#PREEMINENT CONFIRMED??? KINDA???

[spinjitsuburst]

HELLO??????????

[ninjago-x-lmk]

I think this is how it works.

The Underworld > For Warriors Disgraced in Battle.

The Cursed Realm > For People who have died with bad deeds or bad intentions and motivations such as vengeance or murder.

The Departed Realm in general > THE ACTUAL resting place of the dead.

This is Kinda like in The Underworld of Greek Mythology where souls go to different places depending on how they live…

The Fields of Asphodel is somewhat debated on what it does, but is considered to be a place where a majority of the dead go.

The Elysium is considered the place where heroes like Achilles or where Heracles would’ve ended up in if they died. Sometimes there’s an exception where the gods will request for you to end up there.

Then there’s the Isle of the Blessed which is sometimes considered a real place on Earth where good people go to that aren’t necessarily heroes.

Then there’s Tartarus a widely excepted place in Mythology which is basically Hell if you want to simplify it…

In the Ninjago World there seems to be more than one way you can die and could end up either in The Underworld, The Cursed Realm or The Departed Realm.

For The Underworld it is mainly far warriors who are disgraced in battle, those who are dishonored, disliked and tyrants in battle, like Samukai.

Garmadon DID NOT DIE however, he just fell into the Underworld…since his Season 1 form is more or less confirmed to be some type of Oni Form or something that is affiliated with the Oni, (considering Mystake turns into a Similar form in front of Garmadon) the Oni Form could just be permanently activated by his evilness, other than that, Garmadon did not die, so he couldn’t have turned into a Skulkin because of not dying.

Meanwhile the Departed Realm is rightfully named because it is the only place where the Dead go…we barely even see this Realm, but judging by Lloyd’s temporary visit to it, and a glimpse of what it looks like to Wu and Pixal, It’s likely it’s separated between Good and Bad people. (Whether or not the bad part was made due to the Cursed Realm’s influence is not confirmed)

Meanwhile usually the way to get to the Cursed Realm is if your soul is cursed when you were alive and you died or if your soul was banished. And since the Cursed Realm is basically the guts of the Preeminent, it works like a Digestive System where the longer you stay there you basically get your skin peeled off and turned into a soul. (Examples Include: Clouse and The Anacondrai Generals) Not only that but it basically looks like purgatory since those who reside there are eternally hungry and thirsty.

A majority of the Cursed Realm’s residents are either dead or were banished to the Cursed Realm, (Soul Archer for instance) so it’s hard to determine what exactly makes them ‘Cursed’ other than their souls are cursed.

Guys! Tommy talks about the Underworld and How it works! This could be super helpful in figuring out more about Bonzle!

It also answers some questions about what happened to Garmadon when he fell down there! Take a gander at this stuff!

That last comment is super interesting! It could give insight as to what happened to Bonzle!👀

[blackkudos]

Raphael Saadiq

Raphael Saadiq (born Charles Ray Wiggins; May 14, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. He rose to fame as a member of the multiplatinum group Tony! Toni! Toné! In addition to his solo and group career, he has also produced songs for such artists as Joss Stone, D'Angelo, TLC, En Vogue, Kelis, Mary J. Blige, Ledisi, Whitney Houston, Solange Knowles and John Legend.

He and D'Angelo were occasional members of The Ummah, a music production collective, composed of members Q-Tip and Ali Shaheed Muhammad of A Tribe Called Quest, and J Dilla of the Detroit-based group Slum Village. He is a co-founder of independent video game developer IllFonic, which developed Friday the 13th: The Game.

Saadiq's critically acclaimed album The Way I See It, released on September 16, 2008, featuring artists Stevie Wonder, Joss Stone, and Jay-Z, received three Grammy Award nominations. His fourth studio album, Stone Rollin', was released on March 25, 2011. For the album, Saadiq worked with steel guitarist Robert Randolph; former Earth, Wind & Fire keyboardist Larry Dunn; Swedish-Japanese indie rock singer Yukimi Nagano (of Little Dragon fame); funk artist Larry Graham (on the bonus song "Perfect Storm") and Taura 'Aura Jackson' Stinson.

Music critic Robert Christgau has called Saadiq the "preeminent R&B artist of the '90s".

Early life

Saadiq was born in Oakland, California, the second-youngest of 14 siblings. His early life was marked by tragedy; he experienced the deaths of several of his siblings as a young child. When Saadiq was seven years old, one brother was murdered. One of his brothers overdosed on heroin and another committed suicide because he was unable to deal with his addiction to the drug. His sister died as a result of a car crash during a police chase in a residential neighborhood. Saadiq states that he does not want his music to be reflective of the tragedies he experienced, saying that "And through all of that I was makin' records, but it wasn't comin' out in the music. I did it to kinda show people you can have some real tough things happen in your life, but you don't have to wear it on your sleeve."

He has been playing the bass guitar since the age of six, and first began singing at age nine in a local gospel group. At the age of 12, he joined a group called "The Gospel Humminbirds". In 1984, shortly before his 18th birthday, Saadiq heard about tryouts in San Francisco for Sheila E.'s backing band on Prince's Parade Tour. At the audition, he chose the name "Raphael", and had difficulty remembering to respond to the name when he heard that he got the part to play bass in the band. He says of the experience, "Next thing I was in Tokyo, in a stadium, singin' Erotic City. We were in huge venues with the biggest sound systems in the world; all these roadies throwin' me basses, and a bunch of models hangin' round Prince to party. For almost two years. That was my university."

