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wits-writing · 10 months

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Next Day Reblog!

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“A Wonderful Experience”: Why Transformers: EarthSpark and Nightshade Matter

I’ve been a Transformers fan to one degree or another for as long as I can remember. Whether it’s early memories of watching Beast Wars, renting the G1 animated film on VHS from Blockbuster, or reading the numerous excellent comics that have come over the years, I’ve always found something to love about this franchise. So, I was probably going to find time to check out the 2022 CGI animated series Transformers: EarthSpark eventually no matter what. But one little bird changed that from an “I’ll get around to it eventually” to “I need to make watching this show a priority.”

A little bird by the name of Nightshade (voiced by Z Infante)!

I’d already heard from people I trust about EarthSpark’s quality as a series, but finding out about the franchise’s first prominent, explicitly nonbinary Transformer got me eager to dive in. I’ve discussed characters I relate to and read nonbinary themes into in the past, but getting a chance to see a show in a franchise I love feature that kind of representation with intent was exciting. Given the fact I’ve written 3000 words analyzing the character of Nightshade now, it’s easy to say I wasn’t disappointed!

The topic of gender and how it relates to the Transformers as characters has been one of many long, exhausting fandom debates over the franchise’s nearly four decade history. I’m not here to relitigate any of that, so take it as read from here on out that the Transformers as characters do have and express gendered identities throughout the history of all its incarnations.

To give a quick primer on EarthSpark as a whole (and why it’s great) before digging into Nightshade’s character in specific:

The series is set fifteen years after the end of the Autobot/Decepticon War. The bots that managed to survive the fighting and remain on Earth are presumed to be the last of their species. All of them are stuck in a holding pattern where the only options currently viable are a life in hiding or working alongside the government-funded alien threat detection/response agency GHOST. Optimus Prime and Megatron head up the latter efforts, in the hope of finding some peaceful balance between humans and Transformers going into the future (though neither of them are fully at ease with the situation, as GHOST clearly has ulterior motives of their own.)

The grim outlook for the Cybertronians takes a turn for the better with the birth of two new Transformers. The Earth-sparks of the show’s title (called “Terrans” throughout the series), Twitch and Thrash, who are bonded to the human children Robby and Mo Malto. Helped by Optimus, Megatron, and the Malto kids’ parents, GHOST agent Dot and her husband Alex, the decision is made to keep the Terrans a secret until the extent of what their existence could mean for the Transformers future as a species is fully understood. The Terrans become an official part of the Malto Family (lovingly referred to as “Malto-bots” by the other characters.) At the halfway point of the first season, in the episode “Age of Evolution”, this unconventional family unit expands further with the birth of three more Terrans, including Nightshade.

Between puzzling out the Terrans’ existence, hiding from GHOST, and fighting threats like the human mad scientist Mandroid, there’s a lot of thematic meat on the bone of this series’ setup. The main one I’m interested in digging into through the lens of Nightshade’s characterization is how the Terrans are written to feel like kids figuring out who they want to be as they grow up. Transformers has a history of designating one or more bots in its series central casts as the rookie/kid character, not insignificantly the Terrans’ primary mentor, Bumblebee, has been traditionally positioned as that very rookie. EarthSpark adding the narrative weight of representing a potential for all Transformers, particularly in how they’ll relate to humans while living on Earth, onto these characters gives more meaning to them being under that role.

The Terrans learn lessons about who they want to be and who they can/can’t trust (not always determined by old alliances like Autobot/Decepticon) from the older Transformers and humans alike. Also proving through their actions everything new they’ll have to offer the world they call home through the gift of their existence. Each Terran has been given the appropriate space so far to have their characters develop, each in their own directions, through this theme.

Nightshade is exemplary of this, best understood through looking at how they’re characterized before/after their first focus episode “Missed Connection”, about them forming a bond with Decepticon scientist Tarantulas.

[SPOILERS for EarthSpark beyond this point]

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wits-writing · 10 months

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“A Wonderful Experience”: Why Transformers: EarthSpark and Nightshade Matter

A little bird by the name of Nightshade (voiced by Z Infante)!

To give a quick primer on EarthSpark as a whole (and why it’s great) before digging into Nightshade’s character in specific:

[SPOILERS for EarthSpark beyond this point]

Before “Missed Connection”

Something that genuinely impressed me going back through EarthSpark for the sake of writing this piece is how immediately Nightshade is fully themself from their earliest bits of screentime in “Age of Evolution.” While the other two members of the second batch of Terran Transformers, Hashtag and Jawbreaker, have their names confirmed upon them by their connection to Robby and Mo, Nightshade actively introduces themself with a bow and a flourish (“It is a delight and a surprise to meet you all!”) This beat quickly establishes their self-assuredness in their identity and that, while they’re later shown to have occasional introverted tendencies, they are anything but shy. I’m also fond of how the scene establishing their pronouns as Optimus lays out their plan of attack also foreshadows their eventual alt-mode, since they ask to be represented by an owl-bobblehead during the planning. The one scene serving as a contrast to their outgoing demeanor, as they recoil at the sight of Mandroid’s cruelty, gives the first hint towards their eventual desire to protect those in need.

