#Disclaimer I am not a genius so if I got details wrong in my generalizing I'm sowwee

[caltria]

Fate has ruined Arthurian myth for me. I know AC Zero was going for Pixy being Morgan, hell it's all but obvious with how the relationship between him and Cipher played out through the whole story. And the plane he flies at the end is called the Morgan. Yeah. Okay. I get it.

But eh, this is also the guy who once flew with one wing. He's known for that. He's the first person who Cipher meets in this game, and becomes a confidant of sorts. Until things went horribly wrong with the world, he was always there with Cipher and then there's the whole fight at the end that signals the end of the Demon Lord's legend....

All I see is Sir Bedivere.

And nothing good would have come out of these men getting their way in that critical moment. The Camelot Singularity. V2 leaving behind another nuclear wasteland in Osea.

In conclusion Pixy is more Bedivere than the actual Bedivere in this funny plane combat game.

[ad1thi]

If your still doing fic recs, could u rec any soft stevetony ones?

absolutely!! this got pretty long so ive hidden most of it under a read-more so i don���t annoy people. a couple of authors feature more than once. ive tried to avoid that as much as possible, but if an author features more than once - take that as a sign that they have rly good stuff for soft stevetony

disclaimer: don’t forget to leave kudos and comments for every author!! (a disclaimer i regrettably forgot to add to previous fic rec lists but will be adding from now on)

soda pops: @starklysteve

If anybody asks, Steve would smile and say it was very romantic. Very Tony. Because if he went into any further detail, nobody would quite believe him.

Tony, on the other hand, would laugh and say that Steve’s in love with a man in a can. So, really, it wasn’t outside the natural progression of things.

me voy pa’l pueblo: @firebrands

two times steve walks away, and one time that tony walks with him.

/ or, my very fluffy take on my bingo card prompt "farewells." steve is on vacation when he meets tony.

fill for my stony bingo prompt: farewells; also for bookworminaslump on tumblr who asked for a tourist/knowledgeable local au!

Tumblr Ficlets:  @omg-just-peachy (this is 115 chapters of stevetony being soft!!)

A collection of enough tooth-rotting fluff to last a year, all in one place.

tender offerings: @omg-just-peachy

Five times Steve carried Tony to bed.

the best thing (is that it’s happening to you and me):  @captainstarkreportingforduty

Or, five times the team saw Steve Rogers and Tony Stark in love.

Sweet On You: @miniblackraven

It’s the 1940’s and Tony is working as a Donut Doll for the Red Cross. His job is to go around to various military bases and offer comfort food and conversation to homesick soldiers. He’s come to expect a lot of things in this job, but he doesn’t expect to fall in love with Captain America, the hottest most awkward soldier Tony has ever met.

Bespectacled Avengers Society (Membership of One):  @baffledkingcomposinghallelujah

Tony gets glasses. Glasses get a Tony. Steve loses his mind and walks into walls.

a flower crown for your love: @anthonyed

"There, there," Pepper cooed. "Tony likes flowers?" she said with a shred of doubt in her tone. But when Steve peered up, she's smiling her bright toothy smile. He squinted and she sighed, dropping her hand from his shoulder. "He does." she insisted. "Even more so than me."

if this was a movie: @omg-just-peachy

“One of our seniors is being generous with his time this year—by force of his own actions, but generous none the less—and he’d be happy to help you, I’m sure. Tony Stark? I’ll set something up for later this week. I think between the two of you you’ll be able to pull your average up enough to make it through to playoffs,” Coulson said, with that ever-hopeful lilt in his voice.

Or, Steve needs a calculus tutor, Tony is available, but how is Steve ever supposed to focus when he's been in love with Tony for ... his entire school life?

you take me higher than the rest (everybody else is second best): @firebrands

tumblr fill for adi & anthonydarling, who asked for "'Prank' war, but the kind to see who can make the other blush the most in public" from this prompt list

amore mio:  @brucewaynery

Tony has had it with Steve being dumb and reckless out in the field, he has a family to think about now, Steve promises him that he'll be with him, kingdom come.

(initially based on that one headcanon about Italian Tony yelling and gesticulating at Steve but Peter thinks he's doing some weird dance and tries to copy him, but it got very fluffy very quickly)

Lost My Mind in a Coffee Shop: @betheflame

“Boyo,” Bucky muttered to his best friend. “I swear to God that if you don’t ask that man for his number soon, I will create a Grindr profile for you and you will not like it.”

Steve rolled his eyes. “I am here to finish grading, not hit on men.”

“Can you not do both?” Natasha smirked. “Nearly tenured, historical genius, feels like something you should be able to multitask.”

&&&

In which Steve is a history professor and Tony's an engineering one and Bucky owns the joint where they have their meet cute.

AU-gust Chapter 7: @iam93percentstardust 

stevetony, childhood friends AU

Right Up The Road: @gottalovev

The day at the senate committee in Washington DC wasn't supposed to end with Tony and Steve transformed into animals by a baby witch. That said, the 350 miles trek back to the compound to get help promises to be quite an adventure too!

(or the adventures of Cat!Tony and Wolf!Steve - and how to readjust when you're back to human!)

i’ll take care of you: @elcorhamletlive

“Hi.”

Steve blinks. The sound of loud thunder roars outside, but he doesn’t jolt, too focused on the image in front of him to be startled by the noise.

He has no idea what to say, and he isn’t sure if the shock is because of Tony’s absolutely sodden state – his hair glued to his forehead, his clothes dripping with water, forming a small puddle in front of Steve’s door – or because he wasn’t expecting to see Tony for at least three more days.

