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the-pen-is-mighty-and-so-are-you · 7 months

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Starting Fresh - from wp blog, 19/04/2020

Hello, my dear visitor! I hope you are doing well and are still safe and sound. It's one week later, roughly, so I thought I'd call on you again. I'm happy to see you are armed with that hearty supply of biscuits I sent you - never again will we have a biscuit-less tea session!

As foreshadowed by my last post, this past week has been one of... learning, shall we say. I learned that things do pass, because now my feeling of 'overwhelmed' has subsided to a manageable degree. I simply took it day by day, setting myself small, achievable steps I knew I would feel accomplished for doing: for instance, setting aside a day for 'getting back to people', video-calling plenty of relatives, and going on an adventure to the big Asda (as a result of which shop I now have slightly blonde-ier hair and my boyfriend has made so-delicious-it's-actually-dangerous Oreo cheesecake). I also made sure to be kind to myself. I haven't been updating my 'Fuck it' diary as often as I 'should' but, well, as my mum Anna says, "We need to stop should-ing". Again, I've had to conscientiously change my vocabulary, making sure I recognise that I only write in it because I enjoy it, and that I haven't 'stopped' writing in it, it is simply on hold for now. And that's okay.

Another thing I learned (a perhaps basic thing, you may be thinking, considering my writing passion) is that reading makes me feel good - thank you to my parents who sent me that parcel! I'm currently really enjoying The Monkey Wrench Gang, partly because of the extensive vocabulary I've learned from it (pictured), but also the writing style has me 'hooked'. It's made me realise that reading doesn't take time away from my writing, but is part of the process of developing my style and skill. This is shown quite literally in the creative piece of writing I am about to share - but first I want to talk a bit about The Monkey Wrench Gang.

I am only about a quarter of the way through (so no spoilers please), but already it is the first piece of fiction in a while that has fully captured the attention of my monkey brain. It's written like an enhanced style of conversation, with vivid imagery constantly keeping my imagination engaged. It's easy to follow the themes and messages and plot, and because of that it's a book I could read all day, as I practically did today.

The most fascinating thing that caught my attention was the structure. It opens with a prologue detailing a dynamic event key to the story, absent of the main characters. Following this, each main character (there are four) is given a chapter to themselves to give a bit of background. In the sixth section, the characters finally meet - and from there the main plot comes into motion, but the thing keeping it driving is the prologue; the notion that at some point, these characters will be involved in said dynamic event. The result is one of anticipation, cleverly and clearly organised in the structure of the book, which is very satisfying. It has inspired me to have a go at writing out in a similar structure - in which I lay out the world and themes in one chapter, and then take the time to slowly introduce and bring all the main characters together in the succeeding characters. It's a good way to develop the world, plot and character dynamics, even if later on the story doesn't include the writing of this exercise. Have a whirl yourself!

Anyway, I wanted to include a couple of bits that I really liked from the book:

"Far beyond those galloping galaxies, or perhaps all too present to be seen, lurked God. The gaseous vertebrate."

P65 (1982 Picador Ed.)

"No one knows precisely how sentient is a pinyon pine... or to what degree such woody organisms can feel pain or fear... but this much is clearly established as scientific fact: a living tree, once uprooted, takes many days to wholly die."

P76

The first one is a favourite simply because of 'gaseous vertebrate'. I mean come on! What an ingenious, inventive way to describe that guy. The second is just a beautiful moment that captures how human this story is. I really want to thank this book and the donor of this book (Anna) for what it has taught me.

I have also learned this week when to move on, let go and (cue title) start fresh. Some of you know, and some you don't, that I have been working on a story for the best part of three and a half years. However, I have reached a point where I know I need to put it aside and give it some space. Part of the reason is because I wrote it when I was a bit younger, and lots of things have changed in my mind since then, so I feel sort of alienated by it. I might come back to it, or not, it doesn't matter too much to me - I learned a lot along the way, and I proved to myself that I can stick to an idea for a long time if I want to. It had turned into a tired marriage, and now I'm going to try something else.

Yay! New project! I'm going to try my best to use what I've learned, use what I love and write a story from start to finish. Currently, I love Edinburgh. What else do I love? Vampires! Always have, always will. What else do I love? The Monkey Wrench Gang's opening structure, baby!

The following piece of writing is a creative exercise. I'm testing the waters of a new story. Please let me know what you think of the idea, and which bits you liked best! The writing may not be the best, because this is like -1 of a draft. But I do hope you enjoy, visitor...

If you were one person, you might see a vast expanse of bare pavement, long stretches of square stones and tarmac exposed to the sun and rain and sky, but no footprints traced in water or oil; no footsteps. There’s barely a soft percussion as the rubber sole of someone’s trainer presses ahead, with legs that carry an uncertain gait, ready to run, ready to stop and go home. The birds still chirp, though their songs can hardly fill the space left behind, and the clang of the clock chime still rings out. Strange, though. The sound of proud and important metal announcing time washes cleanly through the landscape, no conversation to override it, no jostling of bodies that absorb the impact, no distant acoustic music nor yell nor unexpected snapshot of “-well, I told him to straighten his tie, didn’t I? And did he?”

“-rimark has the best prices, sure, but everything falls apart in a week-“

“-shoes! They’re so sparkly, I love them. Oh my god, look at that dog-“

In fact, the ratio of dog to people is near equalised, for every pedestrian that owns one arms themselves with a companion, the perfect armour for any questions from the formal sector. No sir, no fine please, I live nearby and was just heading for a march up Calton Hill. Is it a ten-minute walk from the high street to the hill? Maybe it’s just shy, but hardly anyone actually lives on the high street, on the street with chain shops opposite chains wrapped round park gates, with an undulating set of gardens set apart by meaningless road. Shaping the backdrop is the silhouette of a stone giant on a jagged base of cliff, so dramatic it could be a film set, a hollow and lonely castle. Its city certainly inspired sets of films.

No, people come and go, but hardly any live on the arms of the high street. Now there’s hardly any coming or going either, the train station a quiet vessel that cannot meet the eyes of the hopeful mason magnificence that is the hotel next door, and the one opposite, and over the bridge in the Old Town. The settlers are few and far between – so that means your walk is definitely over ten minutes.

I’m sorry sir, but I was in need of monument. I yearned to smell trees and grass and climb to a height where everything is clear and manageable; to see the sea – yes! We’re connected – that blurs blue with blue or grey with grey as sky meets itself in a mirror; to cast my eyes over the Victorian Roman-style structures and statues that make me feel as though Edinburgh’s all a dream.

That’s what the walker thinks, but in actuality they say much more of an apologetic compromise, respectful citizen, law-abiding wanderer. Or that’s what they say, in the scene in their head, and then they sigh and pet the head of their dog and feel reassured.

That’s what you would see, if you were one person: city dead, people trying to stay alive. Humans hiding out in a weirdly calm apocalypse. Quarantine is becoming life and life is staying quarantined. It’s a lot different from how all the fantasy novels described it would be – stark contrast to the daunting and impossible violence of the movie undead; the sound design is void of screeches or screams; there’s no vital protagonist ready to smash our problems away with a spiked bat or highly specialised doctor ready to give us back our humanity.

An eerie, beautiful, human-less city.

Similarly, if you were another person, there’s hardly a human in sight – or at least they’re drowned out by the murmurs of the drifting, the dragging, the droning. There’s a lot more space and so they’ve filled it up, expanded and stretched the crowd like a bunch of damned gas particles. A woman in Edwardian dress stands by the train station, chattering to a couple of female friends, waiting for their English pen pals to step off the steam locomotive; they carry lace parasols in delicate white gloves and the hems of their dresses hover just above the ground. A gentleman in a dusty suit that splits at the elbows bends over clumsily, bottom in the air, and sniffs a daffodil. He hesitates only for a moment before gaping open his foul jaw and snatching it, bulb upwards, yellow flower eaten by a yellowing mouth. A tall man with porcelain skin watches on as he passes, shakes his head and brings a napkin to his slightly blood-soaked teeth, red eyes both disgusted and understanding.

“Waste of a flower…” he mutters and follows the winding garden path.

“Oi!” A flower fairy smacks him in the face with purple dust. He whispers “At last” as he falls backwards and slides part way down the slope in slumber. She rolls her eyes, fists clenched, but then sees her sisters trying on clothes in H&M and buzzes over hastily. They’re trying on the latest trends from a month ago, posing in crop tops and strange sunglasses and baggy high-waited trousers. Their brother’s flapping his wings in distress as he tries to put everything back the way it was – he doesn’t want a human accidentally getting arrested for this. They’re the ones that put out our fairy circles, he thinks. The Big Winged Ones got bloody lucky with Stone Henge.

There’s wolf howls and angel cries and demon chanting, there’s magic and everything unknown clouding the air. There’s a witch graffitiing hexes on the cliffside and a confused half-human confiding in their spirit guide. Sometimes you might see something and you’re not sure how to categorise them – they have sharp teeth, but that’s it? Or they seem completely mortal? Or they’re a ball of mist with a knitted pair of eyebrows? Whatever the thing or being - big, small, or giant – they’re a glorious patchwork community thriving on the underbelly of human life and partying in the many damp graveyards that speckle Edinburgh’s body.

If you were the first person, who would have known that dancing on your empty stone slabs and ruffling the hackles of the dog was all that world? Although, perhaps some do know. Some have seen ghosts, heard unexplained noises in the night, seen flitting life-like shadows. They watch you while you sleep, they visit when you’re not looking, or they’ve spoken to you in disguise. And it’s hard to imagine, when you look at the stone spine of the city and take account of all its monuments, that it lacks some kind of spirit, some ‘other’ and that two different worlds may not somehow be intertwined.

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It's so fun reading through past bits that I've written. This was the start of a fantasy idea that has stayed stewing in my mind since, and is manifesting in my current writing project. I love the paragraph that describes the reality of quarantine, it truly captures what that time felt like for me. And it's a bit chaotic, but I love this writing style, so vivid and fast-paced somehow! I might try this writing exercise again sometime. (although I never got round to finishing The Monkey Wrench Gang lol)

#creative writing #quarantine #covid #monkey wrench #on writing

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oneoftheprettynerds · 3 years

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Just My Type: Dark!Steve x Reader (Mob AU)

Chapter 2 in the Lipstick and Crayons Series.

Chapter 1: Welcome to the Darkside

Main Masterlist

A/N: This chapter is 2K words more than the last chapter and I’ve second guessed every single line in this one. This story is getting a lot of traction guys and I’m equal parts happy and scared. Thank you for the nice comments, they do encourage me. Also I’m just ranting feel free to skip this note haha. Your support in any form: like, comment or reblog is appreciated greatly. Also you can dm if you want to be friends, God knows I need those. Hopefully, this chap was worth the wait. Also, I made a poster for this on the main masterlist so check that out, it might be foreshadowing dome plot.

Warning: Eventual Non-Con, Sickening Threats, Mob Themes, Violence, Death, Manipulation, a mild mental breakdown, Cheap Tricks later.

Genres + Characters: Mob AU, Single Parents AU, Steve Rogers x Reader.

Summary: Steve can't ever repay you for what you did. After meeting you, Steve believes his broken family is the missing piece in the puzzle of your own wrecked one. Indebting the crime lord to you has been the biggest mistake of your life, cause now you can't get rid of him, no matter what. Loyalty and favours go a long way in the mob.

Chapter 2: Just My Type

It had almost been a week since the incident and you had barely gotten a wink of sleep. When you drove back to your house that night, Steve surprisingly didn’t argue as you had expected. After that friend of his whispered something in his ears, you only assumed he was needed elsewhere and you couldn’t be more thankful for that. They escorted you to your car and Steve thanked you with a strained smile, words genuine but eyes calculating. You didn’t even wonder what went inside his head. You were thankful for the peace and quiet of your own car, content to just get out of the area and into your humble abode.

After you put the already asleep Grace to bed, you couldn’t bring yourself to get out of her room. You just sat on the floor beside the bed, hand intertwined with hers as you rested your head beside her tummy on the mattress.

Your adrenaline wore off and your limbs ached as your thoughts finally settled into place, the gravity of the catastrophe a few hours prior hitting you. Tears made their way down your cheeks as you realized that you both could have very well died tonight.

One bullet could have sealed each of your lives and you were basically defenseless had Steve not saved you against the creeping assaulter. You couldn’t commend yourself for even defending yourself against one attacker, the guilt of killing someone harboring in your tired head. Your quiet whimpers eventually wore you out, while Grace’s shallow breaths lulled you to sleep.

You didn’t manage to sleep for long though, every time your eyes closed, horrific images flashed in your mind. A blood curdling scream here, heaps of dead bodies there, with distant exploding sounds all around. You could see men clad in black holding guns to Grace’s head and whensoever you woke up, you just wondered how much more creative your mind could get, making these visuals so realistic.

When 8 AM rolled in, you didn’t wake Grace up even though it was Monday and you had work. You got up, changed into a long tee after a shower and called your office and then her daycare. You knew you would have a hard time going back to your normal life, to become trusting enough to leave her alone.

Your assumption about yourself was right. You took almost the entire week off, which your boss generously allowed you to after hearing your traumatic experience, which soon made the city news headlines. All your colleagues checked on you, almost once in the five day break you took, and sweetly enough offered to bring you anything you needed.

It was kind of them, but none of them could bring you what your heart genuinely craved: peace and assurance that you and Grace would be safe.

Even though Saturdays were off, you did go to work to see what you missed and where to start on again. You went in because you knew that the random spurt of resolution you got in the bathroom to collect your life, wouldn’t last.

To ease back into your normal life, you gathered your guts, called a babysitter and left home. You couldn’t bring yourself to leave Grace at the daycare just yet. One of your good friends offered to come in to the office and help you, even on the weekend and you were quite grateful to him.

When you both decided to take lunch in the nearby dining place, you both got to talking, the conversation obviously originating from ‘How have you been?’ and ‘Is Grace okay?’. You reminisced about how you used a photobooth to hide, grotesquely and uncomfortably chuckling when you remembered Sarah calling you her mom and how her dad saved you all.

You deliberately left the part where you killed someone and Steve shot someone too. You hadn’t come to terms with it yet and you stiffly restricted your mind whenever it tried to go down that lane.

He sensed how the conversation was becoming tense and distressing for you and briskly redirected the topic.

“I hope the dad was hot though?” He wiggled his eyes creepily and you snorted at his vulgarity, light for the first time in days.

“He was easy on the eyes; I will admit that.” You played along, recalling your girlfriends and how you used to ogle people.

“Don’t be a homewrecker though, I don’t support cheating.” He said nonchalantly, checking his phone as a notification bell rang off.

“He’s a widower.”

His eyes snapped up and met yours as his head tilted in confusion. “That’s a strange fact to know about someone you met for a few minutes.”

Steve’s even stranger comment about his dead wife popped in your mind and before you could stop yourself, you blurted that out as well.

“He even said and I quote, ‘She deserved what she got.’” He put his phone down, weirdly amused.

“Ooh Creepy! Do you think he is one of those husbands who kill their wives and bury them in the backyard? The podcasts always say that the psychopaths are visually handsome and charming. And his statement was quite vague and spooky.” He continued munching, and you felt that now Aiden was really paying attention unlike before.

“Steve did have a gun while searching for Sarah, come to think of it.” You drank your tea and awaited his response. What you did not expect was his eyes to widen and worry to cloud his features.

“Um Widower Steve with a toddler Sarah? At the place where The Vices attacked?” He mumbled, grabbing his phone and doing God knows what on it. Your eyebrows furrowed and before you could ask him what was up with his antics, he resumed.

“This is a long shot but I really hope your Steve didn’t look like this.” He positioned the phone in your vision, and you could already tell it was Steve by the sapphire blue of his eyes piercing through the screen into your soul. The picture was a month or two old, his hair was much longer when you met him than in the photo.

“This is him.” Your eyes met Aiden’s and worry visibly took over his features as his forehead creased and jaw tense.

He looked around the restaurant, finding it empty in the afternoon. He leaned and whispered, “This Steve of yours is dangerous.”

You interrupted Aiden, even though you already knew Steve was, the sight of his armed men still fresh in your head, and inquired, “Why do you say so?”

“It’s just like the fictional stories we hear from our parents, except here, in this city of ours, every myth holds true. There are really powerful men, untouchable by law, who reign the city silently and live luxuriously. Every shady, under the table deal you’ve heard of, transpires. Illegal trades, fraud schemes and bounty hunters are not fictional, they exist here. These men kill whatever hinders them and trust me, you don’t want to be the deer caught in their Jaguar’s headlights.”

Ice froze in your veins again, resembling the fear you felt that night but now because of your deemed ‘savior’. You convinced yourself that you had not wronged him in any way, instead had saved his daughter’s life.

“Are you in contact with him? If you are, distance yourself cleverly, don't block him immediately.”

“No, we just parted ways near my car, he thanked me for Sarah and was called away. It’s almost been a week and he hasn’t reached out if that’s what you mean. We didn’t exchange contacts and I don’t think I even told him my full name.” You explained yourself as if you were on the witness stand in court, trying to convince yourself more than Aiden.

“Pray that he doesn’t remember you more than that, if at all. I’m being totally honest here in telling you this, I’m genuinely worried for you and Grace. You are smart but he is powerful. He has unimaginable resources and if you become more than a speck of dust on his windshield, you are screwed. There is no exaggeration here.” You took his words to your heart and swore to be careful, if not for yourself then for Grace.

The rest of the day went by and you found yourself dwelling on and worrying about Aiden’s words. At least he put it out there as it was. Heeding his advice, you did google Steve on your phone, finally finding him in the topmost news headline when you added ‘Buck’ in the search bar as well.

‘With 38 lawsuits pending against businessman Steve Rogers, the filers have lost all hope in prosecuting him. All cases are being drawn out for indefinite periods of time by the Chief Justice Bruce……’

Aiden was right.

Businessmen was code for illegal mob heads. Cases being stretched on meant he was, in fact, invincible, at least to the common man’s fists.

You flickered through several titles, each one more surprising than the last. He was believed to be involved in the carnival attack, alleged for three hit and run cases that he didn’t lose but the witnesses swore they saw him driving and was also rumored to have brought in quintals of drugs just last week, but the packets just evaporated into thin air and there was no proof of their existence in the first place even on incessant searching.

Every crime of his made you shudder and you mentally thanked Aiden for pulling you out of your oblivion. Your mind raced and heart palpated and you cursed yourself for being so drastically unaware even after living here for almost four years. Technically speaking, Steve and you were even, him saving your life and you saving his daughter’s. No logical reason came to your mind for him contacting you ever.

You wished as Aiden said and assured yourself that your paths would never cross again, Steve not having reached out in a week, so hopefully never again.

That thought went out the window when you reached home to find a box awaiting you. Hannah, the babysitter you had called, informed you it came around 5 in the evening and was exclusively to be opened by you today.

Your mind raced as you paid the babysitter, your hands sweaty as you tried not to think about the gift and its sender. There was an apparently clear answer to who mailed it but you refused to accept that, courtesy of Aiden.

The box was of the height of Grace, it was black with red hearts painted across it; some red roses also sparingly adorned it. You opened the lid and found tons of red tissues and a multi-flower bouquet adorned with mostly red roses and a few purple and pink flowers.

Because of your frequent gardening in your backyard, you knew all the flowers’ meanings. To sum it all up, red flowers, especially roses were used for courting someone. Pink meant admiration, purple for beauty and you knew the ‘violet’ flowers were for loyalty.

As your nerves increased tenfold, you willed yourself to get it over with and empty out the box first, ignoring the little card in your bouquet, saving the ‘best’ for last. You find a mini bouquet inside but unlike yours, it had chocolates of every kind. You did read its card and cringed when it was for Grace, bothered not by the deed but by the doer.

Further inside were some animal plushies, face masks, perfumes, scented body lotions and shampoos. Your head hurt thinking about the ‘single mother care package’ delivered to you by someone you refused to acknowledge.

As Grace sat in her playpen occupied, you dared to pick your card and read its message, your heart beating unrealistically fast for someone who refused to accept the cruciality of her situation.

I can’t thank you enough in this lifetime for saving my little princess. The gift of your help is more than anything money could ever buy for me. Please accept this invitation of mine for dinner tomorrow night, 7PM at La Bonne Nuit, as a symbol of my sincere gratitude for everything you’ve done. I’ll gets the kids covered and pick you up, you just be ready and look as amazing you always do. Sincerely, Steve Rogers

You stilled as you read it over and over again.

An invitation, your ass. Even in writing his authority portrayed, there was no question and hope for you coming, he just stated that you’d come. Looking pretty as always? You just met him once, in the middle of a calamity, covered in dirt and blood.

