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anne-with-an-evangelion · 3 years

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When it comes to talking about DBH characters who get character growth/a redemption arc, Hank is the obvious person to bring up, and there’s the obvious fandom fixation on Gavin, but what about Adam Chapman? He has an arc in the game that sort of disappears in the fray when compared to other characters but he has the literal journey that everyone wants Gavin to have. But even in comparison to others I feel like Adam completely stands on his own as a good character with so much potential as far as his past, future and motivations.

When Kara, Luther and Alice first show up at Rose’s house, Adam is outside chopping wood and literally turns them away, saying his mom isn’t just too busy to talk to them - she doesn’t WANT to. Of course this isn’t the case and Rose invites everyone inside. And Adam is PISSED.

Also he’s wearing a shirt that says Average Casual Guy which is so funny

Adam is young, probably around twenty, he doesn’t seem to be away at college or anything, rather Rose says they just farm their own food to sell at the market and that’s how they scrape by. Sounds stressful, especially with a bunch of Androids living in their house. It’s obvious Adam doesn’t want them around and definitely doesn’t want any new deviants showing up, after the call for revolution that occurred with Markus’s Stratford Tower speech.

As the scene goes on, you get more information about the Chapman’s and the things they’ve been through. Rose is obviously an incredibly strong and compassionate person to be helping the Androids to this extent, but there’s no denying it’s putting her and Adam in danger. When Kara walks in on their right in the kitchen, Adam is telling Rose they need to stop getting involved, that it’s not safe, and he’s not going to back down about this issue anymore.

His outburst over this is pretty understandable, in the context of the game - even when Kara first shows up asking for Rose, Adam’s first question is, “What do you want with her?” Which I feel like isn’t just about whether Kara is an Android or not, but whether she’s someone there to bust them for having Androids in the house. And of course he’s right, because the cops come by like five minutes later to search the house. They are putting themselves in danger, and even though they’re doing the right thing, it must still be a strain on their family... and it’s clear they’ve fought about this many, many times.

So, yeah, his rejection of his mother’s desire to help the Androids comes from a place of fear for their safety, which is understandable to an extent. But he isn’t just afraid of deviants and doesn’t want to help them - he really seems to hate them, which shouldn’t be an understandable view to hold within the context of the game and the allegory of the Civil Rights Movement, and then the language he uses is like, yikes...

It’s not, I understand they’re in trouble but I’m upset you’re putting us in danger, it’s something else - and of course Adam is really mad, and maybe saying something he doesn’t necessarily mean, but this does seem to reflect his view of the Androids as a whole. At this time, Adam honestly doesn’t see them as being people, which probably makes it even harder for him to understand why Rose goes so far out of her way to help them.

I mean, she sets up trips across the river which have been obviously successful, she drives them to Jericho, she has some kind of contact with or understanding of the revolution leaders because she’s able to direct Kara on where to go, and though not much is explained, her brother (and Adam’s uncle) is obviously totally cool with Androids because he’s willing to help them too. She’s clearly been doing this for a while, or at least is proactive enough to take action and do whatever she has to. She’s even willing to take care of Alice once they get across the border. Literally the hero of DBH but I digress. Adam doesn’t think Androids are worthy of the rights they’re asking for, especially when compared to humans.

What follows this is one of the most intriguing lines in the scene (to me)

What does this mean?? We know his father passed away, and Rose says that ever since then, Adam just boils over sometimes. Maybe it happened suddenly, an accident possibly - or did he get sick? Were Androids involved somehow, like what happened with Cole? What was Rose’s husband’s opinion on Androids? Things have changed since he passed, for sure, but still. Did he hold that same “Androids aren’t alive” opinion that Adam is now expressing? Or is it just that Adam thinks if his dad were still here, he’d be able to solve this issue somehow? Maybe his dad was a politician who ran on pro-Android laws and after he died Adam has become disillusioned with his parents’ worldview ??? Maybe his father died helping Androids too and that’s why Adam rejects them so much. Or maybe his dad hated Androids so much he would have never allowed Rose to help them, and so they wouldn’t have gotten involved in the first place, in Adam’s mind. (Edited to say that apparently it’s canon that Adam’s father died of cancer though I can’t recall it specifically being said in the game, so that is definitely a sad addition to things☹️)

I’m literally just making shit up lol but I really do personally hesitate to give Adam some kind of super traumatic backstory or make him bigoted against Androids because the Black characters are already treated poorly enough in the game when it comes to those things. I’m inclined to think this is just a general outburst of missing his dad and wanting him to be there to ‘fix’ things or at least, maybe, mediate the conversation between Adam and Rose. Idk, it’s cool to speculate on, especially when other characters are given super deep dives into their literally nonexistent canon backstory, it definitely feels like there’s so much that’s unsaid here.

Obviously there’s a couple of different ways the gameplay can go after this - but one other thing I wanted to bring up was what happens if you end up with Kara at the border crossing and run into Rose and Adam there. After talking to Rose in the bathroom and making a plan to all go to her brother’s house, Kara talks to Adam outside-

He says he doesn’t agree with Markus’s methods (which is like.. ok.. a whole other conversation in itself)(EDIT: so apparently the answer is different if you choose the ‘pacifist’ route for Markus- Adam says that ‘seeing what Markus is doing made me realize you’re alive’ !!! Which is cool that it changes and def reflects something different about his character than if his response is always the same!) So anyway he now believes in Androids’ right to freedom and happiness. What made this come about?? Was it after interacting with Alice and Kara and Luther?? I have a theory that Rose knew Alice was an Android as soon as they showed up but just played along - maybe when Adam realized there were Android children mixed up in this too, he began to change his view on things, maybe see himself in them, or see things through his father’s eyes, wanting to protect his family and child. Maybe that’s the lens through which Adam begins to see it. It could be the peaceful pacifist revolution Markus is leading, if he is- but even if not, Adam still changes his mind.

Or, maybe after everything that’s happened, he just realizes he was being kind of an asshole about the whole thing and when it came down to it, a government that was literally going door to door searching for Androids and the people who might help them? That’s probably not the type of place Adam wants to live in. It’s definitely interesting to think about his motivations and what brought him to this point.

And even though it’s sad for Kara and Luther, I find the ending where Alice ends up with the Chapman’s really.. bittersweet-ly satisfying in a narrative way. Found family .... though of course it sounds like they were all planning on meeting at Rose’s brother’s house so they would have all been together anyway☹️

🥲I feel like I had so much more to say but yeah!! I think he’s such a cool interesting character and I love that he ends up on the side of the Androids in the end. And what happens after they escape safely??? Does he start helping deviants too like Rose does? Are they going to settle down and form a commune of sorts with the other Androids who escaped? I love the idea of that loss in Adam’s life being filled up with the addition of new people who care about him, and a little sister in Alice, since he seems to be an only child. The possibilities of it all...

Adam has a sad sort of story to his past, he dislikes Androids and then comes around, he has so much potential for what happens after the revolution - and he’s not the only one!!! There are so many characters in the game that deserve a closer look but I just love Adam..

#dbh #adam chapman #he’s just really compelling guys #like. he actually has an Android friendly redemption arc. in canon !!!#Gavin whomst????

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yumeka36 · 3 years

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Thoughts on Rebuild of Evangelion (all movies plus ending interpretation)

*Artwork credited to リオ on pixiv*

Now that Evangelion 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time, the last movie of the Rebuild of Evangelion saga, has been released, I'm finally ready to discuss all the movies as a whole, including my interpretation of the ending...

MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD!

I've been a fan of Evangelion for nearly 20 years, starting back in 2002. After hearing the series praised by some classmates, I asked for the DVD set of the original TV anime for Christmas that year. I was 15 years old and a fairly new anime fan at the time, so naturally I was blown away by the show. The Internet was young then, and since there were no fandom wikis or YouTube explanation videos available in those days, I had to rely on a few scattered fan sites and my own resources (mostly bonus features on the old DVDs) to try and figure out the lore and symbolism. Even though many aspects of the series, as well as the eventual "true ending" movie, End of Evangelion, left me scratching my head, I still loved it and it left a long-lasting impression on me. And now, here I am almost two decades later, sharing my thoughts about the new movies...

-Before Thrice Upon a Time was released, I hadn't touched Evangelion since 3.33 came out in 2012. I had forgotten many details, and since Evangelion is a franchise that is fraught with nuances and subtleties that can be key to understanding what the heck is going on, I wanted to watch all the Rebuild movies again before watching Thrice Upon a Time. So I plowed through all four movies this week, and I gotta say, after being away from the franchise for so many years, I'm happy to report that I still thoroughly enjoyed it. But I can also recognize that it is definitely not a series for everyone. The drawn-out technobabble, constant introduction of lore jargon with little to no explanation, and the ambiguity between what's real and what's symbolic, can certainly turn off casual viewers (it gives Kingdom Hearts lore a run for its money!) Funnily enough, as I was watching the Rebuild movies, I was thinking, "I understood the lore better 20 years ago than I do now, lol" (maybe it's because I was younger and didn't have as strong of a theorizing mind as I do now!) But after reading through a bunch of pages on the EvaGeeks Wiki, I learned enough to get a gist of the story's vaguer elements. But unfortunately, the fact that information necessary for understanding the plot can only be found by Internet research, could certainly be a turn-off for viewers. But at the same time, for those willing to make the commitment, or at least appreciate the series' other qualities even if you can't follow many aspects of the lore, it's definitely an anime unlike any other. There's a reason it's been such a well-known franchise in Japan for so long.

-Asuka has been one of my favorite anime characters ever since I saw the original Eva TV series, and thankfully, I'm happy with what they did with her character in the Rebuild movies. My only complaint is that I preferred her original backstory that emphasized her relationship with her mother, rather than having a "clone-complex" similar to Rei. However, her character development in this new storyline made up for it. The Rebuild movies really nailed her abrasive, no-nonsense personality that hides depth within. There were also more scenes that showed her "softer" side, something I always felt was lacking in the original series, such as when she confides in Misato towards the end of 2.22 and when she confesses her feelings to Shinji in Thrice Upon a Time. I also felt her initial dislike for Shinji and Rei was a bit more warranted this time; despising the fact that they were able to become Eva pilots purely by connection to Gendo while she had to work hard for it. But again, we get more hints at her kinder side when she makes the sacrifice to help Rei get Shinji and Gendo together. This is pretty contrasting to the original series, where she was always oozing hate for Rei. Even their infamous elevator scene ended differently in 2.22 compared to the TV series, where instead of hitting and yelling at Rei, she agrees to help her (in her subtle, Asuka-way). Asuka and Rei also had a brief scene together when they were at Village 3 in Thrice Upon a Time, and the way Asuka talked to her made me feel like she actually cared about her, or at least didn't hate her. But even with the Rebuild movies giving Asuka more scenes to show her goodness, they still stayed true to her tough-love personality - it's not like she suddenly started smiling a lot, or gave Shinji a passionate hug, or broke out in tears...they developed her character without making her do a 180 change, which I appreciated. Even in her final scene with Shinji on the beach before he saves her (loved that scene, and the shoutout to End of Eva there) she still reacted in her "tsundere" way (though not as harshly of course). I'd also like to mention that they made the fourteen year time-skip in 3.33 very believable in terms of Asuka's growth. I really liked the hardened, lone-wolf, protector role she had in Thrice Upon a Time because it makes sense - fourteen years had passed and she not only matured during that time, but she had spent all those years being the sole Eva pilot along with Mari fighting to protect humanity, so settling into that kind of identity makes sense for her. But yeah, Asuka's always been a great character, and the Rebuild movies made her even more awesome in my opinion.

-When I first watched 2.22 years ago when it came out, I was puzzled that they decided to put Asuka in the Eva that Unit-01 ends up destroying rather than Toji. But looking back on it it now, it worked better since they had a plan for Toji's character that had nothing to do with the Evas. I did kind of miss Asuka's friendship with Hikari though (they could have tied that into her staying with Toji and Hikari at Village 3 instead of with Kensuke). I actually wrote a WYDS fanfic for End of Evangelion way back in 2003 that emphasizes Asuka and Hikari's friendship (that's somehow still on Fanfiction.net!) But she got a friendship with Mari instead, so it's fine, lol (I also liked that they removed her crush on Kaji, which I never thought fit well in the original series). But I do wish we got to see what was going through her mind while she was stuck in the Eva and getting attacked by Unit-01. We know she was aware of what was going on because she knew what Shinji did (that he didn't try to save her or attack) so it would have been nice to see a scene or two of her reactions.

