#this just proves the entire disney+ show was bs

[spaceskam]

another part of my kid fic universe for @zuluoscarecho ❤️️

warning: mentions of past abuse and deportation

“I spy with my little eye something... brown.”

"Um... Alex's hair?"

"No! His hair is black!"

"Definitely brown.

"Let's say both," Alex chimed in, smiling easily as he listened to Michael and Isaac play their billionth round of I Spy as they made their way to Texas to pick up Isaac's things from his Tía Ellie’s house. 

It took a bit more negotiating that expected. Turns out, she’d never directly witnessed Isaac actively using his telekinesis, but she’d been getting suspicious that there was something off about him. She loved him, she’d said, but she was no longer comfortable housing him. She’d been getting in contact with a social worker and Isaac had overheard which led to him hunting down Michael in hopes he’d be a safe place to go. Alex had to take over the phone call at that point.

“Okay, okay,” Michael agreed, humming as he looked around for something brown. His hand was locked with Alex’s, resting on the center console of Alex’s truck. Alex gave his hand a soft squeeze. “My hair?”

Isaac erupted into unprecedented giggles, “Not everything is hair!”

“Well, shit, I don’t know what else comes in brown, dude, the tree trunks?” Michael asked, smile getting wider by the second.

Isaac had only been staying with them for a week so far, but he got comfortable fast. They’d set up his room and he would be starting school that following Monday, so it was clear he had no reason to not get comfortable. Besides, he and Michael had little telekinesis lessons and that seemed to help a lot at making him feel safe there. Alex made sure to add a little more to that safety by working on making sure Daniella had a constant, trustworthy line of communication to talk to Isaac every day. So far it’d been a little rocky, but he was working the little bit of magic he could manage.

He was determined to be a good father figure.

“No,” Isaac said.

“Okay, I give up, what is it?” Michael said.

“My hair.”

Michael laughed and turned in his seat to face him, looking some where in between impressed and baffled.

“You totally tried to throw me off course.”

“Duh.”

“You hear that, Alex? We’ve got a fuckin’ trickster in our backseat,” Michael said, huffing a laugh as he settled back into his seat, “He’s gonna outsmart us all.”

“Wouldn’t shock me,” Alex agreed, pulling his hand to his lips and pressing a kiss to his knuckles. His heart felt so full in a way he couldn’t quite articulate. Michael leaned over and kissed his cheek for extra measure.

“Me neither,” he agreed, looking back to Isaac when he pulled away, “How’d you do in school, by the way? Forgot to ask.”

“Good,” Isaac said, shrugging, “As and Bs.”

“Trying or not trying?” Michael clarified. There was a few seconds of silence and Alex could picture the distinct, guilty grin on his face that mirrored his father’s. “Well, I always say if they know you’re better than them without even trying then you’re doing something right.”

“Okay, no, that’s a horrible lesson,” Alex butted in. Michael scoffed in disagreement as Isaac just let out a soft laugh. 

Isaac hadn’t really struggled to understand the fact that two men could be together (another thing they had to thank Daniella for) but it had been an adjustment for all of them and they had a conversation about the barest definition of Michael’s sexuality to nip any complicated questions in the bud. That had been preceeded by a talk with Danielle herself who said ‘that would explain a lot, good for you’. 

In times of banter, though, he happily sided with whoever he felt could make the situation funnier.

“Yeah, Mr. Michael, bad lesson.”

“This whole teaming up against me thing is not gonna fly. You both seem to forget I could throw everything with my brain,” Michael said, more pouty than serious and only getting more laughter from the boy in the back seat, “And stop calling me mister, it makes me feel old.”

“You are old,” Alex told him. Michael stuck his tongue out at him, but didn’t argue. They hadn’t quite had the whole alien conversation yet. That felt like more a month milestone or something.

The rest of the drive to Texas went like that, conversation and jokes and listening to music. It took about three songs to realize that Daniella seemed to have only one flaw in raising Isaac and it was his lack of music taste. Alex put on Panic! to educate him.

Around the two and a half hour mark, Isaac had passed out against the window and Michael was laying over the center console to put his head on Alex’s shoulder. It was quiet and peaceful and so damn domestic that Alex could almost imagine they were taking a family trip to Disney World.

“I love you,” Michael whispered for no reason, fueling his little fantasy even more.

"I love you too.”

They arrived outside Ellie’s house around 1PM. The neighborhood wasn’t the greatest thing in the world, but it was nice enough. Lawns were manicured, kids were playing outside, people were walking their dogs. The fact that Daniella had been successful enough to have a house in a neighborhood like that and still got deported was a quick reality check Alex didn’t enjoy.

“Wake up, bud,” Michael said, reaching into the backseat to gently shake Isaac awake. It took him a minute but he rubbed his eyes and slowly came back to life.

They all climbed out of the truck and walked towards the front door. It opened before they could even knock, a small, white, blonde lady on the other side. By looks alone, it was difficult to tell how old she was--she could’ve been 23 or she could’ve been 45.

“Ellie?” Alex clarified.

“Yes, Sir,” she said, eyes landing on Isaac as he hid behind Michael, “Hey, Isaac. You scared me running off like that. I’m glad you’re okay.”

His small hands clutched Michael’s, hanging off him slightly. Michael didn’t seem to mind.

“We’re just here to grab his things or anything you managed to keep from Daniella’s house. We’ll keep it until she’s able to come back,” Alex said. Considering Michael had personal reasons for disliking this woman, it seemed best that Alex took over.

“Right. Everything I could save is in the guest room,” Ellie explained, moving out of the way to let them in, “Could I get you guys coffee? Water? Anything?”

“We’re okay, thank you,” Alex said.

She led them to the small room that Isaac had slept in when he was there, nearly every square inch of the room covered in things. Most of it was small trinkets and personal items and Alex considered that maybe he should’ve asked if he needed more boxes.

“I’ll go get you some newspaper to wrap some of it up,” Ellie said, quickly walking out of view.

“I... I was not expecting this,” Alex said carefully, looking around the room before looking to Isaac. He was still clinging onto Michael, looking either scared or embarrassed or both. Alex managed a warm smile. “It’s okay, I’m not mad. Just surprised, ‘s all.”

Slowly, they began making trips to the truck. Alex had a few boxes and they filled them with newspaper-wrapped trinkets and mugs, handling them all with care. Then they got to the other stuff like his clothes, some of Daniella’s clothes, multiple sheet sets, curtains, a quilt Daniella made from his baby clothes. Then they got his books, toys, etc. It was just a lot. It had the entire backseat full and the trunk not too far off. It took three hours.

“You sure you don’t want anything? I can make lunch,” Ellie suggested. Alex politely declined.

“We’ll pick up something on the way home. Thank you, though, for taking care of him for so long,” Alex said. She nodded, but grabbed his arm to keep him in place after Michael and Isaac said their goodbyes and headed to the truck. “Is something wrong?” 

“Be careful with him,” she said, voice hushed even though they weren’t in ear shot, “There’s something off about that boy. Daniella hid it well, but once you have him in your house... Things start happening.”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine,” Alex said, again trying his best to be polite. She knew enough, they didn’t need her discovering more. 

“Just be careful,” she said sincerely, “I tried bringing him to church but--”

“Thank you for watching him, but we’re good now,” Alex cut her off, not really wanting to hear more. He knew she hadn’t done what Michael’s religious foster family had, but how much longer until she had? That was just something he could keep to himself.

Alex made his way back to the truck where Michael and Isaac were already waiting for him, both silent and probably for two entirely different reasons. So, Alex suggested food.

They ate in silence as well as they started their drive back to Roswell. Isaac looked drained which was probably his main reason for silence, but Michael looked out of it. 

By the time they started driving through long stretches of empty desert, Isaac was sound asleep in the backseat. It was when the sun started going down, though, that Michael couldn’t keep it in anymore.

“You okay?” Alex asked softly, squeezing his hand as he heard his breathing slowly begin to escalate. He looked over at him and saw that his bottom lip was quivering and his eyebrows were drawn taut, everything showing that he was trying to not cry mixed with his breathing becoming more and more erratic. A quick look in the backseat proved that Isaac was still asleep.

