#also. would've loved to have read that dragon age issue...

[thelvadams]

GAME INFORMER (1991 - 2024) • favourite covers

[marveloustimestwo]

Can you do yandere Aemond obsessed with his i maid, he tries to convince his mother so she let him married her and alicent is a platonic yandere for her too

Thank you for the request, anon!

Warnings: Yandere themes, allusions to Aegon's tendencies, this is very long when I did not intend it to be.

Aemond Targaryen is already quite a difficult yandere to deal with.

He has trouble dealing with his emotions, or rather, he instead chooses to ignore them completely until he no longer can.

Whatever anger, sadness, or undesirable issues he feels towards his family, himself, or others are stuffed away, which really only causes them to get worse.

The fact that you are a maid only adds to this issue.

Aegon already views him as weak, as someone undeserving of respect. While Aemond does not much care for what his brother thinks, the last thing he needs is to bring further shame unto himself in the eyes of others.

Aemond would often treat you coldly because of this. He wants to keep himself from falling more than he already has; he's already finding himself far more comfortable with you than he would like.

You're so warm, so sweet to him in a way that he hasn't received in years. The fact that he forces his emotions down makes them worse, yes, but his family dynamics also play a heavy role in why his obsession starts.

How he was treated by his father and brother is especially damaging, but it is also a big reason why he would seek reassurance, praise, and comfort from you.

If you were hired when you were both very young, you would be a crutch almost, a safe space for him to go to when Aegon insulted him or when he couldn't speak to his father.

Knowing Aemond from a young age would have made things better for both of you in all honesty.

While his obsessive tendencies would still be there, Aemond would be a lot softer than he would be if he met you later in life. The anger and the coldness he feels would've melted away years ago in your presence.

Granted, that same softness would not extend to others. He's still rather cold at best, and downright vicious to those who think they have the right to touch or even talk to you.

He's very possessive. Even when you're getting orders from those who are higher up have Aemond seething. Nothing is too little.

Aemond would ask for you to only be his maid early on. He hates the idea of others spending this sort of time with you, especially Aegon. He's heard of what his brother does to the servants, and he hardly needs you being subjected to that.

It also means that once you've done everything needed for the day, he can spend as much time as he wants with you (which is all the time, really.) If he had his way, you would stay in his room permanently.

He'd particularly enjoy reading with you or discussing topics from his books. Considering you're a maid, he'd take time to teach you how to read if you didn't know how.

Late at night when things are quiet, Aemond would also take you on flights with Vhagar. The dragon was his pride and joy, the same thing he spent so many years without, and lost an eye for.

Having the two things he cherishes the most in one place is something he holds dear. It would likely be during this that he would realize that he wanted to marry you.

At this rate, being years into his obsession, Aemond wouldn't really care what his brother thought. If Aegon really, truly had the gall to try and stop him, he could always use his prized dragon as a way to end the fight once and for all.

His mother, however, was a different ordeal. While they have their own unhealthy dynamic, Aemond has no true want to harm his mother and actually does care about what she thinks.

The one thing Aemond didn't expect was how accepting Alicent would be of this situation.

Going into it, he was preparing himself for a fight. He had a whole speech prepared about how he wanted to marry you, about how deep his love runs for you, and how there is nothing he would not do to make this happen. To him, fire and blood would be an easy path should all else fail.

A deeply dramatic speech that is met with Alicent's judgmental gaze, and a reply of "Did it truly take you this long to realize all of this?"

Alicent had noticed your presence as soon as you were assigned around any of her sons. At first, she gave you nothing more than a glance, far more concerned with other things than a simple maid.

It was when Aemond requested you as his personal maid that she actually saw you. Aemond in particular had become so unfriendly over the years, so it had surprised her to hear of this request.

She was even more surprised to see how attached he had become. Alicent had never seen him so friendly with anyone in years.

Looking into your life, it was hard for her to see what was so special at first. You came from a long line of servants, the majority of the women being maids, while the men were often cooks or stablehands.

Asking Aemond was like asking a brick wall. The answers he gave her consisted of the things she already knew. "She is my personal maid," or "She was assigned to others, I just so happened to request her personally."

With no explanation as to why. Only one comment actually seemed to give her anything.

"I have known her since I was a child, mother. Of course, I am fond of her."

A flippant remark, it seemed, at the end of another line of questions. Alicent even wondered at times if Aemond had realized what he said.

