#and not to mention the guys like EVERYONE served on the visual aspect

[karin-ko]

Funeral Parade of Roses by Toshio Matsumoto

The film "Funeral Parade of Roses," directed by Toshio Matsumoto and released in 1969, is an avant-garde movie featuring a gay boy as the protagonist, made with experimental visuals and structure. Eddie, a popular figure in the gay bar scene, is the lover of the owner and vies for the position of "Mama." Triggered by certain events, memories begin to resurface. While the content itself is quite serious, elements like music and fast-forwarding add a comedic touch, allowing the audience to watch without feeling too downcast. It was a film rich in playful elements, incorporating various avant-garde techniques. This was the first time I had seen an underground film, and although I found it confusing, I could enjoy watching it.

Although there were many impressive editing and directing choices, I will mention some that left a particular impression on me. Firstly, what stood out the most was the frequent use of flash cuts and the techniques where footage that the characters are watching becomes integrated into the film itself blurring the lines between what the characters see and what the audience sees. , such as a scene in which a disturbed image is suddenly shown and it turns out to be what the characters are watching on TV. This made me feel strangely unsettled, as I could sense the tension and suspense that the characters must have been experiencing. The occasional inclusion of poems or images was challenging for me to decipher, but I found the prospect of different interpretations intriguing. Flashbacks and repeated scenes made it difficult to grasp the timeline initially, but the shifting meanings kept it engaging, allowing for a gradual understanding of the overall narrative.

The use of documentary-style interviews with gay boys added a sense of realism to the fictional story, blurring the lines between fiction and reality. Knowing that people like the characters actually exist added a current, realistic dimension to the film. However, I found the scenes showing behind-the-scenes footage, including the staff and filming equipment, the scene where one of the actors messed up their lines, and the interview footage with Peter, who plays the protagonist, Eddie, discussing his thoughts on the character and why he wanted to take on the role, to be amusing but left me somewhat confused about whether they were part of the story or behind-the-scenes footage. Also, the deliberate use of contrast inversion and blown-out whites added vibrancy to the black-and-white imagery, which I appreciated.

There were many memorable scenes, such as the one where everyone passes around marijuana, gets high, and dances, or when Eddie is approached by guys on the street, shown from their perspective and use of the jump cuts. However, the most memorable scene in terms of direction for me was the fight scenes. In the scene where Eddie and Leda quarrel, there are Western cowboy-style elements that come to mind, but suddenly, speech bubbles appear, and they start exchanging insults. In the scene where three girls and three gay boys fight in the street with pop music and fast-forwarding. Like these scenes, there are many instances where the direction takes a comical turn, creating a starkly humorous impression contrasting with the seriousness of the content. And above all, the innovative use of the film commentator Yodogawa Nagaharu was incredibly amusing. "Sayonara, sayonara, sayonara…"

Mirrors seemed to be a key motif in this film. From the beginning, there were numerous instances where the camera transitioned from a reflection in the mirror to the actual scene, blurring the boundaries between illusion and reality. The use of mirrors was skillful, often making me unaware that I was watching a mirrored image until the camera moved. Mirrors seemed to serve as tools for self-awareness. And highlighting aspects like the scene where the character is shaving off their leg hair, emphasizing the chest, or showcasing makeup application, repeatedly reminding the audience of the characters' identities as gay boys. Even in contemporary Japan, issues of sexual identity are often kind of taboo or poorly understood, and I imagine that those living in that era must have grappled with significant internal conflicts and struggles with self-awareness. Human beings constantly wear layers of masks, and self-awareness is inherently complex.

The content itself was cruel and tragic. As evident from the poster referencing "Oedipus Rex," the story is based on the tragedy of Oedipus, who unwittingly kills his father and has sex with his mother, resulting in him seeing hell upon realizing the truth. In this film, Eddie kills his mother and unknowingly engages in a relationship with the owner, his real father. Upon discovering everything, the father commits suicide, and Eddie, mirroring Oedipus, blinds himself with the same knife his father used to end his life. It was visually impactful, so Yodogawa Nagaharu's commentary provided me some relief. The foreshadowing of this ending through the interview footage and the sight of a doll with its eyes pierced by nails beside the fallen figures was particularly intriguing.

[christiangothicgirl]

Formal Introduction

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Hello everyone!

I hope this message finds you well. I am writing this introduction to share a glimpse into my world through the lens of my hobbies and personal interests. I truly believe that our hobbies can reveal much of our character, passions, and values, and I am eager to share mine with you.

One of my foremost hobbies is being a visual artist. In elementary school, I began my visual artist journey. I spent days drawing popular cartoon characters and wouldn't stop until I mastered each art style. It was then; I memorized how to draw those characters because DVR's weren't as popular and I didn't recieve a smartphone until 9th grade. In fall 2018, I dipped my toes into digital art and thus began my visual and digital artist era. Engaging in art has not only provided me with an outlet for creativity and self-expression, but it has also taught me valuable lessons in perseverance, discipline, and the joy of pursuing something purely for the love of it.

Another passion of mine is creating background music using FL Studio. In high school, to become "popular (which failed miserably)" I inserted myself as a rapper who tried to rap, but quickly discovered I could not. Guys, I can't even write poetry. In 10th grade, I discovered FL Studio on YouTube and, given my background with the keyboard, I figured I'd try it. It took a few months to acclimate, but I can truly say I am quite good at making happy, bouncy background music. I find great fulfillment and a sense of adventure in immersing myself in the world of art and music. Through this hobby, I have connected with like-minded individuals, learn from their experiences, and broaden my horizons.

I am an avid creative writer and manga reader. My love for art developed in elementary school after watching a series of nickelodeon cartoons, but I became a creative writer after watching the first Diary of a Wimpy Kid movie in the 7th grade. I thought, "The dialogue sounds so easy to write.... I can do something like this," and this my writing journey began. Now that I've figured out my art style is heavily based on anime designs, I began reading many mangas including Gangsta and JoJo. Writing brings me immense joy and allows me to tap into my creativity. It has also served as a valuable outlet for relaxation and self-reflection, providing me with a sense of balance amidst the demands of daily life.

Beyond these hobbies, I am constantly exploring new interests and seeking fresh experiences. I believe in the power of lifelong learning and continuously challenging myself to grow and expand my horizons. Whether it's [mention any other hobbies or interests], I approach each new endeavor with enthusiasm, curiosity, and a desire to learn and evolve.

I firmly believe that hobbies play a vital role in shaping our personal and professional lives. They provide us with an opportunity to recharge, explore new perspectives, and develop skills that can be applied in various aspects of life.

Thank you for taking the time to read this introduction based on my hobbies. I am excited to connect with you and discover the potential intersections of our interests. If there are any shared hobbies or experiences that resonate with you, I would be thrilled to hear about them and explore the possibility of embarking on a meaningful journey together.

[eri-blogs-life]

Fire Emblem: How Engaging Really Is It?

Fire Emblem: Engage has been out for two weeks now, and I just finished my first playthrough, and I figured it captured my attention enough that I wanted to write up some of my thoughts about it on my blog. And that’s what this post you’re reading now is! :o

So, first off, I am not gonna avoid spoilers, if anyone cares about that, just as a heads-up.

Second off, tl;dr: if you don’t wanna read what’s probably gonna end up being a lot of paragraphs about this game, then here’s my short answer: It’s a good game! Probably one of the best games in the fire emblem series... in certain respects. But it’s also got some big issues which may not be issues for everyone but which did cause me to have a hard time getting into the game at the beginning. If you want to know whether I’d recommend it, I’d say it’s absolutely worth picking up if you have liked any other FE games before, but as an entry to the series I think Three Houses is probably a better first pickup on the Switch.

Alright, so let’s break it down. Broadly speaking, I think the game is really good. It also serves as a nice love letter to past fire emblem games without overdoing the callbacks

But let’s start with probably the most obvious aspect of the game, the aesthetics:

(Alear, the protagonist of FE: Engage)

The main character of FE:E is Alear. Alear has very striking features. And mind you, there is an understandable story reason for it. (As you might guess, basically she lies halfway between two states of being in the story and so that’s represented by her blend of red and blue.) (Also, you CAN play as a male Alear instead but I play with female avatars and will likely continue to refer to Alear as a she throughout cause that was my primary experience with Alear in my playthrough.) (Also also, my friend mentioned they might’ve colored her red and blue specifically because as a reference to the switch’s default joycon controllers? But IDK about that.)

Toothpaste-chan, as Alear was affectionately called by the community after her original reveal (among other nicknames), has a very striking design with those two colors mixed like that. It looks weird as heck at first glance, and continues to look weird as heck throughout the game. But you get used to it.

As I understand it, the Fire Emblem team hired a notable japanese visual artist who’s done a lot of vtuber designs before, so when Alear was first revealed people were all “oh you can TELL this was made my someone into vtubers” (said in a derogitory kinda way), which does kinda suck. It’s a real offputting design at first, but it also is a design that kinda works in a nice way to capture a big part of what Alear IS. Alear is the bridge between Good and Evil within the setting and story of Engage, at least to some degree - the bond that draws together people from all over the wartorn world to unite together and work as one.

Though, if we look at that as a piece of political commentary it gets kinda weird. Alear unites all the people of her world to fight against a common threat, the evil Lord Sombron, but that threat is revealed to come from outside the world. He’s a foreign entity and Alear as the hero units the people of her part of the multiverse to kill that guy who came from elsewhere. But I guess they do also ally themselves with the Emblem, people from other worlds, so it probably is more intended as a story to be about fighting for the world alone vs together.

(Vander, one of the early characters, when you speak to him in your hub area)

The other characters of Fire Emblem: Engage range from being relatively mundane in their appearances, to even more out there than Alear. And a lot of the really weird designs are front-loaded, and relegated to story-significant characters (looking at you, Timerra).

And... I get that. From a character design perspective, you want your main characters of your story to really stand out and stay in people’s minds, as well as making them easy to identify what they’re all about at a glance. And Engage’s designs certainly do stick in your mind! BUT not all for good reason.

The game also puts a lot of the weirder characters early in the story, and the story early on really isn’t all that strong, being a kinda generic forgettable adventure until about a third of the way through the game, but I’ll get to the story later.

I REALLY dislike a lot of the character designs in Engage (and I really like a lot of the others), but I’m absolutely willing to put up with the weird ones. Because...

(The greatest Override I have ever or will ever accomplish)

Fire Emblem: Engage’s gameplay is AMAZING. As a long-time Fire Emblem fan, who’s been into the series since it came to America in the GBA era and has played every game save for a couple of the older ones, I have to say... FE:E may be my new favorite game in terms of gameplay. There’s a decent variety of maps, lots of mechanics both old and new that blend together really well, lots of different objectives on maps both required and not, which push you in different directions and do what I think any good strategy game should do - make every turn its own puzzle, custom-built by the decisions you and your opponent (the computer) have made over the course of a fight.

The big new mechanic is obviously Engaging - there are twelve Emblems (kind of? There are twelve main ones, but then there’s also like some shenanigans late in the story that change it up, plus you can also get extra emblems from the DLC too). These Emblems are heroes from previous Fire Emblem games, though within the world of Engage, those emblems are known to be something like effigies of the spirits of heroes from another world - not the hero themself, but a representation of them. During combat, characters who have an emblem’s ring equipped can Engage.

This mechanic lets them fuse with the emblem to become something new, getting a new costume and new abilities. The new abilities a character gets depends both on which emblem they’re using, and how strong their bond with that emblem is, with bond being mostly built up from fighting together in previous fights. Bond can also be built up with training in the Arena, or with another new mechanic you can do in your home base area, the Somniel.

You know that mechanic that got cut from Fire Emblem Fates where you would invite allies to your home base and you would have to pet them with the touch screen and that would increase your relationship with them? Engage has something like that, but it feels even creepier somehow, and this one didn’t get cut for censorship reasons

(Technically, there’s nothing perverted about this scene, but it still feels off)

You can have different characters polish the rings, thus increasing their bond. But it’s a mini game where you have to move the cursor around and press A to polish, and the emblem gives you words of encouragement along the way and it just feels... off. It feels perverted somehow. I don’t know that I can elaborate how or why, but it is one of many Somniel activities I just stopped doing entirely like 2/3 of the way through the game.

There were a lot of those.

Like in a few recent FE games, you have a base that you can run around between missions, called the Somniel. In the Somniel you can eat meals with your team to increase your supports and get buffs for the next fight, work out to get Alear temporary buffs for the next fight, farm animals to get eggs and stuff (or exclusively ingots once you realize putting dogs on your farm gets you ingots), and all kinds of other activities. Honestly, it just got to be too much for me. I was spending way too much time in the Somniel and not doing the fun strategic puzzle gameplay that I WANT to be getting up to in a game like this.

So eventually I just stopped polishing rings, eating meals, and just about anything else. I’d just come back to the Somniel between missions to restock on healing items, inherit any emblem skills I had finally unlocked for a character, and check out any new Bond and Support conversations.

The Bond conversations, between characters and emblems, are all pretty lame. They’re usually a two-sentence back-and-forth, with just some pleasentries exchanged that don’t really say much about either character in the exchange. Supports are better than that, at least. A lot of them feel really light, though, in my opinion. Short. And they are REALLY poorly animated, using a lot of repeat stock character animations that don’t feel like they fit the mood of the scene at all.

But, to be fair, there are definitely some cool characters in the game, and even if the support conversations feel kinda short, and even if their designs visually sometimes leave a lot to be desired.

(one of the bests of the bests in terms of characters in this game)

One big appeal about the Fire Emblem formula definitely is digging into the personal lives of all your characters and learning about what makes them all tick and what they get up to outside of the ongoing war, and even if most characters will appear on the surface to be pretty tropey and one-note, being just a class and a gimmick, supports usually flesh those characters out into being much stronger characters overall. And Engage certainly does a decent bit of that, in my opinion.

One aspect I really liked about a lot of older FE games was seeing how a character’s supports you’d built over the game changed their ending in the epilogue. Unfortunately, Engage doesn’t seem to have any characters pair up if you max out their supports in the ending, at least as far as I saw on my first playthrough, which is a bit disappointing. Like, I think Celica and Alcryst would make a great couple, for example.

But you can get a special relationship with a character of your choosing and your protagonist in this game, which is pretty cool. And you can be gay!

(i obviously married best girl Yunaka. my assassin wife <3)

(there’s even unique CGs for which character you marry, apparently! which means I’m going to have to replay a bunch of times to see all of them I guess lol)

And that’s cool. Cause relationships is definitely a big part of Engage. Not just romantic relationships, though. Bonds, Supports, the Pact Ring (the marriage item), they’re all part of trying to tie into what seems to be the narrative core of the game:

At least, that seems to be the narrative core of the game once you get up to the final battle. Before that... well, I didn’t really pick up on any specific themes that really felt strong up until you get to that last third or so of the story.

But yeah, let’s talk about that story a little.

Fire Emblem: Engage’s story is definitely FUN, I’ll say that. It starts off really weak, though. The first third or so of the game is fairly slow, mostly just introducing you to the world and a lot of the major characters, but having a fairly generic story about going to fight against some guys who stole your cool rings from you. Which isn’t necessarily a bad story on its own, but its execution does feel like it leaves a lot to be desired.

(Also, quick side note, in like the second chapter Alear’s mom dies, but because of the way the story’s set up neither us nor Alear really got much time to spend with her, so what feels like it SHOULD be a big dramatic moment in the story rings REALLY hollow as the player. Like, why is Alear crying over someone she basically met, like, yesterday?)

But things really pop off about a third of the way through the story, when we start getting some good character development from Alear. Alear starts out fairly bold and confidant, but gets her ass handed to her about a third of the way through the story, and we get to see her rebuild up her army and her confidence.

And about two-thirds of the way through the story, we get some reveals about the nature of the world, and things really start to pop off. This is when it goes from being a solid story that’s enjoyable as a backdrop for the amazing gameplay, to being a point where I was REALLY invested in the story.

