#Prelude leitmotif

[homestuck-music-tournament]

Pondsquatter (Live Chamber Version)

Album: Genesis Frog (Bonus Track) Composer: Alex Rosetti Leitmotifs: Prelude, Pondsquatter, Frogs' Intermezzo, Great LOFAF Expedition, Breeding Duties Characters: N/A

[smitingthewicked]

(little excerpt about hellfire's lyricism from the essay on religion in media I wrote for class)

‎

But there are times when the secular world of modern music and the powerful tradition of religious music intertwine and create something, both removed from, and nonexistent without, the sacred.

Committed to their image as a clean, family-friendly media conglomerate, Disney has long put to rest its raunchier subject material. No more drinking, no more smoking, no more violence. Every movie is smoothed into an edgeless ball of mediocrity, devoid of anything deemed even mildly offensive, all in an attempt to appeal to every demographic possible. Every song is designed to be an earworm, and most don’t mean to convey anything but a desire to sell dolls and CDs.

Then, there was that one time where they adapted one of the most infamous pieces of gothic literature into a movie for children.

Walt Disney Studios’ take on The Hunchback of Notre Dame remains one of my favorites. For as much as people dislike its darkness and lack of child-friendly themes, for as many stories I’ve heard of parents pulling their children out of the theater during its initial release, I will never stop believing that it’s the best in Disney’s repertoire.

And, of course, what would The Hunchback of Notre Dame be without Hellfire?

Including its prelude and thematic opposite (Heaven’s Light, which I will not include in this essay as I fear the length already), Hellfire, at just five minutes and twenty two seconds, stands of one of the most memorable moments in musical history. It is, in my own opinion, the crowning jewel of the film and encapsulates every aspect of what makes Hunchback so controversially masterful.

There is no doubt that Hellfire- and the film as a whole- are indirect forms of religious expression. Devoid of the usual pandering and ingratiating aspects of Christian animated media, it not only succeeds in displaying the benevolent, hopeful side of religion, but excels in its evils as well.

As the dreamy, soft-edged melody of Heaven’s Light fades into the sound of church bells, the song is taken from a gentle allegory of love as paradise to the echoes of Latin chants against stone walls. Here, the hopefulness of Quasimodo’s ballad is sent through a hazy mist of prayers and resurfaces in a rising anxiety.

Claude Frollo (originally an archdeacon, but a judge in this particular version) begins his own song by beseeching Mary. To confront the holy virgin, the sinless mother of God herself, with his temptations, to turn to an immortal woman as an escape from one of flesh and blood. He denies, and then he bargains, and then he denies again. Frollo’s cognitive dissonance from the image of superiority he projects onto others versus his struggles with the moral inferiority he feels within himself, which have been building since the very first minutes of the film, reach their narrative peak here as he ultimately refuses himself capable of sin.

His obsession with his own damnation and his deflection of personal responsibility chase him throughout the song as he faces an imaginary court of hooded monks. The echoes of Latin- the language of Catholicism, as if the church itself is judging him- counteract every desperate claim he makes: “It’s not my fault // (mea culpa)”, which directly translates to “my fault”.

Even the symbolism of fire itself is a double-edged sword. In the context of Christianity, fire both represents pain, suffering in Hell- and cleansing, purification. Frollo’s own struggle with sin, as represented by fire, is complimented by a desire to purify himself of his lust by burning its source. In a literal and figurative sense, he weaponizes his own fear against others- he both resents AND wields the very thing that destroys him. After all, whether fire is hellish or purifying, it still burns.

The song closes with Frollo’s leitmotif, a chorus of “Kyrie Eleison”, an older Greek prayer that roughly translates to “Lord Have Mercy”, and he collapses.

Hellfire, fraught with heavy symbolism, intertwined with such a controversial character, not only represents Catholicism, but some of its darkest consequences as well. A pure revelation of the sacred through creation.

[7grandmel]

Rip of the Week: 01/07/2024

Barreltr​ü​ckung of Doom

Season 8 Featured on: The Joke​-​Explainer 7000​™​'s Highest Quality Rips: Sunrise

Ripped by Madinstance

Tentative rip name: KNUCKLES (Smaragdwächter)

I pondered long and hard about this post, of what rip to make it about - I'm sort of back in the groove of things after my break, and I'm happy to see people are enjoying the graudally-increasing trickle of variety posts already, but I also feel as if I'm still regaining my footing in how to pick these rips for the blog. Alas, amidst all the requests and the all-time classics, I do inevitably hold recency bias close to my heart - bias you've already seen with rips like Last Freight-train Night, and that rears its head once again with Barreltr​ü​ckung of Doom. Because no matter what happens to me or the blog, I am but merely a Sonic fan, an Undertale enjoyer, and an absolute CONNOISSEUR for Madinstance's work. The madlad's done it again.

Like, look - I've featured the guy so many times before, I've featured Undertale music on here so many times more than even that, blah blah, blah blah...can you sincerely blame me for picking this one? Madinstance has been featured on here plenty for their incredible arrangements like M-O-O-G City and Thwâmpröck Desert, and I've always sort of taken them as the kind of ripper who puts their heart and soul into rips of games and music that they genuinely just care tons about, most evident with their Minecraft tributes like Fell From a High Place (Reprise). But lately it feels as if that view may have been wrong - or Madinstance is just growing as a ripper to where they're becoming willing to take on any arranging project so long as it sounds cool. Honestly though, I can't blame them with a concept as sick as this - meshing together prototype Carnival music from a Genesis Sonic game with Undertale boss music is the kind of lunatic concept that I don't know how one comes up with but also wouldn't be able to help myself to pursue.

There have been a lot of times where I've worried that I've covered too *much* Undertale music for the blog...but the more I sit on it, the more I realize just how core Undertale's music is to both SiIva's viewers and its rippers. Undertale blew up just a short few months before the SiIvaGunner channel itself did, and its fans have thus grown in almost direct parallel with SiIvaGunner's own fans - and on top of that, Toby Fox is the exact kind of online meme freak that SiIvaGunner itself attracts the most. Is it any surprise that we've had banging Undertale arrangements on SiIva like Hoopache, SUNGORE, and indeed Madinstance's very own Fell From a High Place (Reprise), since the very beginning of the channel, from just about every one of the team's rippers? Undertale is endlessly beloved, and moreover - endlessly versatile for arrangements, its leitmotifs and melodies so well known as to becoming a series of online anthems all in their own rights.

