#but there are so many aspect of the book that could be better shown if they had a longer time to show it

[krenenbaker]

Why Trey's a Weirdo

@wordycheeseblob your question on that Trey meme led me to write up a little analysis on Trey! I admit, I got a little carried away with this ^^;

Okay, so! On the topic of Trey being a freak/definitively not "normal", there are a number of different things you could look at. It's up to personal interpretation, but generally, there are some things that point to him being absolutely WEIRD.

The most obvious aspect is the teeth thing. We all know he's, uh, very fond of teeth. While that's odd, there are - in my opinion - other things that make him far stranger.

Trey can be considered kind of freaky because of how perceptive and clever he is, specifically because he hides this fact. He sees what people do, he understands the cause-and-effect of things, and he uses that information to reach his goals - mostly, avoiding conflict. I'd say he's honestly rather Machiavellian. Looking at everything from his Labwear vignette, to his Wish Upon a Star vignette, to Vil's Labwear vignette, Trey is shown to manipulate situations and people around him, in order to keep the world around him in the state he wishes. He's also quietly very violent and vengeful, as suggested with his desire to continue with the Spelldrive/Magift match at the end of Book 2, for the express reason to use magic against those he felt anger towards.

That's not to mention his Unique Magic/Signature Spell - it's perception manipulation, plain and simple. That's both terrifying, and honestly pretty strange. Especially considering how he uses it on his dormmates... DEFINITELY not something a "normal" person does.

Trey also is strange in how normal he appears. He is unusually humble, caring, and competant... to a suspicious level. He intentionally tries to make himself seem "normal" (ex. Trey's Halloween vignette). And he also ASSERTS how normal he is multiple different times. Most of the time, if people genuinely point out that you're eccentric or odd or somehow not normal, many times... chances are you're not the "normal" person you think you are.

There are a few more things that could also be added, but these are my main arguments on Trey's "normal" vs "weirdo" status ^w^ There IS a reason why he's at the top of Idia's (I don't remember the exact phrasing) "Turbo sus vice housewardens to be avoided" list, after all. He's just as weird as Jade or Rook, simply better at hiding it.

#twst #twisted wonderland #trey clover #my darling baker ♡ #krenenbaker's :) #I love Trey so much (*´◡`*)♡

[heliomanteia]

did u delete ur latest post regarding rick giving leah a lackluster script?

Hi! Yeah, it needed rewording & more examples but if you don't mind I'll use your ask as a reason to talk about it! Annabeth is my favorite girl and I feel very passionate about how easily she could be dealt a better script.

Under read more because I go on a tangent.

I genuinely think Leah's script was mediocre at best and it's in no way the actress' fault. Many people pointed out that she's way "more Annabeth" within mediums not controlled by Richard & Co: interviews, promotional material, her personal interactions with the cast, and such.

My beef with Richard is that he very obviously "used", for the lack of a better word, Leah as some sort of a shield against any sort of criticism and then sort of really failed her - and I believe Leah to genuinely like her character & do her best.

I. I feel like there's a Lack of Annabeth in the camp scenes as an educator/guide.

Chiron wasn't alone in showing Percy around in the book, Annabeth did it with him. That's how we are first introduced to Annabeth as someone who knows so much of the Camp as she lived there so consistently. She also was the one to teach Percy Greek alongside Chiron. I feel like this positioning of her as someone with high degree of knowledge suffers greatly in the show: we aren't really shown that Annabeth is really knowledgeable, we're told that, and that's all.

II. I feel like Percy overtakes a lot of Annabeth's role as a character.

He offers exposition, explains the myths to HER in the Amusement Park episode (why is he the Wise Boy?), and overall "does her job". I wouldn't mind it as much if Annabeth was given a different archetype in return for that exchange, but she's left hollow. It's just Percy doing the thing and her trotting behind. That's... not how their dynamic works.

III. I think Leah!Annabeth is written off as a "Strong Woman" not allowed to show childlike qualities.

She is so serious and it makes her character very single-faceted. Annabeth is serious and focus-oriented, yes; but she is also silly, she is so geeky, she is adorably passionate, and she's so human. Feels like they reduced this in Leah's script by a lot and I don't get why. It would literally cost nothing to let her rant about architecture or let her passionately tell others myths.

IV. I believe her backstory is sort of forgotten about.

Many people spoke about how weird it is that she is presented as the one who needs to reach out to her neglectful dad, to do the emotional labor despite being a young neglected girl. It feels weird that it was Leah who was dealt such unfair treatment of her character.

Annabeth canonically didn't leave the camp much, she isn't familiar with the world outside; it'd be nice to see that aspect of her too. Also, her bond with Thalia is sort of there but her bond with Luke is nonexistent, it's just spoken about. Again, this strips her off so much of her humanity as a character. Without these little things showing that Annabeth can be fragile, vulnerable, sweet, funny, loving we just end up with an arrogant, angry girl. Not a good look for Richard tbh.

V. The show fails to objectively narrate Leah!Annabeth.

The Disney+ adaptation - for the abovementioned reasons - ends up presenting Annabeth to us as Percy's future love interest first and as her own character second. It wouldn't work even if it was Percy's POV because Percy sees her for the girl she is first.

VI. I think Richard fucked up the premise of the character.

Book Annabeth was one of the examples of deceitful appearances: the "dumb blonde" that actually was insanely witty. This "she's not what she appears like" trait was sort of taken away from Leah and I don't get why? I fail to believe that there are no stereotypes regarding presumed lack of intelligence that could be played off with a Black actress. Sounds like Richard and Disney didn't really think about it.

VII. I hate how she was cut out of Tartarus scenes.

That was such a BIG moment for 'beth, she was the one talking to Hades! Because Grover was scared to death and Percy was impulsive and with no filter! He doesn't know how to talk to Gods, he's been a halfblood for so little and Annabeth has been one her whole life! She's the brains, she's the negotiator. The show leaves her in the forest of regrets and sort of forgets about it after.

So, I do think that the script for her sucked bad. And the worst part is, it could be better SO easily. Leah deserved better imo.

#🏛️ #pjo show crit #pjo tv crit #rr crit #Throwing to the sharks: #percy jackson #annabeth chase

[hostdoozy]

why kraang1 is a good villian.

The Kraang are shown to have an authoritarian ideology that "the strong will devour the weak". Kraang1 specifically prides in his species' raw power and technology, even taking many moments to boast about the "mighty technodrome". He takes pride in what he is- but also, who he is. (read more below)

There's no doubt about it. Kraang1 has an inflated ego, so devoid of love or empathy that concepts like "honour, redemption & sacrifice" are (no pun intended) alien to him. To risk everything, your own well-being for the sake of another, for someone who is weaker than you- is something beyond his own understanding. When you smack talk him or his species- he'll take personal offence to it. The guy quite lirtally said it himself. He views himself as a gift.

To add emphasis on how fucking massive ego is and how strong his ideals are. His first instinct when is WHOLE ASS BUILDING is thrown at him. isn't to embrace himself for impact. no. He instead readies himself to FUCKING PUNCH THROUGH IT.

Kraang1's unbridled self-confidence within himself and his leadership, plays an unspoken role within the narrative. i feel as though it needs to be highlighted because I want the community to understand why Kraang1 works so well as an antagonist to Leonardo. Kraang1 and his little sibs are my favs so I'm just heavily biased here

To briefly touch upon the fandom's favourite turtle, Leonardo. it's well-established that Leonardo has low self-esteem issues and often masks his insecurities through a dashing confident facade. when faced with the responsibilities of leadership. he sabotages himself.

I won't be going too in-depth into this since many posts discuss this aspect of Leo infinitely better than I ever could. So, I suggest reading this post by Risestarkiss and this analysis video by Skullrot if you want a deeper look into Leo's insecurities as a whole. (go follow them btw)

This is something worth mentioning because Kraang1 mirrors everything Leo isn't at the start of the movie. A strong competent leader. He's confident in himself but also in his own siblings. it's heavily implied that he has a great understanding of 2 & 3.

An example of this is instance is during the integration Scene where Kraang2 is curiously examining Raph before threatening him. Kraang1 emerges from the shadows saying "forgiven my sister. She's got a bit of a temper and being imprisoned for 1000 years hasn't done her any favours" He speaks with an air of familiarity. He understands his sister and where Her weakness lies. He knows her strengths and what makes her a ferocious foe. Another Example of Kraang1's understanding of his siblings, is his interactions with Kraang3. While nothing explicitly said between the two. Kraang1's here actions speak louder. Before the climax, Kraang1 is seen accompanying Kraang3. He knows the importance of Kraang3's role and thus, protects him along the way. Kraang1 understands that Kraang3 is the weaker one out of the trio but knows that despite this, Kraang3 is valuable. Why Kraang1 make's effective as a villain is that he's also an effective leader too. His confidence isn't just a facade, When he tells you he's a gift- he MEANS it and can back it up.To put this in perspective. In Casey's timeline. He won. Kraang1 isn't all bark and no bite. This son of a bitch means business. But throughout the movie, Leo is coming into the role of a leader. When called out by Casey, he reflects and steps up. He begins to Listen. It isn't about him after all. Kraang1- is the EXACT opposite of this. Everything leads back to himself. for Kraang1, it IS about him. It's about his strength, his species and his future empire. Everything surrounds him in some way. While his confidence is one of his strengths- it's also his weakness. By setting himself apart from the other Kraang, it became his downfall.

