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heniareth · 3 years ago

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I was really curious about what your opinions on the DAO companions are :) I know we have talked about some, but I'd love to hear more and about the others as well :D I hope it's ok to pose this as an ask :)

Sure! That sounds like a ton of fun. This might be a long one tho. Mind you, this is not the finished version of the answer. I'd like to link stuff and add a cut, but rn that's not possible. I'll update it when I can.

Edit: I have updated it ^^

Let's go alphabetically bc why not.

Alistair:

Sweet guy. So sweet. There was a moment when I was hard pressed chosing between him and Zevran (alas, Zevran won). Also, he's weirdly tall according to the wiki? How did I not notice that before?

Let's get a bit more serious now, Alistair is a great guy. The only reason he's not the hero of the story is because he doesn't want to. He has all the qualities of a leader: he's good at dealing with conflict (as evident with the conversation with the mage at the beginning. He gets where he wants to get without antagonizing the mage, but without allowing him to trample all over him). He's a solid tactitian and knows how to make allies (he suggests to use the Grey Warden treaties, after all). I bet if he was in the leadership position, he'd even not bicker with Morrigan. His moral code is pretty tight; some might say too tight, but I think it's less about the moral code and more about learning to judge people by their actions, not by the labels they fit into (Morrigan is a proud apostate and therefore bad. Wynne is a humble circle mage and therefore good). He also has a bit of a black-and-white way of seeing the world. I empathize a lot with Alistair, especially with his experience with the Chantry and his subsequent reluctance to deal with it. I really wish I had gotten to know more about concrete experiences he had during his training as templar, but he seems reluctant to talk about it (gee, I wonder why).

Since I've only played the game once, I haven't really picked up on Arl Eamon's abuse towards him, which apparently exists (Isolde, however... I mean, even if he were Eamon's illegitimate son, he's a kid, ma'am, he didn't exactly get to chose his parents. So that's so not okay). Alistair's way of speaking about them both, however, is either sign that he has not come within a hundred miles of acknowledging how much it hurt him, or that he's already gone through the whole process and has decided to forgive them. The latter shows a very strong character; yes, he relies on the approval and leadership of others, he has his issues, but he's already started working on them.

That being said, irl Alistair would be like a little brother to me. I'd tease him relentlessly (all in good fun and I promise to stop if it makes him uncomfortable, but he's just so teasable). I still wish the videogame gave him the chance to take important decisions for himself. But that, of course, would somewhat defeat the point of the game.

Leliana:

Another sweet, sweet person. Her singing voice is amazing. Her belief in the Maker inspires me (I'm a religious person and seeing religious characters represented in a positive light is Very Cool. It's also sometimes a source of discomfort, because the Church has done a lot of very messed up stuff and positive representation can sometimes veer into apologetics for things that should not be excused, but that's a whole other can of worms. The bottom line is that religious characters sometimes work for me and other times don't and Leliana works for me very much bc she's an outsider inside the Chantry).

Leliana is best friend material, tbh. I'd love to get to know her irl, discuss theology and philosophy and maybe even politics? She makes mistakes and has prejudices, but, tbh, so do I. And I do get the feeling that she tries her best to learn. From the times she intervenes in a conversation between the Warden and an NPC, she shows herself to be compassionate and open to the needs of others. What I get from her character is that she genuinely wants to help, which is something that I adore of her. I suspect that she sometimes has a hard time deciding wether she's a good person or not. She has killed and seduced and worked for a morally dubious person, and she doesn't show the same nonchalance about it as Zevran (though they both do discuss their line of work in very... professional terms). This is, however, more of a headcanon than actual factual canon.

I also very much enjoy her girly side, like her interest in shoes and dresses. She's one badass woman who also looses her cool about the latest fashions in Val Royeaux. I like that. Between her and Alistair, a non human noble Warden has as good a help to navigate the Fereldan court as they're going to get. Leliana is also, I can't forget that, clever and insightful. It'd be easy to write her off as the innocent chantry girl, but she's so much more than that. Her kindness is paired with foresight, I think. She knows that taking on the trouble to help now can go a long way in the future. I just have a lot of respect for her.

Loghain:

This one's gonna be short bc I didn't recruit him. He's an amazing villain and would probably be a great Warden as well. He reminds me of Denerhor from LOTR; once a hero/stewart of his people, ambition and desperation have driven them both down a terrible path. I have also only little idea about his past. People say he lost a lot, and I believe it wholeheartedly; it doesn't excuse the fact that he plunged the country into a civil war in the middle of a Blight. I don't have a lot of sympathy for short-sighted politicians. I wish he hadn't made himself regent. That's what I take away from his character.

Edit: One thing I forgot to mention that really impressed me was his death. I had Alistair duel him (that was a rough duel), and then it kinda just jumped to a cutscene of my Warden nodding and Alistair executing him. That didn't sit well with me. I didn't want to kill Loghain, and less so in front of Anora. But what impressed me was that Loghain just accepted it. That takes a whole lot of guts. Compare that to Howe's death, and how he screams out that he deserved (more, probably, or anything but death) and it's crystal clear who the more noble of the two is. Loghain strikes me as very lawful neutral, and any neutral alignment has the particularity that it can be dragged towards good or bad, sometimes without the characters noticing it (which is interesting from a DnD perspective; neutral is often concieved of as just as stable as good or evil, but that may not be true. But that's a different post). Anyway, Loghain's death was impactful.

Morrigan:

I could kick myself for not maxing out her approval in the first play-through. I got to enjoy a bit of her friendship by the end of it and boy was even that little bit worth it. Friendship with Morrigan is something that is hard-won. It's all the more precious because of that.

Morrigan is full of paradoxes, I think. She's incredibly wise in some ways, yet also very short-sighted (”just kill them, don't solve their problems”. Morrigan, dear, I'm not going to gain a lot of allies if I kill everybody who poses a problem to me). She is so intelligent, but emotionally... not so. She knows so much about some things, and very little about the next. She's incredibly wilful and knows what she wants, but follows Flemeth's orders all the time through. She hungers for power and independence, yet craves closeness, but won't allow herself to have it. She asks you to prove yourself to her and is extremely critical of your actions, I think, because she's afraid. She bites the hand that feeds her because it might hit her next.

Like with Eamon, I haven't managed to catch the undercurrent of abuse that seems to permeate Flemeth's relationship with Morrigan. Except there are signs, because there must be something Morrigan is scared of and who has instilled all that rage in her, and that's Flemeth. Also, she clearly hates/does not care about her and wants her dead (unless killing Flemeth was part of Flemeth's plan as well? Hm.)

Morrigan is that one person who you are nice to, continuously, because nobody else is. And suddenly she becomes less cold. And then friendly. And suddenly you're asking yourself why everybody hates her, because she's a really good friend! I just wish the other companions came to a similar conclusion, especially Alistair and Wynne.

Oghren:

They did this man dirty. He has such great lines and I'm convinced he was a great person before Branka disappeared. He has that dwarven warrior spirit, and while he looks like Gimli, some of his most impactful lines remind me of Dwalin or even Thorin Oakenshield himself. He could be so noble had he gotten some character development, damnit!

Oghren as he is written is somewhat disgusting. I hate the lechering comments and the drunkenness. And still, I don't hate him because of those amazing lines he has when he's actually sober. It's frustrating and I'll give him that character development myself if the game won't. I strongly associate the song Whiskey Lullaby with him, bc that's how he would have ended up if the Warden hadn't taken him along (warning: the song talks about suicide and alcoholism). Like I said, they could have done such cool things with his character. As he is written now... it's just sad. Moments of lucidity drowned in alcohol and creepy jokes. As you can see, I don't blame the character for either. The alcoholism happens all too often irl. The creepy jokes... I put that one on the writers' tab.

I actually think Oghren could have been a great mentor figure (I know, I shock myself as well sometimes). Next to the Grey Wardens, the ones who know most about fighting darkspawn are the dwarves because they have to deal with them constantly. Especially a warrior caste dwarf like Oghren could have brought a lot of that invaluable knowledge to the team, especially since there are no Grey Wardens in Ferelden but two extremely green recruits. Next, you get the chance to give Oghren the command of the teammates you leave behind in the battle of Denerim with the reason that he has lead men into battle before. Where did that suddenly come from? Oghren should have been right up there telling my Warden that they were doing this wrong, that they needed more food (and booze) and a confident leader to keep the armies they've called together going. Oghren should have been able to tell my civilian city elf who got recruited into the Grey Wardens a six months ago how one leads an army. How one presents oneself to inspire confidence, how one doesn't crack under the pressure, how one gets the leaders of said armies (some who hate each others guts i.e. Dalish elves and humans) to work together. And, last but not least, Oghren could have had a great story about grief. This is a man who has lost most of what made him (and what he hasn't lost he's spilling down the drain with every mug of ale). This is a man who, if you take him into the Deep Roads, has to see what his wife did to his family, how his wife got absolutely obsessed, and can be forced to kill said wife or watch her die. All Wardens loose their home and families at the start of the story. It would really have rounded the whole narrative out if the Warden and Oghren could have recognised their grief in each other and hashed it out somehow. Such as it is, Oghren is a depressed drunkard and there is nothing we can do about that. I find that frustrating.

Rascal (a.k.a. Dog):

Best boy. 100/10. I wish we had gotten to see the reaction of the different origins to the mabari (because elves probably have a whole different experience with them from mages or humans. And dwarves just... I think they straight up have none? XD). Other than that, no complaints. The name Rascal was the one I gave my dog because you have to be a right rascal to survive what he did and play the pranks he plays. Smartest breed in the world indeed.

Shale:

Shale is one of those characters that I recruited rather late in the game, so I haven't had the chance to explore their personality and worldview, really. I didn't even get to take them to the Deep Roads (this will be ammended in playthrough nr. 2). As such, I don't have particularly strong opinions on them (or her? The wiki refers to Shale as 'it', but that sounds weird). But, because I know so little about Shale, I have a lot of questions. First, what were they like before they were a golem? Shayle, as she was called then, was the best warrior of her time if I remember correctly. Why did she become a golem? Was it to be able to eternally protect her people? Was the sarcasm the golem Shale exhibits also part of the dwarven warrior Shayle or did that come later (if for thirty years you have nobody to talk to but yourself, you better be entertaining. And I can imagine how it could make somebody terribly jaded as well).

Next, how attached is Shale to their golem form, exactly? According to the banter, they infinitely prefer it to a squishy fleshy form. If that is the case, however, why go to Tevinter to try and become a squishy dwarf again? It's not like that process could be reversed if they wanted to become a golem again; if Shale survives to the end of the game, the Anvil of the Void is destroyed and Caridin is dead. Was the whole spiel about their indestructible form a façade? It might have been, but not because Shale actually disliked their form. I think it would have more to do with the loss of their memories and with the very invasive experiments and alterations of Shale's body made by the mage Wilhelm. The loss of memories means that Shale is unable to remember life as a fleshy creature. They might be deflecting by pretending that they didn't care for that experience anyway because of the superiority of their golem form. The modifications made to their form by Wilhelm would have alienated them from their body. In light of this, it's significant that Shale asks the Warden to decorate their form with crystals.

All of this is, of course, pure speculation. I may have easily missed or forgotten details that would disprove the above thoughts. All in all, I like Shale and I hope we meet them again in DA4 (given that it's mostly set in Tevinter). It's a liking from a respectful distance, because Shale is tall and made out of rock and also way more experienced than I will ever be (they are literally the oldest member of the Warden's little Blight fighting squad).

Sten:

Sten is another person I'd keep a respectful distance from physically. That seems to be the what he would prefer, at least. I've enjoyed his character a lot, especially because he seems pretty clear-cut at first, but slowly lets the nuance of his person show (gruff and stoic, but then he has an eye for art, a sweet tooth and he likes cute animals). It's also very interesting that there's no moment when you learn "the truth" about him the way you do with Zevran or Leliana. There's no big reveal about his life under the Qun before coming to Ferelden. He says he was sent to monitor the Blight, but honestly? If neither Ferelden nor Orlais knew there was a Blight, how could the Qunari know? I think he's lying, and he takes his secrets back with him when he leaves Ferelden. And yet I think I know him enough to say that a Warden who has become friends with him has nothing to fear from Sten.

One thing I find very interesting about Sten is how he thinks. His conversation about how women can't be soldiers has been analysed a lot on this page I think. He seems to be arguing based on a different paradigma than the one the Warden has. He also seems to have a very clear-cut view of the world. What is fascinating to me is that, when arguing with the Warden and learning about their culture, he is not necessarily becoming more lax about his worldview. I think it's more likely that he is expanding his paradigma, the structure of thought through which he understands the world. I don't think that he is now convinced that women can be warriors as well. I think he rather understands that, in Ferelden, the relationship between occupation and gender is different than under the Qun. Which of the two he thinks is more right or more agreeable, I have no idea. I'm also not very interested in that. But I find it fascinating how he always seems to be looking on quietly, gathering data, classifying it and trying to fit it into his understanding of how the world works. I wouldn't be surprised at all if his original party was a scouting party to see how vulnerable Ferelden was at that moment to outside forces. One thing I don't understand with all of this is why he urges the Warden to meet the Blight head on. No smart soldier would suggest that, except if they are foolishly proud (and Sten doesn't seem like that kind of guy tbh). I get that the Warden takes way longer to gather allies than expected because they first have to solve all of their allies' problems. But surely Sten sees the need to have allies? Is he just that impatient? Does he have a death wish (à la, I lost my sword and am without honour, better to die sooner than later and in glorious battle)? Was he his group's previous commander and is he now having trouble following somebody else's orders? Or maybe it's his way to make sure the Warden knows what they are doing? To push them into becoming the self-assured commander their allies will need once they're all gathered? I really don't know. I like the last option best, however.

For me, Sten is my fellow, more experienced soldier. Like Alistair, he can potentially be the Warden's brother in arms, but he's definitely the older brother here. He probably doesn't take kindly to tearful confessions of how hard everything is, but I feel like he's otherwise a solid rock to lean on. I feel like the Warden can trust him to do what is necessary and count on him no matter what, especially after they get his sword back. His devotion from that point on is honestly so powerful.

Wynne:

Wynne was such a support for my Warden (except with the whole conversation about love vs. duty and that she may have to choose between Zevran and ending the Blight and that she should therefore break up with him. Wynne had a point. Astala was so not willing to sacrifice her relationship with Zevran. But the whole conversation came at a point where she was already so disillusioned that she blew up in Wynne's face (”can i please just have one (1) nice thing????”)). But all in all, Wynne is great.

She has a lot of flaws. She was very marked by her life in the Cricle and, for all her age, she has little experience living outside of it. She is also a conformist despite her strong moral core. In a way, her ability to find peace with her lot in life impresses me deeply because it speaks to a lot of strength of character. Sadly, however, strength can be ill applied and used to suppress. I think she has convinced herself that the Chantry is right under (almost) all circumstances to be able to rationalize the life that mages live. She's had her son taken away from her as a baby and an apprentice killed. Her reaction seems to have been to convince herself that this was right, or for the greater good (and now I'm thinking about the Guardian's question at the temple of Andraste's Ashes; are you wise or do you just repeat what others have told you? The answer is not as clear-cut as it might be). This is why she is so irritated by Zevran and Morrigan. By aligning herself with the Chantry, she is, in her eyes, good. Zevran and Morrigan are not; they do not conform to Chantry morality and they defend themselves tooth and nails against somebody who would try and convert them. This is something Wynne never allowed herself to do; she always did the "right" thing and it has cost her so much. I'm not saying she was right (it would probably have done her some good to rebel from time to time, and to trust her own gut instinct more), but in light of this, it hardly surprises me that she's so judgamental. She has to be, or she would be forced to confront all the evil she has not fought against all those years and all the hurt that has been caused to her by the very institution she protects (and thank God she only tries to argue and can appreciate it when people have found a good life outside of her comfort zone. If she tried to convince by force or, for example, drag her former apprentice back to the Circle... boy oh boy that would get ugly). If you think about it, Wynne really is a good example for what happens if you live by a philosophy of always choosing the lesser evil.

Something that I keep forgetting over her grandmotherly and dignified character is how damn powerful she is. She has escaped the carnage at Ostagar; HOW!? She protected those mage apprentices in the Circle tower for God knows how long. In the battle of Denerim, she wades through an army and comes out alive on the other side. The wiki lists her age at 40, I think, but that doesn't make a lick of sense unless 75 years of age are the Fereldan equivalent to 100. This lady, about whom people make grandmother jokes, did all that. It's impressive.

Zevran:

You know, I would really love to know what Wynne thinks about the events at Kirkwall in DA2. It might be a disaster for her, or it might pave the way for one last bit of character development. She certainly didn't want to return to the Circle after fighting the Blight. That may be an indicator of some change in her stance on the Circle of Magi.

Edit: I forgot that she is what the Circle considers a literal abomination! Holy cow, how could I forget that?? Anyway, her conversation about what being an abomination means is so... heartbreaking, actually. It's so tentative. So careful. "Am I an abomination? Am I the same thing that has killed my students? The same thing as Uldred? Am I lost and damned? Did I invite this spirit in? Is this my fault?" Like wow, Wynne is going through something huge right there. I love it. I have to continue playing the game to see what it ends up as, but it's fascinating and such a huge thing that she allows the Warden in on that.

Ah, Zevran, my beloved (he has stolen my heart so much it's not even funny anymore). He's funny, he's charming, he's so so loyal and it breaks my heart. Zevran is the one about whom I've read most meta: these three wonderful posts for instance, as well as this one about his possible lack of scars, and this one about his lack of freedom. All of these have influenced my opinion of him and they are great reads.

I have talked about Zevran with you before, so I'll just skip to the new stuff. I have come to conclusion that Zevran is an artist at heart. This is totally not biased by the fact that I also do art, but hear me out. One of his preferred gifts are bars of silver and gold. While those have the obvious utility of basically functioning as money (they can be sold to any silversmith or goldsmith and their value is pretty stable through time and in different countries), there's also this from his codex: "Zevran shows an affinity for the finer things in life—hardly surprising for an Antivan Crow—but his appreciation can be more poetic than he lets on. A simple bar of refined silver or gold, uncomplicated by a craftsman's hammer, is elegantly valuable." Tell me that is not an artist's eye that sees that gold and sees the beauty in it. Then, there's also the meta about Zevran the Seducer which I linked above and link here again. It talks specifically about how he lets himself enjoy the target and be seen in his enjoyment. Tell me that is not an artist's eye that beholds the beauty of something he is set out to destroy. Even his talk about his assassinations show this. He talks about it as an art, the way somebody would talk about the brutal intervention in stone that produces a sculpture. Yes, it's a rationalization of the act of killing and yes killing is still wrong. But he doesn't go on about it on a moral tangent the way Alistair or Wynne would (”this person was bad, killing them was necessary”) or even through the argument of survival like Morrigan would (”it was either them or me and it sure as Hell wasn't going to be me”). He talks about the pleasure of a job well done, of the satisfaction of striking the precise point and executing a plan to the perfection so as to minimize chances of discovery and to make a clean death possible. And pleasure in seeing and in doing, this I firmly believe, is absolutely fundamental for an artist.

