#but honestly i'm just jaded with tv in general

[italoniponic]

guys, let me explain *barely holding together* this is even funnier bc the show's host name is ANA MARIA

ninguém:

Shadow passando por baixo de uma mesa depois de dar uma surra no Team Sonic: HHHMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM *sons de latidos*

(referência antigona, eu sei)

Shadow at a Brazilian tv programm

[starcatching]

Get to Know Your Tumblr Mutuals

i was tagged by @hwanswerland thank you and please forgive me for being one million years late i thought i posted this but it stayed in my drafts😭💗

What's the origin of your username? -> i just thought it sounded cute, plus it's a little nod to my love for all things space <3

OTP(s) + shipname -> i don't really have one🤷

Song stuck in my head -> FUFN by jade

Weirdest habit/trait -> i don't know if it's weird because people either get it or they don't but.. no outside clothes allowed on the bed!!! i don't care if i've been outside for 5 minutes or 5 hours, those clothes are not touching my bed affsfs

Hobbies -> mostly reading and writing, but also rollerblading, piano, giffing, fashion, and falling into weird wikipedia rabbit holes. learning random useless facts should be my main hobby fr💀

If you work, what's your profession? -> i'm an HR specialist, but right now i also help out small local fashion stores on the side-whenever they get new pieces in i wear the clothes for photos they use on their socials. so it kind of balances out the terrible corporate vibe lmao

If you could have any job you wish what would you have? -> i wish to not be in need of a job 😭

Something you're good at -> i'm really good at planning. i think i have a sharp eye for detail so whether it's throwing together a last-minute trip or organizing a complex project i can break it all down and make sure everything's covered. also i've got a weird knack for fixing tech stuff - like i'll just quickly read up on it or just start tinkering and somehow it always works out

Something you hate -> spiders....ai art.... and the government👊😡👊

Something you forget -> to live in the present

Your love language -> oof, good question… i'd say quality time just because i'm the definition of an "errand friend." need someone to go grocery shopping with? i got you. getting the oil changed in your car? i'm on my way. need someone to hold your hand at the dentist? i'll be there ily. oh and also BANTER

Favourite movies/shows -> omg too many tv shows to list.. but off the top of my head i'd say mr. robot, black sails, and succession are some of my top shows. i'm not the biggest movie person but i love sci-fi/fantasy in general

What were you like as a child? -> easily entertained 😂 i could spend 5 hours playing outside or just as long customizing and building stuff in the sims. i used to draw a lot too, and that's something i'm sad i stopped doing because i was pretty good at it

Favourite subject in school -> literature, english and physics

Least favourite subject -> p.e.

What's your best/worst character trait? -> loyalty. if i care about you i'm all in, ride-or-die, no questions asked. your enemies are my enemies now lol. worst: tie between being conflict-avoidant and a perfectionist to the point it's lowkey self-destructive😎✌️

If you could change any detail of your life right now, what would it be? -> i wish i had more energy AND time to do everything i want to

If you could travel in time, who would you like to meet? -> there's no one specific and i don't wanna get all sad with it so maybe i'd just hit up a concert from back in the day. or honestly? i'd jump a few years into the future out of pure curiosity. but not too far... kinda nervous about what mess we might've made of the planet by then

no pressure tags <3 @artbora @applejongho @cordiallyfuturedwight @raplinenthusiasts @rashfcrd

[askror]

Jade Lanolin once more found herself in a strangely familiar room, finding a younger version of herself. This time it was a version of herself that she recognised.

The one who'd lost the tenrec she loved.

The younger sheep sat in front of the TV, idly watching what looked like some kind of documentary while a young fox snoozed away while resting his head against her arm.

Their eyes met and Jadolin couldn't help but smile at the scene in front of her.

"You're doing great." she said while gesturing to the little kit. "She'd be so proud of you."

"Scientists for generations have argued about the meaning of the ruin to little avail. Built like a temple but with no clear entrance or exit, the general consensus is some kind of monument to a goddess of the sun."

The clinical, elderly human with the bushy eyebrows droned along on television, only occasionally breaking away from his monologue to ramble about cucumber sandwiches. Lanolin, truthfully, had been wearing close to sleep herself as well. Tonight had been a good night; everyone had come together and aired out their concerns, and rather than the result being anything and everything falling to pieces beneath dissent between the Diamond Cutters, they'd done nothing but strengthen themselves.