So Alex pulled over into the desert.

He got out of the driver’s seat and went over to the passenger side, all but pulling Michael out of the truck. He broke down as Alex pressed him into the door, trying to hold his face and get him to calm down.

“Hey, what’s going on? What happened?” Alex asked softly, hands on his cheeks. He hated seeing him like this, yet loved that he was being so open with his feelings. It was a strange juxtaposition.

“After the house he grew up in was foreclosed, but before they had people go in and clean it out, he’d break in to get his and his mom’s things. They wouldn’t let him go in and get his shit after they took his mother, Alex. He had to break in,” Michael admitted, choking on a sob as he recounted it and meeting Alex’s forehead with his own. Alex frowned and that secondhand sadness seeped into his veins. “He shouldn’t have had to do that.”

“No, he shouldn’t have,” Alex agreed softly, weaving his fingers into his hair, “That’s fucked.”

“I feel so guilty,” Michael admitted, “I-I should’ve known about him. I should’ve been easier to reach, should’ve been the first person they called when they needed somewhere for him to stay.”

“How could you? Daniella didn’t tell you,” Alex assured him, “Which, honestly, was probably good for both of you. He didn’t need to get to know you when you were at your lowest.”

Michael sniffled, seeming torn on whether he could agree or not. Alex just continued to do his best at soothing him.

“But it doesn’t matter. We can’t change what happened. He found you, that’s all that matters.”

“God, I can’t... He was so close to ending up like me,” he said, clutching Alex’s shoulders, “I don’t want him going through that shit.”

“And he won’t, okay?” Alex promised, “He’s got us and we’re not going to let that happen.”

“Never let any of that happen,” Michael insisted, “He’s gonna have a good life.”

“Yeah, he is. He’s already got a ton of people who love him and want him,” Alex assured him, “We just need to make sure he knows that.” Michael sniffled and nodded his head. “You’re wanted too, by the way.”

Michael huffed a laugh, “It’s not about me.”

“Kinda is,” Alex said, “And that’s okay. It’s okay to be scared of what might happen to someone else and want better for them. That gives you a drive to be better for yourself.”

Michael breathed steadily a few times and Alex carefully dried his face, grounding each other easily. Alex moved just enough to kiss his forehead and Michael relaxed a little more. 

“Sorry,” he said once he calmed down. Alex shook his head.

“Don’t apologize. It’s okay to cry and be sad,” he whispered, “It’s okay to be scared.”

Michael managed a smile and he whispered, “Have I told you I love you lately?”

“Yeah,” Alex said, “But I still like hearing it.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too.”

They met in the middle for a soft kiss that led to another that led to another before they slowly stopped. As easy as it would be to let it turn into something else, the truck was still running and they had a sleeping 10 year old in the backseat.

“You’re gonna be a great dad, Michael.”

“So are you,” he said, his hands sliding up to his neck before he pulled him into a hug, “You’re already great.”

They held each other for a moment before deciding it was okay to let go and climbing back into the truck. Michael leaned back over the center console to lay his head on Alex’s shoulder and wrapped his arms around his bicep. 

Alex really started planning that trip to Disney World.

#malex #malex fic #michael guerin #alex manes #roswell new mexico #my fic #i never planned on you

[oceanspray5]

How Mulan 2020 Could Have Been Improved With One Simple Plot Change

Mulan could have been SO MUCH BETTER if they removed the Chi stuff (there's no way this film could work with that Chosen Onr BS) and made Honghui the General's son.

They could have had the General train the soldiers initially but then he'd be called away to command another battalion for some reason or another and later the scene where they come upon the city and him and his battalion are dead could have been dead. That way the stakes could have actually felt impactful (cuz there really felt like none unlike in the 1998 version where they were prominent).

Furthermore, having both Mulan and Honghui put in charge due to their exceptional progress during training would have been so interesting! It would have solved Disney's issue of unhealthy power dynamics but it would have led to a much better subplot of Mulan and Honghui learning to trust each other because both had to work hard to get to their position and now have to work side by side because the entire troops lives are in their hands. I don't mean that they should have had an antagonistic relationship or anything but their relationship would have an organic growth to it with more depth to it. The live action tried and it was fine but that was just it, it was "fine" and not at all deep rooted like the 1998 version. Most importantly, this subplot would have given the opportunity to address male vs female strengths and weaknesses.

Honghui is a son but he has expectations thrust upon him too because of it and those aren't always positive expectations either (subtly toxic masculinity could have been addressed is what I'm saying) and it would especially be impactful if he was just as much as a newbie as the rest of the camp at the beginning. The general would not have used lineage as an advantage for him but would have used it as a reason to work him harder and Honghui would have to work hardest to prove himself to his father and uphold his honor.

Consequently, Mulan's part would have stayed the same as in the 1998 Mulan. She would work hard yet struggle and eventually also manage to find alternative solutions that work better according to her physical limitations but are just as efficient.

This addition would allow to make Honghui's later trust in Mulan more nuanced as well "You said you trust Ping, why is Mulan any different" as said in the 1998 movie and it would actually have much deeper meaning behind it here because they would have worked together to LEAD and Honghui would have to acknowledge that yes a woman did do his job just as well as he did and alongside him and he TRUSTED her judgement with an entire battalion so why shouldn't he anymore?

This subplot would have added an excellent juxtaposition between male vs female strengths as I mentioned earlier. Honghui's superior physical strength (because a woman's strength IS limited due to physique differences and the 1998 Mulan showed that very well) vs Mulan's more out of the box problem solving mindset. It also would have hammered home the most IMPORTANT message. Men and Women CAN work side by side and they can be equals in terms of capability. What one gender lacks, the other makes up for and both genders don't have to exist in an extreme of hypermasculinity and hyperfemininity. A balance CAN and SHOULD exist. Mulan and Honghui would have had the same skill set but different ways of using them.

Commanding a batallion together would also have forced the entire battalion to question themselves as well. Their more strategic leader was a woman (the one who saved them with the avalanche strategy, the one who the General praised and the one who Honghui trusted to layout they plans and they all trusted with their lives and she DID save them). It would have a much more profound impact and would genuinely force the men to acknowledge and come to question their ignorant way of thinking especially because they were all in direct contact with a woman's leadership.

Also Honghui losing his father would become impactful cuz again, the general would have died like the OG Mulan. Honghui would have to come to terms with his own limitations and mindset and it would force him to respect Mulan more because he'd witness first hand that the woman he worked alongside with played a greater part in winning the war than he did and she did it all for her family, not out of some desire for glory as he assumed war would be about (I feel adding that bit of nuance - war=glory as sons are raised to think - would definitely also address another aspect of hyper masculinity).

I dont like the addition of the witch and her removal would be better too but since this is me mentioning how to improve the movie with ONE change then I can work with it. This subplot would have give the witch a GENUINE REASON to switch sides. She already had one altho it was somewhat flimsy but with this subplot, seeing how Mulan is actually Honghui's equal when leading in battle before and after she's revealed a woman alongside the fact that Mulan respects Honghui and vice versa without it being forced on either end would have her reflect on how she's being treated by Bori Khan who sees her as a pawn. It would force her to acknowledge that she doesn't need to be superior over men to be respected (because I got the impression in the film that she knew she could never be equal if she wanted to "win") but also not treated like dirt. A balance does exist where everyone wins.

Ultimately the 1998 Mulan should never have been changed anyway for the live action remake. That story didn't NEED any sort of changes. That film was a masterpiece of storytelling and delivered the necessary message perfectly. But if Disney HAD to change the plot cuz they couldn't just let it be, why couldn't it have been something worthwhile that juxtaposed important elements and stereotypes of male and female strength and forced the audience to THINK for once? Why did Disney have to ruin it with the ridiculous "Chosen One" bullshit that benefitted absolutely NO ONE.

Anyway that's my two cents on how the live action Mulan COULD have been better but sadly wasn't. Feel free to add your opinions and thoughts cuz I'm literally just spitballing here but I do like the idea and layers this type of story would have had.