If Kraang1 in this timeline took a page out of Leo's book, he might have won again. They're a sense of irony in this. Kraang1 is an experienced warlord who knows how to lead effectively. He knows his siblings and utilizes their strong suits for conquest.

Leo in some regard, is simllar. He too understands his siblings, he knows how to lead when push comes to shove. Yet Leo possesses something that Kraang1 is lacking in. The ability to reflect. Leo is able to see where he faltered and pick up the pieces.

Where kraang1 cannot. When his mistakes are pointed out. he takes offense... and that's why, he failed.

He made it about himself.

#brew talks #rambles #leonardo #kraang #krang #rottmnt #rottmnt krang #rise tmnt #rise of the tmnt #character analysis #this is just a long way of me saying #i just like how cocky kraang is #kraang1 #krang1 #rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles #rise leo #teenage mutant ninja turtles

[wolfnesta]

I was thinking of the Rhysand and Nesta dynamic and how I would not hate Rhysand so much if it was just done so much infinitely better. So with that if you are absolutely pro rhysand, absolutely pro SJM, here-for-the-fun, just click away, block me, filter, do what you want. Other than that here we go.

So I feel like I understand the read between the lines, kind of relationship were supposed to see between Rhysand’s dislike of Nesta, as in we can read between the lines that Rhysand can’t stand her because of her tendency to resort to insults (which I find personally questionable with the actual material vs what sjm has to blatantly tell the reader left and right and that’s not even considering the retcons but that’s another topic) especially in regard to those that he loves. Him being merely tolerant of her because he’s defensive for those he loves, like Cassian for example, who has been fighting against words like bastard since birth and Mor being from the Hewn city where they are abusive and she is apparently the only good person there (another sjm writing critique but whatever).

So onto what I think Nesta disliking Rhysand should have been portrayed as in acosf.

Let me remind everyone that at this point every single character has dirt on them, every single one has done questionable things, and so I think that a good way to balance this sort of moral compass that we have going on, with Rhysand disliking Nesta for these reasons above, I would’ve liked to see Nesta point out or atleast in the same read between the lines fashion assert her annoyance/defense and insults, specifically towards Rhysand— Since that is what we got is, that it is her way of protecting herself, to insult before she could be insulted which can manifest as cold and calculating— for her to recognize that cold calculating attitude Rhysand has. Albeit not for the same reasons or in the same way Nesta’s barbs are but in his decisions and actions because Rhsyand has that. I’m not open to hearing people say ‘but Rhysand only did this because of that’— let’s not take away the morally gray aspects of a character. Much in the way that Nesta’s defenses aren’t excusable because of trauma the topic here is that Rhsyand has done/does questionable things regardless of reason. Back to the topic, Rhysand has shown to have cold, calculating tendencies yet all SJM let Nesta tell the reader about him— ‘Rhysand might be an arrogant, vain bastard, but he was honorable. He fought like hell to protect innocents. Her dislike of him had nothing to do with what he'd proved so many times: he was a fair, just ruler, who put his people before himself. No, she just found his personality-that slick smugness grating.’ the way that this line is the worst that Nesta ever really says about Rhysand in the entire book and even then its peppered with compliments that seem borderline absurd is so telling of the entire book. Not only that but Nesta encourages the reader throughout acosf that Rhysand has all the right to hate her and she’ll even go as far as say that she hates her self as well yet she doesn’t know how to fix that. That’s the whole point of acosf, right, that she’s healing and learning a better way to cope (much to my loathing). So personally I detest Rhsyands character in that book because Nesta could have given us so much of her own ‘redemption’ as well as touch on Rhysands flaws. Maybe even come to an understanding because of them. Because no Rhysand is not always morally correct but that book insisted on nothing but that. If anything that books served as a huge reminder of real life problems were the men get praised for doing the most basic, standard things that women have been doing all of their lives yet women do something that men do and are still crucified that’s not even considering being a woman w children. The mom works= she’s not present for her children. Mom doesn’t work= she’s just mooching off of the husband. The house unkept= the woman is lazy. It’s always the women that are questioned first/only. Nesta is calculating and cold but let’s not touch upon the 500 year old man’s actions and repercussions, matter of fact let’s flatter him and explain why he hates her. Absolutely hate that and therefore I cannot stand his character. Just butchered. And that’s without touching the infamous pregnancy plot line

#anti rhysand #anti sjm #tagging anti for those that just want to enjoy this series l #I’m assuming it’s been filtered out by now #nesta deserves better #pro nesta archeron #I’ve been refraining from posting think pieces because this series is too exhausting for that #nothing makes sense

[algebraicpizza]

Cannot even describe how much I loved Yumi and the Nightmare Painter.

Sanderson is a great author, but not a perfect one. He does incredible things many others aren't even trying to do, but there's always a little bit of awkwardness that keeps his books in the 8/10 range for me. They mean a lot to me; I just recognize they could be more. The characterization could be a little more vivid, the prose and dialogue a tad more natural, even if he does fantastic things with plot structure, twists, magic system, worlds, even the characters in many ways.

This one is different. It makes me happy that I can finally call one of his books a 10/10. I'm not sure it would be one for everyone, but it absolutely is for me. The main character was so relatable that I found myself feeling both attacked and pandered to. But it was more than just relatability; both his and the deuteragonist's arcs were incredible handled.

Everything was cohesive. The setting was magical and vivid, and led to life circumstances that naturally would lead to main characters who felt the ways they did. Better understanding of how different cultures lead to people who think in different ways than Sanderson has shown in the past. So many aspects of the world, the characters' pasts, their relationships with the people around them, all tied into the themes. The way the plot put them together and they then learned from each other was beautiful. There were fantastic metaphors for real-life issues that still tied into personal matters for the characters beautifully.

For me, it's without a doubt Sanderson's best work. I'm reeling from it. You don't experience something like this every day.

#ssp3 #yumi and the nightmare painter

[688199]

Ladybug PV led to the creation of Null Era + other things: A theory re-evaluating the pre-production of Miraculous Ladybug

ah yes, the famous pv, with an alternative marinette that’s confident and an aloof cat boy called felix. yet, even though they seem to be based on null era, why are they still so different from their null era counterparts?

there were a lot of holes in timeline regarding the production, things that made no sense if it was sequenced that way. but when i started to see it this way, i think it solves some questions i had.

(i apologise for the messiness of all the ideas as i am just rambling)

so here’s my theory, as well as the reasons why i think so:

ladybug pv laid out the groundwork for null era. like such:

(first image represents the era in which marinette was confident, and nathan existed. for lack of a better term, i’ll refer it to the 2010 era.)

seems like toei was only given “2010” material to work with, and thus came up with the pv. this explains why alina, adoni, the bodyguards, null doesn’t show up. oh and why bridgette bug uses martial arts instead of weapons.

if anything, the pv isn’t based on null era, it’s based on the 2010.

looks to me like the pv expanded on the 2010 ideas by astruc

and the development team liked it so they expanded on the ideas even further into null era which explains actions shown in the pv, such as richard destroying the world because he’s power hungry.

bridgette’s design seems to be heavily based on this artwork specifically. long hair, same shorts and same shoes. except her top outfit, which seems to be from this right image, created even earlier.

her personality as well is obviously not shy. she’s much like the 2010 marinette rather than the null era.

now let’s talk about felix.

felix sphinx, on the other hand, has right swept bangs like in the pv, different from many other “felix-like” artworks that showcase nathan/ felix with left swept bangs.

if felix sphinx was based on the pv, the difference in their personalities makes much more sense. why pv is portrayed as being annoyed with bridgette, however not in the same degree as astruc’s nathan version. most likely while creating null era, the team further toned down on the annoyed aspect and heightened his nerd side to create who we know as felix sphinx.

not to mention, the pv is also the only media that depicts felix with being studious (books), other than the july 2012 bible.

now take a look at these, which i believe are all based on the image on their left.

2010->PV->Null Era

i used to think the right image inspired the middle image, but now arranging it this way makes more sense to me.

in terms of how everything actually went down:

i think that there were on going discussions on how astruc’s original “2010” concept could be altered during 2010-2012. many ideas were being brought up then scraped such as (the later part of) mini menace, quantic kids, etc, leading to an influx of art and ideas tossed around during this time, especially during 2012.

before toei officially became the co-producer, i think toei brought up the possibility that it could be 2d animation, then created the pv using the original astruc concept, of course with their own ideas tossed in (like how another producer wanted quantic kids). the proposal for 2d was rejected in the end, but i think they wanted to explore toei’s ideas, thus leading to the creation of null era.

rather than see it as a linear progression with a lot of mixing in between “eras” which is how i saw it in the past, the development should be seen as a centre (2010) being branched out into multiple ideas all scattered around the place. each era/ version is just the team mixing and matching elements that they like, and going forward with whatever fits best + goes through the approval of sponsors and producers. this leads to why chat noir was officially confirmed to be called felix during september 2012 while he’s called adrien in the first bible, why quantic kids appeared in the super lady luck game, why the pv and the bible, which differed greatly in ideas, existed during the same time (it’s also possible pv was made much much earlier than the date it was put onto youtube).

okay i should shut up now. this is what i think basically.

lol.

