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aquilaofarkham · 5 years ago

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Much like his infamous father, the aesthetic of Alucard has changed tremendously since Castlevania’s start in the 1980s—yet certain things about him never change at all. He began as the mirror image of Dracula; a hark back to the days of masculine Hammer Horror films, Christopher Lee, and Bela Lugosi. Then his image changed dramatically into the androgynous gothic aristocrat most people know him as today. This essay will examine Alucard’s design, the certain artistic and social trends which might have influenced it, and how it has evolved into what it is now.

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INTRODUCTION

Published in 2017, Carol Dyhouse’s Heartthrobs: A History of Women and Desire examines how certain cultural trends can influence what women may find attractive or stimulating in a male character. By using popular archetypes such as the Prince Charming, the bad boy, and the tall dark handsome stranger, Dyhouse seeks to explain why these particular men appeal to the largest demographic beyond mere superfluous infatuation. In one chapter titled “Dark Princes, Foreign Powers: Desert Lovers, Outsiders, and Vampires”, she touches upon the fascination most audiences have with moody and darkly seductive vampires. Dyhouse exposits that the reason for this fascination is the inherent dangerous allure of taming someone—or something—so dominating and masculine, perhaps even evil, yet hides their supposed sensitivity behind a Byronic demeanour.

This is simply one example of how the general depiction of vampires in mainstream media has evolved over time. Because the concept itself is as old as the folklore and superstitions it originates from, thus varying from culture to culture, there is no right or wrong way to represent a vampire, desirable or not. The Caribbean Soucouyant is described as a beautiful woman who sheds her skin at night and enters her victims’ bedrooms disguised as an aura of light before consuming their blood. In Ancient Roman mythology there are tales of the Strix, an owl-like creature that comes out at night to drink human blood until it can take no more. Even the Chupacabra, a popular cryptid supposedly first spotted in Puerto Rico, has been referred to as being vampiric because of the way it sucks blood out of goats, leaving behind a dried up corpse.

However, it is a rare thing to find any of these vampires in popular media. Instead, most modern audiences are shown Dyhouse’s vampire: the brooding, masculine alpha male in both appearance and personality. A viewer may wish to be with that character, or they might wish to become just like that character.

This sort of shift in regards to creating the “ideal” vampire is most evident in how the image of Dracula has been adapted, interpreted, and revamped in order to keep up with changing trends. In Bram Stoker’s original 1897 novel of the same name, Dracula is presented as the ultimate evil; an ancient, almost grotesque devil that ensnares the most unsuspecting victims and slowly corrupts their innocence until they are either subservient to him (Renfield, the three brides) or lost to their own bloodlust (Lucy Westenra). In the end, he can only be defeated through the joined actions of a steadfast if not ragtag group of self-proclaimed vampire hunters that includes a professor, a nobleman, a doctor, and a cowboy. His monstrousness in following adaptations remains, but it is often undercut by attempts to give his character far more pathos than the original source material presents him with. Dracula has become everything: a monster, a lover, a warrior, a lonely soul searching for companionship, a conquerer, a comedian, and of course, the final boss of a thirty-year-old video game franchise.

Which brings us to the topic of this essay; not Dracula per say, but his son. Even if someone has never played a single instalment of Castlevania or watched the ongoing animated Netflix series, it is still most likely that they have heard of or seen the character of Alucard through cultural osmosis thanks to social media sites such as Twitter, Instagram, Reddit, and the like. Over the thirty-plus years in which Castlevania has remained within the public’s consciousness, Alucard has become one of the most popular characters of the franchise, if not the most popular. Since his debut as a leading man in the hit game Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, he has taken his place beside other protagonists like Simon Belmont, a character who was arguably the face of Castlevania before 1997, the year in which Symphony of the Night was released. Alucard is an iconic component of the series and thanks in part to the mainstream online streaming service Netflix, he is now more present in the public eye than ever before whether through official marketing strategies or fanworks.

It is easy to see why. Alucard’s backstory and current struggles are quite similar to the defining characteristics of the Byronic hero. Being the son of the human doctor Lisa Țepeș, a symbol of goodness and martyrdom in all adaptations, and the lord of all vampires Dracula, Alucard (also referred to by his birth name Adrian Fahrenheit Țepeș) feels constantly torn between the two halves of himself. He maintains his moralistic values towards protecting humanity, despite being forced to make hard decisions, and despite parts of humanity not being kind to him in turn, yet is always tempted by his more monstrous inheritance. The idea of a hero who carries a dark burden while aspiring towards nobility is something that appeals to many audiences. We relate to their struggles, cheer for them when they triumph, and share their pain when they fail. Alucard (as most casual viewers see him) is the very personification of the Carol Dyhouse vampire: mysterious, melancholic, dominating, yet sensitive and striving for compassion. Perceived as a supposed “bad boy” on the surface by people who take him at face value, yet in reality is anything but.

Then there is Alucard’s appearance, an element that is intrinsically tied to how he has been portrayed over the decades and the focus of this essay. Much like his infamous father, the aesthetic of Alucard has changed tremendously since Castlevania’s start in the 1980s—yet certain things about him never change at all. He began as the mirror image of Dracula; a hark back to the days of masculine Hammer Horror films, Christopher Lee, and Bela Lugosi. Then his image changed dramatically into the androgynous gothic aristocrat most people know him as today. This essay will examine Alucard’s design, the certain artistic and social trends which might have influenced it, and how it has evolved into what it is now. Parts will include theoretical, analytical, and hypothetical stances, but it’s overall purpose is to be merely observational.

What is Castlevania?

We start this examination at the most obvious place, with the most obvious question. Like all franchises, Castlevania has had its peaks, low points, and dry spells. Developed by Konami and directed by Hitoshi Akamatsu, the first instalment was released in 1986 then distributed in North America for the Nintendo Entertainment System the following year. Its pixelated gameplay consists of jumping from platform to platform and fighting enemies across eighteen stages all to reach the final boss, Dracula himself. Much like the gameplay, the story of Castlevania is simple. You play as Simon Belmont; a legendary vampire hunter and the only one who can defeat Dracula. His arsenal includes holy water, axes, and throwing daggers among many others, but his most important weapon is a consecrated whip known as the vampire killer, another iconic staple of the Castlevania image.

Due to positive reception from critics and the public alike, Castlevania joined other titles including Super Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda, and Mega Man as one of the most defining video games of the 1980s. As for the series itself, Castlevania started the first era known by many fans and aficionados as the “Classicvania” phase, which continued until the late 1990s. It was then followed by the “Metroidvania” era, the “3-D Vania” era during the early to mid 2000s, an reboot phase during the early 2010s, and finally a renaissance or “revival” age where a sudden boom in new or re-released Castlevania content helped boost interest and popularity in the franchise. Each of these eras detail how the games changed in terms of gameplay, design, and storytelling. The following timeline gives a general overview of the different phases along with their corresponding dates and instalments.

Classicvania refers to Castlevania games that maintain the original’s simplicity in gameplay, basic storytelling, and pixelated design. In other words, working within the console limitations of the time. They are usually side-scrolling platformers with an emphasis on finding hidden objects and defeating a variety of smaller enemies until the player faces off against the penultimate boss. Following games like Castlevania 2: Simon’s Quest and Castlevania 3: Dracula’s Curse were more ambitious than their predecessor as they both introduced new story elements that offered multiple endings and branching pathways. In Dracula’s Curse, there are four playable characters each with their own unique gameplay. However, the most basic plot of the first game is present within both of these titles . Namely, find Dracula and kill Dracula. Like with The Legend of Zelda’s Link facing off against Ganon or Mario fighting Bowser, the quest to destroy Dracula is the most fundamental aspect to Castlevania. Nearly every game had to end with his defeat. In terms of gameplay, it was all about the journey to Dracula’s castle.

As video games grew more and more complex leading into the 1990s, Castlevania’s tried and true formula began to mature as well. The series took a drastic turn with the 1997 release of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, a game which started the Metroidvania phase. This not only refers to the stylistic and gameplay changes of the franchise itself, but also refers to an entire subgenre of video games. Combining key components from Castlevania and Nintendo’s popular science fiction action series Metroid, Metroidvania games emphasize non-linear exploration and more traditional RPG elements including a massive array of collectable weapons, power-ups, character statistics, and armor. Symphony of the Night pioneered this trend while later titles like Castlevania: Circle of the Moon, Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance and Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow solidified it. Nowadays, Metroidvanias are common amongst independent developers while garnering critical praise. Hollow Knight, Blasphemous, and Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night are just a few examples of modern Metroidvanias that use the formula to create familiar yet still distinct gaming experiences.

Then came the early to mid 2000s and many video games were perfecting the use of 3-D modelling, free control over the camera, and detailed environments. Similar to what other long-running video game franchises were doing at the time, Castlevania began experimenting with 3-D in 1999 with Castlevania 64 and Castlevania: Legacy of Darkness, both developed for the Nintendo 64 console. 64 received moderately positive reviews while the reception for its companion was far more mixed, though with Nintendo 64’s discontinuation in 2002, both games have unfortunately fallen into obscurity.

A year later, Castlevania returned to 3-D with Castlevania: Lament of Innocence for the Playstation 2. This marked Koji Igarashi’s first foray into 3-D as well as the series’ first ever M-rated instalment. While not the most sophisticated or complex 3-D Vania (or one that manages to hold up over time in terms of graphics), Lament of Innocence was a considerable improvement over 64 and Legacy of Darkness. Other 3-D Vania titles include Castlevania: Curse of Darkness, Castlevania: Judgment, and Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles for the PSP, a remake of the Classicvania game Castlevania: Rondo of Blood which merged 3-D models, environments, and traditional platforming mechanics emblematic of early Castlevania. It is important to note that during this particular era, there were outliers to the changing formula that included Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin and Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia, both games which added to the Metroidvania genre.

Despite many of the aforementioned games becoming cult classics and fan favourites, this was an era in which Castlevania struggled to maintain its relevance, confused by its own identity according to most critics. Attempts to try something original usually fell flat or failed to resonate with audiences and certain callbacks to what worked in the past were met with indifference.

By the 2010s, the Castlevania brand changed yet again and stirred even more division amongst critics, fans, and casual players. This was not necessarily a dark age for the franchise but it was a strange age; the black sheep of Castlevania. In 2010, Konami released Castlevania: Lords of Shadow, a complete reboot of the series with new gameplay, new characters, and new lore unrelated to previous instalments. The few elements tying it to classic Castlevania games were recurring enemies, platforming, and the return of the iconic whip used as both a weapon and another means of getting from one area to another. Other gameplay features included puzzle-solving, exploration, and hack-and-slash combat. But what makes Lords of Shadow so divisive amongst fans is its story. The player follows Gabriel Belmont, a holy warrior on a quest to save his deceased wife’s soul from Limbo. From that basic plot point, the storyline diverges immensely from previous Castlevania titles, becoming more and more complicated until Gabriel makes the ultimate sacrifice and turns into the very monster that haunted other Belmont heroes for centuries: Dracula. While a dark plot twist and a far cry from the hopeful endings of past games, the concept of a more tortured and reluctant Dracula who was once the hero had already been introduced in older Dracula adaptations (the Francis Ford Coppola directed Dracula being a major example of this trend in media).

Despite strong opinions on how much the story of Lords of Shadow diverged from the original timeline, it was positively received by critics, garnering an overall score of 85 on Metacritic. This prompted Konami to continue with the release of Castlevania: Lords of Shadow—Mirror of Fate and Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2. Mirror of Fate returned to the series’ platforming and side-scrolling roots with stylized 3-D models and cutscenes. It received mixed reviews, as did its successor Lords of Shadow 2. While Mirror of Fate felt more like a classic stand-alone Castlevania with Dracula back as its main antagonist, the return of Simon Belmont, and the inclusion of Alucard, Lords of Shadow 2 carried over plot elements from its two predecessors along with new additions, turning an already complicated story into something more contrived.

Finally, there came a much needed revival phase for the franchise. Netflix’s adaptation of Castlevania animated by Powerhouse Animation Studios based in Austen, Texas and directed by Samuel Deats and co-directed by Adam Deats aired its first season during July 2017 with four episodes. Season two aired in October 2018 with eight episodes followed by a ten episode third season in March 2020. Season four was announced by Netflix three weeks after the release of season three. The show combines traditional western 2-D animation with elements from Japanese anime and is a loose adaptation of Castlevania 3: Dracula’s Curse combined with plot details from Castlevania: Curse of Darkness, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, and original story concepts. But the influx of new Castlevania content did not stop with the show. Before the release of season two, Nintendo announced that classic protagonists Simon Belmont and Richter Belmont would join the ever-growing roster of playable characters in their hit fighting game Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. With their addition also came the inclusion of iconic Castlevania environments, music, weapons, and supporting characters like Dracula and Alucard.

During the year-long gap between seasons two and three of the Netflix show, Konami released Castlevania: Grimoire of Souls, a side-scrolling platformer and gacha game for mobile devices. The appeal of Grimoire of Souls is the combination of popular Castlevania characters each from a different game in the series interacting with one another along with a near endless supply of collectable weapons, outfits, power-ups, and armor accompanied by new art. Another ongoing endeavor by Konami in partnership with Sony to bring collective awareness back to one of their flagship titles is the re-releasing of past Castlevania games. This began with Castlevania: Requiem, in which buyers received both Symphony of the Night and Rondo of Blood for the Playstation 4 in 2018. This was followed the next year with the Castlevania Anniversary Collection, a bundle that included a number of Classicvania titles for the Playstation 4, Xbox One, Steam, and Nintendo Switch.

Like Dracula, the Belmonts, and the vampire killer, one other element tying these five eras together is the presence of Alucard and his various forms in each one.

Masculinity in 1980s Media

When it comes to media and various forms of the liberal arts be it entertainment, fashion, music, etc., we are currently in the middle of a phenomenon known as the thirty year cycle. Patrick Metzgar of The Patterning describes this trend as a pop cultural pattern that is, in his words, “forever obsessed with a nostalgia pendulum that regularly resurfaces things from 30 years ago”. Nowadays, media seems to be fixated with a romanticized view of the 1980s from bold and flashy fashion trends, to current music that relies on the use of synthesizers, to of course visual mass media that capitalizes on pop culture icons of the 80s. This can refer to remakes, reboots, and sequels; the first cinematic chapter of Stephen King’s IT, The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, and both Ghostbusters remakes are prime examples—but the thirty year cycle can also include original media that is heavily influenced or oversaturated with nostalgia. Netflix’s blockbuster series Stranger Things is this pattern’s biggest and most overt product.

To further explain how the thirty year cycle works with another example, Star Wars began as a nostalgia trip and emulation of vintage science fiction serials from the 1950s and 60s, the most prominent influence being Flash Gordon. This comparison is partially due to George Lucas’ original attempts to license the Flash Gordon brand before using it as prime inspiration for Star Wars: A New Hope and subsequent sequels. After Lucas sold his production company Lucasfilms to Disney, three more Star Wars films were released, borrowing many aesthetic and story elements from Lucas’ original trilogy while becoming emulations of nostalgia themselves.

The current influx of Castlevania content could be emblematic of this very same pattern in visual media, being an 80s property itself, but what do we actually remember from the 1980s? Thanks to the thirty year cycle, the general public definitely acknowledges and enjoys all the fun things about the decade. Movie theatres were dominated by the teen flicks of John Hughes, the fantasy genre found a comeback due to the resurgence of J.R.R. Tolkien’s classic works along with the tabletop role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons, and people were dancing their worries away to the songs of Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, and Madonna. Then there were the things that most properties taking part in the thirty year cycle choose to ignore or gloss over, with some exceptions. The rise of child disappearances, prompting the term “stranger danger”, the continuation of satanic panic from the 70s which caused the shutdown and incarceration of hundreds of innocent caretakers, and the deaths of thousands due to President Reagan’s homophobia, conservatism, and inability to act upon the AIDS crisis.

The 1980s also saw a shift in masculinity and how it was represented towards the public whether through advertising, television, cinema, or music. In M.D. Kibby’s essay Real Men: Representations of Masculinity in 80s Cinema, he reveals that “television columns in the popular press argued that viewers were tired of liberated heroes and longed for the return of the macho leading man” (Kibby, 21). Yet there seemed to be a certain “splitness” to the masculine traits found within fictional characters and public personas; something that tried to deconstruct hyper-masculinity while also reviling in it, particularly when it came to white, cisgendered men. Wendy Somerson further describes this dichotomy: “The white male subject is split. On one hand, he takes up the feminized personality of the victim, but on the other hand, he enacts fantasies of hypermasculinized heroism” (Somerson, 143). Somerson explains how the media played up this juxtaposition of “soft masculinity”, where men are portrayed as victimized, helpless, and childlike. In other words, “soft men who represent a reaction against the traditional sexist ‘Fifties man’ and lack a strong male role model” (Somerson, 143). A sort of self-flagellation or masochism in response to the toxic and patriarchal gender roles of three decades previous. Yet this softening of male representation was automatically seen as traditionally “feminine” and femininity almost always equated to childlike weakness. Then in western media, there came the advent of male madness and the fetishization of violent men. Films like Scarface, Die Hard, and any of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s filmography helped to solidify the wide appeal of these hyper-masculine and “men out of control” tropes which were preceded by Martin Scorcese’s critical and cult favourite Taxi Driver.

There were exceptions to this rule; or at the very least attempted exceptions that only managed to do more harm to the concept of a feminized man while also doubling down on the standard tropes of the decade. One shallow example of this balancing act between femininity and masculinity in 80s western media was the hit crime show Miami Vice and Sonny, a character who is entirely defined by his image. In Kibby’s words, “he is a beautiful consumer image, a position usually reserved for women; and he is in continual conflict with work, that which fundamentally defines him as a man” (Kibby, 21). Therein lies the problematic elements of this characterization. Sonny’s hyper-masculine traits of violence and emotionlessness serve as a reaffirmation of his manufactured maleness towards the audience.

Returning to the subject of Schwarzenegger, his influence on 80s media that continued well into the 90s ties directly to how fantasy evolved during this decade while also drawing upon inspirations from earlier trends. The most notable example is his portrayal of Robert E. Howard’s Conan the Barbarian in the 1982 film directed by John Milius. Already a classic character from 1930s serials and later comic strips, the movie (while polarizing amongst critics who described it as a “psychopathic Star Wars, stupid and stupefying”) brought the iconic image of a muscle-bound warrior wielding a sword as half-naked women fawn at his feet back into the collective consciousness of many fantasy fans. The character and world of Conan romanticizes the use of violence, strength, and pure might in order to achieve victory. This aesthetic of hyper-masculinity, violence, and sexuality in fantasy art was arguably perfected by the works of Frank Frazetta, a frequent artist for Conan properties. The early Castlevania games drew inspiration from this exact aesthetic for its leading hero Simon Belmont and directly appropriated one of Frazetta’s pieces for the cover of the first game.

Hammer Horror & Gender

Conan the Barbarian, Frank Frazetta, and similar fantasy icons were just a few influences on the overall feel of 80s Castlevania. Its other major influence harks back to a much earlier and far more gothic trend in media. Castlevania director Hitoshi Akamatsu stated that while the first game was in development, they were inspired by earlier cinematic horror trends and “wanted players to feel like they were in a classic horror movie”. This specific influence forms the very backbone of the Castlevania image. Namely: gothic castles, an atmosphere of constant uncanny dread, and a range of colourful enemies from Frankenstein’s Monster, the Mummy, to of course Dracula. The massive popularity and recognizability of these three characters can be credited to the classic Universal Pictures’ monster movies of the 1930s, but there was another film studio that put its own spin on Dracula and served as another source of inspiration for future Castlevania properties.

The London-based film company Hammer Film Productions was established in 1934 then quickly filed bankruptcy a mere three years later after their films failed to earn back their budget through ticket sales. What saved them was the horror genre itself as their first official title under the ‘Hammer Horror’ brand The Curse of Frankenstein starring Hammer regular Peter Cushing was released in 1957 to enormous profit in both Britain and overseas. With one successful adaptation of a horror legend under their belt, Hammer’s next venture seemed obvious. Dracula (also known by its retitle Horror of Dracula) followed hot off the heels of Frankenstein and once again starred Peter Cushing as Professor Abraham Van Helsing, a much younger and more dashing version of his literary counterpart. Helsing faces off against the titular fanged villain, played by Christopher Lee, whose portrayal of Dracula became the face of Hammer Horror for decades to come.

Horror of Dracula spawned eight sequels spanning across the 60s and 70s, each dealing with the resurrection or convoluted return of the Prince of Darkness (sound familiar?) Yet these were not the same gothic films pioneered by Universal Studios with fog machines, high melodrama, and disturbingly quiet atmosphere. Christopher Lee’s Dracula and Bela Lugosi’s Dracula are two entirely separate beasts. While nearly identical in design (slicked back hair, long flowing black cape, and a dignified, regal demeanor), Lugosi is subtle, using only his piercing stare as a means of intimidation and power—in the 1930s, smaller details meant bigger scares. For Hammer Horror, when it comes time to show Dracula’s true nature, Lee bares his blood-covered fangs and acts like an animal coveting their prey. Hammer’s overall approach to horror involved bigger production sets, low-cut nightgowns, and bright red blood that contrasted against the muted, desaturated look of each film. And much like the media of 1980, when it came to their characters, the Dracula films fell back on what was expected by society to be ‘masculine’ and ‘feminine’ while also making slight commentary on those very preconceived traits.

The main theme surrounding each male cast in these films is endangered male authority. Dracula and Van Helsing are without a doubt the most powerful, domineering characters in the story, particularly Helsing. As author Peter Hutchings describes in his book Hammer & Beyond: The British Horror Film, “the figure of the (male) vampire hunter is always one of authority, certainty, and stability (...) he is the only one with enough logical sense to know how to defeat the ultimate evil, thus saving the female characters and weaker male characters from being further victimized” (Hutchings, 124). The key definition here is ‘weaker male characters’. Hammer’s Dracula explores the absolute power of male authority in, yet it also reveals how easily this authority can be weakened. This is shown through the characters of Jonathan Harker and Arthur Holmwood, who differ slightly from how they are portrayed in Stoker’s novel. While Dracula does weaken them both, they manage to join Helsing and defeat the monster through cooperation and teamwork. In fact, it is Harker who lands one of the final killing strikes against Dracula. However, the Jonathan Harker of Hammer’s Dracula is transformed into a vampire against his will and disposed of before the finale. His death, in the words of Hutchings, “underlines the way in which throughout the film masculinity is seen (...) as arrested, in a permanently weakened state” (Hutchings, 117).

This theme of weakened authority extends to Holmwood in a more obvious and unsettling manner. In another deviation from the source material, Lucy Westenra, best friend to Mina Murray and fiancé to Arthur Holmwood, is now Holmwood’s sister and Harker’s fiancé. Lucy’s story still plays out more or less the same way it did in the novel; Dracula routinely drains her of blood until she becomes a vampire, asserting his dominance both physically and mentally. This according to Hutchings is the entirety of Dracula’s plan; a project “to restore male authority over women by taking the latter away from the weak men, establishing himself as the immortal, sole patriarch” (Hutchings, 119). Meanwhile, it is Helsing’s mission to protect men like Arthur Holmwood, yet seems only concerned with establishing his own dominance and does nothing to reestablish Holmwood’s masculinity or authority. Due to the damage done by Dracula and the failings of Helsing, Holmwood never regains this authority, even towards the end when he is forced to murder his own sister. His reaction goes as follows: “as she is staked he clutches his chest, his identification with her at this moment, when she is restored to a passivity which is conventionally feminine, suggesting a femininity within him which the film equates with weakness” (Hutchings, 117).

So Van Helsing succeeds in his mission to defeat his ultimate rival, but Dracula is victorious in his own right. With Jonathan Harker gone, Lucy Holmwood dead, and Arthur Holmwood further emasculated, he succeeds in breaking down previous male power structures while putting himself in their place as the all-powerful, all-dominant male presence. This is the very formula in which early Hammer Dracula films were built upon; “with vampire and vampire hunter mutually defining an endangered male authority, and the woman functioning in part as the site of their struggle (...) forged within and responded to British social reality of the middle and late 1950s” (Hutchings, 123).

