#and don't even get me started on how it's ashley in particular playing this character with such love and care

[realtalk127]

thinking about how saranrae came to exandria and started a family.

how on the one hand it's beautiful and sweet. she assumed a mortal form and loved mortals so much that she couldn't help but love a few of them in particular.

but at the same time.

she knew. she knew what she was. she knew what she was here for. she knew the plan. she knew it couldn't last.

so is it beautiful or is it cruel? i genuinely don't know. it might be both.

[hopeymchope]

I'm finally playing Another Code Recollection!

I started it a week ago, and I just finished the "Two Memories" section. As a longtime fan of Ashley/CING/Another Code, I have THOUGHTS.

It honestly bothers me more than it should that there's no separation, really, between the first and second game. You don't go back to the title screen. You don't get some credits or anything. You complete the first game's story, and then it just says "Two Memories" "The End" and then the second game's story IMMEDIATELY BEGINS. You go straight from the big climax of one story into the lazy-days opening of another adventure, and it's JARRING. It's not a good idea. They should've had a pause, had you maybe be able to select the second game from a title screen option? Instead it's just all... one game now. And that feels WRONG to me.

It's cool we're all united under calling the device "Another" and calling her Ashley Mizuki Robins now. In the old days, her name was "Robbins" in North America and "Robins" in Europe. The device was "Trace" in America and "Another" in Europe. The original DS game even had two different translations for basically ALL the same dialogue. It was weird how you could play two English translations that conveyed the same info in distinct ways. But now, at last, UNITY! Every region will know her as Ashley Mizuki Robins, and everyone will call the machine her dad worked on the "Another." YAY.

I feel like this puzzle has stuck in the minds of those who played the original FOREVER.

3. Let's face it: None of the puzzles in this remake are remotely as clever as the ones in the original games. The way "Two Memories" made use of the DS' distinct form and "A Journey into Lost Memories" made use of the Wii Remote were SO damn creative, and that was a big part of what made the games have such an impact on the relative few who played them. With "Recollection," we still get the characters and stories we love, but losing that kind of outside-the-box puzzle design kinda DOES suck. These aren't making any particular special use of the Switch's design or innate gimmicks. They're just... regular ol' adventure game puzzles. (Though I'm at least grateful I didn't have to do that damned slide puzzle again... fuck do I hate slide puzzles.)

4. Ashley's outfits are redesigned in both games. And while I think she looks great across the board, I also think they did a much better job of retaining the basic visual design of her "Two Memories" look as compared to how they reminaged her "Journey into Lost Memories" look.

Above: The original Ashley designs from the DS and Wii games. Below: The new ones from the Switch collection.

In both cases, Ashley loses the midriff and the dangling strap/chain thing. No big losses imo; in fact, I think the use of a plaid flannel in her new "R" design invokes '90s grunge fashion in the same way that chain/strap did, so it's a pretty functional swap. Also, her old wrist cuff/band things only appear (recolored) on her new "R" outfit, but I don't think anyone felt emotionally attached to those. Overall, the "Two Memories" outfit keeps the same color scheme/placement while changing over to a hoodie that feels/looks really good. But even with the flannel doing some thematic work for the "R" redesign, they largely went in a totally different direction from the original. Ashley's new outfit looks very... uh, confused? Like, she's wearing some fairly short shorts plus a plaid flannel long-sleeve over another shirt; Is it hot or is it cold, girl? Make up your damn MIND.

5. It's really interesting to see how the story's been rewritten so far. Richard and Bill's first appearances are both handled BETTER in the remake, I think; I think that in the original "Two Memories," Bill was overly standoffish for what he was trying to do, and Ashley was just WAY too skeptical when first meeting Richard. Both these issues are corrected now. There's also a much clearer link between the original and the sequel, and I'm less sure about that decision. The original game was an open-and-shut case to the point that "R" had to work backwards to be like "Oh, but there's ANOTHER layer to the mystery." Now the other layer is plainly present from the jump, but it also kinda makes Ashley look... dumber? Like, she literally sees the name "J.C. Valley" doing MAJOR SKETCHY SHIT at the end of "Two Memories" during one of the most eventful/memorable days of her life, and then her dad goes to work at "J.C. Valley" in the sequel, and somehow she NEVER MAKES THE CONNECTION. (At least she hasn't yet in my game.) I guess that was a pretty overwhelming day? But still...

