#and thats also the mindset richard has

[weirdcat1213]

what i love about requiem of the rose king is how it makes the reader doubt about every character when it comes to richard. you are able to feel richard's hesitation with everyone. like him, you are not sure whos gonna accept him and who wont. even anne, whom we all love cuz shes adorable and nice and doing her damn best to have some agency in medieval times, is not free from the "they may be an asshole to richard list." the reader can trust characters with a lot of things except richard's body. and thats exactly what richard feels. its always a 50/50 and richard knows this.

[sporesgalaxy]

since i dont want an entire "zim age debate" on your blog im keeping this off anon so you can answer this privately if you want

im ALSO not trying to "convince you" to change your interpretation of zim because thats stupid and completely defeats my entire point that its up in the air. thatd also be pretty mean of me!

but my main point is that i think different writers on the show have different ideas for how they see him, considering jhonen is not the sole opinion-haver there and his favorite thing to do is make shit up. like richard and andy((zim and dibs voice actors, respectively)) im pretty sure dont think hes an old man otherwise the puppet kiss incident or the "i love you zim" wouldnt have happened. ((not that i want this to be About shipping but thats a big example)) and then theres advertisements calling zim an "alien kid" or jhonen himself calling zim a child in the old pilot bible

i understand what you mean with tak the hideous new girl however thats also the episode where he tries to Date tak under the impression that shes a human child and id rather not see my funny greenboy as a predator. i just always thought that the 60 years joke was "haha isnt it funny that were using ridiculously long periods of time and theyre still children"

not to mention mopiness of doom where it shows that zim and dib are grossly codependent enemies and i just dont really want to imagine a 60+ year old man and a child depending on eachother like that,,,,,

theres more "evidence" but i think this ask has gone on long enough

ALL OF THAT BEING SAID!!!!! theres no definitive proof either way and i find that unless youre shipping or really want to dig into the child soldier angle((which i personally find interesting)) it doesnt really matter. again this isnt supposed to be a persuasive essay just like,, idek. i like discussing this show and the characters in it! theres story benefits to either interpretation of zim and i like your art either way

uhh,, cheers and also sorry i think!!

eh. I had to write so much to respond to all this, it seems wasteful not to post.

TL; DR

There is no way for me to 100% guarantee that zadr will be read the same way by everyone, because it won't be, as is the nature of all media. That is exactly why I don't think that everyone who interprets Zim as a child necessarily has ill or manipulative intentions.

But I can provide arguments like the following for why I think zadr and kids who ship it would be a likely target for groomers, and therefore why I feel it is a good idea to discourage this ship.

As I mentioned in the previous ask, I think that said discouragement should be approached with the mindset that not everyone involved is malicious or arguing in bad faith. It is necessary to determine how best to act depending on the situation.

Personally, I'm going to continue pointing out the problems I see with the ship as much as I can in hopes of changing peoples' minds, whenever I have the time and energy to do so.

re: the VAs: This does not refute my point about Zim being easily read as an adult bc of the 50 years comment/ many other contextual implications made by the show. If anything the vagueness about Zim's age because of his alien society could make this a more useful grooming tool. I feel the same way about Bill Cipher x Dipper. Bill has just as much childish adult coding and just as little certainty about his age within the context of his alien species.

•••

re: the pilot bible: the show changes lots of things from the pilot bible so this is no more reliable than any other "word of god" (input from creators of the show rather than material within the show) from Jhonen.

That said, I think the VAs were joking around and did not put much thought into it. Joking around by making characters act the opposite of normal (hating each other -> liking each other) is common.

That said, I think the unprovable nature of the intentions behind the VAs comments is a good argument for excluding word of god from the Zim age conversation entirely. I think that zadr is still Not Good and should be Discouraged even if you only look at the show with no additional outside input, for all the reasons I explained in the first ask and have added here.

re: advertisements calling Zim an alien kid: a bunch of characters in the show call him a kid because they are genuinely convinced he is one, so it doesnt surprise me that advertisement/bumper writers who arent really paying attention would call him that.

re: trying to date Tak: in that episode it is made VERY clear that Zim does not understand romance at all, and does not care to beyond what's necessary to blend in. He clearly does not genuinely want to date her and only wants to use it to seem more socially normal. The Keef episode established a precedent for how Zim treats human relationships he's unfamiliar with, and it's by doing the bare minimum and then ditching them immediately. It's not GOOD behavior by any stretch, but he isn't acting with genuine predatory intentions.

re: 60 years joke: yeah sure that is a joke the show might make. But the additional cultural context we have for Zim's life (that he has been a soldier for a long time + that he trained to become a soldier for a long time, as we see in The Trial) gives Tak being a janitor for 50 years more potential to be taken literally.

re: mopiness of doom: yeah honestly I just personally don't like that episode script. But also, as codependant as they are and as weird as that is, nothing about it is inherently romantic. My frenemies argument from the end of the original post still stands, as do all of my arguments about the ship being potentially useful for grooming because of the lack of clarity.

re: your conclusion: The fact that Irkens HAVE child soldiers IS interesting, yes, and we see in The Trial that Zim has been trained to be a soldier basically since birth, which is also interesting to consider for Zim's character.

However, I explained in the previous ask how I think reading Zim as a child during the current events of the show weakens some of the show's core themes about incompetent, unquestioning adults. I think the whole show just makes more sense if it is centered around a socially shunned child and socially shunned adult fighting against each other. The fact that Zim is old and still a loser further highlights how futile both his and Dib's aspirations to greatness are within their respective societies-- and they are CLEARLY meant to be seen as futile.

I cannot think of a theme or character arc that would be served by Zim's age being unclear, so I do not think it comes across as intentional, even if you rule out word of god. But still, even if nothing I've read into here was intentional, what matters is that it is lends itself to being interpreted as an adult/child ship, or being interpreted as an age gap that "doesnt count" for superficial reasons. And NO I am not claiming that there is any way to conclusively determine that a ship with an unclear age gap has crossed the line into potentially harmful territory. It HAS to be considered on a case-by-case basis. And you've made it clear that there are muddling factors to sift through for this one in particular!

But I feel very strongly that these muddling factors are more circumstantial than, less intuitive than, and ultimately outweighed by, the parts of the text which contextually place Zim as an adult, and will continue providing examples supporting this conclusionc whenever I am able to.

[s0lar-ch3ri]

ive only been reblogging semi-normally. lets change that, monster control service rambles GO

chase is entirely innocent to me cause his actions are a product of his environment (will explain below, spoilers and just. mcs generally)

logically chase couldnt be older then 10 years old, since he came out of his mother when she died (10 years ago). even if we are to be entertaining the idea he is this omnious '10' he insists, he still looks and even acts similar to a 10 year old boy. for a regular boy, this is around when puberty starts and where emotions get very fucky, and while chase is no human and probably has different anatomy or psychological things, if he had the similar mindset of a 10 year old, it's very likely the impressionability is still there.

we also have to take into account: richard is the only adult figure in chases life. yes, chase interacts with other adults and shit, but the only one who'd know his secret is richard, which can be used to his advantage. richard is also chases biggest human example. hes around him a lot and as such the main influence in his appearance, behavior, disguises, etc. if anybody else were to learn chase werent human, the company could have chase been captured or worse, so its not ideal to tell others.

we all know how sexual richard is. i mean, hes the whole reason ep 2 has to come with a warning. HE FUCKED A LADY TO DEATH. now one may argue chase should be held accountable for this needed warning too, but consider: hes a product of the environment hes lived in. a monster hunter while a monster? no monster would choose that, not unless you were taught to. i doubt chase has actually been to multiple public places due to his difficulty with disguises (ie: doctors, schools, etc), so whod be teaching him what he knows? richard.

dont even try to tell me that richards a good dad even! a canon thing he tells chase is to "bottle up his emotions"! he hid what happened to his mother for several years! hes very loose when it comes to his parenting! im such a richard hater because he sucks as a parent and as a person man.

however, even with all that, chase looks up to his dad, and it is his dad. hed believe what his dad says is right. hed probably even take after behaviors of his dad, because its the only influence in his life that has seemed positive.

can chase be held accountable for his horrid sexual acts if hes been told thats right? can you hold the one who doesnt know right in the wrong?

chase is practically 10 years old. richard is the one whod know better. chase just listens to all about humans hes known. richard just gives a new meaning to monsters.

despite appearances, i truly believe the monster is richard and the human among them is chase.

[simptasia]

In a Sawyer/Juliet/Miles threesome, what are the dynamics?

oooh, fun! thank you!

some time into the dharma years, not sure how long, i wanna say a year? but sawyer and juliet are a couple by this point, but also both of them really like miles. i think sawyer falls in love with miles also. and with juliet, there's a Strong Fondness, she really likes miles. cuz despite how hard miles tries, he's actually pretty likable somehow

sawyer and jules have a talk, with jules having to do some prodding cuz sawyer has issues with being attracted to men. but they eventually come to the conclusion that, hey, miles is fuckable, let's add him in sometimes for funsies

and miles, naturally, is down for this, as he finds sawyer and juliet hot too. so the dynamic is, miles is added as a third and miles is like "okay they're a couple but thats not my thing, this is just a casual sex between friends thing and that's it" but miles eventually gets this sad feeling in his tummy when he sees sawyer and jules being lovey together. and he doesn't understand why he's feeling this sense of longing. basically he's in love with them too but he doesn't know what to do with those emotions so he lives in repression and denial

jules is having the healthiest mindset about this but she doesn't see that miles is feeling glum. and sawyer is feeling weird inside about this too but he's ignoring it too. i imagine sawyer has had this mindset of, women = sex and sometimes romance, men = sex. so thats messing with him

im making it all sound like it's Big Sad, no it's a couple having great sex with their friend. and theres some issues in there too

so that goes for about 2 years

then Plot happens and juliet dies. and tho sawyer and miles love each other, they saw juliet as the glue that put them together. and they miss her, of course. so miles, outta respect, never brings up the possibility of him and sawyer doing Stuff again (espech cuz i imagine post-finale, he's going thru his own emotional stuff with richard)

tho the more i talk about it right now, the more sad it feels and my feelings for sawyer/miles are getting stronger. i have miles and richard together post-finale. but clearly i've developed a dangling emotional thread here. hm. hmmm. some rekindling of feelings may be possible. lookit that, my headcanons are changing as we speak

anyways overall the dynamic was, miles would visit their house sometimes, they'd hang out, eat cupcakes, and sometimes bang. and sometimes when miles would be putting his jumpsuit back on, and seeing sawyer and jules cuddling, he'd feel a little empty. and that's not the first time a couple has made him feel that way

these three badly needed to communicate about their feelings more, some regrets were had, but overall it was a nice few years

as for sexual dynamics? juliet has a strong desire for control and that lends itself well to sawyer, the 3rd subbiest man in LOST, and miles, who altho he's a natural switch (& vers!), just naturally tends to end up in the role of people dominating him. i don't think they would have given miles the pain he's into but they certainly had a good time

anyways. thank you for your time!

