#Rolf is protective over his little bro

[ameliathefatcat]

Using this picrew I made Rolf and Jonny Scamander

The two brothers look a lot a like to the point where as adults they are asked if they are twins. Rolf is four years older than Jonny. Jonny is very very accident prone

[rhetoricalrogue]

Thinking about the AU where Vincent winds up romancing Josephine this morning because I am a sucker for sweet romances and so far this one has delivered.

1. Vincent secretly siding with Leliana (and Rolfe, because The Boy always has to elbow his way into things for attention) that they should just infiltrate the House of Repose and kill everyone. Vincent is all “we have trained assassins, let’s go” but does the diplomatic approach because it makes Josephine happy.

2. Rolfe goes with them to meet the count guy and is “bro, you hide the real count in a closet? I know that fake accent anywhere.” and the assassin is just “fucking Trevelyan, you always screw up my hits.” Rolfe just rolls his eyes and replies that he shouldn’t take on Chantry assassination jobs if he knows that Rolfe’s on guard duty, but it comes out as a variation of “git gud” instead.

3. Vincent heard about the assassination attempt and just runs over Rolfe, who he had put in charge of protecting her in the first place, to go hover over Josephine, hands out and ready to heal her if she was hurt.

“I’m fine, by the way. Thank you, dear brother, for saving my most important diplomat. I appreciate everything you do and envy your brilliance and your amazing hair.”

“Did you have to get blood on the carpet? You know that’s Josephine’s favorite one.”

4. Rolfe initially teasing Vincent about “don’t worry, Loverboy, I’ll keep your sweetheart safe” but then getting serious and reassuring his brother that he’s got his back

5. KISSES IN THE GARDEN. THE FOOT POP.

6. Vincent is NOT a smooth talker but he’s plainspoken and earnest and does little romantic gestures all the time. Any time Josephine blushes or smiles at him, he feels like the luckiest guy in the world

[eenefangirlanalysis]

“That was good, pipsqueak.”

Once again Bro grabs Eddy by his pants and has him hang upside down for a few seconds. So far Eddy’s Brother hasn’t handled Eddy in a gentle way. This is not rough housing. Bro is enjoying the pain that he causes to Eddy. He is simply playing ‘Uncle’ for his own amusement.

And he works in an amusement park.

I have brought up countless theories regarding on whether Bro actually works in this park or if he’s hiding. How popular is this park? 

What if this amusement park has been closed down? This is just a theory, but what if Bro saying that the park not opening until noon was a rues to torment these kids? Going back to the theory that the police are after Bro, he may be hiding out in this empty abandoned park. So he won’t cause suspicion he’ll turn on the rides when kids show up.

Or he chose to live in this closed down amusement park so nobody would suspect he’s there.

So many theories! I love this amusement park as it only shows up for five minutes along with Bro. It’s supposed to be a happy place and yet it is filled with this unhappy vibe.

Next, Eddy is placed right in Bro’s hand. Bro’s size increases as the scene goes. He is the only adult to have ever appeared in the show. As I have said before Bro’s height may be exaggerated as this show is from a child’s perspective. Bro has always been Eddy’s biggest fear. Eddy sees him as this intimidating figure who has overshadowed him even though Bro has been gone for eight years.

Eddy’s facial expressions are so important in this scene. You can only see them for a few seconds. Eddy has multiple important facial expressions throughout the entire series that reflect his true self and who he is hiding.

Eddy is very uneasy. Bro has tricked him, but he’s not going to give in. Everybody is watching. Eddy is aware that everyone is suspicious. He is doing whatever he can to remain in denial that Bro’s abuse is just his way of loving him.

“So, can we go inside now?”

I don’t how to describe this Bro face and action. He is smoothing out his little beard while staring at Eddy in this disapproved manor.

Bro cares more about himself, his little needs, then his brother!

“Why not? Don’t forget to wipe your feet.”

Hmm, similar quality Bro shares with Edd? His room was rather tidy.

Question: Would you have wanted to see what the inside of Bro’s whale shaped home was like? Or are you satisfied because we saw his bedroom?

That’s a rather hard poke in the stomach. You have to watch the scene because Eddy makes a grimace with his eyes.

Also, Eddy’s eye is hitting Bro’s hat.

Sidenote: Have you noticed how... normal Bro’s tongue looks? The explanation on the reason why all the kids tongues are odd colors is because they’re always slurping on jawbreakers.

Bro never had a jawbreaker! 

Also, I want to point out that Bro’s skin is much paler then Eddy’s.

There is a head canon which theorizes that Bro has been on the run from the police. He spends his days inside. So, if he’s hiding does he really work in this amusement park?

How would the story have gone if they did end up going inside Bro’s place? It would have been a very different ending. AKA had a few different endings for the movie such as one where the cops came. I have written a fanfic where the Eds actually go inside Bro’s house and then the cops come.

“WHOA!”

Did Bro.... he did! He threw Eddy into his house!

AND A SECOND TIME!

Ed finally understands that something is wrong. Eddy has praised his brother his entire life, but this doesn’t look anything like a healthy relationship.

This is not the kind of slapstick humor we see in the show. Although the slapstick got violent at points, such as The Good, The Bad, and The Ed, they always tries to make it funny.

AKA did a great job dealing with the topic of abuse in the movie. It’s a very heavy topic to talk about, even for a kids show, but I believe every single viewer watching this moment knew this was serious. This is not how siblings act.

His reaction is the best in the last image. His whole body just slumps, even his facial expression. I love whenever Ed realizes without anyone else telling him that something is wrong. I notice that it is whenever Eddy is in danger. Edd too, but Ed has known Eddy for the longest time. Right now, Ed can feel what Eddy is feeling.

The saddest part about this scene is how Eddy has to go along with everything as if it were normal. He hasn’t experiences this amount of pain in years. Yes, years as this is how Bro’s true and relationship with Eddy was like. 

Eddy doesn’t want to face the horrible truth of who his brother really is. Facing that will only make his true self come out, which he is not ready to deal with. He has no idea who he is. Along with that, he hates the person he became. He doesn’t want anyone to see that weakness.

As we cut over to the cul-de-sac kids reactions Bro beating Eddy against his house doesn’t stop. Eddy is hit against the house a total of SIX TIMES!

“Dude, Eddy’s brother is a real jerk.”

You don’t say, Nazz. So, why are you more disappointed with Eddy’s brother then scared for Eddy? Kevin looks as if he’s ready to have an anxiety attack!

Kevin is hiding behind Nazz. 

Kevin and Nazz’s roles have been switched. Nazz is always the one to hide behind Kevin. That was important detail from Fistful of Ed. Kevin is so afraid of what is happening. This is his true self. We know how much he doesn’t like Eddy, but his neighbor who he has known his whole life is getting pummeled. This is his first time seeing Eddy’s weak side.

Eddy and Kevin are both unsure of themselves. They hide under masks wanting to make it look as if they have their life together.

Look at Rolf. He is ready to pounce. Rolf, outside of being an Urban Ranger, has had a soft spot for Eddy. He wanted to help him get rid of his pimple and has offered to help him on many different occasions.

See, they all do care about Eddy. They all have different feelings regarding Eddy, but I don’t think any of them outright hate Eddy. They don’t like him. But, the kids have no idea who the real Eddy is. They hate Eddy because he has portrayed Bro all this time.

None of them are coming forward to stop what is happening because they don’t know what to do. They’re scared. This man is hurting his little brother right in the open.

Bro, believing that these people who Eddy said were after him, think that they will have a laugh out of this. At first, I thought the kids would have laughed because, think back to other times when Eddy got hurt. They’d laugh.

This episode brings the characters out from their masks just be seeing Bro. All the cul-de-sac kids had a Bro characteristic in them that they needed to get rid of.

“WHAT’S HE DOING TO MY MAN?!”

LEE’S.BEST.MOMENT!

Marie and May literally have to restrain Lee who wants to kick Eddy’s brother’s ass!

The Kankers are not longer the antagonists. This is a rare moment where they are actually a part of all the characters story. They usually have their own story as they lead a much different life from everyone else.

Bro and the Kankers are two very different antagonists. We get to know the Kankers throughout the series. They have actual character traits, quirks and as audience members we tend to feel bad with how they have to live their life. They are very poor, but live with it.

As for Bro, he is a bad person all around. He is a terrible person because he finds pleasure out of it. He steered Eddy down the wrong path and he doesn’t understand right and wrong.

In a way, the Kanker’s play the unlikely heroes of the movie because they are saving the Eds from harms way of the kids, and they give Bro his comeuppance for what he did to their boyfriends.

The Kankers have grown since A Fistful of Ed. They backed off on the Eds and learned more of what is right and wrong. Of course they still come on to the Eds, they are actually portrayed as heroes.

