#OR ratio thought he had to act that way for it to seem legit when its not his modus opperandi

[magicalgirlsirin]

the fact that penacony has been out for months and people are still doing "its anti rroma to hate aventio" discourse is so funny to me. are you all trapped in some kind of time prison

[nny11writes]

Shadow Weaver, One Good Thing, and Moral Shades of Gray

Some Season 5 rambling for whoever wants it regarding Shadow Weaver, her actions, and the end of her character arc.

I might revisit this later more from her perspective, that scene (you know the one) felt very complex to me and I have a few different feelings about it, this is one of them. 

Spoilers below the cut!

Okay, I really loved Shadow Weaver this season. I’ve loved her every season, she’s such a great character and her concept, animation, and voice acting all work flawlessly together to breathe some real life into her. I just love her! Great bad guy!

And this season? No one is letting her fucking breath without body slamming her.

It was one of the things I loved about her interactions with everyone, that she’d say something and immediately get told off. No one was falling for her shit. And you can see the way she’s super annoyed and confused, amazing how much a mask can portray, “Excuse ME I’m a GOOD GUY now?????” No one was forgiving her, no one liked her, they barely even tolerated her. I feel like it was wearing her down. I haven’t re-watched yet, but I think we saw Weaver with or near cups several times, but regardless, for sure when Catra found her she was drunk. She was half fucking slurring as she drank at what could be the end of the world. It was a rather pathetic sight, and now the joke about Shadow Weaver being drunk at 8AM makes more sense. This is just some stuff to keep in mind as we mosey along.

Noelle has talked before about shades of moral gray in the series and how people can shift and move along that line, and how people can also still be good people making bad choices or bad people making good choices.

I think Shadow Weaver is being used to display that. She is a few baby steps away from the beyond Vanta Black of Horde Prime. She is not a good person, she is not a hero; even if some of the things she’s done are good for others or could read ‘heroic’.

There was also a running theme this season of “One Good Thing”.

Catra is an obvious one, “I just want to do one good thing in my life!” And she goes from thinking she’s made a heroic sacrifice of sorts by saving Glimmer to getting the chance to actually move forward. And even if her steps faltered, Catra moved forward and did far more than just one good thing.

Hordak had a few moments of getting to see him lower his walls with Entrapta, but the thing that stuck out to me was his face as he held a happily cooing Adora. “Oh…okay, I guess- I guess this baby is mine? WAIT NO, CAN’T DO, ABORT, NO EMOTIONS, EMOTIONS ARE FOR HORDE PRIME, GET THIS THING AWAY FROM ME!” (Okay so that wasn’t all just his face, but that’s the gist). Hordak didn’t kidnap Adora, he went where sensors showed a portal would be and found a baby. He could’ve left her there, he could’ve done a lot of things, but he had a one good thing moment where he chose to take that baby with him. Cradled close. It’s a kind action in some ways, and not in others. I think Hordak hoped the baby might have an answer or solution to the portal (talk about high hopes buddy). But I think he also didn’t want to leave a baby to die alone in a field. It’s not a big great declaration or heroic moment, but it is still a good thing. Hordak’s one good thing.

I think Shadow Weaver has always held a twisted sort of care and love for Adora, and I also really think that Shadow Weaver would have held just as disgusting and awful a brand of ‘love’ for Catra if Catra had done/been what she’d wanted (which let’s be real was unrealistic and was a bar she would’ve kept moving). Shadow Weaver’s love is not pure. Perhaps as Light Spinner it could have been. As Light Spinner she was still an awful person willing to use anyone including children to get what she wanted. She wasn’t a good person. But even bad people can feel true love for others. I’m not saying that her love was pure or was always good intentioned as Light Spinner, just that I think she had the capability for it. But once that entity/parasite consumed her? Once she let her lust for power overwhelm her basic humanity? No. I don’t think her love would have been good in any form FOR SURE after that.

So her insistence that, “Didn’t you hear? I’m one of the good guys now.” rings just that much more hollow and cracked. Her motivations have always been selfish and her choices rarely take other’s into account beyond ‘how can I use this to my advantage’. Her kindness is faked, her goodness is incidental, her love is poison, everyone else knows that. Everyone else treats her the way they should, cautiously at best and hostile as needed. But Shadow Weaver doesn’t get that. She truly believes that she’s a good person now and is baffled that no one else will believe her and if frustrated/upset that she can’t even go ‘pure evil’ because she doesn’t have the legs to stand on for it. “I’m a good guy,” fuck you.