All the red roses and gifts screamed his romantic interest but you illusioned yourself into thinking they meant gratitude. You wouldn’t be able to digest it all otherwise.

Knowing what you knew now about Steve, you understood there was no denying the dinner tomorrow. You had to get out of his clutches and distance yourself, but as Aiden had so rightfully said, cleverly.

That night you laid in bed mulling over your next course of actions. You had called the gift shop to return the unwarranted presents you received but they said it was non refundable and anonymous to trace. You bitterly snorted in their face, they put a card with Steve’s name on it for heaven’s sake!

You didn’t flinch even when you realized you never gave Steve your address, neither for mailing stuff nor for picking you up. There was no number given to call him and thank or to call him and deny. The bastard had planned it all out, and you felt like you were driving in a one way lane, going deeper into the tunnel. Somewhere among your all-relentless fretting, you managed to finally sleep.

When the doorbell rang, your eyebrows furrowed. It was just 6 PM and you weren’t expecting anybody else except for Steve. You had already begun getting ready, having developed a habit of keeping an extra margin of time now having a toddler. You still had to assemble Grace’s essential backpack, fill it with her meds and bottles.

While still putting on your diamond earring, you made your way to the door, unlocking it to find a redhead grinning at you. Before you could interact with her, a small body clung to your legs and you looked down to find the azure eyed kid that put you in this mess, Sarah, smiling up at you.

“Mama! You look pwetty!” She looked up in awe and now aware that she didn’t have a mother, you were even more so coerced into accepting this title rather than telling the kid that 'you are semi orphaned'.

“I’m Wanda, Sarah’s nanny. Mr. Rogers told me to pick her friend, Grace, up for the night?” So, this was what Steve meant. Bringing Sarah was proof enough of her legitimacy, but behind her you saw ‘Buck’ salute you from the driver’s seat of the black car. One of these days, you needed to learn his real name.

You invited Wanda inside and Sarah ran to Grace immediately, grabbing and whining while asking Grace to give her some popcorn she was munching on, her fist generously full.

In your open plan kitchen, you grabbed two plastic bowls, filled them with each with the tub of popcorn that sat in the microwave and handed each toddler one, fortunately quietening Sarah. Sarah obeyed Grace, in first thanking you, their ‘mama’ and then following her to her open playpen.

You faced Wanda again who sat on a barstool and kept on beaming. If your annoyance at her amusement showed, she sure didn’t let it falter the smile.

“Mr. Rogers told me you’d worry about your daughter, but I assure you she’d be in more than capable hands.” All you could focus on was how self-reassured she was. “I’ve served him for almost two years, the last family I served, I was there for 8 years and before them, I was employed for 3. I know the general bedtime and snacks, all I need from you is information about her allergies.”

You nodded and told her about Grace, her meds and what all you packed. When you got to know that her family owned the daycare Grace went to, you were finally somewhat convinced. After seeing them off, it was about fifteen minutes later, that the devil disguised in Prada showed up at your door.

You grabbed your purse and your keys. Wiping your sweaty palms on your dress, you opened the door. Steve stood there, a smirk lodging on his handsome face. His blue, three-piece suit perfectly paired with his cerulean eyes was impressive to say the least.

He was dressed to kill, and it appeared as if you were his first victim.

As your eyes took him in from top to bottom, his did the same lazily, taking their time, resting at certain places for longer period than others.

“You look stunning.”

You knew you did. You wore one of your more expensive dresses when you found out La Bonne Nuit to be one of the few seven-star hotels in the country. In hindsight, if you’d have dressed worse, maybe he’d have left you alone.

“Thank you.”

“Shall we?” He offered you his hand and you obliged with your palm in his. Your other hand pulled the doorknob while you stepped out, all alarms already set-in place. He waited while you locked and put the keys in and when you were done, with a soft kiss along your knuckles, he pulled you along.

The act surprised you, your stomach turning and your gut wrenching and you wondered if you’d be able to process the food after all, with your upset digestive system.

Like a proper gentleman, he opened the door for you and when you settled, he took his position at the driver’s seat. The silence was painful for you, your overthinking finally filling ideas in your head that you avoided contemplating about all day, focusing on Grace.

He was relaxed though; his humming was proof enough.

Mid way through, your thoughts were rudely interrupted when a hand housed itself on your knee. You glanced to find Steve’s palm slightly rubbing your knee. If it was meant to be assuring, you certainly didn’t feel like it.

You frowned and looked up to Steve who still had the arrogant smirk on his face, eyes straight ahead on the road, giving no indication of his inappropriate touching.

You wanted to swat his hand away but a brainwave dashed through your head and a disturbing thought made you halt, that whether he carried guns to restaurants as well, since carnivals were no big deal.

You ignored his hand and continued looking outside, pretending to ignore it as well as he did. Your scowl was a huge giveaway though.

You didn’t know that, but when your eyes found their way out, his finally rested on your face, the smirk growing even more.

Thankfully, apart from the incongruous touching, the dinner went okay-ish. The food and wine were impeccable, perfect even, the restaurant on the hotel’s top floors was so picturesque. You tried to savor your one-time experience there, knowing you’d no way be able to come back there.

Well, you tried to relish as much as you could while your mind still sat there, wary of the human in front of you. If you’d ignore your journey here, Steve was nothing short of a true gentleman, often making you wonder if you had imagined his hand on you.

This ‘friendly’ date you were having was probably one of the best you have had, he had left no expenses. He appeared to be interested in your work, about your childhood and about Grace’s but you swiftly avoided his questions about her father. He was growing a tad bit too comfortable for your liking and you still refused to entertain the idea that this was a ‘date’ date.

When you were finally onto dessert, the last course of your meal, your table was shadowed by the broad frame of a brunette and his date. He clapped Steve’s shoulder and Steve rose to hug him, you awkwardly smiled.

“It’s been far too long since you’ve been here, Cap. Why don’t you and your gorgeous date stop by my penthouse for a bit? We could finally go over the papers you sent me, in person?” He winked, they discussed something more and then went away, his date bowing and trailing after him as well.

Steve claimed his seat again, and finally told you about the interrupter. “That was my good friend, Tony Stark, always in a hurry. I’ll introduce you to him when we meet him later.”

“I think I’ll be heading home; you need not worry about my introduction, I hardly think we’ll ever run into each other again.” His eyes narrowed and you clarified, “Me and Mr. Stark, I meant.”

That’s good, don’t associate yourself with more of his kind.

“He was so kind in inviting you though, it would be rude to refuse.”

“It’s already late, Steve. And I’ve never left Grace alone for a night yet. What if she’s antsy? What if she is bothered? What if she feels unsafe? She's only used to very few people, and after last week, I-” You had started the sentence hoping to use Grace as an excuse but every word of yours succeeded in making you more apprehensive.

The carnival night flashed in your mind, along with the nightmares and you started panicking even more. Your hands clammy, your dessert spoon fell in your lap as sought your phone in your purse, hoping to call Wanda for an update. You felt like a terrible mother, who left her child with a stranger, only a week after she suffered trauma, just to go on a date with a mobster.

Steve reached across the table and grabbed your fidgety hands and as you wriggled to get your hands free, he softly called your name. Voice stern but vocals gentle. Your blurry eyes snapped to meet his while he guided you to breathe deeply, in and out.

His firm hold convinced you to listen to him, you’d never free yourself of them otherwise.

When you had calmed a bit, he withdrew his hands and fetched his phone. Your thoughts slowed down, and you wondered if anyone here was judging you. Your little scene, mercifully, went unnoticed by the other affluent people dining here.

Steve handed you his phone where four colored frames rested, the screen showing you Grace and Sarah cuddled in a frilly, pink four poster where Wanda sat too, her lips moving.

The feed was live and the screen muted, both the toddlers’ eyes fluttering close slowly, on the bridge of sleep.

You handed the phone back to Steve and drank your water while he rubbed circles on the back of one of your hands. You never freaked out like you did right now, always collected and never giving into anxiety. What had happened to you?

Well, In your defense, you had never experienced a disaster either.

“The kids are safe; I’m never putting either of them in harm’s way ever again.”

Your mind did catch the plural in his statement but you promised yourself you would not let it get that far and continued drinking your water, emptying the entire glass.

“The HD image you just saw was by cameras Tony recently developed. His technology is amazing, I’ll take you to his lab sometime.” You appreciated his attempt to redirect the topic but you also focused on how tech-savvy his friends were as well.

You hummed and agreed, trying to be ambiguous with your answer.

When you finished your dessert, you hoped he’d forget about his ‘friend’ Tony but to no avail.

“His penthouse is two floors above. He owns this hotel as well in case you didn’t notice.” He led you to the elevator as you recalled the Starks Group logo you saw earlier sometime.

Some AI named Jarvis opened the elevator doors for you in the living room of Tony’s penthouse. It was even more magnificent than the restaurant earlier, the place illuminated by several hues of different colours. Steve chuckled and strung you along, introducing you to a ginger-head named Pepper, who was Tony’s date earlier and went to search for his acquaintance.

She offered you wine but you politely declined, opting for water instead. She brought your glass to you from the extravagant kitchen and you both sat on the barstool there instead of the living room. Too anxious to say the wrong thing, you stayed quiet until her voice filled the deafening silence.

“So, Steve almost never brings dates around. You two serious?” She questioned, leaning towards you, waiting for some gossip, no doubt.

“Oh no! We aren’t dating. He just invited me for a friendly dinner. We merely met the other week.” You deliberately left out the part where there was bombing by crime families and attack on the common man.

“Honey, in the mob life, you don’t just introduce random people to the fam.”

Oh, she wasn’t being shy about the whole mob ordeal. It seemed weird to hear it from her, since you and Steve hadn’t used the word yet. Maybe he figured you already knew considering the circumstances you met in or how famous he was.

“We really aren’t romantically involved. This dinner was just a gesture of gratitude if I’m being truthful.”

She chuckled, as if you were a kid making stories and quizzed, “Gratitude for what?”

You trapped yourself into that one. You didn’t know how to answer her and your brain downright blanked. Surprisingly,, Steve came to your rescue and two voices interposed your conversation.

Steve called your name and as you turned to the men, he continued, “She’s the one who saved Sarah the other night. You know the story, Wilson probably got it printed.”

“Impressive, really. Hey, I’m Tony and I see you’ve already met Pepper, my fiancée.” He shook your hand and kissed your knuckles, much like Steve did earlier in the day. You bowed, smiled and mumbled a ‘nice to meet you as well’. They escorted you to the elevator and Tony continued.

“Well, it’s not everyday Steve brings brave and extraordinarily attractive women around. Welcome to the family, sweetie. She’s a keeper, Cap.” He winked while saying the last sentence and before you could correct him, Steve ushered you inside the elevator, bro-hugging him. As the doors closed, Pepper winked at you from behind Tony and a shudder ran through you.

Okay you had to make it clear, get on the same page.

As the elevator music filled the silence, you started, “Steve, look we aren’t-”, “I served in the army, that’s why Tony calls me Cap, short for captain.” And crudely got interrupted.

“I never wanted to get into the army, I thought people were fools to sacrifice the one life they got. But I went to make my mother’s dream a reality, I really loved her, you know? Sarah is named after her, my mother.”

His voice broke at the end and as much as you wanted to redirect onto your former topic, you couldn’t. This amiability of yours would be the death of you.

“She died alone in her bed; I was dispatched too far away to even make it back for her funeral.” He mumbled but you heard him clear as a sunny day, and he leaned back onto the wall for support while you awkwardly rubbed his shoulder to return the support he provided earlier during your mental breakdown.

He closed his eyes and gathered himself, taking deep breaths. As the elevator dinged, his eyes opened and he gave you a strained smile.

The car ride to his mansion was painfully silent, his mind too sidetracked to focus on harassing you again. With all that you went through today, you almost forgot about that.

His mansion was enormous, twenty guards stood outside and even more patrolled the lawn. He took you inside his house, the interior even more detailed and scenic than Tony’s temporary residence.

You just concentrated on swiftly getting Grace and Uber-ing back. As Steve showed you earlier, Grace and Sarah hugged and slept and it was a meticulous task to untangle their limbs without waking either of them up andnd get Grace with her back-pack. You thanked Wanda on the way out, hoping to avoid Steve but somehow he stood outside before you, leaning on his sleek black car. He opened the door for you before you could refuse the ride. You settled with Grace in the backseat itself, trying to be smart.

He just summoned one of his guards to drive and sat alongside you in the back. You didn’t let the annoyance at his clinginess show though. You just focused on Grace who drooled over your shoulder.

Hopefully, there won’t be any point of exposure to him ever again, your circles didn’t match, both social and professional. Your Venn diagrams didn’t overlap anywhere. This should be reason enough to avoid meeting ever again.

He didn’t try anything even this ride around. You doubted it was hardly because of the toddler or because of the driver. He did as he pleased, if he wanted to he could very well grope you. Luckily, he wasn't in the mood.

When you reached your dwelling, you stepped out hastily, thanking him in a whisper. You fumbled to get your keys out, but since everything you held slowed you down, he caught up with you without even trying.

He took and held Grace’s bag while you drew the keys out, Grace still on your hip. He handed you the bag back, “So this is it, I guess?”

“Yeah, tonight was a total delight. Thanks for the dinner and everything, really.” You put up your best façade, hoping to convince him.

“It was, thanks to you. The company matters the most.”

You awkwardly chuckled and you sensed him leaning in, his eyes flickering shut. Your eyes closed as you turned your head to avoid him, so that his lips would peck your cheek.

They never came.

Your eyes opened to find his and he chuckled, leaning in once again swiftly, catching you off guard this time. He didn’t meet your lips though, he kissed the corner of your mouth, lips overlapping for a fraction of skin.

“In due time, baby.” He stepped back and strolled to his car leisurely, content in his own world.

You opened your door and slammed it shut, the peck feeling wrong on so many levels. It felt more sensual than a lover’s kiss, leaving room for intimacy and longing.

Your thoughts ran a hundred kilometers an hour, the most absurd but nauseatingly true being, this was a date and it was not your last encounter.

Steve smirked outside in his car, the dinner an absolute success in his opinion. Tonight just made him feel that you both were more than compatible for each other. You needing him during your mental breakdown, him relaxing under your shy touch, Tony’s approval, not that important though, and your anxiety for Grace was the best part, because he, more often than he’d like to admit, fussed about Sarah the same way, agonizing and fretting her well being.

A text lit up his black screen and his grin widened even more if possible.

‘The Stark cameras are up and working, Sir.’

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mejcinta · 3 years

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Can I just say that this scene is beautiful and the dialogue cleverly and sneakily woven together to foreshadow the turn Dick's romantic life is going to take? I have to actually thank Barbara for keeping a level head throughout and being open to reality, as our boy Dick wasn't that clear-minded and was this close to switching to his old self. Phew!

Analysis:

*You okay?* (She’s noticed how Dick is basically dangling a carrot at her. Wanting to stay.)

*Yeah, I’m good.* (No he isn’t. He’s screaming to be taken by her.) 🤦 It's so obvious, it hurts, lol. Dick is definitely the one more invested in their past relationship.

*I should probably go.* (Dick realizes he’s being inappropriate, breaching their deal to keep things professional. Also, this is him acknowledging whatever little change he’s underwent since leaving his life as Robin and nurturing the Titans for 6 months. I loved that he did this. That he paused to respect himself and Barbara and the deal they'd made 6 years ago after breaking up.)

*Right.* (Barbara’s disappointed, because she's human of course, but also she's not opposed to the reality that things have changed; and Dick is a different man now, with a different emotional obligations and responsibilities to others in his new life as the head of the Titans ‘family’. Kind of felt sorry for her. She seems to be just as good at communicating her true feelings/opinions as Bruce.)

*It’s late.* (He’s trying to excuse why he’s turning her down. That it’s not in bad taste. But Dick inwardly knows what this conversation and his previous comment signals: that things truly have changed between him and Barbara. And that they’re not exactly sure about where they stand at the moment.)

*It is.* (Barbara swallows this reality. She’s not referring to the time, but their relationship and that they can’t take things back to how they used to be, regardless of the residual feelings they have for each other. She’s letting Dick go in a sense. The bittersweet reality has set in and she’d rather keep things that way because she’s the more logical and realistic one between them. Dick still wants to hold on to the shadow of their past, all he needs is her signal. But Barbara can’t perceive a future. At least not for now. She puts out the flame of hope and lets him go, empty. It’s appropriate to her at the time.)

#titans analysis #tv: titans #titans season 3 #dc titans #dcu titans #titans tv #titans s3 #barbara gordon #batgirl #dick grayson #robin #nightwing #dickbabs #bruce wayne #batman #kory anders #koriand'r #starfire #lady vic

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mindibindi · 3 years

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Beyond disappointed in Ted Lasso. What were they thinking?!

The writing is a complete betrayal and insult to Rebecca’s character and Hannah’s skills as they’re being seriously underused. It’s also insulting Sam’s character.

Hoping someone pulls Rebecca’s head out of her ass tbh. Sam shouldn’t be getting caught in the crossfire of her looking for romance. I know he showed up at her doorstep but she still should’ve turned him away, and not even messaged him in the first place.

Hey, I'm with you, Anon, though we do seem to be in the minority. Sam is definitely not blameless here, he is also in the wrong. But if one of them is more in the wrong, it is Rebecca. I can't speak to whether her head has left her arse as yet because I have quit watching (at least for now). I hear she called it off with Sam in the most recent ep, though not because of any major crisis of conscience or because anyone in her inner circle expressed any reasonable reservations in response to her bad behaviour. And to be honest, I'm not sure we should need to hope and pray that Rebecca's precocious god-daughter, her slimy ex-husband, or the brutal British press will act as a moral compass on this ill-advised relationship. Both Rupert and the press have been set up to some extent as the villains of the piece. And a 14 year old should never have to school her elders on what is and isn't acceptable. Nora's needs have already been neglected by Rebecca for far too long.

If a moral position is to be taken on this, it needs to be taken by the show (because stance matters) and/or by its characters. But the show has for the most part depicted this relationship as ill-advised but ultimately hot, sweet, funny and romantic. As for the characters themselves, Sam has shown at least once that he has some moral backbone but seems to be adorably clueless when it comes to fucking his boss who keeps trying to set boundaries with him. Meanwhile, Rebecca's whole arc in s1 was about learning not to misuse her power for her own selfish ends. In season one, she misused her power within the club in order to exact revenge. In season 2, we have seen her misuse her sexual power, though I still cannot see to what end. I'm a bit at a loss as to what exactly she gets out of this 'relationship' but then I'm a grown woman so I have absolutely no interest in sleeping with a Harry Potter enthusiast barely out of his teens. I couldn't think of anything less sexy and more ick. I was certainly hoping for better character development for her this season.

As to what the writers were thinking, obviously I was not in the writer's room, but I would guess that they were thinking that any drama is good drama, people are stupid and fan devotion will trump any meaningful critique. In other words, they were thinking exactly how every other television writer thinks, despite the fact that this show posited itself as 'not like other TV shows'. This, to me, is where the blame really lies. Not with the characters or with the actors who are doing their best to sell this ludicrous turn of events. It must be noted, however, that both actors were completely blindsided by this relationship that had supposedly been so cleverly foreshadowed. Newsflash: if the people actually living these stories did not see this coming then you haven't foreshadowed shit. Sure, there were a handful of people that paired Rebecca with Sam but this does not constitute proof either. Fans have free-range to imagine and re-imagine characters. In some cases this may extend to imagining relationships between characters who have barely, if ever, interacted. There may be little to no evidence that these characters have even clocked each other's existence and some fans will still ship it. The existence of a handful of shippers does not legitimise such a problematic and divisive plotline making it onscreen.

But wait!, you might argue, this may not be a case of a popular show seeing just how far they can stretch fan devotion. This may not be a case of fan service to a handful of shippers. After all, the creators mapped out the entire three-season arc of Ted Lasso before they even pitched it to Apple. This was their brilliant plan all along! To which I would say: then maybe they should've rethought their second act based on people's strong reactions to their first. Ted Lasso was touted as the show we all needed in 2020. The writers and creators have all marveled at the chord it struck considering it was conceived prior to the pandemic and all the chaos it wrought. And while there is something to be said for having/sticking to a creative vision, there is also something to be said for being flexible and responsive to your audience and the cultural zeitgeist with which you're engaged. Season 1 of Ted Lasso told its story so gently, without creating distrust, division or unnecessary anxiety. It did not treat its audience like a gaggle of stupid lemmings to be led over a succession of narrative cliffs. THIS is what I mean when I say the show has broken with its brand. And look, this whole dark forest thing would be okay if the narrative arc was as well-crafted as s1. Season 1 gave us meaning, cohesion, comfort, sense in a senseless time. It was an almost perfectly crafted season of television. And I kept the faith for 6 episodes, despite the first half of s2 being pretty damn wobbly. But the follow-up to this stellar debut has been less than extraordinary so yeah, perhaps they should've thought a little harder about what made s1 so special before throwing it all out the window.