My favourite part about my Warden and Zevran as a pairing is that Zevran precisely brings out that ability to take your pleasures as they come and to really savour them. Fighting the Blight is tough; it's so important to find good things amidst the chaos to stay sane. If Astala saves Zevran from himself by offering him a place to stay and a purpose, Zevran saves Astala from herself by keeping her from running herself into the ground trying to save the world.

There are some things I don't like about Zev. The incessant flirting, for example, sometimes makes me uncomfortable (it becomes enjoyable for me once the Warden and him are in a relationship, but before that? Nah, no thanks). I wish he would also leave the other female characters alone (and there's so many more shameless comments of his aimed at Morrigan, Leliana or Wynne than at Alistair or maybe even Sten).

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And that's my take on the Origins companions (this was rather long. Whew ^^' I hope it was still readable and that you enjoyed it!!) Thank you so much for the ask!! It's been a joy thinking about this. I was worrying at first that the less prominent companions like Sten or Shale wouldn't get as much content but... well XD

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korinthya · 4 years ago

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Hiii 🤍

Is there a plausible reason for the PB fandom to hate Grace so much? I'm shocked sometimes because there is no real reason, and like, a lot of them would rather see Lizzie being treated like nothing by Tommy (because his lack of love affection for her is very clear) than accepting that he loved Grace.

I mean... WAKE UP HATERS SHE'S THE ONLY ONE 😌

(I LOVE your theories btw, they give me life)

❤ Glad to hear that ❤

First of all I confess that I don’t like to write this kind of post, I prefer to focus on what I like but I will answer you according to my criteria so...

I believe that this hatred, when exists, is mainly because of two reasons with a first and last name:

First Reason, Thomas Shelby

- Thomas is the protagonist of this story, and as often happens, with whom we live more situations and experience more emotions, therefore we empathize more with him than with the rest (which makes us forgive him easily as well).

And this brings me to the next point: quite a few of the supporting characters are vaguely developed, SK tries with Arthur and Polly but many times I see more inconsistencies in their narrative arcs than anything else. Many of them are puppets or tools at his service. In my opinion, this situation started in the second season and was accentuated in the third one. This leads to the public becoming more attached to him due to his strength as a character in comparison and because we better understand his motivations, hence we distance ourselves unconsciously from the others (including Grace), who seem shadows of what they were or could have been...Season 1 is the most generous in this regard, even Finn has personality there.

- Thomas has become an idol for men and women as a consequence of his Gary Stu qualities and a writing that blesses him with luck, which crowns him with the title of untouchable in the eyes of his fans or viewers, obviously not all of them, who decide to continue with this story, his story. Eg. 4x1, if it wasn’t for the miraculous letters he found that compromised the king, his family would have been executed because of him.

Second Reason, Grace Burgess

- Grace is a character who truly challenges and misleads/confuses him and that is linked to making him look bad (harming his “reputation”) or literally hurting him.

["Character X" touches "Untouchable Character" = Disgusting Character that is worthless and should be dead].

I'm not making it up; you can often find one of these adjectives aimed at her or other characters in a similar situation.

- And if we add to that Grace is a person who comes and goes, the viewer doesn’t know her or empathize with her so much, which makes her unpredictable, "unpredictably harmful". However, I have to say in favor of SK that in her case, unlike other secondary characters, he made up for her lack of screen time through details to delve into her psyche, but he didn't try too hard either, huh. Eg. She wrote him letters for two years telling him about her life (S2), the lavender color that we saw in 3x1 and 3x2 means the mourning that she feels for her deceased husband, among others.

Thomas' lovers

- And finally, the viewers prefer Lizzie (faithful to Thomas from minute one), or May (more business = more wealth), over Grace.

Reading the statements of her detractors, I’ve come to the conclusion that the problem, or the key, is usually the same: She is a worthy character / partner depending on how useful is to him.

Yes, as if they were scissors to prune a hedge. And hey! They are not entirely wrong, taking into account their depth or that the conflicts they present with themselves and for the plot are more superficial than a puddle, especially May. They are simply there, waiting to be used by Thomas... and that availability, that control over them and the assurance that they won’t "create problems / harm" the Untouchable it’s what they really like the most. It doesn't matter if Thomas treats them like shit or they have nothing in common, or even if they use each other for purely superficial purposes. As long as Thomas comes out well from whatever and the woman in question has been good to him they make a wonderful couple. So yeah, I hope Lizzie is the Black Swan because she at least has potential.

-Oh! But I'm not saying a dysfunctional relationship isn't worth telling or developing, long live the diversity! That can offer a lot, BUT that’s not the case here, mainly because of the immense indifference shown by one of the parties and the inactivity of the other. (Guess which is which).

In short: They are angry because Grace putted one over on Tommy, the blue eyed boy, and on top of that, he liked it and then got married to her. Instead, Lizzie is easier to handle than a lollipop.

Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the story and most of the characters, but as much as I like something, contrary to Thomas, and quoting Grace: I'm not blind.

Thx for asking

#peaky blinders #grace shelby #tommy shelby #lizzie shelby #may carleton #anonymous question #tommy x grace

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boomcomplains · 4 years ago

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It's typical. A loud noise sends a character back into a hostage situation, a war, or a gunfight. When faced with the majority of reporting on PTSD centers around combat-related PTSD (source), it makes sense that it's the shellshocked veteran we often see in books, TV, film and comics. However, the civilian population that experiences PTSD is 13 times larger than its military counterpart. Of course, there are more civilians than those in the military, so naturally, that population is bigger. This article is not meant to dismiss those in the military who deal with very real and terrible side-effects from their time serving.

However, it does beg the question, what does a character with PTSD look like when their trauma is outside combat?

I think a very good study of this sort of character is Dr. Nicholas Rush from Stargate: Universe. There are many other characters out there that I could use, but I'm in a SGU mood today, so I hope you'll forgive me.

At the beginning of the show, Dr. Nicholas Rush is a difficult man. Unable to deal with his wife's terminal cancer, he drowns himself in work so he can avoid the pain of losing her. When she dies while he is off-world, this complicated grief drives him to focus on the mission of the ninth chevron because he has to make his absence from her deathbed mean something. After all, if he didn't succeed, he would not have an excuse. Without the excuse, he would confront the nasty truth that he didn't support his wife in her dying days because he couldn't handle the grief.

The ninth chevron leads him to the Destiny, a ship far beyond the reaches humanity could ever dream to go, with a singular but ultimately mysterious mission. His doggedness to stay on the ship, and follow the mission is likely a reaction to his own inability to come to terms with the trauma of losing his wife.

Because of this, he approaches situations from an ultra-logical world that doesn't exactly coincide with the emotional gray side of the human experience. That's why when he felt that Colonel Young was repeatedly putting lives and the mysterious mission of Destiny in danger, he decided to... frame him for murder... and when that didn't work, stage a coup.

I promise, within the confines of the show, those were actually both very rational decisions.

The coup was the last straw for Colonel Young, so he abandons Rush to die on a desert planet that has no stargate and therefore no possibility for escape. So, metaphorically, Young essentially commits the murder that Rush tried to frame him for.

It is there, on a sandy planet without food or water, that the narrative of Nicholas Rush's PTSD starts.

While attempting to escape, Rush alerts an alien race called the Nakai to his presence as tries to fix a crashed alien spaceship. For the Nakai, it's a lucky find because they are hell-bent on boarding Destiny. Why do they want to get on Destiny? I don't know. They're aliens. Sometimes you don't get to know the why when it comes to aliens.

On their ship, Rush is tortured and imprisoned in a water tank (this is important later). So for the PTSD counter, we have both abandonment and abuse to contend with. His feelings about Young essentially murdering him for doing what he thought was right for the ship are compounded with being mentally torn apart by the Nakai.

Flash forward, Rush is accidentally rescued from the Nakai's clutches due to a lot of plot points I'm not going to go into. Frankly, it's very likely most of you haven't seen the series—or have forgotten more about it than you remember—and the last thing I want to do is turn this article into a Stargate: Universe season recap.

So, back on the ship, Rush isn't sleeping, which you find out after he commiserates with fellow torture victim Chloe. It's assumed that it is for the same reasons as Chloe, which are vivid nightmares. For those of you keeping track, that is a classic sign of PTSD. The subsequent not sleeping because you're afraid of having more nightmares is also a very strong indicator.

Unfortunately, insomnia leads to emotional decision-making, usually based on your experiences in that trauma. But let's put a pin in that for just a moment, and we'll fast forward to a later episode entitled "Pain."

In "Pain", the crew accidentally bring a tick onboard that causes vivid hallucinations, some of which are paranoid delusions. For everyone who experiences this, there is little rhyme or reason why the hallucination starts, and they go with it unquestioningly.

Rush, however, is different. His hallucinations are all triggered. When under the influence of the tick, Sergeant Greer (a proponent for Young's leadership) threatens Rush. Because of this, Rush experiences flashbacks to the Nakai ship and sees everyone as a potential Nakai threat. Paranoid ideation is a symptom of PTSD. When I say "paranoid" though, I fear that this may be read dismissively. PTSD, in many ways, is a survival mechanism. It's a set of prefab reactions because you have already experienced something similar. Essentially, it's not paranoid ideation to you, because it's happened before.

It is unclear if Rush himself was affected by the alien organism, but it seems very likely that his reaction was hinged on the perceived/very real threat to his survival. The fact that it has been established that he has not been sleeping for episodes now, and his hallucinations are of past experiences—such as the room flooding with water, or seeing other members of the crew as Nakai —it seems more than likely that Rush's experiences in this episode are PTSD-related and not due to the tick.

This, however, is not our only brush with PTSD. Let's move forward to the next season, where he finds the bridge of Destiny and hides that discovery from the rest of the crew.

One of the cool things about Stargate: Universe in the first season is that they never find the bridge of the ship. They don't even know there is one because Destiny is so massive and broken, they haven't found it yet... or perhaps the Ancients were so culturally different at the time they didn't design the ship with a bridge in mind. Even if they did, there would be a fair chance the crew would have no idea how to use it.

So, Rush—who is established to still not be sleeping after an incursion with the Lucian Alliance—finds the bridge of the Destiny. Until now, he and the Science Team had been interfacing with the ship in what I think is probably a janitor's closet, so this is an incredibly important find because it is vital for the survival of the ship and the crew. Naturally, that means Rush should want to share it, knowing what we know of him from before he was abandoned on the planet and then tortured by the Nakai. Before, it was the greater good. Now, it's survival is first and foremost.

But no. Rush, instead, reasons that Young cannot be trusted with this find, and starts to lead a double life of surreptitiously guiding the ship (to disastrous results) and pretending like he's still doing things from the Control Interface Room/Janitor's closet.

But what led him to do this? After all, keeping this find under wraps leads to dire situations that compromise the survival of the crew, and indeed causes the death of one member. It is not a rational decision.

Except that it is. If there is one thing I want to make very plainly clear in this article, PTSD-sufferers reactions are rational, even if they don't seem that way to an outsider. I think oftentimes we nitpick plots in fiction because characters make decisions that seem illogical to us. Sometimes this is deserved because an author did not sufficiently help us empathize with a character, other times I think it is because we don't understand what it means to have PTSD.

You don't have to be triggered to have PTSD affect your decision-making process. You see, unmanaged, PTSD gets you stuck in survival mode. It's an undertow that drags you down with things that were true but aren't necessarily true now.

So in Rush's sleep-deprived, and exhausted state-of-my-mind, he reverts back to Young being the threat despite all the work they had done to repair the relationship. While some may be frustrated with this backstep, I can't tell you how much I appreciate that about his character. It explains the rationale for doing something irrational, and makes his character so much deeper.

The beauty of Stargate Universe is that it shows PTSD as it is. Even better, no one is excusing Rush's actions because of it, and/or invalidating his experience. It simply is.

PTSD is so misunderstood, it deserves logical, rational representation, and it gets that with logical, rational Dr. Rush. I mean, let's face it, there is logic to what goes on in a PTSD-sufferers brain, but it's logic from a different time period. Dismissing it as irrational is insulting, and I love that Stargate: Universe never does that, and I think it is exactly why Rush is such a deep and meaningful character.

In the end, I think there is a lesson writers can draw from this: don't be afraid to explore this within some of your characters. Understand their viewpoint, and what drives them to make their choices. If you do that, you will never have a boring story.

#nicholas rush #stargate universe

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s0ym1lk · 4 years ago

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So I finally finished playing Burial at Sea parts 1 and 2, wrapping up my replay of Infinite. The last time I played these games, I had a really visceral dislike of the ending to Infinite, and didn’t even finish part 2 of BaS for the same reasons. Having played them again, I am really satisfied with how the games came together, and how strongly it reinforced its themes in BaS.

Bioshock has always been about choice, consequence, and the relationship between people. More specifically it tackles choice in relation to your past, and whether you can (or should) try to make up for your mistakes.

To me, Infinite was a very interesting experiment in telling a story, because I think without serious analysis, the player is led to the wrong conclusion. The way I read it, Infinite is making a case specifically for breaking the cycle of violence by....showing how difficult it is to break the cycle of violence.

Booker and Comstock represent two polar opposite reactions to making mistakes. Comstock discards his past completely, and with it, he discards valuable lessons in empathy and compassion. He becomes a man obsessed with righteousness, purity, and ruthlessness. Booker stews in his past and never moves past it. He refuses to forgive himself for the mistakes that he made, and that self-flagellation keeps him in a cycle of shame and wrong-doing. However, this isn’t just a case study of Booker/Comstock. Infinite raises the stakes by using Elizabeth to illustrate to us that _anyone _can fall victim to the cycle of bloodshed. The game is all about trauma, forgiveness, and violence - from Booker empathizing with how Slate is sent to war and then discarded like an old toy, to Fitzroy trying to find belonging with Comstock’s family, only to be framed for murder and radicalized into a rebellion leader, to Elizabeth finding compassion for the mother that abused her who was herself abused by Comstock, to Songbird - Elizabeth’s captor and only friend, itself a captive with a friend only in Elizabeth. The point is that every single one of these people are trapped in a cycle of violence that traumatizes them, which in turn forces them to traumatize others, perpetuating the cycle.

The end of the game brings that big structural-level cycle back into the personal relationship between Elizabeth and Booker when it reveals that Booker and Comstock are the same person. Booker is responsible for Elizabeth's life, and she now has to decide what's more important to her - the tentative relationship she's built with Booker thus far or getting revenge for what was done to her as a child. This is the turning point for Elizabeth - and therefore where the game puts the period on its thesis. When Elizabeth chooses to kill Booker, she feeds into that cycle of violence and.... essentially becomes Comstock. She has chosen violence for the ‘greater good’. She has declared that there are some things you can never come back from, some things that you deserve to die for. And she does so discarding many of the lessons about compassion, personal connection, and forgiveness that she learned along the way. (It’s also very important to note that she makes her decision because she ‘knows how the story ends’. Upon replay, I think the game has some very interesting things to say about whether this statement is true. Comstock also knew how the story ended, which drove his own villainy. In essence, the game is saying that this type of ruthless realism is just pessimism in disguise, and that it WILL turn a person into a monster. It's only when Elizabeth loses her powers in BaS, when she becomes a regular person with no concept of the future again, that's she able to see the power of optimism and find some redemption. )

I believe the complexity of that message (and the admittedly confusing packaging it came in) was lost on a lot of players, which is why in my opinion Burial at Sea doubles down so intensely on the themes. Part 1 is literally about Elizabeth becoming the villain. They make that very clear by redeeming Booker/Comstock through his kindness towards Sally, and villainizing Elizabeth via use of Sally as a tool to get to Comstock. Then, at the beginning of part 2, Elizabeth is exactly where Booker was at the beginning of Infinite - with the blood of a child on her hands, wondering what chance she has at redeeming herself. That search for redemption morphs into an understanding of the importance of human connection. Ultimately, despite it being a lost cause, it matters that Elizabeth tries, over and over again, to save Sally. It matters that Elizabeth misses Booker, that Elizabeth helps the Big Daddy, that Elizabeth saved Songbird when she was a child. Those small human connections are the true heart of Bioshock, and the thing that Elizabeth lost at the end of Infinite when she sacrificed Booker. So many little things point to this central message - the ‘lion with a thorn in its paw’ metaphor, the stories of the big daddies and songbird, the ‘imprinting is not found in genetic code’ line, the guitar/singing scene in Infinite, and - my personal favorite part of Infinite - the scene of Booker trying to get Anna back as a baby before she’s taken through the tear.

There’s definitely something to be said there about the foolishness of playing God. All of Bioshock’s villains have sought to shape the world to its best (in their varying opinions) form. Elizabeth does the same. Upon seeing that a bad choice can be made, she chooses to take the choice away, failing to realize that there’s no way you can do that for every bad thing that will ever happen in life. Though the game doesn’t show you the consequences of Elizabeth’s choice (note however that Burial at Sea very much does), it implies by everything that comes before that killing Booker will only perpetuate the cycle of bloodshed. The 'best' choice, thematically, should have been for Elizabeth to forgive Booker for being human and making mistakes. But the game wants us as players to understand how difficult a choice that is to make - so difficult that Elizabeth herself couldn’t even make it.

Ultimately, Elizabeth is redeemed in death, because she chose to fight for the lost cause of saving Sally, even though she knew how it would end. Even if Elizabeth had once sacrificed Sally trying to get to Booker/Comstock, it still mattered that Elizabeth tried to save her - just as it mattered that Booker tried to stop Comstock from taking Anna pre-Infinite. We, as human beings, are more than our pasts, because every moment we can make the choice to change. When we use our pasts to help us navigate the future, when we allow the past to give us empathy for other people and for ourselves, rather than wallowing in it or forgetting it completely - that’s how we can make choices that matter.

