#also really liked the one where we discover king's titan lore | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

spinaroos-47 · 3 years ago

Text

Hunter Noceda AU!

So, this has been an au that's been developing on my mind for the last two weeks, and Yesterday's Lie has helped to rough out the start of the story but it's still not very developed.

The basic is, Hunter would have somehow ended up falling on the human realm through a leak caused by Titan's blood (i haven't figured out exactly how that happened yet) when he was pretty young, like three or four years old and Camila (and presumably Luz's dad) found him and adopted him!

Then, years later, when Luz is being sent to the camp, he would be going too, working as a counselor-in-training there. But then the whole Owlbert thing happens and he ends up following Luz and Owlbert to the demon realm and the story goes from there.

- He and Luz are pretty close since neither of them are exactly popular or even well liked. They’re two ND kids who mostly only trust eachother since they almost always were the only ones who understood and stood up for the other. They both love Azura a lot and often end up in hours long discussions about the lore and theories.

- He has felt like he didn’t belong there for a lot of reasons. The pointy ears, magenta eyes, just appearing out of nowhere when he was small, having no idea where he’s from, anger issues, being very obviously ND and having weird interests, and the list goes on.

- Generally he's more cautious than Luz about almost everything, trying to think things through first, he likes being sure of what to expect. But that gets dropped down quite a bit when they're in the Boiling Isles because everything is so interesting and he's excited to know more, ending up more impulsive, even if its a bit out of his comfort zone a lot of times.

- He's hesitant to stay on the Boiling Isles at first (for obvious reasons) but he decides to stay because 1) Luz 2) He wants to know more about witches, since that's his chance to finally know more about who he is 3) Magic nerd number 2.

- It takes a while for him to discover he's powerless. He at first thought it was because of Earth not having natural magic like the Boiling Isles do, and then he goes to the assumption that his magic is funky because of having stayed on earth for so long, but that it will come back one day. But he does end up realizing he just never had a working magic bile sac. Takes a little while for him to accept that.

- He's autistic/ADHD, aromantic and trans (trans guy Hunter and nonbinary Luz solidarity).

- King loves staying with him, often leaving him trapped in the couch not able to leave because he fell asleep on top of him (and no one disturbs King’s naps).

- He has the habit of hiding his ears quite often ever since Jacob one time bugged him about it when he had the displeasure of bumping into him one time on the coffee shop. He still does it on the Boiling Isles out of habit, but kinda drops it after a while, specially around the owlfam.

- Most if not all the emotional problems Canon Hunter has are still there, but not as outward/extreme as in canon or they appear in different ways.

- He’s also a magic nerd because of Azura, as well as a history nerd, who sneaks into any library near him, be it in Gravesfield or Bonesborough. He would love Hexside, he’d probably choose all tracks like Luz, but maybe not going all out like her.

- Idk If he's still a grimwalker here. Maybe? Could be interesting

- And I also don’t know how the second season could play out . If he's a grimwalker, then there could be an even younger Golden Guard. That’s a fun and horrifying idea, i think I'll go with it. Would be a hell of an existential crisis.

- I think that, while extremely invested in the glyphs too, he would be searching for other ways of doing magic too, to not have to rely on only glyphs.

- His and Luz's father is still alive (we didn't get confirmation that he died and the possibility of him being alive makes some good small bit of angst for the au, as I’ll explain on the next points), but divorced/broke up with Camila some years ago and she ended up with the custody of both Hunter and Luz, and they still sometimes see him.

- There wasn't any way of Vee knowing about Hunter and his relationship to Luz before she decided to escape to the human realm. She only finds out about him when Camila asks about him and she doesn't immediatly associate him being the witch she saw with Luz at the start, she just assumed he was another witch who lived there, she only realizes who he is when camp ends. He had agreed to wait with Luz for the bus until some colleagues who were also going to be counselors-in-training were going to pick him up and give him a ride to the camp (to not “embarass Luz by the otehr campers knowing they’re siblings”), so when Camila found Vee alone, she assumed he had already gone.

- And just like Luz, he lied about going to camp to Camila, and lied to the colleagues that he gave up on that (and Vee accidentally helped by giving the same answer when asked about it and panicked). He really wants to know more about where he’s from and about all kinds of magic and everything going on, and he doesn’t want to worry Camila and if he said the truth while Luz was lying it wouldn’t end well for both of them. He’s scared of being forced away from all these things he wants to discover, and doesn’t want it for Luz either, and like her, he loves this new support group they both have. His plan was to keep the lie until camp ended, but we all know this doesn’t go as planned and he gets really nervous about this, like, barely able to keep himself from having a crisis.

- He is very attached to Camila, he would send her messages everyday, and the guilt eats him alive. Luz and he talk a lot about this in the middle of the nights.

- So, portal gets destroyed, camp ends. Camila is (obviously) stressed out by only finding one of her kids and discovering that Hunter never even got there in the first place. She can’t contact him in any way so she’s pretty sure he ran away, maybe to her ex’s house, so this already makes her feel horrible and like she messed up a lot, assuming he hated living there. It worsens a lot of stuff for Yesterday’s Lie.

- Luz does tell that Hunter is fine and with her (he wasn’t on the portal realm doing this experiment with her), and it breaks Camila’s heart to know that, while Hunter is okay, both of her kids are trapped in a different realm, there’s a kid that acted as Luz ever since camp started and she didn’t even know, and that Hunter and Luz chose to stay there and lied to her. I don’t think that, when Luz gets out of the portal, she even tells Hunter about everything of this situation.

- Yeah Yesterday’s Lie made this so fucking sad

There isn't much on the story besides the start and where the second season has stopped for now, the relationships haven't been fleshed out yet and his design also isn't finalized, but I'm so excited to share this au!

#toh #long post #toh spoilers #the owl house #golden guard #hunter toh #king clawthorne #hunter noceda au #alec talks #my art #au #this second golden guard is peak another adopted sibiling also sgdhdjh

125 notes · View notes

godsofhumanity · 3 years ago

Note

12 titans headcanons please ❤️

yes ❤️

❤ warning: this is gonna be a very long post ❤

OCEANUS

Oceanus is the oldest of the Titans, and i really like the idea that he grew to adulthood within a day of being born.

i think i've mentioned this in some Gaia hc's previously, but i don't think that Gaia had any of her children in the "conventional" way that we're used to.. as in, none of her children were actually formed in her womb- instead, i imagine that she and Ouranos only had to place their hands on the Earth to cause their children to be born.

for the Titans in particular, i like the idea that Gaia caused a field of flowers to bloom, and within 12 of them were each of the Titans.

Oceanus bloomed first, and was named by Gaia (i think he's the only one who was actually named by her, herself- more on this later).

we know that Ouranos never cared for his children, so i think that the 12 Titans were originally born so that they could help Gaia take care of the Earth,, thus allowing Ouranos and Gaia to spend more time with each other.

so when Oceanus was born, he had to grow quickly so that he could take care of his siblings and raise them (Ouranos wasn't about to let Gaia go "wasting" her time taking care of children).

Oceanus builds the first village, and his primary motivation in everything he does, is to take care of his siblings.

i think he's very paternal,, though he doesn't like to show it.

Oceanus is very stoic as well... he hates brash decisions and always takes his time to think about things before he says something or does something.

also, in Gaia's absence, i think he named all his siblings, and i think that although all the Titans refer to him as their brother, they also have the understanding that Oceanus has been more of a parent than either Gaia or Ouranos, and they all look up to him a lot.

Oceanus isn't cowardly, but i don't think he likes fighting. he would much rather preserve the peace at the sake of his own freedom, than have said freedom but at the price of blood being spilled.

that said, he could definitely pack a punch if he chose to.

related to Oceanus’ unwillingness to fight, i think this is an important factor in why Cronus (who is the youngest) becomes King instead of Oceanus (who is the oldest).

technically, it’s Oceanus’ birthright to become King after Ouranos, but Oceanus doesn’t possess the qualities required to be a good king, and he knows it, which is why he never challenges Cronus’ authority or tries to take the throne for himself- he is absolutely okay with not being king, in fact, i think he’s grateful for it.

TETHYS

Tethys is, as the lore states, Oceanus' wife, and i think she's always been really close to Oceanus- the only one who truly understands Oceanus' deepest feelings.

since Oceanus doesn't really show much emotion physically, i think it's sometimes difficult for the other Titans to know exactly what he's thinking, but Tethys is very intuitive and understands Oceanus quite perfectly.

i think Tethys is slightly more energetic than Oceanus, but she's still the most quiet of all her sisters.

she too, prefers not to fight if she doesn't have to, but while Oceanus will wait for the very last opportunity to fight, i think Tethys can be persuaded to make a move earlier than she usually would.

i also think she's more adept at fighting than Oceanus.

when Oceanus and Tethys are referenced in poems and plays, they are usually described as the "primeval parents", and are often referred to as the "genesis for all" which i think is really cute, and although Tethys isn't the goddess of motherhood, i definitely think she's very maternal (i mean, she has 3000+ children, so we hope so, right?).

after the Titanomachy, it is said that Oceanus and Tethys became Hera's foster-parents, so i imagine that Tethys and Oceanus opened their home to many gods and goddesses, even if they were simply passing through.

Hera, in particular, i think had a closer bond with Oceanus and Tethys than with Rhea- and that of course is no fault of Rhea's, i just think that's how things happened.

everyone talks of this idea that Zeus would go around pestering Oceanus and Tethys when he was trying to court Hera, and i like that idea as well ^_^

i think Oceanus was particularly reluctant to let Zeus be with Hera because Oceanus has had sooo many daughters who have been effectively abandoned by their husbands (see: Metis, Asia/Clymene, Hesione, Eurynome, etc.) and he doesn't want that to happen to yet another one of his kids.. but Tethys, the sweet voice of reason whom Oceanus has a hard time saying "no" to, intervenes on Zeus' behalf perhaps because she sees something more in Zeus' proposals, which is why Oceanus finally concedes and allows him into his house.

CRONUS

now this guy >:)

i've said it before, but i just really really like the idea that Cronus is the epitome of "you either die the hero, or live long enough to see yourself become the villain".

before i said that Oceanus grew to adulthood within a day because he had to take care of his younger siblings, and following this logic, i think some of the younger Titans took more time to grew simply because there was no need for them to grow up quickly- they were going to be taken care of.

as the youngest, i think Cronus takes the most time to grow.

most of his life, his siblings are ordering him around which i think gets to him a little, so of course, Cronus has always been a little bit mischievous and a little sneaky.

i think he gets along really well with Iapetus. they are “terror twins” as Oceanus calls them, and as children, they would always get up to no good.

in terms of morality, i think initially, he’s actually quite sane and level-headed. he understands that war is brutal and should be avoided if it can, but he also understands that sometimes war is necessary. this is what makes him, initially, a good king- because he understands the need for balance.

but,, after sometime, i think he goes insane with Ouranos’ prophecy and he convinces himself that murdering his children is just a part of the job- it’s his duty.

i like the idea that Cronus sees himself first and foremost as King. being a husband and a father is second to kingship.

i always wondered what makes a man go so mad that he’d eat his own kids, especially after he literally deposed of his father for doing effectively the same thing- why would he willingly follow in the footsteps of the god he hated so much? well, i think it’s because Cronus is driven by this philosophy of being King before being anyone else.

he believes that it’s his job to protect the world, the way he did that first time when he rallied his siblings together to fight Ouranos. Cronus believes that his children are going to ruin the world and destroy his siblings, and he loves his family and the world too much to let that happen,, and if he has to choose between his children and the world that he has sworn to protect, well, as King, isn’t he obligated to choose the world?

and after that, he just goes downhill, and i think he loses sight of the bigger picture, and becomes the villain.

also- not relevant to the core of this section but i just wanted to talk a little about Philyra, the mother of Chiron by Cronus ^-^

so in the original myth, i’m pretty sure that Cronus and Rhea are still married when Cronus and Philyra get together,, and that’s why when Rhea catches them and gets pissed, Cronus panics and turns into a horse (which is why Chiron is half god, half horse- lololol Cronus, you absolute loser).

anyways, i love the myth because it’s funny, but i don’t like the idea that Cronus was actually cheating on Rhea- i mean, first you eat her children, and now you’re cheating on her?? c’mon, have some tact!

so i have my own little take on it, and that is that Chiron is born after Cronus gets disposed (so when Rhea and Cronus are pretty much divorced).

i like the Orphic version of events where Cronus gets sent to Nyx’s cave, so following from there, i imagine that Philyra must have somehow helped Cronus escape from Nyx’s cave (probably because she was manipulated by Cronus),, and when they escaped, they came to Mt Pelion, which coincidentally, is where Rhea, now happily retired, lives.

so that’s how Rhea accidentally discovered her ex-husband’s affairs (which is in line with the original myth where Rhea catches them).

of course, i don’t think Cronus ever cared about Philyra to begin with, i think he was just using her because i don’t think the “player” archetype suits Cronus- he’s not a romantic, that’d make him too similar to Zeus, and the last thing Cronus would want would be to be like his son.

anyways so where does Chiron’s equine nature come into my version of events? well, running from Nyx’s cave to Mt Pelion on foot sounds a little tiring, but luckily, Cronus is a god and can therefore turn into a stallion, so he and Philyra probably ran away like that.

i don’t think Cronus ever actually knows about Chiron. Philyra, in the myths, is ashamed about Chiron’s appearance (which is really rude and mean), so she abandons him, but i like the idea that she simply wasn’t ready to be a mother, much less a mother of a child born from a war-criminal, so she instead leaves Chiron on Rhea’s doorstep. and Rhea recognises immediately who Chiron is, but she’s the goddess of motherhood so she adopts him, until Apollo comes in a few days later and decides to take Chiron. anyways, so that was a little bit of a tangent but i just wanted to share that ^-^

another thing- i know we all like to make jokes about Cronus seeing children as good for only one thing- snacks- but in all seriousness, i don’t think that was the case. i’ve said before what i, personally, think his real motivations behind consuming his children were, but i don’t think he was averse to the concept of children and having a family entirely.

ok, i have to divert to the story of Prometheus to explain myself here, but bear with me for a sec- so Prometheus gets punished because he helps the humans- but why does he help them? why does he love them so much and why does he feel sorry for the way they’ve been treated by Zeus?

well,, we know that Prometheus was alive during Cronus’ reign. and during Cronus’ reign, Cronus made the Golden Age of Man where mortals lived in peace and harmony, free from interference by the gods, where no one did the “wrong” thing, and life was great. so couldn’t it be that Prometheus had seen what life for humanity could have been like?

my hc is that Prometheus had seen what Cronus had done for humanity and was appalled by what he now saw under Zeus’ rule.

so what does that have to do with Cronus and children? well, i like the idea that Prometheus grew up in the palace, and he had known Cronus all his life. i like the idea that Cronus actually spent time with his nephew, and was the one who first introduced Prometheus to the mortals. i think Prometheus and Cronus actually were rather close as uncle and nephew. so,, i don’t think that Cronus hated all children,, he just didn’t think he could have any of his own.