Career

1987–1999: Tony! Toni! Toné! and The Ummah

After returning to Oakland from touring with Prince, Saadiq began his professional career as the lead vocalist and bassist in the rhythm and blues and dance trio Tony! Toni! Toné! He used the name Raphael Wiggins while in Tony! Toni! Toné!, along with his brother Dwayne Wiggins, and his cousin Timothy Christian. In the mid-1990s, he adopted the last name Saadiq, which means "man of his word" in Arabic. His change of surname led many to speculate that he had converted to Islam at that point; in reality, Saadiq is not a Muslim, but rather just liked the way "Saadiq" sounded and changed his last name simply to distinguish himself from and avoid potential confusion with his brother, Dwayne Wiggins. As he confirmed by telling noted R&B writer Pete Lewis of the award-winning 'Blues & Soul' in May 2009, "I just wanted to have my own identity!"

In 1995, Saadiq had his biggest solo hit to date, when "Ask of You", featured on the Higher Learning Soundtrack peaked at #19 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #2 on the R&B chart. In 1995, Saadiq produced and performed on Otis & Shug's debut album, We Can Do Whatever.

Tony! Toni! Toné! would become major R&B superstars throughout the late 1980s and 1990s. However, after the 1996 album entitled House of Music failed to duplicate the group's previous success, Tony! Toni! Toné! went their separate ways in 1997.

1999–2004: Lucy Pearl and first string of solo albums

In 1999, Saadiq's next big project became the R&B supergroup Lucy Pearl. He recorded the self-titled album with Dawn Robinson (En Vogue) and Ali Shaheed Muhammad (A Tribe Called Quest). The group only lasted for one album.

Also in 1999, he collaborated with rapper Q-Tip on the single "Get Involved", from the animated television series The PJs. It samples The Intruders' 1973 song "I'll Always Love My Mama" and charted at number 21 on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks.

His 2000 song collaboration "Untitled (How Does It Feel)" won D'Angelo a Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance; it was also nominated for Grammy Award for Best R&B Song. The song was ranked #4 on Rolling Stone's "End of Year Critics & Readers Poll" of the top singles of 2000. D'Angelo's album Voodoo won a Grammy Award for Best R&B Album at the 2001 Grammy Awards.

In 2002, Saadiq founded his own record label, Pookie Entertainment. Among the artists on the label are Joi and Truth Hurts. In 2002, he released his first solo album Instant Vintage, which earned him three Grammy Award nominations in addition to another two Grammy nominations for his writing work on “Love of My Life (An Ode to Hip-Hop)” the following year. He released a two-disc live album All the Hits at the House of Blues in 2003, and his second studio album Ray Ray in 2004, both on Pookie Entertainment.

2004–2010: Expanded output and second string of albums

In 2004, Saadiq produced a remix of the song "Crooked Nigga Too" by Tupac Shakur which is featured on the album Loyal to the Game. Other artists he has collaborated with include Whitney Houston, Mary J. Blige, The Isley Brothers, A Tribe Called Quest, Teedra Moses, The Roots, Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, Macy Gray, Angie Stone, Snoop Dogg, Mac Dre, Devin the Dude, DJ Quik, Kelis, Q-Tip, Lil' Skeeter, Ludacris, The Bee Gees, Musiq Soulchild, Jaguar Wright, Chanté Moore, Lionel Richie, Marcus Miller, Noel Gourdin, Nappy Roots, Calvin Richardson, T-Boz from TLC, Jody Watley, Floetry, Leela James, Amp Fiddler, John Legend, Joss Stone, Young Bellz, Anthony Hamilton, Babyface, Ledisi, Goapele, Ghostface Killah, —Ginuwine, The Grouch Stevie Wonder, Earth, Wind & Fire, Bilal, Chali 2na, Larry Graham, Luniz as well as many others. In 2007, Saadiq produced Introducing Joss Stone, the third album of British soul singer Joss Stone. According to J. Gabriel Boylan of The New York Observer, "he's produced artists including Macy Gray, the Roots, D'Angelo, John Legend, Whitney Houston, Mary J. Blige, and more. With all of them he's pushed a classic aesthetic, heavy on organic sounds and light on studio magic, deeply indebted to the past and distrustful of easy formulas."

Saadiq's third solo album, The Way I See It, released on Columbia Records on September 16, 2008, available in a collector's edition box set of 7" 45 rpm singles as well as on traditional CD, was critically well-received, made several critics' 2008 best albums lists, and garnered three Grammy nominations including Best R&B Performance by a Duo Or Group With Vocals (for "Never Give You Up", featuring Stevie Wonder & CJ Hilton); Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance (for "Love That Girl") and Best R&B Album for The Way I See It. Music from The Way I See It was featured in the following motion pictures: Madea Goes To Jail, Bride Wars, Cadillac Records, Secret Life of Bees, In Fighting (Rogue), and It's Complicated.

Touring with a nine piece band, Saadiq hit the 2009 summer music festival circuit with performances at Bonnaroo, Hollywood Bowl, Outside Lands, Pori Jazz, Stockholm Jazz Festival, North Sea Jazz, Essence Music Festival, Summer Spirit Festival, and Nice Jazz Festival, Bumbershoot Music Festival and Austin City Limits. Saadiq has been touring Europe extensively, and held a five-night residency at the House of Blues in Tokyo, Japan, in June 2009. In 2008, Saadiq formed a new label called Velma Records, a place where he promises "people can express themselves like I did with The Way I See It... where they can dream something up and just go with it".

He produced songs for LeToya Luckett's forthcoming second album Lady Love, released August 2009. In 2009, Saadiq produced "Please Stay" and "Love Never Changes" for Ledisi's August 2009 release "Turn Me Loose". Saadiq also was the executive producer for an emerging group called Tha Boogie. Tha Boogie's first EP was released on iTunes and is titled Love Tha Boogie, Vol. 1 (Steal This Sh*t).

