#I really do like this aspect of the main character's development and didn't know how else to express it

[princechaikka]

"Mr. Protagonist, you've been doomed by the narrative!"

Happy March 5th ❤️

[mythicalartistx]

I know now without a doubt Kingdom Hearts is L—

No actually I think Kingdom Hearts is honestly purposely censored.

I used to be like well I don't think it's inherently the translators faults, Japanese is a tough language for people to know what it's referring to and likes to Americanized certain things like adding heteronormativity and romanizing things. People like romanticizing thingz so I can't exactly blame them it's part of westerners.

Like when you think of relationships most think of straight relationships so that probably what they thought of it's probably about even though the relationship doesn't really develop that much.

A lot of Action movies have the same problem when there is a male main character, there is always a forced romance with some side girl character when it's not a developed or good relationship it's just there to mark of the love interest category.

But now realizing how much Kingdom Hearts censors things, maybe they had an idea.

Some lines are WAY off from the original made to romanticized so much when the original wasn't even anything remotely like that or about a character in that way. And some scenes take out movements and edit it.

They change the entire meaning to censor things for American Audiences.

Nobody knows why.

And all I can think of is to make it have things that American Audiences would rather enjoy having romance in places unnecessarily or censoring things to be "safe"

I made a post about the Dream Drop Distance scene which gotten a crazy amount of attention only on the first few days it's at 300+notes, but the post was essentially about how when Sora was sleeping he tells Donald and Goofy it's his job to keep him on his toes and he puts his arm down in a fist. Then Riku moved his arm slightly to the left and put it in a fist again?

But the scene actually had Riku telling Donald and Goofy how he slapped Sora awake whenever he fell asleep on the beach and it shows Riku moving his hand in a slapping motion, not whatever that awkward motion was.

The thing is DDD was one of the side games and I thought they didn't pay much attention to the censoring in those. And given how gay DDD is and it wasn't as censoring their dynamic.

However, it got censored and it's like why? Did they think Audiences couldn't handle it?

Like it just seems like a silly thing he would do. It's kinda like how some people would pour water on someone to wake them up.

Like a teasing thing which he does A LOT and it probably wasn't that hard.

And other times I heard about how the language had some swearing or words that could be translated that way but of course since it's Disney the western version had to censor that.

The novels and manga actually still have more language in it.

And I think the main problem is Disney. They censor things a lot now.

They used to be more open to this kind of thing, but now they are soft and never take risks. I also heard how their team would edit things that would be in their original movie to tone it down for KH players.

It's kinda sad because there is definitely a lot of meaning to KH that is lost in translation. The battle with Vanitas is one in particular I had realized it's meaning is a bit more than the western version. The western version also simplifies things and tries to condense aspects as well. Xehanort's reason for everything is also worded very differently in the western version.

One of the reasons I look at fan translations is because it gives more meaning to certain events, not only because of dynamics and possible ships that are lost, but also explanations that are no longer there.

I'm so grateful for everyone who tries to retranslate things accurately and sometimes I use a site for certain things I'm curious but by no means do I speak their language and I get translation is hard, I really hope their future installments don't do this especially with KH4 and ML coming up in the next several years.

[nekohime19]

Macaque study # S1

I've seen people arguing that Macaque's redemption was rushed and didn't feel natural and while I never felt like that myself I also wanted to re-watch the show to really see how this redemption plays out and have more insight than just a “gut feeling” about it.

So this is just me analyzing Macaque redemption arc more deeply and how Macaque character is handled in the show 😁.

It's gonna get very long, I’ll go into details. Of course everything stated here is my opinion and you can totally disagree, and maybe what I'm saying is like crazy obvious idk, I just wanted to share it.

Also, I'm gonna cut this in multiple posts, one for each season, cause if not the post is gonna get so long 😭.

First, what I think is important to consider before delving into the episodes and dissecting them is the format of LMK.

LMK is a ten minute episodes series with approximately ten episodes each season and four specials. It's important to consider this because ten minutes is NOT long and it means one season is basically 2h30 which is a very short frame of time to build and develop something. With this being said, what you have to pay attention to is the purpose of the episodes. With the episodes being this short, LMK have to be very direct with the purpose of their episodes and get to the point.

Now with this in mind let's see the episodes and how is Macaque's character portrayed.

Season 1 ep 9

LMK season 1 is basically an introduction to the characters of the show and the MC. In each episode we either get the time to know a character or the time to know one aspect of MK's powers. For example, s1 ep3 (“coming home”) is focused on Mei and her relationship with her family and through that we get to understand her character better, the way she grew up and her struggles (not fitting in her family).

S1 ep9 is Macaque’s introduction and that's very important to keep in mind. What is the purpose of an introduction? It's to make the audience see a character and get something out of it. Hero? Villain? Confusing in-between ? The purpose of the introduction is to give you a frame of the character, a first, often one dimensional, frame that can evolve later on.

So what does s1 ep9 tell us about Macaque?

First thing you notice is the name of the episode. S1 ep9 is the only episode in season 1 that is eponymous. It might seem like nothing much but I think it's a very important detail considering we're in the introductions season! Even our first taste of LBD is not an eponymous episode despite her being a main villain. Our first taste of LBD appears in “Skeleton key”, s1 ep8, which focuses on what is most important about her character right now : her release.

So why an eponymous title? Why not “The other mentor” or “Focus” to make a call back to the reason MK defeats Macaque in the episode. Why “Macaque”? All other episodes have titles that are centered around either an event or a struggle so why not this one? Even Mei's episode is not titled after her, “coming home” as a title reflects more her struggle than herself. I think having a simple “Macaque” as a title is already very explanatory. It's just Macaque. No indication of good and evil. Just raw unadulterated Macaque.

In this episode, Macaque is the event, Macaque is the struggle, it's about Macaque. What are you gonna get in s1 ep9? You're gonna get a plate full of Macaque. We haven't seen the guy yet and we already know he's gonna be very important later on. You do not get an eponymous episode centered around you in a short 10 episode series without being important.

Also, what is interesting to notice is that Macaque episode is in between two episodes concerning LBD (ep 8 and ep 10 are about LBD release and possessed DBK) . Guys, the Macaque episode is already circled by LBD's episodes. Considering what we know will happen I think it's a really cool detail and gives me the impression that Macaque's episode is trapped in between LBD episodes. The placement of the episode is also interesting, we're this far in the season (ep 9 in a 10 episode serie) and we get a new guy? Nah, you know this guy will reappear later on. That's why his episode comes so late. Obviously as an audience you're gonna remember the later episode of s1 when you begin s2. And the later episodes of s1 are Macaque and LBD.

Now let's delve into the episode content.

First scene of the episode? Macaque is not even there and yet you can already tell he's gonna be trouble.

Story wise, I was always a bit confused as to why Wukong is telling MK to destroy a mural of the pilgrims? Maybe it can signify some sort of renewal? But if you put into perspective that it's Macaque's episode then oh boy this gets a whole new meaning.

Having close shots of the pilgrims being all covered in cracks. Having shots of Wukong like this in Macaque's episode? Boy, not even one minute in Macaque's episode and we already get drama. Destroying the pilgrims in Macaque's episode is I think a really powerful symbol, especially since in JTTW Macaque symbolizes the side of Wukong that wants to do the journey alone. Obviously this is not JTTW, this is LMK, and we have to separate the two at times but I also think as the source material JTTW should not be completely ignored either. Having the mural destroyed in the beginning of Macaque's episode can, simply, be a symbol about how Macaque wants to destroy this hero Wukong that is portrayed in the mural with the pilgrims. Mayhaps this is me reading too far into this, but I like to think it is.

The first scene is also a direct confrontation between MK and Wukong on teaching. You have two opposites. The young, impatient mentee. And the inflexible, silent mentor. I say Wukong is silent because our golden guy isn't really good at explaining the purpose of his lesson.

Two very opposite forces that will clash if the wedge between them widens.

So in the first minutes of Macaque's episode, you already get a confrontation between Wukong and MK and Macaque is not even here yet. You can tell this episode will bring trouble between the two, maybe even a wedge. And that's exactly what will exploit Macaque later on. He will use this tiny crack and expand it tremendously.

What is the first appearance of our guy?

This is the very first clear shot of Macaque. And boy I was not ready for it. You got a yellow-colored shot which is generally Wukong color pallets. Obviously, since MK confuses Macaque with Wukong the color of this shot is here to also confuse the audience. But make no mistake. What you have behind Macaque is very important and something I did not notice before rewatching this. This is clearly an eclipse. You got something reassembling the moon before the sun. This is not a meaningless detail especially with the Shadow play episode in s2. First shot of Macaque in the entire series and you already got the moon and sun imagery. Even better, the moon is obscuring the sun, it's overshadowing it and in turns it makes Macaque shine.