Compared to the more popular tunes like Megalovania and Death By Glamour, it feels as if ASGORE doesn't get as much attention from remixers and rippers. And perhaps that was part of what made me fall head over heels in love with Barreltr​ü​ckung of Doom right from the moment go - it shows such a profound respect and understanding for not just the original ASGORE theme, but the iconic Bergentrückung prelude that introduces the battle, here weaving the two together damn seamlessly in the rip's intro. It's immensely impressive just how atmospheric and intense the rip still sounds despite, again, it's baseline track being the borderline juvenile carnival music used in Sonic 3's recently-unearthed prototype versions, a series of cheerful clapping samples introducing the track yet never overriding the emotional sincerity of the melody leading the rip. I feel like the emotion in large part also just comes from how fucking cool of a sound Sonic 3's music in general has, a lead synth that sounds unlike anything else on the genesis playing a sort of melodic back-and-fourth with a second synth lead that sounds just as distinct yet far more chipper and bright, almost reminding me of something from Rivals of Aether...? The back-and-fourth feel is an amazing touch either way, is the point!

Barreltr​ü​ckung of Doom's final touch, of course, comes toward the finale, the section in which the original ASGORE battle theme takes a step back from its intensity to reflect, a calm in the midst of the storm. Madinstance brilliantly uses this interlude to throw a complete curveball that still fits the arrangement perfectly: using samples and sounds from the *finalized* Carnival Night Zone theme, the one created by Michael Jackson's soundteam, and featuring that distinct glass shattering sample from Jam. I talk about escalation in rips a fair bit on here, but it wasn't as it the rip was in any need of it here anyway given how amazing the arrangement already was. It's just the sort of thing that pushes the rip from great to godlike, the kind of touch you'd mainly expect to see from a Sonic the Hedgehog superfan committed to their rip, akin to what MtH did with Youkoso Twinkle Park e. But again - perhaps, somehow, I've underestimated just how far Madinstance will go once they've landed on a concept they truly click with. Season 8 may well be the silly season in many ways, but it's all too clear that each one of the team's rippers are growing more powerful by the day.

[tarisilmarwen]

Rebels Rewatch: “Spark of Rebellion”

With the Ahsoka show coming up here in August, I have just enough time for a full refresher so, you know, I Might As Well.

This is going to be different from my normal liveblogs, obviously, less real-time reactions and more commentary and meta analysis, though you’ll probably still get some incoherent nerdery and feelings spew here and there.

All right, let’s get into it.

You know with the benefit of hindsight, Vader’s speech to the Grand Inquisitor here is actually a perfect encapsulation and summary of the premise of the show.

“Hey so the Jedi are dead and the Empire reigns but the Emperor is still worried about threats to his rule, so your job is to hunt down and kill anyone a little bit too Force Sensitive and also anyone Order 66 managed to miss.”

It’s an interesting choice of phrase too.

“The Children of the Force”

Emphasizes the villainy of our bad guys in that they’re hunting down literal children and also seems to suggest some kind of protectiveness from the Force here; these are its children, people born into its “family”, so to speak.

Anyway.

OKAY WAIT NO I NEED TO STOP BECAUSE I STILL CAN’T GET OVER HOW THIS SCENE IS PARALLELED IN THE FINALE.

SHOT FOR SHOT.  SHOT.  FOR.  SHOT.

The show opens with the “boy who was lost” and closes with the “girl who was broken”, Sabine’s move into more narrative prominence S3 onward was not a writing mistake, it was purposeful, it was deliberate, the show is their coming-of-age arc, they are co-protagonists, they are each other’s Most Important Person and have so much influence on each other’s character development and it’s reflected so perfectly in that seventy-something episodes later we’re going to see Sabine standing right here where Ezra’s standing now.

*sobs*

Okay I’m good.

Right here is also when we hear our first classic Star Wars leitmotif, as the Imperial March blares out with obnoxious brassy flair.

Followed almost immediately by the short excerpt of the Rebel Alliance theme that functions as our stinger.

(I’m going to be talking about the score A LOT this time around, better get used to it lol.)

Ugh, there was this one stupid post that was like, “What’s so bad about the Empire regulating commerce anyway?  Controlling food safety is a good thing!”  REGULATIONS ARE A TOOL OF THE STATE TO CONTROL ITS PEOPLE SHARON, you notice they harass this vendor specifically because he hasn’t asked permission from the oh-so-benevolent Empire to make a couple credits selling a single basket of fruit, as if that’s something the Empire needs to control, and when he dares to complain about it they immediately want to toss him in prison.  That’s the epitome of petty state authoritarianism.

This is also such a wonderful character establishing moment for Ezra, because as much as he says he’s only out for himself and doesn’t stick his neck out for people the very first thing we see him doing in the show is surreptitiously sticking up for this harassed vendor.

We learn three main things here: 1. He’s clever and agile, 2. He’s a street kid trying to survive, 3. He actually really does care about people.  All in less than a minute.  Very tight writing.

I love the sound effect they use to signify Force use.  It’s very pretty.

Aaaaand of course accompanying it, the quiet string prelude to the classic Force theme.  An immediate auditory clue cueing us into the fact that Ezra is also Force Sensitive.  So unconsciously, we’re already primed to expect that.

Snrk, I still love how casually Sabine tosses the grenade onto the speeder.

There’s a strechiness and elasticity to the character models here that I think they lose later, as the tone evens out into being more serious, but it’s very Disney-esque.

Actually hilarious and kind of fascinating that instead of stopping Ezra, Sabine lets him keep part of the shipment and have a fair shot at escaping.

She definitely sounds like she likes his gumption.

If no supposed to ship, why let Tiya say the line so playfully here?

Zeb’s resigned thumbs up always cracks me up.

It bears repeating but the animation?  Very Disney-esque.  The whole way characters move, their design, how they emote and express.

I was always particularly impressed by the hair.

Look at it.

It’s always shifting softly around Ezra’s face and blowing in the wind and reacting to his movement shafkjghkajh.

SO much better than early Clone Wars.

No, shut up, go back and watch those awkward early episodes.

The faces don’t emote.

Kanan’s fond little smile. :)  He already loves that kid so much.

Again with the animation being very 2D Disney hand-drawn inspired in the way Kanan sloughs his shoulders here replying to Hera.

Hgnnnglllll the little shine in Ezra’s irises shifts like it’s an anime sparkle, I love this animation I love it I love it your Clone Wars could never.

If no supposed to ship, literally why have this moment with the classic Sees Her In Sparklevision trope?  (Okay so I added the actual sparkles but still.)

Seriously Filoni.  “I think there’s an automatic instinct to ship them.”  WELL WITH THIS COMING DAY ONE EPISODE ONE WHAT DID YOU THINK WAS GOING TO HAPPEN?!

Hi Kallus!

Right so after this sequence where Ezra feels inexplicably guilty for not doing more to help the people of Tarkintown despite him literally only finding out they existed two minutes ago there was pretty much no way I wasn’t going to love him.

I think my brain subconsciously recognized, “Oh, he has a Hero Complex.” annnnd yep, yep, that did it, he’s my son now.

Interestingly, this is also I believe the first time we hear Ezra’s leitmotif, which like Luke’s theme is primarily in brass but in a minor key, slower, more somber, more introspective, almost a thematic foil to the adventurous bold excitement of Luke’s theme.