In 2009, Saadiq announced his video game development company called IllFonic. The first video game in development by IllFonic is titled Ghetto Golf, with an expected release late in 2010. In 2009, Saadiq teamed up Bentley Kyle Evans, Jeff Franklin, Martin Lawrence, and Trenten Gumbs to create a new sitcom called Love That Girl! starring Tatyana Ali. Raphael is an executive producer and composer for Love That Girl!. The show airs on TV One and debuted on January 19, 2010. That same year, Saadiq performed The Spinners hit "It's A Shame" in a legendary Levi's commercial and sang as part of the chorus in the 2010 remake of "We Are the World" for Haiti.

2011–present: Stone Rollin'

In 2011, Saadiq was the guitarist/bandleader for the group backing Mick Jagger for Jagger's tribute performance of the Solomon Burke R&B classic, "Everybody Needs Somebody to Love" at the 53rd Grammy Awards in Los Angeles and on CBS. The band that accompanied the performance was Saadiq's touring band called Stone Rollin. In 2011 he and his band performed as the ESPY's house band for the night, where he performed his latest compositions.

Saadiq's 2011 album Stone Rollin' was released to great critical acclaim. "He's always had a boyish enthusiasm for performing, and a flexible, naturally joyous voice that suggests a young Stevie Wonder," wrote Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune, "but with his latest album, Saadiq finds a new gear. The album and his current tour demonstrate that there's a big difference between retro and classic, and the artist consistently finds himself on the right side of that divide." Kot ranked the album number seven in his year-end list, in which he dubbed it Saadiq's "finest achievement" and stated, "He's always written songs steeped in soul and R&B, but now he gives them a progressive edge with roaming bass lines and haunted keyboard textures. He's no longer a retro stylist – he's writing new classics." Critic Jim Derogatis called it "a stone cold gas of a party disc."

In fall 2011, he performed on the fourth results show of Dancing with the Stars season 13. In December 2011, he performed a cover compilation of several Neil Diamond songs at the Kennedy Center Honors award ceremony.

In 2012 he signed a deal with Toyota to do a TV commercial for the Toyota Prius. In 2013 Raphael partnered with Bay Area/ Atlanta Production company EL Seven Entertainment/ Republic Records and new R&B Superstar Adrian Marcel and released his 1st promotional mixtape "Raphael Saadiq Presents Adrian Marcel 7 Days of Weak".

Saadiq is a featured bass guitar player on Elton John's 2013 album, The Diving Board.

In 2016 he executive produced Solange Knowles album, A Seat At The Table which debuted at #1 on music charts in the United States. He also guest starred in Luke Cage, where he performs his songs "Good Man" and "Angel" at Harlem's Paradise.

In 2017 he appeared in the award-winning documentary film The American Epic Sessions, directed by Bernard MacMahon, where he recorded the Memphis Jug Band’s 1928 song “Stealin’ Stealin’” live on the restored first electrical sound recording system from the 1920s. Of recording on the system he said, “it’s amazing to just look at how it’s built, you know just look at the machine itself. It just has this like magical sound the way that it’s built. It’s true. It’s just the truest sound you could ever get.”

In 2017, Saadiq collaborated with Mary J. Blige as a songwriter for the movie Mudbound (2017), for which they both received Academy Award nominations for Best Original Song.

In 2018, he produced the John Legend holiday themed album, A Legendary Christmas.

During the 2020 coronavirus pandemic he released a song on his website called Rony! Roni! Roné!”

Discography

Studio albums

Instant Vintage (2002)

Ray Ray (2004)

The Way I See It (2008)

Stone Rollin' (2011)

Jimmy Lee (2019)

with Tony! Toni! Toné!

Who? (1988)

The Revival (1990)

Sons of Soul (1993)

House of Music (1996)

with Lucy Pearl

Lucy Pearl (2000)

[obscurewatch]

D.Va's skin Black Cat has been hinting at the new Paris map for a year

The Black Cat skin for D.Va was added January 23rd 2018 as part of the cosmetic update.

On the mech's jetpack-wing-thing, you can see a LUNA sticker. Until now, it made no sense but with the release of the Paris map and the introduction of the omnic cabaret singer/owner Luna, we now know the whole skin was a clue about Paris :D

From the game files, texture file of all the stickers on Black Cat

Same cat ears !

Since Black Cat's release, we've had 12 months to figure out Paris was going to become a map. The skin contained "enough" clues to make a wild guess and think of Paris, or at the very least think of the cabaret vibe, and then of Paris.

Her dress looks like the curtains of a cabaret stage. Her shoes and that pearl belt also look very cabaret-ish. Her cleavage also has that cabaret vibe and look at the lace on her dress, on her mech and on her cleavage too. The hearts everywhere on this skin (even though hearts are already a big part of D.Va's design) could have made us thing of "Paris city of Love".

NOW it all makes sense.

It would have required gigatons of reaching in order to guess Paris out of that. But technically it was doable. Once you assume that everything is a clue (and this just confirms it), you start seeing things and all it takes is connecting the dots.

I like that it might be canon that D.Va is a big fan of Luna !

From the Patch Notes :

Paris, an elegant city of art and romance, is the home of our newest Assault map. Begin your journey at the Cabaret Luna, where the velvety alto voice of preeminent diva Luna charms movie stars, revolutionaries, locals, and tourists alike.

...D.Va IS a movie star !

The name of the skin itself is a cool reference.

Black Cat. Chat Noir in french.

There's a very famous parisian cabaret by that name.

And there's a very famous poster advertising that cabaret.

On the left, a poster we can see in Luna's cabaret as well as inside the bakery. On the right, a poster from 1896 advertising a tour with the Chat Noir cabaret's troupe of entertainers.

So yeah, with Blizzard, everything is either a clue for future releases or an easter egg.