First shot of Macaque and you got the sun being obscured by the moon while having Macaque still basking in Wukong's colors. Basically you got the guy whole trauma in one single shot. This is not the moon and the sun being in harmony, this the moon overshadowing the sun. This is Macaque wanting to surpass Wukong, wanting to defeat him but still basking in his colors, so still Macaque following Wukong leads and not his own.

Maybe I read too much into it. But this post is basically me reading too much into things.

Wanna points out that Macaque rarely uses his staff in the entire series and when he uses it, for his introduction, it's when he's trying to trick MK and appear as a hero? Macaque imitating the only hero he knows, which is Wukong, to trick MK is at the same time very ironic but also a testament of how much Macaque's life was and is still centered around Wukong.

What I like in the scene of MK meeting Macaque is the unsettling feeling you got about Macaque and still he appears like a genuine dude at the same time. MK is the one to approach Macaque, to ask him his name, to question him, to ask him to be his mentor. So you got the illusion that MK has the choice here. At the same time, Macaque doesn't jump at the opportunity of being MK's mentor, he points out that “Monkey King” is already MK’s teacher (by the way this episode is one of the rare time in the entire series that Macaque calls Wukong “Monkey King”, obviously a way to not appear familiar with him to MK).

So in theory he seems good right?

But then you got this very unsettling shot :

Macaque : “But you can't have too many teachers right? I'm sure Monkey King would agree. It's not like he wants to hold you back.”

This dialogue with this particular image is why you are thinking : this is a shady guy. First, the shadows are in a very strange twisted angle and only in one corner of the frame. This gives an unsettling feeling, especially since they are on the edge of a building. Twisted angles are used a lot in this episode to give Macaque an unsettling feeling when what he's telling is not strictly bad. The music, those low notes, are also a bit unsettling.

Then you look at what Macaque is saying and you realize, yeah, something is up. He begins with an affirmation to explain why it's good for MK to have multiple teachers. Then he uses Wukong's name to give credits to his words and ends with something that appears genuine but in reality is really manipulative. Saying “It's not like he wants to hold you back” is implicitly saying that if Wukong doesn't agree with MK having multiple teachers, then Wukong wants to hold MK back. And MK, idolizing Wukong, would never think this of Wukong and thus, with his own desire of wanting to know cool techniques, will agree to Macaque proposition and convince himself that, no, Wukong doesn't wants to hold him back and thus even if he doesn't ask Wukong permission, Wukong has to agree with this.

At the same time, this is the first seed of doubt Macaque plants in MK minds. Does Wukong want to hold MK back?

We got classic manipulation here.

At the same time, it's the first appearance of Macaque and even if he's not here Wukong is mentioned a lot. MK confuses Macaque for Wukong, the whole colors of the scene (except for Macaque and the monster) are yellowish, Macaque mentions Wukong multiple times, the staffs are shown (both Macaque's and Wukong's). Then you got Macaque replacing Wukong's symbol on MK's jacket with his own.

Okay. They're not trying to hide it, this is not MK’s enemy, Macaque is Wukong's enemy. It shows. Everything is about Wukong. Macaque is about Wukong.

By the end of the scene, you know Macaque is not to be trusted and everything about him is unsettling. What you got is essentially : a shady guy who's somehow linked to Wukong.

And really, the unsettling feeling doesn't stop there.

The next scene is the training scene with Macaque.

He feeds on MK's insecurities by telling him he expected better of THE Monkie Kid and thus pushes MK to overwork himself. MK wants to be recognized and Macaque knows it and uses it to his advantages.

There are cool parallels between Macaque's training and Wukong's training.

You got Wukong who's very far from MK and lounges on his cloud, not training with his mentee. There is a distance between them. Meanwhile you got Macaque training alongside MK, doing the gestures with him. You might think : does this mean Macaque is a better mentor? But then you see that Macaque training alongside MK is once again a shot with only their shadows and it unsettles you, because shadows are not really you, they're reflections, a lie of some sort. And Macaque is lying in this scene, he's pretending.

Then you have MK confrontation with Wukong and you got this :

Like, this is unnecessary. If your plan is to defeat Wukong, why the hell would you reveal your existence to the guy like that? It's because more than defeating Wukong, Macaque wants to torment him. He's taunting him. Erasing Wukong’s symbol and replacing it with his own. Even the symbol face is taunting, mocking Wukong. Because what Macaque wants is to get Wukong's attention, to taunt him, to torment him, to upset him.

The next scene is the battle with the Shadow monster and Macaque just cannot stop being unsettling. The camera is slightly shaking (re-watch the episode to see it) and this is so twisted, having Macaque not even fully in the shot, pressing down on MK, then pushing him forward :

He's doing a pep talk, trying to lift MK's spirits, but you know his true intentions with the shots. He's not genuine. He's manipulating him, pushing him.

And then the betrayal, which I think is really interesting when you catches some details :

First, you got the monster becoming Macaque. Literally. The moment of the betrayal the monster MK was chasing becomes Macaque. Pretty telling imagery about how Macaque was the true enemy all along

But even more interesting :

The Macaque that was with MK since the beginning becomes the monster. I didn't catch this at first. You can see in the first image there are two Macaques, the one at MK's side who's been with MK since the beginning of the episode, and the one holding the golden flame who is the monster turned into Macaque. But then, the Macaque we know since the beginning leave MK sides and turn into the monster (second image).

Does this mean the Macaque who's been with MK all this time was a clone???

Pretty cool imagery of the monster was at your side since the beginning.

Macaque overshadowing MK, having his shadow looming over MK like this, you cannot have a more telling image about MK's feeling in this situation. He's helpless and he has been in Macaque's shadow since the beginning of the episode despite being the MC. And this shows, because the fight just after is between Wukong and Macaque and MK is on the side until the end of the episode where he takes the spotlight back from Macaque.

Then Wukong arrives and the two monkeys talk/banter.

The dialogue of this interaction is also very telling of the relationship between the two :

Macaque : Monkey King! It's good to see you bud.

Wukong : Are you ever going to get sick of living in my shadow? It's time to get back what you stole.

Macaque : You are such a gem. It's gonna be so satisfying killing you with your own powers.

The taunting on both sides is so heavy you wonder why even they're doing this. First you got Macaque emphasized on bud ( a nickname we know Wukong used with Macaque in the past) to imitate Wukong and mock him, and the fact he calls him “Monkey King” despite never calling him that after or in the flashbacks we got, he use this specifically to hurt Wukong. Wukong doesn't have to respond to the taunt and yet he does with a taunt of his own, calling out one of Macaque's insecurities we learn in season 2 (the shadow play episode, being left in Wukong's shadow). We know Macaque is affected by this taunt because despite him smiling his eyebrows are twitching. Then Macaque answers by sarcastically praising Wukong (wonder if the use of gem is because Wukong is a stone monkey) something he might also used to say in the past and end with literally “I'm gonna kill you” which in a kid's show is surprising. I think the fact Macaque found it satisfying to kill Wukong with his own powers is a testament of how Macaque primary goal is not to kill Wukong in itself but to take revenge, to humiliate him, to upset and torment him.

They both know each other and they know how to hurt the other with their words. They know how to get under the other's skin.

The fight between the two monkeys is just full of parallels between the two. When one uses a power, the other will use the exact same power. They're equal in this sense, two faces of the same coin. I'll go back to this idea of equality between the two monkeys in the later seasons.

Once again Macaque's dialogue is very interesting when he's fighting Wukong :

Macaque : seriously? You fell for that? (laughing/ after he take MK appearances to trick Wukong in the fight). Sorry kid, nothing personal.

Okay, first using MK appearance is so dirty Macaque but he's already been introduced as a very manipulative guy so no surprise here. The fact he says “nothing personal” really speaks volumes about how all of this is truly about Wukong and how Macaque doesn't have any grudges towards MK in particular. In a way, we can say Macaque truly has nothing personal against MK as an individual, this whole mess he's causing is because he wants to rile up Wukong.

Macaque : Come on! Show me the real Sun Wukong! The whole you would have leveled this whole mountain range to stop me! But you're scared of hurting some kid? Pathetic!

This is gold, because it subtly shows what Macaque really wants. He wants the old Wukong. At the same time he wants to torment Wukong but he also doesn't like the change Wukong endured in the pilgrimage (who likely caused their fight). He wants to get Wukong back to his old ways, perhaps to prove that Wukong never changed, that him being a hero is nothing more but a scam.

I can see how after being brought back to life seeing your old buddy so wise and changed, being so different from what you knew, is unsettling. Personally, I think there is a form longing there. Macaque wants his old bud back. But there is also a twisted need to prove Wukong never changed, perhaps because Wukong being a hero is, in some ways, what marked the end of Wukong and Macaque's relationship (we'll see that in the Shadow Play episode).

In the end, Macaque is defeated by MK, which I think is a nice way to round this up and give MK his spotlight back as the MC.