Speaking to you personally felt as though it were her only option.

At first, it had only made her more confused. You gave her all the answers she wanted, as she was the Queen, but to hear it from you felt strange.

If Aemond has threatened you to be around him, she might understand. She already had another son who harassed the servants. But to hear that you might actually enjoy Aemond's company? That he taught you to read, took you on dragon rides, actually talked to you about his thoughts and interests?

It practically gave her whiplash. Her immediate thought was that you might've been trying to squeeze something out of him. Private information, money, or god forbid, actually marrying her son to get a leg up in life.

Questioning Aemond on the matter would immediately have him snapping at her. He did not need his mother threatening what he has with you. Forcing you to stay away from him, having you take care of anyone else, or making you leave the castle entirely will have violent consequences.

So Alicent set to watching you and seeing why exactly her son liked you so much. And that is where her own obsession would begin.

When Aemond finally tells her that he plans to marry you, Alicent has been waiting for a least a year for this to happen. She's tired of him beating around the bush and is happy to do whatever she needs to make it happen.

As such, it takes a very short time for you to be married to Aemond. No matter what anyone else tried to say about it.

[emlan]

Finished DLC!

Here's some Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree ramblings, spoilers under cut.

.

.

.

.

. DLC catered to me a lot since I'm a Zanzibart cutscene enjoyer who loves map exploration and Vista money shots but I'm kinda HUH-cat.clip when it comes to some new lore bits and in general the world feels divorced from main game even though main game characters and topics are around?

I don't remember how much souls DLC tied into the other story, but I'm using The Old Hunters from BB as base and it really added extra value to its world and characters and there's just nothing new of real interest in SotE from what I can see…

In a vacuum I can only appreciate even more (literal) brother on brother action but Miquella seemingly being deeply obsessed with Radahan is so out of left field??? Granted I'm not an lorester but what I remember as Miq's key things from flavor text when it comes to ties to other people is him being sad about being unable to cure Malenia of her rot and also sad about not being able to grant Godwyn his true death. The only ties to Radahan is by proxy of his sister fighting him? (Was she even fighting him just to bring bro his crush to him? This makes Caelid getting nuked by her even more of a waste.)

It's so out of nowhere that the Epic Prime Version of him comes off as a cheap soyjak pointing bit pandering to Radahan fanboys (pretty sure he's like no1 fav guy for players right), but fanboys will obviously not be happy about him just being a hollow shell again (?) that might not have wanted anything to do with Miquella (?) so I just can't see this as satisfying for ANY kind of player even on a full Gamer Dude to Deranged Fujoshi spectrum? I imagine deep lore enthusiasts also feels a bit… Ambushed.

I'm not against Miquella doing dark unpleasant or just stupid desperate acts since it was already a popular theory that he was a brainwasher type, but the issue for me is that I'm not sure if this Miq/Rad union is "intended" to be read in such a twisted way even when it's the only way I can read it.

Though I guess the fact general consensus going from "wow Mohg is so messed up claiming Miq no matter Miq's consent" to "wow Miq is so messed up claiming Radahan no matter Radahan's* consent" is poetic….?

*I'm writing Radahan here but really it's also a synonym for 'Mohg' considering he's the one getting desecrated the most.

I'm sure I'll end up watching some vid or writeup making pieces fall into place later but I can't believe Miyazaki is handing me visual age gap brother incest and all I can do is force a strained smile in response!!!

Anyway general whining time:

As much as I love filling out up the map I feel there was too much big "empty" areas. Climbing the dragon mountain was the worst presentation of anything I've seen in a FS title, extremely cheap unfinished filler feeling with the spirit jumps instead of at least adding some kinda atmosphere like the open flower/gravestone fields. The Abyss gimmick overstayed it's welcome since it's too miserable checking if you missed a shiny somewhere without your horse, but at least the stealth parts was such a non-issue it might as well not be there.

While I like that you can see several inaccessible areas from where you stand, and I do think it leads to some fun moments when you're taking a random path halfway across the map and ends up on the other side as an a-ha moment, it was a bit frustrating not being able to tell more clearly how to reach sections. Plus I would've died 10000 times from drops if it wasn't the fact Rainbow Stones protected me from making bad choices.