Alucard c. 1989

As for Castlevania’s Dracula, his earliest design takes more from Christopher Lee’s portrayal than from Bela Lugosi or Bram Stoker’s original vision. His appearance on the first ever box art bears a striking resemblance to one of the most famous stills from Horror of Dracula. Even in pixelated form, Dracula’s imposing model is more characteristic of Christopher Lee than Bela Lugosi.

Being his son, it would make logical sense for the first appearance of Alucard in Castlevania 3: Dracula’s Curse to resemble his father. His 1989 design carries over everything from the slick dark hair, sharp claws, and shapeless long cloak but adds a certain juvenile element—or rather, a more human element. This makes sense in the context of the game’s plot. Despite being the third title, Dracula’s Curse acts as the starting point to the Castlevania timeline (before it was replaced by Castlevania: Legends in 1997, which was then retconned and also replaced by Castlevania: Lament of Innocence in 2003 as the definitive prequel of the series). Set nearly two centuries before Simon Belmont’s time, Dracula’s Curse follows Simon’s ancestor Trevor Belmont as he is called to action by the church to defeat Dracula once he begins a reign of terror across Wallachia, now known as modern day Romania. It is a reluctant decision by the church, since the Belmont family has been exiled due to fear and superstition surrounding their supposed inhuman powers.

This is one example of how despite the current technological limitations, later Castlevania games were able to add more in-depth story elements little by little beyond “find Dracula, kill Dracula”. This began as early as Castlevania 2: Simon’s Quest by giving Simon a much stronger motivation in his mission and the inclusion of multiple endings. The improvements made throughout the Classicvania era were relatively small while further character and story complexities remained either limited or unexplored, but they were improvements nonetheless.

Another example of this slight progress in storytelling was Castlevania 3’s introduction of multiple playable characters each with a unique backstory of their own. The supporting cast includes Sypha Belnades, a powerful sorceress disguised as a humble monk who meets Trevor after he saves her from being frozen in stone by a cyclops, and Grant Danasty, a pirate who fell under Dracula’s influence before Trevor helped him break free from his curse. Then there is of course Adrian Fahrenheit Țepeș who changed his name to Alucard, the opposite of Dracula, as a symbol of rebellion against his tyrannical father. Yet Castlevania was not the first to conceptualize the very character of Alucard; someone who is the son of Dracula and whose name is quite literally the backwards spelling of his fathers’. That idea started with Universal’s 1943 venture Son of Dracula, a sequel to the 1931 classic that unfortunately failed to match the original’s effective atmosphere, scares, and story. In it, Alucard is undoubtedly the villain whereas in Dracula’s Curse, he is one of the heroes. Moral and noble, able to sway Trevor Belmont’s preconceptions of vampiric creatures, and with an odd sympathy for the monster that is his father. Alucard even goes as far as to force himself into an eternal slumber after the defeat of Dracula in order to “purge the world of his own cursed bloodline” (the reason given by Castlevania: Symphony of the Night’s opening narration).

When it comes to design, Castlevania’s Alucard does the curious job of fitting in with the franchises’ established aesthetic yet at the same time, he manages to stand out the most—in fact, all the main characters do. Everyone from Trevor, Sypha, to Grant all look as though they belong in different stories from different genres. Grant’s design is more typical of the classic pirate image one would find in old illustrated editions of Robinson Crusoe’s Treasure Island or in a classic swashbuckler like 1935’s Captain Blood starring Errol Flynn. Sypha might look more at home in a Dungeons & Dragons campaign or an early Legend of Zelda title with a large hood obscuring her facial features, oversized blue robes, and a magical staff all of which are commonplace for a fantasy mage of the 1980s. Trevor’s design is nearly identical to Simon’s right down to the whip, long hair, and barbarian-esque attire which, as mentioned previously, was taken directly from Conan the Barbarian.

Judging Alucard solely from official character art ranging from posters to other promotional materials, he seems to be the only one who belongs in the gothic horror atmosphere of Dracula’s Curse. As the physically largest and most supernaturally natured of the main cast, he is in almost every way a copy of his father—a young Christopher Lee’s Dracula complete with fangs and cape. Yet his path as a hero within the game’s narrative along with smaller, near missable details in his design (his ingame magenta cape, the styling of his hair in certain official art, and the loose-fitting cravat around his neck) further separates him from the absolute evil and domination that is Dracula. Alucard is a rebel and an outsider, just like Trevor, Sypha, and Grant. In a way, they mirror the same vampire killing troupe from Bram Stoker’s novel; a group of people all from different facets of life who come together to defeat a common foe.

The son of Dracula also shares similar traits with Hammer’s Van Helsing. Same as the Belmonts (who as vampire hunters are exactly like Helsing in everything except name), Alucard is portrayed as one of the few remaining beacons of masculinity with enough strength, skill, and logical sense who can defeat Dracula, another symbol of patriarchal power. With Castlevania 3: Dracula’s Curse, we begin to see Alucard’s dual nature in aesthetics that is automatically tied to his characterization; a balance that many Byronic heroes try to strike between masculine domination and moralistic sensitivity and goodness that is often misconstrued as weakly feminine. For now though, especially in appearance, Alucard’s persona takes more from the trends that influenced his allies (namely Trevor and Simon Belmont) and his enemy (Dracula). This of course would change drastically alongside the Castlevania franchise itself come the 1990s.

Gender Expression & The 1990s Goth Scene

When a person sees or hears the word “gothic”, it conjures up a very specific mental image—dark and stormy nights spent inside an extravagant castle that is host to either a dashing vampire with a thirst for blood, vengeful ghosts of the past come to haunt some unfortunate living soul, or a mad scientist determined to cheat death and bring life to a corpse sewn from various body parts. In other words, a scenario that would be the focus of some Halloween television special or a daring novel from the mid to late Victorian era. Gothicism has had its place in artistic and cultural circles long before the likes of Mary Shelley, Edgar Allan Poe, Bram Stoker, and even before Horace Walpole’s The Castle of Otranto, a late 18th century novel that arguably started the gothic horror subgenre.

The term itself originated in 17th century Sweden as a descriptor of the national romanticism concerning the North Germanic Goths, a tribe which occupied much of Medieval Götaland. It was a period of historical revisionism in which the Goths and other Viking tribes were depicted as heroic and heavily romanticised. Yet more than ever before, gothicism is now associated with a highly specific (and in many ways personal) form of artistic and gender expression. It started with the golden age of gothic Medieval architecture that had its revival multiple centuries later during the Victorian era, then morphed into one of the darkest if not melodramatic literary movements, and finally grew a new identity throughout the 1990s. For this portion, we will focus on the gothic aesthetic as it pertains to fashion and music.

Arguably, the advent of the modern goth subculture as it is known nowadays began with the 1979 song “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” from Northampton’s own rock troupe Bauhaus. The overall aesthetic of the song, accompanying live performances, and the band itself helped shaped the main themes of current gothicism including, but not limited to, “macabre funeral musical tone and tempo, to lyrical references to the undead, to deep voiced eerie vocals, to a dark twisted form of androgyny in the appearance of the band and most of its following” (Hodkinson, 35-64). This emphasis on physical androgyny in a genre that was predominantly focused on depictions of undeniable masculinity was especially important to the 80s and 90s goth scene. Bauhaus opened the gates in which other goth and post-punk bands gained popularity outside of underground venues, including The Cure, Siouxsie and the Banshees, and Southern Death Cult. Much like Bauhaus’ “twisted form of androgyny”, these other bands pioneered a romantic yet darkly feminine aesthetic which was then embraced by their fans. It wasn’t until the producer of Joy Division Tony Wilson along with members from Southern Death Cult and U.K. Decay mentioned the word “goth” in passing that this growing musical and aesthetic subculture finally had a name for itself.

The goth movement of the 1990s became an interesting mesh of nonconformity and individual expression while also emphasising the need for a mutual connection through shared interests and similar aesthetics. Unique social outsiders looking for a sense of community and belonging—not unlike Stoker’s vampire hunting troupe or the main cast of Castlevania 3: Dracula’s Curse. Paul Hodkinson author of Goth: Identity, Style and Subculture describes the ways in which goths were able to expand their social networking while making the subculture their own. In order to gain further respect and recognition within the community, “they usually sought to select their own individual concoction from the range of acceptable artefacts and themes and also to make subtle additions and adaptations from beyond the established stylistic boundaries” (Hodkinson, 35-64). This was one of the ways in which the goth subculture was able to grow and evolve while maintaining some typical aesthetics. Those aesthetics that had already become gothic staples as far back as classic Victorian horror included crucifixes, bats, and vampires; all of which were presented by young modern goths, as Hodkinson puts it, “sometimes in a tongue-in-cheek self-conscious manner, sometimes not” (Hodkinson, 35-64).

The vampire, as it appeared in visual mass media of the time, was also instrumental to the 90s gothic scene, reinforcing certain physical identifiers such as long dark hair, pale make-up, and sometimes blackened sunglasses. This was especially popular amongst male goths who embodied traditional gothic traits like dark femininity and androgyny, which had already been long established within the subculture.

As always, television and film did more to reinforce these subcultural trends as recognizable stereotypes, usually in a negative manner, than it did to help people embrace them. In media aimed towards a primarily teenage and young adult demographic, if a character did not possess the traditional traits of a hyper-masculine man, they instead fit into two different molds; either the neurotic geek or the melodramatic, moody goth. However, there were forms of media during the 90s that did manage to embrace and even relish with no sense of irony in the gothic aesthetic.

Two films which helped to build upon the enthusiasm for the vampire were Francis Ford Coppola’s lavish adaptation of Stoker’s novel titled Bram Stoker’s Dracula starring Gary Oldman in the titular role of Dracula and another adaptation of a more recent gothic favourite among goths, Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire with Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise. The majority of the male goth scene especially emulated Oldman’s portrayal of Dracula when in the film he transforms into a much younger, more seductive version of himself in order to blend in with society, everything down to the shaded Victorian sunglasses and the long flowing hair; a vision of classic, sleek androgyny combined with an intimidating demeanor without being overly hyper-masculine.

Primarily taking place during the 18th and 19th century, Interview with the Vampire (the film and the original novel) also encouraged this very same trend, helping to establish European aristocratic elements into the gothic aesthetic; elements such as lace frills, finely tailored petticoats, corsets, and a general aura of delicacy.

Going back to Hodkinson’s findings, he states that “without actually rendering such categories insignificant, goth had from its very beginnings been characterized by the predominance, for both males and females, of particular kinds of style which would normally be associated with femininity” (Hodkinson, 35-64). However, it is important to acknowledge that the western goth subculture as described in this section, while a haven for various forms of gender expression, placed heavy emphasis on thin, white bodies. Over the years, diversity within the community has been promoted and encouraged, but rarely do we see it as the forefront face of gothicism.

The Japanese Goth Scene & Ayami Kojima

Modern gothicism was not limited to North America or Europe. In Japan, the subculture had evolved into its own form of self-expression through clothing and music that took inspiration from a variety of 18th and 19th century themes (mostly originating from European countries). Yet despite the numerous western influences, the eastern goth community during the 1990s and early 2000s embraced itself as something unique and wholly Japanese; in other words, different from what was happening within the North American movement at the same time. To refresh the memory, western goth culture focused primarily on the macabre that included completely black, moody wardrobes with an air of dark femininity. Japanese goth culture maintained those feminine traits, but included elements that were far more decadent, frivolous, and played further into the already established aristocratic motifs of gothicism. This created a new fashion subculture known as Gothic Lolita or Goth-Loli (no reference to the Vladimir Nabokov novel Lolita or the themes presented within the text itself).

In Style Deficit Disorder: Harajuku street fashion, a retrospective on the history of modern Japanese street fashion, the Goth-Loli image is described as “an amalgam of Phantom of the Opera, Alice in Wonderland, and Edgar Allan Poe” (Godoy; Hirakawa, 160). It was an aesthetic that took the western notion of “gothic” to higher levels with a heavier emphasis on opulence and an excessive decorative style—think Gothic meets Baroque meets Rococo. Teresa Younker, author of Lolita: Dreaming, Despairing, Defying, suggests that during the early years of the Gothic Lolita movement, it acted as a form of escapism for many young Japanese individuals searching for a way out of conformity. She states that “rather than dealing with the difficult reality of rapid commercialization, destabilization of society, a rigid social system, and an increasingly body-focused fashion norm, a select group of youth chose to find comfort in the over-the-top imaginary world of lace, frills, bows, tulle, and ribbons”. One pioneer that helped to bring the Goth-Loli image at the forefront of Japanese underground and street fashion the likes of Harajuku was the fashion magazine Gothic & Lolita Bible. Launched in 2001 by Index Communication and Mariko Suzuki, each issue acted as a sort of catalogue book for popular gothic and lolita trends that expanded to art, music, manga, and more.

According to Style Deficit Disorder, during this time when Gothic & Lolita Bible had helped bring the subculture into a larger collective awareness, the Goth-Loli image became “inspired by a yearning for something romantic overseas (...) and after taking on the “Harajuku Fashion,” ended up travelling overseas, while remaining a slightly strange fashion indigenous to Japan” (Godoy; Hirakawa, 137). Then came KERA Maniac, another magazine launched in 2003 that had “even darker clothing and international style points and references, such as features on the life and art of Lewis Carroll, Japanese ball-jointed dolls, or interviews with icons like Courtney Love” (Godoy; Hirakawa, 140). The fashion trends that both Gothic & Lolita Bible and KERA Maniac focused on also found popularity amongst visual kei bands which were usually all male performers who began sporting the very same ultra-feminine, ultra-aristocratic Goth-Loli brands that were always featured in these magazines.

Similar to traditional Kabuki theatre, “this visual-kei placed great importance on the gorgeous spectacle created onstage” (Godoy; Hirakawa, 135). One particular visual kei performer of the early 2000s that became Gothic & Lolita Bible’s biggest and most frequent collaborator was Mana. Best known for his musical and fashion career, Mana describes his onstage persona, merging aristocratic goth with elegant gothic lolita, as “either male or female but it is also neither male nor female. It is both devil and angel. The pursuit of a middle ground” (Godoy; Hirakawa, 159).

Opulence, decadence, and femininity with a dark undertone are all apt terms to describe the image of Japanese gothicism during the 90s and early aughts. They are also perfect descriptors of how artist Ayami Kojima changed the face of Castlevania from a franchise inspired by classic horror and fantasy to something more distinct. As a self-taught artist mainly working with acrylics, India ink, and finger smudging among other methods, 1997’s Castlevania: Symphony of the Night was Kojima’s first major title as the lead character designer. Over the years she worked on a number of separate video games including Samurai Warriors and Dynasty Warriors, along with other Castlevania titles. Before then, she made a name for herself as a freelance artist mainly working on novel covers and even collaborated with Vampire Hunter D creator Kikuchi Hideyuki for a prequel to his series. Kojima has been dubbed by fans as “the queen of Castlevania” due to her iconic contributions to the franchise.

Kojima’s influences cover a wide array of themes from the seemingly obvious (classic horror, shounen manga, and East Asian history) to disturbingly eclectic (surgery, body modification, and body horror). It is safe to assume that her resume for Castlevania involves some of her tamer works when compared to what else is featured in her 2010 artbook Santa Lilio Sangre. Yet even when her more personal art pieces rear into the grotesquely unsettling, they always maintain an air of softness and femininity. Kojima is never afraid to show how the surreal, the intense, or the horrifying can also be beautiful. Many of her pieces include details emblematic of gothicism; skulls, bloodied flowers, the abundance of religious motifs, and lavish backgrounds are all commonplace, especially in her Castlevania art. Her models themselves—most often androgynous men with sharp cheekbones, flowing hair, and piercing gazes—look as though they would fit right into a gothic visual kei band or the pages of Gothic & Lolita Bible.

Castlevania: Harmony of Despair was the final Castlevania game Kojima worked on, as well as her last game overall. It wasn’t until 2019 when she reappeared with new pieces including promotional artwork for former Castlevania co-worker Koji Igarashi’s Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night and a collaboration with Japanese musician Kamijo on his newest album. Her work has also appeared in the February 2020 issue of TezuComi, depicting a much lighter and softer side of her aesthetic. Ayami Kojima may have moved onto other projects, but the way in which she forever influenced the Castlevania image is still being drawn upon and emulated to this day.

Alucard c. 1997

There were actually three versions of Alucard during the 1990s, each of which were products of their time for different reasons. The first example is not only the most well known amongst fans and casual onlookers alike, but it is also the one design of Alucard that manages to stand the test of time. Ayami Kojima redesigned a number of classic Castlevania characters, giving them the gothic androgynous demeanour her art was known for. Most fans will say with some degree of jest that once Kojima joined Konami, Castlevania grew to look less like the masculine power fantasy it started as and more like a bishounen manga. No matter the differing opinions on the overall stylistic change of the series, Kojima’s reimagining of Alucard for Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is undoubtedly iconic. His backstory has more or less remained the same, carried over from Castlevania 3: Dracula’s Curse. After killing his father Dracula, Alucard, unable to fully process his actions or his bloodline, decides to force himself into a centuries long slumber in order to rid the world of his dark powers. Symphony of the Night begins with the Byronic dhampir prince waking up after nearly 300 years have passed once Dracula’s castle mysteriously reappears in close proximity to his resting place. The only difference this time is there seems to be no Belmont to take care of it, unlike previous years when Dracula is resurrected. Determined to finish what was started during the 15th century, the player takes Alucard on a journey throughout the castle, which has now become larger and more challenging than past incarnations.

Despite being somewhat of a direct sequel to Dracula’s Curse, Symphony’s Alucard is not the same dhampir as his 80s counterpart. Gone are any similarities to Bela Lugosi or Christopher Lee; now Alucard bears more of a resemblance to Anne Rice’s own literary muse Lestat de Lioncourt from her ongoing Vampire Chronicles. Instead of slicked back dark hair, thick golden locks (which were originally black to match his father) cascade down Alucard’s figure, swaying with his every pixelated movement. Heeled leather boots, a black coat with gold embellishments along with an abnormally large collar underneath a flowing cape, and a high-collared cravat replace the simplistic wardrobe of 80s Alucard—from a traditional, minimalist goth mirroring his father’s masculinity to an extravagant, aristocratic goth with his own intense, almost macabre femininity.

With the early Metroidvanias came the inclusion of detailed character portraits designed by Ayami Kojima which would appear alongside a dialogue box to further establish the illusion of the characters speaking to each other. Symphony of the Night was one of the first titles where players got to see Alucard’s ingame expression and it looked exactly as it did on every piece of promotional poster and artwork. The same piercing glare, furrowed brow, and unshakeable inhuman determination, the sort that is also reflected in his limited mannerisms and character—all of which are displayed upon an immaculate face that rarely if ever smiles. Just by looking at his facial design nearly hidden behind locks of hair that always seems meticulously styled, it is clear that Alucard cannot and will not diverge from his mission. The only moment in the game when his stoic facade breaks completely is when he faces off against the Succubus, who tempts Alucard to give into his vampiric nature by disguising herself as his deceased mother Lisa. Yet even then he sees through her charade and, depending on the player’s ability, quickly disposes of her.

Despite his delicate feminine features, emotional softness is not one of Alucard’s strongest suits in Symphony. Though for someone in his position, someone who must remain steadfast and succeed in his goal or else fail the rest of humanity, where little else matters, Alucard’s occasional coldness (a trait that would return in recent Castlevania instalments) makes sense. There is a scene near at the climax of the game where he exposits to the other main protagonists Richter Belmont and Maria Renard about how painful it felt to destroy his father a second time, but he reframes it as a lesson about the importance of standing up against evil rather than an admission of his own vulnerability. However, he does choose to stay in the world of mortal humans instead of returning to his coffin (depending on which ending the player achieves).

The second 90s version of Alucard is a curious case of emulation, drawing inspiration from both Kojima’s redesign and other Japanese art styles of the 1990s. Castlevania Legends was released for the Game Boy the exact same year as Symphony of the Night and acted as a prequel to Dracula’s Curse, following its protagonist Sonia Belmont as she traverses through Dracula’s castle alongside Alucard and becomes the first Belmont in history to defeat him. It was then retconned after the release of Castlevania: Lament of Innocence in 2003 due to how its story conflicted with the overall timeline of the series. As with most of the earliest Game Boy titles, the ingame graphics of Legends are held back by the technological limitations, but the box art and subsequent character concepts reveal the game’s aesthetic which seems to take the most inspiration from other Japanese franchises of the decade. The biggest example would be Slayers, a popular comedic fantasy series that included light novels, manga, and anime. Legends Alucard is portrayed in this particular animated style, yet his design itself is very similar to how he looks in Symphony of the Night with only minor exceptions.

The third and arguably most obscure 90s Alucard comes from the animated children’s show Captain N: The Game Master, a crossover that brought together popular Nintendo characters like Mega Man, Kid Icarus, and Simon Belmont. The episodes were presented as traditional monsters of the week, meaning each one focused on a brand new story or environment usually taken from Nintendo games. One episode that aired in 1993 centered on Castlevania and featured a comedic and parodied version of Alucard. Although the episode took elements from Dracula’s Curse, Alucard was meant to be a stereotypical representation of rebellious 90s youth, i.e. an overemphasis on skateboarding and “radical” culture. A colorful, kid-friendly version of the character that was never meant to be taken seriously; much like the rest of the show.

Out of the three variations, Ayami Kojima’s Alucard is the one that made the biggest and longest lasting impact on Castlevania. Redesigning an iconic franchise or character always comes with its own risks and gambles. In the case of Symphony of Night, the gamble made by Kojima—and by extension Konami and director Koji Igarashi—paid off. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said regarding Alucard’s next major change as a character and an image.

Lords of Shadow

“What motivates a man to confront the challenges that most of us would run from?” This is a question put forth by Castlevania: Lords of Shadow, the first attempt by Konami to reinvigorate and inject new life into the Castlevania brand name by completing rebooting the universe. Starting from scratch as it were. Originally, Lords of Shadow seemed to have no connection to the Castlevania franchise. Announced by Konami during a games convention in 2008, this was meant to give more attention and not distract from the upcoming Castlevania: Judgment. However, merely a year later at Electronic Entertainment Expo, it was revealed that Lords of Shadow was in fact the next major step that Konami was taking with Castlevania. From its announcement and early trailers, the game was already generating a healthy amount of media buzz due to its updated graphics, design, and gameplay. Having Konami alumni, video game auteur, and creator of the critically acclaimed Metal Gear series Hideo Kojima attached to the project also helped to generate initial hype for this new phase of Castlevania (though it should be noted that Kojima was only credited as a consultant and advisor for the Lords of Shadow development team). After nearly a decade of near hits, substantial misses, and a lack of focus for the franchise, Castlevania had once again become one of the most highly anticipated upcoming games. To quote gaming news and reviews website GamesRadar+ at the time, “this could be a megaton release”.

And it was—so to speak. As mentioned in previous sections, the first Lords of Shadow did relatively well, garnering critical and commercial success. By November of 2010, nearly one million copies had sold in North America and Europe alone. While not a monumental achievement or a record breaker, Lords of Shadow soon became the highest selling Castlevania game of all time. But enough time has passed since its release and nowadays, fans look back upon this reinvented Castlevania timeline pushed by Konami with mixed feelings, some more negative than others.

The main criticism is that when it comes to gameplay, environment, and story, Lords of Shadow changed too much from its original source material. Change is not always a terrible thing especially in regards to long-running franchises and Castlevania had already gone through one massive upheaval with Symphony of the Night. Although the difference is how well that dramatic change was executed and how players reacted to it. For many, Lords of Shadow felt less like the game it was supposed to be emulating and more like other action hack-and-slashers of the time. The gameplay didn’t feel like Castlevania, it felt like Devil May Cry. Elements of the story didn’t feel like Castlevania, they felt like God of War. Each boss fight didn’t feel like Castlevania, they felt like Shadow of the Colossus (a frequent comment made by fans). Despite the familiar elements from past games that made their way into this new instalment, for many, Lords of Shadow was too little of Castlevania and too much of everything else that surrounded its development. Meanwhile, the afformented familiar elements seemed like attempts at fanservice in order to make sure that longtime fans felt more at home.

Does the game and its following sequels still hold any merit in terms of aesthetic and story? They do, especially when it comes to its style. Lords of Shadow, its midquel Mirror of Fate, and the sequel Lords of Shadow 2 are not unappealing games to look at. When examining the concept art of characters, enemies, and environments, one could argue that the Lords of Shadow series has some of the most visually striking Castlevania art in the series. The monster designs in particular take on a much grander, ambitious, and menacing presence that take inspiration from various mythological and biblical sources, the best example being Leviathan from Lords of Shadow 2.

