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drummergirl231-2 · 2 years

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So Goldie’s been living rent-free in my head for a while.

Personally I blame the movie Forrest Gump. I got on this kick of watching first-time reactions to Forrest Gump on YouTube (and by the way, did you know you can tell a lot about a person’s heart by their first reaction to Jenny?). Some of the comments on those videos were very inciteful, too.

Anyway, I’ve noticed some similarities between Jenny and Goldie’s behavior and now I’ve constructed this whole tragic backstory for her that I don’t wanna go into too much detail about here since this is supposed to be a safe blog as relatively trigger-free as possible (speaking of, I think I’ll put a seizure trigger warning on this because of one of the gifs), but anyway I’m pretty convinced Goldie was abused as a child, which would explain...

1. Her fear of vulnerability

(Sorry, this gif doesn’t have subtitles.) There are times when Goldie starts to let her guard down with Scrooge, just a little, and then she immediately puts her walls back up. Moonstoneflowers brought this up to Frank a few years ago.

2. Her preference to be in the lead

Goldie grew up in a time when men were in charge of everything. If a man close to her had abused that power, of course she’d be uncomfortable letting a man lead anything, even dances, and she’d prefer a brand of chivalry that let her be in control.

3. Her avoidance of domestic life

Settling down would mean entrusting her life to a man. Divorce laws were stricter way back when, and women often relied on their husbands for financial security. The idea of being financially dependent and legally bound to someone for life who could wind up mistreating her the way someone else had would be terrifying to her.

4. Leaving before she can be left

Someone made a comment on YouTube about Jenny and how staying in one place for too long would force her to ruminate on her traumatic past, so she was always running from it. I can see this applying to Goldie. She also probably feels like she’s not good enough for Scrooge, and would rather leave before he can reject her and that door gets closed forever. I can also imagine her leaving asap so she doesn’t get caught, but more on her con artist side in a minute.

5. Betraying before she can be betrayed

Sometimes it feels easier for victims of abuse to keep people at a distance, and as much as Goldie seems to crave closeness, it also scares the crud out of her. Betraying isn’t only a means of financial gain to her, but a way of keeping people who start to care about her from following her, and a way to prevent being hurt again.

6. Occasional violent tendencies

Sometimes victims of abuse try to regain a sense of lost power by being abusive to others. Other times, it’s just because that was the behavior that was modelled for them and they don’t know what healthy love is supposed to look like.

7. Becoming a con artist

Single women didn’t have a ton of money-making opportunities in the Victorian era, and certainly very few that would appeal to her. I imagine she’d have run away from home at a young age, and had to start stealing to survive. She probably performed in saloons at some point (since she did in the old comics and I think that’d be a neat nod, like her performance in “The Outlaw Scrooge McDuck!”), but she’d have grown uneasy as drunken men would’ve catcalled her or tried to grab her. Frustrated that even earning an honest living left her vulnerable to sleazy men, she’d go into scamming and prospecting full-time.

And then she’d meet Scrooge.

(^Favorite Scroldie screencap EVER)

I could go on and on about what likely drew them to each other... you know, besides being stuck in an iceberg and forced to stare at each other for five years... but I think what it came down to is they wanted the same thing at the time: gold. Neither of them felt any pressure to settle down from the other.

Now, Scrooge has more or less “settled down.” He still adventures, but he’s got a family that depends on him who mean more to him than anything. As for Goldie, I think after “The Forbidden Fountain of the Foreverglades!” she’s realized Scrooge is more important to her than anything else she’s been after.

It seems like after this episode, they were “back on,” so to speak, but in a long-distance relationship. That’s probably what’s most comfortable to her right now. But it was nice seeing her get to the point when she realized what she wanted was a fresh start and to be with Scrooge. I think that was a big step for her.

#seizure trigger warning #ducktales 2017 #ducktales goldie #ducktales scroldie #ducktales the forbidden fountain of the foreverglades!

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derekfoxwit · 2 years

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Quite The Discourse Oddity: Feeling Edgy & Mature

As someone who has come to appreciate the art of animation, it’s really common to see discourse that has to stress that the medium isn’t just for children. Over my time online, however, I’ve felt that there tended to be an obsession with creating an image of self-righteousness or entitlement with select projects that were able to appeal just as much for adults as children. Whether it’d be due to insecurities or genuine ego, so often I’ve felt too much animation discourse (especially from the late-2000s to early 2010s) would seemingly rely more on the image of SOUNDING smart rather than the ability to engage the subject with depth, how their artistic lens or media literacy developed overtime, or even if they have any real sense of scale. Sometimes to the point that the idea of whether one’s actually calling a work a job well done can be questionable. Welcome to......QUITE THE DISCOURSE ODDITY!

To start this series off, I want to bring up the incorporation of innately mature content in an animated family work. First off, Le Innuendo! Here is a link to a post I made. For now, we’re ignoring the “back in muh day” comments for a second. I’ve felt that over the years, there has been this oversimplifying habit of bringing up these innuendos (mainly the sexual kind) as a means to elevate the animated kids’ work as cream of the crop material. For example, that aforementioned post that has an image that showcases a hidden joke this iconic Cartoon Network show was able to work in. As neat as that could be to notice looking back at a show, I’ve felt that over the years, there has been this oversimplifying habit of bringing up these innuendos (mainly the sexual kind) as a means to elevate the animated kids’ work as cream of the crop material. Yet, in practice, HOW they illustrate this sort of love tends to amount to “they were able to work in this bit I now get” but little else.

Sure, like I said, it can be neat to realize those gags now that you’ve aged and see how they managed to sneak them. The issue I have here, though, is that with how surprisingly frequent it is to see several innuendos across individual kids’ cartoons, I find that it takes away from how good of a job the work could be doing at what it aims for. Or ESPECIALLY the stylistic touches that are in display. Largely due to how often emphasis is put more on the MERE inclusion of that type of gag than anything else relating to its’ implementation, a frequent oddity with plenty of animation discourse circles. I find that by downplaying such jokes, or even the overall tone of the comedy, in a similar way, it unintentionally downplays why certain works themselves are considered so good. Almost like an implication of all the comedy of that nature being created equal, which is just…….NOT the case!

With the aforementioned sexual innuendos, simply leaving it as “it’s a joke I now get” doesn’t necessarily inform one on why some cartoons were able to catch on more compared others. For example, if I was looking back at this joke and several others from Powerpuff Girls and was all “man, that show was top tier” after realizing said jokes, yet also showed little interest or enthusiasm in Animaniacs (a very notable cartoon for its’ bonus jokes for adults), what is that meant to say about the quality of either? What would that mean for certain animated films? Even in the occasion in which someone actually DOES bring up that said dirty joke is likely to turn out more awkward or gratuitous than effective, when that line is being crossed is often no less hazy. It’s definitely not helped when people overblow how gimped family cartoons became with what a kids’ show can do now. In case of the Justice League related one, you also got the comments in the screencap clearly missing the point of what that specific scene and episode was about (newscaster using his position to ruin the JL’s credibility).

Speaking of which, for all the (frequently deserved) ragging on certain adult animations for being gratuitous with how edgy or intentionally offensive they could get, every now and again, the general attitude with what someone wants in a family cartoon can feel no different. Mainly in the sense that it feels like sheer spectacle is all that’s needed, not so much the structural substance. In this “western animation vs eastern europe animation” video (which we’ll be going back to another time), TONS UPON TONS of commentors were romanticizing the ‘more mature’ nature of the Eastern Europe example (an animated telling of Vladimir the Great) in comparison to the obviously cherry-picked example of inferior content (the Blue’s Clues reboot, mainly the pride parade clip). As shown above, several of those comments would talk up the Vladimir cartoon (and older fairy tales at parts) for being darker and good for the kids due to showing them harsh realities.......yet some of the language also reads as excessively masculine and largely patriotic on attitude. They were also being REALLY arbitrary about what’s okay to show kids. Let’s just say that certain flags were burned just to wave their red one.

Every now and again, there’s so much focus put on sheer edginess that it can lead to people either ignoring much of the story content entirely or just simply missing proper context of certain events. For example, more often than not, when Pokémon fans bring up how much more mature the manga can be compared to the anime, they’re highlighting isolated moments rather than the full narrative content, with this sliced Arbok being the most notable image. However, within the manga proper, that same Arbok was one that could regenerate. For another example, here’s a screencap of a couple of Justice League related Tweets I found at some point. In addition to the same overblown comment of not being able to make that joke today, the two comments in the Tweets clearly missing the point of what that specific scene and episode was about (newscaster using his position to ruin the JL’s credibility).