What mindbroke me most was trying to get into the flower field area north east, having an "oh boy, beating this guy will let me reach it for sure!" moment for both Gaius and Sunflower was such [record scratch SFX]. I did figure posing in front of the statue was most likely the entry afterwards but somehow I had missed the gesture needed (most embarrassing DLC moment considering I tend to fine comb pretty well and the gesture pickup is just sitting there out in the open………. why am I even admitting this shameful thing). Watching trees get knocked over from something moving under the water in the church district was really cool and unnerving and then you realize it's just branch dragon number 800……………..

The wicker men has a great design but fighting them was either a boring slog or a frustrating jankfest trying to toss the bombs right. Peeved that you HAVE to use a furnace pot for the sleeping one blocking the ruin puzzle, hefty should've been fine too.

Bosses are too hectic/aggressive for my taste but that's just business as usual for ER so whatever, last boss really is way too punishing compared to other Hard bosses tho, in fact I just watched ending on YT since I'm stuck still on them :V Camera also makes a glorious return as the toughest challenge of them all.

Think my biggest highlights was seeing the bizarre finger/tongue path under the church and the finger mom boss visual itself and the black humor of the miserable living jars stumbling around with the pot on their head. Ansbach is a hot new waifu and it's very precious how such an upstanding man stays all-in loyal to a Deranged Satan (said lovingly) soooo cute you actually get a "Um, so about how Mohg died…👉👈" prompt with him. There was more NPC voice lines than I expected which was fun. St Trina's design was very neat and shoujo manga. Having to sip syrup 4-5 times instead of the classic Third Time's The Charm is a crime however and I missed making the Trina fanboy jealous until it was too late :/

The open world for all of Elden Ring is such an incredible experience that I'm happy I got to play and I had such a good time and I can't imagine any other studios will be able to reach these map heights but I also hope they never make an OW game again because it's too much when you "need" to replay it.

[kaija-rayne-author]

It's so sad. Bioware has been a staple, almost, of RPGs for a long time.

But them laying off so many people (it's 125ish over the past handful of months) really doesn't increase confidence in the company.

Even though DA:DW is in Alpha, it's going to affect how many people buy the game. Because they'll think that many layoffs will affect the quality of the game. Average people have little idea about how games are made. Alpha means it's in primary testing, meaning the game is mostly finished.

Could they have shot themselves in the foot better if they'd tried?

Fans are pissed and swearing they're done with Bioware.

A lot of fans.

And I have a Kassandra like feeling that DA:DW is Bioware's last chance as a company.

So, their behavior toward employees = loss of consumer confidence = fewer people buy Dreadwolf = Bioware sinks and we don't get any more Dragon Age after DA:DW.

Don't execs have business degrees and such?

If so, why is my ridiculous ass better at cause/effect for economics and business than they are? I've never even taken a business class.

What exactly do the execs do to earn those obscene paychecks?

Anyway, I really think it comes down to this; if we want more Dragon Age past Dreadwolf, we'll have to ignore Bioware's behavior and buy the game regardless.

And... I don't know how many people will do that. I don't even want to do that. I've boycotted companies for far less.

Edit Saturday Aug 26, '23

I need to add some thoughts to this.

Unfortunately, negative chatter will likely affect whether they release the game at all. Which sucks for people who do want it. (It's rhetorical, but it’s almost finished, why wouldn't they release it?)

I've read that Andromeda DLCs were canceled because of that. I won't be boycotting. I'm unhappy with bioware, but there's much more to consider.

For me, I've been thinking and reading what those laid off have said. It's them that are most affected, after all. It's not about bioware as much as it's about the people who no longer work there who poured years of time, love, and passion into Dreadwolf.

I don't like bioware, but at the same time, I refuse to shat on the creatives who loved and made Dreadwolf. I know, personally, how much of yourself you pour into a creative work. I'd be heartbroken if people boycotted something I'd worked on and truly loved. Even if I were no longer working at the company. I believe the devs can't even talk about it, unless/until it's released due to NDAs. Can you imagine putting years of your life and creativity into something only to have people boycott it?

And to use your status at the company as the excuse?

Kirby has said she hopes people love it as much as she does. She's one of the most affected and she's still hoping people play and love it.

And to be calmly realistic, Bioware isn't the main source of the issue. EA demanded a layoff of 800 people across all their holdings. Corporate greed. I doubt bioware would've made such awful choices without that pressure.

