#arc: institutional lies

[branwinged]

dany is an interesting character because her acts of violence routinely get framed as worse and more concerning than every other character whom one would label as 'perceivably morally good' in asoiaf. some of it is probably misogyny and some of it is strictly boxing dragons in the nuke metaphor category because "angry teenager has three nukes" does not result in particularly flattering readings of the character; but the rest is because revolutionary counterviolence often gets portrayed as just as bad (worse even) as the every day violence required to uphold an oppressive institution as a way to make some point about all violence in itself being evil. now the reason i don't believe asoiaf buys into that rhetoric is because dany's adwd story arc is basically her agreeing to one concession after another until the fighting pits are re-opened, she's married to a slaver, and the yunkish are slave trading right outside her city walls. i don't know why people are reading her choosing drogon in the fighting pit as her running away from her problems because i've always interpreted it as a rescue, she's a princess in the metaphorical tower, shackled to a peace the price of which is the continuation of slavery and the dragon is her rescue, the dragon is her knight, the dragon is her and the dragon is the truth she has been avoiding the whole book, that the choice she has to make in slaver's bay is not between war and peace but between war and slavery.

now the way she reaches this conclusion is kind of bad and concerning, "dragons plant no trees" is not the ideal thing to internalise but obviously that's a low point in her character arc, the way sansa believing littlefinger's philosophy of "it's all lies" is a low point in hers. and neither are whole truths. which is something that will get addressed later, because that's how character arcs work!

[valtsv]

shrue's arc in the silt verses really is like. some 16th century epic horror poem about getting trapped in the fae realm until you go insane. you've got "holding court" with people who twist the truth into fantastical shapes that only technically can't be called lies because they have the power to make them so, wordplay and meditation on the power of words, being hunted by inhuman things that may have once been human and want to drag you down into their suffocating embrace forever (love saints episode), a wretchedly omnipresent ridiculous yet threatening creature who talks in riddles (carson), a "be careful what you wish for and how you ask for it" narrative in the form of their potentially imaginary family, and even the summit episode where you can't eat or drink anything or else you'll be trapped forever in the institutions of power, made apathetic and helpless to the whims of others with more sinister agendas.

[heartbreakprincewille]

Erik is a metaphor for the Monarchy

This season has given me so much to think about Erik and Wilhelm's idolization of Erik, and how it plays a dual role in Wilhelm's arc as a character.

I think Erik represents Wilhelm's motivation to carry forward the legacy of an institution which is slowly crumbling in its relevance (in the fictional Sweden atleast, I have no idea about the geopolitical scenario of the real-life monarchy in Sweden). Yes, Wilhelm does come from a lineage of a family relevant in history, but not only he is too young to understand that burden but he is also someone who does not feel a personal connection with that burden, unlike August(which ironically also stems from his love for his father). But he does feel that personal connection to Erik, not only because they are brothers but also Erik seems to be the only one Wilhelm can fully be vocal about his thoughts until he meets Simon. Erik is what separates Wilhelm from that burden of legacy and responsibilities.

But then Erik dies. Erik's death not necessarily represents the death of the monarchy, but it's still the death of the stability that the system thrives on. Royals want everything in control, and we can see that a lack of control runs everything berserk in that system. Erik's death is the beginning of the legacy weighing down on Wilhelm in full force, how the monarchy is just a system that thrives in perpetual succession and does not care if a spare fills the shoes of an heir unwillingly. He is expected to mould himself in the image of Erik, and the personal connection Wilhelm lacked with the Monarchy takes the shape of Erik in his mind- he believes that he is doing good to Erik's memories if he steps up as a suitable Crown Prince, but in the end, he's just catering to the system, not Erik. Even if the system is full of lies and secrets and he is forced to part ways from his authentic self.

But then he realizes that he does not want to part ways with himself, and how he stands apart as an individual when he is with Simon. Trying to get Simon back was also an attempt to reclaim his individuality, and the more he tried to gain everything back by the easiest way possible, the more he lost Simon and got pushed to the deep end. The Monarchy still loomed on the horizon, he still wanted to uphold Erik's memory by complying with the mould his mother and the Royal Court has been preparing for him. But when he gets Simon's love back, he also gets back his individuality, and how it leads to an epiphany only his free self could have made in his speech.

The illusion reigns supreme even in his relationship with Simon, because Wilhelm thought that he can be a Crown Prince and Simon's boyfriend at the same time, but the more they progressed with the burden together, it became clear that what Wilhelm wants to be is at clear odds with the system he is being prepared for.

Then the illusion shatters with August's confession. It's utterly heartbreaking that Erik and his homophobic actions put deep cracks in Wilhelm's illusion because in the end, he was still his brother. But he will forever remain scarred by the possibility that maybe Erik could have not accepted his individuality and his love for Simon. His first safe haven he found as a child, and which continued to be one when Wilhelm's grief became too painful, all shattered by a revelation he had no answers to. And suddenly all the comparisons with his older brother became a suffocating chain around his head, and he explodes in a rage of fury to his parents.

Erik was not only a literal figurehead of the institution, but he was also a phantom manifestation of the Monarchy for Wilhelm's character. The ever-present apparition of a system he does not thrive in.

[yuri-is-online]

TDB Episode 7 Thoughts

So this episode sort of felt like a filler chapter between "Meeting the Ghouls" and "the Laurel Crown" arcs of the story. I didn't mind since I really like Yuri and Jiro's dynamic, but the pacing of the story was very quick and not a whole lot happened, after an Episode as loaded with action as Obscuary's it can feel a bit like a let down.

Now as for specific thoughts:

I want to start by saying I appreciate how Yuri doesn't believe in the prophecy because it isn't scientific but 100% thinks he is the chosen one, the champion anyway. Yes, have that self confidence that is nothing but a paper shell built on lies to cover your insecurities king! We love a pathetic meow meow in this house!

His connection to Frostheim... I have had this crack theory in my head that he is related to Jin somehow, like maybe he's his brother or something, but I do think how he talks about Frostheim makes me think he is either a transfer to Mortranken or used to be closer to Jin than he is now. We all are pretty sold on Haku being the one who sold Jin out, but there is a chance it could have been Yuri too I suppose.

We were right! Zenji and Jiro are brothers! And we have Zenji's real name, Taro Kirisaki! He doesn't seem to hate it or anything he is just really proud of his role as a man of the quill so he uses a pen name.

Zenji really loves his brother huh. "If anything were to happen to him I might not survive it this time round" I'd be willing to bet that whatever happened to the Krisaki brothers was connected, it's just that Zenji got dumped at Darkwick General while Jiro was taken in by Yuri. Zenji's voicelines about a brother "in his rebellious phase" and his struggle to express his love for his older brother makes me think they might have been at odds before the clash... maybe Jiro hated how laid back Zenji was when he literally made a deal with a demon? Of course he did too... but maybe Zenji's was related to trying to make Jiro healthy? He seems to have some sort of auto-immune disease and while that could be a side-effect of the coma but it could also be something Jiro's always struggled with and explain why Zenji is so protective of him. I bet they were killed by the same anomaly...

Sorry I have a lot of feelings about the Kirisaki brothers... what happened to them? Why does no one care that they're dead and dying other than Yuri? I don't think Zenji cares that much that Jiro doesn't remember him so long as he's alive... but would it bother Jiro if he could remember? Does he ever find himself making tea and turn to scold someone for talking too much, he's being annoying again but there isn't anyone there and he doesn't know who he's scolding because it wasn't Yuri... does he know how to make tea because Zenji insisted on teaching him? Is Zenji the one who he would tease about being afraid of dead bodies before MC?

Right on not simp notes: we have more information about the murder, the victim was from Ultio! And the murder predated the Clash so it's pretty safe to say the inability of the school to find the murderer is probably what kicked things off.

We also have hints of a mermaid student, so be patient fish fuckers we- I mean you will be getting fed soon. This student seems to be known to Yuri and Haru, and Haru's reaction suggests he might think of him as a friend? He's not beating the Steve Irwin allegations is he, I'm surprised Ed isn't obsessed with him at this point. Then again I think Ed would resent me implying he's an animal, but we've seen the inside of his room so I rest my case.

Nicholas appears to be in hot water with the Institute, and he is not trusted by Yuri. Cornelius references something he calls "the Dionysia breakout" as being Nicholas's fault to contain... given that those students are missing and Nicholas has only recently found them... I want more information before I say anything but Yuri's explanation of how he sees anomalous anything illnesses I think it makes sense to say an anomaly outbreak occurred in the Dionysia dorm that was not contained by its ghouls, something the school blames Nicholas for.