I think this shows with Catra. She’s still an absolute bitch and a half to Catra, and again I’m not saying what she did or said was good or right. But I think Shadow Weaver had a few moments of legit thinking, “Okay, fine, gotta tone this shit down because I’m a good guy.” She was always in control of her behavior and this was such a fine razor to cut with. It’s like the idea of an abuser who just “loses control” and destroys things then apologizes. It’s never their things they destroy and they don’t help to clean up or replace anything. The apology is a lie. They never lost control, they knew what they were doing. Same with Shadow Weaver. It was disturbing to watch her interact neutrally or her warped ass version of nicely with Catra. Because we all know it’s not that Shadow Weaver was out of control before, so we know she could have acted this way the whole time. It still wouldn’t have been good. But I think going from torturing kids and threatening them with death, to basically cold indifference is a half step forward and a full step sideways. It still would’ve caused harm, it still would’ve left destruction in its wake but a different kind of it. I don’t know, I just thought this was a wonderfully god awful way to show that. It also shows that she thinks she can either smooth things over or control the situation, which good luck with that.

Got distracted a hot second there, my example in this is actually when she grabs Catra to cover her mouth. It’s a move that if literally anyone else had done it wouldn’t have felt so fucking skeevey. But it’s Shadow Weaver physically touching Catra, her favorite chew toy. Catra has a very justified reaction to that, and you can still see the wheels turning in Weavers head. “Ungrateful, I’m trying to save you, I’m a good guy!” Fucking hell this lady.

So here we are, with a genuinely awful and bad person who believes they’re a good person now and trying to pantomime what they think a good person would do. With her very twisted version of “love” and the realization coming ever closer that she’s not in control of anything, no one trusts her, and no one likes her. I think she absolutely is thinking about her legacy right here, I think she is definitely trying for one last manipulation to put a big underscore on “Shadow Weaver was a good guy”. 

I also, however, think she manipulates so well because she always draws a grain of truth into what she’s saying.

My example of this is her “You remind me of myself and I wanted you to be better, stronger than me.” Bullshit. Catra might have reminded Shadow Weaver vaguely of herself, but the rest is pure bullshit. Shadow Weaver doesn’t hate herself and certainly never did shit to make Catra a ‘better and stronger’ person. It’s 90% lies, but that 10% helps her sell her abuse.

So I think in her final moments there, Shadow Weaver does some complex mental gymnastics. She knows that Adora has to make it to the heart for anyone to survive. She knows that Adora loves Catra and that Catra loves Adora. She may know that if she doesn’t save Catra it is very likely that Adora will very likely not survive. Adora has always been ‘distracted and pulled down’ by Catra, so now she needs her ‘crutch’. I think Shadow Weaver also knows that once this is all done, no one will have a use for her and I don’t think she wants to face a world where she has no power and no control.

So she steps forward and puts one last manipulative play into motion.

And I think she sells it with a semi truth.

I’ve always thought it was interesting that even after joining the Rebellion that Shadow Weaver seemed so dismissive of Catra. Even as Catra was steam rolling them in Season 4. That Shadow Weaver didn’t even have a moment of, “Well damn, don’t like you still but I guess there was something competent and worthwhile underneath it all.” I can’t even remember if she mentions Catra at all by name when they aren’t in the same room together.

I think that Shadow Weaver was impressed, to some degree. She had always seen Catra as a pest, a gnat flying in her face and distracting Adora. Worthless, small, weak, and dumb. I think seeing how far Catra actually does make it is impressive to her. Not “oh wow that’s amazing!” impressive. More like, “huh, okay then” with a side of bitchiness. I think she never mentions Catra directly because of that. She hates Catra. She doesn’t want to admit she’s impressed by anything Catra’s done. She hates her and hates it and hates the whole thing.

So when Shadow Weaver removes her mask (definitely to play on them seeing her as a person first and not a monster) (although I think it also is a very good way to remind the audience that monsters are human too and that is far scarier to deal with, think about those photos of Nazi’s smiling on their weekend away from work where they helped kill thousands) and says, “I am so proud of you, Catra.”

90% is a lie, 10% is truth. Shadow Weaver might not think that’s the ratio, she might really be buying her own line. That’s something to explore another time perhaps.

And then she goes out in a blaze of glory with no need to face her own bleak and uncertain future, ‘protecting’ Adora, who she holds a dark and twisted affection for, and secures her legacy as a good guy. One final, “I fucking told you so”.