I love how Lee wants to protect Eddy. She really does like him. What is it about Eddy that she likes? I’d honestly like to know. Lee and Eddy both have leadership qualities about themselves. Eddy also made Lee open up about herself and think about who she is. Eddy is the first guy who ever stood up to her.

Also, this is Marie and May’s chance to lead Lee. As I explained with both the Eds and the Kanker’s both the latters go along and wait out orders from their leader.

Similar to Ed and Edd, May and Marie always have to ask Lee what they should do. I think Lee has moreso held them back while Eddy tries to make his friends take lead. They have two different perspectives of the world. Since Lee was the first born she has witnessed most of the nightmares the family has dealt with.

And now Sarah.

Why is she smiling?

Sarah finds this funny. Sarah think that Bro is playing around because this is how she treats Ed. It may look as if she is being cold, but she doesn’t understand yet. Sarah hates Eddy to the core so she may think that this is the punishment he gets.

Since Sarah is a mirror image of her mother is this how she fights with their father?

Jimmy would like to be anywhere but here. Clearly, his wish is not a wish come true.

Bro throws Eddy at his house one final time.

If Eddy hadn’t grabbed Bro’s arm would he have kept doing it?

Aw, poor Eddy. He’s rolled up like a basketball. Bro has never looked at Eddy as if he were his brother.

The force of Eddy hitting the house was so great that the house nearly tipped over.

What are Ed and Edd to do?

They don’t have their leader to give them advice?

It’s time to act for themselves.

[book-o-scams]

Are there any scene from season 1 or 2 that you’d consider romantic gestures between Edd and Eddy?

OK, this has been updated!

I think that would depend on your definition of a romantic gesture.  To Eddy, a romantic gesture can be the uncontrollable urge to jump all over somebody when you hear good news.  Eddy is a weird boy.  The main thing to look for with Edd and Eddy throughout the series is that they are in each others’ personal bubbles all the time and are occasionally flirty with their banter. Here’s a bunch of early Edd and Eddy moments that have shades of their later dynamic…

I don’t even remember this but this was the first screenshot I found going through my old analyses that made me go “whaaat’s Eddy doing exactly?“

I double checked the scene and it’s just how Eddy pulled Edd back from off-screen, but I must say Eddy keeps both of his hands inside Edd’s robe for an unnecessarily long time before he takes them out to gesture around the room.

This episode is a fountain of material for the Eds being super touchy, introducing how comfortable they are all stuffed together whether they’re clothed or naked. 

To be fair, this montage only shows Eddy changing but the direction of it doesn’t suggest Ed or Edd leave the room to change separately.

And even the slapstick slips in suggestiveness

Hyper Edd liked to be in Eddy’s space:

I guess at this point it’s safe to say ‘Dawn of the Eds’ was not the first EddEddy moment.  ‘Sir Ed-a-Lot’ starts putting more focus on this duo’s compatibility rather than the Eds in general, and also introduces their tendencies to dress in drag.

And still with the slapstick:

They like to tickle Eddy.

Edd and Eddy have a choreographed dance..

And this is when Eddy suggested Edd pretend to be his wife…

Honestly this shot of Eddy inviting them into what is clearly someone’s old shaggin’ wagon…  C’mon.

And this is one of those instances I was referring to a while ago where Edd and Eddy are used to react as straightmen in unison to Ed’s irrational situations.

It’s not always on-camera, but I also must note that season 1 Edd is much more impressed by Eddy’s various parlor tricks.

And also takes Eddy’s frustrations more seriously.

He’s already used to doting on Eddy’s injuries.

Virt-Ed-Go reaches a point with a lot of Edd and Eddy teamwork moments

next episode… um..

Eddy hides in Edd’s hat

Reacting to Ed with equal enthusiasm

Going for a ride together

Edd starts teasing Eddy back in ‘Ed n Seek’.  “Smart guy, huh?“  “Only when you’re around, Eddy!“

Elsewhere, Edd and Eddy escape their bus scam together, leaving the kids to die…

About halfway through season 1, Eddy gets into the habit of put his arm around Edd.  Eddy also picks up his bad habit of asking Edd if he’s ever misled him…

Eddy has irrational confidence in Edd.

Eddy protecting them from disease.

They are desensitized to midnight visits.

Aw a sleepover

Edd and Eddy have a fun power struggle when Edd gets an ego during a doctor persona.

Digging around in Edd’s pockets...

Screwing up together…

Now let’s get into season 2, where they start establishing more of the “frilliness“ to these characters.

“You like my new hair do Double Dee?“  “Hee hee, it suits you, Eddy.“  How else am I supposed to interpret this stuff?

Jeez does Eddy put his arms around their necks in every season 2 episode???

Eddy keeping Edd in-character.

Teamwork…

“Stop me boys… I’m getting frilly!“

Edd convincing Eddy to dance instead of wallowing in their failures.

Saving Edd from being caught by Rolf and Kevin…

Teamwork/putting himself and Edd in the spotlight

Evil plan cooperation!

The ep with Ed’s tooth has a lot of Edd and Eddy power struggling throughout.

I always like Edd joining Eddy’s supervillainry against Kevin in this ep…

Plus Eddy was into Edd’s Nazz-drag.

The Jib ep has a ton of Edd and Eddy moments where they are either united as a team, or at least reacting in unison.

Edd is also the only one to really care about Eddy being attacked by Jib.  He lets Eddy get revenge on Ed in the end too.

Edd takes note of Eddy’s leopard skin underwear making a statement, and then at the end of the scene, Edd defines “amorous“ in Eddy’s ear.

Lovely little moment on Eddy’s roof~

The ending has a cute gag where  Ed notes that Eddy is picking up Edd’s obsession with the cleanliness of his possessions.  Edd and Eddy are also teamed up against Kevin and yelling at Ed to join them.

Edd and Eddy are very cooperative all of ‘Rambling Ed’

Oh yeah, and they literally sleep together in this one.

Edd doesn’t mind sharing loofahs with Eddy....

Edd is the only one tries to help Eddy, but gets jumped by a nude Eddy

“what? no flowers?“

Edd concocts a plan that’s as sneaky as Eddy likes.  Edd sneaks in the word “booty“ and giggles.

Edd is very concerned for Eddy’s safety in ‘Honor Thy Ed’.

 Eddy is obsessed with Edd’s attention while Edd’s asleep.

Eddy (accidentally?? violently??) cuddling Edd for giving him instructions

Eddy gives Ed a wallop for crushing Edd with their supplies.

Eddy tries the seductive approach to waking Edd up (and fails)

Eddy strips Edd and then twirls his shirt around

Eddy yells at Ed for forgetting Edd at the creek, but Ed finds him immediately.

Ed and Eddy diligently searching for their missing friend.

Ed and Eddy stand in solidarity against Sarah while dangling Edd like a limp noodle.

Eddy claiming his stake in Edd against everybody else.

Eddy enraptured by Edd’s science mumbo jumbo:

Eddy’s whole no-rules campaign is purely to toy with Edd.

Even after Edd snaps and calls the parents, Eddy attempts to rationalize Edd’s behavior to the kids.  Eddy and Ed more or less take responsibility for Edd.

Eddy steers Edd toward a rare immoral victory in ‘Rent-a-Ed’...

They win by linking loins...

Eddy teasing Edd about his dad by dressing Jonny in a business suit.

Edd and Eddy are just quarreling this whole episode until Eddy tells Edd to “just stand there and look pretty“ with a pat on the cheek.

After that Edd gives credit to Eddy’s tutoring paying off, and then both scold Ed for stealing chickens.

“sum up kevedd vs eddeddy discourse in one screenshot“

Besides being an episode all about the methods Bro used to mold Eddy, this episode also gives Edd a few opportunities to challenge Bro’s teachings.

After deliberately triggering Edd, Eddy can’t actually bring himself to hit Edd with the dodgeball.

Edd gets revenge anyway, and helps Eddy out afterward so even I’m satisfied.

Eddy trying to trick Edd into going along with Bro’s teaching.

Edd criticizing Bro behind Eddy’s back

A moment of silence over Ed.

Edd trying to save Eddy’s life from cartoon mayhem.

Eddy hides in Edd’s hat, then helps save Ed.

Reacting in unison to the kids and then Ed....

Honestly let’s just skip this episode with Eddy doing an Edd impression, just look at the analysis to get an idea of how well Eddy knows Edd.

http://book-o-scams.tumblr.com/post/91696325133/episode-24b-mirror-mirror-on-the-ed

In the next episode, Edd and Eddy have another sleepover anyway.

Edd even impresses Eddy during this one.

Showing off for who exactly?

Romantic sewer rides?

The tables have turned!