#miraculous ladybug #ladybug pv #ladybug classic #null era #quantic kids

[flowerbloom-arts]

"Moomin and its casual relationship with religion/Christianity is something that's truly understated by the fandom or forgotten about entirely and I think it's one of the more fascinating aspects to dive into. I dunno, I could ramble about for quite a bit."

Please do! I would love to hear it. If thou wished so. That is.

Okay SO.

I'm gonna elaborate in that I don't know what Tove's relationship to religion/Christianity is? I know she had a Jewish friend who had to flee the country in WW2 and she probably celebrated Easter and Christmas but otherwise I haven't read anything on her views of religion or what flavor of Christian she is, so I'm just going to base this entire post on what we see within the franchise and try not to speculate on what the Janssons believed.

But like, anyway, the subject of religion in Moomin is pretty subtle in that uhhhh

... maybe it's not too subtle... but I blame it on people not reading the books or comics and watching the 90s and 2019 series as it is almost clean of religious dialog or plot points except for, like, the existence of Christmas I guess.

And the existence of Christmas instead of, like, some unchristian equivalent to it in Moominland is telling in itself. What alot of people don't realize that despite all the magic and shenaniganery that happens in Moominvalley, Moominland is still a sort of.... slightly tweaked, absurdist portrait of the real world. In the books there are references to Mexico, America, Finland itself; Moomintroll mentions venetian curtains which implies the existence of Venice, Tarzan as a pop culture icon is referenced. In the comics the Moomins time travel to Wild West era southern USA, ancient Greece, Ancient Egypt, they wanted to travel to 18th century France but they forgot to switch the location, there are references to Soviet Russia and Australia gets mentioned and the Moomins travel to a Mediterranean beach town which is basically a fusion of 2 real life Spanish towns down to the combined naming (Although Majorca also still exists??), brands like Old Smuggler's and Lyle's Gold Syrup and Maxwell House and Lipton get shown directly on the pages... so many other things... point is, Moomin isn't a fantasy world separated from the real one and with all of this you can't argue about alternate origins of the Christmas holiday, it just is there as it is celebrated in the real world.

In Comet in Moominland, Sniff name-drops the Moses of the Bible in reference to Snufkin being found in a basket like him and the kids have a conversation about how dangerous it was to send a baby down a river:

‘Haven’t you got a mother?’ asked Moomintroll looking very sorry for him.

‘I don’t know.’ said Snufkin. ‘They tell me I was found in a basket.’

‘Like Moses,’ said Sniff.

‘I like the story about Moses,’ said the Snork. ‘But I think his mother could have found a better way of saving him don’t you? The crocodiles might have eaten him up.’

‘They nearly ate us up,’ said Sniff.

‘Moses’ mother could have hidden him in a box with air-holes,’ said the Snork maiden.

‘That would have kept the crocodiles out.’

Mr. Hemulen begs the heavens to protect and preserve him:

‘Heaven protect me!’ gasped the Hemulen,

(...)

‘Oh, heaven preserve me!’ exclaimed the Hemulen,

In Finn Family Moomintroll, Muskrat makes more tangible references to Heaven:

(...) the Muskrat gloomily sucking his moustache. 'The earth can crack and fire come down from heaven for all I care (...)

(...)

'(...) Well, I hope the Muskrat heaven is a peaceful place, because I shan't be here much longer.'

In Moominpappa's Memoirs, the Ghost name-drops Hell:

"By all the Hounds of Hell," began the ghost,

In Moominsummer Madness Mymble Jr believes they're going to die and euphemistically mentions Heaven while Little My whines about having to go:

‘That’s the very least,’ replied the Mymble’s daughter. ‘Try to be good now if you can find the time, because in a little while we’re all going to heaven.’

‘Heaven?’ asked Little My. ‘Do we have to? And how does one get down again?’

Emma the Stage Rat says rest in peace for her late husband:

‘Really, thank goodness,’ she cried, ‘thank goodness that my beloved husband, Stage Manager Fillyjonk (mayherestinpeace) can’t see you all! You don’t know a thing about the theatre, that’s clear, less than nothing, not even the shadow of a thing!’

In Tales From Moominvalley, Mymble says My wouldn't go to heaven if she keeps swearing:

‘If you say things like that you’ll never go to heaven,’ the Mymble started instantly,

Snufkin euphemistically uses Heaven while telling the story about his mother's aunt;

Her wonderful belongings gave her no comfort. On the contrary, they only made her think of the day when she’d go to heaven and leave them all behind her

And Sniff echoes this twice;

[Snufkin said] '(...) feeling rather like a balloon, a happy balloon ready to fly away…’

‘To heaven,’ Sniff observed drily. ‘Now, listen…’

(...)

‘I know, I know,’ Sniff said crossly. ‘You’re exactly like Moomintroll. I know how it turned out. Then one evening she gave away her bed too and then she went off to heaven and was so happy, and the right thing for me to do is to give away not only Cedric but everything I have and then hand in my spade and bucket on top of it all!’

And of course, Tales From Moominvalley has the entire short story about Christmas.

Of course, I could be missing or forgetting alot from the books but it paints a very clear picture, I think. And then in the comics...

The use of words like sin and damned and religious exclamations are used alot throughout the comic, and I can't even show all the examples I have collected because of the picture limit, but it's there.

The Black Prophet in Moomin Begins a New Life uses religious language and quite literally lives in a place called Puritan Street, he claims that any form of enjoyment or self-satisfaction is sin, such as looking attractive or eating food you like, and that one must live life in according to one's duty and the betterment of society as opposed to the hedonist view of the White Prophet to abandon all law and order and do only what one pleases.

The plot of the Lars comic Sniff Goes Good founds itself in the event of Sniff having an implied nightmare about going to hell and takes it as a sign that he should morally correct himself.

Moominpappa kept using the word damn (and damned and the blazes) throughout Moomin and the Sea.

The strange thing about the comics is that it uses alot of religious exclamations but replaces God/Lord or Jesus with Edward the Booble which is a really fascinating implication about Boobles in this world but that's beside the point, Groke is also used for more negative exclamations. Just about the only time I remember a character using God/Lord in the comics is that panel of Moominmamma saying Oh Lordy as shown above, otherwise references to God or Jesus themselves are very much missing, I don't know if it's something to do with newspaper censors or what (I could swear there was maybe a cross or a reference to the Devil somewhere in the Lars comics but I can't remember where).

None of the characters seem explicitly religious, atleast with their language, there's no church in Moominvalley or crosses thrown about, which...

Makes the 1969 Moomin series and its reboot, New Moomin, absurdly funny.

DO DO-DO-DO DO DO DOOOOO...

DUN-DUN!

DUN DUN!

DU-DUUUUNNNNN...!!

(yes that is a real church, part of a whole episode's plot, it has the cross and everything on top, I just couldn't get a better shot of it than this)

As someone who has watched the subtitled episodes available for each series I can say that it is... hilarious whenever it pops up. The usage of Christianity in such a heavy-handed way throughout the shows is very amusing but also fascinating.

It's important to consider that these are a japanese production, and these days, Japan only 1% of the population is self-proclaimed Christian despite the celebration of Christmas and the Christian-style weddings they perform. I couldn't get exact data on Japanese religion in the 20th century but it's doubtful that Mushi Productions, the studio that made these shows and is based in Tokyo, was particularly influenced by the religious colonialism of western Japan (please correct me if I'm wrong, I know I'm not a historian but this stuff fascinates me).

The absurd presentation of these elements feel like it comes from a fascination with the religion than any tangible experience on how mundane, rural European Christians act or believe? Like it's kind of parodying it to get across the fact that this is supposed to be taking place in Europe? The praying, the constant references to Heaven (unrelated to death), Hell, God or the Devil, Snufkin and Moomintroll compelling the Hobgoblin with the Power of Christ, the church that was never in the source material, it's all a bit tacky and I love it??

This element is less present in New Moomin probably due to criticism but it's still very much there. It's probably one of the stranger bits of the series besides the violence of Moomin 1969, but like the rest of the adaptation it feels like it's done in earnest despite its lack of adherence to the source material.

...

All this to say, there's probably a Moomin Jesus who died for their Moomin sins in canon and that is still absurdly funny to think about in an abstract sense after all this time.

#moomins #moominvalley #the moomins #moomin books #moomin comics #1969 moomin #shin moomin #new moomin #1972 moomin #christianity cw #christianity tw #fb answers

[id-be-home-with-you]

Irving and Hickey act as foils in the book

Listen. Those if us who have read The Terror (2007) by Mr. Simmons know it has its issues. I have read some of the most horrid sentences written about women I’ve ever seen in that book. The show significantly improved on many aspects of the story especially in terms of an anti-colonial narrative which I think is vital to how the story should be told.

But honestly there are some amazingly written scenes and character dynamics that the show lacks.

I’ve finished reading the book a second time and I was taken aback by how Hickey and Irving are such direct foils to each other.

Hickey in the book verses the show is pretty similar. They fleshed him out a bit more in terms of his relationships and made him more sympathetic. Primary example is instead of taking advantage of Magnus in a romantic relationship like he was in the book he has one with Gibson which is/was more genuine.

