#Korra is present at the family functions

[whatifitookalilnap]

Korra with the airbending kids: I swear if any of you gremlins say ANYTHING to Asami when she picks me up for our date I will use my earthbending to chuck you suckers into the sun!

Literally anyone: *does something to make the airbending kids upset*

Korra, cracking her knuckles: so I guess tonight is the night bitches die.

[isaacthedruid]

Please allow me to tell you about one of my favourite cartoons through this informal essay I did for school a couple of months back. 

Gravity Falls and How it Did The Unimaginable

**SPOILERS... KINDA**

The 2010s saw the creation of some of the most iconic animated tv shows ever made, the likes of Adventure Time (2010), Steven Universe (2013), Over the Garden Wall (2014) and The Legend of Korra (2012). To explain why this era’s shows are so admirable is honestly rather difficult. Yet, there are many factors that can be taken into consideration when looking for an answer.

The past decade was very successful in perfecting their craft and utilizing the animated format to their favour, creating some of the wackiest and fascinating cartoons ever made. With the advancements made in both 2D and 3D animation for film, this bled into the world of TV as well.

To mention that 2010s cartoons have stunning visuals would be an understatement. Everything about the animation was beautiful; the strong colour palettes, the clean and imaginative character designs, the colourful and immersive backgrounds and especially the mesmerizing worlds that can be found within episodes that are half an hour.

This era’s cartoons also led to a massive shift in storytelling, writing longer-running stories that spread out across seasons while also swapping out episodic adventures for serialization. This heavily aided in the popularization of these shows, due to the rise of internet fandoms and dropping the taboo that cartoons were only for kids. Many shows acknowledged their older viewers by leaving clues and even puzzles to be solved by the theorists who have a large appearance on social media platforms like Reddit, Twitter and Tumblr. As the shows progressed, their fandoms created many theories for what they believed might happen within their favourite series. The top three shows from this era all utilized these changes, being at the forefront of the shift and helping guide the creative vision of 2010s cartoons.

Often regarded as many people’s favourite cartoon, Gravity Falls presented one of the best mysteries of the decade with two seasons and only 40 episodes. Inspired by Twin Peaks and The X-Files, it’s considered as the kids’ version of these two iconic shows as this cartoon acts as many people’s first introduction to horror through bright colours and fun characters.

This series follows the adventures of Dipper and Mabel Pines, twins, who are sent to spend their summer with their great-uncle or Grunkle Stan in Gravity Falls, Oregon. This town is full of oddities like supernatural creatures, insane and eccentric inhabitants, and many puzzles. The Pines twins must adjust to the weirdness while uncovering the mysteries and protecting their new town.

While living in Gravity Falls, the twins are forced to work in the Mystery Shack, a tourist trap created by their Grunkle Stan that overcharges unlucky tourists, teaching about fake monsters despite there being real creatures all over town. On his first day in Oregon, Dipper accidentally came across a mysterious journal written by an unknown author that explains all the oddities to be found in this strange town. This book acts like an encyclopedic of the Weird for Dipper, an inquisitive 12-year-old kid who seeks answers.

Dipper is an extremely intelligent kid, his brain being far more developed than his body. He’s rather awkward and self-conscious as he often stumbles over his words or gets embarrassed trying to talk to girls. Despite this, the boy is an adventurer at heart who just wants to grow up and skip his upcoming teenage years.

While Mabel is quite the opposite in many ways, she is loud and has an in-your-face personality. Mabel is bouncy and fun, she is so excited to start high school. She is easily excitable and for the larger part of the series, she is in her boy-crazy phase. Mabel is a girly-girl as she likes all things; glitter, unicorns, rainbows, partying and crafting. Yet, she doesn’t often compare well with many of the other girls in town, they see her as weird and “too much”.

(In all fairness through, it is not too kind to either of the characters as their personalities are more complex than just awkward nerd and artsy girl-girly.)

Dipper and Mabel’s personalities are very different but somehow, they—along with their Gravity Falls family—manage to solve mysteries and save the town, multiple times.

Gravity Falls is an honestly genius series that completely changed the way cartoons were made. Originally when writing a series, you’d create a base of your story; characters, the universe and a basic plot. Yet, when creator, Alex Hirsch (who was in his early/mid-20)s and his small team first began constructing their show, they planned out everything they could possibly think of for the first season. Additionally, outlining some answers for their biggest mysteries that would be answered at the end of the series.

Despite being rated TV-Y7, this series really pushed the boundaries of kids’ television. From the teeth being ripped out of a deer’s mouth by a demon, rearranging the functions of every hole on a man’s face to an aggressive pop-rock sock puppet show that ended in a dramatic slow-motion scene of the puppets burning. Gravity Falls wasn’t afraid to get a little weird or creepy. Or create some genuine nightmare fuel. 

From the beginning, Gravity Falls had built a mystery into its series, hiding secrets and clues all throughout the show. Most notably were the backwards-recorded message and cryptograms, using roughly nine different kinds, even creating two of their own.

The inclusion of cyphers and mysteries for fans to solve is possibly the reason why this series was so successful. As one of the first shows to do something like this, Gravity Falls used social media and internet fandoms to its advantage.

As mentioned earlier, cartoon fans have quite a presence on social media platforms like Twitter and Tumblr. They create theories and share fun ideas about their favourite shows. Viewers of Adventure Time, Gravity Falls and Steven Universe were all included in their share of theory fun.

Sometimes, fan theories end up being correct but when you’re Gravity Falls creator, Alex Hirsch, you don’t just watch from the sidelines as your viewers figure out the biggest mystery of your show. No, you create a hoax to get your viewers off your trail and that is what he did. Around 2013, only halfway through the first season of the show, viewers had started to follow the clues, theorizing who was the author is Dipper’s mysterious journal.

Unfortunately for the Gravity Falls production crew, the viewers were right— for the sake of readers who have never seen the show, I will not mention who the author was as it would be the biggest spoiler.

In 2013, a supposed leaked image of a tv showing a younger version of the show’s crazy old man character, Old Man McGucket, writing in the infamous journal was uploaded anonymously (by Alex Hirsch) to 4Chan.

Despite the image only being on up for a few hours, it spread like wildfire. Much to the team’s success, theorists stopped searching for the answer to “who is the author” and just accepted the image of McGucket as the truth.

To further push the fake-out, three words were posted to Alex’s Twitter, “fuming right now.”

The tweet was deleted a few minutes later and fans genuinely believed that someone from the Gravity Falls team had leaked the most important part of the story.

While doing research, I came across a Reddit post from April 10th, 2013, the day after ‘leak,’ Alex’s tweet was uploaded. In this post, user, TheoDW uploaded an image of Alex’s tweet with the caption, “It seems that Hirsch got mad at last night’s leak. He already deleted this tweet.”

Seeing the reactions of these Redditors in 2013 is kind of weird and crazy to look at. “He has every right to be upset. Someone internally released a plot revealing screen shot of series breaking spoiler information,” a deleted Reddit account commented.

“This is Alex Hirsch’s biggest success by far, he spent a huge amount of time carefully planning out the series, and then in a moment someone releases a major spoiler. It would make anyone upset,” the user, Time_Loop commented.

“Seriously, this is a nightmare for a storyteller, and shows a breach of trust. I feel so bad for him–honestly, I hope whoever did the leak gets caught and appropriate action is taken. You don’t f��k with someone’s story like this. It’s unprofessional.” the user, lonelybeloved angrily commented.

In 2014, this ‘leak’ was finally disproven when viewers were given an episode on McGucket’s backstory and an amazing tweet from Alex Hirsch. 

Alex had post an image of himself playfully pointing at a monitor with the supposed leaked picture with the caption, “1) Make hoax  2) Upload to 4Chan  3) Post angry tweet about "leak" 4) Delete tweet 5) Let internet do rest”

It is so interesting to look at these comments know that all of this was orchestrated by Alex.

I wish I had been old enough at the time to follow theories and fandom stuff like I do now with current cartoons but really looking at this from an outside perspective, this was insane!

The real author wasn’t revealed until 2015 and when viewers first got the answer to this biggest show on their screens, they must have freaked out!

Following the finale in 2016, a single frame of a stone version of Bill Cipher, the show’s villain, flashed in after the credits had finished.

Alex Hirsch and his team actually created a real-life statue of their villain for their viewers to find and on July 20th, 2016, the Cipher Hunt began.

By following clues, the Hunters found themselves all over the world; Russia, Japan and then travelling throughout the United States for the final 12 clues. When the hunt took them to Los Angeles, actor, Jason Ritter (voice of Dipper Pines, also a massive fan of the series) and Alex Hirsch’s twin sister, Ariel Hirsch (the inspiration for Mabel) joined in the fun helping the search.

Finally, the hunt ended on August 2nd when someone tweeted out an image of the found statue in Oregon, the same state in which the fictional town of Gravity Falls exists. The Cipher Hunt had ended but finding the statue wasn’t Alex’s goal for the scavenger hunt, it was about the journey and bringing together the viewers, more than having them actually find the statue.

Creating its own hoax, an international scavenger hunt and quite a bit of nightmare fuel, Gravity Falls was a show truly unlike any other.

The 2010s saw some of the strongest cartoons ever made, Adventure Time, Gravity Falls and Steven Universe acting as the leaders for multiple different changes in the medium; storytelling, worldbuilding, interaction with viewers, utilizing social media, representation and further pushing music into the cartoon world. From what was created this past decade and what has already been released in 2020, I’m so excited to see what comes next.

I have another one of these which is on Steven Universe’s representation and music if you would like to see that too!! 

[shhhhsh]

About Tim’s New Story….

I just really hope they address Tim’s mental health. Like, DC just been ditching really good plot lines in favor of being “woke” or pandering. Just look at all the live action shows.