#sorry this is so long #i could have written even more tbh #i just really like how they approached all this #the multiverse aspect of this also makes it a very positive ending because #it means that somewhere there IS an elizabeth who forgave a booker #a booker that never gave up anna #a comstock that didnt build a city of blood #most importantly #an elizabeth that made it to paris #it would have been nice for that to be more apparent in canon #but BI certainly did not want to hold the players hand through these themes #bioshock infinite #bioshock infinite spoilers #bioshock #bioshock spoilers #burial at sea #burial at sea spoilers

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makeste · 5 years ago

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BnHA Chapter 250: Why Is This Family Not in Therapy

Previously on BnHA: Fuyumi invited everyone over to Camp Todovid for a wholesome family meal because what could possibly go wrong. Kacchan and Deku proceeded to spend the evening blinking distress signals at each other in Morse code while Natsu shoved breadsticks into his purse and skedaddled after getting mad at Endeavor in a completely unexpected turn of events which absolutely no one could have foreseen. After dinner, Shouto had a heart to heart with Fuyu (and then Deku) about whether or not he was ready to forgive his dad, and meanwhile Endeavor said a prayer for his very dead son Touya. Poor Touya. He was such a nice boy. You know what he really used to like? Messenger bags. He’d put the oddest things in them, too. I wonder if Touya would still enjoy collecting strange and disturbing things in bags if he was still alive today. Alas. We’ll never know.

Today on BnHA: Some guy named Takami who just got out of prison decides to show up out of the blue and fucking kidnap Natsuo because WHY NOT. But before that happens, we get a nice scene of Kacchan and Deku sitting down with Shouto and Fuyu, who finally decide it’s high time they talked about THEIR SECRET DEAD BROTHER seeing as LET’S BE REAL, THAT WAS THE WHOLE POINT OF THIS DINNER TO BEGIN WITH. So basically, (1) he’s definitely dead! For sure! 100% deceased!, and (2) Natsuo apparently blames Endeavor for his death, lol no big. Deku and Kacchan are for some reason super fucking chill about hearing this, and then Endeavor comes over and is all “TIME TO HEAD BACK” and omg I’ve never hated him more. And then as they’re driving away from Todofield Hall, Takami shows up and is all “HEY ENDEAVOR LOOK I KIDNAPPED YOUR CHILD AND I’M GONNA KILL HIM!” and holy shit but Horikoshi is just fucking with us now, though.

(As always, all comments are my unspoiled reactions from my initial readthrough of the chapter. I did a quick edit for grammar and clarity afterward, and added some ETAs in the process, but aside from that there are no changes.)

all right manga, do your worst. I’m completely spoiler-free on this one. watch it not even be a flashback, after all of that lmao

(ETA: lol I read these two asks after I read the chapter and they’re pretty great:

honestly this week wasn’t that bad, though! the worst part of it was the whole “only 13 pages again” thing honestly. next week, though, it looks like we’ll be in for some fun times. oh goodness.)

so it appears night has fallen on Todofield Hall, and hoooooooooly shit you guys, are they. are they all gonna have a sleepover at Shouto’s house, because fdszllk I. I’m gonna. ldskfjla

(ETA: [kicks Endeavor in the shins] why do you hate fun!?)

who is talking?? are these prison stripes??

so is this the Takami guy narrating, then? just like we all predicted last week. ???

(ETA: so I saw all these people going “wtf is this Hawks’s dad??” and I was like “lol what” and it took me longer than I’d like to admit to put two and two together, but anyways, long story short, “Takami” just so happens to be Hawks’s recently revealed surname (with the same kanji and everything -- 鹰見). so while every instinct in my body is screaming at me “gtfo no way they’re related”, it is an extremely bizarre coincidence, so uh. ?? I got nothin’, basically.)

WHAT THE FUCK

IS THIS GUY STALKING THE TODOROKI HOUSE. ABOUT TO BREAK INTO TODOFELL IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT WHILE MY CHILDREN ARE ASLEEP!? CAN THEY JUST NOT CATCH A BREAK

also I will never understand villains who get all smug about being captured alive. “your one mistake was not killing me when you should have!” like okay, so you’re admitting you’re a piece of shit who should have died, and that the hero totally could have done it, but they were nice enough not to so SHAME ON THEM, apparently

anyways I really don’t understand what’s going on at all lol. some guy looked up to Endeavor and then got himself captured by him for some reason. let’s continue I guess

oh lord it keeps getting creepier

-- oohhhhhhhh shiiiiiiit, is this fucker about to air Endeavor’s dirty laundry?? is that what this is about?

AHHHHH

NATSU SWEETIE WHERE ARE YOUR SELF-PRESERVATION INSTINCTS?? IT IS NOT SAFE! and also what the fuck, does Endeavor just not have any security in his home at all? surely he must, if for no other reason than the fact that HE HAS KIDS and he’s not always at home! I have to imagine that any pro hero with a family understands that they’re a potential target for villains and would take precautions. I wonder if we’re about to see this sneaky guy get wrecked

(ETA: nope, Endeavor really has no security whatsoever and Natsu got snatched while waiting outside for his Uber. I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt and assume that he was too busy missing his brother and being sad to remember that he actually has a quirk himself. c’mon Natsu.

-- actually, come to think, props to Horikoshi for once again bucking the trend and having a guy be the one who gets kidnapped and becomes the damsel in distress. I’m just going to assume that had Fuyu been the one to get captured, Endeavor wouldn’t have even heard about it until he received a text from her with a picture of the guy encased in ice and a caption asking “so dad, uh, what should I do with this?”)

BUT FIRST, WE’RE CUTTING BACK TO THE TODOROKI KITCHEN, WHERE TODOBAKUDEKU ARE CURRENTLY HAVING TEA WITH FUYU BECAUSE SOMEBODY UP THERE LIKES ME YESSSSS

hhhglkohhhhh myyyyy godddddd

I KNOW!!! WHAT’S WITH THAT! WE’VE WAITED 250 FUCKING CHAPTERS PUTTING UP WITH YOUR SLY-ASS HINTS ALL “ALL RIGHT THEN, KEEP YOUR SECRETS” but is it finally time now? IS IT??!

Shouto says it’s not exactly an easy topic to bring up, and okay, fair. buuuut also, this is the same child who ambushed Deku in a corridor back when they barely knew each other and was all “let me tell you all about my dad’s quirk marriage and how he abused me and my mom and how I got this scar” so like. what exactly do you consider “easy to bring up” though

OH MY GOD IT’S HAPPENINGGGGGGG

we’re getting DETAILS. ABOUT. TOUYA’S PAST fkdslfh holy motherfucking shitballs someone pinch me

she says it happened right after Rei got hospitalized, which yeah, we all figured based on the middle school uniform in the photo. so that definitely pins down his age then, doesn’t it? Shouto was six when that happened, so if Touya was in middle school he’d have been between 12 and 15. so it’s very likely then that he was 14, the exact same age as Fuyu, so therefore THE TWIN THEORY IS CONFIRMED! WE DID IT TUMBLR

anyways back to being sad though, because

can someone please hug this child?? what are you all even doing?! do you not see his face?? jesus christ

oh no oh my god are you serious are you

okay, before I go on to the next panel and commence FREAKING THE FUCK OUT, I need to stop here though, because the thought that the Todos actually were in the process of healing nine years ago and could have potentially been spared years of additional pain had it not been for this tragedy is. just. I fucking can’t. I need a minute here. god

anyway. so now on to the freaking out though, because

:) :))) :))))))) huh. you don’t say

(ETA: hmm in hindsight I promised freakouts and then all I did was go “:)” but please understand that the “:)” conveys so much more inner freaking out than words could possibly communicate. just picture me screaming and waving my arms around like a Kermit the frog gif okay.)

look at this you guys. this revelation is so stone cold fucking sober that it even got Katsuki to make an actual normal face for the first time in god knows how many chapters, wow

by the way, words can hardly express how much I appreciate that Katsuki is sitting here chilling out drinking tea with the rest of them and listening to this tale of woe and empathizing like a normal, well-adjusted person, though. I will never take that for granted. thank you character development gods. y’all are bros

anyways the face in question that Natsu was making is so fucking sad, and just. THEY ALL NEED HUGS. why is this family not in therapy

NO!!!!!!!!!!!

YOU SON OF A BITCH!! JUST LIKE THAT YOU’RE RIGHT BACK ON MY SHIT LIST, ENDEAVOR!! CHRIST ALMIGHTY ARE YOU SERIOUS, SO WE’RE REALLY JUST GONNA LEAVE OFF THERE? “LOL SO YEAH, NATSU STILL THINKS DAD KILLED OUR BROTHER AND THAT’S WHY ALL THE TENSION” and Deku and Kacchan just nod like that is in any way a satisfying explanation rather than an INCREDIBLY OMINOUS STATEMENT which only goes and raises about A BILLION MORE QUESTIONS OMG. “oh okay, so he hates your dad because he thinks that he murdered your mysterious other brother we’re only just now hearing about. say no more. no further context necessary” fucking --

listen, you two. where the fuck are your investigative skills?? SOME SCOOBY SQUAD YOU ARE!!

oh my goodness gracious

listen guys, things I was not expecting to check off my character development bucket list today: Katsuki joining the Fuyumi fanclub and bonding with her over recipes. I wasn’t even aware that was on my list. BUT IT SURE WAS, AND IT’S CHECKED NOW AND I LOVE IT

also love that Shouto tells Fuyu to just text the recipe to him, and then he will share it with Katsuki. because they are best friends

also Deku is the only one here with any manners at all but oh well. we all been knew

(ETA: though to be fair, Katsuki asking for the recipe is about as big a compliment as one can give to a chef, and it kind of serves as a combination “thanks for the meal” and “everything was really good” tbh. shit, now I want her recipe.)

fdlkjfg

... [reaches out to gently touch the panels] so soft

-- BUT DO YOU KNOW WHAT’S EVEN SOFTER?

[faint sound of my heart imploding] ah

oh my god his face

and Katsuki’s face too. boy are you jealous. to think you were all “WHY THOUGH!?” coming here, only to walk away from it all with a kickass new mapo tofu recipe as well as a new person to add to your secret list of people you would literally die for. awwwwwww

and Shouto. omg. this is the most bashful panel I’ve ever seen. what a blessed chapter

anyway so now they’re all driving away (back to school?? I think he said?) and Endeavor’s talking to them about their upcoming schedule. so I guess they are heading back to school, then

anyway so he wants them to work the weekend as well as two weekdays? damn that’s a lot of class to be missing, he’s asking them to skip literally half the school week (since they have Saturday class too)

wow you guys look at this panel

takeaways from this: 1.) I honestly would have thought Deku would be the one tutoring other people in English, if anything. as of the midterms, he was above Shouto in academic rankings, but more importantly he’s also the biggest All Might fan on the planet, and All Might spent a lot of time in America in his youth and presumably speaks decent English himself, so you’d think Deku’s English would be passable just from his obsession alone. but I guess you just can’t beat that fancy private school education

and the other takeaway: Katsuki doesn’t like being squished in the backseat of a cramped Japanese car with Deku and Shouto. this one is absolutely shocking. I’m gonna need a moment to process this for sure. anyways poor Deku, he’s probably getting so many elbows to the ribs right now. I hope he elbows back

(ETA: actually the fact that Katsuki is apparently sticking his head out the window here in addition to complaining about the cramped conditions makes me wonder if he’s actually getting carsick. my poor baby do you need some dramamine.)

guys, meet Endeavor’s chauffeur

so anyway this is a bit sudden but I have a new favorite character now. life is funny like that. does he remind anyone else of Major Armstrong

wow Endeavor is answering the question seriously

okay but shit, I really fucking love this answer, though. he’s so matter-of-fact about it. because the thing is, the question isn’t really “when did you start baby-sitting a bunch of kids”; it’s “when did you actually start caring about something other than yourself?” and the answer is that it happened when he finally reached the top and realized the responsibility that went hand in hand with that role. it forced him to finally look past just himself, and to think about what it really means to be a hero. shit, I feel another essay coming on, but it’ll have to wait for some other time lol. we still have to see if Natsu’s going to make it out of this alive

anyway so now Armstrong is chuckling and saying that status really does change people huh, and they’re driving on into the night

OH SHIT

THAT’S A NICE SON YOU’VE GOT THERE, ENDEAVOR. IT WOULD BE A SHAME IF SOMEONE... okay you know what, I’m not sure where I was headed with that joke, but in any case I can’t finish it because this isn’t funny at all actually, this is actually SO FUCKING BAD oh shit oh shit

NATSUUUUU

oh no he’s so scared oh fuck. fuck. he’s only 19, he’s just a kid still. god. why do I always get so worked up over these parts. what am I doing reading a shounen manga if I can’t handle seeing kids in peril. HORIKOSHI PLEASE BE KIND TO MY BABIES

holy shit

okay, is this implying that Katsuki was sticking his head out of the window in that previous panel?? I realize more important things are happening and this is hardly the time to dwell on this, but jesus christ my kid is out here trying to get himself decapitated. boy what is wrong with you

anyway so now something is going "pop” and I have no idea. ??

(ETA: lol I guess it was Endeavor? you know, how Endeavor sometimes just goes “pop” for no reason. that’s just the sound someone makes when spontaneously bursting into flames.)

far be it from me to start whipping out analogies about a mama bear and her cubs, but. damned if that ain’t what’s happening though. motherfucker, you mess with his kids? so would you like to die fast, or slow

so now some weird fucking shit is happening to the car, and I guess it’s this guy’s quirk again?

wow my man, so you’re really attacking the car with the three protagonists with SOMETHING TO PROVE in the backseat. you really do have a death wish

(ETA: on top of that, attacking the car mere minutes before the winter break ends, and with it, the deadline for “defeating a villain quicker than Endeavor.” HMMM anybody got some popcorn?)

now Endeavor is shouting “LET HIM GO!” because that’s what superheros shout when someone is being kidnapped

lol poor Natsu looks kind of awkward now

like, don’t get him wrong, he’s still scared for his life. but also he’s starting to get a bit of that same feeling that Katsuki and Deku were getting in the last chapter, like he’s suddenly found himself right in the midst of some grade A melodrama from which there is no escape. anyways don’t mind him, he’s just going to chill here in this big pile of bandages and see where this goes

so Endeavor is all “........... YOU’RE FROM SEVEN YEARS AGO!” and honestly that’s impressive. I guess the quirk is a pretty memorable one, though

wow now they’re suddenly being all coy with this guy’s name? what the hell

?? Natsu bud, I feel ya, this really is some awkward shit right here

ohhhh!

that’s the name of the chapter! well all right then, so at least that much makes sense now

so now Ending is apologizing to Endeavor, and wow, tons of essay fuel in these next two panels here

“you had so many things that I could never get” doesn’t this sound remarkably similar to Deku’s speech to Kacchan during their second fight at Ground Beta? huh

and also, I think we are slowly dancing closer and closer to the Thing Katsuki Lacks That He Needs To Learn From His Internship From Endeavor. what do you guys think? I have a lot of thoughts about this, but again, I’ll save it for another post seeing as shit is hitting the fan right now and all

OH SHIT

ARE YOU SERIOUS, OF ALL THE TIMES TO HAVE ANOTHER THIRTEEN PAGE CHAPTER! HORIKOSHI YOU ARE FUCKING KILLING ME HERE

well shit. okay so when he says “don’t make the same mistake twice”, he’s clearly talking about Endeavor letting him live the last time they met, but also I can’t help but feel like there might be some kind of double meaning here as well. the fact that he went from theft to kidnapping and attempted murder, on top of him mentioning earlier about how he went digging into Endeavor’s past, makes me wonder if he could possibly be trying to recreate a specific set of events. or is that crazy??

but just, hear me out. what if something similar to this went down before, with Touya perhaps being taken hostage by a villain (though it couldn’t have been the same guy because the timing is off, and also Endeavor didn’t recognize him right off the bat), and Endeavor making some critical mistake which resulted in him failing to save him, and Natsu then blaming him for that and holding him responsible for the death. honestly that makes the most sense to me, since I would think that “literally murdered his own kid” would be kind of a deal-breaker as far as the rest of the family ever reconciling with him. so yeah, this could get very interesting here

(ETA: hoo boy, so I’ve been browsing the bnha tags a bit, and it seems that a lot of people are interpreting the hints in this chapter very differently from me lol. I admit I could certainly be wrong about the “don’t make the same mistakes” bit having a double meaning. but like, do we really believe that Endeavor just straight up murdered his son and got away with it, or that it was covered up or something? or that he drove Touya to suicide? I think it’s much more likely that Touya pushed himself too hard, or that he accidentally got caught up in one of Endeavor’s attacks, or something along those lines.

what really struck me, though, was that a lot of people actually seem to be hoping for it to come out that Endeavor really is responsible, though. like, to the point where they’re prepared to be outraged if it turns out he’s not, and this part of the story doesn’t end up conforming to the narrative of Endeavor just being a sinister cartoon villain. and like, I don’t really know what to say about that. except that I really hate this idea that if an abuser is ever portrayed as something other than a heartless monster then it’s super-problematic and/or just bad writing. that Endeavor not murdering his son = Horikoshi endorses child abuse. or something. anyways I don’t have the spoons to really throw my hat into the ring here, but basically my opinion is that life is rarely just black and white in that way, and this story reflects that, and I think it’s absolutely the right call to make and is actually very good writing and I respect it.

and also like, it’s not some all-or-nothing thing here where he’s either a perfect saint, or the worst person to ever exist! what he is is a man who made some terrible choices in the past and abused and hurt the very people he should have loved and protected the most. and what he is, also, is a man who has realized the awfulness of the things he’s done, and is trying his best now to be a good person. what he is is a human being. and acknowledging that doesn’t mean that you condone the abuse; it simply means that you acknowledge that people are made up of more than just the worst things they’ve done in their lives. that’s it.

anyways, for all of my “not gonna through my hat into the ring” nonsense, I’m doing a pretty good impression of exactly that, so I’ll shut up now. damn you Endeavor and your controversy-sparking ways. what kind of psychopath looks at the fucking BnHA fandom and says “not bad, but you know what this place could use? more discourse.” you knew exactly what you were doing, you fiend.)

anyways I’m going to hope and assume that Natsu isn’t actually about to meet his end here at the hands of this bestriped man and his peculiarly thematic villain name and sinister bandage arrows (are they bandages?? maybe not since they seem pretty solid and he’s threatening to stab Natsu in the eye with one. idk). and for all of my joking earlier, this guy actually does appear to have a real, genuine death wish since he keeps talking about how Endeavor should have killed him before. so in addition to all this other drama, toss in an attempted suicide by cop as well! this fucking arc, man. goddamn

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demytasse · 5 years ago

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An homage to Kasuka...