Irving’s character in the show is a shell of who he is in the book. He is much more fleshed out and has a lot of chapters in his pov (much more then even James if memory serves). Also he has more of a relationship with Silna instead of Goodsir. Although Irving was more obsessed with Silna in a way that wasn’t clearly reciprocated in my interpretation. I think changing that plotline to Goodsir was a much better idea.

Hickey and Irving are at odds right from the get go with him discovering Hickey and Gibson/Magnus in the show/book. However in the show after the initial confrontation and Irving’s eventual death, that’s kind of where their interactions and narrative connections end.

In the book this is very different. Both Hickey and Irving are POV characters. Though they may not speak much afterwards often their chapters would follow each other and even mirror each other in some way. A few examples:

Hickey mentioning going to a whorehouse without a sponsor as a figure of speech but Irving mentioning his very positive experience with a sex worker that his dad brought him to

Both have some kind of sexual subplot to their povs. Irving’s desire for Silna, Hickey’s relationship with Magnus

My personal favorite which could have been a great transition in the show is is Hickey emerging from the tunnel to help Blanky after his chase scene with Tuunbaq followed by Irving going into an ice tunnel they found Silna had made to the outside

The prominence of knives is there too with Irving mentioning only having his knife when going out after Silna, using his knife to cut the blubber given to him by the Inuit. Hickey then kills him with a knife (likely a choice by Simmons because Hickeys knife is one of the identifiable artifacts recovered from the expedition)

Irving’s fear of Tuunbaq (amplified by a scene where he actually saw Silna partake in a ritual with Tunbaaq when he was searching for her) while Hickey is intrigued by it shown by him wearing charms of Tuunbaq

So there’s this contrast between the two that could be boiled down to morality. Irving the “good guy” Hickey the “villain.” Simmons is using the Good Christian Lieutenant to contrast with the Mutinous Deviant Caulkers Mate.

But kind of an odd choice to make the main villain of your book’s a foil to a side character right? Arguably he should have made more effort to have Crozier be Hickey’s foil. I’d say Crozier and Hickey are foils to a certain degree in the book and they definitely are in the show. But the contrasts between Hickey and Irving are much clearer. So why?

If you take the constrasts between the two a step farther (because of course I am, I’m this deep already) there is also this really interesting relation of the importance of religion to Irving and Hickey’s death.

For those unaware Hickey’s death is completely different in the book (and in my opinion more satisfying). There is not a lot on what goes down in the mutineer camp because crozier never gets captured and the book focuses on him for the last chunk. The last Hickey chapter finds him in a sledge with him being the only one alive and Magnus’ corpse near him. He believes he has become God. Not like A god like capital G GOD. He has this really well written internal monologue that I think everyone should read. Like he is unbothered by Magnus death because he believes he can bring him back to life at any moment. He’s then humbled when Tuunbaq comes by to eat his soul but then SPITS HIS SOUL OUT AND LEAVES HIM TO FREEZE TO DEATH.

But I digress. Hickey sincerely believes that this whole journey was the story of his personal creation myth.

And I argue Irving’s death is the classic elimination of a heretic/nonbeliever.

I don’t think Hickey had this delusional god complex until after the mutineers left. But I do think Hickey thought Irving was the only thing standing in his way due to him having blackmail if he needed it. And when Irving met the Inuit he knew his power with the mutineers would threatened if there was another group that could offer salvation. So he made the decision to kill Irving.

Both in the show and book I believe this is Hickey’s point of no return. It is an unjustifiable murder that fucks over EVERYONE not just his enemies. He murdered Irving solely for his own personal gain and power.

So I think Irving and Hickey are foils in a way that solidified Hickeys descent into becoming the villain of the story in our perspective and the hero in his own.

And if I dare continue with the religious imagery and further contrast: Hickey may have made himself out to be God, but he made Irving a martyr.

#the terror #the terror amc #the terror book #cornelius hickey #john irving #tuunbaq #tunbaaq #the terror tunbaaq #the terror tuunbaq #francis crozier #silna #silna the terror #lady silence #thomas blanky #magnus manson #billy gibson #the terror analysis #buk speaks

[see-arcane]

So I've heard quite a bit about Richard "Em Dash" Marsh and his book The Beetle, but I've been quite curious: What elements about it are compelling? I refuse to read the book itself (made that mistake with... other gothic-based media (Damn you, Moore), so I was curious about your thoughts on it?

I think it's just the sheer amount of wasted opportunity for metaphor left laying around. Like, I know everyone likes to call it "Dracula but so much shittier," but I've always seen more resemblance to Kafka's "The Metamorphosis," and not just for the insect element.

The two characters we're introduced to as (mistaken) protagonist and antagonist are Robert Holt and the Beetle. Holt is a clerk who lost his job, applied everywhere after, followed all the rules he was taught to trust in, certain that society would naturally play as fairly with him...only to find himself homeless and starved and refused entrance even to a shelter because it was too full. He watches on in mingled surprise and envy as a fellow vagrant blithely breaks a window and waits to be arrested, thrown in jail for the sake of shelter from the rain.

Robert Holt does not throw a brick with him. Robert Holt is too shackled by his ingrained sense of If I Follow the Rules, If I am a Good Citizen, I Will be Helped.

He isn't. He walks away into the rain, still starving, still scraped off the edge of society, shooed like vermin. He reaches the Beetle's home with its window ajar. He slinks in.

And then is immediately preyed on by the Beetle, his free will suddenly ripped away, ordered to strip and walk and talk and die and live and rob and generally be violated on every mental and external level. He is literally so low as to be overpowered and stepped on by an insect.

But Holt isn't immune to his own (read: Marsh's) callousness. He refers to the Beetle, who is an Egyptian visitor here for revenge reasons, in some fairly ugly terms. How much we can shrug off as being a fear/disgust response versus being Conditioned to Other Anyone Not Anglo-Saxon Enough is up in the air in-universe.

The frustration here is that between this opening and the future cast members' rancid treatment of Holt, who tries to help and warn them, and of the Beetle, met with disdain simply for being a foreigner in England before one chitinous move can be made, there could have been SO MUCH to play with in terms of...

Human beings reduced to pests not worth dignity or care because they are Poor, they are Homeless, they are the Lowest Rung of Society, they are Foreign, they are Dirty and Different from What's White Right

The examination of in-fighting of 'verminous' people. Figurative insects living underfoot in supposedly civilized countries, now preying on and demeaning each other rather than extending the empathy they were never shown by polite*** society

Spotlighting the brutality and villainous aspects of our group of well-to-do "heroes", the main cast being mixed up in building genocidal weapons and plotting asylum stays for romantic rivals and hypocrisy and so many layers of bigotry it makes your eyes ache

A better version of the story in which the aforementioned genocidal weapon, a killer gas to be used on South America for some fucking reason, becomes the focus of the story--bonus points for the accidental 'bug spray' comparison to be made--with the potential of the Beetle and Holt switching tracks from singular vengeance and/or the desperate thwarting of this fruition; knowing that the existence of such a thing would be a prelude to 'dealing with the vermin problem' on a terrifying scale. Perhaps by making use of a new kind of 'shelter.' The insects become the heroes, the polished creme of England now turned to fertilizer.

...a better version that might have Holt ending the story with his own metamorphosis, but as a Gregor Samsa with actual strength and will of his own, and acceptance waiting for him on the other side of the change.

But no.

Richard Dickard Marsh couldn't be bothered to reach beyond squeezing out a Sydney Atherton-shaped turd onto the typewriter and calling it done.

It's so, so, SO goddamn infuriating as a storyteller to find the seeds for something that would have been amazing and groundbreaking, especially for its time period, only to see the whole thing salted and burned until all that's left is racist caricatures, a trashfire of a plot, and the most eye-watering syntax ever put to paper.

#in which I am Bitter about the Beetle #the beetle #richard marsh #I hope he's being eaten by scarabs in the afterlife

[beardedmrbean]

Q “How do you tell if someone is a vegan?” 

A: “You don’t have to, they’ll tell you.” 

Maybe it’s jokes like that, highlighting society’s stereotypical view of vegans as arrogant virtue-signallers, that have led to a slump in demand for some plant-based alternatives to meat and dairy, as well as a slew of business failures among manufacturers of plant-based food – most recently Heather Mills’s company VBites, which has just announced it is going into administration. 

Despite veganism being endorsed by a number of celebrities, such as the BBC’s controversial wildlife presenter Chris Packham, it doesn’t seem to have made much headway beyond those segments of the market that are either apocalyptic about climate change or fanatical about animal rights – or both. Perhaps much like Mr Packham himself. 

Then there’s the argument that veganism is good for your health, which has been on an increasingly sticky wicket, deconstructed by books such as the award-winning The Great Plant Based Con by Jayne Buxton. There is also a growing backlash against ultra-processed foods, which many vegan products are. 

But Ms Mills had the gall to blame “gaslighting” by the meat industry for the collapse of her vegan food empire. As a member of the meat “industry”, I take exception to that. Of course it is not really an industry at all in the UK – it is made up of family farms, in stark contrast to the public relations agencies promoting vegan diets. 

Farmers have been hounded and smeared by radical vegan activists for years. I wrote in these pages back in September about Laura Corbett, the Gourmet Goat Farmer, who was targeted by vegan “activists” on social media. Her business was attacked by malicious Trip Advisor reviews. 