Now I’m not saying they can’t make Tim queer/bi/gay, but (as someone pointed out to me) Tim’s previous story writer was bi and he still chose to write Tim as straight & in a healthy romantic relationship with Stephanie Brown. I’ve seen several people who identify as queer/bi say that to have Tim go “ ooooh I’ve fooled myself into thinking I was straight, but now I’m freeeee” sends the message that Tim’s previous relationship failed b/c he was with a woman and not because of Tim’s poor mental and emotional health.

To go back to my previous statement; by him not writing Tim as bi tells me that he didn’t want or care for Tim to be bi, but instead saw Tim as, or preferred him to be, straight. The writer had free control to write Tim how ever he wanted and yet he chose to keep Tim straight. And he actually liked & wanted Tim/Steph. Again, I’m not saying Tim can’t be queer/bi, I’m just saying I find the motivations for this possible change very fishy. Almost as if the new writer is trying to get brownie points for pandering to a portion of the fans.

I think this way b/c in every other media where a character is revealed to be LGBTQ they just did it. They didn’t beat around the bush or do any queer coding/baiting. They either announced it, just made the character that way right out the gate, or just dropped the bomb w/out warning (as seen in Netflix’s Voltron, Amazon Prime’s Invincible, and Nickelodeon’s Legend of Korra respectfully).

DC currently has a bad habit changing things to be “woke” and bragging about it or shoving it in our faces. DC is becoming the “pick me girl” of superhero media. If you want to do it, just do it. Again I just get the “look at me, look at me” & “carrot on the stick” vibes from them now. If you truly feel in your heart to do something you would just do it without the need for recognition or to be so dramatic about it.

Now what I much rather see & think it’s a natural progression for Tim:

I personally believe that if Jason, Dick, & Damian can get a story that attempts to give them character development beyond romantic relationships (romance was more of a B-plot to the character driven A-plot anyway) I think they can give it to Tim as well.

I know that the Bat-Family all struggle with some form of mental health problems (most commonly paranoia and PTSD). However, I would like to point out that trauma is was what brought the others into the vigilante lifestyle, while Tim & Barbara became traumatized because of the vigilante lifestyle. Yet, Barbara was shown overcoming her trauma and using it as motivation to get better. Tim is yet to have this moment.

We all know that Tim struggles with depression, self-esteem, and suicidal tendencies. I mean heck, him becoming Red Robin only happens because of Tim’s degrading mental health. I hate to say it, but Tim is very psychologically broken and has been show to get so depressed that he can’t even get out of bed some times. To my knowledge, Tim is the only one in the Bat-Fam that struggles in his head with the idea of not being needed, useful, or forgotten when in reality that is furthest from the truth (Steph, Jason, & Damian also feel like the black sheep periodically, but that is because they have been presented with real evidence that would lead them to logically believe this. I.e being actually forgotten or dismissed for past mistakes despite great efforts to better themselves).

While yes, Dick did Tim dirty by replacing him without having a proper conversation first, the motivation was because he saw Tim as his equal and not Damian. He thought highly of Tim, but Tim couldn’t see that over his offense. Tim is so beat down by life that he see’s everything with negative lenses. Everyone came to check on Tim’s mental health but Tim took it as an insult instead.

And even though now Tim has reached some form of “peace” in his life, that only happens because the people he lost came back (Bruce, Conner, Bart, Cassie, etc). Tim never fully learned to handle grief, to handle his emotions, instead he represses them. Again in the Red Robin run, the main reason he doesn’t believe in any form of God is because he can’t logically justify the pain he has gone through. He is hurting and doesn’t know how to deal with that. In his original Robin run, when he tried talking someone out of committing suicide……the words and comfort he gave….that wasn’t something that was just inside Tim, this is something that was told to Tim. This is followed by him calling Dick to get the same pep-talk he just regurgitated to someone else.

In short: Tim is hurting. Deeply. And having been someone who’s emotional & mental sanity was pushed to the brink and attempted to jump off several times, I think it’s really sad that DC just ignores it. Now as someone who’s gotten the help they needed & now helps other people who struggle with the same issues as myself & Tim, I think that they’re going to say a lot of Tim’s problems come from him not being “aware” of his own sexuality, which is just sad.

In the story in question, Barbara talks about Tim not having a solid identity. People are more than their sexuality. People are capable of making future decisions for themselves without it hindering on their sexuality. If Tim was real, I would brake down his struggle as so:

Tim refuses to go to college and do something more with his life because he cannot see anything beyond his current circumstance. And the only reason why Tim cannot see anything beyond his circumstance is because he has no internal sense of purpose, identity, and acceptance beyond the cape & cowl. And when Tim finally found that in being Robin, Tim held onto it as a lifeline. There’s a reason why everyone says Tim is basically Bruce 2.0: it’s because he is Robin/Red Robin/Drake & Tim is the mask. At a young age, he did not grow up having these things instilled into him due to his parents neglecting him at a very important age in his development. Tim raised himself, and for a lack of better terms; an idiot cannot teach themselves to be smarter, an idiot becomes smarter by learning from the intelligent. A child can’t teach themselves to be an adult, they have to learn from others to grow & better themselves.

Now a parent doesn’t necessarily have to sit down and give a lesson about how to be an individual, but children learn how to live life by watching their parents. A good example of this is the rest of the Bat-Fam; they all grew up with some form of parental figures that taught them how to behave (for better or worse). Of course children have their own personalities, which is why two kids can go through the same type of trauma but come out differently, but it is a battle of nature vs nurture. Steph, Jason, Cass, & Damian grew up in abusive/unstable homes, while Dick, Barbara, & Bruce grew up in loving homes, but their personalities & character dictated how they responded to trauma. They took what life gave them and decided what to leave or take.

Tim had nothing to work with & is basically playing catch-up with the rest of his peers.

In a weird sense, Tim is like Zuko from The Last Airbender: only living to serve their father’s purpose. Anything outside of that they don’t know what to do. They’ve been trained to be something externally without been given a chance to figure out who they are internally.

Again you are not your sexuality, your sexuality does not determine who you are as a person. When a person struggles through life, it is due to the conditions of thier soul. Everything starts internally and shows it’s self externally.

I want to make that very clear because I am truly scared that in DC’s attempt to claim “clout” they are missing the bigger picture. Tim doesn’t have identity problems simply because he “doesn’t know” he likes boys, but because DC never gave him is own identity to begin with. Robin was never his own identity, Red Robin was never his, & Drake was his first attempt to make his own but he quickly gave it up so that he can be Robin once again. What is Tim going to do once Damian gets back? Is Damian going to get his own identity before Tim? Or is Tim just going to go back to one of his old identities?

I would like for Tim to personally move on from being a vigilante and rejoin civilian society for a while. Go to college, do something for himself and only for himself. Give Tim the self-discovery story, let him heal, and grown to be his own person. Besides you can never have a functional romantic relationship if you are not a functional individual. Self love > romantic love.

[whattheflameo]

Bumi

While not particularly unique, Bumi’s sword has seen a legendary amount of action.

[ID: two pencil sketches of a military-style sword. The first is a horizontal image of the sword in it’s entirety. The second shows vertical detailing of the hilt described below.]

Style: Kyū guntō Length: 32" Material (Blade): Steel Material (Hilt): Wood and gold Details (Hilt): A standard wood hilt with a leather grip, decorated with a wide gold handguard and a single gold decal above the grip. Sheath: Military hip, with silver locket and chape engraved with the air and water tribe symbols, respectively.

Details: Bumi’s sword is a reflection of the westernized modernization in the Legend of Korra, drawing from similar westernization of Japanese military swords post-WWI. Swords are given to most officers in the United Forces for a blend of both functional and ceremonial purposes. They are typically made in small, more individualized batches, and Bumi’s is no exception. Having been made in the relatively early days of the United Forces, it lacks some of the detailing or individuality characteristic of later officers’ swords, which suits Bumi just fine. Bumi’s sword has seen a legendary amount of action, his main weapon in light of being a non-bender. Though his personal sword is his preference, Bumi is a skilled master in nearly every sword form, drawing from all of his extended family.

When Bumi becomes an airbender, he is presented with the option of giving up his sword to follow the more ‘traditional’ air nomad beliefs upheld by his father. Though tempted by the fact that he feels as though he is ‘finally living up to his father’s legacy,’ Bumi chooses to keep the blade that has been through so much with him. He and Tenzin work together to come up with restructured sword customs for the New Air Nation, knowing that many new airbenders will also have swords they are hesitant to part with. As a sword-carrying airbender with strong water tribe roots and behaviors, Bumi often serves as a mediator between his younger siblings in their later years.

[aion-rsa]

What Nicktoon Reboots We Want to See Next

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

When ViacomCBS recently announced the slate of programming that would be coming to Paramount+, the rebranded streaming service formerly known as CBS All Access, the media conglomerate touted a rebooted version of the beloved Nickelodeon classic Rugrats. Described as a “reimagining of the classic ‘90s hit,” the new Rugrats will feature the voice cast from the original 1991 animated series, but present the babies in a brand-new, three-dimensional CG style. 

“Rugrats is one of the most iconic cartoons recognized by fans around the globe, and this original version is one we are taking great care and pride in creating for a brand-new audience,” said Ramsey Naito, President, Nickelodeon Animation. “Having the voice cast behind these special characters come together is one of the essential pieces to making the show recognizable and we can’t wait to watch this talented group bring them to life again.”

Rugrats is not the only Nickelodeon property getting an update from Paramount+ The service also announced Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years, the first-ever spinoff of SpongeBob SquarePants, new spinoffs, shorts and features set in the wildly popular world of Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra, new live-action versions of both Dora the Explorer and The Fairly OddParents, and a continuation of hit kids sitcom iCarly.

