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valwentinefics · 4 years ago

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I’m saving you - Dark!Helmut Zemo x F!Reader

A/n: Hey guys It’s your friendly neighbourhood Zemo simp Aur. Law class is kicking my ass big time so sorry this took so long for me to post. I really like dark Zemo so if you’d like to send requests that’d be really nice but I can’t promise they’ll be out fast! Also the gif on this just makes me go AAAAA. Not sure if I like this or not, but I loved the concept and it was a request so it’s being posted anyways.

Warnings: Zemo is basically a yandere, kidnapping and drugging, mentions of Zemo’s family’s death, past suicidal Zemo, swearing.

Word count: 1736

Plot: It was difficult for Y/n not to fall for Helmut Zemo and soon she would realize it would be even more difficult to get away. When she tells him he can’t protect her from everything he knows he has to find a way... even if his methods are unconventional. (Takes place during episode 4 of tfatws, cannon divergent and possible part 2)

Y/n laid in Zemo’s bed, her fingers gently tracing the small scars from knives and bullets that littered his bare torso. His warm earthy eyes watched her with soft adoration as she laid her head on his chest, sighing contently as his hands ran through her hair. This was something that happened often between the two and Y/n arguably loved it more than the sex that came before it. It was nice laying in the quiet. The only sound that filled the room was their breaths or Zemo’s occasional quiet and rough humming.

Y/n had been apprehensive about Zemo when she first met him. She had never before encountered him in person but he was a popular topic on the news when he was arrested and tried for what he had done. As a friend of Bucky she had originally been against the man, giving him harsh glares whenever he spoke or came too close to her, but eventually against her better judgement she began to develop a fondness for him. It was hard not to when he would talk to her oh so kindly with his beautifully articulate accented voice, or how he’d look at her as if she was the only person in the room when she spoke. His intelligence and various skills attracted her to him even more, and Y/n found herself falling for the man before she even had a chance to breathe.

She lifted her head off his chest and sat up, running a hand through her hair to try and fix it from the messy state it was in from their previous activity. Y/n sent a smile to Zemo, her arms in the air and back arching as she stretched before getting off the plush bed, walking around the room to gather her clothes.

“Where are you going, Liebling?” He asked sitting up, a few unruly bits of hair falling into his face. She was the only one he would allow to see him like this, soft and not well put together.

“Well, me and Bucky have plans to walk around and see if we can find out any information about the Flag Smashers.” She said casually, pulling on her clothes.

Zemo’s body tensed. “I’ll come with you.” He said as he picked up his clothes that had been discarded on the ground and putting them on as he found them.

“No, two people is enough, any more and it’ll look weird.” Y/n explained, placing a hand on his chest to stop him.

“But what if you get hurt, you know what they’re capable of.” He countered, his eyes wandering over her face, filled with concern.

Y/n let out a soft laugh. “You know, you won't always be able to protect me from everything Helmut. I’m not fragile, have some faith in me.” She pressed her lips against his for a second before walking out, not seeing how his eyes hardened as her words sank into him.

Helmut Zemo had lost everything before he found Y/n. Formerly the leader of EKO Scorpion, a Baron of his country, and a father, Zemo had it all until it all came crashing down. Literally. When the dust settled upon Sokovia he wasn’t only looking at the ruins of his country, but of his life and everything he had achieved. After that he was consumed by vengeance and sorrow, dedicating what he believed and intended to be the last year of his life to avenging his late family. When he was put into prison he felt no joy for how his plan worked, only numbness as he waited patiently, anticipating his eventual death. However when Bucky assisted his escape and brought him to the mechanics where his eyes met Y/n’s, he suddenly found a reason to stay around longer.

Zemo ran his gloved fingers through his hair, his jaw clenched as he thought to himself. He couldn’t lose Y/n, she was the one thing he had. He had lost so much previously that even the thought of losing the one last person who belonged to him was almost enough to send him into a frenzied state. Y/n’s words kept echoing in his head, mocking him as he stood. He had to do something, he had to find a way to protect her from everything.

Y/n laughed at Bucky’s joke as the two walked back into Zemo’s home, a smile plastered on her face. She was unaware of Zemo’s glare burning holes into where Bucky’s hand rested on the small of her back. Y/n didn’t see any issue with how close she and Bucky were, even leaning more into his larger body to steady herself as she slipped off her shoes.

“Y/n, how did it go?” Asked Zemo who laid on the couch, his voice sounding tense.

“Nothing productive.” She sighed, waving to Bucky as he quietly went to the room he was staying in. He didn’t like being around Zemo more than he needed to which she understood.

“You should have let me come along, I’m good at getting information.” Zemo said, standing up. His movements were smooth and confident. She admired how he always stayed and looked in control no matter the situation. “Would you like a drink Liebling?”

Y/n nodded in reply, heading to the couch and sitting by the arm rest, enjoying the simplicity of the situation. Just two lovers enjoying a drink together. It made her feel awfully domestic and she enjoyed it. In another life maybe they could have lived like this everyday, quietly enjoying each others company, but it was an unrealistic dream. She was a friend of Bucky and Sam, she would never truly experience peace and safety. There would always be a villain threatening someone, and Y/n would always have to help stop it.

Zemo walked back over, handing Y/n her glass and placing his on the coffee table, freeing up his hands to pull Y/n into his lap. They stayed in silence, Y/n enjoying the whiskey. She downed it quickly, noticing Zemo must have gotten her a different type than usual, it had an odd aftertaste but she didn’t mind it enough to bring it up. It was calming being with Zemo, so much so that her eyes grew heavy, and she leaned into his chest while letting out a content sigh.

The sound of soft music gently pulled Y/n out of her sleep, her eyes squinting as they adjusted to the bright light coming from a window and falling onto her face. The place she was in was odd and unfamiliar. The realization that she had not fallen asleep here and her arms being bound tightly behind her back with a soft fabric sent waves of panic through her body as she jolted up, looking around the room. Where was Zemo and the others? Were they safe? The room itself didn’t seem dangerous, the furnishings similar to that of a nice hotel. It was tidy and well kept which almost made it more frightening than it would have been if it was dilapidated.

“Hello?” Y/n called out, moving to the edge of the bed, her feet dangling off as she was about to stand up when the door creaked open, revealing Zemo. Relief flooded her body as soon as she saw the man, instantly feeling a little safer.

“Helmut, where am I? Why are my hands tied?” Y/n looked at him questioningly.

Zemo smiled at her as he approached. “This is all to keep you safe.” He said, his hand tucking some stray pieces of hair behind Y/n’s ear as he stood before her.

His words confused Y/n. “What do you mean this is to keep me safe? Helmut what’s going on?” She struggled to free her hands. Something wasn’t right here. The feeling of dread ate at her stomach as she watched him.

He shushed her softly, his hand gently stroking the soft skin of her cheek. “Stop struggling, you don’t need to worry about anything anymore. I couldn’t handle the thought of you getting hurt any longer. I knew I had to do something, I can’t lose you too. Maybe I slipped something into your drink, I apologize for that. It was a necessary evil to get you here, where you could be safe with me.”

Y/n’s eyes widened as she stared at the man in front of her, the gravity of the situation weighing heavily upon her. “Helmut, why the fuck did you kidnap me?”

“Don’t look at me with such fear Y/n, it hurts me.” He frowned. “From the first time I looked in your eyes I knew you were different from the rest. You just have a quality about you, something indescribable that draws me to you. I was lost, suicidal, every day I spent waiting for death, until I looked in your eyes and found something to live for. The thought of you getting hurt… I just can’t even stomach it. You’re all I have and I can’t lose any more people I love.”

His words scared her, sending a chill through her body. “I won’t tell anyone if you let me go, I won’t leave you either. We can pretend this never happened!” Y/n pleaded desperately as her mind raced.

Zemo’s hand tightly gripped her jaw in anger, his gloved fingers digging into her skin roughly. “Don’t speak like that, I’m risking so much for you right now, a little gratitude would be nice.” He growled, before exhaling, letting go as he calmed himself down. “Apologies, I suppose I do understand where you’re coming from, I know what it’s like to be locked away. Liebling, I promise to you that I will never hurt you. I’ll give you everything you could possibly desire. All I ask for in return is your love.”

A sob escaped Y/n’s throat, tears falling down her face. Zemo pulled her into his body as if she was made of glass, his arms tenderly holding her against his warm chest. “I want to go home.” She cried.

Zemo sighed. “This is your home meine Liebe. I’ll cherish and care for you. One day you’ll learn to appreciate it, and we’ll have a perfect family. You’ll thank me for this once you realize I’m saving you.”

#zemo x reader #helmut zemo #baron zemo x reader #helmut zemo x reader #baron zemo #the falcon and the winter soldier #tfatws x reader #tfatws

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taraninja · 5 years ago

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Review of A Ghost of a Chance

Just in case my review is too long for fanfiction.net, I’m posting it here.

To start, I want to apologize for the tardiness of this review. I actually began writing it after finishing Chapter 34, but thanks to College finals and the holidays it’s only getting out now. I like my reviews to in some way reciprocate the amount of effort the writer/writers spent in their fanfic, so this was definitely a multi-day project.

Firstly, I’d like to go over the characters and characterizations. Others have pointed this out as well, but you truly do get their personalities down perfectly. There were multiple occasions where I was tricked into reading this as if it were an episode screenplay, which is perhaps the highest praise any fanfic could achieve. Master Splinter is as elegant and effervescent as always, but you delve more into his character than the mere surface level; he also shows off humor, worry, empathy, concern, and of course, the love he feels for his sons and daughter is truly palpable. A great example is in his dealings with the Lotus; he is able to disagree in a way which shows honor and maturity, and even when the Lotus leave, he does not press the issue but let’s both parties (Donnie/April and the Lotus) have their disagreement and move on. It sent a perfect message to Leo that sometimes, interference is worse than simply letting an argument run its due course. I wish someone had taught that message to 2003 Leo, so maybe he could have avoided getting entangled in the gang wars.

Speaking of Leo, there are several facets of his character which have been masterfully delved into here. Something I prefer in the 2012 show is how they show that Leo is much more than just a serious and dutiful leader; he can also be awkward and silly at times, and this is perfectly encapsulated in his conversations with Karai within this story. Instead of distracting from the main plot, it melded perfectly with it and even helped to add to the plot. Karai has trouble getting used to life in the sewer, but has no problems understanding Leo and getting him to hopelessly unravel himself when talking with her. In contrast, Leo seems unsure of where he stands with her, and sometimes doesn’t know what the right approach is. Should he flirt back, or would that be too forward? Are their conversations one big game, or do they mean something to her? And are her questions meant to be taken literally, or as part of a running joke? As a master of deception, I can imagine how confusing talking with her must be. But on Karai’s part, it must be lots of fun, since it’s really more like she’s gently prodding him into taking the first step. I can still vividly imagine the chapter where they spar together, both teasing each other and then that one moment Karai thought she might have pushed too far. The tension between them was so thick that I could feel it past my computer screen, and I inadvertently held my breath as Leo drew closer and almost, ALMOST kissed her, but then revealed that he had just been teasing her back. That scene was perfect poetry, and it really showed me that you get their dynamic. You understand how and why they work, and that’s always great to see in a fanfiction.

Of course, Leo and Karai aren’t the only two lovebirds who have amazing development here, and the next two I want to gush over are Raph and Casey. I’ll admit that I didn’t really ship them before, but after reading this, you’ve made me a believer! There are of course, multiple ways a gay romance can go wrong; it can either feel too pushy, or not pushy enough, depending on the way it’s written. However, I think it was perfectly handled here. Our titular Raph and Casey start as more on the ‘bromance with benefits’ side, which works; a slow beginning helps get new shippers like me to see just how it can develop. Both of them have very similar outlooks and personalities, so there’s already that common ground between them, and then the scene where Casey gets drunk allow us to see them acting uncharacteristically caring for each other. Seeing adult Casey and Raph making out is definitely a—unique way to kickstart the romance, and a rather believable one. As someone who’s bi, I’ll readily admit that curiosity is what often causes a spark in a relationship like theirs. And again, the slow burn is the smartest move when it comes to them. Their kiss was left open-ended, as you could say ‘oh, they didn’t like it’ and not ship it, or you could think ‘hmm, I don’t think their answers were all that truthful’ and continue to ship it. I personally count myself among the latter category, but either way, their scenes have been written exceedingly well so far and I can’t wait to read more of them.

And, of course, my personal favorite ship, the one that made me get off my butt and read this fanfic; Apritello! After Chapter 34, I was squealing for literally hours. It got so bad that my roommate, who is not even a little into TMNT, forcibly grabbed my shoulders and ordered me to stop jumping around like a ping-pong ball. So suffice it to say, I have a lot to comment on when it comes to this dynamic within your fanfiction.