There’s only two episodes between Nightshade’s debut in “Age of Evolution” and their first focus episode; “Hashtag: Oops” and “Outtakes.” Since neither is their focus episode, there’s not much to say about how they’re portrayed in either one (in fact, Nightshade’s entirely absent from “Outtakes” as anything but a brief visual cameo.) “Hashtag: Oops” does still manage to establish some key parts of Nightshade’s personality. Firstly, their comfort in themselves as they proclaim they don’t need an alt-mode (“I like who I am as I am.”) Secondly, their inclination towards tech and engineering as they secretly build a new underground base to surprise their family and give everyone more room to operate within. The latter also indicates their “better to ask forgiveness than permission” approach to their tinkering and scientific work. Which comes back around in a big way during “Missed Connection.”

Which finally brings us to the episode that’s the primary reason I’m writing this piece at all!

“Missed Connection”

Being Nightshade’s first proper focus episode in the series, their current state as part of the ensemble cast gets reestablished in short order. Namely, how they feel out of place around their siblings. Their affinity for science and technology leads to them making their own fun separate from the rest of the family. A pattern that gets highlighted by Nightshade working to perfect a new training drone while the rest of their siblings are playing a game of tag outdoors in celebration of Robby and Mo having the day off school. When later questioned by Alex and Dot about why they don’t spend more time with the rest of the family, Nightshade says it feels like their siblings treat them like they’re “speaking another language.”

This sense of isolation informs why Nightshade is so eager later in the episode when they find a connection with Tarantulas’ own work with tech. Simultaneously providing an opportunity for Alex to offer them something they can connect with while trying to figure out how to connect with others. Like any good nerdy dad, he does it through the magic of reading. He offers Nightshade a copy of his favorite book from when he was growing up, “Winged Sentinel”, an in-universe fantasy/sci-fi series they immediately connect with and find new aspirations. Which we hear as they repeatedly call back to the books like about its hero “protecting those in need.” Their connection to this book quickly leads to the one they find working with Tarantulas, as they were in the local cemetery since it was the “last known address” of Winged Sentinel’s author.

(Quick aside: First time I watched this episode, that detail had me thinking the show was going to do a “Nightshade learns about mortality” type of story. I was relieved when not only did Nightshade grok what happened to the author pretty fast, but the episode in turn swiftly shifted to the dynamic between Tarantulas and them.)

“Missed Connection” finds its central theme in Nightshade and Tarantulas’ discussions on identity and finding one’s place within that world rife with conflict that can be directly hostile to those like them. There’s a recurrent motif in the dialogue of Tarantulas’ cynicism born from eons of experience and Nightshade’s youthful enthusiasm. Though cynicism is far from all the elder Transformer has to offer, as he also provides Nightshade with a new perspective on alt-modes they hadn’t considered and ultimately guides them to their choice.

Nightshade: Aren’t I sufficient as I am? Tarantulas: Alt-forms aren’t meant to complete you, as though you have a missing part, they further express who you already are.

Combining that with Tarantulas’ frustration at the “constrictive labels” of Autobot/Decepticon adds to the resonance this episode has with the nonbinary experience. The concept of “passing” gets explicitly evoked by him while discussing his plan to create a hard-light hologram projector so he can live freely as a human while evading GHOST’s forces. Which is the first proper disguise Tarantulas has taken in his life. While his giant spider alt-mode may provide plenty of utility, it’s anything but discreet.

His plan and attitude informing on it connects back to the broader central theme of EarthSpark as a series of the Transformers finding a new way to live on Earth among humanity with the Terrans representing the way forward. He can’t see a way forward besides hiding who he is and the only safety he can think to offer Nightshade is to join him in that life of discretion. His outlook’s best emphasized by his assuredness that the Autobot/Decepticon War resuming is inevitable, alongside that eventuality dragging him out of whatever peace he does find.

However, cracks in Tarantulas’ bleak worldview show as he begins to admire Nightshade’s exuberant demeanor and determination to be a protector. That admiration for a Transformer with the potential to live unburdened by all the hardships he’s seen leads to him delivering the best, most resonant line in the episode:

“It is a gift to know yourself so well, so young. Take pride in that.”

A beautiful sentiment aimed directly at members of EarthSpark’s target demographic on their own journeys to express their identities.