One day the streaming wars will slow down, but until then, media conglomerates like ViacomCBS and WarnerMedia will lean on their wealth of existing intellectual property to entice buyers to sign up for a subscription to their respective streaming services. ViacomCBS is wise to tap into their Nickelodeon vault, as a whole generation of viewers weaned on Nickelodeon’s programming are now media buyers, many with families of their own. Driven by nostalgia and possibly fresh takes on old favorites, Nickelodeon IP could help Paramount+ catch up with its well-established competition. 

With recent revivals like Invader Zim, Rocko’s Modern Life, and Hey Arnold! already delivered, here are some other potential Nickelodeon properties ripe for a reboot.

Danny Phantom

While Danny Phantom creator Butch Hartman may not be a favorite among the art community, Danny Phantom feels like the Nickelodeon property most fans are eager to see return. It’s easy to see why; the story of Danny Fenton, a teenager who’s transformed into half-human, half-ghost superhero Danny Phantom after an accident caused by his ghost hunting parents’ technology, had a unique comic book-influenced premise that lent itself well to interesting animation, colorful characters, and an excellent mix of action and comedy. 

Superhero content has only further exploded since Danny Phantom’s cancellation in 2007, giving Paramount+ the chance to get in on the action with storytelling beats that are very familiar to Spider-Man fans. Hartman has already pitched Danny Phantom: The College Years on his YouTube channel and confirmed that a script for a live-action reboot exists. Whether the series returns in its classic style, a new CG rendering, or as a live-action property, Danny Phantom seems like a slam dunk just waiting to be thrown down.

My Life as a Teenage Robot

Speaking of superheroes, My Life As A Teenage Robot isn’t one of the most talked about of the old Nicktoons lineup, but it’s one of the series that’s held up the best. Credit that to Rob Renzetti’s art style, which used a classic sci-fi, Art Deco-inspired retro-futuristic look and a bold color palette. Centered on teenage robot XJ9 just trying to live her life as a normal, suburban teenager, the show got a lot of milage out of poking fun at the typical cliches about adolescence. 

During MLAATR’s run, critics complained about the lack of complex storytelling, a problem that could easily be fixed by a new writing team focused on continuity and more epic action. Just like Danny Phantom, XJ9 would thrive whether she returns with a new look, in her classic style, or as a live-action interpretation. As long as there are teenagers, then stories about trying to fit in, feeling weird about your appearance, and achieving independence from your “creators” will always be around.

Aaahh!!! Real Monsters

Developed by Klasky Csupo, the same folks that brought you Rugrats, Rocket Power, The Wild Thornberrys, and As Told by Ginger, Aaahh!!! Real Monsters was garish, gross, and grimy in all of the best ways. Embracing gross-out humor and some lightly nightmarish imagery, Aaahh!!! Real Monsters took style inspiration from Soviet cartoons, film noir, and movies like Blade Runner and Brazil. The show followed young monsters Ickis, Oblina, and Krumm as they attend Monster School below a dump in New York City. 

The show was cancelled in 1997 due to worries about its “disturbing” content, but the darker quality of the show paved the way for series like Invader Zim and Courage the Cowardly Dog. New York has changed a lot since the ‘90s, which could give Aaahh!!! Real Monsters plenty of material to play with. A new series could bring our original trio back or introduce us to a new class of monsters, giving us plenty of new, weird creature creations. 

KaBlam!

Maybe the absolute coolest Nicktoon to ever air on Nickelodeon, KaBlam! was a spinoff of All That conceived to be an “animated sketch series” which served as a showcase for alternative forms of animation, like stop-motion, live-action hybrid, cutout photo, and more. Hosted by animated characters Henry and June, KaBlam! featured recurring cartoons like Sniz & Fondue, Life with Loopy, The Off-Beats, and fan-favorites Action League Now! and Prometheus and Bob, alongside one-off shorts and music videos from artists like They Might Be Giants. 

While we would absolutely welcome more Prometheus and Bob shorts, the KaBlam! banner could be brought back to give new creators a chance to showcase their skills and creativity. Technology has come a long way since the last KaBlam! episode in 2000 and there are plenty of new animation techniques that could be put to use. 

Hey Arnold! 

While the show was recently brought back to life in the form of a 2017 TV movie titled Hey Arnold! The Jungle Movie, everyone’s favorite football head should be at the top of Paramount+’s list for a revival. Created by Craig Bartlet, Hey Arnold! ran from 1996 to 2004 and centered on fourth-grader Arnold as he navigated a facsimile of New York City while living in a tenement apartment with his grandparents and plethora of colorful characters. 

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Set to a brilliantly jazzy soundtrack, Hey Arnold! taught audiences about respecting different cultures and portrayed inner-city life and non-nuclear families in a positive light. Hey Arnold! holds up incredibly well, and Bartlet and company could pick up right where they left off in their last feature. The world could certainly use more of Arnold’s optimism and positivity. 

The post What Nicktoon Reboots We Want to See Next appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[carnistcervine]

Crack Theory Time

So I was looking at pictures of the official Avatar family trees and I’ve noticed a few, missing people...

So! I’ve come up with a thought. An explanation for the missing folks. We’ll start with Zuko’s family tree: It starts with Sozin, and leads directly into Azulon. Now, Ozai and Iroh are defined as having a mother, Ilah. But there’s no one else with Sozin, not even a blank portrait or an “unknown”, just- nothing.

But I think I’ve figured it out, I’ve cracked the code.

Azulon is a homunculus created from Sozin’s blood.

Now, again, Ozai and Iroh have a mother and father. Ilah and Azulon respectively. And Ursa has a fully defined family tree, we know her grandma(Ta Min) her grandpa(Roku), her mom(Rina), her dad(Jinzuk) and she married Ozai to make Zuko and Azula. But no one is given for Iroh’s son Lu Ten.

Lu Ten is a homunculus created from Iroh’s blood.

How about Izumi? Zuko’s daughter? Well, once again, we are given a situation in which only one parent is present. Which leads me to the only logical conclusion...

IZUMI IS A HOMUNCULUS CREATED FROM ZUKO’S BLOOD.

AND IROH II WAS CLONED FROM HER.

Now, Sokka and Katara clearly have parents, and their kids also clearly have parents. *stares in canon ships* But Aang is never given any defined parentage. And I know what your thinking, you’re thinking that I’m going to assume that Aang is a homunculus created from Air Nomad blood. Nope! When we see newborn Aang there is a couple holding him, the implication is pretty clear that he had two human parents.

And We clearly know who Korra’s parents are, along with Asami’s. Mako and Bolin also have a very full and clearly defined family tree.

Now, I would have assumed that Desna and Eska were homunculi created from spiritual essence(because to say that Unalaq has blood is to imply he has a functioning human heart(same reason why Ozai had to marry a human woman)), but they have a mom(Malina).

Now, Toph has a pretty clearly defined lineage. We know her parents and we know her decendents and who they got together with. However, we never find out who Su and Lin’s dads are. Toph just gives some offhand explanation that they were just random dudes, but I have a better idea...

SU AND LIN ARE HOMUNCULI CREATED FROM TOPH’S BLOOD.

There. That’s my theory. It’s perfectly logical and makes all the sense.

[bitchryver]

controversial opinion you should give us your bi aelin headcanons

sorry this took so long to answer I’ve been on a hunt for receipts x

aelin ashryver is bisexual: a summary

-I’m indebted forever to @blackbeaktrash for pointing this out to me but uhhh remember that post about how Mulan Korra and the short one from the time traveling lesbian game all had one thing in common- the bisexual hair cut ? hello aelins fresh chop in HoF

- the assassin and the desert. every single line. is a wlw tragedy romance ripped straight from a mythology.

- let’s get some direct quotes from the gay awakening that was the assassin and the desert:

~

“Celaena tried not to look too interested, though the girl was one of the most stunning people she’d ever beheld.”

~

“And somehow, the thought of returning to Rifthold without Ansel was a tad unbearable.”

~

“Celaena couldn’t stop her lips from trembling as she asked, “Was it ever real?”

“Ansel opened one eye, staring at the far wall. “There were some moments when it was. The moment I sent you away, it was real.”

~

“ And I think she sent you away because she truly cared for you.

She hated her mouth for wobbling. “That doesn’t make it hurt any less.”

-like Sam is nice rip but I refuse to believe he was aelins first love interest when ansel exists

- i understand where people are coming from when they talk about malide being canon if manon was a man but….i present example a- ansel and celaena the original gay love story to never happen and yet be laced with romantic chemistry

-anyway read the gayssassin and the desert

-aelin describing every woman she meets as beautiful and ethereal and then men are like…’he was tall. he had sword’

- yrene in tab: ‘wow I’d love to travel and be a healer so I could help people’

-aelin, emptying her pockets: you’re so pretty I love you here’s a sack full of cash is that enough? You’re so talented ily

-she loves swords & swords belong to the gays

-aelin calling cha0l ugly the first time she meets him…compared with yrene, a straight woman who’s immediately attracted to him…..Noah fence but….that was her gaydar trying to warn her :/

-aelins the only one who calls out these dumb ass white frat boys on their privilege and their upper class straight man bullshit!!shes having none of it !!!

-doriman in tog: “hey aelin? would you ever consider putting your life at risk and jeopardizing your safety to be with me?”