[beachesgetpeaches]

ok Im not about to talk to people in tiktok comments but I need to rant so... gilmore girls rant below cut and if you want to read at your own peril

I think a lot of people would actually benefit from adopting this mindset in life lol. Like go out, believe you're gods gift to other people, it does wonders for you. Also it seems that way because we are watching them as main characters of this show and all of the relationships in the show centre around the two of them like idk I don't find this to be their fault.

//

People love to talk about how Lorelai "took" money from her parents but forget that she intended to return it (did she in the end, ugh I cant remember). They also forget that up until Rory's Chilton education Lorelai was putting her through school and everything all by herself. Working at the inn, hand sewing dresses for her... I mean I know we don't see much of that part but it is heavily implied right? Which also likely contributes to Rory's dissonance about her own status because on one hand she knows what this life is like, she knows of life with not much luxury, but she has also been exposed to a life where she is of some status. Where her last name holds value. And it reflects in that article and her discussion/fight with Logan about it... Anyway.. idk

//

I think the person above starts out well enough but we never get to this conclusion that I have which is... Emily and Richards disappointment and audience disappointment is on them/us for placing certain high expectations on these two women (Lorelai/Rory). And then when they fail, instead of seeing them as human we decide they need to be idk humbled or punished for disappointing us. I think it's quite ironic

//

Dumb opinion. Mitchum did not give her (a very young aspiring journalist) an ounce of good feedback. You don't have it (based on vibes) is not feedback to a young person who has just started studying. It was in no way constructive. It was harsh and Rorys reaction is completely understandable because he doesnt offer her any pointers and direction. He stomps all over her dreams and hopes and is like "based on vibes bro". If he had sat her down and told her that it would be better for her to speak up, do this and that, blah blah... at like any point of the internship, I would be able ti say ya thats an ok feedback why did she go crazy over it. But he didnt do that. So he sucks. Not to mention later on he presenta her as if he is the one who has enabled her to become editor and not brought her down. He never recognises to her face that his pov/vibes were wrong. So like ya Mitchum sucks and is not a good mentor.

[yellowbluemoonshine]

Akito & Richard (III) Parallels;

Akito from Fruits Basket and Richard (III) from Baraou No Souretsu are really similar characters.

They both have same type of character. Closed to the strangers, childish, pridefull, mascluine, noble, poetic, tragic characters.

They do have similar apperances. Short black/purple with white akın and beautifull body. And they both hot as both girl and boy, lol, :))))).

They desire same things. From outside, its look shallow things such as being god or being king but their Real desire is being loved and loving someone. They just dont want to be lonely. They both become someone important cause of their father's legacy. They live for it.

Akito wants to be special cause thats what his father desired, Richard wants to be king cause father said his name is the name of the king. Thats also how they define theirselves, depend on how their father and other people defines them.

Their father told them to fairy tale story. Akito's father said the bond between zodiac and god and Richard's father said there is a heaven in that crown. Both Akito and Richard as children believed in them and thats why they desired that fairy tale story to be real only to be disappointed in the end.

They both have horrible mothers who constantly try to destroy them. Their mother hates them cause they simply exist. Because of their hatred of mothers, both Akito and Richard became really insecure when it comes to relationship.

They both live in toxic environment where they have to protect their position as successor of family. Akito is family head, Richard is prince. They have adult figure whose are twisted religious. For Akito, its sohma maid and for Richard, its his mother.

They close their hearths and putting distance between them and others. Akito fears of abandonment and Richard fears of rejection. They both believe that noone will actually love them for who they are. Which lead them to make mistakes in future. They both nneed to learn self love, need to learning to love theirselves so they should allow other people to love them too.

They both also very deep, realistic and well written characters that you need and can use real pyshlogical explanations to explain them. They migt act grumpy but they also both very vulnerable (especially emotionally) characters who needs love.

Both characters father died and they experience many traumatic events their whole life.

They both also have very unhealthy relationship with their father. They idolise their father and they see father as their partner. Akito has messed up love triangle type of relationship with her parents. This is why she sees her father as partner. And Richard also see his father as partner which is why we see a panel where Richard Kiss his father.

Another reason why they have this confusion and messed up mindset is cause of their gender issues. Akito is a girl who was forced to raise as boy. Richard is intersex, both girl and boy at the same time who was forced to raise as just "boy". Which lead them to reject their "woman identify". Another reason why is their father decided/accepted that they raise as boy so they embrace their "male" identify as possible as they can. And they both similar to Mulan. They both see other women as untrustfull cause of how their mother's treated them. They also see being woman as inferior cause in their sitution, being man gives them more advantage in the society they live in. This is why they act masculine as possible. How society expect men to act.

They both confuse romantic relationship with father figure type relationships. This is why they choose a guys they saw as father figure. They also offer their body, having unhealthy and self harming sexual relationship with them cause thats the only way to be feel a little acceptable for others. They hate and feel very uncomfortable with their body and they self harming with it.

They both also depentive characters who has caretaker and need someone who will take care of them.

They both unexpectedly love animals. Akito loves birds cause she wants to be free like birds, not trapped and Richard loves boars cause he probably view him as similar, "ugly violent". They both view theirselves that way. They also both cat type of characters who desperately craves affection, acceptance and love from other people.

Akito has kinda has harem type of relationship with zodiac but she is unable to have real human interactions cause of her weird supernatural power while Richard kinda has harem and he is able to have real human interactions with them and story treats them different cause of their differen position in their story. Though they are both amazing anyway.

They both wear dark or white clothes most of the time. They hide their weakness.

Many other people saw them as demon, monster. Even though, they are not. They are just broken kids who lost their ways. Both Akito and Richard dehumanize theirselves. Akito is groomed to be god, Richard is called as demon. They are tools for adults to use/hurts them. This dehumanization lead them to act violent cause thats the role everyone expected them to be. They are also very self destructive/neglective.

But in reality, they both actually very kind pure kids who deserves to be happy.

Akito is the antagonist of her story and foil of main character, she is in shoujo positive story, Richard is protagonist of his story, he is in shoujo dark story, its also mix with real history or something like that.

Akito's story is about her learning to let go, finding an identify outside of her father's legacy, meeting with new people while Richard's story about him learning to letting people in his life, finding an identify of outside of his father's legacy, realizing people who loves him. Anyway they both deserves a definitely better ending, they both deserves to be happy.

Akito should get put of that hell clan, get rid of toxic relationships, fnding her Real love and life, Richard should just go and be happy together with Catesby and everyone he cares about.

They are extremely similar characters, they have similar story, just their position in story is different and theme of their story is different but characters are really alike.

Anyway they both deserves to be happy, peacefull and live happiely ever after.

(For now, thats it, if i didnt forget anything :)))).

[angelicmichael]

What if Xavier had a kid he didn't know about and he meets them for the first time after he's already a ghost? Maybe there's a kindergarten group that takes a trip to the camp, and he just has this spirit intuition as soon as he sees them and KNOWS it's his child. Do you think you could expand on this idea? I'd love to see what you come up with!

A/N: This was so fun, thank you for this idea dear anon!! I'm sorry it's late but hopefully u like it 😶. Also, I apologize this is so dark and heavy- I didnt intend for it.. it just, kinda happened lmfao. I turned this into a 'x reader' and it starts with Xaviers POV and ends with readers perspective!! First few paragraphs are pretty dark and then the rest is weird.. angst fluff LOL.Hope yall enjoy 💖💖💖

Warnings: First few paragraphs discuss Xavier's thots about dying SO, it highkey gets dark yall I'm so sorry, mentions of anger?? issues, mentions of murder, stops getting dark roughly around paragraph 6 if u wanna skip all that, MAJOR ANGST, reuniting, very brief Xantana reference 😈, mention of kids, bit of fluff.. think that's it :)

In Xaviers eyes; the worst part of being killed in a desolate camp and having to reside there for the rest of eternity; wasnt the fact that he would have to handle Richard Rameriez and tolerate his peers for eons to come. Sure, both of those things required an adjustment period but.. the realization that his life with you was abruptly cut short, was what truly broke him.

It took him being stripped from everything he once knew to truly appreciate how heavenly life once was before Camp Redwood. He had a steady job, good friends, and a relationship with a actual living, breathing person.. Not to shade Montana or anything, of course. However he had taken all of those things for fucking granted; moving to Camp Redwood definetly had made him become humble- at the very least. He was now nothing but a mere shell of the person he once was; nothing to bring him out of this absolute living nightmare he found himself in.. At first this mindset nearly consumed him, it drove him to kill multiple times.

There was no point in trying to conceal the anger he felt, no way of trying to channel it out into a more socially appropriate way and at this point.. there really was no point in trying to do so. Out here in the forest, espically after he was killed, life outside of the forest soon seemed as if it was some type of myth or fairytale- something not real or attainable. Time in the redwood forest felt different- days quickly bled and melted into weeks, and then months.. trying to guess the date was something Xavier gave up on doing after about the first week.

As much as he tried to deny it, being dead and becoming trapped here had completly made him lose his grip on reality and his previous life. Soon enough, the thought that life even fully existed outside of the camp and that there was actual fucking laws against killing (something which was now a leisurely hobby) had completly slipped his mind momentarily in the beginning as well. Out here in the forest, nothing felt real execpt for his anger that he held onto so tightly.

It was really the only thing he had left; atleast for a while.

The pain of losing his partner, (y/n), still remained but letting that grief not consume him was easily the hardest battle he had fought in his life. Xavier realized he still had his friends - and if he really was going to live for eternity, he sure wasnt going to spend it angry.

After so many years of being 'cursed' to spend forever in this forest, keeping track of the time was something Xavier rarely bothered with, but - it was obvious by the suns posistion, and even the slight mist that made the grass wet that it was just starting to cut into morning. Xavier walked through the forest alone, nowhere in particular to go or to necessarily do, only a sudden need to go and be alone. Almost a beckoning, for him to go and be somewhere else. To witness something.

His days were more often than not purely mundane; he had absolutely no excuse to not listen to this odd and sudden attraction he felt toward a very particular spot in the camp.. so, that's what brought him to where he stood now. Close to the road that brought visitors (a nice word for victims) into Camp Redwood, right next to the mess hall which was rarely used close by.