RHEA

Rhea is one of my favourites <3 i think she’s one of the cooler Titans.

i think her personality is defined by her courage, and her ambition- in fact, i’d call her the most ambitious of all the Titans.

as a young Titan, i think she got along best with Cronus and Iapetus, and i think she actually had a bit of a mischievous nature, similar to them. i think she enjoys pranks and good jokes.

she’s the kind of goddess who would do anything on a dare (i think she was pretty wild, and maybe a little shameless, in her youth, much to Oceanus’ distress).

in saying that, i think Rhea has also always been very headstrong. she’s not arrogant, or rude, but she if she has opinions, she will make sure you’re aware of them. you don’t have to agree, you just have to understand her point of view.

she’s also a little spitfire (a little like Hera tbh), and she is very good at fighting ^-^

but, Rhea is also incredibly kind and forgiving. considering what she goes through during her marriage, i think she is remarkably strong. while Cronus goes insane, Rhea remains standing tall- she survives Ouranos’ rule, Cronus’ rule, and is alive to witness Zeus’, and she is never on the losing side which is a testament to her character and strength of mind.

in the previous section, i said that Cronus follows the philosophy of “King first, husband/father second”, but i don’t think Rhea agrees with this at all.

there is never any way for her to justify to herself that her children needed to be killed- it’s a horrible and messed up idea and it’s honestly a wonder that she didn’t go insane after it happening to her children five freaking times.

i think that what makes Rhea a good queen is that she doesn’t work in absolutes- see, Cronus believes that either the world is saved, or his children are saved, but not both- but Rhea, who is always driven by courage and hope, believes that it is possible for the world to have peace and for her children to also be alive.

where Cronus is an architect of plans, and an executor, Rhea is the thought-process- the one who thinks things through carefully and evaluates the effects of the action... she’s more level-headed, and she doesn’t get angry easily.

after Cronus is deposed, i like the idea that Rhea remained on the throne a little longer- Zeus was simply too young to be allowed free reign immediately, so she kinda pulled the strings behind the scenes.

i don’t think that Rhea has favourites amongst her children. i think she is very protective of all of them and she loves them all very much, but i think the one she finds most difficult to get along with is Hera, maybe because Hera is the most similar to her (which is why Hera spends more time with Oceanus and Tethys than Rhea).

there are versions of the courtship of Zeus and Hera where Zeus and Hera keep their relationship a secret from Rhea because Rhea will disapprove of it, and i do like this version of the myth because i think it makes sense. i think Rhea has some fear that Zeus will repeat the mistakes of Cronus and Ouranos, and she doesn’t want Hera or Zeus, for that matter, to be hurt the way Rhea was hurt.

we know that Zeus had already swallowed Metis, so Rhea believing that Zeus could become like Cronus isn’t too hard to believe.

speaking of the Zeus x Metis myth, i don’t think Zeus swallowed Metis intentionally. i think that, at that time, Zeus was still incredibly young- he had only recently defeated his father, and was still finding his way around the world. so when Metis told him about the prophecy concerning her son defeating Zeus, i imagine that he must have panicked and lost control of his powers, and without meaning to, he had reduced Metis to her divine essence, and she disappeared before his sight (he thought she was simply dead, and didn’t realise that Metis and her child were dwelling within him). Rhea is the first one to discover what transpired between Metis and Zeus and she was probably pretty horrified.

but, Rhea knew that Zeus was still young, and of course, he’s her son, so she refuses to just give up on him straight away- instead, they work on things, and Zeus gets better, and they move on. but i’m sure that the incident gnawed on her mind, and she worried for both Zeus and Hera, hence why she was reluctant to allow them to marry. but as the story goes, she conceded, and Hera became queen ^-^

HYPERION

Hyperion is the fourth Titan, and i think that all-in-all, he’s a pretty chill guy.

generally speaking, Hyperion doesn’t really like to fight, mainly because he thinks it’s boring and the risk of his face getting ruined is just too great for him.

i think he is a little vain,, he loves flattery- he likes being complimented and he likes complimenting others.

i also think that he’s a little bit weak-willed, or rather, i think that when the Titans were all young, he would often be the butt of the jokes.

in saying that, i think Hyperion has good spirit, so although he’d be a little annoyed about all the jokes and the pranks, he never takes it to heart because he understands that it’s all just a joke.

in some myths, it’s said that after Ouranos was deposed, Cronus divided the world into four parts- Hyperion ruled in the West, Iapetus in the East, Coeus in the North, and Crius in the South, while Oceanus took the seas, and Cronus of course, ruled over time + the whole word in general- and i really like this idea.

after the Castration of Ouranos, i think it’s the first time that the Titans actually split apart and start living on their own and having families.

Hyperion and Theia live in the West, and have Selene, Eos, and Helios.

after the Titanomachy, it’s said that Cronus and all his brothers were placed in Tartarus, but given the importance of Selene, Eos, and Helios during Zeus’ role, i just can’t imagine that Hyperion was one of the Titans sent to Tartarus.

i don’t think he would’ve actively supported Cronus towards the end (i mean, he was very clearly insane and needed to be deposed), but i think at the same time, he would’ve been reluctant to oppose Cronus, given how powerful Cronus was. and again, there’s that conflict with the fact that it was Cronus who freed the Titans from Ouranos, so i guess things aren’t really that black and white for Hyperion.

if Hyperion did fight for Cronus, i think he would have done so only out of obligation (because Cronus is the king, and he defeated Ouranos).

THEIA

Theia’s the eldest of her sisters, and i think she has always been a bit of a natural-born leader.

i think she gets along best with Rhea ^-^

but while Rhea is a little more level-headed, i think Theia can be louder and more hot-headed, with a quicker temper.

given that she is the goddess “who endowed gold, silver and gems with their brilliance and intrinsic value ”, i think it’s a fair hc to say that she enjoys jewellery and pretty, shiny things, but, in saying that, i don’t think she could be bought over with gifts.

i think Theia is more strong-willed than Hyperion, and i think she is best reflected in Selene who takes after her the most.

i imagine Selene to be very graceful and elegant- willing to fight, but only once she’s carefully understood her opponents and her situation.

in the Theogony, Hesiod writes that all the Titans were hesitant about killing Ouranos, except Cronus who stood up and rallied them, and while i think Rhea was the first to agree with Cronus, i think Theia supported him next. but!! she wouldn’t have ever supported him during the Titanomachy- i think she would have taken Zeus’ side, if she was involved in the fighting.

also, this isn’t really relevant i guess, but i really like the idea that Theia’s weapon of choice is a whip. like one of those ones made out of a chain with the sharp blades at the end, so that it sparkles as it slices through the air. i just think it’d be neat :D

COEUS

alright, now, strictly speaking, Coeus doesn’t have much of a mythology- he’s pretty much only known as the father of Asteria (mother of Hecate) and Leto, and the guy who ruled in the North when Cronus first became king.

BUT!! very interestingly, in the Argonautica, it’s said that Coeus was thrown into Tartarus after the Titanomachy along with his bros, but he went insane and tried to escape, but Cerberus, being the good guard-dog he is, caught him and sent him back.

anyways, i think this is very interesting because none of the other Titans are really given such a myth.. i mean, none of the other Titans went so insane that they tried to escape from Tartarus (at least, not that I know of).

this myth fits in with my hc that Coeus has the least will/strength-of-mind from all the Titans.

to be honest though, in the same way that i don’t like the idea of Hyperion being sent to Tartarus, i don’t really like that Coeus would have been sent there either. his daughters are Asteria and Leto, and both of them must have been loved by Zeus.

Asteria’s daughter is Hecate, whom Hesiod says was honoured by Zeus above all others. so while Asteria isn’t listed as one of Zeus’ lovers, i think he had a lot of respect for her.

Leto, as we all know, was Zeus’ sixth wife and the mother of his beloved Apollo and Artemis, so there’s no doubt that he loved her.

and so, in light of this, i just can’t imagine that Coeus’ daughters didn’t appeal to Zeus and ask him to have mercy on Coeus, because if they didn’t plead for him, this might imply that they didn’t feel pity for him, which further implies that they might not have loved him as a father at all. and the natural conclusion of such a sentiment is that Coeus really wasn’t much of a father to them- and if that’s the case, then that means that NONE of Gaia’s Titan sons (except Oceanus) were good fathers. and idk, that just doesn’t sit well with me.

why is it that only the goddesses were spared? are they somehow naturally always gonna be on the hero’s side because they’re female? are the gods always gonna be on the villain’s side because they’re male... “boys stick together”? idk it’s dumb.

that’s why i like the idea that Asteria and Leto must have pleaded for him- i think he was a good father, and they did love him. did Zeus listen? i guess that’s another story.

but i do like the idea that Coeus didn’t really want to be on Cronus’ side, it’s just that he was scared of the consequences of opposing him- Coeus is regarded as the titan of “rational intelligence”, and if you ask me, it’d be pretty rational to not want to fight against a psycho when you have a family to think about.

also, i know it’s not a part of the actual myths, but i do like the idea that Coeus was a titan of magic/witchcraft as well, because that might explain where Hecate gets her abilities from.

PHOEBE

Phoebe is Coeus’ wife, and she’s also the titan goddess of prophetic wisdom.

once again, there really isn’t much lore for her beyond the idea that she was the oracle before Apollo.

this isn’t in the myths, but my hc is that Asteria and Leto represent Coeus and Phoebe’s domains- so while Coeus’ magic gets passed down to Asteria and then to Hecate, Phoebe’s prophetic powers are transferred to Leto and then to Apollo.

so, although, it’s not supported by the myths, i hc that Leto had prophetic powers as well, it just might have not been as strong as Phoebe’s or Apollo’s.

anyways, back to Phoebe- i think that the best word to describe Phoebe would be “sweet”. i think she’s very kind, and generous, and mild-mannered, where most of her sisters are a little more.. wild.

i don’t think she’s much of a fighter, nor is she devious or scheming. she’s really just quite innocent.

CRIUS

Crius is another Titan without much mythology.. his main role is as an ancestor of the gods, and apparently as the first to observe the constellations, thus why he was known as the titan of the constellations. which is pretty cool IMO.

i personally imagine Crius to be very intelligent and smart. i think, given his domain, he really enjoys stargazing <3

for the most part, he’s a very level-headed, calm, and reasonable guy, but i think he’s also quite aloof, and not very vocal about his emotions.

i think that he’s pretty comfortable with bending his morals to suit the bigger picture, and that’s why i think he does actively support Cronus during the Titanomachy (hence why he gets sent to Tartarus).

i don’t think he really cares for pranks or jokes. in a sense, he is very similar to Oceanus, and from all their siblings, i think growing up, he gave Oceanus the least amount of trouble.

Crius’ children are Pallas, Perses, and Astraeus.

i’d imagine that Crius has control over the stars and the constellations, and is capable of what i’d call “celestial magic”. and i think this ability is inherited by Perses, who becomes the father of Hecate by Asteria, and that’s how the magic gets passed down to Hecate, and why Hecate is so revered as the ultimate magic goddess.

just as i said earlier that Phoebe and Coeus aren’t really fighters, i don’t think Crius is a fighter either. he’s more of a strategist, and would rely on magic rather than using actual swords and stuff.

anyways, enough about the Titanomachy!! i think my third favourite pairing after Cronus x Rhea, and Oceanus x Tethys, is Crius x Eurybia!

there is no mythology concerning how they met or how they were married, but i like the idea that for most of her life, Eurybia was raised by Gaia and Pontus away from the rest of the Titans,, but Gaia, who is more risk-taking than Pontus, understood that Eurybia wouldn’t stay with them forever, so eventually Eurybia starts leaving their home more often and she goes out exploring the world.

and on one of these occasions, she stumbles into a forest in the South, which is part of Crius’ domain, and that’s where they meet for the first time.

i think that Eurybia is always more at ease with her feelings than Crius, and she’s very vocal about it,, which would make for a good comedy routine with the more conservative Crius, who’s less willing to let emotions rule his head, but under the guidance of love, eventually opens up more <3

+EURYBIA

Eurybia is not one of the 12 Titans, but she is the daughter of Gaia and Pontus, AND Crius’ wife, and i really like my idea of her so i’m including her here ^-^

in Hesiod’s Theogony, he describes Eurybia as having “a heart of flint within her”, which is a really cool idea!!! she’s also described as the goddess of “mastery over the seas”, which refers to the things that control the sea like the winds, and the Moon, etc.

her name also means “wide-forced”, so i imagine her to be a very headstrong and free-willed goddess.

because her father is Pontus (the sea), and she also has some control over the sea, i imagine her to be a little unpredictable, like the sea. i think she has moments where she can fly into an intense rage, or she could be absolutely calm.

i like this idea because she becomes almost the antithesis of Crius. where Crius is more calm and rational, Eurybia is more passionate and unpredictable. i think they balance each other out very nicely.

strictly speaking, Eurybia probably was not thrown into Tartarus at the end of the Titanomachy, but i hc that she was.

i think during the Titanomachy, she would have sided with Crius, and she would have fought on his side because she loved him and would have supported him in anything that he did (also once again, i don’t like the idea that Cronus only had the support of his bros, and that only the guys got thrown into Tartarus :/).