-aelin, right before she goes to have breakfast in bed with her beloved idol nehemia:

-while we’re on the subject, aelin taking literal WEEKS to notice if a mans attractive or not but describing every woman she meets as good looking within SECONDS even if she hates them

-Like LOOK

-I mean I cannot relate to the straight experience but I cannot imagine this is how a straight woman talks about women

-SHE DOESNT EVEN LIKE LYSANDRA AND SHES ALL IN THERE TALKING ABOUT HER ‘SENSOUS MOUTH’ IN QOS i mean

-aelin: the woman was built like a mythical goddess…she radiated beauty and sensuality from every pore

-aelin : this is rowan he’s my husband and he’s built like a TANK

-It took aelin six months to realize he was hot compared to literally everybody else who wanted to jump him mere seconds after meeting him(with the exception of manon, a proud lesbian but anyway)

-girl cannot sit in a fucking chair properly!! always throwing herself sideways or dangling off of it or slouching in it or something

-spitting jewels out of her mouth? Performing foreplay in a room full of powerful men and borian? gay

-i don’t know about you gals but I always get a ring engraved to give to my personal (straight)friends when I ask them to spend the rest of their life with me…

-when Rowan’s like ‘aw man can’t wait to get back and go to bed with my wife’ and the next line is like ‘aelin and lysandra were lying together, asleep’

-aelin saw the absolute straight man manic pixie nonsense quail and dorito were throwing at her and was like ‘bummer uhhh fuck both of you?’ instead of wasting her life and energy on men who didn’t appreciate her that’s all bi energy babes!

-aelin and manon having a metaphorical dick measuring contest but with swords

-aelin polishing nesryns dagger and dreaming of buying her a new one

-aelin telling kale that nesryn can speak for herself !!! Shut up!!!

- nesryn: mind your own business brullo lmao #nosy as fuck

-aelin, who had a dagger at this woman’s back not even 12 hours earlier:

-Aedion: haha…so aelin only invited nesryn out to have drinks with us because she needed an extra pair of hands because I was injured….what a smart strategic move

-aelin: nesryn you look lonely do you want to come with us ? Tell me about yourself. What’s your family like? How do you get your hair so smooth? Do you want my social security number?

-aelin loved nehemia so much she dumped stale whitebread and got written off as a terrible character by the Discourse Police: Cha0l Division. that’s love.

-attempting to murder the man ur fuckin after he’s involved in the murder of your beloved gay friend? hm. not a straight aura but #prove #me #wrong

-aelin keeps all her nails long except her sword hands so she can keep the aesthetic and weapon functionality but also keep a gay functionality

- in tower of dawn whomst does aelin write to? out of every one of the royal family ? lesbian icon and love of my life Hasar. aelin sensed incredible chaotic gay wlw energy from ACROSS the sea and knew immediately where the real power was. gaydar in action

- aelin has impeccable taste in fashion and upholstery, unrivaled by any other person in tog

-listen I live with 2 straight people and I promise you. The only one who cares enough about proper home decor, mood lighting and pretty things that were very expensive- is the gay one: me

-all the men hate her all the women love her lmao that says it all

- chaotic disaster gay aelin ashryver. Hurricane wlw nightmare woman tearing through these streets

-made a post about it here already but aelins like ‘fuck I can’t like manon but her fucking sword is so cool jesus christ’ that’s gay

- when aelin finds out manon graciously allowed snorian to have sex with her: I do NOT approve but go ahead ruin ya life lol

-when aelin finds out manon left elide alone in oakweld: what the FUCK did you do to that precious beautiful angel were it not for the laws of this land-

-MANON ‘LESBIAN’ BLACKBEAK herself says aelin radiates a gay aura she’s disappointed when she meets her in eos because all the batshit chaotic neutral gay has been depleted from her due to over exposure to straight men

-manons entire arc re: aelin in eos was ‘i should rip her throat out but i get where this stupid gay is coming from so’

-aelin giving a woman she’s just met the necklace her abuser gave her on her 16th? power move. gay power move.

- i love her so much but she’s. so goddamn stupid. and that’s such a mood

- Getting My Whole Ass Out To Prove Were Platonic Friends …that’s a level of denial I can’t even cover

-don’t know if I said it earlier but when aelin asks Lys to join her and lys says oh are you proposing, aelin..doesn’t say no lmao she’s just like ‘tragically I find myself with a life partner’

-lysandra sleeping on aelins lap while aelin downs 2 bottles of wine and flirts with ansel, while all the men look on annoyed that aelin did all of their jobs for them- gay imagery

- listen if ansel ‘murdered my boyfriend of 5yrs saving the girl I knew for a month’ briarcliff approves of you then…you’re gay. you just are.

-aelin ’ill murder you if so much as make EYE CONTACT with any of my women’ ashryver

- I said it already but. There is no better way to indicate that you are living life as our lady sappho intended than having a plethora of boring straight men hate you.

-That’s one of the things you need to have before they let you be gay

-aelins the only character who’s like- you know what I’m missing from my life? Women. I should go out and meet more of those

-killing the man who murdered your beloved friend in the exact same way he tortured her killing the man who set it up and basking in his blood am I right ladies

-aelin acknowledging she’s pretty because she works at it ? Maybe the only ya fantasy character who cannonically exfoliates, moisturizes, and uses toner and serum??? And you except me to sit here and assume she’s straight ???? In this economy ?????

-and yeah I’m absolutely 100% projecting because i love her. maybe blonde emotional chaotic bisexual fashion icons should look after each other now and then.

what do I know i clearly missed the gay memo where we all hate her now or something lmaooo anyway

[twitchesandstitches]

A few details i wasn’t able to get into the library fic that introduced the Avatar characters to Crossthicc! This was worldbuilding stuff I thought was interesting, but didn’t have room to put into the fic properly.

AVATAR STUFF

Suki is one of the daughters of Kyoshi, who rules a system of islands, and has inherited something of her size, power, and commanding attitude. The Kyoshi Islands are intended to be an analogue to Japan in some respects, and in particular Kyoshi’s daughters lead their own respective dynasties in service to Kyoshi, who is ultimately a Raava-blessed empress uniting them all as a daughter of Heaven.

The girls are considerably older than in canon, and the boys are more or less their canon ages but in a way to give them a different dynamic with the girls. Katara is the eldest child in her generation, with Sokka as her younger brother. Her dynamic with Aang is even more ‘skilled student winds up marrying his gifted mentor’, with a bit more emphasis on Katara being a heroine. The biggest shift is for Zuko; as Azula’s younger brother, he was never in the running for being Fire Lord and was a surplus child. Mai was more or less his bodyguard and they wound up falling for another as a bright spot in each other’s lives.

Way more AU as the cultures of Avatar go. Sun Warriors are still extant, groups such as the Foggy Swamp Tribe are all over the place. The Fire Nation is presently in a huge civil war between Azula and forces that follow Zuko, and Azula is actually more active as a leader than Ozai is; as it stands, the Fire Nation is basically like Warring States-era Japan, but with people who can breathe fire and ride dragons.

On that note, the Fire Lords are more or less just the Fire Sages as they originally were in canon; the Fire Lord is the leader of the Fire Sages, who ride dragons here and commune with them, and have enormous power over the Fire Nation’s people with this influence. Azula has taken over as hereditary right and the most powerful of the family, but Zuko has also earned the right and this has caused the civil war in question, with an unprecedented amount of nobles, warlords and influencers split between the two rather than the usual free for all.

The Air Nomads are mainly based off the people of ancient Mongolia, with Genghis Khan’s example being a pretty obvious one. The Air Nomads who live in this area are explicitly intended to be modeled after them. Yangchen herself is an analogue to the Khan, down to building an empire and unifying her people, and having a strict ‘insult my people and die horribly’ vibe. As a whole the Air Nomads are a lot more diverse than what we see in canon; Air Nomads like the monks we see in canon are still around, but they’re a specific set of clans who live in the mountains near the Southern Water Tribe and have established a monastary there. They support their life style by working out deals to control the wind for the benefit of their Water Tribe neighbors.

Bending here is marked by two things: becoming a giant hyper-curvy lady (as is the main rule in this AU when you become powerful), and physical mutations. Not like the mods used by other, but non-functional attributes such as crystalline skin for Earthbenders, icy body temperature for Waterbenders, blazing skin for Firebenders, and so on. It varies for each individual, gets more intense as they power up and the specific kind of mutation changes when they are bending different things, but all benders are obvious and easily spotted.

Size is linked to bending. The more powerful you are, the bigger. The inverse is true; if you’re bigger, you have bending powers. Characters who canonically have no bending ability but are big here (Mai, Suki, Asami and so on) are benders here, but have very low grade powers or extremely specialized skills. Suki is probably an Earthbender who can do minor tricks with soul to be immovable, Mai and Asami are firebenders (Mai does internal tricks with heat, Asami can bend lightning but ONLY lightning), and so on.

I usually avoid specific sizes, but I did measurements for a tricky line, and worked some things out. Katara is roughly about twenty feet tall here, an average man only going up to her knees. Toph may be about 30 or so while the other girls are smaller than Katara on average, ranging from 12 to 15 feet. Korra is the biggest at at least forty feet. She is very big!

Raava does not serially incarnate here, but instead bonds to multiple human hosts as they are born; the Avatar is thus not a singular entity but a soul fusion of many different people to previous ones and the other living ones, linked and boosted by Raava. Thus, Korra and Aang can be around at the same time, and she can be significantly older than him too. The other Avatars relevant to Aang (Kuruk, Kyoshi, Roku and Yangchen) are, of course, all alive and doing things, being important heroes and leaders.

The owl entity that is mentioned briefly near the end of the story is intended to be Wan Shi Tong, and the Great Library is a combination of his library and the idea of the Akashic Records from Mage: The Awakening. He’s not as anti-mortal as he is in canon, or at least, not allowed to act upon it due to the other powers in the Library. He is a spirit of the idea of knowledge and lore, and acts as a neutral figure within the library’s command.

