#THIS WAS VERY VERY RUSHED AND I WANTED TO INCLUDE MORE DIALOGUE AND SCENES BUT

[aliceoseman]

Why was the ferris wheel scene so significantly changed form the comic?

I loved the scene in the show because it deepend Toris character which we havent seen in the show so far, but the scene in the comic ia one of my favorite scenes from the whole of heartstopper, so i was a little disapointed when the point of it was compleately different

I've been asked this a lot! I felt that to include that moment in the ferris wheel scene would feel extremely rushed and out-of-nowhere given that there'd been no build up to that realisation for her at all in the show. We can get away with that kind of storytelling in the comics because the comics are so short/condensed in comparison and very Nick and Charlie focused - moments with the other characters have to be brief and to-the-point. But in the show the secondary characters need more complex journeys with proper build up, or they feel flat.

Tori being ace is so important to me that it's essential that I do her journey justice, so I decided to save it for season 4 (if we get a fourth season). In which case, we'd be able to reach that point for her with an understanding of how she has come to that conclusion, and what she's been through to get there. A big part of that, in my opinion, is seeing a little more of what her relationship with Michael is like - another thing we simply didn't have enough room for in season 3. Honestly, I personally felt I would rather risk it and wait for S4 and do it properly, rather than rush/half-ass it by tacking it on to the end of S3.

I also felt that Tori's journey throughout season 3 was primarily focused on her relationship with Charlie. I wanted that scene to exist as a conclusion to that element of the story, and not to distract from that - because Tori and Charlie's sibling relationship is also extremely important to me and important to the story (and origin of the story!).

I think what I would say is: that scene can definitely still exist in a new form at a later point in the story, where it will make more sense, feel more realistic, and have a greater emotional impact. I expect I'll draw from the original comic scene heavily, dialogue-wise, if/when I get there in the show.

Saying all that - I totally understand that people were disappointed and I don't blame/judge anyone for that!

[a-confused-spoon]

So about Caitvi...

I'm no one to judge whether or not caitvi is good representation. As far as I'm concerned, I'm happy if the lesbians watching the show are happy.

...you know what does piss me off though? A teeny tiny bit more than just "a little"?

Seeing some people defend the absence of a conversation between Caitlyn and Vi with "actions matter more than words".

Like...okay, first thing first, season 2 makes it pretty clear that's bullshit given how every other pairing previously at odds resolved things through the almighty power of talking things out: Vander wrote a letter to Silco and they became gay dads in the au, Ekko went through all possible combinations of words to convince Jinx not to blow herself up, and whatever the fuck Viktor and Jayce had going on in the finale... So yeah, crazy thing to say about this season;

Secondly, when we say "actions matter more than words", are we just not counting the verbal promise of not changing followed by abuse/ pain caused by the very much action of hitting a victim of police brutality who has utterly betrayed herself and her people for the sake of helping the same exact person who hit her because she pointed out "hey, maybe don't risk shooting a child"?

GRANTED this and most of what I'll say next is applicable to most of season 2 imo- we barely get to sit with the seriousness of a situation we just have to skip to the next one, so I wouldn't say it's a caitvi thing alone... nevertheless it's present there too, so back to the main conversation-

We know Caitlyn regrets it, but does she ever understand why it's so fucked up that she did that? Vi has a rush of emotions after realizing what Cait has done and is happy to stay with her, but once they... finish in that prison, does Vi really respect herself as an individual who has gone through some tough shit or is it a passive "fuck it we ball" attitude all the way to the finale where she wears once again the enforcer badge?

Caitlyn's personal character development (one that has to do with seemingly grief alone and nothing to do with classism and power dynamics which are a massive part of the problem both on a micro and macro level) shouldn't be something that "makes up" for what she did to Vi in episode 3, and because Vi's character was criminally neglected we never really get to see her actually give a shit about herself beyond, allegedly, her relationship with Cait- which is fucked, considering Vi always ever only sees herself in relation to others (Cait or Jinx for the most part) and never as a stand alone person.

That's why that conversation was pretty much needed here.

Aside from the fact that having a conversation with a partner isn't just saying "sorry", it's about being vulnerable, letting them know you see them, telling them where you stand, being just openly honest with one another etc. (aka is an integral part of the relationship itself), it also would've been an excellent way to let all the development they couldn't show for a lack of time still shine through dialogue.

No, it's not a "wanting things spelled out", it's a "they quite literally did that a bunch of times already in this very season, so they might as well do it for the main romance too since a conversation would also be fitting for the current situation"; examples might include that one scene with Silco and Ekko in episode 7 about forgiveness, or that one scene of Isha and Jinx where Jinx literally spells out "hey you remind me of Powder, meaning myself when I was younger, the younger self I thought I left behind-" (insert that one clip of Kronk from The Emperor's New Groove).

And before anyone puts words in my mouth, this isn't coming from a place of hate for either Caitlyn and Vi or Caitvi as a ship; engaging in criticism isn't hate for what's being critiqued, so please don't assume that some conversations don't come from a place of love for the show and the characters just because they don't openly praise every bit of what we got.

edit: ...tell you what, the more I think about it the more it seems that the issues I have with how this ship comes to be aren't even super specific to these characters and their relationship, but are actually the same exact things I don't love about the general writing of season 2 on a bigger scale (lack of commentary on class oppression, character arcs that feel unfinished or cut short, the theme of love and forgiveness ending up undermining the seriousness of some situations- I'm not complaining about the theme itself nor I'm saying it comes out of nowhere, I'm saying that probably due to the pacing/lack of time we can't sit with how fucked up some stuff is before getting to the point of "love > anything else"... which isn't a wrong sentiment, I'm just talking about the journey to get there)

[chamerionwrites]

About Andor s2 I’ve got two questions. How’d you like the bit from Lonnie’s meeting to Kleia’s extraction bit, how’d it measure up to your le Carre fan standards? It felt like it did but to my shame I’ve never read him so uh. Can’t comment

And secondly I just rewatched Rogue One and yeah I got to say. Andor’s better, little things like the extra’s dialogue and bigger things. It all links up very nicely but I’m definitely showing people in release order if I get the chance. I ADORE your analysis of Draven as a man whose doom is his own haste, I feel like the comm the team send en route to Eadu. Direct quote is “weapon confirmed. Jedha destroyed. Mission target located on Eadu, please advise.” There was intel here that there was hm. A bit of target fixation.

I feel like continuing to pursue the Galen assassination plan (morally questionable but militarily sensible plan earlier down the pipeline) is something that should’ve been reevaluated in the light of “Jedha destroyed” when you’re worrying about a planet-killing weapon. Is that already operational? Is killing Galen Erso the best way to stall it still? I get what you mean about he goes too fast and can’t call off the squadron but he could’ve called off Andor after that communication. I also see that I’m nitpicking a stupidly minor word choice in a stupidly stupid movie. And I’m reiterating what you said.

I have no trouble saying that at its best Andor is polished in a way that Rogue One (and frankly the majority of the franchise) never attains. It has a very strong script (especially in S1), consistently high production values (the costumes and sound design are highlights for me), and a keen eye for worldbuilding detail that adds a lot of texture and truth to the storytelling and that happens to be kind of a personal dream come true in terms of what I want in my Star Wars. I do also think Andor has some very real and at times glaring flaws that are worth discussing as such, and that it holds together a lot better in a vacuum than it does as a prequel (which one could argue is a pretty fundamental flaw in, yknow, a prequel).