By the 2010s, AAA video games in general were going through a sort of golden age with titles such as Assassin’s Creed 2, Batman: Arkham Asylum, and Red Dead Redemption among many others. Not only were the stories and gameplay mechanics improving by ten folds, so too were the graphical capacities that each game could uphold. Due to technological advancements, Castlevania had the chance to become more detailed and fleshed out than before. The locations of Lords of Shadow and its sequels, which ranged from gothic castles, to modern decrepit cities, to fantastical forests, grew lusher and more opulent while the monsters evolved past the traditional skeletons of the series into far more imposing nightmarish creatures.

The first game along with Mirror of Fate kept themselves fairly grounded in their respective environments. Nearly every character looks as though they firmly belong in the gothic fantasy world they inhabit. Gabriel Belmont and the rest of the Brotherhood of Light are dressed in robes reminiscent of medieval knights (with a few non-historical embellishments) while the vampiric characters of Carmilla and Laura dress in the same manner that typical vampires would. However, a new location known as Castlevania City was introduced in Lords of Shadow 2, modelled after a 21st century metropolitan cityscape. Characters with designs more suited to God of War or Soul Calibur intermingle with NPCs dressed in modern clothing, further highlighting the clash of aesthetics. While this is not the first time Castlevania has featured environments populated with humans, the constant shifting between a dark urban landscape with more science fiction elements than fantasy and the traditional gothic setting of Dracula’s castle can feel like whiplash.

The Lords of Shadow timeline was an ambitious attempt by Konami to try and give fans a Castlevania experience they had not seen before. New concepts that were previously unexplored or only alluded to in past games were now at the forefront. Yet the liberties that each game took with established Castlevania lore, both in terms of story and design, were perhaps too ambitious. The biggest example is the choice to have the Belmont protagonist turn into Dracula through a combined act of despair and selflessness, but Alucard went through a number of changes as well. Transforming him from the golden-haired aristocrat of the 90s and 2000s into an amalgamation of dark fantasy tropes.

Alucard c. 2014

After the success of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, Alucard reappeared in a number of following titles, most of which depicted him in his typical black and gold wardrobe. There were exceptions, including Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow and its direct sequel Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow where he adopts the alias of Genya Arikado, an agent for a futuristic Japanese organization dedicated to stopping any probable resurrections of Dracula. Because of this need to appear more human and hide his true heritage, Genya’s appearance is simple and possibly one of Ayami Kojima’s most minimalistic character designs; a black suit, shoulder length black hair, and the job is done. In Dawn of Sorrow, Alucard briefly appears as himself, drawn in a less detailed anime style that softens his once intensely stoic expression first seen in Symphony. The next exception is Castlevania: Judgment, a fighting game where characters from separate games and time periods are brought together to face off against one another. Konami brought on Takeshi Obata (who by then was famously known for his work on Death Note) as the lead character designer and in many regards had a similar aesthetic to Ayami Kojima, creating lavish gothic pieces that were heavily detailed and thematic.

Like Kojima, Obata was given free range to reconceptualize all of the characters appearing in Judgment with little to no remaining motifs from previous designs. This included Alucard, who dons a suit of silver armor and long white hair to match it. Judgment’s Alucard marked a turning point for the character in terms of appearance; a gradual change that was solidified by Lords of Shadow.

This is where things get complicated. While Castlevania could be considered a horror series solely based on its references, aesthetic, and monsters, nearly every iteration whether it comes down to the games or other forms of media tends to veer more towards the dark fantasy genre. Edward James and Farah Mendleson’s Cambridge Companion to Fantasy Literature describe the distinction between traditional horror and dark fantasy as a genre “whose protagonists believe themselves to inhabit the world of consensual mundane reality and learn otherwise, not by walking through a portal into some other world, or by being devoured or destroyed irrevocably, but by learning to live with new knowledge and sometimes with new flesh” (James; Mendleson, 218). While horror is a genre of despair, directly confronting audience members with the worst of humanity and the supernatural, “the protagonist of dark fantasy comes through that jeopardy to a kind of chastened wisdom” (James; Mendleson, 217).

Dark fantasy is ultimately a genre of acceptance (i.e. characters accepting a horrible change or embracing the world they have been forcibly thrown into), but it also represents a rejection of traditional tropes implemented by the works of Tolkien or the Brothers Grimm, thus defining itself by that very same act of rejection. An example of this is the theme of failure, which is common in many dark fantasy stories. There are far more unhappy or bittersweet endings than happy ones while the construction of the classic hero’s journey hinges more on all the possible ways in which the protagonist could fail in their quest.

Going off from this definition, the Lords of Shadow timeline fits squarely into the dark fantasy genre, especially concerning its two leading men. We already know that Gabriel Belmont sacrifices his humanity in order to become Dracula, but what happens to his son borders on a Greek tragedy. Before the “deaths” of Gabriel and Maria, they had a son named Trevor who was immediately taken into the care of the Brotherhood of Light and kept away from his father in order to protect him. Years later when Trevor is an adult with a family of his own, he vows to defeat Dracula for bringing shame and dishonor upon the Belmont bloodline. Yet when their eventual confrontation happens, Dracula easily beats Trevor who, on the verge of death, reveals the truth about his connection to the lord of vampires. In a desperate act of regret, Dracula forces Trevor to drink his blood and places him into a coffin labeled “Alucard” where he will seemingly rest for eternity.

Time passes and Trevor Belmont—now transformed into the vampire Alucard—awakens, just as he did at the beginning of Dracula’s Curse and Symphony of the Night. During his disappearance, his wife Sypha Belnades was killed by Dracula’s creatures, orphaning their son Simon Belmont. The two eventually meet and work together to stop Dracula, but Alucard cannot bring himself to tell Simon the truth.

Despite a well-deserved happy ending in Lords of Shadow 2 (he and his father reconcile before going off to presumably live a peaceful life), the character of Trevor/Alucard is built upon the same themes of failure and learning to accept terrible change found within dark fantasy. His design is especially reminiscent of one of the darkest and most tortured protagonists in the genre, Michael Moorcock’s Elric from his Elric of Melniboné series. First appearing in the June 1961 issue of Science Fantasy, he stands out amongst most sword and sorcery heroes, different from the hypermasculinity of Conan the Barbarian for his embittered personality, philosophical motifs, and memorable design. Elric is constantly described as looking deathly pale with skin “the color of a bleached skull; and the long hair which flows below his shoulders is milk-white” (Moorcock, 3) and a body that needs a steady stream of potions in order to function properly or else he will gradually grow weaker, nearer towards the edge of death—more a corpse than a human being.

Lords of Shadow Alucard is very much like a walking corpse as well. His long hair is the same milk-white tone as Elrics��, his skin is deprived of any real color, and his open chest outfit reveals a body that is both robust yet emaciated. Moorcock’s Elric was the prototype for many other white haired, pale faced, otherworldly antiheroes in fantasy that came afterwards and the darkly ethereal aesthetic that reflected his constant state of self-loathing and tragedy was the most ideal fit for this new version of Alucard. Both fail as traditional fantasy heroes, both abhor their physical states, yet both learn to embrace it at the same time.

A Brief History of Modern Animation

Before we move onto the final iteration of Dracula’s son, let us first acquaint ourselves with an artistic medium that has not been fully discussed yet. This essay has gone into detail concerning the aesthetics of video games, fashion, filmmaking, and music, but where does animation fit in? Since 1891’s Pauvre Pierrot, the only surviving short film predating the silent era with 500 individually painted frames, animation has evolved into one of the most expressive, diverse, and groundbreaking art forms of the modern age. There were earlier methods that fit into the animation mold before Pauvre Pierrot including but not limited to shadow play, magic lantern shows, and the phenakistoscope, one of the first devices to use rapid succession in order to make still images look as though they were moving. Throughout the 20th century, with the help of mainstream studios like Warner Bros. and of course Walt Disney, the medium quickly began to encompass a variety of techniques and styles beyond a series of drawings on paper. Some of the more recognizable and unique styles are as followed:

Digital 2-D animation

Digital 3-D animation

Stop-motion

Puppetry

Claymation

Rotoscoping

Motion capture

Cut-out animation

Paint-on-glass

The most common forms used in film and television are traditional hand drawn and digital 3-D, sometimes merged together in the same product. There has been much debate over which animation technique has more artistic merit and is more “authentic” to the medium, but the reality is that there is no singular true form of animation. Each style brings its own advantages, challenges, and all depends on how it is being used to tell a specific story or evoke a feeling within the audience. For example, the 2017 semi-biographical movie Loving Vincent is animated in a nontraditional style with oil paints in order to create the illusion of a Vincent Van Gogh painting that has come to life. As Loving Vincent is about the influential painter himself and his tragic life, this animation technique works to the film’s advantage. If the story had used a more traditional form like 2-D or 3-D, it might not have had the same impact. Another example like the film A Scanner Darkly starring Keanu Reeves uses a somewhat controversial technique known as rotoscoping, which entails tracing over live action scenes in order to give it a realistic yet still animated feel. A Scanner Darkly is a futuristic crime thriller meant to evoke a sense of surrealism and discomfort, making the uncanniness of rotoscoping the perfect fit for its artificial atmosphere.

Throughout its history, animation has gone through a number of phases corresponding to political, artistic, and historical events such as propaganda shorts from Walt Disney during World War II and the rise of adult-oriented animators who rode the wave of countercultural movements during the late 1960s and early 70s. Animation meant for older audiences was especially coming into its own as most audiences had become more comfortable associating the medium with the family friendly formula perfected by the Disney company. The only other western mainstream animation studio that could stand toe to toe with Disney while also dabbling in mature subject matter at the time was Warner Bros. and its juggernaut Looney Tunes, which even then was mostly relegated to smoking, slapstick violence, and mild suggestive material. Meanwhile, the works of Ralph Bakshi, arguably the father of elevated adult animated features, dealt with everything from dark humor, sexuality, profanity, and complex themes most of which delved into pure shock value and were highly offensive in order to make a statement. There were later exceptions to this approach including Bakshi’s own adaptation of Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, Wizards, and Fire and Ice, a high profile collaboration with Frank Frazetta, in which both films utilized rotoscope animation to create unique, fantasy-based experiences for mature viewers.

With the right amount of funds and creativity, other countries began developing their own animated features with distinct styles that reflected the culture, social norms, and history in which they originated from. The 1960s are referred to as “the rise of Japanese animation”, or as it came to be known worldwide as anime, thanks to iconic characters of the decade like Astro Boy, Kimba the White Lion, and Speed Racer. The longest running anime with over 7,700 episodes to date is Sazae-san, based on the popular 1940s comic strip of the same name. Western audiences commonly associate modern anime with over the top scenarios, animation, and facial movements while having little to no basis in reality when it comes to either story or character design.

While the Walt Disney company was steadily losing its monopoly on the animation industry with financial and critical disappointments (making room for other animators like Don Bluth) until it's renaissance during the 1990s, the 1980s turned into a golden age for ambitious, groundbreaking anime projects. Not only were films like Akira, Grave of the Fireflies, Barefoot Gen, and Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind among many others, appealing to a wide variety of audiences, they were also bold enough to tackle mature, complex subject matter with a certain degree of nuance that complimented each film’s unique but often times bizarre or surreal styles. Akira watches like a violent cyberpunk splatterfest with extreme body horror and juvenile delinquency, yet its borderline exploitative methods serve a larger purpose. Akira takes place in a bleak, dystopian Japan where Tokyo has been rebuilt after its destruction in 1988, setting up an allegorical story that directly confronts government experimentation and the fallout of nuclear warfare.

Artists of all mediums have always influenced one another and the impact that anime has had on western animation continues to this day whether through passing tongue-in-cheek references, taking inspiration from common anime tropes while also depicting them through a western lens, or shows that feature a heavily emulated anime style like Avatar: The Last Airbender and its successor The Legend of Korra. Then there are shows that completely blur the lines between western animation and anime, with the ultimate distinction usually coming down to where it was originally developed (i.e. North America or Japan).

Alucard c. 2017

The overall aesthetic and image of Netflix’s Castlevania is built upon a number of different influences, the majority of which come from Japanese animation. Executive producer and long time Castlevania fan Adi Shankar has gone on record saying that the show is partially “an homage to those OVAs that I would watch on TV (...) and I was like, “This is beautiful, and it’s an art form”. He has also directly compared the show to those golden age-era ultra violent anime features of the 80s and 90s, including titles such as Akira, Ghost in the Shell, and Ninja Scroll. Director Samuel Deats, another avid Castlevania fan, has mentioned the long-running manga series Berserk along with its 1997 anime adaptation as one of the animation team’s primary inspirations numerous times, explaining in further detail in a 2017 interview with io9: “I pulled out my ‘I love the Berserk manga, Blade the Immortal’ and all that. That dark fantasy style of storytelling, character design, how gorey it gets… I put together a bunch of drawings and sketches, and a few color images that channeled all of that”.

Watching Castlevania, the aesthetic references to Berserk are obvious. Both series merge together medieval fantasy elements with gruesome horror but they are also similar in their particular animation styles. One director from Korean studio MOI Animation who partnered with Powerhouse Animation collaborated on the feature length film Berserk: The Golden Age—The Egg of the King along with its two sequels. But the biggest inspiration for the design of Castlevania, especially when it comes to its characters, is Ayami Kojima herself.

From the pre-production phase, the team at Powerhouse knew they wanted Kojima’s art to be the main basis of how the finished product would look and feel. According to Samuel Deats, “In the back of everyone’s heads, we knew that we wanted to heavily reference the style Ayami Kojima used in the Castlevania games. We wanted to bring the same shade-before-image sort of thing”. However, due to the sheer amount of details and embroidered style of Kojima’s aesthetic, many of her original designs had to be simplified into 2-D animated forms (just as they had to be reduced into pixelated form for Symphony of the Night).

Alucard’s animated design is the best example of this simplification process, but it took some trial and error in order to arrive at the finished product. When Castlevania was originally planned as a movie, his design veered closer to the otherworldliness and corpse-like aesthetic of Lords of Shadow Alucard—something that looked as far from a human being let alone a dhampir as possible. Following the years of stifled development until Netflix picked up the project, Powerhouse opted to fall back on Kojima’s artwork for sheer iconography and recognizability.

On the one hand, animated Alucard’s facial expressions are identical to his game counterpart with the exception of a few liberties taken; same determined scowl, same intensely golden eyes, and same lush eyelashes (there’s even a note from his character sheet specifically stating that they must cast shadows for close-ups). Most of all, the same feminine androgyny of Kojima’s work. But there are just as many omitted details from Alucard’s updated model as there are those that were carried over from the original design. When compared to Symphony of the Night, his wardrobe seems to be severely lacking in excessive ornaments, instead opting for a sleek black coat with simple gold embellishments, knee high boots with a slight heel, and a white shirt with an open v-neckline. Despite these supposedly easy changes and evocation of Kojima’s art style, Alucard is still one of the more difficult characters to animate as stated by Deats: “I mean, Alucard has to be just right. You can’t miss an eyelash on him without it looking weird”.

For the most part, it shows in the final product. There are moments when the animation goes off model (as is the case with most 2-D animated shows for time and budgetary reasons), but rarely is Alucard drawn from an unflattering angle. The other reason for his change in design is the fact that Castlevania takes place three centuries before the events of Symphony of the Night. Because of the story constraints and console limitations, players were not given an in-depth look at Alucard’s character beyond his quest to defeat Dracula and the guilt he felt afterwards. It would make sense that his demeanor differs from the stoic nature of how he reacts to certain situations three hundred years later. As a result, Alucard is given a toned-down design to reflect what he might have been like as a younger, brasher, and more immature version of himself.

This immaturity and juvenile nature of his visual image comes through in his portrayal. While the show is in its third season, we will primarily focus on season two as when compared to the others, it revolves around Alucard’s personal journey towards an important aspect of his long established character the most; namely, the reason for his rebellion against Dracula and his eventual act of patricide. Because Alucard only appears as a silhouette in episode one then makes his full introduction during the last fifteen minutes of the final episode, season one gives the audience a very limited idea of his character. What we do get from Alucard is the same impression that Symphony of the Night left fans with: someone who is determined, intensely fixated on his goal, and is willing to use any means to accomplish it—even if it involves striking a tentative truce between a vampire hunter and a scholar of magic. Season two expands upon this, showing an Alucard who is soft-spoken, careful in his mannerisms, more feminine than masculine, yet always rises to the occasion whenever he needs to match Trevor Belmont’s own crassness. For all of his grace, Alucard’s high emotions coupled with an unchecked immaturity (especially in the presence of Trevor) show how ill-equipped he is when dealing with human interactions.

One other piece of evidence that adds to this chink in Alucard’s carefully crafted metaphorical armor is the goal of stopping his father. Throughout small interactions and moments of dialogue, the truce struck between him, Trevor, and Sypha eventually develops into more of a friendship, yet Alucard continues to suffer from extreme tunnel vision, going as far as to chastise his two companionships whenever they get too distracted or unfocused from their mission. This character flaw is also touched upon in Castlevania: Grimoire of Souls when characters remark upon Alucard’s (otherwise referred in the game as Arikado) overly serious nature. A flaw that does more to unintentionally push others away rather than any attempt to bring them closer to him.

When Alucard finally achieves his goal of killing Dracula, it leaves him feeling hollow. He doesn’t quite know how to fully process this ultimate decision, maintaining a delicate sense of composure on the outside while in the presence of others. It’s only when Alucard is left alone does he allow the emotions of everything that has just happened to overwhelm him in a moment of genuine vulnerability that was only alluded to in previous scenes.

Conclusion

Despite the show being renewed for a fourth season, the future of the Castlevania franchise in general remains uncertain. There’s been no talk of any other past games being set for rerelease, Grimoire of Souls continues to make sporadic updates to its gacha system rather than its story mode, and Konami has since chosen to take a step back from developing video games in favour of manufacturing pachislot machines. Symphony of the Night and Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night creator Koji Igarashi has mentioned in past interviews that should Konami somehow make a return to Castlevania, he would be willing to direct a new instalment. But at the present time, rumors have remained rumors and there are no signs of a new official Castlevania game in the near future whether developed by Konami or an outside company.

No matter what direction Castlevania takes in the years to come, it seems as though Alucard will always follow it, just as Dracula and the Belmonts will as well. This is his franchise as much as it is theirs thanks to continued fan popularity. He’s taken many forms in the past thirty years and become the visual representation of certain trends, yet one thing about him never changes: he is still Dracula’s son, the opposite of his father. He can be cruel, powerful, cold, and everything else a Byronic hero should be yet he can also reject his masculine inheritance in both character and aesthetic.

Above all else, the human side of Alucard is greater than the monstrous side.

References

Bannister, Matthew. White Boys, White Noise: Masculinities and 1980s Indie Guitar Rock. Burlington: Taylor & Francis, 2017.

Castlevania Wiki | Fandom. https://castlevania.fandom.com/wiki/Castlevania_Wiki

Dyhouse, Carol. Heartthrobs: A History of Women and Desire. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2017.

Godoy, Tiffany; Hirakawa, Takeji. Style Deficit Disorder: Harajuku Street Fashion, Tokyo. San Francisco: Chronicles Books, 2007.

Hodkinson, Paul. Goth: Identity, Style and Subculture. Bloomsbury Fashion Central, 2002.

Hutchings, Peter. Hammer and Beyond: The British Horror Film. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1993.

James, Edward; Mendlesohn, Farah. The Cambridge Companion to Fantasy Literature. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2012.

Kibby, M.D. Real Men: Representations of Masculinity in the Eighties Cinema. Sydney: Western Sydney University Thesis Collection, 1997.

Kojima, Ayami. Santa Lilio Sangre. ToÌ"kyoÌ" : Asukashinsha, 2010.

Metzger, Patrick. “The Nostalgia Pendulum: A Rolling 30-Year Cycle of Pop Culture Trends.” The Patterning. WordPress.com, 2017. https://thepatterning.com/2017/02/13/the-nostalgia-pendulum-a-rolling-30-year-cycle-of-pop-culture-trends/

Moorcock, Michael. Elric of Melniboné. New York: Ace Fantasy, 1987.

Narcisse, Evan. “The Animation Studio That Made Castlevania Explains Why It Was A Dream Project.” io9. Gizmodo, 2017. https://io9.gizmodo.com/the-animation-studio-that-made-castlevania-explains-why-1797476526

Younker, Terasa. “Japanese Lolita: Dreaming, Despairing, Defying.” Standford Journal of East Asian Affairs, 2012, 97-110.

#castlevania #alucard #alucard castlevania #adrian fahrenheit tepes #castlevania netflix #castlevania symphony of the night #ayami kojima #konami #my writing #i'm sending my baby out into the world...... be gentle

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lilyhoshikawa · 4 years ago

Note

and akechi!!!

– Overall opinion of them

Ok I fucking love this boy, of course, but I hate the way most ppl in fandom portray and view him? He’s one of the most popular characters but I always hate when he’s reduced to like, funny pancake boy, or charming suave prince, or Ren’s angsty boyfriend or whatever. He works best when you see him as a narrative foul to Ren and a sort or alternative protagonist, as well as just a completely feral kid with so many issues to work through dhdkfnfk. Sadly fandom content really colors my view of him at times so it’s a hard balance to strike, especially for a character I think is so neat

– Gender/sexuality headcanons

This one is interesting bc I know transmasc Akechi is a fairly popular HC for LGBT ppl but I really like the idea of transfem Akechi who has to hide that part of themself for social clout, and who never becomes comfortable enough during the game to explore that part of their identity, and doesn’t until after spending time at rehab post-game. That’s kinda why I took that route with Blake, albeit differently dhdkfj. The lack of like, content or support for this HC is why I don’t really push it or explore it, usually still using he/him and such, and also why I primarily focus on that as a facet of Blake. Sexuality is hard too bc I don’t think shipping him with anyone in-game works very well. There’s the obvious like, vague romantic tension and undertones with Ren in the game but I don’t ever see it as a romantic relationship nor do I think it would be healthy if it were djdjfjf and I think Akechi knows that too. I think it would take therapy before he can start sorting those feelings out dndkfn as it stands he already has trouble forming bonds with others so it’s not easy to say, even for him.

– Favorite moment in canon

God there are so many good scenes with this asshole dhdkfj. I think the boss fight, and in particular the transformation into black mask and that reveal, are really cool? The fact that it plays Awakening during the black mask / Loki reveal and then Will Power during the subsequent fight is just so good. There’s also the scene in Royal where he and Ren talk to Maruki before giving him the calling card, the way Maruki attempts to use his life as a shield and he just outright rejects it.

– Favorite moment in a fanwork

Dhdjdjdj this would get into spoilers but there’s a planned Deja Vu development with Akechi that vane has told me abt that I’m really really excited for. As for the existing stuff tho, fortunately there’s vane’s entire “Strikes One Through Three” fic that’s just perfect at addressing this characterization, and also, I’m really fond of the Deja Vu scene where he has lunch with Kasumi and Ren dndkfn.

– Favorite line, in canon or otherwise

Gosh it’s unfair how many killer lines this kid gets. Of course my current discord status is “Justice? Righteous!? Keep that shit to yourselves!” Which is just SO good and so well delivered in-game, but there’s also “I’m a little offended that you think so little of me that you expected me to be dead” and “are you really so spineless that you’d fold over some bullshit, trivial threat to my life?” Dhdjfjf.

– Characters I love seeing them interact with

The big one is OBVIOUSLY Ren bc thematic foils, but there are so many smaller relationships that go unexplored. Him and Ann are so interesting bc they’re ultimately very similar, but they’ve taken very different paths in life both emotionally and in terms of their affiliations. There’s also his criminally underdeveloped (in canon) relationship with Kasumi, who’s basically his only genuine friend before the game starts? He also has some really interesting parallels with Futaba but sadly the whole “killing her mom” thing makes it hard to address those, y’know, dndkfn.

– Last thing before sleeping headcanons

This kid cannot sleep well and tends to work himself to exhaustion until all he can do is pass out, avoiding as much time alone with his thoughts as possible. After awhile he just quickly prepares for bed and collapses, and just crashes.