Kit, all bundled up in a blanket like a fennec burrito, would probably have been mortified at ending up in such a position with his cheek resting on the sheep's bicep. She'd planned to tote him off to bed, but now her eyelids were growing heavier and heavier and-

"You're doing great. She'd be so proud of you."

The sheep flinched, dark-ringed eyes getting wide. It's clear that since Jade Lanolin last met this version of herself, her sleeping problems hadn't improved. Nor other things; the older Lanolin can also see this room in an unfortunately regressive state in general. Nothing adoring the white walls, simple and perfunctory furniture filling it.

Lanolin was spooked at first; and why wouldn't she be? Someone was suddenly in her living room! But her recognition slowly eases that out of her as she settled back to her previous state, speaking in a whisper: "I honestly thought you were a dream last time we met."

"Probably better to think of it that way." Jade Lanolin stopped behind the couch, reaching a gentle hand over the back and stroking the sleeping fennec's hair. He mumbled something about green wolves and poison. Video game dream, as usual. "But... It seems like you're pulling things together."

"As well as I can," Lanolin nodded, looking back at the television as it swung over a giant, mossy structure with seemingly uncountable stairs on its side. "...But the real test is seeing if that 'together' can last under pressure."

"The first step is always the hardest. Getting started, I mean. After that, it's just upkeep and clerical work. And I'm good at both of those, so..." She winked. Lanolin barely stifled an exhausted laugh.

"Yeah. This is definitely a dream." She shut her eyes. Meeting yourself was weird, but... Not unpleasant. "Thank you. For last time. The words of encouragement."

"Thank you for listening." Jade Lanolin decided it was probably best to leave these to to sleep. She bowed her head very slightly, giving one last look to the sleeping fennec and her younger self before leaving the door and whisking herself back where she belonged. She could only hope what they put together as a foundation was strong enough to last... But she had a good feeling about it. And that was definitely a strong start.

[prahacat]

Hi, I really hope you don't mind me asking a few of the questions from the fan fiction writers ask because I'm curious. Of course it's totally fine if you don't want to answer.

✨What's a fic you've posted you wish you could breathe life into again and have people talking about it? (or simply a fic you wish got more credit)

💝what is a fic that got a different response than you were expecting?

🍭why did you start writing?

And my own... Do you write in your first or second language and how does this affect your writing process?

Hey! I LOVE talking about writing and (fan) fiction so thank you so much for giving me an excuse to do so! <3

✨ A fic I wish got more credit: "The Red Night" (it's on both tumblr and ao3) Yes yes, I know. It's poetry, it's very short, it's kinda weird(?) but also kinda generic. Basically the kind of stuff where, as a writer, you're lucky if people click on it at all (and I'm beyond happy some people did and even liked it enough to leave kudos/likes or reblog <3). But I spent several days on those ~500 words, I love how it turned out, it's like my favorite child, it's so ME ... and sometimes I can't help but wish it would get the same love as my other fics.

💝 A fic that got a different response than I was expecting: All of them, in some way, but especially "Three Days of Thawing". It was the first fanfic I uploaded to ao3 after years of writing original fic only: a little oneshot I wrote as a part of a bigger project and ended up posting just for the hell of it. I honestly didn't expect to get a response at all. A fic where nothing happens, it's just 15k of two old jaded men bickering and drinking tea? Little plot, hardly any romance? they don't even kiss. Who'd want to read that?

🍭 Why I started writing: Writing in general: Because of my love for words. My family had a lot of books, so I grew up with stories. As a kid, reading was like eating to me. Sometimes, when I was starved for words and there was no book around, I'd read the tv manual, a cookbook, the labels on my cereal box. Whenever I was bored, I'd dig through my parents' bookshelves until I found something that sounded interesting. Naturally, since it wasn't geared toward children, a lot of it went right over my head. For example, I remember reading this passage from Bronte's Jane Eyre:

‘As we are!’ repeated Mr. Rochester—‘so,’ he added, enclosing me in his arms. Gathering me to his breast, pressing his lips on my lips: ‘so, Jane!’