Unfortunately, the bond these characters have found can’t last. When Tarantulas recognizes Dot as an agent of GHOST, he acts rashly under the assumption that she’s holding Nightshade prisoner. He kidnaps Alex and her, planning to erase Nightshade from their memories so they can go into hiding with him. As a fight between the bots eventually breaks out, Nightshade commits to acting like the protector they aspire to be and chooses the alt-mode of a green armored owl, based on the hero of Winged Sentinel. (Alex’s proud declaration of “You read the book!” while witnessing this is great.) A form that isn’t a disguise but expresses themself as they are and what they want to be going forward.

Nightshade and Tarantulas’ conflict has grown intense enough by this point that the elder Transformer’s admiration for the young bot doesn’t come through in his reaction. Rather he flips it into an insult providing Nightshade their opportunity for a sharp, direct retort (and other best line in the episode):

Tarantulas: You’re still just the lost protoform I first met! Nightshade: You’ve just proven you don’t really know me, because I was never lost!

When the fight ends with Tarantulas’ hologram projector destroyed in the skirmish, Nightshade reflects on words Dot offered them earlier about how everyone deserves a second chance and convinces their family not to hurt Tarantulas any further. However, it seems to be a decision out of their hands as GHOST is drawn to their location by the fight. Tarantulas, finally understanding Nightshade’s situation as well as who they are, offers himself up as bait to lure GHOST away from the Maltos. Running off into the forest as Nightshade reflects on the broken hologram projector the two of them made.

Multiple rewatches of this episode, as well as the first season of EarthSpark as a whole, has reaffirmed it as my favorite episode of the show so far. The tight focus of the dynamic between Nightshade and Tarantulas, alongside the deeper meaning that can be taken from pretty much every exchange between the two, is exemplary of what makes this series standout wonderfully as part of the vast Transformers canon.

After “Missed Connection”

Since there’s not that much of the first season left after “Missed Connection”, Nightshade’s once again mostly off to the side doing their own thing. But there are small bits that show how their experiences in that episode have changed them. They actively spend more time around the rest of the Malto Family, like helping Bumblebee train for an upcoming race and showing that they’ve formed a bond built on mutual tech-obsession with their sister, Hashtag, as they work together to further upgrade the underground headquarters.

We also get a fun minor bit of their “better to ask forgiveness…” way of operating when they add some high tech bells and whistles to Dot’s prosthetic leg as a Mother’s Day present in the episode “Bear Necessities.” A plot point that later gives the show an opportunity for Dot and Nightshade to have a nice mother-child bonding moment as she explains to them why she liked her leg the way it was in terms they can understand (“something like this is personal”) while not completely shutting them down over it (“I’m open to some small changes, but they’ll have to be ones we come up with together.”)

Though the biggest moment post “Missed Connection” moment for the character, as well as my personal favorite single scene in EarthSpark so far, comes from their subplot in the season 1 two-parter episode “Home.” As the Malto kids and the Terrans go into Philadelphia to see more of the wider world, we get to see Nightshade continue acting as a protector for those in need as they save a young person named Sam from getting mugged in an alley. Nightshade notices a pin that says “SHE/THEY” on Sam’s handbag and tells her their pronouns in return. The two end up having a conversation about how the things that make them who they are can also make them targets for intolerantly minded people. This interaction ends with Sam affirming they feel safe around Nightshade and giving the young Transformer a simple but effective explanation of what being nonbinary means.

This not only gives Nightshade further context to understand themself, but also has the important touch from a metaperspective of having a human character be the one to explain the concept. An effective dodge of what’s frequently cited as a pitfall of using aliens/robots to explore these facets of human identity, making it as clear as possible for anyone watching (especially the target demographic of kids) that Nightshade’s nonbinary identity is in no way just a product of their being an alien robot. Rather, it's an identity that simply feels right for some people living in the world. One that people who identify with it and explore their connections to it can find immensely fulfilling.

Or, as Nightshade puts it at the end of this conversation:

“What a wonderful word, for a wonderful experience.”

(Before I dive into my conclusion, I want to say I deeply hope this isn’t the last we see of Sam in the series. Both for representation’s sake and because I like seeing the Terrans bond with humans outside of their immediate family circle.)

It would feel wrong to end this look at Nightshade’s character and how that reflects on the best qualities of EarthSpark as a series without giving proper credit to the creative voices involved in bringing them to life. Namely, writer Mae Catt (she/they) who wrote the episode “Missed Connection” and one of the three writers on “Home”, the other two being showrunners Nicole Dubuc and Dale Malinkowski. While fundamentally I believe anyone could write any kind of story, authenticity comes through stronger when writers from the same background are involved. Catt’s passion for writing this show comes through beautifully in these episodes and in how they’ve discussed the show on social media.

Her understanding for what these characters and stories can mean to the young people watching gets clearly reflected in recurrent elements of EarthSpark’s story. Aside from Nightshade’s admiration for the main character of the Winged Sentinel novels, we also see moments in other episodes of their siblings trying to figure out what being a Transformers means through in-universe Transformers comic books telling the story of the Autobot/Decepticon War.