But wait!, I hear the faithful say, you don't know how things will pan out yet! Wait until the season is over and everything will make sense! But -- wearily and once again, I say -- we should not need to wait until the end of the season to understand what the hell is happening. By this point (over halfway through the season and show) we should have a v clear idea of the show's themes and the characters' arcs. And tbf, from what I can tell there are some fab things happening in other aspects of the show that I wish I could watch and enjoy. But my biggest fear at this point is that they are going to use Sam to solve Rebecca's childlessness. That, like Rupert (because the parallel cannot be avoided), she will become pregnant with a young fling and the show's attitude to this relationship will ultimately be: oh well, it was a bad idea and didn't work out for them but it was all for the best in the end cos who can be mad about a cute lil baaaayyybbbeeee??!! If they do go down this path then I will definitely be abstaining from the rest of the show. I will simply recall my repeated viewings of s1 with fondness tinged with regret at just how badly they fucked up a good thing.

Ultimately, Anon, I think this may be a case of there simply not being a diverse enough perspective in the writer's room. I am not saying that every single woman or every single person of colour will necessarily object to this relationship. I am simply saying that women and people of colour will be more sensitive to the issues of gender and race that are relevant here but that have not been fully or sensitively acknowledged in the writing of this plotline. Neither am I saying that Rebecca is the first woman to sleep with a man much (much, much, MUCH) younger than herself or indulge in an ill-advised relationship. But the comparison with Rupert both works here and doesn't because Rebecca is not being written like a white woman, she is being written like a white man. Realistically, only a white man can engage in this kind of hugely imbalanced relationship seemingly without any major moral qualms or societal ramifications. Not to put too fine a point on it, but this kind of relationship is reserved for all the Bills and Joes and Brendans and Jasons out there -- not for the Rebeccas and definitely not for the Sams. We are way beyond the point in feminism where we believe that liberation is simply the right for a white woman to behave as badly as a white man. The truth is that whatever wealth, power and privilege Rebecca has, the rules are different for men and women. She will not be treated the same as Rupert if and when this affair is uncovered. She will be treated far more savagely than Rupert ever was and Sam will be treated far more savagely than Bex was. This is not an argument for the equal treatment of these two relationships. It is an argument against how the relationship between Rebecca and Sam has been envisaged, i.e. through the wrong perspective. In writing from a 'neutral' white male pov, the show has invisiblised all the many issues activated by this storyline and revealed a blindspot that was always there.

As much as I loved and still love season 1 of this show, it has definite blindspots when it comes to representations of race and gender. There are at least two moments in s1 that stand out for me as being so obviously written by a man. Not necessarily because of what they do but because of what they don't do: what is missed, absent, unacknowledged. I was willing to overlook such minor failings in a debut season for many reasons. But s2 seems to have exacerbated these minor flaws rather than correcting them. And here I can't help thinking of Tina Fey speaking of the diversification of the writer's room at SNL during her tenure as co-headwriter. This notoriously male-dominated environment only began to shift and produce better work when a greater diversity of minds, voices and persepectives was allowed in the room. In this richer environment, she notes, different jokes played differently. Different sketches made it to air. Different perspectives were represented and different performers were celebrated. I can't help wondering if this plotline would have made it to air if there had been a female writer, a writer of colour or both further up the chain of command to challenge the ideas of the straight white dudes in charge.

One of the reasons I didn't think Ted Lasso was for me was that it centred a straight, white, cis-het, able-bodied man who rose to a position he didn't earn. That is just not a pov I would normally choose for myself, especially now that there is such a rich array of alternative perspectives through which to view the world. But I think the show won a lot of females fans with its first season largely due to its portrayal of Rebecca. She is the first person we meet. She is arguably the protagonist of s1. And while she would have been figured as a villain in previous pieces, the show never took that stance with her (because again, stance matters). Other elements like the depiction of female friendships, all centred around Rebecca, made this show female-friendly viewing. But imo, the major reason this show won over female fans (this one, at least) is because, in this post-MeToo, post-TimesUp era, it stood up and said: domestic violence is not okay, we stand with women and all victims of abuse, we will defend you, we know words can hurt, we know it can happen to anyone, we know all about toxic masculinity, we do not take this lightly and we will support you in your healing. Needless to say, this is how women hope men will act when they speak of their most difficult experiences but it is not how they always do.

The shift away from Rebecca this season has however meant that the white male experience is more centred than it was in s1. Rebecca's journey to recovery, health and happiness has been trivialised and sidelined, reduced to a highly questionable sexcapade. Meanwhile, we get overwrought manpain at every turn. We get Beard wandering around London (no, I haven't seen it and no, I don't need to. We've all been raised on white dudes thinking they're genuises when they have a figurative wank all over our screens). We get NO queer represention at all. And the only other female characters on screen are in care/service roles to men. The father/son, mentoring and toxic masculinity themes are all still there but they're no longer balanced out by ANY other competing perspective. One of the reasons I was okay with Ted failing upwards in s1 was that he used his power and privilege to lift up others. He was the one in service. He used his enormous privilege for good, as anyone with such privilege must. (Admittedly, it could be argued that this is just another version of a white savior narrative).

My point here is that I'm not sure that peeking behind the mask at the sad clown is as revolutionary as some might believe. We love it because it's familiar. But this is a narrative with a long and problematic history. Do I believe in tearing down toxic masculinity in all its forms? You bet. Do I believe that patriarchy traumatises men as well as women and every other minority in existence? I mean...nowhere near as much, but absolutely. Do I believe in men expressing their feelings and going to therapy? Wholeheartedly. But I am also aware that 100 or so years ago, we were in a very similar place with our narratives. Everyone is looking for a recapitulation of modernism and frankly, this might be an indicator of just that. Whenever women and people of colour have demanded rights and recognition, there has always been a resurgence of tales about just how frickin' hard it is to be a white man. Minority genders and non-white people have never in western history been as visible or vocal as they are now. So forgive me (or don't, I don't care) if I critique a show not only for centering fathers, sons, boys and men but for blindly and boldly writing one of its only female characters and one of its only black characters as if their gender and race just do not exist. There are many other power differentials at play in this relationship, including age, experience, wealth and position, but race and gender are the two that patriarchy is most invested in invisiblising. So I don't care how brilliant they think they are, I will not trust the writing of a bunch of white dudes trying to tell me that race and gender are irrelevant.

#ted lasso #rebecca welton #sam obisanya #ask #yeah this one got out of hand

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shreddedleopard · 3 years

Text

Twelve-million more reasons Historia and Levi are part of the Endgame. With Pictures.

You can read the first post I made on this here:

10 reasons it would make narrative sense for Levi and Historia’s character arcs to end together.

(This is the mega-evolved version.)

Okay, I’m going to put this out there now, and before you judge me, please just read the posts. You don’t have to agree. This is just an idea. But it makes a stupid amount of sense, at least to me. So here's your fair warning (and now I'm being bold): If you don’t want to potentially be spoiled, Do Not Read On.

Here’s the Theory:

Historia Reiss will give birth to a half-Ackerman child, and together with Levi, from the ashes and ruins of the world Eren destroyed, they will welcome the dawn of a new age for humanity, where Ymir’s curse and the power of the Titans is extinct.

I know. I sound like some crazy, Rivahisu nut. Granted, I am, but I’m not mad enough to make a claim like this without a shit-ton of evidence, because it’s such a damn twist it feels like it can’t be true. But just humour me.

Here’s the theory, then we’ll look at why it makes sense and how it might have been foreshadowed. Please note: I have less clue how this will tie in to Eremika endgame, so I haven’t mentioned this as much, but obviously that will be the other very important side of this coin.

10 months ago (In Japan, full term pregnancy is counted as 10 months), at the banquet celebrating completion of the new railroad, Levi and Historia, having had 3 and a bit years to bond over their shared experiences and become close, may have gotten carried away together and shared one night of being a bit more than friends. She’s well into her 18th year at this point, just to clear that up. This resulted in Historia getting pregnant. Okay just stay with me; I know. I know. I sound crazy. But hear me out. So this pregnancy, contrary to the belief of the MPs and rest of the damn world, was the complete opposite of planned. Historia tells Levi, and Levi immediately panics. Because, to steal Kenny’s famous line, Levi thinks to himself ‘I can’t be some kid’s dad.’

Levi does what he always does best, and shuts down into business mode, telling Historia she will need to cover it up somehow. Historia does as he asks, probably reluctantly, because she really has developed very deep feelings for him during the timeskip, and finds some farm hand to take the blame, likely saying she made a silly mistake with some random and the father doesn’t want anything to do with the child, and so she needs a father for the child not to be illegitimate. Which is her worst nightmare, because of course, that’s what she was. Levi watches the exchange hidden in that famous hood, feeling very conflicted, because although he cares about her, he thinks it best if no one knows that it was him that got the Queen pregnant, and of course, he’s duty bound, with a vow to fulfil, so he has no time to be worrying about a family. (Silly Levi!)

How ironic this conversation would be if this theory were true. Remember, Historia was completely willing to eat Zeke if needed. Instead, she got pregnant, unplanned, nothing to do with any plot or selfish wishes, just the result of a spontaneous act of love by two people who’ve grown to care for one another a lot. ANYWAY.

Because we know Levi actually has a good heart, he feels immensely guilty for all of this; he's just a product of his upbringing and thinks he doesn’t know the first thing about families, so it's better for all involved if he not be. See where this is going? The old cursed history repeating? Making the same mistakes as our parents? Plus, Levi is bound by his duty. He is incredibly important to the military still, and he cannot just abandon this for any of his own selfish wishes. He’s supposed to be the one to vanquish the beast titan.

Cue ten months of Historia looking hella depressed and hopeless, and Levi being even more of an asshole than usual to everyone, and not really wanting to say too much at all, as well as making some terrible workplace decisions (lol) poor boy be distracted.

Look at his face 😭

Yes Levi. A month. Which means Historia is now due and you’re still stuck with beardy, without a solution and pretty soon no reason for the MPs not to turn the mother of your child into a Titan.

That’s what that face is. I thought he looked a bit weird first time I read these panels 🤔 He didn’t know about the wine. We see that later. Anyway, I keep getting distracted, stop. I’ll come back to this.

But fear not; Levi will have a choice to make.

So this is where it gets a bit more iffy for me, because I'm not sure how it would work, so this could be a way off, BUT. I believe it will come to light that the combination of Royal and Ackerman genes will somehow cancel out a person’s ability to turn into a titan and connection through paths, thus making them truly ‘free.’

The founding titan has the ability to change Eldian physiology, according to what Zeke learned from professor Xavier.

EDIT: Okay so here’s where I’ve had to tweak this a bit in light of there latest chapter. So we just had Zeke in PATHS. With none other than our second resident genius, and as proclaimed by Eren, the saviour of humanity: Armin. What do our boys have a conversation about? Reproduction and the importance of the small moments in life - it’s these little moments which matter, regardless of the desire or need to recreate. Interesting how both the leaf and baseball link back to what their ideas of ‘family’ became. If Historia and Levi were to be in the same scenario in PATHS, what would their items be? What truly means family to them both?

Perhaps Armin and Zeke realise what is needed to lift the curse of the titans - maybe a blueprint for genes which can cancel out the connection to PATHS and the founder? If only they had a child with a new type of Royal-Ackerman DNA which might fit the bill ...

Here’s Levi’s moment. He, with Historia, has created such a child - completely by accident, because of one of those ‘moments’ that both Armin and Zeke mention - moments that are simply just about enjoying what you have with no sense of how it might relate to anything bigger - a real rarity for both of them, considering their roles and constantly being asked to think about the good of humanity as a whole. What a beautiful irony, that in the moment they chose to be selfish and, to use freckled Ymir’s own words, really live for themselves, they set a chain reaction in motion that would ultimately save humanity.

Where does this leave Eren and Mikasa? Good question. I believe Eren will die once the curse is removed, because tragically he is the character that has been forced to choose humanity over his own personal relationships. As Isayama has said before, Eren is a victim of the story. Mikasa will be the last thing he sees, hence the original dream at the start of the manga, where he wakes up crying. Something like this. But probably a lot better. Yeah.

Out of the ashes of the old world, a new one will be built, but through Historia’s kindness and love, and Levi’s guilt and understanding of what was sacrificed in the past, society will not repeat the same mistakes. The final panel could be Jean holding his child, perhaps with Mikasa, if she ever manages to get over losing Eren. That would be vague enough so that Isayama was able to show it to us already without spoiling much. Or maybe Jean’s dead and it’s not him at all. I don’t know. 😭

Right. Okay. So now you’re going, sweet story, but uh, there’s no way Levi could be the father. He’s so much older. Isayama wouldn't write a moment of romance like that. Not with him and Historia. YOU’RE JUST CRAZY.

Well this is where it get’s interesting. LET ME SHOW YOU. It’s foreshadowed literally everywhere. Right under our noses.

There is so much symbolism.

Dedicate your heart to what? has been Levi’s question recently. What are they all fighting for? What is he fighting for? How will he give meaning to his dead comrades sacrifices? Is killing Zeke really the extent of it? Is vengeance the true meaning of their sacrifices? Or is it something a lot more hopeful?

The answer is shown to us in the opening credits. And the ending credits. Several times.

Levi says so himself - he keeps messing fulfilling the vow up - why? Why is he so worried about killing Zeke?

Eren has the same questions to consider. Which PATH is the right one to take - revenge and violence with the rumbling, or love ... with Mikasa. We are literally shown what their choices will be in two virtually identically designed panels, which I’ll show you. Tragically, Eren’s choice is taken from him. He is a victim to the story - he must chose the path that saves humanity. Levi and Eren have been bound together through the theme of choices, and taking the ones which leave you with the least regrets, throughout this entire manga.

The upcoming anime episodes literally plot out the timeline of Levi and Historia’s changing attitude to one another, and then Historia’s pregnancy, it’s just so cleverly subtle. Isayama even tells us when/ during what event her child was probably conceived by just dropping dates in from other, seemingly unrelated plot lines.

Zeke gives pointed comments to Levi constantly - every other line of his is either a different jab at Levi about Historia’s pregnancy, a veiled question, or a reminder that he’s under the pressure of a 10 month time limit to do something about him, or Historia will have to eat him once she’s given birth. We start to see Levi unravel because of this, and make mistakes over and over.

It’s in official art. It’s in the soundtrack. Its in music videos. There’s interviews from Isayama that, when read in light of these ideas, suddenly take on a whole new meaning.

Isayama even trolls us. He’s laughing in our faces, the madman. Like, gotchu 🤣 suckers. While we’re all on Reddit and Twitter like, ‘Levi’s character has become so stagnated! He’s making such poor choices or not giving anything to the plot at all. All that’s left for him now is to give up and die! Be at peace, your story is over.’ OOF. Or, ‘Historia has just been forgotten! She’s become such a pointless character. Isayama just got bored with her and sidelined her.’

I’m going to try and write stuff up in the rough categories below, but these might change. I’ll link them when I’m done, and then pin this post. I’m a bit of a rambler so heads up - this may take a while 😅

There’s also a ton of people I have to mention who have contributed to this - I didn’t spot it by myself. I’ll tag them in the finished post too.

Historia and Levi’s Miscalculation: A manga tale featuring the Jaeger Bros., Pt. 1

Historia and Levi’s Miscalculation: A manga tale featuring the Jaeger Bros., Pt. 2

Historia and Levi’s Miscalculation: A manga tale featuring the Jaeger Bros., Pt. 3

Ackerman-Royal Bloodline and Levi’s Choice Pt. 1

Levi’s Choice Pt. 2

Suns, Moons and Songs

Akatsuki No Requiem - Right theory, Wrong guy

The Farmer and The Cattle Farming Goddess, or WHAT’S IN A NAME.

Mistakes of our parents and breaking the cycle

Memories from the future & Levi’s Guilt

Watch this space. And hold on to your pants. If I’m right, I’m getting very drunk.

#shingeki no kyojin spoilers #shingeki no kyojin manga theory #historia pregnancy #snk #shingeki no kyojin #attack on titan #aot #levi ackerman #historia reiss #rivahisu

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redtutel · 4 years

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Rewatching Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens

Although I have vague memories of the Episode III promotional material, this is the Star Wars movie where I truly was a part of the hype. December 2015 was a magical time where everyone was just...loved Star Wars. And it created a meme and parody culture that was just as wholesome as the original trilogies. None of that cynical and nitpicky, or in extreme cases sexist and racist, Star Wars fan culture we’re dealing with today.

So much like the first Avengers movie, the magic surrounding its release will make it impossible for me to judge this movie fairy. But I don’t care. I’m still very attached to it. Will this be the viewing where the magic wares off? Or will I find myself considering this better then the film it pays homage to. I’m excited to find out.

Seeing a brand new “A Long Time Ago in a Galaxy Far, Far, Away” and an opening crawl in theaters was just awesome.

“Will not rest until, Skywalker, The Last Jedi, has been destroyed,” Hey, Foreshadowing! I know there’s a ton of debate as to what was or wasn’t planned in advance for this trilogy, but still.

The First Order is Space ISIS/Neo-Nazis, and Leia leads an army to fight it. Pretty simple. I don’t get why people get so up in arms about how little the politics are explored in this movie. It’s probably a side effect of just how lore heavy Star Wars got after the original trilogy.

The opening shot of a space ship completely covering a moon. A new take on ironic Star Wars imagers. A pretty good summary of this movie. But I feel like such new takes make up for just how many recycled plot points this movie has.

The opening action sequence is the first time in years Storm Troopers have been intimidating (Clone Troopers and Stormtroopers are two different things). It’s pretty impressive. It’s a great way to establish how evil the First Order is.

Finn’s introduction is so impressive. A Stormtrooper who in his first fight, completely looses the will to participate in war. We may never know about his friend he saw die, but despite that, we still understand why he lost his will to fight. It might be a bit awkward for Finn and Poe’s friendship if they ever find out Poe shot Finn’s old Stormtrooper friend.

Kylo Ren stopping a laser with the Force. An awesome new way to use the Force. And I love Poe’s quip “So who talks first?” It establishes Poe as a fun, jokey character, which is why I don’t get why people got upset about his sense of humor in Last Jedi. He’s the sort of character that uses humor to relieve the tension of any situation he’s in.

J.J Abrams made this movie to be watched blind, and I really wish I could (but I saw spoilers before I watched it). Where is Luke? Who is this new Sith? What’s the backstory the old man hits at? There’s a good Stormtrooper? He talks off his helmet? Who’s this girl in the desert? I’d love to discover these things for the first time all over again.

I’m found of robot characters that go against their programming. Finn’s not a robot, but the beginning of his character arc has that concept. He does not believe in this cause, and he fights war terrifying. And he wants to escape.

Anakin was a slave, Luke was a farmboy, and now we have Rey, a scavenger, all alone in the world, just tying to service. She quickly establishes herself as incredibly tough, but also a bit cute.

Of all the protagonists Rey’s backstory is the saddest in my eyes. While Luke had a happy but boring life with his aunt and uncle, and Anakin had a hard life but a living mother, Rey has had to fend for herself since she was a child, holding onto hope that one day her parents will come. She was all alone in the world. But now that’s going to change.

I don’t take any sides in the CGI/Puppets debate, but seeing puppets in a big Hollywood blockbuster again is pretty nice.

BB-8′s so cute. I have too much R2-D2 nostalgia to consider him my favorite Skywalker Saga droid though.

Rey’s relationship with BB-8 establishes that although she’s a survivor, she hasn’t let it harden her heart. She’s willing to help BB-8, and although she wants him to be on his way, she still won’t sell him off (despite being tempted to)

...Poe’s technically the Leia archetype in this movie. This tough rebel who got captured by the villains, and who sent a droid with something important.

The Finn and Poe escape scene has a lot of great dialogue. I’d argue some of the best banter in the series. It’s a pretty good action scene too.

Of all the characters, I like how Finn’s take on his archetype the most. He’s the Han Solo, the deuteragonist who wants nothing to do with the battle, and joins for selfish reasons, but in the end proves to be a loyal friend and hero. But unlike cool and collated Solo, Finn is nervous and cowardly. But that makes his eventual bravery and loyalty all the more satisfying.