To begin with, I am SO glad that the music box was brought up again! When April pushed it aside in the “Bigfoot” episode, I felt so sad for Donnie and was more than a little peeved at April. It was no wonder that Donnie felt like ‘just a mutant’ with the way she was treating him; she pushed aside his heartfelt present, never lets him speak about his feelings with her, and yet continues to lead him on with hugs and kisses instead of actually being clear with her emotions. This is not to say I entirely faulted April, as having two boys crushing on you is never fun and is a situation I’ve had trouble with in the past. But nevertheless, it felt like a breath of fresh air to see the event be brought up and mentioned again between the two of them here. It gave the ship some well-needed groundedness and maturity, so that it could develop beyond just two lovesick teenagers. And oh, how beautifully developed it is! Of course, it begins rather bumpily (April, why d’ya have to take your anger out on Donnie? Him who would never fault you, ever?) with April asking out Casey for dates, keeping it a secret from Donnie, and then trying to get closer with him while not revealing anything to him. But there’s been tons of cute build-up too! The whole ‘evil scientist and best lab assistant’ bit has to be the most adorable love-speak ever, and of course, the silent glances at each other and the secret armor Donnie built is super sweet as well. And there’s no possible way I will ever forget when Future Donnie shook current Donnie to his senses and sent him chasing after April, which resulted in the most romantic scene of all time. Oh yes, it was certainly sappy; but it was a sappiness that felt VERY well-deserved and had been a long time coming. And I’m also really happy that you had Splinter inform and reassure Kirby on all the goings-on; I always feel bad for parents when their children hide things from them within stories, and it was yet another source of relief when Kirby was not only fine with April and Donnie but gave them the go-ahead. I knew he was a good father, but now I’m absolutely certain of it. And that means that April can continue her relationship with Donnie and the others without fearing for her father or focusing solely on college. Not to mention, dating Donnie can only mean good things for a future college career.

Oh yes, and then THAT ABSOLUTE BOMBSHELL in episode—I mean chapter (oh boy you know it’s good when I start calling it an episode!) 35, where April had to watch Donnie get knocked out in front of her. My heart definitely wasn’t shattering into a thousand tiny pieces at that moment (sarcastic tone intended). I’ll get into more detail later when I discuss the pacing, but man, did that scene hit like an oncoming bus.

Of course, I can’t leave out Mikey, the Future Turtles, or the Lotus from my gushing on the characterization! Mikey was at his most hilarious within this fanfic, and I’d even go so far as to say he was handled better within this story than in the usual 2012 episodes. Able to be light-hearted, a prankster, a gamer, and life of the party while still having a certain level of gravity and groundedness goes a long way to show that though Mikey may be the party dude, he has a charm and worth that is so much more than just cracking the odd joke here or there. While Leo and the others were certainly excited to have the Lotus staying with them, it was Mikey who went the extra mile to try and learn as many names as possible. And Mikey is the one who coordinated their family movie night to try and get ‘Karaiwa’ cheerful again. He’s an absolute gem who I want to protect, yet I also know that he is beyond capable of protecting himself.

I’ll admit that the Lotus took a bit of getting used to. When I heard there would be another ninja clan, my impromptu thought was ‘ah yes, the perfect way to insert OC’s’ because that’s usually how I’ve seen it handled within other fanfictions. But it definitely didn’t feel that way here. Though they were all original characters, they only served as big of a part as the plot required and were beneficial to the story’s development, instead of detracting from it. Hachisu-no-Hana served as a great parallel for Splinter, as both are heads of a clan who had been wronged by Shredder, but who took very different responses to said wrong-doing. Wakai wasn’t around long, but he emanated a youthful simplicity that made it hard not to like him, and of course Juro and Atsuko were easy to like as well. In the end I found myself liking the clan quite a bit and was hoping for their well-being just as much as I hoped for Karai’s.

Finally, we have the Future Turtles. It’s a bit harder to speak on their personalities, since they are literally different versions of the same characters within the story, but I think they were sufficiently developed enough to stand out from their current counterparts and show how the passage of time can truly make a difference. Leo has of course become a lot more serious, and along with all the other future characters, his moral compass is more black and white. Either you are on his side, or you are an enemy that deserves death; there is no in-between. This change is devastating to see when compared to how Leo currently is, and I would certainly be interested if you ever decided to do a spin-off fic detailing how the future turtles got to their current states. A lot of details have been divulged already, but like any good reader, that just leaves me wanting even more.

Future Raph and Casey seem to do a lot more laughing and have lot more fun than I would have thought, but it makes sense in the context of their relationship and is yet another great addition to their dynamic. Being in a relationship not only strengthens their bond, but themselves as people. Current Casey definitely can’t be described as sensitive, but Future Casey is not only willing but able to lend April an ear along with some solid advice. And Raph is seen helping Leo out more than arguing with him, which really warmed my heart. After Future Splinter’s death, I can imagine how hard it must have been for the turtles; but especially for Leo, who already had a heavy burden as the team leader, but with Splinter gone, that burden can only have hardened. I’m glad Raph decided to step up somewhat and help support him, instead of escalate their rivalry. It shows maturity and caring on his part, both attributes which I believe Raph already possesses, but doesn’t choose to emphasize.

In contrast, Future Mikey and Donnie seem much more solemn than their current selves. Mikey still has that fun-loving spark, but through his calmer mannerisms and way of speaking it is evident that the future events have tampered him down just as thoroughly as they tampered down his brothers. And while Donnie’s seriousness could be attributed to the important matter at the forefront of their time-traveling visit, I believe there’s more than the fate of his family which keeps him grounded. He’s always been the problem-solver of the group, and his brother’s reliance on him can only have escalated after Splinter’s demise. Plus, he lost the ‘best lab assistant in the world,’ so there has been an additional mental and emotional burden for him to carry. And though you didn’t go into the repercussions for this in too much detail, I imagine it must have been absolutely soul-crushing to see Casey go from dating April to Raph. The thoughts of “April is so great, I would have done everything in my power to make her stay,” “how could he abandon her like that?” “Maybe April feels the same way; maybe she was never into guys” and even “maybe she only dated Casey so she could finally get away from us mutants, and now that she has, she doesn’t care anymore.” I don’t know if he’d actually think like that or not, but I can envision him doing so. It must have caused at least a temporal shift between him and the two lovers and cooping himself up within the lab has obviously become a habit at this point. If he still remains within the lab while brought back to the past while his father is alive, then there’s no stopping it at this point. But hopefully he pulls himself together in a similar fashion that current Donnie did, and fixes his relationship with April. That would certainly be an ideal ending, if not an altogether realistic one.

Alright, now to more boring aspects of the story. First off; Grammar! While this has for the most part been on-point and smooth, there are some small things which could have been better to give the story a better flow. Most of these are nit-picks, because there aren’t many faults within this fanfic, but I think they bear mentioning. There were some misplaced words here and there, like “to” instead of “too” (slightly hypocritical since I KNOW I’ve probably made a similar mistake in this review alone) adjectives which were repeated three or more times in a paragraph, and one particular (and this is the most nit-picky comment of all) word phrase which stuck out and really bugged me, which was ‘portable portal.’ I believe the first time you used it, you had just described how the portal was transferrable, and my first thought was “well, if you wrote a whole section describing it as mobile, why did you describe it as portable again?” And then I saw that phrase repeated more than five times, which just led my OCD brain to go crazy. It might also have more to do with the fact that both words have a “po-“ beginning and an “able” or “al” ending, so it sounds like a repetitive description word, but nevertheless that’s more of a me problem than an overall issue.

Next, there is the plot. I read somewhere that the best plots can be outlined in a sentence and described in ten paragraphs, which I believe definitely applies to this story. While my descriptive powers are not great enough to fully divulge ten paragraphs, I shall do my best to review it properly.

It starts out simple enough; Donnie gets a message from his future self and learns that not only can he communicate with himself past the bonds of space and time, but eventually he can meet his future self without the fear of a time paradox. As Donnie and his brothers prepare to meet their future selves, they meet up with a fellow ninja clan who also has a beef with Shredder, and multiple cases of drama ensue as a result. However, there is so much more than that to pick apart in the plot. There’s action, mystery, romance, secrecy, plus a lot of confusion and mixed feelings which help to add tension and character development. And all the character dialogues don’t seem abrupt, out of place, or like mere exposition; they all blend perfectly together to give the story the feel of a big mixing pot, with multiple themes, characters, and motives blending together to give the story/soup an exquisite taste.

I could be wrong, but I think the main message behind this story is that ‘it is not our actions in the past that define us, but our actions in the present.’ In the very first chapter, we see a lot of characters mingling together who all have argued or slightly resented each other in the past. There’s Splinter and Karai, who used to believe she was Shredder’s daughter and wanted revenge on Hamato Yoshi; Casey and April, the former who used to see Raph as a villain, and then later saw Donnie as a romantic rival; the latter who blamed the turtle’s for her father’s mutation, and avoided them for weeks afterwards; and though it’s more minor, the turtles have all had big arguments with each other in the past. But the fic starts with them all united, sharing ‘Sensei Day’ together and really rallying together as one big family. Yet even though they’d love that moment to last forever, it can’t. There’ll be new hardships, arguments and struggles they’ll have to go through, and sometimes it may seem that the bad outweighs the good, like when Karai leaves the lair to go with the Lotus. But if they don’t keep striving for tomorrow, to make the best of fate while at the same time carving their own destiny, then they’ll never know just how beautiful life can be. This is the message I think Future Donnie learned when he urged current Donnie to run after April, and what all of the Future turtles realized when they learned they could time travel to this point. It may have happened in the past, and it might be too late for their happy ending; but who says they couldn’t help bring a happy ending to other versions of themselves?

And of course, this message is closely intertwined with Splinter, Karai, and Oroku Saki. Shredder chose to follow in the footsteps of his former clan; to carve for himself a path of bloodshed and vengeance, which would dictate all the future choices in his life. Splinter had the choice to follow a similar path, but instead took the path less traveled on; the path of peace. This has opened new options for him, as he gained a new family, obtained happy memories to replace the bad, and got to know many amazing people he wouldn’t have otherwise. Who knows if he would have met April, Kirby, Murasaki, Leatherhead, or Kurtzmann if not for his sons? And while Splinter tries to tell Karai that to choose peace is to choose the higher option, Karai has been raised by the Shredder for too long, and her thoughts are obviously tainted by her false father’s teachings. After all, surely someone who hides away from a fight is the bigger coward…? Surely more honor belongs to the man who seeks out his opponents and does away with them…right?

This is all part of why the Shredder-Splinter-Karai relationship is so compelling. Karai is literally the gray line, separating Splinter’s white and Shredder’s black; she has parts of both of them within her, which makes her choices and actions truly interesting. Someone who is neutral is more relatable than someone who is wholly good or wholly bad, and (at least for me), we want to see what she does because we want to know how we’d react in those same situations. Personally, I can’t fault Karai for a single one of her actions and could see myself making the same mistakes. Even if every part of my rationale told me to trust Splinter, I wouldn’t be able to wholly turn myself away from someone who’d raised me from birth. I’d want to cut off that wrongness, that falseness from my life so I could truly feel free, and that perfectly describes what Karai does. She can’t separate what happened in her past, so she wants to cut it out; even though Splinter and the others don’t care about her past, they just want to help and support her current decisions. I hope Karai comes to realize this by the end of the fic, and that her bond with the others becomes stronger as a result of this whole experience.

For the final tidbit of this review, I’d like to go over the pacing. Like everything else within this fanfic, the pacing has been very smooth and well-handled, with one event following another like dominos falling one after the other. The first chapter starts with a peaceful scene, which leads into a comedic scene in the next chapter, which in turn leads to a romantic scene gone wrong in the third chapter. The progression feels very natural, and the slow as syrup beginning is perfect to help ease the reader into the action. I described the fic as a screenplay earlier, because the events really do take place in a movie-like pace. The tripartite structure has long been lauded as the perfect story system, and that still holds true to this day. Having three big acts which are either followed or preceded by a consecutive list of smaller acts is the perfect way to hype up your big scenes and give them more weight, which your fanfic certainly did.

I promised I would go into a little more detail for Chapter 35 and go into detail I shall. At this point I think you have the three-part structure down so well, that you’re even starting to instill it into your chapters! The first act starts out peacefully, if slightly tear-jerking; the Future turtles say good-bye to Splinter for the last time, and he had some great advice to give the four of them. Once again I found the fanfic hitting close to home with me, as my grandmother has Alzheimer’s and I know any day could be the last day I say bye to her. I swear, your fanfic is going to be one of those I return to over and over again just for the little personal tidbits of emotion it gives me!