Even with the simple act of incorporating darker elements, things would frequently get foggy. One YouTube comment I remember from a Watch Mojo video was annoyed about Toy Story 3 being on the respective list, with particular critique being aimed at the toy gang being saved from the incinerator. However, the critique seemed to only amount to “it would’ve been different and risky”. The commentor also brought up how Bambi and Lion King were able to pull off character deaths and how that apparently proves that TS3 has no excuse, even though…..those are different movies with different goals, a nuance that many of these sort of discussions fundamentally forget about. Sure, it may have felt nice, for example, to see Robin and Starfire’s relationship blossom over the course of the 2003 TV show, but that doesn’t mean every show needs to take up that much time for their romantic relationships or build things up for the majority of the series (some shows don’t even try to go for five seasons).

Sometimes, it can even lead to a continuous elevation of a select couple works for tackling the topic of prejudice at the expense of giving another, less nostalgic endeavor a chance. This isn’t helped by how, at times, it feels like their comprehension of being ‘less deep’ would come down to either a borderline snobbish claim of unoriginality or believing that a quick summary is enough. It makes the idea if the speaker was even looking at things with nuance all the less likely. For example, within this one screencap about cartoons handling the topic of death, this clown was lamenting on the last time it happened for western animation was some early 2010s action superhero show (Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes). With the replies in mind that point out the comment’s bullshit (such as how the much more chill Harvey Beaks was able to bring up the topic of death in one episode), there ends up being not only an implied bias for high-octane action (once again suggesting a focus on perceived ‘edgy’ spectacle), but one that’s clearly led to some sort of dismissive attitude. On the one hand, it is understandable that the incorporation of certain topics in a work mostly intended for children to watch would be heavily appreciated, especially when looking back. But at the same time, for many cases of bringing up how an older project was able to hold up, there are similar notions to that of the sexual innuendo implementations from earlier: treating the MERE incorporation as the most that’s needed (similar to what I previously said about TS3). It frequently feels like it’s less about how one manages to handle the topic (such as things like, say, TACT) and more about giving off this self-proposed idea of higher ambition or sheer audacity. Sure, it’s neat that the original Teen Titans cartoon could claim to have tackled the topic of prejudice, but you gotta remember that it also provided this dialogue exchange for that same episode:

Starfire: “You know what it feels like to be judged simply because of how you look?”

Cyborg: “’Course I do…..I’m part robot.”

Whether it’s through insecurity or a pompous self-image, it often feels like animation discourse can rely too much on FEELING mature by having material that seems edgy on paper. Heck, one of the most called-out animation phenomenon, which relates adult cartoons, helps demonstrate this happening as a public mentality. Yet at the same time, it’s not uncommon to see more dedicated animation circles to focus too much on the mere audacity of seeming a little edgier, downplaying the more structural contents in the process. What can result in those cases is an underdeveloped sense of scale and, therefore, possibly painting excessive extremes that get in the way. More detail on that for another time.

#animation #reddit #twitter #youtube #discussion #rant #cartoon network #nickelodeon #disney #justice league #teen titans 2003 #pokemon manga

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talenlee · 11 months

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May 2023 Wrapup

May’s over! We got there, everybody. That’s one more May in the books that won’t be hurting anybody any more. Just eleven more months before you see millenials busting out the Justin Timberlake memes again. It did bring an annual tradition of finding time to make at least one article making fun of Star Wars to run on May the 4th.

On the Game Pile, I decided to talk about some stuff I really liked, just plain and simple, things I liked, this month:

Lunark, a kickstarter step-platformer about playing furries who steal the moon, not joking

Flamecraft, a kickstarter board game about helping cute dragons find the best way to help people with their day

Tide Breaker, a TTRPG about cinematic pulp adventure that doesn’t rely on the centering of whiteness

The release of the Magic: the Gathering set Scourge, which marks my 20 year anniversary of playing Magic: The Gathering, meaning I have now been playing as long as the average player has been alive

The Story Pile meanwhile brings

The Owl House Finale, where a really good show got a really good send-off. I wish people could talk about the episodes for what they show and how good it is.

My Hero Academia, Season 4 and 5, which is where the multinational juggernaut of the largest superhero franchise not owned by Disney kinda just puttered around and made a few decent episodes of an extremely mid show

The Johnny Series, where Fox and I talked about the trilogy of books by Terry Pratchett that don’t have anything to do with the Discworld. No really!

15 Minutes, a movie about ooo, what if people have cameras all the time, why they’d record crimes and the police would be powerless to stop them woooo and the courts would be on their siiiide

Good articles

As for other articles, I’ve done a bunch of stuff on worldbuilding. There were three articles about the spooky province of the Szudetken (1, 2, 3), and their seven six kingdoms on the far side of a propaganda veil. I wrote also about the Cow People of Kyranou, who are in fact, not cow people. I asked about the importance of droids as slaves in Star Wars. I wrote about how in One Stone, there’s magic but it relates heavily to the nature of things you can do with goo. I also wrote about magic systems that unconsciously or consciously encourage eugenics when you can have a Person of Mass Destruction.

This month I tried a sticker design rather than a T-shirt. The idea was to try and invoke a presidential campaign sticker, the kind that get left on a car well after they matter, because who cares about taking them off? The reference is the two protagonists of major anime franchises in the west in 2006, who were both named Haruhi: Haruhi Suzumiya of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya and Haruhi Fujioka of Ouran High School Host Club.

This is the kind of thing I find a funny joke for myself, and I don’t imagine anyone else will ever be interested in. I think I did a good job getting the aesthetic of a political bumper sticker down, with the firm font and the spacing designed to equalise the two differently-lengthed names. Also, the rose and SOS club symbols were originally reduced from screencaps, traced over for most of the shapes, then upscaled by one of them online upscaling programs that calls itself ‘AI’ and I think is probably just throwing the processes from someone else’s computer at it.

It’s the end of the semester for one of my classes, and one has only a few days left. It’s a tough one to handle because one of those two classes featured a body of students who I’ve been teaching for three to four years finish their degrees and recognise that this was not only their last class for the semester, but their last class. This meant there was an afternoon session of them sitting down and reflecting with me both on their upcoming project, but on what it’s been like to be my student since the Uni first started doing remote learning in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

One of them talked about how she hadn’t encountered a teacher taking executive dysfunction seriously. I know I spoke pretty frankly to those 2020 classes about the importance of respecting your own limits at that point in time — about how forcing yourself to work when you couldn’t was going to make worse work than doing it later. This got her started on some stuff, and we wound up at a conversation about how neurotypicality is kinda a very small, agreed upon box and it’s useful to have the tools to know how you relate to that box.

I’m really going to miss these students. I liked teaching them. But that’s a gift too. I get to remember them and I get to miss them. I don’t have to follow them on their fretting about getting a job or the next stage now they have a degree or how their final exams work out. I just need to mark their work and remember them. Hopefully I’ll find out one day that a student I taught did something amazing. That’d be neat. I’m confident they’ll all do something good, just don’t know what form that takes.

It’s weird to have this memory sticking out for me because really, the defining feeling I have at this point in the month, right now, is failure. Failure at keeping on top of things, failure at doing things the right way, failure at doing things for the right reason. Every day is a long ongoing quest to argue against a voice that for the past few years has been telling me I’m not good enough and let me tell you this month that voice has been winning.

Check it out on PRESS.exe to see it with images and links!

#Diary #Meta

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themattress · 4 years

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My Top 11 Danganronpa Characters

I love many characters in the Danganronpa series, but these ones are truly the Ultimate.

11. Monomi

Don’t get me wrong, Usami is a sweetheart and all, but on her own (as seen in DR2′s Island Mode) she’s pretty bland. While her forced conversion into Monomi caused her no end of grief in-universe, it made her a much stronger and more memorable character outside of it. Her interactions with Monokuma and position as his good counterpart / “little sister” are just perfect, as is the voicework done by Rebecca Forstadt. She, like her “big brother”, is iconic.

10. Sakura Oogami

I may love Nekomaru and Gonta too, but neither of them hold a candle to the original “tall, muscular giant who looks scary as Hell but is actually the nicest, most loyal friend you could ever hope to have” in the franchise: Sakura Oogami. Her lower placement on this list is only because she kind of recedes into the background among the cast until the reveal at the end of Chapter 3 (which is fitting given the nature of that reveal), but once Chapter 4 centers around her she easily steals the show as a powerful, noble and tragic figure who is nonetheless such a beautiful human being that she successfully ends the Killing Game.

9. Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu

A textbook case of a character you hate at the start and love by the end, Fuyuhiko’s development from a perpetually angry wannabe-thug who refused to be friends with his classmates and routinely threatened them with violence as a cover for his insecurities to a humble, honorable, brave, supportive team player was amazing to watch unfold, and Derek Stephen Prince sells it magnificently with his most touching performance since Ken Ichijoji . He may still be rough around the edges, but Baby Gangsta has always got your back.

8. Byakuya Togami

If you merged Sherlock Holmes and Seto Kaiba, and in the process filtered out all of the redeeming qualities, you get Byakuya Togami: an elitist prick of the highest order who has a dangerous intellect to back up his ego. As despicable as Byakuya is, he is also fascinating: I both hate hanging around him due to his constant insults and love it because I’m drawn to watching him work as he displays just how well the Togami family-sponsored education has served him. He’s as useful as an ally as he is formidable as an enemy, and once he learns there are some things beyond his sociopathic grasp and that it’s best to stick with those who know it, he mellows out into a reliable anti-hero. So yeah, awful person, fantastic character.