I don’t know if this is true, but I’ve heard Poe was originally going to die, but Oscar Isaac was so great they kept the character alive. I do believe keeping them separated is for the best, seeing how it makes sure Finn stays around for as long has he does.

Early on we establish that Kylo Ren is abnormally obsessed with Luke Skywalker, to the point where Gnearl Hux questions him.

Finn and Rey’s friendship stars off pretty rocky, but even then they have some good chemistry. At one point Finn’s all beat up, and he asked Rey if she’s okay. He may not be very good at it, but he’s trying to be a gentleman.

I love how the Millennium Falcon gets called garbage. It’s a funny bit of irony, concerning just how sacred everything else from classic Star Wars gets treated.

The first Millennium Falcon chase is another great action sequence. Rey and Finn are figuring things out as they go along, and BB-8′s being cute. And in the end they’re very impressed with each other. Characters becoming friends tough action sequences is a favorite troupe of mine.

Everything from Finn and Poe’s escape to meeting Maz Katana has nothing to do with a New Hope, and thus is a very underrated part of the movie. Although the tentacle monster scene is kind of forgettable.

Both Finn and Rey have no last name. They’ve never had any sort of family before. Heck, Finn didn’t even have a real name until just a few hours ago. They’re nobodies trying to find themselves, which sets of their arc that carries over into the next film

Kylo Ren destroying the console establishes him as short tempered for the first time. He drops his stoic facade and shows his true colors. Kylo looks indimiateing, but deep down he’s an insecure manchild trying his best to inhert a dark legacy. I’m found of this character, as well as similar characters like Berkut and Shiguraki

Did BB-8 give a thumbs up or a bird? The world will never know.

Rey keeps her guard up around people she doesn’t know to well, but she has a very soft and kind side as well. She’s pretty aggrieve to Finn early on, which is probably why....certain people, dislike her. Women and aggression tends to lead to backlash, after all.

I love how Finn slips in a bit of Stormtrooper knowledge. It comes in handy a few times in this movie. Some could say it should come up a bit more, but I think it’s used enough.

“Chewie, We’re Home” What an iconic line. I can still hear the applause.

Seeing Han become the Obi Wan archetype is a very unique direction for the character to take. And he handles the role very well. Harrison Ford may have been sick of this character, but he still brought his A-game. I love that Rey admires Han more for his smuggling than for his war heroics. And it’s very sweet seeing Han admiring just how much Rey knows about piloting. It’s a very sweet father/daughter relationship. In hindsight, Rey and Han don’t even need to be related for this relationship to be this good. Rey lost her parents and Han lost his son, and they can’t help but see each other as a means to fill those voids, even if they deny it to themselves.

The events of the original trilogy are legendary to these characters, which make the “It’s True, All of it” line so cool. It’s pretty interesting how chronologically, the events of one trilogy are legends to the characters of the next one.

Seeing Han be exactly how people remember his is pretty cleverly deconstructed. In-Univse it happened because he needed to escape from the pain of what happened to his son. And now he’s at the point where there’s nobody left to swindle.

Whenever Rey’s in trouble, she’s always the one to get herself out of it. This is definitely meant as pushback to the fact that in so many things, women always need help while men can aways get out of a situation by themselves. And I’m all for it. It’s great to see a woman be this strong, but she’s not flawless. After all, she shuts people out and is struggling to accept the fact her parents are never coming back.

Snoke even says “Last Jedi.” Even in this movie, Snoke is convinced that Luke is the hero of this story, and will stop and nothing to stop him. It is interesting that they introduced the Emperor archetype in this first movie, although maybe it was a sign that he wasn’t actually the big bad of this trilogy.

“It the hands of your father: Han Solo.” And the audience gasped (unless they got spoiled first. It’s one of those things we can never un-know). Although if I have to nitpick, I’d be nice if we found out alongside Finn and Rey.

I love that the space chess still looks like stop motion.

Rey doesn’t see herself as the hero. Just the delivery girl. Even Luke saw himself as trying to save a damsel in distress. But though this journy, she becomes a hero.

"Luke felt responsible. He just, walked away from everything.” This was established in this movie? Why did it take until Last Jedi for people to react to that plot point?

“I didn’t know there was this much green in the whole galaxy” I love that line. It’s so endearing!

Finn reminds me of Usopp. A liar and a coward, but someone who will always do the right thin in the end. He’s my personal favorite sequel character

“Women always find out.” Han has a ton of great lines in this movie.

“I’ve already been away too long” She’s so convinced her parents will come back she won’t even leave her planet for a few hours.

With Maz Katana, we’re back in a New Hope. I’m found of this character. It’s fascinating to see someone who’s Force Sensitive but not a Jedi. And she offers some great advice to Rey and Finn. I’d love to see her in the next season of Clone Wars.

Kylo Ren sees Darth Vader as the hero, the dark as good, and the light as bad. But he has regrets, and lakes the discipline and fidelity of Darth Vader. Of all the characters, he’s the one most desperate to fulfill his archetype.

“Though the ages I have seen evil take on many forms. The Sith, the Empire, today it’s the First Order.” “If you live long enough, you see the same eyes in many different people.” Of the the sequel’s trilogy’s biggest themes is that history repeats itself. But despite that, it’s still important to fight evil whenever it arises, instead of just sitting back and letting it happen.

It never occurred to me before, but Finn’s cowardliness might be the lingering effects of his brainwashing. Although he does not believe in the First Order’s Ways, he was still convinced all his life that they’re unstoppable, which is why he wants to run instead of fight. I also like how he’s admits the truth, instead of there being this “liar revealed” thing.

Finn and Rey have truly become friends at this point. Instead of just running away, now Finn wants Rey to come with him. As far as he knows, she’s the only friend he has, and he doesn’t want anything to happen to her. Meanwhile, Rey doesn’t want Finn to leave, because he’s one of the few people in her life to stick with her for this long. If he leaves, he might end of like her parents, who never came back.

Wait...how come nobody was demanding to know Finn’s parents. He was taken from a family he’ll never know after all. How come people accept that Finn’s parents don’t matter, but insist that Rey’s does?

Seeing Rey connect to the force for the first time (outside of the piloting and scavenging skills I assume she she used them for subcoinsously before the events of this movie) is really impressive. We get flashes of her past, as well as Luke’s past and Kylo’s past, and even hear the voices of Yoda and Obi Wan. ok She’s getting her first glimpse at the Force that binds everything together, and she’s terrified of it. It’s also yet another divination from the New Hope plot, which is very welcome.

I forgot that Rey being Force sensitive was once a spoiler. How time flys.

I really hope Obi-Wan appears in Rise of Skywalker. He spoke to Rey when she connected to the Force for the first time, and I’d love to see that expanded upon.

“They’re never coming back.” A lesson Rey, and the audience, finds difficulty accepting.

“The belonging you seek is not behind you, it is ahead.” Such a great line. It’s a great summery of Rey’s arc, and I imagine people with difficult pasts can relate to it.

Maz tells Rey and Finn exactly what they need. Rey need to learn to move forward, and Finn needs to learn to fight for what’s right.

Why does the lightsaber choose Rey? I guess her midichlorian count is just right or something. It doesn’t really matter, and I personally find the idea that the next hero can come from anywhere inspiring.

...Come to think of it, Luke’s the only protagonist who isn’t just some rando.

“Why is Maz so interested in Rey” Probably because of her strong connection to the Force.

Rey rejects the saber. Classic rejection of the call. Can you blame her, after that vision?

The First Order sees the Republic as weak and dishonest. Seems straightforward to me. Maybe people were underwhelmed because Neo-Nazism didn’t get as much attention as it did just a few months later.

Starkiller Base. It’s cool looking power-creep. On one hand, since we don’t know anyone from those planets, it’s not as impactful as what happened to Alderan. But then again, we actually see people on that planet die. So It’s a bit of a mixed bag overall.

Finn’s not going to leave until he knows Rey is safe. How touching.

TR-8R. I miss that meme.

Seeing Poe’s triumphant return is pretty great.

Seing Rey’s trying to fight off Kylo Ren with a gun is very tense. This the the first time she looses a fight in this movie. Seeing someone so strong get captured really raises the stakes. This is where they first meet. Their relationship is standard Hero vs Villain in this movie, but things are going to change a LOT in the next one.

Despite how scared he is, Finn still rushes in to try and stop Rey from being capture.

Seeing General Leia for the first time is awesome. Han and Leia’s reuinon is so touching as well. C-3PO’s back to disturbing Han and Leia moments as well, which is pretty funny.

Seeing BB-8 and Finn get reunited with Poe is also very touching.

Finn is helping the Resistance for the sake of Rey. He’s not quite a hero yet, but he’s getting there.

So the movie did established R2-D2 had the map in his back-up data in the actual movie.

Han and Leia went back to what they know best after the loss of their son. It’s such a tragic moment.

Kylo almost has the depth in one movie that took Vader two or three movies to get. I feel like that should be discussed more often.

Kylo’s face is removed to reveal...a normal person. Ben didn’t get any external injuries to turn him into Kylo Ren. It was all manipulation

Rey takes on the Leia role when capture, and Finn briefly takes on the Luke role, But when she frees herself they go back to being Luke and Han, respectively.

Even in this movie, Rey and Kylo are using the force to get to know each other, although mainly on accident. Maybe that’s where Snoke got the idea in the next movie.

After seeing Kylo using the Force, Rey decides to use it in order to escape, although she’s a bit hesitant to do so. It takes her three tires to do the Jedi mind trick, after all. I do wonder where she heard about it. Maybe she figured that if you can read minds, you can change minds.

Rey is a very fast learner in any situation, be it piloting, shooting or using the force. Maybe it’s her midichlorian count.

Starkill base makes very little logical sense, but its still a very cool concept, and seeing day turn into night serving as a ticking clock is a very cool visual.

“No matter how much we fought, I always hated watching you leave” “That’s why I did it, so you’d miss me.” All these years later, and that still have such great chemistry.

“That’s not how the Force works.” I love that line, but people misuse it.

Finn is doing something very heroic, putting himself on the frontlines and disabling the shield. But he’s only doing this for Rey. Despite that, he stays true to his word and disables the shields. I love seeing him stick it to his old boss. It’s a fun moment.

The Rouge One “Womp” is even in this movie! How did I never notice it until after Rouge One?

“As Long as there’s light, we’ve got a chance” A classic symbol, but one that still works.

Seeing Rey and Finn reunited is just another very touching moment. “We came back for you.” For the first time in Rey’s life, somebody actually came back for her. I love how Rey describes how using the force to escape was “Something I can’t explain, you wouldn’t believe it.” In general I love how the Force is depicted in this movie.

“We’ll meet back here” No! That was their last moment together!

Ben and Han’s confrontation is another utterly fantastic moment. Ben is tempted to go back to his father, but he’s too devoted to Snoke’s teachings. On top of that, he feels like it’s too late to go this far. He figures that to get rid of these regrets, he has to kill Han Solo. I love how the sky gets dark, leaving red as the only light source. It really makes Ben’s lightsaber stick out when he kills Han. And yet, Han still touchings the check of his son, showing that even despite this, he still loves him. Instead of letting the past die by killing his father, Kylo is left more conflicted than ever.

Meanwhile, Rey lost a chance to have a father yet again.

The snowy forest at night is such a great setting, and leads to an awesome lightsaber fight. Rey gets knocked out, so Finn has to protect her with a lightsaber duel. Kylo is beating himself, increasing his pain to increase his dark power. Finn puts up a valiant effort, but in the end, he gets knocked out, and Rey has to save him. But still, he bought her time, and gave her the strength to use the force to stop Kylo. Seeing Rey grab the lightsaber for the first time using the Force is just awesome. She’s barely holding her own, but true to the character, she’s a fast learning. Meanwhile Kylo is still injured, and maybe a bit worn out from fighting Finn. At the cliffside, Rey is at the ends of her seat, but when she trusts in the force, she manages to beat Kylo after he overpowered her during the rest of the movie.

Finn ends with the movie more devoted to Rey than the Resistance, but he still proves himself to be a loyal friend and a hero. I was worried about him for the two years between Force Awakens and Last Jedi

There’s no words between Leia and Rey. They both just know, Han is dead, and they both loved him. And that’s enough for them to mourn him together.

But in the midts of dealing with the loss of Han, there’s is hope. Specifically, the New Hope.

Seeing Luke for the first time in this movie is such a fantastic cliffhanger.

Overall, I still love this movie as much as when I first saw it. It’s got great action and effects, the new characters are some of my favorites in the series, and the old characters give some of their best performances of all time. Sure it messed with a happy ending, but I’m still investing in seeing how characters old and new are going to try and get that happy ending back.

#star wars #star wars rewatch

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zetalial · 5 years

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BH rewatch episode 23

Previous Episode Next Episode

Episode 23 Girl on the Battlefield

Wow. What was this episode? So much happened. I’m not sure if I can even have an opinion on anything as something else happens before I can digest what was happening. I’m exaggerating slightly – I have lots of opinions

So Alphonse is chasing after Scar. Edward is still in the alley with Winry, comforting her, and he gives her his red jacket. He doesn’t stick around long though as he needs to go and help his brother. Winry sits there feeling useless, that all she can do is wait (yeah we hear Winry’s thoughts all the time. It’s almost strange because we rarely hear the inner thoughts of other characters except when they’re expressed aloud.). Edward orders some of the soldiers to take care of her as he runs off.

Meanwhile, Ling is running away from Wrath with Lan Fan still over one shoulder. (Is Ling supernaturally strong and fit?) Yeah, he got out of the room somehow. I swear last episode he was practically cornered but whatever. Wrath gives chase.

As Wrath is chasing them, he hears that Scar is still out and about and orders Gluttony to deal with him. Why does he even think Gluttony can deal with Scar? Scar can just blow him up every time he gets close, which Gluttony has to given his only weapon is his face and he’s not very smart.

I am also wondering where Envy is. Last time we saw him, he was still just hanging around Central. He should really be helping out too. With his powers, he’d theoretically be able to be quite discreet in watching over the Elrics. He’d be far better than Gluttony.

Anyway, Lan Fan tells Ling not to be noble, that a leader needs to be there for his people and they need him alive. He doesn’t want to abandon her though. Lan Fan is looking at her severely injured arm and realising she’s useless to him while injured like this and she’s only weighing him down. We see her lifting her good arm to make a strike but we don’t see what she does before the scene shifts.

Al is still fighting Scar, saying he’ll make him pay for Nina and the Rockbells, Ed soon joins him. Oh, Scar notes Al is in a metal body and wonders at how he can use Alchemy when it put him in that form. Al points out that the alchemy also saved his life and he’s thankful to Edward for it. Now the fight is in a much more open space.

Then Gluttony appears and Ed and Al identify him as a homunculus and so the three of them all start working to fight Gluttony. It seems its Scar’s first time hearing that term though he has fought Gluttony before. Honestly that Gluttony even manages to bash his face into Scar is impressive. The homunculus is hopelessly outmatched.

Then, Ling appears from the Sewers and he’s taken his yellow shirt off to show off his muscles and cuts Gluttony in half with his sword. He asks Edward to make some restraints and Ed creates some metal coils. Ling quickly ties Gluttony’s regenerating body with them. He does it so tightly that Gluttony’s body is stuck constantly trying to expand but can’t because of the coils and so he’s completely trapped.

Riza appears in a car then, and shoots Scar in the leg. She’s in a paper-thin disguise of glasses and her hair down. It’s to trick the watching soldiers as she takes Ling and the trapped Gluttony away.

So Ed and Al have cornered the wounded Scar and intend to… capture him I assume? But then Mei appears, kicking Alphonse back. She calls Edward short – apparently unaware that she is a complete midget herself. She’s meant to be like 13 or something, right? Anyway, she makes three Alkahestry circles, causing a reaction from a distance to cause some explosions covering the area in smoke. Ed is very interested by this as he recognises it’s not normal alchemy. Mei then escapes with Scar.

Mei doesn’t seem to be aware that Scar is a killer. She has no idea why a group of Amestrian soldiers and Ed and Al were attacking him and she never asks! She just heals his injury. I hate that she’s just ignorant here. It’s so much more interesting if she knows and decides to help him anyway. Or at least have her be curious but show Scar trying to hide the truth or something. But, no, it’s just never addressed. (Also how many daggers does she have? She just used 15 of the things and 10 of them are definitely lost to her. Where does she keep them? Mei’s ridiculously powerful (throwing those 10 daggers perfectly) which I’m fine with but her being so out of the loop and how little information we get about how her power works is a little more annoying.)

Oh, Al has her panda. There’s a brief comedy scene of him holding on to him in spite of Ed’s protests about stray animals. The panda has this gag of a pyramid of hierarchy of Al on the top. I’m not sure why Ed was on the bottom with Yoki – it barely met him - more jokes at Ed’s expense?

Okay, so Lan Fan cut off her arm and attached it to a dog as a decoy while she and Ling escaped into the sewers. Wrath is fooled by this. When he follows bleeding arm and discovers this, his response is basically. “well-played”. This is a nice trick but I really think we should have been shown a bit more of it. Wrath was following them reasonably closely. He’s very quick while Ling was carting around Lan Fan on his shoulder. I would have liked to see them attaching the arm to the dog and then hiding in the sewers. Otherwise too much is happening offscreen. Like, when Mustang was fighting Lust, he cauterised his wound, walked through the empty laboratory and drew his array in his own blood all off-screen. (And got Havoc’s broken lighter working.)

Honestly, I’m not sure this is really feasible. I’m not sure I can believe that Ling really got away from Wrath long enough to pull off this bluff.

Oh well. So Lan Fan is wrapped in Ling’s jacket in a pretty dire state. Ling is in a car with Riza and convinces her to go and get Lan Fan. They take her to Doctor Knox’s place – Mustang got him to reluctantly agree as per usual. Wrath notices Riza and recognises her despite her ‘disguise’ and decides its best he deal with Mustang.

So we cut to Winry, who is waiting in the military and she’s talking with Wrath – well Fuhrer Bradley anyway. Ed comes in to see her and Bradley gives him a subtle warning that he should take care of her.

Winry gets a phone call from Rush valley and all her customers are begging for her to come back. (She was only there from Episode 11-15 and there’s dozens of automail shops and she’s only 16. Why on Earth are they trying to make her skills so ridiculous? This is way too extreme.) Just as she was having tough feelings about being stuck always waiting.

So she heads out on a train and they say goodbye to her as she leaves for Rush Valley. Ed tells her that she’s not going to cry again until it’s tears of joy when they’ve got their bodies back. She agrees. As they leave, Winry realises she has feelings for Ed. (Yeah more of her inner thoughts are being stated to the audience.)

Ling gets introduced to Mustang who thanks him for all his help. Ling, Lan Fan, Ed, Al, Mustang and Riza are all in this safe house together as Lan Fan wakes up. Ed apologises for her getting hurt but Ling says that it was his plan and Lan Fan was willing to make the sacrifice, doing what he could not.

Oh and Ling informs them that Bradley was a homunculus. Huh, a few episodes ago they seemed close to deducing that themselves but yeah it makes sense that Ling can just tell them. They act with typical horror as you’d expect. (Ling foreshadows that Bradley is different from other Homunculi too.)

Lan Fan explicitly draws attention to how her distraction plan was based off her and Ed’s fight. Aww, I thought it would be cleverly not mentioned. But they had to say it. (I’m just disappointed because I was feeling clever for noticing the parallel.) Lan Fan notes again that she is useless to Ling and Ed recommends automail.

Mustang wants to use Gluttony’s Philosopher’s stone to cure Havoc’s injury. Ling protests, saying how Lan Fan just got injured for it and he deserves the stone. Ed cuts in, pointing out how he needs the stone to fix his brother’s body as they’ve been searching for it for so long. It an interesting dilemma. Ed should be pretty urgent to fix Al knowing that his soul is being rejected but on the other hand Ling’s got a duty to his people and he is chiefly responsible for this capture (though it was only possible with Ed and Al luring the homunculi out).

But the argument is quickly cut short as Gluttony reacts to the mention of Mustang, who killed Lust, and with extra determination breaks out of his bonds. Nice to see he cares so much about Lust. His stomach opens up to show the giant gateway inside with the eye inside. It’s eating power takes out what looks like an entire wall and a car.

—————-

And finally, finally the episode is over. Wow, they stuffed in a lot. Can you believe it’s only normal length? Course, everything was very brief as a result. Sometimes the pace is too much. I guess I like it but more time could certainly have been spent on some events. I’m mostly thinking about Ling and Lan Fan. Their storyline is way too rushed here.

