to come. It has me inspired again, and I’m a cynical old bastard. http://j.mp/2gNPnSD