7. Chiaki Nanami

Hey, hey! Chiaki, as portrayed in DR2 anyway, is such a lovable character, at first seeming like an anti-social girl who would rather play video games and sleep than converse with people, but steadily revealing just how big a heart she really has and what a great friend she is once she connects with someone. As naive and weird as she is, she quickly picks up on things once she learns them, and is consistently one of the most perceptive people to have around in a class trial. And just when it seems like she’s becoming a tad too perfect to be realistic, we find out that she isn’t real and suffer one of the biggest emotional gut-punches in the series as she is cruelly taken away from us...except that even then, the bond she and Hajime forged is strong enough to keep her digital spirit alive within him. And Christine M. Cabanos brings it all home with her vocal performance. Chiaki, we will never forget you.

6. Nagito Komaeda

Who would have thought that a guy who at first seems like a weird, equally bland retread of Makoto from the original would end up being one of the franchise’s most famous characters? But it’s super easy to see why - when he shows his true colors it is bone-chilling, and the creepiness factor that Nagito brings with him only keeps on growing from there, as he shows how far he’s willing to go in order to create despair just so that hope can triumph over it. The story of DR2 would not nearly work as well as it does without Nagito in the role of the arch-antagonist for the other characters, all while he develops as a character too in a deliciously negative way which ends up culminating in what is probably the best class trial in the series.

5. Celestia Ludenburg

In a mystery-solving game like Danganronpa, Celestia honestly stands out as one of the most complex characters because she herself is a mystery. The game doesn’t really spell out her backstory, motivations or character arc given that as the Queen of Lies she has to keep a poker face about all that, but does allow the player to decipher it by themselves. While those unwilling to indulge their minds write her off as “crazy evil gambler lady who just wants money in order to become a vampire queen”, the people who pay attention to everything she says and does across the game (including / especially in her FTEs) can separate the truth from the lies and uncover the sad, pitiful reality of the character, a reality that haunts her all the way to her final moments. Call her Celeste or call her Taeko, that kind of depth deserves respect.

4. Gundham Tanaka

That’s right, my favorite DR2 character isn’t Monomi or Fuyuhiko or Chiaki or even Nagito - it’s GUNDHAM TANAKA! This man is a fucking legend, with Chris Tergliafera’s voice-acting perfectly capturing how endearing he is with his persistent delusions of villainous grandeur. But as funny as Gundham may be, he ends up not being a purely comic relief figure, playing a serious, emotional and noble role at the end of his run that gets me and many other players choked up. He may play at being evil, but in actuality Gundham is too good for this Earth.

3. Junko Enoshima

Do I need to explain myself here? It’s Junko fucking Enoshima! One of the most unique Big Bads in recent video game history! From the fact that the ultimate evil is a teen fashionista to the bizarre way she keeps changing her personality just to keep from getting bored to her ungodly despair fetish that has no rational basis for existing but simply does, Junko is less like a human being and more like a force of nature: gleeful, nihilistic despair incarnate. And though it’s true that she wore out her welcome past DR2, in her prime she is magnificent.

2. Kyoko Kirigiri

As far as I’m concerned, Kyoko Kirigiri is the real main character of the original Danganronpa. Makoto is just the POV character; the Watson to her Holmes. And what a character she is; truly one of the greatest female detectives in all of fiction. What I love best about Kyoko is what a unique take on the Emotionless Girl / Ice Queen trope she is. It’s made clear quite frequently that she isn’t really emotionless and that she’s just really good at masking her feelings as a necessary part of her job, and that this doesn’t stop her from being a kind and compassionate person toward others in her own straight-faced way. The narrative doesn’t condemn her for the way she is and she doesn’t have to change it either; what she has to change is her distrust toward others and reluctance to rely on friends, plus her hypocrisy regarding that and her personal goal vs. everyone else’s. It makes her such a rich, nuanced character and I love her for it (fuck the Danganronpa 3 anime though, it did her so dirty).

1. Monokuma

I think I’ll just conclude this post with a screencap:

#Dangan Ronpa #Opinion #Analysis #Comparison

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kimboobaggins · 5 years

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What is ur favorite aspect of ichiruki? Its great but I would like to hear ur thoughts.

hrm that’s a v good question

I guess just the immense amount of trust they have in each other and the fact that they bring out the best in each other is what I love most about them.

There’s so many relationships depicted in media that are portrayed as “goals” and as something you should root for when it’s really a toxic af relationship. I used to watch a lot of TV dramas with my sister and while I would root for a ship (that was eventually canon), I always found myself disliking it quickly once both characters eventually started dragging each other down and just being bad for each other in general but all was always forgiven after one dumb and cheesy 5 minute talk that would be forgotten by the next episode and like???? no thanks?? like they would literally be the worst to each other but all would be forgiven in some half assed way eventually.

Ichigo and Rukia were always equals. Ichigo never saw Rukia as someone weak who needed to be saved and Rukia didn’t rely on Ichigo to save her and take care of her. Even in times when Ichigo wanted to protect her, it was never bc he thought she was weak, but just bc he didn’t want her to get hurt. They were always bringing out the best in each other and improved each other’s lives so much. She stopped the rain for Ichigo. He saved her life and improved the relationship between her, Byakuya and Renji (my memory of Bleach is p bad so I might be wrong on this rip). I haven’t read the first arc in forever but even in the early stages of their relationship they had so much trust and faith in each other. They cared for each other immensely and were always trying to find a way to look out for each other rather than hold each other back. Like when Ichigo really wanted Rukia to come back home with him in the SS arc, he accepted that she wanted to stay and was genuinely happy for her own happiness and contentment in the Seireitei. They had a lot of selfless love for each other and it was such a beautiful thing to see. You have to be delusional to think they didn’t love each other, even if you don’t ship them. I really can’t think of any other relationship like theirs. It’s hard to even put in words, like I’ve really been sitting here for an hour just trying to think of how to word this.

But yeah, that’s p much the main reasons why I love them so much. Just the way they lifted up one another and they respect they had for each other. If I had the time to reread Bleach I would provide you with screencaps and more specific examples but perhaps at a later time (as if anyone else would care LOL).

#i've been up since 4am so im barely a person rn #but I hope this answers ur question???#ichiruki #also idk what provoked this question but ty!!#i don't get many chances to talk about ichiruki lol #i may not remember bleach but gosh dang it do I still love me my ichiruki #*dabs*#too bad it couldn't have been a more thought out response #Anonymous

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ettadunham · 5 years

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A Buffy rewatch 3x16 Doppelgängland

aka evil skanky and kinda gay

Welcome to this dailyish text post series where I will rewatch an episode of Buffy and rant about it in 10-3k words. What you can expect: long run-on sentences and disjointed observations, often focused on one tiny detail about the episode. What you shouldn’t be expecting: actual reviews that make sense.

And if today’s episode doesn’t make you laugh out loud uncomfortably at least 5 times during each rewatch... then you’re probably Vamp!Willow, and that’s cool. You do you. Literally, I guess.

During my rant for The Wish, I already confessed that that episode used to be pretty high up on my personal list. I’m aware however, that most people prefer Doppelgangland to that fun AU apocalypse scenario... and I get it. I really do, especially these days.

On the other hand, it’s also tough to make comparisons. It’s a different tone, different vibe and offers different things for the show’s general storyline and lore, despite using the same alternate universe as a jumping point. The Wish is a dark and gloomy exploration of the hell we make for ourselves once we lose hope in a better world. Doppelgangland is a non-stop fun ride that’s a major milestone and has many future implications for Willow’s character arc.

But let’s start at the beginning-ish, with an unfairly neglected segment of these rants that I like to call Out of Context Wuffy.

Willow: How come the sudden calisthenics? Aren't you sort of naturally buff, Buff? *giggles* Buff buff.

(If that’s not the official ship name, I will make it so, if it’s the last thing I do on this site.)

Willow then talks about how the whole pencil floating she does requires emotional control... and then when she’s like “Oh, I’m totally fine with us talking about Faith”, the pencil starts twirling like crazy like some supernatural lie detector.

But there’ll be plenty of opportunity to discuss Willow’s feelings on Faith a couple of eps from now.

Faith herself is presently bonding with the Mayor, but she also goes out of her way to touch Buffy’s shoulder in a scene beforehand???

There really is no heterosexual explanation for this. Like, I literally can’t explain how Faith acts with Buffy in any other way. We just have to accept that Faith is in love with Buffy as part of the text rather than just subtext, and move on from there.

Oz: I'd call that a radical interpretation of the text.

Shut up, Joss, I’m right and you know it.

But this episode is still very much a Willow episode, so I should probably talk Willow. Which, as you may know, I’m prone to do a lot anyway.