The sunlight piercing the clouds, the more soft yellow colors after Macaque's aggressive purple, and the two of them hugging is a nice way to solve the struggle of Macaque's episode.

The wedge between MK and Wukong being one of the main plot points of Macaque's episode is really symbolic. In a way, maybe Macaque sees himself in MK, or more precisely sees himself in MK and Wukong relationship. As such having MK and Wukong mending their wedge is a nice parallel of Wukong and Macaque which never truly mended their own wedge and instead kept widening it.

So we got our first taste of Macaque and oh boy it was something. Of course, the introduction doesn't define the character for the rest of the series, character development often happens. I think a lot of people stay stuck in their first impression of Macaque. Especially since Macaque has such a strong and appealing introduction in terms of imagery and symbolism. The shadows shots, despite being unsettling, are really cool, the imagery is unique and weirdly appealing. Macaque’s theme is also not like any other of LMK's themes, it's more somber, more quiet. I'm vibing everytime Macaque's theme begins. Macaque introduction marks you but it doesn't mean the guy doesn't get any developpement afterward.

So, after Macaque introduction, the audience have one thing in mind : villain confirmed ✅. Even if you don't catch all the details, you know this. Macaque is also more scary than the other villains. He's more manipulative, smarter, he can go toe to toe with Wukong (in this episode), at this point he's the most terrifying villain of LMK (LBD not being fully introduced yet).

Okay, so this was my analysis for Macaque in season 1, of course you can disagree. I'm not a professional in terms of animation nor in analyzing stories, nor do I claim to be and every theory is welcome and worth it. I just wanted to do it and I thought some people might be interested in it 🤷.

I'll post the analysis of Macaque in season 2 in another post.

Next

[aroaceleovaldez]

hi

tyson's actor has been announced

thoughts on that? i remember you talking about tyson's down syndrome coding and the way there's a big chance of being portrayed in an ableist way

I already talked about my main thoughts on Tyson's casting [here] but in summary - yeah, no, confidence is not inspired right now. I had mentioned before that if they didn't cast an actor with down syndrome for Tyson I cannot see it going well no matter what, and given how s1 handled disability themes (aka erasing the majority of references to adhd/dyslexia and other disabilities, turning Sally into an autism speaks mom, etc) I doubt they're going to reference Tyson's down syndrome coding at all, which is disappointing on multiple levels.

A.) His entire character and the arcs relating to his character, particularly his relationship with Percy and Percy's character development in SoM are ALL surrounding Tyson having down syndrome and themes of grappling with ableism. SoM is supposed to be where we solidly establish Percy as a character who stands up for other marginalized kids, particularly other disabled kids, and if you remove Tyson's down syndrome then that entire aspect of the story goes up in smoke - which is a problem because disability themes are central and core to the entire series. You can't remove them without ruining the basis of the entire plot, because it's disability metaphors all the way down. If by some miracle they do try to keep his disability coding, the casting right now at all levels point to it turning out horribly - firstly they've cast an abled actor to play a disabled character - not cool! Especially given down syndrome is not usually an invisible disability - like I give leeway to adhd/dyslexic casting because it really doesn't affect anything at all. It'd be nice but ultimately nothing is different really - But something like this is significantly more important. Secondly, because we know from the casting call that they're keeping the "Tyson is 'actually' a little kid" (< actually part of his down syndrome coding - it's an outdated medical concept from the 2000s which is very ableist so already not looking great that they kept that) them casting a nearly 30 year old for a character who is supposed to be in Percy's grade (Percy being 13) just sounds like a horrible set-up for a very ableist portrayal.

B.) Based on how s1 went, recent books in the franchise, and this casting, the more likely route is they're going to erase Tyson's disability coding entirely and likely replace it with Tyson being a "himbo" character. I was talking with the TA server about this and apparently according to some of them Daniel Diemer in The Half Of It very much gave off the vibe that with his Tyson casting they're going to go the "himbo" route. Which would make sense given in like TOA, TSATS, and CoTG it seems like Rick learned what a "himbo" is and has been trying to shoehorn that character archetype into everything. Also in recent books Rick has just completely started erasing or ignoring disability themes, including applying ableist tropes to characters instead (Percy being a goofy lazy idiot who dislikes school, Nico being infantilized, Annabeth's disabilities basically being entirely erased, etc etc). Suffice to say it's not looking good I'm not happy about it! :T

Like, in all, I'm sure Daniel Diemer is a great actor. I'm not accusing him of being ableist or anything. (Now, Disney? maybe.) But I am really disappointed in this casting and there is literally no way Disney can justify it. Like, what, "he's tall and Tyson is supposed to be tall?" Character height has literally never been a factor for any other casting and it absolutely is not relevant at all for Tyson. The majority of casting so far has been blind casting (save for age for the most part) - why is it suddenly so important now for Tyson's height of all things? When there are SIGNIFICANTLY more important aspects of his character to be casting for? So far it seems the only casting they've actually paid attention to disability with is Hephaestus with Timothy Omundson, which is nice, but one out of A Lot is not great given this is the disability series! We really should not be getting this many abled actors playing disabled characters (and DEFINITELY not be getting this much erasure of disabled and disable-coded characters - Grover's muscular disease, lack of references to adhd/dyslexia, erasure of Percy's PTSD, etc. Chiron's disability being brought from coding to explicit is nice, but they couldn't be bothered to actually cast a disabled actor for it too? Honestly I wouldn't even mind some of the abled casting as much if they actually bothered to acknowledge the disability themes at all!). And this is a trend so far because Disney has also completely neglected casting plus-sized actors for plus-sized characters in the series (INCLUDING TYSON). It generally just reeks of Disney being afraid to cast anybody but able-bodied skinny actors as much as possible, or at the very least being completely unwilling to touch upon the disability themes of the series - which is stupid, given it's the entire basis of the series.

tl;dr: I have exactly zero faith in s2.

[aeithalian]

On Apollo and fatal flaws

Vague question for my fellow apollogists out there: what do we think Apollo's fatal flaw is? I write this realizing that, in all five books of the series, all told from Apollo's point of view, we never actually have it explicitly stated, either from Apollo's knowledge and refusal to share (which, strangely, seems to me like something he would tell us), or from him not actually knowing, either.

Simply stated, a fatal flaw is any kind of weakness of a hero, god or mortal, that can be exploited and can cause the downfall of that character. That being said, we already know some that generally scope out the larger range of what they can be:

Percy: excessive personal loyalty

Annabeth: hubris/pride

Nico: holding grudges

Thalia: ambition

Leo: feeling inferior

Piper: low self-esteem

Luke: wrath

Jason: hesitation and excessive deliberation

And we are certain that immortals have flaws like these, too. Although it isn't explicitly stated in canon what Zeus' fatal flaw is, it's exceedingly obvious that it's paranoia and hunger for power, as well as his sexual infidelity.

I feel like we can easily knock some flaws off the list already:

Holding grudges is off the list for the main reason that, if there's one thing Apollo oozes, it's forgiveness, and the fact that he is always ready to give second chances to people who have wronged him and the world (Lityerses, Luguselwa, Meg, etc.)

For the same reason, I'm going to knock off wrath. Yes, he has moments of rage, but so does everybody else! It's human nature, and, as stated before, it's usually overshadowed by Apollo's choice to let go of that anger and choose forgiveness instead.

Ambition is an interesting one, but it's not at all something that really comes up in the series to the point where it ends up being powerful enough to be his fatal flaw. He rarely seeks power he didn't already have before, especially when you consider he is Zeus' most powerful son, and one of the most powerful gods period. Why would he need more power? Unless, of course, you choose to point out that one time he tried to overthrow Zeus, but I'd argue he was acting more out of a place of 'hey please be better at your job' than 'I want your title and position', which actually falls more under Poseidon's motivations in that myth.

Interestingly, there's a certain aspect of Apollo's character in the myths that totally screws the pooch in terms of this discussion, and that's the fact that Apollo, throughout the stories of Ancient Greece, is a typical example of perfection. Literally, he's written to be virtually flawless, the paragon of young men, and (in the context of Ancient Greek culture) doesn't have many moments of rage, selfishness, or paranoia, or at least, not as many as other gods (looking at you, Artemis).

HOWEVER, as much as the myths seemingly act like he doesn't have a glaringly obvious flaw, we as a part of Apollo's inner circle/audience know he's got one - I mean, look at him! It's in there somewhere, nobody's perfect, and I don't think anybody's pretending as such for Apollo. What irks me is that we know Apollo is not lacking in general character flaws, but there is one, beyond a doubt, that shapes his inner core irreversibly. And we don't know it.

Thankfully, though, we've got five books of content that might help us come to a conclusion.

The Hidden Oracle, being the beginning of the story and the beginning of Apollo's character development, is where we would get an inkling of what Apollo wants us to think his fatal flaw is. To us, Apollo appears vain, self-centered, and, frankly annoying. And he does these things on purpose. Or at least, he tells us these things.