-Misato was always my second favorite character after Asuka, but I wasn't thrilled with the coldness she exhibited towards Shinji after the time-skip in 3.33. I know she probably got hardened after all those years and maybe still felt resentment towards him for initiating Near Third Impact (which killed Kaji among others). But even so, I felt like her coldness was more to keep the suspense rather than stay true to her character (plus she was the one encouraging him to do what we wanted at the time of Near Third Impact). It makes sense for Asuka to be cold to Shinji, since she was always standoffish like that, but Misato was always shown to be a source of warmth and the most "human" of the characters. But at least she made up with Shinji in the end and got to finish her story arc with a bang (literally).

-I'm not sure if it's still a thing now, but back in the day, Shinji got a lot of hate from anime fans for being too whiny and indecisive when confronted with his task of piloting the Eva. But even all those years ago, I always thought those reactions made him believable. Maybe it's because he's compared to anime shonen heroes like Naruto and Luffy, who are always cheerful and brimming with motivation, while Shinji is pretty much the opposite of those kinds of characters. But it makes sense for him to be like that...if I were a fourteen-year old kid who never knew my mother, had a father who abandoned me, and had to live on my own in a crumbling world while witnessing death and destruction all around, I'd be pretty hesitant and scared too. He's definitely not a "wish-fulfilling" protagonist like many shonen and super heroes are, but a protagonist grounded more in reality, representing a disillusioned youth. So it was nice to see him finally get over his insecurities and be proactive with saving everyone at the end of Thrice Upon a Time (compared to everyone giving him the pep talk at the end of the original series). Though I did think his personality shift was a bit abrupt...he was at his lowest point at the beginning of Thrice Upon a Time, but the one kind gesture from Rei seemed to immediately snap him out of it. A little more gradual build-up to his change would have been better, but it's a nitpick.

-Mari was an enigma in 2.22 and 3.33, so I was hoping Thrice Upon a Time would give us her origin story. Unfortunately, it didn't offer much and maybe brought up more questions than not. My main question is, we see that she knew Gendo and Yui when they were younger, yet if she was their age then, that doesn't match up to the age she appears to be when Shinji first meets her. So she must have been afflicted with the "Eva curse" all those years back, which means she must have become an Eva pilot around that time, but it seems too soon. I thought the first Evangelion pilots didn't exist until after Yui died, so Mari should have been older...I don't know, I'm still having trouble figuring out her place in the timeline. But besides that, I did like her relationship with Asuka that we see in Thrice Upon a Time. Again, it makes sense in terms of the time-skip that they'd develop a good friendship after spending all those years being Eva pilots together.

-I don't have a lot to say about Rei, since I feel her story arc is one of the simpler ones (which isn't saying much for this series, lol). The scenes of her in Village 3 in Thrice Upon a Time were endearing, though I knew they would end in tragedy. Actually, that whole part of the movie with the characters spending time in the village was great. The world-building in those scenes was fantastic too - it really felt like what a post-apocolyptic survival camp in that situation would be like. It was nice to see the characters partaking in and reacting to situations that don't have to do with Angels and Evas (spin-off series for this when?)

-And lastly, how did I interpret the end of the Rebuild saga? Was I satisfied with how it ended? Right after I watched Thrice Upon a Time, I wasn't totally sure. But after reading some more wiki pages and watching some explanation videos, especially this one here (it's a great explanation if you can forgive the bad pronunciation of the names), I've realized just how brilliant of a conclusion it is. There's been speculation that the story involves a time loop, with the events of the original TV series, as well as the Death & Rebirth and End of Evangelion movies, being different versions of the time loop, while the Rebuild movies is where the loop ends because Shinji finally overcomes the pain of his past and can restore the world this time (while he had failed to in the previous loops). I don't think it's a time loop so much as a cycle that keeps resetting and repeating. Further support for this theory is that Kaoru acts like he's met Shinji before, since he's reborn in each cycle to meet Shinji only to be killed by him later (all the coffins seen on the moon are for his past/future selves). I think the final movie title is symbolic of this too, with "Thrice Upon a Time" meaning "three times upon a time," the three times being the three cycles of the Evangelion story: the original TV series, the movies Death & Rebirth and The End of Evangelion, and finally the Rebirth movies. But mostly, the scene towards the end where Shinji meets Rei in the anti-verse, and they're standing in what appears to be a filming room while projected images from the Eva TV series are shown behind them. This to me symbolizes that the original Eva series exists in the Rebuild movies as one version of the cycle, and Shinji has now finally broken out of the loop. Once Shinji has saved everyone, the filming room (which symbolizes the old versions of the story, as I believe it's supposed to be the room where live-action footage used in previous Eva works was filmed) fades away and the literal animation around Shinji begins to break down into its purest forms, as key animation, then layouts, etc., - a near 4th wall-breaking depiction of the world resetting. However, Gendo and Yui had sacrificed themselves so that Shinji wouldn't have to, so Mari is able to pull him back into the world, just like she had promised. In the end, Shinji is able to join his friends in the new world that's free of Evas. Without the Eva curse, all the pilots are now their proper ages as well. The movie closes with Mari and Shinji heading off somewhere in their new lives while the environment merges into live-action footage, representing the fact that the story has now transcended animation and is now "real" because the cycle has finally ended and a true Neon Genesis took place. Like many aspects of the franchise, there are many ways to interpret this ending, but this is the interpretation I've settled on.

-While I am satisfied with the ending overall, I do wish the epilogue showed us more of what the other characters were doing, especially the survivors from Wille and Village 3. I know we can assume they're living out their lives as well, but it would have been nice to get confirmation of that with a few quick cameos. But there are some main characters whose fates are uncertain, particularly Misato, Kaji, and Fuyutsuki. I'm assuming the only people Shinji was able to save were the ones whose souls were still bound to Evas, namely Asuka, Rei, and Kaoru. I don't know about Kaji since I'm still not clear on exactly how he died. Maybe Shinji couldn't save Misato because she died "for real" and wasn't just trapped inside an Eva/Angel. But it is implied that many souls, not just Eva pilots, were saved when the world was restored...so maybe she was too? And like Kaji, I'm not sure what happened with Fuyutsuki. Did he turn into LCL because he gave up his humanity in some way, like Gendo? I'm also a little salty that we didn't get a decent shot of adult Asuka at the train station, lol. I'm not sure if the ending was hinting at Mari and Shinji being an item...possibly Rei and Kaoru too, maybe even Asuka and Kensuke. Like many things in the franchise, the eventual pairings, or lack thereof, could be interpreted in many ways.

In conclusion, while there were some aspects of the old Eva TV series and movies that I liked better, the Rebuild movies overall did an excellent job of retelling the story with the same rich lore and thought-provoking symbolism that we're used to for the franchise, but with enough new twists to make it stand out. And as I mentioned in my interpretation of the ending, these movies weren't just a retelling but a redefinition of the franchise as whole, bringing together the previous versions of the story and giving them true closure. Though we could see some spin-off material at some point, Thrice Upon a Time does seem like it was intended to be the final installment of the Evangelion series. While I was satisfied enough with the endings for the TV series and End of Eva movie, having watched the Rebuild movies, I do believe they're the "retelling we didn't know we needed." It's a tad bittersweet to know that such an influential franchise, and one of my favorite anime for years, has come to its true end. So, to translate the text in the below fan art...

"Thank you , Evangelion."

*Artwork credited to リオ on pixiv*

#evangelion 3.0+1.0 #neon genesis evangelion #evangelion #rebuild of evangelion #evangelion spoilers #rei ayanami #asuka shikinami langley #shinji ikari #evangelion thrice upon a time

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lore-of-the-silvereyes-rwby · 4 years

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You had me with your words but you lost me with your action

This section will relate to the main theme of Volume 7(Trust) and how it relates to Ironwood. Basically despite all of his talk about cooperation and trust he has always been the one that has both rejected and withheld the most of these 2 concepts. Now some of this can be related to his questionable upbringing and past violent experiences. But the core idea is that for all his talk and promises he has never once kept them or bothered to see the error of his ways. As stated before his actions have done more harm than good.

He demands that his subordinates follow his orders without question because he thinks he is right and will always be right. And he never once afforded Ozpin that same loyalty, trust, or authority. Since his debut in the show, he was constantly questioning Ozpin’s choices, even though HE was the subordinate to Ozpin. Kinda hypocritical given his demand for it. He thought differently from Ozpin and could never accept Ozpin’s ways, nor listen to them. He expected the council, Ozpin, his soldiers, and the main heroes to follow him without question and he truly, honestly believes he is right. This is scary, especially when you compare him to Ozpin, but I will get to that in a moment. The big point is that people who are so sure that they are right, even if they are dead wrong, are the scariest adversaries.

What we have here is a narcissist with a superiority complex who can not accept that he is wrong. He was unbalanced since he came into the picture, and Ozpin knew it. But here is where things get interesting.

Prior to the fall of beacon Ironwood condemns Ozpin’s choices for keeping things secret and not sharing with the world everything. And, yes, Ironwood does the EXACT same thing after the fall of Beacon. The difference here is in intention. Ozpin’s purpose was to protect the people and ensure that as few people died as possible. Ozpin’s choices were not based on control or the need to be RIGHT. They were based on experience, a bit of fear, and concern for the people he needed to protect. To Ozpin, sacrifice on a great scale was never an option. He tried his best to make sure that the causalities were as limited as possible. A difficult thing to do, given that hunters and huntresses were constantly fighting Grimm and such. But creating a mythos around the Maidens and eliminating Salem from history allowed him to save many many lives. And I can guarantee that he attempted what Ironwood planned to do, at least on some levels, and met with staggering deaths.

Ironwood, however, is keeping secrets to keep control and out of fear. He needs control, and he is frustrated that people do not agree with him automatically. After the fall of Beacon, these traits became enhanced to an unbelievable level. We see something else surface, though: Ironwood’s ability to manipulate people and be charismatic. Ironwood is looking to survive: for himself( or his legacy that is Atlas). He will manipulate others and sacrifice millions of people’s lives to protect himself (legacy), though he clings to his mantra of “it’s for the greater good.” It will become the sign on the wall of the slave labor he creates. “For the Greater Good”.

Another thing you can do to really get an idea for the type of person Ironwood is, is by looking back to the round table discussions orchestrated by Ozpin versus Ironwood. Ozpin was constant in listening to his people, sometimes taking ideas from them, and allowed them to question him–even yell at him. He was patient and understood what they were trying to say. He demonstrated this with Ironwood and Qrow the most.

You would never see that kind of discussion with Ironwood. RWBY and co are new to the scene and it does throw him off. You can tell he is trying not to pressure them too much because he knows they are not on his side yet. Hooking them up with the Ace-Corps and Winter was a move to help sway them more, a subtle kind of brainwashing tactic that never worked on them as he had hoped.

“You're a good person, James. You've always done what you think is best for the people, even against strong protest. It's admirable. But it's high time you stopped talking about trust and started showing it.”

—Glynda, to Ironwood in "Mountain Glenn"

“This is the right move, Ozpin. I promise, I will keep our people safe; you have to trust me.”

—Ironwood, to Ozpin

“Many have described these as uncertain times. And while that may be the case for the rest of the world, I can tell you what is certain: the Kingdom of Atlas will remain strong... and it will remain safe. That is my promise.”

—General Ironwood, reaffirming his promise to the people of Atlas over the Atlas Broadcast System

“I will sacrifice... whatever it takes... to stop her.”

—Ironwood, declaring his conviction to Watts

How many of these promises did he actually keep and how much trust did he give?

According to Jacques, Ironwood does not trust anybody but himself, something that Ironwood does not deny; instead, he believes that his methods are justified. This leads Ironwood to a more proactive yet headstrong approach to problems, attempting more preemptive measures, as opposed to Ozpin's more subtle, reactive and analytical methods.