[one-more-miracle-gatsby]

I just finished Impyrium by Henry H Neff and I’m gonna talk about it because I have a lot of feelings so spoiler warning

-I completely forgot the demon’s conditions for the Red Winter Treaty so I saw the Prusian Sea on the map and I was like “huh I wonder what the crafty bastard did to get an ocean named after him” and then I got to the line about underwater demon kingdoms and I was like THAT’S RIGHT THEY BANISHED HIM TO THE SEA and of course he still managed to go make himself a successful kingdom like ffs Prusias just enjoy retirement.

-Sigga Fenn is my new favorite character. What a bro. I mean yeah she played Hob like a panther stalking a rabbit and absolutely would have killed him in an instant and we don’t still know what her exact orders are but there are times when she does seem to be as sincere and friendly as she can professionally be and like honestly it’s nice to have such a chill agent. Disguising herself as the old lady was hilarious like that was so unnecessary Sigga you didn’t have to steal her dessert

-I love the dynamics between the triplets. Isabel is great.

-homunculus breeding is fascinating oh my god

-”Hazel saw that Harkün had also drawn a dagger with a wavy black blade” TFW you’re such a die-hard Cooper fan you can recognize his weapon 3000 years later

-speaking of the devil, I hope that Mystic with mismatched eyes was a descendant of who I think she was because please imagine Hazel Cooper’s reaction to finding her greatx3k granddaughter gambling with a domovoi

-Like. I know Prime is not going to turn out to be Cooper but there’s a tiny part of my sappy fangirl heart going, “if anyone were to volunteer themselves to be turned into a statue for all eternity to protect Rowan it would probably be him”

-Hob’s sass is beautiful can he give me lessons

-THERE WILL ALWAYS BE SHROPES COOKING AT ROWAN

-I love the quotes at the start of the chapters, not only did they bring more meaning to the chapters but they also provided some context and backstory, like how old David lived to be.

-Honestly Hazel’s mentality was so unapologetically realistic like she was so innocent and oblivious but then she started learning things and I love her revelations that she can take control of her own life. But like she was still allowed to be delicate and cry and sleep with a stuffed giraffe and it wasn’t depicted as weakness.

-I will be forever be impressed at the all the political webs Henry weaves

-Montague’s character development

-I wonder what Ember really did with Mina like did he really eat her or is she chillin in his mouth under the sea

-The two perspectives were so great and it was awesome because you can’t trust the Fellowship and you can’t trust the royals, you can only trust that the main characters themselves will see the faults of their respective sides and make the right decisions. I love how they opened each other’s eyes to new things.

-It’s so cool because The Tapestry was so heavily based in Irish mythology and now Impyrium is based in Tapestry mythology like the original series became the mythology of the new series, which means that our world is part of that mythology. I remember Henry saying something about how The Tapestry was partially a story about human perseverance and that really spoke to me in some parts of this book too. That ancient, scratched-up, barely-working Disney film was so unsettling but so wonderful. Burke’s line about “would you believe we lowly little humans once walked on the moon?” The part where the Fellowship is explaining about how humans once built flying ships and split matter to its smallest components without any magic, just with the sheer power of their minds. It’s inspiring. And it was interesting seeing that different perspective of the destruction of the Book of Thoth, like we were just starting to explore the heavens themselves and then that technology was taken away from us. But like it said, at least we’re still walking on the Earth. It’s surreal reading this and realizing that in this book we are the ancient civilizations. Much of our history is either not known at all or considered a nonsensical fairy tale. But Disney films and the Brothers Grimm tales still exist. Stories persevere, no matter how rare or expensive or illegal they may become. Getting even more meta, it’s just like the stories of the original series becoming the mythology of this one. Stories stick around, no matter how much they may change, and apparently the same applies to humanity.

-I would love to talk to someone who read Impyrium without reading The Tapestry first and find out what that realization was like, when it suddenly dawned on them that this had once been our world.

-It’s also really interesting and kind of funny seeing the empress and the princesses have the whole week-long pilgrimage and put themselves through such physical and mental duress to go worship this mysterious scary god-king from another world when those of us who have read The Tapestry know that this all-powerful warrior is the same guy who got repeatedly bossed around by a talking goose and once used magic to leap 20 feet in the air because he got startled by a robot centipede. The Hound of Rowan, everybody. One thing I always admired about Max’s character was that no matter how much he grew and changed the core of his personality, his kindness and his humor, stayed the same (and even when he went full supernova god in the Workshop he was still able to keep from destroying everybody because of the love he felt for his friends). And I’m glad that even just from that little glimpse we got of him we can see that he still holds that same personality, that he was so eager to help this teenage girl that he forgot about the FATAL WOUND that would literally kill him if he went through the gate like Max never change

-I was not expecting this story to give me so many Max feels like I thought I was over the end of The Red Winter but apparently not. I actually laughed when they brought out the lyrmrills as offerings because it was so beautifully nostalgic and sentimental but also like, what else would it be? The man loves his lymrills.

-Speaking of Max getting bossed around by Hannah I seem to remember her saying she was immortal at the end of The Red Winter so are she and her goslings still wandering around the Direwoods oh god

-Again it must be such a different experience reading this without the context of the first series because that whole Direwoods field trip was kind of a punch in the gut. I remember in The Hound of Rowan reading about the abandoned charges wandering the Sanctuary and forgetting that humans ever cared for them and I thought that was so sad and now the entire Sanctuary is like that. The Sanctuary was such a beacon of hope and peace and now it’s just a creepy haunted forest where little rich kids are afraid to get their feet dirty. Who knows how long selkies live, that could have been Frigga or Helga in the lagoon being so glad to have some humans to play with again. And the ruins of the Warming Lodge and the dvergar brother’s forge. Dude that one classroom had Nile Croakers and domovoi and stuff in cages and the selkies were described as “water beasts” like that was so sad it feels so wrong and it’s such a good representation of how the culture has changed

-Like honestly it’s just such a message about the nature of history. It reminds me of Church’s monologue from the end of season 13 of Red vs Blue, where he talked about the hero never getting to know if his sacrifice was worth it. Max didn’t know what became of his friends or the world he left behind presumably until David’s death (and don’t think I don’t have a fanfic idea about that), and then Max and David and everyone presumably don’t really know what became of their world 3000 years later, like they know the gate and the dragon exist and they know about the Faeregines coming on pilgrimage every few years, but I guess they probably don’t know much beyond that. They never get to see the long-lasting effects of their efforts, and they don’t get to know the perspectives with which people view them and the legends they’ve become. They didn’t want Rowan to become a place for snobby elites, and they didn’t want nonmagical people to be discriminated against, but they can’t do anything about it. Because we can act to change our history, but in the long run we never know how our stories will end up being told. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t take action to better our world for the present and the foreseeable future.

-I love all the subtle parallels, intentional or not, between this story and The Tapestry. Kids sneaking out at night for a sleepover on a ship, kids sneaking out for a duel. A man losing his face. Workshop specimens getting stolen. Being betrayed by a friend (honestly, I didn’t suspect Viktor at all until he suggested that they collect firewood and then my mind immediately went to Rolf and Connor for some reason even though there was no real connection). The illustration of Hob outside Hazel’s tent with the House Blade next to the fire reminded me so much of Cooper sneaking into Max’s tent with the poisoned Atropos blade, and it was Scathach the shadow who saved Max and Sigga the shadow who saved Hazel and Hob. History repeats itself. No matter how much some things change, some things still repeat.

-Olly was such a great character, like he had flaws but he acknowledged and apologized for them and he was so great. Sniff.

-Seriously Sigga is that teacher who’s like “I know you’re going though a lot so I’m going to conveniently forget to close the submission box until a while after the due date so I won’t know if you turned the homework in late but if I do catch you turning it in late I gotta fail you sorry”

-Also can we talk about the fact that Ember apparently fell in love with Astaroth’s hell dragon that he conjured from dead people like oh my god Ember plz you guys almost killed each other

-I feel like remember Henry saying something about us eventually getting to hear more about the grymholch from Prusias’s arena and the world it was from and I hope that happens

[mrmichaelchadler]

Obsession and The Void: The Performances of Christian Bale

In an early scene in Mary Harron’s “American Psycho,” youthful and Adonis-like stockbroker Patrick Bateman (Christian Bale) runs through his almost pornographically detailed morning routine: a workout with 1,000 crunches, an array of hair and skincare products, all in an exact order to present “an idea of a Patrick Bateman.” Bale performs the scene with a blank fastidiousness, showing no joy or even stray morning wakeup feelings of exhaustion or boredom, all while narrating in a calm but detached tone of a magazine readout. There is a similar scene in the opening of “American Hustle” that functions as a parody, in which Bale’s con man Irving Rosenthal, flabby and balding, puts just as much work into maintaining his elaborately pathetic combover with a far more careful level of focus, a sense that what he’s doing to prepare himself has a real function. The two men are at different ends of the food chain, one obscenely wealthy, the other scrambling to get by; one is cold and unfeeling, the other empathetic and desperately human. Their commonality, then, is how much they have to work to do just to maintain a sense of self, to show that they have a reason for being, even if only to those on the outside looking in. 