Luke’s theme, AKA the Star Wars Main Title theme, by the way, is primarily used throughout Rebels to denote heroism.  Typically it comes in whenever we have a Gunship Rescue from the Ghost or some other kind of Big Damn Heroes moment.

Side note appreciating the animation again, the storyboarding and blocking is very cinematic.  The camera moves as it might on a modern Hollywood production instead of a weekly TV serial, which I think helps makes Rebels feel closer to the Original Trilogy.

And here the full Force theme breaks through. :)

Note: At this point, behind the scenes, Hera and Kanan have already discussed Ezra’s potential Force Sensitivity, and agreed to test him.  I am still sorely in need of fanfics that cover that conversation.  Just saying.

AGAIN.  WRITERS.  YOU NEED TO BE A LITTLE MORE AWARE OF JUST HOW SHIPPY THINGS COME ACROSS BETWEEN EZRA AND SABINE THIS FIRST EPISODE.

Like, there’s a reason why this conversation and footage is used in a million Sabezra amvs.

Ezra rubbing his hand on his neck, Sabine’s soft looks of concern at him, how warmly she finally reciprocates on telling him her name...

(Also notice how Ezra, empath that he is, immediately cottons onto the fact that Sabine considers the Ghost crew her family and discerns that something or other happened to her bio family.)

Gremlin child Ezra. <3

I’m sorry, I just noticed this:

What is that look, Sabine?  Lolol.

Hera going into Mom Mode immediately.  Her cheeky look back at Kanan, lol, she knows exactly what she’s doing.

Edgy TWC bros complained so much about the humor in early Season One and I say they have no taste, “rare hairless Wookie” is hilarious.

Part Twooooooooo!

For all his bluster and his devil may care facade, Ezra had that Jedi compassion and drive in him from the very start, I will hear NO slander otherwise.

Something in this escape sequence I absolutely love?  Ezra clinging to Zeb’s back.  Just the way he grabs Zeb’s legs and climbs him like a feral cat.  And Zeb does not appreciate it lol.

Oh hey, we’re at The Scene That Basically Sealed Ezra As Tari’s New Favorite Whump Target.

Yeah, protip to all showrunners, you put an emotionally vulnerable young male protagonist in mortal peril and you basically guarantee that I will obsess and fixate on them forever.

EVERY SINGLE FRAME OF THIS SHOT IS MORE HEARTBREAKING THAN THE LAST.

Hngl and you can hear him hyperventilating too ow my heart.

A brief excerpt of Ezra’s theme plays right here too, as if to compound Zeb’s guilt about the whole thing lol.

Like the score itself is saying, “HEY AREN’T YOU MISSING SOMEONE?!”

Sabine automatically assuming Zeb did something to Ezra. <3

Hera full-naming Zeb. <333333

A couple people pointed out before that Ezra flinches pretty noticably when Kallus reaches for him, and Kallus definitely marks that reaction with his eyes.  It’s such a quick little sequence but it’s fascinating in the layers it suggests.

I reiterate: The subtle facial animation is this show is fantastic.  The minute little emotions that you can pick up tell so much story.

Chopper voting with Hera to go back for Ezra. <333333333333333  The murder hobo does have a heart.

I love the little sideglance these troopers give each other after Ezra seals them in.  You can’t even see their faces but you know they’re chagrined all, “Oh.  Ohhhh we’re in so much trouble.”

And the joke is even followed up on when Kallus demands to know how Ezra escaped and this poor dude just has all the notes of, “This is the worst day of my life.” in his voice lololol.

I gotta gives props to Taylor Gray, he pulls off Ezra’s impersonations really well.

So how much do you want to bet Kallus had unfortunate flashbacks every time one of Sabine’s bombs threw him?

“I’m sure your parents must be worried sick.”  “I don’t have parents.”

*URGE TO ADOPT HIM INTENSIFIES*

(Also, same, Hera, same.)

Speaking of entire stories being told in the subtle expressions...

Tangenting here a little bit, I’ve seen more than one bad faith reading chiding Kanan and especially Hera for “manipulating Ezra into being a child soldier” and hnnghghghgkjgdksh could you guys have any worse comprehension?

Ezra’s fate, narratively and meta-textually speaking, was sealed the moment he volunteered the information about the Wookies and actively took part in their rescue.  He didn’t have to do any of that.  He could have stayed quiet.  He didn’t.  He could have made Hera drop him off first.  He didn’t.  He could have stayed on the ship the whole rescue.  He didn’t.  And yeah, some of the reason why is because Hera told him it was better to fight for others than only for himself, but also have you considered that Ezra maybe is just that selfless at heart?

(See above where his Establishing Character Moment was saving that fruit vendor.)

ANYWAY, if he hadn’t done any of that, Kallus would have never seen him leap far higher than he was supposed to be able to, and would never have marked him as a Force Sensitive, would never have alerted the Inquisitor to him and basically marked him as a target.

Any time the local Lothal garrison spotted him, their impetus would be his capture and/or extermination.  Ditto for when news eventually reached the Inquisitorius.

The safest place for him was absolutely staying with the Ghost (where he could be trained to protect himself) and they even gave him the choice about it.

To say that he was manipulated or guilted by Hera into following instincts that were already inside him denies Ezra his narrative agency; he chose to become a Rebel and fight against the Empire.  Hera might have awakened his heroism but it was Ezra who Answered The Call.

All right, tangent over.

Oh ho man, you can tell they went into this with zero plans to redeem Kallus.

I mean, I’m glad that it happened, I definitely enjoy that aspect of his character.  But there was noooooo groundwork laid for it in these early episodes lol.

Writers got halfway in and realized, “Shit, we like him.” and then had to scramble to come up with something, which, I mean... I relate.

Ah, here’s what I mean when I say Luke’s theme is used primarily as a shorthand for the element of heroism.

And for an example of what I’m talking about re: cinematic camera motion, there’s the bit right where the crew charges out of the cargo hold onto the platform on Kessel.  The camera is behind our subjects and instead of immediately cutting to an exterior shot (which would be perfectly acceptable), instead it sort of rolls out behind them, pushing down and forward with them, for a more dynamic shot.

Add several tracking shots after that, that basically follow specific characters, and with that simple cinema magic, the action sequence feels more frenetic and energized.

Gosh, Ezra was so tiny back in Season One.

I do like this cue right here, when the Imperial ship drops in, don’t know if it’s generic action filler or it becomes a leitmotif later, will have to pay attention I guess.

With context from A New Dawn, we know that Kanan has not ignited his lightsaber since Order 66, though he apparently came pretty close it in that book.  I just find it rather beautiful and poetic that the Force tells him it’s time right when he has a padawan to protect. :)

And this reveal is still excellently done, fine candidate for my personal No Context Signature Scene Test (that being a scene which, when shown in isolation, showcases off the best of a movie or show and entices watchers to check out the rest, it must do a good job of selling the work, essentially).