You know I’d like a reason to like Ling but how can I if it’s going to rush through the part where he is horrified as he ties his best friend’s bloody arm (which she just cut off for him) to a dog while she is practically bleeding to death next to him and he’s in a hurry. That’d be just the sort of scene to make me sympathise with him. We’d get to feel his guilt, mixed with a sense of duty and the dark side of Lan Fan’s loyalty. Instead we get him telling her not to do it and then a cut to him jumping out of the sewers with his shirt off and cutting Gluttony in half. Yeah, I get it, he’s ‘badass’ and a loyal friend. But his most interesting scene was offscreen! Instead we’re messing around with setting up Ed/Winry.

I’d also have appreciated lengthening the Philosopher’s stone argument. It’s interesting to see Edward, Ling and Mustang all in an argument where they all have compelling reasons. They’ve all sacrificed a lot after all. It’d be great too as it’d make the moment where Ling offered the Stone to Edward at the end of the series more meaningful.

I’m going to keep a watch out for the use of inner thoughts being stated to the audience. Often thoughts are expressed out loud but I think inner thoughts being shared is actually pretty rare. I feel like Winry’s thoughts have been shared before (just the other episode she was thinking in her head about Ed’s broadening shoulders). I don’t recall any other characters having this happening but maybe I can’t remember. Either way, I’ll keep an eye out in the future. (I’m curious if this is unique to Winry. Which would be weird as she’s not the protagonist of the story and I don’t see why her inner thoughts would deserve special treatment.)

But it’s not a bad episode or anything. A lot happened and it was good, I just wish more time was spent on some of these events not that any of them were bad. But they don’t have the full impact if there’s not a chance to dwell on them a bit.

#fma #fmab rewatch #Gosh imagining that heart-wrenching offscreen Ling scene #it would have been amazing #I'm honestly a little angry it was offscreen #Why?#For a twist reveal when he pops up out of the sewers?#That's nothing compared to the scene we lost.#where he would be handling Lan Fan's arm #with urgency but his emotions would be getting in the way #but sorry Ling it was offscreen so I still can't like you yet #Do I seem like I hate Winry?#I don't #her additions in this episode were just bad is all #they didn't touch on her feelings about Scar at all #just her feelings of being left waiting #and her feelings towards ed #meta #myposts

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sovinly · 6 years

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*chinhands* Tell me your thoughts about Nirvana on Fire! Orrrrr, if that is two broad a topic (since it's FIFTY FOUR DAMN EPISODES), tell me your thoughts onnnnnn...your favorite lady from the show!

Oh maaaaaan, okay :D I have just finished my WIP draft for my NIF fanfic (170k what the fuck), so this is a GREAT TIME to answer this! Thank you for such an inspiring topic!

It is such a good show. The costuming is often exquisite and obviously very carefully planned out, and the sets are also wonderful. Visually, it’s fucking stunning and just gorgeous to watch, minus some Not Great CGI here and there. The casting is also fantastic, and the actors are all so good - there’s so much subtlety and attention to detail. Even the minor characters are consistent and complex, and there’re a bunch of veeeeery small characterization details that are nevertheless continually incorporated, and I was so delighted when I started to pick up on them. Even the antagonists are well developed and make sense coming out of their contexts (for the most part, at least), and though they can be sympathetic to an extent, that doesn’t negate or minimize the genuine harm they’ve done or the way they’ve created their own downfalls.

Narratively and structurally, the show is a masterpiece as well. The political plots are very cleverly woven and intertwined, and characters’ motivations and ideologies are consistent and well developed. The amount of detailed foreshadowing is stunning, and every time I watch a scene or a section, I feel like I pick up new nuances. It’s just very tightly written. The last episode has some rather rushed pacing, and I have some issues with some things (there’s some fridging that I am Not About, for example), but overall, honestly, the writing and structure are fucking solid, and I enjoyed figuring things out as the story unfolded.

I also really like that, even though it’s a Magical Wuxia Illness, Mei Changsu’s illness and limitations are actually pretty fucking realistic. It resonated with me a lot, and it is, again, consistent throughout. He’s not well, and he makes things worse by pushing too hard, but overall, there are things he can do to mitigate the effects. There are consequences to things, and it comes through. Even secondary characters: Fei Liu is always treated with agency and like he’s actually his age, and Yujin’s eyesight is consistently shitty. Small things, but I really do appreciate it.

The major draw of this show, though, is its ethical and moral stance. It picks apart a lot of assumptions of power, and is very blunt and honest about living under a ruler who grinds down all dissent and promotes people based on his own emotional state. It’s a theme that’s developed throughout, and is critical of such self-serving paranoia. It’s also ruthless in its critique of privilege and the people who take advantage of it - that unthinking cruelty is the downfall of so many people who don’t think those beneath them are people.

It’s also a show about truth and justice and taking down a terrible government. There are so many characters who decide to contribute in what ways they can, and about the fear of what happens to those who push back, and about continuing when things are exhausting and seem to get you nowhere. It’s about making an impossible situation better, and about exposing convenient lies and giving justice to the dead. It’s about honesty and loyalty and actively making choices. It makes no bones about how hard and exhausting it is to fight back, but it’s also about hope. Hope, and seeing others clearly, and doing better even when you think you have nothing left to give. It is... in a lot of ways, it’s a story about people we thought were lost returning to us - literally or metaphorically. “What do we do with the time that is given us?”, y’know?

When good people band together and confront evil, we can go from surviving to thriving. I think that’s a message I really need right now, and it’s fundamentally a hopeful one.

It also has amazing friendships and the Only Redeemed Dad I will allow in media, so that’s a plus too. Please watch this show, because even though it’s a big time investment, it’s a really good one.

So, let’s finish off with some of my favorite ladies, because I cannot pick one, I love them all.

Nihuang: very badass and also gorgeous, sharp as her sword, that one. I love that she’s much more observant and politically aware than anyone ever gives her credit for, because she is so fucking smart, she is terrifying. I love her. It’s so cool to have a character who is a badass general and who can be just as underhanded and snarky as the main protagonist, but who is uncompromising about her emotions, too. She isn’t afraid of being sad, or of obviously loving her little brother, or of admitting that she’s upset about something Mei Changsu did. Also has many A+ looks.

Xia Dong: ALSO super badass and incredibly driven and loyal. I started the series all “but can I really love this essentially a private-FBI-agent?” and the answer is yes, yes I can. Loyalty is virtue #1 to her and everything else kind of derives from that, and the complexities of that become so much more clear through the course of the show. She’s smart, and clever, and she cares a lot about her people. She also loves her husband so much, she’s still grieving over a decade later, and she’s still so upset about the betrayal. I love her.

Consort Jing: quiet and wise and clever and beautiful. God, she’s so fucking cunning, and so very unassuming. Watching the way that she manipulates the situations in the court, and the way that she is so genuinely goodhearted and yet so ruthlessly intelligent is such a blast. A Good Mom and a Good Aunt, deserves every good thing in the world.

Grand Princess Liyang: Liyaaaaaang, she is amazing. Her story is SO FUCKING SAD but she’s so good. Her perseverance and her doubt and her bravery just reduce me to a puddle every time. She never gets a fucking break, and she has so much trauma and fear, but she is always brave, when it comes down to the wire. She also deserves every good thing in the world.

All the women in this show are good? They’re all interesting, and I wish we got to see more of them doing more things. I am keeping this list to just four, because otherwise I will be here all day, but man. This show has so many things to say about women and power and surviving in a sexist society, and it’s pretty fucking great.

#long post #nirvana in fire #it's a good show #a really good one #i cried a lot and then had a lot of emotions #also all the characters are great #even if the women are sometimes given the short shrift #answer memes #samyazaz

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theonceoverthinker · 6 years

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OUAT 3X02 - Lost Girl

One question before we start: If you’re in the mood for fast food in Neverland, where do you go?

…

The PAN-da Express, of course!!!

It’s okay! You can laugh!

Thank you, Pan!

Anyway, my review, as always, is under the cut!

Press Release

While Emma, Mary Margaret, David, Regina and Hook continue their search for Henry in Neverland, Peter Pan appears before a startled Emma and offers her a map that will reveal her son’s whereabouts. But the only way to make the map appear is for Emma to stop denying who she really is and come to grips with her true feelings about her identity - and Mr. Gold receives some unexpected advice from a friend that could lead him to understand his life’s journey while in Neverland. Meanwhile, in the Fairy Tale Land that was, when the Evil Queen presents Snow White with an offer to live her life with Charming in peace - with the caveat that she give up her claim to the throne - Charming makes it his mission to ensure that Snow doesn’t take the offer.

General Thoughts - Characters/Stories/Themes and Their Effectiveness

Past

Is it just me, or does this plan of Regina’s feel REALLY out of character (And keep in mind that that is a phrase I do NOT use loosely)? Regina’s never wanted Snow to live and even if she takes the throne, Snow will still be left with her closest loved ones and as Snow later says, they’ll live a happy beautiful life, so her “take everything that was supposed to be yours” schtick kind of falls flat. That said, the spirit of what she’s going for does work due to the severity of taking over the land and Snow and David’s reaction to it.

But that aspect aside, there’s a solid story here. Snow’s conflict is understandable, as is David’s as is Grumpy’s. It’s a simple story, but it was done effectively to run parallel with the main story.

Present

I think it’s so interesting what’s done with Emma in this episode. Because she’s the Savior, Emma is put on this pedestal (Even by Pan -- sort of), one she’s now actively trying to embody for the first time. And she needs to look deep within and discover what that means in order to succeed and unlock the secrets of the map. Everyone believes she’s the Savior -- and she is -- but despite the emphasis being put on that, it’s only be relinquishing the mindset of a Savior that allows the map to show itself. And honestly, it’s done well! The positioning of the group -- and more importantly, Emma -- against the Lost Boys puts Emma and Snow in the perfect place for her revelation. Additionally, the connection she makes to them now comes back later when she appeals to them.

The secondary conflict presented throughout this segment is also great. From a character perspective, we get to see a much more reserved set of arguments between the group than last time, and everyone is painted with sympathy. Killian’s points are right, but it makes the fact that they have to wait so long to get Henry no less frustrating.

Finally, Rumple’s conflict interestingly enough reminds me of Snow’s from “The Miller’s Daughter.” If you recall, Snow was full on ready to try to kill Cora, but when faced with a real possibility of doing exactly that, that’s when she got afraid (Though was still able to do it). I almost wanted to fault Rumple’s story here because he’s been so adamant about saving Henry at his own expense and to falter in this episode felt strange, but in those terms, it really does work itself out. It fits well with Rumple’s character and allows for more of a story to take place as a result.

All Encompassing

Emma and Snow’s conflicts are resolved in the opposite way. For Snow, she has to straight up step up into leadership through her boost of confidence. For Emma, she has to step away from her role as the Savior and embrace being an orphan (A lessening of her confidence) to unlock the map.

“Who you are.” It’s important that Snow was the one to get through to Emma here. Otherwise, a flashback that would was essential for establishing the link between these two women that served as the heart of the episode would have been borderline needless (or at the very least, misplaced).

Insights - Stream of Consciousness

-Rumple’s got one hell of a smoulder! Flynn Rider, eat your heart out!

-WHY WOULD YOU BRING YOUR DAGGER TO NEVERLAND? RUMPLE, YOU ARE SUCH AN EXTRA DRAMA QUEEN! I mean, don’t stop or anything. I kind of love you for it.

-I really like the handling of magic in this arc. They’re cleverly tackling why they just can’t poof their way through this mission.

-David, Killian gave you a minute-long explanation about why that wouldn’t work. Let go of your fucking machismo for a few seconds!

-”It is NEVER too late.” Now Snow, only a Sith deals in absolutes!

-Guys, I LOVE Snow and Charming’s iconic moment, but the Law of Diminishing Returns exists for a reason. This is the third time we see this moment, and there are at least two more to come!

-I actually really like how no one in the town is willing to fight with Snow at first. It’s not just a matter of Snow needing to learn to be more of a leader or them being cowardly, but they’ve never fought before and they’re going against what they may believe is either the first or second most powerful magic wielder in all the realms. It makes this for a very meaty story.

-I LOVE how the crying that awakens and draws Emma deeper into the jungle plays into the theme of Emma growing into motherhood.

-”You’ve got fire. I like fire.” I remember hearing people used to ship Emma and Pan and...no. Just no.

-”Sadly, I agree with the pirate.” YESS! Captain Charming!!!

-I LOVE protective big brother Grumpy! See, when people infantize or otherwise try to downplay Grumpy’s role in the royal family or where he stands (*cough* “A Wondrous Place” *cough*), I think to this scene. Grumpy is more than just Snow’s friend. He became family. I’m thoroughly convinced that he would’ve been Emma’s godfather had the curse never been cast because he and Snow were just that close.

-David, there’s a difference between overcoming a memory spell and boosting someone’s confidence on its own.

-Rumple, you beautiful drama queen, you give new definition to “the clothes make the man.”

-You know, I forget, but Sheep Bros was a very real thing in the EF too!

-I love the...PAN around the group as Emma tackles the map!

-Aww, Snow and David look so happy when Emma calls herself their daughter!

-Whoever was doing the score for the red herring with the map must’ve been having a fucking ball. Listen to how the music swells! XD

-”For once, I agree with the Prince.” MORE CAPTAIN CHARMING! YASSS!

-David! Drop the machismo!

- “Just as you charmed me. Eventually.” Snow, who are you fooling?! You lasted a DAY before you were smitten!

-Ooh! I forgot we got our first mention of Merlin here!

-Is Camelot really qualify as a realm? Seems like one can just get there on foot based on Season 5, whereas usually, to go between realms, you need magic (Ex. The Cyclone to Oz, the silver slippers, the Dark Curse) to go through the barriers.

-I wonder how much A&E knew about the future of OUAT when they first brought up Excalibur here. Was Camelot in their sights?

-Isham must’ve had a fucking BALL with composing the music for these red herrings!

-Two things. (1) Pan dressed in Henry’s clothes is creepy AF! (2) Do you think this was foreshadowing Pan and Henry changing bodies?

-One of the looming questions in this fandom is “What did Killian do to Rufio?” Some people think killing Rufio was the price of being free of Neverland, but based on how Killian talks, I’m not convinced. He says “It’ll be a worse fate for you” and then just keeps on fighting him. To me, it always seemed like to get off of Neverland for good, Killian had to do something worse than usual, something he borderline regretted. But that’s not the Killian that says that line and mentions Rufio so flippantly. Thoughts?

-I’m kind of miffed that we never saw Pan “caw.” That’s his thing! Why didn’t he caw?!

-Another show of just how much Snow cares about Grumpy. Of everyone there, David included, Regina chokeholds Snow’s brother figure! That’s amazing!

-Rumple screaming “WHAT DO YOU WANT?” after being summoned cracks me the fuck up!

-I love the flutter-y way Rumple dissolves “Excalibur!”

-Rumple! That was so fucking rude!

-Snow! Don’t kill David’s bro down!

-Am I the only one getting Talking Tina vibes from the Peter Pan doll?

-”You haven’t forgiven your parents for abandoning you.” This wasn’t brought up all that much afterwards, was it, nor the conflict that Pan brings up about Henry not forgiving her?

-See, David? THAT’S what machismo gets you!

Arcs - How Are These Storylines Progressing?

The Mission to Save Henry - We really get to see everyone working together more and find out the intricacies of just how they’re going to save Henry. It feels like a very logical step from the last episode.

Emma Accepting Her Parents - Now THIS is the start I wanted! While Emma defaults to calling MM “Mom” in the Season 2 finale, once things become real and the ground is sturdy again, her fears return, and I know for a fact that we see this come fact in the finale (It’s also interesting how a similar element of Emma’s personality in this regard shows up just a couple of seasons later). Additionally, while I don’t think it connects to what we saw in the previous episode, we see more of what’s holding Emma back from making more of a connection to her parents.

Rumple’s Redemption - “Did the protection spell work?” That’s legitimately the first time that Rumple’s show such strong care for the town at large. Also, I love the foreshadowing at work for Rumple’s self-preservation habit to rear its head again.

Killian’s Redemption - We really get to see more of the payoff of Killian’s redemption here. He’s a complete asset to the team with his knowledge of Neverland and Pan, a source of support for Emma, is helping David despite David’s (understandable) rudeness, and is risking his life.

Regina’s Redemption - Here, we see Regina able to take another step further in her redemption. She’s frustrated about her current situation -- forced to trust her enemies and not use magic in the way she’d want -- and it’s understandably so. But the work she puts into going along with the group is honestly admirable and her breaking point feels natural and well placed.

Favorite Dynamic

Pan and Emma. I think Pan and Emma’s interactions speak so much of Pan as a character. Why would he give Emma a map to Henry? Because he’s a cocky son of a bitch and he likes fucking with people. He does whatever he can to make this game of his all the more fun. Can he manipulate Henry before the group gets to him? He’s pretty sure he’ll win, but damnit if he wants to find out. And even by giving Emma the map, a nice chunk of her confidence is taken away in the process. Because of this episode, we see our main hero and main villain of the arc confront each other and get to eyeball their strengths and weaknesses, making something truly compelling.

Writer

For the first time, Andrew Chambliss is not writing with Ian Goldberg, and while I’m sad for that, I’m happy to say that his new team up with Kalinda Vazquez was simply superb! There’s a strong thematic resonance between the different segments and the smaller scale of the story works to its benefit. Everything is simple in the broad strokes, but given nuance within them and that’s what makes the story as a whole so effective. The dialogue is also very good here. It feels incredibly natural and real, as all of the best episodes do.

Rating

Golden Apple (If you’re new here, that’s a 10/10 with an * for superb quality). This is one of the best setup episodes. We get to see the extent of Neverland’s dangers and Pan’s influence, but also our heroes strengths and weaknesses as they combat them. Their teamwork on the island debuts, giving us a scale of their potential, but also their starting point so that the later moments where we can see how far they’ve come can be all the more appreciated. But more so than that, it’s a great story. Emma gets a meaningful look into who she is and the failings she is now forced to deal with and overcome. There’s a great thematic resonance between her story and Snow’s story, building to an emotional revelation. Rumple is also given some exemplary character work! It’s just a great episode!

Flip My Ship - The Home of All Things “Shippy Goodness”

Captain Swan - Watching Emma and Killian flirting has me grinning like an idiot! The flirting itself feels natural and charming! Also, HOLY SHIT! Right after Emma says she’s the product of True Love, the camera shoots to Killian! AND when all is said and done, Emma and Killian are together, sipping their rum and getting just that bit closer together!

Snowing - Snowing is soooo adorable cuddling as they sleep! I’m thoroughly convince Josh Dallas walks on this Earth for the sole purpose of cuddling and looking good while doing it! <3 Also, in the past, I love how the arrow only lands when they work together!

Rumbelle - I almost hesitate putting them here because this Belle is an imposter, but I’ll be damned if it isn’t a good one! Seeing Rumple and Belle hold hands as their theme plays is just cute as fuck! Also, just like the real Belle, fake Belle gives great advice too!

-----

So far, so good!!! Loving Season 3 so far! How about you? Also, let me know what you think of the new theme I’m using and the formatting of these reviews! I’m trying something new and I want to know if I’m doing them right!

Thank you for reading and to the fine folks at @watchingfairytales for giving me a chance to write these reviews! Next time, we meet someone who’s by no means common! (Tink, tink, nudge, nudge, say no more!)

See you guys then!

Season 3 Total (19/220)

Writer’s Scores: Adam and Eddy (9/60) Kalinda Vazquez (10/40) Andrew Chambliss (10/50)

Operation Rewatch Archives

#ouat #once upon a time #watching fairytales #ouat 3x02 #ouat rewatch #jenna watches ouat

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fullmetalirin · 6 years

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Fullmetal Alchemist OG: Episode 8

After that brief moment of convergence, OG won’t be catching up with Brotherhood again for a while. Strap in.

Fullmetal Alchemist Episode 8: "The Philosopher's Stone"

Anguished by the horrible demise of Nina, and disgusted at his first assignment of organizing Tucker's research after learning of the man's death, Ed considers deserting to track down Nina's killer. Luckily, Al finds reference to the philosopher's stone among Tucker's papers. Ed is incredulous that such a thing even exists. Left to his own devices, Al has spoken to Führer King Bradley. Winry, who has arrived at Central to visit, is kidnapped by a butcher-turned-serial killer named Barry the Chopper, who disguises himself as a woman. Ed gets kidnapped as well and his automail arm is taken from him as he tries to free Winry and run away. Forced into a fight for his life, Ed almost kills Barry in an act of maddened desperation until Al arrived to stop him, having the authorities arrest Barry. Ed breaks down in tears, and then agrees to search for the philosopher's stone with Al after talking it out with him. Mustang later allows them to search for it, with the caveat that he be kept abreast of developments. Ed is officially dubbed the "Fullmetal Alchemist" by Bradley.