– Sleeping habits headcanons

He has so many nightmares, sources of panic and so much fear around vulnerability that sleeping is an ordeal for him every time. He has to take as many precautions as possible and even then he’s prone to waking up every 10 minutes gasping or screaming. He’s never really gotten a good night’s sleep.

– First thing after waking up headcanons

To minimize grogginess and vulnerability, he immediately gets up, puts on a pot of coffee, and gets dressed in casual clothes to start the day, trying to seamlessly transition into being awake.

– Favorite locations headcanon

He’s got these weird, kind of bittersweet bonds with the places his mom took him, and tends to kind of avoid them for awhile, not wanting to confront those memories or taint those places until he’s better. I think the jazz club is actually somewhere he just kind of chose one day, liked, and became a regular. It slowly dawned on him that this favorite place wasn’t really different from those favorite places, and he’d spent so long away that maybe they aren’t his favorite places anymore. There’s a sour feeling once he recognizes that.

#this is kind of a weird one sorry djdkfnf #meme response #rambles

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drowninginblox · 4 years ago

Text

Thrown into it

Part: 1,2,3,4,5, 6

Part 7- Congrats! You’re living with the protagonist!

We parked in front of a concrete wall, a green sign of characters being the only thing contrasting its pale grey color. A sudden urge of pain makes its way up my spine and to my head, making me grab my hair and inhale sharply. “Hey? Kid you okay?” I hear Mic ask. My eyes water, making me blink a few times. “Y/n? Do we need to go back to the hospital?” Nezu questions. Is that concern I hear? I open my eyes. The head splitting pain fades as I look up at Nezu. “No..no I’m fine..” Where did that come from? Woods turns back in his seat. “Are you sure?” I looked to him only to see something was different. “T-that.. The sign!” I pointed to the green sign in front of us. It was perfect english. “I-I-”

“Yeah.. parking for thirty minutes. So what?” Snipe questioned. “I-I-I couldn’t read that a moment ago..” Nezu observes me while Snipes brings up something I didn't even notice before. “But you speak perfect Japanese.” My eyes widen. “Wait what?” I questioned. Was it just me or was the world spinning a bit? Snipe laughs whole heartedly while Woods stares at Nezu with a look that screams ‘Are they fucking serious?’

Mic keeps himself composed as he lowers his shades. “What do you think we were speaking? English?” I inhale. What is this tom-fuckery? “Call me crazy, but.. yeah..?”

The group glances at each other. Snipe and Woods just plain confused while Nezu and Mic seemed to be talking telepathically. “Look I know it sounds stupid but. It’s just true. I know better than to lie to heroes.” Mic glances back at me and speaks in something that sounds like gibberish. “Scus?” I mumble just before the pain I felt when I glanced at the sign returns. A groan comes out of my mouth as I hold my head in my hands. My eyes screw shut from the pain. I feel someone touch my shoulder but I shake them away at the pain. “What the fuck..?”

“Y/n? Y/n?” I hear Mic ask. First calm, but by the second time more concerned than anything. “Screw it, we need to take em back to the hospital.” I hear Woods groan. “N-no! I-I’m fine.” I gasp. The pain gives way to a newfound lightheadedness. Everything feels a bit fuzzy for a few moments, but with every blink my body returns to normality. I exhale. “I..- I- I’m fine. I’m sorry.. I- I don't know what came over me..” I mumble over myself. “Y/n? Do you understand me?” Mic asks slowly. I hum and nod. “Mind telling me what happened?” I blink away a sudden feeling of tiredness to attempt to explain. “You said.. Something in alien speak, my head started to hurt, and then it disappeared as soon as it came..” Mic nods silently. “Do you know what language we are speaking in now?” He looks over his shades to me. “Japanese..? Like before? Even though it sounds english?” Mic looks over to Nezu. “She thinks we’re speaking Japanese still.” Nezu puts a paw under his enormous, triangular head. “Interesting..” Woods turns back in his seat quickly. “I haven’t seen a quirk like this before! I mean- I’ve seen hyper intelligence- but it takes people like that at least a hour to know a language front to back..” Nezu chuckles while shaking his head. “There has to be drawbacks to this quirk.” Snipe comments. “If not then that thing is damn powerful. Imagine the uses.. Infiltration and undercover work would be easy.” Mic punches Snipe’s shoulder with a look of disgust. “That is a child! The hell is wrong with you!” Mic yells seriously. The older of the two yelps from his seat while waving his arms around. Damn the roles have reversed. “What! I’m just saying! And besides, I’m not saying we should actually do it! That's twisted!” I try to hold back a smile but Nezu notices me. Mission failed, we’ll get em next time. “Anything funny about this situation?” He prompts. “Your staff is full of brilliant idiots.” I admit lightly. “Absolute, bloody, brilliant, idiots. And god do I love them.”

The once arguing trio turns to me with a shocked look. “Hey you can understand us?!” Woods, Mic, and Snipes yell defensively, making me laugh even harder. Nezu glances between all of us with a smile. He probably would have let this go on. “We better hurry or else the Midorya’s will be concerned.” He prompts. We all take a moment to look at each other before following Nezu’s request. I tried to keep it cool but that kind of backfired when I saw the apartment complex that Izuku and Inko lived in. I blinked a few times and rubbed my eyes. I’m actually going to be living with the main character. I must be a Mary sue. Someone pinch me. I might just make the world implode with a sneeze. “Ey little listener!” Mic called from the front gates. “Are you just gonna let the world pass you by all the time or are you gonna move?” His tone gave off a subtle hint of annoyance but he was patient all the same with me. “S-Sorry! Just.. Never seen a building this tall before y'know?” Okay so that was a lie, but he seemed to believe it. “You from the country or something?” I nod nervously and walk to the group. “You could say that.” He hums along with my response. Soon enough we meet up with the group.

“Snipe, Mr. Woods? Do you mind giving myself, Y/n, and Present Mic a moment please?” Woods crosses his arms as if he was about to say something but Snipes beats him to the punch. “Sure. Cmon Woods. I need to talk to you about something.” Snipe grabs Kamui’s arm and drags him ahead by a few meters. I chuckle at his over dramatic struggling and complaints. I fucking love anime. “Now then, L/n,” Nezu pulls two envelopes from his pants pocket, both of which were twice the size of his paw. One of them was a crisp, pure white with the UA emblem on it. The other was more yellow, old, and is slightly wrinkled. “Aniken, should I take the white or the yellow pill?”

“What?” Mic asks with utmost confusion, followed by Nezu with a matching look. I tried to brush off my weirdness with an equally confused “What?” Thank god they didn’t question it. Instead giving me a strange look. Nezu took initiative and moved on from my absurdity. “One of them is your schedule, the other is information you must give to Mrs. Midoriya. State that it’s from your parents.” I look between the envelopes and nod. “What about my uniform? School supplies? I’m.. not really made of cash y'know?” Mic smiles slightly. “Oh we know. The government’s got you covered on that.” He gives an enthusiastic thumbs up. I look to Nezu. “So I’m a charity case?” Nezu shrugs. “Essentially.” Damn Nezu. Blunt much?

Mic chuckles awkwardly at Nezu roasting me alive. “At least until you're twenty. But that’s a worse case scenario. The government is actively trying to find ways to get you back home.” I smile a little at the thought. Back at home this would make one hell of a dream. Maybe even fanfiction if I remember all this. And not get writer's block of course. “Okay.. When do I start?” I ask. Nezu picks back up on the conversation. “The day after tomorrow should be suitable for you, yes?” I take a moment to narrow my eyes. “What’s the catch? I know I have to do work in order to catch up to my peers. The finest hero school in Japan doesn’t let in just anyone.” Mic covers his obvious smile with his mouth. “OOOooo! She knows her stuff.” Nezu smirks. “Indeed. You will need to catch up. So I’ll give you two weeks to finish all the work. Then you can officially start. Think that’s enough time Mic?” The smaller of the two asks. Mic nods “Oh yeah! Plenty of time for this little listener!” I can't help but smile at that. I feel like I’m going on a pokemon journey. “Thanks for believing in me. Not a lot of people do.” I admit. He dramatically gasps “Well that's a damn shame! You’re gonna be great kid. Besides, you have me as an english teacher, and with that quirk of yours you’re definitely gonna get straight A’s for sure.” I look over to Nezu to see his phone suddenly buzzing. He quickly takes a moment to answer it before hanging up on the caller. “I’m sorry to end the moment, but Snipe has reminded me that we are on a time crunch. It is a school night after all.” A long groan echoed through the lot of the complex, making me chuckle.“Oof- yeah you’re right.” The blonde agreed. “I got tests to grade and a lesson to finalize.” And with that, the three of us began to make our way to complex 2, third floor. As the light breeze ushered us to our destination my mind went back to the idea of staying with Izuku. Should I tell him what I know? He deserves to know. But what would be the repercussions of my actions? Him knowing that he will be the number one hero can change so many things. It could go to his head like Bakugou and complements. He could back out from the pressure. Fuck I cant do it. Too many factors. Maybe Mirio? I could warn him about what happens in season four. Maybe then he could follow his dream, maybe he’ll be the number one hero then. But not now.. I don't know where we are in the story. I know after the sport’s festival, but is Stain still out and about? Has the exchange between Shoto, Izuku, and Tenya already happened?

Instead of a pleasant nudge to get me out of my thoughts, this time it was a jab to the elbow. “Ow!” I look around to see Snipe glaring at me and motioning to the door in front of us. In the doorway was Inko! She had a bright pink apron, her signature skirt and shirt- ah she’s so tiny! She chuckles. “I-I’m so sorry! Bad habit!” I hug myself tightly. “I-I’m trying to break it-'' She shushes me from my rambling with a wave of her hand. “It’s completely fine! My son has the same habit. I think you two will get along well.” Her kind smile warms me a little. “Mrs. Midorya, do you have the paperwork we gave you?” Mic asks politely. “Oh! Oh yes! Come on in let me make you some tea! The work is around here somewhere!” Inko scampers from the door frame and into the apartment. I didn't hesitate to follow her inside. While I was taking my shoes off I couldn't help but notice how lovely the inside was. The apartment looked exactly like it did in the anime all the way down to the T. It was so welcoming and homey. Almost like Christmas but without the decorations. I was planted in the living room when the hero’s finally came in. From what I assume was Inko’s room, she called. “Make yourself at home! I'll get the kettle on soon!” I look over into the comfy living room before glancing over at the adults. “We’re sorry ma’am but we can't stay for long.” Nezu responds just as Inko appears again. “Oh, well if that's the case, will you at least take something with you! You all help Izuku so much and you work so hard as is!” I see her eyes glance over to the kitchen. “I have cupcakes?” I turn to her. “Cupcakes?” My stomach rumbles at the sound of sweets. She giggles “Yes. I didn’t know what flavor you would like so I made chocolate and vanilla. I hope that's alright?” I point to her like a child. “Are you sure I’m staying with her? She’s too good!” Inko chuckles at my truth. “Don't flatter me, I’m nothing special. You go and take one. They’re over on the counter hun.” She called me hun! I’m weak! I clench my heart and shake in my spot. “The world doesn't deserve you!” I say before bolting it to the kitchen.

After I grab a cupcake I watch from the counter as the grownups talk. Munching through their attempt at hush talk. “Are you sure you’re okay with this ma’am? We do have other applicants.” Snipe starts. “Oh no, it’s fine! Besides, I need some more pep in my step! These old bones need some movement!” She assures with a wave of her hand. “You don't look at day over twenty Mrs. Midoriya!” I call. The group turns to me, Inko’s face a light pink in embarrassment. At least she has a smile on her face. “Oh you-! No flattery in this house!” She retorts. I laugh. “No flattery, just honesty.”

I glance over at Nezu. It could have just been me but I think his smile relaxed a bit. “We should be off Mrs. Midoriya. I can see they are in good hands.” I get up from my spot and bring the cupcakes over to them. “Her cupcakes are great. You shouldn't leave without them.” I suggest. Nezu sighs and takes one of the vanilla. Over his shoulder he glances at the heroes. “Go on. I’m not gonna stop you!” Mic exhaled as if he was holding his breath all this time. “Oh thank god!” He snatched two and gorged them. “Oh wow.” I comment. Woods jabs Mic in the rib, making him cough on some cupcake. “Hey!” Woods glares at the blonde. “Just because you’re my senior doesn't mean that you have the excuse of not knowing some manners.” Snipe carefully takes one and thanks Inko. Is that a blush I see? No. Calm down inner shipper. “We best be off now.” Nezu restates and soon enough the heroes leave me and Inko alone in her apartment.

We take some time getting to know each other at the dining room table. And true to form, Inko was just as sweet as she is in the anime. Apparently she’s also into American culture and late night dramas. Wouldn't have pegged her for that kind of stuff but the surprise was pleasant. “You’re really great at baking Mrs. Midoriya!” I exclaim while taking our plates to the sink. “Oh- thank you! I’m happy to know someone besides my son likes my cooking.” Oh right.. I should probably ask about Izuku. “Oh right-! I forgot to ask about your son! What’s he like?” This is gonna be interesting. “Oh well, he’s a little shy but once you get to know him you'll see who he is.” Right on que the door opens. “Mom! I’m home!” I hear that iconic voice followed by the front door opening. “Oh Izuku! In here! The exchange student is here!” Something falls and Izuku yells. “I-Izuku?!” Inko begins to get up only for Izuku to call back. “I-Im fine mom!” I glance over at Inko and back at the hallway. Izuku eventually walks into the dining room. “W-Where are-”

Inko motions to me. “Izuku, this is Y/n L/n, they will be staying with us. They’ll have the guest room.” Izuku’s eyes fall on me. As mine do the same for him. He was still in his school uniform. Pants baggy, tie dishoveled, shoelaces untied, the imperfections out weighed the perfections in his uniform. No wonder the hot mess energy he was radiating was all the more powerful. I can't help but smile. “You must be running around a lot.” I smirk in attempts to break the tension. He jumps a little at my sudden remark. “O-Oh! Um.. y-yeah. The school is pretty big so..” He trails off into silence. Silence that lasts a whole minute. I bite my lip. “Sooo uh.. I saw you at the UA sports festival? You won the first round! I was so smart of you to take off a chunk of the robot and use it for the later portion of the race.” His face flushes a bright pink. “O-Oh no! I bet anyone would have thought of that if they were in my situation!” I chuckle. “Dude that's unique to you! Noone can replicate that now without bringing you up!” He goes and scratches the back of his head. “Y-yeah.. I guess you’re right.” I hear Inko let out a sigh of relief.

“Now that you two have met, how about we get you settled Y/n.”

#mha togata #mha mirio #mha #bnha mirio #bnha #mirio x reader #izuku midoriya #inko midoriya #present mic #kamui woods #Snipe mha #prinipal nezu #mirio togata

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smokeybrandreviews · 4 years ago

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Smokey brand Postmortem: There Should Have Been More Than One

It's been a few days since I've seen The Old Guard. It was an entertaining movie, overall, but not a great experience. As a film, it's mediocre. There are a lot of problems with it, way too many leaps in logic for me to be comfortable with. The supporting cast was just there to fill scenes around Charlize. No one felt like a real person. The dialogue was crazy poor. It felt like it was written instead of something that actual people would say. You can definitely tell everyone was reading from a script. I can give credit where it's due, though; Most of the supporting cast was pretty good with what they had to work with but therein lies the biggest issue with this film; There wasn't much to work with. Charlize was great, of course, but she had literally all of the screen time. We never got to know anyone else outside of exposition dumps and forced, interpersonal, conflict. Hell, the flashbacks Andy, Charlize's character and main protagonist, had with the Asian chick seemed like a better movie than what we got. And don't get me started on the chick who played Nile. She was THE WORST! I posted an entire review a few days about if you're curious about the detailed critiqued because that's not what this is. This is how I would fix what The Old Guard left broken.

Issue: Kiki Layne

Kiki Layne is the worst thing about this movie, but not the most pressing. She's bad at her job and I have no idea why. It could have been nerves. It could be that Charlize is so good at her job she completely mitigates anything Kiki was trying to do. It could have been the atrocious writing. It could have been any number of things. Either way, at the end of the say, she was terrible as Nile and it made it extremely difficult for me to buy the realism of her character.

Fix 1: Recast Kiki

She felt like a diversity hire to begin with. This whole movie felt like a diversity hire. Charlize is about inclusivity and considering she was not only the lead but also a producer, this thing was effectively her, using that clout to give others the opportunity to shine that maybe were overlooked for certain, ethnic or gender biases, while cobbling together a franchise for herself outside of the Hollywood machine. I respect that. I love that. Give that opportunity to someone who can do something with it because Kiki Layne was awful in this.

Issue: Poor Writing

The biggest issue I have with this movie is how sh*t the writing is. My goodness, is this stuff bad, man. If Kiki weren't in this flick, the poor screenplay would be the biggest issue but it gets a pass because Layne's performance is that jarring. A friend of mine tried to fight me about this movie, saying it was great and was used to set up a franchise so it's an origin story. That's actually the next issue but it's kind of tied to the writing so it get the third spot.

Fix 2: Rewrite the script a few more times

The script definitely needed at least one more revision. The entire conflict of this story hinges on Andy doing something she would never do. We don't know that in the beginning when we're introduced but, as the film goes on an we learn about this character, that initial mistake seems more and more out of character. Andy is, at least, two thousand years old, probably older. She lost the first person who matched her lifespan to traitorous humans. She's lived her life, ever since, cautious of everything they do. Andy works in the shadows and has had hundreds, probably thousands, of years of practice at this sh*t. You're telling me she walks into an ambush like that? For real? That's how you choose to start your film? Look, if the main conflict of your entire narrative can't be initiated without a completely ignoring core aspects of your protagonist, maybe give your story the once over and figure out how to organically make those events occur? I'm not even going to touch upon how wasted Chiwetel Ejiofor or how one dimensional the main antagonist is portrayed.

Issue: Franchise baiting

This movie is definitely a pitch for a franchise or a series. That's why it was made. That's what it feels like. This is Charlize's retirement plan. She can star in a few, build a brand, and seed the reins to her chosen successor while staying on as producer. She keeps getting checks, the production train keeps rolling, everyone gets paid. That's fine. I don't mind a perpetual money machine. The thing about this is that it's mad lazy. This is a terrible start and would have been dead on arrival if it were released in theaters. Netflix is the saving grace of this mediocre nonsense. Id this is the origin story, it should have been better.

Fix 3: John Wick that sh*t

John Wick is what this movie wanted to be but the writing wasn't there to pull it off. Compare those two. Both of them are small budget, action flicks, who gave you a taste of a world in hopes to build a franchise. So why is John Wick an infinitely better film? Because it's infinitely better written. That world makes sense. Those characters feel real. You don't have to take massive leaps in character motivation just get the conflict of your film going. That first movie leaves a narrative thread that can be picked up, and it was to the tune of two sequels, a fourth in development, and a companion television series, for later. The first John Wick is a small, intimately personal story that slowly expands as the world grows. This is what The Old Guard should have been. It is exactly what the Old Guard is not. The Old Guard tried to do too much, in too little time. They fell into the same trap the DC did. This first movie should have been a smaller, more focused tale. It should have been about Andy finding Nile. Keep it focused on that individual narrative. Keep it intimate. You can explore Andy's whole "never get close" mentality, really dig into that survivors guilt about Quynh while building conflict with Nile, who is literally thrust into a impossible situation with which she has no choice but to reconcile. That, right there, is enough to build a brilliant narrative that feels grounded, organic, and dynamic. Have Chiwetel Ejiofor on the hunt for the duo. Have his character, Copley, one step behind the entire time, learning more and more about Andy's life. The three of them could occasionally cross paths, maybe witnessing a resurrection or something but never actually accomplishing a meeting or capture, to give his motivation in the sequel some teeth. The fact that Andy and Nile kept slipping through his fingers would give him motivation enough to reach out to Pharma for better resources. Give the traitor, Booker, a cameo or a small part in this initial outing to establish Andy's trust in him.

Make that telegraphed betrayal worth it instead of some throw away bullsh*t. Use his appearance to not only establish her trusting affection for dude, but hint at the other member of the Guard as well. You don't need to see them just yet, that's for the sequel, but an acknowledgment that they're out in the world is enough. In the sequel, when you open up to the larger group, there is an emotional resonance to these people and you don't have to spend eighty percent of your run time establishing Andy. You would have already done that, given Nile mad agency, made Copley a real threat, and shown us more of Quynh. You can use the majority of the next flick to flesh out everyone else during the runtime of the sequel. Hell, the sequel can be this exact movie, but since you did the legwork before with my pitch, the events don't seem so obtusely stupid or out of place. If my movie had been made before this one, the writing would have felt organic. It would have felt like an organic continuation rather than a rushed introduction.

#Smokey brand Postmortem #The Old Guard

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linkspooky · 5 years ago

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Shigaraki’s Decay

One of the biggest themes of this arc is how the characters define themselves. What defines them the most, the quirks they were born with, their experiences in the past, the people around them, what burdens they carry? Shigaraki at the moment is facing off against Re-Destro a man who believes that because he was born with a quirk that destroys everything he touches, then he must be capable of nothing more than that. Not only that but during the middle of the fight Shigaraki flashes back to All for One not only telling him the same thing, but encouraging him to see himself that way.

Does Shigaraki’s decay quirk truly define who he is? Is it only capable of being used for destruction? Let’s analyze Shigaraki’s relationship with his quirk and what it says about his character underneath the cut.

This is the accusation that Re-Destro makes at Shigaraki, that specifically triggers his flashback not only of the incident of destroying his family, but also All for One encouraging him to hold onto those feelings. That he was born to destroy. That he’s capable of nothing other than destruction because he possesses such a quirk. That he’s empty of all other feelings.

However, while Shigaraki seems to embrace this narrative the backstory we are shown implicitly contradicts it, especially with the story of how his quirk developed into such a destructive one.

1. Shigaraki and Dabi

While Dabi’s backstory was not confirmed this arc the fact that he is most likely Todoroki Touya makes him a significant foil to Tomura. To whit, both of them were born in abusive households where a patriarchal father figure wielded absolute control over the household. Both of them had their lives, and who they could become dominated by their father figures (Tenko was told he could not be a hero, Touya was not allowed to become anything other than Endeavor’s heir and if he couldn’t become that he was a failure). Both of them are heirs to heroic legacies they never wanted to be a part of, Touya had Endeavor’s rivalry with All Might forced on him, and Tenko did not even know he was Shimura’s grandchild but was picked up by All for One specifically for that reason.

Both of them become the victims of their father’s grudges, Endeavor’s inferior complex over All Might caused him to train his children like they were his own pet raise your own hero project, and Kotaro’s abandonment by Nana caused him to take his feelings out on Tenko for just wishing to be a hero when he was five. Both of their father figures had rivalries with All Might and trained them as a successor to surpass All Might, Endeavor as a fellow hero, and All for One as a villain.

Dabi was raised as a hero before he was raised as a person, Shigaraki was raised to be a villain before he was cared for as a child in need.

All of that being said, if only one detail was revealed about Dabi who foils Shigaraki so significantly this arc, then it must be an important detail. The one reveal we get is that Dabi’s quirk is fundamentally compatible with his own body.

In fiction, a foil is a character who contrasts with another character, usually the protagonist, to highlight qualities of the other character.

Horikoshi would not be asking us to draw these comparisons between the two of them, unless he was trying to inform us about Shigaraki through how much he has in common with Dabi.

That for both of them, their quirks are incompatible with their bodies. Even though they were raised specifically because of those quirks by both of their respective father figures to be their heirs, those quirks which are supposed to define them are fundamentally at odds with their beings.

Not only that but Dabi comes into contact with someone who just like him, was raised to only value the strength of his quirk, who was born and spent years doing nothing more than developing the strength of his quirk with little contact with the outside world not allowed to have a life other than his quirk, and who defines his identity entirely by his quirk and Dabi mocks this idea.

He finds it pitiful to define yourself entirely by your quirk, that the quirk you were born with makes you who you are. After all his father bred him for a quirk, Apocrypha’s mindset smells like Endeavor’s, that of his abuser’s.

If there is a difference between the two foils right now, it is that Dabi rebels entirely against what his abuser wanted him to be he was raised a hero and became a villain instead whereas Shigaraki still embraces the narrative that All for One gave him too much he’s a villain, but he has no interest in building an empire like All for One just tearing one down. As an heir he turned out a little too well. All for one encouraged him to destroy and set him loose, and now he does not find identity in anything other than destruction.