Anyways, returning to the topic; the second part of the chapter sees the different groups initiating their plans. Leo, April and Mikey taking the secret passage by the church catacombs, and Donnie, Raph and Casey entering through Baxter Stockman’s lab. Of course, things don’t start out well for either group, as Leo’s group/Team Nerf gets the ceiling caved in on them, and Donnie’s group/Team Roof has some mutated human kids attack them. I was thinking this would be the point the Future Turtles come in to help, but since they don’t I’m sure there’s another aspect to the plan that the Leo’s are looking out for. Perhaps they realize that Karai would have split off from the main Lotus group and want to save some man-power to help her when the time comes.

And then, the third/final act of the chapter comes and gives me a minor heart attack. Three mutants aptly named Lock, Shock and Barrel enter the fray thanks to Rahzar, and don’t only injure most of the main fighters; Barrel knocks out Donnie as well. The turtles, Casey and April barely manage to defeat Barrel before the focus returns to Karai, who places herself straight in Shredder’s den amidst a throng of enemies. While cliffhangers aren’t my favorite things in the world (again; intended sarcasm), I do think it was perfectly timed here. Any more action taking place would just be too much, and at least you ended it in a way that reminded us readers of the important stakes behind their battle. Even though the turtles may be beaten and battered, it is imperative they push on; not just for their sakes, not even just for Karai, but also for the Lotus, Future Turtles, Splinter, and everyone else the Shredder has hurt. While it is true they can’t turn back time and reverse all the evil he has done, they can at least stop his hand right now, and save those that matter most to them. And that is truly the most important cause the turtles could have for their fight.

#@suthnmeh #Ghost of a Chance TMNT fanfic review #super long post #I come back from the dead just to reveal I've become another filthy fanfic reader

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novastarrapter · 4 years ago

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New Skullgirls Muse(s)!

I’ve been wondering if I should commit to posting any more rp more muses here; and have been debating how quickly I wanted to throw in Muses here; as I have a feeling most of my muses will have many verse options. I’ll probably give a little alert here every time I have a new Verse or character uploaded in my Muse section! Though uh...I’ve got a bit of a feeling I will get easily carried away and post far too many ;v;

Note that all information on these characters are subject to change based on whatever is most convenient in a roleplay along with roleplay partner perference! The bonds and origins of this character are the default settings for her and I’m willing to change them in various roleplays based depending on the preference of others!! .O.

Also! Trigger warning as the backstory contains kidnapping, child enslavement, and gore!

Note to self: Update these artwork references

Raziel’s origin

(this section is optional depending on how powerful we wish for Raziel to be in a roleplay)

Raziel was originally a very tiny piece of Venus’s body (as it is stated that Venus’s true body exists beyond the threshold of human comprehension, thus I figured it’s a reasonable ability for Venus to take off tiny parts of her body to create mere scouts), to act as one of the various eyes of the trinity to keep an eye on the world. Her abilities are not nearly as vast as the trinity’s, yet she was gifted with the ability to transfer herself across different dimensions and realities(it was basically a concept of a plot device for others to reasonably reach the trinity for a roleplay I was in), yet after a certain incident; she’s become even more weakened and has forgotten how to use her abilities. She’s gained amnesia after falling from a great height (the exact reason I’ve never really specified how it happened, as I’m leaving it open for various interpretations and concepts of how to expand her character)

This origin is mostly how I’d describe her as having ‘hidden potential’ which makes her parasite so desperately cling onto her and thinks that raising her could allow her to become more powerful with time.

However it is entirely possible that the Trinity can still essentially use her as a remote video camera of sorts; as Venus can likely see whatever Raziel can see given she is a part of her.

Backstory

Raziel’s story starts with her seemingly falling through the sky; whether or not she was launched from a great distance or had some other event that caused her to do so is unknown; but it caused her to fall through the roof of an orphanage, where she was nursed back to health by the ones there.

She stated she had amnesia; presumably from her fall, she said she could only remember her name; Raziel. Because she had no memories of her parents or where she originated from, she stayed with the others in the orphanage.

This is the same orphanage that housed Marie and Patricia; though their relationship depends on roleplay partner preference if they prefer them to be close friends or mere acquaintances. Given the fact the orphanage had plenty of other kids inside of it, I figured it wouldn’t be too far fetched to say she could be one of the kids who resided there.

Raziel wasn’t exactly a very social butterfly; so she didn’t particularly spend a lot of time with others, but she was relatively happy being in the orphanage with everyone there.

That is, of course, until the Medici Mafia found the orphanage of course.

Like all of the other kids there, Raziel was enslaved by the Medicis, being forced into manual labor. She was scarred for life when she witnessed the brutal torture of Patricia. The fact that simple acts of rebellion towards them would result in them mutilating her body so horrifically was enough to make her give in to her own fear, feeling petrified at the mere thought of meeting a fate like Patricia had.

Raziel managed to catch wind of Marie’s escape attempt, yet was too terrified of the consequences to accompany her, and stayed behind. This was something that Raziel forever would feel regret for, as this moment made her realize how much of a coward she truly was for not following Marie in her escape. She never found out if Marie ever managed to escape or not. She could only pray that she did not get caught.

As the days went on, she was one of the few that stood the most in line, thus making her a more favorable slave to them, as they decided to keep her around rather than sell her, keeping her as a servant within the Medici Tower.

As Raziel kept serving the Medici Mafia, she almost felt as if her fear was growing stronger each day, at one point she was beginning to feel as if she was hallucinating as she could have sworn that she could see a black liquid leaking through her body, feeling as if her own shadow had a face smiling back at her, paranoid that there was even voices whispering in her head, getting the strange sensation of something crawling through her veins.

She honestly believed that she was beginning to go mad from the fear and anxiety she was dealing with each day. It caused her work to become less efficient as well, causing her captors to grow less patient with her mistakes.

Raziel wasn’t sure how much more she could handle, until one day she heard the voice speak clearly to her.

It told her that it could grant her the ability to set herself free. If they accepted them, they would allow her to never have to fear anyone again.

Raziel accepted the proposition the voice offered.

Within moments, the crawling in her skin began to intensify, she felt agonizing pain as they felt something attaching itself to Raziel’s body, before suddenly having various black tendrils rip out of her flesh.

There was a face being seen out of one of the tendrils, a face that looked like the ones she saw in her hallucinations. She could also see that the tendrils seemed to be made of a black liquid that seemed capable of transforming into a physical and semi-physical states.

The shadowy tendrils emitting from her body caused carnage to any mafia member that got too close to Raziel as she fled the tower, allowing her to successfully escape from the Medici Mafia.

Once in a more safe location; Raziel managed to soon get some answers from the shadowy demon that was lurking inside of her. He stated that his name was Nightmare. Nightmare was something called a Theon, or as others may more commonly refer to as a Parasite.

Raziel didn’t have any knowledge of what a Parasite was, so she was rightly confused. Whilst Nightmare may have skipped some details about himself, he did promise one thing. So long as he was by her side, nothing could harm her.

Nightmare

I made Nightmare a long time ago; and he’s always been that character that I know has a few oc Taboos such as being an overly edgy character that’s been more of an entity, but..I’ve always had a soft spot for him? So I’ve always kind of reinterpreted him time and time again ^^; I may reuse him for other things but this’ll be describing his skullgirl verse version.

Also I swear he wasn’t made to look like Sampson as I made him before I even saw Fillia or Sampson ^^; I know he has similarities to his design and abilities; though given how little we know about parasites/theons in the skullgirls universe; I feel like it isn’t TOO unreasonable for Parasites to share physical traits by coincidence. Though I have considered playing off this fact of him trying to impersonate Sampson, I figured it’d be easier to play it off as a coincidence for simplicity’s sake

It is entirely possible/optional for Sampson and Leviathan to have heard of him in the past given them being rather old parasites, but it also makes sense given Nightmare’s more secretive methods for them to have never heard of eachother.

Sekhmet is also a potential character that could have met Nightmare in the past; as I think it is possible that they could have had temporary alliances in the past, though I think both of them would be too smart to trust the other as proper friends or teammates given they’d probably know the other wouldn’t hesitate to stab the other in the back.

Abilities

Nightmare’s body is made of a rather bizzare black liquid of some form; yet capable of shifting each bit of it’s slimy form freely, and even capable of hardening itself into a physical or semi-physical shape.

His body is difficult to move without a host however. Even though his body can be split into various pieces, he can still move each part of his detached body remotely; although smaller parts would be slower and less capable; and could not become quite as mobile as his primary ‘body’.

An easy way to describe nightmare’s body would be to refer to the Symbiote from Spiderman; or Ragnarok from Soul Eater in a way.

If he loses more of his mass, he can acquire more mass by feeding on humans. He can either feed on their physical bodies for a more potent effect, or to keep himself stable he can instead just feed simply on either their emotions or parts of their mind.

When attached to a host; he usually lurks within the bloodstream of his Host; with the ‘core’ of his body usually lurking around the host’s brain, where he can leave parts of his body inside of their brain to cause their host to hallucinate.

These hallucinations can allow him to either discreetly communicate with his host, displaying a hallucination of his body to talk to them a bit more properly, or just to cause them to panic (as he finds fear to taste delicious.)

He has a large amount of control over his host’s body, although when he takes control; his hosts usually tend to freak out.

Once he is attached to a host; he is capable of ripping parts of his body out of the host for various attacks, as he is capable of focusing the full potential of his shapeshifting abilities when connected. He can also quickly knit the host’s flesh back together after ripping through it.

However; like all parasites; his host will die whenever he completely disconnects his main core body away from the host.

Backstory

Nightmare is a rather old Parasite; however he will insist to refer to him as a Theon, as he much prefers the title. Nightmare has always been intrigued by the potential of power; and has always grown curious of how great his personal strength could become.

He has lived throughout the years living in the shadows, observing closely the nature of those with much more capable powers than himself, studying the essence of power.

Unlike some of the more merciful Theons; Nightmare rarely felt any sense of bonding towards his hosts. He often referred to mankind as mere livestock, although he always made sure to be cautious to keep his existence secret if possible; as it made his research easier if the world didn’t know about him; preferring if he was left as a myth at best.

He will usually only keep a host around for as long as he deems them useful. Once he deemed a host is no longer suitable for his needs; he will drain their bodies dry; killing them from the inside out before moving onto the next host like a horrific disease.

Throughout the years he’s had more smaller parts of his body scout throughout the world to perform his research; plotting and planning as he wanted to rise in power. Though he hasn’t made as much progress as he would have liked; Nightmare was nothing if not patient.

One day; he had managed to find a human that had a body unlike any other mortal he’s found before. One with an unusual power that was tucked deep inside of her. It was a young child known as Raziel.

Usually he’d rip his way inside of the victim’s body; trying to take the body by force. But the fact her abilities were paranormal; and have not developed yet; he figured this host would need to last longer than any of his other hosts, so he’d have to practice caution not to break her too quickly.

Though with his sadistic nature; he couldn’t help giving her a few teases along the way. Playing with the sanity of mortals was a hobby that has grown into a habit for him; and quite frankly he admired playing with his food.

He even gave her the illusion of choice when he offered to make the connection. He could have connected to her at any moment, but he chose to lead her into a situation where she could not resist saying no to him. Make her believe that the devil was her guardian angel.

Nightmare caused the girl to make mistakes at the most horrific moments, causing her employers to grow less merciful towards her. When she was in her greatest hour of need, that was when he finally spoke to her and made his offer.

Once she accepted, he made the connection official.

Tricking and manipulating the girl was far too easy for him. She was just a stupid prey to him; playing right into his hands.

Tag: #Parasite | Raziel and Nightmare

#rp muse #Skullgirls #OC #Oc bio #Rp #Roleplay #Parasite | Raziel and Nightmare

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introvertguide · 5 years ago

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Nashville (1975); AFI #59

Our current movie is probably the most difficult to categorize or summarize, the Robert Altman satire comedy drama musical known as Nashville (1975). The film was nominated for 5 Academy Awards and 11 Golden Globes, but only won a single trophy at both ceremonies and both were for Best Song (Keith Carradine with “I’m Easy”). The eleven GG nominations was a record, but this was likely because the film had four nominations in the Best Supporting Actress category. This result is somewhat appropriate as the actors really did not get enough time to really stand out except for in their singing, and the academy really did not know what to do with the performances. Same with Best Picture and Best Director (for which the film was also nominated). The artistic merit is there and so is the story, but a lot of it is what director Robert Altman allowed to happen and recognized as beautiful as he went so it is hard to put the movie into standard categories. Not to rule out the competition, the film went up against One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest and Jaws that year so there was not a lot of chance along the awards circuit. Now I am going to summarize, but I am not going to break down much because there is far too much going on in this film with 24 main characters and all the different plots. Even Roger Ebert said he didn’t completely understand the film, but that it was not likely meant to be completely understood. So here is my best effort to at least put this wriggling puppy of a movie into a manageable basket:

SPOILERS??? I THINK...I AM NOT REALLY SURE IF I AM SPOILING, GUESSING, OR MISLEADING, BUT HERE WE GO!!!