It’s also what drove me to write this piece. I see Nightshade in all their creative, expressive glory and it makes me happy for the kids watching Transformers: EarthSpark, seeing them, and relating to them. Every story has the potential to be a guide someone out there can use to move closer to their heart. Nightshade’s being that guide to nonbinary kids now in a way I never could’ve dreamed of growing up is, simply put, wonderful.

Happy Pride! 💛🤍💜🖤

If you like what you’ve read here, please like/reblog or share elsewhere online, follow me on Twitter (@WC_WIT), and consider throwing some support my way at either Ko-Fi.com or Patreon.com at the extension “/witswriting”

#transformers earthspark #transformers #nightshade #nightshade earthspark #Wit's Writing #tv review #nonbinary #lgbtqia #queer #nightshade malto #nightshade transformers #pride #happy pride

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wits-writing · 1 year

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We Just Got a Letter(boxd)!: Star Wars Sundays

Back at the start of this year (as in the literal first thing I did on New Years Day) I decided to start up a weekly rewatch of all the live action Star Wars movies in release order.

Called it my “Star Wars Sundays”

It was intended to be something I did just for fun and just for myself. The further I went along into the series I found myself with more to say as my enthusiasm for this universe hit in a way it hasn’t in a long time ago in a galaxy far far away. That enthusiasm came through in what I was writing as I logged each movie into my Letterboxd profile, giving insight into whatever stood out to me (for better or worse) with each film. Mainly in the form of whatever about the movie was most immediately on my mind after watching.

Do I think anything I had to say is a particularly hot take on Star Wars? Somehow bringing something new to the discussion of one of the most thoroughly discussed film series ever made?

Not really.

But even as what I was writing about this movies got more detailed as I went along, I never lost the sense of fun I was having.

So since it’s The Day the Internet Drives a Star Wars Pun Into the Ground, I figured I may as well compile everything I wrote about those movies over those eleven weeks in one place.

Let’s get this started

Star Wars (Watched: 1/1/2023)

Starting a weekly release order rewatch of these movies, my first full look back at them in a while.

There’s an argument to be made that this original is still the weirdest of all the movies in a wonderful way!

[Note from the present: If I’d known I’d be posting these all together here, probably would’ve had more to say about this one]

The Empire Strikes Back (Watched: 1/8/2023)

The willful denial of closure by making the followup to one of the greatest crowd-pleasers of all time a story where the bad guys win and the heroes are stuck with their backs to the wall set a precedent that all "darker sequels" since have been trying to emulate.

Though the imitators often miss how character focused everything leading up to the downer ending of this movie. All the big spectacle action here is front loaded into the battle on Hoth before the scope focuses down for the rest of the movie on Luke's training with Yoda and Leia/Han's romantic back and forth.

Return of the Jedi (Watched 1/15/2023)

As a kid this one was always my favorite and the parts that made it that still hold up; escaping Jabba's clutches, the speeder bike chase, Luke's final confrontation with Vader, and plenty others.

But you can feel this one stretching out at the seams in a way the previous two did not. The narrative momentum those movie's benefited from is conspicuously absent here until the story's final third. Plus the ways Lucas was exhausted from managing these massive productions at this point shows in certain story decisions, like the hasty retcon to turn Leia into Luke's sister as a way to pay off the "No, there is another" tease from Empire. Thus closing off the original outline for the sequel trilogy, which would've focused on Luke's non-Leia twin sister.

All that said, by the time this movie is over and everyone's celebrating their victory together I can't help but feel my spirits being lifted as a smile winds up on my face.

The Phantom Menace (Watched 1/22/2023)

To say a few nice things; when the storytelling in this movie is purely done through the visuals, it's actually pretty great. That's probably the reason the Duel of the Fates sequence is so fondly remembered, no bit of story telling is stronger in this movie than the body languages of Qui Gon, Obi Wan, and Maul while the three are trapped between force fields.

The thematic groundwork this lays out for the rest of the prequels is also fairly interesting. Presenting the pristine style of the systems under the Republic in contrast to an Outer Rim territory like Tatooine. Which also speak to the misplaced confidence the Republic has in its own operation with hints laid that this is more a Gilded Age than a golden one, with corruption and greed laying just below the surface.

The problem is that everything around those elements of the story and even some of those used to communicate it are so stiffly delivered. Either through the pacing or the delivery from the actors. Plus this movie sucks at communicating its stakes, we hear so much about how Naboo is suffering under the Trade Federation's occupation but are shown no evidence of it even once. We spend so much time among aristocrats, politicians, and Jedi that this movie forgets to consider portraying the common people in any form besides the occasional line here or there.