POV shot as Kanan stands up out of cover, cut to in front of him, the action music drops out and fades into the Force Theme and Kanan just kind of... casually walks through shots, leaning around them, the sound gets muted slightly, we get the gunslinger shot of the lightsaber pieces clicking together and then the Force Theme gets a bass drum flare to emphasize the moment.  Awed looks from everyone.  A triumphant musical cue.

Even Kallus is unnerved for a second lol.

And I love the verbal hesitation when he says, “Focus your fire on... on the Jedi.” like he can’t even believe he’s saying that.

Is it any wonder why I love the whole Rebellion Era Jedi aesthetic?  It does such a good job of encapsulating pure eucatastrophe, the sudden happy turn for good, a beacon of light and hope breaking through the darkness and despair.

The Wookies look at Kanan like a living legend has stepped out of the pages of their storybooks.

HNGH no one touch me.

And of course, Kanan stepping up immediately inspires Ezra to do the same, I love these two so much.

Wilhelm scream, lol.

See people, Kallus already associates Ezra with Kanan and has marked them as a master-padawan pair, there was no chance Ezra was going to just be able to keep his head down and live his life after this.

And again with the subtle expressions, there’s just a flash of sadness from Ezra here as he watches Kitwarr reunite with his dad, HAVE I MENTIONED I LOVE HOW UTTERLY EXPRESSIVE THE FACES ARE IN THIS SHOW?

I do kind of wonder what made Ezra decide to swipe Kanan’s lightsaber.

He had a thought to sell the holocron but honestly it seems like he wanted to keep the saber.  As a keepsake?  To use?

Honestly though I love it when writers have Force Sensitives just kind of compulsively drawn to Jedi artifacts and tools.  Like some part of them is called by the Force within the items.

There’s a really cute, almost shy way that Sabine ducks into her shoulders here.  I see it in amvs all the time but no one ever really talks about it.

I mean, along with Chopper’s sad little moan I think it’s meant to convey that they’re already fond of him and regret him having to leave.

Chopper loved Ezra from the beginning and only gave him grief because that’s how he shows affection change my mind.

Ezra does not take Zeb’s playful hit well, flinches like he did with Kallus.  Of course later he’d get used to it but right now Ezra definitely does not associate roughhousing with affection.

Ezra gets so timid in his body language here.

I... I would really love to know how Kanan got up the tower.  Where exactly is the turbolift in this thing?  Is it in Ezra’s room?  How’d Kanan sneak past?

I know we’re meant to believe Kanan is physically there and just Batmans in and out but honestly I don’t blame the people with the wild theory that Ezra’s having a vision of Kanan in this moment.

Speaking of Ezra’s timid body language, have you noticed how often he crosses his arms, in an insecure kind of self-protective fashion?  This all but goes away in the later seasons as he grows up.

Aaaaaand we hear a snatch of Leia’s theme as Obi-Wan’s message plays again, a little musical Call Forward to the princess’s iconic plea for help perhaps?

Interestingly it fades into a very understated version of Luke’s theme, without the full orchestral accompaniment, just a single trumpet and then some quiet strings playing the notes.

I’m going to have to pay attention but I’m tentatively hypothesizing that Leia’s theme will primarily represent the aspect of hope in the series, to accompany Luke’s representing the idea of heroism.

Hope and heroism, two classic archthemes of Star Wars, lol.

Maybe it’s fitting that Ezra’s theme kind of blends the feel of both of the twins’.

On a completely different note, nice to see composer Kiner keeping in the tradition of assigning the Ominous Latin Chorus to the villains, lol.

I like Grand’s theme, it’s reminiscent of the Emperor’s, all bass male voices and dark minor chords in the strings.

I warned y’all I was gonna be talking about the soundtrack a lot in these.

And that’s the pilot premiere down.  Some people said they found it hard to get into the series at first, but I was never one of them, the pilot had me hooked from the get go.  Granted it was my birthday and I was a bit, ah... sloshed at the time.

Still, there was pretty much no way I wasn’t going to be into this show.  The classic Star Wars feel, the lovely animation, the fact that Ezra was basically exactly My Type... (Orphan, tragic backstory, Hero Complex, heartwarming relationship with (surrogate) father figure, this boy was ticking off boxes left and right lemme tell ya.)

Pilot still holds up.  Not every show’s first episode does but this one does.

This was a fun exercise.  I think I’m going to try to knock one of these out a day at a time until Ahsoka drops, maybe not as in-depth and rambly as this one, but we’ll see.

Until tomorrow then.

[lesbianfakir]

hey quick question my good dude, I'm putting together something and u need to know, I have kindq searched all the wiki and have not found anything on Fakir's leitmotif

do you happen to know what it is or am I relegated to adding generalized Tutu songs?

Yay you’ve come to the right place!! This post has links to the songs plus analysis, might be helpful.

Tldr version: fakir’s official theme is Beethoven’s coriolan overture it plays when he’s fighting or otherwise being a bastard. Then you’ve got an excerpt from Scheherazade, this one is more for his chiller moments, like writing and building his relationship with duck. Finally, we have a prelude from Lohengrin (same name as his sword). This one only plays once so you’re going to have a hard time finding a leitmotif but it plays at a super crucial moment (fighting kraehe in the season 1 finale) so I figure it counts.

Lmk if you want help isolating the specific leitmotifs from these songs!! I would do it here but I don’t have headphones with me rn. Hope this is helpful, and you are so so welcome to ask more questions

[windienine]

soul tether is my favorite song in the prelude; a lot of the songs have fun melodies and instrumentations but soul tether is the only one that has ysme's little six-note leitmotif getting key shifted, finagled around, and played on the same lonely-sounding flute as loic's theme.

is it loic faithfully repeating her words in his own voice, or ysme's tune literally changing as she considers his perspective more carefully and shifts her own in time?

right before that, loic's theme is played on a more confident-sounding acoustic guitar, as though to emphasize a newfound purpose. like him in the scene itself, it's a very serene and collected sound, while the second half sounds almost like it's trying to question the first, much like ysme.

light and hunger is the obvious awesome showstopper that breaks a lot of your expectations for what the game's music will sound like in the first place, snowfall does some really interesting melodic bits with the game's title/primary theme, normal theme for a normal woman is prime sillygirl hours and gets stuck in my head the most often, and sunflowers and sage invocation do so much to expand on loic's character in the music alone...

but man. soul tether.

