#alec ryder is the villain

[aymayzing]

Finished Ryder Family Secrets and I hate hate hate Alec Ryder and I hate how the game frames it as a good thing when it's just. So evil. So wrong. On so many levels. The only way for me to stomach this is making it into the tragedy it ought to be so in my mind Scott never figured out that Ellen is frozen. He dies. Sara becomes the Pathfinder and she's like in her forties, married, has kids. Since Scott spent his life trying to settle Heleus and putting out fires, she has the time to parse through the memories encrypted in SAM and finds out about Ellen. Medicine did move forward so they find a cure and Ellen is woken up.

She was ready to die, fine with it, satisfied with the life she led. She wakes up in another galaxy hundreds of years later. Her daughter is almost the same age as she is. Her husband is dead. Her son is dead. The world changed and moved forward around her and she cannot find a place for herself in it. She grieves for Scott. She's furious at Alec for putting her in cryo and a little resentful of her daughter for pulling her out of it.

[infectedpaul]

oh yes beetlejuice 2 is just kinda okay . its got a lot of fun gags and sfx but. man is it too long and just kinda is like 2 different movies . like they establish its villain really early on as beetlejuice's ex wife which is hilarious in concept and her presence is really cool...for like the 5 minutes total she is on screen. then we forget about her for like an hour to focus on the human stuff and the other two 'antagonists' on top of the subplot between the deetz and delia mourning her husband + we gotta make sure to put in a bunch of. really pointlessly drawn out musical dream sequences becuse First movie (even though the banana boat segment is what. like a minute? theres two of them that are like . 3-5 times longer) idk i just feel like theres too many god damn characters in this movie

you got the legacy characters (lydia, bj, delia, charles, the shrunken heads ig?? theyre in it a lot more idk why) plus lydias daughter astrid, her boyfriend Megaminds dad, bjs ex wife, the treehouse kid, willem dafoe and theyre all taking up their own little sideplots so its like . 4 different stories all going on at once and theyre all . enjoyable...i guess but idk i feel like the first movie was simple enough with. reverse ghostbusters , two ghosts that wanna get living people out of their house so they call up this schmuck. and they just stick with that the only other plot is lydias grief and crappy family life which ties into the main couples stuff well creating a nice weird. family of sorts. in this movie it feels like they just put a pause on one story for a while and then come back to it 40 minutes later. they establish early on that astrids dad/lydias ex husband died after they got divorced and even though lydia can see dead people she has never seen the dad and the whole plot leads to. the most disappointing and milktoast conclusion of hey. We love each other . Because family.

idk. i liked how they brought charles back without bringing back jeffrey jones it was actually really funny. i really liked all the special effects and they got like a bit gorier/grosser than the first i did like that. beetlejuice himself ill be real hes never been all too funny to me hes barely in that first movie for a reason hes better in small doses. winona ryder and jenna ortega are fine i feel like they really werent given much to really show off their chops despite being in the movie a lot theyre both just kinda. rushing through the mother/daughter story line youd expect. i dont like the boyfriend he just feels like alec baldwin from the cat in the hat. speaking of which no the maitlands arent in this they literally have one line saying they found "a loophole" and just left (although i did see their crash was on the miniature in the opening, nice touch /gen) catherine o'hara no notes as always. the new villain lady i wanna steal her away shes so fine im sorry shes in it for like 5 minutes. willem dafoe being in the movie was a nice surprise and he serves. really no purpose to the movie he could be cut but he was funny i like him and his secretaries

idk 7/10 but a low 7 just wait for it to come out on sflix watch the teen titans go episode for now

[spookytuesdaypod]

spooky tuesday is a (now not so new!) podcast where we’re breaking down all of our favorite slashers, thrillers, monster movies and black comedies on the new scariest day of the week.

with the sequel coming out in just a few weeks, we decided it was time to revisit an old classic here at spooky tuesday. when beetlejuice (1988) first hit theaters over 36 years ago, audiences fell instantly in love with the titular character — even though he was meant to be more of a disgusting villain than a charming rogue. in fact, he's become so iconic that it's almost easy to forget alec baldwin and geena davis play the actual main characters. it doesn't help that winona ryder and catherine o’hara are major scene stealers too, but this whole flick is packed with fun, funny moments, and it's hard to choose just one fave. on our latest episode, we're digging into the grimy, ghostly nitty-gritty as we try not to summon too many evil spirits.

give spooky tuesday a listen on apple podcasts, spotify, iheart radio, or stitcher

[theladyfromplanetx]

Rebel Report

"The release date of the Star Wars prequel is still more than 850 days off, but gauging by the rumors surrounding Episode 1, you'd think it was next week. Unofficial fan clubs, Web sites and Newsgroups are rife with guesswork about the cast, script and shooting locations. First, here are some Lucasfilm-confirmed facts: Preproduction has begun at Leavesden Studios outside of London; sets are being built; principal photography is expected to start in the latter part of 1997; George Lucas will direct the first movie. SWGM can also report storyboards, character and vehicle designs and maquettes for Episode 1 are being produced at Skywalker Ranch.

Now, back to the rumor mill, with official responses from Lucasfilm:

George Lucas is considering Natalie Portman for the young female lead in Episode 1. Our casting director has interviewed over 3,000 people for the two lead roles. No one has been cast to date.

Kenneth Branagh was 'considered' for the role of Obi-Wan. The Branagh rumor came out of a London tabloid and was never true. We certainly admire Mr. Branagh's talent, but have never considered him for the role of Obi-Wan.

The idea of Grand Moff Tarkin showing up in the prequels... George Lucas has not shared with us all the characters in the prequels, so we cannot answer this question.

The copyrighted 'tentative' title for Episode 1 is Star Wars: Genesis. George has not titled any of the prequels. We are using Episode 1 as a placeholder title.

Bijou Phillips has gotten past her fourth callback for the next Star Wars flick. Phillips had one general interview, and is not currently being considered for any role.

Alec Guinness will be playing young Obi-Wan in the prequels. This, of course, would be impossible since the story takes place 40 years before Episode 4.

I'm pretty sure John Williams is doing the music again. No decisions have been made regarding the music as of this date.

Christopher Walken would be an excellent villain in the prequels! Walken is a great villain, but he is not currently being considered for a part.

Winona Ryder...will...play the mother of Luke Skywalker and wife of Darth Vader. Ryder is not currently being considered for a part.