“Hi?” he says, a little tentative, before his brain catches up to reality. In his defense, he was getting ready to sleep when Tony knocked. He looks at what Tony is holding – a wet mess that seems to have been a flower bouquet at some point. “What are you doing here?”

The Tally System:  @betheflame

Everyone on the team knew about the tally system.

Whenever Steve would save Tony - whether from a monster or from his own stupidity - he’d say, “tag”. Whenever Tony do the same, he’d say, “your turn”. Thor thought it was adorable, Clint thought it was ridiculous, Bruce refused to register an opinion.

Natasha thought it was something she could work with.

what’s mine is yours: @robertdowneyjjr

5 times Tony stole Steve’s clothes, and 1 time Steve returned the favor.

or

For a billionaire, Tony Stark really doesn't pay for a lot of what he wears.

I like Shiny Things But I’d Marry You With Paper Rings: @betheflame

Rhodey: I just confirmed with Sam that he’s going to make sure he cooks tonight and that his entire team is briefed. I’m heading over now to strategically arrange a fuck ton of ficus trees to block them from gen pop.

Pepper: They’re not getting engaged in a prison, Jimmy.

Rhodey: Tony Stark and Steve Rogers show up to Circe on a Saturday night in May and you watch every person in that restaurant turn into someone I’d rather arrest than eat with.

****

In which Tony and Steve get engaged, but they're kind of extra about it, because they are always themselves

the road to the stars: @shell-heads

Tony is seven years old when he sees the ballet for the first time and meets his future pas de deux partner.

His father is invited to sweet-talk politicians into a new weapons deal and explain his latest idea for their program, and his mom goes to catch up with old friends she hasn't seen in years, but Tony goes because his mom had smiled down at him and told him he would love it.

His mom's never wrong.

-

In which boy genius Tony Stark meets girl wonder Natasha Romanoff at the ballet, and they fit their broken little pieces together to make something beautiful on the dance floor.

Steve? He's just a dumb, awful, chaotic, extremely supportive older brother that really should just shut up and admit he likes Tony a lot more than he pretends, because Natasha only has five people in the world she likes; it only makes sense her two favorites would fall in love with one another.

They always were a little slow, though.

A Second Chance To Take it Slow: @omg-just-peachy

Tony loves his adopted son, Peter, but that doesn't stop him from wishing he had someone to do this whole parenting thing with. After a failed one night stand, Tony's parent-teacher conference with Mr. Rogers comes with quite the surprise.

Wake Up!: @randomstufffromotherblogs

Tony came home from a business trip and is woken up by his husband and their three-year old.

pull me closer to love:  @captainstakreportingforduty (part of a series)

“A Mother’s Day card? For... Tony?” Steve clarifies, and can’t help the smile on his face as six familiar little heads nod in response.

“But... guys, Tony’s not—“ he pauses and takes a breath, any explanation dying in his throat against the excited gleam in everyone’s eyes. “Why do you guys want to do that, hmm?"

compromises:  @robertpattisons (when i looked up OP on tumblr, this is the blog i was directed to - but i sincerely apologise if ive gotten it wrong)

Steve should have expected it, he really should have.

There were regulations that came with dating Tony Stark. Things that were clear and things that they needed to work through.

Things like how Steve always got strawberry ice cream, while Tony got rocky road. Or when Steve needed to get his homework done before he was down to make out - even though Tony always got his way.

Things like that were clear

all that you are is all that i’ll ever need: @natasharxmanov

Tony Stark and Steve Rogers announced their engagement on Good Morning America through Tony Stark’s previous secretary now CEO, Pepper Potts. And over this past weekend, I got the chance to sit down with them both, to visit their home and attend their gala, all to write this article about the most powerful couple in the world.

(Or, the fic in which Tony and Steve get married.)

(i won’t ever) trade my mistakes: @brucewaynery

Toddler Peter, painting a masterpiece with his dad.

aka: a dumb amount of family fluff to help you power through the week

[blush-and-books]

i'm about to pass out but needed to write this - JATP + school headcanons

*disclaimer: I am only evaluating their attitudes and performance in what are considered "core" classes in my state. Idk if it is universal. These are also generalizations -- ik theres different types of math and science that they are taking

LUKE

He inspired this so we start with the king

ENGLISH CLASS: He excelled. Somehow, unknowingly, became his teacher's favorite. Did the homework for this class and ONLY this class. A+

MATH CLASS: B-/C+. Does not like math, hates it actually, never did the homework. Somehow averaged a B+/A- on tests and quizzes because he would have Reggie tutor him days before in preparation. Teacher always shocked at how he managed.

HISTORY CLASS: Did not do the homework, but still, like, paid attention?? Had it with all the guys so there were funny moments and events to associate with each lesson and lecture and somehow he remembered it. Again, did not do the homework. Maybe if he was super bored. C+/B-

SCIENCE CLASS: Skipped it most of the time. Would show up for labs and experiments even if he had no clue what was going on. Bobby tried to help but Luke was so uninterested lol, and the teacher was v boring!!! Not fun. D+

LANGUAGE: Took Spanish because its what everyone did??? He thought it would be the most useful but it ended up being such a mistake. He thought that English was complicated, but shit!!! Hard :(( Julie tried to revive his education but fails often (but hes really faking it bc he just wants to keep hearing her speak Spanish and try to teach him). D+/C-

JULIE

ENGLISH CLASS: Aces all of her essays. Emotionally attached to all of her female English teachers!! Sometimes her interpretations of the books are a little off but literally everyone's are. Loves English. A-/A

MATH CLASS: Gifted kid syndrome but only with math if that makes sense?? Got super ahead in elementary and middle school but now that shes in high school she barely knows what's going on and is running out of math classes to take because she was able to jump so much from middle to high school. Has to study the most for this one. Thank god for Reggie. B-

HISTORY CLASS: Could take it or leave it! Likes the subject but hates the teacher. Does well on tests to spite them. Doodles too much on her homework and it annoys the teacher v much. A-

SCIENCE CLASS: kinds vibes ngl??? Something kinds cool about it. Has Flynn in the class, a fun young science teacher, and they all just have a really good time. Julie never really liked science but with the right people and environment shes flourishing!!! A

LANGUAGE: Did not have to take one -- took a fluency exam in Spanish her freshman year. Has minor superiority complex every time Flynn complains about not knowing her language.