The movie is set in the city of Nashville that is prepping for a presidential campaign stop that will be accompanied by a country music festival. In the days leading up to the rally for a new reform nominee, a bunch of country singers come together to perform. These artists are accompanied by their management, a variety of groupies, and a large number of up-and-comers looking to get discovered. In amongst this group are also journalists, politicians, and aids trying to organize the whole event.

The movie begins with a mass of characters all showing up at the airport to meet people or greet the public. Of special note is the return of Barbara Jean (Ronee Blakely), a country singer from Nashville that was in an accident in which she got burned and is still recovering mentally. She is greeted at the airport by a country music staple named Haven Hamilton (Henry Gibson). Barbara Jean promptly goes of script and decides that she is going to go and great all of her fans that are being held in the airport building and she suddenly passes out. In the melee that follows everyone trying to leave the airport at the same time, there is a car accident that causes more interactions amongst the characters.

Another band that showed up at the same time is a folk trio made up of a couple and a guitarist named Tom (Keith Carradine). Tom is a womanizer and sleeps with many of the women who have gathered, including his bandmate, a reporter, a married gospel singer, and a groupie.

Barbara Jean goes to the hospital for heat exhaustion and she is replaced by a girl that seems linked with Haven Hamilton named Connie White (Karen Black) for a performance at the Grand Ole Opry. Also performing is a black country singer who does not seem to get his due respect in Tennessee.

There are a lot more characters and a lot more scenes, but I am not about to try break down every single plot line. Mounting tension amongst everyone in an attempt to gain the spotlight, even for a second, builds up to the day of the country folk festival. The line up has the entire cast together in one place and as the festival starts, Barbara Jean sings and she is suddenly shot by a quiet character in the crowd that is a big fan. The movie ends as a singer steps up to the stage and sings to calm the crowd down, giving her a moment to shine in the tragedy that befell another.

There is quite the mix of genres in this movie because there are definitely set jokes making it a comedy, there is competition and betrayal making it a drama, there is over an hour of singing performances so it is also a musical, and it is set in a parody of the American political system making it a satire. I watched quite a few interviews with Robert Altman to try and get a better idea of his intentions and I am not sure that he knew what the film was beyond a panoramic observation of a Nashville music festival and all the drama and comedy that brought it together. He seems exceptionally elusive when categorizing his film and it seems obvious that he didn’t want that. The film is supposed to be more of an experience than a linear story, which makes the film complicated beyond the simplicity of the music.

Here is where I might get some hate and I kind of don’t care because it is a personal thing. I have not found that I like country or bluegrass music in general so this particular soundtrack did not do a lot for me. I especially did not like that this is amateur hour as many of the actors (some of whom could not sing) did all of their own music. This made some of the music interludes down right painful. If it were not in my watching rules to not skip ahead, I would have taken a good hour off the run time from all of the exceptionally bad numbers. However. In the long run I am glad I stuck to my rules because I heard 3 songs that I love. I will link those 3 first and I will also link the song that won the Oscar:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pm8PwXOHNPs (Dues) This is sung by actress and professional singer Ronee Blakely. It is the character’s first singing appearance after an accident so she is a little shaky. She is singing about a failing relationship and how there is a desire to stay and try to fix things to what they used to be. Very powerful and she truly has a great voice. I really like this song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NToTcTiX66g (Since You’ve Gone) This song is right before the award winner and the chorus is a mesh of voices that all sound in pain but still harmonically satisfying, This is my favorite song in the movie as it brings a trio on stage where the woman is married to one member but having an affair with the other. I really believe that this song should have been the one that won the Oscar if it was going to come from this film.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BYyDusJYJo (It Don’t Worry Me) This was another song that was written by Keith Carridine besides the Oscar winner that was sold to Altman. It is played many times throughout the film, but I think that the best version is when a talented singing character is looking for a break and suddenly is tasked with calming the crowd after the tragedy at the primary. She sings so woefully with a heavy dose pain and ends up sounding like Janis Joplin. A church choir backs her up and it ends the movie in a similar way to how “Let the Sunshine In” ends Hair (lots of repetition with a growing number of voices and variation).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6y47KcuI4Y (I’m Easy) This seems like a point of intersection for most of the characters in the film and Altman said in many interviews that he bought the song from Carradine before the plot of the movie fully existed. It seems like Altman had the start of the movie from notes by his writing partner Carol Tewksbury and the end where all the characters are at the music festival. The song did win the Oscar and Golden Globe for best song for Carridine but the tune doesn’t impress me. It seems more important to the movie plot since four different women in the room think that the song is in reference to them. Fine plot point, but a boring song for me.

So does this film belong on the AFI Top 100? Well, I guess so, but maybe not such a high ranking. It is a slice of Americana set in Nashville featuring a very American style of music during an American election. All the characters were very American in the 70s (except the British one). And it was a pretty good movie with a lot happening and special care to the craft. However, the #59 movie in 1997 was Rebel Without a Cause while Nashville was not on the list at all and then that switched completely in 2007. I liked this better than Ben-Hur so I suppose this movie could be on the list, but Nashville should not replace such an iconic American film as Rebel Without a Cause. Finally, would I recommend it? That really depends on the viewer. The movie is very long and has a lot of very complicated plot threads, some of which go nowhere. I can’t say somebody would like it based on the performance of a specific actor or character because 24 people split up the screen time. Being interested in country music, politics, or the lifestyle of the road musician doesn’t mean you will like this movie either. I would recommend this to those who are interested in film making and story development because the ability to incorporate so many things through shot choice, angles, and overlapping dialogue is pretty phenomenal. I don’t think I will watch it again, but it is probably worth checking out for the experience. I like my movies with a little more plot structure, but that is just me. People in the business would probably love this.

#nashville #robert altman #afi film list #70s #country music #folk music #keith carradine #soundtrack #introvert #introverted

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gloryblooded · 5 years ago

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with a gif of achilles/austin being a major mood ( i mean, who doesn’t want to nap all the time ? ), i hope to catch your attention & say HELLO ! i’m hanna, i’m 22, and i use she/her pronouns! i’m a hufflepuff, a libra, and ISFJ ( what a shocking combo, i know ). anyway, over here i’ll be playing everyone’s favorite disaster hero, achilles, and his new mortal self, austin pelham. i’m so excited for this group and getting to write & plot with all of you.

anyway, below the cut you’ll find some info about both achilles and austin ! it got kinda lengthy ( especially achilles’ part ) + it’s messily written. sdfsfdsdhsfbh im truly sry about that & pls still love us.

ACHILLES.

disclaimer: i’ve utilized several sources to form my portrayal of achilles, namely the iliad and the song of achilles. i have not read the pjo books, but i googled achilles’ role in it & i’ll incorporate that to my characterization to the best of my abilities.

so, achilles. a son of peleus, a king, and thetis, a nereid. boy was destined for greatness long before he was even conceived; great enough that the gods chose to dilute it by giving thetis to a mortal man. despite this, his destiny was to still become the greatest warrior of his generation. thetis, wanting to further protect him, dipped him in the river styx and boom, the powers of almost complete invulnerability ( except that one heel ) were achilles’.

his childhood was actually quite lonely? sure, he had peleus’ orphan boys to keep him company & plenty of admirers, but there was always a certain distance between them, especially he had separate, private lessons. that is until a certain awkward young prince arrived in peleus’ court. achilles was instantly smitten ( a shoutout to that time when he became that ‘g2g chicken’ meme after their first kiss ) and this feeling just became stronger through the years as they studied under chiron’s tutelage at mount pelion.

AND THAT’S IT. NOTHING HAPPENED AFTER THAT. ACHILLES GOT HIS HAPPY ENDING.

just kidding. unfortunately :sob emoji:

tHEN PARIS HAD TO DO HIS THING AND RUIN ACHILLES’ HAPPINESS ( thanks a lot dude ). the war started and, despite the ordeal with thetis where achilles was yeeted to lycodemes’ court & ended up knocking up deidamia, he was off to fight in the trojan war ( with his emotional support philtatos right by his side ).

during his years there, he does his thing. he fights, kills more trojans and their allies than anyone else, is a great leader to his men, and spends his free time with his boyfriend. also i wanted to add that he was not as hostile toward briseis as he was in tsoa. like, ofc they weren’t as close as patrochilles or pat and bri, but he wasn’t as jealous as implied in tsoa.

anyway, now we’re getting closer to that period of time. stuff goes fairly normally, but then aging meninist ( idk how to spell his name & im too lazy to look it up, but u know who i mean ) decides to dishonor him by unlawfully taking briseis from him. and oh boy, do we get to see achilles’ non-chill side. victim-playing & stubborn spite game is strong af. someone tries to reason with him? he becomes that ‘i suddenly can’t read i don’t know’ gif.

anyway, shit turns bad enough that he eventually, although reluctantly, consents to patroclus donning his armor and leading the myrmidons out there. that obvs ends super badly and achilles, true to himself, reacts even worse. he goes ballistic and even fights a river before he finally gets what he wants --- hector dead. after that, he stops caring. he fights, sure, but every single time he wishes his death would come. death eludes him for a while after that, and when it finally arrives & that arrow lodges itself in his heel, achilles vc: finally some good fucking food.

except sike, not ! his bitchass of a son delays the reunion he’s been yearning for. achilles curses him & 100% disowns him because he dared to disrespect his final wish. bUT EVENTUALLY HIS PERSON ARRIVED AND ACHILLES WAS SO !!!!!!!!!!!! BECAUSE ALL WAS FINALLY GOOD. achilles got a good dose of positive character development bc he realizes the error of his ways when he was alive, but most importantly, he never had to part with his one true love.

until the gods got themselves into another mess & dragged other, innocent people with them. smh ( uncle sam and/or the gods better square up when achilles regains his memories bc how dare they interrupt his lovely afterlife with pat!!!! )

AUSTIN.

so, enter the man achilles thinks he now is: austin pelham. his full name is austin alexander pelham-niarchos, but for the sake of simplicity, he goes by austin pelham most days. he is the only child of us army general & greek heiress to a shipping empire. not really a happy marriage, but they wouldn’t divorce either. both adored austin, though, so the boy didn’t pay too much attention to his parents’ marital struggles.

austin’s future was laid out from a young age too. he was to follow in his father’s footsteps and become an army official as well, possibly one of the greatest this nation had ever seen. considering his natural athleticism and gift for commanding crowds, it seemed a feasible future path & austin himself accepted it without complaining.

however, he was a mere kid when all this was told to him, so he couldn’t be too bothered. sure, he excelled in school ( his mother insisted he should only attend the best institutions ), but mostly he enjoyed the perks that came with having been born to a lap of such luxury.

contrary to popular belief, austin had basically no true friends; sycophants and other admirers, yes, but no one he truly bonded with. he wouldn’t have minded finding such person, but they never came along & that was fine with austin. he was independent enough to “survive alone.”

so years have gone by, manhattan’s boy king has graduated from harvard with a degree in history, and it’s time for him to join the army, right? sike, no ! austin’s mother had never been particularly enthusiastic about the idea of her son joining the army & possibly getting killed in action, but this is the first time she has a major argument with her husband about it.

before he could do anything about it, she made her move. she used her connections to get him his movie role and manipulated austin by telling him that if he were to abandon his military plans & pursue a career as an actor, he could achieve more fame than he had ever dreamed of. austin, being a trusting person, had no reason to believe otherwise, so he accepted his mother’s offer and began working as an actor.

and what a rise to stardom it was. after his role, he got more and more offers, most of which were action / war films. austin did not mind being known as an action star; those were his favorite type of movies to film anyway. recently he finished filming what is supposed to be next spring’s ( & year’s ) biggest blockbuster and now relocated back to new york city where he plans to stay for a few months at least.

personality wise, i’d say he is most similar to pre-trojan war achilles ( when he’s at mt. pelion & lycodemes’ court ). he still has that certain brand of innocence to him and fairly easy to manipulate if you know where to strike. however, he has earned a reputation of being somewhat challenging to work with ( he knows what he wants / how he wants something done & isn’t afraid to demand this respect ). this hasn’t tamed the constant flow of work offers, though, because a) he has a way with the crowd, so fans love him, b) money is guaranteed due to his large crowd of followers, and c) he always gets the job done when he sets his mind to it. slightly more prone to making bad decisions, since he doesn’t have his impulse control person. austin is often up for a good time, though, and an evening with him won’t be a boring one.

AND THAT’S ABOUT IT, I THINK ! I DON’T YET HAVE A CONNECTIONS PAGE UP, BUT I’LL START WORKING ON IT ASAP. IF YOU HAVE ANY IDEAS, FEEL FREE TO MSG ME BECAUSE I’M UP FOR P MUCH WHATEVER. I’LL DO MY BEST TO COME UP WITH IDEAS MYSELF & MSG YOU LOVELY PEOPLE! ugh im so excited for this group!!