...and why he’s so relatable.

She(Ruri) was barely able to wrench out the words, “That’s a line...from ‘Carmilla Saizou’...”

“Yes, he’s one of the figures I respect most.”

“Respect? A character that you play…?” she asked in exasperation, thinking of the movie that they had once worked on together.

But that accusation didn’t faze Yuuhei in the least. “That’s right. I’ve played an insane killer, an idiotic criminal, a gay man in love—and I respect each and every character I’ve acted.”

“...”

“My brother was overemotional, so I used him as a negative role model, and now I think I’m missing a number of important things for a person to have. And I understand that—which is why I think I became an actor.”

—Drrr!! Vol. 4: pg 171 - 172

Let me explain why I really love this excerpt

It’s a succinct explanation for why Kasuka operates as he does and ultimately decided to become an actor. Within a simple exchange, we’re given a three-sixty view of his character while it defines Shizuo’s positive effect on Kasuka through the lens of a bad example.

His vacant appearance isn’t just a bullet point on a character profile, it’s not some flat decision that he became the polar opposite of his brother in order to build Shizuo’s character. No — he has the utmost respect for which characters he plays on the screen. RESPECT. Not just a casual appreciation, but one of high regard. That speaks volumes. It’s fascinating, why he has such confidence of who he is and how he operates. Regardless of how simply he states it, there’s in-depth logic to his reasoning.

Fiction is comprised of constant variables that allow it to be studied and boiled down to a reliable analysis of human attributes — what’s normally unpredictable. Outside of fiction, the world isn't so cut and dry, its people don't follow a static code. There's irrationality to real-life emotions and how one person interacts with another comprised of the same imperfection.

Characters, on the other hand, operate within a world created with a purpose: a playground where they can thrive without a hiccup. Their emotions are written into a script and are exact. So this representation aids an actor to become another person, interact with other characters as that person; they laugh when they are told, cry where it’s designed — they mimic emotions. There’s logic to the illogical.

Thus the emotionless Kasuka wears a personality that he seems to lack — borrows their feelings, mock their emotions; by proxy, experiences what he personally stunted of own development due to Shizuo’s overabundance.

It's endearing — cute. It’s far from tragic, hardly sad, but shows us that he does have a method to express himself. He isn’t devoid of life, his flat exterior is just a blank canvas painted with an artistic image that connects him to others and touches the lives of his fans. It’s a roundabout way of getting emotional gratification without the basic sense of self.

To this I believe is adjacent to people within fandoms.

In this era, a majority of people grow up with parents that are devoted to their jobs and careers, and that neglect has an impact on children during their impressionable years. Therefore children, later adults, are unsure of how to analyze their psyche, furthermore assess their emotions without that familial example to compare themselves to. Already there’s a similarity to Kasuka.

So who can people look to for the answers in lieu of proper guidance?

Characters.

Fans are drawn to fictional worlds, fall in love with characters; inclined to build a controlled community the revolves that reality. It’s a second home, a haven, shaped with a purpose: a similar playground to the very fiction they adore, where they can thrive and have an impact, unlike the chaotic real world. And through consumption of media, people find bits of themselves within characters, even if they don't entirely share the same traits they feel those similarities. In short, people empathize these fictional beings when it’s difficult in the unpredictable real-world.

It’s RESPECT. Characters are role models, which the inclusion of them within one’s life is intrinsic to societal inclusion. To look up to a wiser individual is primal, a survival instinct to ensure that an individual isn’t neglected by the pack and met with certain death. And in the fandom specific case, characters teach people how to express themselves in a tried and true fashion which helps them fit in.

Observation of a character’s successes and failures skips them past the intimidating trial and error phase, has a direct impact without the fear of negative repercussions. Without a keen understanding of the human psyche, they learn how to better channel their thoughts into actions.

They’re a literal translation of personality, morals, ideals; because there’s an intentional limit to what people are shown, it’s easy to pinpoint those details. It’s defined. It’s logical.

They're constant variables to an equation: X character does Y and gets a Z response.

And not only can characters be used as a social field guide, but also a coping mechanism through self-improvement arcs; they’re allowed their flaws, yet redeemed and later accepted by others. A fan can reap the same satisfaction and validation as their role model or kin. If instead, the character fails to succeed, alongside the character, a fan can wallow and cry. Through substitution or projection, people can feel the depth of emotion. Which brings me back to our main man...

Kasuka reflects a lot of us out there. We respect characters that help us feel what we lack — what he lacks too. Much like we're enamored of characters, he is as well. Kasuka is valid, relatable, and comprised of broken code. Though, he is respected, adored, yet still an overall success. Most importantly, he accepts the unconventional method he uses to function in the world without shame.

There’s nothing wrong with us, my fandom peers — we’re human, and much like Kasuka is loved by Ruri, Shizuo, and others, we too deserve that love. We should embrace our flaws, learn to forgive our mistakes — love and respect our own personal character and those of others in our little community; our fandom family, if you will.

Because through the respect of characters we relate to, we respect ourselves — and if we respect others in the like, it's a proof of character. ( °∇´)⌒★

This is why I love this excerpt, why I respect characters; this is why I love to shamelessly share my love for this series with others — my fandom.

#heiwajima kasuka #heiwajima shizuo #kasuka heiwajima #shizuo heiwajima #durarara!!#durarara #durarara light novels #yuuhei hanejima #drrr!!#drrr #durarara character analysis #durarara quotes #ruri hijiribe #hijiribe ruri #my analysis #drrrx2 #durarara!! x2

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silvokrent · 5 years ago

Text

The Prices We’ve Paid - 1

In the aftermath of the Fall, Emerald starts to realize she might be out of her depth.

There were days—once far and few in-between, but now becoming increasingly more frequent—when Emerald was relieved the entirety of their plans didn’t hinge solely on Cinder’s confidence.

Not that the surety was unwarranted. Tonight had been the culmination of months spent carefully vetting and recruiting numbers to their cause, compromising the kingdom’s defenses, theft and sabotage and infiltration and death of a magnitude that Remnant hadn’t seen in nearly a century. Cinder had been meticulous in leaving little to chance, and in the end, they succeeded.

Or very nearly, anyway.

Emerald struggled not to lose her footing on the gnarled root of a tree, nearly-overbalancing to compensate for the weight borne between them. Beside her, Mercury faltered in his pace, pausing long enough to readjust the limp form braced by his shoulder. The light of the shattered moon and distant flames illuminated the sheen of sweat on his face, and the haunted, hunted look he did little to hide. She never thought she would have found herself missing his obnoxious arrogance or haughty disdain for everyone around him, if only because it was something familiar. Anything would have been better than the sobering panic he wore, that she was sure perfectly mirrored her own.

“We’re close to the extraction point, right?” Emerald asked, when the silence became too much. Well, no, silence wasn’t the right word. Even with all the distance they’d put between themselves and the city wall, she could still hear the screams of people and the spine-chilling ululations of the Grimm.

Mercury pulled out his scroll and thumbed through a mess of readouts on the screen. “It’s about thirty meters northeast from here. Rendezvous’s gonna be a spot in Forever Fall. Figure it should only be another ten minutes.” He scowled. “Probably not though, seeing as we’re sort of inconvenienced at the moment. We could get there faster if we just—”

“Don’t,” Emerald snapped.

“For fuck’s sake, Emerald, look at her.” It was kind of hard not to, with her adrenaline-overdosed brain jumping back and forth between spellbound morbid curiosity and gut-churning disgust. Emerald made an effort to keep her eyes fixed ahead, determinedly ignoring Mercury’s glare. “She’s slowing us down. And if by some miracle the Grimm don’t pursue us, she’s lost a lot of blood. Who knows if there’s anything left to even save.”

Her pulse jumped in her throat. “The Grimm aren’t going to go after three people while there’s still the entirety of Vale,” Emerald said in what she hoped passed for a reasonable tone. “And—” She weighed her options against all the things she actually wanted to say (she’s our leader, we wouldn’t be here without her, we’ve survived worse, abandoning her is wrong) and decided that appealing to Mercury’s self-interest would get her the results she wanted. “What happens when we show up without her? What happens when she finds out we made that call?”

A vicious satisfaction surged through her as Mercury, however discreetly, flinched.

“We already lost our chance at getting the Relic. How forgiving do you think she’d be if she found out we lost the Fall Maiden, too?”

Very faintly, she could make out the sound of teeth grinding together.

In the end self-preservation won out, and to her relief Mercury didn’t argue. On some tacit agreement they resumed their trek in tense silence, with the only interruptions being the occasional grunt of exertion, the snap of a twig underfoot, or an incoherent noise of pain. Fortunately her theory held true and they moved through the shadows of the trees unaccosted, though it did little to quell the anxiety savagely beating against her ribs. The thoughts came unbidden, and Emerald tried (and failed) to not dwell on the very real possibility of Mercury’s words.

There had been a lot of blood. And in the pandemonium of the aftermath, they’d had little time to make a full assessment between digging through rubble and sprinting through the hysteria-induced crowds toward the outskirts of the commercial district. Were it not for the shallows puffs of air against the side of her neck, she could have forgiven him for assuming otherwise.

She could have, but the odds of that were up there with the ones of ripping off one of his prosthetic legs and proceeding to bludgeon him to death. For now, at least, he was keeping his spiteful cynicism to himself.

Her uneasy train of thought was interrupted by the sight of a dim glow in the gap of the trees.

Emerald stopped and gestured with her free arm in the direction of the light. After briefly consulting his scroll, Mercury nodded, and they pushed their way through the undergrowth.

During the final stages of preparation it had been a foregone conclusion that Atlas’ fleet would be too preoccupied with the White Fang, Grimm, and overridden mechs to pay mind to any lone airship that just so happened to blip on the edge of their radar. Despite this, Cinder had been loathe to let a getaway vehicle anywhere near her preparations, with the merest hint at a contingency plan from Torchwick nearly earning him a second-degree burn. To even suggest the need for one implied failure, an implication which Cinder did not take to kindly. It was only when Salem was consulted on the matter, and made it clear that retreat must be considered a possible outcome, did Cinder relent.

It made sense, really, when Emerald had tried to approach the issue from Cinder’s perspective. Contingency plans were a sign of ineptitude. That you didn’t posses the resolve or skill to succeed, that you openly acknowledged your inability to account for what could go wrong. Cinder had accounted for everything, and therefore nothing could go wrong.

A mutinous voice at the back of her mind (the one Mercury liked to mock whenever they were beset by boredom and passed the time by bickering) tried to empathize. Emerald had wanted to believe her. And as she’d watched from the rooftop—the wyvern perched atop Beacon Tower, stygian tar dripping from its wings and Cinder’s outstretched hand caressing its skeletal maw as the world burned below them—she had.

Their encumbered pace brought them to the edge of the small clearing where the airship idled. A seamless door slid open on the hull, pooling light on the ground ahead of them. Emerald squinted against the glare as a familiar silhouette stepped into view.

“Just because the CCT has fallen does not mean local communication was disrupted,” said Watts, by way of greeting. They’d only dealt with him a handful of times in the last year, as Cinder preferred to minimize her and her team’s interactions with him. It hadn’t taken them long to figure out why. Salem made sure to fill the ranks of her council with people of varying occupations and skillsets, and it had taken all of thirty seconds of listening to Watts talk before Emerald had filed him under the heading of Professional Bastard.

Of course it was their luck that he’d been assigned to extraction, in the event of a worst-case scenario.

Then again, he was apparently some sort of doctor, so maybe it was their luck.

Time to find out.

Mercury bristled. “Sorry, but it’s kind of hard to call ahead when we’re running and avoiding capture.”

“And whose fault is that, I wonder?” Watts said. He brushed his hands down the front of his overcoat, narrowed eyes peering into the darkness where he couldn’t see, but still heard them approach. “Were I not concerned with the impending consequences, I would congratulate you on the manner in which you failed. I suppose if you were going to waste our one chance at victory, then might as well do it with style. That was quite the lightshow. I think there were a few people in Mantle that didn’t go blind just now.”

“That wasn’t us,” Emerald said, an edge creeping into her voice. She took another step toward their escape, desperately trying to ignore the stab of agitation at the seconds ticking by. “We need to get onboard and leave. Cinder is—”

“Ah, yes. Our fledgling Maiden. I did wonder how she fared.” He had the audacity to smirk. Were she not making the effort to fight off exhaustion, Emerald might have considered the risk worth striking him. Agitation and fear were quickly fraying what little patience she had left, and if Mercury’s clenched fist was any indicator, consequences be damned was going to become a battle cry very soon. “Our lady invested quite the time and resources into her training. It would be a shame to learn that it had all been for naught.”

“Then see for yourself,” Mercury spat. At last he stepped forward and pulled Emerald with him into full view, carrying with them the third member of their party.

The emotion slid from Watts’ face.

“Bring her onboard and set her down, now,” he ordered.

“What did you think we were trying to tell you?” Mercury’s barbed remark was predictably ignored, not that Emerald really cared. Watts had already disappeared to the front of the ship by the time they’d hastened Cinder’s limp form onto one of the benches by the wall.

For the first time since they’d hauled Cinder from the wreckage, Emerald was able to get a clear, unobstructed look at the extent of her injuries. It occurred to her, somewhere, in the region of her brain not preoccupied with gaping like a fish, that a lifetime spent in poverty had given her a pretty great front row seat to the unflinching horrors of the world. What people looked like as they starved to death, what people smelled like as untreated wounds turned gangrene from medical neglect. What people sounded like as they died in anonymity, begging for help from passersby that would avert their gaze and double their pace. The familiarity had taken on a role reversal in recent months, courtesy of Cinder’s benefactors, and Emerald could now say that she’d perpetrated quite a few of those horrors herself, with the odd homicide or two thrown in for good measure.

A lifetime of horror had made Emerald assume she was immune to the worst of it by now, only to realize she needed to seriously update her definition of worst.

The arm was the most immediate and visually arresting. Halfway down the appendage, just above where the elbow should have been, hung strips of mangled flesh. Debris and bone fragments sullied the wound, darkening the blood that had begun to trickle around the remains of the limb.

There was a sudden, plummeting sensation in her midriff, accompanied by a bout of nausea Emerald very nearly failed to suppress. Not wanting to vomit on her boss, she decided to focus on Cinder’s face instead.

And immediately regretted it.

A mutilated stump was a lot to take in, but at least it still looked like a limb. Cinder’s face was all but unrecognizable. Skin had been asymmetrically burned away into a topographic map of red-and-white flesh that furrowed here, peaked there, as if it were suspended in the process of melting. Where an eye should have been was a congealed mass of raw flesh and fluid that pooled into the socket. Only the right side of Cinder’s face remained unmarred, comparatively speaking. Amidst the pallor of the skin her remaining eye shone wetly, the pupil dilated to a pinprick, unfocused on the people crowding above her.

“She looks…bad,” Emerald managed, when her vocal cords finally remembered how to work. As far as descriptors went it was pretty underwhelming, and judging by Mercury’s unimpressed frown, he agreed.

“She looks nearly dead,” Mercury corrected her, rather unnecessarily at that. Okay, it was more accurate than “bad,” but it still made Emerald want to punch him. Common sense quickly banished the impulse from her thoughts. Both of them were low on Aura and running on fumes, and getting into an impromptu fistfight on a moving aircraft probably wasn’t the smartest plan she could’ve come up with. Instead, she focused on trying to drag air through her lungs, wincing at the burning sensation from the smoke she’d inhaled. The gesture did enough to clear her mind though, and bring with it another intrusive thought.

“Why hasn’t she said anything?” Torn between the desire to touch and the instinctive fear of Cinder lashing out at any physical contact, Emerald hovered nearby, arms folded over her chest. “She made noise when we transported her, so she’s definitely conscious. I think.”

Mercury frowned, this time in thought rather than contempt. “It could be some injury we’re not seeing.”

“Perhaps if you moved,” said a voice from behind, “I could find out why.”

In the time between configuring the flight controls and rejoining them, Watts had donned a blue-gray lab coat and retrieved a pinstriped physician’s bag. With an impatient shooing gesture he strode past them and set it down on the benchside table.

“Formalities first. Cinder”—Watts leaned forward—“if you’re alert then I need you to prove it. Can you speak?”

His only answer was a faint, rasping breath.

“I assumed as much.” A critical eye swept lengthwise over his patient as he removed a pair of latex gloves from his bag. “Not that it particularly matters, but in the event you can still hear me, I assume you’re consenting to whatever treatment methods I deem necessary.”

She could've imagined it, but Emerald thought she saw Cinder’s chest rise and fall a little faster.

Mercury, meanwhile, had made himself comfortable leaning against a nearby wall, close enough that he could still watch the proceedings. It was a deceptively casual gesture that to the untrained eye would have given the impression of indifference. It was also a complete lie and fooling no one, so Emerald really didn’t see why he bothered. Couldn’t he at least pretend to look worried?

Then, to her surprise, he spoke up: “You’re not seriously going to perform surgery on her now, are you? Right here? Isn’t that dangerous?”

“More or less dangerous than leaving her to hemorrhage everywhere?” Watts asked dryly. He arched a slender brow at Mercury. “If you’re squeamish then by all means, you’re welcome to leave the room.”

“Leave the—? It’s an airship with one room and a cockpit.”

“Precisely,” Watts drawled. He slipped a surgical mask over his face, but not before Emerald caught a flash of teeth. “So I suggest you get over yourself rather quickly.”

There was a pause as he removed another piece of equipment from his bag, before he added, almost as an afterthought: “And to answer your earlier question, no. I’m merely seeing that she arrives in stable condition. We’ll operate upon our return.”

That got her attention. Emerald exchanged a wary glance with Mercury, before curiosity got the better of her. “You actually never said where we were—”

That was exactly when Cinder decided she’d had enough, and with an incoherent cry slammed the heel of her foot into Watts’ ribs.

The blow caused him to stagger backward, although it lacked any of the usual strength behind it. The most it achieved was creating a meter gap between them. With a swear Watts closed the distance, sidestepping a second kick aimed for his head and pinning her with the weight of his arm in the same fluid motion. The proximity caused Cinder to thrash harder, teeth bared in a snarl.