REGGIE

ENGLISH CLASS: Got distracted hella easily... Not very fun :( teacher didn't understand that he had ADHD and learned things in a different way. Luke tried to help him cheat on tests tho so he didnt have to repeat the class. D+/C-

MATH CLASS: GENIUS!?!?!?!? GENIUS. Literally took two math classes one year bc he could. Somehow it all made sense. Really loved how numbers were consistent and clearly right or wrong; not subjective. Teachers loved him because he was always kind and positive and brought a smile to everyones face. A+++

HISTORY CLASS: Did not suck at it??? Kinda cool stuff and fun times with his besties. Did better in the class than any of them. Teacher was a total prick tho and Reggie was also late because it was their period right after lunch and he was a slow eater and the teacher didnt allow food. Again: teacher was a prick. B+

SCIENCE CLASS: Enjoyed the labs and experiments, usually aced those because he has exceptional attention to detail. Everything else, not so much. Certain concepts were just very hard to grasp and he had a hard time creating ways to remember things. C+

LANGUAGE: He took French because he knew his mom took French when she was in high school and he thought she could help him and they could bond. That plan didn't really work out -- but he still did okay, even if his mom didn't pay attention. B-

ALEX

ENGLISH CLASS: In between Luke and Reggie -- read the books and retained most of the information, but the essays were not it. He really liked class discussions even though the teacher would tell him his interpretations were wrong (how do you interpret something incorrectly?? Art is up for interpretation?? He will never quite understand). B+/B-

MATH CLASS: Kill him. Least favorite class. Hates math and has hated math since his first lesson on fractions broke his spirit in third grade. Reggie helped him through most of it but shit really did not click. Did his best because his parents would be mad if he didn't. C-/C+

HISTORY CLASS: Very into history for some unknown reason??? The TA in the class was hot so he made sure to pay attention and make a good impression. He was often apologizing for the behavior of his bandmates. A+

SCIENCE CLASS: Did not hate it!!! Had the fun young new teacher instead of the same old dude that had been there for 20 years. She was really fun and sweet (and totally got the vibe he was gay and was super supportive)!!! He didnt quite understand everything but still worked his ass off. B+

LANGUAGE: French with Reggie because he thought it was a more romantic language. Quickly realized his mistake and switched to Spanish the next year. Realized his mistake again (the mistake being that he would be good at learning a new language) and stopped trying lol. C+

FLYNN

ENGLISH CLASS: Her essays are well written because Julie edits all of them. Like Alex, is always told that she is reading the text wrong?? The two of them bond mega over that. Just because she has a wider imagination does not mean she should be punished for it!!! B+

MATH CLASS: Geometry is her jam but algebra makes her wanna commit every degree of murder. Sometimes it clicks and sometimes it definitely does not. Probably dont ask her for help because shes awful at explaining things. B-

HISTORY CLASS: Hates it here!!!!!!!! She hates the curriculum, hates the lecturing, and constantly either feels bored or singled out in every lesson. Is advocating in the district for textbook and curriculum reform to include diverse and pan-ethnic studies. C-

SCIENCE CLASS: Her favorite class!!!!!! Loves everything about it. She isnt learning how the world works through history but instead through the facts of science. She feels invincible in the lab and like she has so much more to discover. She particularly enjoys astronomy. A+

LANGUAGE: Spanish so that Julie could help her out!!! Can barely utter more than 2 sentences in conversation but is perfect on paper and that's more than half of the battle. A-

[lilylilie001]

“Old Friends Not Forgotten” Review and Analysis

Spoilers for Star Wars: The Clone Wars S07E09

If you are interested in my reactions while watching the episode click here

If you want to read my rant about the thing that made my cry the most in this episode click here (disclaimer: I was still crying while writing this and that may have clouded my opinion about the scene. In this review I will go into more detail about that)

So then let’s get started! I have calmed down and feel now emotionally ready to actually interpret and analyse the scenes and not just bring across my emotions. But this still is only my personal opinion! So if you disagree that is fine, just please don’t be mean about it.

So the first scene we get is a parallel to the movie (aka the first arc of TCW) which I think is a pretty amazing idea. It shows how Anakin and Obi-Wans relationship has changed and how it has stayed the same. Anakin is as cocky and arrogant as ever. But this time he is not Obi-Wans student anymore. He leads his own men with his own plan and is just coming from his own solo-mission. Yes he wasn’t Obi-Wans Padawan in the movie and Rex was under his command back the too but their dynamic was still different. He still sees Obi-Wan as his former Teacher and as a Jedi Master and part of the counsel he is technically still above Anakin, but they act more on an eye-to-eye dynamic. More like brothers than father and son.