Xavier felt wildly uncomfortable standing so close to the place which previously held so much trauma - and honestly still did.. The place where Chef Bertie died. Xavier paused, about to just say 'fuck it' and just give up and go back to where his friends resided (or atleast Montana) when.. he heard it.

His sign, the thing that seemingly enticed him in the first place.

It first sounded like the old, familar sounds of tires coming across a gravel road - Xaviers mind immeadietly jumped to perhaps this could be new people.. new vistors.. new victims.

His blood ran cold when he heard something else; an eerie ringing of chains hitting against the ground. Something that was mostly a associated with buses.. and hauntingly familar. He had little to no time to think or even act on his suspicion when he noticed that a yellow school bus full, and nearly combusting with children was pulling into the camp.

Xavier wasnt exactly certain the bounds that ghosts had when it came to certain bodily functions like vomiting, but hes sure that under normal circumstances he would certainly be sick by now. Nevertheless he could feel his body tense up and the other natural symptoms associated with anxiety also kicked in. Urging him to clumsily get out of vision; he stumbled behind a few trees that poorly blocked him from sight. He continued to watch in complete and utter horror as the bus came to a stop, and it didnt take long for kids to start pouring out of the bus. Xavier felt his heart drop and his blood run cold every time a kid exited the bus and stepped on the dirt soil of Camp Redwood.

Xavier whipped his head around; scanning the surrounding area to make sure no other ghosts were here to bear witness to this.. Xavier was nearly always down to commit murder, it was really the only thing that kept him from fully going insane from pure fucking boredom but - kids? There was no fucking way he would let anyone touch them.

While he thoroughly scanned the area, he noticed a few adults leave the bus out of his periphery vision. He thought nothing of it, chaperones were to be expected on elementary field trips but.. the strange beckoning feeling he felt ealier visited him again, urging him to turn his head fully and look at one of the chaperones more closely. Instantaneously, he then automatically realized why he felt so compelled to come to this spot.. Why he was meant to be here at this exact moment.. It was you.

At first he thought he was merely hallucinating; you definetly looked significantly different from the last time he had saw you but.. he knew it was you, his partner that he had before his life completly went to shit (minus the catastrophe that occured with Blake, of course). He knew instantly, it was your eyes, your stature and just.. your overall warm and familiar aura that gave your identity away. He couldnt believe that the person he had so fucking desperately wanted to see more than anyone or anything was only a few feet away - and now, that you were finally here... All he wanted for you to do was to leave.

As soon as he saw you he felt a sudden tightness posses his chest and throat which accompanied the formation of tears burning his eyes; hastily blurring his vision. He had to physically restrain himself from sobbing outloud; trying his best to just swallow down his tears. His whole body felt as if it was on fire with anxiety, but he chose to continue to stand still behind a few dainty trees - trying to pull himself together so he could actually have the chance to think critically and choose what the ever living fuck he was going to do next.

While he waited for his blurry vision to clear, he chose to focus on the semi distant figure that he knew was you. He took in the little details; like how the sun highlighted the colors in your hair and your simple but charming outfit. It took him several moments to think of why you would even be here in the first place, with a school bus- and thats when another dreadful realization hit him.

Only parents were mainly chaperones when it came to elementary field trips.. meaning-

No other thought crossed Xaviers mind as his eyes flicked down inhumanely fast to the child where (y/n) stood next too.. and immeadietly he knew.

The features the child shared of both you and Xavier were partially a giveaway, but most importantly.. it was the feeling he had that confirmed his belief. The initial anxiety he felt of the kids arriving still remained but was significantly muted and mostly replaced with a overwhelming sense of pure love. The feeling spread to every fiber of his being, and so did a odd urge to protect this small being which he knew was his.

Not ever in his entire life had he felt this way about someone (execpt for perhaps, you). He felt himself taking a few steps forward, at first completly involuntary but he knew he had to talk to you. Just the idea of reuniting tasted so fucking good but, he knew he couldnt get too greedy if he was going to talk to you. He knew confronting you had to be solely done in order to save you and his child, he couldnt get carried away. He wouldnt.

He tried his best to appear casual as he submerged from behind the trees, his hands held behind his back - the only way he could get them to stop shaking. He tried to relax his shoulders and appear confident as he strided up to you; your back turned toward him. He continued until he was directly behind you, he wanted to tap your shoulder but - touching you seemed out of the question. That would confirm everything, it would make it seem actually real and not like this just some torturous dream.

"(Y/n)"? He spoke.

Xaviers breath hitched as he watched you whip around to face him. He studied your features as you went from looking utterly confused to surprised beyond belief.

"Xavier, what-"

"We need to talk".

Xavier quickly grabbed your hand, leading you away from herd of kids and the few sparse chaperones that were amongst them. A few of them gave you two a few odd looks but neither you or Xavier particularly cared, after all this was the first time in years you two had seen eachother. You hastily followed his lead, feeling slightly embarrassed that it was obvious how nervous and simply caught off guard you currently were. Your palms (one of which was still holding onto Xaviers hand) were starting to moisten with sweat. These feelings only amplified once Xavier turned around to face you. The intensity that was in his eyes put you on edge - never in your time of dating or knowing him did he ever look so serious with you.

"What are you doing here"? Xavier spoke, his voice was still in a higher pitch, slightly breaking.

"What"?

After years of not being able to see you, in fact; years of you not even knowing where he went - this was how he chose to greet you?? Automatically your blood ran cold with the sudden realization that something was wrong. Seriously wrong.. but the feeling didnt just apply to your ex boyfriend. It was the entire camp.

"Its not safe here, you need to take the kids and leave". Xaviers voice more visibly shook this time as he spoke; as if his words physically pained him.

Your heart skipped a beat, the sudden pain and anguish starting to fully settle in. You couldnt believe it; after years of not seeing you - this was all he had to say? Was he fucking joking?

"What? A-are you kidding? Xavier, I havent seen you in years- I didnt even know you would be here-"

"I'm sorry (y/n). I'm so sorry but you have no idea what this place is like. You just need to go, and the kids. And promise me you wont come back".

It was torturous to watch tears gather in Xaviers eyes, and watch as they streaked down his cheeks. The sadness you previously felt was now washed away with red, hot rage. The feeling spread throughout your body like a wildfire that he was seemingly rejecting you.. but you knew now this wasnt some pathetic excuse. Something was seriously wrong here; and now it was starting to become too obvious to ignore.

Xavier looked hauntingly the exact same from the last time you saw him. He forever, looked as if he was still stuck in the same moment of time - like in the summer of 1984, which was when you last saw him.

You didnt realize you were still holding onto one of his hands until you reflexively tried to move it to brush away his tears that were still staining his cheeks; but awkwardly.. you chose to do so with your other hand. Squeezing the one hand you were still holding onto a bit tighter.

He winced as you touched him, and as much you tried your damn best to hold it together - you could feel tears starting to burn your eyes as well.

"I cant promise I wont ever come back, Xavier. I need to see you again, and what about-" you said softly, about to reference the child you two shared together.

"No, you'll see me again (y/n). I promise.. okay"?

He brought your hand up to his mouth to kiss your knuckles; the tears you trying so desperately to hold in were now sliding down your cheeks. Your breathing was now horribly choppy. You were on the brink of full on sobbing but you held yourself back - it was nearly time for you to go.

The fact you would have to go back to go the others and make up some bullshit excuse to leave, put a bitter taste in your mouth.. but your sure Xavier had a valid reason for ushering you to leave. Even if he didnt want to tell you right now; you trusted him with your life.

"Okay.. Fine. I'm coming back though, and I'm sorry I couldnt find you sooner". You admitted.

You dropped his hand that you were still holding in order to wrap your arms around him. To get one final touch to remember him by. You were desperate to fully touch him and to be wrapped in his embrace, something you had desperately and madly missed. As he held you; you tried to soak in his scent, his aura.. just the fact that he was even here seriously with you, in this moment.

You previously assumed Xavier had passed away; that was easier to come to terms with rather than thinking he willingly ran away or.. that something else more sinister had happened. A part of you wanted to be frustrated that you were leaving with more questions than answers but.. you didnt care. Your heart didnt care. You were just happy you were able to see your boyfriend.. no matter the circumstance or conditions it came with. Even though you were stupidly happy, your thoughts kept annoyingly circling back to the same question - how was Xavier here with you, living.. breathing.. in the flesh. How was this possible? You were about to speak your thoughts outloud when you first felt Xavier break away from you. You didnt get as much as a second glance just when you felt something soft on your cheek. Perhaps a goodbye kiss? and then.. just like he wasnt there at all, he was gone. Almost as if he completly disintegrated into the fresh, morning sky.

You felt your entire body stiffen as you realized he was gone.. again. It was difficult to pinpoint exactly how you felt. It was a nasty mix of both grief and anger that left you completly speechless and deathly still. You took a step back to combat the feeling, and attempted to look casual (and not like the person whom you were just hugging had completly fucking vanished). Sheepishly taking a look at the group you had arrived with and making sure none of them noticed your.. odd behavior.

Sure enough, none of them did. They all stood, and continued on conversing just like they were before you had broke away from them. Smiling and laughing as if nothing was wrong; just like they didnt have a care in the world - just as if the love of their life wasnt ripped away from them for a second time.

Even though Xavier was now gone, that odd, unsettling feeling still lingered with you. Like something was terribly wrong here, in Camp Redwood. The feeling wasn't entirely bad though; sure - the overall air in this place reeked of something terrible but.. now you felt something else mixed into it. A comforting essence of safety; Xaviers presence. You knew he wasnt directly beside you anymore but he was somewhere.. lurking. Watching you, as you begrudgingly walked over to the group you came with. Making up a bullshit excuse in your head so you could escape whatever this place was pretending to be.

Taglist: @michaellangdonstanaccount @langdonsexual @jimmason @blakewaterxx @dark-mei-rose @9layerdevilfoodcake @prophecy-is-inevitable @matildaofoz @beautyiswithinchaos @frenchlangdon @instincts-baby let me know if u would like to be added!! :)

[ducknotinarow]

How do you get inspiration?, Are there any songs that remind you of your muse and/or get you into the mood to reply?, Name one of your favorite tropes.

((Ooc mun answers))

* how do you get inspiration?

I get inspired by life. I know how that comes across lol I draw ideas from things I know or things I like. Music is one of my biggest inspirations and this is why I listen to all kinds of music cause sometimes I find a song that gets me in the right head space.

Do I need to do fluff? Romance songs or classical music.