It took Emerald a stupidly long moment to realize she was still standing there, occupying about the same level of uselessness as Mercury, who hadn’t even vacated his spot by the wall. Uncertainly she took a step forward, wanting to intervene but not sure how, or even who, to help.

It was a decision that became irrelevant a second later, as Watts had finally managed to wrestle what looked like a syringe out of his bag. Before either of them had the chance to react, he’d stretched out her intact arm and jabbed the needle into the skin. An eerie, cold sensation, like the kind Emerald got whenever in the presence of Grimm, settled in her gut as she watched the fire fade from Cinder’s remaining eye. Her face slackened into an emotion that she couldn’t read (not that it was necessarily a good one), and with a final gasp the tension bled from her body.

Cautiously, Watts straightened to his full height. He collected himself with a quiet exhale, and then scowled at the copious blood stains that had soaked their way into his coat.

“I suppose I’ll have to dry clean this,” he announced to no one in particular.

Emerald must have been telegraphing her thoughts pretty hard, so she didn’t exactly jump so much as dramatically fidget when Watts answered her unspoken question: “That was a general anesthetic. It should keep her unconscious for…well, for however long I decide. If nothing else, the silence is an improvement.”

Prick.

Weighing the pros and cons, Emerald crept a little closer, while maintaining an apprehensive amount of space. It wasn’t so much a lack of faith in the drug so much as it was a lot of faith in Cinder. And the reasonably healthy paranoia of nothing short of a rhino tranquilizer keeping her boss down. A paranoia that may or may not have been stoked a little by the sight of Watts touching her arm and fastening a tourniquet to the bicep.

“Why did she do that?” Not that Emerald blamed Cinder in the slightest. “How was she even able to do any of that?”

“You’d think bleeding to death would take a lot out of you," Mercury added. Emerald shot him a glare.

“It does, or hadn’t you noticed her inability to fight?” What would have ordinarily been a derisive remark sounded almost pleasantly neutral—or rather, what passed for “pleasantly neutral” from Watts, if only because his focus was on the windlass he was torqueing against her skin. “That little outburst certainly clarified a few things in retrospect. I suspected this would be the case, if the earlier unresponsiveness and confusion hadn’t been dead giveaways—oh dear, that was rather insensitive, wasn’t it?”

If she concentrated hard enough, Emerald could picture the smirk beneath the surgical mask.

“Clarified what, exactly?” Mercury prompted, after a beat of silence.

Watts clipped the windlass into place and jotted something down on the strap. “Her current condition, which lines up with the other symptoms she’s been exhibiting since you dragged her onto the ship.” He reached down and secured Cinder’s wrist with one hand, pressing two of his fingers against the skin. He lapsed into a momentary silence before releasing the appendage, and inscribing something on a holographic tablet with a stylus. “Reduced temperature to extremities, pale complexion and clamminess, pulse one hundred and thirty beats per minute, heightened anxiety and panic, respiratory rate estimated at thirty breaths per minute.” He tsk’d. “Even without the measurements for systolic and diastolic pressure it’s safe to infer she’s in the early onset of hypervolemic shock. That would place blood loss at…” Watts tapped the end of the stylus to his chin. “About a liter and a half, give or take.”

“What?” Emerald lurched forward. Out of her periphery she saw Mercury’s expression go blank. “Are you serious?”

“Oh, quite.” Watts’ eyes didn’t stray from whatever was so fucking fascinating on his screen. “Do bear in mind that she’s lost an arm. Amputations tend to be rather bloody affairs.”

“Then do something about it!” Mercury snapped. For a moment, Emerald was taken aback by the venom in his voice, only to belatedly remember that she’d convinced him that making sure Cinder didn’t die was in their best interest. Well, that was reassuring. In a messed-up sort of way.

“I am,” Watts said. Rather pointedly he set down the tablet and went about retrieving his supply bag. “The pressure I set in place is constricting the blood vessels. Not that it matters, seeing as her brachial artery was completely severed by whatever put her in this sorry condition. That's some good news, I suppose.”

“Good news?” Emerald made a strangled, indignant sound. “How is a severed artery good news?”

“Because it induces a process called vasospasm.” With an elastic snap Watts removed his gloves. “In any other circumstance that would be a problem, as it would lead to ischemia and tissue death. Here, it’s acting like a clamp and preventing the artery from hosing everything in blood. Factor in what I’ve already done to minimize blood loss, and dear Cinder shouldn’t be losing another liter any time soon.”

What should have been reassuring only dialed up Emerald’s stress to an eleven. It seemed to be a mutual sentiment, as Mercury didn’t resume his original post by the wall, but actually came to stand next to her. If Watts cared about having an audience then he didn’t show it, as he busied himself with swapping out a fresh pair of gloves and fetching a tube he’d left off to the side of the bench.

A thrill of revulsion and discomfort shot through her as Watts dabbed the ointment onto his fingers, and with obscene gentleness, began to massage it into the burns on Cinder’s face. Just the mere act of watching him touch her made Emerald want to do—something. Probably something dramatic and stupid and not at all helpful to their current predicament. In a vain effort to distract herself from the whooshing sensation in her gut, she wrapped her arms around her shoulders.

Thank the gods or pathetically good timing that Mercury decided at that moment to offer a distraction, in the form of what seemed like a fairly obvious question: “Look, I’m not going to pretend to know anything about medicine—”

“And yet you’re still talking,” Watts said.

“—but shouldn’t she be hooked up to IVs and crap? What about an oxygen mask?”

Weird how that was the thing that got Watts to stop, long enough to shoot the pair a withering look. “Does this look like a hospital to you?”

Only Mercury could make a talent of taking all the insolence in the world and packaging it into a single shrug.

“This model of airship is designed for fast transport, not medical intervention and treatment. The extent of what I can do is everything laid out before you.” He’d gone for a second application of the topical cream—Emerald could make out the words silver sulfadiazine on the label, though what that was or what it did she had no idea—and resumed rubbing it into the skin. “Once I have access to my equipment I can begin a blood transfusion, and get her on a saline drip. For now, we make do.”

Which wasn’t exactly great news, but Watts seemed to know what he was talking about, and it wasn’t like they had any other options. Mercifully he withdrew his hand and binned the soiled gloves.

“What about her Aura?” Emerald asked. “I know depleted Auras can take a while to recover, but they’re part of the healing process for us. Shouldn’t hers have started to come back?”

It didn’t sound nearly as reasoned-out as it had in her head, and Emerald might have been grasping at straws by that point. She’d hit a profoundly new degree of desperate if she was relying on conversations with Watts for reassurance

But at least he was humoring her, even if the scornful eye-roll indicated that such questions were beneath him and a clear waste of his time. “That depends on the extent of the injuries, which in her case are rather impressive, if you can describe incompetence as such.”

A hand shot out and grabbed Emerald by the shoulder. Thankfully Watts missed Mercury’s warning headshake. With a long exhale Emerald extricated herself from his grip and stepped back.

“Until her body has healed up a bit on its own, her Aura won’t be regenerating any time soon.” Then, to her surprise, Watts pocketed his scroll and turned to face them, arms braced against the bench. “Of course, I could expedite that process if I knew what caused it.”

Emerald briefly faltered under his scrutiny and shot a helpless glance at Mercury. “We…actually don’t know what happened,” she answered, after a brief internal debate. “She was like that when we found her.”

“Oh?” he drawled. “Do tell.”

“There’s nothing really to tell.” Mercury crossed his arms. “We were the first people to get there. There weren’t any signs of what did that to her. Cinder was delirious and sort of confused, and that dragon-Grimm was turned to stone.”

Watts’ eyes narrowed, and he inclined his head to the side. Emerald didn’t like the sudden interest.

“And her assailant?” he asked. “Had they already fled?”

It took a second for her brain to connect his question with what she’d seen, and even then, Emerald really wasn’t sure what he was looking for, but it certainly wasn’t what they’d found. “There was another student—a girl who goes to Beacon. She was out cold when we got there. No injuries. At least, none we could see.”

“Not like we were taking the time to give her a full-body physical,” Mercury added. Though that hadn’t stopped him from kicking Ruby in the torso as they’d collected their half-conscious employer and scrambled back down the tower.

Whatever Watts thought of that, he didn’t say. There was an assessing quality to his expression as he gave them a precursory once-over. “Were either of you injured during the battle?”

“No,” said Mercury. Emerald shook her head.

“Good. Leave it that way.”

Emerald recognized a dismissal when she heard one, and frankly, she didn’t need to be told twice. That went double for Mercury, who wasted no time in staking out a corner of the ship that was relatively free of clutter, and with a grunt, prizing off Talaria. He’d produced a screwdriver from somewhere on his person (seriously, where was he hiding all these tools?) and began to make adjustments to his protheses. Watts, meanwhile, went about cleaning up his work station, discarding the facial mask and sanitizing any surfaces of blood.

Which left Emerald rather aimless. Down time hadn’t exactly been a thing during her childhood, with every moment spent pickpocketing strangers, stealing food, or looking for shelter. Her upgrade from homeless street rat to criminal accomplice hadn’t changed much there either, as she’d immediately been consulted on everything, from planning heists to acquiring assets. It was only during their undercover operation at Beacon she’d found herself with a sudden surplus of free time, and an overwhelming uncertainty of what to do with it, exactly.

Standing in the middle of the ship, Emerald realized she still hadn’t figured out what to do with it, and it was eating away at her nerves. The offer to help Mercury with maintenance momentarily crossed her mind, only to be discarded just as quickly. He would have thrown her off the airship just for bringing it up. And she’d rather jam scalpels into her eyes before she asked Watts if he needed a hand.

And so, with nothing better to do, Emerald began to pace the length of the ship.

It was on her fifteenth pass when Watts finally looked up from whatever he’d been doing by the bench. “You know,” he said, in a voice that went for impassive and fell a little short, “it’s going to be a rather long flight. You might consider getting some sleep.”

And stop annoying me. He didn’t voice that part. Not that he needed to.

“I’m not tired,” Emerald answered, only to be betrayed by the yawn she wasn’t quick enough to hide.

Watts’ lips twitched in the beginnings of a smirk. “Clearly.”

Just the suggestion of sleep opened the floodgates for all the exhaustion of the past few hours, from wherever it had been conveniently stashed away until now. Brains were funny like that. “No, really, I’m fine. I don’t need to sleep.”

“Would you like a second opinion from a licensed physician?” Watts asked meanly.

Emerald turned to face him, and was struck by the sight of him standing by Cinder, another syringe in hand. Suspicion crowded out any previous fatigue. “It wouldn’t be a bad idea to take turns keeping an eye on her,” she offered, in what she hoped passed for nonchalance. “I could take the first watch.”

Watts studied her for all of three seconds before he let out a low chuckle. (This time, Emerald did jump.) “Do you honestly believe I spent the last hour patching up the little drama queen only to off her the second your eyes were closed?” He sneered. “For that matter, do you think either of you is in fit enough condition to stop me, even if I wanted to?”

Emerald really wished she had some clever insult to fire back with. That he’d seen right through her was making it a little hard to concentrate.

“I’m merely giving her another sedative, so she doesn’t wake up and try to put a hole in the ship.” Watts stroked his chin. “I couldn’t allow it in good conscience if you were deliberately neglecting your rest. Perhaps I could help with that.” He gestured ever-so-minutely with the syringe.

Message received. Emerald warily retreated a step or two back. The other implication in his words finally caught up to her, about patching Cinder up, and she spoke before she could stop herself. “So she’s really going to live?”

“Yes. Unfortunately.”

“But you can fix her?” Emerald gestured to what was left of the arm, now obscured by some sort of tarp.

Watts heaved a sigh that was more theatrics than sincere. “If I wasn’t the most distinguished person in my field, some other hapless soul would be standing here, tending to this mess. Yes, I can fix her.”

A breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding shakily left her.

“Now either find something useful to do or make yourself scarce. You don’t want to leave that choice up to me.”

“Em.”

Emerald turned to see Mercury regarding her with a look that, while not friendly, was a step up from his usual stick-up-the-ass MO. He appeared to be deliberating on something that he hadn’t yet come to regret, but was about to any moment.

Honestly, she really, really didn’t have time for this.

Before Emerald could say as much (along with a couple other mean things) Mercury reached a decision. Very awkwardly, he patted the spot next to him.

Emerald blinked.

Apparently she took too long for his liking, because he snorted and went back to tightening a bolt on one of the legs.

Much as she wanted to stand there and contemplate the universe and whatever planetary alignment was causing him to act like a decent person, sleep beckoned. On unsteady feet she trod over to the wall, and slid down to the floor next to Mercury. For a moment Emerald entertained the hilarious thought of using his shoulder as a pillow, but decided not to push her luck. She’d slept in worse conditions. A little discomfort was doable.

Very doable, in fact. She was out before she had the chance to think about the horrible neck pain that would be awaiting her when she woke up.

#rwby #rwby fics #rwby thought dump #the prices we've paid #emerald sustrai #mercury black #cinder fall #arthur watts #tw: amputation #tw: gore #tw: surgery #tw: burns #filling in the gaps for volumes 3 and 4 #my posts #i speak

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tarajenkins · 5 years ago

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It’s me, of course I have thoughts on the MSQ , be warned there are all the spoilers below the cut

First up is--surprise!--Eulmore!

I was pretty hype hype af when I learned we were going to meet the adviser to Vauthry's father. I was sure we were going to finally get some truth out about what the dickpickle let Emet-Selch do to his wife and unborn son. Instead, we got to hear him elevated to the source of "the good old days" of Eulmore -- even though he was uncaring of casualties in the Echo flashback, even though he was bad enough at his job the citizenry was being stirred up against him, and he wanted to rule not just Eulmore, but the world, in his words.

And then we just got to stand by and /smile and /nod while everyone else laid all the blame on one of Emet-Selch’s biggest victims once again. (seriously, I will never be stop being skeeved how The Men(tm) discussed the wife’s bodily autonomy while she stood right there, looking terrified) It didn’t feel heroic, at all, just as it didn’t feel heroic how politely we dismissed the man who bought Yotsuyu and pressed her into prostitution. The narrative at least afforded Yotsuyu sympathy. I have never seen a character in this game dehumanized quite so hard as Vauthry. Meanwhile, the one who corrupted him is the fandom darling. I’d wonder why that is, but I know, and it’s depressing that is even a thing in this the year 2019.

I still do not get the reasoning behind blaming Vauthry for his actions, the one other excuse I see given for not empathizing with his plight. Claiming he is fully culpable is like blaming Thancred for the massacre at the Waking Sands. I'm not entirely sure why Vauthry should be held to a different standard than literally every other character who has been corrupted by the sin eaters.

The writers were at least very clear to establish he was physically and mentally corrupted by the Lightwarden wedged directly in his chest (on the heart side, interestingly), from the moment we met him. In the Japanese, he even shares Titania’s speech pattern, to indicate he is also “off” like they were. How could he be expected to have true control when no one else in the same situation -- not even the WoL, at the end, without intervention -- did? We're to forgive the Eulmoran nobility for being "influenced" by him, despite their having free will the entire time before we went to fight him -- but we then completely ignore he was influenced corrupted before he was even born? By a Lightwarden, that no one short of the WoL had a chance of resisting--and the WoL would have destroyed worlds, had they lost control. Would the WoL have been responsible for that, would the destruction have been their (evil) informed decision -- or the inability to resist the instincts/will of the Lightwardens?

tl;dr: It would really be nice to let it be known who the actual bad guys were. If not Emet-Selch, because explaining Ascians is complicated, then certainly Vauthry's father, rather than elevate that man to "the good old days" of Eulmore. They used a woman like an animal to turn her infant into a monster. To sweep that under the rug is the last thing I'd expect from a "hero". :s

I had to laugh that no one wanted Vauthry’s responsibilities for running the city to the point Nuzz had to be shoehorned into the role, though. And he and Dulia had some really cute squishy moments. Press f for Nuzz’s pelvis lmao

It has inspired me to do some spicy Chai arts I hope to finish soon. >>

Square is just blatantly pushing the pixel fanservice with Kai-Shirr’s deliveries, though. Getting Eulmore’s agriculture and military up and running again are dire concerns, but we are first going to focus on turning the place into a tourist trap with....an adult nightclub. Eulmore seems to be the only place in the First with airships, useful for many things, and therefore highly lucrative, but we’re....going to help with the nightclub. Alphinaud is going to faint dead away, get those Ondo pearls ready for clutching!

I loved the new dungeon and Beq Lugg, although they killed me a lot, and I am really glad the Afflicted have a chance at recovery. I am also really jazzed the canon theories for helping them out turned out to be almost identical to the theories @onewonderfulbug and I used in our RP with Unna, in her quest to separate her patron from the Lightwarden. I agonized for weeks I was not being clever enough, lmao (except her method is science-based, not “porxie”-based. Alisae ilu and I WANT TO BELIEVE but)

Speaking of Alisae, I really love they are making the Scions so much more personable, though it will cost Alphinaud his life.

An Lad seems to be Titania reborn, and I am so glad at least one of the Lightwarden-corrupted characters survived, in a way. Sad they might not remember their old life, though. :s Speaking of reincarnations, Asahi, gtfo. Datamining confirmed that is his face under the mysterious “dog’s” hood. It has to be someone just borrowing his face, but why was Yotsuyu killed off and this twerp given ANY other sort of screen time is beyond me. I am NOT a Zenos fan, lmao. I love his nose but I hate his complete lack of depth. Maybe it will get better, but not counting on it. what the fuck was even that proto-Ultima thing, jfc how horrifying. Also as a non-Dragoon and a scrub ffffffuck your animation locks Estinien. >:C I unlocked the raid but I am full of fear. Amazing music though! ALSO FORGIVEN CRUELTY MOUNT, UNNA GONNA SIT HER BUTT ON IT SOON AS SHE GETS HER HANDS ON NUTSY’S SACKS I am so sorry for making you read that with your eyes She went to NG+ immediately, to forever wallow in the time things hurt slightly less. :(

#FFXIV #5.1 spoilers #Shadowbringers #Vauthry

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janiedean · 5 years ago

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I was just wondering what do you think about posts that excuse Cersei's behaviour because she's mentally ill, or that if you critique its because your ableist and hate mentally ill people? Or some variation/combination of the two? Like it just bugs me in general when people automatically excuse and even justify horrible, violent and abusive behaviour just because someone's mentally ill, particularly as someone whose been on the receiving end of that behaviour from mentally ill people.