That's the thing: if you look past all the fluff Apollo spits out to the audience throughout the first majority of the book, before his children are taken into the forest, you'd find that his dialogue, aka how the other characters of the story hear and see him, doesn't really reflect that. Most of the annoying, self-centered brattiness is only on the page, and not as obvious in his personal interactions (not saying they're not there, but it's so much worse in his internal monologue). So, what does this tell us?

That those aren't his fatal flaws. He's very good at pretending that they are, probably because, as I've read several other metas very cleverly explain, that this is what gods are supposed to be, and, Apollo, in his desperation be his father's golden child again (or, also to avoid his wrath, take that how you will) has built up a very elaborate mask for thousands of years, because that is what he is not. He's trying to be glossed over in the vast sea that is the gods, and it's not really working because, well, he got turned into a mortal. Again.

As we pass through books 2 and 3, we're still not quite past the whole "pretending to be petty and self-serving because this is what I am supposed to be as dictated by the laws of my immortal people and my father". That, almost certainly, doesn't come until the latter half of The Burning Maze. So it's further safe to assume that our best guess as to his fatal flaw probably coincides with his more honest moments with the audience, eg. books 4 and 5.

Now, I know a popular common answer to this whole question is that it's his ego and his pride. But here's the thing: as we move on to the second half of the series, we get an interesting revealing of Apollo's perception of himself. To put it plainly: Apollo is not a narcissist, as much as he pretends to be (see the above points). Honestly, he might actually hate himself and what he's become as he learns to take a more critical view of himself as the series goes on. Drawn in direct antithesis to his moments in the first two books, when he tells us that he assumes that anybody he meets is willing to help him, after the peak of his development (marked by his promise and Jason's subsequent death), this isn't the case. That's why I'm pretty okay with putting pride and ego towards the bottom of my list of possible fatal flaws for him.

Honestly, if I didn't know any better as we reach the end of the series, I'd say Apollo's fatal flaw might fall somewhere closer to poor self-esteem, insecurity and self-doubt, but for some reason, that doesn't quite fit. I'd argue that a lot of those feelings probably stem from being stuck in the inadequate body of a mortal with a tiny fraction of his usual power - of course he's going to feel like that. That, and it's almost the direct opposite of what his flaw is perceived to be by other sources, so it feels like too large a leap to me.

I'm deliberating from my point, which is this: I still have no clue what his fatal flaw is.

It's not:

narcissism

pride

OR on the other side of the spectrum:

low-self esteem

self-doubt

OR the list of things we knocked off earlier:

holding grudges

wrath

ambition

And when you compare to other characters he might also be like, I would argue he's a totally different animal. The only character I could see a similarity with is Percy. But, again, it's just not the same. Percy's flaw, excessive personal loyalty, still doesn't really fit because, while I'd argue that Apollo's never really put in a situation where he's had to choose to save the life a mortal friend over his task of restoring the Oracles, I do believe he has a strong sense of duty. No, I don't think he would sacrifice Meg's life to do that job, but it's not something we see him forced to pick between (that I can think of, at least). I like to think that, on one hand, Percy would flat-out refuse to do his duty to save the life of a friend out of principle, whereas Apollo might find a clever loophole to save the friend, do the duty, and end up doing harm to himself. If anything, while Percy would be ready to burn the world to save a friend, Apollo would be ready to burn himself first.

That, I think, is our biggest indicator. Apollo loves his friends and the world. He wears his heart on his sleeve, this is something the Triumvirate exploits to no end.

Athena tells Percy something in the PJO series (the Titan's Curse, I think?) and says that the most dangerous fatal flaws are the ones that are good in moderation. And, of course, Apollo is a main character, so naturally his fatal flaw will fall under this category.

I think Apollo's fatal flaw is of the same breed as Percy's, but isn't really the same creature. I'm sure there's a more eloquent way to put this, but it seems to me that his fatal flaw has something to do with his tendency to be self-sacrificing, easily forgiving, and empathetic. He's been stabbed in the back several times and every time chooses instead to show trust and camaraderie, to see the best in people, and give them another chance to prove themselves: with Meg, Crest, Lityerses, Luguselwa, Meg's adoptive siblings, and many, many more. That seems very dangerous in the wrong situation, yes? Especially someone in Apollo's position - there are plenty of bad people who would be ready to take advantage of this.

And what is a story if not the hero learning to overcome their fatal flaw? And, really what is the Trials of Apollo all about? How do we end? What choices does Apollo make for the future at the conclusion of the Tower of Nero that directly contradict his overwhelming urge to choose forgiveness and let others try again?

The Tower of Nero, Chapter 36

At the end of any good epic story, the hero learns to overcome their weaknesses and flaws and do the right thing regardless. For Apollo, this comes when he refuses to forgive one person: Zeus. Apollo ends his pentalogy with coming to an understanding of himself and his relationship with his father, learning to overcome that tendency see the best in everyone, and realize that not everyone can choose to change for the better like Apollo has.

EDIT: a masterlist of my other metas

[stagefoureddiediaz]

ugh this is horrible news tommy is still around, hope to god he's gone in the finale. v

Maybe in your world Nonnie, but not in mine and I'm not entirely sure why you felt the need to come and complain about it on my blog, but here we are!

It makes perfect Narrative sense for Tommy to still be around in the back end of the season, and even possibly into the start of season 8. The show is telling a story of Bucks bisexuality, so why woould they get rid of Tommy so quickly? To do so would do a disservice to that story - a massive disservice. I'm guessing you're hating on this relationship becasue you see it getting in the way of Buddie, rather than viewing it as a vital step on the route to Buddie.

Lets put it into simple terms - Buck figures out he's bi and then begins to explore that newly discovered aspect of himself. The show has also taken the time to move Buck from someone who didn't really do relationships (of the long term variety), into someone who is looking for love and looking for forever. But in amongst all of that, he hasn't really had a healthy long term relationship, the closest he had to that was with Ali and that one didn't last especially long and she wasn't around for most of it

Buck isn't ready for an endgame queer relationship right now - he is still to immature from a relationship perspective - especially a queer relationship perspective. If Eddie was available and he and Buck got together - as they are as characters right now, they wouldn't last - they're not in a position to do so successfully. And this isn't me suggesting that they need to have figured everything out before they get together - to have fully healed etc, because thats neither realistic or something I would want to see - what it means is that they both need to get to a point where they are in a healthy enough place to put in the work together, understand each others flaws, and their own flaws and proactively work towards overcoming those things together and as of right now, neither of them are - they are getting their and moving rapidly in the right direction, but Buck needs to learn a bit more, and in many ways learn how to be with a man, before he will be ready to start anything with Eddie.

The growth we're getting to watch Buck go through right now - in the aftermath of the lightening strike, his reckoning with his mortality etc and the fact he's now off the hamster wheel and moving forward - in a healthy and faster way than we've ever seen from him, speaks volumes.

Tommy is also a far better developed love interest than any other love interest we've seen Buck (or indeed Eddie) with (Abby excepted but she was a main, so had her own purpose on the show)- I'm sure I'm not alone in feeling like I know Tommy more after 3 episodes plus what we got from the begins episodes he was in, than I managed to ascertain about Taylor or Ana or Nataila etc!

Not to mention, him figuring out he's in Love with Eddie as part of this process is going to be fun to watch. The show has made no bones about re-enforcing at every. Single. Opportunity how close, how entwined and how important Buck and Eddie are to one another - the show has quite literally been prioritising that over anything else Buck and Eddie related - Buck was there front and centre - placed very much on an equal footing with Shannon and even Eddie himself in 7x01, and then Eddie was the centre of Bucks bi arc in 7x04 and in his coming out in 7x05. They are literally moving chess pieces into place to tell an amazing story of queer love in later life and creating an epic slow burn for the ages.

And finally, Eddie is, as far as we know at this point in time, still in a relationship with Marisol - why shouldn't Buck get to explore who he is and what he want's within a relationship rather than sitting pining on the sidelines - that isn't healthy in any way shape or form. Eddie still has stuff to figure out about himself.

Even Tim and Oliver have stated in interviews that this is about a happy and joyful queer experience of figuring out bisexuality and therefore within that is giving the narrative a romcom vibe. But they have also stated that Tommy isn't going to be around for that long - that he is very much a narrative device.

It is worth pointing out that timelines on various aspects of the narrative may have been shifted because of the season 8 renewal - but that is only going to help tell the story because now it doesn't have to be rushed. I'm still fully expecting some form of feeling realisation from one of them by the end of the season (my money is on Buck), setting up for season 8 and Buddie going canon either 8a finale or early into 8b.