I'd also never argue that Rogue One is a movie without flaws. I even think it's entirely possible that some of what's good about it is a bit of a happy accident! The script gets both kinda mushy and kinda rushed in Act II (specifically some of the Eadu stuff, including some of what you've mentioned here); I think Jyn's character arc in particular really needs at least one more scene after her argument with Cassian but before the council meeting on Yavin. The CG on Tarkin and Leia is unquestionably not quite there. The performances are not only very good but very good across the board imo - which is lucky because I think they're carrying the lion's share of the story by comparison to the script. However I do also think that the film has a very satisfying thematic cohesiveness (high on the list of things I look for in a good story), that the character sketches are quick but strong, that it's gorgeously shot and that it deserves credit for introducing some really fresh and interesting ideas into Star Wars that Andor then had further space to expand upon (and sometimes beautifully but only sporadically did so, which is one of my Andor critiques).

So - yeah it's better is a case you can make, and depending on what elements you're focused on I might even agree with you. But ultimately I don't find that kind of absolute (and to a certain extent subjective) statement nearly as interesting or useful as discussions about exactly how and where one thing is better than another (or isn't). ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Anyway. Re whether Arc 4 is le Carré-esque: I think the vibes are absolutely there (and tasty as hell to me personally), but Andor really doesn't have room at that point to properly Do The Thing. Specifically, imo we actually pick up pretty near the end of the le Carré version of this story, which is FAR more focused on the exact cat-and-mouse process by which (1) Lonni stole Dedra's code cert and followed the paper trail to the Death Star and (2) Dedra followed Luthen's trail back to the antique shop. Likewise, a le Carré story would spend at least as much time on the nerve-wracking details of how exactly Cassian & Co manage to land their ship on Coruscant without flagging any suspicion as it would on a firefight in a hallway. And no self-respecting le Carré story would be even a tenth as fuzzy on the precise political/ideological fault lines between Luthen and the Alliance - or between the various members of the Alliance - and how those frictions play into the Kleya extraction situation. Those aren't necessarily complaints - just a compare and contrast! In its focus on process and logistics and bureaucracy, in the way it spends most of its time setting up dominoes before exploding into action, and in its preoccupation with trust & betrayal, I think Mon's extraction from the Senate actually follows the trademark le Carré beats more closely.

Finally, re Draven and the Eadu clusterfuck: you have to keep in mind that the man is working with extremely limited information. He makes a bad call - and I think it's pretty clear Cassian knows it's a bad call, and that this factors into his moral anguish about the assassination and ultimately his decision not to go through with it - but Draven is working off whispers and imaginings and blips on a radio, in a universe where communication technology is vastly more limited than in ours. (Honestly all the clicky clunky tactile radio porn and focus on how the comms work - and don't! - was one of the things I absolutely lived for in Andor. And even so, at times I think they're really pushing at the edges of what's previously been implied about the setting; Cass & Wilmon's earpieces on Ghorman for example are awfully clean and modern and small.)

All that said, post-Jedha-destroyed-message is absolutely the point at which Draven - THE INTEL GUY - should've said okay I'm flying blind and I need more intel. That he doesn't is pretty clearly a fuckup, and portrayed as such. But I don't find it unrealistic for human beings under pressure to fuck up that way, or even necessarily surprising to the point that it requires an explanation for the plot beat to work. It would definitely be stronger if we got a bit more character insight on Draven, or a bit more plot structure to really drive home the time crunch, or even a bit more clarifying dialogue - but the simplest explanation is just that Draven has no particular reason to trust Galen as an ally. Going by the information he's working with, the guy is (1) an Imperial weapons developer (2) who's already built something very dangerous, (3) may build more weapons, and (4) maybe if the Force is smiling on them plays an important role in maintaining that first weapon's functionality??? And also Draven appears to be highkey stressed and a little trigger happy. And also he didn't send an extraction team, he sent an assassin. Smuggling one guy out of a top secret military facility alive on the chance he'll willingly share info with you is a WHOLE different level of manpower and precision planning than putting a laser bolt through his brain. Draven knows that Galen is on Eadu now, but not that he'll stay there; he doesn't have an extraction team on the ground or the prior planning & recon required to pull off that extraction without getting a bunch of his people killed; he DOES have a reliable agent on the ground who's reliably good with a sniper rifle. So between the pretty-sure-thing murder right now and the very-hypothetical extraction sometime in the future...Draven picks the sure thing.

The story is open enough that you can headcanon all kinds of motives/emotions/plot obstacles into the empty spaces there, but I think ultimately it still all comes down to those urgency blinders you referenced.

[yoshifromcalgary]

My feed included your 82% post. I think your openness about your feelings and how you are reacting to commentary or to others’ opinions on the show reminds me that we are people, not bots. And you’ve gotten enough comments giving you advice or words of caution.

But help me focus on the story, the good you see. Help me understand, which part and themes of Arcane S2 resonated with you?

Now don't get me wrong, I do think that S1 was better objectively, I understand the complaints and I get that it was rushed and it needed a third season. But at the same time, I just really enjoyed the individual character stories we got in S2 so much that I found myself enjoying it more than S1. My three favorite characters in the whole show were Vi, Caitlyn, and Jinx, I want to go through all of their respective arcs and go through why I liked them so much

**CaitVi- **

For Vi and Caitlyn, I loved the moments they had together, and I feel like while yes, their chemistry wasn't as strong this time around, their relationship felt much more real and it felt fulfilling to me when they finally, "got to know each other." I really feel like their ending was really satisfying as well, both finding comfort in each other in the end and being able to start a new future for both themselves, and the city, even though I do wish we had a few more moments with them after the finale.

Caitlyn

Caitlyn had in my opinion the best arc in the entire season, and I think she MASSIVELY improved from S1. Some people are upset that she didn't verbally apologize to Vi for everything but, I think her actions (Saving Vi from Warwick, freeing Jinx, betraying Ambessa) meant alot more than her words. Also for some reason people think that she was forgiven too easily by Vi, but, uhh, I don't think spitting on someone's face is a sign of forgiveness ngl. My only complaint is that she seemed to change a little too quickly, there were signs that she was trying to change but I just wish we got a little more from her arc. But saying her arc was "objectively poorly executed" is still insane because it does flow well enough, just not as well as it could've.

Vi

Vi also had an interesting arc, although I do wish she had more to this season like most people seem too, I feel like a lot of people equate that to her being sidelined, which I don't think she was even slightly, she was the heart of every action Jinx or Cait took all season and the idea that she "lost her agency" honestly makes me giggle because if anything she has MORE agency now than she did earlier in the story, when forced to choose between the people she loves most, she chooses both all season and I feel like her scene with Cait, while a little out of place tonally, made sense for the end of her arc as she chooses to let herself heal with someone who's proven that she loves her instead of throwing herself back into the fray (Also I really don't think she knew Jinx wanted to off herself there, her dialogue during when Jinx leaves, when Cait finds her, and when Jinx returns solidify that for me).

Jinx

I also think Jinx was a little more interesting this time around, I feel like her relationship with Isha and Isha's ability to remind Jinx of the good still locked within her was amazing. I also loved the fact they didn't make her go full villain mode, that makes her a much more nuanced character and allows her to grow throughout Season 2, her growth was entrancing to me as she, and Caitlyn, were both harming Vi by fighting each-other, so they both agree to go separate ways, and the idea that she chose to leave (Break the Cycle) in order to make Vi happy, not that Vi wasn't happy with Jinx, but she knew that Vi needed to move on from her, just like she needed to move on from Vi. I also like Ekko's story for the same reasons everyone else does, Timebomb ofc, Jayce and Viktors story while a tiny bit hard to follow for me was very good, the Black rose and Mel stuff was, probably my least favorite part just because it was painfully obvious setup and was very hard to follow for me personally.