They've been subtly hinting at a Paris map with a skin for an entire year and we completely missed it. Granted, it was kind of hard to guess. But it goes to show that they ALWAYS tease everything, months if not years in advance ! We're constantly surrounded by teases for things that won't come out for months or years and we don't even know it. Just how much is there out there for us to find ?!? Makes my head spin.

Wait

Hold up.

HOLD UP.

(from the PTR patch notes)

Paris, an elegant city of art and romance, is the home of our newest Assault map. Begin your journey at the Cabaret Luna, where the velvety alto voice of preeminent diva Luna charms movie stars, revolutionaries, locals, and tourists alike.

preeminent diva Luna

What if Hana picked the name D.Va because of her idol : Luna

...hot damn.

WHEN DOES IT END? Just how many layers are there?????

Blizzard, stahp. It's too much. We can't keep up !

That would explain so many things. D.Va is a nerd for Paris.

Phew. Wow. Okay then.

One more thing about Luna.

See the blue dot under her eye? It's called a "mouche" (a fly in english, because it's the size of a fly, kinda), it's a fake beauty mark made of fabric that was all the rage centuries ago in France and is still used in a few places, like cabarets for examples. It serves a specific purpose, depending on where you put it on your face/cleavage, it will have a different meaning. For example, in Luna's case, if you put it in the corner of the eye, it indicates to the people around you that you're the "passionate" type.

"Plus cruelle que la passion, n'éprouvant aucune compassion" she sings. More cruel than passion, showing no sign of compassion.

We get it, you're passionate x)

I'm passionate as well, about clues that is, and if you are too then you should join my discord server where we get real passionate about clues.

https://discord.gg/SkVvhJN

Everything is a clue. Me, you, them, everything. It never ends. Every new update, more clues. Let's find them all !

[segadores-y-soldados]

Have Some Mercy

Anon: “I don't know if you've mentioned this, but what do you think the odds are of Mercy being evil? I see a lot of theories about that, but I don't know if they can be backed up or not. I'm sorry if you've already discussed this” Hey, no worries, Anon - a lot of my Mercy stuff is spread out through like...five separate posts, so here’s one that’s got it all collected.  I moved this to a regular tumblr post so that I could also provide a cut and pics and whatnot.

I think Mercy’s personality is basically how she’s presented in the game - a healer who is passionate about her work, but also gets rather tired of the responsibilities she feels.  She appears to have some level of guilt or frustration over Overwatch’s fall, indicated by the line:

Overwatch was shut down for a reason. Maybe it's best it stay that way.

So in short, no, I don’t think Mercy is “evil” - I’ve seen a lot of similar theories and almost none of them have real evidence to back them up.  

To start with, we’ll get the “biggest one” out of the way:

Mercy is the one who incorrectly resurrected Gabriel Reyes/Reaper.

This is not true.

More under the cut

https://us.battle.net/forums/en/overwatch/topic/20747844983#post-16

Chu: “I'm not sure where it came from (maybe there is another line that sounds similar to it), but the "this is not what I intended for you, Reyes" line/exchange does not actually exist in the game.”

For a long time, many fans seemed to believe that there was a voiceline or interaction between Mercy and Reaper that went something along the lines of:

Reaper: you’re the one responsible for all this. Mercy: this was not my intention for you, Reyes.

Now, there is an unused Reaper voiceline that goes:

Reaper:  Don't forget, you're the one responsible for this.

But because it’s unused, he never actually says it.

We also need to remember that the game itself isn’t “canon” - what is happening with the game is a huge series of “what if’s”.  “What if” these six heroes got together and defended a payload in Numbani from another six heroes?  “What if” Reaper and Ana ended up working together again after the events of the Old Soldiers comic?  “What if” Genji and Hanzo had to work together in Hanamura after “Dragons”?  That sort of thing.

The game is basically a massive reference system for each character’s personalities and interactions, but are not actually 100% canon.  Each voiceline is meant to give you an indicator on 1) who this character is, 2) what their relationships with the other characters are, and 3) their relationships within the larger world of Overwatch (e.g. when a character comments about a specific map).

The “exception” to this are the series of interactions between Reaper, Sombra, Soldier: 76, and Ana.  While these still fall in the category of “what if” (these four characters interacted post-Old Soldiers), these four are the only characters who currently know that Reaper is Gabriel Reyes.  It is debatable how much Doomfist/Akande Ogundimu and Widowmaker/Amélie Lacroix know about Reaper.

Getting back to Mercy, she certainly has some Strange Techno-magic Shit going on, that Blizzard has put under their category of “firm science fiction” by describing her Caduceus staff as “nanobot technology,” but basically the majority of her interactions in-game are “Not Canon” in the sense of being firm, specific events we can point to and stamp as “This is canon proof about Mercy’s life.”

Mercy forced Genji to become a cyborg.

I spoke with a user privately not too long ago about the nature of Genji becoming a cyborg - the short answer is “we just don’t really know enough details about his fight with Hanzo and ‘the deal’ he made with Overwatch/Blackwatch to argue who is morally right or wrong here.”  And the longer answer is basically an expanded version of that.

We don’t actually know what level of involvement Mercy specifically had in terms of rescuing Genji and the Overwatch/Blackwatch operation against the Shimada clan.  Presumably, Overwatch/Blackwatch had been investigating the Shimadas for some time, which is why they were “close by” when the fight between Genji and Hanzo occurred and could rescue Genji before his death.  My assumption is that Mercy is still a doctor who genuinely believes in doing good, and so she wanted to help save Genji and create a new body for him.  Her level of involvement in making him “a human weapon” for Overwatch is not known.  In Uprising we see her monitoring his training, but I would assume by that point the person who is actually in charge of him is Commander Reyes.