2. Shigaraki’s Quirk is Incompatible with his Body

The character’s quirks obviously influence their identity a little bit, they are characters whose personalities were thought up by Horikoshi to compliment their quirks after all. So their quirks mean something in regards of who they are. Compress is a classic sleight of hand magician, his quirk makes things disappear and become smaller with a touch to where he can hide them underneath his sleeve. Twice is extremely lonely and he just wants a companion and self acceptance, his quirk literally makes copies of both himself and other people he knows well enough to measure them with personalities based on how well he knows them. Dabi is cool headed, and yet at the same time quick tempered and quick to lash out with his flames like he’s hiding seething anger underneath it all at something, therefore he makes flames that are blue a cool color, and yet burn hotter, so much it burns him underneath his skin.

However, this arc thematically also brings up the question if the league was defined their entire lives by their quirk. Twice was driven insane because his quirk made him forget who he was or if he was the real one. Toga has a natural predilection towards blood because her quirk works by sucking blood and stealing the appearances of others.

While that idea is brought up it’s also contradicted. Their quirks aren’t the only thing that influenced them as clearly all of these characters are heavily influenced by their environments as well. (The tagline of the whole volume is “all it takes is one bad day). Himiko was raised to repress herself and nobody seriously tried to accept her for who she was, therefore Himiko eventually explodes and lives to express the worst of herself not caring what others think because they were never going to accept her anyway. Then Himiko finds people who does accept her, and she starts to improve, while she still does things on whims, she follows rules, listens to commands, and is extremely loyal to a certain set of people. Twice is able to make copies of himself again because at his lowest point, he was able to find people who accepted him and wants to protect those people.

They are influenced by their quirks, but at the same time the environment around them influences who they are just as much and can even influence their quirks. Their personal development causes their quirks to grow.

So, as I said above if Dabi’s quirk is incompatible and using it harms his own body, then the same can most likely be said for Shigaraki. Let’s briefly touch upon his past once more.

In Shigaraki’s origin chapter it’s revealed that Tenko had a chronic allergy condition that caused his eyes to water, and his face to become itchy. Not only that but he itched at his face constantly, which only caused the itching to get worse. While it’s unknown where this allergy came from, it’s also stated at the same time that Tenko had not manifested a quirk yet even though he was five years old (most quirks manifest at four).

My theory is that Tenko’s quirk actually did activate when he was four, but at that point he could not manifest it slowly. The reason being that Tenko’s quirk is controlled by his emotions. He did not reach his breaking point until he was five years old. Before that point he was just constantly uneasy, and anxious about his environment due to his father’s controlling nature. therefore, his decay manifested in his own body but only as an itch that looked like allergies around his face. Instead it was decaying his skin slowly, and only barely noticeable because he had not reached the breaking point. He decays his own body subconsciously, hence the constant itching and facial scarring that only worsened over the years.

It makes sense as human bodies are about as incompatible with decaying, as they are with fire. There are several instances of quirks not being perfectly suited for the human body and carrying flaws like this, Deku breaks his own bones because his muscles are too strong, Ochako gets nauseous due to not being fit for zero gravity, however it’s also special in Dabi and Shigaraki’s case because it’s thematic.

Tenko’s decay only manifests in his hands when he’s reached his limits emotionally. The reason it never manifested before was Tenko was holding it back. Until he reached the point where he could not take it anymore.

All for One even says this directly, that Tenko keeps his own quirk in check subconsciously. Hence why we see so much destruction the first time he loses control at his own family, and yet several years later when he’s fighting Aizawa we see a much milder form of his quirk.

Fighting against Aizawa Shigaraki gives him a light rash on his arm, and yet in a different situation when Shigaraki is pushed to a much more emotional extreme he decays people’s entire bodies in an instant.

There’s also proof he can manifest decay in other parts of his body, he’s shown using it with his feet. (Though, this could also be the decay spreading out from his hands after he initially used it).

Still, this all supports the idea that Shigaraki just subconsciously localizes Decay in his hands, and subconsciously suppresses its strength at all times. Because, decay can spread if he doesn’t control it, and also because if he’s not careful he could decay his own body as well. He only removes the limiter when he’s pushed to a breaking point by extreme amounts of stress.

There is however, another thematic idea suggested by Shigaraki subconsciously holding back decay, and purposefully limiting his own power. That he still feels guilt for what he destroys, and therefore even if it’s only in the back of his head some part of him tries to hold back.

For someone who exists only to destroy, Shigaraki is extremely careful with what he touches to the point where he holds everything with only a few fingers to limit his destruction. It shows in every gesture of his body how much he purposefully holds himself back. We are told time and time again in his backstory, that Shigaraki felt an intensive amount of guilt for what happened to his family due to his quirk.

When he’s brought back to All for One, and confronted with what he did Shigaraki is literally so disgusted with himself he violently retches and vomits.

When people are being violent to him, Shigaraki’s first response was not to lash out, but rather to hold himself back intentionally and suppress that urge.

When father’s hand gets knocked off of his face much later in the future, Shigaraki apologizes to him, and then more importantly starts to excoriate again due to the stress as we see him itching himself.

The hands make him remember his family, and therefore he feels restrained and burdened by constant guilt, and self disgust. He feels nauseous for even living.

All for One even said directly the hands were something meant to restrain him, keep his quirk in check most likely so he never tried to turn it against All for One. Shigarki probably feels a great deal of guilt for what he did subconsciously, no matter what he may say about himself, and because of that until this point held a great deal of his quirk back so he would not lose control like he did with his family.

Which means Shigaraki does not delight in destruction the way he claims to, he feels self disgust, and genuine remorse for what he destroys and because of that he is constantly sick with himself. The last villain Shigaraki faced off against was Chisaki, who wanted to rid the world of quirks. He also was somebody who like Tomura could completely destroy someone with just a touch of his fingers. What does Shigaraki do? Cut off his hands.

Why? Because he hates him.

However, Chisaki and Tomura have several things in common. They were both raised by villainous organizations (yakuza, and All for One), both of them want to carry on the legacy of the man who raised him and restore a crumbling empire to its former glory, both of their quirks are extremely similar.

Shigaraki’s particular dislike for Chisaki could also be an extension of his hatred for himself, and what does he do to Chisaki? Cut his hands off. Rid him of the destructive quirk that he used so freely. Which is probably also what Shigaraki wants to do to himself on some level, he just protected that desire onto Chisaki.

There’s much more evidence to suggest that Shigaraki is in conflict with himself, just like his decay quirk is incompatible with his body, his philosophy of destroying everything is also incompatible with who he is as a person. As much as he indulges in destruction, he also loathes it, and loathes himself for destroying. Then, why destroy in the first place?

3. The Psychological Itch

Once again Narrative is an important theme in these chapters. It’s not just subtext but literal text directly spoken by the characters, the MLA is trying to create a narrative, and the League of Villains are contradicting that narrative.

Therefore narrative =/= reality, and even a character’s personal narrative will not one hundred percent reflect the reality. As I’ve already pointed out there are several inconsistencies in Shigaraki’s own personal narrative, but it’s important to realize Shigaraki is not using his own he’s adopted All for One’s. He is not choosing to embrace his own identity, rather believing he is when he’s really just reacting to the narrative that All for One set up for him.

Shigaraki was in need of validation for who he was. Because he was not accepted, because he was rejected entirely by that household he felt a constant unease, an itch that he could not scratch. Just like his own body rejects his quirk, Shigaraki also was rejected by everyone around him and therefore could not develop healthily his own sense of self.

Tenko, an observant kid realizes that everyone around him is rejecting him for who he is. That he cannot be himself as long as he remains in this household. Not only is he forbidden from being the one thing he wants to be, he’s also violently punished. It’s a good enough reason to feel constantly anxious, and at unease with his environment. What Tenko seeks is to be told that he’s not wrong, that it’s okay to be who he is.

Shigaraki reflecting on the scene tells us directly in narration that destroying that household, everybody around him, made the itch go away. That therefore the itch must have been his suppressed desire to destroy, and what he really wanted all along was to just destroy that house and he was finally indulging on his true desires.

However, literally the next scene in Shigaraki’s flashback completely contradicts that.

The itch comes back. If Destroying made the itch go away, then why does it come back almost immediately after Shigaraki runs away from his house? If destroying everything around him creates freedom from himself and freedom from his itch, then why does it keep coming back?

The itch is a metaphor in part, for Shigaraki and the cycle of abuse he is caught up in. Here is the thing about abuse victims, they are not always palatable to people’s tastes. They do not present themselves in a way that is either pure good victim or pure bad victim.

Abuse does make people want to hurt other people. It makes them want to lash out, because otherwise they carry the wounds for their abuse on them all the time and are in desperate need to express that pain somehow. At times it feels they can only either repress themselves entirely, or lash out, and neither of those does anything but make them feel better temporarily. People feel better after they lash out, but it does not solve the problem.

The cycle of abuse is something Shigaraki is caught up in. Kotaro was abused by his mother when she abandoned him. Kotaro is still a victim, it’s just he is making Shigaraki suffer worse, by lashing out at Tenko and hurting him just because of the reminder of his mother he sees in Tenko. He deliberately even says that this is what heroes do, hurt their own families, when he hits Tenko. It’s a simple venting of his feelings towards his mother by lashing them out at someone else.

Venting does make people feel better, but it never solves the problem itself which is why the itch never goes away for Shigaraki. He lives with wounds and scars covering his body, and Shigaraki feels an itch, so he agitates the scars, picks at them, but he only ever makes the scars worse and reopens them in the long run. He never tries to heal, he only tries to distract himself from the pain. This is also, exactly what All for One encouraged him to do. He says line for line do not heal.

We also see the prolonged effects of All for One’s encouragement in Shigaraki’s flashback chapter. All for One lies to him, he tells him that the itch is his own destructive impulse, rather than a reaction to an abusive and unsafe environment and his own trauma.

Then, because venting does make the itch go away temporarily, because venting does relieve the piled up stress of abuse even if it’s unhealthy in the long run Shigaraki ends up believing him.

It’s a narrative that All for One gives Shigaraki. Because what did Shigaraki want, he tohught if one person saved him, if they tried to help him the itch would go away. He thought the itch would go away if his household accepted him for who he was. He just wanted person to tell him it was okay to be him.

This is what Tenko believes that All for One is doing for him. That he really is the first person who accepted Shigaraki for who he was, and told him it was okay for him to be himself. That that self is just a person with a natural impulse to destroy, and everything else in society was holding him back and that All for One was the only person who would ever accept him for who he was.

All for One took advantage of that part of Tenko to force his narrative onto him. Tenko was not naturally like that, All for One remade him in his own image. He never accepted who Tenko was as a person, he literally killed his old self and renamed him symbolically. He says from the start his only intention was to make Tenko not into a person, but a symbol who only lusts for destruction.

Shigaraki believes that he was naturally that way, but we see in the flashback itself All for One admitting that he’s purposefully making Shigaraki into that person. It contradicts what Shigaraki writes of his own narrative (I wanted to murder my father, it was not a tragedy).

Therefore being born with his quirk does not determine who Shigaraki is, rather it’s a narrative that All for One has given to him, and one Shigaraki embraces in response to his trauma.

Once again to draw a parallel to Eri, we are shown that Eri’s quirk is unstable and out of control. It’s potentially dangerous and can even rewind someone into nonexistence. Chisaki says it’s unnatural and can only exist to harm others. However, her quirk does not exist in a vaccuum she’s also in an environment that is perpetually out of control.

Before that she was in an environment with an abusive mother who literally abandoned her and threw her to the head of the Yakuza when she hurt someone in a way that was only a freak accident. She was in an environment where Chisaki encouraged her to believe that she would only hurt other people who came to save her, that it would be her fault for hurting them, and that she was utterly helpless. Therefore she could not control her quirk at all and it became wildly unstable. Chisaki told her her quirk was an unnatural, horrible thing, and Eri intenernalized that idea and believed him.

However, Deku calls it a kindhearted quirk and just from hearing those words Eri’s quirk that could only destroy for that point begins to change.

Therefore, is quirks can change based upon the environment and how the person views themselves, it’s likely that Shigaraki’s quirk is meant to do much more than decay as well.

#shigaraki tomura #all for one #meta #mha meta #my hero academia meta #league of villains meta #shigaraki meta

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smokeybrand · 4 years ago

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Smokey brand Postmortem: There Should Have Been More Than One

Issue: Kiki Layne

Kiki Layne is the worst thing about this movie, but nt the most pressing. She's bad at her job and I have no idea why. It could have been nerves. It could be that Charlize is so good at her job she completely mitigates anything Kiki was trying to do, it could have been any number of things. Either way, at the end of the say, she was terrible as Nile and it made it extremely difficult for me to buy the realism of her character.

Fix 1: Recast Kiki

She felt like a diversity hire to begin with. Charize is about inclusivity and considering she was not only the lead but also a producer, this thing was effectively her, using that clout to give others the opportunity to shine that maybe were overlooked for certain, ethnic or gender biases, while cobbling together a franchise for herself outside of the Hollywood machine. I respect that. I love that. Give that opportunity to someone who can do something with it because Kiki Layne is awful.

Issue: Poor Writing

Fix 2: Rewrite the script a few more times

Issue: Franchise baiting

Fix 3: John Wick that sh*t

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raiswanson · 6 years ago

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The Loving Seal shorts #1: Song (Nyvina PoV)

(So I don’t usually share “complete” pieces on here because hey, we all know lots of people skip over long posts, but I spent all of March bouncing around writing these in a frenzy and I!! Want! To! Share! So I am! I hope they help everyone come to love the sweet selkie babes as much as I do <3 Especially since I won’t be sharing the full book for a while ;w;)

This is the first short of six (seven if I decide to share an extra ~risque~ one), set years before the events of The Loving Seal way way way back when our two main protagonists first met...

(This short is about 2k words long, in full beneath the cut)

“Poor thing. He was the only one left. His whole pod was in pieces by the time Nadia got there,” one of the adults murmured.

“How did a wiry little pup like that make it out?” the sunning adult on my other side asked.

“Nadia said he was wedged into a crack with two older seals in front of him. She thinks it was his parents but he still hasn’t spoken to her yet.”

“Oh...poor dear. What do you think it was? Leopard seals? Orcas? Surely not humans, this far from their territory...”

“No one knows. Whatever it was they really left a bloodbath behind...”

Done listening to the gossiping going on around me, I rolled away and scooted into the waves to get away from the chatty pair. It seemed mean to be talking behind the new pup’s back when they could just go and ask him themselves. I’d only gotten a glimpse of him as my mother had guided him to the pod and immediately taken him to the whelping cove where it was quiet and safe, but he’d looked about my age. He was bigger than me, but most of the males were. I was sure he could talk just fine.

Determined to get the information needed to clear the air and get everyone to shut up, I swam right to the cove and looked around for my mother as soon as I hit the shore. She was sunning in the sand a short ways from the wall of rocks that shielded the cove from wind and water, and opened her eyes to blink at me as I padded toward her with my skin dragging behind me.

“Is that boy still here?” I asked, pushing the head of my skin out from over my face to peer around. I didn’t see any sign of anyone else, and pouted when she heaved a sigh and rolled onto her side.

“Nyvina, you should leave him be. We must give him time to himself,” she answered, tail flipping when I didn’t turn to leave and kept looking around the cove. “Pup...”

“Everyone is talking about him. I just wanna meet him. What if he gets bullied when he joins the pod?” I protested, treading toward the rocks. “Is he over here? I just wan—”

“Pup, I don’t think he wants company right now,” Mother warned, making me scoff.

“I’m not gonna bother him. If he doesn’t wanna talk then I won’t talk. I just wanna see him!” I insisted, hurrying forward before she could tell me otherwise. I heard her groan over my shoulder, but as I ducked into the rock wall I peeked back to see she’d gone back to sunning instead. Great. That was a blessing as far as I was concerned.

It didn’t take long to find the huddled little selkie wedged between two big boulders, spotty gray skin just as floppy and oversized on him as mine was. He didn’t move as I plodded closer, and even when I plopped to sit down a few feet away he only tugged his knees closer to his chest.

I looked him over with as critical an eye as a six year old could. He remained silent as I studied him, tucked up in his glossy skin, and I frowned at his curled, pale toes trying to glean what I could from the only visible part of him until I finally gave up.

“Hi,” I said loudly, making him tense and duck deeper into his skin with a tiny gasp.

“I thought you might like someone to talk to,” I said more gently, wanting to explain. He didn’t react this time, keeping quiet out of sight, and I leaned back on my hands with a long sigh.

“We don’t have to talk though. I can just sit with you instead,” I added after a little while, sighing when he continued holding his tongue. I’d never known another pup this quiet before. “Would you like that?” I asked.

As expected he didn’t answer. So I waited, picking sand particles out of my fur and twiddling my thumbs. I didn’t want to admit my mother had been right, but the more time stretched on the closer I came to admitting defeat. I’d just wanted to talk to him. Didn’t he want to talk to me too? I’d wanted to talk to people when my father had been smashed on the rocks by an orca.

Maybe he really didn’t want company. Maybe he didn’t want to join the pod at all?

I poked my toes in the sand and huffed, disappointed. Something about him had spoken to me in my brief glimpse before. I’d thought we could be friends. The other pups had already decided they didn’t like me very much, and this one hadn’t been turned against me yet.

I guessed I hadn’t had a chance after all.

“If you’d rather I left I can—”

“Please stay,” peeped a quiet voice, soft and gentle enough to stop me in a half-risen position.

Blinking, I raised my gaze to him and saw he’d looked up, black eyes wide and fearful from under the head of his skin. He was still tucked in on himself, but I could see his face now at least.

I also saw the long slashes oozing blood down the bottom left side of his cheek, marring at least a quarter of the view all the way from lip to neck.

He wiped at the wounds as I stared at them, smearing more blood across his face and wincing as though he’d forgotten such things hurt to touch. Mouth dry, I gaped back at him as his lip began to tremble, and slowly sat back down before he could shrink back into his skin and vanish again.

Eyes unable to break from the slashes, I cleared my throat. “Okay. Do you wanna talk?”

He sucked in a breath and shifted beneath his skin, implying a shrug. “I don’t know what to talk about...” he said, sounding a little less fearful than before.

“Oh. Me either.”

That made him blink, frowning, and he tilted his head as though considering me. He wiped his face again—flinching—and seemed to find something in my puzzled expression. Whatever he found made him smile, and I gulped as the expression seemed to light up half the cove.

“You have a pretty voice,” I blurted, scrabbling for topics to discuss before he decided he didn’t want to talk anymore.

The words made him smile wider, then hiss in pain as it creased his wounds, but there was bashful color in his cheeks when he directed a smaller grin at me.

“Thank you,” he muttered, leaving an awkward pause as I lost my words and could only stare back in stunned awe. My lack of continued dialogue left us both floundering, and his eyes darted about in thought while I continued staring like a dead fish.

“My mama told me my great-grandpa was a siren,” he said hesitantly, shaking me out of my daze.

I scrunched up my face and shook my head. “No, that’s impossible,” I told him, knowing sirens never bothered to play with selkies.

Disbelief was clearly the wrong reaction.

“Mama never lies!” he cried, lovely voice crackling into something much stronger and startling. It made him sound bigger, and put a spike of fear through me sharper than the sight of fins in the water.

I sat frozen in terror for a moment, then noticed the tears welling in his eyes and took a steady breath. Forcing myself to unclench my jaw, I gulped and dipped my head as he trembled and sniffled.

“I’m sorry. I wasn’t calling your mama a liar. My mama isn’t a liar either,” I said.

He stared at me, still shaking, then sniffed and ducked into his skin—not as far as before, but enough to shadow his face. “Who’s your mama?”

“She’s the one who found you,” I answered, wondering if that was a good topic to talk about when he stared back at me with his eyes big and round.

“Thank you,” he mumbled.

I laughed and leaned forward on my knees, pleased he’d taken on the pleasant voice again. I liked this voice. It made my neck tingle. In a good way.

“I didn’t find you, thank her!” I told him, raising yet another awkward silence when he glanced beyond me toward the rest of the cove and shifted his skin over his shoulders. Realizing it was my job to keep the discussion going, I pursed my lips and tried to pick something less scary to talk about.

“So...um...what’s your name?” I asked.

He blinked back, eyes dark and thoughtful. “Kaelan,” he said quietly.

I beamed back with all the encouragement I could muster, pleased that I had something I could tell the others about him. “I’m Nyvina. It’s nice to meet you Kaelan. So are you gonna be staying with us now?”

His knees—slowly easing as we’d spoken—tucked tight to his chest at my question.

“I guess so.”

I tried not to be too disheartened by his unenthusiastic answer, disappointed to hear the musical chime of his voice droop as he spoke. “Then we can be friends. I’ve never known anyone that was part siren before,” I said, delighted when he smiled at me.

My heart jumped up into my throat to choke me as I realized he was prettier than any other selkies I knew. Almost siren pretty. Maybe his mama really had been on to something. And I’d never met a siren, but the more he talked the more I wanted to make him keep doing it. They did that, right?

Idea springing up in my head, I hopped up and down in the sand and looked at him excitedly. “Can you sing? I’ve never heard a siren sing before,” I asked, deflating when his face crumpled and he ducked his nose behind his knees.

“I don’t feel like singing right now,” he answered with a tiny squeak, pitiful sound piercing straight through me like a human’s spear.

“I’m sorry. You don’t have to,” I said hastily, knowing it was too late when he began to tremble again.

“Mama likes to hear me sing. She sings too. She always sings when I’m...she likes to sing when I don’t feel—” his voice broke with a warbling whimper, and he buried his face in his knees to gasp and shake. “I want my mama.”

The desperate plea put me on my feet before I knew it, and I dropped myself in the sand at his side to take a few deep breaths. “Um...I don’t think I can sing as well as your mama, but...”

Trying hard to remember all the words, I opened my mouth and sang a stilted version of one of my mother’s lullabies. I ruined it completely, faltering on notes I’d never tried to match in earnest, but after humming it and trying again I thought I’d managed it pretty well. I sang a song of a mother seal calling her pup away from the water, bringing it back to rest safe and warm at her side as night fell. It was a comfortable song I’d always loved, but as I finished the last of it I realized it might have been a poor choice.

I gave Kaelan a worried look, fearing I’d made things worse, and wasn’t sure what to do when I saw him watching me with his eyes wide. Mouth open and trembling, he stared in silence a while before sniffling, and then the tears began to spill. He broke down into heaving sobs, hands to his face as he slumped against me, and when I reached out to hug him on impulse he pressed his face to my neck to cry against me.

I didn’t know what else to do as he crumpled and sobbed, so I tucked him into my chest and leaned on the rocks, snuggling close to sing softly into his black hair as he covered me in tears and blood.

And that’s the end of that short! Thanks for reading, please stay tuned for the next one!! <3 <3 <3

#writing #writeblr #Rai writes #The Loving Seal #I'm so sorry to anyone that the Read More breaks on. srsly. So so sorry. I know this is pretty long ;w;#I love these babies so much it hurts ;w; my precious selkie babies

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oldtvandcomics · 6 years ago

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MY OPINION ABOUT ENDGAME

I’ve written this nice long YouTube comment about Endgame, and it contains pretty much everything that I think about that movie, so I’m just going to copypaste it here. Because of the subject of the video, a lot is about Steve/Bucky not becoming canon and what happened instead.

Spoilers after the break.

Ok, I don't care, I have OPINIONS and need to share them somewhere.

1) Stucky was never going to be canon and I think most of us are adult enough to admit that. HOWEVER what the movie did in general felt as if it would ignore everything we know about Steve, Bucky and Peggy.

- Did they keep Steve and Bucky apart? Totally.

- Steve ending up with Peggy. Would have been nice, IF that was where they had been going since 2011. It is not. They had a movie together where they have some flirting going on (a lot less than other superhero love stories, if you ask me, but shipping googles, don't ask me). After that, Peggy got an entire season about mourning Steve and slowly accepting his death, and a second where she started dating again, and Steve two plus movies where his motivation was mostly "OMG, Bucky is alive" and "I need to protect Bucky". THEY BOTH MOVED ON. This felt like a last minute "let's do something that gets Steve out of the way and will count as a happy ending".