Indeed, I would suggest that consumers have been put off by the taint of fanaticism surrounding vegan foods. Recent research has shown that omnivorous consumers are less likely to buy products if they are labelled with the V-word. While it is too early to consign veganism to the history books, I suspect when that history is written it will be seen as a fad that was rejected by the British public largely because the wild behaviour of its more extreme followers trashed the brand. 

It always seemed unlikely that, after millennia evolving on an omnivorous meat-rich diet, we would then wholly abandon it. There is only one species that has ever done that: the panda. And that has not been an unqualified success. 

If the vegans had wanted to actually persuade people to eat better, rather than hector them, they could have chosen a much less blunt message. But a more effective, nuanced approach, focused on stopping the harmful aspects of meat and dairy production, was not pursued and all livestock farmers were tarred with the same brush. This happened even after the positive environmental role of grass-based beef farmers was recognised by the authorities, as they began to be paid carbon credits for the net carbon they sequester.

We can’t allow vegans to continue to ruin the debate about food. We need a real food counter-revolution. 

#nunyas news #vegan #veganism

[livefreeforfun]

Terapagos' Hidden Power

Terapagos is the newest legendary Pokemon, introduced in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet’s Indigo Disk DLC, the second part of the Hidden Treasure of Area Zero. While the story of Scarlet and Violet isn’t over yet as we’re getting an epilogue in January, there’s a scene in the DLC that I absolutely have to talk about as the lore implications are nuts. Obviously there are gonna be spoilers for Indigo Disk, so if you haven’t played yet then you should probably click off this post now.

After capturing Terapagos in the Underdepths of Area Zero, you can gain access to a hidden interaction at Kitakami’s Crystal Pool, noteworthy for its… well, crystal formations of Terastal energy. Upon approaching the pool, Terapagos exits its Pokeball and calls forth a cloud of mist and, seemingly, Professor Sada/Turo before retreating back into its ball. This naturally prompts a discussion between the confused professor and the player, but it’s a brief discussion as after a few minutes the cloud of mist closes back in and takes the professor with it. While I won’t be going too in depth into the conversation with the professor, I will be going into how I think Terapagos is involved with it and revealing a potential hidden layer of mystery and intrigue to this new Pokemon.

Sada’s/Turo’s Arrival

So naturally, the arrival of Sada and Turo is what needs to be covered first as it’s what reveals new aspects of Terapagos to us. First, many would be led to assume that this is actually Professor Sada/Turo as this conversation takes place at the Crystal Pool, a location that’s said to allow people to speak to the dead. However, I believe this to be untrue. Early on in the conversation, Sada/Turo come to the conclusion that they must’ve been transported to the future by some unknown force.

(Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQ-SiGwyCKA)

This wouldn’t exactly make sense, though. After all, the implication about the Crystal Pool is that those you meet there are dead, so why would this be any different? Even the Milotic you battle with Carmine is coded to have the Tera Typing of Ghost to further allude to this fact. The time machine can’t be at fault either as AI Sada/Turo explicitly states that those who travel through time cannot return to the present, which we see Sada/Turo do. But what if what’s happening here isn’t time travel?

Milotic

As stated previously, the Milotic you battle with Carmine to obtain the Crystal Cluster needed to fix the Teal Mask is coded to have the Tera Type of Ghost. This isn’t a hugely known fact though, as it’s only really viewable if you look into the game’s code (or look at Bulbapedia like I did). Obviously since I’m bringing it up, I think it has some relevance here. I find it odd that despite giving this Milotic a Tera Type different from its original type, it never actually undergoes Terastalization. I mean, why not? Wouldn’t that get the idea of “meeting the dead” across a lot better? Not to mention, we’ve seen the ghost of a Pokemon before in the form of the Marowak from Pokemon Tower. Well…

I don’t think that Milotic is dead at all. In fact, I don’t think it was even alive before you first approached the Crystal Pool with Carmine. “This guy must be an idiot, what could he possibly be talking about?”. First, rude, my feelings :(. Second, I actually do have some evidence to back this claim up, and it all lies in…

The Scarlet/Violet Book

Trust me, I’m gonna tie this all together, just stick with me here. If you read the copy of the Scarlet/Violet book in the Academy, you’ll find a section titled “Monsters of Area Zero”. It’s the section of the book that goes over the first discovery of Great Tusk/Iron Treads, as shown in the photo provided below.

(Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/PokemonScarletViolet/comments/zi7ef7/mysteries_of_the_scarletviolet_book_unlocked/)

So why’s this important? It’s simple, really. Quoting Arven:

“Wait, hold on... Isn't my mom's/dad's time machine the whole reason the ancient/future Pokémon ended up here in the first place? This book is from way before she/he made the time machine, but it mentions ancient/future Pokémon. Isn't that kinda...weird?”

Why yes, Arven, it IS weird! This entry basically confirms that the time machine isn’t what’s creating the Paradox Pokemon. Something else within Area Zero is creating these Pokemon from the “past” or “future” based on which game you play. I think the same thing is happening at the Crystal Lake with Milotic and Sada/Turo. That wasn’t a Milotic, and that isn’t Sada/Turo, they’re recreations of a Milotic and the professor made with Terastal energy. And who molded these recreations?

Terapagos and the “Time Machine”

Time to tie this all together with a neat bow. Yeah, there’s obviously a reason that Terapagos’ presence is required for this interaction to happen. It made the Sada/Turo that the player interacts with at the Crystal Pool, just like how it made the Paradox Pokemon originating in Area Zero. Yeah, I’m going as far as to say it also created the Paradox Pokemon. The “time machine” was powered by Terastal energy, the same energy used to create the Milotic, the phantom professor, and presumably our Koraidon/Miraidon. The idea might strike some as odd, as if it’s not a time machine, when what is it?

While it’s hard to say what it is for certain, we can make some inferences on its true identity. Like I said, the whole machine is powered by Terastal energy, which I’m theorizing has the power to create entirely new organisms. The most difficult part to intuit is what it creates organisms from, but I think I have a pretty solid idea: imagination.  Think about the first Pokemon that was pulled through the machine. Koraidon or Miraidon, depending on the version of the game you’re playing. These Pokemon are meant to represent past and future versions of Cylizar, as stated by their dex entries:

Koraidon’s Violet Dex Entry: “This Pokémon resembles Cyclizar, but it is far burlier and more ferocious. Nothing is known about its ecology or other features.”Miraidon’s Scarlet Dex Entry: “Much remains unknown about this creature. It resembles Cyclizar, but it is far more ruthless and powerful.”

And what Pokemon was Heath, someone who you could say Sada/Turo idolized, prominently shown with in the Scarlet/Violet book, a volume which the professor admits is precious to them in their conversation with you at the Crystal Pool? Why, Cyclizar, of course!

(Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/PokemonScarletViolet/comments/zi7ef7/mysteries_of_the_scarletviolet_book_unlocked/)

I just can’t see this being a coincidence whatsoever, the choice to give Heath a Cyclizar while making both box legendaries past and future forms of it just feels so intentional. The Paradox Pokemon having been created during the original expedition makes sense as well. Before they had ever seen a Paradox Pokemon, they had been researching the regular Pokemon they were finding in Area Zero, and given that they were scientists it’s natural to assume they were most likely theory crafting what other kinds of Pokemon could live down there. It was only after a couple days of descending into Area Zero that the team encountered their first Paradox Pokemon. This could even explain why the Milotic at the Crystal Pool had a unique Ghost Tera Type; meeting the dead at the Crystal Pool is a common folktale in Kitakami, and the Crystal Pool is full of crystals of Terastal energy, just like Area Zero.

So, let’s wrap that neat little bow on all this. Terastal energy is clearly some form of creation energy, as it’s been shown to create not only the Paradox Pokemon, but also Milotic and even a duplicate professor. We’ve only ever seen this form of creation occur in two places: Area Zero and the Crystal Pool. Terapagos is stated to be the source of the Terastal phenomenon in it’s Scarlet Pokedex entry…: “Terapagos protects itself using its power to transform energy into hard crystals. This Pokémon is the source of the Terastal phenomenon.”

…and the interaction with the professor at the Crystal Pool does not happen without the player catching Terapagos. The “time machine” is really a machine that brings Pokemon from your imagination to life, and the Crystal Pool shows you terastal energy copies of those who have passed away rather than genuine ghosts. With all that in mind…

Terapagos’ Hidden Power

The true power of Terapagos, the Hidden Treasure of Area Zero, is the power of creation. Be it replications of deceased individuals and books they held dear, or entirely new Pokemon that have never existed before, Terapagos can pull ideas from the minds of individuals and, using Terastal energy, will them into reality.

#pokemon #pokemon scarlet #pokemon violet #pokemon scarlet and violet #pokemon scarvi #the indigo disk #indigo disc spoilers #the hidden treasure of area zero #terapagos #professor sada #professor turo #heath

[gwenllian-in-the-abbey]

I'm not being rude or evasive and if so, forgive me. I just have this doubt: why don't you illustrate baela with black skin like in the HBO series?

I'll tag the artist, @aifsaath in on this too, in case I'm speaking out of turn, but it is indeed something that we definitely discussed when we decided make this fic happen.