And then we go to what is basically a fucking meteor in space and fight an epic final battle against a dragon and it’s amazing

(Sombron, the big bad, summons Dark Emblems that represent the big bads of previous games, but they’re subtle enough as references that it feels like a nice nod to past games while still letting Engage do its own thing. This also makes the final fight into a really cool puzzle challenge of its own that isn’t just all about wailing on a lonely old guy)

(Also, if you do Game Over during the final fight - which is hard to do since you can normally use your Time Crystal to reset to a previous turn of the fight - you actually get a Bad Ending, which surprised me when I was expecting to just go back to the title screen)

So... I think that sums up most of my core thoughts. Here’s just another fun set of screencaps I took. I started the game taking like <10 minutes per map:

Then through the midgame I took roughly 30-50 minutes per map, until we get to the final fight:

Almost 2 hours. Damn.

Anyway, I think I gotta wrap this up. I enjoyed the heck out of my time with Engage, even if it felt really weak at the start. I’m looking forward to my next playthrough, just gotta decide what to do with that playthrough (maybe if I can do the new tumblr polls I’ll make one of those).

I’ll just end it with one last screencap. My feelings for Engage overall I think:

[1kook]

That post really got me thinkin

[cognidoodledoo]

We can’t forget about giving these guys their own intro, types and enneagrams, now can we?

More info down below:

From top to bottom function, they get visibly less and less humanoid + the dark sclera compared to the main functions since they aren’t as developed or even expressed/made aware of as often as the first four (especially Te and Si).

In a way they’re all symbolic “opposites” to their functions’ counterparts! More of this will be detailed in their individual bullet points.

The similar color schemes and designs for Ne and Si to @cognitivedoodles​’s still apply here: shadow ENTP/INTJ and ENFP/INFJ have Ne and Si in the same slot, but influenced by different auxiliary/critical and tertiary/trickster functions!

The introverted functions having a more muted palette and the extraverted functions with a more saturated palette still applies.

Introverted functions tend to have longer hair while extraverted functions have shorter hair; I’ll delve into this a little more for each relevant individual function.

Hopefully I delivered with the semi-compensated colors that represent both Fi and Te!

Opposing Ne

Ne’s design is meant to be reminiscent of a spider, since I associate opposing Ne as being “caught up/stuck in a web of possibilities”.

The intuitive functions are the only functions that don’t contrast each other through the “roles” they represent; they do it via imagery alone.

Compared to Ni’s ponytail made of converging the strands of hair, Ne gets twin tails and diverge at the end as a contrast to their way of processing patterns and information!

Another part of the design that points towards this is Ne’s multiple eyes; seeing multiple possibilities in equal weight.

The ribbon-like part of the outfit are supposed to act like extra limbs since I figured the actual extra limbs are reserved for Se. They’re also used to further hammer in the “multiple possibilities” aspect of Ne.

Ne has a bad habit of provoking Ni (re: everyone) when given the opportunity, which further serves Ni’s paranoia of needing to suppress them as much as they can.

Ne has a soft spot for Se though, given that they’re both the only manic functions around.....maybe when Ni finally slips up Ne can make her acquaintance with Se.

For all her teasing, Ne can at least respect Ni’s dedication to the user. That doesn’t mean she doesn’t harbor any hard feelings toward them though....

Critical Fi

Fi’s a ragdoll, which explains the stitches around on her body, fake blush on her cheeks, patches on her dress, and heart motif patched onto it which contrasts with Fe looking more clean and polished as a China doll with porcelain glazed skin and his heart motif as a shiny brooch of sorts separate from his body/outfit.

Also eye contrasts! Fi having buttons for eyes and basically an ‘x’ for pupils while Fe gets “actual” eyes with a pure white heart for pupils.

Not to mention hair contrasts- Fi with her long, lush, and thick hair that touches every inch of her body while Fe has shoulder-length hair and neat bangs.

Fi contrasts Fe’s role as a doting and sociable parent by being the silent and critical parent; she could give Si a run for his money when it comes to who’s the least talkative, given that she generally only speaks when spoken to.

In that same vein, Fi actually more often than not calls out Fe on his bullshit when she gets the opportunity and sees it, much to Fe’s chagrin. But there are also other times where Fi’s the only function to notice and recognize what Fe actually misses when reading others. and himself

Trickster Te

Te’s an automaton, hence the shiny body! (Based on many Te dom characters I love lmao) Also his “glasses” are actually just a visual provided by the screen, they’re not real glasses (or eyes for that matter).

Te contrasts Ti’s role as an innocent, tight-lipped, knowledge-hungry school girl by being the stern, aggressive teacher that always has something to say when everyone else is being inefficient, or worse, unable to make their plans work out.

Te definitely has issues with the entire main function stack being “disorganized” and “inefficient” because of the many notes he’s jotted down about why and how they could improve if they just let him and the other shadow functions take control for one second.

He mostly has issues with Ti, calling her “slow” due to her need to know every single little detail and fact (unbeknownst to Ti of course because of a few strings Ni and Fe managed to pull so a function like Te and the rest can stop threatening to take control of their spots and ruin the user even more than Se could ever dream of)

The whip is also another reason Ni and Fe don’t want him around lmao

Demon Si

Si’s a timekeeper demon that actually hates his face so much he opted to wear a mask so he doesn’t have to face (heh) himself

Si contrasts Se’s role as an eternally youthful, joyful teenager by being the eternally elderly, depressed time demon that would rather be left alone forever but sticks with the shadow functions under the excuse of “keeping them in check”.

The broken off demon horn is to emphasize the fact he’s a demon since the original one whole circle horn is supposed to symbolize him being a timekeeper (eternity). The demon and self-loathing emphasis references how INFJs/INTJs internalize Si negatively more often than not.

Si has only ever interacted with Ni a few times and Ni’s more paranoid about him than any other function; he fuels their anxiety more than everyone else combined, to say the least.

No one admits it, but Si is in some weird way the glue that makes the shadow functions stick together.

[sugar-petals]

So Caro how do you like "butter"?? 😳🤔

i’ll be cranking out my media major, let's review butter stylistically. ✍️ in four aspects — sonically, visually, lyrically, and concept-wise.

sonically: 9/10. here’s an interesting comparison i found, this can be calculated by looking at the stats of a musical piece. if you want to do harmonic mixing with another bts song, seesaw (!) is the most similar to it. with the exception that it’s written in f minor but other than that, the bpm/energy/danceability is uncanny. mindboggling. in other words, two bts songs can have the same anatomy and be entirely different worlds. that’s seriously hard to pull off. talking genre, recalling that namjoon said it's a "super retro disco pop new age acoustic ballad", that description is right on 😂it gets very daft punk after 1:38, groovy, the production is quite proper. especially in the second half, it’s a firework and all transitions VERY well. what i liked less, the voices are quite meddled with and as last time, the pitch gets higher and higher so the baritones need more pressure on the voice to be heard (i salute taehyung, my mezzo would be breaking apart). it’s a miracle that rapline can handle these songs. they put a heavier bassline under yoongi’s and rm’s bars, and separated hoseok toward the end since his tone is higher so, i hear you, someone knows what they’re doing. as for the tenors, looking forward to the live rendition of the mixed register bits and the vocal runs. bts are stable like that and jk’s timbre carries the song effortlessly (as is everyone’s great english pronunciation, these guys work so hard) so they wouldn't need autotune, figure it's been added for artistic effect, the retro vibes. a bonus on the other hand, jin getting his lines, hell yes, the spotlight for him. and the arrangement of their parts in general is quite ingeniously done, that looks like the workings of namjoon’s giant brain.

visually: 9/10. the dancebreak being the highlight — this is the sexiest thing i've ever seen — we get to see some really fancy moves from everybody and the hairstyles are quite a feast. jimin and jk have been much-talked-about so i'll emphasize the extravagance of hobi's 2013 MAMA g-dragonesque neon yellow here. he’s the smooth like butter guy they’re talking about indeed, butter hair, butter attitude, butter on his plat! 😂it’s seriously good thinking to have one member embody the concept with a color so, pretty clever. making him stand out as the ending fairy and then blending in the butter logo is equally smart. they wanted to catch our eye, they achieved it. the couture: yep, fashion youtube will have a good time going through all the outfits. from tae's chanel earrings, jin’s skirt, to white suits to jackets over the shoulder. very stylish. someone put a lot of thought into it, and i'm a sucker for some gnc undertones so very cool stuff. the only (very trivial) minus i noticed, a lot of the tailoring does not exactl fit the boys’ bodies to a t, see jungkook’s or jin’s sleeves, though you can’t expect bts to have a tailor come in and fix so many outfits with so many comebacks at once. the dance, it's a compilation of many classic bts moves. i feel like it could be tiny bit more distinguished with a whopping new complex signature formation that bts is famous for in creating, then again the full dance practice isn't out and the head nodding part is quite a visual anchor. also: i noticed they put yoongi in front row a lot. someone’s shoulder is finally better again, we can prepare for some good stuff.

lyrically: 4/10. the song fulfills its function, it creates the mood, but i’m hard to please in that regard as mentioned before. why: time and again i realize that yoongi, rm, and pdogg spoil us with comforting or on-fire lyrics that hit home and are on brand. same idea as in dynamite here, we're hit with a lotta english catchphrases that we usually wouldn't hear from bangtan. it's party mode, it's the summer hit kinda writing, so yeah it does what it’s supposed to do anyway and anybody can sing along. it’s catchy and solid for sure. the 'smooth criminal/superstar/heartbreaker' idea is carried through as a red string so thematically, it's coherent at least. a lot of lines are downright hilarious with random analogies and i don't know if the writers are serious or not. they could go all the way to make it clearer that humor and braggadocio is the concept here, exaggerate it even more. you can’t always tell if it’s a parody of a ‘yeah i’m the man you all fall for me’ sentiment or if it’s 100% business. in some parts of the song it works, in others it makes less sense. where i’ve seen bts execute this well with their own writing is converse high, that’s the bar. it’s also a personal lesson for me since i write crack often, butter tells you where to put the punchlines and where to keep it neutral. a lot of it is all over the place. on the other hand, it fits right on the beat. and perfectly executed pop so i'm a bit torn. i like the ‘got that heat’ part they gave jimin. 'side step right left to my beat' is a good chorus entry as well. making light of it, every lyric works as a witty gif or tweet tagline and we'll be circulating these phrases to eternity. every line works as a good comeback in any situation of life. yoongi's verse legit made me giggle. TLDR: the lyrics are partially confusing but they blend with the music well. 

conceptually: 8/10. hit the bell for that black and white intro, that was a good idea, same with the latest teaser. and: range, darling. only in a bts video could a cotton candy jimin go from a mugshot to being the president to a basket ball court hero to going full saturday night fever to flexing his legs in less than three minutes. jokes aside: it all fits in the universe of boy with luv and dynamite so points for consistency. bts's directors have outlined a new style for sure. the worldbuilding could go even deeper, but lumpens did a good job giving us many different eye candy serves and an innovative theme that hasn’t been tackled before, k-pop and pancakes why not! there are less actual film sets (and the difference shows, e.g. in Fire or Daechwita it really gave it some oomph), but it's not really needed. butter has no requirement for an agust d-ish plotline with historical buildings and the members' looks are in the center of attention. then again, i like those details of hoseok sitting in a retro apartment at the end — cozy, i love — with a radio. once again, they could exaggerate the vintage even more, it wouldn’t take away from the idea and visuals. i wish they would’ve expanded even more on the melting butter aesthetic shots as well, although it’s neatly tied into the song so it makes sense. the lyrics really have been blended with the choreograpy theme (the side step as a central move) so i’m thinking the art direction and choreographer had quite an in-depth discussion how to create a bigger picture. as for my weakness: cuteness melts me like butter, extra points for jungkook and yoongi being adorable in their seats.

[kob131]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=byjiwECylIE

So EruptionFang made a video about Raven Branwen. 

Considering his last video I watched (his Volume 8 Episode 2 Breakdown) was basically him shitting himself continuously because he’s STILL bitter about his headcanon being disproven, I don’t have high hopes.

But who knows, maybe he’ll make a good point.

0:00 - 1:24 “In RWBY, other characters get torn down to make Team RWBY look better, like the show only wants you to like Team RWBY! No one gets to be fleshed out or understood by the show! It’s SOOO disrespectful!”

...

*SMASH!*

Sorry, that was the sound of me faceplanting so hard I smashed a desk in half.

Really, Team RWBY never rises up and only other characters get torn down to make them look good? Yang never had to develop from being reckless as all hell to actually using her head in a fight? Blake didn’t have to get over her own fears and learn to accept help from others? Weiss didn’t have to struggle against her own personality to become a better person overall? Ruby didn’t have to struggle against the world itself and her own worldview to keep going?

This shit that is OBSERVABLE IN THE FUCKING SHOW didn’t happen? Sure, and there are two Adams. Even by the example you visually give (Avatar The Last Airbender)- Team RWBY still rose up like Team Aang did.

And don’t give me that ‘other characters get torn down!’ bullshit. The Ace Ops weren’t made to look bad to make Team RWBY look good- They failed because of their own personal flaws that were already established before that fight (Harriet’s recklessness, Elm’s temper, Vine’s detached attitude, Marrow’s disconnect). And Adam wasn’t torn down AT ALL: he remained the same damn character throughout his appearances and failed through his own failures born from his character.

And funny how you talk about other character not getting developed and yet ignore the Ace Ops’ boss. What’s wrong? Oh yeah, Ironwood IS developed (EXTENSIVELY. As in, we know more about his thought process, reasoning and actions than even WEISS, let alone Blake, Yang and Ruby.) so he just becomes a walking debunking of your OPENING ARGUMENT.

Not even past the intro and I’m already pissed.

1:46 ‘Any character’s righteous revolutions-’

Which didn’t exist, was disproven in the first episode and completely ignores BASIC writing tropes (like ‘Villians LIE’).

But please, keep talking about your delusions.

1:56 ‘There is an inescapable bubble Raven is in by both the audience and the characters!’

Spoiler Alert: It’s a bubble Raven HERSELF made in the first place.

‘A bubble that she’s a coward and cares about no one but herself.’

True and effectively true. I’ll explain WHY later.

(Nothing to say about the ‘Meeting Yang and Raven’ part, moving on)

8:37 - 8:51 *quotes Shane’s letter, portraying it as a cruel choice to ignore the Volume 2 stinger scene.*

So now we’ve moved on to tearing off chunks of Monty’s corpse and Shane’s grief to use for his own headcanon. Fan-fucking-tastic.

I have absolutely no sympathy for anyone using this- partially because it’s always using an emotional connection to Monty to manipulate the audience. Partially because this was a DUMB decision. 

Where the FUCK would Raven fit into Volume 3? Even the section EF takes from is about a fight that everyone agrees wouldn’t have fit into Volume 3 at all and served no purpose and this is the ONLY mention of Raven. Combine this with how Volume 3 is structured (where Raven can’t do anything that Qrow didn’t already do), how ambiguous the final scene of Volume 2 was, the Mary Sue accusations against Yang at this point and Raven’s revealed personality- She wouldn’t WORK in Volume 3. Just because Monty had the idea doesn’t make it a good one. Fuck, he BROUGHT ON Miles and Kerry BECAUSE he knew he wasn’t a writer and his last contribution (Maidens) was BY FAR the worst aspect of RWBY which proves that even more.

EF, you’re bitching that Raven wasn’t shoved into a Volume already overstuffed and lacking in time and resources. With NO purpose and contradicting her personality.

Congrats on encouraging bad writing.

10:43 ‘It doesn’t make sense that in introducing the maidens and making Raven one, they cut her attacking Pyrrha to get her Maiden powers!’

Yeah- nice headcanon. Too bad your own quote says they didn’t know the purpose, Shane’s letter never says the purpose either and you even say it’s speculation. Also too bad that we’re suppose to SYMPATHIZE with Raven on some level later on and a large part of why Cinder isn’t portrtayed as sympathetic is that she KILLED Pyrrha, Raven’s theoretical target. Thus Raven’s attack would make her even MORE unlikeable.