[miloutic]

just found out that jenova's leitmotif is present in the prelude. what the hell

[unproduciblesmackdown]

love how there's that Drama in the Scriptorium sequence after the baron visits and before sister illuminata asks if everyone could please shut up where the player / andreas can largely opt out of engagement but has to consider options to get in there and argue or criticize....and how, afterwards, this sequence doesn't really seem to have stakes (besides that maybe it affects interactions with suspects later on if you're losing points with them then?), but you don't know that at the time. comparing it with the earlier scene of the exchange with illuminata about the value in the books she's recovering, both their potential illuminated paths to truths and the limitations or obfuscations or inaccuracies in what they present, wherein it's clear what goal andreas is pursuing, and it's a bit of an interrogation in addition to a negotiation, as sort of a prelude to dealing with The Mysteries (lol!), and establishing this perspective on books for andreas where he's recognizing the value in each of these, even the romantic adventure one, and trying to save One particular one that he knows will otherwise be destroyed and he doesn't want that to happen no matter what's in it....makes you think about possible future events where andreas decides he's Gotta save books from destruction, any amount of them, even knowing there's no way to carefully pick and choose which those might be....and this scene that's this first time there's some shit going down and andreas can interfere with that at all, or not, there's this unavoidable outcome of "there was that Drama in the Scriptorium and people argued and maybe did some insulting" whether he [said nothing], tried to be diplomatic, or kept it Real(tm). like now it makes you think about future events in which andreas could try to help certain people or accuse others of being jerks, or perhaps murderous, based on his observations, or be more noncommital than that....might make you think of other themes (like how the discussion and negotiation with illuminata about the value in art and books as potential illuminated paths to truth and all worth preserving might make you think of Themes), wherein andreas will later have to involve himself in bigger, higher stakes situations, can't avoid having an effect on it even if he'd rather not have that responsibility but also can't have so hard an effect that he can guarantee some things certainly do or don't happen

this quick, low stakes verbal scuffle happening in the scriptorium, and andreas being able to think, as a quote from the game, "well, that was…not wonderful. but there's nothing to be done about it now."

makes you think about potential future events where he instead struggles hugely with something not wonderful happening about which now nothing can be done, as yet another huge theme. i could've left that up to the audience but it's such a fun like [yet again a thematic prelude] that is like, here's a fun lightly played little leitmotif that will start being bass-boosted at 9000db wherein that's one's overarching arc, just like with the art and the books and the truth. literal nut...until then

[absolutebearings]

after this latest ultimate extended rewatch with @lecampy i can finally say for sure: i like the hobbit movies more than the OT ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ

All 6 are more consistent in quality than I remembered so there's less for me to get hung up on that i wasn't already accepting from the first movies -- there's infrequently wonky cgi, weird act 3 pacing, and stupid action sequences in the OT but they didn't get in the way of my enjoyment then, that's still the case for me here

i already like tolkien dwarves so all the focus on them was awesome, i like that they blended in some other tolkien works, i like that there were references to the cartoons and various illustrated editions

it must be said -- the soundtrack fucks! howard shore adds some new great dwarvish themes to the leitmotifs we're already familiar with and it works so well -- in particular its underscoring of thorin's descent is really really good

the biggest thing for me though is the characters. I am incredibly fond of all the dwarves, and bc the movies put effort into differentiating them I was able to quickly learn names. i always come away from a rewatching getting attached to a new character (this time its balin ;__;)

riddles in the dark! the barrel escape! goofy and heartfelt songs! outwitting trolls and bluffing dragons! i think all the best stuff from the novel is a lot of fun in large part bc freeman is the perfect bilbo, he handles this ridiculous, increasingly depressing procession of events with a combination of twitchy insecurity and desperate nerve and its exactly as i imagined

dont even get me started on armitage as thorin jesus christ holy fcuk. I'm still recovering and it's been a decade. his last scene had me in hysterics

in general bilbo is a more interesting and compelling protagonist, (all his little tics are so endearing!! there's like 50 Relatable Bilbo Moments per movie) and thorin's tragic character arc beats the shit out of anything from the OT. i wish i had 10 more hours of them interacting. i wish they had more time together

love the stuff with bard the bowman, he is a much more interesting figure than i initially gave him credit for, especially after laketown is destroyed and he's trying to care for all the refugees who immediately looked to him for guidance because he's the one that killed the dragon. he feels the weight of responsibility for their survival on his shoulders, his dragonslaying wasn't so much a feat as it is a prelude to the real work that is the result of prowess -- those who can, MUST. and that pressure drives his plea for thorin to just honor their prior agreement, and the feeling of betrayal when that plea is callously refused. its just like thorin taking responsibility for his people after erebor was lost (and the deliciousness of thorin treating bard like thranduil treated him, and the way the trauma of being abandoned to starvation and exile ripples out over years)

the critique i agree most with is the execution of the kili/tauriel romantic subplot, it could have been better developed imo, theyre really intense about each other after like one conversation LKJFdsjf

pacing is definitely wonky at times

specifically the pacing of the gandalf subplot was not as good as the main plot, but i think it was better handled in the extended editions

i dont think smaug was killed too quickly, or the confrontation was weirdly positioned astride the 2nd and 3rd movies bc the dragon isn't the most interesting antagonist of this story and there are more important things to explore, like thorin's descent into paranoia, his awful choices as a leader once he steps inside erebor and how theyre connected to his past experiences, and the way infighting leaves all parties vulnerable to destruction. but i'm someone who was bummed they cut scourging of the shire from the OT so i would enjoy stuff like this, those arcs that show the fallout after the Big Final Battle, (or what seemed like it at the time), where you have to reconcile real world shit like diplomacy w/ neighboring polities.

i still love the OT, its a classic for a reason, but the hobbit movies are underrated and i'll die on this (under)hill.

[spectral-muse]

omg I know we don’t like Wagner (and for good reason) but anyone who likes the use of leitmotif in modern media scores please please PLEASE look into the prelude to Tristan und Isolde, bro is weaving like 6 different leitmotifs at once into a beautiful, ethereal tapestry representing how they evolve on the narrative of the opera (erm, “”””music drama””””), it’s so beautiful

leitmotifs never get old to me like holy shit dude there’s this melody that corresponds to this one guy and if you hear the melody it means the guy is there. holy shit. and sometimes it refers to ideas too not just guys. has anyone heard about this

[mediciunicorn]

Das Rheingold, Meditations on Wagner's Vorabende

To begin this journal, let us briefly discuss the history and impact of Richard Wagner. Richard Wagner—love him or hate him—is practically unavoidable in music history because of his revolutionary work. His influence on music history is profound; among other achievements, he may have single-handedly challenged the tonal system (or at least tried to), incorporating so many chords and notes from outside the expected major and minor keys that audiences must rely on his leitmotifs for orientation. From a compositional point of view, Wagner left future composers unsure of what boundaries remained to be pushed. He expanded the size of the orchestra and the demands placed on singers to the very limit of human capability. Indeed, it is simply a statement of fact that only some opera singers possess the physical stamina and vocal power to perform as Wagner’s music requires. These extraordinary demands become most evident in the music he composed for the Ring cycle.

The core orchestration for the Ring cycle includes one piccolo, three flutes, three oboes, one cor anglais, three soprano clarinets, one bass clarinet, three bassoons, eight horns, three trumpets, one bass trumpet, three tenor trombones, one contrabass trombone, one contrabass tuba, and a four-timpani percussion section with triangle, cymbals, tam-tam, six harps, 16 first violins, 16 second violins, 12 violas, 12 cellos, and eight double basses. Wagner wrote Das Rheingold (the first evening of the cycle, or “Vorabend”) with a greatly enlarged orchestra, even adding an offstage harp and 18 offstage anvils.