#ohq:intro

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zonamievents · 7 years ago

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ZoNami Analysis: The Orange Island Arc and First Impressions!

Hello everyone! Welcome to my new series of posts, where I discuss every Zoro and Nami moment to have ever occurred in the entire series of One Piece. Any scene can merely be friendly, but perhaps we can uncover a hint of something more between them as we go through it all? Let’s find out on this journey together!

Also, I am aware that koukihime has done a similar series on her website, zoroxnami.weebly.com. However, I wanted to perform my own analysis of Zoro and Nami’s relationship, so please bear with me if there are any accidental similarities. Thanks!

Today’s topic is how this ENTIRE arc solidifies Zoro and Nami’s relationship moving forward. First impressions are important, and though Oda-sensei likes to play with how we preceive someone vs how they really impact the story in later arcs, the simplicity of the beginning of the series tells us a lot about how these two are meant to be critical players in the Mugiwara crew, and in each other’s lives.

Picking up from where we left off, Zoro has just stepped in to save Nami’s life from Buggy’s crew! Nami is in great disbelief to find that an infamous pirate hunter like Roronoa Zoro is actually the other half of Luffy’s pirate crew.

As she stands there mistified, Buggy questions if Zoro has suddenly appeared to take his head. Though Zoro tells him that isn’t the case, Buggy instigates a fight and in a matter of seconds, it seems as though the pirate captain was taken down instantaneously. Disappointed and confused, Luffy, Zoro and Nami can’t understand why his crew starts laughing after their boss’ defeat, only for Zoro to learn that not only did he underestimate Buggy, but…

Buggy also has a Devil’s Fruit that allows his body to separate at will.

Luffy, Zoro and Nami know they need to escape, but the situation looks rather grim. However, leave it to Zoro - who now has a stab wound in his left side - to flip an entire canon over and aim it at the Buggy pirates!

After the canon shoots, it is Zoro AGAIN with his inhuman strength lifting the cage that Luffy’s stuck in and trying to carry him down off of a rooftop and onto the ground! Nami is just in awe as she follows them, and though she apparently knows the name ‘Zoro’, it seems she is unaware of just how powerful he truly is.

Nami starts to lose her wonderment when Luffy later picks a fight with ShuShu the dog. But she still brings Luffy the key to the cage so he can get himself free. Defeated for the moment, Zoro sleeps off his injury while Luffy gets himself into even more trouble! Zoro is woken up when Buggy fires another one of his Buggy Balls at the building, and somehow survives the impact so he can join the fight once again!

As the story progresses and the two crews face off - with Nami finally agreeing to ‘cooperate’ with the Straw Hats - Buggy faces off against Luffy, and Cabaji challenges Zoro. At one point in their battle, Cabaji intentionally aims for Zoro’s wound from earlier, and Nami calls him out for such a cheap trick.

And she calls him out on it again, but the third time Cabaji tries to attack his wound, Zoro not only blocks him, he decides to make that particular injury seem a little less interesting…

...by cutting himself! It disturbs even Luffy that he does this, but the tactic works and Cabaji is now focused on the overall fight rather than targeting Zoro’s obvious weakness. Of course, this only makes Nami worry about him more.

Nami leaves the scene shortly after that to go and get the map of the Grand Line that was most likely lost in the explosion. She sneaks off and promises to join up with Luffy and Zoro again if they manage to survive. However, the fight ends up being so engaging that she watches it from the distance before achieving her goal!

After avoiding an enraged Buggy when she steals his treasure - and after Luffy’s inevitable victory against Buggy - Nami groups up with Luffy and the sleeping Zoro and as he wakes up, Zoro says he doesn’t think he can walk. To which Nami replies…

And that’s the major highlight, or theme, of this arc: Luffy and Zoro are meant to show off how powerful they are together, and just how otherworldly their strength can be. Even though this is a Zoro and Nami-centric post, I just want to point out that everything mentioned above happens in order and nothing plot-centric is skipped over. A great deal of Nami’s impression of this crew revolves around her reactions to Zoro’s heroism and just how brutal he can.

But what does this mean for ZoNa?

Why summarize this entire arc and say that it’s worthy of more love from the ZoNa community?

What does the Orange Town story really highlight for us ZoNa fans!?

It shows us that this is where Nami realizes how integral Zoro is to not only the crew, but her survival too. It isn’t meant to impress us as the reader because we’ve already met Zoro - this entire meeting is meant to wow Nami into feeling safe with them.

Before she became a Straw Hat, Nami traveled the seas alone. Why bother getting any sort of outsider involved in her village’s problems? Her willingness to join the crew wasn’t simply because of her dream, but it was because she knew that she needed them to stay alive if it meant she ever encountered someone like Buggy again. Remember, Nami explicitly states in this arc that she thought Devil’s Fruits were nothing more than a myth that pirates tell themselves. For her to see both Buggy and Luffy in action in the East Blue - which she knows is statistically the weakest of all four - means that Nami needs some strong partners in crime if she plans to finish her mission of saving Cocoyashi.

Given her methodical nature, it’s only logical to tag along with such irrefutably strong men to guarantee success. And that’s the perfect way to highlight yet another ‘opposites attract’ aspect of the ZoNa relationship!

The Left Brain vs The Right Brain.

It’s a concept most of us are familiar with: each half of your brain specializes in a specific area of your personality. If you’re more instinctive than strategic, you’re Right Brain is probably your dominate half. If you prefer to plan out your day rather than letting events unfold as they will, than you’re a Left Brain thinker. At first glance, some would call Nami emotional and spastic, but us fans of the character can agree that she is one of the most intelligent and well thought out members of the Straw Hat crew.

Zoro, on the other hand, is a reactionary character. Where Nami would try to concoct a solution, Zoro would prefer to make his own based off of what he feels is best. Though a stone-cold type of character, even his choices in battle come from training that taught him how to hone his instincts in order to guide his body to dodge attacks and execute strikes successfully.

Now, why does this matter?

Because neither one of them is solidly using only one side of their brain.

Together, Zoro and Nami create a proper middle ground - known as the Wise Mind in the example image above - that create a viability for each other. Where one lacks, the other exceeds expectations. Both are impressive characters, but what we get from this arc is the root of Zoro and Nami that truly show the significance they bring out in one another based off of their mere functionality.

In the very first post of this series, I talked about how Nami was the navigator and Zoro works as a protector; this first introduction they have clearly provides the foundation for Nami’s perception of Zoro as the person she ends up relying on the most from here on out. Essentially, their relationship works itself into a very popular theme: the Beauty and the Beast.

If you look at Belle from the Disney version of the tale, she is smart, well-read and cunning. She knows when it’s time to run away and when she needs to step up to the plate, to risk her life for either her father or for the Beast himself. She yearns to have more than the life she leads and it causes her to seek adventures beyond herself. Though her wits can get her into trouble sometimes - and even put her at odds with the Beast - she manages to to prove herself as a worthy partner to stand next to the Beast.

On the other hand, we can look at the Beast himself. He’s very stern, off-putting at times, despite the kind-hearted individual inside. Though others may comment on his brash personality, the Beast stays true to himself but starts to warm up to the idea of having Belle around. The Beast even saves Belle more than once and her respect for him grows when she sees how selfless he can truly be. He isn’t the easiest characters to love in his own story, despite being a clear protagonist. He always has his own goal in the back of his mind and thinks about how it involves the lives of those around him. He’s also the first to tell you he isn’t ‘a fool’.

There is a fantastic, oldie but goodie fanfic written by SF Kitty called “Beauty and the Beast: One Piece Style” from 2006 that shows how fans of ZoNa have picked up on the notion that there are evident ties to this Disney couple, and for good reason! It’s a popular concept that has worked out for many other fictional couples, because each couple acts as the other half to their partner - like the Left Brain meeting the Right Brain to make a Wise Minded couple! And though this arc is summarized simply in this post, I believe that the intention of this story allowed for Zoro to show off his beastly attributes to a rather shell-shocked Nami, just like the Beast does when he saves Belle from the wolves in the Disney adaption of the tale.

Mind you, Nami isn’t as smooth as Belle when she comes back to help Zoro and Luffy, but the similarity exists and that’s good enough for me!

#zonami analysis #zona #zonami #swordgust #beauty and the beast #maiden here

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hereticaloracles · 7 years ago

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Asteroid Files: Ophelia

Helios on Ophelia– Tragedy! Ennui! Drama! This week’s Asteroid has it all!

The Astronomy– 171 Ophelia is a large, dark Themistian asteroid that was discovered by French astronomer Alphonse Borrelly on January 13, 1877. This asteroid is a member of the Themis family of asteroids that share similar orbital elements. It probably has a primitive composition, similar to that of the carbonaceous chondrite meteorites.

A 1979 study of the Algol-like light curve produced by this asteroid concluded that it was possible to model the brightness variation by assuming a binary system with a circular orbit, a period of 13.146 hours, and an inclination of 15° to the line of sight from the Earth. Photometric observations of this asteroid at the Leura Observatory in Leura, Australia during 2006 gave a rotation period of 6.6666 ± 0.0002 hours and a brightness variation of 0.50 ± 0.02 in magnitude. This is in agreement with previous studies. Ophelia is also the name of a moon of Uranus.

The Story– Ophelia is a character in William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet. She is a young noblewoman of Denmark, the daughter of Polonius, sister of Laertes, and potential wife of Prince Hamlet. She is one of only two female characters in the play. Of all the pivotal characters in Hamlet, Ophelia is the most static and one-dimensional. She has the potential to become a tragic heroine (to overcome the adversities inflicted upon her) but she instead crumbles into insanity, becoming merely tragic. It appears that Ophelia herself is not as important as her representation of the dual nature of women in the play. The extent to which Hamlet feels betrayed by Gertrude is far more apparent because of Ophelia’s presence. Hamlet’s feelings of rage against his mother can be directed toward Ophelia, who is, in his estimation, hiding her base nature behind a guise of impeccability.

Through Ophelia we witness Hamlet’s evolution, or de-evolution into a man convinced that all women are whores; that the women who seem most pure are inside black with corruption and sexual desire- And if women are harlots, then they must have their procurers. Gertrude has been made a whore by Claudius, and Ophelia has been made a whore by her father. In Act II, Polonius makes arrangements to use the alluring Ophelia to discover why Hamlet is behaving so curiously. Hamlet is not in the room but it seems obvious from the following lines that he has overheard Polonius trying to use his daughter’s charms to suit his underhanded purposes. In Hamlet’s distraught mind, there is no gray area: Polonius prostitutes his daughter. And Hamlet tells Polonius so to his face, labeling him a “fishmonger” (despite the fact that Polonius cannot decipher the meaning behind Hamlet’s words).

To the rest of us, Ophelia represents something very different. To outside observers, Ophelia is the epitome of goodness. Like Gertrude, young Ophelia is childlike and naive. But unlike Queen Gertrude, Ophelia has good reason to be unaware of the harsh realities of life. She is very young and has lost her mother, possibly at birth. Her father, Polonius, and brother, Laertes, love Ophelia tremendously and have taken great pains to shelter her. She is not involved with matters of state; she spends her days engaged in needlepoint and flower gathering. She returns the love shown to her by Polonius and Laertes tenfold, and couples it with complete and unwavering loyalty. Even though her love for Hamlet is strong, she obeys her father when he tells her not to see Hamlet again or accept any letters that Hamlet writes. Her heart is pure, and when she does do something dishonest, such as tell Hamlet that her father has gone home when he is really behind the curtain, it is out of genuine fear. Ophelia clings to the memory of Hamlet treating her with respect and tenderness, and she defends him and loves him to the very end despite his brutality. She is incapable of defending herself, but through her timid responses we see clearly her intense suffering:

Hamlet: …I did love you once. Ophelia: Indeed, my, lord, you made me believe so. Hamlet: You should not have believed me…I loved you not. Ophelia: I was the more deceived.

Her frailty and innocence work against her as she cannot cope with the unfolding of one traumatic event after another. Ophelia’s darling Hamlet causes all her emotional pain throughout the play, and when his hate is responsible for her father’s death, she has endured all that she is capable of enduring and goes insane. But even in her insanity, she symbolizes, to everyone but Hamlet, incorruption, and virtue. “In her wanderings, we hear from time to time an undertone of the deepest sorrow, but never the agonized cry of fear or horror which makes madness dreadful or shocking. And the picture of her death, if our eyes grow dim in watching it, is still purely beautiful”. (Bradley, Shakespearean Tragedy 132-3). The bawdy songs that she sings in front of Laertes, Gertrude, and Claudius are somber reminders that the corrupt world has taken its toll on the pure Ophelia. They show us that only in her insanity does she live up to Hamlet’s false perception of her as a lascivious woman.