- Steve living in the past. Ok, ok, ok, this is a BIG one for me. As many others have pointed out, he is now in a time where he full well knows Bucky is being held prisoner and tortured, and it's either letting it happen or key points in history will change. He is also watching SHIELD being founded and recruiting former HYDRA agents, as consequence of which PEOPLE WILL DIE, and Steve knows that, because HE'S BEEN THERE. Is he just going to sit there and let it happen??

Also, if we are already at it: Imagine the following scenario. It is the early 50s and Steve Rogers has just returned from the future (2023, right?) to spend the rest of his days with the love of his life, Peggy. Segregation is still a thing. Residential schools are still a thing. Women don't have the same rights as men. Queer people don't have any rights, period. Disabled and mentally ill people are being constantly mistreated, part out of ableism and part out of genuine ignorance in the medical field. The US is in cold war with the Soviet Union, and both sides do stuff that are not ok, and also highly classified. Steve, having lived in the future knows about them because it's history. Should I continue?

We normal people would maybe play the well-behaved time traveller and sit around waiting for history to happen, BUT NOT STEVE ROGERS. He is famous, and very influential because of his status as Captain America, and he has got a significantly smaller tolerance for bullsh*t than the other people in his time, because he has seen a world that is more accepting. He is going to try to fight everything at once. This is going to be chaos.

- Finally, and I haven't seen this pointed out yet, but HOWARD. Steve just returned to a time when Howard Stark was still the Howard Stark we know from The First Avenger and Agent Carter. A little weird and egocentric and visibly ND, but all in all a nice guy. I don't even know where to start with how much chaos this is going to cause. The memory of Steve Rogers has been a driving force behind Howard's entire life. Having him actually BE there will 1) prevent him from idolising him, and 2) Steve will be able to say little things to him like "Howard, you really have got a nice son there, maybe you could spend some more time with him?". Will Tony without his abusive childhood still become Iron Man? I think so, yes. Will it still completely change who he is as a person? Also yes...? Don't even mention that Steve perfectly knows how Howard and his wife are going to die, namely assassinated by Bucky, because...

(Also, remember Agent Carter season 1 when Howard openly told Peggy tat he'd been in love with Steve? Yeah, that is going to be a fun discussion when they announce their engagement. Seriously, someone should write it.)

Conclusion: While I understand how the idea of Steve returning to Peggy might have sounded good on paper, the writers just didn't think it through and as a consequence, it feels rushed and as if they'd just butchered not only one, but at least three or four of our beloved characters and their story arcs.

2) My opinion about Endgame was that it was nice. But definitely not good or something I'd want to rewatch anytime soon.

- It bit off more than it can chew. One movie to close off six character arcs is not enough by far. They should have made at least three. One for Steve and Tony, one for Clint and Natasha, and one for Bruce and Thor.

-> Tony's character arc was the one I was almost completely happy with. Minus the Pepper wearing the suit bit, which I feel should have been a big emotional moment but instead was just kind of there and came a little out of nowhere. Steve, see above, would have needed either a different ending or a whole lot more thought in it.

-> Clint becoming a pretty terrible serial killer was just somehow never dealt with?? Because THAT? That would have needed a complete movie to make sense and to give him time to actually redeem himself. Natasha... Redemption equals death. I'm not a fan of that trope, especially because she already seemed to have redeemed herself at that point? She didn't need to die? Also, fine, I get why it could make sense, but killing off the one female protagonist these movies had for quite some time feels really, really... It makes me feel cheated. Given more time, they could have developed the whole arc better.

->Bruce making peace with the Hulk IS exactly what should have happened to him. HOWEVER, it all happened in that short moment when the screen was black and read "five years later". That is... Not what I'd call good character development. Again, this would have needed TIME. Give him a movie. Combine his story with that of Thor. Could have been great.

-> Thor. This is the one that makes me just ANGRY, so I'm giving it it's own bullet point. Look, what happened to him completely makes sense. It also feels as if the movie hadn't taken him and his pain seriously. Like that scene in his cabin, that was totally played for laughs, and after that, they just didn't give him enough time. And I get it, there WAS NO TIME. There was just too much going on.

But people, alcoholism and PTSD are SERIOUS subjects, and if you want them there, you need to commit to write them properly. Marvel can do that, as they have proven with their Demon In A Bottle storyline, Iron Man 3 or The Incredible Hulk episode Alice In Discoland. But these are all separate stories that revolve around these themes. There is no way someone could manage a nuanced and sensitive representation in an ensemble movie that also juggles at least eight other characters and aims to close off eleven years worth of movies. There is just not enough time.

So what they should have done instead: Either make Endgame three movies, and give Thor and Bruce one where they can support each other while dealing with his trauma and the Hulk, or just leave out the entire arc. Thor's arc was finished in Thor: Ragnarok. He became king, learned to accept that his father had done many bad things and made peace with Loki. They should have left it there and only used him to drive the action forward instead of trying to have him evolve in any direction.

(In this version, the massacre at the beginning of Infinity War shouldn't have happened. Give them some more time to arrive on Earth, and than call Thor and Bruce away to fight Thanos while Loki is benched because the Asgardians need an acting king. Thor behaves more or less the way he did in Ragnarok, goes on his quest to get the axe, and Endgame is just plain different.)

- While I do enjoy a good "everything is bad AU", Endgame didn't make it work. Probably because they messed up the characters part.

- Nice call backs, though. Especially the one when they redid the Star Lord dancing in the cave scene, and than cut to Rhodey and Nebula watching him looking like a complete idiot. :D I really liked that one.

- Good action scenes. The end fight when all the dusted heroes came out of the portal and they were these dark silhouettes with a bright light behind their backs! Wheeeeeeeeeeee!!!

Conclusion: Nice movie. Not a fan. Only half achieved what it set out to do.

#marvel #avengers endgame #avengers engame spoilers #avengers endgame review #stucky

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naoyatoudo · 6 years ago

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The Protagonist Always has to have the Most Tragic Past

AO3: Here

Characters: Sakata Gintoki, Katsura Kotarou, Takasugi Shinsuke, Yoshida Shouyou

Summary:

Because we still haven't seen the full extent of how Gintoki's childhood could have affected him. Before being picked up by Shouyou, things weren't easy for him. The scars still remain, and Takasugi and Katsura take notice. A short one-shot looking back to a time before their lives fell apart, but after his had been put together again the first time.

Notes:

I wrote this two years ago...edited it a bit and my style has changed now but...I thought I might as well share it because I like it enough. Might do a multi-chaptered one soon. Haven’t written in a while...

Pale moonlight streamed through the thin rice-paper door, illuminating the light brown wood covering the floor of the room. Three boys slept on, peacefully dreaming under the full moon shining above them. Silence reigned within the room, the only sound being that of the slow deep breaths of the three children, each at most around ten or eleven years old.

Earlier that night, the room had been a rowdy mess of yelling boys and thrown practice material. Takasugi was staying at the temple school now after being kicked out of his home, with Gintoki already living there, Katsura had decided to stay the night as well instead of returning to his empty home. Every now and then the trio would have sleepovers like this, staying up late and bantering over this or that, sometimes even practicing their swordsmanship if it came to it.

This evening had been no different than any other of their frequent nights together. The three had decided to try and stay up all night as they usually attempted to, ending with Takasugi and Gintoki brawling while the longer-haired of the three put together rice balls from out of nowhere as he tended to do. Shouyou-sensei had ended up coming in later into the night, giving them all a whack on the head with a “You’re one-hundred years too early to try to stay up all night under my watch” and shooed them off to bed.

The silver-haired of them had grumbled a few choice words to his frequent frenemy laying one person away from him once he was sure their caretaker was gone-- out of all of them, Gintoki knew the best to fear the strength of their master. Katsura had been quick to silence that, though, demanding quiet so he could go to sleep and prepare for class tomorrow or he’d call in their teacher again.

That threat had certainly been enough to sway the lighter-haired child, the boy grumbling but complying as he burrowed into his futon.

All three were quick to fall asleep, the lights in the temple school disappearing as even Shouyou went to take a rest for the evening. It was a fairly warm summer night, so the children had left their sliding door open just a bit, allowing the cool night air to spill into the room.

In this otherwise peaceful atmosphere, one of the boys began to move restlessly, face scrunching up as he tossed and turned within his blankets.

“Ah…!”

Suddenly and without warning, the child bolted upright, one hand going to his left hip, a frightened yet determined look in his eyes. After a moment of heavy breathing, the boy looked around himself, taking in the environment surrounding him in the waking world, allowing the dream that had overtaken him to melt away. Noticing where his hand had reached for, he quickly snapped his arm back, holding his wrist with his other hand and looking at this companions worriedly.

Had he woken them up? Had they seen his moment of weakness? Katsura and Takasugi were the closest friends he had at the temple school, loathe as he might be to admit that out loud, but he did not want them to know about this side of him. He didn’t want anyone to know. Shouyou-sensei was the only exception, seeing as the man had been the one to pick him up originally from the battlefield. In fact, for the beginning of his stay with their master he had often woke up in a fright or lost himself in memories of fear and desperation.

Usually he would go to the man who was like a father to him to try and call down, to reassure himself that everything was alright and he had a safe home now. Gintoki had grown past that, though. There was no reason to go bother their teacher who was most assuredly sleeping, and he was old enough now to not be bothered by stupid things like bad dreams or old dredged up memories. He was learning to become a strong samurai-- he couldn’t let things like that continue to affect him so heavily.

Shaking his shaggy head of hair to clear his mind a bit, the boy spared a glance at the two laying next to him. A sigh of relief escaped him after a moment of observing their steady breathing, glad not only that he had not woken them up, but that they were still alive and well. This wasn’t a dream, this was reality. The dead were in his dreams, they weren’t real anymore. He was fine. Everything was fine.

With a huff, the red-eyed boy laid back down, pulling the covers back up over his chin. His eyes darted over towards the partially open door, staring at the serenely shining moon overhead. It was amazing, really. Whether he was among a sea of corpses or in a room with two soundly sleeping friends, the view of the moon never seemed to change. It was almost reassuring, in a way. The sky, that is. If there was one thing he could count on to let him know he was still in reality, it was the sky above, the blazing sun, the brilliant moon, the twinkling stars-- the skies in his dreams were always splattered with blood, either red or monochrome. Only by looking up, could he be certain he was awake and alive.

Sufficiently calmed now, the child turned his gaze away from the moon, body moving so he was facing the wall once more. It was still much too early to be up, so he might as well go back to trying to get some sleep. In a matter of moments, he was out once again.

On the end of the trio’s sleeping arrangement, two grassy green eyes peeked open, the young boy turned towards the open door. He had been awoken by his friend’s strangled cry, but chose to remain silent, feigning sleep as to get a better grasp of the situation. Gintoki was difficult to deal with in general and they fought often, but they were still friends. There was obviously something wrong with the silver-haired boy, and Takasugi was going to try and find out what.

Once he was sure his friend had gone back into the world of dreams, the male slowly made to turn over to face his other two companions. With careful movements, the child turned his body so that he was facing Katsura, eyes widening and holding back a scream of surprise at the brown eyes staring back at him intently.

“Zur--!” the shorter began, only to be cut off as a hand was shoved over his opened mouth.

Putting a finger up to his lips and hushing, the other boy whispered, “It’s not Zura, it’s Katsura, and be quiet. We don’t want him to wake up again, do we?”

A quick glance at the still-sleeping Gintoki and the shorter gave a nod, “I guess…” slowly sitting up so as not to make too much noise, the boy continued, “You heard him too, then.”

With his own glance towards their friend, noting the dark circles under his friend’s eyes now so prominent with the silver moonlight spilling across the other boy’s face, the more motherly boy gave a nod, “I’d never heard him sound like that before. Do you think we should get Shouyou-sensei?”

“No, he wouldn’t be happy if we did something like that. You know how pig-headed that idiot can be when it comes to dealing with things,” Takasugi gave a sigh, gesturing for his friend to sit up as well and follow him.

Silently making their way over to sit by the door as to talk a bit more freely without waking their friend up, the pair now sat with their backs to the moon, two sets of eyes watching the lone sleeping figure.

For a moment, neither spoke, each unsure of what to do or say. Katsura himself was surprised by his lack of attention when it came to the lighter-haired boy’s obvious lack of sleep. While it was true Gintoki was more than capable of pretending he were alright when he wasn’t, it seemed so obvious now that he could clearly take a look at his friend. How long had this sort of thing been going on? What was Gintoki dreaming of that would frighten him so?

For his part, Takasugi seemed just as lost in thought as Katsura. The boy seemed well and truly unsure of what to do in this situation, though obviously they would have to do something. He couldn’t very well sit back and let his rival lose sleep like this, it’d make beating him in a match too easy. His pride wouldn’t allow for it, really. That was the only reason. Definitely.

“You know...once Shouyou-sensei mentioned it to me,” the green-eyed child began, eyes staring forward as he brought to mind the memory from his earlier days at the temple school, before he had moved in.

“Mentioned what?” the other male questioned, turning his attention back to his friend and away from the worries and thoughts clouding his mind.

A bit unsure if he should share, but thinking it was a better idea than not to, the smaller continued, “He told me that Gintoki was ‘different’. It was back when I was challenging the dojo all the time.”

“Oh, you mean back when Gintoki beat you all the time?” Katsura asked with an innocent air.

Angry at the reminder of his early defeats, Takasugi forcefully whispered, “Shut up! Do you want to know what he said or not? Anyways, he told me that the reason I kept losing was because Gintoki was different, that he’d had to grow up a lot more quickly than other kids.”

“Had to grow up more quickly…?” the boy questioned, looking somewhat uneasy. He didn’t very much like the sound of that. Sure, Gintoki was tough, and he had mentioned being a nomad with Shouyou-sensei, but what could his life have been with before meeting the caring man they all had been picked up by?

“Shinsuke, Kotarou,” a familiar voice spoke lightly behind the boys’ turned backs, two fists coming down to rest hard enough on their heads to hurt, but not enough to drive them into the ground as per usual, “What do you think you’re doing? You’re one-hundred years too early to think you can stay up all night with me around.”

Each holding their now aching head, the pair looked up, “S-Shouyou-sensei…!”

“Now, what is it you two were talking about...and why is it only Gintoki is still asleep, hm?”

His frighteningly kind smile paired with the parental tone of voice, that which might make him seem as if he were the most gentle of adults, were enough to scare the two boys still awake into explaining everything in a whispered rush. Tumbling over each other’s words, the children explained how they had, in fact, been sleeping, truly they had, but Gintoki had woken up with a scream at one point and they had been curious and concerned (Katsura admitted it, Takasugi claiming once again it was merely for the sake of fairness in his sparring) about their friend.

Listening carefully with his arms crossed, the man waited before they were finished before making a move to answer. A small sigh escaped him, the teacher gesturing for the two to come outside with him, “Why don’t we discuss this outside then, so we don’t wake him up, hm?”

Both children gave a nod, quietly padding after their adult figure and taking a seat on the porch ledge on either side of him. For a moment, they merely sat in the summer night, the two boys looking at Shouyou who was looking down at the small pond in the yard, the full moon reflected clearly upon its surface.

Although he spoke in more than a whisper, the man’s voice remained far on the more quiet side as he began, “So it still happens, does it? I should have expected a stubborn child like Gintoki to keep it from me. That boy really thinks he can do everything on his own.”

“What do you mean, sensei?” Katsura asked, urging for the other to continue in his explanation.

Turning a smile to them, the man spoke, “Although you might not believe me, Gintoki is not my biological son. He was the first child I picked up, we met a while ago before we came to this town,” he began.

“Uh, no, I think it’s pretty obvious you two aren’t related. You look absolutely nothing alike,” Takasugi cut-in, giving the elder man an incredulous look.

“Yes, we do have some similarities despite not looking alike, don’t we? He’s been trying to model himself after me, I think,” the teacher continued, now shifting to give the other boy his attention.

“No, I’m not saying you’re alike in personality, I’m saying absolutely nothing about you is alike.”

Steadfastly pretending he couldn’t hear that, Shouyou went on, “That boy and I met by chance. The village I was staying in at the time had mentioned there was a corpse-eating demon haunting the nearby battlefield, slaying anyone and everyone who dared to disturb it,” he chronicled, gaze looking off far away. Although he had turned to look across the yard, it seemed as though he weren’t seeing the familiar greenery of their home, but rather the far off days of the past.

“You’re just ignoring me now, aren’t you?” the green-eyed child questioned, a bit annoyed with how this conversation was going.

Curious dark eyes looked up at the man, “A corpse-eating demon? You can’t mean Gintoki was--”

A nod and a small laugh, “That’s right. The people had mistaken a lonely child stripping corpses for food as a demon. It was silly of them, really, but they had probably never seen a child that looks like Gintoki does-- much less one who could use a sword like him.”

Although he understood why some may be surprised by Gintoki’s hair and eye color, Katsura couldn’t comprehend why the boy’s swordsmanship would cause alarm, “I don’t understand, do they not have samurai schools where you found him?”

Shaking his head at the question, the adult replied, “No, it’s not that he could use a sword. You see, when I found him, Gintoki was completely alone. He did not have any adult looking over him, there were only copses and crows as far as he could see. He didn’t even have a name, that child...he actually drew his sword on me when we met, shaking but stained in blood…likely from those who had attacked him before...” trailing off, the other seemed to be lost in his memories.

“Sensei…?” Takasugi prodded, snapping the man from his thoughts.

Smile returning to his face, the grey-eyed male continued, “Ah, you know, despite how he is now, Gintoki would rarely speak when we first met. I actually thought I’d have to teach him how to speak, even though he could easily understand what I said,” he gave a laugh.

“Huh, really? How did he go from that into the obnoxious perm-head we have today,” the green-eyed boy questioned, though it was more rhetorical than anything.

A hand was placed on his head, roughly messing up his bangs with more force than necessary, “Now, now, I’d say it’s a big improvement. It took a lot of coaxing and learning to get him to where he is today.”

“Ow! Sensei, my bangs-- it hurts! It hurts!” the child squawked, attempting to shove the hand away from his head.

Katsura was frowning, looking back at their still-sleeping companion, “So...you’re saying before you met him, Gintoki was wandering alone on battlefields, fighting adults who attacked him?”

Removing his hand from Takasugi’s head, the child now holding the sore hairline left behind, Shouyou gave a nod, “Although I don’t know exactly what happened to him before I met him, I can tell you this: You two are different. Shinsuke, you left your family, but despite being disowned, you had parents for a time. Kotarou, although your family died when you were young, you still had your grandmother for a bit. Gintoki had nothing. He once told me he couldn’t remember having anyone care about him before he met me. He was wandering around battlefields and fighting to survive for as long as he could remember,” he explained, a certain sadness weighing heavily on his words.

The children remained quiet for a moment, mulling over his words. Takasugi was the first to speak, “Well, then it’s fine now, isn’t it? Like you said, he met you.”

Surprised by these words, the teacher looked at the two with an unreadable expression, not having expected such a response.

“That’s right, and he has us now as well,” Katsura agreed, nodding his head.

Smile breaking through, Shouyou beamed at the pair, “That’s right, he has all of us now, doesn’t he? We’ll have to remind him of that as often as we can then!”

From inside the room, one red eye opened a slit, staring at the three laughing idiots with something akin to fondness.

#Gintama #sakata gintoki #katsura kotarou #takasugi shinsuke #yoshida shouyou #my writing

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osmw1 · 5 years ago

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Crowbar Nurse Chapter 6 — What Gives an Engineer Superhuman Strength?

—Why did my body feel so nimble?

Just exactly how did my body change…?

As I ran at the group of zombies, I questioned how impossibly agile I was, considering I had just finished working overtime.

It’s almost like I’m actually Sera Harvey.

I wasn’t able to leap over buildings or anything crazy like that, but it’s not like Sera was able to do so in the game either. Plus, the controls in DMC games are typical of most horror games in that the characters walk quite sluggishly. I suppose it’s more frightening this way. Being able to run like this is more than good enough for me. I prepared myself for the worst as I headed straight at the enemies. I knew this was already an uphill battle.

There’s only one way out… we’re going to do it and do it well! First, I’ve got to get the Tank to fire…!

The Tank fired a high-explosive shell as soon as I got within range. The shell traveled many times over the speed of sound and was heading directly at me. … however, the projectile impacted and detonated quite a distance away from where I was.

Perfect… it’s just like how it works in game!

With the Tank being a zombie, its slow lumbering movement did not help it track its target. The Tank is almost guaranteed to never accurately land its first shot. And muck like a real Tank, it would be unpleasant for anything standing immediately next to the gun, to say the least. The muzzle blast went straight into the surrounding zombies and they were all destroyed… the Minotaur took a huge hit as well. Everything is going just as I planned, save for one thing.

Augh! Don’t tell me I got caught too…!

A sharp pain shot through my body. I collapsed on the spot as the pain torn through me from the inside out. Before I had collapsed, the tank zombie fired another few shots… but I wouldn’t still be here if I had been hit by it. The situation was taking a turn for the worse.

“Gah… ugh…!”

Breathing was a lot harder than I remembered. … something must have happened to my lungs. My diaphragm and other muscles were functioning as they should, but I couldn’t breathe very well. The shockwave must have punctured my lungs.

I-I can’t move… crap. I can’t fight like this!

I thought the only tactic was to get the enemies to kill themselves, and honestly, that part worked alright… but I didn’t expect to receive this much damage either.

In the game, the blast radius is about 10 meters, but I’ve heard it’s much smaller compared to real life. Maybe I had misjudged my distance. I sure hope I didn’t receive a real Tank’s gun blast…

“Sera!”

Kiryū rushed over in fear. The Tank is still alive. It was dangerous for him to come over here… but I’m sure he knew that already. Just as I realized he had tossed me some recovery items, he turned to face the Tank with his crowbar.

Oh, that’s not a good idea. You can’t take down a Tank with a crowbar…

The pain seared through me again, leaving me unable to speak. I writhed in pain as the blood-soaked Kiryū came back with his blood-stained crowbar.

“Good thing it was pretty weak already… hey, use the healing items already! What, are you feeling too weak to use it yourself? Jeez… you okay? Do you recognize me?”

I faintly nodded at his question.

“Aw, jeez… I haven’t used any healing items in this game before, so I don’t quite know how to use ‘em… how about this bottle? Should I just sprinkle it over your body?”

I shook my head. That bottle… or rather, that vial in his hand has a rubber cap over the end of it. It’s so that you can’t open it by hand. You need a syringe to utilize it. For some reason, the protagonist spawns with a syringe—I did not. There’s a hospital section afterwards, so maybe I’ve gotta get one there.

“Hmm, how about these herbs then? What do I do with them? Can I just cram it in your mouth?” “…”

…

… hmm?

Umm, maybe?

I’ve never seen it being used in game before. In the game, you open the menu, select Items, select Medicinal Herbs, then select Yes when it asks Do you want to use this item?. Since it’s never shown how the protagonist uses the herb… I don’t have the slightest idea what to do with it. I’m not sure what Kiryū thought when he saw my expression, but he stuffed the whole plant in my mouth.

“Mm… ugh…”

A handsome youth ramming a handful of lawn clippings into a sweet, young girl’s mouth… this must’ve looked much worse than it actually was. Would this really heal my internal trauma?! Almost as if answering the question… a miracle occurred.

“Ugh…?!”

A refreshing tingling sensation rushed through my body as if I had been immersed in menthol. All the pain and breathing problems affecting me had disappeared instantaneously.

“… how does this world work…”

I spat the ball of herb out from my mouth.

“Those medicinal herbs worked as quickly as sublingual tablets…” “Let me know once you figure this world out…”

He heaved a sigh as I sat up from the ground. Kiryū, still sitting there, was dripping with blood… but none of it seemed to be his own—all of it was just splattered from the enemies.

“You took down the Minotaur and Tank without so much a scratch… that’s incredible, Kiryū.” “All I did was hit and run. You had weakened the Tank already and the Minotaur smoked itself with the gas turbine exhaust.”

He says it had gone so smoothly only because I charged in with all my courage.

“No, but still, you’re way too strong even with all things considered. … you’re probably the real one-man army here. Really, thank you so much for saving me… but I can’t help but feel like I’ve lost all my confidence.”

I forced a smile. Kiryū—a total beginner—had to save me. And I even boasted about how “I know this game like the back of my hand”.