‘B-but it changes the context of what we know, like Yang’s search for her!”

And how? 

“Through her message to Yang, which was hostile and angry!”

... Really? The message of “I won’t save you again” is angry and hostile? It seems more matter of fact to me, informing Yang she won’t help her again not out of anger or dislike but through her worldview, which would be disconnected from her emotions on the surface.

Qrow’s words never include an insult or attack on Yang, like calling her weak or mocking her. You can INTERPRET it as hostile and angry but that depends on the subjective worldview of the person. The actual words and message don’t carry hostility or anger. They carry apathy.

‘B-but it splits her character in two-!’

Oh my god, did you SERIOUSLY try to pull another ‘Two Adams’ on me?

Raven DIDN’T HAVE a character to spilts in those two appearances. We knew nothing about her as a person. Her saving Yang and that supposed talk could have been for and about ANYTHING. That’s why there were so many theories: NOTHING was known. And nothing about those actions inform her character without context, which Volume 2 never gives.

This ‘first Raven’, like CJ Black’s ‘First Adam’, DOESN’T EXIST. It’s just a headcanon you refused to accept as being debunked.

‘W-well, Raven still looked after Yang when her arm was cut off!’

In bird form. And only bird form. And never directly interacts with Yang. All in a form Yang DOESN’T KNOW she’s in. Suffering from problems RAVEN HERSELF caused. WITH A FUCKING PORTAL TO HER AT ALL TIMES.

‘B-but her actions say that she DOES care!’

I knew PRECISELY what arguments you were gonna make the moment I started this video. Because they’re the SAME DAMN SHIT I’ve seen to defend Raven before. And let me go ahead and tear it down now: Raven being around in bird form means NOTHING. Without Yang knowing it’s her, it is meaningless. It’s WORSE than nothing because it demonstrates that Raven could have been with Yang throughout her life with no apparent cost to her because SHE WAS ALREADY DOING IT. And it means she watched Yang struggle with her abandonment and the toll it took on her family and ESPECIALLY Yang and did NOTHING to fix the problem. 

Even ignoring the portal thing, taking this one scene in a vacuum- her looking at her depressed daughter and then fucking off paints her as either so lacking in empathy that she can’t be bothered to help HER OWN CHILD or so ill equipped to be a parent she makes TFS Goku look like...well, Taiyang. With CONTEXT, (still ignoring the portal thing), she CAUSED this depression by scarring Yang all those years ago and made Yang’s life worse for it. With the portal, she couldn’t even do the barest of minimum standards.

You can try to portray this as beautiful all you want: Nothing is shown stopping Raven from actually BEING A PARENT FOR ONCE before this and after this, we KNOW it wouldn’t be difficult in the slightest and she STILL chooses to not help. It’s one of the worst cases of parental apathy I have ever seen and fuck you for trying to bitch out the creators because you chose to IGNORE CONTEXT.

‘Instead of making it so Raven abandoned Yang because of her Maiden powers, they instead chose to abandon her role as a mother!’

You mean they had a character make a decision that completely fits with how the audience would perceive the character at this point?

Everyone, consider what we know about Raven. She’s Qrow’s twin sister, meaning she’s logically just skilled and strong as Qrow is. She’s also a Maiden, something that gives characters an IMMENSE amount of power separate from their normal abilities. She has a decoy so no one knows what she actually is. She has a portal to and from Yang at ALL times. She’s as strong as the strongest non-Maiden character shown so far, IS a Maiden bolstering her power beyond the Maidens we DO know of and can instantly be there for Yang at any time in her life and get away if someone tries to go after her, which makes no sense if it’s about her being a Maiden because she has a DECOY for this thing.

And yet, with all these things working for her, giving her every advantage that DEFIES the common trope EF is pushing- Raven still ditched her, ditched her a second time and couldn’t even be bothered to give her deeply apathetic message herself. And now supposedly, Raven would suddenly become a mother to Yang...and we’re expected to feel happy about this.

Yeah, no. People would be outraged that Raven got off scot free. In no part

“Everyone keeps being hostile and angry with Raven, who is also being hostile and angry. This means that the other guys are just pidgeonholding her into this role!”

Yes, a trend that Raven HERSELF causes. Qrow is hostile towards her because she tried to act as though she cared about her family to Qrow, a character shown to be a loyal person, but ignores her own DAUGHTER when it’s supposedly about family. Yang is hostile towards Raven because she knows Raven could have been there for her but chose not to, all while she NEEDS to find her ACTUAL family. Even Taiyang’s look at the end of Volume 5 makes sense as if she’s there, that means she’s likely running from their daughter, whom she has failed as a parent YET AGAIN despite Taiyang giving her a generous interpretation.

Raven is being forced into a role SHE MADE FOR HERSELF.

“This isn’t how it was at the beginning of the show. Yang and by extension the audience is sad and curious while Raven and Qrow are angry and toxic.”

Again, you ignore context.

Yang knows NOTHING about Raven and was abandoned by her. Of course she’d be sad and curious.

But Qrow is different. He DOES know Raven, saw first hand what her actions have done to his family while being the type of person who would HATE this and Raven is actively being manipulative while also avoiding him as he asks for help in SAVING THE WORLD.

Later on, Yang finds Raven...after learning that Raven had every chance in the world to be there for her and chose NOT to. All while Raven exudes arrogance and a selfish pride in being a ‘prize’ for Yang to work towards.

Then Raven proceeds to use her as BAIT, abandon her, try to turn her against the family that HAS been there for her, insults the father and uncle who loved and cared for her- all for more power...that wouldn’t even solve the problem Raven has. She stabbed her own brother and daughter in the back...for nothing. Because of her own flaws, something Yang fought against and overcame making her more mature than her MOTHER.

And after all that, she is given one last chance to truly show her love for Yang: to help her and join her. To go with her and put herself at risk for Yang’s safety or at least taking the Relic so Salem will target her instead of Yang. And what does Raven do? Abandons her AGAIN.

Abandons her to run off near her ex, the man she left with a child and a broken heart. She uses her connection to him to run away from her responsibility as a parent, running away from THEIR DAUGHTER. The girl he raised up without blaming Raven for anything, instead trying to paint a good picture of her in Yang’s head.

No shit people are hostile or unhappy with her- She keeps FAILING.

‘Oh hey, they made her an antagonist and thus EVIL! The writer’s CLEARLY think that there’s no way a parent who abandoned their child can be anything other than EVIL!’

... Then how come they portray her as conflicted and sad in the finale of Volume 5?

Much like how Adam’s unmasking fundamentally BREAKS his previous arguments of ‘HE EVIL!’ because it helps humanize Adam and give him pity and sorrow, the same is done here with the finale and Raven’s final actions so far. If Raven were evil, she wouldn’t have tried justifying her actions. Salem, Tyrian and , actively evil characters, don’t act like Raven. And they certainly don’t show regret or sorrow for their actions or conflicts about the results. This goes AGAINST how people perceive evil, even in the show itself.

So if she’s supposedly EVIL, why is her climax all about aspects that are fundamentally incompatible with how evil is portrayed in the show?

Answer: Raven’s not portrayed as evil. She’s portrayed as FLAWED, with actual negative flaws that cause her grief and pain like any normal character. EF is just throwing a fit that a ‘character’ he likes isn’t being treated as positive.

‘Volume 4 wasn’t where we got our first impression of Raven, it was Volume 2 and 3!’

And what impression could you get?

That she’s strong...and that’s it. At least, that’s it for positive traits. Raven is strong because she scared off Neo and that’s all the positive traits we have of her.

Everything else is negative. She apparently doesn’t care enough about Yang to stay around in any capacity for whatever reason. She refuses to see Yang and is largely apathetic towards her. She can be there for Yang but chooses not to. And her own twin brother Qrow doesn’t really like her.

The things we saw of Raven then paint a picture of someone who doesn’t care about Yang in any meaningful way. Even though I’ve chosen to ignore the portal thing, I really shouldn’t because she showed the portals off since Volume 2, meaning since her physical introduction she ALWAYS had a path to Yang but never chose to. EF acts as though these aspects of Raven didn’t exist before Volume 4...when the barest minimum of thought shows them in before that.

‘Their biggest mistake was the Volume 2 end credits scene since it goes against everything they wanted to do with her as a character!’

Yeah...and you argue for including it even though your own source shows that the other writers KNEW this issue.

‘The first impression we got of her was her saving Yang’s life and then confronting her!’

Yeah, and guess what? Those are not inherently positive. She could have saved Yang to manipulate her and use her as a pawn for all we knew. For as many positive interpretations you can give for these actions, I can give a negative interpretation. All because these actions lacked context at the time so it was neither positive nor negative.

The context dictated what these actions were. And context defined them as ultimately positive...but flawed. Which you conflate with malice.

‘The Volume 2 scene was meant to be a kicking off point-’

For what? Once again, the scene is not inherently positive. Raven never shows care or love for Yang in that scene, all she shows is a desire to talk (which without context of what she says, what it means, what her intentions are, how informed she is and how she uses this opportunity- makes it neutral.)

After this you do this cartoonish ‘oh they changed direction!’ thing without a single shred of evidence beyond a letter made by a grief madden man which doesn’t even say what you are saying. You keep assigning direction to something without a clear direction.

‘So how do you address her Maiden plotline with her Yang plotline?’

You make it about her personal failing of trying to use power to hide her cowardice, show that she lies to herself as well as others to justify her actions and show how she fails? Like how they showed that her ditching Yang lines up with how she refuses to take action until backed into a corner, gets confronted repeatedly with her flaws as her daughter (someone far weaker and less informed) keeps going and the show forces her to see how she’s being cowardly?

‘Don’t do one.’

... Translation: ‘i didn’t like what the show did so I’m gonna do selective remembering to make it look like nothing happened. ... What? I did it with Adam.’

Regardless of how you feel about the plotlines- They were BOTH addressed. It wasn’t dropped, it wasn’t forgotten- It was resolved as I have shown multiple times here.

And here at 20:33 I’m ending this. It’s pretty damn clear that Erup-Cole is just ignoring whatever doesn’t fit his view. Instead of taking a look at what happened and trying to understand the pattern that comes, he’s making up a pattern and patchworking it together through cherry picking.

I see that he hasn’t changed from his Adam tantrum, because this is the EXACT SAME VIDEO, just stretched out and about Adam’s MILF form. And I do mean ‘Adam’s MILF form’ because I don’t think a character with such superficial similarities to him getting the same treatment is a coincidence.

Cole, you can’t try selling me something with THIS much bullshit. It’s like trying to serve me a maggot infested steak and telling me it’s well cooked. You’re full of shit and no matter how much you try to hide it, it won’t change.

Your headcanons are not canon and it’s your fault you take such offense. Deal with it.

[manjuhitorie]

Hitorie’s album ‘4′ - Interview via Natalie.com - English Translation

It all began from wowaka’s wish for people to perform his songs with.

　- Interviewer(森朋之): I gave 4, your first ever greatest hits album, a good listen. It truly ossifies the footprints Hitorie left, the marks Hitorie etched in the world, and the beauty of wowaka’s homemade music. May I ask the reason which spurred this endeavor?

ygarshy (Bassist): Now, at this juncture, do we find it fitting for people to look back at the music we 4 made.

Yumao (Drummer): Not to mention the urge to show everyone how we feel; to show those who’ve listened to Hitorie all this time and those who’ve just found us both. We’ve been performing as a trio for a while now, even before the release of this album, so in order to reach a broader range of ears a greatest hits album was a no-brainer.

Shinoda (Guitarist/Chorus): The title ‘4’ was my idea. We were discussing what to dub the title over a meal when this popped up in my head. It was like “This is it, nothing else”. The song selection was a group effort, in essence its designed around songs which felt indispensable. As Yumao said, we considered future new listeners as well.

　-     I’m sure it served as a trip down memory lane for you too, so in fact how did it unfold behind the curtains?


ygarshy: Hitorie originally started with wowaka as the core: wowaka served - we hit. Humans as his bolsters: including the complex songs practically unplayable by humans (laughs). We learned to tackle those songs more and more pragmatically, as in “How much expression can we uphold with just our mortal bodies“. The album’s track list is parallel with our timeline too, so you can feel our growth for yourself with a very listen.

   
-     The more music you make the more physical substance you assume, then in name and in form both do you truly become a band.
 
ygarshy: Yes. Through the trial and error of our early years did we puzzle out our own unique way of expression, as such, near the end of disc 2 you can see that a new world happens to open up. There’s more straightforward and honest expressions, wowaka begins to add more direct words to his lyrics. He’s always had originality to him, but through living life did he acquire more and more.
 Yumao: Speaking of... People told me this and I realized it’s true: Disc 1 and Disc 2 are in two different phases. Disc 1 gives the impression of wowaka expressing the imaginary world within himself only, while Disc 2 to seems to be conscious of other people as well. I think this was influenced by the time of writing plus the way we conversed as a band during production. At first we needed words to converse, but slowly did we transcend and become able to form a song without them. So in correspondence did the lyrics become more outwards reaching as well. As ygarshy said, near the end of Disc 2 the songs feel like they’re heading towards a “forward”. Hitorie’s music and messages, and everything included, there’s new ideas and experiments happening. Chronological order was the perfect way to roll Hitorie up in a single package, and it shows that Hitorie aren’t yet done with their journey.




wowaka was someone who believed “This feels good, so I’ve gotta do it.”

   
-     Shinoda do you also find this greatest hits album to be a model of Hitorie’s growth? 
Shinoda: Like, I’ve gotta. It’s our blood sweat and tears we’re talking about. How do I put this, over time our workplace gradually became a more comfortable space. Not in terms of our relationships as people, but our relationships musically. I hope this greatest album serves as a looking glass into that intimacy of ours.
 　  -  
When exactly did your musical relationship grow closer?
 Shinoda: Probably around when we were making ai/SOlate (Mini album released in December of 2017). Playing with all our might is always a must but, in our early years we would often put too much time and energy into fretting over the minor aspects. Like “Are you sure this is okay?” or “Is my guitar really recorded as cool as can be?”. Around ai/SOlate did those doubts begin to slip away, and then with HOWLS (Album released in February of 2019) were we able to let ourselves out, as frank as possible. Less weight on our shoulders = less unease and chips on our shoulders.
 　- I see. Listening really hammers in the originality and uniqueness of your band. Where do you think Hitorie’s musical personality fits in with wowaka’s realm of imagination?

 ygarshy: Excuse me if this is the improper choice of words, but, wowaka’s the type to thrust himself in to whatever he finds physically pleasing. You may find that even the highest tempo songs will have intricate phases, this is because wowaka, in pure innocence, believes that “It’s cooler this way!”. Lyrics are the same ordeal. He himself divulged this frequently in interviews and such as well.. that more than the dictionary definition of a word, he places importance in the way a word sounds when it hits the ear, there’s more definition and meaning to a word that way. His stance on this links to who he is as a person, how he lives and thinks. I always got the impression that he didn’t use his conscious mind when he wrote, rather he believed that “This feels good, so I’ve gotta do it.”.
 　  - When he found musical enjoyment, he didn’t falter and flung himself right in, I see.
 ygarshy: That and, because he’s so attuned to those nerves is he so unwavering. He has exact things which he will “refuse to give this up” or say “I need this” about. In being close to him I noticed this about him. Of course this applies outside of music as well. For example, at one point wowaka got really into cooking and really good at it. He possesses the ability to figure out the core essence of something, and visualize “If I add this here, this will happen”. It’s not as if he’s savvy, it’s more like he has keen sensors when it comes to pinpointing sweet spots. Yumao: One characteristic of wowaka’s music is the sheer volume of information. When I checked out the printed version of Senseless Wonder’s lyrics I was shitting myself, all over again. It boasts such capacity, and it feels like it's aaaall coming straight for you. I felt this when we made music together as well, in a way it’s a weapon of his. Not to mention that from ai/SOlate and onwards did our sound become legions better. Mixing and mastering play a role in this, along with wowaka’s efforts to spend time working with our engineer man-to-man. In regards to the music I felt a desire from him to go with the flow of his current trends. I think he probably felt “I’m wielding a whole new way of music”, it’s then in those moments when he will unleash a beastly level of focus. In line with what ygarshy said, he definitely isn’t savvy, it’s not as if he wrote these songs in a jiffy either. However he is capable of spending a long time span completely absorbed in a single objective until it takes full shape. It’s akin to building a plastic model: to gather small bits and pieces and piece them together. 　- So wowaka has a clear vision of what he wants to do in his head, he gathers all the necessary parts, then begins construction. ygarshy: That’s it. Say when you’re putting together a puzzle, say even if you couldn’t fit the pieces in, you could still make out the shape of the grid, right? I’m not him so I can’t say for certain but, I think maybe music writing was like that for him. 　- The guitar phrases seem to be constructed with perfect precision as well, what’s that like on your side Shinoda? Shinoda: The guitar parts were always a tug of war between wowaka and I. We‘re the only two who share the same role of instrument, wherein he has his guitar aesthetics while I have my own. We clashed so to speak. When I was to reenact a phrase he wrote I would propose my own saying “I have a better idea!”. Only to be shot down by wowaka. Or other times be recognized. When he would say “Your phase is better.”, I felt like I won the battle (laughing). We had a pretty fierce relationship, we clashed and we understood each other, we were always aiming higher, and the fruit of my victories can be heard in a few tens of the guitar on the album.