This was the Star Wars movie I always felt like revisiting the least when I was a kid. While there are ones I dislike more now (we'll get there in the coming weeks), this rewatch made me remember why that was.

Attack of the Clones (Watched: 1/29/2023)

There's definitely something to be said for how this movie chooses to be about the birth of the Galactic Empire. Obi-Wan's plot following the machinations and conspiracies that are literally manufacturing the armed forces for both sides of the upcoming Clone War drives our view into that aspect of the story. Genuinely love the way it culminates in Dooku flatout telling Kenobi what's happening with the Republic in the lead up to this war. Whether the Jedi believes him or not, it strikes a division between the Jedi Order and those they serve regardless.

Anakin's side of the story, on the other hand, has to rest a lot of its substance on George Lucas' (self-admitted) lackluster dialogue. Since the Prequels started with Anakin so young and innocent, this movie needs to sell us on Anakin both as a noble Jedi Apprentice in his own right and as someone on the edge of falling to the Dark Side. It winds up in a place where his journey to evil feel rushed and underdeveloped as it gets left off in this entry.

Revenge of the Sith (Watched: 2/5/2023)

The Prequel Trilogy's central trio of characters is clearly meant to be Anakin, Obi-Wan, and Padme. A big problem this movie has is that one member of that trio is given no agency or story to speak of for themselves. Padme's entire character gets reduced to "worried about Anakin" and her utility in the plot down to "gives birth to Luke and Leia." I can't argue with the fact that she gets the best line in the movie with "So this is how liberty dies... with thunderous applause." But one good line does not make up for every other misstep this movie makes with her.

Those problems with the part Padme plays in this movie are in line with the problems Revenge of the Sith has in its overall plotting. It's in a rush to get everything to where the audience remembers it being at the beginning of the 1977 original film. Which gets in the way of the good things this movie does have going for it.

I enjoy the opening 20 minute long set piece's role in this narrative as a last "just for fun" adventure for Anakin and Obi-Wan. It create the necessary dramatic contrast to how they end the movie on opposite sides. This movie is also dramatically playing on what I said about Attack of the Clones, the Republic was already the Galactic Empire in all but name by the time that movie ended. What we see here are simply the last steps Palpatine has to take to make sure there are no more obstacles in his way.

Purely from a broad plotting standpoint this is a perfectly tragic finale to a trilogy that was always building to tragedy. But the rush it's in to make sure that tragedy can happen within its runtime ends up failing several key elements that could've made this a stronger movie.

The Force Awakens (Watched: 2/12/2023)

I love how effectively this movie sets up its two leads in Rey and Finn. The first chunk of this movie dedicated to setting up each of them as fundamentally lost people, but in inverse ways.

Through the village massacre by the First Order that opens the movie and helping Poe escape, we see Finn realize he wants no place in the fascist idea of "order" he's been raised/trained in. He decides to start running and that brings him right into the path of the people that are going to start changing his life for the better, Poe and Rey.

While Finn's defined by how he's running from danger, Rey's established as someone determined to stay put despite dreaming of adventures like those in the legends she's heard. A character trait acutely visualized when she takes time out from eating her dinner to put on an old Rebellion pilot helmet as she watches starships leave Jakku. Coming across BB-8 puts her on a path that winds up crossing with Finn's and winds up forcing her out of her desolate situation as a scavenger gathering scraps of tech in exchange for scraps of food. Waiting for people that are never going to come back for her.

The journey this movie takes them on together culminates when they reunite. Finn chooses to run towards the First Order for the sake of his friend after spending the whole movie determined to run away. In doing that, he winds up proving to Rey that she now has people in her life that care enough to come back for her.

Rogue One (Watched: 2/19/2023)

(Note: I haven't watched Andor yet and fully intend to at some point)

I deeply wish this entire movie was as well executed as its final act.

Up until the mission on Scarif, Rogue One is fairly scattershot in terms of how it executes on the ideas it presents. A nature reflected in the narrative structure provided by the films editing. A problem that starts early on as we quickly jump from Jyn as a child in the prologue to her as an imprisoned adult for all of thirty seconds before jumping directly into Cassian's introduction. We don't get to know how Jyn is living with her current situation and only get told about it later when she meets with Saw Gerrera.

The majority of the titular squadron don't really get much breathing room for us to get to know them. Their personalities mostly communicated through quick inferences. Ones that all make me want to know and see more of them, but still simply inferences.

One character who is incredibly well developed that I've loved since the first time I saw this movie is Ben Mendelsohn as Imperial Director Orson Krennic. A figure who wields what limited power he has in the Galactic Empire's structure with great pride and takes it incredibly personal when that power doesn't grant him more reward than his superiors are willing to deal out (or even actively deny.) A perfect balancing act between menacing and pathetic.