Angst? More emotional songs or tencho

Steamy? Sexual songs or lofi (i don't know why it just helps)

*are there any songs that remind you of your muses and/or get you into the mood to reply

Songs that get me in the mood to reply:

This just depends. Sometimes I'll attach to one song that is a favorite because getting into the beat helps my mind start to flow with ideas. I cant or shouldn't sing but I will when I really like a song and dance a bit so I thibk me just enjoying myself helps me get in the creative mindset.

Songs the remind me of my muses:

Well I have two Playlist alone for two of my muses but ill just say two for them

Richard: confidence by demi lavato, and whistle while you work it by Katy Tim.

Because richards confidence is his biggest charater trait and has a lot todo with how he carries himself. Richard owns the room hes in always, he's unshamed and a bit bold. He's also a workaholic and uses work to hide in a sense.

Drake mallard: super hero by Simon Curtis and celebrity status by Marianas trench

Because I feel this song really more fits into Drake drive to be a super hero and how he can face the challenges that come with it. Second song because well Drake is also doing it for the recognition and least how I've always portrayed him is a guy who feels he holds celebrity status due to his own ego.

*Name your favorite trope

Romance trope (im soft shut it): friends/enemies to lovers. I like seeing how one dyminc starts to change change how charaters see each other

Fake relationship. And soul mates.

Rubbing face into s/os hand.

Only calling the other by a nickname

only calling each other by thier real name when things are serious.

Kissing s/os tears

Tracing over scars

Emotional tropes: ansgt.

Cracks in voice

Tears that can't stop

Wipeing someone's tears away gently

The stoic breaks

So emotionally upset you can't stand

Charater tenses up when being touched in a affection way no matter the context.

So relieved to see the other is fine despite being a mess your self.

I could go on trust me but I think thats good for now xD

[iliketowrite1996]

Someday 1/3

     With encouragement from @pocmarvelworks and @chaneajoyyy  @starsshines-blog and I present are 3 chapter story of Steve Rogers and Black!Reader set in the 1940′s. I like historic fiction, and I want to get into writing it with my own characters. This is a stepping stone. She’d had an idea as well, so we decided to collaborate on this as well.  This will contain heavy matters such as racism, segregation, colorism (probably) and probably sexism. I am trying to stay as true to history as I can, and that will mean that sometimes I will edit things after I post them to ensure the highest quality of accuracy. 

TRIGGER WARNINGS AND THEMES- Segregation, racism, mild violence, harassment.

The world, and the people and things in it,or separated in many ways. Invisible lines create state and country boundaries. Animals from the wild are separated from domesticated animals. You even separate your laundry when you put the colored clothes in one side and the white clothes in the wash.

    This is done from preventing the colored clothes from bleeding onto the white clothing and ruining everything. It’s a very necessary and understandable things to do.

    You just wish people didn't have that same mindset when it comes to people.

    The Year is 1940 and segregation is everywhere. From the schools, to the theatre. To the grocery store to your neighborhoods, you name it. There is a thin and invisible line, but it’s mighty powerful. It separates the black people form the white people.

    It's been that way since you were a little girl, and probably before that. It’s a way of life. One that you’re not happy about, bit one that you have (begrudgingly) accepted for now.

    You know your role and you're expected place. You go to work. Come home. Make dinner. Spend time with your family and Jeremy Coleman, the man down the street who your momma is just itchin’ to get you to settle down with.

    You and your sister, Jane, both decided that you find him attractive. However with ehr being just three years younger than you, your parents first priority is to find you a husband first.

    ‘’Look, I know you’re smart and kind and sweet I know that, too.’’

    This is what your momma tells you every Sunday, as you sit in the kitchen and let her press your hair until it’s silky smooth and straight, the hot comb leaving nothing but straightened, ebony hair once she is done.

    ‘’It’s just that well, he’s got a nice and steady job. Jeremy Coleman will be able to take care of you.’’

    ‘I have a steady paying job myself, mother.’’

    ‘’Yes. As a maid. I don’t want you to be working the same job that I am for the rest of your life.’’

    It’s not that your mother looks down on being a maid. No, she raised you and your four siblings to understand that there’s more life than fancy cars, expensive perfumes, flashy clothing and the like. You and your brothers and sister have bene hard workers since the day that you were born. All because your mother and daddy, Althea and Richard Jameson, are both hard workers.

    Your daddy is a handyman and carpenter, your mother cleans homes. Your older brother, Jacob, works as a delivery truck driver. Jane is currently a secretary, you clean houses to help pay for those night classes you’ve been meaning to take, and your younger brother, Jeffery, is in fifth grade at the elementary school down the street.

    ‘’Now don’t start feeling your head with fantasies. Come right down here, back to earth, where you belong.’’

    That’s something that our mother is frequently telling you. To Come back to earth, where you belong. Because she is practical and you are her daydreamer child and she doesn't know what she's going to do with you.

    You wonder how she's tell if she knew that, on the days that Mrs. Carlson lets you of early, you’re not going back to clean her house. No,,you're going to the jazz club.

    That’s here you come alive. That’s where the music and the poetry in words moves through you and you move freely, hips keeping in time as you keep up with the best of them in your dancing.

    She'd chase you clear across town so what she’d do.

    Because the only way to get back home is to take the bus, and that bus can be dangerous. Especially at night.

    However, she doesn’t mind you taking the bus to get the groceries. You ignore dirty looks, pay for the bag’s worth of good, and leave.

    You’re casually waiting or the bus when an older, angrier man come to you.

    ‘’You got no business being around here.’’

    ‘’Sir, please,’’ you take in his pale skin, his bright brown eyes, ‘’I am just waiting for the bus.’’

    He doesn't care. No, he chooses to harass you instead. You looks straight ahead and tighten your hold on your groceries, wondering if you should just walk the five miles home.

    ‘’Hey, man. Leave her alone.’’

    You and the man who has unleashed his verbal attack on you look to see a scrawny-looking boy with pale skin, blue eyes, and blonde hair.

    You’re not ashamed to admit that you’ d find him attractive if it weren’t for the circumstances.

    Also, he might be dumb, because he deliberately picks a fight with the guy. He tries to defend you and he’s not much taller than you are and it's really just a poor choice all around.

    Maybe that's why he ends up knocked to the ground. His nose is bloody and he has a black eye and you definitely can’t get on the bus with him looking like that.

    So you take that fresh steak out of the bag.

    Have him press it to the eye.

    Trek back home, taking an hour to get from the store when it would have taken you only fifteen minutes to get to the bus stop across town and walk the fifteen minutes from there to your home.

    Trek back home, angry, sad, hurt, humiliated, and with a fresh steak because you have one to your hero on the sidewalk.

    Said hero tracks alongside you, and you try to ignore the glares, whispers,a dn wide=eyed looks from your neighbors as he follows you.

    He hasn't spoken a word to you since you insisted (demanded) that he walks home with you so you can fix up that lip of his.

    From the way he speeds up so that he’s walking right alongside you, you can tell that he whispers of your neighbors gossiping hurt more than his black eye and busted lip.

    You sit him down in a wooden chair in the small kitchen of your home. You press the cold towel to his lip and give him an ice pack for thateye.

    You clean it.

    Avoid making eye contact with him.

    Wonder how you been got yourself into this.

    ‘’What made you go and fight him?’’

    That’s the first word you’ve spoken to him since you left the bus stop, and it startles him.

    ‘’Beg your pardon?’’

    ‘’What made you fight him? I can take care of myself,’’ you say calmly, rinsing the bloody towel in the basin of water.

    ‘’I couldn’t stand by and let him talk to you like that, miss.’’

    ‘’Nothing I haven't heard before. You’d do wise to stay in your own lane next time.’’

    ‘’He would’ve done wise to stay in his own lane and not insulted you. He had no right. You were standing there, minding your own business.’’

    You stare into his eyes for the first time, and there’s something in here. It’s comparison mixed with determination mixed with something you can’t quite read.

    ‘’You’re good at this.’’

    ‘’Thank you,’’ you respond to his compliment, ‘’I’d like to be a nurse someday, but…’’

    You let that hang in the air. You know that he knows- the rest of that sentence is definitely implied and well-known. You’re not sure if you want to continue this conversation, after the day you’ve had.

    ‘’Thank you for helping me,’’ you sigh, dropping the towel in the basin.

    ‘’No need to thank me,’’ he tells you, and the moment is quiet again, ‘’Just tell me your name.’’

    You introduce yourself, finally able to relax your shoulders a beer before trying to continue the conversation, asking im what your name is.

    That doesn’t last for too long.

    The front door is open and in walks your younger sister, Jane.

    ‘’Is anyone home?’’

    Steve and you are staring at each other with wide eyes. You’re both frozen to the spot, as if winter had suddenly come and you were too flowers with frost bite.

    Your sister, Jane enters, coat thrown over her arm and shoes in her hands.

    ‘’You would not believe th day I’ve had! I had to stop three children from trying to sneak out of the library as if the books aren’t free with a library card, and….’’

    She stops.

    Gapes.

    Looks between you and the young man.

    ‘’Well, I did not know that we had company,’’ she sticks her hand out for the young man to shake it, ‘’I’m Jane Jameson, her sister.’’

    ‘’Steve Rogers. Nice to meet you, miss.’

    Ah so thats hi name.

    Jane is looking a toy as she tucks her short hair behind her ears, ready for an explanation.

    ‘’Stebe saved me and walked me home. Someone at the bus stop decided that it was a perfect day for yelling at me.’’

    She shakes her head, no stranger to this scenario. She gets it all of the time, especially on ehr commute to work.

    Jane is your best friend. You two have been sharing a room ever since she was born and will continue to do so until one of you moves out. She’s the quiet one to your outgoing personality. But she’s also really smart, really sweet, and really aware. You can see the wheels in her mind turning when you look at her face, and you know she’s on to something good.

    Right now she’s trying to figure out why this handsome young man is sitting in your kitchen.

    She can’t ponder that much longer because you hear a truck door slam shut, and you both lo at each other in a panic.

    ‘’He’s got to get out of here. Jacob is here.’’

    She rushes to the front door to try to stall Jacob as you usher Steve out the back door. You  explain to him as well as you can why he has to leave- ‘’My brother won’t take too kindly to seeing you here.’’

    ‘’Got a thing against stranger's’’ Steve asks as you rush across your small backyard.

    ‘’Something like that,’’ you admit, opening the back gate and pointing down the alley, ‘’Just back the way we came and you’ll get to the bus stop. Can't miss it.’’

    ‘’Thank you. It was nice talking to you.’’