[seriouslycalamitous]

Hi! It’s the writing anon again, thank you for your advice, it was very much appreciated!

Um, I was wondering how you make sure scenes don’t pass too quickly, or that nothing comes across as very confusing for the reader? I usually write very rushed, so everything gets jumbled up really easily. That’s one of the main things I’m worried about. Sorry if you aren’t wanting questions like this! Feel free to ignore it.

-✨

Great question! And don’t worry, I love answering writing-based questions. Gotta be one of my favorite topics! For future reference, you and anyone else with questions can send them my way at any time!

(If you couldn’t tell, i tend to get carried away. Please enjoy the next several paragraphs of me explaining.)

First things first, keeping things within the range of understandable for your reader.

What you immediately need to know is that your reader isn’t dumb. They can figure stuff out better than you might assume. Mentioning a magic crystal in passing will help them put the pieces together in their head that ‘oh, this is a world with magic replacing electricity’ or something of the sort.

Sometimes, you do have to explain topics more, especially if they’re relevant for your POV character to understand. Use simpler language, don’t overwhelm the character or the audience with terms and world elements that they might not already know.

If you want to make a callback to something a character already knows, to give both them and the audience some anchoring and understanding, have them remember a piece of dialogue or a memory from an earlier piece of the story. You can frame it like a very very very brief flashback where they hear the words echo in their head, or summarize it, like “he remembered the time this guy told him not to go to this place. now he knew why.”

Try not to do this often. Thoughts and memories are fine, but if you do it too often, the audience will feel like you don’t trust them to recall these details.

Most importantly, take it slow. Don’t over-explain things or try to fit every single detail of world-building at once. Spacing things out so they come up in relation to the scene or conversation topic can help with this.

Foreshadowing is a great element to help readers get accustomed to themes as well. It doesn’t necessarily need to be some big plot-altering detail to be worthy of foreshadowing. It can absolutely apply to personality traits, magic, world-building, and stuff of that nature.

Dropping hints here and there, like certain details that you sprinkle in but mostly gloss over can make information easier to deliver later, and can give your story good re-read value!

Unfortunately, something quite a few writers, including myself, struggle with is where the cut off of relevant information begins. If your character is a guy rebuilding an abandoned temple to fulfill a debt, we probably don’t need to spend a lot of time — or any, actually — discussing the different forms of currency in this world, or the gender roles of a household, or the supremely different fashion choices around town.

You can spend a little time on each if necessary, but a character like this might rather notice the types of architecture around them over anything else. Even then, those are details you should keep short and use when necessary, since your character might like architecture, but it’s admittedly a little boring if you spend longer than a paragraph or two on it.

As for scenes not passing too quickly, there’s some quick, simple tricks to make that work while also keeping your flow natural.

Dialogue is great, but people in real life don’t tend to ramble as much as they do in readings. If you need to, have your characters stop speaking every now and again to breathe, think over certain topics, perform an action, etc. It makes the scene go on longer, and gives readers more time to process what’s happening.

Thoughts are, perhaps, the easiest things to help a scene go on longer. Have a character think about the way someone’s acting, the way they look, the way the world around them is reacting to their situation, or the tone within which another character is speaking. Try to make life easier on yourself by avoiding action words like “thought” or “thinks” and their synonyms

Too much “he thought about the time she did this” will also feel like spoon-feeding your reader. “She had done stuff like this before” can be enough. It implies a memory without outwardly reminding us that these memories don’t actually exist beyond what is being told to us on the page.

I know this is a lot and I may not have touched on everything in the most helpful way, but i hope this makes at least a little sense!

[stelladess]

New rise from embers episode was... fine. It should have been two episodes though really. It felt like one of those edits that remove all pauses in dialogue and scene transitions.

There is nothing actually wrong with any individual line or shot really. Just the editing makes it feel so rushed and does not allow a single part of the episode to breath. This could have been some of the best of the series but it was too rushed for that. They moved some stuff around in ways I think makes sense though.

I appreciate giving Doc and Kal more different looks during Babel era than in the game where it was just the color of their outfits. But I do think it would have made more sense to give W some differing designs in the earlier flashback parts since it seems like years pass during the events of darknights and they already put in the extra effort of new designs here, so I think she would have been one that was better used for.

Especially since the editing makes it seem like even less time passes, so having W clearly age up during the flashbacks I think would have been a good idea to help convey the passage of time in this visual medium that can not make use of the narration to convey that. (Especially since W's exact age is super vague, I think on purpose, in the game so they have room here to portray this however they want in an adaptation, especially since the exact time period of different events of darknights are a bit muddy to begin with).

But also that could just have been fixed by the editing being less rushed. Which is the core issue here.

I think including darknights in season 3 was a good idea because it is so important to understanding W's actions in chapter 7 and 8. But I feel it was rushed, and combine that with the changes back in season 1 to Misha's death I think the anime has kind of bungled a lot relating to W and Amiya in ways that will also negatively impact their relationship and their entire character arcs. Will have to see how they land this by the end of the season but I feel this part is gonna be a mess, which is a shame as it is one of my favorite stories in the game.

The anime is such a mixed bag. The Frostnova stuff was handled perfectly, I expect them to nail Rosmontis, Patriot and Talulah this season but the missteps with Ch'en and Amiya and W so far I feel will still hit this season very very hard.

I sound much more negative about this episode than I actually feel, but I just feel like, there are some major problems that have been dragging that this episode makes bigger.

I like this new line though:

[presidenthades]

I love your mothers last grief and can’t wait for what’s to come.

Especially things like Aemond and Daemon.

Or Rhaenyra at Dragonstone.

There is so many possibilities. Will he spare her because of Jace, or will the grief of his dead children be stronger than his want to keep Jace’s feelings unhurt. They are obviously it for each other, but after years of not seeing her and raising his sons, will that overshadow his love and grief for Jaehaerys and Maelor. But I can also see Jace changing him, and not wanting to bring more suffering, especially to children like Alyssa and Viserra.

There is so many possibilities and I am so excited for whatever’s so come.

(This is not me asking for spoiler, just nerding out)

Some of these events are not too far away! I don’t want to rush the Dragonstone arc, but the majority of the fic is supposed to focus on the post-Dance era. We won’t be spending the entire story with just Jace and Aegon on Dragonstone.

No spoilers, but I will say that generally, I try to avoid copying scenes line-for-line from canon. This might be a leftover habit from when I read a lot of LOTR fanfic, and every other fic just copy-pasted the Council of Elrond. 😅 In case it isn’t obvious from my fics thus far, I love drastically changing things from canon while including Easter eggs for the canon material.

F&B has some banger dialogue that I hope to keep, but overall you should expect something unexpected. 👀

But also try not to be too optimistic, because this is a very angsty story. 🫣

[eewtp]

Not a PJO Show Review*

Now I was so excited for a truthful adaptation of the books and I am left just disappointed with every new episode that comes out. First of all, why was this fourth episode not even 30 minutes long? ?

Anyway, one of my main issues so far includes pacing of the story. It’s very much stuck in a “rushed but at the same time slow” moving kind of pace, which is insanely weird. In one episode they spend all their time in one place but the writing tries to cram so much detail into that episode that everything rushes by with dialogue instead of action. It’s so weird I can’t even describe it well, but the point is that there is entirely too much of the characters walking you across the street with dialogue only readers could actually follow/understand.