I've heard that the new trilogy will be partially filmed in Portugal and Tunisia. Our Producer, Rick McCallum, is currently scouting locations, but the majority of the work will be done at Leavesden Studios. Other locations have not been determined yet.

Tommy Lee Jones as Emperor Palpatine... This is a false rumor.

I heard that Macauley Caulkin would play Luke as a child...and Mark Hamill would play Anakin Skywalker. It is a false rumor about Caulkin. First, Luke was not born at the time that the prequels take place, and Caulkin has not been contacted for any role. It is also a false rumor about Hamill.

Hollywood sources say George Lucas wants Frank Darabont to write the script for a new Star Wars film. Currently, George is writing all three scripts. There is a possibility that he may bring in another writer to help on the second and third scripts after he has the first drafts completed. George certainly admires Darabont's talent, having worked with him on the Young Indy series, but no writer has been signed on as of this date.

One final fact: See you in the next issue."

- From Star Wars Galaxy Magazine, Fall 1996; Editor Bob Woods.

[timptoe]

Finished ME: Andromeda, so some final thoughts:

Yeah no this is literally just Inquisition-in-space, right down to the pacing of the story. A lot of what differentiated the original trilogy from Dragon Age is missing - sometimes that’s good, sometimes it’s not.

The Reyes romance is great and then it just ends! BioWare! I want to smooch on that guy every time I come back to Kadara! Wasted opportunity fr.

I don’t feel like they do a good enough job of explaining the Pathfinder-SAM connection. Strong enough that he can stop Ryder’s heart, but then the Archon just kind of rips him away? Needed to be way more clear what was happening there.

Who killed Jien Garson??? Were they expecting to write a DLC and then didn’t because EA shut it down? What an incredible plot point to just so thoroughly drop.

Same with the Benefactor. How did B know the Reapers were coming? Was it TIM? Because if it wasn’t, that’d better figure in ME5.

The jaardan/angaran thing was cool. Wish they’d explored that further.

Same with the Scourge and Meridian.

That’s a common theme tbh: things that could’ve been cool that they just hand-wave and go “eh.” Give me that deep lore, guys.

The final run to the Archon was cool (I’m a sucker for ensemble “we ride at dawn!” scenes) but that last fight was absolute trash. Honestly, all of the ME final boss fights are trash, BioWare just has no idea how to do an epic final battle with guns in space. (Contrast with Haakon or The Guardian in DA:I or even Meredith in DA2. BioWare can do final bosses well, just not in FPS apparently.)

The epilogue was sweet. Also note-for-note the ending of Inquisition.

Final thought: Andromeda just isn’t as emotionally resonant as the original trilogy. The single time I heard the Reaper horn in Alec’s archive messages was still scarier than anything the Archon said or did. The original trilogy did such a good job of other-ing the Reapers, which is why they were such good villains. Not so much the kett or the Remnant, which was a huge missed opportunity considering the setting.

That being said, I still liked it. Don’t think it’s as bad as I feel like the fandom presents it as. I liked the open world style, I really liked Ryder. I’d play it again, eventually. It just didn’t break me the way the original trilogy did. Which, you know, might be okay.

Gonna reload right before I meet Reyes and smooch him again, brb.

Finally started playing ME Andromeda, I’m about thirty hours in (so no spoilers!), and…it’s kind of lovely? I get the sense from the fanbase that it’s pretty hated but I’m kind of liking it. First impressions:

It’s very much like if Mass Effect and Dragon Age: Inquisition had an adorable baby. Is that why people don’t like it? Because it’s so much less hoo-rah military?

I also heard no one likes the Frostbite graphics but they don’t bother me? The asari are a little cutesy, but everything else is gorgeous.

I do miss Shepard and the crew, tbh. Love the Liara cameos. Will always want more of Kaidan and Joker and Tali and Vega and everyone.

Do like the new crew, especially their interactions with each other. Hardcore shipping Drack/Lexi. And the Drack-Vetra friendship is really sweet.

I just met Reyes and hooooooo boy. Scott’s been flirting with Gil but he’s suddenly falling hard for Reyes—sorry Gil, don’t hate me forever.

Also Gil just go kiss Kallo already, ugh.

Also also (because Reyes’ voice actor is also male Hawke’s voice actor) my new Dragon Age II headcanon is: after Hawke meets Zevran and does his quest, he will only speak to Isabela in Zevran’s accent for the next six months. She hates it but finds it weirdly sexy. (Much how I am reacting to Reyes’ voice.)

Jaal++

Did the Nexus really not carry a QEC to talk to the Citadel? They traveled to a different galaxy and didn’t think, hey, we have tech that’ll let us say “yo descendants we just woke up!”?

Exaltation is a sufficiently creepy plot point, right up there with indoctrination and Reaper liquidation.

I miss quarians.

I do not miss missions. The open world style is my jam, I love the viability/colonization aspect, love the way this game does side quests.

I find the concept of the exiles to be weird. You sign up for the Initiative, are deemed worthy of being sent ahead on the Nexus instead of an ark (so you’re presumably all in), and you flake out in less than a year because…it didn’t all go to plan? That part of the narrative’s kinda weak.

Though I just got the first part of the Jien Garson whodunit and I’m super invested already.

Really intrigued by the Remnant.

Andromeda does feel less high-stakes than the original trilogy, which is too bad. Sure you’re not dealing with galaxy-wide apocalypse, but survival in Heleus should feel a lot less Laura Ingalls Wilder and a lot more Oregon Trail.

Overall, I’m liking it. Less than halfway through so still plenty of time for it to go sour, but I’m intrigued.

[femalechibiblogger]

Celebrities Who Were in ‘Fallout’ Games Part 1

You may not know this, but the Fallout game franchise has actually had famous celebrities guest star in their games. Some you may know, and some you may not have heard of, but maybe you recognized their voices without realizing it.

1. Keith David

Keith David is a voice actor who is known for voicing ‘Goliath’ in Gargoyles, ‘Dr. Facilier’ in The Princess and the Frog, ‘Flame King’ in Adventure Time, and ‘King Andrias’ in Amphibia. Besides cartoon characters, Keith David also voiced characters in other video games, such as ‘The Arbiter’ in the Halo series, ‘David Anderson’ in the Mass Effect series, ‘Sgt. Foley, in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, and Al Simmons/Spawn in Mortal Combat 11. 