The problem that I’m kind of running into is that I find it hard to talk about the subtle effects and shifts this episode starts or shines a light on in Willow’s character without seeing that arc folding out first. Like, I know where we’re going, and I could talk about that part I guess, but I’m more interested in re-experiencing and paying more attention to the steps that take us there.

Something that this episode calls out for instance, is how Willow feels like she’s The Doormat, even in their own friend group. The person that gets bullied to do other peoples work for them, someone they rely on to be there and do what they ask of her.

This, while coincides with Willow’s desire for validation, runs counter to her need to feel special. So when Anya asks if she wants to do a spell with her, there’s absolutely no hesitation on her part. Finally, she gets to do something that sets her apart!

But then Evil!Willow appears, and that represents a whole new can of worms to Willow... On the plus side, one of those is the fact that she’s not afraid to want or ask things for herself. And that’s a lesson that our Willow will certainly take away from this encounter I think.

I particularly like the ending scene, where the jock Willow was supposed to tutor, and who tried to get her to write his whole essay for him, shows up after his encounter with Vamp!Willow. And he’s actually done all the work. Thoroughly. Twice. And even gives his apple to Willow.

It’s a rare occasion where we see Willow actually having the power in an encounter or relationship like that. At least it’s been rare up until this point.

That’s sort of the fun of Vamp!Willow here. She may not be our Willow exactly, and she may be an evil creepy vampire (as all vampires are), but she still makes Willow consider new possibilities... As well as perhaps confront some facets of her character that she ignored in the past.

Willow: That's me as a vampire? I'm so evil and... skanky. And I think I'm kinda gay. Buffy: Willow, just remember, a vampire's personality has nothing to do with the person it was. Angel: Well, actually...

And just look at that girl in the screencap above. She’s so gay for Vamp!Willow, it’s not even funny. No wonder she got the Moloch treatment of getting immediately killed by her evil gay crush. (Those wacky 90s, am I right?)

Let’s not forget though, that Vamp!Willow evidently also enjoys getting handsy with herself. Their shared scenes are essentially the embodiment of the “I don’t wanna have sex with my clone ‘cause what if my clone is evil” meme.

Meanwhile Anya gets introduced more, and I can’t wait to spend some more quality time with my favorite 1000-year-old demon child.

Arguably something else that can be said of this episode, is that it’s just all memorable lines all the time, from start to finish. So, much like with the previous episode, I can only advise you to give this episode in particular a rewatch. It’s very much worth it.

Press play on Doppelgangland you guys, watch order be damned!

#buffy rewatch 2k19 #btvs talk #btvs

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lotusdiscussthis · 5 years

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@yunevii

I read your tags and I was afraid to respond to it considering you didn’t show it on the reblog. By putting your comments on the tags, I could’ve easily overlooked it, so I didn’t know if you really wanted to talk about it or not. In the end, I’ve decided to link you to give you my reply anyway. I hope you don’t mind.

I don’t blame you for not agreeing. After all, my perception of Saihara can be hard to believe when I haven’t given enough explanations as to what made me look at Saihara in such a negative way. It’s mainly due to having to reanalyze the story in a different perspective after discovering things that paints the supposedly innocent detective in a different light. But I’ll try to explain my thoughts the best that I can...

“kokichi often makes conversations go in frustrating circles because of his lies...

True, talking to Ouma also gave me headaches when I first played. Though sometimes the best way to determine someone’s nature is to not always rely on their words, but through their actions. It’s easy to say things like “I’m really evil” and act like the bad guy, but if your actions contradict with that behavior, that would naturally raise questions.

Let’s take Ouma’s evil speech after Gonta died. He said he enjoys their suffering, yet in the previous chapter, he urged Himiko to express her grief properly. How is it that he would go that far for someone he barely even knows, only to suddenly make a big show about he loves their suffering later on? Or when Ouma looked like he faked being injured only for Saihara to notice him wobbling as he walked and failed to notice how he was blanking out while talking to him? Or how about when Ouma was screaming “WE want to live, so don’t get in our way!” mid-trial while arguing with Kaito? We’ve just forgotten that part when Ouma later explains, “Oh yeah, me and Gonta were totally planning on getting you all killed so you wouldn’t have to face the horrible despair of the outside world!” None of this makes any sense.

How is it that Saihara would overlook these major redflags that would contradict the fact that Ouma was a heartless person? If I can notice this myself, how is it that the protagonist, the Ultimate Detective, can’t??? (Also, reading between the lines is kinda what detectives do, so this is no excuse)

“i think more than anything saihara wanted to feel like kokichi was on his side-...”

I will be frank, you shouldn’t expect people to do anything for you so simply. That was pretty much what I was trying convey in my original post. To think that somebody on the opposing side as you is automatically suspicious, not good, or wrong is just incredibly flawed reasoning. Especially since the reason why Ouma wasn’t on Saihara’s side in the first place was because he was mostly siding with Kaito the whole time. And Kaito, a man of instinct/belief/blind optimism, mostly showed hostility towards almost everything Ouma says and does. Ouma clearly knew the gravity of the situation and yet, he gets treated like the pariah because almost nobody wants to listen to what he has to say.

Ouma tried several times in the beginning to speak logically about their circumstances, yet practically everyone would automatically think he’s trying to start up pointless trouble. Like when Ouma said if Gonta were to continue being gullible, he was going to get killed. The reason why we saw Ouma as the bad guy in that moment was because everyone around him started to get all defensive and called him insensitive for saying such things after Kaede and Rantaro died. Which isn’t rational. THEY ARE IN A DEATH GAME. Whether Ouma had said anything or not wouldn’t have changed that fact.

Out of everyone, Ouma has proven to have put in the most effort into showing his trustworthiness by spitting out the facts and warning them all to be careful, but it was everyone else (besides Miu and Gonta) that had rejected his help in the end.

On the one hand, Saihara hadn’t really done anything to earn Ouma’s support and friendship since meeting him. Even if Saihara was truly expecting what you had claimed, it doesn’t change the fact that it’s selfish for him to think that way. He doesn’t owe Saihara anything.

On the other hand, Ouma also did say at one point he was on everyone else’s side. And in the 5th trial, he had put everything on the line for his final plan to work and put an end to the killing game. Knowing that, does it still sound like he was not on his friends’ side? Even if you’ve figured it out, Saihara somehow couldn’t bring himself to comprehend this fact.

“...but talking to him always feels like a battle just to get the truth out”

If the ‘truth’ you are referring to is about knowing Ouma’s true intentions and plans, then there’s a good reason for that. Ouma did mention in the beginning that carelessly opening up to people would be dangerous. And no, I don’t think he was speaking as Mr. Paranoia as much as the fandom loves to see him as. I think he said that because Monokuma would most likely be listening in on their conversations and that one of their friends is most likely the ringleader. (Just like how Kyoko was cautious of talking to Makoto out in the open in DR1) And turns out he was correct. So if he explained that much in the beginning, shouldn’t that give the listener (Saihara) a better idea as to why he shouldn’t be too outright with his intentions? There’s only so much you can do without getting careless within a killing game.

“also by the time saihara says that he’ll never get kokichi to change kokichi had proven to be not just hard to talk to but pretty heartless and villainous as well”

I would like for you to recall how Ouma first introduced himself... Now this is something I’ve always found curious, but never really dove into too deeply in case the story were to prove me otherwise at some point. But now that it’s been a year since I first played, I just have to ask those who think that Ouma has a single sadistic or villainous bone in his body.....

What kind of antagonist would out themselves as a liar in the beginning? In a killing game, no less?

We all know that he’s an incredibly clever boy who knows how to play mind games and put on an act that would befit the situation. So if he was truly serious about winning the game and was willing to coldly disregard the lives of others, wouldn’t it make more sense to not reveal that problematic aspect of himself? Wouldn’t it give him a better advantage to NOT play the flaming jerkwad role and piss everyone off to the point of wanting to kill you? Much like how Komaeda played innocent until Hajime and Chiaki cornered him into admitting that he set up the murder plan and then showed his crazy side. Ouma could’ve played himself up just like that as well, but no. Instead he kept claiming he’s nothing more than a liar.

Admitting to a bunch of (supposed) strangers that he’s a liar just makes no sense at all. Although, to disregard his intentions as just him being crazy or just him screwing around would be oversimplifying things. Even Nagito had an understandable method to his madness...

“though he hadnt done anything drastic he does fuck up the trials and says (lies) about how much fun the killing game is”

When you say “fuck up the trials”, you mean when he took Ryoma’s motive video or saying that he killed Angie? I had to ask to make sure because just simply saying “he screwed up the trials” is not a clear enough explanation. Anyway, we never actually knew the real reason as to why Ouma stole the motive vid. We were made to think he did it for kicks, but in the end, he explained on Ryoma’s behalf that his motive video was empty when nobody knew what could’ve made him lose his will to live. I guess he also speculated that Maki was Ryoma’s killer and wanted to steal it before she got a hold of it. After all, she was the original holder of his video and nobody knew about her and Ryoma’s encounter besides Ouma, so nobody would’ve questioned her as to why she had his video. And I think Ouma was waiting for an opportune moment to shove the evidence in her face if things went differently. (I’m just guessing here tho.) But I do believe Ouma has reasons for why he does what he does, instead of simply doing it for jokes.