(For example; Zeus is pissed that the bolt is missing and wants it back by the summer solstice or else he’ll start a war. The solstice is in a few days. This is mentioned once/twice and nobody has shown even an ounce of urgency to find the bolt. It’s just expected of you to remember that fact while the show does nothing to remind you of it- the sun is always out and it’s not stormy to show just how mad Zeus is, the characters calmly walk and chat and never once mention the bolt again, etc.)

The exposition dumping does not help at all; a sentence or two to describe something important only for the talking to drag on with the expectation that you know what they’re talking about. Grover absolutely running through what CHB is all about, the entire point of the kids’ quest, Annabeth being the daughter of wisdom (so far there has not been one instance where this is proven, just mentioned offhandedly). There’s hardly any personality attached to any one character because all they do is rapidly explain things.

Now, exactly why are they going to the Underworld? To save Sally, yes; but what does that have to do with the bolt? At this point their mission is Sally, not the quest- the Hellhound chase scene was cut from the show, so now there is no indication at all that Hades might have had something to do with the missing bolt. Poseidon and Zeus are pointing fingers at each other (which was either not mention or I missed it because of how off handed this detail was), so why in the world would Hades play a part in this? Because these three hate each other? Again, only readers would be inclined to think like this because their hatred was never emphasized or expanded upon.

(Are they hoping to just ask and receive some kind of news about the bolt? They have no lead as to where the bolt may be, so going to Sally’s aid first and then figuring out details with the bolt is so questionable. Again, this is far from showing the urgency of the situation)

Also, Luke’s betrayal is going to be interesting. He’s the one who let the Hellhound in, which put the entirety of camp in danger for his own goals. Without this, he’s just some guy who doesn’t agree with the situation they’re currently in- he’s not dangerous or evil, so far he’s just there.

Friendships are just not there. They say Luke and Annabeth are like family but they’ve spoken once. They say Luke and Percy are tentative friends but all they did was have a tour around camp. They say Percy and Grover are best friends but their conversations mainly revolve around dumping exposition.

There’s more I have to say but I’ll just say I have hope the show will make up for this iffy start. It’s not too much, but it’s there-ish.

[biribaa]

Victor sfw alphabet yaya

i loove victor. he deserves way more fanfictions

TW/CW: FNV spoilers

A = Affection (How affectionate are they? How do they show affection?)

Victor can be as affective as your heart desires him to be. Being a cowboy also includes being a gentleman, and he wants to show he's the right man for you. Victor is more used to show his love by words of affection and being protective, as these are the easiest options for him and also the ones he claims to be professional with. The securitron do wishes he could show more phisical affection, but he's afraid with a body as bulky and hard as his, it wont do much besides somes hugs, so its better for you to show all the phisical attention.

B = Best friend (What would they be like as a best friend? How would the friendship start?)

Your friendship with Victor would start right after you enter the Strip, that if you have some time left for some talk and even some rounds of blackjack, in which he's very skilled at. And you both would have even more free time after House win the hoover dam battle.

C = Cuddles (Do they like to cuddle? How would they cuddle?)

Because of his model, Victor is afraid you are going to feel uncomfortable during cuddling, but if you're willing to, sure, he would feel flattered. In moment, Victor would attempt wrapping one of his arms around your waist, bringing you closer to him.

D = Domestic (Do they want to settle down? How are they at cooking and cleaning?)

The idea of having a calm and sweet domestic life with you is comforting for the robot, and he will make the effort to bring this feeling to you at the Lucky 38. As a cowboy, Victor does knows a few culinary tricks, but nothing out of the ordinary or extraordinary, its the basic of the basics in gastronomy.

E = Ending (If they had to break up with their partner, how would they do it?)

Victor would wait for the right time for both of you and then tell you everything. He would be direct, but also trying to not keep the scene harsh, constantly reassuring you that you two can continue to be friends.

F = Fiance(e) (How do they feel about commitment? How quick would they want to get married?)

Victor never thought that much about weddings, or that he would ever marry someone, so he doesnt have a much strong opinion about it. Victor won't rush you, of course, but if you did propose for him in the right time of your relationship, he would accept right away!

G = Gentle (How gentle are they, both physically and emotionally?)

Victor is extra gentle with you due to his securitron model, every movement with you are made with extra delicacy for you and only you to prevent any discomfort or injuries. His claws always caressing your shoulder in a flimsy, yet firm movement.

H = Hugs (Do they like hugs? How often do they do it? What are their hugs like?)

He loves hugs! Victor deeply love any any type of phisical affection coming from you. He just struggles when its him perfoming them. But trust me, he loooves them.

I = I love you (How fast do they say the L-word?)

Victor is far more used with perform his acts of affection to you(protection and being verbal) as a way to say his "I love you" to you, and hes not accustomed with PDA. So hes more comfortable with using the phrase when hes alone with you, or when youre talking with only him.

J = Jealousy (How jealous do they get? What do they do when they’re jealous?)

Victor only gets clearly stressy when someone is obviously hitting on you, in that case, the cowboy grinds his teeth and makes subtle movements that imply the relationship between you two. He adds one of his arm around your waist, uses more romantic nicknames than usual, and repeatedly mentions the fact both of you are dating during dialogues, this while a blatant gaze is pointed at the person in question.

Victor trusts you, so when you are the person causing all this jealousy with someone else, he takes it way less seriously. He does feels the sentiment deep down, but he rather joke about it, as I mentioned, he trusts you. Unless its actually getting very suspect, then he will push you to a talk.

K = Kisses (What are their kisses like? Where do they like to kiss you? Where do they like to be kissed?)

He LOVES to be kissed by you in his screen. You press your lips against Victor's screen and you experience the same staticky feeling everytime while his strong arms push you closer. He absolutly loves to (attempt) kiss your face and any part of it, and the same goes for him. If not your face, then perhaps, if he could, your neck.

L = Little ones (How are they around children?)

Some kids are afraid of Victor, the others really enjoy him! Its just the cheerful cowboy personality that attracts the children. Victor doesn't mind, he likes to show them tricks and teach them small things while also being a jokester to them. With that being said, hes pretty good with children!

He never really thought about the idea of him being a father, tho, it gives him a good feeling, but he would definetly question you if you really want to have a family with him, a securitron, or if even House would allow it. In the end, if everything goes okay with House and you fully convince him that you really wants him to be the father, he would feel more than flattered... For a good while Victor will be all soft towards you and call you all the names that one can imagine.

M = Morning (How are mornings spent with them?)

Victor always arrives in the right time if he's not busy with some work coming from House. He bids you a "g'mornin'", and waits for you to get ready for the day, or rushes you, if you have any appointment for the day. Sometimes, if hes feeling extra, he even brings breakfast for you.

N = Night (How are nights spent with them?)

If you do want to sleep with Victor right next to you, laying by your side in your bed, that would be...difficult. So mostly, when sleeping in the Lucky 38, Victor prefers to stay by the side of your bed, still counts as company and he is right next to you!! If you prefer, he even offers his arm for you to hold.

In other times, where both of you arent in the Lucky, and rather out in the wasteland, when you sleep in the ground, it would be far more easy for Victor to lay in the ground with you! But he still prefers to stay up, getting up from the ground is difficult for a securitron, and he wants to keep you safe while both are out.

O = Open (When would they start revealing things about themselves? Do they say everything all at once or wait a while to reveal things slowly?)