Important PSA: This film and its crew supports the concentration camps/genocide of the Muslim Uyghers in China and actively THANKED the people responsible for running those camps in the end credits of the film. The lead actress Liu Yifei supports police brutality (she made a tweet in favor of the Hong Kong police without provocation i. e. Nobody asked her about her stance so she willingly spoke up against the protestors when it wasn't necessary). The crew of the film is all white as well so it's clear that Disney doesn't really care about human rights or even historical and racial accuracy.

If you do want to watch the film then I implore you to sail the seven seas. Pirating is free. Don't give Disney your money and instead #BoycottMulan on official streaming platforms and speak up about the humanitarian issues surrounding the movie.

Also I highly recommend watching the video I'm linking. It's a video essay by a Chinese person about the 2020 Mulan and why it fails. It comments on male and female gender roles and why the original Mulan challenged those and how they were all lost in the live action remake. I found it very interesting both due to the new things I learnt about the actual Ballad of Mulan in the process but also because it's an authentic point of view from someone who's culture is represented in the film and I believe hearing those out is very important too.

In case the link breaks, the video is by Accented Cinema and titled "Mulan: A Case of Failed Women Empowerment".

Feel free to leave your comments about my idea in the reblogs or message me about it if you like it. It's just my own take but I'd definitely be interested in hearing others opinions and also if others think they story would have been better if this change was made.

#Mulan #Mulan 2020 #Disney

[jtodd-whomst]

Honestly, Fuck Endgame

So yea they all live in the tower. After Avengers 1, they’re like “o fuk Loki was being mind controlled and we can prove it” and they’re like “the best way we can keep an eye on him is for him to stay with us, fuck you Oversight Committee” and they keep him around in the tower, and eventually he becomes an honorary Avenger. It gets episodic after that, because now that there are superheroes, there are super villains too. They may have accidentally created their own problem?? Oops. Anyways, Steve moves to DC for a while to work for SHIELD and then CATWS happens but not so crazy, in reality it’s like “well shit we can’t trust SHIELD now cause they’re all HYDRA, but thank god we had a clean split and we can definitely trust who’s left.” So, basically it’s Fury, Maria, and Coulson (who is not dead) running the picture now, and HYDRA is on the run. Steve moves back into the tower, before leaving to look for Bucky. He takes Sam with him, and it takes a year but they find him. Meanwhile, Thor and Jane and Loki leave for a minute for TTDW, then they come back just fine (no death lol). Avengers 2 never happens lol, and they meet Wanda and Pietro while taking down HYDRA goons, rescue them, and then fun shit. Meanwhile, a kid named Peter starts hanging around Tony a lot under the premise of a “Stark internship” but really he’s a spider kid! Steve and Buck are back in the tower, Bucky is recovering (though he still has awful days) and things are going fine. No CACW!!! Then Thor and Loki are gone yet again for a minute to deal with Hela, and Thor gets Kickass lightning powers (but he still keeps his hammer for shenanigans). Then Hank Pym is like “hey tony meet my daughter and asshole son in law” and they’re like “holy shit you can shrink” and they communicate (but don’t live with them yet). Then they’re like”o fuk villains are using magic now??” And then Doc Strange is like “Yo” and the team is like “this might as well happen.” He doesn’t live with them, but he’s an honorary avenger. Then Wakanda is like “heyyyy um we’re actually hella advanced, but we hate all y’all and we’ll only work with the Avengers because we have a legacy of heroes in this country also they answer to no nation, so we like them bc they won’t put up w colonial bs” and the avengers are like “wow we fuckin love Wakanda, how about we be allies because holy shit your king is a cat” and Shuri was like “please T’Challa I wanna meme w Peter” so they’re allies now. Then the GOTG show up and are like “yo watch out there’s this purple dude in a chair tryna collect rocks” and then Carol shows up like “yo watch out there’s this purple dude in a chair tryna collect rocks and also I’m GAY” and so the avengers like like “hell no” so they fight thanos and Clint shoots Scott up Thanos’s ass and he expands and he dies in a big purple goop explosion!!! And he dies, and they return the infinity stones to where they belong (aka they put the tesseract back in the place the Red Skull found it, they put the Aether back in the weird rock, they give back the time stone to Strange, they Yeet the soul stone back into hell where it came from, they give the power stone to Peter Quill for safe keeping because he’s the only one who can touch it w/o vaporizing because he’s basically half ancient cosmic entity (also he didn’t lose his powers with the death of Ego), and they keep the mind stone). So then Tony and Shuri and Loki are dicking around in the lab and accidentally use a combo of science and Magic and the Mind Stone and suddenly JARVIS has a body??? Aka Vision is born and JARVIS learns how to be a person and a computer at the same time, and sort of falls in love with Wanda along the way.

Or, the AU in which Loki and Bucky are best friends and little shits and prank the fuck out of everyone, Steve is Tired Team Mom and also an Angry Feminist, Shuri and Pete are baby avengers and meme bros, Thor is actually a smart dude and not entirely played for laughs even though he still waxes poetic about pop tarts, Clint lives in the Vents with Sam and they’re bird bros, Nat is sneaky as fuck and shares Team Wine Aunt duty with Pepper (who still has her lit af fire powers), Carol and Fury laugh about the crazy kids, Tony and Bruce are Science Bros, Tony lives off of caffeine and his love for Peter and Bruce is team doctor and also the only reasonable one here, Strange makes a few appearances from time to time with wise words of advice, Rhodey supervises from the background, sometimes the guardians pop in, and it’s all good and no one has to hurt too much, even though there’s angst, but everyone lives and they all get a happy ending.

Also if you all think I forgot about Morgan Stark you’re dead wrong, she’s a darling girl and all her aunties and uncles and non-binary caregivers love her very much.

Also because I’m gay and I rub my queer hands all over fandom, Steve is Bi and has been gone for Bucky since the 20’s and they’re practically married (and probably literally married by the end of the work), Loki is gender-fluid like in the comics, everyone is feminist as fuck and pretty darn liberal, Clint is the Ace rep we deserve (the thing for purple is a dead giveaway), Nat is bi af, and so was Peggy, also Valkyrie is actually shown to be bi and not just implied because of stupid Disney and their stupid rules, and all the relationships (straight or gay or whatever) are built on mutual respect and trust and they actually talk out their issues like rational people instead of causing excess drama. They’re extra, but not that extra.

The only things I’m keeping from Endgame are Nat and Carol’s cool new hairstyles, and Professor Hulk. Also the “America’s Ass” comments because damn. That’s a nice booty.

#mine #swearing #long post #endgame #endgame spoilers #fix it #i will eventually write this #mama didnt raise no coward #avengers #yea this is my story officer and im sticking to it #its one am what do you expect #stucky #tony stark #steve rogers #captain marvel #captain america #bucky barnes #spiderman #avengers 2012

[thekingdomheartsprincess]

when kairi died part of me felt relieved

very long rant filled with run-on sentences, over-use of bold words, and over-use of italics. you’ve been warned

I’ve been holding off on my full review and thoughts on kh3 until after I get through my second playthrough. I will say, it was an overall great game and I was pleasantly surprised by a lot. I have my issues, but I’d like to hold off until I’m finished with my regular paced play through (not speedplay) before I write all my thoughts. However, one thing I really have to get out now is how absolutely disappointed and disgusted I am by kairi’s entire existence in kh3.

And just an fyi, I set the bar low going into this for her. I wasn’t expecting much, yet somehow, I was still let down harder than I thought was actually possible.To me, the highlight of kairi’s appearance in kh3 was probably going to be because she was training with axel. Therefore, with the reasoning that axel usually gets excessive screen time---you know, the guy that should have fake died twice before his actual fake death (which I’m not complaining about, just saying)...kairi would have by default gotten some of that extra relevance right??