Ironwood's heroism is because of his lack of trust - he has to do everything himself, no matter what, because he doesn't trust anyone else to do it.

He doesn't trust others because he thinks of himself as the hero, that only he can do things right, that everything that goes wrong is because people didn't listen to him.

Following Orders was also another theme of this volume, but it was hinted at back in V2 and other interactions between him and his subordinates. This is a huge red flag when RWBY and co come to him in Volume 7. Ironwood has surrounded himself with Yes men, people who only follow orders and never once question them. It is a dynamic theme throughout this volume, about controlling and crushing down your emotions to follow orders–or manage your semblance? Winter started alluding to this back in V3, which really set the stage for her and future Atlas soldiers.

Because of this Ironwood is often portrayed as the least worst character while in a company of other worst characters( or other Atlasians and antagonists to be specific)

For example Volume 4 chapter 2; Remembrance; we see Ironwood and Weiss after the fall with Jaques Schnee.

This is our first proper onscreen interaction with these characters that allows us to explore their new dynamic after beacon. From a visual standpoint we can sorta see Ironwood being somewhat humble after his failure at beacon but really he hasn’t changed from the arrogant warmonger that he is from his debut.(I’ll explain that later)

During his meeting with Jaques is where we get this misdirection of his character due to the exposition from their conversation. Ironwood talks about the dust(trade) embargo being necessary as to ease tensions with the other kingdoms due to Atlas being framed is an understandable and reasonable decision in comparison to Jaques argument being that it's costing him potential Millions of world currency to profit from. The meeting ends with Ironwood leaving before making a proposal to weiss which leads to this line of dialogue with her father;

“I suppose the council trusts him, for better or worse.”

—Jacques, in "Remembrance

“I trust him.”

—Weiss Schnee, responding to her father's bad faith

Just like that the fandom is being swayed to see Ironwood in a more positive light for 3 reasons

Because best girl Weiss trusts him

Because Jaques is a greedy a**hole(As well as other Atlaisans)

Because Ironwood sides with her against the rich(V4 ep.6)

But the question that must be asked here is why does Weiss trust Ironwood?

Prior to Volume 4 she has had little to no interaction with the General. Her only point of reference for his character is only whatever Winter has told her about him, the Military propaganda and her first scene with him when he chastised and disqualified Yang and her team in Volume 3(potentially her first real and true friends by the way)

If we were to add in the factor of Ironwood's incompetence and failure at beacon, Weiss should really have no real reason to trust Ironwood who she should see as the reason why beacon fell since it was his army that he brought only to be used by the villains to kill her and her friends and destroy beacon. As well as the man who’s failure had led her back into the custody of her father.(Remember she went to Beacon to get away from his abuse) She should at least harbour some sense of Scorn or resentment for him.

The Only reason why she apparently doesn’t is because her father was in that scene. Who prior to his debut was hinted to be a greedy abusive bastard. So just like winter she sides with Ironwood simply to defy her father. The difference between her and winter though is that she doesn’t see him as a potential father figure that he may have presented himself as when he first met winter. Instead she sees him as someone she would prefer to be around instead of her father.

This is further explored during Volumes 5 & 6 where Ironwood was absent leaving her free to continue throwing shade at Jaques, Whitelty, etc. To reiterate Weiss is not pro Ironwood because she thinks he might be a good guy. She is pro Ironwood to spite and defy her abusive father.

We possibly covered what was going on in the mind of the ice queen during volume 4 that had allowed her mind(as well as us) to be swayed to favor Ironwood. Now we will cover how she ( and the audience) was wrong by relooking at Ironwoods character by the end of Volume 4( his last on scene appearance before his return in V7)

Since Ironwood was largely absent from Volumes 5 & 6 and only mentioned during those volumes we were left with our opinion of him after V4 to hold us over till his return in V7. The problem however is that we only had 3 scenes and one mention of him during the whole of volume 4. So what are those 4 moments of Ironwood that you may ask? In order they are;

His first argument with Jaques where Weiss sides with him

Taiyang telling Yang that it was him who gifted her a new arm(For whatever reason?)

Ironwood siding and defending Weiss against the rich a##holes of Atlas

His second argument with Jaques while Weiss escapes, where he reaffirms his power to the greedy bastard

This is literally the entirety of Ironwood's impact on the story during volume 4. Not much if you were to think about it. But if you did you would come to realise that all of it was a major red hearing for his character. For you see at the start of this volume we were led to believe that Ironwood had changed for the better after his failure at beacon, but in truth he didn’t.

To further explain let's look at the narrative symmetry of his arc during the volume. It starts with him arguing with Jaques and ends with an argument with the same man with both arguments ending with Ironwood on top Winning the argument. The difference between the two is how Ironwood is portrayed. The first argument as stated before tricks us into believing that Ironwood has become humble and wiser after his failure. But the second shows us the truth. Ironwood hadn’t changed at all. Instead it shows us that he is still as blunt and arrogant as he was during Volumes 2 & 3. To best explain let's look at the transcripts of the argument;

Weiss is soon creeping outside her father's study door when she hears a glass crash followed by the rising voice of James Ironwood. She crouches behind a cushioned chair against the wall.

Ironwood: You need to control yourself!

Jacques: You're talking to me about control? Do you even hear what you're saying?

Ironwood: I am basing everything on my reports from your daughter.

Jacques: A daughter you stole!

Weiss moves closer to the door to listen.

Ironwood: Oh, we are not getting into that again.

Jacques: Oh, yes, we have far more pressing matters to discuss, starting with your apparent lunacy!

Ironwood: Jacques!

The scene changes to an overhead view inside Jacques' study. He is seated at his desk while Ironwood has both hands on it, leaning over him from the other side.

Ironwood: (sighing heavily) Winter is one of my best. If she's telling me there's a threat in Mistral then I am not going to take that news lightly. She's been there for weeks, people are mobilizing, sudden spikes in weapons and Dust trades. Someone is about to make a play and I do not trust Leo to stop them.

From this first half of the scene we are only shown the middle and near end of the argument and we are left to interpret what led to this escalation of opinions. Prior to this we are swayed to believe that Ironwood is in the right while Jaques is in the wrong. But before we are shown the cause of the argument via its resolution, we get this interesting bash from Jaques claiming that Ironwood stole her from him(or to be accurate her family).

I find this interesting because we don’t exactly know why Winter would be so loyal to Ironwood to the point of saying that her life doesn’t matter in V7 and why she would be so against her family to the point that she makes no effort to see Weiss, and Whitely included and only bothering to be apart of weiss’s life only because she seems to be following the same path of defiance against their father. In other words she only chooses to interact with her sister only if she is rebelling against their father. If she is not, then WInter wants nothing to do with her.

Now who or what exactly would cause Winter to have this unhealthy mindset in regards to her own personal existence and relationships?

The answer being Ironwood.

If we were to consider Jaques words being serious than it is more than likely the truth. Ironwood did steal Winter, not just from her father but from the rest of her family. I don’t know what exactly Ironwood said or did to turn winter away from her family but it wasn’t out of the kindness of his heart. He did this just to have a loyal subordinate with incredible power( her hereditary semblance) & status( her grandfather's legacy and accomplishments) just to give his power and status more legitimacy.

By doing so Ironwood had brainwashed Winter into believing that her family as well as herself is beyond redemption due to the actions of her father thus leading her to abandon them and only believing Ironwood can redeem her hence why she values her life so little and is willing to die for whatever Ironwoods says.

Now we move on to the next part of the first half where Ironwood doesn’t trust Leo to handle the situation in Mistral. He first starts this off by listing all of the things that obviously would be of concern in regards to potential riots and war. Understandable and reasonable to be ready for an attack. Especially for a paranoid military leader. But here’s the thing: this is a foreign affair that has to be resolved by the people over there. In other words, that is Leo's problem to resolve, not Ironwood’s. (Keep in mind this is Ironwood before he is told the truth about Leo.)

Lionheart who is also another member of Ozpin's inner circle like him is trusted with the safety of an entire kingdom. The difference between the 2 however is how leo seems to be a most trusted member of the group given how fondly Ozpin speaks of him to the point of giving him gifts as well as being trusted with full autonomy trust, and independence in comparison to the scorn and micromanagement Ironwood gets from Ozpin and the other members(Qrow Glynda, Theo, Etc).

In other words Ironwood should at least have some trust in Leo's abilities to handle the situation in Mistral before he learns of his betrayal. But instead he claims he doesn’t and says that he could handle the situation better. Remember this is before either we or Ironwood are shown that plot twist and betrayal. For all we know when Ironwood said that Leo may have been a decent guy. This is just simply another example of Ironwood’s ego and need for control being shown but in a subtle way that we don’t even notice

We covered the first half now we will continue with the rest of the scene.

Weiss is listening outside.

Jacques: You've never trusted anyone other than yourself!

Ironwood: (shouting) And for good reason!

Weiss covers her mouth with her hand as she gasps at the sound of Ironwood slamming his fist onto the desk.

Ironwood: If Oz had just listened to me from the start...

Jacques: You need to get a grip.

Ironwood: That's exactly what I'm doing. Our people need protection. By this time next week, the Kingdom of Atlas will be officially closing its borders. No one in; no one out. Without the council's permission.

Jacques: You mean, without your permission?

Ironwood: And if that becomes the case, I would think you'd want to be on my good side.

Ironwood walks away from the desk, leaving Jacques to sigh and fold his hands.

Those first 3 lines help better clarify that despite all of the apparent good Ironwood did during the volume it exposes the truth that hasn’t changed and he is still the same narcissist authoritarian from Volumes 2 & 3. As well as a potential foreshadow of his nihilism as he ignores and rejects the fact that it was his fault beacon fell and instead chooses to continue blaming Ozpin; who if he had it his way with dealing with the events of volume 3 wouldn’t have been as disastrous as when Ironwood had his way. Simply put had Ozpin had his way continued;

Beacon possibly wouldn’t have fallen

A droid army wouldn’t have been used to frame an entire kingdom

Global communications would probably still be a thing

Fewer people would have died

Trade would still be a thing as well

The threat of another world war could have been avoided

Instead Ironwood pulled a power move against Ozpin, and it backfired immensely. Instead of learning from his mistake he chooses to blame others for his mistake and fails to realize that he is doing more harm than good.

To continue with the rest of the scene where Ironwood tells Jaques that he will be closing the borders and that nobody can leave or enter without the council's approval leads to Jaques pointing out that he really means with his permission, only for Ironwood to taunt jaques in a smug gloat to tell the greedy bastard that he has already won. The final line of that scene is probably the highlight of Ironwood’s ego being stroked as he (in his mind) has crushed and won against the last of his local opposition. It also shows us that Ironwood had amassed too much power and that it has further validated his mind into believing his own hype regardless of what the sane and reasonable characters are saying.

Now it is pretty clear Ironwood has a very toxic mindset and very manipulative personality, but why is it that after volume 4 we consider him to be a good guy till the events of V7 even though his last scene in V4 clearly shows that he is still the same as V2 & V3 Ironwood?

The reason being that his last scene was confronting Jaques Schnee who earlier had slapped his daughter in the face, revoked her inheritance, and was only presented as a corporate d##chebag. Because of this we the viewer would rather side with anyone that isn’t Jaques Schnee. But in that schnee we are tricked to side with a Paranoid Warmonger who had only a few good moments to make us believe he had changed for the better against a man who was presented as one of the most awful characters of this volume. But in truth they were both terrible when it came to morality and eventually we had to pick a side and we the audience chosen wrong(Jaques is still a villain no argument there but I think we would have no problem beating his @$$ vs getting destroyed if we challenged Ironwood on his bull$#17)

“His heart is in the right place. He's just... misguided.”

—Ozpin, about Ironwood in "Never Miss a Beat"

“Sometimes, I'm not even sure he has a heart.”