Mercy has connections to Oasis/the group governing Oasis.

This is one I actually believe.

If you’re not aware, there’s a lot of interesting little lore bits floating around about Oasis.  The “City of Science” is governed by eight ministries, each one “ruling” over the city’s different scientific disciplines (e.g. Geology, Biology, etc).  We are specifically told that there is, in fact, a Ministry of Biology.

https://playoverwatch.com/en-us/blog/20457295

Mercy is a preeminent doctor in biotic nanotechnology.  Her last known location as of Recall is somewhere in the Arabian Desert.  Oasis, meanwhile, has been confirmed to be in Iraq.

Fortunately, the game has actually provided us with a handy little map showing Oasis’ location.

And yes, that is Oasis’ location because it is the only map currently found on the Arabian peninsula.

This map is pulled from the computer on Necropolis, where Ana and Soldier: 76 are tracking Reaper’s locations.  These locations are:

St. Petersburg, Russia (Volskaya Industries - Infiltration)

Watchpoint: Gibraltar (Recall)

Numbani, Nigeria (Museum Heist)

Los Angeles, California (Reflections?)

Oasis, Iraq

(Not shown: Giza, Egypt - Old Soldiers)

Oasis is particularly interesting because it’s hypothetically the only location we haven’t seen Reaper appear at in “actual canon materials” (aka comics and shorts, or lore events like Uprising), which means we need to sit down and scrutinized why it’s being referenced alongside “canon appearances.”

Reaper has a very specific, “semi-canon” interaction when he is selected alongside another character in Oasis:

Sombra: So what are we doing here boss? Reaper: I need to pay a visit to a friend.

Remember, Reaper’s interactions with Sombra are “canon” in the sense that she knows who he is, and presumably knows about his “condition” too.

A number of theories argue that Reaper is going there to “off” Mercy... but considering their only “what if they encountered each other” interaction is this:

Mercy: What happened to you? Reaper: You tell me, Doc.

It legitimately sounds like Reaper is actually going in for a doctor’s appointment with the doctor who may have the ability to resurrect the dead.

Mercy is not exactly what she seems to be.

This one I also believe, and this ties into the last “theory.”

http://segadores-y-soldados.tumblr.com/post/159665523340/overwatch-apocalypse-now

I have a long essay talking about some of the “dead/undead” mofits in Overwatch, and Mercy is basically top of the list - yes, arguably beating out Reaper.  The issue, as is the issue for like 70% of the Overwatch cast, is that we simply do not have enough lore/story/plot for Mercy to determine what exactly is “off” about her.

Just that she kinda is off.

In the essay I linked to, I talk a lot about how the symbolism and mythologies that Mercy’s different skins reference should give us some pause.  They’re not canon (well, the “Witch” is canon as a Halloween costume she wore at some point before Overwatch fell), but they’re not...exactly... “isolated” either.

I sum it up like this:

What the Overwatch team is building here is a series of “range of canon” background mythologies (some that are “non-canon but merely background white noise that colors how the players view the world,” to “these are kinda sorta canon and you should be paying attention to how we use these references,” to “these are outright canon and we will be using them blatantly for whatever we want”) that develop the world in a set of unique ways.  Even for the stuff that “isn’t canon,” it still exists in the game and it still tints how players interact with the characters, their personalities, and their story arcs.

So yes, I know that like half of this essay or whatever “isn’t canon.”  But if Mercy’s Witch skin has impacted how you view her, or knowledge of Watchmen has impacted how you understand Overwatch as a whole, or hearing Orisa’s voiceline about the Iris has changed your perception of it, then does it matter “how canon” it is?

If it has impacted how you see it

Then it has already influenced how you interpret it.  

I wrote this essay like, right after Uprising came out.  Since then, we’ve received a few more indications on how this reading is not inaccurate:

This doesn’t even cover backstories like Reaper or Mei or D.va, that latter of whom straight up has Godzilla/Evangelion references in her background.  And this doesn’t even cover stuff like the battle of Eichenwalde, or Deadlock, or “HAL-fred Glitchbot” (who is literally a reference to HAL and Alfred Hitchcock, both elements of “Hollywood horror”), or even the issues around Los Muertos.  There’s a ton here that shows that the Overwatch devs are dropping apocalyptic and/or horror references as varied as Mad Max to Apocalypse Now to 2001: A Space Odyssey to Neon Genesis Evangelion to The Headless Horseman to “the grandfather of all sci-fi” Frankenstein to “the grandfather of American macabre Romanticism” Edgar Allan Poe.  

The “background mythos” of Overwatch is filled with horror story references - everything from The Raven, to Thriller, to Psycho.  Behind the bright colors and beautiful maps are canon stories that imply something darker - a God Program being contained against its will, a yakuza clan that “needs to be reigned in,” a city “building the tallest tower in the world,” an arms-dealing gang “coming back into power,” an EMP being delivered to “hostile Omincs” - and a whole slew of “non-canon references” that display something even deeper, “even darker” that lurks beneath them all.

And what did we receive for our patience?

More

http://segadores-y-soldados.tumblr.com/post/164048891205/chateau-guillard-details

Evidence.

http://segadores-y-soldados.tumblr.com/post/163200042035/death-becomes-you

And what’s coming next?

Athena: Welcome to Junkertown.

The mother of all Overwatch apocalypse maps is going to “hook” us in soon.

So what exactly is “going on” with Mercy?

“You tell me, doc.”

I’m not certain, but I’m super excited to see where her lore goes.  I suspect that if Reaper is actually visiting her to “get a consultation,” then Mercy contains a lot of the “answers” we’ve been missing - what happened to Overwatch after the fall?  What is going on with Reaper’s condition?  Can she actually resurrect people from the dead?