In the very first Fallout video game, Keith David voiced a man named ‘Decker’, who was a powerful crime boss in The Hub. Decker rules over the crime ridden city of The Undergrounder, and can offer two jobs to the Vault Dweller...but you can also bring down his criminal empire with the help of The Hub authorities. 

Overall, Keith David’s excellent voice acting skills really do fit within the Fallout universe.

2. Katherine Soucie

Katherine Soucie is a voice actress who has played many characters in cartoons from the 90′s and 2000′s, such as: ‘Phil and Lil’ in Rugrats, ‘Maddie Fenton’ in Danny Phantom, ‘Lola Bunny’ in Space Jam, and ‘Kanga’ in the Winnie the Pooh franchise.  Besides cartoons, Katherine Soucie also voiced characters in video games such as: ‘Rachni Queen/Kaira Stirling/Greta Reynolds’ in Mass Effect, ‘Sally/Shock’ in The Nightmare Before Christmas: Oogie's Revenge, ‘Taro’ in Final Fantasy X, and ‘Naryu Virian’ in The Elder Scrolls Online. 

In the first Fallout game, Katherine Soucie voiced two characters. The first character was a girl named ‘Laura’, who is a member of the Children of the Cathedral and a spy for the Followers of the Apocalypse. Laura pretends to be meek, submissive, and quite to hide the fact that she is a spy for another cult, and is actually quite strong and sharp. If the Vault Dweller gives her a password, she will help them enter the LA Vault. Another character that Katherine Soucie played in the same game is The Master’s female voice. The Master is the main villain of the first game, and is the one creating the Super Mutants that ravage the Wastelands. 

Katherine Soucie has returned in the recent Fallout game, Fallout 76, voicing robots and a Crater Raider named ‘Surge’, who will betray the leader of the Crater Raiders if we ask the Raiders for help in breaking into Vault 79. 

Katherine Soucie is a veteran voice actress who has played characters from our childhoods and continues to do amazing work. 

3. Tony Jay

Tony Jay is a voice actor who was known for voicing villains in animated movies and tv shows, such as: ‘Judge Claude Frollo’ in The Hunchback of Notre Dame, ‘Shere Khan’ in The Jungle Book 2 and Talespin, ‘Megabyte’ in Reboot, and ‘Monsieur D'Arque’ in Beauty and the Beast. 

In the first Fallout game, Tony Jay voiced an intelligent Super Mutant named ‘Lieutenant’ who is the right hand man of The Master and the commander of the Mariposa Military Base. Lieutenant known for being more intelligent than most Super Mutants and has important information about The Master, which can come in handy for the Vault Dweller. 

Tony Jay also voiced another Super Mutant character named ‘Attis’ and was also the narrator in Fallout: Brotherhood of Steel. Like Lieutenant, Attis is highly intelligent for a Super Mutant and created an army from the remnants of The Master’s fallen army. He is the Brotherhood of Steel’s greatest enemy and is the main antagonist/final boss of the game.

Tony Jay’s voice was perfect for dark, cruel villains. Sadly, he passed away in 2006 at the age of 73...but he will always be remembered for his excellent voice work.

4. Cree Summer

Cree Summer is a voice actress who is best known for her roles as: ‘Numbuh 5′ in Codename Kids Next Door, ‘Cleo the Poodle’ in Clifford the Big Red Dog, ‘Susie Carmichael’ in Rugrats, and ‘Elmyra Duff’ in Tiny Toon Adventures. 

In the first Fallout game, Cree Summer a young woman named ‘Tandi’ who is the leader of a small settlement called Shady Sands. The Vault Dweller would become a trusted ally of Tandi after saving her town from their enemies, and she would go on to become one of the most influential people in the Capital Wasteland. 

Cree Summer returned in Fallout 2, but as a different character named ‘Joanne Lynette’. Joan Lynette is a woman who is the pillar of the community, Vault City, who seeks the Chosen One’s help and can exile them from vault City if the Chosen One gets on her bad side. But if they remain on Lynette’s good side, she can make them the Captain of the Guard in Vault City. 

Cree Summer has a great voice and is a very funny person whose characters tend to stand out, as she can make them sound both serious and playful. 

5. Clancy Brown

Clancy Brown is an actor who has done both voice acting and live action roles. He is best known for voicing characters such as: ‘Mr. Krabs’ from Spongebob Squarepants, ‘Lex Luthor’ in the DC Animated Universe, ‘Savage Opress’ in Star Wars: The Clone Wars, ‘Chris Bradford/Dogpound’ in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and ‘Red Death’ in Venture Bros. Not only was he in cartoons, but he also voiced characters in other video games: ‘Doctor Neo Cortex’ in the Crash Bandicoot franchise, ‘Hades’ in God of War III, ‘Alec Ryder’ in Mass Effect: Andromeda, and ‘Lt. Hank Anderson’ in Detroit: Become Human. 

Clancy Brown also appeared in live actions roles in both movies and tv series, such as: ‘Capt. Byron Hadley’ in The Shawshank Redemption and ‘General Wade Eiling’ in The Flash.

In Fallout, Clancy Brown voiced ‘Rhombus’, a Paladin and Head Knight of the Brotherhood of Steel in Lost Hills. Rhombus is very dedicated to the Brotherhood and tries to keep political struggles outside of the research and development in New California. 

While Clancy Brown is known for playing villains, he is also great as playing allies to the main characters. 

[dalekofchaos]

My Bond rankings

How I rank the Bond franchise, Bond actors, Bond villains and Bond Girls

Sean Connery Era

From Russia With Love

On Her Majesty’s Secret Service(I am counting On Her Majesty's Secret service in the Connery era because I feel like it matches the tone of these movies and Connery could've easily played the Bond in that movie)