The simple answer is that we're writing from the book canon, and we went with book descriptions when possible, including their coloring and their body types. Of course, whenever there's an adaptation, the actors portrayed in the show are going to be the ones who first pop into people's minds, regardless of whether the fic is set in the book canon or the show canon, and that's fine! In fact, my first long-fic is based more on the show-verse, and I described that Baela as she appears on the show, with curly silver hair and brown skin. To me, they're different canons and there are legit reasons to choose one or the other, or to mix them up. For this fic we wanted to stick to one consistent canon rather than mixing and matching, and since the majority of the events that happen in this fic have not been depicted on the show yet, and won't for many years to come, we decided to go with Fire and Blood. Less simple answer below the cut.

Here's the more complicated answer. While the show chooses not to focus too heavily on this aspect of the world building, the Valyrians are racial supremacists. They believe in blood purity and consider themselves to be better than non-Valyrians. The Targaryen dynasty in particular has built a whole mythos around Targaryen exceptionalism based on their special blood, but the blood is shown time and again to not actually be all that special. It's a lie, like white supremacy itself is a lie. Targaryens can't get sick, until they do. Only those with Targaryen blood can ride dragons, until Nettles comes along. Targaryens must marry their brothers and sisters, and nothing bad will come of this because they are a special exception, but it literally ruins multiple people's lives and causes at least one massive war. The Valyrians weren't special chosen ones, they were slavers, eugenicists, they practiced blood magic (heavily implied to involve human sacrifice), and their hubris led to their doom. And while it's kind of heavy handed, it's not coincidental that GRRM made these folks pale haired and pale skinned and made them obsessed with preserving Targaryen purity. OFCIR is critical of this, and we did not think it was a great idea to make George's fantasy version of white supremacists into POC since they are blood supremacists in our fic, something the show waters down a lot, at least so far. George has actually said that he once had the idea of making ALL of the Valyrians Black, as a kind of uno-reverse on white supremacy, but realized that would probably be a bad look and scrapped the idea.

Some fans are also very attached to the idea of the special blood actually being special. Online I've already seen people arguing that Nettles, who was written in the books as a Black woman, could simply be of Velaryon blood (nevermind that the Velaryons were not dragonriders by blood, Addam Velaryon rides a dragon, probably due to centuries of Velaryon mixing with the Targs), when in Fire and Blood it is heavily implied that Nettles tamed a dragon the good old fashioned way (by feeding it!) rather than bonding to one by blood. And when Rhaenyra believes Nettles is fooling around with Daemon, she throws around insults that imply Nettles' blood is impure, calling her "common," saying Daemon would never lie with such a "low creature," and finally accuses her of sorcery to tame her dragon, saying, "you only have to look at her to know she doesn't have a drop of dragon blood in her." Hair and eye color alone can't be what she's talking about either, because book!Rhaenys has dark hair, and Rhaenyra's own sons are brown haired and brown eyed. And while I have no doubt that the show will likely change this storyline significantly, we are using book canon. For what it's worth, I think it's significant that the one canonically Black dragonrider is the one who does not get her dragonriding skills from her "pure" Valyrian blood, but through skill and perseverance. It's a deconstruction of racial supremacy, but it doesn't work if she is simply another hidden Valyrian.

But you might have noticed the art gives Aegon a more golden skin tone, and that's because his mixed heritage is a part of his story. And although later on some Hightowers are described as having light blonde hair (possibly because Rhaena marries into the bloodline), Oldtown is very close to Dorne, and the southern part of the Reach is closest to the Summer Isles of any part of the realm. Oldtown is this major trading port, with people coming in and out from all over the world for thousands of years. Oldtown has a history of being a center of trade for a lot longer than King's Landing has, so we imagine the southern Reach as being as pretty diverse place, a bit like the Mediterranean in our world. It's fair to say you'd have Reacher families with a wide variety of skin tones, which is why you see that in @aifsaath's drawings of Aegon, and in our descriptions, he is indeed darker than Baela.

#asks #targaryen blood supremacy critical #targaryen exceptionalism #our fathers clad in red #f&b fic

[jedinotes]

The Power of Dune Part Two’s Final Act: Stepping Away From the Messiah

Stunning photo by Jack Davidson

So I didn't think I would be talking about Dune in my first post for this page (considering that I intended it to be more Star Wars focused and also since I haven't read the Dune books yet), but the final stretch of this movie has been on my mind ever since I left the theater a few weeks ago.

(Spoilers for Dune: Part Two)

It's strange in the sense that we are suddenly distanced from Paul, and also in that the climax seems to accelerate the story faster than ever before. So far (in both movies), there has been a pretty strong focus on Paul and a very deliberate pace that let all the plotlines simmer. It’s a masterclass of immersion, both technically and emotionally. The humanity of its characters aren’t lost in the many elements at play. Paul is a character whose empathy and how it makes him conflicted with what is placed before him make him quite likable. Spending so much time with him, Chani, and Stilgar makes us grow attached to them, not just because they’re the heroes, but because they feel real. And yet we’re pushed away. In the third act Paul's dark transformation happens swiftly (you’d initially think from how it’s shown the water of life turns you evil), and by the story’s end we only see Paul from a distance in the eyes of other characters, unable to see him resolving the concerns we’ve wrestled along with him, unable to get a good read on his motivations anymore. The final battles with our heroes happen rather quickly as victory over the Harkonnans and the Emperor comes pretty easily. On one hand this shift could feel unsatisfying, and the first time I watched the movie I was a little unsatisfied. But I’m not here to say this is a fault of the movie; in fact, this shift results in something greater happening, and it’s the most powerful triumph of Part Two’s story.

By the end, even when we do zoom in on Paul we're not sure what's really behind his intensity. (All the Dune screencaps are from Dune Perfect Shots 4K on Twitter).

Dune’s story up until this point, from what I know about these two films at least, is all about complexity, discerning the many variables, the need to carefully monitor both these variables and one's own behavior. The importance of mastering oneself. (This video by Alt Shift X talks about this really well, and it definitely helped me understand this aspect of the story better). But Paul’s tests, like the Gom Jabbar in Part 1 and the worm ride in Part 2, carry not just that significance but also the danger of a prophetic horror being more and more certain. Therein lies an irony - you can gain power but tied to it is something much larger that’s out of your control. This becomes pretty key to the whole story, and there’s something I was reminded of that helped me put all this into perspective. I brought this up in my first-time watch review too, but I think I have more to say about it now. But bare with me as this might end up being convoluted.

In one of my classes this semester we read the poem “The Promised Land” by Gabeba Baderoon, and I was really struck by this image that it alludes to called the Angel of History.  Described by Walter Benjamin based on the painting Angelus Novus by Paul Klee, it depicts an angel whose wings get caught in the winds of a destructive storm “blowing from Paradise.” It’s trapped in the storm’s momentum going forwards with no way to escape. All the while, its head is permanently twisted backwards, forced to watch the wreckage of the storm, named progress, gathering below it. From what we discussed in that class this disturbing image suggests that all the events of history, all that we do or achieve or create, is not a series of events affecting each other, but instead one ever-building catastrophe barreling forwards. Both the Bene Gesserit’s century-spanning machinations and Jessica’s usurping of it all by birthing a boy. Whether the Harkonnen house or the Atreides house controls Arrakis. All of these are merely before a future that’s larger than any of them individually; the messiah and his holy war will come regardless. Even if it’s towards her own end rather than that of the Bene Gesserit, Jessica still uses their propaganda to facilitate his rise. The two houses end up converging anyways in their family trees with the Baron, and Muad’dib Atreides embraces it, merging the two families’ ideologies like the Kwizatz Haderach was always intended to. Whether his sudden ruthlessness is him embracing his desire for revenge or actually a strategic choice after sifting through the past and futures laid out, we’re denied of knowing for sure as we look at him from afar, and this denial by the film questions if the answer even matters much. The Angel image and the movie’s narrative dispel the idea that we have the capability to easily fix things when we make progress. It’s a notion that renders reasoning or means as having little ability to empower, envisioning us all moving towards the same horror anyways. It suddenly renders all the complexity of the plot and these competing ideas and factions inconsequential. And I don’t mean that in a bad way — it’s crucial to what the film is really getting at.

"We're Harkonnens... so that's how we'll survive. By being Harkonnens."

“You of all people should know there are no sides, Reverend Mother.”

Now, it’s fair to question the nihilistic bent of this (are we in the real world truly powerless to stop to this continuous catastrophe???), but the Angel of History and Dune use the stories they put forth as cautionary tales where that all-encompassing bleak endgame are meant to deconstruct our notions of progress and control. If we are powerless to shape history, how strong is the power we wield? And how good is the power we wield? As we strive for “paradise” and celebrate attaining it we often forget what happened as we got there, and we fail to see where we really are. If the reasoning for our actions doesn’t empower us, the effects of them in turn are even more debasing. The Baderoon poem that alludes to the Angel of History does so to examine this too. In its discussion of the end of apartheid and the ushering in of a democratic South Africa, “The Promised Land” weaves in the legacy of the jazz pianist Moses Molekelwa, who, despite influencing the poem’s speaker’s attitudes towards social progress (and appearing as an idol in that sense), is shown as getting off the hook in the eyes of history for strangling his wife to death. The triumph of his music is remembered while his wife’s murder is willfully forgotten, and the poem concludes that “our forgetting is also our home, which is why we will never leave the old country.” Baderoon warns of when the celebration of progress doesn’t factor in the ugly parts we still carry with us into the future, and her allusion to the Angel of History works to convey that danger. (Obviously the real anti-apartheid struggle of South Africa is very very different from the story of Dune, and I wouldn’t want to compare them to each other. Dune’s exploration of complicated progress instead speaks more towards the dangers of charismatic leaders and the co-opting of a cause). The only thing I want to highlight is just that Dune, Baderoon’s poem, and the Angel of History all hone in on the need to not lose sight of the now. 