Wrong... in a stunning turn of events they actually left axel to the side as well. He got a few good lines in, but at the end of the day he barely fights, does anything important, and somehow has his keyblade destroyed by xemnas in his first real battle with it. I’ll get back more to the truly ridiculous lack of keyblade skills later. While I’m still on the topic of axel though, let’s talk about kairi’s use as a tool to figure out axel’s feelings and xion. Like, no problems with the whole kidnapping thing, no deep connection making. Did a lot of us expect and fear that kairi would be used as a plot device for axel’s xion memories? Yes. Does it make it any better that we were prepared for it going into kh3? For me, yeah, but the real problem is it doesn’t stop there. And axel’s feelings and memories of xion were poorly included and barely mattered anyhow

Also the whole letter writing thing axel comments on, a sad excuse for not wanting to actually provide sokai interaction. “They’re more for herself”-bullshit tbh. Someone tell square enix that if they make me play another game where my girlfriend writes me letters and I can’t respond I’m gonna lose it. *cough ffxv cough* It was a sad excuse for trying to build up sokai before end game. Plus, bad writing aside, if my girl kairi is gonna be a romantic plot device forever; you could at least let her send sora those stupid letters. The poor girl is talking to him in her head. WHY

So much opportunity here to build up sokai before the end of the game. And you know what? I don’t really care about sokai anymore, or whether its canon, or if they have any moments at all in the game. But it you are going to use it as a plot device, you could at least put some effort into it. Sokai needs to be better if it is going to have such a huge direct impact on the ending of the game. Maybe this was difficult, because this really wasn’t the game for it. Everyone has a lot going on in this game, and for sora, his focus is really on getting the people connected to his heart back. He barely even talks about riku in the game! Which is completely justified, because the boy has a lot of stress on his shoulders and a lot going on. The sokai getting thrown in basically at the last minute of the game, is like white noise in the background...that shouldn’t have been there.

The paopu fruit scene felt uncomfortable and thrown in at the wrong moment. There was opportunity for this scene at the end of kh2, or before sora left the island again for 3d. Or if some effort was put into developing sokai throughout the game (which again, I don’t think this was the game for this) it could have worked. Instead, we got a scene which really wasn’t romantic in the slightest, and pretty much had “somebody or both of them is dying/being separated tomorrow” written all over it. The scene starts out of nowhere basically, riku is quite literally shoved to the side to talk to himself, kairi sort of dismisses romantic intentions when asking sora to share it with her, and sora sort of just nods his head and rolls with it. The best part, is the imagery relating to the drawings in the cave (which is admittedly beautiful). However, this is not the sokai paopu fruit scene 7 yr old me envisioned. While I certainly don’t expect to get what I wanted to see, this is almost an insult to all of the build up to this moment in previous games.

What would have been the only wonderful and meaningful sokai scene in the game, is the one where kairi is able to help sora basically escape death and light his way through the darkness or whatever. The whole “I’m going to keep you safe now” and “you make me feel stronger” thing is really sweet as an out of context scene if I knew nothing else about kh3. The problem is, this isn’t really true. Kairi doesn’t keep sora safe, and the limits of her strength seem to be in that one cutscene. Not to mention, this already happened. We literally saw this same thing happen in kh1-and it was a better scene.

Maybe I could believe kairi’s determination behind her words if she was able to even lift her keyblade when she’s being attacked, or put up a fight against her kidnapper (i mean come on, even belle got to elbow xaldin), or finish a battle against someone who was not an alternate version of herself (or remotely believably on xehanort’s side for more than a second). Seriously, she did more with her keyblade knocking out a few heartless in kh2. That scene was actually cooler. I am truly disgusted that I have to even think that. It’s not that I thought she would go up from kh2, but I surely didn’t think she would go soooooo far down. 

They totally shot themselves in the foot with the whole merlin’s magic excuse. Axel and kairi show up as if they just got the keyblade 20 seconds before the keyblade war, yet supposedly they had unlimited time to train. Maybe we’ll get some bs excuse on how it “wasn’t exactly unlimited time” later, but seriously? If you were going to have both of them fail so miserably, you could have used the short training time as an excuse!! Why would you write yourself out of that excuse, just to give me these pathetic jokes of keyblade wielders. By all logical reasoning, if they had unlimited time to train, they should have both shown up stronger that xehanort and eraqus combined. Like did they just settle after they could shoot magic at x number of moving objects in merlin’s training facility???

She may not have done much, but by the time we saw her get mercilessly stabbed for no real logical reason I was relieved. Relieved that I might finally not have to watch this anymore, and can just go into all future kh games without having to worry about what they will do with her character. I want to say I was pissed, upset even, that they killed her off like that. Confused as to how this helps xehanort’s plan? Absolutely. I mean, wouldn’t that ruin his 7 princesses part 2 backup plan if he needed it? Wouldn’t the last key form as soon as he killed kairi? Were the 7 lights going to stop fighting him there? Was he just being a cruel dick? I don’t have the answers. But I will say that I didn’t actually get angry, until xehanort stole her fucking lines. “One sky, one destiny” She doesn’t even have that anymore. The significance of those lines, now can’t just be kairi’s but has to be shared with the man who killed her. Could it get any worse? Yes! Because sora has to go and do some strongly hinted form of self sacrifice for her again. Turning the shit show writing of kairi into probably the most detrimental part of the story. 

Now, its playing such a huge role in kh3 and future kh games. It makes the major plot point of the ending of the game suffer. There’s no kairi for me to appreciate that would make me care about her dying, the one really good moment sora shares with kairi is hardly based in reality, and what’s supposed to be used as a way for sora to prove himself doesn’t really do that. He already sacrificed himself for kairi. What more is this proving? And with no excuse for kairi’s lack of training or presence in the game, I’m confused as to how this happened or why I’m supposed to care. However Nomura needed this to end up to set up future kh games, was this really the only way to do it? 

I wish I could say I just personally cared this much about feminism in kingdom hearts, and that’s why I’m so disappointed by this complete and utter failure of writing a character, but that’s not even it. When I was little I loved kairi because she was like a new disney princess in a video game, and I was heartbroken when sora told her she couldn’t come with him for the rest of his adventure. That she would just “get in his way.” 23 year old me is still pissed and not letting go. Even more frustrating, is that square enix has (deliberately or not) ignored a large part of the fandom who just asked for a little bit better. The kairi bar was low, and square enix did the limbo rock under it. (bad joke i know, it’s 2:30 am and i should be sleeping)

I’ll shut up now, but be aware i’m screaming “and another thing about kairi in kh3!” every hour on the hour in my mind

#spoilers #kingdom hearts 3 spoilers #kh3 spoilers #kingdom hearts #kairi #kingdom hearts 3 #KH3 #square enix #i am going to be salty about this forever

[migleefulmoments]

Wow, the tinhats are on fire today. Bitching about it being disrespectful to have their sexuality defined for them (hypocrite, much?), actually saying Darren STATED ON RECORD that he was gay (wut, then why does he need a beard?), reading the minds of Darren's parents, apparently have direct access to Darren, Mia and Ben's bank statements to know how much money they have. These Emmys have really given them a fright and rattled their cages LMFAO.

I literally just wrote a post tagging them about that ridiculous post calling out someone for saying she is straight when she considers herself pan.  Whatever dude.  Getting angry over an anon calling you straight is f’ing pathetic when 1. you are nobody and there is no reason for anybody to give a shit about your sexuality and 2. you aren’t actually talking about your sexuality-pan or otherwise- on your blog. I mean if you had a blog that was about your sexuality then your sexuality should be respected but bitching because someone didn’t check your bio to see if you felt the need to proclaim your sexuality before posting about CC is pathetic.  Franky, I don’t fucking care who anybody except my husband sleeps with. I certainly wouldn’t feel the need to check a Tumblr bio to ascertain the sexuality of the owner of a blog whose sole reason for existence is to discount everything Darren says about himself, his sexuality, his love and to criticize every move he makes while blaming it on an elusive and every-expanding contract, the evil players in Hollywood, his inept yet all-controlling manager and the evil beard he hates but who controls his life simply to torture him and “get promotion”.   Oh, and she also exists to cyberbully Mia, a woman that she is so jealous of she spends her days creating and perpetuating lies to make herself feel better about her pea green envy of Mia. 