The school knew the MC was going to turn into an anomaly and did not tell her "for her mental health." I like MC's mixed feelings on this. On the one hand I don't think she would have handled it well if we had learned it immediately. On the other, I am a firm believer that information is not something that should be gate kept, and hey. It's the MC's life she deserves to know what happened to her. I think I land on not trusting Darkwick but I do trust Yuri, I want to know why he's so determined to cure MC but I don't doubt his sincerity in the slightest. If I had to say who is most determined to see MC cured, I'd say its Yuri and Haru. And Zenji but he's out of commission at the moment. Yuri has an ego the size of his forehead, but he does seem very passionate about curing anomalous diseases and takes failures a bit more personally than he'll ever admit to. Haru is just a stand up guy who seems like he wants the best for those he loves, and he really does seem to love MC! He says he'd trust her with his life! That's my dorm captain he's literally the best <3

The tree is curious, one of the fruits looked a bit better, but then it shrunk after the announcement of the Laurel Crown and the Gala coming back... which I guess makes sense? The ghouls are fighting again, technically, and if their hate for each other is what makes the tree sick then I don't think it is going to get better. Speaking of the tree... poor MC.

Yuri's description of an anomaly that could destroy the world does match up with how Ed describes the Kyklos. Dani and I talked about this already, but that name (in addition to being super similar sounding to cyclops explaining why she has one eye) is ancient greek for cycle. It is typically used to refer to a theory about human history that depicts it as being a cycle between Dark and Golden ages, how this monster came to be is something I'd be super interested to learn about... I have some theories but they're 100% pure Colombian crack with no evidence.

That being said, Ed knows what it is but Darkwick's staff does not... Ed revealing the MC is going to turn into a monster to the whole student body makes a lot of sense for him to do actually. He sees it as him helping the MC because he wants the ghouls to compete to cure her, and knowing how he thinks of humans he probably assumed they wouldn't do so unless there was an incentive so that's why he made that the goal the dorms would have to meet to win the Laurel Crown.

Speaking of which... Sho. Shohei. Hyde has him doing a special mission, wonder what that is huh? Whatever it is, that's suspicious. That's weird. I've got both my eyes on you Mr. Playboy, Lyca wouldn't do this to me maybe he should get to keep the babygirl title.

... also I really love the "if it were not for the laws of this land I would have killed you" vibes Rui, Tohma, and Haku had during their little conversation. I was dying, "oh hiiiii Rui :D so nice to see you NOT IN THE SHADOWS STALKING ME. DID YOU KNOW HE CAN DO THAT MC? GO INTO SHADOWS AND STALK YOU? NO???" Haku just being like "teehee maybe MC and I are a thing Tohma" and Tohma leaving that on read because who cares? Not him his interests are classified but I swear its ntr- *i am shot and dragged from the premises*

[galactic-rhea]

You know, I keep thinking about the acolyte finale and I the force amnesia thing is...just too over-powered, in the sense that is so extremely useful that the amount of times in which any sith could and should have used it, is endless

And my response to this is that, narratively the thing that would have made the most sense was for Mae to die. I'm all for showing the jedi as flawed or the institution being corrupted, but the dark side is supposed to be...well, dark. From a narrative sense, if they wanted Osha to go on and be evil enough to be the apprentice of a sith as handsome as he might be, the darkest, evilest thing to do in that situation, was to murder her sister. Yes, she did kill Sol and that's evil, but huh, we had a whole deal with Osha feeling anger at her sister and we even had Sol be the one to tell her "There's good in her, the part that loves you" but we have not much indication that Osha really believed that. She shot her before (hesitated but the conflict is there), killing her sister despite knowing Sol lied to her would have : a) Truly shown how the dark side is taking over her. b) Leave no witness and no need to invent a super canon-breaking and extremely OP ability. and c) Big Emotional Impact.

Let's see, somehow the show wanted to be the inverse to usual Star Wars. And usual Star Wars is about love and, redemption, and defeating evil and family. So you had the chance to do just that, just the contrary to that as they alleguelly wanted the show to do, all I'm saying is...you want to do Sith Show? Then go on and be unapologetic about it. Because, from what I have seen in interviews is that, like I said, they didn't want the usual SW, with redemptions and fake-deaths or the usual hero journey.

Mae already did a lot of damage, so from Osha's POV, she could even justify herself with that. Besides, Osha seemed to be completely fine with sith arms guy just after a day, despite all the murders he did in front of her eyes, so I really don't think Osha killing Mae would have felt OOC or against her "going to be evil" arc, at all.

I will keep saying this over and over but it feels so much like there were whole episodes of development missing.

Or then you could just do the political intrigue corruption plot from the inside of the order, because the problem with having "the sith show", is that it would be a bit hard for the writers (but not impossible) to make the jedi have a corruption arc without making it look like justification (especially for this fandom because god lord), but is not impossible at all and it shouldn't be that hard either. My fav scene keeps being the one with Venestra and that Senator, and it only lasted like 2 minutes, whyyyyyyy

[callmearcturus]

Stumbles in covered in dust to pass you a note that says "Arc please your analysis of the strange priesthood (your words)/odd mysticism (mine) of the IMF in Dead Reckoning, I need it urgently"

(It is such an integral part of the movie and its just one hell of a lore drop and I also have Thoughts about it and how it makes So much sense for Ethan's MILF era but you first you first)

bless you and all your endeavours

SPOILERS FOR THE ENTIRE MISSION IMPOSSIBLE FRANCHISE

I want to talk about the evolution of the IMF. Because one of the things that always kind of confused me about it was what it actually was. Is it another three-letter agency or is it a task force inside the CIA or... is it something else entirely?

IMO the answer changes over the course of the movies. In MI1, there is a concrete institution, the mainframe for the IMF is inside Langley, thus it seems to be part of the CIA. And it's kind of the villain of the movie honestly; the IMF mole hunt gets Ethan's team killed and almost gets him killed because he can't turn to the very agency/group/force that he's supposed to be working for to get assistance.

This idea of a group that is very rigid is continued/heightened in MI2 and MI3. The IMF misleads and lies to Ethan. They are still be bad guys. In MI2, Swanbeck uses Ethan to manipulate Nyah without cluing him in and is upset that Ethan didn't bring back the deadly super-virus for them to have. In MI3, the entire IMF just feels like the FBI in structure, all the visual signifiers casting it as a discount FBI. And that's echoed in the way the IMF handles its agents, the rigidity of the structure, the oversight, the centrality of the headquarters-- it all points to the IMF being a weird 9 to 5 govt job until someone goes on a mission.

There is a hierarchy, there is a director and assistant director and mission handler and tech team and all this shit, right.

Then we reach the McQuarrie Trilogy-cum-Quadrilogy, and things begin to change.

In Ghost Protocol, there is a feeling that the agency (if that's what the IMF even is) is more... amorphous. It's made clear there are safehouses and caches just shoved in various corners of the world. There are mentions of a headquarters (specifically, that it doesn't exist anymore) but when its time to get a new mission, Ethan hands them out from fuckign Seattle, and then walks off into the smoke to his next one. After Benji and Carter have their disastrous mission that sets off the plot, they don't circle up at HQ in the same way that happens in MI3, they are just directed to go grab Ethan, and clearly they find a place to grab some gear beforehand. The IMF is decentralized.

Then oh fucking boy, Rogue Nation. The CIA absorbs the IMF's assets and all we see is the CIA's HQ, not any central location of the IMF itself. Even in the intro when Brandt is monitoring the team going after the package on the plane, he's clearly in some shipping containers-turned-monitoring office. And Ethan going rogue survives by picking over the abandoned remnants of older safehouses.

Another interesting pivot happens in RN. Ethan is explicitly the functional leader of the IMF by example. There is no new secretary to give orders and hasn't been for years, there is no director, the closest thing we get to a hierarchy is Brandt who could allegedly "authorize" things but the agents just.... dodge him by not looping him in.

The idea of a structured organization is fully jettisoned in favor of the modern IMF, which mostly seems to be a lot of people under the radar working together to share information and execute missions.

Emotionally, Ethan is the leader of this new type of IMF, and we are in the movie that truly sets off on the idea that Ethan's ethos is that... he can't handle casualties. It's the blunt object used to hurt him, the way Lane murders the IMF plant in front of him, and his expression of haunted shock is vivid and clear.

All the way back in MI1, Ethan stopped Krieger from killing a bystander, telling him they didn't leave a body count. And by RN, that's become the bedrock of the IMF, the idea that the lives of the many are never more important than the few, and the IMF agents will destroy themselves in the name of getting everyone out alive. There are no acceptable losses.