“That was just a fluke. Don’t even get me started on how scary it was fighting enemies that could kill me in one hit…”

He urges us to hurry to a safe zone, to which I nodded with all my might. I was in absolute, 100% agreement. Since we’ve just taken down some special zombies, there shouldn’t be a mob for the next little while. Nevertheless, another Tank or Minotaur might show up if we were to take our sweet time. Drastic times call for drastic measures.

Drastic measures.

“… looks like we will have to grind for those levels after all.” “Hey, now. Did you forget you were at the brink of death, Sera? If we kill too many zombies and get too powerful, more of those special ones are going to spawn, right?” “I haven’t forgotten. That was… humiliating. If we were to avoid every single fight, there will be too many of them before we can react.” “I mean, I guess…” “Trust me.”

I’ve played this game so much, I can literally beat it with a plastic bottle as my only weapon. I’m a beast. Yet, I just showed Kiryū just how unreliable I was. It was absolutely shameful.

“We’ll make sure to be ready for next time. I’ll build us an unstoppable army from hell…”

I slowly stood up from the ground.

“… what’s that about an army?”

He seemed confused as he stood up with me.

“That’s right, an unstoppable army from hell. Even if I can’t level up in this game, there’s many other ways we can win. Don’t worry… I’ll turn these streets of downtown into a safe zone, like a garden that you can stroll through without a so much a care…” “I couldn’t care less about a garden. Let’s just calm down and plan our next moves.”

Kiryū, with a wry smile on his face, rolled his neck.

“That’s our destination, right?” “Ah, yes. We have almost reached the beginning of the stage. It’s my first time backtracking like this. It feels a little odd…”

As we twist and turn through the narrow alleyways, another new enemy creeped across our path.

—It was a Heart.

That wasn’t a metaphor for anything. The zombie was about four times the size of a yoga ball. Tentacles scrawl from the monster in the shape of a literal heart. I don’t remember what its actual name is. That’s how unimportant they are.

“Shit. We’ve used up all the herbs earlier…!” “We’ll be fine. That thing may look gross, but it is only ‘slightly stronger’ than the average zombie. We’ve got more than enough firepower to take it down…”

I walked in front of Kiryū. He looked anxious, but he seemed to calm down when we made eye contact.

“Could you please lend me your crowbar?” “It’s all sticky from the blood. You okay with that?” “I’ll be fine after wiping it with my skirt. This will be an easy fight… I used to kill a whole bunch of these things before my anatomy tests… so watch closely, okay?”

I took a few big swings with the crowbar.

“—Let do it. We’ve got to!”

“Whew. That was a good workout! The heart is a complicated organ with lots of specific parts to remember. I couldn’t have passed my exams without the help of these guys!”

I listed out each artery by name as I bashed away with the crowbar before returning the crowbar to the blood-soaked Kiryū. I could imagine him thinking I’m some sort of psychopath giving a lecture on the human heart.

“Are all nurses like this…?”

I ignored his flabbergasted comment at me. Then, crossed the now navigable street and hurried to the Vital Watch.

“… let me just correct you that no, not all nurses are ‘like this’.”

“I don’t think you’ll find many female nurses who love blasting hellish monsters to giblets with a BFG.” “A BFG… don’t tell me you mean the Big Fucking Gun, the most powerful weapon from Doom…? I don’t think many people in Japan know what a BFG is… man, you’re hardcore.”

We finally reached the beginning of the game, even with us chatting. There were small two-story shops and the glass from their display windows lining the street. The alleys around here were a little wider, but many of them were blocked off by fallen utility poles and crumbled walls. Here was also where the army (though I don’t know which nation’s army, so it’s hard to make a joke here) faced off with the zombies.

“Oh, look, there are herbs over there. I’mma go grab ‘em.”

Kiryū walked from planter to planter to pluck the herbs from them.

There’s dirt falling out of his pockets…

The absolute beauty of a man contrasted his overflowing pockets like a bad joke. But those herbs saved my life earlier. I’m can’t exactly tell him to “cut it out because you look super lame” either.

Speaking of which, I’d like pockets of my own too. I’d like to have herbs readily accessible. Or at least a pocket big enough to fit my phone… too many dresses nowadays forgo pockets to focus on “showing off your perfect lines”. It’s honestly really inconvenient.

“… or maybe a drink would be nice too.”

Nothing beats a good drink after work.

“Hmm? A drink?”

Kiryū stood up as he looked at me. He must have heard my mumbling.

“Yes, I would love one. Ugh. You just need a frosty can of beer after working overtime. But instead, I was sent over here with no beer at all. Just my luck.” “That’s… unfortunate. I don’t think you’ll find any here. Once you we get back to our world, you can get your fill of booze.”

Scratching his cheek, he tepidly tried to console me, but I wasn’t about to give up so easily.

“No, I might get the chance. One of the healing items in this game is an alcoholic drink.” “Huh. If we find them, then yeah, that could happen.” “That’s exactly right. I wonder if there are any lying around… whoa, hey! Look!” “… that’s way too convenient…”

I ignored Kiryū as I filled my hands with alcohol and my heart with joy. I popped off the top and took a swig.

“Ahh, that hits the spot!” “You nurses sure love your drink… and are you sure about drinking something you picked up off the ground?”

He doubted me with a tilt of the neck, but I laughed in response.

“I’m sure. Absolutely sure. We picked up those herbs lying on the side of the street too, right? Same difference. And plus, I haven’t even finished working overtime and I was dragged into this adventure. I deserve this.” “… well, I guess so.” “Right?”

Down the gullet the liquor goes.

“There’s a real interesting part in this game too. You get a lot of health back from booze, but if you drink too much…” “What happens?” “… you puke it back out. Bleeeghhh!” “Oh, you’ve gotta be shitting me.”

■The back blast of gas turbine engines

Just a quick tidbit from the author. After weapons like rocket launchers and tanks guns fire, there will be a blast of extremely hot gas. Being within 30 meters of the back blast will guarantee injury if not death. The heat will roast you to a delicious crisp. So, if you ever see one in real life, try to keep distance. Now that’s a top tip that will ensure your chance of survival. (Not that you would normally have the chance to get up close to an operating tank in Japan anyway.)

contents: /ch001/ /ch002/ /ch003/ /ch004/ /ch005/ /ch006/ /next/

(leave me a tip on Patreon?)

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shitsuji-hcs · 6 years ago

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Elizabeth Midford, Dull Swords: Part 1, Building a fight scene

Despite Black Butler’s massive popularity as an anime and manga, by film standards the movie falls far beyond what the fandom would have expected. The first live action was received with heavy negative criticism and it would seem that ‘Book of the Atlantic’ fell somewhat in the same way. In less than two weeks of the Japanese release and the three days of US release the film earned less than $5,000,000 combined - in comparison, the highest grossing film of the year, ‘Detective Conan: Crimson Love Letter’ earned $11,749,652 alone on its opening weekend.

These two movies can’t be compared, due to the huge differences in the plots and narratives yet… Black Butler’s production team could learn a thing or two. The greatest fault in ‘BOTA’ was its “so-so” action, that was also said to be a fault in the previous movie. Knowing this, I’d like to analyse Elizabeth’s famous fight scene and look into why the series has been known for poor action scenes despite the great action depicted in the manga.

Long post so the rest is under the cut.

For anyone who would like to watch the fight as they read the analysis, the full fight is linked here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LfH_MLe7jI

An important thing to know about writing fight scenes is that a fight alone is not interesting. It is the weight behind that fight that makes things interesting. Superheroes fight to save the world and villains fight to accomplish their own goals. The start of this fight is not interesting because it begins with Grell wanting to fight simply for the sake of fighting - this is just Grell’s character. We know that one of her main roles in the series is to block Ciel and Sebastian from attaining their goal. Our protagonists, Ciel, Sebastian and Elizabeth want to avoid this fight instead, giving us more of a reason as to why this fight should be done with as soon as possible. This fight does however have one purpose - leading up to Elizabeth’s exposition as the swordswoman she is.

When creating a fight scene, interest is added by raising the stakes - the more danger there is of losing something, the greater the emotional payoff and tension - each fight should be a gamble that makes us feel that the characters we root for have to win. Even if they’re bound to lose, the chance that they should win should at least tempt us. Toboso changes this with how she portrays Sebastian.

Usually when Sebastian engages in battle, we expect him to win every fight, since he’s put forward as this amazing force that always succeeds his tasks. Fighting against two reapers should mean nothing to him. Yet, the extra baggage of protecting two children raises a problem. By separating them, Toboso then creates the possibility of “only one can survive” - Sebastian would choose Ciel in priority over Elizabeth. In this instance, we start to fear that Elizabeth is in danger.

Given that Ciel would “do anything to protect his fiancee”, we trust that he’ll be able to reach out to Elizabeth in her time of need. With an injured leg, Ciel is then rendered useless in his state. The fact that Ciel is pictured as further away from Elizabeth in the manga, shown by how Ciel is not in the frame, highlights her vulnerability against the Dolls that are drawn enormously in comparison to her size. Not only is he unable to protect her, but he’s unable to protect himself if Sebastian can’t shake the reapers off of him.

In the film, Ciel is pictured relatively close to her, removing this aspect of fear for Elizabeth’s state. The film makes it seem as if either one of them was able to stand, they could make it to each other in less than a few seconds. Since the idea that Ciel will always protect Elizabeth has been referred to in the film numerous times already, we believe that if she makes it to him he’ll do what he can to protect her. While one may argue that this puts Ciel in danger as well, Sebastian could come in soon and save the both of them - the distance between them in the manga is important in exaggerating that the matter of a second could literally result in Elizabeth’s death.

The manga shows her sluggish movements to get up while Ciel calls out to her quite well, since the distance between her and the Bizarre Dolls is much closer to make it seem as if they’re closer to grabbing her than they really are.

The fact that when the camera cuts to Elizabeth as she’s already propped herself up removes the aspect of vulnerability that’s shown in the manga. The way that the film only shows their legs in the foreground does play with the whole compositing of the scene, making them look larger than they are, but it ends up losing the sense of urgency that the manga had as they seem close enough to touch her.

In the manga, we don’t see Ciel whip out his gun and cut straight to him shooting. This already is far more effective than how in the film we see him pull the gun out (rather slowly considering the situation) and then shoot. This panel is effective as it shows the speed of his fire - he wants to kill them as fast as he can and the futility in it shows it. The film only shows the first shot then switches to focus on Ciel shooting, rather than the targets he’s aiming at. To improve this, perhaps a shot showing his perspective as he watches Elizabeth try to scramble away with his shaking hands in the frame as shoots would be more effective.

Not to mention that as the first Doll lunges to bite Elizabeth, for some reason it gets launched sideways instead of being fired back by the force of Ciel’s gun. If you slow it down enough it even looks as if the image of the Doll being shot was just dragged across the screen instead of actually flopping from the force of the shot.

The next image of Ciel shooting is relatively basic. The team might as well have just made a gif of Ciel shooting those three shots or so and it could look the same. There lacks any variation in those few moments that we see. Comparatively, the single image in the manga of Ciel shooting at the horde without showing the Dolls being killed right before Elizabeth is much more effective. It’s made evident in the manga that this boy is in full panic as we see the large group towering over Elizabeth, once again with the distance exaggerated as much smaller to create the sense of danger. The open space around Ciel in the film also takes away from how much tension there was in the manga - while you can argue that this shows his isolation, having this sort of shot in this perspective loses the image of danger that threatens Elizabeth.

In the manga, we truly see Ciel’s terror as he realises that his gun is out of bullets because of the closeness of the panel and the tightness of the frame which follows the positioning of his arms. Not to mention how the gun is so centred in the panel, showing how it’s the centre of his focus.

Ciel’s expression in the manga shows fear by a wider mouth and the more dramatic shading over his face. In the film, his expression is much more frustrated. This choice is obviously understandable. It’s a pretty shot and all, but it does take away from some of the drama because the position is far less dynamic.

The sequence of events leading up to Elizabeth’s reveal changes, which arguably makes it less effective. In the manga, switching perspectives between Sebastian, Elizabeth and Ciel adds to the chaotic nature of this scene. Everyone has different opponents but they all need to survive. Seeing Sebastian dash towards Elizabeth emphasises that even he might not be able to save her, shown by how close the Dolls hands are to Elizabeth. The manga is able to use action lines to show and highlight the focal point of each panel. Such a thing would be harder to animate. Though used heavily in sports anime like ‘Haikyuu’ and ‘Ballroom e Youkoso’, in a setting such a ‘Black Butler’ which tries for elegant and refined style, rather than artistic interpretation, these sort of lines don’t fit as well.

Arguably, the most important part for this build-up is how Ciel reacts to believing his fiancee is about to die before his eyes. The order of focus is especially important in this. In the film, Elizabeth starts to talk, turning around just as the feet of the Dolls come into frame. This is a relatively good shot. Here, the director chose to show Elizabeth’s vulnerability more by emphasising the height disadvantage. On the floor, she lacks the escape means. In the manga, she may be sitting down, but the danger is shown in the form of hands. What the film shows is the immense force that is about to strike down on top of her. The manga does this as well, but I would give this a pass.

On the other hand, the manga highlights the panic that the both of them feel in this situation. In the film, Elizabeth is already smiling as she talks to Ciel, and then we see Ciel’s reaction, rather than how Ciel in the manga realises first and then we see Elizabeth’s struggle to hold in her tears. The film chose to show Elizabeth in a state of acceptance, which again is very powerful, making the audience think that she’s resigned to her death.

Ciel’s expression in the film is much more akin to anger, a frustration in how he’s unable to save her. The manga’s choice shows Ciel in absolute fear - the lack of colour serves to dramatise this as well. Black Butler is known for beautiful eyes and just zooming in on the empty look of Ciel’s eyes shows the rawness of his fear. His gentler brow also serves towards showing more fear than the sharper brow in the film. This, coupled with the echoed gasp and sound effect, adds to the hollow feeling that Ciel would feel upon realising the possible fate of Elizabeth.

Once again, the lack of colour in the manga adds to the dramatic panic felt in this scene. During the entire scene, Elizabeth’s blazer was coloured black, as well as her eyelashes - pretty much everything has been turned to greys. As she cries over how she can’t be cute anymore, the softened lines serve to show her in the last angelic moment that she may well have. At this point, it’s hard to tell what are water droplets and what are tears as they run down her face. Her innocence is also highlighted by lighter eyes and shaded cheeks and lips in contrast to her tangled mess of hair. This is the last image that Ciel may see of his beautiful feminine fiancee.

I have less complaints about the image of her in the film. The camera panning up to her crying face emphasises how delicate she is while also keeping the Dolls in the background to keep their threat important. There’s far less detail and her eyes are drawn wonkily, but at least they tried to make this dramatic with the camera movement.

Sebastian finally manages to escape Ronald with simple movements, but that can be forgiven since he isn’t the focal point. Instead, we have the image of him running to save Elizabeth, but all that can be seen of her is her dress between the legs of the Dolls. At this point, the film tells you that it’s all over for her.

I don’t want to pick up on this, but the way that Sebastian runs here makes me think of the spider gif. It really is a downer to what is a good scene but it had to be said. If this gif doesn’t work when I post it I’ll start crying.

Another flaw I’d point out would be Ciel’s final reach out to Elizabeth. The way this is done in the film feels far too smooth, rather than carnal and desperate - how one would normally react in absolute panic. It’s more like a dramatic flourish that someone would do in a high school play. Of course, his expression of panic is still great. Wide mouthed in a choked/silent scream. If this was animated with a greater sense of urgency, there’d be less of a problem here.

Frame tightness is especially important for the drama of this scene - the manga frame is tight and barely shows Ciel’s full face. This can symbolise how trapped he feels in not being able to do anything. His under eyes are also heavily shaded to show his distress. The open spaces and use of the background feels inappropriate for the close seriousness of the situation. The manga also showcases a look with greater desperation as we see how things are from Elizabeth’s eyes - her fiance screaming for her is the last image that she’d see.

The fact that we see Elizabeth once again as the shadows of the Dolls close up on her is a really good directorial choice. Here the camera’s closeness to Elizabeth’s form works. It almost feels as if she’s saying goodbye to her audience instead, the tighter frame making us form a more personal connection with her, making up for the lesser emotion that Ciel was drawn in beforehand. In opposition to the reactions of Ciel and Sebastian who see that they’re too late in the manga, having Elizabeth listen as her fiancee screams her name in darkness is really well done.

The blackness that fills the screen is just as effective as in the manga to make one think that Elizabeth’s finally been killed. Letting this ring for two seconds gives the audience a chance to think that a death really has occurred. For an audience member who hasn’t read the manga, this would be effective enough to make them think for a second that she’s gone. These few seconds are good and there’s little I would change and I’m glad that the director actually chose to do this. This blackness serves as an equivalent to the page turn and makes it even more surprising when we realise what happens next.

As pernickety as this analysis has gotten over the build up, it’s important to look at it because this is how fights are built up. You don’t start out in any martial arts match with the massive axe kicks and what not. Tension is built up in every fight, whether an official match or in a fictional setting, by the fighters raring up to the bigger scenes instead of coming out with them straight away. Toboso wrote the build up to Elizabeth’s revelation well, which is why this had so much of a reaction for Japanese readers - far greater than Grell’s reintroduction.

Now, despite all that we’ve looked in to so far… we’ve only scraped six or so pages - 30 seconds if you want to talk about it in the films terms. You can see clearly that there are some great points that the film has done well to adapt the manga. It can also be seen that there are some areas of the film which are “so-so” because it lacks the same depth that the manga does.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this scene alone. I will be getting to the rest of the fight direction, where I believe things start to decline, but I can’t give too much away right now.

#black butler #kuroshitsuji #elizabeth midford #ciel phantomhive #sebastian michaelis #about black butler tag #mod sen

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writing-ideas-inc · 7 years ago

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Hello! Me again. A while back I asked about flow writing, and I'm still having that problem but now I'm also having a huge struggle slowly putting in information about my world, meeting characters and giving a relationship about those characters. It's the pacing that's getting me now. Thank you!

☆Hey! Sorry for the wait, but I had each of the mods answer your question, so you'll have lots of different advice☆ Oh gosh, I’ve struggled with too! One of the things I’ve done to help with that is to not use list like to describe, like: when he first saw her, he was struck by her big blue eyes, long blond hair, and bright smile. A way to help with that is for the character to notice little things over a period of time, like: she laughed softly, hiding a her beautiful smile behind a hand like she were self conscious of herself. And for environment, I’d say it’s also about mentioning stuff over time. Like if it were a big city, you could mention how the buildings tower over you, and maybe mention the flow of people. How I think about it is, you’re painting a portrait, it takes steps and lots of time, like you wouldn’t paint the skin and the eyes at the same time because the paint would mix if you didn’t let it dry first. And for pacing, I’d just let the story flow and see where it gets you. Every story is different and none are ever the pace, some move faster, and some move as slow as ice melting, it’s all about personal preference!~ Bubs (@ruddiestbubbles) Hi there! Putting in expository information (information about background, characters, and the world that doesn’t have to do with the immediate plot but which provides necessary context) can be tricky, especially because no one wants to read blocks and blocks of exposition. If you’re dealing with a fantasy or dystopia, some people go with prologues to set up the backstory of the world. This is especially applicable if there’s some specific event that happened before your plot’s timeframe that you want to have the readers know about but can’t fit into the story anywhere. Also in these genres, some authors include glossaries with character information. Nevernight by Jay Kristoff uses footnotes to add snarkily written pieces of worldbuilding that, because they’re funny, don’t come off as exposition. Also you can set it up so that as the characters discover it, the reader discovers it. This is how Tolkein sort of does it in the Lord of the Rings, and it’s effective because we discover it with Frodo. For relationships between characters, I recommend strong dialogue. Do your best to show your characters talking to one another and doing things for one another so that we as readers have evidence for their good relationship. Having them ask one another questions about themselves (as it’s relevant to the plot) is also a good way for them to reveal expository things about themselves. Telling us “Suzy got along with Adam” is not nearly as effective as writing a scene where Adam has a problem and Suzy helps him out with it. Hope this helps!~ Gloria (@gloriawriting) Sneaking in exposition and information about your character’s world can be really tricky. You never want to dump a lot of info on your reader all at once. You want to trickle tidbits of information throughout the story. Have your character notice small things about their world. Maybe they meet someone dressed in heavy furs and robes; that could tell them the person lives in a colder climate. Maybe your world is more of an underdeveloped one with people scattered about in small groups. Your character could make observations about having to find shelter from animals and harsh weather, or rarely ever seeing one other person, let alone a group of people. The main idea is to keep the information scattered throughout your story and mentioned casually when it makes sense. If it’s information another character has that is crucial to the plot, then it will probably receive a little more attention. Your characters should not only stand out from each other, but they should have their own voice, and their own specific purpose in your story. Ask yourself; “What is this character’s point? Why do I need them in my story?” It doesn’t always have to be something profound. Maybe you need a character to be there to support your protagonist. But if you can’t think of a reason for your character to be there and are having trouble really developing relationships between them and your other characters, it might be time to cut them out.Understandably, developing relationships between characters can be hard. Think about how your characters will treat each other and act around each other. Again, it’s the small actions that can show a lot about a character. If you have two characters who have known each other for a long time, chances are there’s going to be a lot of trust between those two. They may share inside jokes, or be more affectionate towards each other. Their body language around each other will be more open and relaxed; they might be used to giving friendly hugs or touches on the arm. On the other hand, if you have two characters who have just met, things are going to be very different. How they treat each other often depends on how they’ve met, and remember that even acquaintances on friendly terms will not trust each other with everything right off the bat. There’s going to be a period of the characters finding out more about one another, and learning how to act around each other. Unless a new character is part of a major plot point, meeting them should not take very long in your story. When pacing your book, you want to keep everything balanced, be it dialogue and narrative, or action and peace. Give your readers something to keep them hooked, then let them rest for a little bit. If you’re having trouble deciding how to pace the plot as a whole, I’d highly recommend looking into the Hero’s Journey. The “Hero’s Journey” is the cycle almost every novel follows, and it helps build up each part of the plot to lead into the next part. It generally goes that your protagonist is the hero, and they have their own version of comfort at the beginning of the story (what is usual to them/how they usually live). Then something happens that disrupts their usual life, and they must embark on a journey because of this event. Along the way there are a number of obstacles they must endure before they reach the climax of the story, the main “fight”. It might help you a lot to divide up your story like the “Hero’s Journey”, and then decide what parts are more important and should take up a larger chunk of your story, and what parts should take up smaller chunks of the story.~Carolyn (@theories-fans-andwombats)

#Ask #information #story development #pacing #all mods #Writing tips #writing tip #writing advice #writing help #creative writing #creative writing help #book advice

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theamazingsallyhogan · 7 years ago

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Star Wars: The Last Jedi

I don’t enjoy going on about things I dislike – it’s more fun talking about things you enjoy.

But I keep seeing articles implying that the only people that dislike The Last Jedi are diversity-phobic members of the Alt Right and some dusty old nitpicky nerds that hate anything new. So as a someone that doesn’t fit into either of those boxes: I disliked the movie. A lot.

Let’s look at Rey first. Now, The Last Jedi isn’t The Empire Strikes Back, and shouldn’t be judged as a remake of that movie, but for the sake of comparing a trilogy to a similar trilogy it’s worth taking a moment to compare where Luke was at this part of the original Star Wars: when he abandoned his training with Yoda, we were shown that nothing was more important to Luke than Leia and the others. In contrast, Rey cares about “The Resistance,” but barely spares a thought for individual members. She doesn’t even meet Poe until near the end. I’m not saying that they needed to slavishly copy the original, but damn, the emotional connection between the members of the “new trinity” is frankly bordering on nonexistent. Rey doesn’t rush off to rescue any actual friends; she ditches Luke to save Kylo, i.e. the guy that literally tortured her.

At the end of Empire, we saw that Luke would be going against apparently impossible odds in the third movie, because when he fought Vader he lost so resoundingly it cost him a hand. Comparing that setup to Rey and Kylo Ren… Ren is a joke. Rey defeated him at the end of The Force Awakens, and trounced him so badly in The Last Jedi that the scene of her knocking him unconscious wasn’t even considered important enough to show. We’re shown Rey debating whether or not to fight him, then Hux walking in to find Kylo unconscious. The only reason he’s still alive is Rey inexplicably took pity on a guy that thinks it’s awesome to destroy entire populated solar systems.