—Qrow, about Ironwood in "Never Miss a Beat"

Back in V2 and V3, Ironwood showed his ability to be both charismatic and manipulative. His subtlety in his manipulation is a statement to his rise to power. He puts himself into the position of a Father Figure to lure in the people he wants. It worked with Winter and the Ace-Ops, which is why they are his right-hand yes men. During Dance Dance, he was praising Ruby and fueling her admiration for him. Even when team RWBY came to Atlas, all his actions were calculated to manipulate the team into trusting him. Unfortunately, his actions never really lined up with his words, which was why the team was on edge.

“people only did wrong when at the moment the perceived benefits seemed to outweigh the costs.”

This is exactly what ironwood did.

To Ironwood, the world cannot be saved without Atlas(or to be accurate him). He truly believes he and Atlas are the key to victory against Salem. But Victory is not in a single person, group or in strength of power. Victory is only achieved by cooperation, teamwork and in unity.

(real quick i want to give credit to @rwby-etc for they're post that I used to help better summerize this section)

I am power I am due process I will smite

#rwby #world of remnant #general ironwood #james ironwood #rwby ironwood #rwby analysis #rwby spoilers #rwby theory #jaques schnee #winter schnee #weiss schnee #qrow branwen #rwby ozpin #lie ren #rwby ruby rose #rwby atlas #rwby mantle #rwby ace ops #Ironwood analysis

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rivahisu107 · 3 years

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The Unresolved Baby Subplot Chapter 5: Campfires, Kids, & Titan Science

As forementioned, after Chapter 123 or so, the pregnancy subplot only really has one or two moments where it features since the Alliance is off trying to “save the world”.

Meanwhile, while Hange gets a lot of time actually being proactive, Levi is either a) sleeping b) grumbling about killing Zeke, or c) being injured. Until the last few chapters where he fights until the end but with seemingly no purpose after the Titans are done. Plus we never get his perspective on the whole Rumbling, which is a bit suspicious if you ask me.

However, there are a few bits and details which make me wonder about the possibility that a more open to interpretation ending came into play, because there are some dialogues that could work as subtext, but I must warn you that this chapter is going to contain a lot more personal speculation based off the Marley and first half of War for Paradis clues. Without further ado, let’s delve into this chapter of this (conspiracy) theory of an unresolved plotline!

Levi and Hange are off in the forest when the Rumbling begins, yet all Levi can talk about is killing Zeke. He’s got his vow to fulfill, although now maybe the vow will be double motivation to stop the Rumbling.

They face off with Marley’s remaining forces, Magath and Pieck, and they unite unrealistically fast over the goal of killing Zeke. And for some reason, Magath brings up the fact that Ackermans have the strength to stand against the Nine Titans. Huh? This is the second time Ackerman abilities have been brought up this chapter. Why was this so important?

But Titan Doctor Hange knows a lot more than Marley, so who knows?

It just confuses me what Hange could have said about royal blood or Titans or Ackermans that convinced them to side with them. After all, she gives away nothing new that Gabi didn’t share with Magath and Pieck a few chapters ago.

It’s again a question of how and why Hange was studying this in the first place. Besides, if she was studying royal blood and Ackermans as speculated due to a child having that unique combination of genetics, she might have been able to convince them to stop the Rumbling not only for the sake of the rest of the world but also for the fact that maybe there could be something that they could work out to stop Titan shifting one day. Pieck had a sad conversation with Gabi a few chapters ago about how they would always be feared for turning into Titans. And hold that thought.

It’s campfire time! The Alliance is having its first meal together while they sit around and blame each other for atrocities and confess their sins- except Levi, who is sleeping. Funny artistic decision to swaddle him like a baby here.

Perhaps the most intense moment around the campfire is when Reiner reveals what happened to Marco, and Jean beats him to a bloody pulp until Gabi jumps in and begs forgiveness- very mature character development on her part here- and begs Jean to help them stop the Rumbling for their families. She even uses the phrase “lend me your strength”- which is a line associated with Levi and his song “Reluctant Heroes”. Falco joins in with her, but Jean walks away, emotionally overwhelmed.

And then suddenly, Levi wakes up right next to an image of Jean walking away in tears.

The whole situation is somber, and I find it very weird that Levi would wake up for this one line of dialogue after this scene. But here’s why I think it connects to the pregnancy subplot. Re-read the dialogue.

“He left... it was no good.” (Gabi cries)

(Levi wakes up) “Will they shut up?”

And pair that with Jean right there. Oh no. The man who is supposed to be helping these children is leaving them. The father of the child is far away from the woman he loves and his child who is going to be born any time now. Poor Levi. On top of being injured, he had no choice but to be the runaway father whose child has nothing to do with him. :(

The next day, a lot happens at the fight at the port. Not the time to talk about a pregnancy, but in a brave moment of sacrifice, Magath and Shadis meet each other for the first and last time. But before that, they speak about how proud they are of the kids- some now adults- that they brought up even if they have some regrets.

On the ship, while Annie despairs about her homeland being destroyed, Hange gives her an explanation for why Magath sacrificed himself.

“He did it so we could save even one more life of a stranger whose name he’ll never know.”

Hmm. One more life of a stranger. Why is there a closeup of Gabi here? Backtrack to the first meeting that the remains of the Corps and Magath and Pieck met up. Remember how Hange may as well have been doing all this research about Titans and Ackermans? Well, oh my. I think at least two of Marley’s forces may have learned the truth about who and what exactly they were fighting for. And Magath loved those kids and wished they could have a better future.

Skip ahead to the boatride after Levi wakes up and is roaming the halls to get away from Yelena- who I can imagine he would despise so badly right now- and get the others to interrogate her for info on Eren. Yelena begs them to admit that Zeke was right about euthanasia. Just look at Levi’s face here.

Remember this whole thing about using the royal Ackerman child as a tool for island security? It’s true that Levi and Hange weren’t aware of this euthanasia plan in the first place, but it’s not unlikely that Yelena was already spilling the beans about the plan when she woke up.

Skip ahead to the scene where Floch puts several bullets in the flying boat before Mikasa puts a bullet in him. He rambles about how they can’t kill Eren because he, as their devil, was going to save the island. Here is how Hange replies.

It’s interesting how Hange went from being broken and admitting she had no solutions pages ago to saying that they can’t give up. Maybe there is still hope on the island. It’s just too bad she won’t live to see it.

And while all this is happening, Historia is giving birth after ten months of pregnancy, ten months after the banquet where Eren was mysteriously able to meet with Yelena despite the fact that Levi said he would never get near her again. While Eren was plotting to destroy all life, were Levi and Historia making a life on accident?

And during the actual battle against Eren, there are only two other possible references on Levi’s part that could contribute to this all. One is after he is injured again and giving orders. He knows that they have to kill Eren no matter what, but he has a sense of remorse over it. Then there’s this odd dialogue.

To be fair, it could be about anything really, but since we never get Levi’s perspective on anything this arc, it seems this is something very personal.

And second off is the second reference to how Ackermans cannot turn into Titans. Again, I would really like some official answers on how Hange knew this in the first place. Otherwise it’s quite the gamble, as Erwin would say.

At least whatever happened, the Titan curse got lifted at the end.

...

It has been very difficult for much of the fandom to process the ending when there was no real resolution or closure to most of the characters, plotlines, and lore of the manga. And it seems that there are going to be no spin offs in the immediate future to clarify anything further. So in the meantime, we’re all going to speculate further and see whose theories stand the test of time. Over here, I’m still going strong, dear readers, because nothing thoroughly proved or debunked this theory there.

Up next will be my last official installment of this theory. However, it is going to feature a lot more personal speculation than this chapter. The focus will be on marriage (feat. Mikasa Ackerman), the situation on Paradis, and how Chapter 69 ties into the conclusion of the character arcs of Levi and Historia.

#attack on titan #rivahisu #unresolved baby plot

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mediaevalmusereads · 3 years

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An Extraordinary Union. By Alyssa Cole. New York: Kensington, 2017.

Rating: 3/5 stars

Genre: historical romance

Part of a Series? Yes, Loyal League #1

Summary: As the Civil War rages between the states, a courageous pair of spies plunge fearlessly into a maelstrom of ignorance, deceit, and danger, combining their unique skills to alter the course of history and break the chains of the past . . . Elle Burns is a former slave with a passion for justice and an eidetic memory. Trading in her life of freedom in Massachusetts, she returns to the indignity of slavery in the South—to spy for the Union Army. Malcolm McCall is a detective for Pinkerton's Secret Service. Subterfuge is his calling, but he’s facing his deadliest mission yet—risking his life to infiltrate a Rebel enclave in Virginia. Two undercover agents who share a common cause—and an undeniable attraction—Malcolm and Elle join forces when they discover a plot that could turn the tide of the war in the Confederacy's favor. Caught in a tightening web of wartime intrigue, and fighting a fiery and forbidden love, Malcolm and Elle must make their boldest move to preserve the Union at any cost—even if it means losing each other.

***Full review under the cut.***

Mild spoilers in the Plot section.

Content Warnings: racism, threat of sexual assault, use of the n-word, violence, blood, false rape accusations

Overview: I first became aware of Alyssa Cole via Courtney Milan’s recommendations page, and I decided to start with this Civil War spy romance because... why not? It looked fun! And it was, to an extent. I liked the high stakes, the dynamics of the romance, the characters themselves. But what ultimately prevented me from giving this book more than 3 stars was the plot, romance trajectory, and some aspects of the prose. Of course, your mileage may vary, so if you’re a fan of romance, I suggest giving this book a try for yourself.

Writing: Cole’s prose is fairly clear and easy to read. It flows well, so you can skim or read more in-depth, depending on your preference, and I think that works for the genre Cole is writing in. I also really liked that Cole would drop in random quotes from classic literature to demonstrate Elle’s eidetic memory, and I liked that she was able to communicate the stakes of each scene without overwhelming the reader with infodumps.

I do think, however, that Cole relies a bit too much on telling instead of showing. We’re told over and over again through the characters’ inner thoughts that they have feelings for one another, but I didn’t quite see how those feelings were brought about externally. The banter and the arguments, while good, didn’t quite foster feelings of romantic connection, and I wish a little more was done to show the characters’ chemistry, rather than being told that they had an effect on one another.

Plot: Aside from the romance, the majority of this book revolves around Elle and Malcolm as they infiltrate a Southern senator’s house to learn more about Confederate operations during the Civil War. While I liked the idea, I ultimately thought Cole could have done a little more to give this plot structure. Both Malcolm and Elle seemed to be placed in the house to be on the lookout for any useful information, so from the get-go, it didn’t feel like they had a strong purpose. I think I would have liked to have seen Elle go in with the knowledge that the Confederates were planning something; maybe the Union/Loyal League had whiff of a plot to break the blockade, and Elle is tasked with doing everything in her power to make sure that blockade stays in place.

I also think Cole could have made her characters a little more agentive. While I liked that Malcolm was purposefully flirting with the Senator’s daughter to weasel his way into their good graces, it felt like both Elle and Malcolm were passively waiting for information to fall into their laps. I would have liked to see more scenes of them sneaking into the Senator’s office, trying to find letters or other information, or something else that required the characters to be proactive. The only real scene where we got that, I feel, was when the two went after Dix, the engineer, but even then, they seemed to just follow him out into the woods before getting accosted by slave catchers, forcing them to return home with nothing useful (which they don’t seem too disappointed about).

Speaking of the pursuit of Dix, many scenes seemed to be like this one, and by that I mean many seemed to have been inserted into the plot to create empty tension or action. The characters don’t really get anything useful out of following Dix; the scene was mostly there to give Malcolm and Elle some time to talk and to put Elle in danger. There were others that I felt had a similar purpose. The scene where Elle suspects Malcolm of being a double agent, for example, seemed to come out of nowhere and be over and done with way too quickly, only used to manufacture false tension and then give the two a reason to be alone together. The ending, too, seemed to rely on a lot of exciting things happening in quick succession, and while I liked that it forced the characters to think quickly and make plans, it also felt like Elle and Malcolm had to rely on surprise plans from other people and impossible coincidences.