You have every right to dislike Tommy if thats you jam - have at it, but don't come to my blog and expect me to agree with you. I'm not a multi shipper by any means - I'm a one ship kind of gal and I will be a Buddie shipper until the end of time, but within that, I am here for amazing storytelling and amazing queer storytelling - the like of which I've not had the privilege to watch on my screen before - especially one that hits so close to home. Its a really important story to tell and I'd rather it not be rushed.

And if you had to pick - I'm pretty sure you'd rather have Tommy around for a bit longer that Marisol!!!!

[bibibbon]

You know, the loV stans complaining about shig and dabi and toga's ending is a tragedy "poor meow meow" and with a rare dose of people not blaming Izu (it's rare super rare) but forget how....they didn't want to be saved, Ochako, Izu and maybe Shoto(through I think Shoto's case makes a bit more sense) were on a fool's mission.

Izu suffered, suffered, suffered for absolutely nothing.

He didn't saved Shig.

Shiga and Izu don't know each other...it's almost laughable how they are strangers really

Izu get nothing. Monoma gets a statue (not a hater, but come on! Why he get a state and Izu not even a thanks, oh sure lil kids thank him once in a full moon)

Izu has no friends.

And the likelihood of bk being the #1 is still a thing.

Bk won

Izu, the mc, the underdog lost.

If the mc can't have a good ending. Why the fuck the LoV stans thought shig and dabi would have a happy ending?

Just mad...not with the story, but with the fans.

MHA is a shitty story ...with a fandom which has no media literacy

Hi @mikeellee 👋

It's hilarious how underdeveloped the dynamic between Izuku and shigaraki is it's almost like horikoshi forgot about them and then tried to do something to try and fix that in the last war arc by using the whole memeoru sharing thing that mainly shared Shigaraki's memories and barely none of izuku's. The two characters haven't interacted enough to even understand eachother and izuku is still stuck in chapter one (Izuku doesn't actually develop he is an incredibly static character) so how do you expect a static character to save another when izuku can't even save himself?!?!

Iam incredibly critical of both shigaraki and izuku and at least shoto and Dabi or toga and ochako were given slightly more justice than what the main duo was given.

However, even when it comes to the other characters the villains weren't given proper arcs to be saved. I have touched on that aspect a lot on other asks but its incredib easy to make them tragic characters who end up proving a point or characters who end up becoming redeemed but they also need to be properly humanised and developed.

Iam not trying to say that the only characters that can be saved are those who are perfect victims but Iam saying that it's quite difficult to save a character who says they will continue to harm/kill or destroy even after being given another chance.

In the end everyone who isn't bakugo got a bad ending.

[nix-moon]

✮⋆˙✮ V𝔦𝔯𝔢𝔫'𝔰 𝔳𝔦𝔩𝔩𝔞𝔦𝔫 𝔞𝔫𝔡 𝔯𝔢𝔡𝔢𝔪𝔭𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫 𝔞𝔯𝔠𝔥 ✮⋆˙✮

(𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕨𝕙𝕪 𝕀 𝕝𝕠𝕧𝕖 𝕚𝕥 𝕤𝕠 𝕞𝕦𝕔𝕙)

SEASON 6 SPOILERS AHEAD ⚠️📢🚨

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I'll start by saying that this is my personal analysis based on nothing more than my own experience watching "The Dragon Prince". Anyway, long text ahead!

•°•°•°•°• ☆ °•°•°•°•°• ☆ °•°•°•°•°•

I really like how Viren's story was built throughout The Dragon Prince/Mystery of Aaravos. I enjoy villain narratives that bring some elements which, in my opinion, give the character development a little bit more of a "real humanity" you know?

Like for example, a character that makes mistakes, regrets them, and then go and do something totally apposed to their beliefs, take hypocritical actions, such as humans do all the time! I love when the idea of a perfect character falls apart, showing contradiction.

I think TDP brings that to the table all the time buuut talking about Viren I think it makes total sense that he used dark magic again after giving it up on previous seasons, exactly because of contradiction in actions, because things change and so does the circumstances and his whole beliefs/regrets.

Another thing, and this might be totally MY gone-too-far analysis, I feel like there's a lot of attention to detail and symbolism in Viren's relation with dark magic, which is basically, you know, the main "element" that makes him a villain somehow. Whether this was on purpose or not, I'd like to point out some of my observations towards this:

𓏲⋆ ִֶָ ๋𓂃 ⋆ Dark Magic and Viren's ascension and fall ᯓ★

Viren's plot started and ended with dark magic. As his "villain era" started when he used it to cure Soren, as shown on season 6, he also died from its use. TWICE if you think about it, because the turning of events in previous seasons were mostly led, in my opinion, by the fact that Viren, being someone very ambitious (thinking that he would to anything to get what he wants, either the cure of his son or power) found in dark magic the instrument he needed to materialize his desires.

𓏲⋆ ִֶָ ๋𓂃⋆ Someone who was served, someone who claims to be a server ᯓ★

Before dying, king Harrow "humbled" Viren by pointing out his place as a servent of Katolis, which wasn't taken so seriously by the High Mage at that time. In my opinion, we was already taken by the idea of getting almost everything he wanted from dark magic, or, being served, since magic creatures were literally serving to his purposes. As his journey continues in the "after-resurrection" times and he starts to be more reflexive, he comes to a point where he, himself, goes back to the place he sort of turned his back to (Katolis) claiming not mercy, not forgiveness, but that he is a servent of that kingdom. ~CHILLS~. This is one of my favorite moments by far! It shows to me a true redemption, where the character isn't looking to a scenario of "feeling better" about the things he did and regretted, he is actually assuming the weight of his mistakes and willing to pay the price.

I understand that people wanted some sort of reconciliation between him and Soren, or some kind of gathering with Claudia, but I like the way things went in the story by far. I'm glad Soren didn't get that letter, because to me it brought even more real-life aspects to the narrative: where you may not be ready to say some things and back up, where there's angst, where forgiveness is so hard to achieve when someone you love takes a path that hurts you so bad! Soren goes to see Viren on the dungeons, and then doesn't want it anymore, he is fighting contradictions of feelings he doesn't even know how to name - is there something more human than that? Being confused and wanting to do AND not do something at the same time?

𓏲⋆ ִֶָ ๋𓂃 ⋆ The heart: corruption and salvation ᯓ★

The last topic leads me to this one: the heart. During the series, we constantly see the narrative of the "corruption by dark magic", the "it will consume you inside", and at some point the heart is used as the main corrupted "element", let's say, which is already symbolic enough for me to think about. BUT WAIT!

Not only Viren was corrupted by dark magic, which means his heart was taken, but it was his heart that "saved" Katolis. That old heart, broken by the idea of losing his child, broken by his wife reaction to his use of dark magic, and then consumed by it, stopped by it more than once, who was used in a spell made not anymore by the High Mage Viren, but by the humbled servent of the kingdom.

And more: Soren wanted him to take his heart. In his place, Viren decided to take his own, even though he had to use dark magic again, even if he would die doing it.

This is why it makes sense to me he did it again. This time, he wasn't doing it for him, he was doing it for his son, like he did before. In the beginning, he used dark magic to save his son, and in his last moments, he did it for his son once again, and the way this was so beautifully built trough the narrative makes me actually feel butterflies in my stomach and scream cry throw up.

I love this FUCKING show so much.

∘₊✧────────────────────────✧₊∘

That was my super-freaky-super-long analysis of a fictional character. If you read all of this... Go get a life. JK, I hope you enjoyed it. Let me know what you think! ᯓ★

[fortheloveofarchons]

Been playing Love and Deepspace for the past few days and here's my take on this.....

Content warning though, it's gonna be a long post! And this is just coming from someone who only played the game a few days ago so this is just my first impression!

Let me just say this, algorithm...

It's your fault for making me download the game.

You knew I like hot attractive fictional men. You knew I like bratty boyfailures. You knew I like older, stoic yet kind men. You knew I like mysterious softboys.

YOU KNEW.

So you bombarded me with L&DS content on my socials, my home, my walls, and even my grass!!! I won't forgive you for dragging me into another gacha hole, especially when you knew that I promise myself to never spend a dime on any of these games!!! (I'm an f2p player)

Anyways-- Here's my take on this game as a newbie.

The VAs and character designs?

Amazing. I love the boys (including Caleb) and the MC customisation is really detailed. Though, I wish we could have short hair MC permanently but I'm glad we get to experience it on photoshoots. I do wish we get to explore more of the boys on the main plot cause it feels a bit underwhelming. Then again I just finished chapter 3 so we'll see!

I love the dates and the playtime mode since it gives us time to get closer to the boys and understand more about their past and their characteristics. (I'm convinced the claw machine gacha is so random cause one day Xavier won a lot and the next it was Zayne)

I will say tho for now I feel like Rafayel is more developed and interesting compared to the other two. I like Zayne in terms of how much he really cares about his patients and how he was closer to MC back then, but I wish we get more of him soon. For Xavier he's such a mystique as well and I really like him too! Overall, I wish we get more events dedicated to Zayne and Xavier.