    He takes your directions and you silently wish that the small part that is disappointed that he didn’t ask to see you again would just hush up.

    That’s not the kind of world you live in. He knows that. You definitely know it.

    So you return to your house, still kicking yourself and trying to forget the event of this day.

    That night, as you and Jane lay in your bedroom, you try to release the days’ events form your mind to no avail. You toss and you turb, thinking about heros with scrawny arms and blue eyes so deep that they could see right into your mind if they wanted to. You’re sure of it.

    Steve lays awake that night, too. Thinking of ebony curls and smooth skin so different from his own and a variety of other things that he knows he can’t tell Bucky about.

    He lays awake, wondering if he’ll ever see you again.

    It’s not practical. He knows that. You know that. He knows you know that. So why doe he want to believe the opposite and go against what he knows is possible for you two?

    That's the last thing that he ponders before he finally drifts off to sleep, images of the day playing in his head.

    Maybe it’s the rush he got form helping you or the little bit of dreamer inside of him, but he believes that he’ll see you again.

    In fact, he know that he will.

    Until then, though, he’s content with waiting for that day.

    He'll have to be.

    Until that day finally comes along.

DISCLAIMER- I OWN NO MARVEL CHARACTERS, I JUST REALLY LIKE MAKING FANFICTION.  

[avoutput]

Gaming And Film: The Tomb Raider Example

A golden opportunity has arisen. I get to make another example of the star crossed genres, Film and Video Games. Two narrative forces bound by their visual narratives, but separated by a single major mechanic: Control. But a new challenger has arrived, or rather a returning challenger, another gaming legend. Tomb Raider. The gods have deigned Square Enix another chance at the big screen after their massive flop at the box office over 20 years ago with their own classic title, Final Fantasy. Gaming has made its way back to the big screen with Tomb Raider “parenthesis 2018 film” starring the legend herself, Lara Croft. Well, it stars a real actress, Alicia Vikander, but you know what I mean. Gaming has its own stars. Previously, this role had been played twice before by Angelina Jolie in Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001) and Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life (2003). This gave me a very unique opportunity to take a jump back in time to gaming’s initial foray into the world of the Third Dimension (3D), its replication of cinematic narrative structure, and all of the freedom that comes with giving the player the ability walk around in that space, instead of just watching. It was during this 3D polygon era that cinema took a fundamentally flawed stance to the translation from game to film; they tried to duplicate as much of the minor details as possible in effort to reanimate and profit from a movie going audience. In doing so, they sacrificed the heart of good cinema trying to capture the flavor of the game, hoping that the only thing fans would need is a the skeletal carcass of their favorite game.

By the time that first installment of  Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001) had hit the screens, there had been 4 full games released, none of which would ultimately become the story of the film. They surmised that simply making a film that imitated its main attraction, a (British) woman who raids tombs for treasure, would suffice. And in a way, this might be the most correct course of action. There had already been series of similar action films to take from, including Indiana Jones, James Bond, Mission Impossible, and Jackie Chan’s Armor of the Gods. With the games already pulling inspiration from these existing films, intentionally or not, it doesn’t seem that unreasonable to think that a film version of Tomb Raider would succeed at the box office.  All they needed was to eject the male as the lead and pop some abnormally large breasts on an otherwise perfectly attractive female figure. But then the real question becomes, why make this film based on a video game character at all? Obviously brand recognition and the all mighty dollar, both domestic and international, but wouldn’t they need more to really entice both the fans and the uninitiated alike? And this exposes an issue with the Hollywood mindset that, while I have come to understand, I can’t abide or come to terms with. Forsaking the heart of intelligible film making in favor of a return on investment. When art and capitalism mix in which the art comes second, the audience usually loses, and the house of Hollywood usually wins or breaks even. Because for the audience, what’s on the line is a chance to make a good video game into a great movie, and if that movie flops, then investors look at not just the game franchise, but all gaming films as a risky or unworthy investment. Stranger still however, is what ended up happening with Tomb Raider. It returned big on its initial run, almost certainly powered by Jolie’s star power. But when you make a cheap, flimsy version of  a game into film, and it works, it becomes the model that all video game films run on. We end up being served a deformed representation of something that, in my opinion, never stood a chance of becoming anything more than a cash grab. (See: Resident Evil (2002) starring Milla Jovovich)

At no point does Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001) or its sequel try to become more than a cheap representation of its source material sewn together using existing action-adventure movie tropes. The original games themselves offer little more than an exploratory cave diving, gun slinging shell for people to play in. Games (at the time) were not as harshly criticized for taking huge leaps in story, tone, or realism, but the films never really took that risk. In the game, Lara shoots at bats, bears, and wolves while cave diving. Yet, both Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001) and The Cradle of Life (2003) look indistinguishably bland compared to other films of their era like LOTR: Fellowship of the Ring, Swordfish, Training Day, Jurassic Park III, Pirates of the Caribbean, Kill Bill, The Matrix Reloaded, and many more. Granted these budgets are a bit more inflated, even their smaller moments are better than Jolie’s biggest. In fact, some of the stunts seem to come right out of the Mission: Impossible series. Taking a game thats little more than an empty, fun action platformer and trying to build an entire film franchise around it without adding some spark of originality or building any sense of a larger world for its characters will ultimately lead to a lackluster, forgotten film. Anybody watching these movies today are only returning because they might be a fan of the franchise, which might be the only win under the belt these films, but it’s another loss for gaming, gamers, and film.

Moving into the next generation of consoles and computers, as games become more modern, they began to more deftly integrate cinematic techniques. Game creators can control the world, the camera, and the characters with complete freedom, unlike film which has to worry about pesky things like props, actors, and reality. In 2013, Tomb Raider was re-imagined by Crystal Dynamics and published by Square Enix. They created a more sleek and vibrant world that embraced a mixture of realism and paranormal. Lara was modernized, made a bit more youthful, and her skillset was more refined and deadly. She went from a caricature to a character and her adventure matured into something a bit more robust. Coupled with expert pacing, the new Lara Croft moves through her deadly environment and faces foes head-on in the same vein as Indiana Jones. Only she is a bit more willing to pull the trigger or sling an arrow. I don’t want to continuously gush about this game, so to summarize, I will just say this game was by far one of my favorite action games in this last generation. This reinvisioned version would become the basis for the recently released Tomb Raider (2018), and I was excited to see what kind of adaptation would spring forth. After the many, many Hollywood failures, had gaming finally caught up so completely to cinema, possibly even overtaken it, that it could allow for an easy transition from game to film?

As much as I don’t want to spend the entirety of this review discussing the differences between the film and the exact game it was based on, that is technically the point of this article. Still, I’ll spare you a lengthy diatribe and stick to the key differences between Jolie and Vikander’s Lara Croft. In this version, the realistically re-imagined Lara Croft is crafty with a bow instead of guns, inexperienced instead of an expert, and hasn’t attended any higher learning in pursuit of abandoning her heritage to find her own way. These also happen to be departures from the Crystal Dynamics’ Lara Croft as well. However, I found that these character changes spoke the language of cinema better, making for a more relatable character, especially for late millennials and gen Z at which this version is aimed.

Tomb Raider (2018) stars the new Lara Croft (Alicia Vikander) as she takes on the challenge of living life as a broke young woman in the big city. But, a twist, the young lady is broke by choice, turning down the opportunity to take up her family name and with it , the family business. Angry that her father, Lord Richard Croft (Dominic West), never returned from a business trip and is considered dead, she mounts a personal battle against her heritage. Through a series of turns, she finds a final message from her father in a secret bunker outside her family estate, warning her to burn all of his research just in case some bad guys come looking for it. Instead, of course, she sets out to find the last place he was said to have visited, enlisting the son of the man, Lu Ren (Daniel Wu), whose boat was to have taken her father to his final resting place. At this point the film finally takes a similar shape to the game, introducing Mathis Vogal (Walton Goggins) as the leader of digging team sent to find the treasure of Lady Himeko’s tomb. Vogal has been employing as slaves shipwrecks and treasure hunters who have come to the island in search of such a treasure.

At this point, I would like to praise this film for actually making a decent adaptation of the game. The actors are great, the story is pretty tight, and they do a pretty good job keying you into just how far Lara will have push herself to get what she wants. Unlike Jolie, who was characterized as a fearless expert, Vikander is an inexperienced young girl who struggles at almost every turn. Throughout the film, she misses, she loses, and she takes hits, which is similar to the game, except when you lose the game, it had some pretty incredible death scenes. But in a way, I personally liked her Crystal Dynamics video game persona better. She was both experienced and still struggled. She used her wit and cunning to elude her captors. In the 2018 film, Lara spends most of the runtime falling into situations and just kind of winging it, but not with tools or weapons found in the game, mostly just through luck. My only other criticism is a bit of a spoiler if you have played the game and not seen the movie or have seen the movie but not played the game. But here it is. The film rejects the concept of the supernatural, which is one of the biggest reasons I wanted to see the film after having played the game. The game continuously hints at the supernatural, but only towards the end do we actually see it in action, which totally caught me off guard. I half expected some ancient local tribe would be behind some form of sabotage from the shadows, like in an episode of Scooby Doo. But how does this stack up as a video game film? Can we build a new legacy from here?

Well, unlike the Jolie era, video games and film are not so different anymore. In fact, film often doesn’t have the runtime to contain an entire video game plot into a single movie. The golden age of television would be a better place for your favorite game stories. Japanese anime has been doing this for years with shows like Star Ocean EX and Persona 4 The Animation. In a very short time, film has been surpassed as an entertainment medium in size, scope, and runtime/playtime. But the one thing that you can feel has really changed in Hollywood is that they no longer underestimate the need for authenticity in the transition. Gaming films are getting better because gaming has become better. The stories they tell are taken more seriously, and triple-A titles have bigger budgets than some triple-A films. Gaming companies could be looking to invest in adaptations to film, seeing them as an extended product to their own. With that dollar power and some guaranteed butts in seats, we should be able to expect better films. I would like to imagine if both Godzilla and King Kong can be re-imagined into great films that also get to share the same universe as a plethora of tokusatsu monsters that gaming can get of its ass and produce some better films. Still, it was only 2 years ago that Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (2016) was released, ending a series of terrible video game films that did nothing to elevate games as critically good films. Assassin's Creed (2016) also didn’t help.