Astraeus is Eos’ husband, and Pallas is Styx’s husband, and both Eos and Styx, on many occasions in the actual myths, have been evidenced to be on Zeus’ side. so, although in reality, Pallas at the very least probably would’ve been on Cronus’ side (since, in the Theogony, Styx takes her children to Zeus first, and Pallas isn’t really mentioned), i like the idea that Astraeus and Pallas both fought on Zeus’ side instead, and escaped punishment.

which makes things tricky for Eurybia, because some of her sons are on one side, and then her husband and her other son are on the other side- what’s she supposed to do?

Eurybia is too headstrong to simply be passive and sit back and let her boys fight, so i think first she fights on Crius’ side, but then she also fights to save Astraeus and Pallas when they get into trouble.

i think she accepts that her children have grown up and made their decisions, but she also understands that she will always be their mother, and she will never bear them any resentment for fighting against their father.

also, one of Pallas’ children is named “Bia”, and i’d like to think that he named her after his mum <3

i think “Bia” is Crius’ nickname for Eurybia <3

IAPETUS

i hc Iapetus to be the supreme troublemaker amongst the Titans.

i think he has served as the largest source of headaches experienced by Oceanus when the Titans were young >:)

Iapetus loves jokes i think. he loves pranks.. all kinds of humour. he’s more street smart than book smart, and actually i think if he was trying to study, he’d lose focus after 2 minutes. but call him to participate in a prank? the guy is coming up with plans like a general preparing a war campaign.

i think as the second youngest of Gaia’s Titan sons, Iapetus has always gotten along the best with Cronus. prepare for trouble, and make it double :)

this is specific, but i’ve got this idea that when they were young, Iapetus and Cronus decided to slip some dye into Themis and Hyperion’s basins, so when they washed their hair, Themis’ hair turned pink, and Hyperion’s turned green,, but Oceanus caught Iapetus and Cronus and forced them to wash out the dye as punishment ^-^

anyways, what i’m saying is that Iapetus and Cronus have always been the closest of brothers.

i also think that Iapetus hates people who boast about themselves, or act as though they’re superior to everyone else, so he’s never really gotten along with Themis (who i imagine to be a little vain- more on that later), and that’s why he likes to play pranks on her (to irritate her).

Iapetus has five children- Prometheus, Atlas, Anchiale, Menoetius, and Epimetheus- by the Oceanid Asia... but i think that from all of them, Prometheus is the most like Iapetus.

i think Prometheus shares Iapetus’ mischievousness and his wit, which is exactly what causes him to end up being chained to a rock with eagles eating his liver :///

back to Iapetus though- i think he values loyalty a lot. so, during the Titanomachy, there is absolutely no question about him siding with Cronus- Cronus is his brother, and his King.. he set them free from Ouranos, and he even sacrificed his own children for the sake of peace, and, messed up as it is, i think Iapetus is pretty moved by that.

i think Cronus always had more guts than the rest of the Titans, and Iapetus always admired that,, which is why he supports Cronus till the end,, and i imagine he must have been really disappointed in Prometheus when he learnt that Prometheus had sided with Zeus :(

THEMIS

okay so in the above section i said that i hc Themis to be a little vain.

now by “vain”,, i don’t mean that she was a narcissist or that she was arrogant,, but i think sometimes her siblings,, especially Iapetus,, would mistake her advice and counsel as sounding a bit self-righteous.

Themis is the goddess of divine law and order,, so essentially- justice. and i think that from all the Titans, she has the purest sense of right and wrong, and she’s incredibly wise and sensible.

so for the Titans that tend to bend the rules a little- like Cronus and Iapetus, sometimes her advice doesn’t go down too well.

additionally, justice isn’t always what we want it to be- it’s not always nice, and it’s not always pleasant, and sometimes it doesn’t feel fair. and Themis embodies that concept, which is why she doesn’t always get along with her siblings (to clarify though- none of the Titans hate each other!! they’re still siblings, and they love each other, pre-Titanomachy).

as an individual though, i think Themis is very outspoken. she’s very loud, and i think she is just a little judgemental.

it’s said that Themis had oracular powers, and that when Cronus became King, he made her the oracle- and i like that idea, it makes sense.

although Themis can be harsh, she always gives good advice and wise counsel, and only a complete dumbass would hear her words and choose not to heed them.

during the Titanomachy, Themis undoubtedly sides with Zeus. and after that, i think she continues to serve Olympus with her wisdom and judgement.

this isn’t strictly related to anything, but in Egyptian mythology, the goddess of justice is Ma’at, and i love the idea of Themis and Ma’at hanging out together, doing social justice things... awesome ^-^

MNEMOSYNE

finally, Mnemosyne <3

“Mnemosyne” is such a lengthy name, so i have this hc that her siblings call her “Mnemo” instead (like, Nemo) :D

anyways, Mnemosyne is the titan of memory, and her children are the Muses, who pretty much embody every aspect of the Arts, and i think that really hints at Mnemosyne’s character.

i hc Mnemosyne to be extremely gifted at pretty much everything.

but, even though she knows that she’s really gifted, she isn’t the kind of person to show off about it. she’s always gracious and willing to teach others her talents.

i think she has a really superb voice, and when the Titans were young, i think she might’ve sung for her younger siblings.

Mnemosyne is also a little feisty i think. she’s short-tempered, but in saying that, i think it’s difficult to make her angry.

again, a kinda random hc here but i really like the idea that Mnemosyne’s weapon of choice is a battle-axe. i mean, she’s this sweet, kind-looking goddess, but she’s swinging her battle-axe and is about to wreak real havoc. it’s great ^-^

98 notes · View notes

azraqnar · 4 years ago

Text

Thoughts on Agony of a witch (Spoiler warning! (Duh))

Oh boy I was doubting this series’s before but not anymore! This episodes is easily the best in the season. Grom doesn’t have shit on this episode! Everything was just great about AOAW, the music, the suspense, the action, the story, the animation, it was all wonderful!

- for one, Hooty is damn creepy when he fights not only does he effortlessly kick the emperors covens ass (you’d think they’d be more powerful than this but whatever) but he has a tea party with their unconscious bodies after. That was an interesting (& creepy) choice & it has me curious if Eda created him or not. We need a hooty backstory.

- Eda’s curse is getting worse and after episodes of not mentioning it they finally acknowledge how bad it’s getting & how Eda needs more potions or a higher dosage to barely keep it under control KEY WORD “BARELY”. It does remind me of when my aunt had cancer and her chemotherapy stopped working they had to higher the dosage. Good job on finally talking about it.

- When Luz leaves I do like how Eda & King reflect on how the “vibe” of the house changed when Luz showed up & how King thought they were gonna eat her (I guess it confirms witches do eat human kids)I am picking up a familia love from Eda & King so now we have the found family trope (Which I love). I thought it was cute when Eda decided to make a cape as a sign of gratitude & how it sets up how important this cape is when Eda talks about the material it’s made out of.

- Luz’s class is going on the field trip to the emperors coven but isn’t Bump the principal not a teacher?At my school whenever we had a field-trip it was the Teachers that went with us not the principal, Bump didn’t even play a big role so they could have swapped him out for a Teacher & nothing would change.

- Amity’s leg is still broken so she can’t attend the field-trip, which I thought was a good idea she didn’t go. I feel like the writers would try to force in more Lumity moments and it would distract from the plot. I do like Lumity but if Amity was there then fans would focus on that rather than the story & the last two episode were Amity focused so she wasn’t needed in this episode. Smart move from the writers, maybe if her legs heals next episode she could be there but idk.

- Now while Luz was thinking about stealing the healing hat I was a bit conflicted on it. I don’t like how the show is telling viewers it’s okay to steal but In Luz’s case it’s for a good cause, she wanted the hat so she could heal Eda’s curse. It’s like those cases you hear of people stealing groceries to feed their families, I felt the same here. Yeah stealing is bad but if it’s for saving someone you love is it really that bad? Idk if the writers wanted us to be conflicted over that dilemma but they succeeded.

- “Good luck with puberty” I laughed when Lilith said that, can’t believe Disney let that slip in.

- I have to say I do like the lore we get in this episode. Emperor Belos established the coven system 50 years ago to “honor the titan” which is the boiling Isles where they might get their magic from, before that witches were doing wild magic in what was called “the savages ages” it’s setting up more lore about the emperor like how did he rise to power? Who was he before? What were these “savage ages” like? If it was 50 years ago then there still are witches & demons that were alive in the savage age & they could tells us what life was like before. It also means Emperor Belos is 70+ years old. I’m just saying a human could live that long. 👀

- Now emperor Belos, wow his designs looks cool as hell, his voice is amazing too, it’s kinda sinister yet soothing at same times. As shown, it looks like he’s in a weakened state, he has to take these weird bird glowing green slime thing to have energy. We don’t know why or how he got like that, but it seems like he wants to Capture Eda so she doesn’t try to overthrow him since he’s weak. In fact, that might be the reason for the coven system, if he limits their magic then they aren’t strong enough to overthrow him. We only saw him for a bit but he gave a good impression when Luz said that no one will know about her stealing the hat we hear Belos voice echo: “ I will know” in the most bone chilling voice ever! The crew did a great job on him! Tho one thing I noticed is why is every big villain always in a weakened state? Darth Vader, Hordak, Aaravos, Zarkon, every anime villain. I just noticed this trope is overused, but I hope we can see Belos at his strongest and see how powerful he is. I have high hopes for him!

-Lilith discovers Luz is there & decides to use her as a decoy to lure in Eda. Which she succeeds when Eda goes there all angry for daring to drag Luz into her issues. I love how Eda doesn’t even try to stay calm she just straight up attacks Lilith & you can feel her angry.

- Speaking of that fight, best fight in the series thus far! The animation, the spells, the music, the raw emotion, it was all down great! It does remind me of a DBZ style of fighting when they’re moving so fast that your eyes can’t catch up & their magic surrounding them like Eda went super Sayion, I’m not complaining I like those kinds of fight & The intensity you feel in the fight is overwhelming. Luz’s life is at stake and Lilith even uses her as a human shield. She knows how much Luz means to Eda & was willing to kill her. Hell, she even threw Luz toward the spikes and Eda had to save her, then they both struggle with Eda trying to lift her up & Lilith trying to press her against the spikes & then Eda slowly turns into a monster THIS IS HOW YOU WRITE A FIGHT (takes notes she ra)

- Now the biggest bomb drop in the series. IT WAS LILITH WHO CURSED EDA. she blurted it out in a rage of jealousy it seems. They were insulting each other on how one is better than the other. Then when Lilith says “THEN WHY WERE SO EASY TO CURSE?!” My jaw dropped, I suspected they would tell us but not this episode, you see can see the hurt & betrayal in her eyes when it was her own sister who cursed her. Like ouch. From what I suspected is that Lilith was jealous of Eda from what their exchanges told us. But why was she jealous of Eda? Friends? Magic capabilities? Power? Maybe fighting over a crush? What? Whatever the reason is does not excuse doing that to your sister and your YOUNGER SISTER AT THAT. Goodness & I thought Edric and Emira took it too far with the diary thing. I’m officially part of the hate Lilith club. Idc what you do but hurting your sibling like that is the worst thing you can do to them, just imagined how much Eda suffered for DECADES with this curse. No redemption can fix that. But boy do they need Family therapy or just punch it out that works too.

- I loved it when Eda went into rage mode when she found out it was Lilith who cursed her. Her own sister. Like damn that has to hurt knowing your own family did that to you. She deserved to beat Lilith to a bloody pulp & I’m happy she didn’t even bother to listen to Lilith she just wanted to attack her & I don’t blame her one bit.

- Ugh the scene where the curse overtakes Eda was a heart wrenching one. She knows she slipping away and tells Luz to take care of King & Hooty & to stay safe before she slips away. When Lilith told Luz that Eda is with her true family made me want to punch her more than Amity’s parents. You feel how helpless Luz felt & I hope they work towards her character with that feeling because Luz is happy go lucky & seeing her in despair makes for great character development.

- it kind of reminds me of when Queen Angella sacrifices herself In season 3 but I hated how they never acknowledged it since season 4 & she doesn’t even return by the end season 5, they pretty much forgot about her. We know for sure Luz will never leave Eda behind & will go save her.

- So we know Luz will go back to save her cuz we do see her wearing the cape Eda made her in the promo. Also we have 1 episode left so we know she’s gonna attempt a rescue mission for Eda but will she succeed? She’s up against the emperors coven! She’s gotta pull all her cards on the table & team up with her friends.

- A witch loses a true way. It could refer to Lilith officially turning to the dark side or Eda being lost in her curse even into season 2. Knowing Disney, they will give us a happy ending cuz it’s Disney but I will be pleasantly surprised if Luz fails to save Eda by the next episode.

- One last thing, I like the credits had no music, just silence. It reminds me of in full metal alchemist whenever a character dies the credit are always silent. I guess it’s meant to represent despair in a way? Or change? Yeah it think it’s change.