Basically the Emmy’s showed the world that Darren is deeply in love with and ridiculously smitten with Mia Swier.  It is really hard to defend your mantra that Chris is “captain of this ship” and supporting Darren with all his might because they have a LOVE for the ages and are in the fight of their lives against the evil of Hollywood when Darren wears his heart on his sleeve and declares his love so freely.  So let’s dissect their lies:

1. Did Darren state on Record that he was gay?  Well if he did it was in one poorly recorded livestream while telling a joke and he was off camera. He HAS actually stated with his mouth, while on camera, in clear language, and in written article after article, that he is straight.  He has elaborated on what it is like to play gay while being straight and he has talked about representation over and over. He has also said- out of his mouth, while on camera- that he is engaged to and loves Mia.  Back to the declaration “I’m gay”. Jordan Roth was Parascoping from an event viewing (Emmys?) and a bunch of guys were standing around. A pic of Taylor Swift in a bathtub had just broke the internet and he made a joke about it. Darren off camera makes a joke like “I see that everyday” and then something garbled is said amongst the laughing and over talking. CCers claim Darren says “but I’m gay” which seems odd that he would declare such a thing in that context, on a livestream. It isn’t a natural response to having just said you see “that sort of thing all the time” and WHY THE FUCK WOULD HE OUT HIMSELF LIKE THAT ON a LIVESTREAM?  Also I have listened to that audio a hundred times and I don’t hear “I’m gay”.  Oh, and Jordan doesn’t respond in the way one would if a closeted friend just screwed up and outed themselves. CCers hang on to that moment like it is a defining CC moment while disregarding and denying all of the times Darren has said he is straight and all the behavior that proves he is with in fact, the fiancee of a woman named Mia

2. Darren’s parents. I posted earlier that I believe the pics are “proof” that Charles doesn’t love or respect Cerina or Darren- he’s walking in front of them after all. He’s also reading his phone- another sign that means he doesn’t actually love or respect those he is with. NOBODY walks in front of someone they love and respect and NOBODY ever looks at their phone when they are with someone they care about and a picture isn’t a snapshot of 0.01 seconds of someone’s life...it is an entire story for strangers to dissect. The pics are are a “stunt” and not at all indicative that the group is annoyed that Paps are literally walking backwards in front of them snapping pictures. Nope they are statements about the disgust the person walking in front carries for the other members of the group. At least THAT is how Tinhatters have seen it every time pap pics of Darren and Mia are released and he’s in front of her or on his phone so it must apply here as well, right? 

3. There was also an argument that Cerina and Charles are pulling stunts,  pretending to be  “one big happy family” because “they love their child so much they would do anything”.  That isn’t how parental love works. Bad behavior, lies, and deception are not OK simply because you do it out of love.  I love my children to death but I would never outright deceive the world by literally participating in “stunts” over and over where I was putting on a performance that was counter to everyone’s best interest. I wouldn’t consider it “supporting my child” by doing anything that kept them in the closet or forcing them to lie over and over or colluding with them to pretend they are engaged to someone they hated. Ethics and morals still matter and doing what is right matters and supporting the good things-not the bad things- in our kids’ lives matter. But the CCers pretend that love matters more than anything...as long as it is about love then nothing else matters.  That is the Disney-princess version of life and love.  It doesn’t hold up in reality. 

4. Speaking of Makes No Sense... The idea that every time Mia is talked about, mentioned, in a photo or standing near Darren he is promoting her. WTF? “Promotion”.  Mia doesn’t even have social media...she isn’t promoting herself. Darren isn’t promoting her.  Stop being so f’ing jealous of her CCers.  It doesn’t look good on you.  

5. Ben...oh lord Ben.  That whole trope is entirely made up.  Ben might have stayed with them long ago but I follow him in IG and he is rarely in LA and never for more than a few nights. There is nothing to suggest he is even staying with them anymore.  Mia and Ben are clearly friends and Mia and Darren both  openly share their lives with her friends. Mia wearing Ben’s hat means absolutely nothing and Ben’s arm around Mia at an IHeartRadio event means they are friends and Ben supporting the bar means it is a fun place to hang out and he likes them.  Nothing more.  The whole story about them in bed and taking pictures on Valentine’s day 1854 is so pathetic and contrived... I just can't. Every time the CCers stomp their feet and yell “Ben Ben Ben HOW CAN YOU IGNORE BEN” I think of Trump and his pathetic attempts to prove that Mueller is a witch hunt...or Tucker Carlson and Laura Ingraham claiming they aren’t racist. It is just as desperate. 

There are a lot of comments today- made by single woman- about what a healthy relationship should look like. There is nothing about Ben and Mia and Darren except desperate CCers trying discount Darren and Mia’s engagement.  Hell, maybe both Darren and Mia are sleeping with Ben....a throuple if you will.  It doesn’t matter if they are because IT ISN’T ANY OF OUR BUSINESS.  Having been in a relationship for *cough *cough 24+ years with the same man, I can say that there is nothing about Mia and Darren- including Ben- that makes me think it isn't a healthy relationship. Long term relationships are hard work..not the stuff of Disney princess love and CC BS.  If Ben stays with them when he is in town, who cares? He is in town so little. I can imagine staying in hotels gets old and staying with friends whose home is filled with music and singing has to be a joy. 

I agree with you, the Emmys rattled the CC family... big time.  It is hard to ignore the look Darren gave her as he declared her “my darling Mia” and said the most romantic thing I have heard a man use to proclaim to his love ...well, EVER. It is hard posting the same pics of Darren and Chris talking on stage over and over and over and over and pretend that means they are in love or that it wasn’t 10 years ago. They have sunk to arguing that when we watch Glee we aren’t seeing Klaine on screen but rather that is CrissColfer and they aren’t acting..they are in love in RL.  Um, dude NO, those were characters. They were reading lines written for them by writers. They were following stage direction and hitting marks.  After the Emmys, the CCers were left analyzing WHERE Darren and Mia’s noses touched because their kiss during the excitement of hearing his name announced wasn’t perfectly coordinated.  Darren’s aim was a little off -apparently- they bumped noses and that proves they don’t kiss often. I MEAN THAT IS IRREFUTABLE PROOF THEY ARE FAKE.  There was also a proclamation that clearly Mia practiced on objects and other people so she could grab Darren’s face and plant one on him after his name was announced.  Making that kind of shit up is the epitome of desperation. They are running scared. Their entire fandom is based on lies, anger, hate and criticizing people who don’t care about them. So when it falls apart, there is no reason to be a CC Family. Their international friendships which are glued together by their hatred and envy of Mia, ceases to have a reason to exist. When it all falls apart, they have no reason to be so sanctimonious or self righteous and they cease to be internet “famous” as they have labeled themselves.  If they aren’t fighting for Darren’s very soul, they don’t matter. That just sucks. Of course I watch them double down on “how will NEVER marry her” and I know they are setting themselves up for a big fall...it’s a train wreck happening in slow motion. Of course he will marry her. He has said so publicly several times. Their friends congratulated them and showered them with love-ya know, people who actually know them.  I know the CC family will have a few days of anger and then they will regroup and talk about how getting married to one’s beard is the new “breaking up with one’s beard” and that Chris was supporting Darren with everything he had. They will hate the beautiful wedding song Darren and performs for Mia and then they will claim it was really a secret message for them-the people who are really listening- to proclaim his undying love for Chris. Chris will continue to ignore Darren and while most of Hollywood sends Darren and Mia love, the CCers will claim that the ONLY reason Chris wouldn’t send a social media post to Darren is because he contractually can’t. That alone is telling...there is NO other reason he would ignore Darren... I mean, that is the only thing that makes sense, right? 

[thetimelordbatgirl]

This is going to sound a little harsh but I think that Thomas shouldn’t have been hired in descendants 2. Now this has nothing to do with him or his acting but more to do with Dove. It seems very obvious that she can’t act professional with him around. That fact she is trying to twist canon just so their characters can be together is unreal... And because Disney is kissing her ass she can do whatever she wants.

Eh…tbh, I think its confirmed she was still with Ryan when Disney hired Thomas….and then….I don’t know when they did this but broke off engagement during D2 filming and Dove went on with Thomas.

Like- I feel like hes the only one whose professional about their dating? I have never really seen him bring Marry into the conversations and interviews while Dove constantly does- like….I kinda agree and kinda disagree- but like you said- its more to do with Dove at this rate then Thomas as I easily brought his abilities to act as Harry….with Dove….not really.