Theres not much Victor have to hidden, due to his amnesia(more likely caused by House). So you pretty much know everything about him already, and he would love to expand his historic with you.

P = Patience (How easily angered are they?)

Victor is a happy folk, but that could easily change with any threat towards you or him.

Q = Quizzes (How much would they remember about you? Do they remember every little detail you mention in passing, or do they kind of forget everything?)

Victor is a securitron, so excluding his amnesia about himself, he can remember several things about you! Birthday, favorite food, favorite book, weapon, flowers, little details of your backstory, pretty much anything!

R = Remember (What is their favorite moment in your relationship?)

Victor adores the moments where both of you are out in the wastelands, alone, while youre laying next to him in the middle of the night. Its peaceful, no gunshots or anything of that except for the radio. A small moment Victor finds himself craving more.

S = Security (How protective are they? How would they protect you? How would they like to be protected?)

Can be very protective to any threat towards you or any ally and isnt afraid of making a mess, unless demanded to not.

T = Try (How much effort would they put into dates, anniversaries, gifts, everyday tasks?)

Victor got quickly used to perform everyday tasks for you sake, he even finds himself enjoying it, nothing more than his responsability. But when it comes to special dates, he adds some extra effort(with some help with Jane, too). Dates arent going to be perfect, of course, but he makes sure to make it charming for both of you, he cooks and prepare everything at Lucky 38 for you and you only.

U = Ugly (What would be some bad habits of theirs?)

As I said, protective, sometimes a little too much. Without any warning Victor could be already poiting one of his weapons to anyone slightly suspicious or threatening to you. Hes already naturally protective, when hes with you it gets extra.

V = Vanity (How concerned are they with their looks?)

Theres not much Victor worry about, hes a securitron. And deep down, he enjoys the dust and scratches in his metal, makes him feel truly like a dusty cowboy.

W = Whole (Would they feel incomplete without you?)

Victor wont feel like a disaster, nor he ever felt before dating you, but will certainly miss you. You just made things more exciting and bright, yknow? But in the end, he agrees if youre happy somewhere else, or with someone else, hes happy too.

X = Xtra (A random headcanon for them.)

Victor is always using a cowboy hat over his antenna, it spins like crazy, yeah, but makes him feel different and more original than the others securitrons. I also hc him as bisexual

Y = Yuck (What are some things they wouldn’t like, either in general or in a partner?)

Debauched people or/and pure cowards, it bugs the securitron a lot, and makes him wonder if he can trust someone like you. Victor enjoys actions some time or other and having a honest partner. Not choosing violent is something, running away from it is another.

Z = Zzz (What is a sleep habits of theirs?)

He can't sleep! The most Victor can do is shut down.

[ranshoku]

after finding out that there wasn't just one, but (at least) two scraped Lopmon evolution scenes in chapter 5, I decided to check if there was a scraped Dracumon evolution scene in chapter 3...

...and found nothing 😭

On the other hand, found some other changes + interesting stuff that isn't included:

Kaito was supposed to meet the others at the school--he and Dracumon found the school, told everyone about what happened to him and Miu (also about Arukenimon), and everything else played out the same (i.e., the whole Minoru vs. Shuuji debate)

You know the scene where Takuma accidentally caught Saki changing clothes? It was initially going to be Minoru insinuating Ryo to go peek the girls changing to get him back to normal (and he did get Ryo to act normal... only for a bit. Ryo: "Are you nuts!? How is that supposed to make me feel better!?") Takuma happened to come across them at the wrong time, and when he was about to intervene Ryo and Minoru (I think?), Saki and Aoi came out, finding out the whole thing. Aoi tried to calm Saki down by saying that they must have not planned anything weird, but Saki was already mad and calling them perverted and stuff.

The affinity dialogue with Shuuji picking fruits has a reference to Shuuji's penchant for studying.

There's another affinity dialogue with Shuuji where Takuma caught Shuuji only eating half the portion, prompting him to ask if Shuuji was really done with his food. Shuuji said yes, and he only ate half the food because he wanted to save up food as much as he could. Takuma told him that he didn't need to do that because it'd take a toll on his health, to which Shuuji said that it was fine because he was the oldest here. The entire thing made Takuma wonder how Shuuji tends to get caught up in the weirdest thoughts. He also thought about how he looks up to Shuuji as an adult, but now that he thought about it again Shuuji was only a high school student and high school student was still a kid. Shuuji then dismissed Takuma to go check on Minoru and Ryo, but Takuma thought that he was as worried about Shuuji as he was about Minoru and Ryo.

When they're on the way to search Miu, Aoi noticed that there were spider webs and thought about how it might be something the enemy left to mark them.

Midway, Shuuji and Saki started angsting about Professor again, and Takuma would get to choose to scold them and blame them for Professor's death (not in a... mean way, Takuma just thought that maybe he should stop with the weak consolation, but it kinda backfired and he regretted how he went too far kahsdjdkhd)

Instead of Saki feeling exhausted, we got her spraining her foot on the way, so they had to stop for a while because of that.

They met Arukenimon (her human disguise) along the way. Kaito lost his patience midway and rushed off on his own to chase after her, and there was an entire scene of the other kids badmouthing him relentlessly kahdsjkhd

You got to pick whether to agree with Minoru+Saki (save Miu) or Aoi+Shuuji (head to the top of mountain to gather info first). Ryo was just off on his own.

During the scene at the radio tower, Ryo pulled out to see that his phone now had connection and started mumbling to himself about some stuff. Minoru was delighted to see it and was about to jokingly tease Ryo about it, but Ryo reacted very strongly and told Minoru and the other kids to not go near him. Everyone froze because they weren't expecting him to react that way. Ryo started suspecting the others of being monsters, and so Shuuji tried to calm him down saying that they weren't, but Ryo didn't believe it and ran away. Everyone panicked and chased after him.

We would have met Cyclomon first before we fought Arukenimon (we saw that Cyclomon and Arukenimon had Ryo hostage), not much changed except that Ryo's death scene didn't happen here if you managed to save him. If not, Arukenimon would have dropped Ryo and the scene in the final game played out more or less the same.

After beating Cyclomon, the kids saved Ryo and went after Arukenimon where we'd have also fought her near the cable car. If we hadn't used the alcohol lamp thing from the first chapter, we'd have the option to use it here to burn the webs--doing that would result in lesser Dokugumon to appear. Ryo, in a frenzy, went to the cable car because he saw his mom over there (the others panicked because Arukenimon kept talking about how it was the altar she prepared for the sacrifice). Haru followed him, and they panicked even more because "Are you expecting us to believe a kid like him can stop a middle schooler???"

Haru was actually trying to save Ryo. Ryo: "My mom is right there! Let go of me you brattttt" Haru: "That's not your mom... honestly, I would let you go here, but if I did that, it'd be the same as abandoning my sister…" After Haru said that, the others noticed how Ryo now looked a bit reluctant, giving them some time to catch up with Ryo and Haru. The other kids then started bodying him like in the final version and everyone talked him out of it but slightly longer, until they finally snapped Ryo out of it ("you're heavy, you idiots!")

Ryo, if you managed to save him: "Because... Ma-- my mom... when she last spoke to me, she said, 'Ryo is a strong kid, so he'll be okay.' That was… her last words…"

Ryo whispered something to Haru after the whole thing. Takuma was curious what he said Haru. Haru: "Nothing special. He just said 'I'm sorry.'" Takuma: "Really...? He really did that? Wow haha" Haru: "Maybe I should have kept it a secret." Takuma: "Ah well, maybe I'll keep that a secret too."