Which brings us back to this movie's final act on Scarif, because Krennic's position within the Empire plays in parallel to the position of the rebel soldiers that make up the unit of Rogue One. While Krennic longs for recognition at any cost short of himself, Rogue One fight to make the Galaxy a better place even if they're never recognized for it. The ideological division, mixed with some of the best on screen action in a Star Wars film makes this movie's bittersweet conclusion strong enough to make up for the messy way the movie gets there.

The Last Jedi (Watched: 2/26/2023)

Despite the hell of modern Star Wars discourse, despite what followed in this trilogy, despite everything...

This is still my absolute favorite Star Wars movie!

A movie that says hope isn't just something to believe in, but something you can create for yourself and others

A movie that says it's never too late to learn from your failures and that those failures don't define you

A movie that says our place in the world and among those we love are not preordained but the product of our choices

A movie that to this day reminds me of why I fell in love with Star Wars to begin with!

I wish I could be more elaborate and articulate about this, but in the immediate aftermath of this rewatch, the fact that it still has the effect it did on me when I first saw it in the theater is overwhelming.

All coming down to the great action, fun characters, spectacular visuals, and the perfect final shot!

Solo (Watched: 3/5/2023)

I'll take this over a hundred deep-faked Luke Skywalkers!

Alden Ehrenreich plays a character I can believe grows into the smug scoundrel we all remember from the original trilogy. Trying to act like he's not flying by the seat of his pants at any given moment, improvising his way around every new dangerous scenario.

The action set pieces here are a nice, varied series of heists across the various parts of the criminal underworld of A Galaxy Far Far Away. My absolute favorite being the chaos that gets unleashed on Kessel.

Feel like some people never gave this one a fair shot, but I still find it a pretty damn delightful space adventure.

The Rise of Skywalker (Watched: 3/12/2023)

A large part of why this movie still rubs me the wrong way is that I can tell it is trying so hard to be a satisfying, high-energy, action-adventure that also brings some form of thematic closure to the "Skywalker Saga." (A term for the nine "Episode" movies in the film series that was invented for the sake of marketing this movie.)

But I would've been fine with a movie that just brought a satisfying conclusion to this trilogy as its own thing. The only story line that does feel like it's prioritizing the weight of this trilogy's themes in this movie is Poe's character arc, picking up right from where we left him in The Last Jedi. An arc that asks whether the spark of rebellion will in fact come through to light the fire that will burn the First Order to the ground.

Culminating in a moment that I should, in theory, absolutely love, where those ordinary people gather up to join the final battle and turn the tide in The Resistance's favor. All the while the villains are baffled that the ones out maneuvering them are "just people" rather than an organized fleet.

But I can't feel what that moment's going for because it gets buried in The Palpatine of It All, which drags everything this movie could've had going for it down. The presence of the classic Star Wars' biggest Big Bad winds up being the main thing to override what the previous movies in this trilogy built up, especially with Rey. Her arc in this movie requires her to push away the very bonds she spent the previous two movies building after a life in isolation, but it feels so... forced (for lack of a better term.) To the very last minute this movie doesn't actually seem to care about those bonds, because where we could've ended on the shot of Rey, Finn, and Poe hugging in relief in celebration, we instead tack on a lazy callback to A New Hope where Rey is back where we first found her, alone on a desert planet.

Going through these movies on a weekly basis throughout the year so far, I've tried to find stuff to like in each of them no matter what my preexisting opinions of them were. Even in the ones I don't necessarily like, I managed that. But with The Rise of Skywalker, even finding those things (I genuinely think the fight between Rey and Kylo on the Death Star wreckage is the most interestingly choreographed fight in this trilogy) didn't make up for what it lacks.

#star wars #movie review #wit's writing #We Just Got a Letter(boxd)#a new hope #the empire strikes back #return of the jedi #the phantom menace #attack of the clones #revenge of the sith #the force awakens #rogue one #the last jedi #solo: a star wars story #the rise of skywalker

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wits-writing · 1 year

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Next Day Reblog!

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Five Miscellaneous Favs of 2022

Felt like doing quick looks at five pieces of media that caught my eye during 2022.

Not a ranking nor limited to any specific medium, just five things I loved last year that I wanted to talk about with a focus on things I felts were lesser discussed overall in the year.

Because while I could talk about how great Everything Everywhere All at Once, Cyberpunk Edgerunners, or RRR were, I also wouldn’t be bringing that much new to the table by discussing them.

Let’s start with something that hit towards the end of the year:

Matilda the Musical:

What a delight this turned out to be!

The engrossing stylized visuals of this film adaptation of the musical stage adaptation of Roald Dahl’s original children’s book grabbed me from the word “go.” A stage director moving on to direct the film adaptation of their own theatrical work, as is the case with Matthew Warchus here, can and has led to mixed results in the past but here those theatrical instincts shine. Each musical number manages an appropriate scope to get across the emotional impact of the scene and make sure the viewer can appreciate the stellar moments of choreography from the ensemble of child performers. A visual language that lives up to the nature of Tim Minchin’s music and lyrics for the story.