On the matter of him claiming that he killed Angie, he said so himself that he was trying to lure out the culprit by pretending to be the killer. He said if he played the killer, the actual blackened would likely push the blame onto him. I don’t know about you, but I think that’s more of a valid reason to do it than simply screwing around.

It’s rather funny to me how the fandom talks about how Ouma screws up the trials, but what about Tenko, Himiko and Maki???

Tenko kept others from questioning Himiko for the sake of the investigation, Himiko would sooner let everyone die for the sake of keeping her magic a secret, and Maki stupidly kept quiet and put the trial on hold so nobody would figure out her talent. And yet, Saihara would sooner side with them and lie for their sake in the middle of the trial even though he had just about as little relations with them as he did with Ouma. Why????

“its really hard for saihara to feel like he’s on his side despite how much he does want to work with him”

I’m sorry to say, but Saihara had that opportunity to work with Ouma when the boy himself made the offer in the VW. Without considering it or even questioning him, Saihara just ignored him and logged out. Saihara clearly had no intention of working beside him.

“i do kinda agree that he didnt really ask that many questions but kokichis answers really had proven to always be super vague or just a lie”

Which vague answers are you talking about exactly? I wouldn’t know how to answer that myself because that’s not specific enough. Give me an example?

“the point is i really dont believe saihara is an arrogant person.”

I’m afraid that the screencaps I’ve shown in the original post aren’t the only proof I have to show that he’s an arrogant person. I wanted to mention them in a different post, but I’ll give you a few other brief examples.

He has insinuated that Ouma is stupid despite the fact that we’re talking about the same dude that has pretty much been doing more detective work than the actual detective did. Not to mention that Saihara’s the one that believed Ouma was the mastermind and screwed up the first case majorly.

After the 5th Closing Argument, Saihara claimed his detective’s intuition was flawless even though it was clearly just conjecture in the end. He had practically no proof to back up what he had laid out for them. He may have gotten Kaito to exit out of the exisal but only because he had to lie. That doesn’t prove that was what actually transpired. Only Kaito knows about what had happened between him and Ouma, and seeing how Kaito was following the script he was given, we wouldn’t know the extent of it.

This one really peeves me. Because he thinks he knows better, he thinks he gets to shut down someone else’s emotions because he thinks they’re lying when he couldn’t possibly have gotten the chance to know one thing about him. Whether you think someone is insincere or not, it’s not your place to disregard their feelings like that.

There’s also the fact that Kirumi got unexpectedly personal and called out on the fact that Saihara doesn’t even listen to others in the 2nd trial. It was weird how she could make these accusations at all like she knows something...

And despite the fact that Tsumugi claimed it was Kaede’s twin as the possible suspect, Saihara would sooner disregard the piece of evidence because he trusted his intuition moreso than looking into possible facts. Same can be said in the first trial too, where he trusted his intuition to pin Kaede as the culprit despite the fact that she WASN’T...

I’ll just stop it here...

“i dont think its right to compare gundam and kokichi”

Well, I don’t see how it’s wrong either, honestly... Considering how the game itself gave me a lot to work with to show how much these two said characters contrast with one another. I actually made something before that would showcase a lot of comparisons between Ouma and Gundham. So if you wish, you can look for yourself and see what I mean... (Link to Self-Sacrificing Duos post) And a friend of mine actually analyzed a scene between the two when they had a moment in TDP and the game even subtly hinted about them being similar! (Link to Gundham and Ouma TDP moment post)

It’s kinda hard not to compare when there are a number of things you can compare within this franchise, not just Gundham and Ouma. They are all by the same creator after all and he loves to re-utilize his own tropes.

“wow i should not have written all this in the tags its so long sorry i make it sound like i dont like kokichi when i really do. he’s a great character just really hard to get along with. i hope this made any sense lol”

It’s no problem. I just hope that what I’ve explained made sense ^^; I apologize if I come across as harsh or anything like that, but I couldn’t find myself expressing certain points any better than I did...

Hopefully, this gives you at least a better understanding of where I’m coming from.

#{replied}#yunevii #{opinions}#{thoughts}#{screencaps}#{personal}#{answered}#{I need smeeps}

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prorevenge · 6 years

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Won't have my back? Guess I don't have yours anymore.

warning: sorry for length.

I work for a rather large well known, well hated company. Said company has started cracking down on Sexual Harassment thanks to a certain figurehead getting busted and the #metoo movement. This story of revenge starts back a few years ago...

I was really close with a coworker named Franklin. Franklin is a nice guy, about 10 years older than me, married, has kids, etc. However, Franklin was notorious for being a womanizer, a flirt, a pervert, but I had known him before joining the company, so I was used to his BS, and I put up with him. About a year after I started at the company, I moved to a new department, and 18 months later, he followed.

Why is this important? Because I am one of the reasons his promotion was approved. He was a good employee, knew his shit, and I talked him up. I even made sure my supervisor grabbed him, as he didn't know who would be good to grab, and I knew once Franklin was polished up on the policies of our department, he'd be an asset.

Remember how I said he was a flirt and a womanizer? Flash forward a few months later. He's gotten really close with another agent named Kelly. Kelly is very sweet, nerdy, and shy. Also everything Franklin drools over. Kelly is also married, which makes her a challenge, which Franklin doubly enjoys. He proceeds to spend a lot of time with her, buys her lunch, goes on breaks with her, etc. It's not long before the rumor mill is on overdrive.

Of course, being friends with both of them, I know what's going on. I deflect rumors, I give them alibis, the only thing I won't do for them is lie to their spouses. I feel guilty, but they're two grown adults, and if they're choosing to be idiots... that's on them. One day, they're making out in a stairwell at work, and another colleague walks in on them. Rumors are confirmed, they have to tell their respective spouses they cheated, 'cause how else do you explain a week of administrative leave, etc...

Flash forward a couple of months. During this hullabaloo, Franklin had been going for a promotion to a supervisor position. Between the two of them being honest, me running interference for them for so long, Franklin comes out with barely a scratch and gets the promotion. At this point, Kelly is now given an ultimatum. Because of their prior relationship, she has 6 months to find another position in the company, or get shitcanned.

I feel horrible, and help her get a position in another department. (That position ended up getting termed, but she's much happier where she's at, outside of the hellhole.) Franklin told her that it was too bad, and he'd miss her. He didn't do anything for her, and that infuriated me. While she was still with the company, he would reach out to her when he needed favors her department could pull, and try to get more out of her. I had her keep screenshots of these conversations.

At this point, he was also starting to get comfy with other girls in the department. Because of my sexuality, he saw it as an open invite to point out the other girls in the department, and rate them to me. I started getting really irritated with him, when he started hitting on my good friend Dawn (who also happened to be dating my brother - important later).

Dawn was in no means interested in him, and would purposely flirt with me in front of him, to try and deter him. When that didn't work, she made it crystal clear that she was dating my brother (it was also unknown by most that my brother is my brother - different last names). When Franklin knew he had lost, he would bitch about my brother to me (screenshots taken), and had plotted to get my brother fired (he partially succeeded, but that's another story and not worthy of my revenge). Even after Dawn moved on, he would still lament about how he never got to sleep with her (screenshots taken) and after my brother proposed he started to bad mouth both of them.

Franklin, about 8 months ago, started another affair with another agent. There were several between where this story starts and this point, but this one was the catalyst. You see, Franklin had just now become my supervisor, due to sheer dumb luck, and I now see why he relied on me so much. He was so busy focusing on the ladies in the department, he sucked at his job. He had been previously working with agents who were new, or lower performing. He was suddenly the supervisor of the best agents in the department. The way he acted, I'm constantly reminded of Joker's line in the Dark Knight "I'm a dog chasing cars. I wouldn't know what to do with one if I caught it!" There was a reason why his agents didn't progress or get better. They didn't have guidance.

Now, something I haven't mentioned about myself. I'm sick. Like, I'll be out for a few days at a time due to my illness sick. I may have also gotten some prorevenge on another supervisor (that one will get this screen name identified almost instantly, so if I share it, I'll have to change quite a bit). That supervisor, as well as another and an agent, have made it their mission to make sure I get fired the next time I step foot in the building. Kinda skyrockets one's anxiety when your job is on the line, right?

So, I go to Franklin. With all the times I've had his back, I'm sure he'll help me out. Yeah, I wouldn't be here if that were the case. He tells me, he can't control the other supervisors or agent, and that if they want to drag me through the the steps to get me fired, well, that's their prerogative. I'm shocked, but I nod, smile, and walk over to another supervisor who I know will have my back.