... I think I’ve made my opinion clear, but very briefly and hoping that I don’t unleash the kraken:

c.’s issues could have been solved if someone had sent her to a child psychologist before the age of then in modern au. period. because someone who grows up not having a shred of regret over having thrown a supposed friend in a well when they were twelve over a menial thing either should have had a completely different upbringing or should have gotten therapy. which doesn’t exist in westeros, but anyway, when discussing c’s issues that’s the crux of the matter;

c’s issues also hurt other people and I’m not talking about j., I’m talking about everyone around her or mostly, and the point is that the moment someone’s issues also mean hurting others... your freedom ends where others’s starts. assuming that her MH issues mean that she’s justified in behaving the way she does means that having MH issues is a free out of jail card for hurting others, which... it’s not;

spoilers: all three lannister siblings have mental health issues. same as like, 90% of the characters in these books. I’m 99% sure that the only two POV characters who doesn’t have issues that would require immediate therapy are davos (and he’s lost four kids, he has his problems) and asha, probably, and asha is just... very functional but it’s a miracle she came out like that considering her background. everyone else has issues over issues to different degrees, so... at this point disliking anyone in these books with this reasoning would mean hating mentally illy people while at the same time 85% of the characters you like most likely also have mental health issues and I’m talking just that, because I mean... if someone likes bran and not doran or viceversa I’m not going to assume that they’re ableist since both characters are disabled and both can’t walk, but most likely it’s just a personality preference, so saying that if you don’t like c. it’s because you hate mentally ill people or are ableist to me is ridiculous because like... I don’t like c. and my top five has three pov characters who have obviously mental health issues up the wazoo and one who most likely had plenty (and two out of those five also have become physically disabled as well during the series), I have gone to therapy for a damned long time myself and I hate mentally ill people now just because I don’t like a character who has MH issues? sorry but that’s like... ridiculous. you’re allowed to not like some characters because their personality is not your thing regardless of the issues they have;

also: again, c.’s issues hurt other people. those other people have no obligation to stick by if they feel like it’s detrimental to their health, same as no one has an obligation to stick by someone who is detrimental to their MH or well-being and also has no intention of changing/is aware of that. like, I can get behind wanting to support someone you love whose behavior hurts you who has realized it and is getting help/is actively trying to get better, but if that person doesn’t care or isn’t aware then no one has an obligation to stick by if it hurts them, so assuming that people who don’t like c. or whoever else or that characters in the books should stick by c. because of her issues if it hurts them is imvho not a thing people should even bring up because it implies that people have an obligation to excuse actions that are hurtful when the person who commits them has no interest in getting better, so... nah;

also there’s critique and critique and disliking a disabled character doesn’t automatically make you ableist same as disliking a woman doesn’t make you a misogynist, but like, going outside cersei: people can dislike tyrion just because they don’t gaf about him or because they don’t like the character or because they don’t find his personality that charming, but the moment the criticism turns into calling him a monster or joking about his height or basically sounding like tywin when he talks about tyrion then it’s definitely ableism and to be quite honest when it comes to tumblr there’s a lot more ableist critique thrown at tyrion than at cersei, because the ten of us who dislike her openly do it because she’s terrible while recognizing that she has issues which explain why she’s like that but don’t justify what she does at pretty much almost any point ever, the army of people who meta about tyrion as if he’s these books’s ultimate villain when 90% it’s because he could be in the way of their ship or say that he has male privilege over c. who therefore couldn’t have abused him (YES I had to read that with mine own eyes) and the likes most likely should check their priorities because that’s not hating him bc he’s a character you don’t like, that reeks of ableism 101 and of having skimmed his chapters (also tyrion has MH issues up the wazoo too but I don’t see people on here mentioning it). same way, one thing is disliking cat because she’s not your type of character, another is the fact that this entire fandom seems to have decided that blaming catelyn for every horrid thing that happened in these books that would not have happened had she just stayed home with the kids which imvho shows exactly the level of not-so-hidden misogyny rampant around here/directed at her specifically. but I don’t think that everyone who hates cat is misogynist or does it because of misogyny, I just think that a lot of fandom bias against her is... very misogynistic;

to sum up the above thing, considering that c. is also straight up written as a negative character and grrm has said time and time again that it’s her point in the narrative, assuming that someone would dislike her just because she’s MH is pretty much fried air as we say here because given what she’s pulled up until now, I think that she has enough of a CV that people have more than enough reasons to dislike her without bringing her mental health into account. because her issues might explain why she’s like that, but they don’t justify for shit anything she does, and if that’s valid for knowing why theon was the way he was in wf but doesn’t justify him killing the miller’s kids, knowing why jaime pushed bran but doesn’t justify it, knowing why sandor doesn’t disobey ethically horrid orders but doesn’t mean he hasn’t done pretty fucked up shit etc., then it’s also valid for c. and I really would like for characters to be judged evenly, thanks.

also: everyone has their limits when it comes to understanding/explaining where a person committing wrong actions comes from. if people can relate to c. and/or see themselves in her issues and have compassion for her, that’s their prerogative and I won’t go bitch at them for it same as I appreciate if people don’t bitch at me for having compassion for theon or sandor or jaime or whoever else. but at the same time assuming that everyone has your standards is ridiculous. for me c. was irredeemable after she basically went and laughed about the red wedding/thought she was so much better than cat because cat went insane after seeing robb die because to me people finding the red wedding funny or hilarious or well-deserved is the ultimate thing that will make me stop caring about them. if for someone jaime having pushed bran out of the window is irredeemable as long as they don’t come to me complaining about why I don’t think it is, it’s their prerogative.

but assuming that all of us need to find c. redeemable or understandable or relatable because people who like her do is ridiculous because you can’t expect anyone to relate to your favorites just because you do, and calling out the social justice card is ridiculous because fictional preferences are what they are and you can’t force yourself to like someone you despise just because they belong to X category - I wouldn’t tell people they have to like jaime because he has ptsd nor I’d expect them to be automatically ableist if they don’t gaf about jaime either way and don’t make jokes about him losing his guts with his hand or about how he’s the stupidest lannister, I’d expect people wouldn’t tell me I have to like c. because she has MH issues or whatnot. because there’s plenty of reasons to dislike c. and none of them have to do with her MH and most of her have to do with her abusive behavior.

also, last thing: the one time I actually met someone who was a self-proclaimed ‘I empathize with cersei on a personal level’ person, after three days in which they were an asshole to everyone in the group we were, the moment I called her out on it after she had been even more of an asshole when someone else tried to discuss it reasonably, I got backhanded in the face twice for it. now, I handled it and tbqh I didn’t mind it half as much as I could have because I didn’t gaf about this person and barely knew them. I also know that this person had issues (and later went to therapy so good for them), but as much as I could sympathize with her issues, forgive me if I don’t really think I want to see again someone who barely knew me and saw fit to hit me in the face twice. now, am I ableist for that? I really don’t think so. it’s the exact same principle. someone else might have had another reaction to it, but I’m not obliged to give them a second chance since they hurt me first and no one would say I’m ableist for it. it’s the exact same argument just brought to fictional level. one thing is disliking a character because of their issues only (ie theon and the castration jokes), another is disliking them because you think they’re boring and/or they’re not your kind of character.

and people need to realize that their favorite character can’t be everyone’s favorite character statistically. like. none of our faves are automatically everyone’s faves and that’s fine because that’s how the world works. *shrug*

#1 #2 #3 #4 #5 #mental health cw #anti-cersei #anti-cersei lannister #janie rants #*shrug*#Anonymous #ask post

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cheryls-blossomed · 5 years ago

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do you think nora westallen is a tragic character?

Given the fact that her story ends with her sacrificing herself AND the date of Crisis on Infinite Earths moving up by five years, when all she wanted to do was save her father, Nora definitely is a tragic character. The problem with Nora’s story arc is that the narrative doesn’t properly develop her and doesn’t really do her character justice, so the sadness I felt when watching her sacrifice was more from the perspective that Barry and Iris lost their beloved daughter rather than from the perspective that this character I adore, in her own right, died. Which is honestly really unfortunate, because I do really like Nora, but I like her in spite of how much she was short-changed in terms of strong development.

Nora has the backstory that presupposes tragedy. She never got to know her father, because he disappeared when she was very young, and she hasn’t been able to healthily deal with the devastation and anger she has felt her entire life, so instead of compartmentalizing, which honestly she can’t fairly be expected to do, given how much loss she has faced, she projects a lot of that hurt onto her mother, to the point where her anger is such that her memories of Iris in are incredibly warped. She also never knew she had superspeed, because of the power-dampening chip placed in her when she was a child. She goes back in time to meet the father whom she idolizes, only to realize that he is not just a distant hero, but also a living, breathing human being with emotions and flaws and hopes and dreams, and this forces her to face the fact that one person whom she has been angry at is, in fact, him.

The problem is that none of this backstory is fleshed out. There are two episodes where we become more acquainted with her life before her time-traveling escapades. The first is 5x12, “Memorabilia,” where her parents are granted access to a portion of her memories. What Barry and Iris witness, however, is a false memory of a cold, distant Iris and an infuriated Nora. This is where Nora’s story becomes especially difficult to empathize with, and it’s not just because she is so angry to the point that her memories of her mother are false, but also because she was so willing to forgive Eobard Thawne two episodes back, while her mother, by Nora’s own admission in 5x07, has had to bear the brunt of Nora’s anger for decades. And she’s still bearing the brunt of it, because Iris, who is trying to understand the person that she becomes in Nora’s future, is only further traumatized by what she witnesses in Nora’s mind. But it’s a false memory that is eventually shattered, and the real memory clearly also exists in Nora’s head, somewhere beneath all the false memories, because Barry and Iris witness Iris, as we’ve always known her to be, softly and sweetly comfort her daughter and tell her that both of her parents love her so much. The problem is not necessarily Nora’s complicated feelings, but rather how jarringly problematic the writing is. Nora can forgive Eobard Thawne after two brief, out-of-context conversations, one with her mom and one with her dad, about forgiveness, but she has literal warped memories of her mother that are the result of years of misplaced anger. And this threadline only exists to traumatize Iris in the present, rather than to actually flesh out Nora and her tragedy.

I do think 5x18 does a far better job of constructing Nora’s tragic story from her perspective, particularly after she loses Lia. It makes sense why she turned to Thawne, but it still doesn’t narratively justify the quickness with which she forgave him, when Nora has never been characterized as someone who is particularly forgiving, because of how devastated she has been for the entirety of her life. Even the power-dampening chip isn’t given proper narrative weight, because it was never meant to have any real or meaningful impact on the story outside of creating tension and drama in the present and ensuring that Nora was easy to manipulate in the future. It therefore also existed to traumatize Iris in the present, especially when you consider the fact that that version of Future Iris is now completely erased, but the pain Iris feels in the present is still very raw and very real, when she didn’t even do anything. So, while Nora’s hurt is completely understandable, this arc is not fleshed out in the future, where it ought to be fleshed out. Future Iris is not given a chance to explain why she did this, even though the reasons are obvious (meta-human serial killer Cicada II is still out on the loose, and Barry disappeared and is presumed dead), and if she had had the chance to explain her reasons this would have further fleshed out Nora’s story. Rather, 5x18 is mainly focused on explaining how the alliance between Nora and Eobard came to be, because at the end of the day, that was Nora’s purpose, which is kind of sad to me. She deserved to be a character with a fully fleshed out arc, in her own right.

Tragedy needs to be consistent. Nora was treated as a plot-device to magnify and further personalize the enmity between Barry and Eobard, so her tragic story failed both in consistency and in characterizing Nora fully.

But that doesn’t mean that Nora isn’t a tragic character. She is definitely a tragic character, and her choosing to die over becoming a villain highlights this fact. It’s also a moment of commendable growth for her, because she had otherwise been rash and impulsive for the vast majority of the season. But that’s another issue: she’s only allowed to demonstrate growth in 5x21 and 5x22, the final two episodes of the season, when she should have been portrayed as having gradual growth for the entirety of the season. Suffice to say that Nora deserved far better writing and that her tragic story needed to be fleshed out properly, but that she still is a tragic character. And I do hope that one day Jessica Parker Kennedy can cameo as Dawn, and that Dawn has a relatively happy and fulfilled life.

#the flash #nora west allen #replies #Anonymous #my meta

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stedes-black-bonnet · 6 years ago

Text

My Baby Does Me: Chapter 6

POV: John Deacon x reader

Notes: n/a

Warnings: Orgy? JK

Abstract: Everyone takes a rest together; confessions are made; Roger returns.

Deacy was in a compromising position. At least he wasn’t alone, which made it all the more scandalous. This was, he thought, the only time in recent history he had been party to this kind of situation. The second Freddie saw them, he knew, the first thing out of his mouth would be something about “Not being invited to the orgy, darlings.” He grinned at the notion. Freddie always knew how to break the tension running through his life. Their friendship was irreplaceable.

Deacy had to hand it to Lydia, though; this was an inventive hiding place. It had the sand of one of his favorite stories, “The Purloined Letter” by Edgar Allan Poe.

It is the story of a detective, who makes a bet about being able to find a piece of evidence the rest of the police force have been unable to locate. The evidence, a letter, should have been easy enough to find, but the police only thought of places they themselves would have hidden the elusive letter, instead of trying to think like the person who had hidden it; it was a small detail, but an important one; a good detective becomes his prey. And therein lies the rub; our detective was able to empathize, put himself in the shoes of the perpetrator, and therefore he was able to locate the letter. The perpetrator ended up hiding the letter out in the open, on a shelf with other papers, where anyone could have found it. You see, Deacy thought, often the best places to hide were in plain sight.

This was something Poe understood, and Lydia certainly was clever enough to use it as her main tactic here. Deacy keenly felt this idea. He was famous, world-known, a household name. There was nothing more lonely in the world than being known, he thought. As far as hiding in public went, he was a professional. Hiding in public had become almost a game for him. He’d challenge himself by seeing how long he could go being unrecognized in the open air of a restaurant, a park, the theatre. It was entertaining, you see, because he desperately wanted to blend in, while also getting some kind of recognition for his chameleon-esque ability. He knew it was contradictory, but this kind of singular game carried with it a personal thrill unlike any other. Well, almost unlike any other.

He wondered where you were, then. Laying there, his thoughts drifted quite naturally to you, as if he had already spent years building you up in his mind. The smell of your hair, some flower? Bluebells, he questioned? Intoxicating either way. The scent of your skin, something sweet. Vanilla? No--sweeter. Sugar cookies, he pondered? He wasn’t sure if that was flattering or not, but it absolutely deepened his cravings for you. You were every dessert he wanted to taste from now on. His desire was unquestionable in his mind. A great reckoning had occurred. Kissing you had been like the sensation of finding a long lost treasured object, like steam from a doused fire, he was a dark theatre and you were the spotlight; he saw clearly now what he wanted. It had been no time at all, but he knew he had to have the opportunity to get to know you better. He had to see if you felt the same, if you wanted to see if something was here between you two beyond that cupboard. That cupboard, oh, that cupboard. He couldn’t stop mulling over it. He didn’t want to stop himself from reliving it over and over again.

Deacy hadn’t felt like this about anyone in a long time. He had had successful relationships, or what he thought had been successful. They always ended in tears and someone leaving for the better. He wondered if anyone would ever stay, if perhaps he was unlovable, too damaged to adore. Too distant to be loving. Too famous to be known. He shifted his arm slightly.

“Oof,” Brian said next to him. “Watch that elbow.”

“Sorry, Bri; my arm is asleep.” Deacy pulled his arm from under Brian’s back, and turned. He was between Brian and Jim.

“Deacy,” Jim said, next to him, “I had no idea you were so well...proportioned.” They were facing each other, and one of Jim’s legs was pressed, accidentally of course, up against Deacy’s crotch.

“You’ve never seen Deacy naked before, have you?” Brain asked Jim with a waggled of his eyebrows. “Well, nothing so spectacular as our very own John Richard Deacon has been created in all of the cosmos.”

“Well, no, I haven’t had the privilege of seeing him in his natural splendor; I’ve never been interested in or privy to the dressing room amalgamations of you straight men. Keep your rituals, honey. And I’ll keep mine. Though, if I had known what you were...packing, I might have made an exception to my rule. I’m terribly disappointed in Freddie for never mentioning it.” He was mock-inconsolable.

“I’m not,” Deacy said with a robust chortle.

“Boys!” Lydia hissed, next to Brian, “You do know the purpose of the game is to not be found? With all this noise, they’ll find us for sure.”

“They haven’t yet.” Brian observed, trying shield Lydia from his halo of hair. “Sorry,” he whispered, “I can’t help it.” He motioned to his hair as best he could without invading her personal space. Though, it was particularly difficult not to seek an invitation into her personal space. She was exceptionally easy on the eyes.

Lydia didn’t seem to mind, though. His hair was god-like, like her own. She, perhaps, unsurprisingly had taken to these men like a duck to water. Being starstruck was for other people. She, more or less, took to all men in such a fashion; she could win anyone over with her dazzling charm, and all men tended to take to her. She couldn’t wait to introduce you to John Deacon. He seemed preoccupied by something, or perhaps he wasn’t as naturally loquacious as Brian and Jim were. When she thought of herself in bed with three men, she never imagined it would be these men, under these circumstances. But, here she was.

“Jim?”

“Yes, Lydia?”

“Whose bed is this?” Lydia asked.

“Mine and Freddie’s, actually.”

“It’s fantastic. Freddie has such good taste.”

“I’d hope so; he did pick me.” Jim preened.

“And me,” added Brian.

“Really? He picked me, too.” Deacy simpered.

“Blessed, all of us, really.” Brian beamed.

“Entirely,” Deacy sorted.

You heard muffled laughter coming from the room Freddie had led you to. You weren’t in the least bit surprised to find Lydia’s hiding place had been a bed. Obvious for some, but if done right, obstructive and misleading. Manipulative, in the best way. You opened the door quickly, yet silently. At first glance, there in the dark, you saw a larger than necessary bed. The coverings looked lush but wrong somehow. Like the bed hadn’t be made, or was made up in such a way as to “seem” natural. It was just a little too designed, a little too fussed-over. This had been Lydia’s doing, no doubt, in an attempt to make the bed look made and empty when it was, in fact, party to four people, soon to be six.