Major highlight of the cast is Emma Thompson as the despicable Miss Trunchbull, performed and presented in a way that makes her the perfect villain for a movie that’s essentially “Baby’s First Antifa Uprising: The Musical.” An authoritarian running her school as a surveillance state who will change her own supposedly sacred rules on a dime in order to never appear as if her power is starting to slip.

Representing the kinder adults of the world in this movie is Lashanna Lynch’s Miss Honey. Any take on Matilda as a story will live and die on how much you buy into the found family aspect of the relationship between the title character and Miss Honey. This film playing into that handily as Alisha Weir’s Matilda finds the first adult to see what’s remarkable about her love of learning in her teacher and Miss Honey finds a reminder of what it means to stand up for yourself and others in an unfair world in her new student. A mutual sense of inspiration beautifully summed up in the new-for-the-movie finale song “Still Holding My Hand.”

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Mad God:

Okay, time for a bit of a mood shift…

According to my Tumblr Rewind for 2022, my personal blog’s most popular post of the year was a screencap from a Slash Film interview with Mad God director Phil “You had one job!” Tippett.

This one:

And in that post I described it as a “beautifully blunt” summation of why Mad God paints such a bleak picture of its world and those inhabiting it. Later in that same interview he specified by relating it to how when there’s a tragedy, American news media shoves it in people’s faces on repeat. A process that normalizes the pain and horror of these events and limits people’s ability to imagine a world without any of that. A depressing downward spiral where terrors can never be escaped, only recreated ad nauseum until the end of time (and even beyond that.)

Anyway, I found Mad God to be a ton of fun and it was easily my favorite animated movie of the year!

Probably feels bizarre to go from the previous description of the movie’s world to calling it “fun.” But that’s the balance Tippett managed to strike after the multi-decade process of getting it made. A sickening, compelling contradiction to entice a niche stripe of viewer, because this was certainly anything but a movie made with broad appeal as a concern.

A playfulness comes through in moments like the mindless homunculi that keep this dystopian society running trudging along until a piece of the machinery they work around splats them against a wall, Wile-E-Coyote style. Monster designs that genuinely disturbed me exist alongside ones that are oddly charming in their unconventional designs and mannerisms. The most purely playful elements of the movie take the form of easter eggs to VFX filmmaking history that are featured among the apocalyptic landscapes of some shots, like a statue of Robbie the Robot that features in one shot.

Some stories get by more on a vibe than a carefully constructed narrative and Mad God’s vibes are unlike anything else you’re likely to see.

Bee and Puppycat: Lazy in Space:

Speaking of vibes-based entertainment but on the opposite end of the spectrum.

Bee and Puppycat finally returned this year with a new season on Netflix with an abundance of lo-fi chill at its disposal!

The season, subtitled “Lazy in Space”, has three episodes retelling the story of the original Cartoon Hangover season in the new animation style followed by 13 episodes of original material.

In a universe filled with gorgeous pastel space-fantasy scapes, what keeps the series compelling is everyone in the main cast trying to live the best life they can. One bizarre circumstance after another happening in the periphery of their personal journeys. Exemplified by the show’s approach to doling out information with regards to worldbuilding, everything delivered in pieces tangential to what the focus of a given episode is actually about. This goes doubly for the backstories of the titular characters. Even when we’re given an episode to explicitly flesh out Puppycat’s mysterious past, it turns out to be a nonlinear narrative more concerned with the roots of his attitude than in being a lore-dump. Meanwhile, everytime we get new information about Bee there’s always another layer or three yet to be dug into beneath her unassuming appearance and general ADHD tendencies.

Delivering all that in a balance between high concept scenarios and low-key, chill presentation will keep me coming back to this show for any and all future seasons.

Goodbye, Eri:

2022 was could reasonably be argued to be The Year of Tatsuki Fujimoto

Aside from Chainsaw Man Part 2’s manga beginning and season 1 of the anime hitting it big, the mangaka released two one-shots through Shonen Jump in the past year; one was Just Listen to the Song which was written by Fujimoto with art by Oto Toda and the other was Goodbye, Eri, wholly done by Fujimoto.

And it was the best comic I read the entire year.

The story of high schooler Yuta taking the gift of his smartphone as the first step on his path to becoming a filmmaker. His first project being a documentary about the last days of his mother’s life, followed by a narrative covering his artistic evolution as he’s called on to do the same for his classmate Eri.