Lastly, I think the prologue was an odd episode to serve as the book’s initial inciting action. We open with Elle going undercover to pass a message to another operative, and just as she does so, she is harmed by some racist separatists and blacks out. One year later, Elle has recovered and is on a new mission in Virginia, and we learn that she was saved by none other than Malcolm himself. While I felt that this prologue could have worked if Elle and Malcolm hopped around the South on missions and kept meeting up again and again, the events of the prologue didn’t seem to have much significance other than to show that Malcolm had met Elle once before, and even that revelation fizzled out soon after they both realized it. I think I would have liked a more sustained plot where Elle and Malcolm kept crossing paths while doing spy missions, or else have the prologue feature something like a secret meeting where men are talking about building the ironside.

Characters: Elle, our heroine, is a smart, sharp-tongued Black woman with an eidetic memory and a fierce devotion to the Union. I really liked the nuance she brought to interpretations of the abolitionist movement and the politics of slavery and race relations; she would frequently call Malcolm and other well-meaning white people out on their inability to see slavery and racism as something that affects individuals (they see it rather as an abstract concept). I also really liked that she knew her worth but was conscious of what acting on her anger and frustration could do to jeopardize her goals. It made her feel pragmatic and human at the same time, which I very much enjoyed. The only thing I didn’t like about her was that she seemed to keep going back and forth on what she wanted with Malcolm, but more on that in the next section.

Malcolm, our hero, is a Scottish undercover detective for the Pinkertons. I liked that he had a roguish personality without being a Scottish stereotype - he didn’t drop a lot of random slang words, nor was he overly violent or drunk. His main asset was his charisma and his ability to weasel his way into places of power, and I think Cole showed that well. I also liked that he served as a vehicle to explore topics relating to racism, and he was constantly learning about how to be practically anti-racist, not just generally not racist (if that makes sense). I do think, however, that Malcolm made way too many stupid mistakes for one supposedly so good as his job, and I think his attraction to Elle was too insta-lovey for my tastes (but more on that below). He also seemed to have no serious character flaws to overcome; he rather seemed to be a “nice guy” whose only “flaw” was that he just had some things to learn about the Black experience.

Side characters varied in the quality of their usefulness to the plot, but I think Cole wrote them all with good purposes in mind. Susie, the Senator’s daughter who Malcolm flirts with, was appropriately written, being neither an exaggerated villain nor a sympathetic product of her time. The fellow slaves at the Senator’s home were likeable and I enjoyed the way Elle expressed her affection for them; I wish Mary’s plans had been foreshadowed a bit more, but it is what it is. Probably the most underutilized character, in my opinion, was Rufus, whose true identity comes at a surprise to Elle and Malcolm. I feel like a rival espionage plot could have worked well in this story, especially if Elle and Malcolm’s story had been more reluctant-allies-to-lovers, but Rufus’ twist seemed to come out of nowhere and only be important in the last 50 or so pages of the novel. Dix, too, could have been more of an interesting character, but he seems to exist only to put Elle and Malcom in a risky position. Nothing really comes out of his character.

Perhaps the least compelling character, in my opinion, was Daniel, Elle’s supposed longtime friend who was born free but sold into slavery. Daniel never makes an actual appearance on the page; Elle talks about him a lot, but since we never actually see them interact, I felt like I was expected to care about a person I never met. The drama with Daniel seemed to exist to either create jealousy in Malcolm or serve as a way to make Elle trust Malcolm, and honestly, I don’t think Daniel needed to be included at all.

Romance: While I liked the idea of this romance, Elle and Malcolm’s story ultimately didn’t work well for me because I personally found it insta-lovey and somewhat repetitive. Malcolm is attracted to Elle right away, which isn’t a problem, but it seems like they developed feelings for one another after their initial chat in the woods. I prefer my romances to build up over time, with characters falling for one another after becoming emotionally vulnerable and bonding over shared values or helping one another overcome personal character flaws. Elle and Malcolm, by contrast, had some nice banter, but Elle would push Malcolm away, then remember how attractive he was, then the two would kiss or be intimate before Elle would declare they couldn’t be together because it compromised their jobs, and the cycle would repeat. While a conflict of interest could be an interesting point of tension in a romance, I personally felt like Elle was too back-and-forth, and I personally don’t find that back-and-forth very compelling.

I also found some of the sex scenes to be a bit too clinical and clipped, which may work for some people but may not for others. Personally, I like my sex scenes to show not just physical intimacy, but emotional intimacy, and it seemed like some of them were used to that effect while others were just... “she did this. he did this.” I think I would have liked to see Cole put more pressure on the idea of sex as comfort. The first time Elle and Malcolm are physically intimate together, Elle describes it as seeking comfort. However, it’s not really brought up again, and I think it would have been interesting to expand on the idea, perhaps by portraying their reluctant allyship as first a purely physical release/escape to something more emotional and mutually supportive.

TL;DR: An Extraordinary Union brings some much needed diversity the romance genre, and while it has an intriguing plot and likeable characters, it also features a fairly cyclical romance and depends on things happening to the characters, rather than the characters being active subjects.

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quirkless-and-embarrassed · 4 years

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Sir Nighteye

Ok, I watched the anime and felt like doing another character meme!

Spoilers for Overhaul arc/season four of the anime.

Favorite thing about him:

I like that Nighteye didn’t allow his admiration of All Might to turn him into a pushover. Such adulation could have blinded him to All Might’s flaws, something Midoriya struggles with, but Nighteye stood firm, spoke his mind, and took action in accordance with what he believed. The way Nighteye willingly, gladly admits to being wrong (about Midoriya and All Might’s decision to fight fate) makes it clear that it wasn’t pride that drove Nighteye away from All Might, but actually principles and genuine concern/panic. Nighteye was happy to be wrong, even though it meant that his failures to change the future were true failures and not simply something out of his control. Knowing this enabled Nighteye to let go of his underlying fear that his quirk didn’t just see the future, it set the future in stone, and he’s able to die peacefully after giving All Might and Midoriya his full, unconditional approval, and after internally apologizing to Mirio for seeing him as a vessel before realizing the error of his ways.

Nighteye presumably awakened his quirk when was four or five, and he was thirty-eight when he died. That’s thirty-four years—he could have used his quirk easily thousands of times, maybe more than ten-thousand—and never once has the future significantly deviated from what he saw. Essentially, his quirk’s been the daily Word Of God since he was five years old. It’s easy for Midoriya or Rock Lock to say, bring it on, I can smash fate; for Nighteye, who has actually tried, it’s a completely different ballgame. He knows what it MEANS to try to change to fate, but he’s determined to try anyways.

I like the balance Nighteye strikes between fierce idealism and calculated realism. Yeah, the narrative often criticizes realism for not being plus ultra, but it’s a quality I like. Nighteye wanted to carefully plan Eri’s rescue and Overhaul’s arrest, but his caution didn’t make him any less committed or passionate, or any less admirable than anyone who would have (tried to) saved her immediately (it’s not like Overhaul would let anyone walk away with her).

I like his hero name. The Sir invokes the honor of a knight, All Might’s vassal, the “eye” is obvious, and “night” because he can see in the “dark”: the future is clear to him. Plus, I like the night/knight pun.

I also like just how gangly, angular, and weird he looks. He has some quality body language with the angle of his head.

Least favorite thing about him:

His stamps…his abs…come on. He doesn’t need to a fantastic fighter. His stamps are a funny weapon to be sure, but it irritates me that they’re as strong as they are. It’s ridiculous that Nighteye could cartoonishly hurl Rappa the way he did, and it was stupid to tear his shirt to show off how ripped he was. I felt like Horikoshi was trying to show us that Nighteye meets the standards of a conventional hero, when he could be just as much of a hero using his brain. At the most, someone like Nighteye, who emphasizes logic and excels at predicting opponents’ next moves, should be carrying a gun like the police.

The tickle machine. Eughh. I could barf at how much I hate it.

It’s also frustrating that Nighteye completely wrote Midoriya off as a “quirkless middle-schooler” who could never become the Symbol of Peace and actively undermined All Might even now that he was finally raising a successor. I can at least respect how upfront he is about it: Midoriya knows what he’s getting into by the time he submits his work study application to UA. But even without that, Nighteye doesn’t trouble me as much as he did the first time I read the manga because 1) I figure Nighteye saw Midoriya when he foresaw All Might’s doomed future, because Midoriya is such a big part of his life that of course Nighteye saw him, 2) Nighteye is aware that they’re working on an extremely tight timeline: All Might is due to die within the next year or two, so picking a baby successor who’s going to need tons of hands-on guidance is a bad move, and 3) Nighteye paid the price for his “quirkless” comment when Mirio lost his quirk, and, despite what he said, it was clear that he didn’t love Mirio less, or respect him less as a hero, because of it.

I like that Nighteye appreciates humor, but his final speech about laughter and smiling, combined with Mirio’s determinedly positive reaction, makes me think that he may not have taught Mirio that it’s okay to be sad, that you don’t need to always smile. That would be a disappointing failure on Nighteye’s part, since the overwhelming pressure All Might feels to be positive+proactive is part of what made him unable to accept Nighteye’s criticism. It also fits with how Nighteye’s inner monologues tend to be more sympathetic than his actual dialogue, so maybe Nighteye should have tried to be less didactic and tell Mirio that he has been Nighteye’s pride and joy, instead of thinking that and giving Mirio a last speech on the importance of smiles and humor. I think he would have been a better teacher if he’d allowed himself to be more sentimental.

Favorite line:

My absolute favorite is in ch137, as he observes Mirio’s guilt from letting Overhaul retrieve Eri and bring her back to his headquarters. Nighteye thinks:

I can’t say whether or not the future can be changed. But we can change the past. How we view the past and interpret it. That much is possible.

It’s an important life lesson, and I like how he inverts the typical, “the past can’t be changed, but you can control the future so that’s what matters” perspective.

I also like it in ch130, when Nighteye berates-slash-comforts Midoriya, who regrets allowing Overhaul take Eri back: “Enough of that arrogant thinking! Haste makes waste. Go after him haphazardly, and he’ll slip through our fingers. You’re not quite so special as to save whom you want, when you want.” Then he elaborates on their plan and finishes with a bang: “The world is not so accommodating that you can act the hero because you feel like it. The cleverest villains out there lurk in the shadows. There will be times when every precaution must be taken.”

One more, in ch161. When he’s on his deathbed, Nighteye looks at Mirio and thinks, In the beginning…I only brought you in as a potential vessel, but you stuck by me, believed in me, and at some point…you became my pride and joy.

BROTP:

Him and Mirio. I love how Nighteye took Mirio under his wing in a half-logical way, viewing him as All Might’s proper successor, only to accidentally raise Mirio as his own successor.

I wish we got to see Nighteye and Aizawa interact more. They’re both the rational mentors who get attached to their kids. It would have been nice to see Aizawa talk to Nighteye about his problem child or about Mirio, or to help Midoriya navigate his relationship with Nighteye, but since Aizawa doesn’t know about OfA and Nighteye was on his way out anyways…oh well.

I’d also love to have seen Nighteye and Hawks interact. They’re connected on a meta level, as the unofficial righthand men of the #1 heroes, and also by the idea of fate. Nighteye’s arc centered on the fact he could see the future, and the future he saw could not be changed. Hawks may or may not know it, but the imagery surrounding him is unmistakeable, and we the readers know that some sort of doom is waiting for the man who goes too fast. Whether Hawks can defy fate or if he’ll be crushed by it remains to be seen (and, like Nighteye, he’s not looking promising).

Hawks takes one look at Nighteye—perfectly pressed suit, pinched, no-nonsense expression and all—and is like oh this guy looks like he’s gonna be fun. Nighteye looks even more tightly wound than Endeavor. But actually, Nighteye actually respects and appreciates Hawks’s cavalier attitude! And though they rarely see each other, since they live far apart, they become friends who mainly swap information and keep each other up to date on villain things. Occasionally Hawks will see something ridiculous, like a meme or something, and send it to Nighteye, and Nighteye follows Hawks on social media and sometimes likes his stuff.

It’d be especially interesting to see them disagree about All Might. Nighteye is such a hardcore fanboy, Hawks professes to not be a fan, the Symbol of Peace is such an important part of how Nighteye envisions the future, and it’d be interesting to hear Hawks’s perspective on the Symbol of Peace and where it fits into his vision of the future.