Goldfinger

Thunderball

Dr No

You Only Live Twice

Diamonds Are Forever

Never Say Never Again

Roger Moore Era

The Spy Who Loved Me

The Man With The Golden Gun

Octopussy

Live And Let Die

For Your Eyes Only

Moonraker

A View To Kill

Timothy Dalton Era

License To Kill

The Living Daylights

Pierce Brosnan Era

Goldeneye

Tomorrow Never Dies

The World Is Not Enough

Die Another Day

Daniel Craig Era

Casino Royale

Skyfall

Spectre

No Time To Die

Quantum Of Solace

Bond ranked

Sean Connery

Daniel Craig

Timothy Dalton

Pierce Brosnan

George Lazenby

Roger Moore

Bond villains

Ernst Stavro Blofeld

Auric Goldfinger

Red Grant and Rosa Klebb

Alec Trevelyan

Raul Silvia

Le Chiffre

Mr White

Francisco Scaramanga

Emilio Largo

Dr No

Safin

Oddjob

Jaws

Karl Stromberg

Mr. Big and Baron Samedi

Max Zorin

Elektra King

Elliot Carver

Hugo Drax

Franz Sanchez 

Aristotle Kristatos

Emile Leopold Locque

Gustav Graves and Zao

Kamal Khan

Gen. Georgi Koskov and Brad Whitaker

Dominic Greene

Bond Girls

Tracy Bond

Vesper Lynd

Tatiana Romanova

Sylvia Trench

Xenia Onatopp

Pussy Galore

Wai Lin

Pam Bouvier

Elektra King

Madeleine Swann

Paloma

Nomi

Camille Montes

Domino Derval

May Day

Andrea Anders

Anya Amasova

Natalya Simonova

Solitaire

Miranda Frost

Holly Goodhead(how the fuck did this get past the sensors???)

Lucia Sciarra

Aki

Honey Ryder

Fiona Volpe

Lupe Lamora

Ruby Bartlett

Tilly Masterson

Jill Masterson

Mary Goodnight

Strawberry Fields

Manuela

Countess Lisl von Schlaf

Kara Milovy

Christmas Jones

Jinx Johnson

Octopussy

Stacey Sutton

Magda

Corinne Dufour

Kissy Suzuki

Nancy

Melina Havelock

Sévérine

Rosie Carver

Patricia Fearing

Miss Taro

Solange Dimitrios

Ling

Molly Warmflash

Paris Carver

Paula Caplan

Pola Ivanova

Caroline

Plenty O’Toole

Martine Blanchaud

Tiffany Case

[amityn7]

Rise of the Asari Recap

Since it has been ages since the last update to Rise I figured it might be a good idea to write up a Star Wars style opening crawl to go before the next chapter. The next update is still in development but I thought it would be cool to post the recap here as well prior to the release. Please enjoy!

-------------------

Commander Shepard is dead. Killed by the villainous Matriarch Aquilla after discovering the asari’s true identity...the ancient Goddess herself; ATHAME. Leaving the crew of the Normandy under the command of Miranda Lawson, the disillusioned heroes pursued a forgotten Cerberus legend. Poseidon Station; the Illusive Man’s hidden archive of Cerberus’ greatest assets. Buried deep below the ocean world of Talus, Miranda and our Heroes made an uneasy arrangement with a local Terminus despot, the enigmatic DEALER. In exchange for the Cerberus treasure buried below the Dealer provided transport to Miranda and her estranged wife JACK. With no intention of honoring their arrangement Miranda dispatched the Dealer’s envoy after arriving inside the station and the couple proceeded inside. After discovering many relics of Cerberus’ past Miranda revealed her true motives to Jack. The secret of the Lazarus project was a device she invented for recreating and transferring consciousness and memories into a host body. She called this device the Echo and it was her intention to erase her mind to allow Shepard to return in her own body. However before Jack could assist her in this endeavour the pair made a shocking discovery. There were more than just artifacts preserved inside Poseidon Station. Miranda and Jack came face to face with a ghost when the long dead leader of Cerberus itself materialized before them. The Illusive Man had returned.

On the other side of reality, Commander Shepard had awoken after her own murder inside the body of an alternate version of herself. Exiled by Aquilla through the ancient relic the asari used to peer through realites, This Shepard fought for a struggling resistance made up of the Alliance and the failed ANDROMEDA INITIATIVE after a series of brutal defeats had brought humanity to its knees and left it isolated and adrift in a Milky Way consumed by war. Shepard found herself married to a Miranda Lawson shaken by grief and in a forced partnership with an aging rival, the Initiative's Pathfinder MARION CORVUS. This new Corvus had never crossed paths with the timid ardat-yakshi FELINA but had instead allied herself with an asari prisoner calling herself PEEBEE. The asari had set Corvus on a secret and controversial mission to save the life of this timeline’s Aquilla before her imminent execution. Hoping that Aquilla would know a way for her to return to her own reality and body, Shepard embarked on the rescue mission aboard Corvus’ ship the TEMPEST. Yet their own people conspired against them. Acting as an agent of the scorned former Pathfinder Alec Ryder, Cora Harper secured a place aboard the Tempest as well with the intentions of seizing the ship and it’s crew for a pending insurrection aboard their capital station, The NEXUS.

[becauseanders]

i am currently sitting here laughing at myself about how i am apparently entirely incapable of not writing from experience and how if you’ve read one of my fics you’ve basically read them all talent and creativity? never heard of her!

like writing my atla modern au i have been teasing writing zuko as bipolar and i have already explicitly written him as borderline and autistic and focus super hard on his ptsd, and i also write him as autistic and possibly borderline with a heavy focus on his ptsd in canon universe; i also heavily focus on sokka’s ptsd and his always feeling like he needs to be “the strong one” for everyone and with adhd with a strong focus on rejection sensitive dysphoria; i have also made modern au zuko physically disabled and given him migraines in both my au and canon universes and given modern ty lee ehlers-danlos (and i have all of these things)

i have also made my shepard, my ryder, and my inquisitor physically disabled, and i tend to focus hard on kaidan’s migraines and other chronic pain when i write him; i have made my shepard, my modern au hawke, my warden, and my inquisitor bipolar, made my canon hawke borderline, focus hard on anders’s bipolar and ptsd and possible borderline in any universe writing him; my shepard and my modern au hawke have substance abuse issues, plus my shepard, my hawkes, my warden, and my inquisitor all have dealt with trauma through hypersexuality; my ryder and inquisitor are autistic and so is kaidan, my ryder has adhd and villainizes alec for being the piece of shit father he was; anders, my shepard, my au hawke, my warden, my inquisitor, canon universe suki, and au zuko are all sexual assault survivors; i have stolen abuse stories straight up from my own actual life and detail for detail transferred them onto au zuko; and literally who among them doesn’t have ptsd (and again i have/have been through all of these things)

projecting? onto my fics? it’s more likely than you think!

and then of course it means tumult, all of the i was lost without you series, where i want to be, in his eyes were a thousand stars on a dark sky, and arguably see you on a dark night are all either straightup song fics or at least heavily inspired by/making several explicit references to music with no consideration for whether or not readers will know any of it

i guess, uh, write what you know?