This is bad, frankly. It is a very bad weakness for a super secret spy to have. But it is TEXTUALLY the entire point of Fallout, that Ethan can't let Luther die. In RN, he couldn't let Benji die. He couldn't let that random French cop die. Over and over, Ethan is given a choice between "save a ton of people" and "save one person" and keeps picking both, and it hurts him every time. It is unreasonable and demands so much from him.

And I have been wondering what that was building to, and Dead Reckoning lays it out.

The IMF as a formal institution doesn't exist anymore. There is no director, there's no hierarchy. What we see of a possible HQ is not the IMF, its everyone else in the intelligence community. As Kittridge explains, the IMF is a mail drop where they "leave word" and hope someone inside the group gets it and takes care of it. There is no oversight because each agent is basically a self-contained satellite.

AKA the way Ethan has found he works best. For every. single. fucking. movie. the IMF has been a hindrance at best and The Bad Guy at worst.

When we meet Ethan in Dead Reckoning, he is a man standing in an old building with sturdy walls and high ceilings. He initiates a new member and tells them they made the right Choice. It is the reassurance of an elder member to a novice.

Because I think... Ethan has essentially guided the IMF to this. How the fuck does anyone survive when there is no hierarchy, there is this creed of Save Everyone Yes Everyone, how do they do that?

Well. Everyone in the IMF lives by simple rules. Any IMF agent looks to another and says "your life will always mean more to me than my own." And the details don't matter. There is no exception to this.

The reason Ethan is alive is because his life means that much to his team, and their lives mean that much to him, so they survive by prioritizing each other in a way that borders on irrational.

This is where I think we get into the weird priesthood/odd mysticism of the IMF. They are a self-selecting group of people fanatically devoted to the preservation of everyone, and are skilled enough to back it up. There is a level of altruistic devotion there that's absent from the other agencies. Hell, Kittridge is back and when we catch up with him, he's fucking trying to buy the key to the fuckign Entity! Once again the CIA is evil, shock of shocks.

In a franchise where the CIA is always evil and the IMF As An Organization isn't better, the only moral choice seems to be to opt-into caring radically about everyone. It's the only counterpoint possible.

I think its significant that in Dead Reckoning, with this new evolution of the IMF, we only see Ethan and the team in old buildings. They are fading remnants. They can't pass on the responsibility to family, so they keep watch for others who have what it takes. They are a small, dwindling group, and they are the only people that can destroy the Entity.

Punct and I have talked about how Ethan defeated the Syndicate by infecting them with humanity basically; through Ethan's influence, Lane becomes vicious and petty in a way he'd like to deny, but he is motivated by his connection to Ethan more than his ideals. Similarly, I think Ethan and his ilk have infected the IMF with this strange solemn duty, and act as guiding stewards. It's an ideal that will die, but until it does, they will keep saving everyone they can, because no one else will.

[fantasyinvader]

The fact they named an Agarthan Epimenides...

Epimenides is known for his paradox. “Epimenides was a Cretan who made the immortal statement: "All Cretans are liars."" The paradox is that Epimenides is a Cretan who says all Cretans are liars, therefore him saying all Cretans are liars would itself be a lie meaning that not all Cretans are liars, but does that mean that Epimenides was telling the truth? Because if Epimenides was telling the truth that all Cretans are liars while he himself was a Cretan, that would mean him saying that would be a lie meaning that to him not all Cretan's are liars and... you get the idea how this goes around.

Think about what this means in Houses, and the fact that Edelgard admits that she did and said everything she could during White Clouds to sway Byleth to her side. Yet if we join Edelgard, we get her taking credit for Byleth's leadership to make herself look better, the information campaign line that was cut, Hubert contradicting the backstory Edelgard told you, Edelgard keeping her soldiers in the dark about attacking Arianrhod while giving a false target, Edelgard blaming the Church for the aftermath of Arianrhod, Edelgard privately saying Rhea needs to be destroyed while publicly offering her a chance to surrender, Petra going to her paralogue after being told the Church is trying to strong arm Brigid for support only to free Imperial troops while the Church says they were there to keep Brigid out of the war, Imperial history making it out that Byleth lost their powers due to an injury and kept using “their sword” despite switching to the Sword of Seiros, or Edelgard giving her big “power of friendship speech” when defeating Rhea before turning around and instituting reforms based on ideals directly counter to it.

Other routes have more, like Aegir being blamed for Arundel's rule, Edelgard's manifesto being designed to keep people from uniting and therefore weak against her, her trying to convince Dimitri she knows nothing of Duscur AFTER he saw her be told it was for her benefit.

There's a lot of evidence that Edelgard is a liar, so the issue is when do we actually believe what she says... if ever? If everything she says is a means to try and gather support, then nothing Edelgard says should be taken at face value, much like Seteth saying that it's a big mistake not to see what her true, evil intentions are. Even in Hopes, there's this arc about her learning to trust Shez despite her suspicions of their real heritage. However, doing the “good” version of her route has her saying in the shadow realm that she can't afford to trust even herself. Edelgard doesn't really trust Shez, while at the same time highlighting how she herself can't be trusted. Heroes even has it's moments, where Edelgard learns that none of the other lords think like she does and acts like she has something to consider. She'll still return to her world the same tyrant she was. Likewise, we see in her interaction with Mila going on with how gods are bad because they provide for the people and make them weak, only to say they're bad for not providing for people when Mila points out Duma and his teachings. Edelgard also makes it out like she saved her world in Engage, just like Claude and Dimitri despite her actions being diametrically opposed to theirs as they needed to stop HER.

Is there any point where we can believe Edelgard actually tells the truth? Do we ever see a real Edelgard, or is her entire character just lies.

This would mean that Epimenides was a name with deliberate meaning.

[britneyshakespeare]

French Lady Barbie, from the 1997 Great Eras Collection

It's France in the early 1800's and the name Napoleon Bonaparte is on everyone's lips. Self-proclaimed emperor in 1804, he and his beautiful wife Josephine are the leaders of French style and fashion. French Lady™ Barbie® pays heed to the dictates of the famous emperor. Her gown is all the latest rage in Napoleon's court. Its empire styling mimics the elongated elegance of a classical Greek column, a time and period most admired by Napoleon. Its predominant color is French blue, a color much favored by everyone royal in France. The underskirt is dotted with golden Fleur-de-Lis, a long-lived symbol of French royalty. Women of the era wore high heels on tiny feet, and often had a pair made to match every outfit. French Lady Barbie has hair gathered into a golden headpiece and her lovely face is trimmed in tiny chestnut curls. Her skin is fair, her eyelashes rooted, while her faux turquoise jewelry complements the French Blue of her gown. Napoleon had an effect on more than fashion and style. He gave France a civil code, religious tolerance and fair taxes. During his reign, the Bank of France was founded and France enjoyed freedom of the press, rare in its long history. While Napoleon led French armies in conquest, the beautiful, brooding music of composer Ludwig van Beethoven was heard throughout Europe. In France, artist J. L. David achieved fame and popularity as did portaitist Jean Ingres. In 1806, the Institut de France was created by combining Academie Francaise with other academies, all designed to protect and promote everything French, from art to architecture! The beautiful city of Paris began to take form and shape as the famous landmark, the Arc de Triomphe by artist Claude Clodion, was begun in 1806 and completed in 1836. Rarely in history has one nation ever commanded so much prestige, so much success and so much style. In this magical age of Napoleon, everything the French touched rang with glory. French Lady Barbie captures this glory in her brilliance of style and sophistication. It's not difficult to close one's eyes and imagine her gracing the balls of Paris, with the cry of Vive la France, ringing in her ears.

[asoiafcanonjonsnow]

Jon Snow & Brienne of Tarth

JONSNOWFORTNIGHTEVENT2023

DAY 4: UNSUNG CONNECTIONS 🔍🧩: Brienne of Tarth

At first glance, these two characters appear quite dissimilar. While one is confined to the Wall in the northernmost region of the Seven Kingdoms, the other is journeying through the Riverlands. Their paths belong to separate storylines, and there is no certainty that they will ever cross paths. Even if fate brings them together, their meeting is unlikely to significantly influence each other's narrative arcs.

It is evident that these two characters were not intentionally designed to follow parallel journeys or serve as foils to each other. Nevertheless, despite this lack of deliberate planning, they share certain fundamental similarities as noble-hearted underdogs.

Outcasts:

Both of these teenagers are introduced as social outcasts, never truly feeling like they belong in their respective homes. Jon, being born as a bastard, faces a particularly challenging situation among his siblings. Although he grows up alongside them, his status is deemed inferior, and his future prospects are limited. Being constantly aware of his disadvantaged position, which he has no control over, he also carries the burden of society's stigma towards bastards. In the eyes of Westerosi society, bastards are often associated with lust and deception, and their character is unfairly judged as wanton and treacherous.