And if heroes never die

Then why do they appear to be losing “the war” against evil?

[recentanimenews]

Rating the Wishes of Juni Taisen

Hello all, and welcome to Why It Works! The Juni Taisen has at last come to a close, with Rat securing both his victory and his desired wish. But Juni Taisen was always more about the characters than the combat, so it came as no surprise that the show’s finale acted as something of a eulogy for this show’s fascinating cast. Rat’s special power gave him the ability to plot out one hundred possible futures, and in at least a few of those futures he ended up asking all his fellow competitors what their victory wishes would be. Some were sad, some were silly, some revised our view of their bearers, and others only confirmed everything we knew. I kinda fell in love with this cast over the course of this series and so today I’d like celebrate their wishes. And what better way to do that than to judge them based on the nature of their heart’s desire? Today on Why It Works, here are my official ratings of the hopes of the zodiac warriors!

Sheep

Wish: Eternal youth

Rating: Unconvincing

Sheep’s conversation with Rat seems as duplicitous as his theorized conversations with all the other Juni Taisen competitors. Sheep wants to play the part of the feeble old man and, to a teen like Rat, idolizing youth probably seems like it’d be the smart play. The truth Sheep wouldn’t want to reveal is that he has no wish: he has lived a long life, seen his family grow up, and is content with what he has accomplished. Sheep got away.

Chicken

Wish: Confidence

Rating: Heartbreaking

Chicken’s wish reflects the fact that she was never really given a choice in life. Her career as a warrior was prompted by necessity - she was neither born into a noble family like Boar or willingly adopted into one like Sheep, she was simply raised as a tool by others. Chicken understands there is an emptiness inside of her, but all she wishes is to no longer recognize it - for her to truly be able to believe in a life she knows is false. When Rat asks why she doesn’t just wish to not be a warrior, she seems genuinely surprised that that’s even an option. Chicken deserved better than this life and better than this wish.

Boar

Wish: A harem, of course!

Rating: Outstanding

Boar didn’t come into this Juni Taisen looking to make friends or find herself. Boar knows who she is: she grew up in a prestigious warrior house, she’s the best at what she does, and she wants to reap the rewards. Boar’s wish perfectly reflects her self-interest, lack of pretension, and utter satisfaction in being the person she is. You do you, Boar.

Dog

Wish: Security for his daughter

Rating: Adorable

Dog’s wish was one of the truest script-flippers, introducing us to a side of the character we had no reason to suspect existed. Yet, between the direct revision of Dog’s flashback intro and the incredible charm of him being so proud of his breakfast skills, I bought Dog’s true self completely. Dog is a professional and a family man. He may enjoy his work, but at the end of the day, it’s his daughter who brings out that smile.

Horse

Wish: Talent

Rating: Nearsighted

Horse understands that this is an arbitrary world. Strength is distributed unequally, people succeed or fail for reasons outside of their control, and no amount of training can measure up to a genius-level talent. But Horse is a simple man, and thus he wishes not to break this cycle, but to simply be one of its success stories. Like Chicken, Horse is blinded by his worldview; unlike Chicken, the limitations of this worldview are entirely of his own making.

Rabbit

Wish: To be friends with everyone in the world!

Rating: Psychotic

Rat really had to stretch to make Rabbit’s wish seem like anything more worthwhile than his own lack of direction. “Becoming friends with everyone” doesn’t really pass muster after twelve episodes of demonstrating your “friends” tend to be lifeless, moldy, and just as murderous as you. I suppose Rabbit is at least as true to himself as Boar.

Tiger

Wish: To fight against Ox as equals

Rating: Noble

Tiger idolized Ox because he possessed a certainty of righteousness that she could never attain. It likely wouldn’t comfort Tiger to hear this, but her own uncertainty was in itself a positive and noble thing. Tiger’s experience on the battlefield was devastating precisely because she was the kind of person who cared deeply about helping others, about doing the right thing, about improving the world - and for most people, embracing those values means embracing uncertainty, and knowing there is rarely a simple right answer. A better world would have validated Tiger’s nobility, but this one was at least able to grant her wish.

Snake/Dragon

Wish: Money

Rating: Endearingly insincere

Both Snake and Dragon immediately walk back their wish for money, but only when they’re separated from the other. That fact reflects the nature of their relationship: that even though they overtly crow about competition and the preeminence of money, the only things they really care about are each other. Their rhetoric is the way they affirm that they are on the same wavelength, and if one of them truly reached the end, you can bet anything the other would soon be mocking them for their actual, sentimental wish.

Monkey/Ox

Wish: To save the world

Rating: Impossible, unattainable, and absolutely necessary

We don’t hear Monkey or Ox directly articulate their wish, but given who they are and how Rat lumps them together, it’s not hard to guess. Both Monkey and Ox are indeed impossible role models to follow - but people like them do exist, and ideals like that are still worth following. Perhaps neither Monkey’s platitudes nor Ox’s righteousness could truly save the world, but it’s only Monkey’s words that save Rat, and only Ox’s righteousness that saves Tiger. Goals need not be attainable to be utterly worth pursuing.

Rat

Wish: To forget

Rating: Painfully appropriate

Rat’s power is the curse of knowledge: the ability to know all the possible ways things could turn out, and thus the certainty of knowing things would turn out badly most of the time. Rat’s victory reflects Juni Taisen’s general disdain for war as some kind of righteous crusade; it is not nobility or even necessarily strength that determines victory, but luck, and Rat is the patron saint of luck. Rat is ultimately the troubled, often bitter, constantly uncertain teenager that Monkey pinned him as and, in the end, this avatar of unhappy information only wishes for the absolution of ignorance. Rat’s wish may bring him some comfort, but it feels like it may be the unhappiest wish of all.