This is why the third act’s shift away from Paul works so well. The film doesn’t show people “forgetting” necessarily, but we do see them caught in the fervor without acknowledging what’s happening to them. Paul is an exception in that he sees it all: his arc sees him changing his perspective on the destiny laid ahead and taking control to ensure it happens on his terms. He doesn’t really turn evil, but since we’re denied of seeing past his new icy exterior as he looks ahead with his prescience, the film instead turns us back to the now, like the angel looking behind. We're with Chani now, the only (non-psychic) person who’s seeing this all. We already believe in Paul’s goodness. If we were to see what Paul sees and fully understand his reasoning, it would make it easy for us to downplay the costs. The story thus has us focus on the consequences of Paul’s path beginning to gather in real time, the Fremen being exploited as they are led into a coming bloodbath by their messiah.

And this is the sadness of it all, right? Things that were once honorable, like Jessica protecting Paul like she promised Leto and the legacy of Leto that Gurney hopes for Paul to carry with him, are twisted into foul and manipulative actions. Good intentions and real connections, like Paul’s empathy, his and Chani’s relationship, and his and Stilgar’s friendship, all give way to the storm.

The quickness of the third act’s events compounds this danger. The path Paul takes may be the best possible option after considering all the variables, but the story doesn’t revel too long in the glory of his successful leadership and strategy.

The awe-inspiring images speak not to just heroism but something volatile and intoxicating. It's not that the film oversimplifies the moral dilemmas at stake, but by letting the big battle, Gurney slaying Rabban, and Paul slaying the Baron happen all too easily, it removes the focus from only being the powerful exploits of Paul and the Fremen and adds emphasis on how they become like Harkonnens and how the Fremen become entrenched in Paul’s conquest. The Harkonnen bodies are burned like the Atreides were before them, and the Fremen Fedaykin ultimately fight carrying the Atreides banner instead of their own. They lose sight of this fact as they place all their faith in Paul, their cause and faith co-opted. It happens so fast and it can’t be stopped. We’re caught in the momentum of the storm raging, pushing us forward, and at the same time the film adjusts its focus to ensure that we don’t forget to recognize the consequences of Paul’s choices. This is what I find so compelling about this movie — we’re given a story that details the complexity of all things and also ultimately denies complicated factors and necessary evils of becoming excuses that wave the wreckage of progress away.

Hopefully this was enjoyable to read and wasn't pretentious or anything! Lemme know what you think about the movie!

#dune #long post #dune part two #dune movie #dune 2 #dune part 2 #dune 2024 #paul atreides #kwisatz haderach #lisan al gaib #angelus novus #angel of history #determinism #frank herbert #denis villeneuve #gabeba baderoon #movies #movie review #movie discussion #movie analysis #film #film analysis #film discussion #media analysis #favorite movies #letterboxd #cinema #movie stills #movie photography #movie adaptation

[biscuitbakerbecca]

Jared Kleinman for the character asks :)

Favorite Thing About Them

Jared is so bad at communicating he reminds me a lot of myself. I have ODD so it’s a little different, but the man is an asshole in the best way possible. He is petty and gives off angry cat energy in both fandom aspects and canon. Also I appreciate that he never acted against Evan even when he had the opportunity and reason to do so, he threatened it but he kept his mouth shut. Real friend right there <3 (I could tell everyone everything! Okay great! You go ahead! Do that! Tell everyone how you helped write emails pretending to be a kid who killed himself! Fuck you Evan!)

Least Favorite Thing About Them

He doesn’t have enough screen time/show time. People mischaracterize him because his entire character is shoved into as little time as possible. I know I just said that I love how he’s an asshole but he’s more than an asshole. He’s so clearly lonely and more than just an angry kid. At least in the book they made him “hot” in the end but the show and movie pretty much get rid of him come act two

Favorite Line

Kinky!

Just kidding

Asshole!

Okay okay for real this time

Yeah I hate to tell you this Evan, but you may have already perjured yourself.

Isn’t that only when you’re under oath? Like in a courtroom?

Well weren’t you under oath? In a way?

No.

Or from the movie (since I view them as different canons)

Connor took a letter from me. It was an assignment for my therapist.

Ew.

(I’d offer a different line but Jared doesn’t have that many)

BROTP

Jared and Zoe friendship!!! They hate each other they’re best friends they get drunk and cry together!!

Another excerpt of my own writing that explains this. Again my writing quality has gone up since this but oh well:

Connor rolled his eyes, "I'm saying that Evan will always be there, okay? You are so fucking stubborn, and I'm trying to be nice and make you feel better, just say thank you like a decent human being."

"You just made me feel shitty."

Connor threw his hands up, "Fuck! You're impossible!"

Zoe's voice screeched from below, "FUCK OFF! HE IS MY BEST FRIEND!"

— I don’t know what I want, but I need you. Chapter 12

OTP

Either kleinsen or kleinphy. They both have potential. All my kleinsen fics are really fluffy (soulmates, hurt/comfort, etc) and my kleinphy fics are like…rough and angsty (teen parenthood, child abuse, etc) I like both equally, but what I want to read depends on the content I’m looking for as shown by my own writing style

NOTP

Nothing icky like the parents being involved obviously, otherwise Jared/Zoe fics just don’t feel right. Jared is gay. Like he has to be. The book tried telling me he liked boobs and I know Val Emmich lied. Evan was simping at the end for a reason. Jared doesn’t even have to like Evan the man is still gay. Best part of the movie but dear god at what cost? (I did like the movie I swear)

Random Headcannon

Jared has two moms, or his mother is bisexual. I tried writing him with straight parents and every single time it feels kind of wrong

Also he has a cat. Her name is Mayonnaise. Mayo for short.

Unpopular Opinion

Idk if this is unpopular or not but I’m glad they cut Goin’ Viral. It only pushes the he’s an asshole idea and even though I love the song it wouldn’t have helped his characterization. I would have liked for them to properly record the song when they released the deluxe album but apparently Disappear Pt. 2: the duet version was more important.

Also Jared Goldsmith was my favorite Jared actor other than Will Roland. Nothing can beat the Will Roland vibes

Book Jared shouldn’t have ditched his glasses and got buff, they made him too powerful. Evan couldn’t help but fall for him. Let him stay as he is don’t make him conventionally attractive!

Song I Associate With Them

Jared is such a complicated guy. His feelings are deep. He’s cringy but free. I haven’t thought about this in a while hang on…

I imagine that Jared is a pop girlie and this gives the desperate for attention vibes that I usually associate with him

And as for his inherently cringey vibes that I usually give him…

I’m not sorry

Favorite Picture Of Them

Again, we have options…

#dear evan hansen #deh #asks answered #Jared Kleinman

[awesomefringey]

Hi Sabine- hope you are having a good day. I have a question about PR relationships. I’ve never really been a fully committed fan of anyone before I discovered 1D and Louis and Harry (except maybe in the early 90’s but that was pre-social media so different parameters) so I’ve never paid close enough attention to one person to follow along with them outside of regular mainstream news, and I gave up reading gossip mags about 20yrs ago when I realised they were mostly bullshit.

I’ll preface this with saying that I absolutely don’t believe Harry is in a relationship with Olivia. My question is surrounding the purpose of some of the ‘sightings’. I get the pap walks and the attendance at high media profile events like Coachella etc. as these make their way into the GP’s realm and assist with PR for both of them (and reinforce Harry’s closet) . I don’t understand the objective behind the side stage/ backstage presence and other more obscure sightings such as these? This seems like something only fans would pay attention to (sometimes the photos only come from fans in the crowd) and I don’t believe the PR is there to convince fans of anything as I don’t think either side of this fandom supports her.

Is this extra ‘togetherness’ outside of the organised for Media outlets pap stuff a normal aspect of a PR relationship? Usually I’m quite good as seeing the rationale behind general things we are shown in different aspects of the media etc. but I don’t see what purpose this serves- am I just being thick?

Hi nonnie, thank you for reaching out because I could ramble about this forever. But I think your guess would be as good as mine since we both share similar experiences around fandoms and observing PR strategies.

This is going to be long, so my apologies in advance. 💜

I think Holivia has huge issues with credibility and image. In the general public they’re far from the iconic Bennifer-fication. They are called a “strange couple” and depending on the POV people wonder why Harry is with her or the other way around.

It must be a great disappointment that even Harry's het fanbase doesn't buy into it and rejects Olivia. I think younger fans can’t identify with her because she’s so much older and Harry’s fans closer to her age are furious about her behavior while dragging her kids into it all and making a show of custody battles like it’s some trashy reality tv. (It’s not helping either that she’s got a long history of treating people poorly.) This all manifests itself in very weak Holivia UAs with like 8k followers at best, of which many only lurk to rant over what they see if we’re being honest.