“Bastard children were born from lust and lies, men said; their nature was wanton and treacherous."

Jon's mistreatment and sense of being unwelcome in his own home are vividly demonstrated through the way his father's wife treats him. While the reasons behind her behavior may be complex and subjective, it is undeniable that she plays a significant role in making Jon feel like an outsider.

In both cases, these characters' struggles are rooted in the way society perceives and treats them, forcing them to navigate the world as noble-hearted underdogs who defy unfair judgments and prejudice.

As for Brienne, she faces the unfortunate reality of not being considered conventionally attractive in a society where noble women are primarily valued for their ability to secure advantageous alliances through marriage. Brienne's appearance makes her an undesirable bride, as exemplified by the hurtful rejection she experiences from one of her potential suitors, Ser Ronnet Connington. Consequently, she becomes a target of pity and disdain within her community. Similar to Jon, Brienne endures the consequences of something she was born with and cannot change. The way both of these young individuals are treated is undeniably unjust.

Ironic Nicknames:

Both Brienne and Jon are indeed given ironic nicknames that serve as reminders of their perceived shortcomings.

"Brienne the Beauty, they name her . . . though not to her face, lest they be called upon to defend those words with their bodies." Catelyn II

Brienne is mockingly called "Brienne the Beauty," but it is done discreetly because anyone who dares to say it to her face would face the consequences of physical confrontation. This sarcastic title emphasizes society's mockery of her appearance and the unfair beauty standards imposed upon noble women.

"That is a longsword, not an old man's cane," Ser Alliser said sharply. "Are your legs hurting, Lord Snow?" Jon hated that name, a mockery that Ser Alliser had hung on him the first day he came to practice. Jon III, AGOT

Similarly, Jon loathes the name "Lord Snow," a cruel nickname bestowed upon him by Ser Alliser during his initial training at the Wall. This derogatory name is a constant reminder of his status as a bastard and highlights the disdain he faces from others due to his birthright.

In both cases, these ironic nicknames exemplify the hurtful treatment and prejudices both characters endure, reflecting the challenges they must overcome as noble-hearted underdogs in their respective worlds.

Failing Institutions:

Both Jon and Brienne yearn to escape their homes, seeking refuge as knights, skilled with a sword. However, their aspirations do not lead to the solace they envisioned. Brienne, venturing into the male-dominated sphere of Renly's Rainbow Guard, faces discrimination from fellow knights who perceive her gender as a hindrance in a war expedition. Similarly, Jon's dreams of noble protectors are shattered when he realizes the Night's Watch is not the idyllic brotherhood he had imagined. Many of his new comrades are far from the noble figures he had hoped to find.

These disillusioning experiences mark a significant transition for both characters, propelling them from adolescence to adulthood. Stuck in less-than-ideal circumstances, they are forced to grapple with their identities and find their place in a world that proves harsh and unforgiving. As they navigate these challenges, their journeys pave the way for personal growth and maturity. The trials they endure and the realities they face shape them into more resilient and self-aware individuals.

The Agony of Love's Demise:

Both Brienne and Jon find themselves cradling their beloveds as the life slowly drains from their bodies, leaving them engulfed in heartache and despair.

Brienne's arms become the final refuge for King Renly, the man she loved deeply. His armor stained with blood, a vivid reminder of the violence that stole him from her. Despite her unwavering strength, she cannot save him from his tragic fate, and she must bear witness to the life slipping away from the one she held dear.

For Jon Snow, the woman he loved, Ygritte, rests in his embrace, her life slipping through his fingers like sand. He clings desperately to hope, vowing that they will return to their cave together, but the reality of her passing shatters him, leaving him to grieve the loss of his first love.

In these heart-wrenching moments, both Brienne and Jon are confronted with the devastating toll that love's demise takes on the human soul. The agony of watching their beloveds slip away leaves an everlasting mark on their hearts, forever altering their paths and shaping their characters.

Compassionate:

Despite the multitude of injustices they have faced, Jon and Brienne do not succumb to bitterness or resentment. While struggling to find their place in the world, they do not harbor hatred towards those who seemingly have it easier. Jon does not resent his siblings for their legitimate status, and Brienne does not hold grudges against those considered conventionally beautiful. Instead, they demonstrate remarkable compassion and empathy, even towards those who have not treated them fairly.

Jon's act of comforting Lady Catelyn during Bran's farewell and Brienne's kindness towards Jaime, despite his previous rudeness, exemplify their belief in goodness within a world filled with nihilism. They hold onto their ideals and maintain a sense of morality despite the harshness they have endured since their childhoods.

Their ability to remain realistic while acknowledging the world's harsh realities showcases their maturity and resilience. Rather than being delusional, they are aware of the challenges and injustices that surround them. Their experiences have shaped them into compassionate and understanding individuals, and they choose to rise above the bitterness that could easily consume them. Instead, they stand as beacons of hope and kindness in a world that often lacks it.

Mentors and Protectors:

Despite their own struggles, both Jon and Brienne exhibit a strong sense of empathy and a willingness to help others who face challenging situations. They take on the roles of mentors and protectors for those in need, demonstrating remarkable maturity and selflessness, even at a young age.

Jon's nurturing and protective nature are evident through his interactions with Arya and Sam. He becomes a source of comfort for Arya, offering her support and teaching her how to defend herself. His gift of Needle and initial swordfighting lessons empower her to face the difficulties ahead. Jon's friendship with Sam leads him to intervene and shield Sam from bullies, showcasing his sense of loyalty and defense of those weaker than him. Furthermore, as a seasoned member of the Night's Watch, Jon dedicates himself to training new recruits, imparting his knowledge to teach them the art of self-protection.

Similarly, Brienne's compassionate nature is exemplified when she takes Podrick under her wing during her quest. She not only agrees to let him accompany her but also takes it upon herself to improve his swordsmanship. This selfless act showcases her commitment to helping others grow and gain the skills necessary to protect themselves.

Both Jon and Brienne's mentorship roles and their willingness to stand up for others reveal their inherent goodness and sense of responsibility to aid those in need, even amidst their own struggles. Their actions go beyond their personal experiences, and they use their strength and knowledge to positively impact the lives of those around them.

Exemplars of Chivalry and Duty:

Brienne and Jon stand as shining examples of their respective institutions, embodying the true essence of chivalry and duty.

He could have tried, Brienne thought. He could have died. Old or young, a true knight is sworn to protect those who are weaker than himself, or die in the attempt. Brienne VI AFFC

Brienne, guided by the principles of knighthood, contemplates the essence of a true knight. In her musings, she acknowledges that a genuine knight is bound by the solemn oath to protect those who are weaker, even at the risk of their own life. This profound dedication to the code of chivalry underscores her unwavering commitment to the values she holds dear, making her a paragon of knighthood.

"Are you certain that I have not forgotten some? The ones about the king and his laws, and how we must defend every foot of his land and cling to each ruined castle? How does that part go?" Jon waited for an answer. None came. "I am the shield that guards the realms of men. Those are the words. So tell me, my lord—what are these wildlings, if not men?" Jon XI ADWD

Jon Snow, as the Lord Commander of the Night's Watch, is equally dedicated to his sworn duty. When faced with the question of defending the realms of men, he challenges the narrow perception of what constitutes humanity. His poignant query about the wildlings reflects his belief that even those beyond the Wall deserve protection and empathy, reaffirming his position as a true defender of the realms of men.

Both Brienne and Jon exemplify the highest ideals of their institutions. Their actions and convictions showcase the depth of their character, as they remain steadfast in upholding the values they have embraced. As paragons of chivalry and duty, they serve as beacons of honor and righteousness in their respective worlds.

The True Essence of Knighthood: Jon and Brienne as Exemplars

Ultimately, even though neither of them holds the title of a knight, and it is unlikely they ever will, Jon and Brienne embody the true essence of knighthood. The oath of knighthood, which states:

"In the name of the Warrior, I charge you to be brave. In the name of the Father, I charge you to be just. In the name of the Mother, I charge you to defend the young and innocent. In the name of the Maid, I charge you to protect all women," resonates profoundly with their actions and values.