- This is why shows should focus on the plot because when you do, it delivers for some great storytelling & this episode surpasses all of the episodes combined. when you focus on the story & lore & characters it makes for great emotional impact of an episode and I hope Dana and the crew continues to do this. This show has so much going for it & people who only watch a show for a ship are clowns because this is what you’re missing out on. an amazing story. I applause Dana & the crew for this episode, really outdid yourselves!

- Overall 9.7/10 it was phenomenal!

#the owl house #luz noceda #amity blight #owl house #eda clawthorne #willow park #gus owl house #toh spoilers #toh #toh hooty #king the owl house #lilith clawthorne #emperor belos #Emperor coven #agony of a witch

85 notes · View notes

certain-death-awaits · 4 years ago

Text

Theories & Predictions for Champion of the Titan Games

If you need a refresher on the full lore of the Fair Folk, do read my post about it. They’ll be quite relevant to these theories. Now, let’s read the theories! If you want anything explained, don’t hesitate to make a comment, or send an ask on anon if you’re shy. It’s weird to write everything down after just having it in my head for so long, so this might be long-winded and incoherent.

Ezabar, the Somber Knight, and Selona - I theorise that the Somber Knight is a lich. The Somber Knight has an especially dark reputation according to Henrick, and resides in catacombs (built by wizards even though Dragon Slayers generally have a distaste for wizards).

The air in his lair is markedly lifeless, though pure.

He is thought to be undead- something more “powerful and evolved” than a zombie or wraith- by Tanu and the public of Terrabelle. When he loses his leg and forearm, he isn’t in danger of dying, but makes his way back to his lair to regenerate. In popular culture, a lich keeps its soul in a reliquary. If destroyed, the lich would re-form at the location of its reliquary.

Like the Somber Knight, liches traditionally spend their time hidden from the world in their lair.

In Fablehaven, liches appear desiccated (like the ones on the Path of Dreams) or completely skeletal (like Calumbra or Ezabar) .Their touch also bruises- both would be good reasons for the Somber Knight to be completely encased in armour.

In Fablehaven, a lich is a type of undead (the lich Belrab used to be a wizard), who deliberately retains some of it’s former human will. Some are able to control lesser undead. I think that the Somber Knight, or Ryland as is his true name, was one of the Fair Folk, and think the Fair Folk had a role in placing him. I don’t think it’s really in question for him to have been a wizard- all Dragon Slayers hate dragons, and tend to distrust wizards. He also has a name that sounds like a Fair Folk name (Like Lockland), and resides under Terrabelle; he would have even been placed there at the same time the territory was established. Eve found his name from “the old stories”, and Lord Dalgorel asked him to help Eve even though only the caretakers of Wyrmroost are supposed to command him. Seth asks Ezabar if he’s a lich, and Ezabar concedes that “that is one label”. Ezabar asks Seth to find a piece of information for him in return for allowing him access to the prison. To help provide context, he explains that he used to live in Selona. It’s possible he lived there as a wizard, but I think that he lived there as one of the Fair Folk, because he asks Seth what became of a boy called Toleron, son of the Duke of Hester, whose mother was called Ingrid. It seems like a matter of personal importance to him. I think that becoming a lich or whatever higher form of undead might be more common among Fair Folk, or at least it doesn’t have the same taboo it seems to have for wizards. Oh, and I asked Brandon Mull if Fair Folk could become undead, and he said that they wouldn’t be normal undead, but could be liches or revenants. Those would be the forms of undead with their own will.

Wizard-Fair Folk Cooperation- Wyrmroost was established by Archadius, the first wizard. Wyrmroost has had several caretakers since its establishment, the fourth of which was Agad. Though the Fair Folk are neutral, there is a settlement of Fair Folk at every dragon preserve, with the three largest settlements being at the three with a Dragon Temple, and this is not common knowledge- perhaps deliberately so. These three preserves are also where the Sage’s Gauntlets, shield-that-repels-dragons, and harp-that-soothes-dragons are guarded by the dragons. The very talismans that helped defeat the dragons long ago. I suspect the Fair Folk are stationed in these locations to keep an eye on the dragons, and that they-at least formerly- are here to prevent the dragons from gaining power over the other races. Further proof that they have diplomatic priority- by “ancient treaty”, the defences of Blackwell Keep do not repel the coach of Stormguard Castle.

I also want to talk about the Sovereign Skull. If you don’t remember it, you can catch up on it here. I think that Selona was created by wizards primarily to house the Sovereign Skull, or at least the sphere it’s located in. I would equate it with Zzyzx, which had a physical location (Shoreless Isle) but was in reality its own realm. Selona would have a physical location in Europe (as Ezabar alluded to) but be its own country. It’s very secret- Eve declines to tell Kendra and Seth about it, Ezabar says it’s impossible to access, and Agad only reluctantly shares information about the location of the skull with Kendra. It makes sense- the Fair Folk enforce neutrality at Selona, and Lord Dalgorel was certain the dragons would need to “crush Selona”. “If our mother country falls, it could create a permanent imbalance, and unending age of dragons.” he says. The dragons mean to destroy the Sovereign Skull. I believe they are connected.

Humbuggle and Curses- What happened at Stormguard Castle is widely referred to as a curse by those who do not know what happened, and was created by Humbuggle. Serena, investigating the Nipsie curse, was last seen headed for Titan Valley, which is where Gabrinko said that Humbuggle’s Castle is. After all, it was Humbuggle, colluding with Graulas, who cursed the Nipsies. My theory is that the Nipsies are a cursed form of Fair Folk- that’s why nothing is ever designed with them in mind (think the Path of Dreams). Calvin says that Nipsies “used to be more powerful. And bigger. Maybe even as big as I am now”. But to curse them, he’d need a motive- I think it’s possible he intends to weaken the Fair Folk as a group. Another curse of his might’ve been the phenomenon in which “Almost no babies are being born anymore. Nobody is sure why.” Weakening the Fair Folk would benefit Humbuggle simply because they are a neutralising force, and of course curses are Humbuggle’s hobby.

Calvin and Humbuggle- I think that Calvin is either colluding with, or he is Humbuggle. I have only circumstantial evidence, but here it is. Look how these parallel one another-

“The curse came with a prophecy,” Calvin said.

“Tell me.”

“All nipsies can recite it:The curse arose from the demon’s blight; the lord who slays him will set it right.”

“It rhymes,” Seth observed.

“Most of the good ones do,” Calvin said. “Some strain more than others. But the basics are clear. Whoever kills the horrible demon will help lift the curse.”

And then these two scenes from Wrath of the Dragon King

“I suppose,” Humbuggle said. “I could also eat plain oatmeal every day to stay alive. An explanation is more pleasant when it rhymes. And a tad more official.”

“To keep the game fair, I will confess that the Wizenstone is jealously guarded by a powerful demon. Any who seek to claim the stone would have to ward off the demon before long.”

I also think it’s intriguing that right after showing Kendra how he morphed into Augie and Elouise, this exchange takes place:

“You’re sneaky,” Kendra said.

“Young one, you have no idea,” Humbuggle replied.

Bracken misses Calvin when he’s reading minds. They never check with the Nipsy elders that Calvin is legitimate. Camarat does not sense any darkness in him, but he is also unable to tell what Calvin is before he reveals himself. This is of note because in SotDS, Camarat is able to tell that the knapsack contains an “unconventional automaton and a hermit troll”, and is able to detect that Seth is a young shadow charmer. Gabrinko says he’s legitimate, but like @carolinelikesdinner said, he’s an outcast from his society and may be exiled for a good reason. He would also have access to Fablehaven- in the Caretaker’s Guide, it’s mentioned that there is a magical dwarf among the colony at Fablehaven, whose intentions are unknown.

Loose Things That I Want To Point Out

-Serena was “with a woman of human size”. I have no evidence, but intuition tells me she is Isadore, an enchantress mentioned in the Caretaker’s Guide.

-Ezarod was killed by Dromadus in dragon form. Dragons, when they become wizards, change their name. Liches are often former wizards. It’s possible, though unlikely, that Ezabar was in fact Ezarod.

-Celebrant’s wings make an unmistakable whistling sound when he approaches by air. I know Chekhov’s gun when I see it.

-The Roost is Wyrmroost Castle. The caretaker used to split time between it and the Keep. It was important enough to even have a scepter. However, I cannot find any other allusion to it, and we can only assume we will learn more in future books, meaning we will hopefully return to Wyrmroost.

Agad is a Shady Bitch- This isn’t a theory, but I have a couple of things I want to point out. First, don’t forget that Ryland thinks he may be:

“Agad became caretaker long after Wyrmroost was founded,” the Somber Knight said. “He was the fourth caretaker. Wizards love their secrets. It is possible he never knew the medallion derived power from a hidden scepter. If he did know, then you were set up to become caretakers, and to discover this knowledge on your own, so you would be forced to decide how to proceed without external influence, thereby assuming responsibility for all the associated risks and perils.”

Agad constantly warns Seth to stay away from the Blackwell. When he departs for Soaring Cliffs in WotDK, he warns Seth to stay away from the Blackwell. Marat, too, frequently warns Seth to stay away from the Blackwell. Of course, this is for the safety of himself and others- but he’s also one of the only people even capable of releasing the beings of the Blackwell.

Vanessa lists shades and haunts as ethereal restless beings, much like apparitions, phantoms, sky phantoms, specters, and wraiths. Shades and Haunts are said by Amulon to live in the Barrows, Lackluster Woods, and Adjoining Meadows- why weren’t the creatures of the Blackwell given their own domain like this? I have a very good reason- Agad’s grudge against the wizard-turned-lich imprisoned there. According to the Sphinx, Belrab is a powerful lich, and controls the other beings imprisoned there. This is eerily similar to the case of a Morisant; he was another dragon-turned-wizard-turned-lich, imprisoned along with his minions. (It’s never explicitly stated Morisant is a lich- but he matches all the requirements)

#dragonwatch #fablehaven #theory #meta #original

21 notes · View notes

bossuary · 5 years ago

Text

Having just finished Tevinter Nights, I have un fucktonne of questions and theories. But, below are a few of the subjects/problems that I can’t stop thinking about. I’m curious how other people interpret them, or if I’ve missed some critical details, because it seems like there’s some retconning going on.

so, spoiler warnings apply, since i’m about to discuss the Big Doings below the cut.

The most immediately relevant items come from the final story, right? BUT, because of the nature of the characters, I sort of assumed that much of “The Dread Wolf Take You” is a study in unreliable narrators. Can any of the tales be believed after Charter exposes the Bard? Do we move forward assuming the puzzle pieces we’re trying to fit together are the correct ones, or tread carefully on the word of a known liar?

Nothing about the Assassin’s Tale fits the facts we know:

Meredith’s corpse didn’t actually stay in the middle of the square in uptown Kirkwall. Her remains were taken away to The Black Emporium. (iirc, Varric mentions this in one of the recent comics)

Pieces of her sword (Certainty) were re-forged for Samson to use in service of Corypheus, a sword which eventually passes to the Inquisition.

A shard of the idol continues to exist outside of Meredith’s remains, or her re-forged blade. Depending on worldstates, the shard is either a weapon rune--forged by Sandal and given to Hawke--or it was given to Varric (who then gave it to Bianca to study, I think).

In the comics, and in a few of the short stories, the fiasco of Fen’Harel’s agent losing the red lyrium “item” is cleverly handled from a lore-continuity perspective. It’s only ever referred to as a “weapon,” which could mean a lot of things, and allows for greater freedom in describing it in later media. Until the Assassin’s Tale, I firmly believed they were talking about Certainty. Now we’re supposed to believe it’s been the magically re-formed Primeval Idol this whole time, freshly revealed (by the equally untrustworthy Mortalitasi) as a go-go-Gadget ritual blade.

So, are the Tales a cheeky narrative lie, or is it all lore retcon? If it’s a retcon... -What ritual could the blade have originally served? -Might it actually be a key, as lots of people have theorized? -Is there really a potion that can melt lyrium? -Does Solas actually have the idol now, or was his entire story a lie to cover the truth that he still hasn’t found it?

Also, uh. . .Can Solas just. . .kill people while they sleep/dream, even dwarves? I mean, he has demonstrated the ability to create a “dreamlike” state for a dwarf Inquisitor. But, this power seems OP, even for him, and narrative reach. Possibly it’s further evidence that nothing in “The Dread Wolf Take You” can be trusted. 1. If the plans for the Fade are already underway, what does this mean for people like Evangeline, Anders, Grandin, and Sigrid, who’re possessed by spirits/demons? It’s possible they’ll be forcibly separated. Those (like Evangeline) who’re only alive because of their spirit, will likely die. Without Justice, Anders might finally succumb to the taint.

There are probably thousands of people across Rivain and Seheron, and among the Avvar and the Dalish, who’re contentedly hosting spirits. Would these spirits allow their mortal hosts to be harmed by Solas? Or could there be resistance to his plan from the Fade side of things?

Lots of the stories in Tevinter Nights include the theme of outliers breaking ranks from within a seemingly monolithic society: the Ben Hassrath don’t support the Antaam in their campaign, the Venatori and their supporters operate in defiance of Tevinter, the Crows had one of their Talons disrupt a centuries-old pact.

Going forward in the next game, we might see a spirit faction that, for any number of reasons, acts against The Dread Wolf’s plan to sunder the Veil.

2. Why does everyone in this book describe the red lyrium idol as having only two figures, when every depiction of it that we’ve seen clearly shows three? The crowned figure is (if Solas is to be believed) comforting one person, but no mention of the other poor soul, an even more skeletal figure who seems to be missing their left forearm, and is stuck on the other side of the large ring. No love for that dingus, I guess. Very curious.

And no mention of the serpentine shape that surrounds all three of them.