Anakin uses a smiliar trick as Obi-Wan did back in the movie. (I don’t know how the Republic and the Separatists handle that but it is considered a war crime in our world... Since Obi-Wan did it and never got called out for it I guess it is okay in their world...) But of course Anakin puts his own spin on it. That is I think a pretty good way to show how Anakin learned from his master. He did watch and listen but he is not like Obi-Wan. He likes to do things his way. And as long as it works he won’t stop.

Their friendly banter in this scene is also really in tune with the way they act with each other in the beginning of ROTS (especially in the deleted scenes). So it is not hard to believe that this takes place only days before. 

Before Anakin does his own thing Obi-Wan says: “I know better than to try and stop you.” I really liked this line. Not only because it was funny but also because for me it had a bit of an bitter aftertaste. He does not approve of Anakin’s actions (or methods to be exact) but he doesn’t do anything about them. Anakin is an adult and Obi-Wan is done with his education but his former padawan is far away from being a Jedi Master.

Then we have the first moment with Rex. Again a beautiful example of their dynamic. The other clones do what Anakin say (they have to) but they also are a bit annoyed by their general and his plan. Rex on the other had has Anakin’s back, as usual. And he motivates his men to follow Anakin. The trust these two have in each other is just beautiful! Rex trust that Anakin knows what he is doing and Anakin trust that Rex is taking care that everything works. I am pretty sure Rex wasn’t given more than a few instructions haha 

Anakins plan works and he learns nothing except that he was right. Again. I am not gonna go into to much detail about Obi-Wan and Cody but I will say this. As usual they care about and trust each other. Cody is like a friend and not just some clone to Obi-Wan and knowing that makes Cody picking up Obi-Wans lightsaber in a few weeks so logical. Also it makes Order 66 as usual even sadder.

I can’t help but feel that is episode feels like part of a movie. The opening battle. Very Star Wars. That would also explain the new intro and outro. A very nice ending to the show. Staring with a bad movie, finishing with good one. All in all this episode really played on nostalgia about the TCW Movie and I love it!  

Okay back to the episode.

Ahsoka used the name Fulcrum for her transmission. It is a nice callback to Rebels and to the Ahsoka Novel. But with the republic (for example Yularen who becomes a impirial officer) knowing that she uses that name it feels like a bit risky to me to use it in the rebelion as a code name... Maybe I am thinking to much about that but yeah I had to write that thought down. Also Anakin first thinks it is Saw Gerrera, so that means he came up with that name? This just confused me... 

So now I going to try to fangirl not to much about Anakins reaction to Ahsoka, which is hard. But I am going to talk about it because it is very important for his character. I personally don’t remember the last time I saw Anakin this happy. Ahsoka coming back into his life is for him obviously a thing he had wanted and hoped for for a long time. But at the same time he is so surprised that it happened.

The next feeling he goes through is concern. He is just immediately concerned about her and the reason she is contacting him. Perfect Anakin moment. He loves his adoptive daughter and of course he is scared about her wellbeing. He is Anakin! He always scared about the women in his life. So having this poking out under his happiness was a good call.

Obi-Wan on the other hand is just surprised. And Ahsoka herself is very distant. (gonna go into detail about that in a second)

The talk Obi-Wan and Anakin have while walking to Ahsoka’s ship is also very interesting. You can see Anakin trying to find a reason for her leaving. Like it is the will of the force. Meanwhile Obi-Wan has a mixture of quilt and anger. He was partly responsible for Ahsoka being kicked out of the order and therefor also for her not returning. But it also feels like he is mad at her for not retuning. Maybe (that thought had just crossed my mind) he is angry at her for breaking Anakin’s heart. After all Obi-Wan had to piece him together again. (There is an unfinished scene form the original 7th season were they talk about Ahsoka.) And now he feels like she should not be let off the hook just like that. 

Or he really just angry that she left the order that he believes in.

Again we have a nice callback to the movie. I really love those. They feel fitting.

R2D2 is just amazing as usual and greets his masters daughter like a good boy. 

Ahsokas face goes through so much in a matter of seconds. She looks at R2: happy. She looks up at her former masters: scared and unsure. She takes a step: confident. That is genius! I especially love that little moment of fear in her eyes. It makes so much sense when you look at her in the rest of the episode! And I personally think that it is Obi-Wan that she is cold towards. I think she has not forgiven him at all for his part in her trial. And she is not at all ready to face him. But she puts on a brave face because she has a mission bigger than her. 

At first when she stopped Anakin I was a bit upset but i get it now. She does not want to have this in front of Obi-Wan and Bo-Katan. Anakin staying behind for a second and putting himself together again is also really fitting I think. He was so excited to see her and she is cold towards him. He either does not see that it is not about him or he feels the tension between her and Obi-Wan.

Anakin again becomes worried dad when she mentions Oba Diah. And it feels like she would want to tell Anakin but she has Bo-Katan next to her and Obi-Wan in front of her so she doesn’t. She also seems surprised that he still cares so much about her. I think she expected him to be a upset with her and not as open and happy as he is. (Maybe that was why she looked scared in the scene before...) 

“What is one more?” This sentence is big. I mean yes Bo-Katan is not a friend of the Jedi and not a friend of Obi-Wan. But it also kinda shows the overall frustration with the Republic and the Jedi in the galaxy. 

Anakin lighting the mood with a joke...that is just pre-Vader Ani at his finest!

Bo-Katan is not wrong in this scene but after everything she had done to sabotage Satine she should really get down form her high horse here! 

You can just feel the tension leaving the room when Anakin and Ahsoka are alone. They start to banter and she immediately smiles. These two have still so much love for each other and truly enjoy each others company. But after that there is this small moment of silence. Again perfect moment. It just shows that regardless of that there is baggage here.