… and it had me so confused. I didn't get it. "Pressing his lips on my lips? Okay, so like kissing? Why doesn't the author simply write kissing then? That's such a strange, roundabout way of phrasing it!" Yes, I was very young. But moments like that made me think about the different ways to use language for the first time. I feel like writing stories is all about expressing simple truths in a bit of a strange, roundabout way.

Writing fan fiction: I started writing fanfic (again) because I was stuck with my original story. So I wrote a short story about my current obsession, Star Wars. And then another one. And another. I love the disaster lineage, and I love writing for the PT because so many of my favorite themes can be accommodated in the stories. A lot of it is about family, about the more quiet, intimate struggles that happen inside of us, but there's also something so inherently "Greek tragedy" about the characters that makes their destruction feel intense and almost inevitable.

First and second language and how it affects my writing process: I write in both my first and second language. English is my second language. I don't think my writing process differs much in either language. My English is okay, I guess ... I keep looking up comma rules and prepositions when editing.

There are a few instances, especially when writing emotional, introspective scenes, where the idea of what I want to say evokes a strong, very specific feeling, but it remains abstract, almost like music or a blur of colors. Or like a train of vague thoughts, but they keep moving and flashing and I can't grasp them. And in such cases, I sometimes resort to my native language to "search" for imagery or tangible concepts that can be expressed with language. It's not like I have difficulty expressing my ideas in English, it's more that the process of pulling them from some unconscious, wordless depths into the realm of consciousness and language comes easier to me in my native tongue. I guess it's more of a creativity technique?

For example, I remember using this technique on this little paragraph from "Three Days of Thawing" (the fic where Dooku is stuck in his Redemption Arc, oscillating between self-loathing and the need for acceptance/forgiveness):

Maybe Dooku wasn’t happy, how could he ever again, but he had learned to put some distance between himself and the hated shadow inside him, the way most people no longer think about the bacteria living in their mouths or the mass of dead skin cells on their bodies, all a gross but inevitable part of the self. Him: the man he hated, and the man who hates, and the man who tries to forgive them both, and the dizzying distance in between. Sometimes, when he sits by the lake and stares at his reflection trapped inside the ice, he can delude himself into believing he might become whole again.

I felt the part about the split self very strongly, but it wasn't until I thought about it in my native language that the words to express this feeling came to me.

There are quite a few scientific studies about how emotions are accessed and processed differently in your native language and in your second language. I know I'm definitely a bit more detached from my emotions when I'm speaking/thinking in English. In contrast, my "English brain" is more rational and analytic, which is great for "killing your darlings" and avoiding sappy, melodramatic dialogue (something I love to write, but it often doesn't feel right for my fav characters like Dooku or Obi-Wan).

Gah, I could really talk about this topic for hours! It's so fascinating to me, and I'd be very interested in hearing the experiences of other bilingual writers!

Thank you again for the questions, this was a lot of fun!

[gillianthecat]

13 Books I've Read Recently (plus 1 tv show)

I haven't watched any BL since my last post on My Stand In, but I have been reading! A lot of it's been rereading, actually. Here's a list. Hit me up if you want to talk about any of them :-)

You Should Be So Lucky

and several other m/m romances by Cat Sebastian. She's one of my favorite romance authors, with only a few misses for me. I'm loving her recent-ish switch from regency to 20th century historical. I read her newest, You Should Be So Lucky, about a baseball player and a reporter assigned to write a story about him. So good! That inspired me to go back and reread some of her older works.

The Ruin of A Rake

(reread) is a regency enemies to lovers between the titular jaded rake and an uptight social climber, a combination that is catnip to me. Her main characters are all multifaceted and emotionally complex, but she's also very good at creating complicated and real-feeling side characters, even if they're only seen briefly.

Hither, Page and The Missing Page

(rereads) "Cozy" mysteries in post WWII England, in a village and a country house respectively. Both trace the romance between a doctor with PTSD and a spy sent to investigate a murder in the village, so best read in order. For me the romance and the mystery plots are well balanced, though obviously that depends on what you want out of those genres.

I love James and Leo so much. Cat Sebastian generally writes people who are finding refuge in each other, in a way that many call cozy and gentle, but for me she shows the cruelties of the world that they are seeking refuge from in a way that is unvarnished and raw enough that her books never feel fluffy or saccharine to me. The gentleness always feels hard won.