That’s in line with much of the praise, and sometimes the criticisms, of Bale’s career. He’s undoubtedly skillful at reshaping his own appearance—often gaining or losing weight to extreme degrees—but the focus is frequently put on the surface external appearances, lauding how he’s become “unrecognizable” (both an exaggeration and more accurately praise for the makeup crew) or knocking his work for being too focused on nailing an impression or a physical quality at the expense of emotional connection. This misunderstands Bale’s strengths, however: he is an actor for whom physical transformation is but an anchoring facet to a depiction of obsession, be it Patrick Bateman’s pathological need to project normality to hide his depravity in “American Psycho,” Irving Rosenthal’s need to project success to attain some sad measure of it in “American Hustle,” or Dicky Eklund’s fixation on his one brush with greatness as a fighter to stave off the truth of his all-consuming crack addiction in “The Fighter.” They’re people who feel a deep need to construct or pursue some idealized form of self as a way to succeed or survive. It’s reflected in Bale’s own process, in which he seemingly constructs a façade, an attempt to hide himself, in order to find something authentic in his roles. The prosthetics, the hair changes and the punishing fluctuations in weight can sometimes be a crutch, but they’re also directly tied to the ring of truth in his best performances.

Bale’s new film, the Dick Cheney biopic “Vice,” has drawn fiercely polarized responses, with criticisms thrown both at typical Great Man Movie problems (lumpy one-thing-after-another structure, an over-explanatory script) and writer-director Adam McKay’s own additions (divisive fourth wall breaks and an uneasy tone that walks a thin line between “lacerating” and “lecturing”). The actor's deceptively sensitive work as Cheney, however, does showcase much of what makes him interesting as a performer beyond the bodily transformations and close attention to detail: he plays people with a single-minded obsession that outweighs other concerns, a need to pursue it at all costs or else fall into the void of their lives, and a self-presentation meant to prop it up.

One could look at any number of Bale performances to highlight this, but these five best discuss the range of emotions and tones he’s able to explore while exemplifying this theme.

"Empire of the Sun" / Warner Bros. Pictures

1987: “Empire of the Sun”

When Steven Spielberg cast 12-year-old Christian Bale as Jamie “Jim” Graham in his adaptation of J.G. Ballard’s semi-autobiographical novel, he had no way of knowing his young lead actor would grow up to become one of the biggest stars of his generation. Even so, “Empire of the Sun,” the story of an English boy coming of age in Japanese-occupied China, marks the breakthrough of an extraordinarily gifted young actor, one with a real skill for sketching out the death of innocence. Bale’s early scenes show a classic Spielbergian dreamer, one whose fixation on airplanes shows no real understanding of the ideology behind the battles or the life-or-death situations that people find themselves in. He looks to everyday misery (beggars in the street) with curiosity but not compassion, and his casual cruelty to his family’s Chinese servant (a matter-of-fact, disinterested “you have to do what I say” when told his mom doesn’t want him eating before bed) is less out of a sense of superiority than a total lack of understanding of how his privilege dictates her life, to the point where he's completely shocked when that same servant slaps him after the Japanese invade and she no longer has to pretend to respect him. 

As Jamie falls in with John Malkovich’s savvy crook Basie and they’re both sent to an internment camp, Bale shows a child’s adaptability, rushing through the camp and carrying out chores to win over everyone from his mentor to his captors. He’s at once a young opportunist and an earnest child, one whose mimicry of Malkovich and company (adopted American clothing, repeated jokes without understanding their cruelty) never quite gives way to comprehending that they don’t care about him (his sincere declaration that Basie is his friend is met with little more than amusement from the older man). At the same time, his admiration for the Japanese—a childlike fascination both with their aircraft and their sense of honor—protects him from the harsh realities of the camp, where people are beaten and starved or left to disease. In a late scene, Bale’s shift from unbridled joy at seeing bombers in action (hugging himself, cheering) to emotional breakdown after he’s rebuked by an elder (“I can’t remember what my parents look like”) show how much he’s depended on a fantastical sense of the world to escape how little he has left. His adoption of American habits and Basie’s theory of survivalism, paired with his salutes and bows to Japanese military men with a palpable sense of respect, is a child’s way of playing war games, an ideology- and nationality-blind view of war straight out of boys’ games and comics. Jamie has to act it out, or else realize that there’s little honor in doing whatever it takes to survive and that he’s unlikely to make it out in one piece. If the film and performance show a child’s resilience, they also show how quickly their views of the world can crumble, yielding only pain.

"Velvet Goldmine" / Miramax

1998: “Velvet Goldmine”

A few notable exceptions like his cocky performance in “Newsies” aside, Bale spent much of the ‘90s giving quietly sensitive, soulful supporting performances that he’s since only reprised on occasion (most effectively for Terrence Malick, who yielded one of his very best performances as John Rolfe in “The New World,” where Bale somehow makes unfailing kindness magnetic). Bale is very good in literary adaptations such as Gillian Armstrong’s “Little Women” (as the charming, lovelorn Laurie), but his best work of this period is in Todd Haynes’ “Velvet Goldmine” as Arthur Stuart, a music journalist reminiscing about his self-discovery as a gay man in the glam rock era. Haynes’ film borrows its structure from “Citizen Kane,” attempting to find how Jonathan Rhys-Meyers pop superstar Brian Slade disappeared, but it also works as a “Kane” for Bale’s character, who’s introduced in the middle of a youthful, “A Hard Day’s Night” rush to a concert, all teased hair and youthful excitement. Then we’re yanked to 1984, and his eyes are sunken, his demeanor sad and reticent. What happened that brought him to this place?

Bale’s greatness as a physical actor is often yoked to his extreme dedication to losing and gaining pounds, but “Velvet Goldmine” can serve as an example of how he can use his body to tell a story. He plays teenage Arthur with a measure of shyness that suggests a boy who hasn’t yet found an outlet for his dreams or a place to be himself; he hangs his head in embarrassment when he’s told his musical hero is a “poof” and that he himself is “disgusting.” Contrast that with his first strut on the streets of London minutes later, in a tight purple shirt, a moment of freedom that’s both liberating and frightening, his gait more open but still uncertain. The rest of his journey in the ‘70s scenes of the film is a navigation between those two poles of repression—his heaving frame as his father shames him for his homosexuality—and short-lived freedom, including a first romantic connection with rock star Curt Wild (Ewan McGregor). It makes his scenes in 1984 all the more painful, in which a withdrawn, older (and older-looking) Arthur shuffles through the streets, looking as if he’s trying to blend in with everything rather than stand out on his own. 

Bale plays the role not as someone who’s found a permanent new identity and acceptance, but rather as someone who, briefly, saw a better life and the first stabs of individuality in the music and fashions that meant so much to him, before those small gains were rolled back and a new, more powerful form of repression turned his world to gray. Perhaps Arthur wouldn’t have stayed glammed up his whole life—most people don’t look and dress like they did when they were teenagers—but he’s stuck in a point in time where he can’t even find a modest form of self-expression. Bale the actor locates that moment of temporary self-discovery and shows just how it’s so intoxicating: it’s a first assertion of self, even in an idealized form. That adult Arthur can’t fully break from that fixation is understandable; that he should be required to totally deny any semblance of it is tragic.

"American Psycho" / Lions Gate Films

2000: “American Psycho”

Bale really arrived as a Great Actor™ with “American Psycho,” the first film that showcased his ability to dramatically transform his appearance for a role. Bale hasn’t shaken his attraction to these challenges, and while he usually manages to transcend the stunt-y nature of these roles (“The Fighter,” “Rescue Dawn,” the otherwise tedious “The Machinist”), there are times where the trick is more impressive than the performance (“I'm Not There,” the “Dark Knight” trilogy). Still, none of this detracts from his work as psychopathic yuppie Patrick Bateman, which remains his most iconic performance. 

“American Psycho” director Mary Harron has spoken about Bale being inspired by a Tom Cruise talk show appearance in which the star displayed “intense friendliness with nothing behind the eyes,” and the film itself draws parallels between him and President Ronald Reagan’s use of sunny optimism to sell cruel policies. Either comparison works: in his public life, Bateman has a near-permanent tone of unfailing cheerfulness, discussing the importance of ending apartheid and world hunger as he flashes a killer smile. His eyes, however, always have the glint of predator, a coldness that only occasionally breaks through in creepy remarks, delivered with the same psychotic chipperness (“Not if you want to keep your spleen”) that might not hide their perverted nature if any of his friends were a little less self-absorbed and a little more perceptive.