[chloe-caulfield94]

A Miracle I Chose Not to Perform - a LiS fan poem

On a surprisingly sunny and warm day in October

a genuine miracle was about to happen

In spite of the consequences of their actions

(and fitting conclusions to their character arcs)

emerging from the ocean and coming their way

the following wonderful people would be spared:

A promising young artist would be allowed

to keep making his haunting works

after just a brief three year stay

in an institution run by those

who clearly fail to comprehend

that in pursuit of real art

sacrifices must be made

Some shallow graves simply need to be filled

with whores

I mean sluts

I mean models

if truth and beauty are to be discovered

An ambitious businessman would be allowed to keep

the spirit of entrepreneurship alive

by selling his intoxicatingly enticing wares

to the most challenging customers of all – schoolchildren

And I’m sure that such a nice, hard-working man

would soon find a new, suitably young match

to replace the one he killed with his product

One that would understand

that after a hard day’s work

(and tasting his own stash)

a “man” has the right to explode into a blind rage

A devoted school principal and brave boys in blue

would be allowed to keep supplementing their incomes

(which are absolutely inadequate, when you factor in how much they care about the people they teach, protect and serve)

with envelopes coming from

a pillar of local community

for keeping the young artist’s career

under wraps

A valued member of the student body

would be allowed to teach

many a more stuck-up prudes

a lesson using her phone camera

having never been made aware

that other people have feelings too

All those wonderfully revolting things

would be allowed to happen

for a low tall Price

of just one murdered girl

What is the murder of a single girl

if it allows the putrid entrails

of a scenic Oregon town

to keep on churning

An irrationally angry girl

who had the audacity to confront

the boy who'd merely roofied her

Big deal!

He only wanted to

do something beautiful to her

and he would have

had she not unceremoniously fled

while she was still alive

How rude!

But you can’t expect class

from a scholarship kid in tattered clothes

Forgive my sarcasm dripping from the page

I will now speak plainly

The miracle described above I chose not to perform

I decided that just this once

friendship

should carry more weight

than the cruelty of evildoers

One ghoul pierced her heart

with a bullet-tipped spear

Another placed a red crown of thorns

on her forehead

Conquering her fear she didn’t cry

„Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani”

No, instead she handed me

the final nail

and begged me to hammer it

so that others might live while she would die

But despite her bravery

in the face of oblivion

(or perhaps because of it)

a blue-winged seraph was sent down

to defend her life

Nobody would miss her

the promising artist said

and if I had let her cross be raised

I would’ve proven him right

Nothing ever is worth someone

being murdered

Nothing ever is worth someone

dying alone, abandoned, hopeless and afraid

And for that reason

unlike two millennia ago in Palestine

expiation was denied

to those who required it the most

but deserved it not

I made sure of that

by pulling the would-be Christ of Arcadia Bay

down from her cross

Even though two nails

had already been driven

her hands, feet, heart and brow

bear no holes

My supposed crime is digging out of her heart

a bullet fired by

the promising artist

Shouldn’t the fault lie with the one

who aimed the gun and pulled the trigger?

I never claimed to be a hero

and if saving a friend's life is a sin

then I’m the greatest sinner

(and unrepentant one at that)

Once you cut out all hope

from your own friend’s heart

and you nail their body to a cross

once you’re smiling over their coffin

bloody knife and hammer in your hands

once you selfishly reduce

the light of their life

to a memory locked away

in your brain

then you can judge me

But know that

I don’t care about the verdicts

of ghouls

Isn’t it written

that whoever saves a life

is considered to have saved

the whole world?

So by digging the bullet out of her heart

I saved her world

my world

our world

the world

She was the Price to be paid

for sparing Arcadia Bay

from its fate

I refused that bargain

because who in their right mind

would pay with the world

for a town?

All the fine people described at the begininng

casual in their cruelty

banal in their evil

learnt an important lesson

(and for some of them it was their last):

sometimes hatred and disdain sown

become a Storm reaped

So on an unsurprisingly cold and stormy day in October

the miracle turned out to be

how such a tiny town could've fit

so much cruelty

before it burst at the seams

and that the seeds of the Storm

sown by its dwellers every day

took that long to yield crop

[galaxythreads]

Loki is a narcissist

.........................................right.

You have to have five of the nine symptoms below to be considered a narcissist:

A grandiose logic of self-importance

A fixation with fantasies of infinite success, control, brilliance, beauty, or idyllic love

A credence that he or she is extraordinary and exceptional and can only be understood by, or should connect with, other extraordinary or important people or institutions

A desire for unwarranted admiration

A sense of entitlement

Interpersonally oppressive behavior

No form of empathy

Resentment of others or a conviction that others are resentful of him or her

A display of egotistical and conceited behaviors or attitudes

^ some of the wording has been changed below so it's easier to understand:

Why Loki does NOT fit every symptom:

A grandiose logic of self-importance

oh look at him lying about all of that. except for the part that he, was yknow, legally was the regent.

only argument for this is really the Avengers, and this line supports that ^, but Loki never showcases this level of self-importance before or after the Avengers, which is important because these patterns have to be consistent. Loki doesn't show this after the Avengers either - yes, there's the play in Ragnarok, but Loki was the prince of Asgard. There are probably 495004985094385 other plays about other royalty.

reminder this is how loki describes himself in Thor 1:

A fixation with fantasies of infinite success, control, brilliance, beauty, or idyllic love

In Thor 1, he is obessed with idyllic love from Odin, his family, and Asgard. In the Avengers he's obsessed with a throne. In the Dark World he doesn't care about it. In Ragnarok, all Loki wants is to stay alive, keep Thor alive, and keep Asgard safe. He's not fixated on a fantasy of a throne. Even in the Loki series, Loki is not fixated on a throne.

So kinda, but I'm leaning toward no.

Again, there is an argument for this in the Avengers with his fixation on "glorious purpose", but it's still not consistent.

A credence that he or she is extraordinary and exceptional and can only be understood by, or should connect with, other extraordinary or important people or institutions

people Loki actively spends time with, none of which are geniuses. Loki has never given the impression that he needs to spend time with only "extraordinary" people.

A desire for unwarranted admiration

Okay. Loki has the play in Thor 3, but he literally did almost die for Thor. And yes, it is probably unwarranted admiration/exaggeration, but again, not a consistent pattern. Plus it's a play. It's supposed to be entertaining and Loki intentionally wrote it to mock himself?

Thor 1: no

Avengers: no. He doesn't demand admiration for anything he does.

Thor 2: no

Thor 3: yes, sort of.

IW: No.

Loki series: no.

A sense of entitlement

again, argument for the Avengers Loki, yes--the whole point of his villain arc in A1 is that he feels entitled to a throne. But that is not consistent. Loki defends his actions in TDW by saying that he was "giving truth to the lie he was told his entire life", which ISN'T a "I deserved a throne!!!!!" and more so "identity crisis part #4325235235"

is interpersonally exploitative, i.e., takes advantage of others to achieve his or her own ends

Yeah. This one is a solid yeah. Reminder, 1/9 doesn't make a narcissist though.

Thor 1: lied to Thor to keep him on Earth so he could manage the Jotunheim disaster

Avengers 1: mind control

TDW: removed Odin from the throne

Thor 3: the Sakaar mess

Loki series: did attempt to manipulate Mobius several times to not die and Sylvie once to teach him how to enchant.

No form of empathy

Yeah, that's Loki. Empathy-free guy.

is often envious of others or believes that others are envious of him or her*

*reminder that SIF not loki SIF is the one who says that Loki has "always been jealous of Thor"

actually Loki:

shows arrogant, haughty behaviors or attitudes

^ Loki's explanation for why he tried to get Thor's coronation delayed

^ Loki's explanation about Avengers 1

like yes, Loki does show arrogant/haughty behaviors, but -- outside of the Avengers -- I don't really see that being the case for Loki long-term.

I think that someone could easily make the argument that Loki in the Avengers shows npd-like behaviors, but Loki as a whole in MCU isn't a narcissist. He's complicated, but not in an npd kind of way. And it would be fine if he did have npd, that doesn't inherently make him evil, but he just...so clearly doesn't have that.

[whumpshaped]

Finished Stories Masterlist

Dollhouse

About a passionate doll enthusiast, keeping a whole house full of human dolls. (Set in the same universe as Sweet as Sugar.)

tw noncon bodymod, captivity, lady whump (both whumper and whumpee), multiple whumpees, dehumanisation, major character death

ending: bittersweet/hopeful

Under the Bell Jar

About a tiny whumpee trapped under a bell jar.

tw tiny whump, captivity, driven halfway to madness

ending: unhappy

Killing, Stalking... Whumping?

About an average whump enjoyer tracking down their favourite blogger and getting more than they bargained for.

tw DEAD DOVE DO NOT EAT, noncon, pet whump, gore, dehumanisation, torture, major character death

ending: unhappy

SPK canon content

Alternate ending to KSW, with a rescue and recovery.

SPK AUs

AUs of the AU.