3. The sea is going to be a big part of the next stage of this story.

-Mythal’s origin has her emerging from the sea. -In “Luck in the Gardens, the 8 Venatori who were tasked with keeping the “formless” monster in its sealed prison each wore a clay amulet depicting a thin four-winged dragon rising above a sea. -“The Horror of Hormak” describes the viscous gray transformation fluid (and the monsters it creates) as stinking of brine. -The Mortalitasi’s Tale includes a reference to The Dread Wolf screaming about the Sea of Dreams. -The Executors appear to be stepping into the action, finally. They are known as ‘those across the sea.’ -Among the murals discovered during Trespasser, there are some that include imagery of flowing water: The Death of a Titan, and Lifting the Vallaslin -Before ascending to godhood, Ghilain’nain killed all of her creations. . .except the giant monsters in the deepest waters. Lore says “Pride stopped her hand,” which could mean that she spared them because she was too proud of how perfectly-made they were. Or, that an aspect of Pride (as a demon or spirit), convinced her to let them live.

4. I’ve always thought that the painted murals of Trespasser and those completed at Skyhold are actually of a different sort, in a very specific way. Much of the ornamentation, symbology, and iconography that’s used in the various frescoes in Trespasser. . .isn’t found in Skyhold’s frescoes. My feeling, based on these differences in style, and the uneven quality of the paintings in the Vir’Dirthara, is that the murals in Trespasser have been painted-over.

-Thanks to Gatsi, we know that the mosaics we worked so hard to complete for the Inquisition were all re-carved by several hands over the ages, making it difficult to get an accurate interpretation from them.

-During “The Horror of Hormak,” Ramesh and Lesha encounter mosaics depicting elven kings and queens, and their subjects. But the mosaics shift and change the longer they stare at them. The scenes transform from a glittering parade of nobility offering succor to their subjects. . .to a death-march of tyrants forcing magical torments on their slaves.

-In “Genitivi Dies in the End,” our industrious well-traveled Brother is humbled when he discovers an elven tome that depicts the continent of Thedas in superior and, crushingly, more correct detail to anything he’s ever seen. Which means that either the continent has changed dramatically, or all the maps that exist in modernity are based upon a flawed (altered) source.

There’s an established trope of people from all parts of Thedas altering relics in order to change history’s interpretation of them. So, why would the frescoes/murals be any different? I believe that either Solas, or someone loyal to Solas, altered the murals in order to obscure the truth behind them.

If we believe Philliam, a Bard! (though, again, an unreliable narrator), the Qunari Rasaan disbelieves all of the names attributed to Solas, either by his enemies or himself. As Philliam posits, to know Solas’ true name would be know the best and worst of him, his flaws and weaknesses, and what he’d “failed to be.”

Essentially, I think we’re being misled at every turn. And this leads me to. . .

5. None of the stories in Tevinter Nights expands on the role of dwarves in past and future conflicts. We get lots of new and juicy stuff on Tevinter, Nevarra, mages, elves, the Crows, the Lords of Fortune, even the Qunari. Noticeably and glaringly absent is any mention of dwarves, titans, and how they fit into the unfolding lore.

One of the largest and most influential groups of dwarves in all of Thedas (The Ambassadoria) lives right in the heart of Minrathous. Above ground. Vulnerable to the invading Qunari and Fen’Harel’s agents.

Dwarves are as tellingly absent in this set of stories as dragons were in all the Evanuris revelations.

The one place where those two things intersect. . .is out in the Hissing Wastes, near the Sunstop mountains (which has always sounded to me like the same naming convention as Skyhold).

Out there, we come across a dwarven thaig, the only thaig to have been built above ground, that pre-dates the first Blight. It’s called Kal Repartha, which means ‘a place where we may meet in peace.’ Paragon Fairel and his sons appear to have built the thaig as a way to escape some huge conflict in the Deep Roads.

Statues of Mythal’s dragon form are arranged in places of honor outside Fairel’s tomb. As if in protection.

Fairel was a rune-smith, one of the greatest who ever lived. Mythal might have worked with Fairel toward some common goal, relying on his skills to make devastating weapons, runic keys for hidden places, or repositories of knowledge best kept secret. She might have protected Fairel as a respected friend and ally.

Reaching a little deeper, Mythal may have helped separate the ancient dwarves from the hivemind control of the titans, freeing them to create their own vibrant society, far from the “witless, soulless” existence they lived as drone-like workers.

(As an interesting aside, Fairel wrote about dragons, proving that dragons, dwarves, and the Evanuris existed at the same time)

It just seems like the root of this unfolding elven lore is the Titans themselves, the life they created in the dwarves and the tangible world, the innate power of their blood, and the knowledge that was stolen from them. Why don’t dwarves feature more heavily in the anthology?

That’s it. That’s my tinfoil haberdashery at the moment. Thoughts? Corrections?

#dragon age #tevinter nights spoilers #tevinter nights #dragon age meta #DAMN #long post

14 notes · View notes

tessatechaitea · 5 years ago

Text

New Titans #112

Don't you worry your pretty little head about Red Star's right leg.

I keep trying to organize my life so that I can read more actual books (as opposed to comic books which I'm not judging. I'm just differentiating) without having to sacrifice any of the other things I enjoy doing. What that generally means is that I wind up reading about ten pages every morning before going to bed (I work nights!). Which realistically means I need to do improve my time management if I'm going to be serious about reading. I have managed to read the first "book" of Alan Moore's Jerusalem but it's taken me a fucking long time to do it. I thought it would take me a long time because I was expecting a difficult read but I'm finding it enjoyable. Plus by the time I've finished, I'm fairly certain I'll be able to navigate Northampton with ease. I'm also wondering if all the descriptions of the characters' movements through the city are an encoded treasure map! Or, being that Alan Moore wrote it, it's more likely a spell to summon some sex demons. While organizing (and by organizing, I mean the main definition of organizing: moving shit around in a way that makes you feel like you're accomplishing something but really you're just engaging in an activity to forget about your mortality for awhile. Plus you can generally get some really fucking good dusting done), I managed to place all of the books from various book shelves that I have yet to finish reading (or that I simply want to reread) on the top shelf of the row of bookcases in my office. Jerusalem is first on that list followed by some books by high school friends (Rogue's Curse by Jason Beymer and Soy Rakelson's children's books that I'm willing to bet everything I own as well as my life and my mother's life on that they're black and white morality tales with a super conservative and possibly Ayn Randian view of the world). After that is There Is No Year which Doom Bunny gave me because it's supposedly a terrible book that I'm not sure he even finished and which I wanted to make fun of (but, hey, maybe I'll love it!) and the rest: Inside the Yellow Submarine, Trixie Belden Mystery-Quiz Book #1, Don Quixote, Gravity's Rainbow, Lost in the Funhouse (reread!), A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, And the Ass Saw the Angel (by Nick Cave!), King's The Wind Through the Keyhole (A Dark Tower book!), Crime and Punishment, Hey Nostradamus!, The Best of H.P. Lovecraft, The Lore and Language of Schoolchildren, The Boomer Bible (re-re-re-re-re-re-re-re-read), Six Volumes of The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night (finished with one and a half volumes after owning this set for twenty five years!), The Holy Bible (currently reading for my Patreon), The Norton Anthology of Modern Poetry (Second Edition) (because I need poetic context for the 20th century!), Only Revolutions, The Exegesis of Philip K. Dick, and The Familiar (currently just book one but there's going to be like nine hundred of them, so maybe I won't even bother!). Oh, and I just added We Learn Nothing (reread) and I Wrote This Book Because I Love You, both by Tim Kreider. I'll probably start with those because funny essays are easier to get through than anything by Dostoevsky, Danielewski, Pynchon, Cervantes, Barth, Joyce, or Sakelson! I mean Rakelson! Oh man. Rakelson would have a stroke if he knew I listed his name with all those postmodern authors! Not that they're all postmodern. You can figure out which ones are and aren't on your own. I'm busy reading New Titans #112 which must be good since Starfire is naked on the cover. Okay, almost naked. She is wearing a dickie and a belt. I know a lot of you just skipped that big paragraph while thinking, "Oh, la dee da! What a fancy book reader you are! Fucking virtue signaler! Or whatever the term for listing or showing off your reading list full of classic literary texts is! Seems like virtue signaler works well enough! Better even than what idiotic fuck nuggets use it for on Twitter anyway!" But maybe you missed the part about how those are books I haven't been able to get through yet! I've owned some of these books for over a decade! And I didn't even put The Collected Works of Gertrude Stein on this shelf because do I need to be reminded that I used that book more as an address book than something to read? Although I carried it with me everywhere I went for a year or two (which is why it's full of phone numbers and addresses!). And I really did want to read it. I didn't carry it around so people could think, "Look at him with that book! Who the fuck is Gertrude Stein? What a ponce!" Although to be fair, I did leave off a few books on my "to-read" shelf! But it wasn't because they weren't smart enough sounding! It's because they were comic books and also pornography and also also fucking hilarious.

One of my friends in the state department who learns a brand new language every four years or so bonded with me over Oglaf last time he visited. He was all, "I'm glad I know somebody I can share my love of Oglaf with and not be looked at like a completely demented perv!" Although I do look at him like he's a completely demented perv, I didn't need to admit it to his face!

I embrace my delusion that readers merely skipped "one" paragraph of my comic book "reviews"! This issue is called "A New Home" and my brain continued to add to that title with "o-erotic Journey." Mostly because of this panel:

Fairly certain "bamming" a baby is illegal, even in space.

The Titans (and I use that term loosely since the characters encompassed by that shorthand are Changeling, Red Star, Pantha, Baby, and Starfire) have been stranded on The Terraist's space station. That name probably could use a hyphen so you don't first read it as terRAIST twelve times thinking "What the fuck does that mean?" before your brain finally sees the God-awful pun and you give up, finally letting go of that last gossamer thread that's been connecting you to the reality you just discovered doesn't fucking matter. How can there be any meaning to existence when an editor greenlights the name "Terraist"? I'm sure Wolfman's pitch contained at least two dozen "Get it?!"s. Anyway, maybe most readers never even noticed, shrugging their shoulders at every single moment in which a comic book doesn't make sense because at least Starfire is practically naked throughout the last few issues! I have a theory that most people don't really absorb much of what they're reading in comic books. They tend to just love a character for some magic reason and stick with loving that character no matter what terrible writer winds up writing them. And at that point, they just ignore plot holes and inconsistencies and terrible dialogue and whatever the fuck Ann Nocenti does with her typewriter. They simply go star-eyed and gape lovingly at the drawn images of Dick Grayson's throbbing buttocks. That was a hypothetical sentence and not a memoir. Here's a panel with evidence that might lead to proof of my theory if I could actually interview anybody who read this comic book in 1994 and ask them, "Did you even notice this panel?" To which they would all probably respond, "No, I was distracted by the opposite page where you can see tons of Starfire's side-boob and I think one of her outer labia." Um, anyway, the panel I mentioned:

Damn, Marv. Beyond the Forest was nearly fifty years old at the time this comic came out.

To be fair to Wolfman and Changeling, I did an Internet search on "Whatta dump" (and, yes, I spelled it differently than Marv did) and the first hit was video of the scene where Bette Davis says the line. What's odd is that she delivers it flatter and straighter than anything I would have expected out of Bette Davis's eyes...I mean mouth. Gar's rendition of it is terrible! The way Bette says it, I would never think to spell it any way but "What a dump." But that's not the point! The point is how is "What a dump!" a immortal words?! Granted, you're probably now thinking to yourself, "Well, how did X and Y and Z become oft-quoted movie lines?!" (where X and Y and Z are actual phrases from movies and not just letters. But I'm not psychic so how should I know what terrible oft-quoted movie lines you were thinking of? Mine would have been "Seven schools in seven states and the only different is my locker combination" or "William H. Bonny. You are not a god?" "Why don't you pull the trigger and find out?" or "Ziggy Piggy! Ziggy Piggy! Ziggy Piggy! Ziggy Piggy!") I suppose one can't help what phrases the zeitgeist picks up on. According to the YouTube video of Bette Davis, "What a dump" is Bette's famous bitchy line from that movie I'd never heard of. I guess I just haven't traveled in the right circles! Although I have heard the phrase "What a dump!" Has everybody in the world been quoting Bette Davis all this time and I just didn't know it?! Was this movie the first time that phrase was ever uttered?! To think I could have known all of this if I hadn't been distracted by Starfire's side-boob and — I'm fairly certain — one of her outer labia. To shut Gar up, Starfire admits that she doesn't remember any of them and then she punches Pantha in her vagina.

Starfire punching Pantha in the vagina is funnier than anything that Pantha has said in the last forty issues.

After punching Pantha in the vagina, Starfire knees Red Star in the balls for no reason. Unless the reason is that she's been wanting to do that for a long time and her pretend amnesia allows her this moment! I suppose I'd fake amnesia too to get away from being a Titan. I've been joking about seeing Starfire's outer labia but is this it? Is that one of those things?

Is my boner proof that it's her labia or is my boner proof that I'm a comic book reading virgin nerd?

I can't wait for everybody to message me telling me how that can't be her outer labia because that's not where it would be and anyway this photographic proof I'm sending you is what one looks like! Then I can actually them and say, "Well, you can't know that for sure! She's an alien and maybe her outer labia is fully engorged due to Pantha back-fucking her!" Also I'd really enjoy some of that photographic evidence!

This is not what I would do with those photographs.