So even though my kneejerk reaction is to boycott, I'll buy it and play it for the creatives who poured everything into it.

Is it right? Hell no. There's no ethical consumption in a late stage capitalist nightmare world. But I'm also not going to punish the people who loved it enough to make it.

Y'all do you, but I wanted to share my more measured thoughts on the matter.

[missdeepend]

I was Wrong about Wendy Marvell

I used to say for years and years that when Wendy and Carla joined Fairy Tail is when the series as a whole began to go downhill. In retrospective, it is when the show had begun to change its course in a way that I did not understand at the time. A more mature series was going to emerge and that was something I was not ready for.

While I dislike Carla still and find her character a little less than irritating, I have to say for many years I was wrong about Wendy Marvell. Wendy to me was the connection between the series going downhill in my eyes and I couldn't look past that. Now I know that she is probably one of the best developed characters in the show.

This will definitely be long fair warning and I will without a doubt bring up 100 Year Quest. I just cannot speak about her character without bringing it up. I mean I could, but I would feel like this is incomplete. Please keep reading though if you care to. If you dislike Wendy or believe she is weak then I beg you to read this.

Wendy was a character I felt no attachment to despite watching Fairy Tail for the first time when I was around her age. I cannot tell you how I felt about the Oracion seis arc when I first watched it, but I can tell you it was mixed feelings. At some points I was excited that the series was going somewhere and we actually had a reason for the mention of dark guilds. Another part of me, however, was upset that the series I loved so much for its silliness was taking a turn for the darker side of things.

Carla's characte rI never could like. She was too bossy for me and her selfishness and outlook for only Wendy never sat right with me. However, Wendy... well I felt indifferent about her. I believe it only turned to dislike due to connecting her with when Fairy Tail changed so much. Even now, after putting aside my feelings for the change, I feel indifferent to Wendy first appearing.

Wendy begins as the weakest member of the alliance in the Oracion Seis arc, well besides Carla and Happy. She did bring the interesting concept of a female dragon slayer that was also a child. She helped greatly but due to her small size and strength she could only go so far.

On the other hand, Wendy's personality I always found to be sweet and I know now it makes so much sense for her. She was a girl that lost her parents, who she now doesn't remember, and then her dragon mother. She was a scared child left to fend for herself until Mystogan had found her. Then after he brought her to Cait Shelter, he left too. Honestly, it is no wonder why Wendy had so many emotional issues at the start and was hyper sensitive. By the age of 12 she had lost her parents, her adoptive mother, Mystogan, and Cait Shelter. We also learn that she had gotten separated from Anna Heartfilia and the boys so you can count that as a loss as well.

My thoughts are is that Wendy may have developed an idea of abandonment, which is why she is scared to mess up when she joined Fairy Tail and was apologetic. She was most likely nervous she would be kicked out if she wasn't strong enough and didn't prove herself, which set her off on a path to get stronger. Not to mention the idea of wanting to protect her friends.

By the Grand Magic Games you can see just how much Wendy develops. Sure she may have been struggling prior to that and wasn't too reliable on Tenrou Island, but by GMG she had grown so much. I'm sure by then the concept of Fairy Tail abandoning her had left her mind and after Edolas Carla was guaranteed to stay at her side.

Speaking of Edolas, side tangent here, poor Wendy had to watch her guild be taken away once again and then later learned that her own cat was supposed to be turning her into Edolas which would've led to her death. This poor girl has endured so much.

With Grand Magic Games, we see a new side of Wendy. That fragile girl is a bit more toughened up thanks to her "older siblings" aka Team Natsu. As soon as she is able to participate in the games once again, she does. She doesn't care who she has to fight if she can bring back smiles to her guildmate's faces after 7 years. It is during the GMG that we see her first interaction with Shelia, who becomes her best friend (and if you ship it then love interest). These two have such a dynamic that I love. Although they have to fight for a win for their team, the two compliment each other and act like...well... young girls. They don't need bickering about how their guild is naturally better. They don't need the blind insults thrown at each other despite not knowing one another. They just act like girls that just met and they just so happen to have to fight. This is also the first time we see Wendy fight someone that is meant to be on her level. Its not some strong mage from some dark guild or giant dragon, just another girl like her with rare magic.

Considering Wendy's main spells center around healing or status buffs, watching her go head to head with a god slayer is entertaining. Of course she does have the one weakness that she can only heal others while Shelia is able to heal herself, but she continues to push forward. This earns her a tie with the girl, which in Wendy's case is a big win.