Why She Matters– Okay, so Ophelia is complex in her simplicity. First off, she lacks a strong female figure to look out for her and keep her safe, so she is left to the devices of her father and brother. They are men of their time, and while I think that they did truly love Ophelia, they see her as a means to an end (to manipulate Hamlet) and as less than them as she is only a woman. Keep in mind, this is of a different age than us entirely, so don’t @ me in the comments saying that I’m a misogynist cuck and hate women or something- I’m only saying that you view this in that perspective.

Ophelia is naive, and she gets used by everyone she loves because of it. She lives and extremely isolated and lonely life, and falls in love with essentially the first man that she meets outside of her family. She is not wise to the way the world works, and that other people don’t always act from a place of altruism. She then reads too much into the erratic behavior of an emotionally unavailable man who is sliding headfirst into insanity due to circumstances outside of his control. She goes all in on him and tries to save him from himself, but it is just too much for her to handle. She loses herself and is not experienced or mature enough to save herself and come back from that cliff edge. Her final fate is tragic, but at the end of the day we need to view her as a cautionary tale and not a love story.

Ophelia in the chart represents a point of extreme drama, where you tend to see what you want in a relationship partner; overlooking their flaws (and possibly their direct rejection of you) while seeing only the positive and the potential for a true partnership with the person. It can also be an attraction to the damaged type of person, thinking that you can save them with your love. This undoubtedly ends poorly for all involved, as those people usually are not ready or in a position to be saved. Ophelia can also manifest as an area of your life (defined by house placement) that is dominated by patriarchal concerns and leaving you with limited or no options or choice. Ophelia is far more active in transit than in the natal, as you get swept up in chaotic attractions that shake up your life rather than in the natal where it is a sensitivity or predilection.

The type of person that this asteroid tends to attract is the narcissistic, manipulative sociopath, regardless of gender. You will try to help them and try to love them, but it is a toxic love for the Ophelia native. No matter the intentions of those involved, it always degrades. What happens is the Ophelia native feels manipulated and used, and tries to find a way to plot and work around their manipulation, ending up doing just as much manipulation as the narcissist- but maintaining the victim role. The issue is that neither person sees how their actions are hurting the other, and the blindness (willful or otherwise) can just be so damaging. The worst part is, it can be so easy to just stay in this pattern, and not move on from it- living with it instead of breaking out. You steep in that negativity, and it taints your soul. You end up becoming numb to yourself, your emotions, and the world at large.

To find out where she shows up in your chart, go to astro.com, put in your birth details and click on “extended options” on the next page. All the way at the bottom, there will be a menu of additional objects. Under that is a blank space where you can enter the number 171 for Ophelia. Once you have it entered, generate the chart! Where does Ophelia affect your life? Let us know in the comments below!

Analysis of Ophelia courtesy of Mabillard, Amanda. Ophelia. Shakespeare Online. 20 Aug. 2000. <http://www.shakespeare-online.com/plays/hamlet/opheliacharacter.html>.

Asteroid Files: Ophelia was originally published on Heretical Oracles

#astrology #tarot #asteroid astrology #fuckstrology #bruja #brujeria

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mllemaenad · 8 years ago

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Personally... I feel that WEaWH tries to remove itself from TME because it realizes that TME is fucking irredeemable garbage, and tries to make its WLW representation less appalling. So I'm entirely willing to overlook continuity errors for the sake of one relationship between women in the entire series that can go well.

I’m sorry, but I don’t believe that. I’m not going to argue with you on the merits of The Masked Empire, as you’re entitled to like or dislike any media you choose, but I don’t think Bioware is trying to distance itself from the novel. I also don’t think their motive is positive representation, or that they’re seriously suggesting a happy ending. However, even if they were I would call the choice to reunite Celene and Briala without any serious examination of the issues that drove them apart … disquieting.

1) On distancing themselves from the novel.

To begin with the obvious, several of the Dragon Age novels provide not only context for the quests in Inquisition, but also promotional material maintaining audience interest between games.

It’s hardly an accident that Asunder is a prequel to In Hushed Whispers/Champions of the Just, The Masked Empire is a prequel to Wicked Eyes and Wicked Hearts (as well as giving you a roundabout introduction to Solas) and Last Flight provides you with some context on why Weisshaupt is just no help at all during Here Lies the Abyss.

They do kind of want you to buy all their stuff. And if you started with Inquisition and liked what you saw, they want you to run back and buy all the earlier stuff for context. Video game tie-in novels aren’t generally considered high art, so they’d need serious reasons to want to reject the novel as part of their canon. Just in case, I checked The Masked Empire’s Amazon page, and it’s currently got 4.4 stars – so it doesn’t look like something they’d be particularly desperate to ignore. They’d rather you bought it and gave them money.

To move more to the specific, the game references the novel constantly. In addition to devoting a whole main quest to resolving its plot, it also includes cameos from Mihris, Michel and Imshael, which really serve no other purpose than to provide a bit of closure to the people who read the novel and wondered what became of them. This is actually more than it provides for, say, the characters of Asunder: Rhys and Evangeline appear only in a war table mission, Adrian doesn’t appear at all – and who knows where Shale has wandered off to.

It also references the murder of Briala’s parents directly:

Cole: She’s still behind the curtains in the reading room, watching the blood pool on the floor.

Briala pulled the red velvet curtain aside. Her hands shook as she did. There was a pool of red on the floor of the reading room, staining the rich Nevarran carpet. It had spread almost to the curtain.

At the other end of the pool were Briala’s parents.

– The Masked Empire

If they really wanted to distance themselves from The Masked Empire, they wouldn’t put that in there. If they wanted to say that that this didn’t happen, they’d have retconned the story – or at the very least not mentioned it.

In fact, the choice of words is particularly distressing. Cole senses pain. When he says Briala is ‘still behind the curtains’ he’s emphasising that the trauma and anguish are still very much with her, making a reconciliation, particularly a reconciliation that utterly fails to address a thing that they have confirmed happened, even stranger.

I would say that one motive for their choice to reconcile the two characters is simplicity. I like parts of Inquisition, but honestly it’s over ambitious. They set up a series of continent-wide catastrophes, each one intensely political: the mage rebellion, the Orlesian civil war, the collapse of the Chantry.

Each one probably requires its own game for a satisfactory solution. I realise they were probably going for something similar to the galaxy-wide political collapse in Mass Effect 3, but the Dragon Age games are at a serious disadvantage because they lack continuity of characters.

Mass Effect 3 had its own problems, of course, but for example – I think most people have fun curing the genophage for the krogan. But what they remember is Mordin Solus and ‘There’s a reaper in my way, Wrex!’ When it worked it was able to build on characters who were present across the series.

Inquisition is faced with trying to find resolutions for groups of people that have no direct connection to each other, and whom the protagonist has never seen before (even if they player has). This is hardly the only time their attempt to fix everything in a single quest ends up making no sense.

2) On positive representation

I’m afraid I don’t think what we get in Wicked Eyes and Wicked Hearts is especially positive. I think it’s … kind of infantilising, really, and has a whiff of sexism about it. I mean – again, I’m not asking you to like The Masked Empire. But this:

“It would have been a locked suite in the palace for a few years, nothing more!” Celene kept her voice low, aware that Michel and Felassan had stopped planning and were looking their way. “It would have changed nothing for us.”

“Your hair still stinks of the smoke from the people you burned,” Briala said. “That is a change.”

The dead leaves crackled under Celene’s feet as she stepped forward. “How many wars can our empire survive in such a short time? I wanted my legacy to be the university, the beauty and culture that made us the envy of the world. Instead I may be known as the empress under whom Orlais fell. You have the luxury of mourning Halamshiral’s elves and holding my heart hostage. Sitting on my throne, I see every city in the empire. If I must burn one to save the rest, I will weep, but I will light the torch.”

Briala swallowed. “You’re not weeping, as far as I can tell. Nor are you sitting on your throne. She stepped away, her movements fast and jerky. “With your permission, Your Radiance, I shall go indulge myself in my luxury.”

– The Masked Empire

… is at least an argument between adults, with the details of what they believe laid out. Celene honestly believes that the empire and her legacy are worth 'a few thousand elven lives’: she believes that maintaining the strength of Orlais is worth thousands of lives in sacrifice, as is the vision she has for the country’s future. Briala is facing up to the fact that this is the bargain she’s made: stay with Celene and she might see an elven scholar graduate from the university – but she’ll likely also see elves burn every time there’s a crisis, because elves are the most expendable people in the empire.

Briala wavers throughout the novel, obviously, because there is genuine feeling between herself and Celene. But the discovery that this has all happened before, that this is not the first time Celene has shed elven blood to impress her rivals and gain power, and that her own parents were among the victims, brings her to a decision.

You don’t have to like it, but these women are serious about what they want and believe.

But in Wicked Eyes and Wicked Hearts we get stuff like this:

Sera: Elves-elves-elves, but it’s really a pissing match with an old lover. Don’t know the rest but that explains a lot.

It’s hardly coincidental that they chose Sera to say this. Sera the commoner, who despises the nobility. Sera the Red Jenny, with contacts in every corner of Thedas. True, Sera’s background has led her to reject a lot of elven culture, but her biggest objection is usually to ‘moping’ about the past. This:

Briala thought for a moment. “Celene and Gaspard saw an army, but that would be fighting their fight. With the paths, I could get food to alienages where elves would otherwise starve. They would let me move ahead of an oncoming army and warn the target, or move behind them and attack their supply lines.”

– The Masked Empire

… sounds more like the practical stuff she favours: she’s said getting revenge would be a preferable option, and this is getting food to the poor, terrorising the nobility and giving little people a shot at being part of something bigger. But now we can’t take it seriously, because Sera has reduced it to a lovers’ tiff.

That isn’t meant as a criticism of Sera, to be clear. They do this when they want a mouthpiece. This is the equivalent of having Cole approve of Cullen.

And as for it going well, this is their epilogue slide:

Where once war raged, there is now a shaky peace. Orlais is resurgent, the empress a patron of arts and culture.

Many attribute this recovery to her lady love, though others wonder how long their reunion will truly last.

– Epilogue (Inquisition)

I mean – maybe they’ll forget about this. They have been known to forget their epilogue slides. But it doesn’t read as though the intent was to write a strong and loving partnership. Rather it looks as though they are selling the relationship as tempestuous.

That’s one place where I am very uncomfortable. This is the revolt of an oppressed people, and the politics an empire. And there’s a sense that they’re saying ‘Oh, those women and their emotions! Today they love each other; tomorrow they’ll hate each other; the day after they’ll probably love each other again. You never know, with women.’

I appreciate that Bioware is fairly progressive, for a game company: the character choices, the romance options, the NPCs – they are trying to represent a variety of races, genders and sexualities. But it doesn’t mean they never fuck up. I mean, there’s a bit in Mark of the Assassin where Isabela tells Hawke that Gamlen has been sexually harassing her and two responses blame her (You find something inappropriate?/Break him. And wear pants.).

Given that they are already struggling to resolve a massive plotline in a ridiculous amount of time, I’m not surprised they fell back on this. It’s narrative shorthand, and that can be handy for desperate situations. But it’s still sexist shorthand, and I very much wish they hadn’t done it.

3) Removing The Masked Empire from the equation doesn’t solve the problem

I mean, it makes some of the bigger issues like Briala’s dead parents a little easier to miss, sure, but it doesn’t make the problems go away.

I appreciate that representation is important. I do. But romantic relationships between women are not the only representation issue at stake, here. There’s no single source for the elven people, of course, but it’s easy enough to see that Bioware has borrowed from the experiences of Jewish, Romani and aboriginal peoples living under empires and/or colonialism.

And have we ever established that it is shit to be an elf. The city elf origin story in Origins is an abduction/rape/murder combo. The Dalish clans in Origins and DA2 can be slaughtered. It’s terrifyingly easy to kill off clan Lavellan in war table missions, and even though this is the protagonist’s family the game doesn’t make a thing of it. There’s a whole side quest in DA2 about a serial killer who targets elves, and who keeps getting away with it because no one gives a shit. We are up to our eyeballs in codex entries on the treatment of elves.

And here we have Briala, the leader of a rebellion in Orlais – one of the nations best known for oppressing the fuck out of the elves and trying to destroy their culture.

Even without The Masked Empire this is:

a) providing only the most minimal description of the nature of her rebellion and what she hopes to achieve.

b)allowing her to be dismissed as primarily involved in a lovers’ tiff.

c) pairing her with a woman the game actually says massacred the Halamshiral elves.

d) using the massacre as evidence against her because she was sleeping with Celene, rather than as evidence against the woman who actually committed it.

That’s … all pretty shitty, even at the simplest level. The game doesn’t address any of this. It doesn’t even force the characters to discuss what happened before throwing them back together. It spends as much time tsking at Briala for destabilising Orlais as it does Celene and Gaspard. It loves the idea that they’re all as bad as each other – which allows the player to justify just about any ending.