What’s brilliant about Bale and Harron’s conception of Bateman is that they’re able to convey the character’s essential loneliness without losing the humor or downplaying the grotesque nature of his (possibly imaginary) crimes. Most talk about Bale’s performance focuses on his informercial slick delivery of Huey Lewis factoids before chopping up Jared Leto with an axe. More telling, however, is his scene with Chloe Sevigny’s secretary, in which Bale shifts from blithe morbidity (bringing up Ted Bundy’s dog, Lassie) to psychotic fixation on consumerism (lashing out at Sevigny for almost leaving an ice cream-covered spoon on his coffee table) to insincere, monotone openness (“I guess you could say I just want to have a meaningful relationship with someone”) to, finally, a real recognition of his own hideousness (“I think if you stay, something bad will happen,” delivered with something that approaches but doesn't quite reach sadness).

Bateman’s cruelty and emptiness couldn’t be plainer, and yet he finds no release in his actions or his confessions. We see that morning routine, the search for the perfect business card, the hunt for the reservation at the best restaurant, and see an attempt to assume the role of the idealized yuppie, but it’s all work ... no soul, no joy. The same goes for Bateman’s more sociopathic actions, whether it’s a self-regarding attempt at a threesome (in which he’s more enamored with striking godlike poses than the sex itself) or stabbing a homeless man on the street. He has the impulses that give him a brief flash of life, but there's little catharsis. Bale plays his compulsions, both murderous and consumerist, as those of a joyless man who attempts to approximate enjoyment. His intense commitment to the role’s physical requirements mimics the character’s own intense commitment to a lifestyle, but where one finds a pulse, the other finds a pit. If most of Bale’s characters attempt to outrun an emptiness or pain in their lives, Bateman is his own emptiness, and no amount of heavy lifting and slashing can change it.

"The Prestige" / Warner Bros. Pictures

2006: “The Prestige”

If “American Psycho” made Bale a name actor and “The Machinist” cemented his reputation for near-deranged commitment, “Batman Begins” and “The Dark Knight” made him universally recognizable, physical transformations be damned. Truth be told, his most famous films with Christopher Nolan aren’t his most notable, succeeding primarily on the basis of their villains and thematic ambition. While he’s admirably grounded and present as Bruce Wayne, Bale never quite dives into the monster that Batman's alter ego is fighting so hard not to be; his line readings are too glum, his face too stoic, rarely registering the internal struggle that Nolan’s scripts try (a little too hard) to give him (for a better heroic Bale performance, see “3:10 to Yuma”). It’s his other collaboration with Nolan, “The Prestige,” that best exemplifies that inner conflict and, indeed, the defining theme of Bale’s career.

There’s no way to talk about Bale’s performance in “The Prestige” meaningfully without diving into spoilers, so here’s your warning.

Bale’s Alfred Borden is established as the more risk-taking of “The Prestige’s” central characters, compared with Hugh Jackman’s Robert Angier, something hinted in early scenes as the actor speaks to Angier and Michael Caine’s Cutter with an air of arrogance and almost demented devotion to the craft. This extends to his personal life, which is eventually revealed to be a literal double life: Bale’s playing both Borden and his twin (dubbed “Fallon”), who loved separate women (Rebecca Hall and Scarlet Johansson) and ruined their lives through a total obsession and commitment to their craft over all else. Observant viewers can spot the moments in which Bale’s warmth with Sarah (Hall), Borden’s wife, is genuine and when “Fallon” is speaking to her with nothing behind the eyes. One particularly painful scene, a final confrontation between “Fallon” and Sarah, features one of the most gutting moments in Bale’s career, in which his anger at her realization of the truth prevents him from even attempting to maintain the illusion. Asked if he loves her, he spits out a “Not today” with a level of coldness worthy of Patrick Bateman.

The performance is, on some level, as much of a stunt as “The Machinist” or “Batman Begins,” but the trick of it feels all the more appropriate, given the subject. Bale imbues his twin magicians with a combination of mischievousness and palpable sadness, showing a flash of joy in their eyes after showing a child a magic trick ... and a sense of loss as the twins face each other, knowing only one can exist. Perhaps Bale found something moving in the idea of men who find purpose in deceiving viewers in order to entertain them, and in the idea of men who are madly committed to realizing an idealized form of craft at the expense of their personal identities. The dual performance shows two men who are constantly amused at their own ability to pull off a trick (especially at the expense of bitter rival Angier) and simultaneously aware that they’ve sacrificed true happiness for an obsession that they seem to be pursuing without any real thought as to why.

"The Big Short" / Paramount

2015: “The Big Short”

By the late 2000s, Bale’s own commitment to his craft seemed to have lost real direction, lapsing into self-seriousness (“Terminator Salvation,” “Harsh Times,” his dull work in the otherwise sturdy “Public Enemies”) or pure imitation (“I’m Not There,” in which he’s by far the weakest Bob Dylan). Whatever the weaknesses of post-“I Heart Huckabees” David O. Russell (shapelessness, self-satisfaction, volume over everything), he managed to get Bale to loosen up as few directors beyond Gillian Armstrong and Werner Herzog had, directing a pair of lively performances in “The Fighter” (for which Bale won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor) and “American Hustle” (another nomination). Bale is at his best as of late when tapping into his comedic side, as best demonstrated in his first collaboration with Adam McKay, “The Big Short” (a third nomination). 

Playing hedge fund manager Michael Burry, the oddest of the men who made millions by betting the U.S. economy would collapse, Bale roots the comedy of the character in his behavior. A whiz with numbers, Bale’s Burry nevertheless has no social skills; the humor of his bizarre compliment (“That’s a very nice haircut. Did you do it yourself?”) to prospective employee is not only in its inherent strangeness, but in his halting delivery and blank expression, as if he knows he’s not good with these interactions but not exactly why the thing he’s about to say is weird. His gestures are similarly uncomfortable, whether he’s flashing a smile for no reason or awkwardly rubbing at his glass eye while stammering about subprime mortgages. And yet, Burry is one of the least deceptive and most honest characters in Bale’s three-decade career, focused entirely on the tangible at the expense of more difficult-to-pin-down things like social niceties and gut instinct. It is a very different, but equally telling, echo of Bale’s own methods that one can find in his more deluded characters. If Dicky Eklund or Irving Rosenthal act in self-deception to convince themselves and others of something, Burry concentrates only on what he can see empirically to find his truth, not unlike how Bale drills down on tangible external details (hair, weight, voice) as a way to find his own.

If Bale’s performance in “The Big Short” is his funniest, it is also among his saddest, as his character’s obsession with numbers at the expense of person-to-person interactions make him both the ideal person to predict a market collapse and the worst person to convey it. When confronted by angry investors, he does little to assuage their concerns, instead speaking in a low but self-assured tone (at the idea that nobody can see a bubble: “That’s dumb ... ”) that he can’t see is doomed to only further enrage people. When he’s rebuked, he can admit his weaknesses, but not without reinforcing his total conviction in what he does. “I don’t know how to be sarcastic,” Bale says with a slight shrug and a tone that’s equally confessional and weary. “I just know how to read numbers.” It’s the rare Bale character where one’s obsession is what can help spot the looming, soul-and-economy-destroying void, even if it can’t help avert it. 

"Vice" / Annapurna Pictures

This makes for a fascinating polar opposite to his most recent McKay-directed performance. Like Bateman and others before him, Bale’s Cheney in "Vice" is a cold-hearted cipher, a man so consumed with the idea of power and the need and ability to wield it that questions of ethics, morality or popularity never elicit a moment’s thought. His measured cadence and small gestures (a small head jerk on “different understanding,” a shift from a guarded posture to a hand wave on “mundane” to suggest a helping hand) show someone who has weighed exactly what he has to do to pull someone over to his side in a way that makes them think he’s nudging them along to where they always wanted to be, rather than totally manipulating them. 

Bale actually almost played George W. Bush himself in Oliver Stone’s “W.” before finding the prosthetics weren’t to his satisfaction (another case of needing tangible details, or self-deception, for a successful performance), but he feels like a better fit for Cheney, a man hiding behind a façade of reserved normality to hide an all-consuming desire for expanded empire, denying ulterior motives to the public and possibly to himself. The world is remade in his cruel image in a way that persists to this day, and that will be near-impossible to change. If Burry, like Bateman, can clearly see the void, Cheney, like Bateman, is the void.

from All Content http://bit.ly/2FvN4OM

[eenefangirlanalysis]

Just then a familiar squeal is heard.