“How the hell did this guy manage to sing these wack-ass songs"

　- In June of 2019, Shinoda-san took on the role of main vocalist, and together to put on a hour-long show as a three piece. Furthermore in September to November did you tour the country. What are your thoughts on performing this way? ygarshy: Shinoda is the one to ask, he has the most to say on this subject.  Shinoda: Well I’m the only one taking on a completely different role. It makes me go “How the hell did this guy manage to sing these wack-ass songs. He’s fucking unbelievable.” I too have spent time writing and singing my own music, but in a million years I still would’ve never come up with the crazy concepts he did. Like, “If you consider the fact that you gotta sing these songs, no way would anyone in their right mind stuff this many words into the lyrics.”, right?! But, I’m singing ‘em now. ygarshy: Hahaha (laughs). 　- Is it possible that he didn’t consider concerts when he wrote?

 Shinoda: Probably. Of course he knows full well that he’s going to be singing them out there but, I think he was more fervent to bring his ideas to life.     - How about you, ygarshy? How do you fare? How do you feel about Hitorie’s current setup? ygarshy: Hitorie’s musical structure tends to treat the bass like an on/off switch. Conventional music structure has bass and drums as constants with guitar playing over them. With Hitorie however, our standard is to have 2 guitars going constantly, while the bass pops in and out at intervals. 

Such as the bass playing during the intro, but being silent during the first verse. That’s one of the unique aspects of wowaka’s songs. So when we try to play as only 3 people, there’s times when songs will seize to take shape. So I may have to cover the second guitar parts on bass, or we may have to even remold the structure itself. We’re still busy doing that even now. 　- I would like to ask Yumao as well, when you get up on stage as a trio, how has the view from the drummer’s seat changed? 
 Yumao: Quite much. I was beside myself at first. With wowaka gone the space in front of me is so barren and open that I lose my bearings. Albeit there may be no need for me to change anything I do but... Rather, the atmosphere of the livehall is changing bit by bit I suppose. When the 4 of us performed there always something.. tense about the atmosphere. The core essence of a concert may be all about hyping and having fun but, on the flip side, people may also get absorbed in the performance only to stand around utterly paralyzed. Hitorie were makers of the latter mood, I’ve felt it and seen it with my own eyes. Now, when we perform as a trio... Instead of worrying whether we can do it or not, we just say “We gotta try” and go... After getting through a tour and a festival, our approach as a whole has shifted. How do I say this.. Deep down I think that if we don’t put on more sociable open concerts we don’t stand a chance. I can tell by the audience’s faces that change is slowly but surely taking it’s course. Well I guess that’s only natural but y’know, it’s not as if we sat down together and decided “Let’s do more open concerts” or anything.   　 - I’m sure that the audience’s hearts are in different place as well. 
 Yumao: I think so. There may be people who come jumping with joy or people who come bearing heavy hearts. I myself see people crying so. We‘ve found balance amidst that storm and have forged our very own trio way, so our next concerts will be stronger than before. 




Going forward, I want to fling myself into whatever coolness and artistry we’re capable of expressing

    - Your national tour for 4 has been cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so you’re to put on your first ever streamed concert on the 5th of October. In regards to this and to your musical innovations, what kind of future is in store for you?

 ygarshy: We haven’t been able to think far ahead in terms of music. Our minds were still in chaos just during our tour in 2019. For the time being we’re working off the feeling of “We want to create a gathering space for us and our audience”. Our performance is an afterthought, for now we’re focusing on emotions.

 Yumao: Yeah.

　 
ygarshy: On that same note, I have some insight… In the album we included the live version of Rollin’ Girl (2016.2.18 at Shimokitazawa GARDEN), and when I listened to that track I thought “Did we always sound this awesome!?”. I have zero recollection as to what I could’ve been doing while I played back then, because performing together as 4 was my everyday life at that point. I knew but I didn’t quite realize just how awesome Hitorie sounded. Now that we’re 3, I can’t reach that same level of emotion but, I do believe that I want to continue on creating heart-wrenchers. Going forward, I want to fling myself into whatever coolness and artistry we’re capable of expressing. Yumao: Up until 2019 we performed with such vigor that it’s hard to preserve that level of effectiveness with only the 3 of us, we need more, we can’t simply go in headstrong, we need time to recollect our thoughts. To that end I want to communicate among us and do it right.

 Shinoda: Well, y’know… Now that we’ve decided to continue, we’ve no choose but to move forward. Exactly what that entails though, I have not a good clue. We can’t slip and do something uncool, one of wowaka and our slogans was “Let’s constantly be doing cool things”, so I don’t want to drift astray from that. Such may seem obvious but... it’s all I have to say for now.

[tes-trash-blog]

So, uh, a while back you mentioned making a post about how Prisoner McNord might affect the player experience/perceptions of the "default" and I would be super interested in reading that

So!

I have a few thoughts already on what is considered “default” in Skyrim to be expanded upon in a future shitstorm rant (it’s on the list, between Almalexia Is Interesting Actually and Even More Crying About Snow Elves Part 17: My Tears Have Become Sentient And Are Also Crying).

And as always, keep in mind that Skyrim is coming up on 9 years old, elements of it have not aged well, and this is in no way, shape, or form meant to be a “If you like Skyrim then you’re Bad” rant. In case you haven’t noticed, I kind of love that game. It has flaws; all games do, and frankly it’s a miracle this game is as solid as it is. The writers are that, writers. They had deadlines to make, hardware limitations to consider, and above all else, worked for a company that wanted to make money.

To keep this relatively short I’ll focus on how your perception of Skyrim is influenced by the first few minutes of the game via Ralof, the Nordiest Nord to Nord since Ysgranord, and how the writers really, really really wanted you to hold on to that perception.

Overanalysis and spoilers (Metal Gear Solid, Borderlands, and Bioshock respectively yes this will all make sense in context) under the cut.

Part 1: How To Make A Perspective In Three Easy Steps

As the saying goes, first impressions are lasting impressions. This is evident in.. well, every bit of media you can find. The first chapters of a book, the first episode of a show, the first 15 minutes of a video game, all as a general rule:

1.) Introduces the setting, a part of the main plot, and with these two, sets the tone of the medium (high fantasy movie, light hearted TV show, mystery series, horror game, etc.). Exceptions exist, especially in horrors, mysteries, and certain visual novels, but even these exceptions rely on setting a tone so they can subvert your expectations later on.

2.) Give you an idea of what is going on. This is normally accomplished with exposition of some sort; Star Wars had its famous screen crawl expositing the dark times in the Galaxy, Borderlands literally begins with “So, you want to hear a story..”, Metal Gear Solid briefs Solid Snake (you, the player character) on a vital mission to save two hostages and end a terrorist threat, so on and so forth. And again, there are exceptions: Bioshock purposefully disorients you with a plane crash in the middle of the ocean so you’re inclined to trust the first person who talks to you.

This all serves to suspend disbelief, immerse you, and earn your trust. This is a new world, you have no idea what’s going on, so you’re gonna take cues from someone who does. Combine points 1 and 2, and that..

3.) Gives you an idea of what is “good” and what is “bad”. Damn near every story has a central conflict, you gotta pick a side, and there’s gonna be a bias as to which one is superior or morally just. Using Bioshock again, this mysterious man named Atlas guides you through the first level, and tells you how to fight and survive in the hostile environment of Rapture; meanwhile, Andrew Ryan taunts and belittles you, and also has a giant golden bust of himself. The shorthand is: Atlas is humble, helpful, and good, while Andrew Ryan is a megalomaniac who wants you dead. Leaning on Borderlands again, the first voice you hear is literally a guardian angel telling you not to be afraid, and that you are destined to do great things. Once more with Metal Gear: Your organization and your commanders are good, you are good because you’re saving innocent people, and FOXHOUND is bad because they’re terrorists who have the means to launch a nuclear warhead.

Keeping all this in mind, let’s do a quick runthrough of the first, let’s call it 15 minutes of Skyrim. No commentary on my end, just a play by play of the beginning of the game.

Part 2: First Impressions In Action

You wake up on a cart. Your vision is hazy, and you are clearly disoriented. You see a man bound and gagged, another man in rags, and several men dressed like soldiers. Everyone on the cart is tied up, and the people driving the cart are wearing a neat, vastly different uniform.

Then comes the famous line: “You! You’re finally awake! You were caught trying to cross the border, got caught in that Imperial ambush same as us, and that thief over there!” The thief bitterly remarks how these damn Stormcloaks had to cook up trouble in a nice and lazy Empire. The Nord who first spoke with you nobly says that we’re all brothers and sisters in these binds.

The presumed Imperial tells you all to shut up. Undeterred, the thief and the Stormcloak provide more exposition: The gagged man is the leader of the resistance, is supposedly the true High King, and since he’s on the cart, it’s clear that everyone on board is bound for the executioner’s block. The thief is terrified; the Nord accepts his fate, but takes a moment to opine on better days when he flirted with girls and “when the Imperial walls made him feel safe.” There is also a remark about General Tulius and the Thalmor agents; the Nord, in a rare bit of anger, damns the Elves and insinuates they had a hand in this capture.

It’s execution time. General Tulius gives a speech about how Ulfric started a civil war and killed the former High King; Ulfric, being gagged, cannot say a word in defense. A Stormcloak is executed to mixed reactions (“You Imperial bastards!” “Justice!”, etc.). The thief runs away; he is shot by Imperial archers, demonstrating the futility of escape. It’s your turn. The Nord in Imperial armor states you’re not on the list; the Imperial captain doesn’t care and orders you to the block anyway.

You see the headsman’s axe rise up when, as if the gods intervene, a dragon appears and interrupts your execution. In the chaos, you run with the Stormcloaks. The game does not give you the option to run away alone, or with the Imperials; until you meet Hadvar again in the fire and death, you take orders from Ulfric.

Part 3: The Crux

A lot happens in the first few minutes of Skyrim. You’re disoriented from being unconscious, and that’s compounded by your two near death experiences (point 2), the first person you meet is a calm, almost reassuring mouthpiece of exposition while the other side, at best, doesn’t care if you die (points 2 and 3), one major aspect of the plot is revealed (point 1, and the tone is that this is a classic Rebellion story).

And people love rebellion stories. Americans especially; we spend billions on the day when a bunch of white guys said “fuck you” to a bunch of other white guys. With the additional layer of when Skyrim was developed, by who, and in what landscape it was written.. Yeah. There may be two ways to go for the Civil War questline, but for most players (myself included!) their first gut instinct is going to be “side with the guys who didn’t just try to kill me.”

It’s the same song and dance. In Bioshock, your instinct is to trust the Irish guy who wants to help you get out of Rapture alive, but he needs your help first. In Borderlands, your instinct is to trust the woman who is literally called a guardian angel, and she shows her compassion by asking you to help the people of Fyrestone and the poor robot who got hurt in a gunfight. In Metal Gear, your instinct is to shut down the threat because terrorists are evil and these ones are not just terrorists, they’re deserters. Hell, even in other Elder Scrolls games the plot is laid out by helping hands: you’re a prisoner being contacted by your murdered friend, and given the goal to stop Jagar Tharn (Arena), you’re a Blades agent tasked with putting a vengeful spirit to rest that leads you to a weapon that can secure the Empire’s power (Daggerfall), Azura literally tells you not to be afraid, and that you destined to stop an old threat (Morrowind), and a soon-to-be-assassinated Emperor voiced by Actual Grandpa Patrick Stewart recognizes you in a prophetic dream (Oblivion).

Where Skyrim departs from these games, and even the other Elder Scrolls titles, is how much it enforces the first thing you see as solidly good and evil, and how little it tries to subvert that perception. Remember point 2, when the game makes it clear that this person is trustworthy? Therein lies the bread and butter of psychological horror, mysteries, and heart wrenching plot twists: that trust gets tested, and often broken.

The rebel leader Atlas? He’s somehow more evil than Andrew Ryan, and has subtly controlled you the entire time with a command phrase (“Would you kindly..?”). You are unable to stop yourself when you bludgeon Andrew Ryan to death at Ryan’s command. “A man chooses,” he tells you. “A slave obeys.” His final words are him telling you that you are a puppet, only able to obey.

The end of Borderlands reveals that “Angel” was watching you the entire time.. from a Hyperion satellite. You were tricked into opening a Vault holding back a dangerous monster, and you don’t even know why. Borderlands 2 goes further into just what (or rather who) Angel is: a teenage girl and a powerful Siren, used by her own demented, evil, father, Handsome Jack, to manipulate the Vault Hunters and gain more power for himself. Her final mission given to you is simple: she wants you to set her free and end her father’s mad march to power by killing her.

Metal Gear Solid ultimately plays it straight in that you stop the terrorists and disable the nuclear threat, but you don’t emerge from the rubble as an action hero; you’re forced to kill your own brother, the terrorist cell is revealed to be composed almost entirely of people exploited by your organization, and you secretly carry  a virus designed to kill the people you were trying to save. War, as it turns out, is not as clear-cut as “we good, they bad”. The people you’ve killed without thinking are your genetic brothers. Sniper Wolf, the assassin who shot your commander’s niece, survived a genocide and has never known a life outside of war. Psycho Mantis’ telepathic gifts were exploited by both the KGB and FBI until he lost his mind. Ocelot is Ocelot.

Oh, but those are other games. What about The Elder Scrolls? Well..

In Daggerfall, your search for hidden correspondence leads you to finding the Mantella, a sort of soul gem that can power the superweapon everyone wants: The Numidium. There are six entities total who want the Mantella, some for their personal gain, one to make a home for his people, and one so he may finally die; the Underking’s soul is in that gem, you see, and he’s been trapped in this misery since the days of Tiber Septim.

In Morrowind, Dagoth Ur recognizes you not as a schlub with a dummy thick journal, but as his oldest and dearest friend. The Empire who guided you for so long? They’ve manipulated you into taking down the Tribunal, destroying the one weapon that could stand against their might, and depending on your interpretation of “then the Nerevarine sailed to Akavir”, have possibly killed you.

And what of everyone’s favorite game in the series to mock? Surprise! Oblivion isn’t even about you, hero! It’s about the actual chosen one, Martin Septim! Sure you can join the Thieves’ Guild and cavort about as Grey Fox, or uncover the traitor of the Dark Brotherhood, or run off and become the Mad God.. but none of those events actually acknowledge you. To be the Grey Fox is to literally be forgotten, by the time the Dark Brotherhood questline is complete there is effectively no more Dark Brotherhood, and to become Sheogorath is to lose yourself entirely. The Hero of Kvatch is one who is ultimately forgotten. Your actions were important, have no doubt, but such is the fate of the unsung hero: they’re not sung about.