While walking down that corridor Anakin acts like a worried dad again. “It doesn’t matter to them. It is a sign of respect. They know what you went trough for them day after day. Battle after battle.” I choose to believe that he is also talking about him self when saying that. It is his way of telling her that he is proud of her. I don’t think she picks it up but the way he talks about it...that is his opinion of her for sure!

The Helmets...I just love them. I am not going to talk about them much. Their meaning is obvious and this is getting really long. I will also skip Rex for now (don’t worry he will get his paragraphs) same with the lightsabers.

Ahsokas face...she just feels proven right about the Jedi...

So I am not sure if Anakin’s worry is about Padme or the Chancelor. I mean they talk about the chancelor and he is close to him. But he looks really worried so maybe Padme? 

Ahsokas and Obi-Wan argument. The scene is amazing! I have to say that. It showed their morals pretty perfectly and both are kinda right. Again the tension between them makes sense. It still hurts to watch it.

But also Anakin standing between them awkwardly is kinda fitting with his arc. He is so happy this whole episode that it is hard to see ROTS Ani but I think it still ads up. He knows they are both right. The war has to be won but also Mandalore needs help.

“Unfortunately Ahsoka is no longer a part of the grand army of the republic.” That one sentence made so mad at Obi-Wan. Yeah, he is technically just saying a fact but his attitude. He is partly responsible for that he takes no blame! Even Ahsokas reaction is just like: Are you kidding me right now? She just looks at him for a second and she looks so disappointed and hurt. 

And Obi-Wan, he continues to look at her after she looked away and I don’t know but I see a bit of regret in eyes.

So apparently Anakin can promote Rex just like that. Don’t know why he never did it before. I mean we all know Rex would deserve it. But better later than never, right?

Interestingly enough the tension between Ahsoka and Obi-Wan is gone so quickly. It is fare away from their friendship in previous seasons but still. There is respect there again.

Of course Obi-Wan has to make a Kenobi joke before leaving. That really made me forgive him, at least a bit.

“Thanks for the support, as always.” I have not nothing to add to this sentence. Ahsoka’s words nailed the point I want to make about Anakin in this scene.

Okay now on to the lightsabers. Two things. First, he must have had them with him on the whole siege! So that means that Anakin Skywalker kept her lightsabers with him at all time to either remind him of her or just in case she came back to him! Yeah, attachment is problem with this boy...

Secondly...they are blue. All of Ahsokas lightsabers are green up to this point. So he either got her knew crystals or he played with them so much that the took on his lightsaber color. I don’t know what to say about that. 

Ahsoka rolling her eyes at his braging is just wholesome. Nothing more to add there.

I really love their dynamic when they are alone. It is so pure and happy and loving...

“Good thing I taught you otherwise.” So again a sentence with so much meaning. Filoni just loves throwing these in there, right? Let’s analyse it (bc that is the purpose of the post after all). With this sentence he basically tells her that it is okay to disagree with Obi-Wan and that he is not holding it against her in any way. He himself does it. Especially with the scene from before in mind that is so powerful. 

We have heard a multiple of Jedis saying that luck doesn’t exist so Anakin saying that shows he does not care about what the order thinks is right. He has his own right and wrong. For now that is not problematic but we all know who that ends...

And that means he tells her he raised a good person and not necessarily a good Jedi in her. (it is really late, my english is no longer working properly) Hopefully I got my point across.

The way Ahsokas stands in this shot... She is not a little girl anymore. She is a fighter. A warrior. 

“Anakin! Good luck.” 

I really have to take all my strength to stay calm while writing this. I don’t want this to be too emotional. 

So. Okay. *takes a deep breath* Ahsokas last words she ever says to Anakin Skywalker. The next time she talks to him he is Vader. Good words. Less than I personally wanted but good words. 

After what he told her before it is just so poetic. She wants the best for him. She wants him to be lucky. To succeed. But after what he said it is more. So much more. It is a rejection of the Jedi and an embrace of the light force. And... Damn with everything that is going to happen in ROTS having Ahsoka telling him words that the Jedi reject is just... 

Moving on before I lose my mind. We still have Rex to cover. 

Anakin and Ahsoka think they will see each other again. They think that they will win and be together again and then they can figure out what to do about everything. About them. About the Jedi. About Obi-Wan.They have no idea what the future has in store for them. And it is perfect. I aligns perfectly with other star wars media. ROTS, Rebels, Ahsoka Novel. They don’t hug. They don’t say goodbye. I hate it but it is perfect.

I love that Rex got promoted but he is gonna be Captain Rex for me forever. Captain or Sir. But he really does deserve his promotion!

Because this is really long already I will not talk about Bo-Katan and the Mandalorians but focus on Ahsoka and the Clones. 

We get an amazing banter between Rex and Ahsoka were Ahsoka proves that she is Anakins Padawan after all and that she has Skywalker energy. It is really amazing to see her in her element again. She can use the force whenever she wants and kicks ass! This really was her childhood.

And then she saves a Clones because that is what Ahsoka Tano does. She knows casualties are a part of war but she saves who she can.

Rex is so happy to have her back! He smiles and smiles just like Anakin. And just like with Anakin Ahsoka is so relaxed with Rex. They are her home! 

I just love the cinematography of her fighting. It really is just watching a Star Wars movie. I can’t wait to watch the whole arc in one go!

“Beat you.” “Some things never change.” Wholesome. This is just wholesome.

Okay so that is it for me. I know there is still Maul and Bo-Katan to cover but I will talk about them after next episode!

But I will say this in conclusion: This is episode was stunning! Like everything was beautiful and meaningfull and thought out and detailed! I truly love this episode! I already watched it three times today. And I am so amazed by the animations! The characters facial expressions were on point! I had so much fun analysing them!