[archduchessgortash]

PSA for Durge-players:

Durge has an exclusive cutscene that plays at the very first long rest at camp.

It isn't especially big or crucial, but I hate missing story content, and this scene is VERY easily missed. In it, the Dark Urge reflects on what they think is going on inside their head, pondering whether it feels related to their class or species, etc. The scene also establishes the context by which we can infer that Astarion, if recruited, may have first noticed Durge's peculiar behavior even in a playthrough in which no major Durge-specific events have yet occurred. There's also an opportunity for Durge to select options indicative of embracing or resisting the Urge. They can also express curiosity about their past.

In order to unlock the scene, Durge must remain essentially clueless about most of their past for the first day. How to below the cut...

Because of the false sense of urgency that being infested with a mind flayer parasite creates, it is tempting to rush to find a healer or the crèche. Many events and choices to which we have access on the first day will skip this scene permanently if you do them prior to completing your first long rest.

If you want the cutscene, DON'T do these things until after your first long rest:

Do not gain ANY Durge-related inspiration points available in the initial areas, including...

If you stomp the injured mind flayer in the wreckage near Astarion's recruitment spot, you won't get the scene. Don't worry about the inspiration point. The illithid will still be there after a rest as long as you don't trigger the scene at the gates to the Emerald Grove before you return to it. The mind flayer relocates to the Goblin Camp if you go to the grove without interacting with it. (You can notice it in the wreckage, go to camp standing right in front of it, take a long rest, and it will still be there in the morning.)

Failure to recruit Gale because you only have a piece of him... in your pack. Oopsie-daisy, poor rizzard... 😬

Choosing Durge-related resist dialogue to free Gale from the arcane sigil rather than using one of the class-specific options, if available.

Meeting Withers

Furthermore, simply entering the Dank Crypt level from any of the 3 possible entrances, even if you haven't met Withers and do nothing at all inside, will lock out the scene. More below on what you can do after we finish the no-no's.

More don'ts:

Freeing Lae'zel from the goblin trap and recruiting her, even with minimal dialogue, no matter how you deal with the tieflings.

Getting too close to where Lae'zel is caged, even without triggering the scene in which you choose whether to free her.

Interacting with more than 1 broken goblin trap near the grove, even the ones that are not close to Lae'zel.

Triggering the battle at the gates to the Emerald Grove, even if you talk to no one and long rest post-battle without entering the gates

Wandering close enough to the grove that Durge mentions hearing something, even if you don't go any closer

Things you CAN do on day one without missing out on the scene:

Recruit Shadowheart and Astarion at the Nautiloid crash site in any order

If you are a spellcasting class (sorcerer, warlock, bard, etc), you can also recruit Gale without losing access to the scene. I haven't used every class for this scene yet, but Ranger does NOT get a class option even though they can cast spells. Monk might get one.

Defeat the 2-3 intellect devourers at the crash site (the number present depends on whether you are alone or have companions with you)

Search a mangled corpse on the riverbank for a flashback and pick any dialogue option you wish in the scene that follows

Use Speak with the Dead to chat with the corpses at the crash site (if the spell was obtained early via various mod sources)

Gain an inspiration point for Gale from successfully using Speak with the Dead on a body

Use the magic mirror to edit your Durge

Change everyone's camp clothes and dye items (if you have any dyes)

Talk to Shadowheart about your memory loss

Talk to Gale about your memory loss and your violent thoughts

Be nice to a Scared Boar near where you recruit Astarion for some approval from Shadowheart and Gale

Hop down and loot a chest under a rock near Astarion's recruitment spot (includes the Harper map and some potions of speed)

Loot goblin bodies for supplies near Gale's recruitment spot

Fight Gimblebock and crew outside the Overgrown Ruins, even if you choose the Durge dialogue, "I am not competition. I am annihilation."

Clear the top floor of the interior of the Overgrown Ruins of Gimblebock's remaining crew (Refectory level), including finding and opening the hidden door, but do NOT enter the lower level.

Accidentally get Gale killed, and complete his resurrection protocol... or have him jump off a cliff on purpose until he fails all his saving throws because wizard = squishy, and he never dies in your games because you protect your squish. Thus, you don't get to see this scene in most playthroughs...

As you can see, your Durge can have a fairly eventful first day back in Faerûn and still get this scene. Simply avoid getting inspirations for Durge, don't approach the Emerald Grove yet, don't enter the Dank Crypt, and don't recruit Lae'zel until day two.

You'll only permanently lose out on a single inspiration point (from embrace/resist as related to Gale).

[lesbiansforboromir]

Right, breaking my silence having 100%'ed the game. It is good. I had a good time with it, I love my Rook very much, I have made five more and I have to say that the final like 5 hours of that game kind of retroactively make the past 70 hours even cooler than they were.

But it is also so clear to me that it was sort of patched and cobbled together out of the rubble from multiple course changes. The pacing often feels rushed, the beginning of the game is just the same three conversations said over and over again, the companion scenes feel kind of truncated a lot of the time and some scene's dialogue is kind of on the nose in a way that feels like a second draft of the script rather than a finished version.

Like I can imagine after spending time trying to make it a live service game it would be very difficult to re-pivot back to a single player story focused experience. And like... honestly I was so miserable when I heard about the 'only three choices matter' situation, and only got more angry about it when the dev response was 'we didnt want to relegate decision acknowledgements into just codex entries' (Isabela, Dorian and Morrigan are persistent voiced characters in this game so it wouldnt have been ALL and also what's wrong with my beloved codex entries) and 'you don't really want us to bring back your favourite characters anyway we'll be mean to them' (god did that last one get to me I swear what were they even on about, #1 that has never been true for most character cameos in these games and #2 that is in fact exactly what I want actually)

BUT, the far more easily surmised answer to why they only acknowledged three choices was because they did not have the time or resources to write and record all those extra scenes for all the various possibilities that might be created if they accounted for more choices. And like, I know that is me guessing, but that also accounts for all the strange dialogue issues in general, it DOES feel like they are stitching together a workable narrative from a quite shallow pool of recorded dialogue and written material. WHICH KIND OF SUCKS IF I'M HONEST. And like, if you're wondering, they actually don't manage to not step on the toes of possible choices. Like at one point Isabella says 'Kirkwall taught her about family' but one of my Hawkes fully betrays her and lets the Arishok take her away so I'm not sure where the lesson in family was in that scenario! Blegh, idk it's one of those things where you're kind of sad that this game could have included so many more characters and met so many other plotlines and actually taken account of the worldstate I have been building for like more than a decade now! Which is kind of one of the major draws of the dragon age franchise!! if not for the usual EA nonsense.

[eastofedean]

20 questions for fic writers

thank you @carpettmuncher for tagging me!

1. how many works do you have on ao3?

Only one :/ but I promise there will be more!

2. what's your total ao3 word count?

13,416!

3. what fandoms do you write for?

supernatural! I did think about writing some rdr2 stuff, but I'm not sure if I that's ever gonna happen

4. top five fics by kudos

well, i only ever published one fic. so the answer is 'at the end of all things'

5. do you respond to comments?

yes! I rarely get comments, but when I do, i try my best to reply because they mean a lot to me!