Wagner is the composer from whom all modern soundtracks arguably descend. He “invented” the systematic use of leitmotifs—he called them “guides to feeling”—and viewed them as analogous to the ancient Greek chorus, offering emotional commentary to the action on stage. Through these leitmotifs, the audience understands the emotional development of the scene nonverbally, grasping subtle shifts in emotion, character, and action. These leitmotifs, centered on recurring patterns, themes, and harmonic progressions, represent actions, objects, emotions, characters, and other dramatic subjects. Wagner’s liberal use of chromatically altered chords may well have inspired Arnold Schoenberg’s revolutionary move toward atonality.

Wagner was influenced by the philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, who, in turn, affected Wagner’s views on history, myth, and German nationalism. Wagner’s obsession with Germanic myth finds its fullest voice in the Ring cycle. Das Rheingold, the prelude to the cycle, opens in the depths of the Rhine river. The first three characters are the three Rhine maidens, charged with guarding the precious gold in the Rhine. Essentially, Wagner begins his “Vorabend” in a German river, with German guardians protecting a German treasure. The thematic purpose of the Ring cycle is to establish a German-centric mythos, and the opening of Das Rheingold thrusts that message directly at the audience.

Das Rheingold opens an epic cycle drawn from legendary sagas found in the Nibelungenlied. Wagner referred to the Ring as a “Bühnenfestspiel” (stage festival play), and it unfolds over three days and a preliminary evening to encompass the full dramatic journey. Spanning four performances and about 15 hours, Wagner’s story imitates the structure of Greek drama—three tragedies and one satyr play—but he freed it from traditional operatic structures like arias and choral numbers. In Das Rheingold, no chorus exists; its role is taken by the leitmotifs. This opera holds a special place in the cycle, as it sets the stage for the gods’ dramatic struggles that follow.

Several prominent themes appear in Das Rheingold. Nature in its entirety is represented by the Rhine. Alberich, the loathsome dwarf, symbolizes a base, unrestrained form of desire. The gods, too, are morally compromised, particularly Wotan, who trades away his daughter’s freedom. Wotan, the one meant to establish order, seeks to build a “heaven” but must do so through deals that bring “hell.” Wagner’s world is not a pleasant one. The heroes must struggle mightily, and their own desires are questionable as they vie to obtain the ring.

Leitmotifs address three key tensions Wagner faced as he strove to create his own form of opera. They provide a method of unifying verse with melody; they form a natural alternative structural element to the disconnectedness that arias would otherwise introduce; and they provide an organic means of organizing the opera’s development and modulation. Additionally, leitmotifs serve as musical cues linking emotions, actions, and concepts without requiring the audience to consciously articulate them. Thus, leitmotifs unify the work while allowing for free variation.

As I watched Das Rheingold, I noted several motifs. There seems to be a “genesis” or “nature” motif that opens the opera, set at a slow tempo, symbolizing the beginning of the world. Bassoons and trumpets introduce this idea. There is a gold/treasure motif that initially descends before it ascends, sounding dark and tense; the trumpets and violins combine to convey this stress and importance. The Rhinemaidens’ pleasure in the gold is represented by a separate motif, played by the strings, which is lighthearted and carefree. Contrastingly, the motif associated with the gold’s magical power, contingent upon renouncing love, is dark, descending, and instrumented by cellos and basses—fitting, since a world without love is indeed dark.

I greatly enjoyed Das Rheingold. I found Wagner’s attempt to create a complete German mythos reminiscent of J.R.R. Tolkien’s effort to fashion a British mythology in The Lord of the Rings. Both revolve around a ring cursed to doom its bearer, involve a heroic journey to obtain or destroy it, and feature a pantheon of supernatural beings inhabiting a dramatic, epic space where spiritual and material realms collide. Yet Tolkien’s story offers hope—a light at the end of the tunnel—making it ultimately more uplifting. Wagner’s world, by contrast, is one of relentless struggle and futility. I would watch Das Rheingold, and indeed the entire Ring cycle, only through a lens that acknowledges eternal truth and rejects the hopelessness Wagner’s narrative seems to suggest.

[homestuck-music-tournament]

The Prelude

Album: Sburb Composer: James Dever Leitmotifs: Homestuck Characters: N/A

[stonegearstudios]

Theme of Adventure

Ok, so this is probably only exciting for me, but I comm'd a theme for Teak from a fellow SD discord member Kate

She actually created a leitmotif for them specifically, and then a first stab at a tune for the opening area for a hypothetical N64 Zelda style game.

So as a refresher, this is Teak

as a wooden construct they are animated by an arrangement of silver strings inside their chest cavity (you can see a little hatch to it). Life was literally given to them by plucking a resonant sequence into them, that would continue to vibrate forevermore.

That is what the Leitmotif is supposed to represent, their core foundation. Curious, somewhat naive, a prelude to adventure.

It's woven into the short piece to represent that the opening area in this hypothetical game is their origin, but that piece is also meant to represent the area itself, what I'm currently calling the Crumbling Mansion.

In short, it's a massive, but slowly decaying stone and wood mansion located deep in a dark wood. Who exactly built it is unclear, but they did leave behind several constructs, constructs like Teak, who have turned the building into a village of sorts.

They aren't the only inhabitants though, as the Mansion crumbles, holes open in the walls, and all manner of strange forest life has begun to take root there.

Anyway, no one cares about this but me, but I am excited XD

[tarisilmarwen]

Rebels Rewatch: “Always Two There Are”

Getting reeeeeaaaal spooky up in here all of a sudden and also say hello to one of my favorite bad bitches.

We open with Phoenix Squad still traveling idly through realspace in search of a permanent base.

This is a deceptively pretty shot.  Like:

“Hi. :)  Nothing bad is going to happen this episode. :)  See how bright the sun is?  Things are fine. :)”

Rex has already been integrated as a crew member it seems, as he’s quite contentedly playing dejarik with Zeb.

Chopper must have been irritating Ezra and Kanan really badly that week, Kanan doesn’t even really bat an eye at Ezra asking to drop him if he manages to levitate him, lol.

“Shenanigans” leitmotif in flute as Sabine decides it’d be really funny to play a little prank on Ezra, advising Chopper to magnetically clamp himself to the deck, which Rex notices.  And then as expected the Force Theme prelude.

Devilish little bean.

She’s not doing this to be mean, I think, just poking a bit of fun at him, akin to her punching his shoulder back in “Visions of Hope”.

Ezra’s a bit too frustrated by [*gestures to Kanan and Rex’s... everything*] to really appreciate it, with good reason, as no sooner has he complained than Rex stands up all, “Well MY Jedi was--” immediately offending Kanan.

Help him he looks so tired and done.