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[thegirlinthetardisat221b]

Top 10 favourite Male characters

Thank you for tagging me @jaskier-wearing-dresses !!!❤️❤️

In no particular order here they are:

Wash from Firefly

Jaskier from The Witcher

Francis from The Secret History

Alexander from If We Were Villains

Sebastian Flyte from Brideshead Revisited

Charles Ryder from Brideshead Revisited

Sokka from Avatar the Last Airbender

Julien from The Dark Artifices

Alec Lightwood from The Mortal Instruments

Theo from The Goldfinch

I tag: @an-enby-called-ro @ringdonuts and @the-petite-lion !!!

[jackdawyt]

Happy N7 Day 2019 guys! ICYMI, I made a video a while back delving into Mass Effect’s future from here on out. Check it out! 

Today I'm once more looking into the future of Mass Effect, plunging into where the franchise will go since Andromeda's ramshackle attempt. Honestly, I respect Andromeda for trying to create a new narrative for the Mass Effect franchise, arching into many games. However, it's the direction that the game took, and the sheer lack of knowledge of games design from BioWare Montreal that, for the lack of better words, screwed this spin-off.  

Andromeda didn't have the heart and soul of a Mass Effect game, and that's simply because the team had no experience with creating the previous entries. Though, now that Casey Hudson, the original trilogies director has since returned to BioWare, there's hope for the future now. Mass Effect has his vision, and under his supervision, perhaps we could get a return to this beloved franchise in due time, repairing the mistakes of Andromeda with a new entry in the series crafted from the same team as the trilogy.

With that, I guess we've got to ask ourselves what's next for Mass Effect?

Over the years, I've gathered and constructed many concepts and ideas for where this franchise could go from here, so lock yourselves down guys, because we're heading at ludicrous speed into the future of Mass Effect! First up:  

Mass Effect Milky Way Spin-off:

This is probably the best possible way for Mass Effect to return in my opinion, this concept revolves around returning to the beloved Milky Way Galaxy as a new character surrounding an entirely new plot-line in a spin-off fashion.

I’ve always been enchanted by the idea of playing as one of the many races in Mass Effect, embarking on a grand space adventure, perhaps as a mercenary with a small crew, against a more localized threat. At least that's my pitch for now regarding such a spin-off!

This title would encompass origin stories just like Dragon Age: Origins, as an example, if the player we’re to be an Asari, perhaps they've lived a life on the streets of Omega, fighting for scraps and living in poverty, experiencing the true harshness of this urban lifestyle that Omega entails.

This could be a completely different narrative as to someone else who perhaps plays as a Volus growing up on Illium, or a Quarian living nomadically on a fleet. Either race the player picks, they'd always end up with the same goal.

From any lifestyle, perhaps the player would become a highly-skilled mercenary or freelancer, acquiring a ship for the first time in their life, building a squad and opposing a smaller threat within the Milky-Way. Just a quick, role-playing influenced idea there...

However, on the flip of that, perhaps the player and their squad are able to fit the role of anti-heroes within the galaxy, fulfilling a sort of 'Guardian's Of The Galaxy' archetype, allowing the squad to be slightly more antagonistic than ever before.

Even scrap that idea and let the players just be antagonists in this world, let's have a Mass Effect game where we can be villainous, and stir up trouble in the Terminus System! I'm not rightly speaking on being a grand evil, I'm more for the idea of playing as a mercenary leader, experiencing a life of crime in a condensed space opera tied to this plot of backstabbings, betrayal and complete espionage.

Perhaps sneaking thorough the backstreets of Omega, assassinating contracts, smuggling and stealing resources, hacking into operations and even just blatant bank robberies, in Mass Effect's fashion of course!  

It'd be a complete change-up from the previous Mass Effect titles, and the way I see this concept, it's more of a back to the roots of BioWare. They'd be a huge emphasis on character creation and freedom, with a story inspired by pen and paper role-playing games, inspiring more of a D&D feel than anything!

In any case, this scenario would allow me to fulfil my many fantasies of playing as one of the very many Mass Effect races, with a fun, jaded and morally grey narrative to boot, right back in the Milky-Way! With even the possibility of coming across so many of the beloved Milky Way characters that appeared in the original trilogy.

Perhaps not as simple as it sounds, but possibly this title could be a 'Mass Effect 4' set after Mass Effect three's events, this could be done if BioWare gave way to retconning three's ending. After accomplishing that, perhaps you could just pop this concept within the time-space after the Milky-Way is saved thanks to Shepard and Co.

Again though, this is just one of my fantasies, I could talk about this concept all day, perhaps I may do another video one day just on expanding this idea, for now though, we've got other ways to consider!

Andromeda Sequel - a continuation of Mass Effect Andromeda's narrative, crafted by original dev's:

The next possibility surrounds the Andromeda Galaxy, within the game - Mass Effect Andromeda, the developers did a great job of opening up and setting this galaxy as a new narrative. The team were expecting on creating a trilogy within that space, they've planted plenty of seeds for the future of Andromeda.

So, perhaps with the original developers of the trilogy on hand, we could potentially return to the Andromeda Galaxy.

Of course, I've got a few ideas of how this could work!

The simplest concept is just a basic Andromeda sequel, perhaps fulfilling the repressing role as Ryder once more and picking up where things were dropped off. It'd be simple, however, I don't think it'd be a good idea just considering the flack both Ryder and Andromeda's narrative got. it's still an idea though!

A better and more efficient way for Mass Effect to return to the Andromeda Galaxy is to simply set the events of the next title 500 years ahead. Allowing all of Andromeda's ongoing political turmoil, misguided narratives and just general settlement of humanity and other species on this Galaxy. No more Ryder, no more dull companions, a new palette in a Galaxy that could've changed dramatically since it's the very origin.

With centuries ahead since the last game, new threats and species may have evolved, more characters, different technologies, varied biotic capabilities, etc. A completely unique perspective on Mass Effect, just with the same original team working on this one. Perhaps a different protagonist, not related to the Ryder family with a fresh cleanser of a world, this could be a blank canvas for the Mass Effect franchise to start again.

In the same vein as this concept, however, slightly adapted considering Andromeda's flack...