6. what is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

I tend to write fics with happy endings, and I'm not very good at like... knowing if my fics are angsty. My fic 'we met at the end of eden' was supposed to be the first one with a kinda angsty/open ending, but I don't think I'm gonna go that route

7. what's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

I think my lesbian destiel fic (which is currently called the great divide) is gonna be super fucking sappy. It's got everything: stanford era destiel, love, despair, hope, cowboys and a good ending for them. It's more of an idea and fantasy, so I have no clue if it's actually gonna be a real thing... just because I have no idea if I'm gonna be able to like... not get to personal about it lol

8. do you get hate on fics? i haven't gotten any so far!

no, not yet anyway jehsjs

9. do you write smut?

I've never done it before, but it's gonna be part of 'we met at the end of eden'. it just fits into the story (i just hope it's gonna be like good because smut is actually something I have no idea how to write)

10. craziest crossover?

I've never done a crossover, but I am tempted to include arthur morgan in one of my wips

12. have you ever had a fic translated?

no!

13. have you ever co-written a fic before?

no, I thi

14. all-time favorite ship?

is that even a question? well, it all started- 😮‍💨

15. what's a wip you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

all of them tbh. I'm joking! but idk I have a ones hot about lesbian destiel that I have no idea if I'm gonna finish, simply because I sometimes get too sad about it lol

16. what are your writing strengths?

I do enjoy writing dialogue a lot, especially inner dialogue. and like certain descriptions of feelings etc.

17. what are your writing weaknesses?

definitely action. sometimes i just rush through scenes because I have no clue how to write what is happening know an appealing way :/ I'm should definitely work on that

18. thoughts on dialogue in another language?

I mean, it's kinda weird? It always feels a little unnatural to me (as someone whose first language isn't english). So, I would write it into my fic, I think (especially when it's a language I don't speak and I would never write german stuff in my fic lol)

19. favorite fic you've written?

we met at the end of eden! it's just so close to my heart, and I think about it all the time. but i also like at the end of all things a lot :)

20. tagging: @limbel @gracefreakdean @roublardise and @mrcowboydeanwinchester (no pressure tho!)

[kodokberjamur]

AHHH HUGE FAN OF YOUR WRITING your fics were actually my introduction to Trey/Jade as a ship (still pretty new to the fandom) and I absolutely adore the way you characterize both of them.

I’m curious, how would you say your workflow is when you’re writing? You publish new works/chapters so quickly I’m honestly impressed lmao.

AHHH THANK YOU!!! <3333 M-my fic introduced you to TreyJade? JSHDKSHDJ then, I hope I did them both justice!!! Welcome to TWST~ I hope you've been enjoying the game!!

Hmmm... My workflow? I think it'd be better if I gave you the steps...

More below the cut!!

Step One: Take a Shower

It doesn't matter what time it is. It doesn't matter if you've already taken a shower. When it comes to searching for ideas, shower thoughts are your best friend!! Just forget everything else, hop into the shower, and let yourself get lost in your thoughts. Throw all the weight from your shoulders, and take as long as you need in the shower. Let yourself... imagine. And maybe let yourself punch the wall a few times when you get a particularly genius, an adorably cute, or a perfectly angsty idea. I always get bursts of ideas during my showers!! As soon as you're done, rush to your notes and write everything down before you forget!! It doesn't matter if your ideas are coherent or not—if it's directly tied to the fic you want to write. Write it all down!!! You don't know when your ideas can come in handy!!

Step Two: Write Your Outline

After I have my main ideas sorted out, I write a mini outline for how I want my scenes to go. This includes the general vibe I'm going for, the key moments and theme, character interactions, dynamics, POVs, etc. Just go ham! Be as messy as you'd like! What matters is that you have a grounding point that'd help you with your writing.

Step Three: Start Writing the Fic

Here, you don't have to think about how messed up the grammar is and how butchered the vocabularies are. When you let yourself loose, the words will come to you way easier. Just don't think about the technicalities here! I usually do this part in one go—which usually takes up hours of my day. This is why I tend to post my fics quickly. I'm more of a do-everything-at-once person... and that is also how I usually do my work. I tend to hyperfocus, LOL. I wouldn't recommend doing something like that, though. Focus on your priorities first!! You can do this step little by little, I'm just the kind of person that finds it easier to get things done in one go.

Step Four: Start Editing Your Draft

This is the part that tends to take the longest for me. You want to go back to the beginning of your draft and reread it without touching it yet. Then, you make adjustments to the grammar, vocabularies, pacing, dialogues—everything. I like to take multiple breaks as I go during this step; because I like to reread everything multiple times until I'm satisfied. This part would be way easier with a beta reader—but I don't have a beta reader, so... LOL I do find enjoyment in reading my own draft thoroughly, though!

Step Five: Pat Yourself in the Back

Once you're done, celebrate!!!! You've worked so hard! Thank yourself, congratulate yourself!

Step Six: POST!!

YOUR FIC IS READY, AND NOW YOU CAN SHOW YOUR BRILLIANT WRITING TO THE WORLD!!!

Additional Step: Read and Take Notes

Of course, this doesn't apply to everyone, but generally speaking: writers tend to enjoy reading. It's very much normal to take inspiration from other creative writers!! I like to take notes when I find something inspiring, or interesting phrases and vocabularies that I want to use. I'm a literature student, too, so I read classic literature daily—and it's been really helpful in expanding my vocabulary! (You may find it hard to believe, but the me from two years ago absolutely dreaded reading classics. I couldn't understand anything KSJDKSHFSK. Classic literary fiction is now my favourite genre... I really learned a lot from it.)

This is how I always write my fics, both for my one shots and longfics~ having an outline is extremely helpful for writing longfics!! Sorry for the extremely long answer KSJDKSJFKS. Thank you for the ask! Have a great day!! <3333

[mapizb99]

SPOILERS!

Thoughts on the awakening movie

Ok so I have thoughts, not very organized thoughts but thoughts nonetheless

1) why was Marinette’s voice actress when she was singing SO DIFFERENT from her speaking one??? It took me out of the movie every single time.

2) there were too many songs and the fact that none of them were Ce mur qui nous separe is heartbreaking. At the third Marinette song I was rolling my eyes. Plus they all felt pretty same-y and I didn’t think any of the, were particularly good.

3) the scenes felt SO disjointed! Like they had some cool storyboards but weren’t quite sure how to join them together.

4) the whole story felt kinda like that to me, like they couldn’t quite explore all the elements they wanted to include and relies a lot on the fact that we already know (and love) the characters, like if it was my first approach to the universe I’d feel like the movie was rushed and shallow.

5) on a more positive note the animation was incredibly beautiful, a few characters felt a little too baby faced but the lighting and textures really made this very pretty to look at.

6) what was Gabriel’s villain song? It’s like they had an interesting idea but they just couldn’t deliver (which unfortunately rings true for most of the movie)

7) related to Marinette and her many many songs was her character arc, it felt kinda all over the place, like her whole “gotta face my fears” lesson was learned like three different times and not once in a fulfilling way.

8) Alya was kinda mean at the beginning? Did anyone else feel that way?

9) Tikki’s rap was SO CRINGE and the bit in Hawkmoth’s song where he gets a hat and poses un a rap-y way was so weird as well. Like come to think of it they were probably referencing “friends in the other side” but it only makes this song seem way worse by comparison.

10) the movie had serious issues with its rhythm and pacing, with the whole story but also in every scene.

11) kinda related to that but their mouths sometimes would not move with the dialogue? At first I assumed it was because it was made for French first but I could very clearly read their lips in English just not in sync with the sound.

12) the kwamis (genies in this movie apparently, ugh) were characterized in such a weird way, it was like trying to be Tikki but not quite getting there. I did enjoy when she got all wide eyed and musterious, it kinda goes with her being super old and powerful.