Not only does she look so dis-interested throughout the entire film, but in scenes with Thomas- its like shes forgotten shes acting and gets all flustered and shit and her acting suffers as a result- is it Thomas’ fault? No, considering he seems pretty fine and pulls of Harry so well I could see murder in his eyes when he looked at Mal- but Dove just…no….I couldn’t see any acting much there.

And she cant….im honestly not a watcher of the Lodge, mostly as im more into cartoons nowadays and Andi Mack, but Dove being on the show and getting her own promo that hints she has a past with Thomas’ character is….annoying- like, the media aint helping her either- they keep posting up on the pair, they keep stanning the ship and they keep acting like Harrys off limits now cause Dove said so.

I cant even begin to wonder why shes so determined to ruin set up canon outside of just wishing she’d grow up and act her age as China’s 19 and yet, acts more professional then Dove does at this rate despite Dove being 21- like her made up HCs not only are BS but also just prove shes determined to fit her love life in there somewhere no matter what.

And Disney needs to generally stop doing that….its not fair with the other actors really….like….they got 100s of actors and yet…they kissing Doves ass still and letting her get away with so much it aint even funny.

#disney descendants #descendants #descendants 2 #harry hook #mal #dove cameron #thomas doherty #oh I am gonna die tonight for tagging Doves tag.... #dove stans be unable to accept critizm on their princess...

[serenagaywaterford]

1) "Is violent mob revenge the answer? (I honestly can’t make that determination.) Is violence sometimes the answer? Is war the only answer with totalitarian regimes?" Those are the kind of questions I had in mind actually. Obviously, I wouldn't expect any answers (bc those are up to the audience, not the series), but it would be interesting if they went there. Of course, these questions would fly over some people's heads (like you said), bc honestly? Said people approach THT like it's a

2) Disney-esque (/superhero) series (nothing wrong with them), where the totally good guys get to punch and kill the totally evil guys in the end, uwu. (If I'm being too much of a dick, just tell me and I'll tone it down a notch, lol.) Anyway, mob mentality aside, history proves that such regimes fall and rise the same way they have been created. Aka "Those who arrive with blood, fall with blood." Doesn't mean that we have to like it. I've mentioned before that I detest violence and I especially

3) believe that it has NO place in politics. I've been called naive for this, so there's that. Weirdly enough, I'm also the kind of person who thinks that equating ALL forms of violence is quite dangerous given that: i) threats/regimes like Gilead are inherently genocidal in their ambitions, ii) the scale of violence is not always the same, iii) every country (democratic or not) has its army and police and most people consider this kind of (controlled) violence perfectly valid, iv) there's

4) self-defense. Where I'm going with this? If a pro-Gilead person is threatened by an anti-Gilead one, the former has a choice: they can ask for a democratic trial (bc it's too late to apologize). Most likely, civilized/democratic people will listen to reason. (Well, unless we're talking about mobs... THEN, things get quite disturbing.) But if a person belongs to a group/minority targeted by Gilead, there's nothing they can do that will make pro-Gilead people happy... except die or get raped

5) for life. Anyway, I really could go on and on about this subject, but I think I'll stop here, bc it's quite complex. /// I was thinking about what you said concerning Fred and Serena's pre-Gilead relationship, and you know what? You're right. Their relationship would have fallen apart at some point, Gilead notwithstanding or not. Fred is two-faced and he sure af played us in S1. (Ngl, I used to think he was the lesser of the two evils.) But one doesn't become such an antipathetic monster at

6) a flip of the dime. The nasty parts were always there, but he concealed/controlled them. Maybe bc said parts wouldn't exactly make him endearing to others? Anyhow, your interpretation makes him quite the interesting antagonist/villain, so I'm rolling with it, lol.

---------

OMG. I think I’m in love with you?  PLEASE NEVER STOP BEING YOU. I don’t think you’re being a dick at all. I love it. Cos sometimes we just gotta call the BS like we see it?

“Of course, these questions would fly over some people's heads (like you said), bc honestly? Said people approach THT like it's a Disney-esque (/superhero) series (nothing wrong with them), where the totally good guys get to punch and kill the totally evil guys in the end, uwu.”

This is such a huge point. Cos I think there’s a very common trend of THT attempting to approach issues from various angles and try to show the complexity of it but then it going WHOOSH over so many viewers’ heads. Which never makes sense to me cos like, what’s the point in watching THT if you’re not considering it on multiple levels and trying to explore the issues? I don’t wanna point the blame in the general directions of particular shippers but I can’t help it, perhaps cos they’re just the most vocal in fandom, but it seems that the Disney-eqsque superhero tale is what they want, complete with EPIC HETERO ROMANCE!!! throughout. I’d say at least 50% of the responses are about Mr. Nicky (It goes up to 75-80% if we are actually shown his face). (And their concern is focused on the male romantic lead... YAWN.)

I would absolutely love THT to take the path of questioning mob mentality and the cycle of violence/victimization, etc. But it may be too much for even Hulu to want to tackle considering how black and white viewers seem to think. They are trying so HARD to present characters as shades of grey (Serena, being the main example. But June, Emily, Luke, Nick, etc. also) but instead of placing them along a spectrum it’s either DIE EVIL SCUM! or AMAZING CINNAMON ROLL CAN DO NO WRONG! I think the only one they complain about is June cos she’s not AS perfect as they’d like her to be. She makes some dumbass fucking decisions for sure. Sometimes I like that about her, especially how pre-Gilead June was not a super great person. She was just sorta... normal. (Other times I’m like, “JUNE YOU IDIOT WTF?!” lol but that’s fun too I guess.) If I made a scale myself, I’d probably put June fairly close to the centre, rather than on the far “good” end.

I always wondered this:

If June hadn’t been deemed a “fallen woman” and thus been allowed to stay as an Econowife, with Luke and Hannah, would she have done anything? Would she be as inspired to rebel and resist as she is? I’m not trying to shit on June at all, but I feel like it’s a question I’m curious about. A lot of people say they would be big heroes, but when really faced with the reality of living a sort of shitty life or risking that for an uncertain thing/death, most just choose to go along with it and hope it ends (especially hope that SOMEBODY else takes the risk to end it). Even good people. What do you think? 

(Aside: June being called a fallen woman is SUCH bullshit. She wasn’t cheating on anybody! LUKE was unfaithful, not her! Which is why I thought perhaps they missed a chance to address race. It could have influence on what Gilead deems “holy” marriages, and those they see as “sinful”. And a (even subtly) racist fascist state, would deffo see mixed marriage as a terrible thing. “Let’s get the fertile white woman knocked up with some white babies; no more of this mixed race babies!” Again, as we talked about before, it would limit Hannah’s storyline ofc, but I guess it wouldn’t HAVE to. She could be in a “lesser” household, instead of the rich fancy one she is.)

Sorry, those were some unplanned side rants!

I love how you described all the politics of that. It really is a fascinating thing to consider, especially how to deal with Gilead, both on an international scale, and just on smaller scales. War? Seems inevitable honestly. And clearly, Gilead is STILL fighting wars all over the continent. I honestly... you’re so right. It’s very complex and I’m not sure how detailed THT will go with that. They seem to be keeping things quite... superficial. They reference things every so often but there’s nothing solid to latch onto. It often reminds me of the Underpants Gnomes from South Park. 

phase 1: blow up congress

phase 2: ???

phase 3: establish fully-functional military fascist handmaid regime over entire continental US.

....so how to bring down Gilead then??? 

phase 1: burn down 3 house + angry handmaid steal babby back then let babby go to canada!!

phase 2: ???

phase 3: overthrow massive fascist military regime!!!!

So, we’ll see how they do it. I doubt we’re really going to get a lot of details about how everything works and maybe it’s just better that way cos it seems like the more they try to explain how Gilead stays working, it makes even less sense. And also, as much as this stuff is interesting, I really don’t wanna watch THT turn into like Zero Dark Thirty or some shit. It’s strongest when focused on the women’s experiences specifically.