“I believe Lydia is on that side.” Freddie said, “And that lump looks suspiciously like my husband. Time to face the music, angel.” He winked at you, and you both entered the room, and made for your respective sides of the bed.

“Lydia!?” You yanked the blanket from over the lot of them.

“Sardines!” They all whispered at you and Freddie.

Your heart leaped into your throat when you saw Deacy in the bed. You didn’t think you’d be in a position to be in a bed with him already, this soon into whatever it was the two of you were. He smiled up at you, looking deeply in your eyes as if he could see the future in them. Maybe he could. You had eyes only for him, and paused, unable to move.

The blanket was useless in your hands. You let it go. It fell back over the bed and your friends. Lydia could see your dilemma and your distraction. She knew you better than anyone. Something was up, she thought. But what?

“Get your arse in this bed, now!” Lydia said to you. “We’ve got to hide from Roger; can’t make it easy for him.”

“You? Easy? Never!” You snickered at your best friend.

“Ha ha ha, very funny.”

You maneuvered into the bed as best you could. It was a tight fit, and you were happy you were on the edge of the bed. You weren’t sure you’d be able to handle being pressed up so closely to Deacy again in such a short amount of time. You heart couldn’t take the overwhelming ecstasy of his touch, his eyes, his gaze, his breath.

Deacy was frustrated in himself for not offering to take the edge of the bed just so he could be close to you again. His yearning was paramount in his mind. The memory of your scent wasn’t enough; he needed another dose.

“Jim, can you forgive me?” Freddie pleaded extravagantly snuggling up to Jim.

“Don’t you dare do it, Jim.” Lydia said with a stern laugh.

“Oh, shush you,” Freddie said with a wink in his voice and a smile in his heart. “Really, darling, I couldn’t help myself. It was Rog.”

“I seriously doubt it was Rog, my love.”

“You know how he likes beating things, and that temper of his. He just snapped!”

“Snapped?” Jim asked skeptically, “Let’s throw this one to Lydia, shall we? What news do we have today from the lies and misinformation department, Lydia?”

“Well, Jim, tonight the forecast is surging with one falsehood after another. We’ll have a storm-front of deception coming in next. Back to you, Jim.”

Everyone was laughing. It was the laughter of families sharing a meal, of friends reuniting after a spell a part. It felt like home.

“The truth?” Freddie adjusted the covers over everyone like a magician.

“The truth,” Jim nodded.

“It was me,” Freddie admitted.

“Yes, I know.” Jim said.

“Are you terribly mad at me?”

Jim sighed. This kind of thing was just routine when you lived with and loved Freddie Mercury. He just couldn’t help himself. It was one of things Jim loved most about Freddie. Everything was always at level 10, even a whisper was dramatic; everything mattered so deeply to him. His emotions and desires were operatic. Every word, every event took a great toll on his heart. He could write a symphony to a cold, and ode to tying your shoes. Every moment was inspiration to him, and being around someone who viewed life like that was transcendent. And being loved by him, well, it was beyond all comparisons, beyond all metaphors. Loving Freddie Mercury was like blinking to Jim; he did it without even thinking about it. It was like falling asleep; you never remembered falling asleep, the act of falling asleep is a mystery, but you always remembered waking up. Loving Freddie was like that, he didn’t remember when it happened, but one day he woke up and found he was irrevocably in love with him.

Jim never stayed mad at Freddie for long. Freddie had such a way with people and situations, he was impossible to abhor, impossible to blame. And as for staying mad at him, well he just didn’t have it in him. Jim turned to face Freddie with some difficulty; he heard a soft groan from Deacy.

“No, Freddie; I’m not mad.”

“I made sure none of your plants were harmed.” Freddie put a hand to Jim’s face, tracing his mustache.

Freddie had said the magic words, and he knew it. Jim smirked at his husband, and kissed him briefly, but deeply.

“Has everyone made up?” Brian asked the room at large.

“No, Bri. I’m still angry at your for not noticing my new cardigan last week.” Deacy said matter-of-factually.

“Deacy, can you ever forgive me? I’ll serve you my heart on a platter, if it’ll fix this rift between us.” Brian May put his hand on his chest, and then held his hand up in the air. It was a dignified gesture.

Deacy reached out in good time, and took Brian’s hand in his.

“Your hands are freezing, Deacy!” Brian bellowed.

“Put them in your hair, that’ll warm them right up.” Deacy reasoned.

“I have another place you could put them.” You said.

The entire room went dead silent.

You sat up, clasping a hand over your mouth. You couldn’t believe it; it had just come out of your mouth without thinking. You couldn’t take it back. You weren’t sure if you wanted to.

You felt Lydia freeze next to you in awe.

Jim and Freddie, nose to nose, grinned at each other like proud parents.

Roger was unsure what he had just walked in on, but felt compelled to see it through. He took a sip of his cocktail, standing silently and unnoticed in the doorway.

Brain felt Deacy’s grip on his hand tighten like a vise, and he knew something momentous, something earth-shattering had transpired between the two of you tonight.

Deacy felt the rhythm of his heart sputter before increasing twofold. He was in double time now. He blushed a deeper shade vermilion than the blankets of the bed. At least no one could see him blush in here. He let go of Brian’s hand.

Deacy sat up in bed, looking your way.

In the darkness, eyes well adjusted to the room, you stared at each other. Deacy saw the look of panic mingled with pride on your face, and wondered how best to put you at ease. Absentmindedly, he traced his lips with his fingers thinking deeply. Then, he held a hand out to you. His long, skilled fingers reaching out as a helping hand. He tilted his head, a silent question. Don’t be afraid; join me? It said.

You took your hand from your mouth, and gingerly placed it in Deacy’s hand.

“SCANDALOUS!” Rog howled from the doorway.

Tag List: @phantom-fangirl-stuff @triggeredpossum @obsessedwithrogertaylor @groupiie-love @richiethotzierz @partydulce @sophierobisonartfoundationblr @psychostarkid @teathymewithben

#john deacon x reader #John Deacon #freddie mercury #jim hutton #brain may #roger taylor #rami malek #ben hardy #gwilym lee #joe mazzello #Queen #bohemian rhapsody #queen x reader

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savegraduation · 5 years ago

Text

“But being a minor is only temporary!”

On the old Fourth Turning forum one day, a teacher who called herself TeacherOfMillies ("Millie" being a diminutive of "Millennial" popular on the board) started a thread in which she wrote about telling her son that he needs to "respect adults". Adina, a Millennial on the board, accused her of ageism. TeacherofMillies' response was:

Adina: Recognizing that minors have different capacities from adults and therefore do not deserve the same rights cannot be put in the same category as racism or sexism. A minority group is a group (such as sex, race or religion) whose membership is normally permanent. People who are born black stay black for life. Adolescence is not permanent. There is no discrimination here.

Then there was the old Pagan message board at AOL, where Brocéliande, a Joneser Wiccan with a 12-year-old son, told me that teens were not a minority group, because a minority group was by definition permanent, with the implied reasoning that discrimination on the basis of age was therefore acceptable.

It happens again and again when youth rights is brought up. Someone will bring up the -isms: sexism, racism, classism, ableism, and by extension, ageism. Someone will then bring up Murray and Herrnstein's The Bell Curve or other ostensibly scientific claims that some demographic groups are statistically more likely than others to be wise or have a higher IQ. Someone might say, "Statistics show that Asians are, on the average, worse drivers", or "Simon Baron-Cohen showed that men are better than women at systemizing tasks and women are better than men at empathizing tasks", or even, turning the tables, "Statistically, women are less likely than men to start wars; does this mean we should deny all men the right to positions of world leaders, even the gentler men, so the world will be safe from the risk of blowing ourselves up?" And then she or he will ask, "If it's not right to deny freedoms to deserving ethnic minorities, or deserving women, or deserving men, just because a large number of other people in their demographic aren't qualified -- it would be discrimination -- why is it OK to deny a mature 17-year-old the right to vote or drink just because some other people her/his age are immature?" And then some defender of the anti-YR position will fumble to defend it by arguing, "Being a minor is only temporary, so age is different from race, gender, or religion!"

Before I go any further into rebutting this argument, let's play this on an honest ground with our terms here. I prefer the term "demographic group" to "minority group". A group does not have to be a minority group to be discriminated against. Males are not a minority group, and the draft discriminates against males. Blacks are not a minority group in South Africa, where only 10% of the population is White, and apartheid discriminated against the Black majority. But males and Black South Africans are demographic groups, and prejudicial treatment against them is discrimination. Discrimination simply means treating someone wrongly differently because of her or his demographic group. And no one can argue with the fact that teens are a demographic group (as are seniors, for what it's worth!) When you say "minority group", you're really saying "demographic group that has traditionally been at a social disadvantage in the society/civilization in question" (in this case, the United States, or the West). So it's not "minority group", but "demographic group" that's the relevant concept here.

The first problem with this argument is that the impermanence of being a minor ("An American who was born Black could never wake up one day and be White all of a sudden!"), while making this different from other forms of discrimination, is not really relevant to the issue of whether discrimination is justified. One can pull up interesting differences when comparing two things, but just because those differences exist, it does not necessarily follow that said differences are relevant to right and wrong. For example, one might argue that in England, committing murder with a knife is different from committing murder with a gun because knives are legal to own in England, just not to use for murder, whereas guns are outright illegal to so much as possess. While this as a fact in and of itself is true, is this difference in any way germane to whether an Englishman killing someone with a knife is morally acceptable, or whether it should be legal to murder someone with a knife in England? Exactly how does the temporariness of membership in a group make discrimination defensible? I don't think that if that person became White one day and was finally allowed to vote because of it in the pre-1860's world, he or she would forgive and forget all the needless discrimination in the past!

Secondly, being mistreated during one's teen-age years will stay with a person for life. Your world does not become a clean slate again once you reach the legal age to do something; rather, the pain of discrimination from the past carries on.

A butterfly that flaps its wings when you are 13 will still have the ripple effect going when you are 40. For example, if 15-year-old Rachel's parents restrict her from taking the courses that competitive colleges like by refusing to sign her course selection form until it is whittled down to the dumbed-down classes that satisfy their anti-intellectualism, Rachel will have a very hard time getting into the colleges she wants by the time she's applying for colleges her senior year. As an adult, her opportunities will be limited against her will because of the choices her parents made for her against her will as a teen-ager.

In 2016, a 16-year-old boy named Gary Ruot was diagnosed with Leber hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON), an ocular disease that causes rapid degeneration and ultimately leads to blindness. The only hope for Ruot was a treatment called gene therapy, for which GenSight Biologics was running a trial for the treatment of LHON. However, the FDA had only approved the gene therapy LHON trial for patients over 18. By the time Ruot would turn 18, it would be too late, and he would be blind. Ruot's relative, Avery Wilson, posted a petition on Change.org, demanding the FDA lower the age for this trial to 16. Less than three months later, the FDA did the right thing and lowered the age for the trial, and Gary Ruot was saved. But what if the FDA had not reduced the age to 16? By the time Ruot was 18, he would be blind, and it would be too late for the gene therapy to save him. He could turn 21, 25, 30, 50, 75, and 100, and he would still be blind.

And what if your parents take you to get a circumcision before you are old enough to legally say no to an operation? Your foreskin isn't going to magically grow back once you reach the age of medical consent (which, in the U.S. varies depending on your jurisdiction, from 15 in Oregon to 19 in Alabama). Judging by the arguments ageists use against 12-year-old boys being allowed to say no to circumcision, you’d think they were convinced a boy’s foreskin will magically regenerate on his eighteenth birthday! Similarly, we're now hearing news stories about teens who live in states where under18s may not get vaccinated without their parents' permission researching vaccination on the Internet and often driving (or, if under 16, being driven by a friend) into states where minors do not need parental permission to be vaccinated. If some teen's Christian Scientist parents say no to a vaccination, and then s/he is exposed to the bacterium Bordetella pertussis or the rubella virus at 16, and catches pertussis or rubella, the teen will most likely die before her/his eighteenth birthday of a preventable disease -- are you seriously then going to defend this with the "But being a minor is only temporary!" argument?

The emotional enscarment that comes from being hurt by age-discriminatory laws will also last for the rest of one's life. If someone goes through a gulag school where he is subject to waterboarding, electroshock therapy, straitjacketing, and sensory deprivation, he may eventually be out of it as an adult, but by then the damage will be done. He will suffer the trauma for the rest of his life. Survivors of conversion therapy may be past conversion therapy, but by now they're 8.9 times as likely as their peers to consider suicide. Since I was 6, I suffered from a mental disorder called logaesthesia, where I taste words and have the sensations of swallowing them. The words I don't like I have to "purge" out by scraping my nails against my groin and then "vomiting" them up by carrying my nails over my abdomen, chest and throat. All the "socialization" I received in high school, all the being forced to do things, all the fascist comments that my behavior was "inappropriate" or "socially unacceptable", haunt me to this very day. I'm 39 now. Every day I still think back weekly to run-ins with authoritarian teachers that happened during my school years over both logaesthesia and other conflicts that came up. I have flashbacks, I bite myself, I slam my fist against my head, and punch my abdomen as if slicing open a watermelon, I yell. If I had only been given the chance to stop going to school, to live away from my parents, to move to Berkeley, I may have been able to get away from it before too much damage was done.

People who have been arrested under status laws may feel the effects of the arrest for the rest of their lives. Many employers would not hire a 30-year-old if they dug in his records and found he had been arrested for underage drinking at age 19. In California, where Proposition 21 eliminated the automatic sealment of one's juvenile record upon reaching 18, a conviction for breaking a city's curfew law at age 15 could put off potential employers. And the social stigma will attach to the arrested ex-minor from many people who know, firsthand or secondhand, about the arrest.

And what if you die during your teens? Then your adolescence will indeed become permanent. If you die before age 18, you will never have the chance to vote for or against a president. If you abided by the law stating no one is to drink alcohol until his or her twenty-first birthday, then you got drafted and went to war rather than dodging the draft, and got killed in war at the age of 20, you would die without ever having the chance to try alcohol. You think a belated "sorry" is going to make that OK?

The choices adults make for minors may even last beyond their terrene life and carry beyond the grave. For example, a recently deceased 17-year-old may have his organs harvested for donation against his consent. Or imagine that Blebdahism is the one true religion, that God is a Blebdahist and believes anyone who betrays Blebdahism is sentenced to Hell. But one young person who believes in Blebdahism deep down in his heart may have parents who are Sporgalists. In the United States, the parents may, by law, force their child to practice Sporgalism even though it is wrong, which would thereby condemn not only the parents, but also their child, to Hell for refusing to practice the rituals of Blebdahism. Since no one knows God's exact sentiments, one could not promise children that God would understand if they betrayed their religion only because they were forced; it could very well be that God thinks conforming to parental force is no excuse for not following Blebdahism, even for part of one's life, and still refuses to let those youth into Heaven, regardless. Of course, it may very well be that God understands people who betray their religion because of coercion by authority, that several religious paths lead to "Heaven", or even that Heaven does not really exist . . . but what if those aren't the case? Or suppose, arguendo, that God does let people into Heaven who practiced Sporgalism as minors but converted to Blebdahism as adults, but not people who were still practicing Sporgalism when they died. What if the child of Sporgalist parents who wants to practice Blebdahism gets hit by a truck at age 15? She'll never get another chance at practicing Blebdahism, and will be stuck spending an eternity in Hell. And the Blebdahist child of Sporgalist parents will probably be buried, in accordance with her parents' wishes, in a Sporgalist cemetery, where her body will lie forever . . . and ever . . . and ever.

Thirdly, lost time is never found again. Everyone only has a finite time to live -- at least until human life extension technology is invented, and we don't know how soon that will be. If the first 18 years of a 90-year life are spent in chains, that's one whole fifth of your life -- lost forever. Say a girl named Danielle wants to wear dreadlocks starting at the time she begins high school in September of 2016, at the age of 14 years and 6 months, but her school clamps down and forbids her to wear dreadlocks because they are against the dress code. Danielle graduates in June of 2020 at the age of 18 years and 3 months. She is then free to wear dreadlocks, until she dies the day after her eightieth birthday. She got 61 years and 9 months to wear her dreadlocks, but if her high school hadn't disallowed them it would have been 65 years and 6 months of her life. God is not going to magically add 3 years and 9 months to her life, allowing her to live to 83.75, to make up for the years she could have spent dreadlocked but was wrongly denied the right to.

An election only comes once. A person born in 1980 would not get to vote until 1998, and the thousands of decisions voted on in 1996 and 1997 did not have that person's say. He may get to vote on 1998 propositions or in the 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, and 2020 elections, but it is already too late for him to vote in the Clinton-Dole election of 1996, which is lost forever in the annals of history. For any of the bad decisions of voters leading up to the current day, there’s a possibility it could have been avoided being passed had more young people, those who were 16 and 17, been allowed to vote.

Fourthly, ethnicity is the platonic prototype of a demographic variable and racism of discrimination, and every other demographic variable about humans has something about it that makes it different from race and unique from other demographic variables.

Take gender and sexism, for instance. Gender is a universally recognized trait; the gender someone is assigned at birth would be the same across the world in more than 99% of cases. Someone's race may be labeled as Mulatto or Mestizo or Black in Cuba but Hispanic in the United States. In one society, having sex with another person of your gender automatically makes you gay, whereas in another society, it is viewed as natural to experiment even if you are straight, and a third society may have no concept of "sexual orientation” whatsoever. The legal ages for things differ from country to country. Someone with epilepsy is viewed as disabled in modern countries but as having special, supernatural powers in the Hmong culture, and what is seen as ADD in the context on one culture is "normal" in a traditional nomadic culture. But everywhere around the world, someone with a penis and testicles is assigned male at birth and someone with a vagina and ovaries is assigned female at birth. (Defining someone by their karyotype -- XX vs. XY vs. various trisomies and polysomies like Klinefelter's syndrome -- is a twentieth and twenty-first century development, and even then, fewer than 1% of births are ambiguous or "intersex" when external genitalia, gonads, and chromosomes are taken into account.) Some people turn out trans, and there are some special gender categories, such as the berdaches/Two-spirit people in Native American cultures or the Thai kathoey, or ladyboys, in some cultures, but even then the person's biological sex is still acknowledged. Even in the relatively trans-friendly United States, the Selective Service system still has laws on the books requiring transfemales to register but denying transmales registry, because gender assigned at birth is so hardwired into the law. In 2002, in the case of In re Estate of Gardiner, the Kansas Supreme Court ruled that a man and a transwoman could not marry, because the transwoman was male before the law and Kansas did not recognize same-sex marriages at the time.