So, despite his blowing me off, he still confided in me, let me know about his escapades, let me know about the girls he was interested in. This time however, he sent me a dick pic. Several girls in the department had complained about it, but they never provided the evidence to management, as Franklin made them afraid for "some reason" (Read, I have a power of position over you, do you like your job?). Now, why has it taken almost 7 years for Franklin to send ME a dick pic? It wasn't meant for me. Remember that new affair I mentioned? His side piece has a very similar name to me. So say my name is Sparky. Her name is Sparkles. We're right next to each other in his contact list. He begged me to delete it and not tell anyone about it. So I screencapped it, emailed it to myself, deleted it, and showed him my phone. We're BFFs, right?

Management got an email with 5 years worth of his sexual harassment of other agents, his sexcapades with other agents, and of course, the dick pic they needed so desperately.

He got his termination letter today.

update: Someone asked why I showed him my phone. He asked to see my phone, to make sure I deleted it. He was getting paranoid with all the dick pic rumors floating around about him, so if he saw that it was off my phone he could "rest assured that I was on his side"

update 2: Also want to add: Yes, I was complicit in Franklin and Kelly's affair. I was young and stupid, and honestly if I could go back and not be, I wouldn't. However, that's what opened my eyes to Franklin's ways, and why I started gathering 5 years worth of evidence. The rumors about him acting inappropriately? Came from the open investigations from upper management. But because the company has the shittiest definition of sexual harassment, he always got off scot free. The dick pic came AFTER he blew me off, which was the final piece of evidence management needed to fire him, but no one could ever get.

(source) (story by sparksandscars)

#by sparksandscars #revenge #revenge story #revenge stories #pro #prorevenge #pro revenge #pro revenge stories

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hawkseyebrow · 5 years

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Headcanon Time #1 - Hermann Gottlieb uses UDC to organize his books

I needed some pretty detailed information about Hermann and Newton’s lab and so I was doing screencaps of it from the first “Pacific Rim” movie and making notes about everything that’s there. At one point you can see that on Hermann’s side of the lab he has some books with white stickers at the bottom. At first I didn’t even acknowledge this as odd, because I see books with similar stickers every day. I work as a librarian in a rather small school library (~12.000 books total). We use those stickers to write an UDC number of the book - it’s basically a signature of the book’s place in the library, so a number that tells you exactly where the book is or should be according to an international standard. Now I’ll go into some detailed explenation, for those who are interested. If you want to just go to the headcanon itself it’ll be at the very end of the post. So, the UDC stands for Universal Decimal Classification and in general it goes as follows: 0 - general science (aka a category for all of the books that don’t fit anywhere else) 1 - philosophy 2 - religion 3 - social sciences (sociology, law, etc.) 4 - that’s the most insane one, because no book in the world has a UDC that would start with a 4. It’s a number reserved for a yet undiscovered branch of science. 5 - mathematics 6 - biology, medicine, technology 7 - art, sport, hobbies 8 - language (books about linguistics, all of the literature - poems, prose, everything) 9 - history and geography Each library can tweak it a bit to match it’s purpose - for example theoretically all textbooks should be under 3, but seeing as we are a high school library, a pretty big chunk of our books are various textbooks. Putting them all next to one another wouldn’t make much sense, so we divide them into all of the other classes: maths textbooks go under 5, history textbooks go under 9 etc. And you can go deeper. Those first numbers are just a general idea of the branch of science the book belongs to, but for example if we take 5 it contains not only mathematics, but also eg. astronomy, physics or chemistry. And if you add jest one more number to the UDC, you can differenciate between them: 51 is maths, 52 is astronomy, 53 is physics, 54 is chemistry and so on. But you can go even deeper! 51(075) - this number says “Hey, this book should be in the mathematical section of the library. It’s about pure mathematics and it’s a teaching material for this subject, a textbook to be more specific!” And you can go on and on, depending on the level of complexity that you need. You can basically say what the whole book is about in pure numbers. It’s pretty awesome. But in most libraries only the librarian has access to an UDC number of the book - nowadays it’s just in the electronic system and you can access it with a swipe of a scanner. But, as I said, we’re pretty small, not really public - all in all we’re still a pretty old-school library and we don’t have barcode scanners installed yet. And so, we put UDC numbers on the books themselves. Not only on the inside, but also on a white sticker at the bottom of the book’s spine. It helps immediately spot a misplaced book which is a huge help in high school environment, believe me. It also aids in positioning the book on the shelf. There is a complicated system for this too, don’t worry. The general idea is that books should be sorted alphabethically by the last name of the author. But there are so many exceptions to this rule, especially in education-oriented libraries, that it’s just a general idea. A quick example: if the book has two authors, you use the surname of the fist one, easy enough. But if it has three or more authors, you sort it alphabetically by it’s title, not caring about the authors at all. It’s easier to have a very detailed and complex UDC system, where the only thing you have to do is to compare numbers from 1 to 10, than to rely on the ofeten unclear alphabetical sorting system. The headcanon begins now! When it finally clicked that normal people don’t have any reason to put such stickers on their books I began to wonder why on earth does Hermann have them. And I just like to think that he’s using the UDC system for his personal books. Judging by the look of his side of the lab, he has loads of them. If we assume that most of them are coding/maths books he might need to check them from time to time for reference. And wouldn’t it make sense for him to have a system based on numbers that would ensure that they are immaculately sorted at all times for quick access? And that would allow him to re-organize them quickly if Newton someone messes them up or after moving the whole collection to another location?

#pacific rim #hermann gottlieb #newton geiszler #headcanon #headcanon time

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animeride-blog · 7 years

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Kagami Uchiha's Importance In Naruto Series https://animeride.com/blogs/6688/kagami-uchihas-importance-in-naruto-series/ #Hashirama, #Izuma, #KagamiUchiha, #Madara, #Naori, #SenjuClan, #Uchiha

New Post has been published on https://animeride.com/blogs/6688/kagami-uchihas-importance-in-naruto-series/

Kagami Uchiha's Importance In Naruto Series

Today we’ll be discussing my favorite Uchiha out of the bunch

Kagami Uchiha

I know the unfamiliar name may already have many of you Googling just who this character was. When thinking of all the Uchiha’s, the list goes something like this: Sasuke, Itachi, Madara, Obito, Shisui, Sarada, and some people tack on Izumi, Fugaku, and Mikoto if they really like the Uchiha enough to remember those last three.

However, there are few Uchiha that people would do good to remember that are of utmost importance to the plot of the Naruto series: Izuna, Kagami, and Naori, all respectively.

And if you don’t remember any of them? That’s perfectly alright! Combined, the three of them hardly have more than five minutes of screen time. Unless you felt the need to explore the characters thoroughly, or have an interest in the Warring States Era, you should hardly have recalled who they were.

This is beside the point though – my main focus is of Kagami and his analysis, though I will often be deferring to Izuna and Naori as examples, along with Tobirama Senju, Danzo Shimura, and Hiruzen Sarutobi as character buffs due to their relation with Kagami.

So, where to start? Let’s have a brief rundown of Kagami’s backstory pertaining to the story: this is what you probably know of Kagami at first glance if you remember him.

Kagami Uchiha was on Tobirama Senju’s task force and was a close body guard of the second Hokage, especially during the First Shinobi World War. Multiple times throughout the series, Hiruzen and Danzo both revere Kagami as having been an incredible fighter, and sometime before the age of twenty five, he had a child and died at that young age. I’m total, he has about less than a minute of screen time, and the most notable screencap he is in, is the one in which Tobirama named Hiruzen as his successor.

After that brief synopsis, you must be confused as to how I could go into any more detail about such a minor character. However, for someone who never spoke a single line in the series – Kagami himself speaks volumes about the Will of Fire and events leading up to the Uchiha Massacre.

Kagami’s main purpose in the series is to be the first Uchiha who willing revokes his status from the clan to follow the Will of Fire that Tobirama had hoped to instill across the village.

Now, it may never be stated that he had done something as harsh as remove himself from the clan, but I would like to turn our attention to the Naruto universe’s real life counterpart: Japan. More specifically in the Warring States Era of the series, Feudal Japan.

If you ever decide to pick up a history book or two about East Asia, you’ll be surprised to discover just how extensive loyalty to your own family went. Westerners hardly realize that last names were something that held more significance than sometimes even religious deities in the East Asian cultures. It was perhaps preferable to lose limbs rather than lose your family name – your loyalty was to your own blood, and those who controlled the government were afraid of that. Family was your law, your government, loyalty to your own blood was your society. In certain parts of Asian history, surnames were even banned in the hopes of severing the familial loyalty civilians clung to.

And from this I see people always ask: Why were the Uchiha so against integrating into Konoha like every other clan? And I give you that as an answer. The Uchiha were fire and passion – to lose their tradition, to meld within other clans was against their ways. They were selfish for the need to maintain status and power, keeping their sharingan closely guarded from those who are not to be blood related, enough to intermarry.

Might I remind you of the instance of Izumi Uchiha? Due to her father not also being of Uchiha decent, her mother and her were shunned by the rest of the Uchiha, labeled as outcasts.