“Wilfred? Is that you?” Rolf asks, sitting up from the ground. He has been separated from his beloved pig for a whole day. Has he been given time to think about his out of character behavior while his head was trapped in that meat grinder? 

Rolf’s character is better at the beginning and ending stages of the movie. His scenes are more filler then anything. Why the writers decided to have Rolf go alone is beyond me. Rolf’s character is better interacting with others then just himself. We learn about ourselves through social interaction. Although being alone is worth experimenting we should not be alone our whole lives. It’s not healthy. That could be the lesson he learns in all this. 

I love how Ed immediately smiles. It’s like he senses that Sarah is going to be with Wilfred. Either that or the sound of a pig makes him happy. He loves animals.

I love scenes in eene where the characters are all together. Artists have to pay attention to each character’s different personality. That’s quite hard to do honestly. Still, it’s my favorite part when it comes to writing or drawing out a scene with multiple characters. Always challenge yourself because the more you do it you’ll get better. 

Also, I love how the whale house looms over the kids. It’s a sign that things are out of place. It’s supposed to look intimidating. These kids are all alone without any adult supervision. This is the first time they’be left the cul-de-sac to explore what’s outside of it.

Sarah storms into the scene having had it with Wilfred eating corn dogs off the ground.

Where did Jimmy get the popcorn? Is there a stand already open? Bro confirms that the park doesn’t open until noon. 

This kid is adorable! Seeing this makes me giggle. This little moment is one of my favorites because it’s so random.

I still don’t understand why Jimmy is hated among the fan base. People are still angry over what he did to the Eds in If It Smells Like an Ed. I don’t think I have ever disliked Jimmy. That episode monumented his growth. He devised a whole Agatha Christie scheme which had the Eds and even viewers baffled. Jimmy has gone from a whimpy kid to a conniving schemer who can look out for himself.

Jimmy and Ed have similarities. The two are always playing around, eating random food they find, and try to make the people around them laugh. If Sarah had a different relationship with Ed Jimmy would be much closer with Ed. He wants to get to know him better. He’s always tagging along with Sarah agreeing with her opinions so Sarah won’t snap at him.

The Kanker’s are first to call out the children.

I wonder if these were different circumstances the girls would have gone after Sarah and Jimmy to get their revenge. Lee sure wants it.

Ed is ecstactic to see his baby sister that he is adapted the ability to fly again. This is the first time Ed mentions his sister throughout the whole movie. He would have mentioned how much he misses her in a deleted scene. 

Ed knows that Sarah is a different person deep down. They’re facing the same neglect from their parents. Ed loves Sarah because she’s the only family member he can look up to and feel that every day is worth living for. Sarah too.

May is the only one out of her sisters who is not angry to see Sarah and Jimmy.

Look at her face. She didn’t realize this was Ed’s sister. Now she’s going to worry about how this will affect their possible relationship. Will Sarah tell Ed what the Kanker’s did to them? 

EdMay is such a cute ship. Ed and May are longing to be independent from their friends. Edd and Eddy and Lee and Marie are obviously more close with another. Post BPS Ed and May could wander into each other and talk about the events.

Sarah is annoyed that Ed is still in one piece while Jimmy fears that they’ve missed the Eds beating.

Sarah can rant off how ever much she wants about how she dislikes Ed all she wants. Remember how I pointed out the difference in personalities within their eyes? One eye reflects the mask while the other shows their true personality they don’t want others to see. Examine her eyes carefully.

Wow, even with the Kanker’s standing a few feet away they walk towards them.

The other kids are here to protect them. And Ed too.

So, they’re still here to see the Eds get beat up. As I have questioned before is it just Eddy they want to see get beat up? Eddy has always been the least likeable of the trio. 

Sidenote: ‘Mermaid Burgers’

Kevin proudly states that they have not missed any action as he grabs Eddy by the ankle.

Keep in mind this is the leg that will be horrifically tortured in a few short minutes.

Eddy briefly panics but then realizes he has a free card.

“In your dreams, shovel chin. Tell yah what, why don’t you talk to my Bro?”

Sidenote: Is that Ed calmly standing with the Kankers??

Eddy, you’re adorable!

Eddy finally gets revenge on Kevin after he stomped on his head in Ready, Set, Ed!

“[Bro] lives here yah know.”

The scene is slightly reminiscent of Ed... Pass it On.

First, the look Edd gives Eddy.

In Ed... Pass it On Edd was trying to encourage Eddy to tell the truth to everyone saying that his brother wasn’t going to show up. Eddy had the perfect moment to reveal that  Bro was not the person he let on. Instead he kept on lying. That’s where Edd and Eddy’s deterioration in their friendship started.

They have gone through an entire journey where they’ve opened up and saw one another in a different and powerful light. Is all that going to go away?

Each character has a different reaction at the possibility that Bro is the owner of this whale shaped house.

Kevin and Rolf are in disbelief. They both share feelings of legitimate terror whenever Eddy’s brother is mentioned.

It’s implied that Eddy’s brother must have done something quite terrible to Rolf’s chickens. I have a head canon that on the infamous day when Bro’s final scam went awry it caused Rolf’s chickens to go insane. Remember how Eddy hates birds?

As for Kevin it’s suggested that he has only heard horror stories and never met Bro.

I have talked about the divorced parents theory before and may the reason for why his mom left is because of Eddy’s brother. That’s why Kevin holds a grudge towards Eddy.

Nazz is immediately alerted. She has expressed how awesome and cool Eddy’s brother sounds. The kids were very young if they were living in the neighborhood at the same time as Bro.

Sarah and Jimmy do look surprised. Sarah was not interested in the possibility that Bro may show up in Ed.. Pass it On. Jimmy has always been intrigued.

The Kanker’s are the only character who were not present during Ed... Pass it On. Surprisingly Lee is the one Kanker who is interested to meet this figure behind the door. May and, in a rare moment, Marie are unsure. Marie is holding her hands together as if she’s nervous. There is a whole different side to her character.

I guess I should also mention Wilfred too. The writers kept him part of this scene and made sure that he had a motivation to be here. Good on the writers part for not letting him drift off and never be seen again.

Jonny was never been present to witness the possible encounter with Bro in Ed.. Pass it On. And he misses out on everything here. Totally unfair! Jonny should have showed up in his bus now rather then after all these events have occurred. Why did the writers have to outcast his character like that? He’s a member of the cul-de-sac who has hung out with the kids and been in on their schemes in almost every episode.

I have a theory that Big Picture Show takes places one year later from Ed... Pass it On. Everyone, minus Jonny and the Kanker’s, were present in Kevin’s house asking questions about Eddy’s brother whereabouts and true nature. Eddy has been faced with the conflict of being true to himself or denying his past regarding his brother.

A lot can change within a year.

"Yeah. So tell him how you're gonna beat up his little bro,” Eddy remarks turning back to the door.

[eenefangirlanalysis]

Edd walks through the filthy waters of the swamp to where this little dock is.

Didn’t catch that? Let me repeat it.

Edd WALKS through the FILTHY WATERS of the SWAMP.

Go back to a few scenes before where Edd wouldn’t even touch this filthy water when he was trying to find Ed and Eddy.

This is where I believe that Edd gets over his fear of germs. He is mad that he had to dig through a pile of mud that got all over him. Surprisingly, it all disappears when he walks back through the water.

I kind of wish that the mud could have stayed on him throughout most of the fight. It would keep bringing a callback to what they are fighting about.

I love this image so much.

The artists still want to make the swamp look like a scary place, but that doesn’t matter to Edd anymore. His friends played the nastiest trick on him. Fear is losing his best friends, not being lost in this swamp.

I like the effect with those several eyes appearing out from that dark hole in the log. They put in such an eerie feeling and yet they don’t matter to the scene.

Where did this dock come from anyway, and how did Edd know that this was here? I have a head canon that Edd must have seen this before they crashed. He wanted to head towards that while Eddy started fighting saying they had to stick with the current. Maybe after they crashed Edd was going to suggest that they go find the dock where they’d follow the road.

Yeah, I wouldn’t want to mess with Edd right now.

Edd pulls himself out from the water onto the dock. 

Edd’s strength is something that has always made Edd fear himself. He didn’t want to have people look at him in the wrong way fearing that someone may find out about what he did in his past. He also doesn’t want to give a wrong impression towards himself. Edd only uses his physical strength during serious moments.

Here he wants to get away from Ed and Eddy as soon as possible. And when people get angry they don’t know what they’re saying or doing half the time. I know this for a fact.

I never noticed how uncomfortable Edd looks when he looks off into the swamp.

He realizes that he has walked away from his friends. He is alone. Cold. And angry.

As if things couldn’t get any worse Edd slips on the dock slamming his face into the wood.