The thing is, we don’t need video games adapted into film. Gaming has its own thing going on, and when it’s done right, it does it all bigger and better. But, if we are going to continue to see them pushed into film, let’s at least get a few things straight. First, there is a balance between authentic and creative. Take care to have a vision for the film beyond simply taking a bird’s eye view of the game and applying that visual to the film. The old Tomb Raider was built on the back of action genre films we had already seen and for the most part lacked any sense of creativity. It was authentic to its source from afar, but up close it offered nothing for fans beyond a push-up bra and two guns. Second, be aware of the scope of the game’s world. More and more games are open world, meaning that the world is going to be as much a character in its own right, so don’t forget that it exists. Even older games can have a vibrant world. A good example is Castlevania, which saw an amazing mini-series produced by Netflix. The story was small, but it never betrays the world in which it takes place. Now more than ever, the lines between gaming and cinema have all but been erased, so narratively, you can take a much more direct approach to the translation. Feel free to rewrite the story as long as it doesn’t forsake the game’s characteristics. Games are no longer manufactured for control alone, they have well thought out characters, themes, and motifs, all with a joined motive. If Lara Croft has taught us anything, take calculated leaps, not blind jumps into the abyss.

[khel666]

You Need to Stop

This is a kinder, gentler version of my previous post.

Classic Rock Fandom: OH MY GOD HE'S SO FUCKING HOT

Other people: he's 70 years old no

Classic Rock Fandom: YOU DONT UNDERSTAND HE'S A FUCKING GOD

Other people: dude stop

Classic Rock Fandom: I WOULD DO ANYTHING TO GO BACK AND BE A GROUPIE FOR HIM BECAUSE FUCK

Other people: dude no thats not good

Classic Rock Fandom: I DON'T CAAAAAAAAAAARE

*********************************

I've seen this item floating around for a while now.

I’m going to gently explain the problems with this post, and I hope that people will actually bother to read what I say rather than simply attacking.

First of all, never purport to speak for an entire group, in this case, the "classic rock fandom." There are a lot of people in said "classic rock fandom" who do not identify with what is being said here.

For instance, I have been a fan of what has come to be termed "classic rock" since quite literally back in the late 1960's, and I would never speak of the musicians who created the wonderful songs that I love in such an objectifying manner.

If YOU, the O.P. have the expressed view, so be it. Attribute said viewpoint to yourself, not an entire group.

You can find someone outside your age range interesting. You can even find them attractive. In the days of my youth, I found Leonard Nimoy very attractive. He was old enough to be my father.  I would never have dreamed of objectifying him. I respected him far too much to ever see him as a piece of meat.

As for being a groupie...I’m not quite sure the O.P. understand just what that means. Being a groupie is not exactly a healthy goal. Being in someone’s life for no other purpose than to service them sexually starts to leave a person feeling pretty damn hollow. You aren’t special, you’re one of many. How is that something to aspire to?

Before we get started accusing me of “slut shaming” (a term which I hate because I don’t believe anyone should be called a slut), I will state that I am not saying that groupies are bad people. I simply think that a girl or woman can do better for herself. Aspire to become a musician yourself. Aspire to become a band manager, a sound engineer, a promoter, a roadie, a radio DJ. You’ll meet musicians aplenty, and you’ll also have a career you can be proud of.

I’m over 50, so if I were to get involved with a member of one of the “classic rock bands,” nobody would bat an eye. Some of them (i.e. Nikki Sixx, Tommy Lee, Vince Neil) are in my general age range. Some of them (i.e. Mick Jagger, Keith Richards) are old enough to be my father.

Although my involvement with these men would not cause any sort of stir, that is beside the point. I have enough respect for them that I would never look at them as mere objects. They are human, and they are vulnerable.

I am well aware of the kind of deterioration that can happen to a person as they age. I acquired my perspective from having worked with the aging population, from watching my own relatives age and die, and from the things that are happening to my own body.

Thus, I do not find this sort of objectification expressed by the O.P. either flattering or harmless. This mindset doesn't view its targets as human. This mindset reduces people to things to be ogled. 

I feel like a piece of me is torn away every time one of the musicians that I’ve “known” all my life becomes ill and dies. 

A few examples.

B.B. King, who was a blues musician, but any rock fan worth their salt knows that the blues is the backbone of rock–the amazing B.B. King died from complications of Alzheimer’s.

Ronnie James Dio, who I thought would pretty much outlive everyone, died of stomach cancer.

My dear David Bowie–and no, I’m not objectifying him, I always thought of him as a friend I very much wanted to meet–died from cancer.

Lemmy Kilmister–wonderful, tough as nails, amazing Lemmy with his powerful voice is gone from this world. I have a tattoo honoring Lemmy on my left calf. No, it isn’t because I wanted to “be a groupie” for him. It’s because his music meant something to me, and because the more I learned about him, the more I liked him as a person.

Malcolm Young isn’t physically dead, but he’s gone from this world. What I’m going to say comes not from a place of hate but from a place of love. I wish he’d died before the god damn fucking dementia had a chance to destroy him. He is not going to recover, there is no reversing that shit. His brother, the person who he was closest to in this world, has said that Malcolm “isn’t in there at all anymore,” and I know exactly what the hell he’s talking about, and it fucking sucks, and there isn’t a god damn thing anyone can do to change it.

The original post doesn't indicate that the poster cares one iota about the music or the people who wrote it. It appears that she’s mooning over pictures of cute boys who are no longer “cute boys”. They haven’t been “cute boys” for a long time. 

“Classic Rock “ musicians are real people.

Real, and often fragile.

More and more of them are getting sick and dying. 

That fucking sucks.

Dear O.P., in the future, please speak for yourself. You do not speak for the entirety of the “classic rock fandom.” 

You speak for a minority faction of teenage girls who have, in reality, not done much living; who may not realize that posts such as this are tremendously disrespectful.

I have been part of the “classic rock fandom” for longer than the O.P. has been alive.

The O.P. does not speak for me.

The Cheese Hath Grated It

[jeongguksoveralls]

iamsapphirecrimsonclaw replied to your post “i just want to follow some good, not absolutely ridiculous true crime...”

I just find him attractive, that's not condoning anything he did

I feel like a lot of True Crime fans don’t fully understand what “i don’t condone” means. Finding Richard Ramirez attractive is one thing, saying “If Richard Ramirez wanted me i’d rip my clothes off and stab myself for him.”

Not condoning is saying “wow he has an attractive face but is also a violent and sociopathic serial rapist and murderer and needed to be caught and stopped from harming more people.” or “he’s visibly attractive, and i find the mindset and patterns of serial muderers fascinating but they need to be brought to justice, this person i find attractive included no questions asked, no excuses made”

there are so many true crime blogs that I’ve seen just in 24 hours talking about Ted Bundy or The Columbine assholes like they are teen idols, someone even saying they want to shoot up a school in their honor. thats.

 100% horrifying, and absolutely ridiculous.

[mavwrekmarketing]

Image: Shutterstock / turgaygundogdu

Lazy. Entitled. Narcissistic.

At both the popular and academic level, those three words pretty well sum up the problem with millennials. But why stop there? Theyre job-hopping, promotion-expecting, still-living-at-home-with-their-parents, social-media junkies whose only shared passion seems to be the vague desire for fame. Oh, and theyre also insecure (so if you could not call attention to those deficiencies, thatd be great). Of course, its one thing to identify the problem its another to go after the solution.

The question is: How? To find out, I connected with five leaders at the helm of successful and millennial-dominated companies. Their lessons all reflect powerful insights that are far more about how to lead millennials than about just lamenting whats wrong.

1. Raise the bar

With 620,000 followers, a podcast garnering one million monthly downloads, and over $100 million in sales through his fitness brands last year, Andy Frisella is more a force of nature than a CEO. In fact, the name of his podcast and website make that point clear: The MFCEO. (You can guess what MF stands for.)

However, Frisellas passion for millennialswhich comprise all but five of his 130 employeesstems from a surprising source: empathy. There are these kids out there who want to be successful, Frisella told me, but their entire life theyve never had to work to be successful. They dont understand reality. Everyone likes to dog millennials like theyre not as good as previous generations, but the truth is that its not millennials who have failed. Its the people that raised them. Its us.

That kind of ownership is why, instead of lowering the bar, Frisella raises it: They come in at 19 years old; many stay, but obviously some move on. My goal during that time is to make them so good through the challenges of work that they come back and say, That is the best thing that ever f****** happened to me.

Pushing back against the participation award culture most millennials grew up in, Frisella makes expectations clear. Encouragement is earned, never given. The result is an culture that elevates young workers while also building self-confidence only in a job well done.

2. Cultivate a common passion

In 2005, Jones Soda was a bonafide pop-culture phenomenon. Features in Fast Company, Entrepreneur, and Inc. chronicled the manufacturer’s iconic bottles along with their 30% year-over-year revenue growth.

Then, everything fell apart. Over the next decade, Jones wouldnt see a single profitable quarter, downsize by 63 percent, and eventually get delisted from NASDAQ. As the fifth CEO in as many years, thats the landscape Jennifer Cue entered in 2012.

The situation, Cue recalls, demanded creative problem solving and a team that shared a common entrepreneurial spirit.

So, with a 60% millennial workforce, she led by example. In addition to coming in as CEO at a very low salary offset by equity, Cue invested $680,000 of her own money into the company. More vital still, she played to her teams strengths regardless of their titles and responsibilities.

The lesson: Trusting and empowering millennials by providing challenges and opportunity for growth leads to an incredible sense of fulfillment. Its important not to generalize and not to categorize teams by age or demographic. The great thing about Jones is that we all share a common passion for what were doing.

3. Give up control

Handing over the management of 750,000 followers to a college intern sounds like a recipe for disaster. Especially during your companys most busy time of the year. And yet, thats exactly what Candice Galek founder and CEO of Bikini Luxe does every summer. With ecommerce, you always have to be on your toes, the Forbes 30 Under 30 recipient explains, and having a creative team whos eager to learn, experiment, and try stuff out is crucial.

Even riskier is the fact only 8 of Galeks 48 regular employees and 10 seasonal interns work in the same location she does. Why roll the dice?

In Galeks words, Weve learned to love the creative mindset and flexibility of our primarily millennial team members. Trying to control everything for the sake of quality and branding doesnt just kill creativity, it crushes the spirit of the people who work for you regardless of their age.

Plenty of organizations pay lip service to employee freedom. Giving your people the flexibility to pick where and when they work is a step in the right direction. But the real test comes from giving up control over what you post, publish, share, and even produce. This doesnt mean weak leadership, but it does mean giving millennials the tools they need to grow and then letting them.

4. Bring work and play together

Since launching in 2014, Studypool a 500 Startups-backed learning portal thats raised $2.5 million in venture capital has made their vision becoming the Google of academics a reality. Numbers like 40,000 online tutors and over a million student accounts prove it.