Shadow Weaver’s death is not a redemption. I think she hopes it is, and knows that even if it isn’t, Catra and Adora can never deny the impact she had on shaping them. That they’ll never really be free of her, and therefore no one else will either.

She will never truly have to face the consequences of what she’s done. For all that the other characters shut her down, no one gave her the true blue knock down drag out no holds barred VIBE CHECK she deserved. And without that this ending is very unsatisfying for some. For others that missing piece adds.

My take?

She’s a bad person, doing her One Good Thing, not realizing that it doesn’t take her from bad to good. Her sacrifice is, in this way, in vain. She’s a bad guy and will be remembered as such. She did her one good thing. 

She’s still a monster. 

[incorrecteragonquotes]

Eragon Movie Recap Part 2: Electric Boogaloo

It’s Part 2 of the Eragon Movie Recap! There’s a second part now! That you can read!

Part 2 picks up where Part 1 left off. Arya’s been captured by Durza, Eragon has found a cool rock, and Galbatorix can’t win the geology convention. All of this makes for one eventful night! Let us see what happens next.

As Eragon returns to town after his hunting trip, we get a nice look at Carvahall in all of its ramshackle glory. As Eragon walks across the frame, we see a small patrol of soldiers walk by as well. As we’re about to see, the soldiers and the villagers could be considered distinct factions within Carvahall, and they do not get along. Though, if the soldiers aren’t considered villagers, I wonder where they live. How many of them are there? What’s the soldier-to-villager ratio? Why do they care this much about Carvahall? Does the army have this many resources to spare on every village? It would make sense to me if the soldiers were to be here temporarily, as they tour the countryside accosting all of the villages, but the way the soldiers are treated by the film makes me think that no, they just live here.

A bunch of soldiers haul Baldor and Albreich off to conscription land, wherever that is. Baldor and Albreich are, of course, not named, and I’m-pretty-sure-that’s-Horst complains about their sudden departure in an expositional manner. This is one of many ways in which the filmmakers ruined their planned franchise - these characters do a lot of things in the later books. I suppose Baldor and Albreich could return later as a part of the army and then rejoin Carvahall’s forces, which would fit well enough, but still, the writers just sabotaged any future attempts to adapt the later novels.

Additionally, this soldiers’ attitude here is quite confusing to me. They’re all very snide about this abduction, while they, too, must have joined the army somehow. If this is how they treat the villagers of Carvahall, they must have come from somewhere else. Were they conscripted as well? Is this whole conscription business a recent development? Maybe they joined voluntarily. They could have signed on because they wanted to bully people for a living, though I’m not convinced there are all that many people joining the army for that reason. People have better ways to spend their time, after all. So what’s with the attitude? If they stay in Carvahall for long enough, they’re bound to become part of the community in some capacity. But they clearly aren’t. What gives? I am by no means an expert on this subject, but the soldiers in this film bother me to no end.

Eragon walks into Sloan’s meat shop, and is immediately intrigued by the prime cuts Sloan has on the chopping block. Sloan appears to be cheery enough, even becoming the first person in the film to refer to Eragon by name. He’s downright educational until Eragon expresses an interest in making a purchase, at which point he switches to some rather forced (and expositional, because why not) mockery. But Eragon’s serious, so he proposes a trade.

Sloan accuses Eragon of stealing the cool rock, but this doesn’t seem to put a damper on his interest in the Big Shiny Thing. Just as Eragon’s about to complete the trade, he remembers that it is his solemn duty to behave as stupidly as possible, so he leans in conspiratorially and tells Sloan that he found the cool rock in the Spine. This is true, but it’s also the one thing he could have said to immediately convince Sloan to cancel any and all trading plans. Sloan’s very targeted dislike of the mountains may have been replaced in this film by a generic sense that the cool rock belongs to the king, which is somehow determined by its being found in the mountains. Maybe the Spine is state-owned land? As he’s booting Eragon out of his shop, Sloan goes on to tell Eragon to keep his cool rock a secret, because it could endanger the whole village. Somehow.

This detail opens up a rather peculiar possibility. Film Eragon keeps the cool rock and everything that comes of it a secret from his family. Does he only do this because Sloan told him that less paranoid courses of action were a bad idea? That’s an awful lot of trust for Eragon to be putting in Sloan here. Surely some of that should be reserved for Eragon’s own family.