“Fred is two-faced and he sure af played us in S1. (Ngl, I used to think he was the lesser of the two evils.)“

Same! It wasn’t until S2 that I started going “hmm” about Fred. I thought he wasn’t as evil as her. And when you go back and watch S1 knowing what he’s done in S2, tehre are hints and I got a weird vibe. Like... I dunno. I was randomly just rewatching that 2x11 scene where Fred and Serena are at the house and Fred is just so.... Yikes. His motives are so clear. And I tried to find examples of Fred’s humanity. I do believe we get glimpses of Serena’s, and she has capacity for kindness--in very specific circumstances but I couldn’t find a single scene of Fred where he does anything selfless, or without expecting some sort of gross sexual favour/ego stroke in return, or even kind. It’s all for his own gratification. And I am 1000% convinced he has some sort of pregnancy fetish. It doesn’t seem like he gives a shit about the actual baby, esp once its born. He’s more interested in June’s bodily changes (not the actual baby) when she’s pregnant, and her lactation afterwards. And I may not know much about the world of fetishes but I do know that’s not exactly a rare one for men. 

I think an argument against me would be the car convo about creating the Ceremony cos Fred kind of just went along with it and was on the fence. But then I think... it’s not that he was against it at all. He just didn’t think women would like it. It was never, “Nah, mate, that’s a step too far.” It was more like, “Cool idea, bros. But let’s rebrand it okay?” I mean, in the flashbacks, he did seem very proud of her, enamored, like you said. But part of me just can’t shake that, okay fair play that he probably did honestly love/respect her in some ways, but he also saw it as, “Yes, this plan is going just the way I want it!” I don’t feel like power corrupts THAT much, that quickly that he’d go from perfect husband and lovingly gazing at his amazing wife to demeaning, repeatedly cheating on her, and beating the living shit out of her (and raping her) in a few years. Then again, extreme situations can make people change quite abruptly. Who knows.

I dunno. Maybe I just hate him and dont’ wanna give him any credit for being a human being in any way whatsoever lol. 

#rants and raves #so soz these are taking longer and l onger to respond. RL ya know! #Anonymous

[lavadog]

SRMTHFG 20 Day Challenge: Day 3: Least Favorite Character

Okay, so here's the thing. When I saw today's challenge, I thought "Oh! That's easy. I've always disliked Jinmay and hated it when she showed up." But I wasn't just going to say so without explaining why, and I hadn't seen Chiro's Girl since a year or so after the show was canceled when Disney still had reruns of the episodes playing. So I rewatched it to refresh my memory.

But watching it again some ten years later, I found that the episode wasn't as bad as I remembered it being. The episode still has several things wrong with it, of course. But most of those mistakes can be attributed to the fact that it’s the first episode, and as with any show, it’s marked by the Characterization Marches On/Early Installment Weirdness tropes. We have "We can't activate the robot without Chiro" even though it is later established the whole team doesn't need to be there to pilot the robot (They can, just with suboptimal results), and "We don't keep secrets from the team" even though nobody told Chiro about Mandarin or Antauri's masters (And so on). We also have the first instance of the writers trying to balance Chiro the hero, and Chiro the teenage boy, and what better way to distract at teenage boy than a pretty girl? Chiro comes off as uncharacteristically dismissive of the monkeys in this episode, which is honestly pretty jarring compared to later episodes (Hence the Characterization Marches On trope), but also carries the tone of stereotypical teenage rebellion that the writers thankfully moved on from. We also have the the beginning of the off and on again weirdness of just how necessary each member of the team is at any given point in time. The monkeys are shown to be in trouble in this episode without Chiro there to help them out, and this is later reinforced by episodes like Magnetic Menace where Sprx not being there put the team off their game. But then we have episodes like Pit of Doom where the team apparently works just fine without Chiro there to help them out (Granted, there weren't as many formless in Pit of Doom for them to fight at once, but the point still stands).    

Chiro and Jinmay's romance in this episode is filled with almost painfully cliche dialogue, and we have that horribly contrived moment where Chiro is apparently so absorbed in staring at her that he can't hear Antauri calling him for help or see the formless driving by outside of the window, but it isn't as bad as it could have been. Chiro meeting Jinmay is a pretty cute scene, and so is their subsequent shyness when they first start hanging out with each other directly afterwards. The betrayal on Chiro's face when he thinks Jinmay was only hanging out with him to get into the robot hit me pretty hard too. Overall, Jinmay is pretty harmless in this episode, and there isn't really all that much to dislike about her.

But here's the thing. Chiro and Jinmay's romance doesn't age well. Their relationship starts off as a cliche. Chiro sees Jinmay and is instantly in love because Jinmay is a cute girl his age. They hang out for maybe an afternoon or so, and then have no truly significant interactions until perhaps Ghosts of Shuggazoom. And even then, they spend what little time they have together fighting Valina. Afterwards, we have the Hills have 5, but that's ruined by Jinmay being brainwashed for the majority of the episode and the two of them only interacting with each other for less than 30 seconds in the entire episode (When she's not brainwashed). Chiro and Jinmay obviously care about one another, but the majority of their relationship seems to operate on tell rather than show. We get the implication that Chiro and Jinmay hang out a lot off screen, but we don't personally get to see any real relationship form between them. And as such, none of it really counts. How am I supposed to believe in their relationship if I barely see them spend any time together?

Because they don't show it, a lot of the writers attempts to prove to us just how much Chiro and Jinmay care about each other feels presumptuous, especially when the monkeys are on hand. Two specific examples that come to mind are in Savage Lands and Ghosts of Shuggazoom. In Savage Lands, the monkeys finally catch up to Chiro as he is trying to rebuild Antauri, and try to get him to come home because in their minds Antauri is gone and Chiro isn't in his right mind. When they initially fail to convince him, they try to contact Jinmay, like just seeing her is going to make him abandon Antauri and go with them because hormones or something. In Ghosts of Shuggazoom, Jinmay is the one to get through to him once he is turned into a wraith, and it's treated like she was perhaps the only one that could have done it because true love or something (Yes, I'm aware that the monkeys were all passed out at the time, but we've seen them power though this when the situation has called for it in the past). Never mind that the monkeys are there. Never mind that the monkeys are his family and that it’s been repeatedly shown just how much they love each other. Never mind that Chiro would literally move mountains for them and what we've seen them go through time and time again for each other. No, clearly only Jinmay could do it because of that one afternoon they shared with each other that one time.

Back to the matter at hand though. Is Jinmay my least favorite character? Ultimately, no. I think they could have done a way better job developing her relationship with Chiro and her as a character (Like Chiro, we know nothing of her past), and I think she mostly exists to be a plot device (I've gone into this in a previous post), but I don't think she's the worst the show has to offer. I can't even really find it in myself to dislike her all that much.

So who is my least favorite character, then? After thinking about it for some time, I'd have to say that it's Valina, and perhaps Ma and Pa Shinko by extension. Ma and Pa Shinko have to be the most contrived villains the show has ever offered us. I mean really. A cult in Shuggazoom City that worships the Skeleton King, the same guy who has repeatedly tried to wipe them from existence in some way or another? Who did horrible things to them like make them dig the Pit of Doom or turned them into mindless zombies? It doesn't make any sense. The best motivation the writers offer us is that Ma and Pa Shinko want power for some reason. Which, again, they wouldn't have gotten if the Skeleton King had managed to succeed in his plans at any point in time. At best, the only excuse I can think of for this so called Secret Society to exist is to inform the Hyper Force about plans to resurrect the Skeleton King, which kicks off the plot of the last three episodes. But the writers could have done this a number of other ways that didn't involve something this ridiculous.

Valina herself isn't that bad of a character or villain. But she makes for a very weak main villain compared to what we've had in previous seasons. In Seasons 1 & 2, we had the Skeleton King. He has an interesting backstory as the once good Alchemist who created the monkeys to stop the evil being that he was becoming, and is clever/dangerous enough to actually succeed in his ultimate plan despite our heroes best efforts. Said plan is to awaken a Dark One, a member of the same ancient evil race that corrupted him to begin with, and although he ultimately dies in the process of doing so (Or at least, loses his individuality), his success gives us the awakened Dark One as the new main villain of the series for Season 3. After Season 3, I couldn't help but wonder how they were going to top having an ancient evil as the main villain. I imagined something even worse happening, like a portal to the Dark One Dimension being opened and multiplying last season's problem 1000x fold. But instead, we got the seemingly one-shot villain from Savage Lands, and despite being the main villain, she seems to almost be an after thought in her own season. She only appears in 5/13 episodes, and she's only a legitimate threat in 4/5 of those episodes (Mandarin is the one using her powers in Night of Fear). Of these remaining four episodes, only 1/4 has her enacting some evil plan that isn't directly related to her ultimate goal of resurrecting the Skeleton King. When we do finally get to resurrecting the Skeleton King (Which was foreshadowed back when Mandarin managed to save the skull in Season 3), she can't even actually accomplish it on her own without the BS that is Sprx turning evil and basically doing it for her (Which by itself is jarring because it's suddenly as if Sprx is stronger than the rest of the team combined).