I really thought he was going to sprain his ankle which would have made a negative impact on how he got around for the rest of the movie.

Edd instinctively grabs his hat so it won’t fall off.

He cares more about the hat then his own physical well-being.

Poor, Edd.

Edd was having a bad enough day already so I don’t know why the writers had to put this in. It’s like when the writers made him whack his head on a lamp in A Fistful of Ed.

But, it does say how bad things are always getting in the way of Edd’s life. Whenever something good happens a person or an object have to ruin it.

That’s what makes up A Fistful of Ed. Things were starting to get better for Edd until all the incidents were happening. He believed that he was become friends with the other kids, Rolf needed a new pencil when he thought everything was going back to normal, and then the Kanker’s showing up to ruin his happy ending. Say if Eddy wasn’t there to stand up to them, Edd has always gone through a rough time.

Once again Edd feels the need to label a warning sign in which nobody will read.

Unless he was warning Ed and Eddy who he knew would try to follow him. That’s says a lot about how Edd feels about his friends even when he is angry with them.

He is the reason why everyone catches up to them in the movie. He can never leave something alone, like when the the car broke down in the beginning. He’s thinking about how other people are going to react. Leaving behind messes makes people angry so if he tries to fix it in some way, maybe they will react differently.

Carefully stepping over the puddles Edd shoves his label maker back under his hat and makes his way towards home.

I’m not sure why writers decided that this was the best place to store his labeler as he is already hiding a big secret. 

This labeler is one of his prized possessions though. It is the first object he is seen using in the first episode. It’s where his whole story began at trying to find who he truly was. Before then, he was always in his room. He spent his days alone having the real world pass by. He missed out on so much.

This road has to be the pathway Kevin and Nazz were biking on when they first made their exit out from Peach Creek. I remember seeing a pond like area before they turned the corner. I think they could be right outside from Peach Creek and Edd knows it.

I love the background music in this movie. Patric Caird you did a wonderful job. Listen to it in this whole scene. It reflects Edd’s mood. This isn’t the kind of music you’d here throughout the series. Something is wrong.

This road also says that they are near civilization due to those bill boards in the distance. Edd must have seen this while they were sailing. I’m amazed that he actually knows which way to head back to the cul-de-sac. Then again, they were sailing in the opposite direction the entire time.

Edd’s plan to leave is a big move. It may be a flaw, but his friends just played the worst trick in the world. Like his mind isn’t that messed up already.

If he did end up leaving, nothing would had gotten better. His situation with his parents has worsened, he doesn’t like the cul-de-sac kids no matter what, and there would be extreme tension if Ed and Eddy returned to the cul-de-sac too.

Also what does that sign say? 'No Camping’ or 'No Dumping?’

Edd has walked a considerable distance before Ed and Eddy catch up to him.

This is one of my favorite shots. On one side is the swamp while on the other is this pretty landscape. And in the middle we have this heated argument that is about to happen.

I love how the Eds are drawn so small. There is clearly a distance which has set our protagonist apart from one another. The three best friends are always together. Being separated is the worst thought any of them could have. 

I remember writing this little ‘what if’ fic a while back. What if Edd and Eddy’s fight took place in mud pit rather then on this road? It is better that it is on this road because the situation was brewed over for a little amount of time. Fighting in a mud pit would also change the whole tone of the fight.

Eddy calls out to Edd asking where he is going. He still doesn’t get it. Or so we think. He’s still acting in his Bro mask while the boy behind it is freaking out. Eddy is great actor.

Watch Ed throughout this scene. He slows down a bit. Something is wrong. He has always feared Edd’s anger. I wonder if Ed’s fear of anger represents how he is treated at home. His mother is always angry with him for little to reason. He gets away from that day after day to be with people who want him around.

This may be a another blink and you miss it moment, but I think Edd speeds up his walking. He doesn’t make much of an effort to get away from them when that is what he is trying to do. Edd sees this fight coming no matter what.

Eddy has always been an obstacle for Edd. He has tried to leave, but no matter what Eddy has ways to make him stay. For example, the one arm hug. Eddy sways Edd with this little hug to make him come off as affectionate. Eddy has been taking advantage of him like this whole life. Eddy also uses words to make Edd change his mind. No matter what, Edd always turns to Eddy for advice or to see if his ideas are good.

“You’re heading back into the swamp. My Bro don’t live....”

I have always been confused by this line. How is Edd heading back into the swamp when this road is clearly going to take him to civilization? Does Eddy say ‘we’re heading back into the swamp’? That seems more plausible as they were heading in that direction towards Bro. Unlike Edd, he never noticed this road as they were sailing through the stream.

“DON’T YOU DARE TOUCH ME!!!”

Edd’s sudden fit of anger actually startled me the first time I ever watched this line. I know a lot of you can agree with me.

Edd has always held back his anger. He mainly did it for himself. And I think his parents also forced him to hold things in. As I have pointed out although Edd looks as if he is the most organized person his mind is a mess. He can’t think straight and is constantly paranoid that he’s not doing the right thing.

This release of anger was needed. Eddy deserves this after what he did to hurt Edd. Edd is not going to fall for any of Eddy’s tricks anymore. He always used physical touch to get on people’s emotional sides.

Eddy is already scared. He backs away trying to protect himself. I wish we could have seen his face when Edd first slapped his hand away.

In fact, does Edd slap Eddy’s hand? The sound effect is present but it never looks like he physically hurts Eddy. 

I’m really glad that this moment takes place in this solitude setting. They have to be alone when having this fight. The cul-de-sac kids have always ruined everything when it came to the Eds trying to talk things out.

They’re actually alone with no one else to help them. If someone were out here they would have been restrained. It is best that they got everything out during this fight.

[eenefangirlanalysis]

Returning from our fourth commercial break viewers are presented with this really well drawn and animated sunflower field. These sun flowers add a unique touch to the scene. It feels as if they’re drawn in a unique way. Which is the purpose of this scene. 

Big Picture Show gives viewers new locations. We’ve been stuck in one spot for ten years. If we’re amazed at what we see then that’s how the Ed’s feel. They’re seeing the world for the first time. Through their eyes. Which is why the atmosphere feels so free, energetic, and calming. That’s what flowers do.

Oh look, a barn in the background.

Could the farmer who owns all those cows live there?

If so, that means that Ed’s have not gone far from the cow field.

I have never studied the locations in this movie until now. Which means, the kids aren’t far behind. They could have caught up with them if they weren’t distracted with their own needs. 

Since Rolf is all alone that is a much bigger distraction. We distract ourselves when we want to get things done. It would have made the movie better if Rolf did go along with Kevin and Nazz there would been less arguing and Rolf telling them to concentrate. Therefore, we wouldn’t have had a whole scene watching Rolf make an egg for himself. 

And then Kevin and Nazz wouldn’t be constantly bickering. Rolf tends to play the mediator between Kevin and Nazz. Kevin has always obsessed about his bike but it seemed a little out of character to always push Nazz to the side when they’re good friends.

Edd is walking through the field inspecting through a device that he prepared with objects from nature. This device is made out from sticks, leaves, maybe flat rocks, and water droplet to replace as a lens.

The Ed’s have always improvised with tools they don’t have. That is really inspiring and I hope that fans have noticed this. Everything may not come out the way you want it to. You have to improvise. That’s what I love about Edd. He is a unique inventor. 

As we would have learned through Edd’s confession he has been inventing since a young age. The dodge ball incident affected him greatly. I have a head canon that Edd’s parents never noticed that their child invented until the incident which game them a wrong impression about their son. They’ve always been too busy working or avoiding their son to observe his special talents.

And so Edd gave up inventing until he became friends with Ed and Eddy. They met as kids when Edd first moved into the neighborhood. My head canon is that the boys didn’t fully connect until some time late in the fourth grade. Have you ever noticed how they still feel as if they’re getting to know one another, or just Edd, through season 1? Ed and Eddy had no idea that Edd’s parents wrote to him through sticky notes. 

His friends inspired Edd to invent again. Eddy always gave him the credit he deserved before he started obsessing over becoming the best scam conniver like Bro. Eddy gave Edd new hope. He looks at himself in a more positive way. Still, he is unsure and holds back due to his past. 

Ed and Eddy are the best things that ever happened to Edd.

An excited Eddy calls out for Edd.

Aw, look at that smile Edd gives Eddy.

He’s so excited that he nearly runs past Edd and his to cling to his shirt.

Adorable.

Edd is protecting his device at all costs.

Eddy has something to show Edd when Ed rams into Eddy.

Once again these X marks appear in Eddy’s eyes and he grimaces.

And only Eddy is in pain upon the impact of falling to the ground.