And here I am to turn back to Kagami. For someone raised in a lifestyle, taught nothing but to see the clan as the only thing to pledge loyalty to, how could he ever revoke his status and turn his back on the clan?

And I tell you this:

Kagami was a dreamer.

Growing up quite possibly during the Warring States Era, or at least the bare end of it, Kagami must have seen nothing but endless deaths after deaths. Children his own age, his friends, his uncles, sent out to fight and never return. And for what? To maintain the clan’s pride and foothold in the world.

Imagine you’re in Kagami’s shoes. Unlike those around you, you don’t understand why you must die for the clan – all the meaningless, senseless deaths. It must have been an abhorrent childhood enough to give anyone series mental illnesses.

But as he grew, Konoha was formed, and although the Uchiha were still loyal only to themselves, Kagami found stance in Tobirama’s belief: The Will of Fire.

Unlike his clansmen, Kagami must have found purpose in Tobirama’s belief for peace through absolute loyalty to only the village. Time and time again he proved himself, not just to Tobirama, but the Uchiha themselves that they lost a major playing card within Kagami.

But just what is so important about Kagami joining Tobirama instead of the Uchiha? What did they lose?

In the many references Hiruzen and Danzo had stated of Kagami, they mentioned that he was incredibly powerful, and Shisui himself had admitted in that Kagami was much stronger than he ever was. And the most interesting part? It’s hinted that Kagami never obtained the Mangekyou Sharingan. His strength didn’t rely solely upon his bloodline.

Kagami’s influence of his passion for the Will of Fire was most obviously passed down to Shisui. This, of course, then influenced Itachi and soon the series spiralled from there.

But what else is there to examine? Surely, Kagami didn’t join Tobirama just for some silly belief in peace? Let’s look at Tobirama’s actions for a brief moment.

Contrary to popular belief, Tobirama himself didn’t hate the Uchiha. In fact, he was perfectly accepting of Kagami, as seen to why the other was placed as his body guard.

So why do so many accuse Tobirama of hating the clan so much? Like previously said, Tobirama firmly believed in the Will of Fire, and the Uchiha were against it. However, many may take Tobirama’s action of killing Izuna Uchiha, Madara’s brother, as a sign of his hatred.

I am here to say Tobirama’s actions were anything but pure hatred – it was for his loyalty and devotion to his brother. He had thought eliminating Izuna would keep his clan, and his brother, safe from harm. He followed in what he thought best for his brother. Nevertheless, such an action was a backhand to Hashirama’s dreams, as Tobirama soon discovered.

This is what had Tobirama so devoted to the Will of Fire. He wanted to keep his brother’s dream alive after he almost shattered it with his own selfish actions.

And I am sure the Uchiha talked about Izuna’s murder at the hands of Tobirama during his reign as Hokage. It was most likely their quipped used the most as to justify just how much Tobirama hated them – but Kagami must have seen the other side of Tobirama’s actions, analyzed them to see Tobirama’s true devotion and attempts to make the Uchiha remove themselves from selfish thoughts.

And there I said it again – the Uchiha are selfish. They are infected with the Curse of Hatred, which lead to many negative connotations as far as to many being power hungry.

However, Kagami, Shisui, Itachi, and Naori were the few who never were infected with such a curse – the first three due to their devotion for the Will of Fire. But what of Naori? Does she play a hand in discovering Kagami’s true analysis?

Naori, despite seeing horrors that unlocked her Mangekyou, was a kind soul who sought to stop others from falling into the Curse of Hatred. They sought power, and she sought the need to quell their macabre intentions. Her Uchiha passion wasn’t for hatred – it was for love.

And that’s the last key to Kagami’s personality – he was an Uchiha, yes, but his passion was not for revenge, hatred, power, or any other of the common Uchiha traits. No, his passion was for his devotion to his friends and Tobirama’s beliefs. He considered Hiruzen and Danzo as his great friends, and maybe that was the exact reason he had died so young, protecting his loyalty to those he had bonded with. He chose to bind himself to those he wished, not those he was born into.

All in all, Kagami’s decision and personality had greatly effected the series as a whole – not just with understanding the Will of Fire, but also his lineage within Shisui and by extent, Itachi.

For such a minor character to play such a large role within the series, it’s hard to imagine. But who knows? Maybe Kishimoto had meant to do this, to leave subtle hints in discovering the true reason behind actions within the Uchiha and prove the Curse of Hatred can be dispelled. Maybe it was an excuse as to why Shisui was never infected? At this point, we may never know. However, Kagami as a whole, for a character who hardly existed, had layers of subtext to him that makes him a special gem out of all the minor characters of the Naruto series.

I hope you all enjoyed me never shutting up about such a small character. I may do some other of my favorites in the future, but I just had to talk about Kagami because he’s so overlooked, but such in interesting character.

#Hashirama #Izuma #Kagami Uchiha #Madara #Naori #Senju Clan #uchiha

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sage-nebula · 7 years

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Pokemon XYZ or blue exorcist please!

Someone else asked for Blue Exorcist, so I’m going to go ahead and do Pokémon XY(&Z). I’m also assuming you mean the anime here, but if not and you meant the games, feel free to send that in, haha.

But as for the anime … oh buddy.

Very first order of business here is to fix Alan’s ending, because I hate, hate, hate everything that happened with him post-episode 44 to the point where I feel actual anxiety in my gut every time I so much as think about it, much less actually see screencaps or gifsets of it. (Well, okay—that scene where Sycamore tries to encourage Alan to dance despite the fact that Alan clearly doesn’t want to, only for Bonnie to drag Sycamore off a couple seconds later despite how startled and reluctant he is, while Alan grins at Sycamore getting a taste of his own medicine there—that was super cute. But everything else? Everything else was garbage, and I’m wiling to sacrifice those seconds of cuteness if it means getting rid of all the other trash.) While the abusive situation that gave me C-PTSD that I’m still grappling with to this day lasted a lot longer for me than Alan’s lasted for him, his situation also came with so many more severe incidental traumas, so I feel it evens out in terms of relatability for me. With that said, the fact that he was given no time to deal with them—the fact that we see in XYZ044 that he’s feeling and sounds suicidal enough to worry Ash to the point where Ash basically gives him a “promise me you’ll battle me again at some vague, undefined point in the future, which means you have to be alive and well enough to do it” offer and that Alan refers to this as Ash saving him, all to just completely sweep it under the rug and pretend it never happened two episodes later so they can toss him out on a journey again (despite, you know, the fact that Professor Sycamore said that with the way Lumiose City was Alan was needed there in episode 44 and Alan was so happy he practically started crying while smiling when he heard that), sickens me.So! Before I get into anything else, the first thing that’s changing is that. Alan is staying at the lab—his home—at the end of the series, in order to rest and recuperate. He no longer has the Mega Ring (and Lizardon no longer has that godawful collar), but the Key Stone and Charizardite X were kept and Sycamore has them fashioned into a matching set of pendants: a half-sun for Lizardon, and a half-moon for Alan. But even though they have those back, they’re still staying at the lab for the time being, with no definite plans for the future. Right now, Alan is just focusing on recuperating—or rather, Sycamore is focusing on Alan recuperating, while Alan is focusing on helping out around the lab. You know how he is. In his mind, he’ll rest when he’s dead. (Which Sycamore would like to be very many decades from now, rather than at some point before his sixteenth/seventeenth birthday, but that requires getting Alan to actually rest and take care of himself, and sometimes that can be a struggle.) So he has no definite plans, but before Ash leaves he does reaffirm that they’ll battle again someday, and whatever he does will work toward that. Ash is pretty happy to hear it.Manon, meanwhile, returns to her own journey. She’s reluctant at first; we see throughout TSME and the main series that Manon has little to no real confidence in herself as a trainer, shown both in how she never actually has a single battle on-screen aside from when she captures Fla-chan (which Alan helped her with and might as well have never happened anyway since Fla-chan was never seen after that moment)—and no, TSME 3 does not count, because Manon did not command Hari-san. He acted independently in order to defend both Manon and Alan. Her lack of confidence is also highlighted in TSME 4, when she tells Alan that if he’s with her then she and Hari-san can grow stronger, and he tells her (truthfully!) that she needs to stop relying on him all the time. So Manon is reluctant to go on her own, but Alan encourages her, tells her that he knows she can do it, and as an added bonus invites her to pick a Kanto starter to take with her. She chooses bulbasaur, and he gives her a cryptic message about how he might have something special for her should she ever manage to evolve her bulbasaur all the way to the venusaur stage. Manon gets excited and pesters him about whether or not it’s a Key Stone/Mega Stone (“Will I be able to mega evolve?!” - “It’s your pokémon that mega evolves, not you—” - “I know that, jeez! Just answer the question!!”), but he refuses to tell her. Just smiles and playfully shoos her on her way. She’s still nervous—scared, even—but she and Hari-san (and her new bulbasaur Fushi-kun) go on their journey to build confidence in themselves and each other.So that’s number one—the biggest one, but a very, very important one. As for others?