I also appreciate Nighteye and All Might’s relationship, but like…idk, they got so little time together in canon, I kinda prefer to think of it as a dead brotp. Even if Nighteye had survived, I would kinda want his relationship with All Might not to be very close, because even though they weren’t angry anymore didn’t mean they could pick up where they left off.

OTP:

Hmm…not really anyone. I haven’t read much Nighteye fic. There is this one touching soulmate AU where he and All Might both bear the black symbol of someone who has been rejected by their soulmate…here.

NOTP:

No, not really.

Random headcanon:

One of the reasons he reacted so harshly to Midoriya as All Might’s successor is that when he foresaw All Might’s death, he also saw Midoriya. Midoriya’s failure to protect All Might from his gruesome death revealed him as an unfit successor, and he believes if he can remove Midoriya from the equation, then he will have changed the future.

Nighteye helped All Might track down AfO to avenge Nana, and he felt partially responsible for All Might’s injury in addition to fearing that his quirk set All Might’s future in stone.

Nighteye used his quirk on All Might between surgeries, because he couldn’t stand not knowing whether All Might would survive his wounds from AfO or not. He should have stopped when he saw All Might survived, but—he’s such a fanboy, and he saw that future!him was terrified and arguing with All Might about something, and he knew immediately just from the expression on his own face that he’d foreseen All Might’s death. He couldn’t resist looking ahead to find it and learn how much time All Might had left.

…part of me thinks that the reason Nighteye’s foresight was wrong about Midoriya’s death was because Eri also has a time-related quirk, and there was nothing Midoriya really did to change fate. Which would be sad, but. Yeah.

I’d like to think that Nighteye had a really wacky, judgmental cat with a questionably funny name. It sat on top of the fridge and looked down on him when he came home late. After his death, it becomes his agency’s cat and harbors a dangerous grudge against Bubble Girl’s aromatic bubbles.

Unpopular opinion:

It seems like plenty of people dislike him, so…I like him? He’s not even close to one of my favorites, but still.

Even though I like him, I was surprised to discover he was dead—I forgot he died, so I guess his death scene didn’t leave an impression on me. Looking back on it, I think it’s a nice enough scene, but at the time I was probably too exasperated by the overhaul arc as a whole to care much.

idk, I don’t see people talk about him much.

Song I associate with him:

uh…um…well……there isn’t really any music I associate with him. Here are a few songs that are very loose associations, I guess.

Darkside of the Sun by Tokio Hotel reminds me of how All Might’s public persona has taken over his identity, and Nighteye is seeking to save his life by retiring his persona.

Carry Me Down by Demon Hunter has the line “I know the pain inside my heart / can’t break the fear inside of yours,” which reminds me of Nighteye’s grief can’t persuade All Might to confront the reality of his imminent death, plus other stuff in the song about unspoken regrets and death.

And last, Turns to Dust by Sound Surfer and Nilka reminds me of Shigaraki (for obvious reasons), but I think it also speaks to Nighteye’s fear of his quirk.

Favorite picture of him:

Ch126 – Nighteye’s glare when Midoriya mimics All Might’s smile! He sure is intimidating 😂

Episode 75 – This moment did nothing for me in the manga, but it was genuinely moving in the anime. The voice acting and music <3

I’ve also done Todoroki, Bakugo, Uraraka, Endeavor, Amajiki, and Shinsou!

#sir nighteye #nighteye #sasaki mirai #bnha #bnha s4 spoilers #nerd mumbling #text #ask meme #mirio #hawks

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l-in-c-future · 4 years

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Book Reading: Lawless

It is written by an exceptional legal professional of interesting background how she overcome and learnt from many challenges in seeking to help her clients and oppressed peoples in Afghanistan over more than 8 years of time.

When I first came across her speeches, she used music and dancing rythms as analogy to express how flexibility and creativity was needed to work things around in different situations at a very difficult country. It turned out that when I read her book, her DJ hobbies of able to choose and decide a list of right playsongs to suit different atomspheres helped her creativity and flexibility when she handled cases at various types of formal and informal parts of the judicial and arbitration system in a country where the concept of rule of law is still at embryo stage constrained by a very conservative social-political-religious culture.

It is so interesting that Ms Motley herself is not a typical stereotyped sort of people that the developing world-mind you-part of the developing world that carries heavy pre-conceptualised perceptions on outsiders, especially the West, in particulary USA.

She started her own story in the prologue that she is an American African lady grew up not really in one of the decent likeable areas (Milwaukee-Wisconsin) in USA. While crimes were common for young people as she witnessed, she suggested that even growing up in that sort of areas might already meant a negative social connotations about her background in her own country. And she was frank and honest about it-she never wants her kids to grow up and being sucked in the same bad environment. (It turned out later in her book that despite she worked very hard to provide for her family to move out and ABOVE, her husband felt sort to become a random teenage gun robbery shootings victim when he took their kids back for unversity classmates re-union catch-up. Shocking enough, Ms Motley discovered that the culprit was one of her distant relative on the trail date hearing. The kid didn’t really seem understood the consequences of his actions nor showing any much sense of regrets of what he did.)

For good or bad, the tough environment Ms Motley grew up has been preparing her for the great adventures with the right characters of toughness, boldness, courage and other live surving and professional skills that become essential pillars for later stage of her life. Probably if she wasn’t grow up in such environment and survived through while excelled in her professional career, this book would have never existed because she probably couldn’t handle the tough and challenging environment of building legal capacity of a dangerous country. Adding to Ms Motley’s interesting unusual background is that she was a Mrs Winconsin. Here is a lady who had battled with where she grew up and became a beauty pageon contest successful candidate for Mrs USA represented her state. A lady one can immediately associates with both musculine sides of characteristic toughness and professional assertion but also fully polished by the congentiality, elegance and beauty of the feminine aspects of a woman.

Through her descriptions of how she handled and brought sucesses to the cases in the book, these nice marriage of hard and soft attributes truly made a difference-differences of life and death, successes and failures that changed the future of her clients. People who saw her as their life-jackets.

I like that frank, open, easy to read English style in the book. Ms Motley doesn’t pretend that she is a ‘typical superior’ arrogance filled ‘Western experts’ that people perceived towards the Western experts.

She began her adventures on her own difficulty and predicaments-”I need to earn sufficient money to move my kids out of Milwakee but my humble public prosecutor job doesn’t provide me the money I need. I was already struggling to pay bills by having a second evening teaching jobs to supplement income but here my husband decided to take full time study. Wherever places and jobs that could offer me a ‘way out’ I would consider.” She did. And it was how the stories of the book began. She DID NOT start as many typical Western experts being sent to Afghanistan (or similar parts of the world) because she was at higher starting point.

That was one of the key reasons as she mentioned from time to time in the book she had to stay on to feed her families, especially when her husband was shot in USA, their entire family savings over years of her hard earned works in Afghanistan had been used up mostly. She was faced with scarry HUGE medical bills of her husband that kept her on the treadmill. In this sense, the feelings is very down to earth. She is not some out of touch pretended experts like her peers who never really stepped outside the typical heavily guarded barracades of ALL Western organisations and complex sites without going out to explore and understand the day to day REAL LIVES of Afghanistan. Sadly, her passions and the genuine professional driving forces for being authentic and down to earth was not much appreciated by some of her employers and peers. In the course of distress and disappointments, she made a very bold and courageous decision to start her own legal pro-bono legal practice. She became the first woman officially practicing legal professions in Afghanistan simultaneously as the first female legal professional from a foreign country.

Both being blessed as from non-White ethnical background and Ms Motley’s proactiveness in understanding how to maneuouvr around the primative and informative legal and judicial systems of Afghanstan, she is less being perceived as hostile or imperialistic by locals. (She didn’t give herself credits to these but the ways she mentioned in the books senior people all the ways up to President’s office, the Presidents and people within the judicial and tribal systems were willing to meet and listen to her, allowed her to work within and among them fully reflected the reality.) Her communication, negotiation and interpersonal skills (thks to being a Mrs Winsconsin) are valuable assets that enabled her to help her clients in many difficult situations.

As she described the harshness of the challenges she had to deal with and overcome in Afghanistan, she was realistic, pragmatic, flexibile while not giving up hope for future improvements there-though she never say it is a nice fairy tale of sunny days ahead always. In this sense, she is not really fallen into the typical traps of Western countries-too much over or under expectations of what to achieve, get out of and get to because of their fantasy of heroism. Ms Motley had used her creative, flexibility, boldness, passions and extraordinary courage to demonstrate what a ‘hero’ (at least to her clients who she had successfully helped them out-both Afghanistans and foreign clients) very down to earth be prepared to rolled up your sleeves and to sweat and toil constantly.

At the beginning of her journey, she was driven by the desperation to feed her own family but what makes her respectful is that after years of her successful career in Afghanistan, she DEFINTELY has earned very high profile international repuation and goodwill, money and well connections-both internationally and locally back in Afghanistan- that are not comparable to many of her peers. She could have walk herself out of the harsh environment as MANY other typical international high profile foreign experts would have done so already) and make herself ways to earn even more money easier. Yet she chooses to stay. The reasons are clear: she is truly committed to her own passion and the dedication to help the disstressed, oppressed, deseperated and hopeless people-whether they are Afghanistan local people or her other foreign clientele-that sooner or later, one way or the others, somebody will find themselves completely caught up in a lawless primative governance and society environment.

She is humble enough to see merits and demerits of just applying a Western approach to make the changes in absence of local context. She is prepared to understand how to make out the best legally possible outcomes for her clients WITHOUT compromising her professional integrity (which she insisted that she WOULD NOT play bribe to achieve the ends and she would ALWAYS look at ways within the existing Afghanistan laws, including Islamic laws and legal means within the existing systems to work her clients’ cases out or if not-she failed with integrity or simply walked out decently). She never show she is on ‘upper hands’ to change a country. She sees both what she had learnt from what was and what is within the existing system while bringing the changes to the ecosystem and people’s hearts gradually-probably she might aware of or not aware of the power of transformations she did.

Persistence. The book tells how STRONG such persistence becomes pillars of resilience for Ms Motley to stay on her commissioned path without transgression. How exactly you can feel the strength of a woman? Imagine you work and live ALONE in a foreign place where the ways of life is VERY different from a well organised civilised society.... She described somebody broke into her home turning everything messy (like a typical TV drama or movie) to send her ‘the message’ that “we are unhappy that you took a case that embarassed us or not letting us know (from the most senior level of the government linking to the current President’s office)” in the middle of the night. As a result, she had to stay inside (locked herself up) her car, drove away to a safer street to sleep over and work over the night inside her car until dawn came. In another ocassion, she described she happened to stay in a hotel being attacked by gunfires only that she could manage to be informed of at the last minute. She supposed to be there to relax and had a good bath and some drinks in her little oasis. She literally ran out of her bathroom, still wrapped up in her bathrope, water still dropping from the body when she hid behind some furniture hearing exchanges of gun fires outside the her hotel room at the outside corridor, seeing men running here and there from the windows. And she had to keep ALL these to herself not mentioning anything to worry her family. On the other hand, she was happy to be contacted by her family and connections all around the clock no matther how big or small the matters were. Amazingly, she did not seem to be bother by these mostly in between her lines.

Despite she fought for many legal injustice, she still takes the brunt of victim that easily happens to a successful briliant beautiful gorgeous excellent woman-her own marriage. She didn’t say why her husband and her separated but it isn’t hard to figure out see years of living apart had taken the toll. (Guy! What can you still blame if you just sit COMFORTABLY in USA while your wife fought day and night to bring the LOT of money to feed you and your kids’ in upper middle class lifestyle-the American dream? And that when the guy was wounded and needed HUGE medical bills, the woman was willing to postpone the divorce.) I felt like reading every cases she shared-she probably be an angel sent by heaven to help a difficult country and to her own family. I cannot explain any reason why such determination never shake in years in such dangerous environment and she seemed to be protected divinely. You ask any folk, they would walk out a hundred times, let alone a woman.

I am not going into the details of her cases here because many of her cases shared in the book had probably been long published as international and local media spotlights. However, the person you can read in between lines- that kind of honesty, frankliness and down to the earth that makes a supposed to be ‘typically boring’ full of jardons legal book of bring out justice (actually Ms Motley said it is hard to find justice in a highly injust society, what she strives to achieve is the sense of justness as the best practicable possible outcomes) becomes very interesting to read. I felt like I was reading an adventurous novel of someone’s exotic careers.