Glitching

Interactive red room whump with the antagonist of KSW, Seth Menderita, as the star of the show.

tw DEAD DOVE DO NOT EAT, torture, red room setting, reader's pov, heavy gore, potential major character death

ending: multiple, choose your own version

Homewrecker

About a poor soul getting stuck in the spider web they had just managed to free their friend from.

tw constant manipulation and gaslighting, lies, medical whump, murder

ending: unhappy

At my Beck and Call (Arc 1)

At my Beck and Call (Arc 2)

About a vampire finding their new favourite toy in an unexpected alleyway — he's not going back in the office with his mind intact.

tw vampire whumper, mind control, kidnapping, captivity

ending: dubious

Discontinued Stories

The Institution

About a group of musicians trapped in a prestigious school, forced to perform in front of the whole world while trying to survive in rehearsal.

tw pet whump, human trafficking, murder

Seven Minutes in Hell (archive)

About a demon and his stolen incubus boytoy.

tw DEAD DOVE DO NOT EAT, pet whump, murder, torture, captivity, multiple whumpers

Accountability

About a miserable man finding himself in a situation where his obedient nature could actually benefit and save him.

Sweet as Sugar

About a successful and wealthy businesswoman and pet trainer getting her hands on more than she anticipated. (Set in the same universe as Dollhouse.)

tw pet whump, lady whumper, captivity, human trafficking

Crack Whump I Don't See Myself Touching Again

Itty Bitty Paw Paws

About a catboy whumper and his prey.

Deal With the Devil

About the literal Devil and their human plaything.

tw heavy torture, religious themes

Got Under Your Skin

About a demon finding their own fallen angel.

tw body control/forced to obey, religious themes, blood parasite thing (u'll get it if u read it)

Feelings Over Facts <3

About a pitiful and spiteful little man being held captive by an unusually obsessive captor.

tw captivity, obsessive/creepy whumper

[protosymphonette]

apparently I shouldn’t ask you your fallout 4 opinions? Now I want to ask you your fallout 4 opinions :)

i warned you about my fo4 opinions bro. i told you dog.

most of these are like. technical and story related. bee tee dubs

ok under cut because i have a lot to say and most of it is TOXIC because i LOVE TO COMPLAIN

listen. listen. i have a lot of feelings about this game. most of them aren't very good. so lets start with the ones that are mostly positive.

i think a thing fo4 did really well was the companions. a lot of their arcs are more realized than the other fo games (despite the fact that 2 of them don't even have full names, but i digress), they have more unique voicelines... and being able to romance them doesn't hurt either. honestly, half the reason i found myself willing to continue playing the game was getting all of the companion questlines and such. i also like how connected it was to fo3 character (like with li, maccready, maxson) and storywise (the institute, railroad, synths), made me feel Smart for getting the references. the way weapons... work? i guess is the best term? is also pretty decent- though the more advanced display hurts my eyes whenever i use energy weapons (which is always because they are the only guns worth using in any fo game)

i'll probably add more positives as i go, but- now time for parts of the game that i don't particularly enjoy... i don't like how many gameplay changes they made. like with the perks and special system (why would they change it. why remove skills?? why start all special stats at 1? the removal of skills really gets me; like, they were a more tangible and easier way to recognize what, well, SKILLS you had and just removing them entirely makes no sense) and the pip boy ui (WHY did they make holotapes go into general "misc" as opposed to having their own "notes" section??? you use holotapes like 40x more often in this game why. what the hell todd) the weapons and armor system irks me too, somewhat- the fact that once you progress to a point in the game in which you are like, unable to see if an armor/weapon is better than what you have because of all of the goddamn superfluous adjectival modifiers. i wish single piece armors were more practical- the mix-and-match nature of the new armor system is... i don't mean to be like, petty, but its Fugly. i know it's the wasteland but, DAMN, my guy's fit is trash! there are too many modifiers to armor, too, i feel. like, ballistic v energy v whatever damage resistance... all i want to know is if this thing is better than this thing, and you're tellin me it is SOMETIMES but not all the times? my iddy biddy pea brain came here to have FUN and SHOOT not to think about strategy in armor. tldr for my technical qualms with this game: they shouldn't have changed allat. it was great and fun as was.

storywise i don't... to put it succinctly, i don't like this game's story. it's boring to me. i don't necessarily care about my son, or my spouse, with the 5 minutes i spent with them during the tutorial and the "hey honey!" holotape you gave me is doing nothing to change that in any way. also, while on the subject of spouses, the game tries SO HARD to railroad (heh heh) you into being the male sole survivor- he NARRATES the damn intro ffs (and replacing the legend ron perlman is a crime which can never be forgiven) AND is a veteran (combat+power armor experience) and nora... is a lawyer? a job in which it would make no sense for her to already have power armor training or experience with weapons. (oatus the power armor ui is fucking ugly and gross too and i've literally never used it outside its introduction with the minutemen because of this) i think the fact that i don't give 2 shits about my son is why the institute is soooooo dry to me. like, why am i supposed to side with these assholes? because my son who is an old man is, what, their dad? or something? (also shaun being the gen 3 synths "father" and you being able to romance a whole slew of gen 3 synths is... weird, plainly put) also the factions are just boring to me. like no flavor at all. i don't want to bring up Beautiful Golden Child New Vegas (but i do) but like... obsidian did the "choose a faction" thing a whole helluva lot better. like i don't really give a shit at all about any of the stakes or factions within fo4 like even a little bit all i care about is my Guys who are my Friends and we Kill People Together.

also this is like very petty and opiniony but i don't like how good the graphics are i feel like fallout is a game franchise meant to look a little shitty

tldr; fallout 4 would be such a good game if it was a good game

[archiveofsouls]

☏ ⥇ 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝒐𝒏𝒍𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒖𝒏𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒗𝒆

ＡＲＣＨＩＶＥＯＦＳＯＵＬＳ  tells  the  tale  of  morality,  mortality,  and  the  price  of  knowledge  &  power.  Step  into  the  shadows  of  Monarch,  where  the  Ivy  League's  façade  crumbles  to  reveal  a  world  teeming  with  enigma  and  magic.  At  this  prestigious  institution,  entrance  into  scholarship  programs  are  key  to  a  realm  where  Gothic  spires  conceal  more  than  scholarly  pursuits.  Unveil  the  secrets  of  the  Alexandrian  Society,  guardians  of  a  timeless  repository  where  whispers  of  the  past  echo  through  the  halls.  But  beware,  for  within  the  Archive  of  Souls  lies  an  ancient  malevolence  hungry  for  more  than  just  knowledge.  Join  the  Medeians  as  they  navigate  the  labyrinth  of  mystery,  where  the  pursuit  of  enlightenment  may  lead  to  a  fate  darker  than  they  ever  imagined.

the society awaits you ... storyline

monarch's guidebook to student life ... code of conduct

alexandrian society class of 2024 ... travelers

inspiration awaits a hungry mind ... pinterest

ready to welcome you with open arms ... application

explore the campus further ... full nav

APP COUNT — 0 ARC ONE — Merit Campbell, Alexandrian Society Class of 2024 Reported Missing; Strange creatures spotted on campus, always be aware of your surroundings; Dr. Isaac Farley to release research and important records that could change history as we know it; who is the Founder? STATUS — Apparatus has been reopened, acceptance date set for June 24, first Time Mission Event slated for June 17 - 23

[halucygeno]

[Draft] Why Roadside Picnic is a timeless masterpiece and why everyone missed the point

(DRAFT NOTE: Otherside Picnic and PAFL are tagged because I intended to conclude this essay by explaining why I think those works, ostensibly inspired by R.P., don’t understand and fail to capture what makes the novel so powerful. My writing never got to that point, but it might still be of interest to fans of Otherside Picnic and PAFL, so I’ve kept the tags. If I ever manage to somehow finish this, I’ll take it down and replace it with the full version.)

ESSAY START:

With that needlessly provocative title out of the way, I hope people are still here and willing to listen as I try to explain myself:

[SPOILERS FOR THE WHOLE BOOK, GO READ IT IF YOU HAVEN’T DONE SO YET]

At its very core, Roadside Picnic is a character study. It acts as philosophical and social commentary too, but a vast majority of that is delivered and explored through Redrick’s character arc.

The sci-fi stuff which everyone loves referencing, and which every adaptation and “inspired” work can’t help but include: the Zone, the artefacts, bolt tossing, Mosquito Manges - none of that matters. You could replace it with magic, or dragons, or some other arbitrary plot device - it just needs to be beyond human understanding and have no clear explanation or origin, to allow for the ideas discussed by Noonan and Dr. Pillman in Chapter 3. This basic premise is all you need to discuss xenology, human psychology, “what’s a rational being”, how insignificant we are in the universe, etc.