Garfield turns into another monster because he can't do birds and rhinos anymore. He lies on top of Starfire and then reveals something that destroys every moment in DC canon where Garfield turned into a rhino to knock some hugely muscled bad guy on their ass. He tells Red Star, "Hey, I may be big and ugly but my mass doesn't change! I'm not as strong as she is!" Well fuck me! The whole concept of Beast Boy has been based on a huge lie! Or at least scientific principles that make the character utterly worthless. Why the fuck would he ever change into a huge beast if his mass doesn't change? Wouldn't he always change into something small and fast to be most effective?! This revelation is one of those moments where DC tries to make their universe more logical but only winds up fucking up the entire multiverse. Red Star and Changeling knock Starfire unconscious and then tie her up which probably isn't totally rapey at all, even if the artist draws it that way.

Yep. Everything is just fine here! Move along.

Meanwhile on Earth, Arsenal, Aqualad, and Flash consider a proposal from the United States government to get the Titans to work for them. They consider it over a couple waters at a local strip club named Ding Dong Daddy's." I mean, the comic book calls it a "retro club" but everybody either gets a private lap dance or laid. It's hard to tell what Marv Wolfman was going for with this scene. Proof that the young cool Titan men fuck? Proof that women are only to provide relief for men's sexual desires? Proof that Aqualad should maybe think twice before saying "Hey guys! We came together!" when women are throwing their vaginas at them?

How long does Aqualad think a lap dance takes?

Back in space while the reader was away, Red Star and Changeling have managed to put a gag on Starfire and tie her legs together. That makes things less rapey, right? If not, I'm sure Marv will improve the situation in a sensitive and professional manner!

Oh come on!

Starfire remembers everything while Changeling whines about how he didn't get to kiss Starfire while she was tied up and scared and beaten and suffering from amnesia. Poor kid! Maybe next time! After regaining her memory, Starfire says, "X'hal! That was dick I saw in South America!" and I snicker like a twelve year old. The first decision Starfire makes after regaining her memory is that she and Dick should get their marriage annulled, if it even took which I'm pretty sure it didn't. If you were a fan of reading the letters pages, whoever the letter answer person was constantly kept pointing out that they couldn't be married because the priest blew up before he could say they were man and wife. But now Wolfman provides more evidence like how no paper work was filed and nobody signed anything (although don't you sign the papers before the ceremony?) Anyway, they're not married and probably never will be if the last twenty five years of reading comic books has taught me anything!

Snicker!

Baby has an idea to use The Terraist's satellite as their new headquarters and the government is all, "Okay! But you have to work with us on a minimum number of yearly missions!" And Roy Harper is all, "That number is zero!" And the government is all, "Yes sir! What a deal! We will pay you a salary, give you the satellite, and get nothing in return! Let's shake on it!"

Who the fuck is wearing The Flash's costume?! First appearance of New 52 Wally West?

The epilogue reveals Raven needs to rape the Titans so that they'll all give birth to Trigon's children. So it should be a fun few final issues before either this comic book was cancelled or I finally recovered my sanity and simply stopped buying it. New Titans #112 Rating: B. It was all kinds of stupid but I enjoyed making fun of it!

#Teen Titans #New Titans #DC Comics #DC #Comic Book Review

6 notes · View notes

officialotakudome · 4 years ago

Text

New Post has been published on Otaku Dome | The Latest News In Anime, Manga, Gaming, Tech, and Geek Culture

New Post has been published on https://otakudome.com/godzilla-vs-kong-review/

Godzilla vs Kong Review

The fourth and supposed final film in Legendary Pictures’ MonsterVerse quadrilogy comes to a close in Godzilla vs Kong. With Kong in Monarch custody following the events of ‘Skull Island’, Godzilla has gained a sense of nearby Kaiju. Their battle imminent, APEX prepares for what may be a destined clash said to end the world.

Godzilla vs Kong is a 2021 monster film, it is produced by Legendary Pictures & distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is currently in theaters with a 30 day release on HBO Max.

Editor’s Note: Near complete to complete spoilers for Godzilla vs Kong may be present in this review. Slight spoilers for the three preceding films may also be present.

Legendary’s MonsterVerse concludes in Godzilla vs Kong.

Said to be the finale of the MonsterVerse, Godzilla vs Kong depicts the final battle of kaiju between Godzilla & Kong. With Godzilla having disposed of nearly all of the other Kaiju in ‘King of the Monsters’ he becomes enamored into a fight with Kong. Sensing the dangers of this government agencies have worked together to keep Kong hidden in Skull Island. But with Godzilla becoming more obsessed it no longer becomes a secure location for him forcing APEX to move him to the Hollow Earth.

Legendary shows off impressive visuals for Godzilla vs Kong.

THE GOOD: Following the events of ‘King of Monsters’ & ‘Skull Island’, Godzilla has been under the watch of APEX. The prophecy of the “Great Kaiju War” has mostly come to fruition with the final battle being between Godzilla & Kong. Godzilla seemingly attacks APEX unprovoked with the public now seeing him as a villain rather than a hero due to his previous efforts in the Kaiju War. Madison who witnessed Godzilla’s behavior in the war remains unconvinced that he’s gone rogue. After an argument with her father she goes off to find former APEX employee turned conspiracy podcaster Bernie Hayes with her friend Josh. Kong is starting to become wary of his Monarch imprisonment. Despite this he has befriended a young surviving native named Jia who was adopted by Dr. Ilene Andrews.

It is revealed that Jia who is deaf has taught Kong sign language. She’s also formed a bond with him to the point where she’s gained his complete trust. Knowing this Ilene gets Jia to have Kong cooperate with Monarch to have him travel to Hollow Earth in an effort to hold off his battle with Godzilla. Dr. Nathan Lind is brought in as a representative of APEX by Walter Simmons who are working with Monarch. Godzilla finds them while out at sea and a battle nearly destroys the entire Monarch/APEX team. Only ending with Kong and the remaining forces playing dead. Madison finds and gains Bernie’s trust being a fan of his podcast. She, Bernie, and Josh stumble into an underground APEX lab where they accidentally witness a Mechagodzilla test. The machine is being powered by the brain of the deceased Ghidorah. Walter captures the trio at gunpoint and explains that he was the cause of Godzilla’s attack as he wanted to eliminate the Kaiju and give the power back to man. Lind and the others lead Kong to the Hollow Earth where he discovers the remains of other creatures similar to himself and Godzilla. Entering what looks like a throne room, Kong finds an axe made from the tail of Godzilla’s species. APEX betrays Monarch and holds Lind and the others hostage as they capture a sample from the throne room. The noise causes bird like creatures to attack and kill most of the group. Simmons’ daughter attempts to escape, but is blocked by Kong. She fires shots at him that only annoy him and he crushers her ship killing her and the others inside as Lind, Ilene, and Jia watch.

Godzilla arrives in Hong Kong where Monarch is stationed alongside Madison’s father. They are coincidentally located on top of the Hollow Earth where Kong and the others are. Godzilla fires an atomic blast creating an opening between Hong Kong and the Hollow Earth and Kong climbs up it with Lind & the others following. Godzilla and Kong engage in a second battle destroying a ton of the city. Godzilla defeats Kong and leaves him for dead. Suddenly Mechagodzilla awakens through Ghidorah’s soul and kills Walter as he enters the city. Godzilla and the Ghidorah possessed Mechagodzilla fight, but Godzilla exhausted from his battle with Kong is badly beaten by Mechagodzilla. Kong nearing death is saved by Lind and Jia convinces him to aid Godzilla saying he is no longer the enemy. As Godzilla falls, Kong fights Mechagodzilla and is about to lose as he too faces exhaustion. Godzilla takes note of Kong’s axe and powers it with his atomic breath giving Kong the edge to destroy Mechagodzilla.

With Mechagodzilla gone Kong and Godzilla appear to ready themselves for a third battle. Kong however, drops his axe surrendering to Godzilla. Godzilla accepts Kong’s defeat and returns to the sea becoming the Titan King of Earth. Sometime later Kong, now residing in Hollow Earth as it’s Titan King accepts Monarch’s trust who continues to watch over him as he remains close with Jia.

Godzilla vs Kong is the surprising finale you hoped for.

Most people know what to expect from any sort of adaptation of Godzilla or King Kong. While the latter is usually pretty good at having well written human characters, the former is great with action sequences. Godzilla can be pretty solid with human character development. Like for example, I remember enjoying the humans in Shin Godzilla. It tends to be way more miss than hit though. The human characters in Godzilla vs Kong can have moments, but they’re pretty ridiculous and forgettable here. I did like the relationship Jia and Kong had, but I wish they would have featured it more. It’s neat to think of the idea of Kong being taught how to communicate by a human. Kong’s relationship with humans is a recurring theme of the series throughout it’s history and we see it here & there in Godzilla just not as much.

This is an oddly colorful film as well. Godzilla is no stranger to bright colors as they’re more often than not used for the kaiju attacks. That remains true here in Godzilla vs Kong, but they expand the use of color to bring out the life of the set pieces. The Hong Kong fight scene in particular is beautiful as hell and really helps pop out the monster designs. The action is as good as you’d expect (or hope) it to be. I also appreciate how Legendary tries to expand Godzilla & Kong’s respective lore with the idea of them having been apart of an ancient war between their two species in Hollow Earth. I’ve seen many Godzilla and King Kong adaptions and I think that storyline is unique to the Legendary universe. While it’s suggested that this is finale, they do a ton of seed planting for the future in case Toho renews their contract. Which is looking very likely citing the current box office numbers as the film has already made it’s budget back.

Strong action scenery makes up most of the film.

THE BAD: Don’t come into this film expecting much plot. Unless you’ve been closely following the connected dots of the kaiju themselves spread out across the four films there isn’t much going for the human characters. And that’s ok no one should expect the human characters to be amazingly fleshed out in an American adaptation of Godzilla. Though I did like Lind, and the small bit of relationship building with Kong & Jia. There’s also some bad writing, like really, really bad. For example, there’s a scene where Mechagodzilla is nearly killing Godzilla and Josh temporarily stuns him by pouring alcohol on a computer that’s no longer connected to him.

Human characters are once again the weak link of the franchise.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Godzilla vs Kong is the epic finale that goes above and beyond for it’s titular kaiju. While the human characters are predictably forgettable there are some standouts, at least in my opinion. There’s some really solid world building for the future of the franchise should Toho renew. And the use of colors in the film really stood out. Otaku Dome gives Godzilla vs Kong an 85 out of 100.

0 notes

uchihauahas · 7 years ago

Text

Arc Retrospective: Trost

Seeing as we’re in the final arc of snk, I’ve decided to do an arc retrospective series! Basically, my aims are to summarise the plot, characters, lore and my thoughts on each arc.

What happens:

Trost technically begins with the graduation of the 104th, but I’m going to tack on the Fall of Wall Maria to this arc, mostly because I don’t know where else to put it.

We are introduced to the Shiganshina Trio, Erwin Smith (who only appears in a groups shot right in the beginning but he’s there nonetheless), Keith Shardis and Eren’s parents, Grisha and Carla Jaeger.

The Colossal and Armoured Titans appear, the gates are breached and Wall Maria falls. Carla gets eaten by the Smiling Titan, and Grisha disappears, leaving the basement key with Eren.

There is a time skip of five years to their graduation ceremony. The Shiganshina Trio joined the Training Corps with the intention of joining the Survey Corps. We’re introduced to the top ten:

1. Mikasa Ackerman

2. Reiner Braun

3. Bertholdt Hoover

4. Annie Leonhart

5. Eren Jaeger

6. Jean Kirschtein

7. Marco Bodt

8. Connie Springer

9. Sasha Braus

10. Krista Lenz

These soldiers have the privilege of being given the chance to enter the Military Police, in many cases the only way to achieve a greater standard of living.

Armin and Ymir are not in the Top 10.

Jean and Eren argue about joining the Survey Corps. Jean accuses Eren of dragging Mikasa to death with him as Mikasa carries him away from the fight.

The next day, the Colossal Titan appears again, and Trost’s gate is breached. The Colossal Titan vanishes as suddenly as it appears. The 104th trainees are expected to participate in the battle. Eren Jaeger is eaten, along with the rest of his squad, in front of Armin.

Mikasa learns of Eren’s death. She ends up trapped between two titans, when one of them attacks the other and kills it. Armin formulates a plan to take back HQ, which has been overrun by titans and is preventing the trainees from resupplying. HQ is retaken and the trainees are able to climb the wall to safety.

The Rogue Titan collapses in front of some of the 104th members and Eren is exposed at the nape. The Garrison takes Eren under custody. Eren remembers Grisha telling him to go back to the basement to find out the key of the titans and the world they live in.

Commander Pixis arrives and stops the Garrison from executing EMA.

Armin suggests Eren, in his Titan form, pick up a massive boulder in the city and seal it at the gate. Commander Pixis approves the plan, and it’s set into motion. Eren transforms, but then attacks Mikasa and knocks himself out. He sees himself in an idealized version of his childhood home with his family.

Armin arrives and appeals to Eren to wake up. By speaking of the outside world, Eren remembers why he wanted to fight in the first place .He regains consciousness, picks up the boulder and seals the gate.

What we learn:

Shingeki is a tale of mysteries. It’s a narrative where we learn with the characters, all of them, because no one knows what’s happening. There are few characters that dole out information to explain everything, and the ones that do are frustratingly secretive and hold their cards close to their chest. There isn’t any one character in this story with all the answers. This is different to a series like Harry Potter, where we see through the eyes of Harry. Although Harry is new to the wizarding world, he is surrounded by people that are able to teach him, and by proxy us, about the nature of the world he’s just entered.

Shingeki is not like that. There are no Ron Weasleys, Hermione Grangers or Hagrids around to explain how things work. All the characters we see are clueless. No one knows what the Colossal Titan is. No one knows why it appeared, how it appeared or how it vanishes. No one knows where the titans come from or why they eat people. These facts become more despairing as we learn that titans eat people and then throw them back up when there’s no more room to hold them.

How pointless, how utterly devastating.

What we learn, all the characters learn with us.