At the day when I wrote this book reading-the Trump admin has announced withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan to release the armies to be ready for other difficult parts of the world. Yet, the way for building the capacities of a nation towards a more open modern society in Afghanistan had just begun-and the road is still VERY LONG ahead. Troops can be witdrawn but the supports and the better approaches to build up the capacities of a country are kids of many long battles. Battling in people’s mindsets and mentality. Battling in finding the right approaches and engagements by wise, tough, humable, flexible, creative and down to earth people like Ms Motley who has commitment to her own passion to pursue possibilities out of the apparently impossibles.

To the West-if you leave a vaccum, the devil and rogues will find ways to fill the cracks.

“Justness for me entails a common-sense approach to the law. It is about pratical thinking rather than theoratical constructs. I try at all times to take a 360-degree view. The first question is always, “What is going to move this situation forward?” “I can also appreciate the adventures that fighting for justness has taken me on and I am excited about where it will push me to go.”

#Lawless #Afghanistan #nation capacity building #rule of law #justice #legal justice #criminal justice #discrimination #oppression #gender discrimination

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tfrohock · 4 years

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Short notes on the horror genre

These are just a few personal observations on the genre, entirely from my perspective.* Some will agree, others not so much—it doesn’t really matter to me.

Horror is treated like fantasy’s ugly cousin—talked about but rarely brought out for company. More often than not, horror is associated with movies filled with gore, but in truth, most literary horror isn’t like that at all.

Men tend to dominate the horror field, because their works are discussed. Respectable lady authors don’t write horror, we’re supposed to write “dark fantasy” or “thrillers,” horror’s more genteel cousins. Like horror, dark fantasy and thrillers dissect the more terrible aspects of human nature through murders and wicked deeds, but supposedly in kinder and gentler ways. It’s all about marketing women writers more than anything else. I’ve read dark fantasy and thrillers more gruesome than some so-called horror on the market today.

Horror … true horror … is really about liminal spaces—those transitional points between being and becoming, either through the eyes of the protagonist, or through the metamorphosis of evil. The prevalent method of transition seen in horror is when the protagonist is forced from disbelief in the supernatural to belief; although horror can also used to explore the passage from one emotional, or even physical, state to another (see Samanta Schweblin’s excellent Fever Dream). The liminal spaces can be represented by haunted houses, dark caverns, or labyrinths beneath the earth. Spanish/Latin American horror is usually a great place to observe the use of liminal spaces to further story, plot, and character development.

Guillermo del Toro’s excellent Pan’s Labyrinth is as a prime example of this form of horror. Ofelia makes the transition through several liminal spaces in her journey. Note the symbolism used throughout (rising up to the earth’s surface through a labyrinth, the faun, who is her guardian/teacher, is known throughout mythology as a sexual creature, the tree she descends into is shaped like a uterus, etc.).

I used liminal spaces in Carved from Stone and Dream. The entire pocket realm beneath the Pyrenees is a transitional space, but instead of using it to show a girl transitioning to woman, I used mine to show Rafael’s transition from boy to man. He lives in a world where the good guys don’t always win. Sometimes they lose and are forced to go on the run. His hero, Miquel, is torn down before his eyes so that the parent he has come to depend on is no longer able to rescue him. In spite of all these traumatic events, Rafael’s light is the love and wisdom that his fathers have given him over the years. He relies on their lessons to survive. The darkness he experiences is more profound in order to show the strides he makes toward emotional growth.

Which brings me to another strong aspect of horror—the exploration of bleak emotions alongside the utilization of chiaroscuro to show that the light of hope can shine in even the darkest places. This particular theme tends to draw people like me, readers who have suffered from abuse. Especially when I was growing up, horror gave me an outlet for my more morbid thoughts. In horror, I saw a world I recognized, but unlike me, the characters in those stories weren’t trapped. They were proactive about their survival and those stories gave me hope that if I carried on, I’d see the light on the other side, too.

Sometimes things don’t work out right for the protagonist in the end, but good horror makes the reader think. John Hornor Jacobs’ excellent novella, My Heart Struck Sorrow, deals with themes of guilt and grief and the length we’ll go to for the absolution of our sins.

Horror can be subtle (Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily”), or a brutal examination of culture, as Shirley Jackson (and quite often, Stephen King) deconstructs the wholesome images of small towns, peeling away the layers to show us the resentments and lies that move beneath the surface. Jackson uses common people thrown into uncommon circumstances while King resorts to supernatural flourishes to illustrate the same points.

Good horror moves the reader to reexamine our motives and our place in the world. Sometimes it is ugly, but sometimes, so is life, and if the reader looks a little deeper, it’s possible to find themes that resonate. If you’re not careful, you might see yourself and your fears reflected within.

_____________ *This post does not talk about splatterpunk, because I don’t read it. If the story’s main point revolves around gore, it doesn’t interest me in the least.

#horror #genre fiction

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1801016-2 · 5 years

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Weekly Summary

Week Six [28.01 - 01.02.19]

Principles: I’ve completed a little more work on my morphing animation but, I will post and discuss that progress next week. This week I finished the entirety of the animated sketchbook. I tried my best to include a strong mix of observational drawings, even if it isn't always from primary research, and work based on imagination. Following the notes I wrote from the first lesson, I attempted to record as many of my thoughts, ideas, and responses as I could, and overall I am proud of the sketched I have produced. I believe there is a bold sense of mark making and experimentation with colour and some mediums. My particular favourites are the sketches of birds as their feathers create a multitude of unique patterns, and the character work on Nine Eyes as they are very close to my heart. However, I still think I could have drawn things that related more to, and would be more useful for animation. I could also use more mediums such as watercolour or gouache paints, or charcoal and pastel. My notes suggested that I look into body language, context, perspective, and internal and external life. I feel I covered these briefly but should have done more. So as there is still around a month left till submission, I have already begun another sketchbook [also because the brief asked for a minimum of one], where I will look deeper into these problems.

Research [Narrative]: There was no lecture this week as we have all the information we need for the topics in the narrative essay, without conducting our own research. But that is of course one of the skills that this project tests; our ability to work independently [eg. ability to work without supervision and follow a brief ]. On Tuesday we had group tutorials to guide us on what we should explore next. After debating my decision to combine the Hero’s Journey structural analysis question with the stop motion film ‘Anomalisa’, I was advised to look at not only Vogler’s refined version of the narrative, but also at Chapman’s original discovery of the mono-myth. She also suggested Yorke’s ‘Into the Woods: How Stories Work and Why we Tell Them’, and perhaps taking the perspective that this film does not fit the conventional narrative structure. I think this week I have started to regain my focus and organisation, finishing up small task so I can concentrate on this essay. So my next steps for the coming week will be to begin making extensive research notes.

Stop Motion: For our third session on stop motion we went back to manipulating wire armatures, using them to show anticipation, weight, and effort, in an exercise where they lift a box. In pairs again [using storyboards we had designed separately], we began animating as if the box weighed almost nothing, taking the character by surprise, in an attempt to add follow through. In the end it wasn’t a strong or very noticeable movement but, I can tell we are starting to be more forward thinking and proactive in incorporating all the principles for a better and more realistic animation. We also tried using exaggeration on the movements, and [maybe more clearly] on the personality of the character. After finishing this test, we had a little time to practice with the box being heavy, and this chance to explore both scenarios greatly helped our knowledge. In future exercise we should film reference material to back this up. To conclude, I think that timing was actually the most important principle for this lesson. You really have to emphasise using more frames for a subtle action to slow it down, and less frames for faster movements, and taking pauses so that the audience can register the changing actions. Luckily when our timing was off we were able to covert single frames to twos or threes rather than ones. However, sometimes when there was a small secondary action during a primary one, because the timing was different, both actions would become confused. Therefore, this is the area I believe we should focus on instead of just trying to make the animation more interesting [learn the basics!].

Digital 3D: Similarly to last week, this time in our digital 3D lesson we learnt to model in Maya, but now with more tools and complexity. Following the step by step guidance of our lecturer we created a pencil, and then with a detailed reference photo, we had to create a larger radio by ourselves. With the new knowledge of the modelling tools it was much easier to create your desired shape, but the more layers and possibilities brought about their own problems, such as angling a shape when it needs to move out straight. Nonetheless, as time went on I became more relaxed when creating the objects and using the computers I am so usually adverse to, and then started to be more independent. I’m not entirely looking forward to animating the objects I make but, it’s all part of the learning vital for the course and its future. I hope that I start to work faster and I think this could become a good opportunity to develop team working skills by supporting each other and offering tips.

#summary #w6

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kayawagner · 5 years

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Storytelling and Games

My #tableselfie for the class. I forgot to take it until the end, so we missed a couple students.

Last week, I had the privilege of speaking to an honors seminar class at Finger Lakes Community College. The class was called Storytelling and Games, and I was asked if I was interested in coming in to talk to the class about narrative in roleplaying games. Was I interested? Ooh boy, was I ever!

Of course, the closer we got to the date, the more nervous I got. It was a two-hour class that met once a week with about twelve students. I wouldn’t be overwhelmed by a large audience, but I still wanted to make sure I gave them a good presentation. My friend, the instructor who invited me, had let me know they were a bunch of awesome nerds, and whatever I brought in should be fine. While all of them were definitely folk of a nerdy flavor, only a few of them had actually played table top RPGs before.

So, what did I do? Well, first, I talked about the history of RPGs and how narrative was kind of an accidental byproduct of early games. I’m sure some grognard somewhere is screaming sacrilege, but RPGs were born out of miniature wargames. The theming of early games was on point right from the beginning, but rules that lead to the story the game’s theme promised weren’t really there yet. Obviously, something about the characters and the stories that did come out of games was captivating, otherwise those original players would have wandered back to minis and wargames.

As games evolved, the narrative they were advertising became more and more important. In the early 90’s, Vampire: the Masquerade debuted and they called the game runner a storyteller, right out of the gate. The rules still had some issues lining up the story of a monster’s struggle with its own humanity with the rules as presented, but the mechanics were getting closer. Then there was the D20 Boom of the early 00’s. In the shadow of D&D 3.0 and all the other publishers making D20 compatible products, an indie aesthetic arose in designers looking for something different. Slowly, the idea of aligning the mechanics for the story the game is promising became more prominent and part of many designers’ goals.

This wasn’t a history class, though, so I kept the lecture to a minimum. I wanted to frame the games I was presenting to them to show the evolution of the hobby and how modern games build the narrative into the core fabric of the game. What I really wanted to do was SHOW them how roleplaying games work.

The Games!

I split the class in two and gave one half Monster of the Week playbooks and the other half Masks playbooks. Both games have very strong, easy to understand themes and the playbooks do a good job of guiding character creation quickly. Because both games have a large number of playbooks, I could have stuck with one or another based on the number of students, but I felt it was more realistic to divide them into groups that were better representative of what an actual gaming table might have. We wouldn’t be able to get in a full game, but I still wanted to give them a taste of it all.

The Monster of the Week crew chose a Monstrous, a Crooked, a Spell-Slinger, and a Chosen. After they worked through their playbooks, we ended up with a Chosen that didn’t really understand that he was destined for something important, but kept being nudged by outside forces into saving the day. The Crooked was a pick-pocket who acted like he was made of Teflon because nothing bad could stick to him. The Spell-Slinger started off as a direct homage to Harry Dresden, but ended up with a little Karrin Murphy flavor in there as well. The Monstrous was a vampire that had decided humanity was getting too good at creating evil on its own, so out of self-preservation, she was working for the good guys to keep the world from going to complete crap.

The Masks players!

The Masks group chose a Transformed, a Delinquent, a Doomed, an Outsider, and a Bull. The Transformed was a metal dude trying to figure out how to still be a normal kid in his new body. The Delinquent developed his powers naturally and just used them to get even more rebellious with his illegal urban exploration. The Bull was an ex-football player that got experimented on, but ended up rescuing all the other kids getting experimented on with them. The Outsider came from the planet Glarfunk, was bright blue with bizarre hair, and never ever passed for normal. The Doomed, on the other hand, was normal enough that her primary enemy was a high school bully that was trying to kill her off.