Bending stuff. Here, bending is not hereditary (though it is dependant on cultural identity); rather, people commune with specific spirits after manifesting an elemental power at a young age. Everyon can use an element appropriate to their culture, though perhaps very limited, and some can commune directly with the spirits, earning their favor and gaining their powers, being physically transformed in some respect and gaining enormous amounts of power. These are like Benders from canon, but they explicitly sought it out. Animals like badger-moles and sky bison are linked to these spirits, too. (There are different ways of earning favor; some women might become hyper pregnant with powerful spirits, for example, and at the end of the pregnancy, transform into their new state and gain their powers. The REAL elemental blessing was inside them all along…!)

The Air Nomads are alive and well!

Aang is ethnically related to the northern Air Nomads who are based on the followers of Genghis Khan; Yangchen’s clans, here. However he was raised among the monastary monks near the Southern Water Tribe, where he met Katara when young and studied under her to learn Waterbending. His heritage carries no stigma, and while he has no concern about his actual family (it being an Air Nomad thing to raise children communally), he wants to know more about his birth-people and ancestral culture.

You may have noticed a reference to ‘red tornado spirits’ in regards to Aang’s tattoos. Double meaning here; Aang’s tattoos were originally based, from what I hear, on the DC robot hero Red Tornado’s markings, and thus the spirits who originally taught the first Air Nomads were related to the spirits that give Red Tornado life force. (It was either that or make Red Tornado this settings version of Tenzin. Still might do that, actually.)

Speaking of Tenzin, Aang and Katara’s children are around for sure, but doing their own thing during the events of this story.

NON AVATAR STUFF

Hermione here is based on my take on her in the fics I’ve written here and there. The other group mentioned in relation to her is intended to be her canonical friendship group, including Harry, Ron, Ginny, Luna and Neville, and possibly others. The Great Library may be Hogwarts, but the castle may exist elsewhere with the wizards and witches here being a specific group that wound up at the Library through a mishap.

Witches like Hermione grow bigger as they get more magically powerful, as generally goes in this AU.

Hermione is intended to be read as black/Afro-British (or a space future analogue) but I’m not sure I’m that great at conveying that in writing.

Hermione’s somewhere between Toph and Katara’s sizes. Smaller than 30 feet, bigger than 20 feet. She’s thicc, hyper busty, and big all over!

Hermione not speaking the language of the Avatar characters is based on a few plot points I’ve had in mind; linguistics in this AU is a serious matter with no ‘translator microbes’ or quick solutions to language barriers. Languages must be learned the hard way. She’s never had any reason to expect to communicate with the people, expecting a life as a solitary scholary with her library chums, so she’s woefully unprepared for this. She will correct this in the future.

Magnus the Red is shamelessly based on the interpretation of him from the youtube web series, If The Emperor HAd A Text To Speech Device. I also included aspects such as the Primarch’s being sensory overload to regula humans, and more mystical overtones than they normally get in 40k. I wrote this with the idea that the Imperium was a pre-cataclysm society in line with the Emperor’s original goals (and had none of the anti-alien issues, due to difference circumstances), and the Emperor has become a god of the idea of humanity as its own thing, with the Primarchs as different reflections of that: Magnus embodies humanity’s magical potential as well as the drive to learn and know.

Magnus doesn’t have an exact size. He is huge, yes, but his bizarre magical nature means that he is much larger than he would seem to be. He’s also a shapeshifter, so make of that what you will.

The figures with him are basically Space Marines: Thousand Sons and Blood Ravens, if it wasn’t obvious enough. Gabriel Angelos, one of the canon Blood Raven leaders from the Dawn of War games, is mentioned briefly.

Obliquely referred to a few times is Optimus Prime; in the main events of the AU his absence has been notable, so this is where he’s been all this time; searching for an answer to what has become of Primus, and unable to return to the Autobots. Grimlock is gonna be PISSED.

The Unseen University’s faculty from Discworld are present here as more comedic elements of the faculty running the library, and may be seen on some other time. They’re not human here, since I’m trying to avoi the idea that humans are super-important in-universe. Ridcully, for example, is most likely a krogan. The magic they employ is a cross between Potterverse spells and classic D&D magic. (I used to headcanon that potterverse magic was particular to humans, but i may be moving away from that.)

I originally intended there to be several characters drawn from religious/monk origins for use as library characters to later join the Endowed Fleet and converse with the characters in this one, but there were too many characters as is. Two of the most important would have been Zenyatta from Overwatch (here a full on magic user and Guru Pathik-analogue) and Scar from Fullmetal Alchemist (donated his brother’s teachings to the library, stayed there to study as a religious duty)

There was originally an in-universe lesson about how their world fits into the cosmology, but i couldn’t find a natural place to slot it in. In brief, they’re technically one of the mortal universes, but exist in a demi-realm deep within the realms of magic and swimming in spirits, so they’re not really connected to the mortal universes and unless you know what you’re doing, there’s no real way to get there. This universe is mainly empty but rich with magic, so it’s possible for people who find their way there to establish new worlds there.

[lokgifsandmusings]

You've talked about having anxiety before. Do you have any tips on how to cope that actually work?

I do, I actually do! I wrote about it a bit in my “Korra Alone” meta, but very happy to reiterate and add some more to it. Just as a note, this is what works for me, and where I’ve landed having made it to 25 before I realizing I had anxiety, and now being 3 years down the road of that process. This is uh…going to be long. 

I have both general anxiety, and a very specific anxiety related to driving cars thanks to an [admittedly mild] traumatic event where I ended up stranding myself in the middle of one of the worst cities in the country because I was having a panic attack (and ended up needing my friends to bail me out of that). My general anxiety also comes hand-in-hand with intrusive thoughts (a manifestation of some OCD), so usually when I get anxious, I get these intrusive thoughts (usually quite dark ones), and in turn those thoughts make me more anxious. This is certainly not how anxiety will present in everyone.

Similarly, my panic attacks involve a tightness in the throat, a drier mouth, and a racing heart. Some people get different symptoms. However what it does is that if I experience these symptoms outside of the context of a panic attack (let’s say I ate some really salty pizza or something), I might whip myself up into a panic attack for thinking I’m having one.

The thing about anxiety is that once you get into a cycle of having anxiety and panic attacks, it begets more anxiety. Anxiety about having *future* anxiety. Which is actually what anxiety is. You don’t like feeling like that, so you worry about feeling like that, and then start to feel like that. It’s for that reason that anxiety can kind of be thought of as a verb. You’re anxietying, but it doesn’t mean you’re this stupid moron who’s letting your head “get the better of you.” It means you’re conditioned to trigger a flight-or-fright mode in the body.

That’s probably the piece of coping that’s helped me understand the most: what is anxiety and what does it do? Why do you have it at all?

Well…as backwards as it seems, since you feel like shit, can’t do anything, and may have overly morbid racing thoughts, it’s your brain’s way of protecting you. Your response to a scary stimuli, whatever it may be and why-ever you find it unsettling, is to THINK.

Anxiety’s function is to stop you in your tracks, so that you can assess EVERY DETAIL and accurately understand the risk to your person. Some people jump into a fighty-mode, some people are more avoidant (there’s also no absolute scale here and you can have all of these reactions at times, btw), but the experience of anxietying is to make you stop functioning, essentially, and consider everything.

Why can’t you get out of your head? Why can’t your brain shut up? Because instinctively, your body wants you to listen to your brain.

Now…we’re not living in situations where there’s predators charging to get us, and more likely than not your anxiety isn’t related to an immediate, physical danger. So this flight-or-fright mode that you get stuck in isn’t super helpful, right? You want to stop having it as a response, and for it to go away.

Well, the thing is, fighting it only makes it worse. It makes you angry with yourself for not being able to “knock it out”, and overall it makes you more anxious about feeling anxious because you *can’t* snap it away. It’s like the devil’s snare in Harry Potter. So what’s the solution?

1. You learn to recognize it.

It doesn’t mean you ever *like* it, it doesn’t mean you ever *prefer* it, but you just learn to have an awareness that this is what you’re experiencing. It becomes something like, “huh, I’m hungry.” “Huh, I’m anxietying.” It’s okay. It won’t hurt you, and it’s your body thinking you need protection.

2. You learn to sit next to it.

Once you can recognize what it is, you can kind of hang out with it. I know this sounds funky, but think of it outside of you. One trick is to interview it, believe it or not. “Hi, Kylie’s anxiety. What is making you feel powerful today?” It feels silly at first, but…it’s just this weird thing hanging out with you. You are not your anxiety, but your anxiety is not your enemy, either.

I’ve said it before, but I’ve come to look at my anxiety/intrusive thoughts as a very badly behaved cat. The cat is weirdly trying to protect me, and truly thinks this is what will help keep me safe, but well…it’s an idiot:

However, it’s MY dumb cat, and don’t you dare tell me I should get rid of her. This fucking moron of a creature is why I’m me. She helped me survive more chaotic forces in my life, and even if she’s a bit over-the-top with her reactions now, she’s doing her best.

If I feel anxious at work, I picture her swatting my pen cup off the desk. If I’m in my car, she’s chewing on my gear shift. And…she’ll go to sleep too, eventually. She always does.

3. You learn to lean into it.

This is the hardest aspect, but there’s first awareness of what you’re experiencing, there’s acceptance that…you will experience it and it’s okay, and finally, there’s the removal of fear of experiencing it.

Don’t get me wrong: anxiety is not *pleasant* to experience, just like extreme hunger. But there’s a point in moving closer to it. That physical feeling you hate? Think about it, sit with it, consider it; is it *that* bad? It’s not nice, okay, but what’s truly going to happen?

This is…exposure therapy in a way. And it’s certainly not something you have to do every time you feel anxious, especially if you’re trying to be productive. But a good introduction into it is to play the “why” game.