This doesn't even delve into the fact that in the same arc we have seen Wendy summon a dragon from a weak life force left behind and help take on the dragons.

Wendy's arc really reaches its peak at Tartaros when her and Carla are up against Face. They have grown so much over the course of Oracion Seis that they are willing to give up their lives for the Fairy Tail guild to succeed in their job. Not to mention Wendy coming in full circle with her Dragon Force coming in at such a young age. You could argue she knew about Dragon Force and therefore knew something to work towards, but she transformed into Dragon Force and fought a Demon of Tartaros at just roughly 12-13!

She is continuing to grow in 100 Year Quest, which is something that I am enjoying the watch of. While there isn't much to the characters I enjoy anymore in that plot, seeing little Wendy mature with the help of Irene is nice to watch. Unfortunately with the departure of Irene we haven't gotten much out of Wendy afterwards.

This doesn't even mention the fact that Wendy has some of the best interactions with characters due to her age. They are protective of her and know just how dangerous being in a guild could be, as some of them were even in it at her age. However, she tells them she isn't afraid and you can just see the proud look on their faces. This is especially true when it comes to Erza, who invited both her and Carla into their guild with open arms.

Just please watch Phoenix Priestess and pay attention to all the Wendy scenes. When she obviously could be scared as they are going up against an entire army in a kingdom, she tells them that she can't be scared because of having to rescue a friend (Eclair) who they just met.

If Fairy Tail isn't worth watching for those characters that are already extremely powered up such as Natsu or Erza, Wendy is the person to watch it for. It makes the experience much more enjoyable when you take into account where she started and where she ended up.

That was pretty long, but I still could go on forever just about Wendy alone. But what do you all think about her? Maybe you guys thought or still think the same thing that I did. I'm curious to know.

Anyways, I'll see you later in the Deep End!!

[momowoah]

The school years in Percy Jackson don't add up. (has like very minor tower of nero spoilers abt what percy and annabeth are up to)

He turns eighteen in TOA

He turns seventeen in HOO

he turns sixteen in TLO

he turns fifteen in BOTL (end)

he turns fourteen in SOM (end)

he turns thirteen in TLT (end)

he turns twelve before killing mrs. dodds

This means that if TLT is set in 2005, Percy's should've been born in 1992, and not 1993 like literally everyone including official sources say (please do the math right I'm begging you). But, according to this paragraph:

Percy was twelve years old a few months after Yancy. This makes sense if Percy wrote this before his birthday in August, but the use of the word few instead of couple (considering he left in late may/early june) is strange. But ok, this might just be a misunderstanding, it doesn't really matter. What matter is this paragraph:

Why? Because Percy should've been in Yancy during the seventh grade.

again considering Percy as being born in 1992 and turning 18/graduating around toa 5 bc it happened two years after tlo, we have the following scenario

pre tlo 04-05 seventh grade

tlo-som 05-06 eighth grade

som-botl 06-07 ninth grade

botl-tlo 07-08 tenth grade

tlo-hoo 08-09 eleventh grade (that he didn't actually have)

hoo-toa 09-10 twelfth grade

if he was on sixth grade during yancy, he would still have a year left before graduating in toa 5. this paragraph from BOTL is also an issue:

If he was in ninth grade after botl, he would've graduated high school in three years, which doesn't make sense (also im not from USA but why would you have an orientation in june when the school starts in august??? anyways)

I might not be making sense bc it's one thirty am, but either one of the books had a time-skip of over one year and I somehow missed it (doubt it bc I read this series like three plus times) OR rick riordan just like casually skipped a whole year but everyone knows he's bad with timelines (as exemplified by that whole dragon ants fourth of july side story that literally can't be really placed anywhere in the series and Nico's age and birth fluctuating throughout the books) so yeah not unexpected I just like to realize stuff

also mostly unrelated question but how tf did Annabeth get into UCLA? she had absolutely no ECs (it's not like she could put "redesigned the mt. olympus" in her application), probably missed a good part of sophomore and junior year (bc of titan war and looking for percy), and there's probably more stuff that I can't think of right now bc I'm tired and my brain is not working. But also how would she have the time to take standardized tests and advanced classes? How would she have been able to avoid any disciplinary actions considering monsters and stuff? How tf was she able to maintain a good enough GPA? nothing makes sense

pjo is full of random nonsense and I love to talk about it but it's two am and I have to sleep so goodnight. if you come up with any answers regarding annabeth pls tell me. that's it.