I hope that was interesting to read and honestly I am surprised if anyone got this far. Anyway I really loved watching the episode again frame by frame and note my thoughts (this took me 6h btw)

[alunclewe]

A Post Mostly About Chris Miller For Some Reason

I have a confession to make.  This may be one of them thar whatchacall unpopular opinions, but...

I did not like The Lego Movie.

The main character was annoying and unlikeable.  The single significant female character seemed to exist only for the purpose of falling in love with the obnoxious main character for no apparent reason.  The story kind of meandered at length without ever actually amounting to much.  Oh, and I’m never a fan of gratuitous pop culture references at the best of times, so the cameos by Gandalf, Batman, Han Solo, et al. really left me cold.

(Disclaimer: It has been a very long time since I saw The Lego Movie, and I did not feel like rewatching it to refresh my memory, so there may be things I misremembered.  The above paragraph still represents the general impression I retained from the movie, even if I got some details wrong.)

I also didn’t like Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.

For, come to think of it, not entirely dissimilar reasons.  The movie never really came to terms with the fact that the whole main problem driving the plot was entirely the main character’s fault—it tried to paint the mayor as the villain, but while he was certainly self-serving and opportunistic, he didn’t create the problem that everyone was trying to deal with.  The main character did, and nobody seemed to care about that, said main character least of all.  And once again, the single significant female character seemed to exist only for the purpose of falling in love with the obnoxious main character for no apparent reason.  Am I remembering wrong, or was there even a scene where he advised her how to wear her hair differently to look prettier?

(The same disclaimer applies as previously.)

These two movies have at least one thing in common. They were both written and directed by Phil Lord and Chris Miller.  Now, Phil Lord and Chris Miller seem to have a shining reputation as genius creators of the best animated features, but, well, the only two animated features I’ve seen of theirs I didn’t like at all, so I kind of figured, eh, apparently I’m not their target audience, or something.  Their movies are not for me.  Oh, I’d heard rave reviews of some of their more recent movies: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse; The Mitchells vs. the Machines.  But my bad experiences with their movies so far left me little motivation to seek them out.

(Another disclaimer: It’s not like I watch a lot of movies anyway, though, especially as busy as I’ve been the last couple of years with my teaching job.  So maybe it’s not exactly as if I’ve been actively avoiding watching their movies, so much as I just haven’t made them a high priority to seek them out.)

This will all become relevant momentarily.

So, the last few days I was at the Produced By Conference, a conference put on by the Producers Guild of America about, well, film production.  The conference rotates between different studio lots; this year it happened to be held on the Fox lot in Century City.  Now, I’m not much of a producer; I’ve produced little aside from a single webseries... but I do aspire to more.  (And of course I’m not a member of the Producers Guild, but the conference is open to nonmembers.)

The conference consisted of a number of different panels about different aspects of production, along with a lot of networking opportunities in between and on Saturday evening.  I’m afraid I didn’t really do anything resembling networking, which I realize was something of a missed opportunity.  I’m not exactly great at networking at the best of times, but in this case I did have two extra mitigating factors for my failure to do so.  First, well, until I get some more projects under my belt, or at the very least get my webseries back into production (it’s been kind of on hold during the pandemic and my time-consuming teaching job, but I’m gearing up to relaunch it), I don’t have terribly much to network about; I can network more effectively if I have a little more to show.  And second, well, having just come off the last week of the school year, I was absolutely exhausted.  Maybe going to the conference right after the last day of school wasn’t the best idea, except that, hey, it’s not like I chose the date.

I did go to the panels, though.  Granted, I think the panels weren’t so much the main purpose of the convention; I think it was really more about networking, which, as stated, I didn’t really do.  Still, I think I did get something out of the panels, and frankly after two years in the classroom I think it was good just to have a chance to immerse myself in the film industry and get something of a recharge of my metaphorical batteries.  So in that sense, even without doing any networking, I think going to the conference was worthwhile.  (Whether it was worth all the money I spent to go, though, is a separate question, and one of the answer to which I’m a bit less confident.  It’s not a cheap event to attend.)

There were six scheduled times for panels, during each of which there were two or three different panels going on that attendees could choose from.  I’m not going to get into all of them here, but there is one panel I want to discuss a bit.  In the Saturday 3:30 slot, I went to a panel called “A Conversation with Dan Lin and Chris Miller”.

Why did I attend a panel by Chris Miller, if I disliked his movies so much?  That’s a good question.  Fortunately, I have a good answer.  No, a conversation with Chris Miller didn’t interest me, but the other two panels in that time slot interested me even less.  One was about why producers should engage their sound team early, which, okay, sounds like good advice, but not something I need to sit through an entire panel on, especially not before I get to larger-scale projects where the entire sound team isn’t comprised of me.  The other panel in that time slot was “Web3 and the Future of New Content Models“, which... yecch.  Besides, even if I didn’t expect to hear anything of interest from Chris Miller, I hoped maybe at least the other panelist, Dan Lin, might say something worth hearing.

I guess I hadn’t really known what Chris Miller looked like; I’d say he didn’t look like I expected, except that I don’t know I’d thought about his appearance enough to have an expectation.  What he did look like to me, when he walked out at the beginning of the panel, was an obnoxious frat boy type, though to be fair it’s likely my prior feelings about him colored my perception.  I think I kind of took an immediate dislike to him, more so than I already had.  And then he started talking, and...

..You know what?  He actually seemed like a pretty good guy.