We learn that this is what they’re facing. Trost Arc is as close to apocalyptic as you can get. Monsters are here, and the lack of a concrete goal on the part of the titans makes them all the more terrifying. They can’t be bargained with, they can’t be reasoned with. They’re unpredictable and nigh on indestructible. They have a history of wiping out humanity. This all begs the question of “Why?”, and that is one of the hooks of the series. We read this story with the hope that this question will be answered, and we hope the characters discover this answer.

Isayama was very bold in killing his protagonist off in the first volume as it created a host of possibilities. Tonally, it created despair. It created shock. It created horror. Narratively, it created urgency for the rest of the characters. It made them feel unsafe. Having Eren’s arm and leg bitten off made it all the more convincing. It also gave other characters in the cast a chance to shine. We saw characters working together, working independently from the protagonist and succeeding, something that’s so important to one of the themes of the story in terms of the value of people.

Then we learn that Eren can turn into a Titan, and everything changes. We have the possibility of answers to the origins of the Colossal and Armoured Titans and the pure titans. For the first time, real, tangible hope is introduced. The arc begins with a Titan breaking a wall. It ends with a Titan sealing a wall. The message becomes clear- the Titans, the abnormal, intelligent Titans, are the key to both humanity’s despair and victory. Their fates are intertwined, which becomes relevant much later in the narrative.

The will of the First King is introduced, though at the time we don’t know what it is. Eren attacks Mikasa under the influence of him, and he keeps Eren a prisoner of his own mind by feeding him fantasies of a peaceful world where his family is alive and safe. Eren only breaks it when he’s reminded of what his beliefs for a better world are.

Ackerpower is also introduced. Mikasa breaks the floorboard she was standing on and kills a grown man with a single stab to the heart. This scene comes across as unusual on a first reading, and only much later we find out that there’s a reason behind it.

Characters:

A large focus of this arc is establishing and challenging the ideologies of the future Squad Levi. We see this most prominently in Eren, Jean, Armin and Mikasa.

Eren isn’t shy in declaring his intention to kill all the titans. This is a ridiculous goal, and the narrative calls him out on this through Jean. Their argument plays out as if it’s they’ve argued about the same thing before.

Jean is very clear: he has no wish to fight the titans, nor does he expect anyone to fight the titans for him. He deliberately calls back to the civilian expedition where so many people died. Although it’s framed as selfish, it is here where we first see Jean’s high regard for human lives. He calls Eren out on dragging Mikasa to the Survey Corps. From the shocked look on Eren’s face, we can see that this is something he hadn’t considered.

Eren’s relationship with Mikasa is established, and it’s in this moment that we get the first inklings that they have different ideas of their relationship. It’s news to Eren that Mikasa will follow him into the Survey Corps, whereas everyone else takes it as a given.

Eren tries to dissuade his friends from joining the Survey Corps with him. Armin states he doesn’t want to be a burden and would rather die, which is really the first we see of Armin’s motivations and character.

After Eren dies, Mikasa and Armin’s characters are pushed to the fore, whereas before Eren was very dominating in terms of their dynamic. We learn about why Mikasa’s so devoted to Eren, we learn why Armin wanted to join the Survey Corps. We see these two working together as a team, along with the rest of the trainees. Armin is faced with the reality of being weak in a world that devours even the strong. Jean is faced with the horror of the titans, and realizes that he can’t accept running away from reality as an option anymore. Mikasa realizes her life is precious even without Eren in it.

Reiner’s reactions to the Titan killing the others is inquisitive at first. It’s very clearly a shifter and he knows it, and when he asks he’s calm, logical and inquisitive. When the shifter ends up being one of his friends, he’s very visibly stressed. This is a small but noteworthy cue to his internal struggles that become relevant later in the story.

Commander Pixis is introduced. He is shown to be uncompromising and dedicated to the task.

Thoughts:

What an opener for the story. This arc gets criticized a lot for its pacing, but I feel like the plot pulls the reader’s emotions to-and-fro. Wall Maria falls! New characters introduced! Protagonist dies! HQ is retaken! Eren is a Titan! Many people die! Trost is retaken! It’s all very emotional and action packed, and in my opinion it does a wonderful job of worldbuilding and creating a desperate and bittersweet atmosphere.

With the bad comes the good. The victory at Trost feels earned. We’re no closer to answers than we are at the beginning, but our plot is slowly starting to take form.

I was very skeptical of Eren being a shifter at first. It was too easy, a power up that was kind of lame. But then the basement, which had been mentioned all the way back before Trost fell, was brought up again, and the set up and planning was there. Eren’s power isn’t a convenient power up, but develops into a small piece of the larger world these characters occupy. Eren being a Titan is the first step to the answers to the questions we all have, and the depiction of this sold me on the idea. Eren only achieves his task because of the characters around him, which is a common theme in shounen, but the portrayal of this is different. It’s shown very clearly that many of the soldiers who fight to protect Eren aren’t sold on the idea of trusting him just yet, and the losses they sustain because of him are high. It’s not a perfect solution by any means, and so feels more real than the power ups that normally appear in these types of narratives.

The series is criticized for being needlessly dark, but I feel like the tone at the end of this arc is primarily hopeful. The image of Eren in Titan form carrying the massive boulder on his shoulders is such an obvious allusion to Atlas, and it’s so effective. As Atlas carried the world on his shoulders, so does Eren. Eren carries the burden of delivering humanity’s first victory, he carries the hope of a future, and it’s seeing that hope realised in Eren that the soldiers are inspired to fight.

The world of Shingeki is fascinating. The 3DMG makes for exciting action and imaginative movement, creating fight scenes where the characters leap off the page. The titans are grotesque and horrifying, dancing in the Uncanny Valley. The characters all had a very busy arc, giving plenty of opportunity for the next one to explore the consequences of this arc and the backstory of the characters involved.

Favourite quote: “Today, humanity won its first victory against the titans.”

Arc MVP: Mikasa and Armin because they were both great here.

Favourite panel:

I can’t choose one so I went with both of these

The image of the Shiganshina Trio looking up at the Colossal Titan’s hand gripping the wall is a sight that could be considered nigh on iconic. Beautifully horrifying in its implications.

Eren carrying the boulder in an homage to Atlas carrying the world is heavy with conceptual subtext so I had to go with this one too.

If you made it to the end of this, thank you for reading! Let me know your thoughts on this arc and if I’ve left anything out

#snk #snk meta #shingeki no kyojin #trost arc #104th #armin arlert #mikasa ackerman #eren yeager #jean kirschstein #my meta

27 notes · View notes

lostcauses-noregrets · 1 year ago

Note

I know new AoT stuff wasn't going to be anything but still an artbook wasn't what I expected. I know it was never going to be about the Ackermans but I swear Isayama should do something about them one day because they are "weakest point" storytelling-wise in AoT. Kenny Levi and Mikasa are all my favorites but also they don't make sense and always feel like something Isayama only invented to explain how they are so OP in a more grounded story where ordinary people without Titan powers are just that, ordinary people. That ask you answered recently for example. They are just... It makes zero sense. Fandom, especially Eruri fans, did so much more justice to this side of AoT compared to Isayama. Because in no world it makes sense that they just discover 2 of their soldiers are literally super soldiers and there can be more out there when they are literally threatened by intelligent titans and a mostly unknown enemy. Don't get me wrong, I love that Yams kept it mysterious which gave the fans creative freedom when it comes to Ackerman stuff. Eruri fans are so creative with it. But he still acts like Ackermans exist in their own little world. No one reacts to them, no one is interested in them unless the story has to remind us they are special (again that ask you answered about ackermans being immune). You telling me Paradis, in desperation under the threat of outside world and their intelligent titans, didn't search for possibly more Ackermans? Erwin who loves things like that never questioned Levi or Mikasa? Hange, who is a science freak and loves titan science in the first place, begged Levi or Mikasa to give them their blood sample or anything? No one tried to weaponize them? Ackermans make no sense because it feels like their story is a side story, a side quest and completely seperated from the main storyline, not because they are a mystery. THEY MAKE NO SENSE ITS DRIVING ME CRAZY

I got this ask last weekend and we've had a lot more information about Shingeki FLY since then. We now know it's going to be a 200 page art book, a "top secret final draft", and "Attack on Titan Vol. 35 which contains the newly drawn manga Bad Boy". There's been a lot of speculation about who Bad Boy refers to with many fans holding out hope that the new manga or side story will be about Levi. (Though I did laugh at the person on twitter who said it might be about Armin and Annie.). So you never know Anon, you might get your Ackerman lore yet!

Much as I would love to know more about the Ackermans, I'm not sure I agree that they're the "weakest point" storytelling-wise". I think there are much more annoying plot weaknesses, particularly whatever the hell is going on with Historia! Personally I can live with the layers of ambiguity surrounding the Ackermans, particularly because they've proved such fertile ground for fic writers, as you rightly said.

The thing about the Ackermans is that, given the king's attempts to wipe them out, it's not clear whether anyone on Paradis knew anything about them. Erwin wanted Levi for the Survey Corps as soon as he saw his strength and skill, but when he recruited Levi, he had no idea he was Ackerman, or what that meant. Levi himself only discovered he was an Ackerman at the end of the Uprising Arc. We don't know from canon whether Levi revealed his lineage to Erwin, but I'm quite sure he did. He certainly doesn't seem to have been reticent about talking about his relationship with Kenny to Mikasa and Hanji in the cart, and with Nifa on the rooftop.

But even if Erwin did know by the end of the Uprising that the Ackermans were a clan of supers soldiers, as you put it, he didn't really have a chance to exploit that information; sadly he was killed barely a couple of months later. Hanji does appear to have some knowledge of the Ackermans later in the story, but again, by that stage they were all fighting for their lives so they weren't exactly in a position to go hunting for more Ackermans to support the Alliance.

Anyway, I can understand your frustration about the lack of information about the Ackermans, and I really would love to know more about them too. However, over the years, I've made my peace with the fact that they are likely to remain a mystery.

#asks #levi ackerman #ackermans #shingeki fly #snk #levi meta #erwin smith #hanji zoe

22 notes · View notes

phynxrizng · 8 years ago

Text

THE HUMAN ORIGINS HEKATE

PATHEOS INSIDER!

Pagan ChannelBlog

HomePagan ChannelHearth Witch Down Under

Hearth Witch Down Under

Iphigenia – The Human Origins of Hekate »

Tauri Princess – The Human Origins of Hekate

March 14, 2017

by Bekah Evie Bel 3

Mythology is a funny thing when it comes to tracing the origins and family of all the Gods. Nearly every single one of Them has multiple sets of parents and multiple origin stories. Some of these origin stories are somewhat in contradiction of each other. In this post I am going to explore one of the origin stories of Hekate, that in which she is apparently human.

First a reminder of the Hesiodic (thus commonly believed) origins of the Goddess. In this, She is the daughter of Perses and Asteria, who are Titans and so Hekate is also a Titan. She is older than the Olympians, and honoured by Zeus and is seen as extremely powerful with command over the three realms of earth, ocean and the heavens.

Hekate the Cruel Princess

“We are told, that is, that Helius had two sons, Aeetes and Perses, Aeetes being king of Colchis and the other king of the Tauric Chersonese, and that both of them were exceedingly cruel. And Perses had a daughter Hecate, who surpassed her father in boldness and lawlessness ; she was also fond of hunting, and when she had no luck she would turn her arrows upon human beings instead of the beasts.

Being likewise ingenious in the mixing of deadly poisons she discovered the drug called aconite and tried out the strength of each poison by mixing it in the food given to the strangers. And since she possessed great experience in such matters she first of all poisoned her father and so succeeded to the throne, and then, founding a temple of Artemis and commanding that strangers who landed there should be sacrificed to the goddess, she became known far and wide for her cruelty.” – Diodorus Siculus, The Library of History, trans. C.H. Oldfather

In this version of the myth Hekate is the daughter of Perses and granddaughter of Helios, the sun. She, like her father, is quite cruel, hunting people, poisoning people and creating a temple to Artemis for the express purpose of sacrificing people. I suppose here we can see part of the reason why Hekate is believed to be an evil Goddess.

Hunting and poisons are the province of Hekate the Goddess, and so we can see a connection between the human and the Goddess already. The fact that her fathers name is Perses, even if it isn’t the Titan Perses, is also a telling connection. What is very fascinating to me though is that she creates a temple to Artemis.

Hekate and Artemis are often conflated so to read that Hekate worships Artemis is quite interesting. But even more is the fact that this is all from an account of the Argonautica. In the myths regarding the Argonauts, it is commonly believed by Hekateans that all references to Artemis, especially those regarding Medea and her family, are actually references to Hekate instead of the Huntress Herself.

So if we look too deeply into this, we’re going to mess ourselves up a bit – as we see the human princess Hekate creating a temple in honour of the Goddess Hekate so She can sacrifice people to… herself.

Mother of Witches

“After this she married Aeetes and bore two daughters, Circe and Medea, and a son Aegialeus.[…] For Aeetes, partly because of his own natural cruelty and partly because he was under the influence of his wife Hecate, had given his approval to the custom of slaying strangers.” – Diodorus Siculus, The Library of History, trans. C.H. Oldfather

Hekate poisons her father Perses – though it seems he didn’t die as, later on in the account, he is killed by his great-grandson – and she assumes the throne. She then marries her uncle Aeetes, making her queen in two kingdoms I suppose and gives birth to the witches Circe and Medea.

Circe and Medea are perhaps two of the best known witches or sorceresses in Hellenic mythology, that they are the daughters of Hekate in this version of the myths, does indeed make Hekate the Mother of Witches and subsequently the Queen of Witches.