Even Arena plays a little bit with your expectations in that the Staff of Chaos alone isn’t enough to stop Jagar Tharn; you need friendship (just kidding it’s a magic gem in the Imperial Palace). Skyrim.. kinda glosses over that. They land a few punches, but for them to stay with you, you have to keep an open mind.

Part 4: Why does that matter?

Because if your expectations are never subverted, your trust never tried in any meaningful way, then your perception of a very specific, spoon-fed worldview is never challenged. The trust you build with a group that is, in essence, a fascist paramilitary cult is never shaken in any way that’s meaningful. You get some lines intended to evoke sadness when you sack Whiterun, but by then it’s too late. Not that it matters; at the end of the Stormcloak questline, there’s not much question about who was in the right. You never lose friends or allies; the Jarls in the holds change, but is there much difference between Idgrod Ravencrone and Sorli the Builder? You might feel a little guilty when you see the Dunmer forced to live in the slums, but then the haughty High Elf says that she didn’t laze around and instead made a name for herself, or the Dark Elf farmer who complains about his snowflake kinsmen harping on about “injustices”. The Argonians seem decent until you meet the skooma addict/thief, and the Khajiit.. let’s just say that even if we disregard the two Khajiit assassins sent to kill you, there exist a lot of extremely harmful stereotypes that none of your friends dispel. They commit no horrific war crimes in your presence, the worst you hear is a Nord (normally a bandit) yell “Skyrim is for the Nords!”, or the clumsy Welcome to Winterhold script where a Dunmer woman is harassed by two Nords; one’s a veteran, by the way. Got run through the chest by an Imperial craven, or so the story goes.

Your only chance to rattle the Nord-driven story is to go against your gut feeling and side with the Imperials (the plotline is pretty weak, not gonna lie), or complete the optional quest No One Escapes Cindha Mine where you see what a Stormcloak sympathizer does to the Forsworn. Even if you complete that quest, the Forsworn still attack you. “They’re savages,” say the Nords, and the game isn’t too inclined to say otherwise.

When it comes to portraying the Nords in any light that’s not negative, Skyrim doesn’t deliver like it did in other games. You saw what life is like in Morrowind under Tribunal rule; it’s not great. The Houses are almost universally awful and they have slaves. You see the destruction in Cyrodiil and hear the rumors on how much the Empire is flailing with the Oblivion Crisis. Hell, even Arena tells you that life in Tamriel kind of sucks, but it’ll suck a little less when Tharn is dead.

That doesn’t happen in Skyrim. You are encouraged to join the sympathetic Stormcloaks, you find out your destiny as Dragonborn, and you set all these things right. Of course you do. You’re a hero, baby. Others have gone on about how storybook the Dragonborn questline is so I won’t go too much in, but that’s it exactly: Storybook. You’re Neutral Good. You’re going to kill the bad dragon that wants to do its job and eat the world. 

And that refusal to really examine the nuances and horrors of war, to consider what it means to be a hero that is never morally challenged or forced into a Total Perspective Vortex, to never challenge an extremely biased perspective or even explore its “logical” conclusion?

It leads to extremely dangerous ways of thinking if unchecked.

[x0401x]

Hey miss wonderful taste in everything, can you recommend us some of your favorite KyoAni productions?

Sure! I love doing recs and I’m literally taking any sort of positive content related to KyoAni lately because we truly need it at the moment. Long post alert, though. Here goes my top 10:

1. Hyouka

This one will probably be my first choice forever. It’s KyoAni’s most brilliant work so far and easily one of the best animes I’ve ever watched, hands down. It’s also their finest novel-to-anime adaptation in my opinion, and one of the very few animation series that actually turned out better than their source material.

The books are extremely interesting, but they’re also bland. The alterations made to the anime added visual value to it in order to make it more alluring and appealing, turning ordinary situations into rather unique and thought-provoking settings, while managing to never deviate from its novel counterpart. The changes on the characters’ designs were also a very good choice in my opinion, as they fit more into the character archetypes and the impressions they give off.

This one is honestly an example for the whole anime industry and a timeless gem. I’m pretty certain that it was one of the studio’s turning points in terms of animation style. Surely will become a classic in the future.

2. Koe no Katachi

KyoAni’s most well-done movie, as far as I can tell. I’m specially fond of the symbolism of every scene and the effort put on the scenery, which gave an effect of depth to the frames. The studio managed to portray the mangaka’s art style while staying true to its own trademark traits as well.

Animation quality and sound design aside, it’s also loyal enough to the manga. There were cuts in order to fit the story into the time limit, but KyoAni made up for the gaps with later released specials. The movie is also considerably less dramatic than the original, yet I’m certain that the alterations in that regard were made so that the transition between the phases of the story wouldn’t feel rushed. Albeit in a much more uplifting way, it nevertheless managed to transmit the characters’ essence and emotions.

What caught my attention the most in this movie was the soundtrack, though. There was a lot of care in its production, and it was clearly made to be gentle and almost imperceptible, with glitch-like repetitions here and there, as if it means to put the viewers in the shoes of the deaf heroine. It certainly did its job well.

3. Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu!

First anime from KyoAni I’ve ever watched, aside from the Inuyasha movies. Easily one of their funniest series, if not the actual funniest. It has a very special place in my heart. I dropped Amagi Brilliant Park on the first episode, but I’d cry internally every time I saw Bonta-kun in it. The nostalgia is strong, kids.

It’s got excellent animation for the year it was made, and I dare say it’s more decently animated than many current animes. The pacing is dynamic and the jokes vary from over-the-top to smart and witty in a smooth way. I also give this one kudos for not relying nearly as much on fanservice as more recent titles.

For the people who didn’t watch the first Full Metal Panic, I suggest doing so before trying this one out. Anyone who enjoys the two should also watch the second season, Full Metal Panic: The Second Raid, which comes right after Fumoffu and was also animated by KyoAni.

4. Clannad

This one I deem as the best out of KyoAni’s most notorious classics. I also recommend the other titles related to this one, such as Clannad: Another Story.

Much like Hyouka, it’s a masterpiece in every aspect. It has a very non-cliché and unconveninent plot that deals with delicate themes in a sensible way and tears your heart apart at the same time. Frankly exemplary to the drama genre and exceptional as a visual novel adaptation.

5. Free!

The franchise became lackluster after the first director left, but the first two seasons were fun enough in their own right. Unlike most novel-to-anime adaptations, Free! started with original content through creating a future for the main story, which was turned into the not-so-distant past in the anime. This is unusual enough, but it worked out well as the anime maintained itself as loyal as possible to the first book and never went off the rails with the plot. The main characters’ personalities did suffer many alterations, yet it’s obvious that they meant to make the two more charismatic and likeable. As far as fan responses went, it worked.

I find very interesting that the creators were aware the story took itself too seriously at times, and they made this clear by compensating the heavy melancholy with heavy comedy. They also compensated the overdramatic atmosphere of the first season by picking up the pace and getting a little more serious in the second season. Everything was intentional and designed to be a hit amongst women, which I think had served the purpose until the first movie came out.

To be honest, I’m not fond of the exaggerated fanservice, but it gets easy to ignore it after a while if you only pay attention to the storyline. I don’t consider myself a fan of Free!, and I actually took very long to start liking it. I only did get into it at the last scene of episode 8, back when the first season was still airing. It was only by this time that I could see the true value of the series, so I recommend anyone who tries it out to go at least that far with it. I know it might be a lot of work, but in my honest opinion, it’s worth the trouble.

I deem the High Speed! novel awe-inspiring because of its nostalgic tone and the awfully realistic depiction of childhood crises. The most serious situations of it are a little out of reality, but the rest is absurdly relatable in levels that I myself don’t know how to put into words. Yet I also appreciate Free! for its strong tone of encouragement. It feels like the creators are trying to cheer up the viewers.

6. Kyoukai no Kanata

It starts becoming a mess from episode 4 onward, yet the beginning was quite promising. This one relies heavily on fanservice, often makes use of nonsensical tropes for the sake of comedy and sometimes goes overboard with the jokes. However, it doesn’t fail to deliver emotional value and the action is pretty neat. Anyone who hasn’t read the novel will definitely be able to enjoy it as a standalone.

I don’t think I need to mention it, but the animation is stellar. I in particular love the blurry movement effects of when the characters draw their weapons and the geometrical spectrums in the colorful power barriers. I also recommend the OVA, as well as the second movie I’ll be Here, although the latter is 100% original content. It was actually cute and fun to watch. The first movie is merely one huge recap.

7. Hibike! Euphonium

Truly dazzling take on slice-of-life. It’s healing and heartrending at the same time. The way that characters are portrayed allows the viewers to feel their passion and dedication without it occasionally feeling unrealistic. Everyone has their own problems, but none of them are taken out of proportion. Miscommunication happens, just not in a frustrating shoujo manga way.

The soundtrack and scenery are breathtaking, yet the forte of the animation in this one was the huge amount of detail put into the eyes and hair. Everyone’s hairdos are remarkably glossy without ever looking weird, and I especially like how their eyes all glinter in different colors.

The author published another volume of the novel after the anime, saying it had inspired her to write more, and it’s no wonder. I also recommend season two and the OVA. The first two movies are just recaps and the third was to me a disappointment, so I leave those to people’s own discretion.

8. Tamako Market

Rather odd but nice story. It blends iyashikei elements with a peculiar plot and actually manages to do that in a cute way. All of the characters are likeable and the visuals do a good job in transmitting what they have to transmit in a very relaxing manner.

This show caught me off-guard by how unproblematic it was. It has trans, gay and dark-skinned characters, but none of them is ever used for fanservice or jokes and their respective circumstances are portrayed as 100% normal, which is sadly still rare in anime even nowadays. The romance is pretty not-dramatic and filled to the brim with fluff, and I very much like that the main guy treats his female love rival as a serious threat.

I recommend the specials and the movie as well. Especially the movie, which is basically the same as direct sugar injestion and gave me diabetes.

9. Munto

Also has a special place in my heart. Cheesy but good, actually. I’d be lying if I said there aren’t some surprises in it, though, but I’ll refrain from giving too much info on the story itself.

It was firstly an OVA, but then got adapted into three movies. The animation was done finely enough, but there’s a drastic change in style from the first to the second half, though I myself didn’t really mind it. The characters are all well-stablished and the plot is consistent. There’s a present quality of feminist shades in it and the relationships are very endearing.

10. Nichijou

Not really one of my favorites but certainly one that I recommend for people who are in need of a laugh. It’s got some pretty creative and iconic humor. Its imaginative retakes on routinely affairs manage to transform the most trivial real-life situations into Oscar-worthy wit. It also gets nonsensical every so often, but this fits within the show’s own narrative.

It has a very unique animation that sometimes mixes different styles of art, which only makes every scene a hundred times funnier for being so soft and adorable. It varies from hyperrealistic to surrealistic at the speed of light and sometimes even becomes abstract as hell. It’s full of notes on Japanese culture, not only about daily life but also about media, which adds up to the fun.

[msbluebell]

Golden Deer Route AU where, at the Gronder Field battle, instead of letting Dimitri run off to get himself killed they knock him out and drag him back to the monastery.

The thing to keep in mind for this AU would be that the Blue Lions are utterly, completely, totally, broken.

Both Black Eagles and Golden Deer have students that have severe psychological issues in them. But, for the most part, they have more students that have normal lives, or managed to get themselves back up before Byleth even entered their lives. 

This is not the case for the Blue Lion students. They’re all broken well before Byelth every stepped into the classroom and MAYBE one or two of them managed to put themselves back together before Byleth. Every single one of them faces a different type of trauma, aspect of grief, anxiety, or bad coping skill. Dimitri, while the most extreme example of the negative effects of untreated trauma, repression, bad coping, and mental instability, is far from the ONLY one. Annette and Ashe both have to receive a type of medication from the Church (I speculate that Annette has anxiety based on the mission description for her medication, and Ashe’s medication description and the fact the mission is just after Lenato’s death makes me think depression). With the destruction of the Church I believe that they also no longer have access to even that bit of medication.

Why do I keep focusing so much on medication? Because, for a lot of people, medication is essential to function properly. It’s not for EVERYONE, but there are a lot of people who genuinely need it. We never get a mention of medications again outside a Church setting, which given how secretive the Church is with technology and such, makes me believe that medications were a something the church exclusively dealt with. It is possible, granted, that academics have replicated the Church’s medications, but I doubt they freely distribute them like the Church seems too, which means many common people no longer have access to such resources. (But BBell, you guys say, this is a fantasy game and you’re reading too much into the medication thing. It’s probably just basic herbalist or aromatherapy.  To which I argue that this game had Fantasy Dragon God Nukes and RHEA, who knows how to replicate such technology and actively tried to stop it’s spread, would probably have an idea about medications so don’t @ me.)

The ultimate point is that the Blue Lions are broken people with bad coping habits, and probably aren’t even aware that they need help in the first place. They’re not exactly open about their issues with each other either. Dimitri puts on a mask for his deep-seated trauma and tries to hide his auditory and visual hallucinations the whole first half of the game, and with Felix’s (understandable) reaction to Dimitri’s breakdowns, I don’t even blame him.

I think the Blue Lions lose something essential if you don’t pick their house.

Now, theoretically, the Blue Lions should be a bit better off in Golden Deer Route than Black Eagles because they have Manuela, the school Nurse, as their teacher, but they somehow seem worse off than if they have Hanneman, the more impersonal professor. Manuela should be able to identify the deep seated issues they express and address them as needed. She’s a nurse, and observant, and a very personable teacher.

Then I realized SHE’S A NURSE.

She probably had them all on medications that they no longer have.

Byleth is far more interpersonal than the other teachers. They tackle the issues each student has by getting personally involved and trying to help them through what basically amounts to therapy. Manuela, a nurse, wouldn’t get as personally involved and would instead provide them with necessary medications and have them come to her if they so choose. While Hanneman, for all he seems hands off, does tackle issues bluntly and personally. He’s not as interpersonal as Byleth, but he doesn’t ignore it if it’s a problem and tries to give advice where it’s due. It’s not therapy, but he IS trying to help them figure out how to handle themselves better. 

So if Byleth chooses the Golden Deer House they Blue Lions are in the worst possible position they could be in. It’s not JUST Dimitri who is worse off, it’s ALL of them.

Now, with that speculated, let’s get to Gronder Field.

We all know what happens to Dimitri in Gronder Field if you play the Golden Deer Route (or at least you better if you’re reading my posts or else you’re going to be spoiled). He’s clearly a madman, no one can deny it, and it’s pretty tragic to witness because he seems so genuine and nice before the war. The Golden Deer students don’t actually have much of an idea HOW or WHY this happened. Yes, they would be aware that he was accused of killing his uncle, and was exiled, but they wouldn’t have an idea about the dept of the various betrayals thrown at him, or the delusions, and it’s really sad.

It would be hard to say what makes them knock him out and drag him back with them before he gets himself killed. Maybe Byleth does it because they recognize he’s mentally ill, maybe Claude doesn’t it because Dimitri is a good guy deep down and he knows he can help (that and keeping Dimitri alive serves him better than letting him die at the moment, idk), or, and this is my favorite, maybe Marianne asked them if there was anything they could do to help Dimitri, because he was a friend hers and she can’t stand the idea of watching him die (their support chain is so fucking precious and cute and just mutual Trauma support buddies and omg, I’m in hell thinking about them and their beautiful friendship. I ship them as platonic, but if I wasn’t so far in Dimileth hell I would totally have them in the running for possible romantic supports.). 

Either way, it ends up with them taking a lucky moment to knock Dimitri out and get him off the battlefield before he dies.

Getting him off the field is a bit harder than it should be. He’s a big guy, and made of solid muscle and heavy armor, and Gustav and the army is hardly going to sit by quietly while you basically kidnap the crown prince.