[supermoviemaniac]

DEFENDING...

THOR: RAGNAROK!

Okay, so yesterday I asked you guys which is your least favourite MCU movie and why. I said I'd take the most commonly disliked film and try and defend it, using my personal reasonings as well as attempting to counter what issues you had with it yourselves.

Firstly, I'm quite surprised that Ragnarok was the most hated! I was expecting Age of Ultron or Iron-Man 3 (though they weren't too far behind). To make it clear, it's okay to dislike this movie, my attempt at defending the movie is just a bit of fun, but if it lets you see and appreciate the movie in a different light then that's cool! If it doesn't then that's cool too! Here goes...

I'll start with why I personally love Ragnarok, and how it was actually my favourite MCU movie, until Infinity War inevitably took that spot.

Thor was the first character in the franchise to introduce outerspace, and the cosmic side of the cinematic universe. With Iron-Man, Hulk and Cap being restricted to Earth, Thor was key to broadening what types of stories they could tell, what sort of threats and stakes could arise etc. The first Thor movie was certainly a bold move at the time, hoping that audiences would embrace the fantastical themes that he and Asgard brought to the table. Bar Thanos, Thor and Loki are the reason sh*t's going down in the first Avengers movie, so you have them to thank for that.

Flash forward to Dark World however, at this point we've seen Asgard already, so the novelty has worn off slightly. As much as the movie expands our view of Thor's home, we still feel very restricted, as though we're only seeing through a keyhole, when we actually wanna bust the door down and see what an outerspace adventure could really offer, hence why people gravitate towards Guardians of the Galaxy so heavily, because it let loose and didn't feel like it was shying away from the sci-fi elements that made the property what it was.

So with Dark World leaving a bad taste in our mouths (even though I think it's underratedly funny, but perhaps another time), and Thor not quite standing out in Age of Ultron, we're left thinking, do we really even want another Thor movie at this point? Something had to change. The studios' take on Thor was good in ways, but wasn't gripping people as much as say Iron-Man and Cap. If Captain America could have an amazing sequel, why couldn't Thor? With the damage already done via Dark World however, Ragnarok had to be Marvel's shot at redemption and reinvigoration, and I personally think it was.

There's no arguing Ragnarok was a bold step to take Thor, though not everyone agrees it was for the better. Could the Thor we were used to still work given the correct writing and direction? Who knows, but with already 'failing' once with Dark World, it was surely less of a risk to go for something completely unexpected. We go from majestic golds and elegant architecture, to crazy, vibrant, jagged imperfections that you'd expect to see in a retro sci-fi movie. The Thor we knew and expected has lightened up a little, during his few years between Age of Ultron and now, scouring the universe for information on the Infinity Stones. No pun intended, but perhaps his absent couple of years provided some much needed soul searching. So to those that wonder why Thor is suddenly so funny and witty, he's been out and about off-screen for quite a while loosening up! That's how I like to see it at least.

In the first 10 minutes, we're given more cosmic calamity than any of the other Thor movie has provided in their joint runtimes. He's in the fiery realm of Muspelheim, kicking the crap out of hellish minions and their giant demonic flame lord, Surtur, whilst the Immigrant Song plays. Then moments later, there's a damn dragon beast that's on fire that chases him, as the coolest little synth melody twinkles in the background. That cool little action scene not only gave Mjölnir the ultimate send off, but I remember thinking just from that point, "This is what Thor movies are meant to be like! This is already my favourite MCU movie!"

I think the comedy is people's biggest issue with the film. Admittedly, the style of humour was a little jarring at first, but I soon let go of doubts and embraced what the movie was trying to do. Notice how I said 'style' of humour, and not just 'humour' as a whole, because a lot of people forget just how comedic the first two Thor movies actually are. I feel like humour allows a sort of alleviation to what could potentially be something rather odd on screen. That way, if the movie embraces it's outlandish source materials, the comedy allows us to laugh with it, rather than at it. I think people are okay with the inclusion of comedic elements - I think they just weren't expecting the amplification that it had. So as I said, you can either let that ruin the film, or you can embrace/accept it, because there is just as much heart in this film as there is humour.