And this is a thing they do repeatedly: they tsk at the mage rebellion as well. They seem to be very good at describing the sufferings of the elves, the mages, the casteless dwarves … but don’t approve of them actually doing anything about their oppression. At least not anything more forceful than writing a stern letter of complaint (for those lucky literate characters!) to the local lord or revered mother.

And so minimising the problems of Celene and Briala’s relationship, and waving a locket around (which, even out of context, does not seem like a forceful enough declaration of love to startle Briala) does … not strike me as very respectful of peoples who have suffered under empires, and who have had to fight tooth and nail for every sliver of justice.

It’s not that I want to exclude a healthy, positive romance between two women in order to have Awesome Revolutionary Briala. I just don’t understand why we couldn’t have both.

Couldn’t Briala show up with a new girlfriend? Do it properly: give her a codex entry and make her active and important in the quest. Show the two of them both being affectionate and working together for the cause. Make sure that at least some of the possible quest endings leave them alive, together and continuing to better the lot of the elves.

I can understand that you may not like The Masked Empire and may want to exclude it from your personal headcanon. That’s absolutely fine, obviously. But I do not believe that was Bioware’s intent in writing the the Briala-and-Celene reconciliation, and I still have serious issues with it.

#Anonymous #dragon age #dai #briala #empress celene #celene critical

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eagle-eyez · 4 years ago

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In BioWare's Mass Effect, you play an alpha solider, well-known in military circles across the galaxy for “what you did in _____” [(you get to) fill in the blank with some vague heroic undertaking]. Beyond that, the accolades involve being the person with the lowest stamina in the world and someone who never quite got around to figuring out the concept of jumping.

Now, not the only fate of billions of lives rests on your shoulders, but you also gotta show them no-good alien species why humans are the undisputed No 1 anywhere and everywhere, forever and ever. Nobody puts baby in the corner.

Starting out with the franchise today, some 14 years after the release of the first game, can be a bit of a jarring experience. While certainly a polished and optimised, the age shows in almost every aspect of the game. Does that mean one should navigate to avoid the pull of this franchise in 2021? Let's find out.

The remastered trilogy (yeah, we don’t talk about you-know-which-one), released last month, seemed to be targeted primarily at the fans of old, as a chance to re-live the experience on the new generation of machines, with better graphics/gameplay. And fans of the series, there are many. But the Legendary Edition (as the re-release is called), also offers a chance to players unfamiliar with the franchise (believe it or not, they do exist) to jump into the shoes of the protagonist, the above-mentioned elite and entirely clueless human soldier Commander Shepard, for some space exploration and alien butt-kicking.

Considered by some to be one of the greatest of all time, the influential action role-playing video game today comes, like few others of similar stature, with a disclaimer: You'd better like it.

And there is indeed much to like, and love. But all that glitters is certainly not gold here. For first-timers like yours truly, while it throws in some unexpectedly delightful surprises, it does come across like a game that perhaps hasn’t aged all too gracefully.

Before we get further, a side note: Just so we’re on the same page, the game being discussed here is the first in the series, simply called, Mass Effect; and not the entire Mass Effect trilogy.

It would do well to bear in mind that the game is a remaster, and not a remake. So while the graphics are upgraded and some mechanics improved upon, the core gameplay remains the same. For example, the combat, which is a big part of the game, is as basic as it gets. Take cover, point and shoot. (When in crouched cover, moving sideways remains a sight to behold.) You do get to choose two squad mates (from a roster of six) to assist you during each mission (more on them in a bit), but there is little depth to it. Meanwhile, the Mako, a somewhat futuristic-looking tank-like vehicle in which you spend way too much time, drives like a broken supermarket trolley on an oil spill.

But what about the story, the storytelling, the characters and all that good stuff?

Well, here is where things get interesting.

Spanning a galaxy, the scope of the tale told is vast; but like much else in the game, it revolves around conflict and acts of violence. Fighting is more often than not the ultimate, approaching virtuous, means to a goal. While it is a reasonable argument that in the game’s universe, the aggression of the enemy needs to be met with equal force, whenever it does come up, diplomacy is almost looked down upon, something to trick oneself out of. Although fantastical in its plot and world, the game is plain in its imitation of life, whether it's the portrayal of racism, the tussle for power among classes or the forever wars. One wonders then if the core story could have been elevated with a bit more ambition and tact.

Like the combat, how the said story is told also feels outdated by today’s standards. While on one hand you start off playing with a character of considerable renown, having seen and done far more than any of your average Joe; at the same time you seem to have no knowledge of even the most basic things and happenings in the world around you. Living under a rock would be a grave understatement. Subsequently, the way exposition works here is by means of you bluntly asking other characters questions on par with if water is wet. The resulting effect is humorous at best, bewildering more often. (Tip: Going through the codex a couple of times makes the whole experience much better.)

But where the game excels, even by today’s standards, is the fabulous voice acting, carried by an incredible cast. It’s difficult to stress upon how much the voices lend weight to bringing the various characters to life. Apart from the numerous personalities you run into across the galaxy, you are surrounded by a core team of seven (six squad mates and the pilot of your spaceship, the Normandy), each with a reasonably rounded backstory (although many of them just happen to latch on to you — more or less swearing their lives and alliances — within moments of meeting you for the first time, so there’s that). After each mission, you can interact with the said characters who confide in you more and more as the game progresses, providing much grounding to your expansive, action-oriented space opera. Weirdly enough, while the voice acting is aces, the overall sound mixing is somewhat all over the place. At times a character will be barely audible (looking at you, Kaiden Alenko), while certain instances trigger speaker-splitting sounds (the ear-splitting Mass Relays were only fixed in the latest patch).

As mentioned earlier, there are times when the story does leave you in awe. But it’s not the big set pieces or action sequences (some of which are pretty absorbing as well), rather what the game leaves to your imagination. Moments like when one of your squad mates, Tali'Zorah, describes her home, the Flotilla (or the Migrant Fleet), a massive collection of starships that became home to her species and how life is like there. Or when Ashley Williams (another of your squad mates) talks about her family, giving a glimpse onto her life and childhood. Or when the leader of a small settlement on Feros, a planet of ancient crumbling skyscrapers, talks about finding tranquillity amid the ruins, making you see the surrounding in a new light. That the mission ends in a rather (un)expected manner isn't the point here.

These are the moments that make you take a step back and truly appreciate the world-building and story potential of the game. And stay with you long after you’re done ticking-off your mission objectives and overcoming dramatic odds.

By the time you finish the game, it is hard not to argue that beyond its janky mechanics and at times questionable themes, Mass Effect has a heart. Although I believe that arguments on the lines of whether the game would have been such a success if it was released today to be rather futile, it does merit to ask if the game is worth diving into for the first time in 2021.

In pure technical terms, no one would be surprised to know that the game does not match up to the contemporary standards. Gaming as a whole has grown leaps and bounds in the last decade and half since Shepard became a household name in the community. Playing Mass Effect today on the back of any current AAA games is almost a sensory shock. But the simplicity of the mechanics also help make it more navigable if you're in just for the story, and would like to move on to the next offering of the franchise.

So, while the remaster does not quite live up to the years of hype behind the game, it does manage to offer a glimpse into what the best version of this world could be. And perhaps most importantly, it lets the mind wander into the possibilities of what stories and secrets may lie across corners of the galaxy, beyond conflict.

Game played on PlayStation 4 Pro. Review code provided by publisher.

source https://www.firstpost.com/tech/gaming/mass-effect-legendary-edition-stray-thoughts-conflicts-and-whats-left-in-the-imagination-9717641.html

#Technology

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akhan12storyboarding-blog · 7 years ago

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Film Analysis Presentation

I will be discussing a scene from the film Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989) directed by Hayao Miyazaki. The film features a young witch and her talking cat. The viewer follows the witch, namely Kiki, into a bustling city where she must train for a year in order to explore and develop her skills as a budding witch. Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989) brings forth to the viewer themes of self exploration, growth, learning, flowering relationships, isolation and responsibility, all of which are presented in an endearing style that is both realistic and fantastical at the same time.

I will be analyzing the scene where Kiki flies for the time after a period of depression, unsurety and inactivity. The city and its people are in a panicked state because a blimp has crashed through the air, leaving a boy hanging for his dear life. The boy, namely Tombo, is Kiki’s close friend. In order to save him, Kiki must revive her magic and fly.

The film itself is animated using 2D animation. The characters and figures are simple in nature, and the colors are blocked in flat. The style is remnant of typical japanese animation in terms of simplicity of facial features and the overlapping similarity of these said features amongst the characters. Although the characters are cartoon-like in this way, sprinklings of realism are prevalent in the movement, props and backgrounds. These realistic elements really bring the animation to life, making the world and characters more relatable and believable. Features such as hats seen through shop windows and the meticulously detailed and varied landscapes and buildings allow the viewers to truly place themselves in this imagined space. This realism can be attributed to the fact that the fictional city is most likely based on Stockholm, Sweden, which is the first foreign country Hayao Miyazaki every visited. By making the style both realistic and cartoon-like, Miyazaki is able to immerse the viewer in a world that is both relatable and romanticized. In a similar way, recognizable accessories such as Kiki’s bow or Tombo’s glasses and shirt make the characters singular and easy to remember. Unlike the colors of the characters in the foreground, the backgrounds seem more traditionally painted and shaded. The contrast between simple foreground characters and detailed backgrounds allows the viewer to focus on what is important in the scene, and thus makes for the smooth relaying of information.

The sound design for this scene is astoundingly effective in many ways. One of the first things that I noticed about this scene was the use of contrast between sounds. This contrast is present between both soft and loud sounds, and high pitched and low pitched sounds. One such example can be seen when Kiki gets on her new broom for the first time. Everything seems to go immediately silent. She starts to shake as she concentrates on her task ahead. Suddenly, the bristles on the ends of her broom stick out, making a loud bursting sound as they do so. Not only does this sound shock the viewer due to its sudden nature, it seems even louder than it actually is due to the silence that came before it. In a similar way, Kiki’s next words, “fly”, are softly and seriously spoken, after which she shoots into the air in an abrupt manner, making almost humorous ‘thump’ sounds each time she uses her feet to bounce off the surface of the buildings that surround her. This technique of contrast allows for the sudden, quick and loud sounds that follow the serious dialogue seem unexpected and somewhat humorous. The viewer thus is suspended in feelings of both suspense and amusement.

Similarly, atmospheric sounds of the sirens, the voices of the gathered people, wind and the blimp are very noticeable in this scene. By overlapping these multitudinous, manic sounds over each other, Miyazaki is able to create a sense of chaos. Similarly, Miyazaki is able to change the mood of the scene by synchronizing the movements of the characters with certain sound effects or music, such as soft tinkling sounds for when Kiki lifts off the ground for the first time, and upbeat, suspenseful music for when she is racing to save Tombo from the crashing blimp.

Contrast is also prevalent in the movements of the characters and the general speed of the scene. It seems almost as if the entire scene is just a combination of fast and slow movements one after another, which create a kind of inconsistent consistency. For example, right after Kiki bounces off the buildings into the air, she stays there for a few seconds, swaying, and then drops really fast back to the ground, stops again for a few seconds right before she hits the surface, and then accelerates at an increasing rate along the ground plane. This makes the viewers unsure of the outcome of the scenario, and thus keeps them on edge and in suspense. Moreover, it makes the whole situation, which is already quite serious, seem even more dynamic and important. The transitions are mostly quick cuts, and add to the emergency of the situation in a similar way.

One of my favorite things about this scene is the way in which Kiki’s clothes are animated. Her dress seems almost to be dancing with the wind, suspended in the air. This is not only visually appealing, but also gives the whole action a more magical vibe. Contrasted with tombos more stagnant clothing (although he too is in the air), Kiki seems to stand out in her idiosyncratic dress.

Furthermore, whenever a character or prop is exhibiting the primary action in a shot, it is composed either in the centre of the frame or shown moving towards the centre of the frame from screen right to screen left. This consistent use of central composition creates a sense of continuity and harmony, and simultaneously allows the viewer to focus on the relevant action and subject in the scene. This is important because otherwise the viewer would most likely be confused, seeing that the shots feature not only crowds upon crowds of characters, but also a surplus of sounds, architecture, vehicles, actions and landscapes.

The scene makes use of long shots, medium shots and close-ups. The longshots most often feature action, and very elaborate backgrounds. They are used usually to establish an important part of the plot, such as for example, a zoomed out view of Kiki flying can be used to imply the distance that Kiki has to travel in order to reach tombo. This information make it easier for the viewers to stay invested. In a similar way, medium shots and close-ups are used in moments where some form of inner conflict or emotion is being focused on. This can be seen in the example where Kiki says “fly”. The close up of her face not only stresses the gravity of the word she speaks, but also adds suspense and makes the viewer realize how emotionally important it is for Kiki to be able to fly at this point. It is almost like the entire movie has been progressing to reach this point in the film, where Kiki has to look inside herself and discover why she has travelled so far to learn this skill.