(But the thing that gets Dimitri off the field is the fact that Gustav LOVES Dimitri. He loves that boy like a son, like he’s his own. And he would NEVER admit it, but it’s true. And it’s true for Rodrigue too. And Dimitri is unconscious, and his face isn’t a scold for one, it’s the most peaceful he’s looked since they find him in the woods, and the sight of him like that nearly brings tears to both their eyes. They’re both failed fathers. Gustav failed Annette, and he failed Dimitri. And Rodrigue failed Glenn, and then Felix, and now Dimitri too. And they’re both realizing that Dimitri is so terribly broken and they don’t know how to fix him and it may be half their fault, and so when Byleth convinces them that this is what’s best for him, that they can HELP, that he can get better if they just let Claude give him the resources he needs to recover…well, they can’t say no. It’s the strongest Rodrigue has been in a long time, he thinks, finding the courage to agree despite knowing that Dimitri won’t be happy. And it’s also the closest he’s been to keeping his promise to Lambert).

So the Golden Deer get the unconscious Dimitri back to Garreg Mach, the army of Faerghus on their heels.

There’s a lot of debate about what to do from there, but since Claude is the highest authority there  (with Dimitri unconscious and not yet fit to rule) it all defers to him and his council. In the end it’s decided Dimitri is a danger to himself and others for now and has to be kept somewhere out of the way, but where he can be observed to make sure he doesn’t hurt himself. (And, oh, isn’t that a gut punch to Gustav and Rodrigue).

So they set him up on the Arch-Bishop’s floor since no one is using it for now. That way he has plenty of space, a room, and can go onto the balcony if needed. It’s just until he recovers a bit, CLaude and Byleth promise, and we’ll let him down as soon as we’re sure he won’t hurt himself or others. Besides, they need to figure out what caused the madness in the first place.

It’s actually Manuela, Byleth, and Marianne that end up being the most valuable resources to Dimitri’s recover. Manuela and Byelth are both good at identifying the issue. Dimitri sees and hears the dead. This isn’t just a metaphor, he’s having active hallucinations brought upon by survivor’s guilt and isolation. The five years on the run would have only worsened this.

But it’s Marianne who understands the core issues outside that. She, like Dimitri, has severe survivor’s guilt, and wishes to die. She won’t kill herself, just like Dimitri won’t, but she prays for death. In a way, she speculates, Dimitri is also praying for death. For him, vengeance is either his reason to live, the reason for why HE had to live while everyone else died, or the road to take to reach the death he feels he deserves. He feels he’s undeserving of life, or kindness, but he’s still alive, so he has to do something to make up for that fact. She explains that to the others, and she understand because she feels that way too sometimes, and it’s critical in their approach to Dimitri. It’s something that will definitely take a lot of time, but I think that, with more than just Byleth trying to do something about it, then there can be progress that doesn’t necessarily NEED something as dramatic as an assassination attempt to snap him out of it (why we needed that assassination attempt in the game is worthy of it’s own meta, but the long and short of it is that the timing drastically needed it before they marched to Enbarr and Dimitri needed to realize FAST that his 1) his actions are awful 2) people DO still love and care about him even despite his actions 2) HE IS WORTHY OF LIFE)

The other Blue Lions are there too, most of them anyway. Ashe is a traitor, Felix claims, because he sided with the Empire after Lenato’s Death. But most of them are there, and far more broken than they were, and none of them are even surprised Dimitri has fallen so far because most of them aren’t much better. Sylvain always had an inner darkness in him, and while he’s not outright insane like Dimitri, he’s gets intense on the battlefield. Ingrid is barely holding herself together, dealing with the loss of everything and the war trauma, and Felix is left to realize that the only thing worse than being right about Dimitri was watching it happen to everyone around him too. Mercedes and Annette are there, too, and they’re better than everyone else, but still, it’s not GREAT.

But, I think, they CAN get better. Not fixed, but in a better place. After all, Dimitri even states in the Blue Lion Route that he’ll always live with his hallucinations. The thing, though, is that getting better requires active care, time, and effort (both from the patients and the people that need to help them) and Dimitri and the Blue Lions get all three at the end of this scenario.

[astrologysvt]

Chart First Impressions: Joshua

For more SVT astrology posts, follow my blog! Check out my masterlist to see all the readings I’ve done so far and what I’ve got coming up! 💫

This is just a very general reading of the member’s charts — the parts that popped out to me, things I personally liked, things I thought were interesting or contrary to the image I have of them. I’m not looking at anything in particular with each reading. Some of their readings may be more aspect focused, where some may just focus solely on their personal planets and their signs. If you have any questions on specific aspects or want to request a more specific reading, feel free to send me an ask!

damn, that moon.

that moon is roooough. 

lmao, this moon is a lot to unpack so it’s gonna take up this entire reading i’m sorry

with such an earthy and logical chart, it’s almost a good thing for him to have such an afflicted moon because otherwise the emotional and feeling part of himself would never be challenged or explored (unless imposed onto him externally) 

but based on his chart, I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s had a hard time understanding himself emotionally.

also considering that capricorns have a rep for being prone to difficulties with processing emotions healthily and consistently, I’m sure this is an area he has struggled with in some way shape or form.

or, if anything, an area in his life he has often had to take into extra account.  

with so many hard aspects, confronting this part of his life is almost unavoidable if not the epicenter of his own personal development.

anyway, his moon square mercury & moon square uranus are constantly making him doubt his emotions. Not only does he struggle to understand them, but there is an inherent distrust of his emotions that he may struggle to overcome. 

there is a constant questioning on whether to trust the mind or the heart. 

inversely, his moon TRINE jupiter gives him a super bleeding and generous heart while his moon square neptune also makes him incredibly perceptive, sensitive, and intuitive. 

moon in hard aspect to neptune not only heightens the intensity of his emotional responses, but he may experience a sense of delusion. He may struggle to understand what he’s feeling vs. what is actually happening. furthering this sense of emotional distrust within him.

additionally, he reacts intensely and notices so much, but his first reaction may be to invalidate. 

his mind can’t trust his own intuition, while his intuition is skeptical of his mind’s pure logics. 

his moon is square venus which would make it hard for him to understand how to express his affection, as well as figure out how to get his need for affection met. 

this can manifest for a lot of people very differently. 

sometimes that’d mean they seldom express affection as there simply isn’t a path for these feelings to be released. 

with joshua, he may still express affection, it may just be a bit awkward, random, or forced sometimes. mainly because, again, it doesn’t just flow through him like it does for others and he may struggle in identifying when it’s needed. 

other more emotionally intuitive members like wonwoo and dk may find themselves moving to comfort without even realizing, simply because they’re so in tune with the others they are just drawn to where their attention is needed. 

more logical and practical members like joshua are still capable of offering this comfort, it just goes through a much more intellect driven filter. “is that person acting weird? why would they be upset? does that make sense? what could have happened? should i leave them alone? should i comfort them? hmmmm maybe I should ask. maybe i’m making it all up.”

and for joshua in particular, learning how to shorten that process is a mixture of getting to know the people he loves and studying their habits, as well as learning to trust his gut more and more. 

his moon square venus also creates a conflict between his own emotional needs, and the needs of others. this can make him a people pleaser, a yes-man, a serial romantic. 

he may struggle to identify when a situation is no longer serving him and when to step away. 

in different stages of his life he may struggle to leave or move on from relationships, and on the other side of the spectrum he may find himself being that “serial romantic.” this can greatly depend on how his other aspects manifest.

his taurus moon square capricorn mars also heightens his emotional responses and could potentially lead to boiling/explosive anger. 

this would simultaneously trigger his softer, sensitive, nurturing parts of himself that would hate those reactions while further fueling his self-distrust. 

we can also look at this in the more literal aspects of these planets. 

his desire to act (mars) is fighting for dominance with his emotions (moon), which can very unevenly distribute the emotionally-charged and turbulent energies that can arise in moments of discord. 

both his moon and mars are in earth signs which can mean he experiences long periods where he is totally fine and very reasonable. they’re both very stable, down-to-earth, and mellow signs and can often find areas of understanding and agreement with each other even though they’re in this hard aspect.

a taurus moon seeks comfort and familiarity which keeps his cap mars in a easy place where it isn’t challenged very often. 

the issue is, is that taurus can be much more easily provoked than a cap mars can. a cap mars can be cool and collected, even in moments of anger where as a taurus moon can 100% blow up if pushed too far, made too uncomfortable, or are challenged too much.

where taurus may decide “that’s enough i’ve had it” a capricorn may simply file it away to be attended to later and more strategically.

and with that, his cap mars HATES being at his taurus moon’s mercy when provoked. this is something that his cap influence would be very frustrated with as he’d much more comfortably depend on his own internal stability than external forces while his taurus moon can’t help but feel flustered by certain things. 

this is why the members consider him a TERRIFYING person to see angry. 

he is so calm and collected for so long thanks to both of these signs, but this aspect creates a tension where his capricorn mars tries to censor his taurus moon and which further activates his taurus moon’s super indignant and headstrong attitude/frustration. 

and once his cap mars decides he’s had enough i can see it playing out in one of two ways. 

1) he’s trigger happy, super frustrated and cannot hide it. either he becomes visually upset or he starts getting short with people over the smallest things

2) he continues to boil until one person steps out of line, and from there you get a perfectly compiled list of reasons why you shouldn’t have done that specific thing and also what everyone else is doing wrong. 

but to put it simply, i watched a lot of joshua angry videos and compilations and i didn’t see even a hint of ACTUAL joshua anger (at least what i’d expect from his chart)

he’s super controlled with it on the day to day and is incredibly composed, which is why he is such a scary guy if you piss him off. it’s so unexpected and sooooooo much more deeper and intense than you ever could have predicted. 

this can tend to be a very discouraging habit for him as he has two parts of his personality that intrinsically HATE when he has outbursts or even feeeeels anger to that degree. 

one being his earth and cap influences that hate the feeling of losing control. 

and two being his softer aspects i mentioned before like his moon trine jupiter and moon square neptune. 

because he has this super soft and empathetic side to him, he probably feels immense guilt in the aftermath of his outbursts and can create this series of events where he finally gets these things off his chest, and then immediately backs away from them because, once the negative feelings have been released, his resolve dramatically lessens. 

not only that, but his judgement on when and when not to act is inhibited due to this moon square mars so he may end up getting mad at the wrong people at the wrong time. 

and the unfortunate thing about all of this is that joshua really doesn’t have a clear path of expression in his chart when it comes to the more turbulent and moody aspects of our personalities thanks to this afflicted moon.

these emotions boil inside of him, both good and bad, and they go every which way to try and find some kind of release.

often times, especially when he was younger, he may have found that he wasn’t comfortable expressing them in any specific way so eventually they’d just explode one way or another. 

this may have made him appear much more unpredictable, impulsive, and hot-headed than he actually inherently is. 

so if you had told me he had a rebellious streak as a kid i’d totally believe you.

often times earth signs with this kind of energy end up doing some stupid things as kids simply to exert control over themselves to counterbalance the instability they may be experiencing internally. 

if you know someone similar who has mellowed out over the years, that’s because they had gotten to know themselves and found different ways of expressing their emotions and exerting control. 

but this is were i really really gotta put a huge disclaimer because i don’t know joshua, i can only look at his mannerisms, the things he says, and generally just try and read his energy through videos and how he acts in a group. 

i think these are fun things to consider but i would never treat this reading as fact unless he were to, for some wild reason, validate it. 

but lets wrap this up because this is getting long.

the funny thing with moon placements is they all kind of hint towards a strong influence on the part of a mother or a nurturing “motherly” figure in general. 

the nature of the influence can be determined based on if the relationship with this mother-figure is either good, bad, or absent (though we know it’s not absent and is pretty clearly a positive influence for him). 

if it’s bad, he may resent this part of himself that’s so hyper aware of his emotional shortcomings. 

if it’s good, then these aspects are far easier to deal with and — in certain situations — can be entirely nulled. 

but most importantly, if neither of those, he’d at least be able to find value in them.

obviously these things are more nuanced than that, but these are some of the few ways you can interpret such a strong emphasis on the moon. 

so many hard aspects in his moon have activated and created awareness of himself that may have remained dormant and unexplored.

i’m only using depression as an analogy (I don’t know joshua’s life) but it’s very similar to explaining your depression to someone who has had similar experiences before vs someone who hasn’t. 

sure, someone who hasn’t can understand the gist but they wont understand the severity and they wont understand the nuance. 

thanks to Joshua’s afflicted moon, after a lot of growth and time, he will inherently be able to understand the nuance of other people’s emotions as well as his own. 

[cosmonaughty]

I recently re-watched Season 1 of Fargo FX and, as is the case with every great show or movie, there were things I noticed that I had missed in earlier viewings. A few of these had to do with the portrayal of hospitals in film, which is another small obsession of mine, so I thought that I would take the time to combine these two interests and talk about the way that Fargo FX depicts hospitals. I will be mentioning the inaccuracies in this portrayal and the way that the liberties that are taken advance the plot and enhance the mood of certain scenes. By pointing out these inaccuracies, I am not trying to criticize the show or its writers, I’m just using my specific experiences to talk at length about something I love.

(Also, this post will contain big ol’ spoilers for Season 1 of Fargo FX, so go watch it if you haven’t yet and then come back.)

There are a few scenes that I wanted to discuss here, and I will bring them up chronologically. In episode 5, Lester is rushed to the hospital in an ambulance with what appears to be sepsis resulting from a shotgun pellet lodged in his hand. In the following episode, he sneaks out of the hospital to frame his brother for his wife’s murder. He does this by switching beds with his roommate, whose face is bandaged. As far as accuracy goes, it pretty much goes without saying that this concept is pretty farfetched, but I’ll run down the issues here anyway.

It’s never really clear to me what injuries require intensive care in this show (more on that later), but I will say that Lester recovers from sepsis in what must be record time. When I had more or less the same thing, my body essentially held down its own power button and restarted everything. I was in the ICU for multiple days, though I’m not sure how many because I wasn’t lucid the entire time, and I was pumped full of fluids and antibiotics, as well as hooked up to multiple tubes and wires.

Lester, however, is in excellent condition pretty much as soon as the source of his infection is removed, despite having been delirious, vomiting, sweating, shivering, and all that other fun stuff only the night before. His room seems to be on the general ward and the only thing hooked up to him is an IV, which appears to be dispensing saline and nothing else.

He is also under the care of what may be the least competent nurse I’ve ever seen in any show. Nurse Farber comes in to transport Lester’s roommate to radiology, but if she had checked his bracelet, she would have realized she was transporting the wrong patient. She also moves the entire hospital bed, rather than moving the patient to a gurney or a wheelchair, as has been my experience in the past (those beds are portable, but they’re very heavy and unwieldy).

However, these aren’t “mistakes”. They are deliberate choices that serve to move the plot along. We can’t put the story on hold so that Lester has a couple of weeks to recover and gain his strength back, so that process needs to be hurried along for the sake of the plot. If the nurse had checked his bracelet, his plan would have been foiled and, again, the plot would not be able to progress. If she had moved him to a wheelchair or gurney, he wouldn’t have been able to smuggle a change of clothes with him. So, these choices don’t arise from the writers’ ignorance of hospital procedure, they just need to bend some aspects of reality to advance the plot.

I would also like to point out some things this scene gets right about the hospital (based on my experience).

This room layout is pretty accurate. I like the little details like the plastic cup + bendy straw that everyone always has on their bedside table (even if you can lift a cup to your mouth, a bendy straw is required. It’s like an unwritten rule). I like the detail that the windows don’t open and I really appreciate that they didn’t have Lester pull out his IV like every renegade tv character seems to do. Instead, he simply disconnects the port from the tube so that he can move around, which I’m sure is more difficult than he makes it look but it’s leaps and bounds better than the old rip-em-out technique that I seem to see all the time.

I also like that the nurse uses the pain scale, which is pretty standard but I get a kick out of it. And, believe it or not, I have actually been deposited in the hall and left alone by nurses while waiting for imaging, which is how Lester manages to escape in the first place. Personally, I’ve never made it out the front door, but I haven’t tried that hard.