I know there's people that think Hela was wasted. Having watched these movies countless times, I rarely see any issues with villains anymore. The fabled 'villain problem' springs to mind, where everyone says that they were just there as a device to make the hero save the day. But what's actually wrong with that technically speaking? And how is that any different to other movies outside of the superhero realm? I see most of these villains as stepping stones for the heroes. These movies belong to the heroes, so the way I see it, the villains are there to develop and shape the good guy into whatever the finished product may be by the time the credits roll, just like all the other characters do in the movie. To prove this point, everyone loves Thanos as a villain, but that's because Infinity War was his movie, given the amount of time spent with him. I think the only exception is Loki, but his character is so well-received because he sits within the grey area of good and bad. We've seen both sides of him now.

Yes, I understand that villains are a little lack luster in most of these movies, but I liked what Hela brought to the franchise. We get the shock of discovering Thor has an older sister, she manages to take over Asgard, she demolishes everything in sight, she was the reason Thor is reinvigorated via his new right eye and weapon, she forced Thor's hand, making him enact Ragnarok (even though there's no stopping Ragnarok but it was a cool twist) and destroy Asgard, she was the first main female villain at long last, and she had a giant wolf. Some films spend more time with the villain, and some sacrifice it to focus more on the hero. There's never a straight 50:50 between good and evil in their storytelling, and I imagine it's always a hard call to make when balancing and ensuring that not only do the audience care for the hero, but also everything and everyone around them. Regardless the solo hero is always the focal point. Unless you're watching Breaking Bad or American Psycho or... *Lists shows and movies told from the bad guy's perspective*

I think the underlining disapproval stems from the fresh direction that it took. His hammer goes bye-byes, his warrior friends die just like that, Thor no longer looks or acts like the Thor we're used to, and Jane moved on. People will either be okay with those things, or it'll be too much to accept. Was the film too bold? Perhaps, but Thor can conduct lightning through his body now and that fight scene on the Bifrost bridge was badass.

Jokes aside, I suppose it's up to the individual audience member to decide whether or not the change is too much. A part of me wishes that the Thor we currently have was the Thor from the get go - things would've been different, but I love the character no matter what weapon or haircut you give him. Ragnarok gave the God of Thunder the opportunity to prove why he's a badass and not just a guy that relies on a hammer. They turned the dial up on his power level, and then again in Infinity War, which is good because I feel like prior to Ragnarok, Thor was kinda just there, y'know?

Everyone has their own favourite and least favourite movie, and no one should force you to alter your personal interests and disinterests, but if I were to wrap up what I thought of the film, Thor: Ragnarok to me is a fun, crazy joyride from start to finish, that provided a lot of heart as well as light-heartedness. It introduced some new, diverse characters whilst also giving the Hulk a much-needed story arc. A bold game-changer for the character and the lore he contributes to the MCU. It's the type of change I can appreciate and most definitely get behind!

What do you guys think? Have I swayed your opinions, or do you hate the movie more now! Let me know. Thanks for reading! Shall I do more of these? Let me know that too. I'm off to buy snacks and watch Ragnarok now, no joke!

[kaija-rayne-author]

I need to add some further thoughts to this.

Unfortunately, negative chatter will likely affect whether they release the game at all. (Blows my mind, it's finished, or close to, why wouldn't they release it? Rhetorical question.)

Which sucks for people who do want it. I've read that Andromeda DLCs were canceled because of that. I won't be boycotting. I'm unhappy with bioware, but there's much more to consider.

For me, I do want Dreadwolf. I desperately want to see what happens with Solas. I didn't want to boycott, even if it's my immediate reaction. I just love Dragon Age too much.

So, I've been thinking and reading what those laid off have said. It's them that are most affected, after all. It's not about bioware as much as it's about the people who no longer work there who poured years of time, love, and passion into Dreadwolf. Into the Dragon Age world itself.

I don't like bioware, but at the same time, I refuse to shat on the creatives who loved and made Dreadwolf. I know, personally, how much of yourself you pour into a creative work. I'd be heartbroken if people boycotted something I'd worked on and truly loved. Even if I were no longer working at the company. If the game never releases, I believe the devs can't even talk about it due to NDAs. Can you imagine putting years of your life and creativity into something only to have people boycott it? And then you can't talk about how much you love it? And using your status at the company as an excuse to shat on something you loved?