6. The combination of Ashley's old and new outfits would make excellent alternate appearances for Ashley in Smash Bros. I've been championing getting her in Smash for YEARS. Is she an unlikely candidate? Of course, but many candidates who are just as unlikely (if not MORE) are already in the thing! Being a trophy in Smash Bros. Brawl is NOT ENOUGh. So right now, I'm in the process of altering my mental moveset for her to account for the new things she does in this game. I think we can definitely make her viable. Maybe I'll make a post about how I imagine her moves in the future. :P

[possessionisamyth]

So, while I do think a lot of the criticism of Remake Ada is in bad faith, I do think there is something to be said about how the design of the character does not match the personality they gave her.

They clearly want to portray Ada as someone who puts up a cold, professional front with a heart hidden underneath but the outfit they gave her still screams Femme Fatale and is in some ways even less appropriate than her original outfit. The animated direction doesn't help either with quite a few shots of her ass. Not that any of this is remotely the fault of Lily Gao who clearly knows what type of character she is supposed to be voicing.

Basically, the writing and acting for Ada aren't the issue, the design and visual direction are the issues.

I forgot I got this in my askbox! I can't really add much to this. You're right, but the problem isn't limited to Resident Evil. Many game franchises pull this shit no matter how nuanced they write the character's story and personality. If they have boobs, it's fair game to try and sell the sex angles. It's honestly their default most of the time.

The people who spend money and yell the loudest about the things they've purchased are the opinions that corporate will listen to. It's why we get the scene of Rebecca struggling in a wedding dress in Vendetta. It's why we got Claire tank top shot and then struggling while tied to a chair in Infinite Darkness. It's why we got that close up of Jill's cleavage with the licker tongue in Death Island. Hell, it's why you could look up Ashley's skirt in the original RE4, an aspect that a very specific group were so pissed about being removed in the remake. Maybe that's why they added all those close ups to Ada's ass and not her face. Who knows! I couldn't tell you. I don't pay much attention to the development side of media unless I have to fix a problem or it's an interesting factoid.

Also gotta take into mind who is behind most of the development process decision making. Is it mostly men? Yeah. Are there good men writers/directors who don't do this shit? Also yes. Are they the ones with the final call on all these decisions for the particular game/movie? Probably not. Which is why it happens, and why it happens so often.

I'm sure when it comes to outfit design and framing, thematically speaking, the stark contrast of Leon's old flame Ada to Leon's new flame Ashley could be used as a line of reasoning. Ada has to be the lusty forbidden fruit while Ashley is the pure fairytale princess, but I'm not here to spout bullshit with confidence. Ada was supposed to look hot and sexy in the original games. They did the same in the remakes, but due to her sweater dress they likely chose to improvise for the same effect.

Does it suck? Yeah. Is it good because woman hot and I do thirst for Ada? Idk! I'm still waiting on my fave youtuber to play Separate Ways DLC, and I'm avoiding spoilers like the plague.

I could attempt to go further into what design decisions define a femme fatale, gender expression, and how a woman and a man can wear essentially the same outfit but the woman's will be framed as more sexual or fragile due to how she's forced to move combined with the camera angles. However, I feel it's faster if you look up those mods where people replace the guy characters with girl characters in game cutscenes to see the sexism at play.

Batman and Catwoman wear the same outfit until they start giving him more armor in later iterations. But look.

Sometimes the clothes don't matter. I think there's a mod where someone switched Ashley and Leon's roles too, and you can see Leon doing Ashley's girly run versus Ashley doing Leon's manly sprint even though they both have shirts that cling to their fat tits. I'm sorry if you wanted something more nuanced than this. I'd say the only true solution to this problem if they're so insistent on selling sex is to give me more ass and bulging crotch shots of the men. It's only fair.

As for Ada's writing versus her depiction, her writing is just recently becoming stabilized and good. If they Remake RE6, we can see whether or not they learned their lesson or if these choices will keep being made regardless. Though they need to fucking remake Code Veronica first.

[pynkhues]

Were you a Sex in the City fan? I do feel like a show for the girls that are in the early to mid late 20s trying to figure it out. Is kind of missing in the market currently. Anyways if you’ve seen it there was a reboot with a whole new cast. What would your fan cast look like?

I actually watched Sex and the City in its entirety for the first time during the lockdowns, anon! While there are definitely parts of it that have aged badly and is very deserving of criticism, there's a lot that's aged surprisingly well too, and even as a first time viewer, I could see why it was the pop culture juggernaut it was. I really enjoyed watching it! Although maybe not enough to watch And Just Like That, haha (after all, what is Sex and the City without all four women?)