I wonder if that means Eddy hurts more then he puts on. He always ignores pains. Eddy is one of the strongest people to ever walk the earth. He has taken so much pain and throws it into the shadows. He moves forward. That may not be the healthiest thing for Eddy as he is bottling all his failures and self esteem issues. You have to admire how he can put everything in the past and move on as if nothing happened.

Does that mean he’s going to have a tougher time post BPS now that his mask has been shattered?

“Oh, um....”

“Cute.”

Edd returns to his mature adult mask not wanting to lose focus. He has been given an important task. Which means he doesn’t want to let down Eddy if he really does want to locate his brother.

Letting someone down is not a part of Edd’s vocabulary. Especially a person who cares about him.

There will be a BIG line later on which implies so much about the relationship Edd has with his parents right now. I wonder if he still continues to do all those sticky note chores. Edd being who he is has to do them all. He has stopped relying on his parents mentally, but physically he needs to get all his chores done. He believes that his parents will one day come back into his life and act as if he’s their son for once.

Edd is about to walk away when Eddy pulls him back by his hat.

Look how freaked out Edd is. His hat was seconds away from slipping off his head.

I notice that Edd’s hat doesn’t stay suction cupped to his head along their journey. Edd needs to hold on to it. They may live in a cartoon world, but they’re facing reality. All children believe the cartoon world exists and will mimic dangerous stunts that happen in the shows they watch. 

This relates to the Ed’s. Living in a cartoon world would be the most amazing life to live. Except cartoon characters can’t have everything. There comes a point where their survival skills are tested. Edd can’t keep what is hidden under his hat a secret for long. This is the first time he has been out in the real world on his own. He feels vulnerable.

Eddy tares out this sunflower.

I love the animation on this, btw. It has a really unique feel in the movement.

And slams Ed in the face.

Eddy laughs hysterically at this scene holding himself against Edd who’s mouth turns into his ear for a moment.

Eddy loves causing trouble. He has to make it with the right people. Oh, he’ll learn his lesson during a famous scene.

“Uh Oh!” Literally this is the cutest Eddy reaction ever.

Eddy runs for it as Ed gives chase acting as if he were a ferocious lion.

Great facial expressions by Edd who is confused on how to act with his friends play. He needs to protect his invention at all costs.

“I AM THE MIGHTY AGAMUSHIN! I AM FROM OUTER SPACE!”

“Don't bite me, oh Agam... ah- whatcha-whatchamacallit!”

Eddy is so adorable throughout this scene.

This little scene is a callback to all the times where the Ed’s played with each other. There were openings to early episodes with them running through the fields, horsing around in the junkyard, and their famous signature dog pile. These were my favorite moment because they gave off the vibe of the show. 

Ed, Edd n Eddy is not just about three boys scamming neighborhood kids to buy jawbreakers. It’s about three outcasts trying to understand the world and each other. They’re kids who grow up too fast because they want to impress people who never respected them.

The Ed’s changed due to the people who affected them in their lives. These people made them have a negative outlook on themselves

I really want to take a minute and talk about Eddy’s character through this scene.

Eddy is usually annoyed with Ed’s antics or won’t play with him at all. He’ll just ignore it. This time away from the cul-de-sac is what he needed. He felt imprisoned with the constant bullying and harsh remarks.

Each Ed feels at peace. 

I remember in Look Before You Ed Eddy stared bewildered at Ed and Edd playing with one another. And then he grows angry. He fears that he gave up his childhood to do these pointless scams and mask a person who he disliked. Eddy has always regretted that. 

This journey is an opportunity to give Eddy a chance to be himself, enjoy life and be a kid.

@cyanidefilledcandy once analyzed this scene. I really liked the line she ended off with. The Ed’s escape from their imprisoned cul-de-sac gives them hope for a better life. They’re getting back in touch with their season 1 selves knowing they’ve become unlikable.

It’s a chance to reconnect. 

Edd is even giggling at Ed and Eddy’s play.

Edd Mentally made himself grow up. He wishes he could enjoy the days where he was kid. I love the way Edd acted through season 1 and 2. He actually initiated the dog pile in the first episode. He found a sense of belonging with Ed and Eddy.

Honestly, I think Edd misses those days. That’s why he’s laughing along at this scene. In the scene from Look Before You Ed that I mentioned above instead of rubbing off Ed’s play he plays along. This is the remainder of his childhood. And most of it was taken away.

Nice face, Edd.

“Agamushin. A forest substrate. How apropos.”

Apropos: Very appropriate to a particular situation.

Hmm? 

The lion is after the lamb bible passage?

[eenefangirlanalysis]

“OKAY, TOUGH GUY!”

Eddy has had it with everyone making a mockery of him. He charges Rolf’s face making a bet with him.

I love how Eddy doesn’t let the height difference get in the way. He is adamant about getting what he wants. This is trait that comes from Bro’s teachings. Bro told Eddy to always stick up for himself. This has come in handy seeing how the real Eddy is shy and is afraid to speak up.

Although Eddy has a strong composure that is always fighting on the outside, he is lost having no idea if what he is doing is right. I can’t help but think that Eddy is questioning himself over every little thing when viewers believe that he has all the confidence in the world. His confidence was all a part of the mask too.

“HOW ABOUT I TAKE YOU ON FOR THE HARDEST BADGE YOU GOT?!”

“RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW!" 

Great expressions and wonderful animation. 

Eddy is always expressive whenever he wants to prove a point. Usually it’s only for show, but this time Eddy wants to prove a point to himself that he can be strong. 

Eddy holds back on physical strength. If you notice he always makes Ed or Edd do the heavy lifting. Correct me if I am wrong, but I think the only heavy object Eddy picked up was in Ed Touchables where Eddy smashed Edd’s bad over his head.

Like Edd, Eddy also fears physical strength. I bet that this is another aspect Bro made fun of. In order to avoid the possibility of being made fun of he makes others do his own work. Bro ruined Eddy’s self esteem. Eddy has many unique talents that are shown throughout season 1 and 2. They soon disappear because Eddy loses himself to mirroring Bro. Eddy believes he is worthless furthering the awful truth that he is a loser. 

I love watching Eddy’s story unfold throughout the series after watching BPS. It’s like the heroes journey. Eddy takes the wrong path to impress people who could never give him respect or friendship he deserved. His mental being worsens to the point where he thinks about death. And then we he arrives at what he believes to be his goal it turns out that he threw away his true person for nothing. And yet he still learns. Eddy will change.

The Urban Rangers are horrified.

The hardest badge?

Do they mean...

“The Hairy Chest of Resilience badge?”

Eddy timidly pears over Rolf’s shoulder upon hearing Jonny say that nobody has earned that badge in over fifty years.

Has he gotten himself into trouble yet again? Would he be able to get himself out?

Although Eddy always puts himself out there I think he regrets it later on. He hates being embarrassed. He says things that should remain inside his mouth. This is who Bro is. Bro was the only person little Eddy had to look up to. 

I head canon that Eddy’s parents worked a lot. They knew how Bro treated Eddy and were reluctant to leave them together. This is why Eddy doesn’t turn to his parents for help. His parents are suggested to be over protective towards Eddy. It’s for good reason. They don’t want Eddy to find out who Bro really was. That’s why the addresses on the letters are smudged.

Eddy doesn’t understand why Bro abused him or his sociopathic tendencies. A child of four years old wouldn’t understand yet. Another reason why their must be tension between Eddy and his parents may be because his parents left him with Bro. Eddy is adamant to trust his parents after they kicked Bro out of the house.

"This badge has trampled the eggplants of many a brave hopeful who have tried to obtain it!" 

Rolf is horrified that this rare badge is brought up. Rolf knows the dark history behind what it takes to earn this badge. 

First off, the Urban Rangers has been an organisation for fifty years. Has Rolf’s family had a history with the Urban Rangers? Rolf and his family moved to America when Rolf was still a child. Are the Urban Rangers a cultural group? Rolf has traumatizing memories as a kid from when a man in a wolf costume attacked him, and his family’s journey to America wasn’t pleasant.

Rolf had a close relationship with his late Grandfather. It’s possible Rolf’s Great Grandfather was a part of the Urban Rangers and competed for the hairy chest of resilience badge. 

Think of it, Rolf’s great Grandfather never made it to America. It’s implied that he died along the way when it was Rolf’s job to protect him.What what his Grandfather’s health like? He may never have recovered if he competed for the Hairy Chest of Resilience badge. As we see in the end Rolf and Eddy have a lot of recuperating to do. The challenge affected the health of his great Grandfather and his story has been forever passed down for all to hear. Rolf is terrified of this one badge.

Seeing how ranger, or cub scouts, have to earn all the badges, do Rolf, Jimmy and Jonny have to earn this badge? They have managed to avoid it for some time.