Which brings us to the next comparison. The big revelation at the end of Empire Strikes Back raised the emotional stakes even further – Luke not only had to defeat “Darth Vader,” he had to wrestle with a lifetime of emotional baggage since Vader turned out to be his own long-lost father. Their conflict was given an emotional charge. Meanwhile Rey and Kylo are given some sort of connection, but… why? Why does she give a damn about the guy that tortured her, slaughtered countless innocents, and murdered a man she was starting to see as a father figure? There’s no justifiable explanation for it. Rey feels an emotional connection and deep-seated need to redeem a genocidal maniac, for no good reason.

The big revelation about Rey’s past turned out to be that there’s no big revelation in Rey’s past. Now, I can see where people are coming from when they say that it’s an interesting subversion, but in conjunction with everything else that’s going on it just cements how isolated Rey is from the rest of the cast. There is nothing of significance linking her to any character beyond her interactions with Finn in the first movie – interactions so neglected in the second movie that I would characterize their friendship as being abandoned to rot by the director. The two characters barely said anything to one another. Throw in that that we’ve established Kylo doesn’t represent a physical threat to her and the stakes could hardly be lower for her going in to the third movie. Maybe the revelation could’ve worked in the final movie, but here it just pours sand in the narrative’s gastank.

But Rey still fared better than poor Finn. Poor poor Finn, who would’ve been of way more use to the Rebels if he’d just stayed in a coma. I hate typing that, but it’s true. The entire subplot with Finn and Rose was a bad joke: they failed their mission to sabotage the First Order’s tracker, their mission turned out to be unnecessary to the Resistance because Vice Admiral Holdo had her own plan to avoid the tracker, but in a twist Finn and Rose managed to fail so spectacularly that not only were they unable to implement their own plan but they also tipped off the First Order about Holdo’s plan. Finn’s contribution to the plot was getting the Resistance nearly wiped out. Poe shoulders some blame there too of course, meaning that two of the three main heroes would’ve been more helpful to their side if they’d just died in the opening scenes.

Of course there’s so much failure in this movie that there’s plenty to go around – special mention has to go to Vice Admiral Holdo, who set the problem in motion by deciding not to share the information about her plan, instead thinking it was a good idea to let her soldiers think that her plan was to have them meekly try to fly away from the bad guys and get slaughtered without even putting up a fight. Star Wars has had a lot of incompetent military leaders, but that blunder has to take the cake. Holdo of course redeemed herself a bit by ramming her ship into the Star Destroyer at lightspeed, a moment that should leave folks scratching their heads and wondering “if you can take out the biggest ship in the First Order’s fleet by having a ship with only one person on it go to lightspeed, why isn’t that something the Resistance is doing all the time? And why was that a last-minute addendum to her plan, and not a key component all along?”

I’m sure people characterize this as finicking fun-hating nerd nitpicking, but honestly, they’re shown us that one person can pilot a ship in a way that instantly turns it into a Death Star-level superweapon. The major threat in the movie is the Star Destroyer that was very slowly giving chase, and Rian Johnson resolved that threat by saying that actually the good guys had literally been sitting on a solution the whole time and just never used it. It’s not a minor detail, it’s the resolution to the threat that loomed over the course of the whole movie. And why did the slightly-smaller Rebel battleships that got blown up earlier never ramming? Why has nobody in any Star Wars movie ever tried to ram another ship at lightspeed if it’s effectively a one-shot-kill? Resolving the major threat in the movie by saying that there’s been a war-ending weapon at everyone’s fingertips the whole time, over the course of several movies, that nobody ever used, with no reason for not using it, is bad writing. To put it mildly.

I’ve heard people saying that the Poe-and-Holdo tension was meant to tell us something, but what? Young people should meekly listen to their elders, even when their elders are giving terrible orders and not bothering to pass on the real plan? Presumably there was an intent to say something about there being no room for “space cowboys” any more, but whatever the intention was it’s undermined by the atrociously bad writing. Generals may not be required to spell out every detail, but there was absolutely no good reason for Holdo to stand there quietly when Poe accused her of planning to just fly away without putting up a fight, hope real hard that the First Empire doesn’t massacre them. Rian Johnson had her react like that to create a surprise when we learned that she had a plan, but in-story it just makes Poe completely in the right. If your commanding officer tells you to quietly march with your back to the enemy and hope you don’t get shot, you don’t go “yes sir!” A leader has a responsibility to instill at least some confidence.

And it’s worth repeating that Finn, Poe, and Rey barely interact. Finn and Poe get a little more time together than Rey gets with, well, anyone other than Luke and Kylo, but still not a whole lot. Going in to the third movie we’ve got three main protagonists that met for a brief time in the first movie (never all together though), and didn’t build on those interactions in the second movie.

Lastly, I’ll say that as a Star Wars fan that’s been following the series for decades, I was sad to see Admiral Ackbar killed off like a nobody, and Luke turned into a bitter old man that mutters “humbug!” at the thought of rebellion. I’ve seen a few people claiming that it was important because in 2017 the narrative needs to be that old people screwed everything up and the younger generation has to clean up the mess. I’ve even seen it called realistic. How bitter and cynical does one have to be to confuse realism with pessimism? But the excuse for why the older characters are shown as failures in this movie doesn’t even hold up – a quick glance at what Finn and Poe accomplished is sufficient to see that the young people in this movie were no better at getting things right.

As escapism, this movie was dire. As a continuing narrative using characters established in previous movies, this movie was disastrous. In terms of telling a story that even makes sense within the established setting, this film completely failed.

The thing is, when I walked out of Episode I and Episode II, I knew I had watched something bad, but I was able to focus on the few good scenes and tell myself “maybe the next movie will be better.” I can’t do that here, because Rian Johnson so utterly kneecapped things, leaving so little to resolve and so utterly failing to establish relationships in his main characters. In that sense then, I would call this the worst of the Star Wars movies.

#Star Wars #Star Wars: The Last Jedi #swtlj #swtlj spoilers #the last jedi #the last jedi spoilers #star wars spoilers #I hated this movie #Now that I've said how much I hate it I can move on with my life

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mothmanismyuncle · 7 years ago

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Part of Your World

Hi, your friendly neighbourhood fanfic trash here, delivering you the first chapter of something that I borrowed from a great post I saw on @keithsblackknight !! Check out their blog, and I hope you enjoy.

As a narrator, I know that I should probably start this story out with like, “Once upon a time,” or “In a galaxy, far, far away,” but this story doesn’t take place once upon a time or in a galaxy far, far away. It happened in Brooklyn, last summer. Now don’t get me wrong, that doesn’t make it any less of a faerie tale. There’s demons, and curses, and star-crossed lovers (We’ll get to that bit. Steamy. Good stuff.) but, like, our dashing protagonist takes the Metro to work? What I’m sayin’ is, stick with me, alright?

This whole thing started in an unassuming corner shop, owned by a man and his wife. They sold newspapers, coffee, sandwiches, the usual fare for a corner store. They were open late, and many people would come in and out to get food to soak up the cheap beer they’d drank at the bar down the block. One particular night, the husband was working the til. His wife was upstairs with her feet up, as she was eight months pregnant with their bouncing baby boy. The door chimed and he looked up from his phone. A woman in a red dress and white pumps perused the chip and candy selection lazily. She didn’t look like their usual customers, but who was he to judge? At least she wasn’t ripping open packages in the aisle and going to town before she paid. He looked back down at his phone. The replays from the Giants game kept him rapt for a few minutes until he felt a presence on the other side of the counter.

“Hiya. Is that all for you, Miss?” The woman set down a bottle of water. He picked it up and began ringing it out.

“And a pack of Marlboro reds, please.” She said, voice sultry. She watched him through her eyelashes and he reached for the cigarettes. He rang them up as well.

“Can I see some I.D.?” He asked, hooking one side of his lips in a grin. She fished the piece of plastic out of her wallet with a coy smile.

“It’s been millennia since I’ve been asked that.” He leaned on the counter and took it between two fingers.

“Well, I can’t see why that would be the case,” He looked down at it. “Miss Rowena. What brings you to these parts? You don’t look like you’re from around here.”

“That’s because I’m not,” She said bluntly. She took the pack of cigarettes and handed him a twenty. He made change and she opened the pack.

“Sorry, sweetheart, but you can’t smoke in here,” She reached for a lighter anyway and took a long drag.

“Oh?” She said simply.

“We can step outside, if you’d like,” He offered, handing her her change. She put it away carefully and tilted her head to the door. He followed her, and she finished her cigarette in relative silence. He’d tried to ask her a few questions, but she’d only smiled at him.

“Do you know why I’m here, Michael?” He squinted. He didn’t recall giving her his name.

“For the smokes?” He replied, frowning.

“Oh, of course. That, but there’s something else.” She tapped a painted nail on her chin in a caricature of deep thought. “Oh, that’s right. What’s her name, Sarah?” Michael’s heart slammed into overdrive. How did this lady know about Sarah? “I know all about Sarah, Michael. Call me Rowena, call me Hera. I have many names, but none of them matter. What truly matters, Michael,” She got close, and the smoke from her mouth curled around his face. “Is that today is your day of reckoning.”

“Reckoning?” Michael stammered. “I don’t understand.”

“Men like you rarely do.” Rowena, Hera, whatever snapped. “I know all about men like you. You take and take, but nothing will ever be enough. I’m here to punish you, Michael.” She sniffed.

“Wait, wait, there’s gotta be something I can do,” He said, taking a step back. She shook her head.

“It’s too late. The damage has been done.” She smiled. Earlier, Michael would have called it coy, but now it looked downright predatory. “I know that you’d only make yourself into a victim if I’d have cursed you, but your boy is a different tale entirely.” Michael’s eyes flew wide.

“What did you do to my son?” He demanded.

“Oh, now he considers his family,” She sneered. She dropped the cigarette and ground it out with the heel of her shoe. “Every day that boy lives, every breath he takes will be a reminder to you that you are scum. You did this to him, Michael.” She hissed.

“Did what? What did you do?”

“You’ll see. Go upstairs. Your wife needs you.”

Shiro’s head whipped back and the knife that slashed across his face drew rivulets of blood that cascaded over his jaw and down his throat. The fingers tipped with claws that tangled in his hair gave another tug and that dragged a growl from his throat.

“Still have some fight in you, I see,” The Queen sneered. “It’s too late. Your little stunt is over.” She threw him to the ground.

“There will always be more of us, Lilith,” He snarled, but she used her ample powers to lift him against the wall by his throat.

“Then I will kill more of you.” She whispered into his ear. “You, though. You’ll make such a pretty example.” Fear gripped low in Shiro’s stomach. He didn’t fear death. He’d welcome it like an old friend, should he die on the battlefield. Lilith, however, had ways of making one wish they had died instead. An icy feeling gripped him in his core and it spread slowly, agonizingly slowly, through his veins and to his limbs.

“What’s happening,” He gasped, fighting to move. Lilith’s face broke into a grin.

“You were one of the most fearsome generals, Takashi.” She said playfully. “Your face would send mortal men into hysterics. It was almost cute.” Shiro was dropped roughly to the floor and he stared in horror at his hands. His claws retracted, and he felt his whole body becoming smaller. Weaker. He reached up to run a hand through his hair to find that his large, curling horns were gone. His mouth felt strange without fangs and Lilith now towered over him. “Try to recruit an army like this, pretty boy.”

“No,” He muttered. “No!”

“Get out of my sight.” She snapped her fingers, and between heartbeats, Shiro found himself standing in the middle of a bustling street. Neon signs glared at him, brighter than the fires of Hell, and the sounds of cars and music didn’t drown out his screams as he fell to his knees.

“Michael Kogane?” A nurse called into the waiting room. She looked pale, and the clipboard in her hand shook. “You need to come quickly.” He jumped up from his seat and followed her. “There’s been… Some complications.”

“What complications? What happened?”

“There was something… Unexpected.” The nurse didn’t say anything else. They went into the operating room. A doctor stood next to the table his wife lay on. She was impossibly still. The doctor faced away from them but turned as Michael came nearer. In his arms, lie a child. Michael shuddered to think that it was his. The thing was small and its skin was a light shade of purple. It had thick, purple fur on its face and head, and its fingers ended in sharp claws. It opened its eyes to burble at Michael, and they were a sickly yellow.

“It’s unlike any birth defect we’ve ever seen before.” The doctor said quietly.

“Is that… My son?” Michael asked. “What about my wife?”

“There was nothing we could do. She lost too much blood, and insisted that we save him first.” The doctor replied. “She said you had agreed on the name Keith.”

Keith was fifteen years old the first time he’d completely snuck out of his house. He knew he was different. It didn’t take a genius. I mean, he’d seen people on the TV and on the internet, and none of them really looked like him. Hell, his dad didn’t even look like him, but he didn’t really think about it, you know?

Eighteen now, and burdened with glorious teenage angst, he flopped onto the couch next to his father in the recliner.

“Dad, will you play Call of Duty with me?” Keith asked. His father let out a burp and set down the can he’d been connected to like a lifeline.

“Not now, Keith.” He’d said quietly. “Daddy’s busy.”

“But Dad, I’m bored.” He huffed. “Are there any more shows I can watch?”

“No.” His father had snapped and Keith shrunk back. His dad took a deep breath, pinching his nose and reclaiming his composure. “No, Keith. I’ll go to the video store later.”

“What if I come with you?” Keith said, coming closer to his dad.

“Absolutely not.” Came the immediate response. “You know you can’t go outside.”

“But dad, come on,” He’d whined. “I want to pick out my own movies. Can we get Netflix? I want to watch something new,”

“And I want to be left in peace and quiet for one night!” His dad snapped again. “We don’t all get what we want.”

Keith had gone to his room after that. He laid on his bed, staring at the stars stuck to the ceiling. When he was growing up, his dad had told him he was allergic to the outside, whatever that meant. Keith’s nightly excursions to the roof of his apartment complex told him otherwise. He knew to stay out of sight. He knew other people couldn’t see him. He was a freak. He picked at the bed frame with his claws. The grooves he left were not the first, and he knew they wouldn’t be the last.

He stayed in his room, reading articles on his ancient computer. He loved reading about cryptids and wondered if that’s what he technically was. He snorted at the idea of people making memes about him.

The red letters on Keith’s alarm clock had ticked around to single digits again before he moved from his bed. His dad was passed out in the recliner, surrounded by more cans. He draped a blanket over him before going into the kitchen to get a bologna sandwich.

Keith had found that he was naturally a nocturnal being, more comfortable in the dark than in the daylight. He wasn’t sure if that was because of whatever made him look like The Wolfman or if it was due to the fact that his dad had boarded up all the windows. He only saw the sun in brief flashes when his dad entered and exited the house in the daylight. Once, a few years ago now, he’d tried to go to the roof in the daylight. The loose plyboard from his window swung open, the sun had hit his eyes, and he had hissed and slammed it shut. The headache he had for the rest of the day was deemed not worth it, and he didn’t try again.

The bologna sandwich stuck to the roof of his mouth. The damn bread was stale again and Keith rolled his eyes at it. Maybe he could guilt his dad into ordering pizza the next day. For now, though, he choked down the rest of the sandwich and checked to make sure his dad was out cold. He shook his foot lightly, and he didn’t even snort. Perfect. Keith crept into his room and grabbed his sketchbook and pencils. Most nights, he’d go onto the roof and sketch the skyline. Once he’d sketched a bird that stuck around long enough for him to get a good look at it. Tonight, though, he opened the door and smelled something in the air. Almost like the time the toaster caught on fire with a Pop-Tart in it. Someone moved at the edge of the roof and Keith froze. Was it too late to dart down the stairs?

“Whoa,” the guy breathed. Definitely too late, but he’d try his best anyway. “Hey, kid, wait!” Keith’s feet pounded down the fire escape, but the other guy was a bit quicker. “What do you think you’re doing? You could be seen!”

“What?” Keith squeaked.

“In here,” The guy put a hand on the back of his head and forced him to duck into the window above his. Keith did as he was directed, but his hands shook and it felt like he was going to upchuck his sandwich. “What the hell are you doing in a place like this? You could be killed! There are eyes everywhere here.”

“What?” Keith said, a little more shrill. The guy stopped. “Who are you?” The guy sighed and tucked the pack of cigarettes back in his pocket.

“I sometimes forget.” He muttered darkly. “Takashi Shirogane. Ex-General of Hell, at your service,” He said, a wry smirk playing on his lips. Keith’s heart slammed against his ribcage.

“I’m Keith.” He stammered. “Why did you push me into your apartment?”

“What are you doing around here? You’re a little young to be topside, aren’t you?” Takashi asked, crossing his arms.

“I have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about,” Keith said flatly.

“What’re your orders?” Takashi asked, screwing up his face. “Are you spying on me?”

“Dude, I don’t even know who you are. Why are you not freaking out right now?” Keith’s voice broke. Takashi took two quick steps toward him and Keith raised his sketchbook as the most piss-poor shield anyone has ever seen. The sketch of the bird faced Takashi, and he looked at it with a puzzled look on his face.

“What?” Takashi said, tilting his head at it.

“Listen, man, just let me go. Please don’t call the cops. My dad will freak out and I’ll never get to go to the roof again.” Takashi made a face like he knew all those words, just not in that order.

“What?” He said again.

“Now damn it, that’s what I was asking you!” Keith said, throwing his hands in the air. The anger leeched out of Takashi’s face, curiosity replacing it.

“Either you’re the best spy Hell has ever sent, or you genuinely have no idea who I am.” He murmured.

“I’ve told you no less than three times that I genuinely have no idea who you are.” Keith replied drily. “Please let me go.”

“Where do you live?” Takashi asked, frowning.

“Like I’d tell a kidnapper that,” Keith snapped. “I’ve seen SVU. I know what happens to kids who get taken away.”

“What?” Takashi said again and Keith snarled.

“You’re the one to jammed me into your window!” Keith’s eyes flashed to the window in question. The still-open window. The still-open window that was no less than five feet from where he was standing. Both men seemed to have the same realization, and before Keith could even act on the impulse, the window slammed shut of seemingly its own accord and a force pushed Keith into a nearby kitchen chair.

“We aren’t done talking,” Takashi growled. Keith nearly shit his pants.

“Oh my god, you’re a fucking wizard,” A bewildered look crossed the other man’s face.

“No?” He responded. Shiro was completely aghast. The kid looked to be old enough to have had his powers for years. Why was he so shocked? “You’re well old enough to have learned how to do that.”

“No?” Keith echoed. “Nobody knows how to do that!” Keith’s voice broke again and he noticed, mournfully, that his claws were destroying his sketchbook. He set the book down gently on the table.

“You look like a demon, but you’re clearly not one,” Shiro mused. “Where did you come from?”

“I’ve lived in this building all my life,” Keith said, shaking his head. “My dad owns the store downstairs,”

“Does he, now?” Shit. “That man’s human. I’ve seen him before.”

“Of course he is. And you’re not?” That gave Shiro pause.

“No. Of course not. And you are?” Keith nodded profusely.

“Yeah. My dad says so, anyway.” Shiro nodded a few times.

“Let’s talk about this, okay? Call me Shiro.”

Keith was finally released an hour or so later, head spinning. The man said that he’d replace the sketchbook that Keith left on the kitchen table. He’d gone to check on his dad (still passed out) and laid back in bed. What the hell had happened? The guy told him some crazy bullshit story about being from literal Hell and being cast out to live as a human, but Keith didn’t quite buy it. It was a bit harder to be a sceptic when he went to brush his teeth in the mirror and he saw his reflection looking back at him. Where else could somebody this ugly come from, if not Hell?

The next night found Shiro in the same place, with Keith quietly clambering up the fire escape. The man was sitting on the edge of the roof with a small green bag next to him.

“You came back,” Shiro called. He sounded genuinely surprised.

“Where else am I going to go?” Keith scoffed. As a rule, he generally stayed away from the edges of the roof to avoid any sightings, but Shiro patted the ledge next to him and Keith found his legs moving of their own accord.

“I brought you something,” Shiro said, holding out the bag. If Keith didn’t know any better, he’d say that under the scar on his face, he was blushing. Keith peeked into the bag.

“No way,” He breathed. It was a new sketchbook, but also a set of inking pens and a box of Prismacolor alcohol ink pens. “For me?”

“Yeah. You’re really good, Keith. I flipped through the other sketchbook.” Shiro said, slightly embarrassed at how weird that sounded out loud. “I hope you don’t mind,”

“No, it’s fine,” Keith said, opening the pack reverently. “I’d just been using one of my dad’s number two pencils,” He chuckled. “I only saw this kind of stuff on YouTube.”

“YouTube,” Shiro said flatly. Keith raised an eyebrow.

“Please tell me you know what YouTube is.” Shiro laughed.

“Of course I know what YouTube is. I’ve been strictly topside for twenty years. How do you think Bill Gates got so successful? I know the guy who gave him his deal.” Keith’s brain skipped a gear.

“No. Huh-uh.” Keith shook his head a few times. “Not even going there.” Shiro laughed, and for some reason, it made Keith’s face heat up. He quickly changed the subject. “So what do you do, like, as a job? Do you still do demon stuff?” Shiro shook his head and gave a small, dark, chuckle.

“Would you believe I’m a lawyer?” That made Keith roar with laughter.

“No way. And you live here?” He asked. Shiro shrugged.

“This building was one of the only ones that didn’t look into your history if you paid in cash,” Shiro said, taking another drag of his cigarette. Keith nodded as he doodled. “What do you do?”

“Wither away to nothingness. Sit in my room quietly and pretend like I don’t exist.” He muttered. It was only after Shiro was silent for a few moments that he looked up. Shiro was watching him with wide eyes and a slightly open mouth. “It’s a joke. Supposed to be funny?”

“Ha, ha,” Shiro said drily. “Do you really never leave?”

“Look at me. I’d get shot at in the street.” Keith scoffed, suddenly not feeling like drawing anymore.

“You’re right. I guess without powers it’s hard to blend in.” Shiro said thoughtfully. Keith rolled his eyes.

“You think?” He muttered. Shiro changed the subject.

It became a nightly ritual. Keith’s dad would drink himself into a coma, Keith would sneak out, and he and Shiro would sit on the roof and talk. Sometimes Shiro would bring him things, like books and movies. Keith would show him videos and other stuff on Shiro’s phone. Keith was becoming enamoured with the thing. His prized possession was his computer, but it was getting up there in age and was starting to bog down. Shiro’s phone was so fast, and Keith played a bunch of games on it every time Shiro let him.

“Do you not have a phone?”

“What?” Keith had asked, blinking.

“I was just, you know. If you had a phone. We could maybe text?” Keith chuckled.

“The Ex-General of Hell, using emojis?” Keith said drily. Shiro actually did blush that time. “No. My dad never really saw the point. I don’t go anywhere.”

The mood was darker that night, and Keith had climbed into bed bitter that morning.

The next day, Shiro was later to the roof than usual. Keith tried to focus on getting the colours of the sky where the sun was setting right, but he was impatient. The sound of someone clambering up the fire escape had him peering over the edge. It was Shiro, and he had a small bag behind his back.

“Okay, so I brought you something,” Shiro said, a grin breaking across his face. He handed the bag over. “You play with mine all the time, and maybe you’ll get less lonely during the day,” Shiro babbled. Keith’s eyes widened as he peeked into the bag.

“No way,” It was a phone! It was the same kind as Shiro’s, but the plastic was red instead of black. “No way.”

“I put my number in there and stuff,” Shiro said, a hand on the back of his neck. For all his demon bravado, Keith was starting to learn that the guy was really just a dork.

“I can’t take this from you,” Keith said, shaking his head. “This is gotta be expensive,” Shiro scratched the back of his head.

“Sure, but who else would I spend money on?” He said softly, brow crinkling. “I lost everyone when I Fell. You’re the first actual friend I made since.”

“We’re friends?” Keith asked, tilting his head to the side. “I mean, I’ve made friends on Xbox Live and on the internet, but,”

“Not the same?” Shiro said, grinning.

“No way,” Keith breathed. They both cracked smiles at each other.

“Well, turn it on! Come on, we’ll play this new game I found.”

#takashi shirogane #keith kogane #sheith #vld #voltron #demon au

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