So, yeah, okay, I probably ought to get over my negativity toward Phil Lord and Chris Miller.  And I probably ought to go ahead and watch their other movies.  Maybe I ought to even rewatch The Lego Movie and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs to see if I still feel the same way about those movies... though, okay, maybe I don’t need to go that far.

Sorry, no new art today; still recovering from the school year.  Tomorrow I’ll get something up for sure.

[asofteredd]

Eddsworld, Eddsworld Legacy, and The End

Disclaimer: It is entirely possible that I will get details wrong in this essay as I have a very spotty record of first-hand events regarding the history this show, along with coming into the fandom two months or so after The End was released. Also, if there's any such legal trouble from me writing this, please contact me, I am a broke internet guy who likes dissecting things. You're not going to get much from a lawsuit.

Disclaimer Number Two: I enjoyed Legacy. I enjoyed The End, to an extent. I’m writing this from a semi-academic perspective because I find it topic interesting in relation to adaptation. Please, nobody send this to TomSka, or Matt, or whoeverthefuck. I’m sure they’re positively sick of being sent this kind of shit, and they do not need to read the ravings of a fan on the internet.

Part One: Eddsworld, The End, and Artistic Essence

Eddsworld is a comic and webtoon that was created and produced by Edd Gould and his close friends up until his death in 2012. One of his close friends and creative partners, Thomas Ridgewell, then kickstarted a continuation of the series named Eddsworld Legacy that ran from late 2012 to early 2016. Eddsworld Legacy worked competently enough, and depending on who you ask, did decently well at keeping the spirit of the old episodes. Then on March 16th 2016, the first part of the final episode of Eddsworld was released.

Immediately, the episode, aptly named The End, was noted for its sudden shift in event and atmosphere. In the episode, the usual theme of absurd shenanigans  is forsaken in favor of focusing on the return of the character Tord. The episode ends with a cliffhanger that hints that Tord's return is only a part of a larger narrative that holds drama and which lacks the usual comedic tone. The End was showing a move toward being darker and more serious. And it did, for sure. The second part of The End revealed that Tord had actually only returned to get a giant-ass robot so that he could use it to achieve world domination, along with the fact that he is a military and technological genius and the commander of an armed force. Except this isn't about the change in The End, not really. This is about what happened afterward and how that factors in the difference between adaptation and essence. Whether or not The End was a good episode, it certainly kicked interest back up in the series, creating a surge of people in the fandom. With many of those people having The End as their jumping off point, a majority pursued fandom creations that focused solely on the events of The End. This created a divide in the fandom- and that's where the catch is. Because The End both is and is not Eddsworld.

Let's back up. When I say The End is Eddsworld, I mean that it contains the characters of Edd, Matt, and Tom dealing with or doing ridiculous things. That is to say that it is Eddsworld because it fits a general, workable definition and summary of what Eddsworld is about. It is not Eddsworld because it defies why one would want to watch the show. Eddsworld is a comedy about four (or three, depends on if Tord’s there or not) friends who deal with ridiculous shenanigans and who all take turns being jackasses to one another and/or other people, which everyone is more or less okay with, asides from being a tad pissed off. Edd pushes Tom into a deathtrap for presumably no reason (Ruined), Tom bombs a city among other things because he resents Christmas (Zanta Claws Three), Matt leads a zombie army against his friends twice because he got bored (Zombeh Attack One and Three), and Tord backs up into Tom in his car (Twenty-Five Feet Under the Seat). It’s routine. The End has Tord, arguably Edd’s closest friend in the show, presumably claim he never cared about Edd, and the reaction isn’t one of annoyed indifference, but of actual shock and sadness (At the very least, seems to have been meant too. Admittedly, Edd looks only mildly disappointed at the reveal, but that’s besides the point). What I’m getting at is that though The End and classic Eddsworld have the same setting and characters and the like, the two are radically different in why someone would want to watch them. The End is Eddsworld in the context of being a canon episode and having the same milieu, it is not Eddsworld as it defies the ‘essence’ of Eddsworld, or so to say.

At the core of every creative work, despite all of the outer looks and work, is why people would like it. Which definitely does not mean it’s the same for everyone, not at all. People can have totally left field reasons for liking a thing, a but for a work there is generally some sort of consensus about why people like a thing. An audience, if you will. What happened with The End was that the boom of interest for The End split the fandom into two parts. And they do not get along. The 2016 Summer Eddsworld boom was absolutely filled with content almost exclusively dealing with The End. There were many artists that became extremely popular in making The End specific content, (Not to mention content for the Red Army subgenre, which spawned from plot threads in The End and a bit from WTFuture) and generally it was dominating the fandom. But the essences of The End and the rest of Eddsworld are contradictory by definition, and thus creates… conflict. Generally, whatever a part of the fandom loathes, for the other part, it’s what they see in the show (There are definitely exceptions, but people generally at least show a preference for one over the other). In summary, the fandom split was caused by The End shifting harshly away from essence of Eddsworld, as though The End is Eddsworld by a typical standard of setting and canon, it varies wildly from why someone would enjoy the show.