 Now that we’ve talked about how the writers take liberties to advance the plot, let’s look at how similar inaccuracies can be used enhance the mood of a scene. If you want to see me get emotional (you sadist), get me talking about episode 7. In this episode, Molly, having been hospitalized after an emergency splenectomy, makes a trip from her room on the general ward to question Mr. Wrench, who is in custody in the ICU after having been shot twice by her (it’s not clear where he was shot, but he indicates his upper right chest, so somewhere in that area). He uses a white board to ask about his partner (Mr. Numbers) and Molly confirms that he is dead. She makes an attempt to connect with him and asks for his help in finding Lorne Malvo, but he shuts her out by refusing to look at her and she leaves. Later, in episode 8, Malvo shows up to taunt Wrench about having killed his partner, as well as to commend him for coming closer to killing him than anyone else had in the past. He gives Wrench the handcuff key and leaves.

Like I said earlier, it’s not clear what requires intensive care in this show, since Mr. Wrench doesn’t appear to be any worse off physically than Molly is (or than Lester was earlier). He does have more stuff attached to him, which is…good(?), but let’s talk about this ICU room:

This looks nothing like any ICU room I’ve ever stayed in. For one thing, in my experience the bed has always been facing the door, not inward to the rest of the room. I assume this is to make it easier to provide emergency care, which is the function of just about everything in the ICU. For this same reason, there’s very little privacy; the doors are usually clear glass and people come in and out all the time (nobody checks on patients in this show).

As I mentioned above, he has more “gear” (no, that’s not the correct term, but just be glad I didn’t call it “swag”) than either Molly or Lester, but far less than I would expect to see. There are maybe two bags on that IV pole, so probably saline and morphine (no blood/plasma/antibiotics/other medications). He’s got a heart monitor and a pulse oximeter, but no oxygen or bp monitor. Whether I like it or not, I’m always given oxygen in the ICU (which I tend to remove as soon as possible, apologies to my nurses) and if he was shot in the chest, he might actually need it. I’m also not convinced that heart monitor is working, since it doesn’t fluctuate at all when Malvo shows up in episode 8. ALSO: that bed rail should be up; I don’t care if he is handcuffed in place, that looks like a fall risk to me. Who is running this place?

(I’m also kinda jealous, because I’ve never been in an ICU room with this much natural light.)

��As I mentioned before, there is specific intent behind these omissions and changes.  For one thing, if there were several different machines and wires and lines and the like, the shot would be really busy and it would be distracting, both visually and auditorily, as hospital equipment tends to beep and beep and beep and beep.

Additionally, the shots are very clean, which effectively communicates a sterile environment to the audience; the natural light from the window compliments the Season 1 aesthetic really well and it also contributes somewhat to the coldness of the scenes in this room.

Speaking of which, this is as good a time as ever to bring up something I only consciously noticed very recently. Let’s go back to episode 7 and take a look at the difference between his room and Molly’s.

It’s very subtle, but the light above her bed is a warmer tone; her bedding is also comprised of warmer, lighter tones. Additionally, there’s some framed artwork on the wall, and most importantly she is surrounded by people (and flowers) in every shot.

Even in reverse shots of her, the frame contains color and warm tones. Contrast this with a similar OTS shot of Wrench in his hospital room. The temperature of the scene is a lot colder and the frame surrounding him is empty, which is excellent shorthand to communicate loneliness and alienation.

His room also has some kind of mesh over the window, the practical purpose of which (if there is one) eludes me. As I mentioned earlier, hospital windows don’t open, something the writers are obviously aware of, and I’ve personally never been in a hospital room that had a grate or bars over the windows. Regardless of its practical purpose, this is another detail that contributes to the theme of isolation that is present in the design of these scenes. Being in the hospital can be a lonely, alienating experience, which is something I feel is communicated really well here.

These are subtle decisions that make a huge impact on the mood of the scene. I’m gonna be real with you right now, Mr. Wrench is my favorite character and this scene breaks my heart every time I see it. A good deal of that is owed to the quality of the show’s writing and the amazing talent of Russell Harvard and Allison Tolman, but it is always fun to see how my emotions are being relentlessly manipulated by the cinematographer as well. Good job, you guys.

 I want to conclude with a proposed alternative to the staging of that last scene.

As you can see here, this scene is set during the day, with daylight clearly visible from the window. However, imagine how the emotional intensity might be different if the scene was set at night.

In my experience, nighttime in the hospital can be the most difficult, emotionally speaking, and it’s something I’ve even come to dread as a patient. For the most part, visitors have to go home, the room is dark but the lights are on in the hall and the nurses’ station. You can’t sleep because you’re uncomfortable and people keep coming in to take vitals and blood, and overall it’s very lonely.

So, imagine this scene exactly as it is played out in Season 1, but now instead of a closed off room with daylight coming through the window, the lights in the room are dimmed, it’s night outside (maybe street lights are visible through the window, but not too much). There is a soft glow coming from the heart monitor. Molly is sitting beside the bed with her back to the open door rather than the window. In the background the lights are on in the hall, you can see hospital staff going about their routine in the background. His life is falling apart in this scene, but it’s business as usual for everyone else. Even Molly, as sympathetic as she is, is just doing her job here.

I’m not saying that this staging would have been better, but it would have had a different emotional intensity. I like to see how the environment of the hospital could be used to enhance the mood of a scene, rather than simply act as a back drop because hospitals are deeply personal places, but can be so alienating at the same time. That said, I think that the way they used the environment to impart that sense of loneliness was excellent, and I support the decision to omit certain specifics that might compromise the mood or the flow of the plot.

Oh, and, if you still haven’t done it: go watch Fargo FX.

[starberry-cupcake]

Social media has become such a complicated tool to use if the content that you want to share is primarily text, and that’s becoming more and more complicated for me to use them professionally, as one has to nowadays. As someone who’s been around internet platforms since I was a kid, going through msn and yahoo groups and old forums, I’ve always been prone to adapt and jump from one to another without much issue. But this current landscape in which text is becoming more and more unwanted is turning too complicated to navigate for someone like me, who primarily writes. 

I’ll do this in read more, ironically enough, because I’ve been told my written posts are too long sometimes. 

Now that social media has become a professional tool and that the platforms developed into systems with their own codes (Bourdieu would have a field trip in this day and age), you have (at least) three sides to each platform. There’s what the platform is created for, what they had in mind when they designed it; there’s what people use it for, which tends to be entirely different; and then there’s the type of community that primarly exists in it, which in tow conditions the way you can use it, express your content or yourself and the type of following you can gather. 

Right now I have the conundrum of having a project that relates to my work and I need a social media outlet for that content. I was practically obliged to make an instagram, because it’s what everyone who took my classes asked me for. It’s where the authors I quote are, it’s where the illustrators I teach about are, it’s where my students are. 

So, I asked a friend some tips, she has a bookstagram which is fairly popular and she gave me some indications of how to manage the “side-insta”. Still, it’s a nightmare, you guys. I’m so so so frustrated. I’m frustrated because I painfully see, through my use, how my content and the platform’s three aspects are not compatible at all. 

Bookstagrams are primarily two types, at least the popular ones. There’s the one my friend uses, which consists on pretty photos of the books in question and reviews of said books as bookstagrammers finish reading them or responses to challenges they dare each other to do in the “community”. The other type is for stores and stuff of the sort, which also feature books with descriptions of them for sale, collectors, etc. 

My content is neither of those. For reviews, I have GoodReads. It’s not the best thing ever, but it’s what I’ve been using because, after the blogspot days were gone, it became the space to specifically share reviews while serving the intended purpose of helping others choose what to read, because it’s easier than following 25 million individuals for book opinions. And I’m not selling the books either, so the second option is also out. 

For the type of content I want to share, the only viable format at this time, is video. Every type of social media platform that encourages text has either dissappeared, become irrelevant or, like tumblr, turned to prefer images and short things rather than long text, while developing its own system which is also incompatible for this particular project. 

I am primarily a writer. I’m not interested in becoming a youtuber. I want to share my content, but I don’t want to enter the youtube landscape, with all the rules and stipulations and monetization conditions and toxic community. And I didn’t want to have to learn skills of audio and video editing to share some stuff (I’m gonna have to anyway, for something else, because I have to teach my classes online now, so I’m working on it, but that’s different because it won’t be shared publicly and the expectations are much lower with quality of video/sound). 

So, basically, I’m kinda stuck. It’s either creating a blog in a platform that isn’t tumblr, like wordpress, but having to rely on social media to spread it because, by itself, it’d be like an island lost at sea. Another option is to turn my content into videos, investing in the software and hardware needed to be a decent youtuber these days (which I don’t have the money for) and do something I don’t feel comfortable doing, because I never wanted to share myself as a person. Or keep sharing a shitty version of the content I’d actuallyt like to on instagram. 

Podcasts are out of the question, by the way, because I need visuals for the stuff I’m talking about. I can’t work with picture books, for example, via podcast, Shulevitz would haunt me.

And, I want to clarify: I’m not actively looking to monetize this content, I just want to share it. It’s not that I’m looking for a place I could make a coin out of it. At least as it stands right now, I’m not meaning for it to be a product by itself, I want it as a companion to my classes and a space to open up more content that my classes can’t have. If it ever came to it having the chance to produce some sort of money, that’d be great as long as it doesn’t compromise my ideas, but it’s not my main goal here.  

In my mind, the remaning primarily text-based platforms that exist with some degree of social-media-relevance are tumblr, reddit and medium, and neither fits my project in the 3 criterias that I named before. 

Right now, I’ll stick to what I’m doing because I have enough at hand with having to figure out how to edit videos for my classes, but the only solution I can think of at the moment is to later on create a wordpress and use it to expand on what the instagram discusses, although I don’t think it’s gonna go anywhere.

And all of this is just about my regular work, I don’t even want to talk about what it means being a writer of fiction these days in which the only platforms to share that are either fic ones or whatever cringe-scape wattpad became. It’s not like we have a hiveworks for writers, as cool as that would be, to give as a space to do as webcomic artists do and start sharing stories online and work from there. And, if there was, I wonder at this point if people would care enough to read them, if they aren’t fics. And I’m not even going to mention the added trouble of not being a native English speaker and having most social medias be primarily English-based.

In any case...yeah. Conflicting times.  

[i-do-unimportant-things]

*clap clap* Movie review

So yeah, Charlie’s Angels, the 2019 reboot of the TV show. A  feminist movie but really just a clichè action movie with a mediocre plotline, relying on it’s ‘woke points’ to be watchable.

First, let’s talk about the movie itself and why it did so badly.

The 2019 Charlie’s angels is an action comedy movie about three female super spies trying to retrieve a weapon of mass destruction from the wrong hands directed by Elizabeth banks, the guardian calls this a ‘weaponised feminist frenzy’. This movie hit the theatres at the start of the year and went on to fail so badly, the financial loss can only be explained by claiming there’s a wage gap. Charlie’s angels is originally a TV show from the mid 70s, but nowadays, no one would consider the show ‘feminist’. The entire plot of the TV show existed around the three main female characters being hot, and near naked. Nevertheless this sleazy show was successful and had a few movies coming out in the years 2000 and 2003. And on November 15 2019, the latest Charlie’s angels came out from Sony studios. Sony, the same company that has brought you: Ghostbusters 2016 and the Emoji movie. Now don’t get me wrong lots of movie companies use nostalgia to try and sell tickets, but no one does it quite as poorly as Sony. The movie tries too hard to be some sort of woke feminist statement, but it ends up just being really forced. One of the main actresses, Kristen Stewart has commented that this movie is ‘taking down the patriarchy’ Ah yes, this feminist reboot of a non-feminist show, is taking on the patriarchy head on! C’mon, no one will believe that this mediocre action film is making is making any kind of significant social impact. It would have made a much bigger impact if the movie was not only made by women, but also, enjoyable to watch. The movie was, unsurprisingly, a massive flop shattering Elizabeth Banks dream of turning it into a franchise. It had a budget of $50 million and ended up making $8 million in it’s opening weekend. No one cared to see it, and for those who did, they hated it. Like, seriously despised it, 4/10 on IMDB? Even shark tale is rated better than that. But Elizabeth Banks wasn’t ready to admit that maybe, just maybe, her movie wasn’t that good. No, instead she was bracing herself for a box-office flop, by blaming men.  Prior to the movie’s disastrous opening weekend, she had said that if the movie didn’t do well, it would reinforce a stereotype in Hollywood that men don’t go to see women do action movies. Here’s a little thinker for ya, if people don’t go and see your movie, it may not be because all men are sexist pigs, but people would rather watch a good movie. Regardless of whether or not there’s a female character in it. Not to mention other medias with female leads have gone on to be extremely successful.  Alien? Kill Bill? Tomb Raider? Both Frozen’s? Metroid series? Mulan? Wonder women? Bank’s counters this by saying that the female comic superhero movies are only successful because they are tied into a larger, male genre of movies. Wait so, the successful movies starring women are successful because men are sexist, but your movie isn’t successful because men are sexist? What are you babbling about? Look, I understand it sucks to see a movie you directed, produced and acted in fail, but this weak finger pointing is not going to help.

Now let’s analyse the movie and see why people hated it so much.

Above all, Charlie’s angels is a comedy spy action movie that doesn’t work as a comedy, spy or an action movie. The plot is basically this high-stakes mission about retrieving weapons of mass destruction. But the problem is that the movie never bothers to actually visually establish as dangerous or as anything really. All we see is one of those devices killing one guy right beside it and then being automatically self-destructed. Then there’s the “action”. It’s mostly just noise without any meaningful character moments or choices or obstacles or any real sense of danger. Most of the time the action sequences don’t even serve any purpose plot-wise. On top of it the physics of it are so illogical they just make no sense. Like just watch the car falling out scene. But all that aside what I wanna focus on is the aspect of Charlie’s angels that is probably the main cause of it’s downfall more that anything else; it’s relentless obsession with gender. There’s a difference between a good female-led movie and a movie so blindly obsessed with the feminist agenda that it gets to the point of being destructive to itself. A lot of times with a certain agenda of gender or social class or whatever they tend to feature a core theme that empowers the group or demographic that it’s about. And with Charlie’s angels the care theme is obviously female empowerment which is made very clear from even the first line in the movie “I think women can do anything”. Basically the core theme of Charlie’s angels is that women, by nature, can do anything. In itself, it’s a great message for younger female audiences. The problem is that the movie quickly grows so obsessed with this theme that instead of it being positively empowering, it actually becomes negatively degrading. Because when Charlie’s angels claims that women by nature can do anything, it doesn’t mean that women can do a certain specific set of things they set their minds to, it means that women, by nature, can do literally everything. And before you say that I’m saying it’s a problem because I hate women, hold on. There’s actually a major character issue that comes with this obsession; it makes every female character and main hero shallow and superficial and takes away their individual uniqueness that’s supposed to make them who they are. To show what I mean let’s look at our three main angels; one of them is this tall angel who initially is established as the physical brawler of the team, she’s powerful and likes to solve obstacles by running straight at it and punching them until their no longer obstacles. And that’s great that’s something that gives her character individuality and can delve much deeper into the movie. Thats who she is but then, she makes this smart science trap using chemicals, then all of a sudden this physical brawler turns out also to be a super-smart chemist, and to be clear; she doesn’t become that, she doesn’t learn to be that she already is that because again, women by nature, can do and be anything. So what exactly is the issue with this?  Well at first she is this one specific thing, but then turns out to be an entirely other thing and suddenly, we don’t really know who she is anymore. To build on this example look at the Kristen Stewart’s angel, the way the movie tries to establish her is that she’s this confident improvisor of the team who uses her wits to gain an advantage over others. But the movie also presents her as just as competent of a physical brawler aa the tall angel, which not only makes her witty hustler personality kind of pointless, it also destroys her individuality it’s hard to know who Kristen Stewart is as a person when she can do and be the exact same as the person right next to her, and if we don’t know who she is it’s hard to get into or develop her as a character when we’re not even sure what it is we’re getting into or developing. The only character difference seems to be that Kristen Stewart says what ever haha ‘funny’ she has on her mind. Then we have princess Jasmin’s angel who is this super smart technology nerd thrust into this world she doesn’t belong in. And she could be a pretty Interesting character, if not for the fact that the movie has already presented the tall angel as super-smart as well, and the fact that Jasmin seems to be able to handle herself in a fight too. So, what makes her different? Who is she compared to the others? Who is she as an individual person? And pretty much with every female character the movie is so unhealthy obsessed with this agenda of female empowerment that it just ends up being a weakness. The characters don’t struggle, they don’t have any flaws or depth they don’t have anything that would make them individual people that the audience can care about and watch grow because in a world where everyone is special, no one is. When women by nature can do or be everything, the one thing they can’t do is be unique.