We open with Ed trying to do alchemy on Nina's bloodstain while sobbing. it's okay I didn't need my heart anyway

Then we get the bit Mustang said in Brotherhood about how State Alchemists aren't so different than Tucker. It's slightly different, though – the comparison he draws is that they both have to cultivate an emotional detachment so they can follow the state's orders.

And Riza actually pushes back! Thank you! She points out that holy crap, they're still just kids, give them a break.

Mustang then walks up and gives the speech to Ed directly. He's incredibly cold and callous, saying he wouldn't be helping anyone by bringing back a twisted chimera even if he could. He tells him the world is ugly and he has to suck it up and deal, which makes Ed furious. Mustang grabs his arm forcefully and says he has to focus on the reason he became a State Alchemist and not get distracted.

So, uh, wow that was a lot darker than in Brotherhood. Much as we saw with Rose earlier, this is a dialogue instead of a monologue: Ed pushes back and is clearly conflicted. We aren't left with a certainty of who's right, or indeed if anyone is right at all. That's a much more powerful way of showing that the world is hard and ugly. This isn't just a loss of innocence, it's a loss of moral certainty.

Cut to the next day. Ed is depressed, but is willing to take another assignment to take his mind off of things. Unfortunately, that assignment turns out to be compiling Tucker's research! I have to wonder whose decision this is. Is Mustang or someone purposefully trying to break this kid?

Ed demands they get Tucker to do it instead, and Havoc tells him he was executed without trial. Ed cleverly recognizes that as a coverup. Havoc warns him not to question the will of the military.

Ed is really spiralling. We see him feeding the chimeras while Al does the actual research, which is a sweet detail.

It seems like this is where they first get motivated to pursue the Philosopher's Stone. Ed dismisses it as a myth, and Al says it can't be if a real alchemist like Tucker was researching it. Ed loses it at him and starts ranting about how evil Tucker was. He runs out and looks like he's about to cry.

We cut to Ed requesting a transfer to the serial killer case, positing that they could have killed Nina. Mustang just dispassionately tells him to finish the work he was already assigned, and that if he wants to investigate on his own, he'll need to turn in his watch. Ed does so without flinching.

Al tries to talk him down, pointing out they're not police. He believes a better use of their talents is finding a way to safely separate chimeras so they can save people if it happens again. Ed doesn't listen.

Ed bumps into Scar, who spares him because he's no longer a State Alchemist. As he walks off, he explicitly thinks to himself that he would absolutely murder that kid if he was. Wow, Scar.

Al is being actually productive and asking around about the Stone. Riza tries to warn him bad things happen to alchemists pursuing the Stone, but Bradley tells him he totally should by the way there are files in the library he could access if a certain someone just so happened to get his State Alchemist status back. He is very kind and fatherly the whole time. Riza doesn't even get to finish saying he's the Fuhrer, but her stiffness and formality around him foreshadows that there is more going on with him.

Ed has been tapping Hughes for the case files. Good use of resources! Kid is learning how to network.

Hughes steals Ed's food and Ed drags the tray away from him. LOL. That's some nice subtle comedy without going into a full-on skit, appropriate for the relative seriousness and plot relevance of this scene.

Hughes suggests the killer could be an alchemist, which makes Ed snap that alchemists aren't killers! Poor PTSD boy.

We cut to Barry infiltrating the kitchens in disguise. The cook tells him Ed is the talk of the town, and once again we get emphasis on how young he is.

Winry is impressed by refrigerated trucks, which are new technology.

Ed finds Winry missing. He's able to figure out she was his visitor by comparing a dropped screw to his automail, then notices the tracks in the road and starts asking about the trucks. When he hears about refrigerated trucks, he connects it to his earlier conversation with Hughes about a car that could hide bodies. Good detectiving! His leaps of logic are clever enough it's reasonable no one figured it out earlier, but not so far they seem implausable.

When Barry knocks Ed out, he takes out his automail arm, because he heard from the cook Ed can transmute by clapping his hands. That's clever!

Barry brings up the war theme:

BARRY: Men have morals, but send them to war and they have no problem slaying each other in the most brutal fashions.

He also says he saw State Alchemists massacring a village.

He cuts into Ed's flesh arm, which I think is really impressive horror – Ed has always made it out okay up to this point by blocking everything with his automail. I think this is the first time he's been really injured.

Ed starts having a PTSD attack to all the violence he's seen, but successfully scratches a transmutation circle on his chains with Winry's screw. Clever use of resources.

Ed looks more muscular than he did in earlier episodes, so let's mark that down as a point for "characters aging realistically".

Ed looks absolutely terrified. He keeps tripping and flailing his weapon wildly without direction.

Ed screams in agony when he forces his automail back in.

I believe this is the first time chronologically we see him do the spike thing with his automail. I think it makes a lot more sense as a technique he discovered in desperation – it's really not a good idea to turn your limbs into weapons unless you have no better options.

It's unclear if Winry pushed herself into the carcasses on purpose or if she just slipped.

Ed has totally lost it, crying and screaming. He nearly stabs Barry but Alphonse restrains him. When he does, Ed whips around and slashes him. Wow, that's dark. Ed has a breakdown but Al stays strong for him.

Al says that without a body, he can't feel the same terror Ed did. He definitely seems to act afraid and emotional in other scenes, so I'm not sure exactly how that works. Perhaps it's related to the idea that emotions are controlled by chemicals, so even if he still feels emotions, they're muted.

Ed was really affected by the fact Al came to save him, because he thought no one would. This is where he makes the decision that they have to stick by each other no matter what, and also that he'll do anything to restore them, even joining the military.

He also says his line about how they're not gods, they're pathetic humans because they couldn't even save a little girl. The delivery is sad, not angry like in Brotherhood, and the fact that he's still affected by this even though it happened an episode ago is a lot more powerful. It shows that this is something he will carry with him his whole life, not something he'll forget when it's convenient.

Cut to Ed requesting his watch back. He says he'll obey Mustang's orders, but he wants info on the Stone. Mustang says that if anyone finds out about their human transmutation, Al will get hauled off to a lab, then explicitly tells this kid who was just traumatized by his little sister getting hauled off to a lab for horrible experiments that he's going to hold that over his head to make sure he behaves. Wow, Mustang. Wow.

Ed is still visibly recovering. There are bags under his eyes and it looks like he's been crying.

Ed's reaction to hearing his title is similar to Brotherhood in words, but his tone is much colder and fiercer. There's additional depth to him getting his title now – it's supposed to be a cool thing he can take pride in, but it's now tainted by tying it to this traumatic incident. "You just saw your little sister get horribly murdered and were nearly murdered yourself by a psycho killer, but look, you got a medal!" The whole thing is a twisted farce, perverse.

Winry takes Ed on a date, but he's still wondering who killed Nina… and then we cut to Scar. Hohoho. He sees Ed has his State Alchemist watch again, and walks off ominously.

Conclusion

I’m really struck by how vulnerable Ed is throughout this. This episode is so raw, so painful, so emotional. There’s an antagonist and a fight scene, but the real antagonist of this episode is Ed’s own trauma, despair, and fear of death. We’re given a whole episode to process the heavy content of last episode and examine what this means for the characters going forward.

I also think it’s worth paying attention to Mustang. He seems to be getting characterized as a much darker and colder figure than in Brotherhood. For all that people say OG is so dark and grim -- and that is a fair assessment -- it actually does have the courage to say that telling kids the world is crap and misery forever and there’s nothing you can do about it is maybe not good behavior. His philosophies are not simply stated, but challenged.

Overall, this episode shows exactly what I like about OG, and may well be my favorite episode so far. Do Brotherhood fans like this episode too, or is this classed as crappy filler?

#fullmetal alchemist #fma #fullmetal alchemist brotherhood #fma 2003 #liveblog

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lawlessfowling-blog · 6 years

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Okay, so like... Can we talk about Ignatius’ ridiculously deep understanding of the criminal element in Gotham? Like, it’s damn near encyclopedic, the way that he quotes facts about some of these people - Up to and including the Batman.

( Forewarning that this kinda goes off topic a lot. I’m just throwing out things about my boy, Ignatius, here ).

So, like, before I get into this - Just so people don’t come ‘round saying that I’m making my muse too OP or anything like that - I wanna make a couple disclaimers. While a lot of these things that I’ve mentioned here are incorporated into his character, my muse specifically is usually still a child. He is only just starting to make a place for himself in the criminal world and that is going to greatly affect a lot of his knowledge about it. While playing him in his future verses, Nay is gonna have a lot more of this kind of information, but I will always be making a point to adjust accordingly for when he’s still a teenager.

On top of that, even in times when he’s incredibly knowledgable about something, Ignatius isn’t going to know anything that no one else does. In fact, I would argue that he probably is even a step down from what Batman and his usual detective skills can discover. I believe Nay has some level of access to police files and possible even Arkham files, due to Cobblepot’s connections, but it’s not going to reveal everything to him. He isn’t going to know things that no one does, like the origin story of the Joker or that Batman is Bruce Wayne. He’s not going to be a mind reader or anything like that. He’s just a guy who pays attention to things with a lot of access to them.

With those disclaimers out of the way, I want point out some examples of his extensive knowledge and then list several major points on how I believe he came into possession of all this information and how he’d gotten so good at implementing it.

( For the sake of this argument, I will mostly be using images and story taken from Detective Comics Vol. 2 ).

The Bat

First and foremost, let’s talk about the Batman. In one of his first appearances, we get a chance to see Nay taking on a heist with a new recruit. This man, from Miami, talks about how he didn’t believe Batman was real. Nay assures him that he is, with a scar to show for it.

As they’re carrying on their heist, this new recruit - Martin - tells him not to kill the guard. He warns that leaving bodies will put Batman on their trail. A simple robbery or heist will go unnoticed by the Bat until he has time - Which he never does because of everything else going on in Gotham. Already, we can see that Nay has at least a basic understanding of Batman’s patterns and habits. He can see the way the guy prioritizes things and does not make the mistakes of underestimating invisibility.

In this same page, Nay first makes the point about needing to be smart in order to survive in Gotham. This belief is one of the first points I contribute to his extensive knowledge about the criminal world. It’s my personal interpretation that Nay has had the incentive to learn as much as he possibly can to use for later from very early on - At least after his parents died, if not sooner. His father used to talk about not rocking the boat, sometime that he believed to be the smart way of doing business in Gotham, and it’s obvious that Ignatius took some part of that lesson to heart.

As for how he got to be that smart, there are a couple of ways that can happen. Obviously, newspapers, hearsay and - In his later years - police accounts of the Batman all contribute to his knowledge. Besides all those things, however, I think one of the most valuable tools that he came across was first hand experience.

Carrying on in this scene, Ignatius talks about the fact that, in their line of work, encountering batman was not a matter of if, it’s a matter of when and how hard. He tells the story of his first encounter, as a kid working as a lookout, and how he understood even then the exact nature of their relationship going forward. If he was going to be involved in crime like this, then Batman was always going to have to be a question on his mind.

And he makes a point to do that. Ignatius does his research and he does it well. Not only is he made aware of the Bat’s patterns, but even goes as far as to learn the Batman’s weaknesses - Something that many others have failed to do in the past. By the time that Ignatius eventually makes his stand to take over Gotham as Emperor Penguin, he has the strength and knowledge to kill Batman. Many others have tried to do this before, but for a random thug off the street this is an incredible feat.

One he would have eventually succeeded with if Oswald had not arrived at the opportune moment to save him.

Just as a side note, I’d like to note that the foreshadowing for this save in the early parts of this run when Oswald stopped the assassin he’d hired to save his own skin was?? Really cleverly done. Both times, men under Oswald’s own employment had gotten him into this mess, but he managed to make the most of the situation by offering a flipper to a man that could only be described as his enemy and rival in every way.

The Rogues

The masked crusader is not the only one Nay has to worry about, however - Nor is he the only one that Nay has done his research on. As portrayed in the screenshot up above, his knowledge extends beyond the underworld of gangs and mobsters and all the way to the rogues and other themed villains, themselves.

In the above example, he showcases his knowledge of Poison Ivy, her motives and everything else about her painfully clear in his plan. He knew where she would strike, how she would do it and even had the foresight to recognize that Batman would be a player in that scene as well. Although Bruce had gone out of his way to mention that it was fairly simple to figure out where she would strike next, I think that it is the simplicity of the plan that really showcases his ability of application.

He also has the scene where he buries and then, subsequently unburies her. After rescuing her, he mentions that his decision to leave her with plant really was what saved her life. There are a couple things about the way that this scene is delivered, especially in conjunction with those around it, that I’d like to point out.

In the way he talks to Ivy, using the phrase “Whether you know it or not-”, we immediately learn that this is not something that Nay has been told by her directly. After he reveals his plan that’s saved her life, she then asks him who he is. Although I personally like to believe that he’s at least been in the presence of many of the other rogues ( backed by the fact she can at least recognize who his employer is), we know that Nay has never had any kind of real interaction with her.

Additionally, we know that this was not something that he learned by being told by Oswald. There is the possibility that an exchange happened between them prior to this one, but the fact that Ivy is notorious for usually having some kind of plant life with her at all times and Oswald made no comment on it when checking the status of her death, only asking about the container she was held in being airtight.

Additionally, I’d like to argue this cannot be a well known fact about Ivy if Nay was questioning whether even she knew it. If he’d learned this from Oswald and the bird later discovered that she’d survived because Ignatius hadn’t bothered to strip her of her plants, then he would have known immediately that Nay had betrayed him. Given Oswald’s temper and his readiness to end even such a trusted employee like Ignatius for just about anything, it would be foolish to make such a big risk before he was ready to enact his coup. Ignatius, based on his previous precautions with Batman, does not seem like the type to take such risks.

Given these two things, we can only determine so many other sources for his extensive knowledge on her;

He knows enough about plant biology and her specific abilities to determine the exact amount of plants she would need to survive.

He has spoken about Ivy and her abilities with another rogue or individual who might have that kind of knowledge, like perhaps a scientist that is particularly interested in Ivy’s brand of abilities. This individual did not pass along the fact that they had spoke to Ignatius on the matter to Oswald, who would then know that he knew Ivy’s ability to create oxygen.

He has bore witness to or heard about an incident where she has survived near suffocation and come to the conclusion on his own as to why she’d been able to do that.

He read that she was able to do this after acquiring a file on her from a source such as Arkham or the GCPD

In any of these scenarios, he had to have shown a great deal of initiative and/or intellect. It can only be assumed that he had this level of thoroughness with the rest of the rogues, resulting in his extensive knowledge on them.

Some other individuals of note that we are certain he has some knowledge about include but are not limited to;

The Joker

He understands the nature of the Joker and his followers enough to mimic it and make the gang related hits he pulls look like random acts of chaos. He even has the ability to recreate a close enough copy to the laughing gas - If not enough so to fool Batman, then certainly to fool the GCPD and most other people who come in contact with it.

His attempt to mirror the Joker is so convincing, in fact, that he is able to return to the scene of the crime without being suspected at all. He is there as one police officer even resigns on the spot.

For The Joker, I hesitate to believe that he’s had much if any contact with him. The man is too chaotic and unpredictable to see it being much help, not to mention the dangers that puts him in. I don’t see Oswald bringing along his assistant in most instances where he’s interacting with the madman. I don’t see the Joker taking very kindly to having a spokesperson sent in Oswald’s place, which would have gotten Nay killed and probably put the Penguin as a target - At the very least.

Instead, my theory is that he mostly used second hand information about the Joker and acquired samples of his laughing gas to reverse engineer. Additionally, he may have gotten in touch with some of Joker’s followers, since the run made a point of saying there was no shortage of them in Gotham.

Victor Zsasz

There’s not as much mystery with this one, but he is also aware of the motives and strengths of Victor Zsasz. Based on a previous interaction, we know that Ignatius not only knows about, but was present when Zsasz vendeta against Oswald was born. It doesn’t seem unlikely to me that he has also had to deal with the assassin wanting to do Oswald in in the past, probably setting up safety measures and such specifically meant to stop the other if need be and otherwise distract him with different targets.

As far as whether or not Nay has worked with Zsasz directly in the past is up in the air. On one hand, if Oswald did want to try and use Zsasz for any one of his prospects, he would have to send Nay in his place for his own safety. An assassins whose only motivation is to kill people for their own sake can be quite a valuable asset, if not a dangerous one, and he would be the kind of guy that’d be good to keep in one’s back pocket.

On the other hand, Nay’s preparation in dealing with Victor is not as sound as the others. He shows up and basically goes “Lol here have a knife so you can kill people”. He understands Victor’s motivations enough to bring them up and he’s a sweet-talker at the best of times, but his attempts to persuade him don’t exactly hit me with the flow of practice. Additionally, Victor did not seem to really remember Nay all that much, which he probably would if they had any exchanges of note in the past.

Personally, I’m of the opinion that they had not interacted directly and that most of his knowledge about Victor in on the hearsay of Oswald. Other arguments can be made, but that’s just my personal headcanon on the matter.

Man Bat

As far as Manbat goes, I think most of Ignatius’ knowledge is about the serum and less about the man, himself. He makes a deal with Anya Volkova for the Manbat Serum, with the intent to use it for his own formula, later. In order to do this, he had to have at least a basic understanding of it’s capabilities and how they could be applicable for his own use, later.

As far as how he came to know this information, I think he had done some basic research on properties of it he’d liked and then consulted with scientists on the matter.

Talia Al Ghul

Based on his conversation with Anya, I am to believe that he has some basic knowledge about Talia - Some of her motivations, her capabilities; Things like that. If he didn’t already know about her prior to Anya showing up at his door, he certainly did afterwards.

I am not really sure the extend of his knowledge on her, nor where that knowledge would have come from. I can, however, imagine at least some of it was told to him by Anya, herself. I do not believe that they’ve interacted to any extent, nor do I think Talia even knows who he is.

???

Although it doesn’t directly connect him to any one particular villain, there is this line that Ignatius says that further establishes an opening for him to have interacted with plenty more. Although I believe that most of his interactions with other villains has been with those that are considered below him, we also know that Ignatius isn’t just a high ranking member of Oswald’s organization, commanding all the people below him to keep order. He is a direct mouthpiece for the man; Which makes him all the more likely to have delivered messages to more notable individuals and those outside the crime ring when Oswald was otherwise busy or unwilling to take them, himself.

Riddler, Scarecrow, Hatter, Catwoman and the other more socially capable rogues probably have interacted with Ignatius and dealt with Oswald through him - Be that by delivering messages, offering aid to a project or simply handing over some kind of package. Although, I hesitate to say that he is close to or even thought of as being on the same level as them, they would probably at least recognize��him as one of Oswald’s employees.

And if they have had enough time to do that, then I think it’s fair to say that he could easily learn about them through direct contact as well. None of those aforementioned individuals ( bar maybe Catwoman in some instances ) are strangers to monologuing their motives and evil schemes to just about anyone who will listen. It wouldn’t even be beyond some of their characters to go around chattering about their weaknesses - Even if indirectly or unintentionally. Pair that with his usual methods of learning about anyone of interest and he probably has a fairly strong grasp of how to use most of these individuals for his own purposes, if the need were to arise.

The Penguin

Now, of course, there is one rogue that his knowledge of probably far outweighs that of the others and that is none other than Oswald Cobblepot. In the comic, Ignatius mentions both that he had been working for Oswald for five or so years as well as that he’d been working for the man since his parents died. I hesitate to say that Ignatius is 15/16 during the events of Detective Comics Vol 2. ( he end up in the general part of Blackgate, after all. Plus, some of the flashbacks tend to make him look more like a teenager than his modern appearance), but I do believe that he was telling the truth in both of these instances.

For that reason, I usually assume that both were referring to his working for The Penguin in different ways. By that point in time, he’d been working directly as Oswald’s assistant for 5+ years, but his dealings with the organization as a whole was closer to 10 - 15. That gives him a solid decade of learning about Oswald, how he ticked, what made him happy, his weaknesses and everything else that has to do with the bird. This is all assuming that Nay is somewhere in his early to mid-twenties during the events of the comic. For those that might put him older, that number only gets bigger.

Given that timeline, the number of years to study the bird alone would probably be enough to learn all kinds of important things - Many of which I believe he implemented to get to his current position as Oswald’s assistant, anyways. He worked in so many facets of the man’s organization - All of which had different experiences and belief about the Penguin - and has learned important skills from all of them before making it up to the bird, himself.