Kirby has said she hopes people love it as much as she does. She's one of the most affected and she's still hoping people play and love it.

And to be calmly realistic, Bioware isn't the main source of the issue. EA demanded a layoff of 800 people across all their holdings. Corporate greed. I doubt bioware would've made such awful choices without that pressure.

So even though my kneejerk reaction is to boycott, I'll buy it and play it for the creatives who poured everything into it.

Is it right? Hell no. There's no ethical consumption in a late stage capitalist nightmare world. But I'm also not going to punish the people who loved it enough to make it. Especially when they say they don't want that.

Y'all do you, but I wanted to share my more measured thoughts on the matter.

It's so sad. Bioware has been a staple, almost, of RPGs for a long time.

But them laying off so many people (it's 125ish over the past handful of months) really doesn't increase confidence in the company.

Even though DA:DW is in Alpha, it's going to affect how many people buy the game. Because they'll think that many layoffs will affect the quality of the game. Average people have little idea about how games are made. Alpha means it's in primary testing, meaning the game is mostly finished.

Could they have shot themselves in the foot better if they'd tried?

Fans are pissed and swearing they're done with Bioware.

A lot of fans.

And I have a Kassandra like feeling that DA:DW is Bioware's last chance as a company.

So, their behavior toward employees = loss of consumer confidence = fewer people buy Dreadwolf = Bioware sinks and we don't get any more Dragon Age after DA:DW.

Don't execs have business degrees and such?

If so, why is my ridiculous ass better at cause/effect for economics and business than they are? I've never even taken a business class.

What exactly do the execs do to earn those obscene paychecks?

Anyway, I really think it comes down to this; if we want more Dragon Age past Dreadwolf, we'll have to ignore Bioware's behavior and buy the game regardless.

And... I don't know how many people will do that. I don't even want to do that. I've boycotted companies for far less.

[kaija-rayne-author]

Unfortunately, chatter like this will likely affect whether they release the game at all. Which sucks for people who do want it. I've read that Andromeda DLCs were canceled because of that. I won't be boycotting. I'm unhappy with bioware, but there's much more to consider.

For me, I've been thinking and reading what those laid off have said. It's them that are most affected, after all. It's not about bioware as much as it's about the people who no longer work there who poured years of time, love, and passion into Dreadwolf. Into the Dragon Age world itself.

And to be calmly realistic, Bioware isn't the main source of the issue. EA demanded a layoff of 800 people across all their holdings. Corporate greed. I doubt bioware would've made such awful choices without that pressure.

Kirby has said she hopes people love it as much as she does. She's one of the most affected and she's still hoping people play and love it.

I don't like bioware, but at the same time, I refuse to shat on the creatives who loved and made Dreadwolf. I know, personally, how much of yourself you pour into a creative work. I'd be heartbroken if people boycotted something I'd worked on and truly loved. Even if I were no longer working at the company.

Is it right? Hell no. But I'm also not going to punish the people who loved it enough to make it.

So even though my kneejerk reaction is to boycott, I'll buy it and play it for the creatives who poured everything into it.

You do you, but I wanted to share my thoughts on the matter, since I was the OP on that one.

It's so sad. Bioware has been a staple, almost, of RPGs for a long time.

But them laying off so many people (it's 125ish over the past handful of months) really doesn't increase confidence in the company.

Even though DA:DW is in Alpha, it's going to affect how many people buy the game. Because they'll think that many layoffs will affect the quality of the game. Average people have little idea about how games are made. Alpha means it's in primary testing, meaning the game is mostly finished.

Could they have shot themselves in the foot better if they'd tried?

Fans are pissed and swearing they're done with Bioware.

A lot of fans.

And I have a Kassandra like feeling that DA:DW is Bioware's last chance as a company.

So, their behavior toward employees = loss of consumer confidence = fewer people buy Dreadwolf = Bioware sinks and we don't get any more Dragon Age after DA:DW.

Don't execs have business degrees and such?

If so, why is my ridiculous ass better at cause/effect for economics and business than they are? I've never even taken a business class.

What exactly do the execs do to earn those obscene paychecks?

Anyway, I really think it comes down to this; if we want more Dragon Age past Dreadwolf, we'll have to ignore Bioware's behavior and buy the game regardless.

And... I don't know how many people will do that. I don't even want to do that. I've boycotted companies for far less.