Outside, we get to meet Brom! He’s being pestered by some soldiers who are accusing him of theft. They apparently don’t think too highly of his hunting skills, and they don’t buy his story about acquiring his dead birds by way of strange weather event. Personally, I think he should get to keep the birds on account of his story delivery skills alone. Jeremy Irons is a blessing to this film and I sincerely respect his performance as Brom. Regardless, the soldier’s don’t care, and just as a fight is starting to break out, Brom sees that Eragon is watching.

Seeing Eragon The Impressionable Youth prompts Brom to stand down and hand over the birds. He clearly doesn’t want to set a bad example for this kid, though it’s unclear if this attitude extends to kids in general, or if it’s specific to Eragon. He’s very bitter about having his birds confiscated with such little justification, but he lets the issue go after a few cutting remarks.

With the spicy conflict over, Eragon walks the long distance home. But what’s this? Garrow’s awake now! He waves at Eragon from the field he’s working in.

Roran charges loudly into the scene to tease his cousin. He has a sense of humour and an upbeat attitude. One could almost call it a… personality? Weird.

Roran acts unsurprised at Eragon’s lack of hunting spoils. Insinuates that Eragon is something of a coward. Gets a little rowdy. Eragon decides to push back, and they have a little fight.

It’s all fun and games. There are some bad quips, and Eragon gets to show a little resourcefulness. Garrow walks in after a few moments and breaks up the fight.

Eragon returns to his room and drops off his stuff. Takes out his weird cylindrical bean. Knocks on it. It makes a hollow, metallic ringing noise. That’s not the sound an egg makes, dragon or no. Certainly not the sound of a cool rock. Eragon is, finally, weirded out by this.

Later, Eragon and Roran are out working the fields. Roran decides that this is the time for an important chat. He’s leaving town! It turns out that this film is really committed to the whole army conscription thing, and Roran must consequently skip town to avoid becoming a soldier. He intends to settle somewhere, eventually, at which point he will send word. Eragon is saddened by the prospect of life without his cousin. Eragon doesn’t know where Roran will go. Neither does Roran. Roran doesn’t seem to mind.

While we’re on the subject of Roran’s departure, I’d like to point out that Movie Roran doesn’t have a definite plan at all, much less one that involves returning to Carvahall. I’m going to go ahead and assume that this also wrecks any future attempts at sequel adaptation. Let’s not forget, though, that this change in Roran’s behaviour is attributed to army conscription. This suggests that Galbatorix needs a bigger army than the one he has. It’d be silly of him to conscript so many people otherwise, since armies are costly to maintain. So Galby needs an army, and a big one at that. Why? What could he possibly be using it for? Is he planning ahead for when his cool rock doesn’t come home? This whole army situation makes no sense!

Eragon and Garrow are… cleaning a horse or something. I don’t know enough about farms to judge this action. Eragon is bummed out, and Garrow guesses immediately that Roran told him about his plans to leave. Garrow knows how to lighten the mood, so he spouts some words about theme! He talks about how one day, Eragon will decide what kind of life he wants to lead. Eragon protests that he likes the life he’s already leading. Garrow concedes that lots of people have their life goals very near, but some people are just the adventuring type.

At the mention of adventure, Eragon spots an opportunity, and asks if that’s why his mother left. Garrow pauses, and then takes the time to clearly state that she was his sister, lest the audience be confused, and he’s happy that he had the chance to raise his nephew alongside his own son. Gotta keep that exposition train a-goin’. Garrow says she left because of reasons. In a twist that should really not surprise you at this point, the reasons are not elaborated upon.

Now Roran’s leaving! Garrow gives him some money that he’d been saving up for this exact purpose, gives him a hug, and sends him on his way. Eragon stands awkwardly in the background, before walking his cousin to the edge of town. As a part of his goodbyes, Roran tells Eragon to work on his aim. It was at this point during the film that I realized they might be saying that Eragon’s hunting skills are legit bad. Eragon sits on a rock and mopes while Roran walks off into the sunset, never to be seen again.

And that’s it for Part 2! This one took a little longer to write than I had hoped, but between life being what it is and these dang soldiers continuing to exist in this movie, sometimes that’s just how it goes. Thank you all for reading, and thanks to everyone who left comments on Part 1! It was great hearing from you. This part covered about 8 minutes of screentime. A lot happened in those 8 minutes… Maybe things will also happen in Part 3! In the meantime, be sure to let me know If you have any thoughts, feelings, questions, conspiracy theories, or favourite rocks.

Remember to tune in next week when we visit such questions as “will Roran be able to capture the Avatar and restore his honour?”, “how many corners will the writers back themselves into?”, and “how will Eragon handle the newfound pressure of geology fame?”. See you then!