In a similar way, Miyazaki makes use of perspective to make certain moments seem more dynamic. An example of this is when Kiki moves towards the camera, and gets bigger and bigger, and then moves away from it getting smaller and smaller, and moves towards the blimp in the distance. By playing with scale in this way, Miyazaki is able to stress the idea the Kiki is still unstable on the broom, and is trying to balance herself. This exhibition of lack of control is very effectively conveyed, the viewers feels almost like they are in the sky with Kiki. It creates a sense of intimacy.

In conclusion, Miyazaki is able to make the film feel personal and real in many ways. Miyazaki is able to use sound, central composition, different kinds of contrast, animation, speed and varying kinds of shots and perspective to create a piece that not only conveys emotion and experiences in a relatable fashion, but allows the audience to grow with Kiki through her journey. The physical action is layered upon the emotional complexities of the film, making the narrative and characters feel intimate and magical at the same time. I think my favorite thing about this film is how it isn’t even Kiki’s powers as a witch that are the most magical things in the film, it is her relationships, her growth as a character, her struggles as a girl coming of age, and the portrayal of a relatable and yet desirable world that resonate with the viewer.

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devisingalondres · 7 years ago

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day #1 - what is devised theatre?

theatre encounters was a bit different than i expected. i think in a good way - i definitely know i’m going to be challenged by a lot of my classes this semester, especially this one. i’m really worried about being unable to properly express my thoughts and actively participate - my anxiety often prevents me from speaking up, because i’m constantly afraid of being laughed at or ridiculed. i know the class is a safe zone of sorts, but i still believe it will be a bit before i can really find my footing and truly get down to the nitty gritty of “devising”.

defining devised theatre

we spent a good portion of class talking about what devised theatre actually is. emma read some definitions and quotes to us from various sources, and we also went around discussing what we knew about devised theatre prior to class - i, myself, knew of devised theatre, but i’ve never actually done it before. we then split into small groups and spent a few minutes jotting down various words that we associated with devised theatre. the words “ensemble”, “collaboration”, “communication”, and “create” came up the most often, i noticed. we then went back to the same small groups and made our own definitions for devised theatre. my group came up with something along the lines of “devised theatre is an ensemble of actors coming together to create a piece centered around a specific theme. the process is always changing”... i’m getting it wrong, but it was similar to that. the process is SUPER important to devised theatre, as is the idea of the ensemble and collaboration - these two things i know for sure.

game time

our first game had to do with memorizing patterns and engaging our brains. between the name pattern, the ball pattern, and the walking pattern, it was easy to become confused and frustrated. however, through repetition, the patterns became more clear, and focusing on specific stimuli made the continuing of the pattern easier. ie, it was easy to focus on the walking pattern (the most difficult for me) and worry less about the others because it was always much easier to locate aisling (to throw the ball) and saying “daniel” in response to my own name became almost a reflex. it was also a good exercise in getting back into the groove of “acting”, where you have to think of multiple things at once and make sure they’re all abundantly clear.

another game we played involved eye contact and clapping (i don’t recall the name). my hands were red by the end, but after my initial frustration, the game became a fun challenge. it was super apparent immediately that eye contact was necessary - even once the rhythm was established, the question of a single clap or double clap was always there. i think the running threw everyone for a loop, but we were doing really well by the end. this game gave me a lot of perspective on the idea of trust and communication and focus - you and your partner(s) have to be constantly aware of each other and come to the same conclusion in order for the action to occur properly. i think the same is true of what (i believe) devised theatre is, at least in the creation of it. particularly because devised pieces are “in flux” and constantly changing, you always need to be aware of your ensemble collectively to achieve your overall goal.

there was also the chair racing game - by far the most physically challenging. however, as difficult as the race itself was, it was a great way of emphasizing the idea of teamwork, fun, and collaboration - the group did not move unless we were all working together towards our common end goal, just like in all theatre, not just devised.

we also played a cat and mouse game towards the end of class! while enjoyable, i admit i’m not sure what i got out of the game - or at least, whatever it is, it’s less concrete? the idea of tactics was good, and the outside “barrier” circle definitely had to work as a team, but those of us on the inside were kind of operating on our own? perhaps it had to do with awareness of ourselves (like physically) and the space we’re in (staying within bounds, reaching out to keep from running into things, etc) and the “cat” had a definite objective. overall, i loved the game, but i still haven’t really landed on what i got out of it.

i nearly forgot the shoulder game! or exercise? but anyway - i liked the simplicity of this game, and the dynamic relationship of the individual goal (to locate the shoulders of the person you originally touched) with the group goal (to return to the same circle). i also tend to enjoy games about engaging other senses - we rely so heavily on sight that it’s interesting to do things without it, particularly a game so focused on touched and sense memory. it was just another interesting way of thinking about and interacting with new stimuli besides visual.

improv

we also did a short “yes and” improv exercise in partners/small groups. my partner and i ended up having a day at the park involving reading and ice cream, but many other groups had far more fantastical plots that i could overhear and i love the range of situations that the room came up with. i did find it hard sometimes to keep the scene going - while logically i knew with the game i could say literally anything to keep the game going, i found myself hesitant to say anything that would break the “normalcy” of our scene and felt like i was censoring myself. perhaps over the course of the class i’ll be able to just accept my thoughts as they come and feel okay with changing the course instead of going with the flow. i think i’m going to struggle with that a lot.

ways of seeing - john berger

i liked listening to his perspective on perspectives. even though i found myself somewhat disagreeing, i think it was very interesting and engaging to hear what he had to say about it. i particularly enjoyed his ending bit about how his words, the music, the imagery, etc have been specifically laid out to a certain perspective to engage us in that view, but to be “skeptical” of it as well (ie make our own perspective/conclusions). i think that’s kind of the main issue and idea of perspective - there isn’t necessarily a correct one, because they’re all correct.

#theatre encounters

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maczazind · 8 years ago

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Film Diary 2017: 'Blair Witch' Extended Thoughts

The following is an extended take on my feelings of Blair Witch (2016). It is an expansion of my monthly film journal for January 2017, the full post of which you can see here. This is simply my opinion and trying to have fun discussing entertainment on Tumblr. Feel free to agree or disagree; I welcome all takes and perspectives with an open mind.

Spoilers follow for 1999’s The Blair Witch Project and 2016’s Blair Witch. What follows is also strictly MY OWN OPINION.

As a child of the 90s, I very much recall the hype of The Blair Witch Project from the perspective of a youngling. While I didn’t necessarily realize the internet tie-in standpoint of the film itself nor how nearly unprecedented the found footage aspect was, I definitely remember how massive of a phenomenon it was. People discussing it, video store conversations by adults at the checkout counter debating the ending. And even seeing it myself…to an extent; it was the movie of choice at a sleepover at the time but I fell asleep out of a mix of boredom and fear after the creepy tone that was set by friends. Since the release, I’ve revisited it removed from the bubble that was the late 90s and admittedly The Blair Witch Project is far from my favorite horror film. My first time rewatching left me feeling jaded and disgusted at what people considered a classic, but multiple times since I’ve come to respect the simplicity, character focus, the mythology slowly expanding through dialogue and the ambiguous moments that fueled the aforementioned conversations all these years later.

While Book of Shadows is a mindfuck in quite a bad way, the Blair Witch hysteria died out never to capitalize on its fame again as the world moved on. For years, rumors popped up in the depths of the internet that maybe Blair Witch could come back in some form and those ideas seemed to be just that: ideas. That is, until Comic Con 2016. In one swift surprise, what was a horror feature previously teased & titled The Woods was revealed to be a continuation of the franchise all these years later simply titled Blair Witch. But while there was a solid reception out of the con, I was disheartened to see not only a negative reception from critics just two months later upon release but a soft opening weekend box office as well, despite a reportedly small production budget as well. At the time of writing this, Blair Witch has a Rotten Tomatoes critics score of 36%, an audience score of 31%, an IMDB average score of 5.1, a MetaCritic critics score of 47 and an audience score of 4.8. So…what the hell happened?!

Missing it the first time around, Blair Witch has hit Blu-Ray & DVD and I finally picked it up to check it out for myself to see exactly what I would think.

Let me start first by prefacing that in the last decade, I was unabashedly a fan of the Paranormal Activity franchise. Even through the upsettingly bad installments (*waves to PA4 and The Ghost Dimension*), I was enthralled by the mythology growing with every movie to a presumed climax that frustratingly never came (I have an idea on how it should end, but that’s a whole other topic for another day). But much like the “torture porn” fad of horror that came as a result of the success of the Saw franchise, the “found footage” aspect that was popularized again with the emergence of PA has clearly worn people out. While there were some very notable films to have utilized that method, there were PLENTY of bad ones that were shot in the style, made on a very low budget, made its money back but at the same time kind of burned audiences (*waves again to the URL ending of The Devil Inside). And to a certain degree I think Blair Witch may have been the very last straw for many in that respect.

Another footnote to consider in this entire ordeal is that Blair Witch had only TWO MONTHS from title reveal to theatrical premiere. That, in my own opinion, did not allow it to build up the positive hype it needed to stay afloat. I saw many tweets online and even knew a few friends who because of the naming and unfamiliarity thought the film was simply a cheap remake and not a continuation. If the film had a bit longer to establish itself in the casual public eye, I think there wouldn’t necessarily have been as big of a blowback as there was. Then again, that’s more than likely just the optimist in me.

But what did I think of the film itself? I walked away liking it…with some reservations.

Some of the initial complaints I’ve seen since the release are that Blair Witch is more remake than it is sequel and I can’t argue with the certain point of view of that. Yes, the path we find our characters on is incredibly similar. The source of found footage serves a greater purpose, they venture into the woods, get lost, start fighting a bit and it all ends at the infamous house. But at the same time I found it to be an expansion with different motivations that served intriguing. The adventure of the first isn’t eclipsed nor forgotten but the additional material thrown into the mix here helps expand the concept for some of the vague moments in the original. In addition, when you believe a scene starts to feel a bit familiar I thought that there was always something fresh to take away to subvert your expectations. The campsite, the tents, the house, the popular symbol of the witch; they all have something presented that at least adds something.

Taking a step back from that, though, the characters prove to be a mixed bag. It doesn’t help that as the plot goes along it burns the bridges of at least two members of the group. There are small details you can grasp onto for each character to flesh them out a bit but not really enough for their personalities to overly shine as the intense circumstances grow and take center stage. A blooming relationship pops up in spots between who you would consider the two leads of the group and it helps to care about that development as we lead into the finale. But with the threat of an unseen supernatural force lurking around, it’s also hard not to try and distance yourselves from these characters in order to prepare for what may be the inevitable.

Similarly the beginning approach feels a bit different with our resident film student Lisa actually going all out to prepare in very reasonable conditions. The arsenal of technology this time includes earpiece cameras and a drone that upon presentation interested me in how exactly they would be used. Likewise to the same problem with the characters however, there was always this feeling in the back of my head that any of this tech can simply malfunction and prove ultimately useless. Some of that does happen but at the same time it kind of feels like a lifeline for the characters being cut off to give it impact to the events unfolding.

With a sequel of this magnitude, it’s hard not to think that somewhere along the way questions from the first film be addressed. Namely the biggest one people have is exactly what happened to Heather in the closing moments. Here the answer is never quite given but can be assumed as much given how our new cast of characters close out their journey. And it’s just the first in a handful of additional material supplied. Before this, through dialogue we learn more about the legend of Elly Kedward - a piece of the mythology presented in tie-ins after the original - that leads to a eureka moment in the climax finale, as does an even more supernatural solution as to how Heather and company exactly got lost in the woods as well as the footage that serves as the catalyst for the entire film.

I do have to commend director Adam Wingard and writer Simon Barrett. To resurrect a franchise so embedded in a certain era of pop culture is no easy feat but I feel they provided what could have been a solid landing pad to have expand upon even more had the film been a bigger hit. Wingard presents plenty of memorable imagery that I can still call back to with such clarity as it took a dormant world and added some fresh air into it. Barrett as well took what we knew about the mythos so far and pushed it even further to get me thinking without ever quite rocking the boat of the entire established story as some horror sequels can unfortunately achieve.

Blair Witch is carried out with such respect and love for what came before it, but audiences and critics simply didn’t bite. Perhaps it was the similarities and the shortcomings along with the lack of an open mind that caused the backlash. Or maybe I’m just glancing at this as more supplementary rather than the intense elevation that others truly wanted. It never tops my list of favorite horror movies nor is it my favorite Wingard/Barrett film (that would be The Guest) but it’s far from a number of frustrating features the genre has pumped out in the past.

#film diary 2017 #blair witch #movies #opinion

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