And Sabine shaking her head in the background there and quickly vacating the chair, wow everyone pretty much bailed on listening to Round #234 didn’t they?  Lol.

Kanan’s annoyed, “Ezra!” as Ezra disappears up the ladder, ha ha.

Ironically, if Ezra hadn’t volunteered himself for the mission and come along, it probably would have gone completely uneventfully.  It was Ezra’s presence on the station that Fifth sensed, and Seventh’s probe probably reported him specifically to her too.

Whoops.

I do have to wonder if this episode was specifically timed for Halloween because it makes an excellent Halloween episode.

Creepy abandoned location?  Check.  Ominous music?  Check.  Killers hiding in the dark?  Check.

My gosh look at the dust falling off the old doors there.  Or maybe that’s ice, Zeb and Ezra’s breaths are also visibly puffing as if it’s cold.

The approach to the station is completely silent, music-wise.  Once we’re inside we get a soft cue full of long eerie strings and plunking music-box-like chimes from several different scale xylophones.

This tilting Dutch-angle shots used throughout are not dissuading the horror movie vibes by the way.

Subtle animation appreciation moment: How Ezra and Sabine both look down and step carefully, watching their feet as they avoid debris on the floor.

A biased shipper note: Ezra’s comfortable enough to get Sabine’s attention with a hand on her shoulder.  Under normal circumstances she probably wouldn’t be this jumpy about it. XD

Ah yep, I was right, the ID9 Seeker doesn’t transmit to Seventh until after it’s seen Ezra.

Chopper turns on ALL the lights ha ha.  He knows when he’s in a horror movie.

This scene with Fifth, Kallus, and Konstantine on the Star Destroyer plays out almost beat for beat like the “Vader senses Luke on Hoth scene” from Empire.  And you know what it just occurred to me that Vader specifically called Konstantine to pick Fifth up last episode, and also gave him his own personal shuttle.  (Which he’s going to use to jet off this Star Destroyer to the target.)

I guess we know which one’s Vader’s favorite lol.

Always love when Jedi use their sabers as flashlights.

For a bit of levity, the music and banter turns playful, Zeb and Ezra arguing about who’s going to find the medical supplies first.  (While they all completely miss the room the crates are in.)

He’s a dumbass and I love him Your Honor.

In the meantime, Chopper gets jumpscared and ambushed by the ID9 Seeker droid, who uses Choppers voicebox to call for help.  It’s actually really sweet that Ezra’s been learning binary in order to better understand Chopper.

Lotta casual touching in this episode I didn’t really notice before.  It’s cute.

Zeb getting stuck in the vent will never not be hilarious.

“Okay, that’s uncomfortable.” <3

What a gentleman. <3

You can baaaaarely make out Seventh in the shadows of this shot.  Her intro is almost casual at first, she just saunters up into view completely unbothered.

AND THEN THE RED LIGHTSABER IGNITES AND WE ARE ALL LIKE, “OH SHIT, THERE’S TWO.”

Yeah, that’s the appropriate reaction.

A little moment of battle tag-teaming for Ezra and Sabine here as the background music swells with rapid tinny percussion beats and an eerie woman’s voice like a siren song.

Ezra fares little better in his brief skirmish with Seventh Sister than he did against the Grand Inquisitor, though his stance is a bit improved.  But the two teens are soon booking it as fast as they can away from her.

ONLY TO RUN RIGHT INTO THIS NIGHTMARE RIGHT HERE.

Again, the appropriate reaction.  Lol.

The bass booms of the Inquisitor theme enter along with Fifth and the siren wail gets louder as Seventh slooooooowly strolls after them.  (After paying a brief, “Oh it’s you.” glance at Fifth)

I love how she’s not even worried her prey will escape; It makes her even scarier, that she doesn’t feel like she even has to expend the energy to catch you.

They come up against a locked door and Ezra moves to cover and defend Sabine as she frantically works at the panel.

She gets it open, they turn to run through, but Seventh catches Ezra in a Force Grip, freezing him in place, and her ID9 Seekers grab hold of his ankles and start dragging him back towards her along the floor.

Yeah that’s not terrifying.

Sabine whips around, horrified, immediately trying to run back.  Ezra can practically feel Seventh bearing down on him now and pulls a move straight from Kanan’s lexicon, yelling for Sabine to run before stabbing his saber through the door controls and sacrificing himself for her escape.

LIKE MASTER LIKE PADAWAN.  *SOBS*

ALSO CAN I APPRECIATE SABINE COMING UP AGAINST THE DOOR FUTILELY, YELLING HIS NAME?

(Trick question, I’m going to whether I get permission or not I love this moment.  Ezra doesn’t even hesitate, he knows he’s caught but he’s going to make sure he protects Sabine, even as she desperately tries to get back to him.  Shut up, don’t look at me.)

Seventh Sister very quickly establishes that she’s the brains to Fifth Brother’s brawn, preventing Fifth from killing Ezra outright and planning to use him to lure in the other two.

Excuse me, MA’AM, that is unwarranted proximity.

Subtle animation appreciation moment: The way Seventh’s nails make small indents and depressions in Ezra’s skin, showing off how scarily sharp they are.

Also Sabine hopping over debris in the hallway here.

“I don’t wanna die this way... I’m the last of my kind!”  LOLOLOL I’M SORRY I KNOW THIS IS A SERIOUS SITUATION BUT THAT LINE KILLS ME.

Zeb immediately snapping into protective big brother mode. <3

I love the way Seventh moves, she’s so slinky and catlike.

Ezra plays a very defiant captive, using his trademark snark and sarcasm as a shield.  The music for this whole scene has gone back to the muted scraping strings, dragging on high notes like nails on a chalkboard.

Fifth tanks Zeb and Sabine’s ambush attempt but then makes the mistake of leaving Zeb alive, letting Seventh’s ID9s take care of him instead.  He’s not the brightest.

Still scary how tiny Sabine is over his shoulder though.

Back with Seventh and Ezra and Seventh has graduated from asking questions to inflicting a bit of mild torture.

And she continues to be inappropriately touchy with him.

Yeah this whole episode basically activates the entirety of my gremlin brain, there’s so much quality peril and whump.

Seventh casually reveals the Inquisitorius knows about Ahsoka and that and the “As pretty as you are...” comment are the first things that really shake Ezra.

I do like how Zeb not really understanding Chopper when he recovers him motivates him to start learning Binary too, offscreen, and he’s learned enough to start to parse Chopper by “Future of the Force”.

Fifth brings Sabine in, much to Ezra’s dismay, and Seventh gets very quickly irritated.  Despite her demands and her previous threats to dismember Ezra, he doesn’t budge.

This is very pretty lighting on the two.  The red isn’t quite as harsh as you’d expect.  Side note.

Lotta silent eye communication as they process Zeb’s ruse. <3

Sabine tries to warn Zeb away but Fifth puts his saber at her throat and Ezra immediately rushes to comply, which will not be the last time that threatening Sabine gets him to surrender.