Andromeda Galaxy meets Milky-Way:

​Perhaps the Andromeda and Milky-Way Galaxies could convey a way to correspond and transport - to and from. Sharing an experience with both world-states, creating an incredible way to amalgamate the main games and spin-off together, creating an adventure and narrative that could sprawl between two Galaxies, perhaps there could be an even more apocalyptic threat that risks more than just the destruction of worlds, but instead Galaxies! Rivalling an opponent with the capabilities to wreak supreme havoc, with the help of both the Andromeda and Milky-Way Galaxies, the narrative could easily over-arch, creating a huge space-opera scale of a story!

With this narrative set so far in the future, Mass Effect as a franchise would be recreating itself, with no more tie in's to Shepard or Ryder's adventure, this would be world's apart from either story. Which I guess could be a good or bad thing... Anyhow, onto the next concept!

A reboot of the franchise:

In a similar vein to games like PS4's God of War, 2013's Tomb Raider and Legend Of Zelda, Breath Of The Wild. Mass Effect could reboot itself following a similar a fashion, each of the mentioned games has accepted the past game's narrative and lore, however, don't particularly regard it, it's not necessary for its new forwarding narrative. God of War, for example, Kratos' previous narrative with the Olympian Gods, doesn't really have much influence in his remembrance of his lover, and new fatherhood revelations. Breath Of The Wild, hardly any of its previous stories sway much within that game's narrative... perhaps Mass Effect could attempt such a reboot for a future title.

Simply done by creating a new title, set it in the Milky-Way disregarding the previous events and continuing on a new adventure. If that doesn't intrigue you, perhaps an entire reboot of the original trilogy, or (as we'd all prefer) perhaps a reboot of Andromeda's story. Taking this new direction towards the discovery of the Andromeda Galaxy into an exciting, encapsulating narrative with the OG team helming the way, as it was supposed to be.

At best, this concept works as a retconning for a future title, ignoring or only subtly mentioning the past, perhaps as a reboot of the previous games, or a new adventure entirely!

Prequel:

I agree partly to this concept, I'd love a prequel of Mass Effect, simply so I could go back and witness key events and characters that have shaped the experiences we cultivate in the trilogy. For instance, It'd make for an encapsulating story if we, as a human we're to be one of the few to travel into the first Mass Effect relay for the first time in history, going through that Charon Relay with an entire squad of humanities best, would be an enthralling experience!

Witnessing character's like Alec Ryder, Ashley's grandfather, etc. We'd see Jack Harper, before he became the Illusive Man, fighting in a galactic war against the Turians. Plenty of previous narratives could unfold, setting the way for the trilogy, and as much as that sounds like a great idea, we all know the ending of it all.

This narrative's been told thousands of times within the games, books, comics, etc. It's a sold story, I feel to go back to that, maybe slightly underwhelming, I think it's a great idea, especially seeing previous characters before they develop, witnessing their origin stories, but again this ship has already sailed, we know those plots already. It'd just be a rehash in my opinion.

Anyhow, guys, that'll do it for me today regarding the future of Mass Effect, tell me down below where you'd like to see this shelved franchise going from here on out. But for all your things BioWare, you're already in the right place!

[anidragon]

ATTENTION GARGOYLES FANS! (I know you’re out there)

GARGOYLES IS NOW AVAILABLE ON ITUNES.

REPEAT, GARGOYLES IS AVAILABLE ON ITUNES!

THE WHOLE TV SERIES.

ALL OF IT.

(If you’re not from a generation that’s familiar with 90s TV, then you should also check it out, because OH BOY YOU’LL BE IN FOR A TREAT!)

[justanotherdumpingground]

Chapter Reviews: May 28-June 1, 2019

Wishful Thinking Chapter 8:

Emus! I'm so glad they finally appear! And the entire scene with them is simply funny and worth it. Pete's an uttee nutcase, though an entertaining one as well. The premium scene with Emi is so adorable that I want to see the emus again in future chapters.

Glad I get to show Alec who's boss. This guy should just stop treating his employees like crap. If only I could have him replaced by someone better (not Ellen, though), that would be better.

I'm glad I finally get to hang out with Anna outside of work. Most of her appearances have her and the MC doing their jobs, so a casual chat about the emu incident feels refreshing. And Charlie's office getting trashed means something fishy is going on, probably someone opposed to him like Ellen, though I could be wrong. Since the summary for Chapter 10 sounds like Anna has some secrets to share, it seems that something is up with Charlie. He's really fishy.

A Courtesan of Rome Chapter 19:

Another exciting chapter that kept me hooked like the previous one. I was worried what Cingerix might do to the MC, so I picked the premium option to talk him out of serving Caesar. I think doing so results in the MC and Victus having a positive opinion on Cingerix, who helped his sister escape as a result.

It was fun to watch MC train under her dad and Euthymios in preparation for the gladiator match, and Cingerix developing feelings for Euthymios. If only I can get my hands on Flavius for killing Locusta and poisoning the MC, my life would've been complete. At least there was Delphinia to pray for her daughter's safety, though the MC should really be more defiant towards Flavius.

Anyway, with my anger gone from me, it was satisfying to watch my MC deliver a speech gearing public opinion against Caesar. Even more so with Sabina chanting with the crows.

Man, I can't wait for the final chapters. Especially now that the MC has told the news about Cingerix's change of heart to Delphinia.

Passport to Romance Chapter 12:

I'm just sick of Elliot and William bickering that I want to shove them inside a room to sort out their own messes. On to the regatta.

As expected, the folks there are so snotty that I can just roll my eyes. I get that Sumire has to develop as an artist, and taking criticism is an important part of it (hence me telling her that it's a learning experience), but the impression Bronwyn gave did nothing to endear me to her. Same goes to Carlisle, whom I dislike more for talking like money's the only thing that matters. Either way, who cares about these two? I didn't spend diamonds to steal Carlisle's champagne, though. :P

So Elliot just got his entire friends in trouble by placing a huge bet on a losing boat? Well, thanks a lot, loser! I swear, Elliot keeps blowing his chances to make meaningful contributions to the group that it pisses me off to no end. The only times he did that were to provide the group a place to stay in Lucerne and a private plane to fly them to Monaco. However, their stay in Lucerne doesn't make sense when they could directly go to Germany from France, and Elliot just waited until they missed the second flight to reveal that his family owns the airline of the missed flights. I seriously question his usefulness. As for Marisa, she better not lose all that money from betting Carlisle.