“I’m scared I’m going to have a panic attack in the car.” “Why?” “Because I’m scared I will get myself stranded again.” “Why?” “Because I’m scared I won’t have my friends to come pick me up this time.” “Why?” “Because something could happen to me if I’m stuck.” And so, and so, and so. Usually your answers will get a little more and more ridiculous, since you’re worrying about scenarios that just…aren’t going to happen.

But this also helps you figure out scenarios to mitigate. If I’m going on a long car ride, I like to talk to friends and family ahead of time and let them know, so if I panic on the side of the road, I know what phone call I can make if I have to. Sometimes I’ll chat with someone for the whole two hours I’m driving (thanks, Julia). Sometimes I purposely won’t tell anyone I’m going so I can feel like a badass for managing it (for very large definitions of “badass”). You just can’t see those pathways to help if you don’t have the ability to sit with your anxiety long enough to find the roots.

Alrighty, all that said, also try the following (while keeping in mind that “yes, this is what I’m feeling, and it’s OKAY”):

Change your body energy! Your brain is getting stuck in a certain mode, so move around and do something else. If you have anxiety about not being able to fall asleep on a Sunday night (if I had a dollar for every time this happened…), fucking get out of bed! Go sit on your couch and be like “I’m just going to pull an all-nighter, whatever.” Then find yourself a book, and you’re going to fall asleep over it. Do jumping-jacks. Literally anything to change up the energy flow.

Focus on something mundane or weird. If I have trouble sleeping, I try and list as many episode names to shows I like as possible. Bonus points if it’s in order! Don’t make yourself plunge on through. You can stop the task you’re doing and find a different way to shake your brain.

Ground your senses. This is a trick for PTSD too, but anxiety snaps your brain into a heightened state in a similar way. Look around and name 5 things you see, 4 things you hear, 3 things you smell, 2 things you feel, 1 thing you taste. Rinse and repeat.

Tell someone who you trust with this that you’re experiencing anxiety. You’re not alone, and just having that validation/lifeline can help.

Do not take your pulse. Just…there’s no reason. Yeah, your heart rate will be elevated. The physical symptoms you have are very, very real, but physiologically, they will *have* to dissipate. This is a survival mechanism. You will be fine.

Find a calming mantra or song. There’s a reason Rebecca Sugar wrote “Here Comes A Thought” like she did. On exhale, “it’s okay, it’s okay, it’s okay, it’s okay, it’s okay.” The stuff that works best for *me* are very repetitive, chiller beats. My go-to? “Wa-Do-Dem” by Eek a Mouse (or that whole album, honestly).

Hopefully this helps? I’m still figuring it all out, of course, and learning how to cope/understand isn’t this clear, linear thing. But you’ve got it. It’s just a stupid cat.

[wizardysseus]

if you're still doing the top five thing, top five superhero adaptations

ASK ME MY TOP 5/TOP 10 ANYTHING

adaptations to film/tv, i assume? like i can’t just list ultimate daredevil and elektra as my fave au and call it good?

captain america: the winter soldier

still in my top movies, full stop. when it came out i ran around campus trying to find my friends and begged them to go with me. i sat next to a friend who’s a very casual superhero fan herself (stays out of fandoms) and made her laugh because whenever she looked over i was, like, clawing at my own face. i cried pretty solidly on her shoulder through the credits?? i believe @a-corndog-named-schibbs was there, too, and should be able to attest. later i read the source material, which got me into other cap and winter soldier comics, which made me into the bitter bucky stan you know and love.

it’s just… a dang good film. it’s suspenseful and funny and heartfelt and sad and hopeful, and every time i watch it, i leave feeling a little more the way “trouble man” sounds.

batman: the animated series

this is just my opinion which is correct, but kevin conroy is the best batman. The Best. if such classic and unbeatable performances as this weren’t enough, there’s also mark hamill’s iconic joker, og harley, the al ghuls, and the rest of the gotham rogues. btas has absolutely hysterical episodes like “almost got ‘im” (the rogues wonder who invited joker to their weekly poker game), “harley’s holiday” (i personally award her a gold star that says You Tried A Little Bit), and “the man who killed batman” (kazoo eulogy. that is all anyone needs to know.) — and then it brings the emotion of two-face’s origin, mr. freeze’s tragic love story, and bruce being trapped in a dream where his parents are alive. i love the theme song. i love the old school gotham vibe. i love my weird loser family of villains who cannot function without an aesthetic. i love everyone in this bar

x-men: days of future past

another of my top movies, not just for the sheer delight i have in anything to do with time travel. i’ve watched it again, uh, a lot, and i will say its flaws bother me more now than they did the first time. but charles’ and raven’s character arcs still hold up, and that’s the core of why the film matters to me. charles struggling to confront his intensely painful empathy (well, telepathy, but in a narrative sense, empathy). logan telling him to form the x-men — even if it does all go to hell someday, still bring the family together. raven paving her own path, making mistakes, but wanting to do the right thing; eventually choosing mercy over vengeance, and it saves her people in the present and the future. that was powerful for me.

i also love that when they send logan back they’re like “ideally charles would go, but you’re the only one who can make the trip, so have fun.” and then everyone in the past goes “wow, you were the exact wrong person for this job” and logan nods good-naturedly like “thanks, i’m aware”

the dark knight rises if i’m being real

i have my bones to pick with nolan, i do (cough whitewashing the al ghuls cough)! but !!! BUT !!! 

tdkr was the movie that finally hooked me on batman. i enjoyed the other two films — the heavy-handed philosophical drama of nolan’s whole trilogy really works for me, which made it a good intro. but tdkr specifically did something beyond that. nolan!batman gets a lot of shit for being too dark, too gritty, too scary. but tdkr is about the reversal of those things — truth and its consequences, hope, sacrifice, and hard-won rest. it’s practically eucatastrophe. and i’m just glad there’s a universe where bruce retired with selina and is at peace. i only want the best for him, you know?

besides, the track “why do we fall?” alone could get it on the list. thanks hans

wonder woman (2017)

there was a time in my life before i saw this movie 3 times in 6 days, but thank god, better times have come. 

diana means a lot to me, as a character. she’s one of the first i called “my wife” and meant it (i think the others were claire temple and avatar korra? so that should tell you something about me). i didn’t need the movie to be flawless, but i needed something genuine to who she is. like her, the film is genuine, tender, badass, and philosophical. maybe humanity doesn’t deserve all of that from her, but she loves them us anyway, because her conviction lies with love itself. that message is close to my heart, and despite a misstep with her backstory, it’s very diana.

i also happened to see the film (the first time) with the same Extremely Casual Fan friend i took to catws, and once again cried on her through the credits. she is good to me.

honorable mentions

batman returns

logan

before s2 came out i would have said netflix daredevil, and i do still love the first season, but i’m also Betrayed™, so y’know. that said:

daredevil 2003 (it’s the worst movie ever, i’ve seen it twice this year)

[loopy777]

Definitely have a problem with flawed characters being based on the idea that decency is non-existent. As you said, even a more severe flaw can work with a likable character if it's natural/fits their character like the example of Katara claiming that Sokka didn't care enough for their mom, or Aang hiding a letter from Hakoda cause he fears being deserted. Mako in contrast risked his first relationship with Asami over a girl he barely gave the time of day to & was willing to cut ties with.

Yeah, I remember being shocked in ‘The Spirit of Competition’ when Mako was suddenly slobbery at the slightest mention of Korra. I was wondering for a moment if I missed an episode where he finally noticed that she was a girl. (The weird storytelling gap there was the main fuel in my theory that the first four episodes were written or produced separately from the rest of the first season.)

But yeah, it’s a perfect example of a flaw not built into the character. Mako was about tight control of his life stemming from having to take care of himself and Bolin over the years. All of the sudden, having only limited (awkward) interaction with Korra previously, he’s willing to risk his relationship with his brother and his chance at the Probending championship to go after her?

Sure, something could have happened off-screen to enable that. But it wasn’t part of the story or character as presented.

A scene where Mako twigs to how enmeshed Korra is in his life now and that he’s considering her part of his circle of family/protection now? A scene where he looks at a happy couple - maybe Tenzin’s full and lively family - and starts to feel a need for more than mere survival? A scene where he has a vivid dream about Korra and realizes that he’s hit puberty and she’s the first female besides Bolin’s fire ferret who he’s interacted with in fifteen years? (Yeah, we’d have to change Pabu’s gender.)

Any of that would have been a functional band-aid.

[mars-0w0]

Voltron : Legendary Defender

So today we’re going to talk about the fantastic show of Netflix and Dreamworks, Voltron : Legendary Defender. This series is a reboot of       Voltron : Defenfender of the Universe (released in 1984) and Beast King GoLion. VLD is produced by Joaquim Dos Santos and Lauren Montgomery  who also are the showrunners of the series, and both of them previously worked on Avatar : The Last Airbender and Legend of Korra.                       This animated series is an adventure and science-fiction one, for the moment 2 seasons are released and the third should come out this september.

So the story began on Kerberos which is Pluto’s moon with the disappearance of three men that was on an exploration mission. Back on Earth it says that those people just died because of a pilot error ; but one day one of the men, Shiro, comes back to Earth where scientists just want to study him and his new alien robotic arm without listening to him while trying to prevent that Galra, aliens that captured him, will come to conquer the Earth. Then, Shiro is recued by three students of the Galaxy Garrison, Hunk, Pidge and Lance, and by Keith that he knew before. After that thanks to Keith’s research they discover the Blue Lion which is a part of Voltron, basically a giant robot, after that the robotic Lion lead them on another planet out our solar system where they meet two aliens Allura and Coran who will explain them what happens and help them to find the other Lions and that’s only the beginning of the war to set the universe free of the hold of Zarkon the Galra emperor.

Now it’s time of characters presentation.