(Watch how his head starts forward here.)

(His eye movement is rapid and darting.)

<33333333

Oh sue me, I’m a big ol’ sap.

Seventh gleefully talking about killing Ezra and Sabine “very slowly.” ughghhh she’s so creepy.

Zeb coming in with a flurry of action music and blaster shots to save the day.

And this is why you should never have a plan that involves teamwork, Inquisitors, because y’all suck at it.

See, this is how it works. :)

Hera with her feet up on the chair like that ha ha.

Kanan was so ready to scold Ezra and then Ezra mentioned Inquisitors, plural, and he and Hera are immediately on their feet and twitching like worried parents.

Kanan’s struck speechless and can’t even answer Zeb, because he didn’t know, he didn’t know there was more than one Inquisitor, half his team could have gotten killed, his padawan could have been killed just because he got annoyed with the bickering and left.

Hera jumping in with supportive touches all around. <3

I love this embrace.  It’s just such married body language.

But ouch what a way to end an episode.  The Imperial March closes us out, slow and heavy, portending doom.

Soooooo yeah, I pretty much love this episode to pieces, it’s a frequent rewatch.  Introduces us to our new weekly low-level antagonists (who while not as strong or charismatic as Grand have enough significant presence and threat to be interesting to me), continues the Kanan-Rex tension and drama, has some of my favorite Sabezra interaction, and splashes us with the cold reality after the previous fun episodes that things are more serious now, the threat is bigger and expanding.  Uncharted territory lies ahead and here there be monsters.

Next couple episodes are more Friendship Fetch Quests.  I haven’t rewatched them in a while so we’ll see if I find any new appreciation for them.

[johnjankovic1]

Alea Iacta Est

What's done cannot be undone. Macbeth, William Shakespeare, 1606

The manifold of amendments between the Air Mail Act of 1925 and 1934 fertilized the growth of the aviation industry. It was government munificence that provided a linchpin of capital for operations as it hedged against risk for companies to expand through adventurism. Rather than some throwaway aberration such subsidies have long been a leitmotif in the development of commerce. From the Phoenicians whose rulers bolstered their merchant fleets or their outposts like Carthage with bullion to Britain’s dominion of the seas the use of subsidies has been the sine quo non in scaling business. The rough-and-tumble world of markets beseeches governments to isolate industries until they are more resilient in the prelude to them being stand-alone incumbents. United Airlines similarly evolved from its ragtag roots into a legacy company under the aegis of industrial policy as a way to overcome economic inertia. Market purists in their Manichean worldview malign this use of public funds but America became a world industry benchmark as a result of them. It only took a decade from the enactment of the Air Mail Act of 1925 before passenger revenue exceeded airmail subsidies. The deus ex machina of this industrial policy unilaterally created the aviation industry by its influx of capital.

United Airlines came to be uniquely positioned as a prime mover of world aviation but it was only so under duress. The Air Mail Act of 1925 winnowed out the couriers which could not withstand the entry barriers to its new market. Spoils were reserved for the most resourceful companies hewing to performance metrics prescribed by the government. These stragglers would soon be offered an exit strategy via buyouts from competitors so as to acquire additional routes, fleets and clients in a show of corporate cannibalism that saw a bevy of consolidations. A paucity of wherewithal and know-how was invariably the death-knell for most. Survivors that were triumphant were those which could see beyond the next fiscal quarter and it was the seizure of profitable routes that guaranteed such longevity. After this attrition by 1930 the skyline of American aviation was carved up amongst an oligopoly christened the Big Four. From the Hobbesian war of the market between its barrages of operational costs and fierce bidding did there emerge American Airlines, United Airlines, Eastern Airlines and TWA. Once the dust settled the Air Mail Act of 1930 was more of a coronation than a moment of stocktaking when routes were reappraised with perquisites. The dominant market position of these four would later become the stuff of legends.

Despite allegations to the contrary the oligopoly in the aviation industry was the product of natural selection. The ‘Spoils Conference’ of 1930 where the lion’s share of routes were doled out in backrooms to major conglomerates was a crescendo of the breakneck competition that preceded it. In reality the invite-only conference should be adjudicated through a prism of ambivalence. Whispers of favouritism did inform the parley but these stakeholders had proven their merit for the reshuffling of coast-to-coast and feeder routes whilst also retaining exclusive rights to them (Wolfram 2004). Deference to these industry leaders in the guise of such a conference was a de jure assent to a de facto reality that from a pool of 45 prospects only 4 champions emerged in the survival of the fittest. The cutthroat parameters of the market were themselves the catalysts for the oligopolistic structure that was left standing in the epilogue of the competition. President Roosevelt’s caprice when he later legislated reforms to atomize contracts was blinkered to how these monopolies were the offspring of what was already a meritocracy. The economies of scale achieved by the Big Four with their resort to mergers when the industry was analogous to the Wild West issued from shrewd business alone hence the reason for their immortality now.

As the government spun off its airmail routes in 1925 United Airlines’ precursor and later subsidiary Boeing became the spearhead of the holding company that would follow. The airplane manufacturer and its arm of transport service were the tentpole of what later evolved into a veritable institution in American aviation. The synergy of these two companies in their vertical integration might be analogized to owning a goldmine and its mint. A direct pipeline between the two meant state-of-the-art technology could be seamlessly transitioned from the drawing board to the skies as another addition to the fleet. This just-in-time application and real-time data therefrom telescoped the production cycle by orders of magnitude enabling Boeing to swiftly pivot into the second generation of its Model 40. The Model 80 graced the azures after a quick three-year span from the original platform manufactured in 1925. For a subject that is never broached it is interesting to see how the business models of Ford and Boeing shared a predilection for the vertical integration of value chains. Both companies were manufacturers and each held eponymous airlines as the two were suppliers and customers of their own products. Lateral thinking of this sort was a desiderata for the competition that coloured the early years of aviation.

Although Ford would later abort its foray into the industry Boeing continued with airplanes and their rapid induction into service in the years preceding the company’s strategic merger. United Airlines then inherited the legacy route of CAM-18 for its operational grid and the in-house prerogative of priority access for the first airplanes off Boeing’s production lines. This privilege was what pushed United to the front of the queue in standardizing its fleet with the Boeing 247 upon its introduction in 1932 as 59 units were ordered (Johnson 1974). Although the technology was relegated to a position of lesser prominence since the Douglas DC-3 upstaged it two years later the aircraft did attract passengers into United’s fold as long as it lasted. The standout feature of this aerial locomotive was its power plant of Pratt & Whitney Wasp engines which supplied it with an ample amount of throttle for a cruising speed of 180mph. Another audacity of design was the novel aerodynamics from a retractable landing gear which streamlined the profile to reduce drag. United Airlines would end up investing $4m into the acquisition of these capital assets. A third inheritance for United was Boeing’s value-added service of differentiating itself within markets by having stewardesses aboard flights to humanize the experience which was the first.