But a plot summary doesn’t get across why this was the best piece of sequential art I read all year. Fujimoto’s talent at using manga as a form to deliver stories elevates Goodbye, Eri as the narrative framing at hand reflects the premise itself. Every single panel is in the aspect ratio and point of view from Yuta’s camera with Fujimoto’s art emulating novice camera work along the way. One of my favorite recurring details is certain panels clearly meant to represent Yuta having shaky hands as he’s filming.

Like any comic, art and writing feedback into each other to maintain this narrative conceit, as characters will stop on occasion to ask if they should redo a lineread or we’ll see bits that were filmed but not included in previous sequences. It’s playing around with the diegesis of the story to craft Goodbye, Eri’s main theme about how we choose to remember our lives. What bits do we hang onto and what sort of impression do we want to leave other people with after we’re gone.

A Paranormal Evening with the Moonflower Society:

You know the feeling when you find the right band/album at the right time in your life?

That was my experience with Tobias Sammett’s Avantasia two years ago as songs from their album Moonglow were in my youtube recommendation. Even after listening to a decent chunk of the band’s discography, Moonglow remained my favorite. Tackling themes of alienation and creating one’s self while running a full gauntlet of the many forms of Metal. I find a lot to love in the rest of the Avantasia catalog, but none of the albums as complete works topped what this one had to offer for me.

Set all that up for the sake of saying…

A Paranormal Evening with the Moonflower Society exceeded Moonglow and became my favorite album of the year (and possibly my favorite piece of media from 2022, period.)

This even being a possibility was something that gradually built up in my mind as the singles began to roll out. The first release, “The Wicked Rule the Night (feat. Ralf Scheepers)”, was a good hard metal track but it wasn’t until the second single, “Moonflower Society (feat. Bob Cately)”, hit with its amazing animated music video, directed by Jess Cope, that I knew I was in for something special.

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The narrative set out by the music video, along with the lyrical content of the song itself, put into focus what Paranormal Evening was about. Especially in how it interacted with its predecessor in Moonglow. If that album was about alienation then this one was going to be about choosing where you want to belong. Whether it’s a conventional path or one that seems off-putting from the outside but could ultimately offer wonders in a future once thought unimagineable. A theme set even more into focus with the third single from the moment I saw its title, “Misplaced Among the Angels.”

A central conceit that reflects Avantasia’s virtue as a group, Sammett assembling performers from across all walks of rock/metal to create something beautiful with each album. New and returning guest performers for the group enhancing what Paranormal Evening has to offer.

I have lost count of how many times I’ve listened to A Paranormal Evening with the Moonflower Society. Enjoying it more with each playback. Each track lifts up the others and puts me in a state where the album closer “Arabesque” hits as hard as any song I’ve ever listened to has!

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#next day reblog

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wits-writing · 1 year

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Five Miscellaneous Favs of 2022

Felt like doing quick looks at five pieces of media that caught my eye during 2022.

Not a ranking nor limited to any specific medium, just five things I loved last year that I wanted to talk about with a focus on things I felts were lesser discussed overall in the year.

Because while I could talk about how great Everything Everywhere All at Once, Cyberpunk Edgerunners, or RRR were, I also wouldn’t be bringing that much new to the table by discussing them.

Let’s start with something that hit towards the end of the year:

Matilda the Musical:

What a delight this turned out to be!

youtube

Mad God:

Okay, time for a bit of a mood shift…

According to my Tumblr Rewind for 2022, my personal blog’s most popular post of the year was a screencap from a Slash Film interview with Mad God director Phil “You had one job!” Tippett.

This one:

Anyway, I found Mad God to be a ton of fun and it was easily my favorite animated movie of the year!

Some stories get by more on a vibe than a carefully constructed narrative and Mad God’s vibes are unlike anything else you’re likely to see.

Bee and Puppycat: Lazy in Space:

Speaking of vibes-based entertainment but on the opposite end of the spectrum.

Bee and Puppycat finally returned this year with a new season on Netflix with an abundance of lo-fi chill at its disposal!

The season, subtitled “Lazy in Space”, has three episodes retelling the story of the original Cartoon Hangover season in the new animation style followed by 13 episodes of original material.

Delivering all that in a balance between high concept scenarios and low-key, chill presentation will keep me coming back to this show for any and all future seasons.

Goodbye, Eri:

2022 could reasonably be argued to be The Year of Tatsuki Fujimoto

And it was the best comic I read the entire year.

A Paranormal Evening with the Moonflower Society:

You know the feeling when you find the right band/album at the right time in your life?

Set all that up for the sake of saying…

A Paranormal Evening with the Moonflower Society exceeded Moonglow and became my favorite album of the year (and possibly my favorite piece of media from 2022, period.)

youtube

#Wit's Writing #movie review #tv review #comic book review #misc writing #matilda the musical #mad god #phil tippett #goodbye eri #tatsuki fujimoto #bee & puppycat #bee and puppycat #avantasia #a paranormal evening with the moonflower society #tobias sammet

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