The fluidity of the animation and graphics?

Really good considering that I'm playing it on mobile, I set it to medium and its runs pretty smoothly without any low pixelated quality. I love how detailed the backgrounds and designs are, and I really love some of the cinematic shots the developers added during the date scenes. I can't wait to pull for more dates for the characters!

Combat wise?

It's fine for now ,and I really appreciate the proceed 10x button when farming for materuals considering that I'm more of a casual player rather than a combat one.

Though I'm still frustrated that one of the requirements of getting 3 stars for extra diamonds would be to win the combat within 90 secs and I'm like-- boy if that dragon didn't have that short animation I would've gotten it faster!!! If it had been 120 secs I would have gotten it easier... I know that the whole combat system will get a bit complicated the more you ascend your hunter level so I'll just farm for materials just to prepare the inevitable.

Also I wish there were more ways to gain more exps for your hunter level instead of doing the daily tasks. Imagine you are about to head to the next chapter get some main content and yet you can't bc your hunter level is just two level away so you have to wait for the next day...

The plot?

I would say its okay for now since I'm about to head to chapter 4 and even though I finished chapter 3 it still feels like the beginning. The worldbuilding is really interesting but I'm still a bit confused on some aspects of the story. Overall, I can't wait to finally see Caleb on screen (I already saw him on Youtube and I wish he's playable he's so pretty sksksksks)

Edit: I just finished chapter 4.... what in the sweet metaflux world... CALEEEBBBBBB!!!!!

So yeah this is my impression on the game as someone who only joined after a few days! I hope to see more contents for the boys and I can't wait for more chapters (I spoiled myself at chapter 4 and my god... I want Caleb to be playable plzzzzz)

I'm aware that as a newbie my opinions are probably flawed considering that it's barely even a week since I joined, I would love to hear some advices from you guys just so I can prepare myself in terms of combat and to understand more about the characters if I missed anything about them!

[bobbydagen24]

While I love World Tour something that's always Bugged me is The Hickory's Betrayal plot point.

Hickory is a stranger who they meet at a convenient time who seemingly sticks his neck out to help our main characters for no Reason other than Moral Goodness

and who Branch warns Poppy about Trusting but who she chooses to trust anyway and after a Journey where some trust is built up between the characters

Hickory is eventually Revealed to be a Bounty Hunter who was just getting close to them so he could find out where they had their string so he could give it to Barb

all in all not a bad plot point in the story personally it caught me by surprise the first time I saw it Hickory is a fairly likable character that from what I can understand most of the audience Grew fond of

and Poppy and even Branch Deffo built up a little bit of trust and maybe even friendship with him in the movie making his betrayal work on pretty much every level

a Twist needs to to work except the problem is the movie Really undersells it

after his betrayal he leaves the movie and is only seen again briefly at the end and its a little comedic scene where he proudly remarks about having taught Poppy the trick with using sweets as ear plugs.

my main problem is Poppy having no Real Reaction to his Betrayal as Hickory's turn is done seemingly just to get Poppy caught by Barb and that's it narrative wise

when I feel it should have been more of a turning point for Poppy's character as she's a overly trusting person

who in the last movie got betrayed by someone she trusted very much which Hurt her a great Deal.

and Despite warnings from Branch about Trusting Hickory she still chooses to keep being a trusting person only to get betrayed again

this should have a way bigger Reaction from her even tho she didn't know Hickory all that long she was clearly starting to view him as a friend

and she went out on a whim by trusting him but she got Burned yet again this should have either made her furious or emotionally Devastated her

instead she has very little Reaction to it and it Really didn't seem to at all change her character as in TBT she's back to being overly trusting such as

instantly taking Brozone's sides when Branch is mad at them going out of her way to make excuses for these total strangers

and comforting Crimp and trusting her as soon as she sees her Despite her being a willing accomplice in torturing her boyfriends Brother.

Hickory's Betrayal should have been used as a way to Develop Poppy into a more cautious person less Trusting person

that way the movie wouldn't literally be throwing away this likable character simply because they needed a way for Poppy to be captured for the climax

and his Betrayal would have a legit character Growth purpose so I feel Poppy should be more emotionally impacted by his turn

and he shouldn't just leave the movie after this he should Remain by Barbs side as a Remorseless Henchmen who is nothing but cold to Poppy when she tries to ask him how he could do this.

and Ideally the movies wouldn't just forget about this and Poppy would be a little more cautious when Trusting strangers in future movies

as Poppy's character Development seems to be undone in every movie making it very surface level tbh

so yeah Hickory's Betrayal has always Bothered me from a plot perspective for this Reason as he's an example of a Good Twist Villain in the way he's set up

( unlike someone else who I will be making a post on very soon ) but like I said the movie Really underplays this aspect and it makes it feel very pointless tbh

as there's a million other ways they could have had Poppy get caught by Barb along with the string without the Hickory Twist.

[alexandraisyes]

how much am i aloud to know about the Hunger Games AU :glancescutely:

TEE FUCKING HEE BITCH BUCKLE UP

And y'all this is gonna be so long but this is an AU I've been working on with Turbo for *months*. We love our TSBS hunger games.

So these are the tributes, this is just a sketch obviously

And here are the mentors, they haven't been sketched yet but have heights

And a few important people from the capitol (there will probably be a few more added later on as we work on developing the plot some more).

Each character will have several refs for the different parts of the story.

Information about the tributes. "Group" is the age group for the Games. In this world the age of maturity is 17, and once you are 17 you are considered an adult in the eyes of the law. Teens are between 12-16, Young Adults are 17-21, and just like in the States while they are adults there are a few restrictions on what all they can do, and certain jobs they can't work until they are 22. Adult is 22-29, and really the only difference between Y.Adult and Adult is that there's certain jobs you can't do when you're below 22 because young people aren't expendable like that according to this government. Elder is the last age group for the games, 30-35, and once you've crossed 35 you are no longer applicable for the Games.

(Poleart is supposed to say polearm)

Information about the Mentors. Then vs Now is how old they were when they won their games, and how old they are in the current narrative.

Tributes are selected by one female and one male tribute, in the lists for the tributes it says which group they represent in that aspect too. The government doesn't care what your pronouns are, they just care about if you're AFAB or AMAB because of tradition. The single exception is Harvest, who is lying about being AFAB and he was so vicious at the reaping about being with Blood that they didn't even bother to question it for the sake of their fingers.

We have done entire descriptions for the past arenas, but there's so much that I'm not gonna include here. Maybe in a separate post? Or when I open up a blog specifically for this AU since it's so convoluted. For an example of how long the arena descriptions are it's 5000 words. I will give you the description of the arena design for the one they're in during the story though.

72nd Annual Hunger Games Victor: Theme: **Apocalypse Forest** A post-apocalyptic wilderness where nature has reclaimed the remnants of civilization, turning it into a sprawling forest of tangled vegetation and decaying ruins. Set in the aftermath of a catastrophic event, such as a nuclear war or environmental collapse, this arena presents tributes with a harrowing landscape where survival is a constant struggle against both the elements and the remnants of humanity's downfall. The once-thriving cityscape has been engulfed by dense foliage, with skyscrapers now reduced to crumbling ruins and highways choked with overgrown vegetation. Tributes must navigate through the twisted remnants of urban infrastructure, facing hazards such as collapsed buildings, hidden traps, and radiation hotspots. The forest itself is a tangled maze of towering trees, dense undergrowth, and winding creeks, where tributes must contend with natural hazards such as toxic flora, mutated wildlife, and unpredictable weather patterns. The air is thick with the scent of decay, and the eerie silence is broken only by the distant cries of scavenging creatures and the creaking of rusted metal. Despite the desolation, pockets of life still exist within the forest, including desperate survivors, feral mutants, and rival factions vying for control. Tributes must navigate this hostile environment while also avoiding conflicts with other survivors, scavenging for resources, and deciphering the secrets of the apocalypse that brought about the forest's transformation.

There are ships, but they're not really a huge focus of the story. The main ones are surprise surprise, Blood/Sun/Harvest. If you've read my writing you should have expected this. There are a few background ships as well.

Unlike the uh canon Hunger Games, we're gonna give everyone the chance to talk to each other, hang out etc. Form alliances, friends, and rivalries. Instead of it all happening in three days before the arena, they get a whole month of training and publicity. Some parts of the story may be grueling for that reason, since we really want to give perspectives on all of the tributes. We're probably going to do a two or three-parter fic, before the games. The games. After the games.

We already know who dies, how they die, who lives, and how they live the rest of their lives after the games.

Oh yeah this is a bio-organic AU. Some of the characters are partially mechanical, like most of the celestial-based ones, but the rest are purely organic. The society is a mix of cyborgs, anthropomorphic animals, and humans.

Here's a few snippets of the plot that we have planned.