Part Two: Eddsworld Legacy and Adaptation

Eddsworld Legacy is an adaptation. Not one into a different medium, and also one done by someone who has authority to make it canon, but I’m hard pressed for a better word, so bear with me and my vernacular. The humor style shifts somewhat from classic to Legacy, although I can’t exactly pin down the specifics (I’m no Comedian after all), it’s a noticeable change. Which isn’t bad at all, it’s an adaptation, an iteration. The humor in Legacy, while different, is still good, for the most part. The problem is with Legacy seeming to be somewhat stuck with the worst of both worlds in regards to directions it could take as an adaptation, and nothing shows that more than Legacy’s use of references and callbacks. If you’re any sort of fan of (classic) Eddsworld, (If not, then thanks for reading this, mate, whatever you get out of it) you’ll notice that there are multitudes of references to it in Legacy. There are quite a few, and more than that, references also are more than background easter eggs-- quite a few times right in plain sight as props that structure minor bits of the narrative. When reference are just background details, that’s pretty cool, but when they’re regularly inserted in large quantities, the references being used as active setpieces in the plot and the narrative at times seems like its structured around references, one is forced to stop and ask, ‘Is this necessary?’

Whenever an adaptation (or iteration) that’s defined as such from a transition in creator instead of medium, there two general directions in which to go in. One, to continue pretty much exactly what the original iteration was doing and creating more in that same style (In the case of Eddsworld, having a firm enough grasp on the original iteration humor to create things that feel true to what was done before) or going Loose Canon style and making your unique take on the general feel of the series but still generally within its essence. Legacy’s consistent use of throwbacks puts it right in the middle of these two options, and it ends up trying to awkwardly do both. While referencing the past is good and makes for a good ‘A-ha! I see what you did’ moment for a fan, if the adaptation has a good grasp on the original iterations style of humor, then it should be able to create new things that’ll really be worthy callback material in the future, because they’re in the same vein as the original. Legacy has a couple of things that could be argued as ‘referenceable’-- the cloudberg and some bits of lines from The End, but neither are really a representation of the original show’s humor.

Going on from that, in the opposite direction, Legacy fails to really break off and become its own thing (Asides from The End, but that bumps into the essence issue and the fandom split), mostly because it seems to come off as having one foot in the past. The history and moments from the original iteration of Eddsworld are referenced throughout the run of Legacy, which takes up any chance of it being able to really branch off and become distinct by its own right. In conclusion, while Legacy is good and nevertheless enjoyable, the biggest failing on its part is that it is caught between the worst of both worlds in that it can’t truly get the originally feeling of classic Eddsworld while being too chain to it to become unique and truly judged on its own terms.

[maxximumreads-blog]

So it did not last the week

 Ensnared by Rita Stradling

 The Low Down from the publisher

A Near Future Retelling of Beauty and the Beast

Alainn’s father is not a bad man. He’s a genius and an inventor. When he’s hired to create the robot Rose, Alainn knows taking the money is a mistake. Rose acts like a human. She looks exactly like Alainn. But something in her comes out wrong.

To save her father from a five-year prison sentence, Alainn takes Rose’s place. She says goodbye to the sun and goes to live in a tower no human is allowed to enter. She becomes the prisoner of a man no human is allowed to see.

Believing that a life of servitude lies ahead, Alainn finds a very different fate awaits her in the company of the strange, scarred recluse.

 (https://s2.netgalley.com/catalog/book/106525)

 Here is my retelling

(FYI for all of the Gaston fans there is no retelling of him in here, there is however a terrifying and insane AI robot)  

DISCLAIMER ALL VIEW POINTS ARE FROM MY OWN POINT OF VIEW – basically I am not being paid for this, and you may even have a different viewpoint yourself.

 The story centers around Alainn who compared to her brother Colby and even her somewhat crazed father, is perfectly average. While her brother and father share a genius genetic that seems to pass her she prefers to be on the fresh powder in the mountains. Although she is beautiful she is haunted by the death of her friend after they were kidnapped a number of years ago. This becomes very important with crazed fathers terrifying AI robot Rose76GF but I digress. Aliann’s father is to be sent to prison if he does not hand over Rose to Lorccan (the guy who paid for her creation) since Rose refuses to go she convinces Alainn to pretend to be rose until Rosette (another AI model) can be made and then Alainn and Rosette can be switched. Needless to say this kind of goes parallel to the original Beauty and the Beast plot we all know and love. Alainn goes to the tower of Lorccan to save her fathers life during which time they fall in love (input scenes not suitable for children here) Rose is the mastermind behind some elaborate plan to kill Lorccan to save the masses (Ok Rose is probably the Gaston) Aliann saves Lorcann, he saves her, The End.

AND CAN I JUST SAY I was, and still am unsure how to feel about the (input scenes not suitable for children here). I mean he didn’t know Alainn was human… he thought she was an AI (whose name became Jade over Rose76GF). Sooooooo I was happy for Alainn but sorta creeped out by Lorcann here.

 The Down and Dirty – The Review

Overall I really enjoyed Ensnared. As with most works there are areas for improvement but in this case the good makes those minor details irrelevant. I will say however the ending could have offered a bit more closure.  Although the ending did not “leave you hanging” (I do not have any hopes for a sequel) it did however feel very abrupt and left open.

Ensnared was a quick read for me because once I got started I couldn’t stop and for me those are the best kind. The ones where you are fully vested and immersed in the lives of the characters you are exploring. The story line moved fast and slow in all the right places and made for a very nice pace throughout.

I would best describe this as Romantic Fairytale Twist with a Sci-fi Adventure and would recommend for anyone who can’t get enough YA, loves Fairytale Twists, and even general Sci-Fi buffs.

 The score

Characters – 5. They were well thought out and really believable.

Plot – 4. I am going 4 simply because of the ending and the amount of “How?” and “Why?” I had throughout

Addiction Level – I should have made this an infinite number. I could not put it down! I was late to my Psych Class because I got sucked in whilst in the school parking lot. Either way this is definitely a 5

 Since most places do not offer a 4.5 rating I am going to rate it as an overall 5. It was really well written and even with the ending issue I still enjoyed it.

  *Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC!*