The Showcases have got to go. They do. They just do. They’re bathed in idol culture, which is extremely toxic and harmful, and honestly I wouldn’t be as bothered by the Showcases if they weren’t female-only, but the fact that this is The Girl Activity (whereas Contests, for instance, were always co-ed) bothers me, particularly since there isn’t any battling involved, but there is a lot of dancing and cooking, et cetera. It feels like a rigid enforcing of gender roles on top of being steeped in idol culture, and I don’t like that. It needs to go.That said? The Pokémon anime actually did introduce the concept of idols way back in the OS—specifically in the Pokémon Chronicles special episodes—and it was far less of an issue then. Pokémon Idols in the OS took the form of trainers like Marina (who was based on Kris from the games), and while the actual job description is somewhat vague, from the way Marina made it seem the goal of a Pokémon Idol is to be as entertaining as possible while battling. It is, essentially, to be a performance artist as well as a battler. So for instance, whenever Marina would battle she and her pokémon had choreographed entrance moves whenever she released them from their pokéballs. She also insisted to Jimmy (who was based on Gold from the games) that she wanted to “turn her battles into performances” in order to make people happy. And you know what? She did! Marina participated in the Johto League/Silver Conference, as well as a Grand Festival, but she was also shown modeling the Pokétch on a magazine cover and has had her face on t-shirts. She has become a star/idol, while at the same time working as a trainer skilled enough to participate in the Johto League/Silver Conference, and a coordinator skilled enough to participate in a Grand Festival.This is relevant, because if they really wanted to capitalize on the popularity of idol culture/idol anime such as Love Live!, the PokéAni writing staff could have worked in something similar for Serena. Rather than inventing Showcases the way they did (and removing the battling aspect completely), they could have instead set up something such as a Kalosian Idol Search, which hosted special battle competitions around Kalos in order to search for the next idol a la Marina. Perhaps these are similar to, but not the same as, Gyms, in which the objective is both to win a series of battles, but also turn those battles into performances in order to win the favor of the public (so, sort of like Contests, but not wholly the same). This could be co-ed as well, meaning that Tierno could participate in an attempt to be an idol, which would be perfect for him given that he loves to dance (and likes to incorporate dancing into battles, which is right in line with what Marina liked to do back in the OS). This way, Serena could be an active battler while still pursuing a goal that doesn’t mirror Ash’s badge quest, and yet isn’t so rigidly “this is for girls, and girls don’t battle,” which is the vibe much of the XY&Z saga gave me. Something like that (albeit a bit more refined, as this is a rough idea) would be far better than the Showcases were. (More entertaining to watch, too, imo.)

And speaking on Serena some more, we’re not going to have her hero worshiping/hero crushing on Ash for the entire series, because to be quite honest that created far more problems than it solved. It’s fine to have them meet in childhood (even though bby!Ash in the flashbacks do not at all resemble OS!Ash, which they should have—and that would need to be remedied, too), and it’s fine to have her remember that meeting and still hold a childhood crush on him—but he should have changed a lot since then. She should have, too. And we should have—we needed to have a moment early on where Serena realizes that he’s not just the amazing and courageous hero that she remembers, that he’s a human being with flaws, and maybe that bursts her bubble a bit, maybe she’s disappointed and put-out that this isn’t exactly like a fairy tale …… but then she gets to know him, as a person, flaws and all. Sometimes they quarrel, sometimes she’s less than impressed with him, but othertimes she is impressed with him, other times she sees that he makes her laugh or that, even if he’s not some amazing hero, he’s a guy she likes …… and, if we must go down the romance route, feelings develop from there.What made Ash/Misty so great in the OS was that Misty wasn’t introduced with the idea of, “This is Ash’s love interest.” Instead, their friendship was first and foremost what was developed, and the romance—which was canonically there from both sides, even in the JP version—developed naturally over time. They are most definitely best friends with crushes. If the anime writers wanted to write a romance arc with Ash and Serena, okay, that’s fine—go for it! But in that case, focus on developing them as friends first. Have the crush grow naturally. Don’t create Serena with the express purpose of having her fawn over Ash (which, yes—a recent interview revealed that the reason why this was written in was because a writer wanted to “see the series from the eyes of a female companion who admired Satoshi” which is just … no). Instead, even if she has a crush on him at first, have her get to know him—actually get to know him this time, not meet once and then separate for years on end, but know him as a person—and have her develop feelings for who he is now, not who she has idealized him to be. (And don’t have him be perfect all the time, either! Let him get mad! Frustrated! Selfish! Petty! Let him be feisty!) And likewise, have Ash develop a special and concentrated friendship with Serena, rather than just cute shippy moments here or there. Show us that he actually feels something for her beyond friendship. Show us before the very end where you just have his eyes sparkle after she kisses him, because you know what? His eyes sparkled the same way when Rowlet cuddled up to him in the Sun/Moon anime. Different animation style, sure, but I’m js. That’s not enough. And if the writers have to tell us later on “oh yeah, it’s meant to imply Ash and Serena are a couple later,” that’s not good writing. You guys can do better than this. Prove it.… So, um, yeah, I’d fix that. I’d change that ship from “girl meets boy when they are 5, develops a crush on him, and continues crushing through to the end as she works to be worthy of him” to “girl meets boy when they are 5, develops a crush on him, realizes when they are 10 that he’s not the Ideal Hero she built him up to be, befriends him as a person, realizes she’s developing new and stronger feelings for him now that she actually knows and sees him as a person, and he comes to see her as one of his closest friends and confidants, and their relationship is much more believable and stronger as a result.” That’s definitely a change I would make if the romance angle needs to be kept. (Which I don’t think it needs to be, but you know, in the interest of fairness, I’m just saying I could have done it better. Js.)

I can’t believe I forgot about this until point four, but rework Bond Phenomenon ffs. First of all, we’re no longer giving it to Greninja (or at least not limiting it to Greninja). That was stupid pandering meant to push Greninja’s popularity, and I’m not having it. If any one of Ash’s pokémon is getting it, it’s Pikachu, particularly since “but Pikachu isn’t fully evolved!1!1″ doesn’t matter because Bond Phenomenon is not mega evolution, and therefore the same rules don’t apply. The entire point of Bond Phenomenon was to avoid giving Ash a mega evolution for whatever asinine reason the anime team had, and if that’s the case, then there is no reason not to give the special love-powered super form to the partner and platonic soul mate that Ash has had since day one, particularly since Ash’s bond with Greninja was so poorly developed and not believable in the least bit. So if Ash is still getting Bond Phenomenon for whatever reason, it’s going to Pikachu, and that’s final.Second, although I know there are many people who would hate this, sorry I’m not sorry, but I felt that there was plenty of foreshadowing that made it seem as if Alan and Lizardon would be tapping into that in the finale of the Flare Arc, perhaps following a scene where they tossed off the Mega Ring and collar right in Lysandre’s face and tapped into Bond Phenomenon afterward, given that they have “a bond that overcomes reason” (Alan’s words, TSME 1) / “a bond that surpasses its limits” (Malva’s words, TSME 4). So on top of giving Bond Phenomenon to Ash and Pikachu and making it clear that it’s not exclusive to that (which, conveniently, Sycamore’s explanation in XYZ036 did plainly enough by saying it’s rare but there are several recorded instances throughout history!), we’d perhaps tap into it here as well, albeit only on a Lvl 1 or 2 scale, and one that probably knocks them both out at the end of the battle due to the physical toll it would take on them.Or, if not that? Then ditch Bond Phenomenon altogether and just give Ash a goddamn mega evolution, particularly in the form of ‘Zard Y. I’d be very happy with that as well, especially since Ash wearing his Key Stone attached to his hat would be adorable (and a nod to Red, whom the anime team specifically said they pulled from when putting together Ash’s XY design, most notably with the sideburns). Either way, Ash-Greninja is getting the boot for sure. Gtfo, froggo. No one wants you here.

Last (but certainly not least), I wanted a real confrontation between Lysandre and Sycamore over what Lysandre did to Alan—the lies, the manipulation, the abuse. We see in TSME 4 that Sycamore gives Lysandre a cold reception when first meeting him, and I really, really wanted Sycamore to go save his son, or at least confront Lysandre over it. So I definitely would have worked that in there, as well as more focus on Sycamore and Alan’s father-son bond in general. We needed more of that. More childhood flashbacks, perhaps (imagine flashbacks showing little five-year-old Alan, fdsfdsafda), some more heart-to-hearts near the end, perhaps … things like that. So, an actual confrontation between Lysandre and Sycamore, and more focus on Sycamore and Alan’s father-son bond, yesssss.

There is a lot more that I would change, I feel, but these are major ones. And this is super long/a lot as it is, so … that should tell you how many feelings I have over it, haha.

#five things i would change meme #decadeoldtiger #long post for ts

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