All the other details are either little tid-bits of worldbuilding, window-dressing, or serve a specific narrative purpose. Witches’ Jelly could be any “super dangerous substance”, because what matters is not that it eats your bones, what matters is that Redrick sells it to a shady dealer, betraying the morals he espoused in Chapter 1:

All of these objects aren’t just “cool artefacts”, they’re tools for the Strugatskys to get across their themes.

And those themes are... Well, that’s harder to summarise. The main theme of the story seems to be about how economic circumstances and crises in one’s personal life can rot a person’s moral compass and kill their faith in the possibility of a better world. The events of the story turn someone like Redrick - an honest worker who believes in Kirill’s promises that science has the potential to save humanity - into an evil hypocrite, a murderer who lies to himself to justify his reprehensible actions. The question asked of the audience is “how responsible is Redrick for his own fate”, while the ending asks “will any of it amount to anything”?

To be clear, Redrick is a BAD person. By the end of the book, he has quit his job at the Institute, sold Witches’ Jelly to shady 3rd parties (which ended in a laboratory accident that killed 35), cheated on his wife (with a woman he supposedly despises) and murdered an innocent kid. He even draws sadistic pleasure from the emotional pain he will inflict on Burbridge by killing his son, savouring the irony of Burbridge being the one who kept encouraging him to take some newbie to the Meat Grinder:

But he wasn’t always like this. At the start of the story, he is cynical and rough, but he has principles. Like already mentioned earlier, in the excerpt where Noonan tells him about someone looking to buy Witches’ Jelly, he even goes as far as saying that he’ll work with the police to turn them in. The same police which, earlier in the chapter, stopped him in the street because they profiled him and assumed he was up to something:

Redrick has done his time in prison, gotten an honest job (yes, I know that he says that he still makes "a few bucks on the side”, but he’s actually relieved when he hears they’ll be walling off the Zone because it’ll mean “less temptation”. He wants to make money as a decent citizen), and he’s still being treated like a criminal and stopped by the police on-sight. And despite this, his fear of what the wrong person might do with Witches’ Jelly is so strong, he’s willing to go to them and report the buyer.

And this rejection of his prior Stalker persona is deeper than just getting a job at the institute and being willing to cooperate with police. When Kirill assumes that Redrick suggested getting the Full Empty as a ploy to sell his services, at first, Redrick doesn’t understand what he means. When he does, he feels outright insulted:

When he finds out about Kirill’s death, he is devastated, but notably, this sorrow quickly turns into a hatred of the systems which throw young men to their deaths for money. He curses Ernest for profiting from this exploitation. A key scene is when he hands Creon (a young man who just arrived in Harmont and wants to become a Stalker) a wad of cash and urges him to go back to Malta:

Another pillar of Redrick’s character is the fact that he loves and is loyal to his fiancée, Guta, despite her family being openly antagonistic towards him - not just because of his criminal past, but the fact that he’s been afflicted by the Zone:

He marries her at some point after this.

Most importantly, he actually has a purpose. This is shown when he is pestered by the emigration agent, as he makes a speech about how Harmont is a “hole into the future”, which will change life around the world for the better:

The crucial detail here is that the one who inspired him to think this way is Kirill. Redrick is always portrayed as cynical and bitter, so this high-mindedness is not coming from somewhere within him - it’s external. He’s drawing inspiration from the idealistic, honest people around him. So when Kirill dies, it is not merely the death of a close friend. It is the death of Redrick’s faith, his hope in the future. He even says “How will I get on without you?”:

Basically, Chapter 1 sets-up Redrick AT HIS BEST, so that the story can send him on a downward spiral in every chapter that follows.

Chapter 2 has several important developments, and it marks the start of Redrick’s moral decline. Before getting into that, though, I’d like to draw attention to another part of Redrick’s moral compass which is highlighted - his hatred of Burbridge and, more importantly, his hatred of Burbridge’s daughter, Dina.

Buzzard Burbridge embodies the most reprehensible, slimy aspects of being a Stalker. He is a selfish profiteer, willing to sacrifice his comrades and leave them to die just so he can get away with the loot. Redrick hates Burbridge, and, very importantly, believes himself to be better than Burbridge:

Redrick hates that Burbridge has no regard for human life, and this hatred applies in equal measure to Dina. When Dina tells Redrick that he should have left Buzzard to his death, he slaps her in the face:

This is not done out of sympathy for the man - Redrick hates Burbridge. What insults him is the implication that he should’ve left a comrade to their death - even a piece of sh*t comrade. He hates Dina, because even though what she says about Buzzard is true, it’s not a reason to abandon him to his death. Just like her father, she has no regard for human life.

In this scene, it’s also worth noting that Redrick is very respectful to Hamster. Hamster is the only Stalker to survive entering the Meat Grinder, supposedly saved by Buzzard. He seems to hang around the Burbridge household, possibly acting as some kind of servant, but is deformed and crippled from his injury:

The contrast between how he speaks to Dina and Hamster sends a clear message; Dina’s beauty means nothing. She’s evil, and deserves less respect than ugly, deformed Hamster.

Another key moment is Redrick’s conversation with Noonan in the café near the Métropole hotel. There, we learn why he quit working for the institute; money. He could no longer earn bonuses when expeditions to the Zone began being handled by robots:

Important here is that his salary still isn’t terrible, and the institute did not fire him. He chose to quit, because he wants a sense of freedom, of not being bossed around, and the money to splurge on things (like cigarettes) and have peace of mind. This is aptly summarised in the line “a man needs money so that he doesn't have to always be counting it”.

Obviously, another reason why he quit is Kirill’s death. In his final, rambling monologue, Redrick admits that he hated working for the Institute, so it’s very likely that Kirill and his idealistic visions for the future were the only things keeping him there.

So, to summarise, at this stage, Redrick’s character looks more or less like this: 1) Wants to do honest work and disassociate from his criminal past. 2) Believes the world can be saved by technology from the Zone. 3) Will never sell Witches’ Jelly to dangerous 3rd parties. 4) Needs money for a basic standard of comfort and freedom from authority. 5) Won’t abandon someone to their death, even someone as bad as Buzzard. 6) Beauty doesn’t matter if, morally, you’re an awful person. 7) Loyal to his wife and daughter.

Having lost Kirill, and with him, his hope for a better future, Redrick’s new source of meaning is his wife and daughter. His purpose in life is providing for them, especially Monkey, whose condition makes her the target of bullying.

(Side note: One thing always annoyed me. Why did they call her Monkey?! That’s asking for people to bully your kid! Was it just a coincidence, or did they really name her after her birth defect? And this is an accurate translation of the Russian “Мартышка”, no weird translation problems here.)

But this new purpose - providing for his family - crashes into him hard when he’s set-up, betrayed, caught by the police, and is forced to flee. It’s then revealed that Redrick had a trump-card up his sleeve - a jar of Witches’ Jelly and an interested buyer, willing to pay the money to his wife in instalments while he rots in prison. It’s never stated how long his prison sentence is, but Redrick estimates that evading arrest (which he did to arrange the transaction) will add another year to it.

To be clear, this jar was prepared as a last resort. He clearly doesn’t want to do this. Earlier, in the Métropole, when he's asked if he managed to procure it, he lies, saying that he didn’t:

He promises to get it later, keeping Throaty interested, but not giving it to him. Later, as he’s about to make the call, he admonishes himself:

This the first major step in Redrick’s decline, where his self-interest explicitly endangers the lives of others, and he still picks himself over others.

Before moving into Chapter 3, one part which I’d like to quickly touch on is the circumstances of Redrick’s arrest. I didn’t pick up on this on my first read, but Ernest wasn’t the one who set-up the police ambush in the Borscht. The one who set up Redrick’s arrest was Richard Noonan:

At first, I was confused as to why Redrick never realised that Noonan betrayed him, but after looking at it more closely, and despite how stupid it may sound, I genuinely think Redrick was so sleep-deprived that he forgot Noonan was the one who told him to drive to the Borscht in the first place. After getting into the cab, he falls asleep and wakes up, incorrectly thinking he told the driver to take him to the bank:

Regardless, in Chapter 3, we learn that Richard Noonan is some sort of government agent, working for the Institute or with law enforcement in some capacity. His mission is to shut down the “flow of materials from the Zone through Harmont”, which is why he has been befriending Stalkers and infiltrating their social circles, monitoring them. His activities include buying artefacts from Stalkers and rerouting them to the Institute:

If you’ve been paying attention, the Stalker which Noonan mentions in the above excerpt, the one he is stringing along and exploiting for his swag, is Creon, the Maltese Stalker which Redrick tried to pay to give up on the profession and go back home in Chapter 1. He persevered, became a successful, and what did it get him? He’s not an adventurer - he’s a pawn, drowning his sorrows in booze, getting closer to death, unaware that he’s being exploited by Noonan.