Both of the daughters follow in their mothers footsteps when it comes to poisons and witchery, though in different ways. Circe improves on what she learns from her mother and surpasses the skills of Hekate, but she remains equally as cruel as her mother. Medea on the other hand is the complete opposite – though she is also skilled with poisons and magic, she is more kind hearted. While Circe revels in the same tortures as her mother, Medea seeks to free those who will be sacrificed by her mother.

Hekate – Goddess or Mortal?

The most interesting part of this particular version of the myths is that there is no overt indication that Hekate is actually a Goddess, nor that she becomes a Goddess. We might assume that she is a Goddess, purely based on the fact that her grandfather is Helios, thus her father is surely a God – but it seems it doesn’t work that way in this story. Given that Medus, son of Medea, kills Hekates father, Perses, this suggests that Perses was mortal in this story and so Hekate must be too.

While there are versions of Hekate where she is human and becomes a Goddess through various means, this particular story doesn’t appear to include that miracle.

So we are left wondering if this Hekate is the same Hekate as the Goddess or not. We could look at this story and assume that Hekate is simply a name for a princess, and not any type of Goddess. But there are many parts of the story that connect Hekate to the Goddess Hekate. Hunting, poisons, Artemis, teaching Circe and Medea about poisons and witchery. Not to mention that the name of her father is the same as that of the Goddess.

And though it isn’t obvious in this account, there is one more connection. The Tauri (people of the land Hekate was princess of) did worship a virgin Goddess who, while often identified with Artemis, is also identified with Iphigenia. This is interesting as in certain accounts of Iphigenia she is turned into a Goddess by Artemis, and her name becomes Hekate.

Perhaps it is far more simple though. We can just take a look at the name of the text from which the story comes, “The Library of History”. It is not impossible that the stories Diodorus shared were less mythological and more historical in nature, even if they aren’t really factual. Meaning, perhaps he looked at mythology and attempted to turn myth into a human focused historical record.

The story about Hekate is precluded with the question of how human sacrifice came to become so ingrained among the Tauri. The virgin Goddess being alternately named Artemis, Iphigenia and via conflation, Hekate, perhaps this was an attempt to reconcile the three into one cohesive story.

Thus, Hekate becomes human as she was as Iphigenia, and Artemis is the Goddess receiving sacrifices.

Daniel Ogden suggests this as well in his Magic, Witchcraft and Ghosts in the Greek and Roman Worlds.

“DIODORUS’S ACCOUNT DRAWS ON THAT OF the rationalizing and euhemerist early Hellenistic mythographer Dionysius Scytobrachion, a contemporary of Apollonius of Rhodes. It draws together many of the ideas that had been attached to Circe and Medea in the course of the developing tradition, and so is a useful place to start in laying out the tales associated with them.”

So, Hekate and Perses in this story then are simply the mortal versions of their divine counterparts – this is the story of what they would have been like had they been human, while still keeping the Gods in the story peripherally.

What this means is that this account is not meant to create a new origin for Hekate, nor confuse those of us trying to figure things out. Simply put, this account is a story told by a man who tried to rationalise mythology and find the historical basis for mythology.

While Hekate is a human princess in this version of events, as Hellenes and/or Hekateans, we aren’t meant to take this any more seriously than we take many of the things we read about in myths. Some things are merely symbolic, not realistic. So in this, princess Hekate can be seen as just another symbolic story to explain who the Goddess Hekate is and what She represents.

FILED UNDER: HELLENISM, LORE AND MYTH, RESOURCES AND MATERIAL TAGGED WITH: DEITIES, HECATE, HEKATE, HELLENISMOS, HISTORY, MYTHOLOGY, NATURE OF THE GODS, PAGANISM, POLYTHEISM, RELIGION, WITCHCRAFT 3 Iphigenia – The Human Origins of Hekate »

SOURCE, About Bekah Evie Bel I am an Aussie Hellenic Revivalist, Domestic Pagan, Hearth Witch and Devotee of Hekate and the Covenant of Hekate. I was raised Agnostic, bordering on Atheist and became Pagan long before I knew the label existed in a modern sense. My "conversion" to Hellenism is fairly recent so I am still in discovery mode, and you get to share that journey with me. I was admin and owner of the Pagan Veil social network for 4 years and have a minor presence within the Aussie, Pagan and Aussie Pagan Homeschooling communities.

Get the Hearth Witch Down Under Newsletter Follow Hearth Witch Down Under! (A Modern Traditional Witch) REPOSTED BY, PHYNXRIZNG

3 notes · View notes

transgamerthoughts · 8 years ago

Text

Final Fantasy XV: Thoughts and Ramblings

I’ve just finished a more detailed playthrough of Final Fantasy XV. There’s plenty to talk about but today is strange and my mind is scattered so I thought it best to keep things loose. It worked for Infinite Warfare. My general takeaway is that I like Final Fantasy XV more than I should. It is a broken, shattered game but one that managed to win me over in spite of itself.

THERE ARE SPOILERS IN THIS POST

1. Let’s start positive here. FFXV has one of my favorite game worlds and settings in a long time. This is impressive given how surprisingly little of it we really explore in detail. There’s essentially two major cities in this game, with a handful of minor locations. Whereas other Final Fantasy games are globe trotting affairs, FFXV remains relatively local until the latter end of the game.

By this point, you’re no longer dealing with an open world design however. For all intents and purposes, FFXV’s largest gameplay chuck takes place within the nation of Lucis and its various regions. The map isn’t dense with things to do but strong art direction and environment design gives ever location an air of believability that most games do not manage. It isn’t on the same level as The Witcher 3 but FF XV is chasing after the great Western open worlds and does so admirably. The world is fun to be in and feels steeped in a larger history and lore that feels suitably epic and magical.

2. The core cast of characters are enjoyable and memorable as well. The four party members banter and have clearly developing relationships. It adds a lot to the experience. There are weak links in the chain; Gladio tends to be far less personable than we are meant to believe and Ignis’ traits remain fairly static until a major bit of action in the plot physically handicaps him. These are minor complaints considering how well the group dynamics flow. By the end of the game, the four protagonists feel like true brothers.

The secondary cast is pretty fun as well. Iris is a charming and likable character who honestly should have accompanied the party longer than she did. Aranea makes for a memorable rival turned frenemy, and while we don’t get to spend too much time with Cor Leonis, his gravitas served the initial parts of the game very well.

On top of this, we have one of the most memorable antagonists in the series history. Ardyn is charismatic, intelligent, watchable, and when the times demand it, he can become truly sinister. There are the subtle hints of true depth for this character; he feels complicated and worn. The plot fails to investigate his highly interesting history but he still manages to make an impression. I’ve not had this fun with a Final Fantasy villain in a long time.

3. A lot of these characters draw strength from strong vocal performances and animations. Ray Chase gives a shockingly good turn as Noctis, a character who starts petty and fairly unlikable grows into a commanding presence. Darin De Paul gives an outstanding turn as Ardyn, oozing charm while slipping into more sinister vocal ranges when needed.

One of the best performances in the game actually comes from Robbie Daymond as Prompto. He brings a wonderful energy to the chipper gunslinger but also imbues him with a raw sense of vulnerability. The voce work merges well with quality animations. In particular, there’s a moment where Luna tells Ardyn that redemption is in his reach if he were to choose it and the facial animation manages to communicate an astounding range of thoughts and emotions within around five seconds. It’s great and shows how important the interplay between multiple disciplines are when creating digital performances.

4. Combat can be frustrating but I found that there’s a nice sense of push and pull to the entire affair. It’s not as technique heavy as Episode Duscae implied. Instead, the challenge is finding times to maintain your offensive actions and your defensive dodging stance. With larger groups of enemies, you will get tossed around from time to time and it can be frustrating. But after a while, you’ll find yourself slipping through guards to deliver big hits, performing strong combination attacks with your bros, and warping around the battlefield to perform deadly, magical acrobatics.

5. The game starts with an amazingly interesting core conceit that I think gets squandered. The road trip angle is given a new weight when Cor makes it clear that for Noctis to succeed against the empire, he needs to reclaim the power of the past kings of Lucis. Awesome. That sounds like a neat quest set up. But the game only has Noctis recover a few of these relics during the plot, sometimes without intending to. This then gives way to communion with the various gods around the world.

It would have been a perfectly acceptable and desirable plot to have Noctis seek out the power of kings and gods with the Empire hounding him along the way only for Ardyn to betray everyone near the latter half. In fact, that structure seems fundamentally etched into the structure of the game as an open world experience. And yet, the game abandons the quest for the king’s power, makes it unclear why Noctis is even seeking the gods (or rather, if they are seeking him), and the game totally abandons the Empire.

The best example of this is Ravus. He’s the commander of Imperial forces, a skill swordsman, Luna’s brother, someone with a personal (if misplaced) grudge on the kingdom of Lucis, and all around bad dude. He was even in Kingsglaive. In FF XV, you encounter him once before he is blamed for the disastrous events in Altissia, turned into a daemon offscreen by Ardyn, and killed in one of the game’s most lack luster bossfights. This is frankly unacceptable from a series that managed to make me give a shit about villains as minor Scarlet and fuckin’ Heidegger but Ravus is basically Beatrix by way of Char Aznable and he’s completely misused. It’s downright sinful.

Similarly, the Emperor has a single scene. If the game took time to build him up, we might have had a betrayal as memorable as Kefka’s when Ardyn usurps power and tosses the realms into chaos. No such luck here. We also only see Minister Verstael for a single cutscene but this is the dude who runs the empire’s weapons program and manufactures MTs using knowledge gained from Ardyn. He’s also, technically, Prompto’s father. There’s loads of potential here that is also wasted because the game hits ludicrous speed after Altissia and never slows the fuck down. As the result, I feel like I’m missing a significant portion of the game.

6. In keeping with the botched story elements, we have the biggest missed opportunity when Ardyn basically creates and eternal night that lasts ten whole years. The world is plunged into chaos, daemons reign supreme, humanity is hiding in a few final bastions of resistance against the hordes. And yet, when we awake into the World of Ruin, we’re not given a new variation of the game map to explore. Instead, we get an expositional dump by Talcott before easily reuniting with out companions.

Yet, in the intervening ten years, a lot of stuff has happened. Ignis has become a badass blind warrior, Aranea has gone from Imperial mercenary to champion of the people with an entire army at her command, Iris, working alongside Cor, has become so awesome that she’s known as “Iris the Demonslayer,” and Talcott, the young boy we knew from years before, has become a veteran hunter in his own right.

Why do I not see the characters again? Imagine if I woke in the World of Ruin with only Gladio to greet me, ever faithful for years as guardian of the Crystal. Talcott joins us as a temporary guest character as we journey from settlement to settlement, helping restore order while also reuniting with our friends. We could help Cindy in a brief story sequence that reunites us with Prompto, we could encounter Aranea and Ignis as they search ancient ruins for information of how to defeat Ardyn, we could reinforce Cor and Iris at Gladio’s request in a battle against daemons attacking Lestallum.

The set up is right there in the background but instead, we get an exposition dump, no satisfying reunion scene with the gang, and we’re able to immediately head to Insomnia to fight Ardyn. If the first half of the game is missing the Empire, the latter half of the game is missing basically everything.

8. In spite of these obvious oversights and missteps, the ending made me cry. It’s well done. I even think it could have been more dramatic. As it stands, Noctis gives up his life for the people of the world and the fates of his best bros feel ambiguous. I think they should have doubled down even harder on the heartbreak here and showed their last stand. If this is a game about gradually assuming responsibility, that needs to extend to the other protagonists in order to be thematically complete.

I also think that while Ardyn should have died, there was no need to have the strange moment with him in the spirit realm. If we had someone gotten to understand Arydn’s past in more detail, perhaps during the time Noctis spends in the crystal, it would have been enough to land the final blow on him and wish him peace in the next life. The ending is good but I can’t help thinking it ought to have been great.

9. I can’t believe I’m saying this but I think this game needed a codex. The world is full of amazingly interesting history that I’d gladly read about. Imagine walking into a dungeon and walking away with ancient lore you discovered on old tablets or spending time in Altissia with some type of tour guide and getting a beefier codex for it. As stated, the world is amazingly interesting. Lestallum is a city run by women, Titan is holding up a perpetually falling comet in the middle of Duscae, the Empire and Lucis had major wars, the tombs of old kings litter the land. This is interesting stuff I want to know more about

Say what you will about how FF XIII made the codex necessary to understanding I actually know the religion in that world and the cosmology. In FF XV, I still don’t quite understand what an Oracle is and that’s literally the profession of one of the (ostensibly) most important characters in the game.

10. Speaking of Luna, she suffers from the same issue as her brother; we don’t get to spend time with her. Occasionally, we see flashes to her life and her side journey but this is a powerful character. Instead, she is relegated largely to the sidelines until Altissia, where we reunite with her just long enough for Ardyn to kill her.

Luna is a prophet, mage, and priestess who can stare down literal gods and heal magical blight. FF XV could have easily given us moments where we play as here or structured itself such that we actually get worthwhile perspective cuts to what she was doing for much of the story. It would have made her death actually mean something.

11. This game has one of the best soundtracks of the series. It is a powerhouse and Yoko Shimomura nails just about every track. Shimomura has always done very well with strings and piano. Here, that strength aptly bridges the gap between the more realistic aspects of the setting with the fantasy. I don’t have an in depth analysis here. It’s just very good.

In general, the biggest issue with FFXV is that is is fractured. The open world is great, if lacking in variety. But I forgive that because of how enrapturing it is. The characters are wonderful but the plot misuses them or ignores them constantly. I genuinely like this game but I know that a better scenario designer could have gotten something much more coherent. That’s the biggest problem; this game just falls apart by the end and even if it manages to hit a strong emotional climax, you’re let with the overwhelming feeling that while it was a good time, it could have been genuinely great.

#Final Fantasy #final fantasy xv

17 notes · View notes