Nightbound Chapter 7:

Why are there options to be mean to Vera for no reason while ignoring the fact that she saved MC from a zombie? I get that her power is deadly, but she used it for good, and had no intention to harm others. Let's hope others will warm up to her.

Heh, no surprise Lady Smoke is Vera's mom. I stumbled upon a theory @a-whore-of-rome came up with, though much of the information involves Vera's first premium scene, followed by the mention of Lady Smoke as a mobster. And wow! Vera and her mom are complete opposites. I think Lady Smoke kinda has a point that they shouldn't live in fear because of their powers. After all, their power to kill others with their bare hands isn't necessarily a curse, but can come in handy depending on the user and their intents. I think Lady Smoke lets this power get in her head that she largely uses it for her benefit. A pity I didn't get her monster tear, but I certainly have plans to get it.

A premium scene to talk to Priya Lacroix. Pass, at least for now. I make no secret why I hate Priya, even though spending time with a love interest sounds like something I'd do once I know who my LI will be. For the time being, none of the love interests capture my attention.

Platinum Chapters 1-2:

First impressions-wise, the story seems OK. I don't like the clichéd bits (small town girl gets picked up by a star), but there's still hope for something else. Super glad that my MC gets to wear glasses as a regular accessory, rather than as part of another outfit. After all, I also wear glasses. And not to mention that the fanbase meter and that certain actions can cause the MC to lose fans looks like a good mechanism that prevents an immediate rise to fame cliché.

Interesting that both Avery and Raleigh can be either male or female, depending on player choices. For Avery, I picked the female one because she's so pretty. The male one's eyes look dopey, but that's just personal impression. Raleigh's harder because both choices look good, though I ended up picking the female one. It's probably not final, though.

Heh, I know Ryder from AME would make a cameo appearance in this story, and it seems that he's in his element. Also, Shane is a good friend to have so far. It's a blessing.

What is it with PB and its affinity with the rival girl cliché? I get that Jaylen isn't a saint, but this cliché discourages players to view characters with proper nuance and understand their roles in the story. After all, an important part of evaluating characters is to not let biases on certain "types" hinder one's thinking.

Anyway, let's see how this story developes.

Open Heart Chapter 16:

Honestly, I really don't like the fact that the MC acts friendly towards Landry even though the way he sabotaged the MC involved disrupting patient care. Because of this, I continued picking options that don't give him credit. Not once did he feel remorse over sabotaging the MC and putting patients at risk. It's like the situation with Sebastian in The Sophomore all over again. Forced to forgive someone who not only expressed no remorse for their wrongdoing but also forgetting that what he did are illegal, dangerous, and degrading. It doesn't help that his sabotage of the boiler is enough to erase sympathy for him.

That aside, I finally get to work with Ethan on Naveen, and it seems that Ethan is more open on his respect for MC. That seems reassuring, especially since I giggled at him saying that his middle name's Jonah after the MC saying Ethan "Freaking" Ramsey.

Seeing Aurora wish the MC luck was nice and calming. I'm proud of her taking the initiative of being nice towards the person who consoled her. It doesn't erase her flaws, such as her overconfidence when she downplayed a case as "not interesting", but I'm ready to see her slowly warming up to others and learn that all patients are interesting in their own way.

Man, I can't believe the next chapter is the finale. I won't be surprised the MC will win and keep their medical license, followed by a little celebration that involves premium options to spend time with a love interest.

Bloodbound Chapter 3:

Too bad that it costs diamonds to actually have fun in Vegas in order to blow off some steam in preparation for meeting with Landgon. Well, I'm not super tempted to buy them because my LI is neither Adrian nor Lily, though I like them both.

Anyway, on to meeting Langdon. I knew this guy's shady, but to see him keeping various supernatural beings alive sickens me. Even more so when he planned to keep MC and co. as part of his collection.

So the cameo comes from Cal. Well, not surprising, and I'm just scared at what might happen to him.

And Lily saying "to defeat the Huns" is what I need to cheer me up and lighten my mood. Despite being a vampire, she always stays true to herself and helps in any way she can. I have great confidence she'll be a great assistant to Jax.

Regarding the second flashback, I feel bad at Adrian killing the Confederate soldiers, though I wonder if that scene has changes depending on his appearance. And Gaius just reminds me how ruthless and creepy he is despite having another side to him in the previous chapter. He's shaping up to be a villain I like.

[houxli]

I’m playing Mass Effect Andromeda again. It’s fine, the writing curdles any liquid in me, it’s pulpy, it’s unimaginative, it’s fun, it’s 6/10, Scott Ryder stands weird, Jaal is a light in the darkness, Cora sucks, Vetra ceases my functions (with affection), I would die for Liam, gameplay is 🤌🏻, new game + isn’t worth doing the level caps are strangling me, the PAW AR is my baby, whenever someone says a line I sigh like a whiny dog, it gets good after 5 hours, it looks fine, it builds character, people should play it, I only want to read the quarian ark DLC book, SAM and Alec are a waste of plot, BioWare has only one villain (they turn us into them!!!), I’ll likely play it again as Sara, and the music in Ryder’s room should play throughout the Tempest.

[death-rebirth-senshi]

I don't like a lot of the tedium the game adds but you know. It's alright sometimes. Bland and everything. Mass Effect Inquisition. The main villain is literally just Corypheus. The kett have potential but I don't think the game digs into it like it could have.

Characters are alright but I also feel like most of the loyalty missions leave something to be desired. There are plenty of character deaths, but no squad member deaths, and like...no one you care much about dies, which has its pros and cons. I'd say the game does not have the proper tone/stakes for like, any major character to die, and while I like the cast well enough Ryder doesn't feel as close/influential to them as Shepard does to say Ashley and Kaidan, and I can't imagine being as torn up about leaving say Liam or Cora behind somewhere to die. Andromeda just isn't that kind of game. But also the fact that Andromeda isn't that kind of game is like...part of it.

Too many jokes and quips by far. I don't care much for having a twin, particularly one that is in a narratively convenient coma most of the game. I don't care much for a singular backstory of oh look it's your dad and he's tough and cool but he's emotionally distant and you two aren't close and then he dies for you whoah blah blah blah which also isn't handled with like...idk I don't give a shit about Alec, he has an annoying unstoppable speech in the game's opening which is all it takes for a character to be the most insufferable character ever, and then he's dead and gone after throwing in the appropriate "I am a vaguely emotionally distant father" cues. I also hate that Alec is an N7 sorry.