Twenty-three years old, CEO Richard Werbe credits being a millennial as part of the reason hes been so successful: While people may assume that my age is a deterrent to my ability lead, its actually the contrary. Like its platform, Studypools culture embraces a work hard, play hard mentality. I know the importance of keeping my team passionate about their work and excited to come to come into the office every day.

While they might sound like small things, Werbe streams music, furnishes a pantry full of snacks, doesnt enforce a dress code, and provides a game room in the office to blow off steam. He also encourages his team to work remotely whenever possible. Theres no point in pushing my team to the point where their job becomes something they resent, Werbe notes, being close in age to my employees makes me particularly aware of the well-being of my team and how to best keep them focused and enthusiastic.

5. Help them plan for whats next

Headquartered in Northern California, Azazie is on a mission to disrupt bridal fashion through affordable customization. With an average employee age of 27, theyre by millennials, for millennials. Whats their secret?

The same tailor-made approach theyve applied to 300,000 dresses, they also apply to staff. As Rachel Hogue an early customer service rep turned senior manager told me, Its about setting individual goals and playing to individual strengths.

Rather than major on quotas, Hogue meets one-on-one with each employee monthly to incorporate their passions and future plans into daily work. By encouraging kindness and open communication, Hogue fosters an environment built on collaboration: Each of our employees is unique. Its my job to ensure they feel comfortable to step up, share an idea, and spearhead new initiatives.

If 300% sales growth in 2017 is any indication, that approach pays off handsomely because when your employees are happy, theyll make your customers happy.

Leading millennials is about leadership

In the end, whether you agree or disagree with the mainstream view on millennials isnt the point.

So, what is? Perhaps Simon Sinek put it best in the closing lines of Millennials in the Workplace: We now have a responsibility to make up the shortfall and help this amazing, idealistic, fantastic generation build their confidence, learn patience, learn the social skills, [and] find a better balance between life and technology because quite frankly its the right thing to do.

Even if millennials are the problem its leaders like you who can offer the solution.

Aaron Orendorff is the founder of iconiContent and a regular contributor at Entrepreneur, Lifehacker, Fast Company, Business Insider and more. Connect with him about content marketing (and bunnies) on Facebook or Twitter.

WATCH: Take the party wherever you go with this portable beer pong table

Read more: http://ift.tt/2r7lUWP

The post The problem with millennials isnt millennialsits how youre leading them appeared first on MavWrek Marketing by Jason

http://ift.tt/2rccARG

[trendingnewsb]

The problem with millennials isnt millennialsits how youre leading them

Image: Shutterstock / turgaygundogdu

Lazy. Entitled. Narcissistic.

At both the popular and academic level, those three words pretty well sum up the problem with millennials. But why stop there? Theyre job-hopping, promotion-expecting, still-living-at-home-with-their-parents, social-media junkies whose only shared passion seems to be the vague desire for fame. Oh, and theyre also insecure (so if you could not call attention to those deficiencies, thatd be great). Of course, its one thing to identify the problem its another to go after the solution.

The question is: How? To find out, I connected with five leaders at the helm of successful and millennial-dominated companies. Their lessons all reflect powerful insights that are far more about how to lead millennials than about just lamenting whats wrong.

1. Raise the bar

With 620,000 followers, a podcast garnering one million monthly downloads, and over $100 million in sales through his fitness brands last year, Andy Frisella is more a force of nature than a CEO. In fact, the name of his podcast and website make that point clear: The MFCEO. (You can guess what MF stands for.)

However, Frisellas passion for millennialswhich comprise all but five of his 130 employeesstems from a surprising source: empathy. There are these kids out there who want to be successful, Frisella told me, but their entire life theyve never had to work to be successful. They dont understand reality. Everyone likes to dog millennials like theyre not as good as previous generations, but the truth is that its not millennials who have failed. Its the people that raised them. Its us.

That kind of ownership is why, instead of lowering the bar, Frisella raises it: They come in at 19 years old; many stay, but obviously some move on. My goal during that time is to make them so good through the challenges of work that they come back and say, That is the best thing that ever f****** happened to me.

Pushing back against the participation award culture most millennials grew up in, Frisella makes expectations clear. Encouragement is earned, never given. The result is an culture that elevates young workers while also building self-confidence only in a job well done.

2. Cultivate a common passion

In 2005, Jones Soda was a bonafide pop-culture phenomenon. Features in Fast Company, Entrepreneur, and Inc. chronicled the manufacturer’s iconic bottles along with their 30% year-over-year revenue growth.

Then, everything fell apart. Over the next decade, Jones wouldnt see a single profitable quarter, downsize by 63 percent, and eventually get delisted from NASDAQ. As the fifth CEO in as many years, thats the landscape Jennifer Cue entered in 2012.

The situation, Cue recalls, demanded creative problem solving and a team that shared a common entrepreneurial spirit.

So, with a 60% millennial workforce, she led by example. In addition to coming in as CEO at a very low salary offset by equity, Cue invested $680,000 of her own money into the company. More vital still, she played to her teams strengths regardless of their titles and responsibilities.

The lesson: Trusting and empowering millennials by providing challenges and opportunity for growth leads to an incredible sense of fulfillment. Its important not to generalize and not to categorize teams by age or demographic. The great thing about Jones is that we all share a common passion for what were doing.

3. Give up control

Handing over the management of 750,000 followers to a college intern sounds like a recipe for disaster. Especially during your companys most busy time of the year. And yet, thats exactly what Candice Galek founder and CEO of Bikini Luxe does every summer. With ecommerce, you always have to be on your toes, the Forbes 30 Under 30 recipient explains, and having a creative team whos eager to learn, experiment, and try stuff out is crucial.

Even riskier is the fact only 8 of Galeks 48 regular employees and 10 seasonal interns work in the same location she does. Why roll the dice?

In Galeks words, Weve learned to love the creative mindset and flexibility of our primarily millennial team members. Trying to control everything for the sake of quality and branding doesnt just kill creativity, it crushes the spirit of the people who work for you regardless of their age.

Plenty of organizations pay lip service to employee freedom. Giving your people the flexibility to pick where and when they work is a step in the right direction. But the real test comes from giving up control over what you post, publish, share, and even produce. This doesnt mean weak leadership, but it does mean giving millennials the tools they need to grow and then letting them.

4. Bring work and play together

Since launching in 2014, Studypool a 500 Startups-backed learning portal thats raised $2.5 million in venture capital has made their vision becoming the Google of academics a reality. Numbers like 40,000 online tutors and over a million student accounts prove it.

Twenty-three years old, CEO Richard Werbe credits being a millennial as part of the reason hes been so successful: While people may assume that my age is a deterrent to my ability lead, its actually the contrary. Like its platform, Studypools culture embraces a work hard, play hard mentality. I know the importance of keeping my team passionate about their work and excited to come to come into the office every day.

While they might sound like small things, Werbe streams music, furnishes a pantry full of snacks, doesnt enforce a dress code, and provides a game room in the office to blow off steam. He also encourages his team to work remotely whenever possible. Theres no point in pushing my team to the point where their job becomes something they resent, Werbe notes, being close in age to my employees makes me particularly aware of the well-being of my team and how to best keep them focused and enthusiastic.

5. Help them plan for whats next

Headquartered in Northern California, Azazie is on a mission to disrupt bridal fashion through affordable customization. With an average employee age of 27, theyre by millennials, for millennials. Whats their secret?

The same tailor-made approach theyve applied to 300,000 dresses, they also apply to staff. As Rachel Hogue an early customer service rep turned senior manager told me, Its about setting individual goals and playing to individual strengths.

Rather than major on quotas, Hogue meets one-on-one with each employee monthly to incorporate their passions and future plans into daily work. By encouraging kindness and open communication, Hogue fosters an environment built on collaboration: Each of our employees is unique. Its my job to ensure they feel comfortable to step up, share an idea, and spearhead new initiatives.

If 300% sales growth in 2017 is any indication, that approach pays off handsomely because when your employees are happy, theyll make your customers happy.

Leading millennials is about leadership

In the end, whether you agree or disagree with the mainstream view on millennials isnt the point.

So, what is? Perhaps Simon Sinek put it best in the closing lines of Millennials in the Workplace: We now have a responsibility to make up the shortfall and help this amazing, idealistic, fantastic generation build their confidence, learn patience, learn the social skills, [and] find a better balance between life and technology because quite frankly its the right thing to do.

Even if millennials are the problem its leaders like you who can offer the solution.

Aaron Orendorff is the founder of iconiContent and a regular contributor at Entrepreneur, Lifehacker, Fast Company, Business Insider and more. Connect with him about content marketing (and bunnies) on Facebook or Twitter.

WATCH: Take the party wherever you go with this portable beer pong table

Read more: http://ift.tt/2r7lUWP

from Viral News HQ http://ift.tt/2rThSCx via Viral News HQ

[jm-fraser]

My Favorite Filmmakers (no. 15 - 11)

15. Quentin Tarantino

Facing a bit of pushback recently by people who feel he is becoming a parody of himself in his recent films, and to those people I would say: why can't a director have a distinctive style without people wanting their films to look like any other bland movie. Thats the thing about Tarantino, he understands the craft of filmmaking to such an extent that he knows how he wants his films to look and feel, and on top of that, they are damn entertaining.

Top 3:

Pulp Fiction

Reservoir Dogs

Django Unchained

14. Wes Anderson

Its interesting to talk about Anderson straight after Tarantino because they receive the same criticism, Anderson also makes films that are highly stylized and because of that people who don't know any better fault him for that. Luckily for us Anderson has become an indie darling, and while he may not be as popular as Tarantino his films have a dedicated following, and we can only hope we get many more in the future.

Top 3:

The Royal Tenenbaums

Rushmore

The Grand Budapest Hotel

13. Richard Linklater

While he may not be as consistent as some of his contemporaries, when he is great, he makes some of the best, personal and just human stories committed to film. His biggest strength as a filmmaker is his dialogue, which may not be completely realistic, but has this philosophic wondering style that most of his characters resemble. I think there are few directors who can better show the struggle of finding your place in the world, no matter how well off you may be, there will always be struggles.

1. Boyhood

2. Dazed and Confused

3. The Before Trilogy

12. Orson Welles

It may be a cliche by this point, but Orson Welles with his debut, Citizen Kane made the most important and influential film in the history of cinema, and as time has gone on people have seen films influenced by Kane, and films influenced by those films, so its impact on cinema has been diluted a bit recently, but if you go back with the right mindset and understand how revolutionary Welles really was in his time, you might understand his genius. In a sense its a shame he never lived up to the monument that was Citizen Kane because he did make a number of other great films, he will always be seen as the creator of that one achievement.