The worst part of this, which is never said explicitly, but heavily implied, is that the Institute is allowing certain Stalkers to operate because real humans are better, more effective gatherers of artefacts then their officially sanctioned robots. They are supposedly cracking down on this illegal activity, but they don’t mind taking advantage of it while they can:

There’s a sickening duality to it. Officially, Stalkers are criminalised, thrown in jail, ostracised. But behind the scenes, the Institute relies on them to deliver them materials, strings them along and keeps them on their payroll.

(Side note: I’ll let you draw whatever real-life parallels you find applicable. The ones that immediately come to my mind are the US prison-industrial complex and the funding of the the Taliban, but I’m sure you can find many, many more.)

Later, we generally get to see Richard Noonan being a horrid person - beating up a subordinate for having overlooked a group of Stalkers who were sneaking into the Zone without the Institute’s awareness.

Following this, Noonan has his conversation with Valentine Pillman, where the analogy of a “roadside picnic” is used and where the book derives its title. The general message is that we’re completely insignificant. The visitation wasn’t an instance of aliens coming to contact us or conquer us - they were just passing by and accidentally dropped a bunch of their trash on us.

Of course, Pillman qualifies this by saying that this is just his personal theory, and that there is no evidence to support this, or any other interpretation. He points out that to speculate about the motives of non-human beings by applying human psychology to them is folly, and calls xenology a pseudoscience.

For how central this conversation seems to be to the book (it’s in the title, after all), I don’t actually think that it’s a particularly interesting concept. It speaks to a general existential dread many people can probably relate to, being insignificant in the face of the infinitely complex, incomprehensible mechanisms of the cosmos. But it seems quite simple and self-contained, especially compared to the layered, interconnected themes of the rest of the book. It’s quaint.

Much more interesting to me are the things we find out about the artefacts recovered from the Zone. Eternal Batteries, seemingly capable of producing infinite energy, are used to power people’s private cars. Black Sprays, little beads which one theory claims are huge swathes of compressed space, are used to decorate jewelry:

To be blunt, Kirill was wrong. The artefacts from the Zone and the research done by the Institute are not “saving the world”. They’re accomplishing almost nothing. At best, they become the playthings of the wealthy and powerful, while the working class is literally killing themselves in the Zone to acquire them. At worst, they’re causing horrible accidents and killing people, like the Currigan labs incident:

The point of this is to show that fancy new technology does not inherently uproot old systems of injustice and exploitation. Without societal change, even something as reality-shattering as an alien invasion will be slotted into the old way of things. There’s even a passing mention of more luxury accommodations being built in Harmont in response to... tourists:

I saw another Tumblr post tagged with #roadside picnic, complaining about how people are trying too hard to make every soviet novel into something political. Well, I’m sorry. IT IS POLITICAL. You’re just not paying attention. If you disagree, I challenge you to read the above passage about “the suburbs being emptied” and tell me that it’s not trying to communicate anything about the economical systems ruling Harmont.

And if I need to spell it out, the force consuming and destroying the lives of Stalkers is not “the Zone”. It’s capitalism. The characters constantly talk about greenbacks, about needing money. The reason Stalkers need to break the law and risk their lives is either because they have rent to pay, or because they want to become financially stable enough to be free from the coercion of bosses and landlords.

The entire reason Redrick betrays his moral convictions in Chapter 2 is because of money. He leaves the Institute because his job is being automated, his pay is being cut, and he doesn’t want to live paycheck to paycheck. He wants to be free. And finally, he sells the Witches’ Jelly because he has to keep his family fed while he’s stuck in jail.

And if you still think I’m just reading too much into things, seeing what I want to see, I’d like to take you back to Chapter 2 for a few notable passages. Namely, Redrick’s experiences as he is entering the luxury hotel, Métropole:

This is Redrick, talking to a cop. Yes, the police, so eager to harass him in Chapter 1, are suddenly asking him if he’s alright, offering to help, calling him “mister”. So what changed?

Well, he is wearing a suit, holding a suitcase, standing in front of a fancy hotel. They assumed he’s rich. That he’s a respectable citizen, that he’d never need to steal anything.

There’s a genius reversal here - in Chapter 1, Redrick was an honest lab worker, but was profiled and stopped by the police. In Chapter 2, while the cop is trying to help him, he’s on his way to an illegal deal with a suitcase full of contraband. He’s an actual criminal, but he’s treated with kindness, because he looks upper-class.

And if you still somehow think this is all a coincidence, I ask you - why is this scene here? Why was it written? Seriously, it’s such a random moment, a complete non-sequiteur from everything happening beforehand, and I never hear anyone talk about it. Redrick, out of nowhere, begins having strong hallucinations and has to stop to catch his breath. If the key information being conveyed here is “Redrick suffers from hallucinations”, why not just have him catch his breath and move on? Why add this random cop, trying so hard to be helpful?

The answer is simple. It’s not a “random cop”. It’s social commentary on how cops exist to protect and serve the ruling class.

In the hotel itself, we have this moment where Redrick steps into an elevator full of absurdly, comically obnoxious rich people:

If you’ve been ignoring the attached excerpts so far, I urge you to read this one. I cannot adequately summarise how seeping with contempt and revulsion these descriptions are. Redrick closes his eyes to try to “shut out” these people, to not have to look at them. The young boy is eating chocolate, of course, drooling, while his mother has the Black Sprays we talked about earlier on her necklace. This is the privileged, wealthy elite and Redrick HATES them and what they represent. It’s textbook class antagonism.

And this doesn’t just affect Redrick. Returning to Chapter 3, Noonan visits Redrick’s house and speaks to Guta, who tells him about their struggles with Monkey, whose condition had worsened, destroying most of her cognitive abilities:

Noonan is wealthy. He’s one of the people who uses a car powered by an Eternal Battery. He lives in hotels. But more importantly:

Noonan genuinely sympathises with Redrick and Guta’s plight, and the suffering they’re going through because of Monkey’s condition. He genuinely wants to help them, and is ready to, but then remembers his boss. He remembers that his job is not to help the ones who are struggling and need it the most, but to serve the system. To label these people criminals and “infiltrate” them, monitor them, instead of simply befriending them.

Of course, Richard Noonan is an awful person. But we're almost given the sense that, given his position, he doesn’t even have an opportunity to be a good, honest person. When he genuinely feels sympathy for those he exploits, he forces himself to stop and suppresses his good nature. Because that’s what’s expected of him, what his job requires. He’s there to protect the interests of the Institute - the ruling class.

I really hope these examples adequately demonstrate what I believe to be the main political themes of the story, because I’m going to put those aside for a moment and go back to the personal, moral journey of the main character.

The only thing of note left in Chapter 3 is Redrick’s father and his reaction to news of the lab accident.

[UNIFNISHED DRAFT ENDS HERE]

(TRANSLATION NOTE: All quotations are taken from the Antonina W. Bouis translation, despite there being an arguably more accurate translation by Olena Bormashenko. This is out of habit, not preference - I’m more familiar with the Bouis translation, which made searching for quotes easier.)

(Huge thanks to Antonina W. Bouis and later Olena Bormashenko for bringing this book to an anglophone audience, to Irena Lewandowska and Rafał Dębski for translating it to Polish, and to Siergiej Rajkov and Milan Asadurov for doing the same in Bulgarian.)

[hellisanhonourstudent]

Four male blorbos,four Hogwarts Houses

Light Yagami - Ravenclaw (I've seen this fucker being sorted in Gryffindor way too many times,but Light is such a cowardly bitch and way too prone to decieving himself. The Gryffindor in Light is at the very least 90% him emmulating Soichiro,lol).

Soo-Won - Gryffindor (he has all the courage lacking in Light,and doesn't need to tell himself a truckload of lies to keep going).

Peeta Mellark - Hufflepuff (he can fit into Slytherin too,IMO. However,I feel like he's cunning and manipulative in a Hufflepuff way).

Graham Calloway - Slytherin (This shithead ain't a Ravenclaw,CS fandom,he's just Bellum's probable favourite student). A case could be made for Gryffindor,because Gray is often straightforward and bold when getting after stuff he wants/people he likes,but this is still pretty shallow,IMO. He started out as an ambitious young man wanting to make it big in his career,and his true redemption arc - no,brainwashing doesn't count because it has to be out of one's own volition - was basically him wanting to give Carmen's agency back. There was no mention of him deciding to go against VILE because the institution was evil,nor anything like that. Gray started out wanting to be rich,and ended motivated by personal loyalty.

Tomorrow,I'll make one for the girls!