Sun and Moon are an oddity. Never has there been a set of (actual) siblings in the games before. Moon tried to tell Sun it would be okay when his name was pulled, and made sure to put on a brave face for the sake of Sun. He knew there was a 1/24 chance of him surviving the games. That was a risk he was willing to take. He would come back to Sun. You can only imagine the way his blood ran cold when they then pulled Sun's name and there was nothing he could do about it. He swore to himself he would find a way to get them free so he didn't have to see his little brother die in his arms. When Blood's name was pulled Harvest immediately pitched a fit. Blood had to pull him off of him so he could go up to the stage (and got bit for his futile effort). The second the female tribute was drawn Harvest volunteered for tribute. No one was going to kill his best friend unless it was him, thank you very fucking much. The guards tried to protest since he was coming from the male group, but they backed off after one almost lost a hand to sharp teeth. Ronty and Frank were from the same district but didn't know each other until they were both pulled for the games. Golden, Freddy's mentor, is his father. Freddy has two younger brothers who aren't old enough for the games yet. Foxy and Roxanne both have kids they need to win the games for to get back to. The Creator is the President.

[aragarna]

Zorro Vive

And vive bien!

So, I've finished Season 1 of the new Zorro show (available through Amazon in the US and most Spanish and Portuguese-speaking countries), and I really enjoyed it!

Without spoilers, I'd say that its main qualities are that it's fun and earnest and more cosmopolite in its retailing of the old story. It doesn't take itself too seriously, there's plenty of little homages to previous adaptations. There's many interesting and well-developed characters - of all genders and ethnicities.

It's (literally) colorful, with a comic/pulp feel that suits it well. There's been a true care brought to the action scenes, and OMG the night scenes are damn well lit. It's rare enough nowadays so points for that. Generally, the show is quite beautiful.

More spoilery thoughts under the cut.

I honestly wasn't sure what to expect from a new show. It's always hard to bring new canon to something so established and so iconic. And even though the Disney show is *not* the original canon, for a lot of people, it is.

But as a principle, same as for book adaptations or remakes, I'm not opposed to variations or changes. As long as they're good changes.

And I have to say, the vast majority of the changes in the new Zorro show, to me, were actually good changes, or necessary improvements for today's audience.

The most obvious is giving back a real voice to the Natives and not sugarcoating the colonization aspect. There's tension there. Natives are angry. But as years passed, people born there consider themselves "true Californians". Natives aren't just background characters or peons anymore. They're a driving plot force. They're shown in their own environment, with their own rites (I don't know enough about Natives of this area to know how accurate it is, but it felt a lot more authentic and respectful to me than other versions).

I do like the idea that the Zorro character comes from the Native culture, and that it's been passed on from one person to the next. Though it also brings my one big issue with the show: Diego becoming Zorro reads a lot like "a white dude steals a Native heritage." And yes, it's symbolic, and yes the fox spirit chose him, Diego didn't pick him, but still. Given that the audience is meant to support Diego (who really is a sweet guy!), that the narrative keeps showing us that Nah-Lin is wrong and should accept it, given the colonization context of that story, it's sitting a bit wrong with me.

This aside, I do like the exploration of revenge vs. justice, violence vs. a more measured response, in the face of adversity. When a few months back, the tagline "revenge is personal, justice is for all" appeared on the first poster, I wasn't sure what to think. I don't like revenge-driven characters. It's cliché and wrong. But the fact that the show precisely explored that, both with Diego and Nah-Lin, was actually quite interesting.

Diego, as I said, is a decent guy. A sweet boy really, vaguely immature originally but having to mature really fast, as the death of his father, the business of the rancho, the Zorro thing and Lolita's wedding are all dropping on him at once. Miguel Bernardeau is a clear departure from most of the previous Zorros, who were played by older actors, giving a more "adult" vibe to the character, but given he's supposed to be fresh out of college and out of his element, Bernardeau's more juvenile features fit the character well.

Nah-Lin is a lot angrier, and while in the context of the story, she's shown to be going at it the wrong way, all that anger *is* justified, and not something that can just be brushed off. Peace can't come easy when you anger people that way.

And you know who else I really liked? That damn Capitan Monasterio! Who would have thought LOL No, but seriously. Not sure why they named him that way. He was actually more of a Sergeant Garcia (or Mendoza from the 1990 show) than a Monastario. Obviously without the comic relief and cutely incompetent side of the character, but as the character who is a decent guy stuck between a rock and a hard place, serving a tyrannic boss and chasing a heroic outlaw that he may not hate that much.

I also really liked what they did with Lolita. An opinionated young lady that throws away all the corseting conventions of her time is always very relatable to me. Also, I just love her fashion sense. I wasn't sure what they were going to do with that impossible love triangle (I thought for a long time the wedding wouldn't actually happen). I wouldn't have thought they'd have Lolita figure it out, but I'm glad she did.

I'm glad they kept Bernardo, the mute confident. And I love Mei, too. The dynamic between the three of them (with Diego) is great!

Also, it's great to finally have a Spanish-speaking production, and have the characters speaking in Spanish, instead of having American actors put on fake accents.

I may have a couple of minor complains: namely that I didn't care about Samael nor Alejandro's first love. Not sure planting so early something that they're keeping for S2 is a right move. Feels like a waste of screentime. Also, I'm not particularly found of secret societies trying to rule the world, but it seems to be mandatory to any Zorro story... And the finale episode didn't actually wrap up that many plotlines - every major villain escaped! So that kinda made it look like Zorro didn't accomplish much, apart from breaking Lolita's heart, and his. But none of this prevented me from having a good time watching the show. I just really hope there'll be a S2 cause it'd be a shame to leave things there!

How about you guys? What did you think of it?

[picturejasper20]

Thought’s on Jack & Maddie Fenton?

As characters i think they are entertaining on their own. They are usually fun to see when they show up, having something funny to say. They do have defined personalities in a way you can separate one from the other.

One thing i do like in contrast to parents from other animated series is that they are have plenty of skills, both in intellect and combat. This is such an cool aspect of them because they can be more active in the story instead of being there hanging around.

This is something that the series has in advantage over other shows that have their young protagonists having to save the world. It is also a very easy way for Danny to get the equipment he needs to fight against ghosts.

And it is pretty interesting how them and Vlad used to be part of a main trio that fell apart after the proto-portal accident in collegue years in contrast to Danny's friend trio. It is such a cool aspect that makes them more intriguing, knowing that they were the ones that were what pushed Vlad to become a villain.

Their relationship with Danny is pretty unique as well, since they see Phantom as their enemy in the series and try haunting him. So they are ¨good guys¨ but somewhat semi-antagonists to Danny's half ghost part.

All these things set up very juicy conflicts for these characters.

...The issue is that series doesn't seem to want to explore all these aspects in a deeper detail, we mainly only get to see glimpses or some aspects of it.

And when we do get them learning about Danny's ghost identity and them accepting Danny... their memory gets erased! All the development they could have had of trying to understand that their son is half ghost and maybe joining him in his battles never happened because the series did really want to keep their status quo.

The complexities of their relationship with Vlad never got a proper exploration neither, which is really frustrating because it is one of the most intriguing aspects of the series. We could have seen more of how they used to be when they were younger and if they left Vlad or didn't know what to do after the portal acccident. A lot of wasted potential...

One of the biggest problems in their writing is that usually the series didn't want to explore how they weren't always good parents and more often than not their poor behaviour was excused. A lot of times it was treated like ¨jokes¨ and not something that had an impact on their kids. The most frustrating episode in this is ¨Fright Before Christmas¨ that has Jack and Maddie arguing over something stupid and it is something that Jazz and Danny have ¨to put up with¨ because the narrative say so. Jack and Maddie do this since they find it ¨fun¨, yet they don't seem to care how this makes their own children feel on Christmas

Another thing i wish we could have seen more is what other interests they have outside ghosts or general character flaws that don't have to be related with their parenting. I want to know about them more as individuals and change over time. Other animated shows usually do this better, developing the parent characters showing different sides of them. I would have liked to see something like that with Jack and Maddie.

They are characters that i enjoy watching and i do like their personalities. I just wish they could have been explored in deeper detail because they have the potential to be some of the most interesting characters in the series if they have had that development.

[spinaroos-47]

Honestly, I think that Moonstone Island having very little fan content is mostly because of the biggest weak point of the game: The social aspect and the story are very surface level

That's not to say that the characters aren't lovable, they are, they really are, but theres not a lot to work with. Yes, you can find out more about them through dates, but kinda sucks that its exclusive to that kind of interaction + in my case it feels bad, as Ive been dating Paolo and i feel bad doing that while dating them.

Sure, the dates could be read as platonic but theres a lot of implications of them having romantic undertones in a lot of them.