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Nick Creamer has been writing about cartoons for too many years now, and is always ready to cry about Madoka. You can find more of his work at his blog Wrong Every Time, or follow him on Twitter.

By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com

[blackkudos]

Raphael Saadiq

Raphael Saadiq /səˈdiːk/ (born Charles Ray Wiggins; May 14, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, guitarist, and record producer. Saadiq has been a standard bearer for "old school" R&B since his early days as a member of the multiplatinum group Tony! Toni! Toné! He has also produced songs for such artists as Joss Stone, D'Angelo, TLC, Kelis, Mary J. Blige, Whitney Houston, Solange Knowles and John Legend.

He and D'Angelo were occasional members of The Ummah, a music production collective, composed of members Q-Tip and Ali Shaheed Muhammad of A Tribe Called Quest, and J Dilla of the Detroit-based group Slum Village. He is also a co-founder of independent video game developer IllFonic.

Saadiq's critically acclaimed album, The Way I See It, released on September 16, 2008, featuring artists Stevie Wonder, Joss Stone, and Jay-Z, received three Grammy Award nominations and was voted Best Album on iTunes of 2008. His fourth studio album, Stone Rollin', was released on March 25, 2011. For the album, Saadiq worked with steel guitarist Robert Randolph; former Earth, Wind & Fire keyboardist Larry Dunn; Swedish-Japanese indie rock singer Yukimi Nagano (of Little Dragon fame); funk artist Larry Graham (on the bonus cut "Perfect Storm") and soul newcomer Taura 'Aura Jackson' Stinson.

Music critic Robert Christgau has called Saadiq the "preeminent R&B artist of the '90s".

Early life

Saadiq was born in Oakland, California, the second-youngest of 14 siblings and half-siblings. His early life was marked by tragedy; he experienced the deaths of several of his siblings as a young child. When Saadiq was seven years old, his brother was murdered. One of his brothers overdosed on heroin and another committed suicide because he was unable to deal with his addiction to the drug. His sister died as a result of a car crash during a police chase in a residential neighborhood. Saadiq states that he does not want his music to be reflective of the tragedies he experienced, saying that "And through all of that I was makin' records, but it wasn't comin' out in the music. I did it to kinda show people you can have some real tough things happen in your life, but you don't have to wear it on your sleeve."

He has been playing the bass guitar since the age of six, and first began singing at age nine in a local gospel group. At the age of 12, he joined a group called "The Gospel Humminbirds". In 1984, shortly before his 18th birthday, Saadiq heard about tryouts in San Francisco for Sheila E.'s backing band on Prince's Parade Tour. At the audition, he chose the name "Raphael", and had difficulty remembering to respond to the name when he heard that he got the part to play bass in the band. He says of the experience, "Next thing I was in Tokyo, in a stadium, singin' Erotic City. We were in huge venues with the biggest sound systems in the world; all these roadies throwin' me basses, and a bunch of models hangin' round Prince to party. For almost two years. That was my university."

Career

1987–1999: Tony! Toni! Toné! and The Ummah

After returning to Oakland from touring with Prince, Saadiq began his professional career as the lead vocalist and bassist in the rhythm and blues and dance trio Tony! Toni! Toné! He used the name Raphael Wiggins while in Tony! Toni! Toné!, along with his brother Dwayne Wiggins, and his cousin Timothy Christian. In the mid-1990s, he adopted the last name Saadiq, which means "man of his word" in Arabic. His change of surname led many to speculate that he had converted to Islam at that point; in reality, Saadiq is not a Muslim, but rather just liked the way "Saadiq" sounded and changed his last name simply to distinguish himself from and avoid potential confusion with his brother, Dwayne Wiggins. As he confirmed by telling noted R&B writer Pete Lewis of the award-winning 'Blues & Soul' in May 2009, "I just wanted to have my own identity!"

In 1995, Saadiq had his biggest solo hit to date, when "Ask of You", featured on the Higher Learning Soundtrack peaked at #19 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #2 on the R&B chart. In 1995, Saadiq produced and performed on Otis & Shug's debut album, We Can Do Whatever.

Tony! Toni! Toné! would become major R&B superstars throughout the late-1980s and 1990s. However, after the 1996 album entitled House of Music failed to duplicate the group's previous success, Tony! Toni! Toné! went their separate ways in 1997.

1999–2004: Lucy Pearl and first string of solo albums

In 1999, Saadiq's next big project became the R&B supergroup Lucy Pearl. He recorded the self-titled album with Dawn Robinson (En Vogue) and Ali Shaheed Muhammad (A Tribe Called Quest). The group only lasted for one album.

Also in 1999, he collaborated with rapper Q-Tip on the single "Get Involved", from the animated television series The PJs. It samples The Intruders' 1973 song "I'll Always Love My Mama" and charted at number 21 on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks.

His 2000 song collaboration "Untitled (How Does It Feel)" won D'Angelo a Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance; it was also nominated for Grammy Award for Best R&B Song. The song was ranked #4 on Rolling Stone's "End of Year Critics & Readers Poll" of the top singles of 2000. D'Angelo's album Voodoo won a Grammy Award for Best R&B Album at the 2001 Grammy Awards.

In 2002, Saadiq founded his own record label, Pookie Entertainment. Among the artists on the label are Joi and Truth Hurts. In 2002, he released his first solo album Instant Vintage, which earned him five Grammy Award nominations. He released a two-disc live album All the Hits at the House of Blues in 2003, and his second studio album Ray Ray in 2004, both on Pookie Entertainment.