But you know I have my fun with the game. There's no ardat-yakshi and other horrible mass effect things.

[meggannn]

I need to talk about N7s

because my brain has been whirring since I read this reddit post, and I have some thoughts I need to blab about

((spoilers for the MEA prologue))

OP on Reddit essentially says that watching Alec Ryder in action puts Shepard’s capabilities as a soldier into greater context within the ME universe, and I’m kind of buzzing at this realization. I’m paraphrasing here, but when you play as Scott or Sara in the prologue, you’re running around trying to find your team, trying not to get killed by a new mysterious alien race, trying not to fall off cliffs or get struck by lightening, trying to figure out this weird technology, doing your best to stay alive while figuring out what’s going on. you’re young, you’re doing your best, you were trained for exploration and less so high-risk missions, but you’re doing your best with the skills you have.

then you meet up with Cora, and follow Alec’s NavPoint -- noticing the trail of dead kett bodies along the way, your dad’s been busy -- and meet up with him, only to find that not only has he found the kett’s stronghold, but he has an idea how to get them all out of here.

“the weather is the problem, so we’re fixing the weather,” says Alec Ryder.

“...what the fuck?” says everyone else.

but Ryder Sr. doesn’t answer; he goes blazing down the path up into the base, vaulting over barriers, yelling at you to keep up while you struggle to pick off the kett that’ve turned their attention toward you.

OP says basically, this must be what Shepard’s companions felt... probably at like any given time. especially all those times when Shepard comes up with some wild idea to fix an impossible problem. (”let’s summon the mother of all thresher maws to take down that Reaper!” “I’ll run around on foot with a targeting laser to distract the reaper while your men take it out!” “guys, keep an eye on me while I hook my brain up to the geth server!” “Liara, take out the yahg while I punch it in the face!”) playing as Shepard in the OT, these ideas make sense to us. we never question it because we’re in Shepard’s shoes and Shepard’s convinced it’s the only way to solve the problem.

the MEA prologue shows us what happens when the plan has consequences: Alec’s helmet survives intact -- N7 gear, I imagine -- but Ryder’s standard-issue initiative helmet doesn’t. Alec sacrifices himself to save his kid because their gear is broken. Shepard travels the length of the Normandy Sr-1 and dies saving the ship’s pilot because he can’t walk to the exit himself in time.

so it feels bittersweet to be playing Ryder Jr., not just because you just watched your dad die when he could have lived -- it’s like playing Joker immediately after the SR-1’s destruction. we literally play the character who’s been passed the torch from an N7, on a narrative scale (Alec) and a metaphorical scale (Shepard). Shepard and Alec Ryder were by far the more valued soldiers than Joker or Scott or Sara -- they do impossible things, they’re the Alliance/the Council’s last lines of defense, but in the heat of the moment, they will always be the last one on the evac shuttle after making sure everyone is safe, and they save a crewmember’s life at the cost of their own.

and it’s not just them; Anderson fights tooth and nail to get him and Shepard through the Reapers to the Normandy in the ME3 prologue, and then you find out he did it just for Shepard, because Shepard’s been locked up for six months and might be out of practice in a fight, and he’s not coming with. he’s going to stay and fight the Reapers on Earth where he know he’ll most likely die.

of the main N7 graduates we know (Shepard, Alec Ryder, David Anderson, Kai Leng), three are protagonists and Leng is the only villain, dishonorably discharged for murdering a krogan without cause while on leave (interestingly, the same year he graduated the ICT, in 2176). Alec Ryder was also dishonorably discharged for his experimentation on AIs, yet he still continues to wear the N7 and Leng doesn’t. I have two theories: either the N7 is a rank you earned and get to wear no matter your status in the Alliance (meaning Ryder is still allowed to wear it post-discharge and Leng just chooses not to, or Leng’s offense was bad enough to strip him of the rank and Alec’s wasn’t), or, once you’re expelled from the Alliance, you lose the ability to wear your former rank along with your title, and Ryder wears it in MEA because he’s still proud of being an N7 and there is no Alliance in Andromeda to get in trouble with. either way, there’s something powerful about the N7 symbol that compels Alec to carry it across with him all the way to another galaxy. as far as we know, he’s the only N7 who came to Andromeda, and apparently he’s going to be the last.

I’ve always found it interesting that Anderson, also an ICT graduate, doesn’t wear the rank even as an Admiral in the field in ME3. and Shepard wears it everywhere. I take this to mean you’re allowed to wear it, but you don’t have to; I also take it to mean being an N7 is not just important to Shepard, it’s how they want others to see them when they walk into a room. personally I’d wager it means more to Shepard than being a Spectre. after all, Shepard’s experiences with Spectres have been largely corrupt: within two years, they took down two compromised Spectres (Saren and Tela Vasir, tho Saren was indoctrinated so it wasn’t exactly his fault), more than most agents in a lifetime. I like to hope post-war, Shepard establishes a better relationship with other Spectres like Jondum Bau, though, because clearly they can’t all be corrupt -- but my point is that I think Shepard sees Spectrehood as a representation of one’s ability to get a job done, any job, and N7 as a representation of capability and adaptability, and of moral integrity. whatever they teach you at the Villa, it teaches you to value life other than your own; it sticks with you for the rest of your career. if you’re a corrupt N7, the Alliance will boot you, and you may have won the badge, but you don’t get to call yourself an Alliance soldier anymore. if you’re a corrupt Spectre, the Council will make turn a blind eye and whisper to another Spectre to clean up the mess.

we don’t actually know the specifics of what ICT training consists of -- I’ve read the wiki and tons of theories just out of curiosity to get a better context for Shepard’s background, but I have a feeling the Alliance keeps it under wraps specifically so initiates can’t prepare for it. still, it makes me wonder now after meeting Alec and analyzing this through the lens of Shepard’s history. we’ll never know what happens at the Villa, but those levels of training must be one hell of a thing. I once read on a tumblr post someone said “Shepard may not have a formal education, but they went to school.”

so knowing all this, maybe it’s no wonder former Alliance NPCs will get mad if Ryder Jr. wears N7 armor around Andromeda. Ryder didn’t earn it.