Point is, theres not a lot of stuff, especially if you dont go on 4 dates in all 4 places with everyone to know everything (which also would mean youd need to break up with them to be able to date someone else and get their home dates, but THEN the character you broke up with just will not talk to you again, which i really don't want to do). Honestly, the only other ways to really know stuff is obviously talking to them (which, yes is good but their dialogue isnt infinite and i keep stumbling on repeats. I dont mind some repetition but in general they dont have a lot lot to say) or by the letters you get.

Theres a big lack in change of the status quo, too. I dont need them to have a full 180 on routine and such, but nothing really changes. Theres no cutscenes, no character development, no change besides everyone getting a spirit, which they aren't really mentioned again after you give them their spirit.

I really didn't want to bring up stardew in comparison but i do think that stardew does the social aspect really nicely. The characters have cutscenes, stuff changes, you can get stuff in the mail randomly, they dont feel static. So its something i really wish was in Moonstone Island, especially with how smaller the cast is, and the theme of it being a small small town, a village even, which in theory would make it easier to give some attention to everyone.

And for the story, its not as much of a glaring issue and im fine with the main story of spending a year away and such is left vague, that one is fine. But i wish there was more about why the spirits are being hostile, why the dungeons are like this now, why and how the rift happened, how did Waldo lose his sense of self, etc.

I know that theres stuff there, but its kinda delivered as if we already knew about it, so its not too in depth or waiting much to explain, and kinda easy to miss, i genuinely missed bits of lore due to half paying attention due to the issue of repeating dialogue happening a lot.

So, yeah, a really good game but its lacking a lot on the social aspect.

[dicenete]

Gilbert's route done :0

Hmm... Finished Gilbert's route with Romantic ending + Epilogue. I have some thoughts. In general, I think Gilbert's route will share the Top 1 spot with Clavis's route from now on. The main part of the route was just * chef's kiss *. The Romantic ending started strong but I feel like it ended bit... flat?... well, I say that the biggest problem is really the format of this game and the restrictions it puts on the story. Next up either Keith, Yves or the surprise candidate Luke. Spoilers under the cut.

I felt bad for Yves. I feel like he was robbed of the character development in Gilbert's route. Like I would have loved the ending more if he would have been more active and brave. I even feel like MC didn't deserve the spotlight that much, maybe if Yves and MC would have worked together then yeah! He came all the way to Obsidian to get her! MC already had shown some initial bravery before she left to Obsidian, I think her ideals would have benefited more with having someone on her side. AND how impactful it would have been if Yves would have stood there with her! HE IS A PRINCE OF RHODOLITE! He is the OG pure heart really.

I feel bad for Luke too. I know, I know we gotta have that happy ending but still... Things ended way too well. I was hoping for more tragedy, but I know this isn't really the game to go there. Maybe it was more about the fact that we didn't really see any aftermath how they dealt with the anti-monarch faction. Do the princes ever really talk about the late king of Rhodolite at all? Like come to general consensus that he was a horrible person? Atleast the last scene with Jin and Luke was a start.

I think Gilbert's obsession with MC before the game's story was unnecessary because he could have just went there and try to corrupt Belle. Because that's what Belle is supposed to be. A someone with pure heart. He already knew that king of Rhodolite was dead. He knew MC was the Belle. (Not only the total chance of her to be the next belle? Unless he orchestrated that too? I don't really think so.) And to go there like "Hey, this might end up me being proved wrong or right. Let's give the humanity one more chance!" I think it would have been more impactful if Belle would be someone who is a total stranger to him.

Roderic and Walter were MVPs.

I named Gilbert's brothers according to Gilbert's and Albert's names: Robert, Rubert and Wilbert. You are welcome. ALSO: I'm kinda disappointed with the eyepatch. I lowkey wished that his other eye would have been blind or something else like that. Because it just doesn't make sense to me why would you even have an eyepatch on all the time for aesthetic reasons. The disadvantage it gives to you if someone say... suddenly tries to assassinate you? Or in fighting? One of your sides would be open for an attack. (Even if I admit, rule of cool is cool, but really...)

Overall I was happy about how dark Gilbert's route was. I enjoyed it a lot. He was as unhinged as I hoped he was. And many lovey dovey scenes had more impact because of the dark aspects of the story. I'm a firm believer of the quote: "For every laugh, there should be a tear." (Walt Disney). The brighter the light, the bigger the shadow.

[writingquestionsanswered]

Hello! I think you had a post about this before but I can't find it. Not really sure though. I have this probelm with picking ideas? When I work on a story I usually explore many different ideas for the plot but find myself stuck in choosing one. I quickly grow bored of what I came up with and start creating more... in the end I have too much, and can't decide what fits my story best. Then I procrastinate because I have too many notes to process and get overwhelmed...

Overwhelmed After Story Evolves Too Many Plots

Stories shouldn't naturally evolve through several different plots. If that's happening, there's probably one of the following goin on: 1 - You don't have a good grasp on how stories work. Stories aren't a random exploration of things happening. Stories are a cohesive sequence of related events through which the main characters react to and often resolve a conflict. That conflict may be internal (within the characters), external (within the characters' world), or both. The particular events and sequence of events in your story (story structure) depends on the type of story you're writing. Most stories (longer fiction in particular) follow basic story structure:

If your stories often evolve through multiple plots, it's because you didn't have a clear and solid conflict to begin with, or you didn't know how to explore your conflict effectively (via story structure) and you burned through it too fast. (See: Plot & Story Structure master list) 2 - You don't know why you're writing the story. There's always a reason we start writing a story in the first place. Nine out of ten times it's because we're hit with an idea and are inspired to follow it. But, believe it or not, most of the time there needs to be a greater purpose there. If you have a cohesive conflict and well developed plot, your story has a purpose in terms of what the characters get out of it. But what about what the reader gets out of it? Do you just want them to have a rip-roaring good time? Do you want them to feel like they've been sucked into the mystery with your investigator protagonist? Do you want them to feel less alone as someone whose experienced the same thing as your protagonist? Do you want them to feel seen or represented? Do you want them to walk away with some deep meaning or moral lesson? And what about you? What do you get out of this story as a writer? Are you writing it to explore an aspect of life, society, or a particular dynamic that is fascinating to you? Are you hoping of catharsis as you do a deep dive into an experience you yourself have lived through? Are you hoping to deliver a moral message that you feel is important to spread? Knowing not just what your characters get out of the story, but what your reader and yourself as the writer get out of the story is an important part of staying on track and staying motivated.

3 - You're chasing waterfalls, so-to-speak... meaning that rather than staying on track, you're leaving the plotted course in pursuit of prettier, more exciting things. Most of the time when this happens, it's because you're giving into the dopamine rush you feel when a new idea strikes. Now, ideally you would write the idea down someplace safe, put it out of your mind, and put your focus back on your story. We do this every single day in life, because if we didn't, we couldn't go to school, have jobs, date, have social lives, raise children or animals... being a responsible human requires us to choose to do the thing we need to do rather than chase the sparkly fun things. If you have to leave for class in ten minutes but your favorite movie just started on TV, you have to make the choice to turn off the TV and go to class. You choose to stay on course rather than go off-track and do the fun thing. However, many of us have a difficult time with these types of decisions for various reasons, such as neurodivergence, chronic illness, depression, mental illness, stress, and exhaustion. So, it's not always easy to make that choice, even when it just means taking the new and exciting idea and writing it down for later. One thing you can do in that case, though, is leave yourself a note in the current story about where you're headed next. What's the next moment, scene, or event you're going to write? Then, save it and set it aside and follow the new idea for a little bit by starting a new story. That way, you're not grafting this idea onto a story that already has its course plotted. 4. You need to be a "plotter". If you start out with a solid plot and story structure, you know what you want to get out of the story, and you're not letting yourself chase waterfalls, but you STILL can't keep your story to one plot, this is a pretty good sign that you need to be a "plotter." Now, there tends to be a little controversy over the whole "plotter" vs "pantser" thing, and that's mainly because everyone things their way is best and often forget there's actually a whole spectrum between plotting and pantsing. Either way, they're both a real thing, because some writers need to intricately plot their story down to timeline, scene list, glossaries, and bios, while others can just "write by the seat of their pants" and let the story develop as they right. Then, of course, there are writers who fall every which way in-between.

Some writers are inherently plotters or need some level of plotting in order to execute a story from beginning to end. Some can write with little to no planning at all. For some writers it depends on their phase of life or what they're specifically writing. But, if you find that your stories are always going off-track even if they're solid in your mind, you may need to do some solid plotting. Start by having a beginning to end written summary of the story and see if that's enough to keep you on track. If not, next time try the summary as well as a timeline of events. If that doesn't work, try the summary and timeline plus a scene list. And just keep adding things until you find the right amount of planning to keep you on track with your original idea.

Happy writing! I hope something here works for you!

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I’ve been writing seriously for over 30 years and love to share what I’ve learned. Have a writing question? My inbox is always open!

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