My impression is that Full Stop planned to market Holivia as this woke ageism-breaking ‘newly single mum succeeding in Hollywood in a male dominated field proving 40 with kids is not the end for romance or beauty or indefinite freedom’ dating this ‘gender bending rockstar aspiring actor who sells nail polish and wears dresses and waves his ally-LGBTQ flags every night but is so so very straight and therefore an icon who ends toxic masculinity’ where brand endorsement deals can be used in double with access to two different target groups/demographics. Harry and Olivia both wear éliou pearl necklaces, Bode, Gucci, Vans, Pleasing, Harry merch. Even better when one wears what seemingly belongs to the other. So outrageous. 🙄

But what happened instead is that people only saw an odd couple with zero chemistry that got together under questionable circumstances (they were still filming DWD due to the delay from closing the set) with Harry as Olivia's subordinate, when she had JUST separated (or had she?), and Harry had only been booked for his second role… And all of it in the wake of Times Up and Me Too as if THIS were the New Hollywood... To me it was the dirtiest kick off for a Pro-mance I could have ever imagined. I hate that Harry is involved in this shit.

Maybe many don’t see it like I do, but to me who takes great pride in feminist values and has worked hard in my profession to overcome the “cute and pretty label” to be taken seriously and now being a team lead in a male dominated field myself, it triggers me to no end. A female in a position of power should never abuse it and call it feminist. Olivia Wilde doesn't bring change when she stands for the same toxic values and creates unsafe work environments that have existed all along.

Why am I pointing it out? Because that part, the beginning of it all is something they still try to make up for. The longer this lasts, the less it looks like a reckless work hook up and more like a super serious love story that needed to happen under any circumstances.

Coming back to your actual question and taking into account what I said above - Olivia hasn’t been offered any deals at all so far.

I'm not aware Olivia is in talks for any scripts to be directed by her. The documentary she planned to do was cancelled? It looks like promoting DWD is the only thing left on her agenda. She has a lot of time on her hands and she attempts to use it.

Their ‘organic sightings’ are being used for articles is the thing. Those fan pics of Harry bathing in Dublin were all over the tabloids. Random ‘Olivia at Coachella’ fan videos were used as well. Harry meeting a fan in South England made it into the press. Harry playing golf didn’t.

So pics from the back of Harry unenthusiastically holding Olivia’s hand in Dublin didn’t end up in the tabloids. So Harry kicked it up a notch and went for a swim in Dublin instead. LOL. I really believe that’s the part that’s unpredictable for their teams. They “offer” Holivia content here and there, walking and walking and walking, but what will be newsworthy is up to the tabloids. It’s an unreliable yet very cheap way of creating buzz and promotion. And Olivia looooves the attention and I’m sure she gets off on the idea that people envy her that she gets to be so close to Harry...

#ask #I don’t even know if my ramblings answered your question #I could talk about this for ages #holivia

[wfagamerants]

A bit late because lol, rl, but as a blog about my Mario opinions, I can’t resist rambling a bit about my opinions of stuff in a direct full of Mario stuff.

Ordering them in how excited I am for each of them, though in the end I am happy about all of these, it’s just a way to decide how to order them.

Luigi’s Mansion Dark Moon Switch

I genuinely like Dark Moon and honestly don’t think it's rep as the lesser of the three games in some circles is earned, so seeing a Switch version is welcome in my book.

That said, I do have some concerns with how choppy the game looks in places. The original had a few moments like this too, but in a HD re-release…yeah you gotta clean that up. Odds are that may even happen, given the game isn’t due until next year.

Besides that, yeah, Dark Moon on Switch. I like the game and will gladly get this and use it as an excuse to replay it, but odds are there isn’t gonna be much new here. Not a bad thing, just makes me struggle to put this higher up here.

Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope DLC

It looks good, I’ll play it and that is honestly it.

This may be worth a discussion of its own, but while I like Sparks of Hope and even prefer some aspects of it over the original, it didn’t stick with me in the long run like the first game and it seems many feel the same way.

Hard to say what it is, but I am sure I will enjoy this, it’s just that at this point, I am really mostly interested in Rayman when it comes to this game,

The mechanical King Bob-omb’s pretty sick though.

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Course Pass Wave 5

Fun idea for a new racetrack and a very solid selection of new characters. Good first impressions.

We still don’t know the other 7 tracks, but I do genuinely think every new wave so far has been better than the last, so I am in good spirits about it and Mario Kart 8 is something I can keep coming back to for another round very easily.

New Peach Game

This is easily the most surprising one in its mere existence.

With how little has been shown so far, it’s hard to really have a strong opinion on things, but the stage play theme does make one wonder what could be and little details like Peach not having her crown really are curious.

Above all else though, I am just excited this is a thing. Spin-offs focusing on other characters are always among the most interesting new releases. They allow for experimentation with ideas that may be seen as not fitting Mario himself and after the 2000s, the well of new ones dried up really substantially.

Peach is also still a very unexplored character for this, even her first game is still heavily grounded in regular Mario stuff, while this is looking to be more of a Luigi’s Mansion kind of spin-off, so I am very intrigued.

Super Mario Wonder

Quite frankly, this game, in everything we have seen, feels like an outright apology for how static and safe 2D Marios have been in the NSMB era.

With this is one, it really feels like there was a desire to just get weird and I can vibe with that. The sections for collecting Wonder Seeds seem really creative and out there, with a lot of variety at that and the trippy nature of the first one in particular is a stand-out.

Besides that we got a surprising roster of characters, with the most out there choice being Daisy. Nintendo actually using their characters? Crazy talk.

In all seriousness, I appreciate them expanding beyond Mario and Luigi on a more regular basis now and what helps charm me even more is how expressive and alive the characters are.

Everyone around on social media has likely seen these comparison shots already:

But even beyond that you have little things like the characters reacting to the spiked boulder about to chase them:

I just adore stuff like this and hope the game is full of that.

Beyond that there are still a lot of little things, like the not-Toad NPC, the elephant power-up, that wild looking Bowser Jr, etc. Loads to see and I can’t wait for more info.

My only gripe is that they are still passing up Toad in favor of colorful generics. It’s not gonna make me less excited for the game, even though I feel cheated out of one of my favs, but I wish Nintendo would finally stop doing that.

Super Mario RPG Remake

I won’t lie, when leakers mentioned this one, I wasn’t all that thrilled.

Not because I don’t like RPG or the idea of a remake, but because I expected it to be butchered. Part of its charm is that it is a time capsule to an era where Mario’s now known visual identity and several concepts didn’t exist yet. I fully expected that to be done away with, for the sake of brand consistency, on top of some of the more undesirable changes from the Mario & Luigi remakes.

I couldn’t have been more wrong.

Genuinely, I was so caught off-guard by everything shown here. Mario, Peach and Bowser are updated to their modern looks, which is perfectly fine, but beyond that, it is genuinely amazing how much they retained the original.

All the original characters are still present which, granted, wasn't unlikely, but still lovely to see.

They retained a more chibi proportioned look, in-line with the original’s renders and sprites.

The environments still look as they did back then, no NSMB colorful hills in the grassland area or anything. They even resisted the temptation to update Peach’s castle to its standard look.

Most shocking of all, the old Toad NPC designs, my favorites in all Mario games, are left intact:

And as an extra bone as a Toad fan, after Wonder disappointed, they even gave him dibs on the blue vest, to further distinguish him from the rest of his species.

Everything just looks so nice. The models and environments, the music, the cutscenes, it’s a charmer across the board.

Much like with Luigi’s Mansion, it’s up in the air how much new there will be content-wise, but honestly, I am fine regardless what direction it takes.

I’m just happy to have a reminder of what Mario RPGs used to be and I will gladly support it to show I miss that kinda stuff, on top of my adoration for the original.

WarioWare Move It!

The Wario fan is most excited for the Wario game, say what?

In all seriousness of course this makes me incredibly happy. Smooth Moves was my favorite WarioWare before the big revival with Gold and GiT and a follow-up with the joycon as the main focus always made sense.

This is very much a traditional WarioWare to its core and frankly, that is amazing, it even embraces the low quality, cursed 3D models from Smooth Moves that I love with all my heart. I would have also liked a GiT follow-up, but this always made the most sense for a second Switch entry and I am happy they aren’t sleeping on it.

The extra stuff like the board game mode also adds some intrigue, not enough to see what this will be like yet, but I am always glad to get some extra offerings beyond the regular stages.

That aside you got the fun vacation theme, 13-Amp possibly being a host now, some lovely Smooth Moves callbacks like the return of forms and so on. I am nothing but excited.

And this is yet another one I am happy just exists. This is the first time since the Wii that Wario has gotten more than one new game on a system and so soon after GiT no less. WarioWare is in a healthy state again and that is huge.

So yeah, banger after banger and a nice uptick after the 2022 Mario output was on the lacking side. I’ll always defend Battle League in many aspects, but it still sucks content-wise and Sparks of Hope, while good, is pretty lacking in the Mario aspect.

Between the 2023 releases out of these and the movie though, we truly have a banger year for anything Mario.

#WarioWare #Super Mario #Super Mario RPG #Luigi's Mansion #Princess Peach #Mario Kart #Mario + Rabbids