Top 3

Citizen Kane

Touch of Evil

F For Fake

11. Werner Herzog

One of the most interesting and distinctive filmmakers working in this or any time. One thing that makes a Werner Herzog film so inserting, is his own presence in them, whether its the physical presence in his documentaries or a more indirect one in his features, you get the feeling that everything he makes is an exploration into his psyche where he is using film and the audience as a form of therapy, and that makes him endlessly fascinating.

Top 3

Aguirre: Wrath of God

Nosferatu 

Grissly Man

[viralhottopics]

As coaches take a step back in ‘Counter-Strike,’ team leaders rise to the challenge

Astralis celebrates after winning the ELeague Major in Atlanta, Jan. 29, 2017.

Image: matt kline/mashable

Astralis and Virtus.pro were tied 14-14 when Virtus.pro used their last remaining timeout to figure out exactly how to turn the tide to take the next two rounds.

A tactical timeout gave teams 30 seconds to convene and was the only time coaches are allowed to speak outside of warm-ups and halftime.

Seconds ticked away. The crowd of thousands grew louder at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta.

“Let’s go Astralis!”

“Let’s go VP!”

The fans’ dueling chants filled the historic theatre as the two teams deliberated.

The coaches, breaking their silence, had half a minute to dish out everything they’d kept pent up.

Virtus.pro’s Wiktor “Taz” Wojtas likened his coach’s timeout speeches to a beatless rap that Jakub “Kuben” Gurczynski dished out as he paced back and forth behind the five Polish players.

Astralis put its faith in its in-game leader, Gla1ve, and it paid off.

On the other side of the stage, Astralis coach Danny “Zonic” Srensen talked strategy with his Danish team, but letting the players do most of the talking.

Once the 30 seconds were up, it all came down to the players and the designated in-game leader. For Virtus.pro, it was Filip “Neo” Kubski, a 29-year-old Polish veteran who has been rolling with the same lineup since 2013. For Astralis, it was Lukas “Gla1ve” Rossander, a 21-year-old Danish star who only just joined the squad three month ago in October.

The round started. Virtus.pro ran in to set up a defense with a weakened economy. Astralis moved toward bomb site A, reversing the last round’s rush on B.

Gla1ve was sure that VP didn’t have enough money for an AWP sniper rifle, and he knew that VP’s designated AWPer Janusz “Snax” Pogorzelski would probably be posted up behind the bomb site on A, so he told teammate Nicolai “Dev1ce” Reedtz to line up the shot. He hit Snax in the leg, hurting him badly but not killing him.

That was enough information, though, to encourage Gla1ve to tell the whole team to rush in. With a flurry of bullets and grenades, the five Astralis players overwhelmed the three VP players defending A, quickly putting Astralis at a 4-2 man advantage and forcing Virtus.pro’s two remaining players to hide in hopes of saving their weapons for the next round.

Astralis found them anyway and took them out, debilitating VP before match point and securing a thrilling 16-14 victory.

A major moment . . . #ELEAGUEMajor http://pic.twitter.com/H31nwo0DbD

Astralis (@astralisgg) January 30, 2017

Astralis put its faith in its in-game leader, Gla1ve, and it paid off.

Since making the top eight of every single Major since the first event in 2013, the Astralis squad took home its first Major championship, the first Major championship since Valve banned coaches from speaking during CS:GO games in August 2016.

The coach ban

Valve’s ban on coach communication came without warning and applied to all Valve-sponsored CS:GO events, which includes Majors the most prestigious and important tournaments in CS:GO. Third party tournament organizers adopted the rule quickly, with ESL One New York in early October being the first premier tournament to institute the new rule.

Valve explained in its announcement that it wanted CS:GO competitions to be about the players in the server.

“Since the goal of our events is to identify the best five-player CS teams that exhibit the best combination of all CS skills, the current participation of coaches in the game is not compatible with that goal,” Valve said.

Coach-reliant teams were forced to adjust. Coaches were forced to adjust.

Before the ban, several top-tier teams had coaches standing behind players during matches acting as in-game leaders. With a sixth person focusing on opponents’ movements, the game’s economy and team positioning, players were freed of that responsibility and allowed to focus primarily on their own movement and crosshair placement.

Teams like Ninjas in Pyjamas, Team Liquid and Na’Vi relied on their coaches to provide this up-to-the-second game analysis, and Valve’s new limitations prompted outrage across the board. Players, analysts and coaches voiced their opposition online, even those on teams who had a player in-game leader like SK Gaming’s Gabriel “Fallen” Toledo.

Tomorrow we will discuss between players about many subjects. I see progress happening between ourselves. Important for everyone involved

Gabriel Toledo (@FalleNCS) August 17, 2016

Valve wasn’t going to budge.

On the organization side of things, Team Liquid’s general manager Steve “Joka” Perino was equally unhappy with the rule.

“My mindset was, ‘What is Valve doing?'” he said. “[Having a coach] was great for us because we had all this firepower and when we could just have this guy be the conductor it made perfect sense. So when [the ban] happened it was quite the blow.”

Coach-reliant teams were forced to adjust. Coaches were forced to adjust.

Five months after the coach restrictions were announced, the first Major of 2017 was kicking off in Atlanta. By that points, teams had enough time to adjust, CS:GO commentator James Bardolph said.

“I think that the biggest issue that teams had was [that] when Valve first came out with that ruling, a lot of organizations had a knee-jerk reaction,” he said. “They gave the teams no warning, no transition time. They said, ‘You gotta follow this rule immediately, this is the rule now,’ which is not an intelligent way to do things, and not really fair for the teams, so we saw some struggle with that. But, again, theyve had time to adjust now.”

Coaching outside of games

Despite the tempered role of coaches, every team at the top level has kept a coach on the team because of the value they bring to organizations. CS:GO analyst and ELeague host Richard Lewis said he thinks coaches are absolutely necessary in pro-level Counter-Strike.

“The coaches are still there, just not [standing] behind [their players],” he said. “Theyre still there to talk in between rounds, talk in time outs, talk backstage before the games, after the games. They can still travel with teams. I think any organization worth its salt should have a coach.”

Astralis’s coach Danny “Zonic” Srensen has been with the team since 2015 and has successfully survived the new ruling.

“We pretty much adapted to the change instantly when Valve put it through,” Zonic said after the team’s quarterfinals win against Na’Vi. “Obviously right now it works.”

“Its more clear what my actual job inside and outside the game is.” – North’s coach Casper “Ruggah” Due

That doesn’t mean it isn’t difficult though.

“It can be really tough standing behind the team and sometimes I see stuff that I want to communicate to the team,” he said.

On the other side of the coin, Zonic’s job is also a bit easier, in a way.

“You have to also remember that it can be really stressful to have six guys talking in teamspeak,” he said. “And this kind of crowd, as well it can get [noisy] in the communication so Ive been helping them and being with them in every practice weve had at home, trying to fix communication and fix small mistakes that we make so that they can pretty much play themselves and dont rely on a coach.”

North’s coach Casper “Ruggah” Due echoed that sentiment a day before the team’s quarterfinals match against Virtus.pro.

“Im very limited in what I can do but I think its also helping out my role because before I could be wearing 10 different hats for things I needed to do during and before games,” Ruggah said. “Now its more clear what my actual job inside and outside the game is.”

North’s coach Casper “Ruggah” Due at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, Jan. 26, 2017.

Image: Dave vagts/mashable

Coaches are more like analysts now, watching what players and opponents are doing and giving feedback after the action happens instead of controlling every move at every moment possible.

“Of course, it would be easier for me to help out during the round if I have a good read on what [opponents] are doing, but thats also why I need to be more on point during my preparations and during the time outs,” Ruggah said.

Players have to do their own reading, which usually falls on the shoulders of the in-game leader.

The rise of the in-game leader

Even before the coach restrictions, SK Gaming’s Fallen acted as the in-game leader to the Brazilian team, leading them to win two back-to-back Majors in 2016. The coach ban didn’t have a huge impact on SK Gaming.

“I think there are coaches that act as in-game leaders for their teams for example [Sergey “Starix” Ischuk of Na’Vi] and [Wilton “Zews” Prado of Team Liquid] but for us, I have always been in-game leader so we dont suffer too much for that,” he said.

In-game leaders have a unique job. Fallen keeps the players motivated during games and makes calls on where they should move to and what areas to cover while SK’s coach, Ricardo “Dead” Sinigaglia, focuses on helping the team with their own individual strengths and struggles rather than analyzing what the other team is doing.

The coach ban dialed back the role of coaches who acted as in-game leaders, but it also put smart, yet oftentimes underperforming players back on the map.

“When you make that decision, you cap the level that Counter-Strike can get to because its not being coordinated,” Lewis said about the coach ban. “But, equally, it adds this fascinating little mini drama because players like [Godsent’s Markus “Pronax” Wallsten] and [North’s Mathias “MSL” Lauridsen] are statistically terrible. Pronax especially…is one of the lowest level performing pros if we just go on kills. But hes a great in-game leader, hes a great tactician, he knows how to activate players and [how to] use them. So, suddenly, this rule has effectively prolonged his career and players like him.”

The coach ban dialed back the role of coaches who acted as in-game leaders, but it also put smart, yet oftentimes underperforming players back on the map.

You won’t see many of these players who have in-game leader roles at the top of stats charts, but they’ve become vital to their teams over the past few months regardless.

“If we dont have the coaching rule, why would you keep Pronax?” Lewis said. “‘I dont need him, I dont need his skillset.’ So you effectively kill a generation of in-game leaders. MSL wouldnt be on a team, Pronax wouldnt be on a team. What would they do? Who would pick them up? I think CS would lose something if we marginalized guys with those skill sets.”

This points back to Valve’s original reasoning behind the coach ruling. The competition at these events is about the five players in the server, and part of what’s needed of those players is a deep understanding of the game, something that takes years of practice and studying to develop.

That in-game leadership is what led Astralis to hold up the ELeague Major trophy in January. Gla1ve read his opponents and made a call, and the team trusted him and went for it, solidifying the Danish team’s lead and leading to its victory.

The Astralis players pulled off something crazy and Virtus.pro’s coach stood behind his team with clenched fists.

The Major came down to the players.

BONUS: Astralis crowned ‘Counter-Strike’ champions at the ELEAGUE Major

Read more: http://on.mash.to/2l91ms4

from As coaches take a step back in ‘Counter-Strike,’ team leaders rise to the challenge