Once there, however, his understanding of Oswald becomes much more personal. He need not rely on hearsay and speculation for how the man will react to anything or everything - He can see that reaction in front of him with his own two eyes. Additionally, I think that their years of working together has definitely opened Oswald up. If he has gotten to the point by this time that he trusts Nay with complete and unrestricted control over his empire without any supervision, then I think Oswald is gonna be okay with this guy standing around while he drinks a little too much and talks a little more. He’s gonna be okay with complaining about people in his life who infuriate him and why they do.

Not only that, but we also see Oswald playing the role of a mentor to Nay, their relationship close enough that he is able to not only spot his unasked question, but is even willing to entertain them, for a bit. While still respectful, there is a level of casualness in the way Nay speaks to Oswald that one cannot imagine most of his employees would get away with. Even when nearing the time when he is supposed to be overthrowing the man, Nay has to put on appearances about being concerned for Oswald to keep up appearances, giving to the idea that their relationship definitely is more than just an employer/employee one. No doubt that time and betrayal have hardened Oswald, but this is perhaps the closest the bird is going to get to having a real, honest friend at this stage.

With all of these things, It seems unlikely that Oswald hasn’t welcomed Ignatius in quite a bit; certainly more than most others. He’s probably told him stories, taught him lessons, given him advice. Everything that Oswald believes is important, Ignatius grew up in. It became important to him for the last five years of his life. Does Oswald tell him everything? Of course not; That be unrealistic. But so too would it be to assume that he does not confide in his assistant and right hand a lot. It is this intimate understanding of Oswald that eventually presented Ignatius as such a noticeable threat to him.

The very depth to which he knows someone determines how much of a danger he is to you. Knowledge in this man’s hands should be scarier than any weapon - And there is no one he knows like he does Oswald.

Application

Of course, knowing someone isn’t necessarily enough to do them in; One must also have a plan for applying the things he learns. First and foremost, I think that Ignatius probably is just naturally a very bright individual who works exceptionally well when it comes to recognizing patterns. In the previously mentioned heist with Martin, Ignatius mentions the dangers of being too smart. He mentions that they are a threat because they tend to have their own ideas.

Sounds an awful lot like the situation with one penguin in particular.

From the reader’s perspective, it only makes sense that we are meant to assume that Ignatius is some kind of genius. He understands advanced sciences enough to create a new formula that enhances his abilities based off the work of several people before him. He is incredibly socially capable, using both other’s initial opinions of him and his charismatic charms to sway people in whatever direction he wants them to go. He’s a quick thinker, able to problem solve in seconds, even with highly stressful elements at play. He’s a master of deception, capable of playing whatever role best fits a situation.

It’s obvious from all his various interactions and behaviors that he thinks, moves and interacts on a level that many would consider profoundly advanced - Particularly for someone probably only in their early to mid-twenties.

( This is actually one of the contributing factors as to why I made him HOH in my verse, because his superior intellect and cleverness reminded me a bit of my best friend ).

Additionally, he was given tutelage ( even if indirect ) from one of the most notorious criminals that Gotham has ever seen. The Penguin is essentially a normal man who is so capable and so good at what he does that he stands on par with what could only be described as gods and monsters. Not only is Oswald Cobblepot the obvious definition of a criminal mastermind, but he is ridiculously skilled in working the system to the point that he has spent next to no time in Blackgate or Arkham - Especially when compared to other villains of note in Batman’s sights. A villain like the Joker gets out and it’s a big deal because of all the chaos he causes and the difficulty it takes to put him back in his box, but there is no box that can contain a man like Oswald Cobblepot, whose reign over Gotham is every single night. He is so powerful, so completely in control, that even Batman - Who could care less about the boundaries of the law - has to let him walk.

This is the kind of guy that Ignatius has spent the last several years learning from and imitating on more and more grandiose scales. He wanted to be the Penguin but better because the Penguin was already a sizable villain in his own right. Anything that Ignatius knows, he’s applying in a very Cobblepot-esc way. He plays everything he has at the right time in exactly the right way to get his desired outcome. Additionally, I can only imagine that being the new and improved Penguin would consist of learning from his mistakes. Not only has working at Oswald’s side given him a great example of what to follow, it’s also provided him with a step-by-step guide of what not to do.

Lastly, I think that Nay has just had a lot of practice. Using the fact that others over or underestimate him and his ability to turn mistakes around into opportunities, he’s probably had several instances in the past where he tried a certain tactic or make a decision that nearly blew up in his face. It’s not so much that he’s always been perfect as he’s just very good at the whole “I meant to do that” thing. Being able to do this also provided him with the ability to learn from his mistakes, however - He learned to try new things until he came upon the steps that were the least amount of work and heartache in the end. He learned to work smart instead of hard and he was rewarded greatly for it.

All in all, I think the thing this whole rant of a post comes down to is that Ignatius Ogilvy is incredibly smart. So smart, in fact, that he can completely manipulate and dismantle whatever he puts his mind to. If he’d been on the side of the good guys, there would be no telling the kinds of things he could accomplish. Probably would have ended up being a Batman 2.0.

I dunno what it is about watching your parents get shot in an alley behind the theater, but damn if that doesn’t come with some astronomical problem-solving perks.

#( ᵇᵘᵗ ʸᵒᵘ ᶜᵃⁿ ᶜᵃˡˡ ᵐᵉ ᵉᵐᵖᵉʳᵒʳ ᵖᵉⁿᵍᵘᶦⁿ || ignatius ogilvy )#( ʸᵒᵘ ʰᵃᵛᵉ ᵐʸ ᵃᵖᵒˡᵒᵍᶦᵉˢ || headcanons )#( ᵃ ᵗᵃˡᵉ ᵒᶠ ᵈᵉᵃᵗʰ || comics )

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thisisevenharderthannamingablog · 7 years

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6.20 The Song in Your Heart

Since the S6 finale is behind us, these last couple of write-ups might be a tad perfunctory. Since I am a completist, I will finish them. How long it takes, I don’t know.

In the past: Snow makes a wish that they could give Emma a chance at a happy ending. In the morning, she and Charming (and Regina) find that they can only communicate in song, and also have an irrepressible urge to stand on tables. This somehow represents a weapon they can use against Regina.

They find Hook, sing some more, and book passage to the Evil Queen’s castle in exchange for agreeing to hand over Rumplestiltskin. Regina visits Rumple in prison, but he is unaffected by the song spell and refuses to give her any advice on how to stop Snow and Charming. They arrive at her castle and sing at Regina, which defeats her fireballs, but she steals their song and sends them home to wait for her curse. The Blue Fairy explains that the song is for Emma to use later, and in the morning everyone forgets about their brief musical interlude.

In the more recent past: Tiny Emma thinks about entering a talent contest at school, but the jeers of a fellow resident of the group home discourage her after barely starting her recording.

In the present: Snow gives Emma her own dress to wear for her wedding, planned for that very day. The Black Fairy shows up to RUIN EVERYTHING by turning the dress black and threaten Emma and oh by the way Rumple lied to them (surprise). The hero team repairs to the clock tower and finds a mammoth… ball?… of Dark Fairy Dust, which is like a kind of curse nuke, set to go off at 6:00.

OMG that’s when the wedding is! I wonder who told her.

On the Jolly Roger, Hook and Charming stare in dismay at the white tux someone (Snow) picked out for him. Emma shows up to say that whoops, Final Battle is on, gotta fight, later my love.

Hook pays Rumple a visit and blowdarts him with dreamshade to ensure that he can’t interfere in the Final Battle, and also promises to kill him. Fiona arrives to spoil everything AGAIN. At the sheriff’s station, Henry acts as the Voice of Retcon and assures Emma that the Final Battle is why he brought her to Storybrooke. He plays a bit of the tape Young Emma made of herself, but she turns it off again.

Regina and Zelena research ways to stop the oncoming curse. Regina gets the bright idea of stopping time to prevent it, and comes up with a potion, which Rumple promptly steals. When Emma arrives at the Mayor’s office for the Final Battle, she finds her family there, all frozen. The Black Fairy bring out the song Emma sang as a child; her magic fails at this reminder of being alone. She retreats, talks to Henry again, and then goes back to the office to give up her heart to the Black Fairy in exchange for letting her family go.

When the Black Fairy takes her heart, however, it can’t be crushed and burns her hand. Henry shows up with a new page he just found in the storybook, showing the forgotten song incident.

Emma picks up the melody she started all those years ago, and sings. She wards off a blast from Fiona and breaks the spell on everyone else. The Black Fairy retreats.

Emma and Killian get married (awwwww). The curse appears right on schedule.

Parallels: There wasn’t even a good parallel in this, it was just ridiculous.

Wardrobe Department:

In Hindsight: Look, I liked Galavant, but I don’t particularly care for musicals as a genre, and I have no interest at all in musical episodes of generally non-musical TV shows. I’m not going to comment on the music itself here because I don’t know anything about the stuff. Even without that aspect, my levels of WTF were off the chart throughout this episode.

My biggest problem is this: why was there a flashback? And why, if there had to be a flashback, didn’t it have something to do with, oh, weddings, or love, or building futures despite the looming threat of Evil? Even more so than most of the flashbacks lately, this one was a total waste of time -- why did Zelena have a song?! She doesn’t have anything to do with any of this! In the penultimate episode of the season, an episode in which one of their main characters reached a huge and celebratory milestone, I cannot forgive that.

How many goddamn episodes have we had this season where at the end of the episode things are exactly the way they were at the beginning?

Beyond that, I guess I’ll just go chronologically.

Why did the wedding have to happen so fast? Even if there is magical tailoring involved, putting a wedding together takes a bit of time and planning. Did they just go with everything in Snow’s binder and call it a day?

Can I call it a continuity error that Charming thought their baby going to be a boy back in S1, when they retconned that back in S4 with the vision?

Having already stated that they were going to wait until they weren’t under the threat of Black Fairy/Final Battle before getting married, why did they go ahead with it once they knew she was back?

Have I mentioned how stupid this Final Battle thing is? Light and Dark are destined to fight, huh? Why? What about all of the other dark™ characters we’ve had? Were they destined to fight? Is there a qualifying event that means you have to fight a savior? The only reason they’re doing any of this seems to be the Black Fairy is determined to make it happen, and there’s no real indication as to why, what she gets out of it. She could have fucked off back to the Enchanted Forest now that everyone else is in Storybrooke and had everything she wanted.

A few episodes ago we had a big plot point ending with “I will always be by your side.” Today it was, “sorry babe, gotta fight this one alone, catch you at the altar?” Hey, remember the season five finale thing about not saying “I love you” when one of them is facing death?

No? Never mind then.

And then we have Henry with the Final Battle boosterism. You can see how cleverly they foreshadowed all of this back in S1.

Don’t get me started on her other scene with Henry, as I am feeling a pleasant lack of rage right now....

Ah, fuck it, kinda have to mention this. The show has increasingly had a tendency to band-aid over enormous incidents in the pasts of their characters in order to move ahead with the All-Consuming (Even When Nonsense) Plot rather than spend any time resolving inter-character problems, but this one just might take the cake. This awkwardly inserted bit of retroactive continuity makes everything all better? Twenty-eight miserable years, the various traumas of Emma’s childhood -- poof! She was never alone after all! She had their songs! Which no one including them knew anything about and which did her fuck all good in the meantime, but it’s all better now!

It’s a damn good thing for them that I stopped caring a couple of weeks ago, because this is actually sickening. I know that part of my visceral reaction to this bit of the season’s story is due to my having young daughters, so every time I see McKenna Grace on screen I go straight into snarling protective rage, but….

Okay, right. Abort spiral. Moving on!

Uh, the wedding. That. I guess that happened. I’m still confused as to how they managed to take this moment and make it boring, but they did it? I didn’t hate it with the fire of a thousand suns or anything, they are beautiful people being beautiful together, I never get tired of that really, but taken as a whole, the event seemed random and could have been a lot more interesting. Given that they have done fuck-all with either of these characters for most of the season, it’s not like they were too busy doing important plot stuff to have had them plan their own wedding with more care on screen.

I’m writing so much fix-it fic for this season, it’s not even funny.

That turned out fairly long after all. Sorry?

#b thinks about once upon a time #ouat #ouat negativity #ouat 6x20

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meetthenutshells · 7 years

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Both of L-Train’s Rock Operas are Identical

Now that I have your attention with a clickbaity title I’d like to take a detour from not reading Past Sins and procrastinate on things I’m supposed to be doing today to write a short essay on the premise that the rock operas Moonrise and Fall of an Empire are in fact, the same story. Now, before people come at me with pitchforks, let me just say that I really like these albums. They’re pretty good power metal and really scratch the itch for melodic metal concept albums with a story, not unlike Gloryhammer or Twilight Force, if a bit less tongue-in-cheek. But this just means I’ve listened to them through enough times to notice that they kinda cover the same story beats. The stories from the show they’re based on are pretty similar (bad crazy magic person gets banished for 1000 years), so they were bound to have similarities, but I feel like the similarities extend beyond that into the execution. Anyway, I’d highly recommend listening to them before/while I babble about them.

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Also, L, if you’re reading this can you please not list the artist name as “The L-Train presents the Royal Canterlot Symphonic Metal Orchestra (Ro.C.S.M.Or)“? Because Bandcamp includes the artist name and album title in the file name, it means that the file path for any given song is “.../The L-Train presents the Royal Canterlot Symphonic Metal Orchestra (Ro.C.S.M.Or) - Fall of an Empire\The L-Train presents the Royal Canterlot Symphonic Metal Orchestra (Ro.C.S.M.Or) - Fall Of An Empire - 14 Prologue- The Tale Of The Crystal King (instrumental).mp3” which is longer than the file path length limit for Windows by itself. Just a minor bugbear. I had to rename the folder just so Winamp would even attempt to play the files. Love the music. Please make it more straightforward to open and play on a computer.

Below the break is a very long ramble about these two albums of horse music.

Okay so, let’s go through them beat by beat.

Part 0: The Introduction

Not much to say here. Moonrise’s “Scene 1: Prelude” is an instrumental which foreshadows some of the motifs in the album to come, Fall of an Empire’s “Prologue: Tale of the Crystal King” gives us some backstory on King Sombra. Different in content, but they both have an introduction as a conscious decision as opposed to just jumping right into the action. We can also see the naming conventions for both of them springing up, where Moonrise uses theatrical naming and FoaE uses literary naming, but they’re both titling their songs using the partition names of another medium, which is another conscious decision. It’s worth mentioning that both albums use a narrator who pops up from time to time to cover transitions, Moonrise’s narrator in the songs themselves, and Fall’s narrator in separate interludes. I’m not particularly fond of Fall’s narrator (the singing is a bit flat), but eh. What can you do.

Part 1: WE ARE AGGRESSIVELY HAPPY

This is what really convinced me to write this. Moonrise’s “Scene 2: Harmony” and FoaE’s “Chapter 1: Welcome to the Empire” both strike this slightly odd tonal dissonance where the lyrics have the characters exuberantly singing about how happy they are, while the music some of the most energetic on the whole album. But it’s not... the happiest instrumentation. The choruses are certainly grandiose and upbeat, but large parts of both songs are in a minor key and have this kind of aggressive growl. It’s quite effective at setting up the feeling that underneath this happy exterior something isn’t quite right.

This is much more pronounced when you listen to the instrumentals. The verses on Welcome to the Empire have instrumentals that wouldn’t sound out of place on a Metallica track, it’s really quite the contrast with lyrics that are basically pleasantries. In Harmony, some of the builds and swells have this organ behind them before it breaks into the chorus that make you feel like Dracula is about to burst in. It’s a really effective contrast, they clearly establish the baseline of the story, and both tracks are really fun to listen to, but both of them do basically the same thing.

Part 2a: Luna Is Happy And That’s Terrible

Okay, so we’ve established the baseline for the story. We have our major characters, and their relationship is pretty good. So now we settle down into a quiet and tender ballad, where Luna is really happy about something. In Moonrise, this is “Scene 3: Nightfall”. I’ve numbered this part 2a because Moonrise only has half as many tracks as Fall of an Empire, but they still cover the same story beats anyway (in fact Moonrise might even cover more), so where Moonrise covers multiple points in the same track I’ve numbered them with a number and a letter. Anyway.

In Nightfall, Luna is just overjoyed to make the night sky. However, because Luna is by herself here and her anguish is more interesting than her passion, Nightfall has to crush this point and the next into the same song, this lasts for all of a verse, which is punctuated by these growling, sinister guitar stabs. More of the song is in part 2b, but it still covers this tonal beat of the quiet expression of Luna really liking something.

This mood gets more fully expressed in Fall of an Empire’s “Chapter 2: Crossroads of Life”, which is a full-on soppy duet between Princess Luna and King Sombra. It almost manages to go the whole way from the two of them sneaking off to getting engaged in this tone, but then there’s a big sinister metal stab near the back half of it to remind you “hey don’t get too comfortable now”.

Both of these seem to come with the implication that Luna isn’t allowed to be happy. In fact that’s basically the byline of these two operas. Whenever Luna does what she wants, bad things happen. Which brings us to...

Part 2b: Someone Goes Crazy and It’s All Luna’s Fault

Oh boy. In Moonrise, we don’t even get the whole way through Nightfall before Luna starts losing the rag. So incensed is she that people are going to bed instead of looking at this pretty sky she’s made that she goes mad and decides to bring about eternal night. It’s a little childish, but A. this is a rock opera, people don’t need good reasons for doing things as long as the emotions flow right, and 2. this is a mythic-style story where larger-than-life characters do extraordinary things for petty reasons.

These points also apply to Fall of an Empire, where in “Chapter 3: Heavy Is The Crown” Celestia convinces Luna that marrying a mortal is a bad idea, and Luna dumps Sombra fairly abruptly. Sombra, a rational person, decides that he should become immortal (”Chapter 4: At Any Cost”) and take over the world (”Chapter 5: Regents Of The Darkness”).

It’s kind of understandable that Fall of an Empire takes three songs to cover what Moonrise does in less than one, because this story beat involves three times as many characters. In Moonrise, Luna goes nuts basically apropos of nothing. It almost feels a bit rushed, and Fall’s more drawn-out and careful coverage of this decline is far more interesting, by giving competing intentions different voices. It makes the story feel more emotionally complete.

It’s more musically distinct too - where Chapter 3 provides what I’ll call the Heavy Is The Crown motif, which reappears later on during expressions of regret, when Luna is forced to take actions for the greater good that are against her personal wishes. There’s more room across the three songs with three characters to convey more nuance in the emotions, like Luna’s quiet promise to cure Sombra of his madness at the end of Regents of the Dark (this actually matches up with something else later). By contrast Moonrise just devolves towards the end of the song into atonal clanging, which isn’t really to my taste and feels a little out of place in a metal symphony. Regardless, these are quite clearly analogous beats of the story.

Oh boy this is gonna run long.

Part 3: Luna is Intransigent, Bad Things Happen

The part where Luna is intransigent is kind of coincidental, because they’re for different reasons, but it is an interesting commonality, that it seems like Luna is just this world’s butt monkey. Really makes you feel bad for her, particularly in Fall of an Empire.

In Moonrise, this is “Scene 4: Lunar March”, where Luna, now Nightmare Moon, is staging her coup and bullying her subjects by asking them “if the moon is not to [their] liking”, in that kind of way where it’s hard to tell if she’s mocking them or being hysterical, and then Celestia turns up and confronts her. This brings up two components that happen in this story beat; the ideological conflict between the major actors is articulated in preparation for the final confrontation, and the impact of this conflict on the mortals beneath them is mentioned. This is in stark contrast to the harmony and happiness of the first song, and I feel like it could do with twisting and subverting some of the motifs from that song. Particularly in Moonrise, Harmony brings up a very strong main theme motif that comes back in Harmony Restored, but it could have really added something to Lunar March to show off a contrast.

In Fall of an Empire, we have the same two components set up, almost neatly demarcated into two songs. In “Chapter 6: Kingdoms Divided”, we get the side-by-side argument between Celestia and Luna, and Sombra preparing the Crystal Empire for war. I say “almost neatly” because this song doesn’t fully prepare us for the final confrontation.

Can I just say before I continue that Kingdoms Divided has one of the best moments on the whole album? The chorus is really cleverly worded:

We cannot stand apart By kingdoms divided by Your arrogant heart

So you’ll stand there and fight Believing you really know What is and what isn’t is right

This is most effective on the second chorus, just after a pair of lines each from Celestia, Luna and Sombra. All three of them sing the chorus, and you could reasonably imagine any one of them saying those exact words, even at the exact same time. This isn’t the only time that they have more than one character singing the same words and where it makes sense to them, even for different reasons (Heavy Is The Crown and Regents of the Dark spring to mind), but because it’s three characters here it feels really well executed.