In addition to empowering the group their about, the other thing these movies with social agendas often do is villainise the demographic opposite them and show how they need to struggle to overcome obstacles set by this opposite demographic. And since Charlie’s angels is about women, obviously here the point is to showcase men and the evil they’re capable of. Which again, is made very clear, even from the very beginning. Basically, all male characters in Charlie’s angels are in some way douchebags who treat women in a derogatory sense. There’s a total of three good guy men in this movie. One of them dies, another one is cleansed of his whatever sins by a women beauty, and the last is like the perfect man from a dystopian world where women have enslaved men. So the message is that men can be a bit of an annoying obstacle to women. I personally don’t like this message, but it has potential to explore some really deep themes with it. But the problem again, is that this movie is so blindly obsessed with it’s agenda of having men be evil that it inadvertently destroys the very message it’s trying to explore. Firstly, just like the female side, all the males are diluted down to unrealistic caricatures nobody can take seriously. The security guard for example, his character is supposed to portray men abusing power against women, and it could have been a very powerful message, but the reason that moment doesn’t work whatsoever is because we’ve never even seen the security guard before, and so we have no perception of why he would do this. He’s not being evil because he’s jealous of Jasmin’s career, he’s not being evil because he’s hurt inside or anything, the movie is saying he’s being evil just because he’s a man. All men in this movie are being evil just because their men and that’s all there is to it.The movie doesn’t give us any reasons or explanations, no explored internal fears or flaws or motive or anything under the surface and that’s not how real life people function, that’s not how to get anything done with your message other than it being scoffed off as shallow and dumb. Secondly, this men are evil obsession creates a big narrative problem. In the sense that the plot of the movie quickly becomes very one-dimensional and easy to predict. For example, near the midpoint of the movie there’s a twist that Elizabeth Banks, who is the leader of the angels, might be evil, she might have some evil plan that involves  tracking Patrick Stewart’s good guy character. But then you remember that this movie has just spent it’s entire runtime  proposing that all men are evil just because their men which would then mean that OH WOW WHAT A SURPRISE THE MAN IN A FEMINIST MOVIE IS EVIL. The problem is that it’s really not that much of a surprise to anyone because from the start the film has done everything in it’s power to condition the audience to believe that women are all good and that men are all evil. Having a message criticising men or a whole demographic can be great and powerful. But you can’t let yourself be so blindly obsessed with it that you don’t even bother delving deeper into it.You can’t have women be good just because women are good and men be bad just because men are bad. That’s not realistic, that’s not how the world works, that’s not a message that will get anyone to listen and above all, it’s not good writing.

Another danger that can very easily come true in movies with social agendas is that the message they’re pushing becomes very one-sided. To the point of alienating a certain section of the audience. And with Charlie’s angels, wether the filmmakers intended it or not, the fact is that the movie altogether as a whole is very anti-male. I’ve already commented about all male characters being portrayed as shallow evildoers, but there’s also an underlying theme that men as people are objectively sinful creatures who deserve bad things to happen to them. It docent matter who they are or what they have or haven’t done, if something bad happens to them, it’s okay because they deserve it. For example, there’s a long-running ‘joke’ where the angels continuously injure a bunch of guys and then make quips about wether or not they’re gonna wake up. But there’s nothing inherently wrong with this, when your making a movie,  you are allowed to portray any group of people or entities in whatever positive or negative way you want. So if you want to make a blatantly obvious movie where a specific gender as a whole is portrayed as the worst possible thing in the universe, that’s fine. But you also need to understand is that there’s also gonna be financial consequences from that specific audience. See, before Charlie’s angels hit theatres, it was clear it was gonna be a flop. And knowing this, director Elizabeth Banks had said what I had put above: “if the movie didn’t do well, it would reinforce a stereotype in Hollywood that men don’t go to see women do action movies” and wether or not the statement has truth(which it doesn’t) is irrelevant. The importance of the statement is the implications that Elizabeth Banks doesn’t understand the concept of biting the hand that feeds. Now I don’t really like the anti-male stuff in Charlie’s angels, but as I’ve said, you’re allowed to do whatever you want in your show. So I understand why male audiences didn’t go out of their way to pay money to see their own gender be continuously criticised and called evil. For example if you make a whole movie ridiculing females and calling them the scum of the earth in a very on-the-nose way, you can’t just expect females to swarm in and support it. Thats not how it works. Whatever message your movie has, you have to be smart about how you deliver it. Don’t just say ‘Women good, men bad’ find a way to imply what it is you wanna say through metaphors. As a filmmaker, you would want everyone to enjoy the film, regardless of gender or race or whatever. I’m not criticising Charlie’s angels because I hate female-led movies. I’m being critical of Charlie’s angels because superficial agenda movies like Charlie’s angels are the reason why we still have so relatively few female led movies. And I’d like to think that by now we’re past one-dimensional messages like this.

[comicteaparty]

November 25th-December 1st, 2019 CTP Archive

The archive for the Comic Tea Party week long chat that occurred from November 25th , 2019 to December 1st , 2019.  The chat focused on Action Hat: Big Trouble in Little Everywhere HD Remix Gold Deluxe Edition by Sergio Ragno.

Featured Comment:

Chat:

RebelVampire

COMIC TEA PARTY- WEEK LONG BOOK CLUB START!

Hello and welcome everyone to Comic Tea Party’s Week Long Book Club~! This week we’ll be focusing on Action Hat: Big Trouble in Little Everywhere HD Remix Gold Deluxe Edition by Sergio Ragno~! (https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/action-hat-big-trouble-in-little-everywhere-hd/list?title_no=260255)

You are free to read and comment about the comic all week at your own pace, so stop on by whenever it suits your schedule! Remember, though, that while we allow constructive criticism, our focus is to have fun and appreciate the comic. Below you will find four questions to get you started on the discussion. However, a new question will be posted and pinned everyday (between 12:01AM and 6AM PDT), so keep checking back for more! You have until December 1st to tell us all your wonderful thoughts! With that established, let’s get going on the reading and the chatting!

QUESTION 1. What has been your favorite strip in the comic so far? What specifically did you like about it?

QUESTION 2. Of the strips with a connected story, which one did you like the best and why? Overall, do you prefer the interconnected story strips or the one-off strips more? What is your reasoning?

AntiBunny

Favorite strip so far is this one here https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/action-hat-big-trouble-in-little-everywhere-hd/the-legality-of-keeping-it-real/viewer?title_no=260255&episode_no=41 mostly because it is quite different from the rest. Since Action Hat is largely a running gag comic that's been doing "wins by doing absolutely nothing" since before Luigi made it cool, this page is a refreshing shake up of the usual gag, being entirely dialogue driven.

To answer the second question, I prefer the one offs. There's a little bit of connection between strips, in that any given of episode of the Simpsons is connected by common characters, and that every event that doesn't contradict the status quo is canon, but mostly it's meant to be taken one strip at a time. Read, get your laugh, and go about your day. Action Hat is best read that way in my opinion. Not unlike a newspaper comic in that regard. Not to be binged, but to be taken in small, regular doses.

RebelVampire

QUESTION 3. At the moment, who is your favorite character? What about that character earns them this favor?

QUESTION 4. Which jokes connected with you the most from the comic, whether in terms of relatability or hilarity? Also, which jokes caught you the most off-guard in terms of making you laugh?

mariah (rainy day dreams)

So I didn't make it all the way through the archive but to sort of answer questions 1, 3, and 4, I thought the strip that had Detective Detective-Partner's gun was super funny. The premise of the already a farsical type of comedy, but I feel like adding a second inanimate object character just pushed it to a new level of funny for me. Especially since the gun just goes off without provocation in the last panel. I'm not sure if that's enough to call the gun my favorite character, but that joke was definitely a highlight moment while I was reading though.

SergeXIII

Hello everyone, thank you for taking the time to read my comic this week.

RebelVampire

QUESTION 5. What has been your favorite illustration in the comic so far? What specifically about it do you like?

QUESTION 6. What piece of advice from Action Hat do you actually think is also a good lesson for how we should carry ourselves in life? How in general do you think the comedy of the comic shows how it can be used to say things about life?

RebelVampire

1) My fave strip is definitely this one: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/action-hat-big-trouble-in-little-everywhere-hd/cool-guys-dont-look-at-explosions-action-hat/viewer?title_no=260255&episode_no=21 This was exactly where I wanted the idea to go, but it was still funny when it happened. Won't get into specifics since I don't want to spoil it for others at this juncture, but suffice it to say, I'm impressed the payoff was everything I dreamed of. 2) I liked the The Power of Love series the best. I am in love with the concept that theres a Guns and Bourbon store, and everyone acts like its the most common thing in the entire world. And I like the story about Detective Partner and Ex Wife met because it's a love story that fits too well in this world. There were just a lot of great continuing gags through. In terms of the second part of this question, I don't really have a preference. I actually like that the comic does a bit of both, since that gives wider appeal. Doesn't matter what you like, there's something for all.

3) My favorite character is Action Hat. Because Action Hat is the wisest of all characters despite not saying a single thing. And that's just badass. 4) The jokes that have connected with me the most are the ones regarding common cop tropes. Like the fact Detective Partner is a macho dude who doesn't open up to people, or that there's massive property destruction, etc. As a fan of cop dramas and cop action stories, I equally enjoy when people make fun of it cause they can be over the top and ridiculous. As for jokes that caught me off guard, it was definitely the one about the shopkeeper being Velma. Cause the entire time I saw the resemblance but thought, nah, that's impossible. But then someone said it. XD

RebelVampire

5) My favorite illustration is definitely from the same strip I answered for number 1. I love the explosions and the angles chosen. Especially the last panel where Detective Partner's face is slammed against the camera. It really gives some good depth to the image that really captures the badass atmosphere it wanted. 6) I think the advice in this strip is actually good https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/action-hat-big-trouble-in-little-everywhere-hd/enter-the-hat-9/viewer?title_no=260255&episode_no=9. Which to me the advice is that people do often lash out because of their own insecurities and fears. And while there is, of course, a line we need to draw at toxicity, sometimes we need to be patient and gentle with others to make them understand how their actions hurt us. In general, though, I feel this comic is a good reflection of how comedy is often a callback to human condition. And that in a lot of ways, it helps us deal with uncool things in life by making us laugh and remind us that sometimes, we need to take a step back from life and consider things from other angles (or even just take a break).

SergeXIII

I really appreciate all of these questions, RebelVampire, but I especially appreciate question number 6. The gag of the cop and inanimate object duo has been done before, but I always thought that what makes Action Hat stand out is that it serves as kind of a conscious for Partner (and Lynda, who is new to this version of the comic), so it is really valuable for me to get feedback on this so as to gauge the effectiveness of this.

RebelVampire

QUESTION 7. Which characters do you enjoy seeing interact the most? What about their dynamic interests you?

QUESTION 8. Given Action Hat is not a speaking character, how do you think this works in terms of the comic’s comedy? In other words, what aspects of the visuals and other characters’ dialogues help pull the comedy off?

RebelVampire

QUESTION 9. What sorts of art or story details have you noticed in the way the comic is crafted that you think deserves attention?

QUESTION 10. What is your favorite aspect of Detective Partner’s and Action Hat’s relationship? What has been your favorite moment between them so far? What about these aspects when it comes to Action Hat and Lynda?

RebelVampire

7) I enjoy seeing Detective Partner and Action Hat interact the most. I really love how the two play off of one another. Especially cause Action Hat is, you know, a hat. And I really like that despite basically just sitting there doing nothing, Action Hat is still given a personality because of how everyone else interacts with him. And I like how Detective Partner makes Action Hat super wise. 8) I think the silence works cause of two main reasons. First, what I hinted at to above. Even if Action Hat doesn't speak, there's still a lot of personality there because of the words other characters add in. And that itself is kind of funny cause it's just a ridiculous idea to have an inanimate object be in the police. So in essence you wind up these ridiculous situations that are brought on by other characters cause of what they assume an inanimate object said.

RebelVampire

9) A detail I really appreciate in the comic is actually the throwbacks to police drama tropes. Like the gruff partner, the dirty business dude trying to bribe people, the belligerent chief always complaining about the wanton destruction. It takes a lot of knowledge to really capture the cop drama spirit, and I love seeing it present while also torn apart in the most entertaining ways possible. 10) My favorite aspect of their relationship is probably their honesty. Like I love how Detective Partner basically immediately apologized to Action Hat for lashing out and became best friends. And I like how much Detective Partner idolizes Action Hat too, cause it is both funny while also revealing of Detective Partner's own wisdom. My favorite moment between them is still probably the one from my fave strip, but I've mentioned that to death. As for Lynda, I like the patience in their relationship. Not a whole lot of people have patience for anything, and I just like this is kind of a key point to their relationship. It's got that good slow burn kind of feel. For fave moment, I like when Lynda is touched Action Hat "waited" for her. And it had nothing to do with the fact it's a hat and has no legs to move.

RebelVampire

QUESTION 11. What do you think are this particular comic’s strengths? What do you think makes this comic unique? Please elaborate.

QUESTION 12. What sort of tropes of cops and cop dramas have you seen in the comic so far? In what ways do you think the comic successfully subverted them and/or changed how you thought about them?

RebelVampire

QUESTION 13. What are you most looking forward to in the comic? Also, do you have any final thoughts to share overall?

QUESTION 14. In general, what other police-drama related shenanigans are you hoping to see Action Hat tackle? How do you think those scenarios will play out?

RebelVampire

11) I think this comic's strength is just how the comedy works. There's lots of creative ways it uses both the fact Action Hat doesn't talk and is an inanimate object to its advantage. There's also just a good balance in how it treats everything since the comic somehow acknowledges the ridiculousness while at the same time taking it seriously. So in the end, it's just got a great tone for having fun with the subject matter. 12) I've talked about this one quite a bit already. But got the disgruntled chief who forces partners together, gruff partner who just like guns, massive property damage, sleezy rich dude, etc. The comic does a great job of reminding you that all this action stuff is actually silly if you were to frame it in the context of reality. Like there's only so much property damage the police will take before firing someone, etc.

13) I am looking forward to seeing other cop action drama tropes. Like serial killers etc. Theres so many more cop stuff to be explored that I'm really hoping to see. 14) In line with the above, I would like to see Action Hat and Detective Partner deal with internal investigations. Cause theres always that one scenario where the cops get framed and get in super trouble and then they have to solve their own case. I'm just waiting for the moment where Detective Partner is like "Action Hat how could you!?" THere's a silent pause, and then Detective Partner gasps and is like "YOU WERE FRAMED I'm sorry I doubted you."

RebelVampire

COMIC TEA PARTY- WEEK LONG BOOK CLUB END!

Thank you everyone so much for reading and chatting about Action Hat: Big Trouble in Little Everywhere HD Remix Gold Deluxe Edition this week! Please also give a special thank you to Sergio Ragno for volunteering the comic and creating it! If you liked Action Hat: Big Trouble in Little Everywhere HD Remix Gold Deluxe Edition, make sure to continue to support it via some of the links below!

Read and Comment: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/action-hat-big-trouble-in-little-everywhere-hd/list?title_no=260255

Sergio’s Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SergeXIII

Sergio’s Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/sergexiii

Sergio’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/sergexiii