2004–2010: Expanded output and second string of albums

In 2004, Saadiq produced a remix of the song "Crooked Nigga Too" by Tupac Shakur which is featured on the album Loyal to the Game. Other artists he has collaborated with include Whitney Houston, Mary J. Blige, The Isley Brothers, A Tribe Called Quest, Teedra Moses, The Roots, Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, Macy Gray, Angie Stone, Snoop Dogg, Mac Dre, Devin the Dude, DJ Quik, Kelis, Q-Tip, Lil' Skeeter, Ludacris, The Bee Gees, Musiq Soulchild, Jaguar Wright, Chanté Moore, Lionel Richie, Marcus Miller, Noel Gourdin, Nappy Roots, Calvin Richardson, T-Boz from TLC, Jody Watley, Floetry, Leela James, Amp Fiddler, John Legend, Joss Stone, Young Bellz, Anthony Hamilton, Babyface, Ledisi, Goapele, Ghostface Killah, —Ginuwine, The Grouch Stevie Wonder, Earth, Wind & Fire, Bilal, Chali 2na, Larry Graham, Luniz as well as many others. In 2007, Saadiq produced Introducing Joss Stone, the third album of British soul singer Joss Stone. According to J. Gabriel Boylan of The New York Observer, "he's produced artists including Macy Gray, the Roots, D'Angelo, John Legend, Whitney Houston, Mary J. Blige, and more. With all of them he's pushed a classic aesthetic, heavy on organic sounds and light on studio magic, deeply indebted to the past and distrustful of easy formulas."

Saadiq's third solo album, The Way I See It, released on Columbia Records on September 16, 2008, available in a collector's edition box set of 7" 45 rpm singles as well as on traditional CD, was critically well-received, made several critics' 2008 best albums lists, and garnered three Grammy nominations including Best R&B Performance by a Duo Or Group With Vocals (for "Never Give You Up", featuring Stevie Wonder & CJ Hilton); Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance (for "Love That Girl") and Best R&B Album for The Way I See It. Music from The Way I See It was featured in the following motion pictures: Madea Goes To Jail, Bride Wars, Cadillac Records, Secret Life of Bees, In Fighting (Rogue), and It's Complicated.

Touring with a nine piece band, Saadiq hit the 2009 summer music festival circuit with performances at Bonnaroo, Hollywood Bowl, Outside Lands, Pori Jazz, Stockholm Jazz Festival, North Sea Jazz, Essence Music Festival, Summer Spirit Festival, and Nice Jazz Festival, Bumbershoot Music Festival and Austin City Limits. Saadiq has been touring Europe extensively, and held a five-night residency at the House of Blues in Tokyo, Japan, in June 2009. In 2008, Saadiq formed a new label called Velma Records, a place where he promises "people can express themselves like I did with The Way I See It... where they can dream something up and just go with it".

He produced songs for LeToya Luckett's forthcoming second album Lady Love, released August 2009. In 2009, Saadiq produced "Please Stay" and "Love Never Changes" for Ledisi's August 2009 release "Turn Me Loose". Saadiq also was the executive producer for an emerging group called Tha Boogie. Tha Boogie's first EP was released on iTunes and is titled Love Tha Boogie, Vol. 1 (Steal This Sh*t).

In 2009, Saadiq announced his video game development company called IllFonic. The first video game in development by IllFonic is titled Ghetto Golf, with an expected release late in 2010. In 2009, Saadiq teamed up Bentley Kyle Evans, Jeff Franklin, Martin Lawrence, and Trenten Gumbs to create a new sitcom called Love That Girl! starring Tatyana Ali. Raphael is an executive producer and composer for Love That Girl!. The show airs on TV One and debuted on January 19, 2010. That same year, Saadiq performed The Spinners hit "It's A Shame" in a legendary Levi's commercial and sang as part of the chorus in the 2010 remake of "We Are the World" for Haiti.

2011–present: Stone Rollin'

In 2011, Saadiq was the guitarist/bandleader for the group backing Mick Jagger for Jagger's tribute performance of the Solomon Burke R&B classic, "Everybody Needs Somebody to Love" at the 53rd Grammy Awards in Los Angeles and on CBS. The band that accompanied the performance was Saadiq's touring band called Stone Rollin. In 2011 he and his band performed as the ESPY's house band for the night, where he performed his latest compositions.

Saadiq's 2011 album Stone Rollin' was released to great critical acclaim. "He's always had a boyish enthusiasm for performing, and a flexible, naturally joyous voice that suggests a young Stevie Wonder," wrote Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune, "but with his latest album, Saadiq finds a new gear. The album and his current tour demonstrate that there's a big difference between retro and classic, and the artist consistently finds himself on the right side of that divide." Kot ranked the album number seven in his year-end list, in which he dubbed it Saadiq's "finest achievement" and stated, "He's always written songs steeped in soul and R&B, but now he gives them a progressive edge with roaming bass lines and haunted keyboard textures. He's no longer a retro stylist – he's writing new classics." Critic Jim Derogatis called it "a stone cold gas of a party disc."

In fall 2011, he performed on the fourth results show of Dancing with the Stars season 13. In December 2011, he performed a cover compilation of several Neil Diamond songs at the Kennedy Center Honors award ceremony.

In 2012 he signed a deal with Toyota to do a TV commercial for the Toyota Prius. In 2013 Raphael partnered with Bay Area/ Atlanta Production company EL Seven Entertainment/ Republic Records and new R&B Superstar Adrian Marcel and released his 1st promotional mixtape "Raphael Saadiq Presents Adrian Marcel 7 Days of Weak".

Saadiq is a featured bass guitar player on Elton John's 2013 album, The Diving Board.

In 2016 he executive produced Solange Knowles Project, A Seat At The Table which debuted at #1 on music charts in the United States. He also guest starred in Luke Cage, where he performs his songs "Good Man" and "Angel" at Harlem's Paradise.

Wikipedia