Anyway where was I? Oh yes, the rest of our preparation for the final confrontation happens in “Chapter 7: The Calling”, alongside a fairly explicit intrusion of the commoners into the Princesses’ affairs when the crystal ponies make their appeal for aid with a really haunting chorus of “save us”. It’s only here that Luna is finally convinced to turn against Sombra. It’s also this moment that really sells Celestia as having Luna’s best interests at heart despite being cold and antagonistic so far, where she gives Luna the final say on what they decide to do (helped along by the return of the Heavy Is The Crown motif). Celestia could have easily badgered Luna into going along with her plan or ignored her, but they really are equal partners in this kingdom-running business. It’s a very sweet and also heart-breaking moment.

This is another place where Fall taking more songs to cover the same ground really helps with fleshing out more characters and greater emotional granularity. But it is the same ground.

Part 4: The Final Battle

This is probably where the disparity between the two base stories is the most pronounced. Moonrise’s “Scene 5: Battle of the Sun And Moon” is an instrumental, which is cool and all, but it kind of betrays how simplistic the story of Nightmare Moon is at its core. All of the complexity in it is in Luna’s descent into madness, and Celestia’s anguish at what she has to do for the greater good (”anguish for the greater good”. Hmm. Where did we see that before?), which means that the big confrontation between the two of them is... basically empty. They have nothing to say to each other at this point. The time for words is past, and it’s a magical punching contest now. This is thematically interesting, but only from a distance. In the heat of the moment, it’s... 2 minutes and 33 seconds of fast-paced instrumental metal. Not really anything more.

Meanwhile, Fall’s “Chapter 8: Heaven’s Fury” is an 8 minute saga. We open with this choral introduction of the “grand regent, unequalled, transcendent, eternal”, which for those who’ve been paying attention, we heard before in the Prologue, telling us how far Sombra has fallen. And just to ice the cake, the start of the song proper, after this little introduction, is the same instrumentation as the start of Welcome to the Empire. I love bookends. They’re great.

What follows is Sombra and Celestia having a metal duel and it’s awesome. Celestia’s singer hasn’t really had much chance to get the lead out until her chorus on this album, and you can really tell she’s giving it socks. She has some trouble hitting the high notes, but I can’t begrudge that too much.

And then, did you think they were done with the bookends? Think again! Sombra’s duet with Luna takes on the melody of Crossroads of Life, reflecting on their relationship, before Luna’s verse slides into her Heaven’s Fury chorus - implying that she is ultimately siding with Celestia here. Even the instrumentation and lyrics of the chorus retrace this transition - it starts off light, she talks about making it work somehow, heavy crowns, the choir jump in on the second line and then we’re back to the full metal instrumentation. It’s impressively layered songwriting and meaningful production.

Wow, I really nerded out about this. The rest of the song is more like Battle of the Sun and Moon, a few minutes of fast-paced battle music, with a little descent-into-atonal-madness bit at the end, which is less interesting, but it wasn’t really going to end any other way.

Part 5: Remorse, Return to a Lesser Life

Turning the tables, this story beat I think is actually done much better in Moonrise, probably because the final conflict had so little dimension to it, and all the interesting bits are in the aftermath. In “Scene 6: Daybreak”, the narrator tells us about the ruin left in the battle’s wake, before seguing into Celestia talking, one-sided, to her banished sister about her regrets over a piano. But what really sells this part is what I’ll call the Harmony Restored motif, which she launches into over a building choir and it just... I cried. I won’t lie. Even with Moonrise’s narrative simplicity, there is still a lot of emotional weight packed in here. It was this moment - these two lines of hope and determination in the face of just, bottomless anguish - that created the character of Celestia as she is in my head, and how she appears in Agents of HEART. All of the weight of her experience just hits you in this one moment.

Not content with that, Moonrise builds further on this denouement of its story in “Scene 7: Harmony Restored”, which revisits much of the structure and melody of Harmony - same introduction, many of the same riffs, but something’s different now - all while Celestia pleads to her citizens to forgive Luna. She’s basically trying to convince everyone that the person who just tried to destroy the world isn’t really crazy please believe me, and it’s tragic. This culminates in the fully instrumented chorus version of the Harmony Restored motif, which is basically the ending of the story. Then we dip into a motif from Nightfall, the narrator gives a little aesop lesson to see us out, and we launch into the Harmony motif and another Harmony Restored chorus and wrap up with the Harmony motif again. Fin. The end. It’s very complete, and maybe has too much in the way of an ending. The narrator giving us a moral is a touch on the nose, and the second Harmony Restored chorus might be overkill, but it’s awesome so I’m not really going to argue. Power metal knows not what this “overkill” concept is.

Meanwhile, in Fall of an Empire, we get... “Epilogue: The Fall of the Shadow’s Veil”. The narrator takes over and tells us what happens after Heaven’s Fury, gives us some of Luna’s anguish, a little note of vain hope, and delivers a moral at the end. It’s not completely without art, the Heavy is the Crown motif finds its way in there, but it’s very heavy on tell and very light on show. The reason Moonrise ended so strongly despite rushing through the middle was that we were shown all the complexity and depth of Celestia’s experience as it happened. Maybe doing that for Luna at the end of Fall would have it run on too long, or be redundant - or maybe L-Train caught on that a full denouement song would make the similarity of the story beats too obvious - but what we’re left with makes the ending kind of sudden, like the budget ran out. It’s kind of a shame with how strong the rest of the album is.

There is one highlight though - remember Luna’s quiet little aside at the end of Regents of the Darkness? Where she talks about how she’s going to sweep aside his darkness and get him back? That’s Luna’s Daybreak. That’s her Harmony Restored. It’s in a different part of the story sure, and only two lines, but it fulfils that same function, where it’s this expression of hope in the face of loss. Unfortunately for her, we know how that turns out, which only makes it go on to reinforce the “Luna isn’t allowed to be happy” running theme of this universe.

Conclusion

Wow I rambled a lot I have lots of other things I need to do lemme hurry up

In conclusion, we see here that both of these albums, even in the ways that both of them show mastery of songwriting, instrumentation and storytelling through music, are basically following the same story anatomy. We are happy but things are not completely okay, Luna is happy and that’s terrible, Luna breaks everything, Luna gets upset and bad things happen, there’s a confrontation, and then wounded by the loss everyone goes back to their business.

It’s worth noting at this point, at the very end where nobody’s going to read it, that this isn’t too far from the structure of most rock operas. Many of them are tragedies of some sort or another. The structure being so similar isn’t even necessarily a bad thing - it’s a very compelling structure, and the second time around fleshed it out in ways that made it much better (even if it did slack on the ending a bit).

So ultimately, both of L-Train’s Rock Operas are Identical, and That’s Okay.

#my little pony #l-train #moonrise #fall of an empire #metal

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vapaus-ystavyys-tasaarvo · 7 years

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Revenge Sandwich Week 1

Okay I’m here to attempt to participate with actual words rather than just maps. I can do this. By the way I haven’t read any other posts yet because I wanted to make mine first! (Because I’m worried that if I do read other people’s posts they’ve already said everything I was going to say and then I don’t have anything. x) I mean, literary analysis really isn’t my strong suit.)

Turns out this book is still such a page-turner for me. :p It’s really reminding me why I loved Dumas books as a kid. I’m already a bit ahead of schedule because I just couldn’t stop reading. But I’ll just talk about this week’s part now.

So yeah, I did vaguely remember some of what happened here but there were a lot of details I’d forgotten. And even things that don’t count as “details”: SOMEHOW I managed to COMPLETELY forget that this was all about politics and Napoleon. I literally read the part about them stopping on Elba and went “hey wait is this a Napoleon thing?” and yes, turns out it was a Napoleon thing.

Anyway.

This story... or at least the beginning is kind of hilariously unsubtle, isn’t it? The book doesn’t exactly make you wonder who are the good guys and the bad guys. (At this point at least. I have the impression that this is going to change.) And Edmond is kind of boringly perfect and like EVERYBODY LOVES HIM except the couple of guys who’re jealous. Although he IS at least kind of charmingly naïve, the poor guy, so he does have at least one fault...

Well also he has a bit of a temper because of course he does, he’s a Dumas protagonist isn’t he? And btw that bit where he’s all like “yeah Danglars and me once had a row so bad that we almost had a duel over it (on Monte Cristo no less, that sure isn’t foreshadowing anything at all) but I’m sure we’ll get along fine from now on and he definitely would never betray me” rhat is EXACTLY the kind of thought process Dumas himself would have. Like I’m 99% sure he’s just outright calling himself out here.

I mean some of the characters do get some complexity already. M. Morrel is introduced as kind of a greedy bastard who just cares about his cargo rather than that his captain died, but then turns out that he genuinely cares about Edmond and is ready to even risk his own reputation to help him. Caderousse is an envious, selfish bastard but he’s also somewhat sympathetic. (Again, because he defends Edmond... this seems to be a bit of a trend here. Liking Edmond makes you more sympathetic. xD) And then there’s Villefort who’s... well he’s a really compelling character and I find him fascinating and I want to read more about him but I also hhhhate him as a person. :p Yuck, prosecutors. I feel like washing my hands. And I just see red when his only motivation to do the right thing seems to be just to please his fiancée and he like fantasizes about telling Renée about how nice he was. Ewww dude, you are the worst.

Renée is interesting because I kinda genuinely do like her but on the other hand she’s way too happy to marry Villefort which makes me side-eye her a bit. I mean yeah she’s an upper-class woman and probably doesn’t have endless choices about matters of love but still. (Also she doesn’t mind the death penalty apparently unless it’s for political prisoners. >__<) Well, we’ll see how things turn out. I hope she’ll keep showing up.

I do really like all the political stuff, even if it seems to be more about the intrigue and the plot than the kind of manifesto masquerading as a novel that Les Mis is. But I enjoy both kinds. :p It’s a fun contrast too, given that these are novels set approximately in the same era. (And Dumas still finds time to make fun of the Royalists which I appreciate.)

Oh but there seems to be quite a lot of class discussion too, right? Which is interesting. I’d really like to see where it goes.

Uh... that’s pretty much all the at least somewhat structured thoughts I had for now? Like I said, this isn’t really my strong suit.

Some random reactions and comments that I wrote down:

‘-- if it were known that you gave a packet to the marshal and spoke to the emperor, you might be compromised.’

‘How could it compromise me, Monsieur?’

Oh you sweet summer child...

‘I shall always have the highest regard for those who enjoy the confidence of my owners.’

That’s an interesting way to translate “mes armateurs”. (I had to check what it was in the original text, it felt so weird.)

- I love the bit about Les Catalans. It just appeals to me a lot, that kind of sense of a tiny community with an interesting history. I just appreciate it in a story (although I don’t really know how accurately they’re portrayed here and of course we only seem to get to meet two people from there.)

- Another thing is the strong sense of the era, it’s just very very 1815. I like it.

- Mercédès’s speech to Fernand is probably the most blatant kind of exposition dialogue ever lol

- Also at points it feels like maybe you don’t need to remind us that they’re Catalan like literally every time you talk about them? Especially with Fernand, omg. (And who says “with your Catalan knife” when they’re also Catalan themself?)

- So far I like Mercédès though, I don’t really have much to say about her otherwise. Fernand creeps me out, like he’s obviously meant to. He seriously doesn’t seem to care about Mercédès’s feelings AT ALL as long as she doesn’t kill herself. >___<

- All the talk about it being bad luck to call a woman her fiancés name before they’re married and a man captain before he’s been formally appointed... there’s SO MUCH FORESHADOWING HERE OMG. I get it, everything is going to go horribly wrong! Stop reminding me!

- Danglars, why did you even talk in front of Caderousse? I don’t get it at allll. I mean at first I thought the novel was going to have Caderousse, Danglars and Fernand all conspire together against Edmond and I was so confused about Caderousse being there because he seriously didn’t have a good enough reason to hate Edmond... I’m glad it didn’t go that way but now I’m just baffled by Danglars.

- I don’t have much to say about Danglars in general, he’s probably the most one dimensional character so far. I mean I appreciate his twisted mind because it makes him a scarier villain but otherwise... I don’t know, we’ll see.

- Btw isn’t it a bit weird how even though we get told that Edmond has all these friends and how all these people really love and respect him but they don’t really get named or introduced at all? Instead all the focus is on the three people who actually aren’t great friends. Just a thought. It’s weird.

‘a commissioner wearing his sash is no longer a man but a statue of the law, cold, deaf and dumb.’

Hah. :D

‘but, dammit, though he’s a Royalist and the crown prosecutor, he is also a man and not, I believe, a wicked one.’

‘No’, said Danglars. ‘Though I have heard it said that he is ambitious, which is much the same.’

Oh snap. Okay I really like that line even though it’s Danglars saying it.

- All the coincidences, like the foreshadowing and the character introductions, ARE NOT SUBTLE AT ALL. Buuuut then again what are you even reading 19th C. lit for if you don’t appreciate Poignant Coincidences....

- Uggghhh all the talk about trials is disgusting. Yuck yuck yuck. Hhhhate. The sheer lack of empathy in everybody except Renée. Also Villefort, HOW IS IT ANYTHING LIKE A DUEL WTF. Let’s make a list: a) duels are supposed to be agreed upon by both parties, b) it’s supposed to be balanced, not favouring one of the parties, c) both should be facing the same risks. YOU LITERALLY HAVE NOTHING TO LOSE, YOUR OPPONENT HAS EVERYTHING ON THE LINE. ARGH.

- did I mention that I hhhate him?

‘Nowadays, the sword has been put aside and the gown is supreme: there is a wise Latin tag to that effect.’

‘Cedant arma togae,’ Villefort said, with a bow.

‘I did not dare to attempt it in Latin,’ the marquise replied.

Okay, relatable. x) (obviously I don’t like her either but)

‘So the guilty man has been arrested,’ said the marquise.

‘You mean, the accused man,’ said Renée.

Thank you, Renée, the only half decent human being in this party.

This restore to us had a revolutionary ring to the ears of the crown prosecutor’s deputy.

Fucking royalists, omg. (I do appreciate Dumas snarking about them.)

settled his features in front of the mirror into their grandest expression and sat down, dark and threatening, behind his desk.

Omg Villefort you dork.

- Also: interrogating a suspect while also thinking ahead to how cleverly you can tell people about it later: like this guy is simultaneously so relatable and so disgusting. It’s both hilarious and enraging. (Idk, it probably hits me particularly hard because he feels like such a real person.)

happiness makes even wicked men good.

Another good line.

‘To whom was it addressed?’

‘To Monsieur Noirtier, Rue Coq-Héron, in Paris.’

Oh shit... Suddenly it makes sense that Edmond ends up in prison. >_______<

- Aaaa poor Edmond has all the power here and he just doesn’t KNOW.

- I don’t have anything to say about the next chapter, just AAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaa

- This part has gotten so much harder to read as an adult tbh.

Villefort ran out but, on reaching the door, realized that the sight of a deputy crown prosecutor in such a hurry could upset the tranquility of an entire town, so he slowed to his normal pace, which was quite magisterial.

Omg this guy. I swear.

- Villefort is having his Storm Inside A Skull moment except he put HIMSELF into this situation and of course he turns out to be an Anti-Valjean if anything. It really feels like an echo of the same scene though, even to the point of being interrupted and pushed towards the final decision by someone coming to tell them that the carriage is ready.

- I don’t have much in terms of thoughts about the chapters with Louis XVIII. Mostly I just kept wondering how historically accurate this was. xD

Okay, that’s all I had. Time to read everybody else’s things!

#CoMC17 #I Tried

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alistairkimble · 7 years

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Until Dawn - Interactive Horror for PS4

You know, I don't often write about video games. In fact, I don't think I've ever posted about one on my website, until now, and I'm writing about Until Dawn from Supermassive Games. I hate to write this, but for those with other platforms, it's a PlayStation 4 exclusive that was released back in August of 2015.

When I began writing fiction seriously again around a decade or so ago, the time I allotted for gaming (video, RPG, tabletop, board, etc.) dwindled to nearly zero. Every once in awhile I'll find a title that intrigues me, and this time it was Until Dawn that hooked me.

The game is an interactive horror film, and while it's filled with some pretty standard tropes, the description of the gameplay interested me enough to give it a whirl.

Okay, here is the setup and the tropes you'll recognize right off: the game involves a group of teenagers who are probably 18 or 19 given the clues you'll find in game. These teens get together in a remote cabin up in the mountains one year after the disappearance of two of their friends who are twin sisters of one of the teens. Of course, they are then terrorized by a psychopath who toys with them and they must survive until dawn.

Okay, that doesn't sound all that original, and it isn't. But that is the briefest of explanations regarding the plot that I'll give--I'd hate to spoil the game (even though it's been out for a awhile now). What makes this game interesting is the gameplay and implementation. This is the first game in a long time that made me come back to it and made me think about it after I'd stopped playing.

First off, you get to play all of the characters, each of them will take center stage throughout the story and you'll find clues, make critical decisions that will not only affect that character, but the other characters. In the game this is called the "butterfly effect" and some choice made early in the game may have a sever impact later on. There are a couple of cool things about this butterfly effect and the way it's implemented. They use Native American lore to explain the significance, and throughout the game there are also totems that characters will find that foreshadow events (such as a characters death, saving someone's life, that sort of thing), so these can help when making decisions and impact the butterfly effect. The other great thing is that these decisions have their own screen and the player can flip through them and see how these events impacted the story and characters as you play.

As this is happening, a story unfolds, and there are times characters have to make a choice on the fly, such as investigate a noise or follow footprints, or stay with the group or investigate noise on your own. These are things you'd be yelling at the screen for if this were a movie, and you'll find yourself making decisions that are the lesser of two evils (until you find out later on it wasn't the lesser of two evils!). And then there are chase scenes where the screen will flash an icon and you need to hit the corresponding button on your controller, but these aren't often, but it's extremely stressful when it happens and I could feel the adrenaline kick in.

Given the choices all these characters can make, this leads to probably hundreds of different scenarios, and the choices the player makes will affect which characters make it until dawn. My first go through, I had 3 out of the 8 survive. Going into the last few minutes until dawn I actually I had 5, but then lost 2 from a decision I had to make in a matter of seconds.

This game lends itself to multiple play-throughs. The good thing is that once you've completed the game once you can access the chapters (the game is divided into chapters), which are also cleverly done and end in cliffhangers, and after a brief interlude (with a psychiatrist who explores your fears--and then those fears get implemented into the game), there is a recap of what happened before in the form of: Previously on Until Dawn, which then gives the highlights.

The effects of all these decisions even plays into how the characters then react to one another and they'll stop trusting each other or perhaps grow closer. I found myself really bummed when a couple of my favorite characters bit it. Another thing, sometimes you are given a choice, and it may seem you have to do something, but there are times when it's good to not hit the button to do something.

A few of the cast members are fairly well known, such as Hayden Panettiere (Heroes) and Rami Malek (Mr. Robot). The in-game characters are not only voiced by them, but modeled on them. The photos of Hayden Panettiere and Rami Malek are from the game, and they're pretty decent. Even the facial expressions are done quite well (I think they're at least as good as the Grand Moff Tarkin CGI in Rogue One--and that was a major production, not a somewhat unknown video game). The only character with weird facial expressions is the psychiatrist, there is just something a little off about the way his mouth moves, it's odd (it may be that the way his mouth moved in the game reminded me of one of my bosses that I didn't get along with at all, so that may have played into it a bit and made me want to punch the screen once or twice. Yeah, we didn't like each other at all). My old boss, I mean, the psychiatrist, doesn't have much screen time, so it's palatable.

It's not all positive. For instance, at times it feels like the game has the characters "on rails", guiding you down a specific path and at times the camera angles are frustrating. But I told myself that added to the mystery (when a camera angle prevented seeing something for instance), and if a door was locked, well, believe it or not, that was somewhat explained down the road when certain pieces of information are discovered. But those are my biggest gripes. It's only 9 hours or so of playing, but to me that's a good thing since I want to replay this a few times since it's impossible to see all the content the game offers in one play through.

I believe this sort of game and the butterfly effect and decision making process would work well with other genres, but it was such a pleasure to take the reins of a horror film and be the one making the dumb decisions rather than yelling at the screen. This really is an interactive horror film and overall I think the acting, graphics, music, gameplay, and cut scenes are pretty seamless and add to the cinematic feeling.

#PS4 #Playstation 4 #horror #video games #Until Dawn

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