Religion and religious discrimination are unique because unlike other demographic variables, people choose their religion. No one chooses to be male, or Chinese, or gay, or 23 years old, or disabled (unless they deliberately stab their eyes out or jump off a height to make themselves paraplegic). But people have control over what religion they practice, and this makes religion different.

Sexual orientation and homophobia are different because sexual orientation revolves around certain behaviors, and behaviors that certain factions and individuals believe are immoral at that. No one gets arrested for the mere condition of being African-American, or female, or teen-age. No one believes that blind people will burn in Hell. But many nations still have sodomy laws on the books making gay sex illegal (this included several U.S. states as late as 2003). Many churches teach that LGBT people will burn in Hell after they die. There are no controversial behaviors that are defining of Blackness, or defining of womanhood, or defining of adolescence. But sexual orientation is about what someone does just as much as what she or he is.

Disability and ableism are different because a disability can render someone by definition unable to do something. An example would be paraplegics being unable to do work that requires you to walk on feet. Men are generally stronger than women, but there are amazonian women and plenty of weak men. Stating that 20-year-olds are too immature to drink but 21-year-olds are mature enough to drink is a loose generalization. Some psychologists, most notably the White Charles Murray and the Jewish Richard J. Herrnstein, in The Bell Curve, make claims that average IQ of African-Americans is lower than that of Whites, which is in turn lower than the average IQ of Asians. There are disputes as to whether these statistics come from culturally biased IQ tests written by upper-middle-class White males, and many people believe there is no difference in intelligence among ethnic groups at all. Others believe that different ethnic groups and different genders have different tendencies towards strengths and weaknesses, such as Dr. Simon Baron-Cohen's theory of female empathizing and male systemizing. Whether the Bell Curve statistics are legitimate or not, though, no one can deny you find bright people and dim people -- even a few autistic savants with extremely lopsided abilities -- in all racial/ethnic groups. But blind people driving? This form of discrimination based on disability is recognized as "bona fide discrimination", and actually is legal in certain cases in many jurisdictions across the world. On the other hand, forbidding an epileptic to become a lawyer or refusing to let someone with cerebral palsy into your cake shop would most certainly not be bona fide discrimination, and pointing out this way disability is different from other demographic variables would not be an acceptable argument.

Socioeconomic class and classism are different because class is mutable (yes, possibly temporary!) in some societies but not in others. If you live in present-day Nashville or Los Angeles, you can rise to the top echelons just by being a great singer or actor. If you lived in Edwardian England, on the other hand, being a prole pretty much meant you were stuck being a prole, all your lower-class ways and mannerisms hard-wired into your identity. Rising in social class was very difficult.

Every rights movement has its own hurdles to overcome, and people who shout, "But this is different!" cause every rights movement to have to start at square one. A good example is Martin Luther King's niece, Alveda King, who fights against the gay rights movement and argues that homosexuality flies in the face of "family values" and therefore cannot be compared to the Civil Rights movement. Youth rights, like women's rights, LGBT rights, disability rights, and civil rights for ethnic and religious minorities, are human rights, and human rights supporters today don't say that being free from anti-Islamic discrimination isn't a human right because people choose their religion, or that being free from sexism isn't a human right because sex is a biological reality instead of just a social construct.

Finally, the transience of temporary pain or damage has never excused hurting people. As someone on the forum for National Youth Rights Association (NYRA) once wrote about people you argue that discrimination against teens is acceptable because minority is temporary: "Someone should give them a hard punch in the face. After all, it will only hurt for a little while". Damage can be temporary (even though damage caused by ageism is NOT always temporary), such as the 7-year-old who gives his baby sister a bad haircut, knowing it will grow back. But, as Martin Luther King famously stated in 1963 in his Letter from Birmingham Jail, "Justice too long delayed is justice denied". Perhaps no infliction of suffering should be illegal because life itself is only temporary, and therefore all of a person's suffering will one day come to an end?

"But!", you say, "What about the definition? You can't deny that a minority group is a permanent group, like female, or Chinese, or lower-class, or Hindu, and therefore teens are not a minority group!"

Putting aside the "minority group" vs. "demographic group" issue, the problem is this: what you've got here is an ad hoc definition. It's what logicians call the definist fallacy. Let's look at the definition of "minority" (definition 3a) in Merriam Webster's Webster's Unabridged: "A part of a population differing from others in some characteristics and often subjected to differential treatment". No mention of the membership in that group being permanent. Next, Wiktionary defines "minority group" as: "A group that forms only a small part of the population, whether it be for ethnic or other reasons". Still no mention of being permanent. Finally, for something different, let's look at the Collins COBUILD dictionary's definition (definition 2): "A minority is a group of people of the same race, culture, or religion who live in a place where most of the people around them are of a different race, culture, or religion". This excludes age, but this definition is so narrow that it also excludes such undisputed minorities as lesbians, transgender people, and the blind! Does that mean the U.S. government should feel free to round up gay people or people with bipolar disorder, since they're not protected by the definition of "minority group"?

As a matter of fact, some published, professional authors have referred to youth as a minority group. In 1971, Edward Sagarin edited a book titled The Other Minorities, which consisted of essays concerning the minority status of non-ethnic minorities: there are essays on women, gays, teens, the elderly, the disabled, criminals, and even intellectuals as minority groups. From pages 95 to 107 is Edgar Z. Friedenberg's essay "The Image of the Adolescent Minority". In it, Friedenberg writes: "In the most formal sense, then, the adolescent is one of our second-class citizens. But the informal aspects of minority status are also imputed to him. The 'teen-ager', like the Latin or Negro, is seen as joyous, playful, lazy, and irresponsible, with brutality lurking just below the surface and ready to break out into violence. All these groups are seen as childish and excitable, imprudent and improvident, sexually aggressive, and dangerous, but possessed of superb and sustained power to satisfy sexual demands. West Side Story is not much like Romeo and Juliet, but it is a great deal like Porgy and Bess." Friedenberg recognizes how facile stereotypes of teen-agers are about as respectful as the old "minstrel show" stereotype of African-Americans.

"But!", you object, "I'm just saying teens aren't a minority group!" Then if the question of whether teens are a minority group isn’t relevant to whether anti-youth discrimination is acceptable (and it isn't, given all the other problems with the "temporariness" argument), then why are you even bringing it up?

Teens are a (very often) oppressed demographic group. Discrimination against teens is still discrimination. The fact that unless you die before your twenty-first birthday you will not be underage forever does not justify your parents dictating what high school courses you will take, or you being denied the rights to medical consent, or you getting arrested for breaking curfew or underage drinking, or you being denied the vote at 16. So please don't use this argument.

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evartandadam · 6 years ago

Text

I want to write a thing about Sasuke’s development throughout Naruto- and where Kishimoto failed his character. (I have been asked about my opinions on Sasusaku, but before I can remotely get to that, I need to establish what I think of Sasuke as a character by himself. He is a very interesting character, and he deserves his own rant.)

There are two important points in Sasuke’s life, and both of these points establish the main theme Kishi wanted Sasuke’s character to feature.

The first point is when Sasuke leaves to train under Orochimaru, and the second is when he is approached, and changed by Madara/Obito.

Point 1: Taking the Path of an Avenger. (Main Theme)

In Naruto:

Sasuke’s main theme throughout the series is slowly succumbing to the darkness for power.

He leaves his village and friends behind. Does this mean he doesn’t care about them? Of course not. He cares. But the point is that he chooses his revenge over his potentially fulfilling life with his friends. He would have been much happier if he could have just let his revenge go (and he knows this), but he didn’t. This is the point Kishimoto wants to drive home about Sasuke throughout Shippuden. Sasuke chose revenge over love (and forgiveness).

And who can blame Sasuke? His brother, after murdering their entire clan, DARED Sasuke to kill him. Sasuke, as a 7 year old, was faced with a responsibility to take care of family business, something no child should have to wrestle with. But it happened. And growing up, he feels it is his job to kill his brother. He listened to Itachi, was molded by Itachi. A traumatic external force in his life effected him greatly. Killing Itachi is now his DUTY.

The problem is that Sasuke is now only 13, and still developing mentally and emotionally, so he isn’t necessarily going to make the best decision about fulfilling this duty.

He knowingly goes to a terrorist S-rank criminal who wants to use him as a vessel, instead of staying at the village with Kakashi, whose power almost rivals said criminal.

Sasuke doesn’t know really anything about his own village, obviously.

He doesn’t know anything about Kakashi or his abilities. How strong and famous this man really is for being a ruthless killing machine by the age of 13, like Itachi!

Kakashi would have been a great person to learn from. That’s why Kakashi wanted to teach him.

But Sasuke assumes that because Kakashi is a “good guy”, he is weaker than Orochimaru. And this is his mistake.

Because his brother is “evil,” and very powerful, that must mean that evil people are better ninja, right?

Sasuke acts on what he does not know. And he does this all the time!

Ok so he’s 13 and kind of lacks basic foresight and judgement. So he goes to Orochimaru. And we skip forward 2 and 1/2 years.

In Naruto Shippuden:

Sasuke is much stronger.

He has held onto his core beliefs. (he refuses to kill innocent people for personal gain.)

Sasuke at this point is super cool, cause he’s edgy, but not a terrible person. Everyone loves Sasuke at this point. He’s got a cool top that shows off those pecs he’s been working so hard on. And he gives less of a crap than ever before.

He is mysterious, because the author purposefully doesn’t let the audience see his thought process or emotions. But we know enough.

But then what happens? He kills Itachi, as he planned all along. What he doesn’t count on is that Itachi isn’t the evil entity he had pictured in his little kid brain. And someone brings this to his attention. Makes sure he knows.

And this brings us to the second point.

Point 2: Manipulation from External Forces (Extension of Main Theme)

Before we get back to the Naruto timeline, let’s go over what makes Sasuke fall for this external manipulation:

"Sasuke is basically a very pure person who doesn't think about whether what he does is good or bad. He just does what he wants to do, which causes trouble for others" - Masashi Kishimoto

Itachi describes Sasuke this way:

And I love this, because it does describe him perfectly. I think this statement stuck out to many readers.

What Itachi means is that Sasuke:

lacks the ability to look ahead and judge things clearly.

He is easily influenced- gullible, even.

And even though he managed to cling to some moral standard up until Itachi’s death- not killing innocent people- everything else is easily replaced on a whim.

By focusing solely on killing Itachi, Sasuke left himself wide open to attack. Not physical attack. Something even more dangerous: emotional manipulation. He neglected every aspect of himself other than the physical- and the desire for revenge. What I’m saying is that Sasuke is extremely emotionally stunted. And people recognize this, and use this to their advantage. Anyone can come up to him and plead to his cause, and he will fall for it, against any better judgement he may have. If he were a character in a video game, he essentially maxed out his stats in one area, and left every other area under-developed and weak.

His ideals always outweigh his reality.

So, how does this aspect of his character get him in trouble? Well, let’s discuss a very big shift in Sasuke’s character.

Madara’s influence:

Back to the Naruto timeline:

The truth about Itachi totally shakes Sasuke’s world. And “Madara” is totally loving this. He’s going to use this to his advantage.

So. Sasuke feels that he has a new duty. He must now somehow avenge his brother. And this means he should kill the Kage- wait, what?

Oh right. Madara is talking into his ear.

“Itachi literally lived and died for this, so obviously he wouldn’t want what I’m suggesting, but you should totally do the dirty work for me and destroy everything Itachi believed in. That way, you can avenge him. I’m totally like, empathizing with you right now. I’m definitely not just saying this to get you to do what benefits me.”

Ok, so of course, Sasuke blindly listens.

And this is the second part to the main theme that Kishimoto explores with Sasuke’s character. What happens when a person, devoid of anything in the world besides revenge, falls into a false sense of justice? What happens after that quest for vengeance is fulfilled?

And at this point in the show, we see a new Sasuke. This Sasuke is very different from before. Why?

Sasuke is throwing his past moral compass out the window.

He’s going to kill people he doesn’t even know are guilty of anything. (Danzo definitely saw it coming, but Tsunade? What has she done to Sasuke? She is a great Hokage! She has nothing to do with Itachi. Neither does Gaara, or the rest of the current Kage.)

But Sasuke doesn’t care about this! Madara convinced him that they are evil, because of their position.

The Kage are automatically evil, because they represent authority. And it’s important to recognize that Sasuke doesn’t care about past authority or current authority- it is not his authority, so therefore, it is bad. It needs to be purged.

Sasuke is putting his problems on unrelated people.

And this is when Sasuke really falls into some dark stuff. He is actually becoming more of a villain.

The Final War:

By the time we see him in the war, he is ranting about “revolution.”

Sasuke is very deluded. And it’s due to outside influence. He is young and brash, and his world is very small. So so very small. All he knew up until this point was revenge and his brother. He doesn’t know how to live a normal life, or how to let things go. It’s like he was asleep until this point, and he finally realized that there’s a bigger world out there, and he needs to do something about it!

Sasuke is rather pitiful. But very zealous and dangerous. And I think people in the fandom downplay this too much. People want to like Sasuke- resonate with him. Up until recently, everyone is nodding their heads like “we feel you Sasuke, this sucks.” But people need to recognize when pity needs to stop.

Sasuke’s best trait is hyper-focusing on his goal. And this is also the most dangerous thing about him. He is easy to manipulate, as I have established earlier. And he is on the far end of fanaticism. He isn’t thinking about individuals anymore. He is only thinking about the collective... kind of like... the Akatsuki?

After all, didn’t the Akatsuki want to create world peace by killing a bunch of innocent people and enforcing lack of conflict through silence?

And we all agree that the Akatsuki are totally missing the mark, correct?

After all, is it really for the greater good? Sacrificing innocent people for one’s own idea of peace? Kind of narcissistic to assume one knows best.

Sasuke is talking about doing WHATEVER IT TAKES to “change the world” to make it “better”. Whatever his version of “better” is. And this is totally wrong! How is becoming what you hate most supposed to prove that your version of peace is correct?

Sasuke is getting high on “justice.” And by justice, I mean elevating himself into the god plane. He thinks he is better than everyone else- his opinion is the only one that matters. After all, these pathetic people can’t possibly think for themselves. He must force them to see the truth!

And he thinks this because his world is so small, and “Madara”, implanted an idea onto his “blank canvas.”

This is literally what’s going through Sasuke’s mind during the final arc of the show. It is extreme, and exactly the opposite of what Naruto, our protagonist, believes. So obviously there is going to be a clash.

This is where I think the author screwed Sasuke over.

Ditching the Main Theme of Sasuke’s Character:

Sasuke up until this point only knows a few things: His first reason for existing was based on a lie, and he now thinks he is fighting for the truth- that Itachi died for nothing good, and it is up to him to change the world.

Naruto fights Sasuke, and when Sasuke realizes he can’t beat Naruto in a PHYSICAL FIGHT, he suddenly changes his drastic opinions on everything he believes in. He says “Sorry, I was crazy, let’s start over.” And that’s it. End credits start to roll.

Kishimoto took Sasuke’s character on a very long journey. And it was all leading up to this peak- the point where Sasuke literally bursts. Sasuke resembles a very specific type of person- a particular path one can take in life. It is about a boy who chose the life of vengeance over happiness and positive personal growth. And the consequences of that decision.

During the entire show, I am expecting something drastic to happen to Sasuke. He is a drastic character. He is a flawed character- a beautiful example of what revenge can do to a good person. As an author, it is important to make this character’s fate what it is being set up for- tragedy.

So there were two (good) writing options here:

Sasuke either needed to die, because his mind could not be changed and he was a danger to innocent people, or, he needed to be redeemed over a decent period of time.

By the time Sasuke enters the war, he is far gone. Is it possible to change his mind again? Sure. He is still young and bendable. But it wouldn’t take two seconds.

Madara didn’t change Sasuke’s mind- he filled blank space. Implanted an idea. He put something on a blank canvas.

Naruto, however, has to undo all of this brain washing. He has to change his mind.

There is a difference here.

Covering a blank canvas with color is easy. But covering those old colors with new ones is hard, and takes time.

As in, Kishi really needed to rethink his timeline for his manga.

The best thing he could have done, since he obviously wanted Sasuke to be redeemed, was to make Naruto fight Sasuke BEFORE the war.

Here’s an alternate timeline:

Naruto finally catches up with Sasuke before the war, and they fight it out. Sasuke loses, but only by a bit. And Naruto actually talks to him. Not the usual “this is my Dream”, but listening to Sasuke and discussing his experiences, and countering his opinion in a personal manner.

Naruto thinks he can’t change Sasuke’s mind, and he worries that if he doesn’t kill Sasuke, something bad will happen to those he cares about in the future. And Kishi puts a lot of time and emphasis on this encounter. This exchange of opinions. This is the cornerstone of their relationship up until this point.

But Naruto decides not to kill Sasuke, explaining the concept of unconditional love to him. And he leaves him.

And Sasuke spends time thinking on this.

And then the final battle begins, and Sasuke drops in, deciding on helping Naruto after all. Thus concluding the Naruto/Sasuke conflict.

This order of events would have been much better. Naruto and Sasuke fighting after the war seemed unnecessary, and it just didn’t flow. It made Sasuke look extremely fickle, when he is actually very stubborn.

Based on this sequence of events, why would Sasuke help Naruto defeat Obito? When Obito was literally trying to change the world “for the better,” just like Sasuke was. Maybe Sasuke didn’t agree on the method. Sasuke would rather kill everyone and start over with him as supreme leader. (Which is... worse than what Obito had in mind? Obito wanted everyone to live in a peaceful dreamworld, where everything was good.)

So, I guess my point is that Kishimoto had a path for Sasuke, and a few points to make about his choices. But he then ditched the consequences of those choices. Ignored the theme he created from the very beginning. In the canon timeline, we as an audience didn’t really learn any lessons from Sasuke’s journey. Sasuke’s part in the story kind of fizzled out. It didn’t have the zing I was hoping for.

Sasuke deserved more attention. More focus on the climax of his personal journey. And more time for the falling action after this climax.

For me to want to see him back at Kohona, I wanted more of his thought-process and journey. It would take time for a person as damaged as Sasuke to fit back into the social confines of his old village.

I would love additional thoughts on this! :)

#Sasuke Uchiha #sasuke #naruto #rambles #text post #masashi kishimoto #writing analysis

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