As a whole, Valina is a villain that is built up as being very threatening, but in practice is easily defeated when it comes down to a direct confrontation, usually by Chiro. This can be seen in both Savage Lands and Ghosts of Shuggazoom, where Chiro basically has enough of her shit and beats her in one or two shots (Heck, in Night of Fear she's still trapped in her medallion from Ghosts of Shuggazoom). In the end, she was apparently so insignificant that the Skeleton King killed her off, supposedly never to appear in Season 5.

If she wasn't the main villain of the season, I think she would have made for a good regular villain. But as the main villain she's disappointing and leads to a lack of focus in Season 4. Being connected to the most contrived villains of the series doesn't help her, and I can't help but wonder if the lack of focus she brought was what helped get the show canceled before we could get a satisfying conclusion.

#srmthfg #20 day challenge #chiro #jinmay #valina #ma and pa shinko

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$RBIZ UPDATED DD W/ MANAGEMENT

Current Share Structure. OS is MAXED, which means no further dilution without an AS increase PENBROOK MANAGEMENT (Institutional buyer) $$$ flowing into $RBIZ is HUGE! https://fintel.io/soh/us/rbiz/penbrook-management-llc https://fintel.io/i/penbrook-management-llc I believe investors are overlooking the $RBIZ IR firm, MKR Group. Take a look at what they’ve done for other OTC companies and the praise given to them by respected businessmen traded on major exchanges. This IR firm seems to know a gem when they see it and they know how to properly get a OTC company upflited.  One cannot argue the contracts we have, it’s all right there in the filings. Would the SEC allow a CT Order for an SEC filer if it wasn’t all legitimate? I think not. In fact, I will begin to walk you through what’s covered under the CT Order so investors can understand what was given the Confidential Treatment or CT Order. This is important because the Commission now releases orders relating to applications for confidential treatment of certain information otherwise required to be included in filed documents. The Divisions of Corporation Finance and Investment Management issue these orders pursuant to delegated authority. After showing the contracts are legit, I will prove they are also being fullfilled. I took a screenshot of the beginning portion of exhibit 10.25 && 10.26 so investors can see what the exhibits are for. I encourage investors who haven’t, go read the 10-k in its entirely. It may help you better understand the legitimacy of $RBIZ and where it’s headed in the near future.  https://www.sec.gov/edgar/searchedgar/ctorders.htm SEC CT order for Exhibits 10.25 && 10.26 CT Order 10.25. Beef Contract https://www.otcmarkets.com/stock/RBIZ/news/RealBiz-Awarded-78-Million-Contract-To-Deliver-Beef-to-the-Middle-East?id=147791 CT Order 10.26. Disney Distribution https://www.otcmarkets.com/stock/RBIZ/news/RealBiz-Media-Group-Verus-Foods-Announces-Exclusive-Juice-Distribution-Agreement-with-The-Walt-Disney-Co-in-the-United-A?id=170497 Now that we can see the contracts are legit, lets see them being fulfilled, right investors?!?! Well here ya’ go, contracts are indeed being fulfilled.  $RBIZ Mangement Anshu Bhatnagar – Chief Executive Officer and Chairman Anshu Bhatnagar has served as our Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board since January 2, 2017. In addition, Mr. Bhatnagar is a food distribution veteran and previously was the Chief Executive Officer of American Agro Group, an international trading and distribution company that specialized in exporting agricultural commodities and food products from 2012 to 2016. Mr. Bhatnagar was also a Managing Member of Blue Capital Group, a real estate oriented multi-family office focused on acquiring, developing, and managing commercial real estate as well as investing in operating businesses from 2008 to 2016. He has also owned, operated and sold other successful businesses in technology, construction and waste management. The Board believes Mr. Bhatnagar is qualified to serve as a member of the Board because of his extensive business experience. Anshu Bhatnagar is a highly accomplished senior executive focused on private equity, real estate and running operating business across multiple industries. Mr. Bhatnagar is a visionary, successful serial entrepreneur with numerous profitable, global businesses to his credit. Well-versed in all aspects of real estate acquisition and disposition, development, financing, leasing and operation and has broad experience across many sectors of real estate – hospitality, office, retail, multi-family, industrial and single family residential. He has a solid track record of developing and implementing strategic business plans that govern daily operations, position in the market, and ultimate disposition. Mr. Bhatnagar has an exceptional career production – managed commercial real estate portfolios in excess of $1.0B, executed over 100 debt and equity transactions, sponsored a highly successful private real estate fund and a mezzanine debt fund. Michael O’Gorman – Director Michael O’Gorman has served as a member of our Board since August 11, 2017. Mr. O’Gorman has over 35 years of successful food brokerage, food manufacturing, project management, finance and legal experience in the international arena. Since 1982, Mr. O’Gorman has also served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Crassus Group of companies, includes entities whose subsidiaries specialize in sourcing and marketing all natural, healthy food and consumer products. In addition, from 1976 to 1979 he served as Chief of Staff in both the House of Representatives and U.S. Senate. He has firsthand experience with agriculture since he has owned and operated a 252-acre farm where he raised both crops and Black Angus cattle. Mr. O’Gorman has spent a number of years working at major international law firms as well serving as a Member of the Corporate Law Department, Director of Litigation Support Group of Peabody International Corporation, Fortune 100 NYSE from 1979 to 1986. Mr. O’Gorman received his JD with a concentration in international law from the University of Connecticut, MBA in international finance from Fairleigh Dickinson University and BS in organic chemistry from St. Peters College. The Board believes Mr. O’Gorman is qualified to serve as a member of the Board because of his experience in agriculture and the food industry. Thomas Butler Fore – Director Thomas Butler Fore has served as a member of our Board since August 11, 2017. Mr. Fore is a multi-faceted entrepreneur and executive with experience in numerous categories of business, including real estate, media, personal care products and fashion. He has served as Chief Executive Officer of Sora Development, an award winning real estate development firm focused on large mixed-use projects with a specialty in public-private partnerships since 2007. In addition, from 2012 he served as Chief Executive Officer of Tiderock Media, a film production company and in 2014 he founded Digital2go Media Networks where he also served as a member of its board. Mr. Fore is also involved as an advisor and partner in numerous other enterprises in media, real estate and consumer products. Mr. Fore received his BA from Towson University. The Board believes Mr. Fore is qualified to serve as a member of the Board because of his background and experience in the industry. Piyush Munot – CFO of Operations in Middle East, Africa && Asia  Piyush Munot has more than 18 years of total work experience including over a decade in the Corporate Finance & Advisory field. Prior to joining Al Masah Capital, Piyush worked at Al Dahra Holding, a food and agriculture dedicated sovereign wealth fund focusing on Fund Management & Investments. In addition, he also worked at KPMG for 7 years in their Business Valuations and M & A division. Piyush holds a Bachelors of Commerce from Narsee Monjee College in Mumbai, India, is a Certified Public Accountant from USA and an Executive MBA from the Indian Institute of Management. CEO’s words on CFO hiring; “In just the last few months, we have added an independent board, a very experienced CFO from a multibillion dollar public company. Bringing in Piyush Munot as CFO to oversee our operations in the Middle East, Africa and Asia is a tremendous hire. We don’t expect most investors to know some of the companies in the region, but Piyush was recently Group Finance Controller at a Division of Al Dahra Holdings, one of the leading sovereign wealth fund agri businesses in the UAE. He has worked at major accounting firms such as KPMG and PWC, and is a US certified public accountant. He is also a great addition to our team and will help seamlessly integrate our overseas operations into our corporate accounting structure here in the US.” http://dlvr.it/QgfByx