13) Plagg??? Being mostly just a fart joke??? 0/10

14) that and Chat feeling so unimportant.

15) Chat also fell in love way to fast, and like it didn’t feel genuine? Like they barely knew each other and Marinette wasn’t like particularly impressive yet for him to be fawning over her.

16) after the little montage tho? I loved their dynamic and relationship, and I really liked their little fight on the roof

17) the movie was sprinkled with little scenes and moments that were enjoyable and well crafted, but even if they were emotional moments they just didn’t feel earned and were kinda buried under a bunch of mid scenes.

18) I did like that Hawkmoth was dealt with in the spam of one movie, 11/10 much more realistic for his abilities than 5 seasons.

19) most of the jokes didn’t land because the timing of them was so weird, like long pauses or they were delivered too fast.

In general there were some bits that I enjoyed and the animation was obviously gorgeous (even if the pacing brought it back a bit) but maybe I had too much hype but I was disappointed. Still I’m certainly inspired to try some fan art and will save stills from the movie cause they were so beautiful.

I probably didn’t make a lot of sense but I needed to get everything out there!

P.S. HOW COULD THEY CUT JUST BEFORE THE KISS?!! UGHHH!!!

[symeraid-s]

2024 Retrospective: Movies and TV Shows

Movies

Arthur the King

It’s a dog movie based on a real story. It’s cute and was very entertaining to watch, but some of the dialogue was a little weird. The team has good synergy though and the dog does steal the show. As he should. Mark Wahlberg is pretty good in this movie and him talking about how much he wanted to adopt the dog from the handler is what got me interested in seeing it. If you want a good dog movie, this definitely is it.

Dune Part 2

I didn’t catch this movie in cinemas, but even so, I can tell that it’s a visual experience. The designs of the spacecrafts and everything else are still really cool and how they portray the different planets is incredibly striking. Austin Butler is amazing in this movie and personally, I’d say he deserves an Oscar nomination for it. I don’t think he’ll get one, but it would be cool. It should be nominated in all the technical categories though. And for the score, because holy shit! Objectively speaking, of everything I have watched, I think this is the best movie of the year.

The Zone of Interest

This movie released in Germany in January 2024, so for me it’s a movie from this year. Why did it release so late? I don’t know. It was a really good movie. It feels more like a documentary at parts, like it was filmed with a secret camera, glimpsing into the lives of the family, which is a really unique directing decision. It also leaves you on an ending that gets you thinking for a while. And also, no Jimmy Kimmel, we do not think this is a rom com, kindly fuck off.

The Wild Robot

Next to Dune, this was my most anticipated movie of the year and it really lived up to my expectations. The Animation is beautiful, and the story is touching. Sure, there were a few cheesy moments, but they feel earned and are scattered far between. The dry and dark humour was really unexpected, but very welcome to me. I’m also not ashamed to admit, that it made me cry multiple times throughout. The voice cast really is amazing. Lupita Nyong’o is really good as the robot and Pedro Pascal shines as Fink, but the biggest surprise for me was Kit Connor as Brightbill. He just seems to be capable of everything.

Deadpool & Wolverine

It’s just a fun conclusion to the trilogy and a nice send off to the Fox X-Verse, if that’s what it’s called. The tribute on the credits is really cool and a nice sentiment. Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman have great chemistry and do a great job in this movie. You can also really tell that this was a passion project for a lot of people. Like A Prayer is also an inspired song choice for the final fight and the conclusion. Also, I’m contractually obligated to mention that they definitely fucked in the Honda Odyssey.

Ultraman: Rising

Is this movie a good introduction to Ultraman? I’m not sure. But it definitely is a good movie. It’s fun, the fight scenes are exciting, and the animation looks striking. Sure, it might not have the most original story, but the way it tells it is really good, and the character growth of Kenji is really satisfying to watch. Kenji in general is just a really good character.

TV Shows

Arcane Season 2

The money really is on the screen, but the 250 million floating around is definitely too much. That may be both seasons including marketing costs, but not purely the Animation. The Animation is stunning and, in my opinion, better than the first season. But I don’t actually know if I prefer this season over season 1. It was an amazing finale, don’t get me wrong, but it does seem a little rushed. A lot of the side characters are very flat and don’t really get anything to do and I still don’t understand what the deal with the Black Rose was. That aside though, I really did like this as a finale and am looking forwards to the other shows.

The Umbrella Academy Season 4

I did enjoy this season up until episode 4. I liked Ben and Jennifers chemistry, the cult leader antagonists were fun and the fight scene in the town where they run over Santa Claus was cool. But then it all began to go downhill. Klaus’ subplot was really tasteless and unnecessary, and I might have thought it was fine, had it not come after he learnt to control his powers in Season 3 and ended with him helping himself. The constant fat jokes with Diego also are really stupid, especially when they later rip off his shirt to reveal that he still is ripped. Diego and Lilas relationship also feels really misrepresented, which leads into that stupid Five and Lila romance that nobody, including the actors liked. This finale was a whole fucking mess and the only reason I didn’t just drop it, was because I thought if it had a good enough ending the show could be redeemed a little. It doesn’t. Why does the fucking handler get to live happily ever after, but the main characters have to die? And also: what was the purpose of bringing Ben back, if you’re just going to kill him off again? It’s all just a big mess and it feels like the writers themselves gave up. So, I’m just going to consider Season 3 the finale.

Heartstopper Season 3

I think this might be the best season of the show so far. The way it handled its heavy subject matter was delicate and masterfully executed. Kit Connor and Joe Locke continue to be great actors. Tao still is my favourite character and the scene where he comforts Nick at the party is probably my favourite of the season. The only complaint I really have is that it ends in a weird place. Like, the finale needed 15 more minutes. Even so, I really enjoyed it.

Connection

I started this K-Drama because the premise sounded interesting and only then realised that it was starring Ji Sung, who might just be my favourite Korean actor. I loved him in the Devil Judge and Kill Me, Heal Me and he is just as good here. His ability to have great chemistry with everyone he comes across really needs to be studied. Back to the show though. It’s good. Some twists are predictable, but they are well executed so I’m willing to give it a pass. There is also a lot of attention to detail. One that I think is really cool is that the drug, the main character is forcefully addicted to, is stated to be an appetite-suppressant and we don’t actually see him each much from Episode 2 to the end of the show. I just thought that was a really cool detail. If you want a good crime drama, this really is the show for you.

Hazbin Hotel

I did enjoy watching this show, but I don’t think it was good. There were a lot of moments that felt weirdly stiff and there were too many songs, really. One per episode would have been more than enough, because most of them seem to be about nothing relating to the plot. Characters break out into song just because. The few songs I do like (Hell is Forever, Hell’s Greatest Dad and Stayed Gone), are really good, but some are borderline unlistenable (Out For Love). It does have a lot of great voice acting talent though and I do really like Alastor as a character. Whenever the show focuses on him, it becomes a lot better.

Helluva Boss Season 2

The animation for this show somehow is better than Hazbin Hotels and only one of these two is streaming on a major streaming service. Especially in the later episodes of the season, the animation was outstanding. For me, this season had some of the greatest highs and the lowest lows of the show so far. The finale pulled it all together though and also finally convinced me of Stolas and Blitzos relationship. The music this season was also outstanding. 2 Minutes Notice has become my anthem, and Just Look My Way is also gorgeous. Bryce Pinkham as Stolas is still really amazing and needs to do more voice acting. Alex Brightman as Fizzarolli is also really good.