Start with the head of Voltron, Shiro.                                                                He’s the pilot of the black lion and also the leader of the paladins. He’s nice, gets rarely annoyed, takes care of the team and can be a good support for the others (probably due to that his nickname is space dad). He’s the kind of character who inspires respect and that we can follow without doubt. Before becoming the black paladin he has been a slave of the Galra empire which captured him when he was on a mission on Pluto’s moon, Kerberos. During his captivity his right arm was replaced by a Galra prosthesis that he is disgusted by. Because of his detention he now has post-traumatic stress disorder that he has to struggle with.                                                                                        He’s dub by Josh Keaton in the original version.

Then Pidge, this one will be hard to present without spoiling but that stuff that we discover in episode 3, so don’t read this one if you really don’t want to be spoil on anything.                                                                                              Pidge, which real name is Katie Holt, is the daughter of Samuel Holt and the little sister of Matt. Even if the Galaxy Garrison, which organized the Kerberos mission, said that the disappearance of the crewmembers of the mission was due to a pilot error she knew that was just a lie and began to search her family. She had to disguise as a boy to be admit in the Galaxy Garrison, being also a school forming engineers and pilots to go to space, because she was banned after hacked their computers to find information about what happened during Kerberos mission.                                                                                                 She’s really intelligent, curious and determined but she can have a hard time bonding with the others. She pilots the green lion, left arm of Voltron.               Bex Taylor-Klaus is the voice of Pidge.

Turn of my little Keithy Keith~                                                                             So Keith is the pilot of the red lion and the right arm of Voltron. Before joining Voltron he lived alone in the middle of nowhere after he has dropped out of the Garrison for discipline issues. Back on Earth he was considered as the best pilot of his generation. He’s loner, impulsive, temperamental, he’s brave but sometimes a little too much stubborn. He’s not really close to the others, but Shiro who is like a brother for him, maybe it’s because he became orphan at a young age that it can be hard for him to bond with the rest of the team but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t care about them.                                                        It’s Steven Yeun who does Keith’s voice.

And now the sharpshooter of the team, Lance.                                               Pilot of the blue lion and right leg of Voltron. He was a student at the Galaxy Garrison. First failed to be in fighter pilot class but then been accepted thanks to Keith’s expulsion. Lance considers the red paladin as his rival, and he looks up to Shiro. He is flirtatious, friendly and brave, he can seem cocky sometimes and he is also playful but during the missions he can keeps a cool head and be considered. He cares about his family and friends and seems to be the most affected by homesickness. Despite his loud personality always shown, when he’s alone he can be totally different.                                                                He shares his voice with Finn the Human in Adventure Time both dub by Jeremy Shada.

Last but not least of the paladin, Hunk.                                                              He’s the left leg of Voltron and the pilot of the yellow lion. As Lance and Pidge he was a student at the Galaxy Garrison. He’s caring, altruistic and friendly he is also a really good chef and the engineer of the team. Due to his gentle nature, at first he had a hard time to engaging fights but he was also affraid yet he quickly passed through that. He bonds with the others quite easily and with Shiro he is the voice of caution.                                                                        Hunk is dub by Tyler Labine.

Now it’s Allura’s turn.                                                                                            She is the princess of Altea, well in fact was because her planet has been destroyed by the Galra. She is one of the last Altean on the entire universe and because of the war that still is going she can’t just take time and do her grief. Everything she wants is to defeat Zarkon and set all the different people reduce to slavery by  the Galra Empire free.                                                                   Allura is a good leader and a good diplomat, she is serious, sometimes she wears herself out but she can be playful too. She’s caring and considers the paladins as her family. She is also very courageous and not affaid to fight herself.                                                                                                                 It’s Kimberley Brook who is Allura’s voice.

To finish with character’s presentation : Coran Coran the Gorgeous man.          As Allura, he is Altean and have to deal with the death of his people and the destruction of his planet. He’s the advisor of the princess and is concerned for her and for the paladins. He is kind and will make sure that everyone is alright, Coran is also a goofy person but when his teammates and he are threatened by the Galra he gets a lot more serious. As he’s outgoing it can be easier to go talk to him. He doesn’t really get upset but when you remind him his age.          Rhys Darby does his voice.

Also, the paladins fight (when not with their lion) with their bayard which is the traditionnal weapon of the paladin of Voltron. The particularity of those arms is that they take a form that fit to the one that uses it. If you want to know more about the bayards you can go see this http://littleblackchat.tumblr.com/post/160394709436/ok-but-can-we-talk-about-how-the-paladins-bayards that a post of littleblackchats about how the bayard suit the paladin and are like them.

And don’t talk about it but it’s the lion who choose the paladin in function of their qualities.

So it’s finally done whith the characters’ presentation. I won’t talk about the villains because, I’m lazy (?) and that already long enough for the presentation of the main characters.

And now it’s Critic Time !! 

Well if I talked about this show it’s because I love it (love not a strong enough word in fact) but i’ll try to be as objective as possible. Why do I have the feeling that I won’t be ?

So, to really end with the characters I’ll begin to talk about them.                   That’s rare, but VLD is one of those shows where I can’t find a character that I don’t like (unlike 13 reasons why where for me the characters are unpleasant but it still an interesting series to watch). Allura is a princess and a born leader and just that’s good to see a badass girl like her. Same for Pidge she’s a talented and fantastic engineer able to build herself lots of gadgets and she is just so ingenious and kinda a model for me. And Shiro, well it’s Shiro do I really have to add something ? I think not but if he had to just the fact that he, the team and the audience don’t really know what happened when he was imprisoned by the Galra is just fascinating. Then Keith, this guy just deserves to be loved and to calm down a little because seriously he could have killed himself in the FIRST episode because he acts and thinks then, and with the next seasons I’m sure he’ll be a even more gripping character thanks to how the staff of the series begin to develop him ; and talking about character development Hunk, Coran and Lance deserve more but I’m sure that’s just a matter of time especially since season 2 began to show a new side of Lance’s personality (can’t say more or I’ll be spoiling but that gets me really excited for season 3). So individually the characters are all awesome (and/or will be more when their developement time will arrive) but it is also absorbing to see their friendships growing and like that it is more convincing than if it was like “Now that we are universe’s only hope and I have to live with you you’re all my besties even if i don’t know you !! <3″. In brief the characters are all appealing thanks to their differences and the way we see them growing and bonding with the others.

Now, one thing that I adore about VLD, the different people and planets. That really something amazing because those different population have their own traditions and lifestyle and some have to change because of the Galra Empire but others don’t know about them. The charac-design of those aliens are also really good and various

And just look at them the Taujeer are tardigrades !!

See they look the same ! It’s not only the people that are interesting but also the planet because they’re not as the Earth, we can see one which is actually alive, one that which is in part made of acid and during the other seasons that’s sure we’ll continue to discover new planets. And that’s not all, they are stuff that are different  between the paladins and the two Alteans, like for example the rain, on Altea that wasn’t like on Earth, in fact not at all. Also, there are words that change, for example in Altean a second is a tic and the terms for the others units of time differs too.

As Voltron is a big giant robot and the most powerful weapon ever it’s sure that we have fights during the show, and they’re all beautiful and thrilling and even if we could wait all the fights be exactly the same they’re not and forming Voltron not always the solution, sometimes they have to be separated to defeat their foes and that’s really a good thing that and the fact the paladins discover new weapons that have their respective lion with time. Also all the combats are not with lions they are also hands to hands fight so we don’t really have the impression that is repetitive. The animation of the fightings is just amazing too especially the one on astral plan that is certainly the most beautiful all.

So I think that all i had to say about the show I would like to talk about the music too but in general I don’t really notice it when I’m watching something so I can’t really give my opinion on it. I didn’t talk about the animation in general because they’re nothing to say it’s just as wonderful as we could wait from the staff that worked on Legend of Korra and just the background (that mainly is galaxy) is splendid.

That’s not on the show itself but i wanted to talk about an au that I really love, the synesthesia au made by marchingspace and also if you like angst just go read Smile for the stars by malikcutie it’s a beautiful fanfiction and probably the most memorable thing that I have ever read.

Think that’s finally finish so I hope that wasn’t too much boring and you enjoyed reading it.

Note : this post is for an English assignment so if you’re not my english teacher I’m sorry for my English and truly hope you enjoyed what I wrote.

[equalmeasurefiction]

Thinking Out Loud...

This is just me rambling about stuff so I can get it off my chest.  Pay it no mind.

So, part of the reason I’ve been stalled in fanfiction writing is, because I didn’t know how to manage Tarrlok’s endgame.  I have Korra’s endgame set up.  I have Amon’s endgame set up.  But Tarrlok was a problem and every idea I came up with didn’t fit with the other two very well.

I mean, you’ve got Korra.  Her arc is about the realization and understanding of her present self.  So that means she has to look back at the past, make decisions about her future and the future of the next Avatars, and center herself in her current lived reality.  No more pro-bending avoidance.  No more pretending that being the Avatar is about being a big damn hero.

Noatak is caught up in his past.  Sure, he tries to avoid it, but if anyone it stuck in the past, it’s him.  In some ways he hasn’t really grown up at all since he left the North Pole at 14.  He’s fixated on his past in a way that Tarrlok isn’t and it prevents him from moving forward.

It makes perfect sense for his arc to force him to shift his perspective from ‘past-centric’ to ‘future-centric.’  In some ways his ‘Amon’ character represents an attempt to focus on the future, but that character is still an extension of/return to his past-self.  He’s carved his self-loathing and hatred into his mask.  Amon can never be a real solution for him, because Noatak is still tied up in his father’s beliefs and attitudes.  In order for him to escape his past, he needs to detach from it and recognize what is in the past is over.  He can’t change it, he can only keep moving forward.

And this brings us to Tarrlok.