It really does feel like there's a bit of a gap these days in TV when it comes to mid-late 20s/early 30s women figuring life out. I feel like the closest we've had for a while was Broad City and The Bold Type, but even those have both been finished for a while, and are decidedly their own animals in focus, tone and style. While I liked it a lot too, I'd also say that The Bold Type never fully knew where it wanted to sit in terms of audience which really shaped a lot of the components of the story.

But yes! A Sex and the City reboot! I love it when you guys ask me to fancast stuff, haha.

Okay, let's start with Carrie:

I hadn't seen Ashley Park in anything until a few months ago, and have since had the triple hit of seeing her in Joy Ride, Beef and now the new season of Only Murders in the Building, and I just think she's so great. She's so, so charming and funny and I think really nails that complicated mix of high strung but also kind of loose and flirty that Sarah Jessica Parker nailed in Sex and the City. I think she could bring so much to Carrie and add after Joy Ride in particular, I'd love to see her lead something again.

Miranda's kind of a tricky one in some ways - you need someone who can find that middle ground between snark and genuine vulnerability, and I think that's really an area Ritu shines in between The Umbrella Academy and Polite Society. Plus she's delightfully watchable, and I think a role like Miranda could really stretch her skills (especially because I don't think Polite Society let her actually do all that much).

Fun fact: Charlotte's lowkey my fave from Sex and the City. I know a lot of people find her annoying, but I actually think she had one of the most fulfilling arcs on the show (I'm a bit of a sucker for characters who get what they want only to realise it's not what they need), and she also reminds me of a close childhood friend who I don't see as often as I want because we live on opposite ends of the country, haha. I looooved Charithra in Bridgerton, and I think she plays naivety without ignorance, and that sweetness without being saccharine really well. Plus I think she could be a really good balancer between Ashley and Ritu.

Okay okay okay, hear me out: Samantha is supposed to be older than the other girls, and one of the things I think is so ingenious about the original casting of Samantha is how they cast an actress who was basically a jobbing actress who'd worked across TV and genre movies for decades but became famous / a sex symbol for a few roles across raunch comedies. While Jessica doesn't quite have a Porky's on her resume, she comes from a similar background of tv, low budget horror, and a few meatier roles that show she can really act, and I've always had a soft spot for her, and tbh, I think she'd kill it.

The guys aren't as fun, haha, but mmm, I kind of like the thought of John Cho for Mr Big? An older guy with the right amount of suave that you can believe Ashley Park would be on the hook for, and maybe someone like Anthony Ramos for Aidan? I'm less sure about them, haha.

[my-burnt-city]

If I'm not too late - top 5 performers who haven't done Punchdrunk who you think should join The Burnt City (casting choices for them optional)

This is a REALLY HARD question! Like, give me a finite list of performers (say, current TBC cast members, or TDM alumni) and I will happily go to town with dreamcasting, but I am an interpreter, not an imaginator, so opening the field THIS WIDELY has frankly blown my mind

After a great deal of thought, I did eventually manage to come up with a list of five names. And then, when I realised they were all Hadestown cast members, I went back to the drawing board and came up with a different list of five names

That said, I am keeping Patrick Page. In a ranked list of "Hadeses I have seen in things", he consistently comes near the top, and I'm reasonably confident he could absolutely smash the demands of this particular Hades too, I would very much love to see it

Then I figured I should start thinking about performers I have loved in other things, but who wouldn't be afraid to get up close to an audience, and make an audience feel unsettled while also being impressed at how well the performer is playing their role. Don't tell me that you wouldn't happily kill someone to see James Garnon take on Kronos (or maybe an aggressively chaotic Laocoön)

For the purposes of this thought experiment, I am assuming that dancing skills are irrelevant here as long as the performer in question fits the vibe of the character. And I know there was already a conversation a while back about putting NT Angels In America cast members in this show (and frankly I could have cheated and regurgitated that entire chat for this post) but if we're just thinking about the acting and who I'd love to see, I'd take a James McArdle Neoptolemus very happily

DON'T WORRY, MY ANSWERS AREN'T ALL JAMESES. This next one is even a woman! Please step forward, Gwendoline Christie Clytemnestra! She's regal! She's loving! She's distraught! She's unhinged! She's murderous! And wouldn't you just LOVE to see a woman of that stature climbing on top of the Czech hedgehog?

And then finally, I would like a Simone Ashley Iphigenia. I think she could smash any of the female roles, tbh, but I would particularly love to see her tackle the contrast between sweet virginal Iphy and immortal priestess Iphy (and she would look incredible in the red dress and you know it)