Once we got the basics of the characters out of the way, we did connections. I did this to show how you can build the narrative of the game at the beginning by interweaving all of the characters together. With the Masks group, most of them revolved their connections around the Bull. During a regular game, I would have pushed them to spread their connections around, but they were all having so much fun making the Bull their social linchpin, I didn’t want to stop them. For the monster hunters of Monster of the Week, the connections weren’t as cohesive and took a little more prodding. In the end, they eventually came up with enough connections to logically explain why they were all in Houston working together to stop a cult trying to summon a major demon.

With the connections out of the way, I ran a quick scene for each group. With each, I tried to demonstrate how the story builds from the scene I set as the GM, but evolved from the actions they took. RPGs should be a collaborative affair, after all.

With the Masks kids, like you sometimes see with new players, I had to nudge them into acting on what they were seeing. They were all super into the world building during character creation, but weren’t sure how to dive into the game once we got rolling. The scene I set for them was a mall that was being attacked by someone or something. One fun thing that happened early was me being able to demonstrate how their ideas can help influence the game. I described the wreckage of a Build-A-Bear store and one of the players asked if they were going to be fighting a giant stuffed bear? Yes, yes you are. Eventually they started to get more proactive and after a couple of times around the table, I ended on a cliffhanger, letting them discover that their real enemy was a little girl on the merry-go-round, animating giant dolls and statues as her ‘friends’.

The Monster hunters!

For Monster of the Week, I gave them a setup where the cult they were fighting against had kidnapped a bunch of innocent civilians and was about to sacrifice them on the floor of the Houston Texan’s stadium. Right out of the gate, I had to have a talk about tone. Again, as you sometimes see with newer players, they were a little more bloodthirsty than the tone of the game calls for. The Crooked’s solution for dealing with the cultists was to blow up the stadium and the kidnapped people would be ‘acceptable casualties’. I pointed out that they are supposed to be the heroes and blowing up innocent civilians goes against that. If it had been a full game, I would have spent more time guiding them into the proper tone of the game, but that was a luxury we didn’t have. In the end, as is often the case in Monster of the Week, the dice made things go sideways anyway. When I ended it, the explosion didn’t go off like they had hoped and the vampire was being held by the cult leader as an acceptable sacrificial alternative.

I had a really fun time with the class and I hope to get the chance to do it again in the future. The students all said they had fun, and I’ve been told that a couple of them expressed that they really enjoyed their first taste of RPGs. Huge thanks to April Broughton for inviting me to the class and good luck to all the students!

Storytelling and Games published first on https://supergalaxyrom.tumblr.com

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briangroth27 · 7 years

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Fox Should Wait to Recast the X-men's Logan

With Hugh Jackman retiring from the Wolverine role as of Logan, I can imagine the pressure to introduce a new Wolverine is overwhelming. He’s the most popular X-man and has been the face of the film franchise since it started (and arguably, the face of the comics franchise since at least the 80s). He’s the only X-man besides Deadpool proven to be a solo hit at the box office. There are three new X-films coming out in 2018—New Mutants, Deadpool 2, and X-men Dark Phoenix—any of them an opportunity to introduce a new Logan within a year. However, that’s the opposite of what Fox, Bryan Singer, and Simon Kinberg should do. The X-films are still my favorite superhero film franchise, but I think they can stand to give Logan a rest for a while.

Can Anyone Measure Up to Hugh Jackman? Wolverine was around decades before Jackman put on the claws and he’ll be around long after whoever suits up next. However, Jackman’s made his Logan the iconic version for many, despite the physical differences from the source material (comics Logan is just 5’3,’’ for instance). Any actor hired to take his place is immediately going to face scrutiny from both comic fans and general audiences, making it that much harder to sell someone else in the role.

Certainly, not just one actor gets to play each character and just because selling a new actor is difficult doesn’t mean the role should never be recast. Most would say Christopher Reeve is the iconic Superman, but that hasn’t stopped others from being (at least arguably) just as good in the role. Each actor brought different aspects of Clark Kent to the surface, making the role their own. And we do already have a great, recast Professor X in James McAvoy, as well as strong actors cast as young Cyclops, Storm, Nightcrawler, and Jean Grey, so the X-roles aren’t sacred and recasting doesn’t take anything away from the original. Sabretooth, Colossus, Jubilee, Gambit, Psylocke, Angel, Moira McTaggert, and Emma Frost have been reimagined as the movies’ narrative evolved, casting new actors in every case (three actresses have been Kitty Pryde!). However, Jackman’s tenure as Logan feels different from those roles, since he’s existed in both the not-so-distant-future and the prequel eras of the franchise. He’s already been established as the Logan of the Apocalypse era, so it’ll be a larger disconnect to see him recast now. It also feels a little dismissive of Jackman’s 17 years in the role and the character’s recent death in Logan to recast him in the near future.

The X-men are Bigger than Wolverine Wolverine’s one of my all-time favorite X-men, but he’s far from the only one worth telling stories about. The team is more than just “Wolverine and his Uncanny Friends,” and it’s past time the movies reflected that. With McAvoy, Fassbender, and Lawrence wrapping up their contracts (though I’m sure at least McAvoy will be back for New Mutants or Dark Phoenix) and Jackman retiring, now is the perfect time to put more focus on the younger cast and flesh out the other A-list X-men. We don’t need Gambit, Deadpool, or a new Wolverine to act as the franchise lead. I’d love it if the X-men films were reframed as true ensemble pictures, like the first movie was. At least let a different trio of characters headline each film while the rest of the team acts as supporting players, rotating them each film so everyone’s fleshed out. I’m more than ready for the films to focus on the other X-men and reintroducing Wolverine could very easily derail that. So many of the characters we’ve already got on screen have compelling stories to showcase:

Cyclops Explore Scott dealing with the pressure of saving an entire species while he learns to be a leader. What if he’s secretly not confident he’s the right mutant for the job (reflecting his belief that Alex was supposed to be the guy who changed the world, not him), but like his optic blasts, he feels he has to keep those doubts bottled up or the team will fall apart? How does he learn to open up and let go when he’s been trained to believe strategic planning is the only way to save everyone? How does his usual status of “married to his job” (leading the X-men) affect his relationship with Jean? Can she get him to open up and relax? In addition to his weaknesses, let’s see his strengths! Show his ability to rally the X-men—and mutants in general—to his side to fight to protect a world that hates and fears them. Rather than the team blindly charging into battle, let’s see Cyclops’ strategic brilliance at work. Scott’s the X-men’s Captain America (with hidden some insecurity/confidence issues) and it’s time the movies played that up.

Rogue Reintroducing Rogue with her comics origin—a supervillain who permanently absorbed the super-strength, flight, and memories of a hero (there, Carol Danvers, here, it can be any random mutant), leaving her to question who she is—would give us a hero with a dark past seeking peace and redemption, much like Logan was...only comics Rogue balanced her angst with a flirty and fun side. The question of whether her heroic instincts were absorbed from the random Flying Strong Mutant or are her true nature coming out as a result of the kindness the X-men showed her would be a great line to walk. If Jean dies or loses her powers in Dark Phoenix, the field team will need a telepath and Rogue’s ability to absorb memories could come in handy, with the built-in disadvantage of also taking on the personalities of people she absorbs. And including that ability instead of just mentioning it happening offscreen, that’d be a fun challenge for any actress.

Storm Ororo stood by while Cairo was leveled—what’s she going through? How does her experience as the beloved leader of that group of Cairo children (making her the only mutant in history willingly followed by humans) inform her choices, viewpoint, and leadership style? Could this drive her to be overly proactive and overprotective of the New Mutants? Could we see her go a little dark, like punk Storm in the comics? Play up both her desperate thief past and her serene, nurturing side from the comics (of all the characters in the original trilogy, Storm’s multiple facets and complexities were flattened out the most). While her villainous arc was my least favorite part of Apocalypse, it’s certainly left her in an interesting position and I want to see her explored more. Could being party to the near-destruction of the planet lead her to take on the responsibility of bending nature to her will to revive the Earth? Controlling the weather is an immensely important power that has practical applications, and I’d love to see how she uses it to improve the world.

Nightcrawler Can Kurt find and keep his faith (and sense of humor) in spite of a world that largely hates his face? How does a religious mutant interpret God’s will and Word, if humans were made in God’s image? It’d be a departure from the comics, but could Kurt start his own denomination of mutant-based Christianity? Let’s explore the mutant subculture in New York through the guy who sticks out the most—we know some humans think they’re cool, we know others hate them, we could meet the Morlocks, etc. A jovial, swashbuckling skirt-chaser with the face of a demon and a strong faith is a great comedic (and potentially tragic) juxtaposition that deserves to be explored more. What happens when he realizes Mystique is (maybe) his mother?

Jean Grey Dark Phoenix will likely focus on Jean’s evolution into the comics’ cosmic force (that was Singer’s original plan for X3). How does she deal with the primal force of her evolved state? Will she want to continue to control herself, or will the power she displayed in dispatching a deadly threat like Apocalypse be too easy an answer to mutants’ problems? What can she do for the world with endless power? Is she the only mutant to achieve the next stage of evolution, or are there others? Are her concerns bigger than human/mutant relations now? What does a person do when they essentially become a goddess? Hopefully she’ll do much more than achieve ultimate power, only to stand behind a different villain like in Last Stand.

Quicksilver Will Peter find his purpose not that he’s gotten out of his parents’ basement? Will he make Erik a better man, or will Erik’s crusade rub off on his son?

While there are some interesting aspects of Logan we’ve yet to see (which I discussed here), I can wait to get to those until we’ve gotten more from the others. We don’t need to see the Cyclops/Jean/Logan triangle again (particularly after they already resurrected it in Last Stand after it was settled in X2) and we’ve seen him mentor tons of people now, so the comics’ recent “teacher Logan” isn’t really needed here either. Just like the films need to use villains beyond Magneto and Stryker, lest they wear them out, they need to dig into the untapped potential of heroes beyond Wolverine.

There’s a Great Wolverine Already Cast It’s possible they’ll have another version of Wolverine, like Jimmy Howlett, Logan’s son from the Ultimate X-men comics, take over the mantle in the main X-men films (which is the plan for the current X-men Blue comic). He’d be young enough that it’s not creepy to be in a love triangle with Jean and Scott (though if Dark Phoenix is set in the 90s, they’d be in their 20s). Daken, Logan’s son from the main Marvel continuity, is another possibility, though he’s a villain.

Still, there’s already a perfect Logan replacement. Her name is Dafne Keen. Fox should follow her adventures in the future in Logan sequels. The best way to avoid Jackman’s shadow is to do the opposite. While either of Logan’s sons are valid options, it’d probably feel forced and redundant to introduce yet another guy with claws who happens to also be Logan’s child. Keen, however, already had the torch passed to her and is ready to go. She’s got the grit to do the crowd-pleasing berserker rage when needed, displayed a more vulnerable and caring side (as well as comedic chops), and she’s young and talented enough that they can take her character wherever they want as she grows.

Plus, Keen would be a ready-made and audience-tested female superhero franchise lead, something Fox could’ve had with Storm, Rogue, and/or Mystique already but haven’t and something WB and Marvel Studios are unfortunately only just starting to dig into. I also wouldn’t hate it if they rolled Laura into the New Mutants film and set it in the future of Logan, which I think should be relegated to its own timeline because of how defeatist in terms of Xavier and the X-men’s legacy it is (as I discussed in my Logan review). No matter where she pops up next, Keen was fantastic as Laura/X-23 and if she’s up for more, Fox would be crazy not to capitalize on this star in the making.

I’m sure at some point, the X-universe will be fully rebooted and a new Logan will be cast. They’ll probably recast a new Logan before that, but I think they should explore the rest of the universe instead of relying on the cache of one mutant. Keen can carry the Wolverine name while Fox gives everyone else time to become stars too. If they must bring back Logan sooner rather than later, I just hope they remember he’s only one member of the team, not the entirety of the X-men.

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