Now, technically Tarrlok is kind of on the same level as Noatak.  He’s conscious of his past and it shapes his present behavior.  But at the same time, I see Tarrlok as being much more future-centric than Noatak.  While his past certainly drives his behavior, he seems far more focused on what will come next than on what has already happened.

Think of it like this.  While Noatak dwells on hatred and self-loathing and is consumed by his need to ‘prove his father wrong.’  Tarrlok turns his anger outward and uses it as a weapon.  He doesn’t want to ‘erase his father’s bending legacy’ as much as he wants to ‘exceed his father in every conceivable way.’  At the end in the boat, Noatak talks about the ‘good old days’ while Tarrlok thinks about what will inevitably follow their escape.

I think the root of this outlook is in the fact that Tarrlok was trained under Yakone at a much younger age, so he probably internalized more of Yakone’s beliefs as ‘normal’ and ‘natural.’  He’s troubled by Yakone, but it’s far less painful for him, because he has fewer memories of them being a happy family than Noatak probably does.

So, Tarrlok should shift from a future-centric stance to a past-centric stance.  It makes sense that Amon and Tarrlok should function as opposites, since they deal with their past in different ways: Noatak needs to learn to look toward the future and realize that he’s not bound by his past and Tarrlok needs to look to the past and recognize how he was hurt so that he can begin changing himself.

But here’s the thing.  I don’t want their arcs to be intrinsically tied so that Tarrlok’s growth supersedes Noatak’s and I can’t let Noatak’s arc take precedence over Tarrlok’s.  They need to be equal, opposite, and impacted/driven by separate forces, because just because they’re brothers in this life doesn’t mean that they were brothers in past lives.

Like I said, I know what I’m going to do with Amon and Korra.  I’ve got their creepy dream sequences prepared and I know exactly how I’m going to direct them...

But I wasn’t sure how I was going to handle Tarrlok and what past-centric night terrors to inflict upon him.

But, thanks to the rediscovery of certain pieces of fanart and a Big Trouble in Little Chinatown, I know exactly how I’m going to play this out.  I just need to figure out how to set that up appropriately...

[meenah-is-a-punk-rocker]

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[djzena]

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[equalmeasurefiction]

Holy Daddy Issues, Tenzin!- Part 2: Why Korra Doesn’t Talk to Strangers

Holy Daddy Issues, Tenzin! Part 1

I have started so many metas based on this one post right here (Korra’s Journey).  But the problem with every single meta that I’ve started is that they all touched on problems that were tangential to the issue at hand.  While I knew that the problem in Season 4: Episode 2- Korra Alone (S4:E2) was indicative of a much larger issue within the Korra franchise, I couldn’t pin-point the underlying cause.  There are so many problems with the Korra series that it’s easy to get lost in the weeds when you’re analyzing.

But it wasn’t until I started thinking about the ‘family’ theme in Legend of Korra that I finally felt I’d found the root of the problem.  I think the reason why Korra doesn’t talk to anyone in S4:E2 is because the Avatar series is about family.  It’s not about Korra, it’s not about the responsibility of being the Avatar, it’s not about friendship or the communities people form when they go out into the world or even how people are interconnected by society and government, it’s about family.  More specifically, it’s about the typical nuclear family where there is a father, a mother, and a collection of children.

Every single main character in the Legend of Korra series is part of a family (except maybe Varrick, but he ends up ‘starting’ a family with Zhu Li, so he’s kind of ‘the future.’  It works well for his character).  All the core issues and problems within the series are derived from family.

Again:

The Equalist Revolution in Season 1 boiled down to family and being unable to escape from it.

The Civil War Arc and Harmonic Convergence Event came down to sibling rivalry (Korra even points out that Unalaq is jealous of his brother).

In Season 3 we have the family that Korra could have had--the Red Lotus.

Finally, in Season 4 we have all the families on display (the surviving ones), breaking away from each other and getting the closure they need as they move toward greater independence.

When the series is viewed in this light, a lot of things that seemed like bad decisions make a whole lot of sense.  Why doesn’t Korra talk to other people who are outside the immediate group in her series?  Simple: according to the show’s underlying thematic logic, relationships that aren’t in some way filial (ie: do not represent or create a ‘nuclear family connection’) are of no importance.  Sibling relationships are important (Mako & Bolin, the Kataang Kids, Tarrlok & Noatak, Unalaq & Tonraq to name a few).  Paternal relationship are vital (like, huge.  I’m not going to bother to list them all, because the list would be insane).  In Season 3, maternal relationships become significant (Beifongs).  Hetero-normative romance is vital, because it’s the root of the nuclear family (the path to forming that mother/father pair).  Romantic relationships are vital because they represent the possibility of creating a family (note that Korrasami only happens at the end of the series--it’s not a baby-producing relationship).  Male characters are only important if they represent fathers, brothers, sons, or boyfriends.  Female characters are only important if they represent mothers, sisters, daughters, or girlfriends.

There is no room in Legend of Krora for any character whose relationship with the main cast doesn’t involve a filial or family-creating relationship.

There are no characters in Legend of Korra that are in any way analogous to Haru, Jet, King Bumi, Ty Lee, Ju Dee, or even Toph (who, Taang theories aside, was the only member of the main group who didn’t seem seriously romantically interested in another main character, and wasn’t related to either romantic lead).  All of these characters, despite having minor romantic arcs, had character arcs that helped the audience understand the stakes of the conflict, appeared multiple times throughout the series, functioned as allies to the main cast/main antagonists, and informed the Avatar world.

In the Korra series, there were no characters who were just friends and allies. There were no characters who weren’t somehow related to Korra’s group or to the Gaang by romance or by blood.  And as a result, Korra’s world feels much, much smaller than Aang’s.

If Legend of Korra were explicitly about family--if it were a series that explored the world in the aftermath of Aang--this wouldn’t be a problem.  But this series is supposed to be about Korra and her journey to become a strong Avatar.  And being the Avatar is about saving the world from destruction, chaos, and the perpetuation of human suffering.  The Avatar is supposed to be the bringer of peace, they’re meant to be embroiled in massive political and social struggles that span continents and cultures.

But Korra’s entire world, the entire thematic thrust of her show, is about family. .  And this functionally cripples Korra’s development.  This theme limits her ability to act and interact with the world she exists in.  She says that she’s the Avatar, but she can’t actually ‘be’ the best Avatar.  After all, she’s not solving the world’s problems, she’s confronting family problems.

And yes, every single problem that Korra ‘resolves’ relates back to family and she only puts an end to the conflict after the family dynamic has been revealed. She could only beat Amon when Tarrlok revealed their family connection.  Her conflict with Unalaq was filial. Her relationship with the Red Lotus was very much tied to her relationship with her father (Tonraq got a lot of screen time as soon as the Red Lotus started to become a threat and I maintain that Zaheer is a kind of ‘dark father’ to her).  And Kuvira?  Well, Kuvira’s main beef is with her surrogate family (Beifongs) and Kuvira’s strife is meant to mirror Korra’s own struggles with her surrogate ‘family’ and their restrictive decisions (it also functions as a nice introduction to the idea that Korra’s not going to end up with a guy--note that when Korra’s kind of ‘into’ guys/dating Mako there’s a male antagonist, when she’s starting to pay attention to Asami the antagonist group gets mixed--this raises even more questions for me...).

So, how does this relate to S4:E2- Korra Alone?

Korra is finally, after 3 Season, presented with the opportunity to interact with the world and engage with people on her own terms-- not as the Avatar, but as Korra.

What happens?

Nothing.

Korra doesn’t have a heart to heart with a single ordinary person.  Instead, she wanders around, takes part in underground fighting rings, and struggles aimlessly right up until the spirits lead her to Granny Toph.  And when Toph’s advice and aide isn’t enough to fully resolve Korra’s struggle, Korra has to go to Zaheer (because mothers and grandmothers can’t fix daddy issues).

As I've previously stated, Zaheer represents an alternate father-figure to Korra.  If things had been different, Korra would have been his protege, his ‘daughter.’  Ergo, his violence against her can function as a metaphor for child abuse.

Since all of Korra’s character growth, success, and development revolves around family-related conflicts, the only way she can resolve her PTSD is by confronting the ‘father-figure’ who inflicted the damage.  After Korra confronts Zaheer, she feels better and is more equipped to fight Kuvira.  Once again, everything is resolved through filial relationships.

Family vs Korra

Now, family is a great theme in any written work.  It’s something that the vast majority of human beings can connect to on a personal level.  After all, most people a family.  And a lot of the moments involving family in Legend of Korra were really great.

That said, the family theme in Legend of Kora was in conflict with the development of the main character.  The narrative focus on filial connections and relationships was so overwhelming that very little time was actually spent on Korra.

In fact, one could argue that the one character who had the least to do with this central theme was Korra herself.  Yes, she was constantly embroiled in family conflict, but she was never invested or interested in these conflicts.  Maybe she’d feel bad about something related to the conflict, or she’d be impacted/influenced by a relative or romantic interest, but for the most part her character wasn’t interested/invested in these struggles.

And this gets into the biggest problem with this theme.  Family was of prime importance to every single other character in the show except Korra.  Sure, Korra felt that family was important to her and she loved her family, but the center of Korra’s existence, the entire drive of her character, was ‘being the Avatar.’  Her drive wasn’t doing things to protect her family and the people who were important to her.  Her drive was being a great Avatar.

Korra’s quest to be a great Avatar, to be successful and solve world problems was sidelined so that the series could talk about family.

This is probably why S4:E2 is such a disappointment to so many viewers and it’s probably the reason why I felt so disappointed in Season 4.  It felt like we were finally going to talk about Korra and her growth and development.  For a moment it seemed like we might actually touch on things that were of central importance to her character.

And then everything went right back to family.  Again.