The mystery was the perfect amount of mysterious for me. In my first reading I don't think I guessed it, but going back I could see every step that got there. I don't have the brainpower to get into it now but I liked the ways she treated the idea of "family" and community.

the A Charm of Magpie series

by KJ Charles (rereads). Charles is another one of my go to romance authors, though this was her first series and it shows. I'll just copy my Goodreads review:

Half a star off because this was obviously KJ's early work and the writing is a bit rough around the edges. Another 1.5 stars subtracted for the pretty egregious orientalism. She has become more thoughtful in the decade since writing this, but it's pretty 😬 in this series. I realize that she's invoking the pulp novels of the time, but it was racist then and it's racist now. There are better ways she could have done it.

Other than that, I was captivated by Stephen and Crane's relationship, and the rest of the characters. I also like the magic system! It is a pulpy, paranormal, plot heavy D/S romance, and the story of the relationship is spread out over the trilogy, so if those elements aren't your thing you're not going to enjoy it, but if they are, and you can ignore the orientalism, the trilogy is a thrilling ride. I don't want to get into spoilers, but I appreciate the overarching development of Stephen and Crane's relationship, and the exploration of their power dynamics, although it takes up less page time than the action-adventure parts of the plot. People who work for non-profits/in social services may have a strong reaction to the last novel in particular.

I highly recommend most of her later works. Laws of Attraction fans may be particularly interested in Think of England, the Slippery Creatures trilogy, and Any Old Diamonds.

A Spindle Splintered

by Alix E. Harrow. Nice enough riff on Sleeping Beauty. I didn't dislike it, but I'd honestly forgotten I'd read it until i looked at my Libby history, so it didn't make that big an impact. I pretty sure it's young adult, and while it wasn't immature, I'm just not the target audience. A very interesting use of fairy tales, and some intriguing moral complexity. Lots of pop culture references that actually fit the character and story, though those generally are something that annoys me. I have another of Harrow's novels on hold (Future Witches) which looks more intriguing to me.

Thief Liar Lady

by D. L. Soria. Another fairy tale retelling, this time of Cinderella. DNF, and normally i would list it, but I was really intrigued by the intro, and so frustrated that it was not what I thought it was going to be (spy for the independence movement infiltrates the monarchy by seducing the crown prince with magic). I almost want to rewrite it as what it should have been. Also an example of why 1st person is so tricky for me. It's incredible when done well, but the narrative has to have an interesting and distinct voice. (This one didn't. Harrow's book above did.)

Sunburn

by Chloe Michelle Howarth. So good. An intense queer coming of age novel about a girl in early 90s rural Ireland. This is an example of the first person narration being essential to the story being told. I would imagine fans of I Told Sunset About You and My Beautiful Man would like it. Though it's less of a romance than those, but has that physicality and intensity of obsession.

Sailor's Delight

by Rose Lerner. A regency? 19th century England at least mm romance between a Jewish navy agent (he lends money to and handles the finances for sailors) and his gentile sailor client. Lots of historical details, which is interesting/overwhelming depending on your mood. Incorporated a busybody family in a ay that I actually enjoyed, which is rare for me. Lerner is one of my go-to romance authors, and one of the few I trust for m/f romance, though admittedly I haven't read any of her m/f in a while. It was very good, but didn't sweep me away. That might say more about my mood at the time instead of the book.

If I Never Met You

by Mhairi McFarlane (reread). The sole m/f romance on this list. Fake dating romance between a 36 yo (gasp! Ancient and over the hill 🙄) lawyer who was dumped by her boyfriend for 18 years and the charming office playboy. McFarlane was one of the few contemporary m/f romance writers I remember enjoying. And I still think she's an engaging writer! Kept my attention the whole way. It's very heterosexual gender roles, in the way that the slight pushback the characters give to that framework only serves to emphasize how bound by it the premise of the book is. But her protagonists are compelling characters anyone. They are nominally romances, but generally I find her books to be more about women finding themselves after major life shifts, and as such the male love interests tend to be...not exactly two dimensional, just kinda out of focus, and the chemistry an afterthought. That's true of everything of hers I've read. I did like what we saw of this ML, Jamie.

The main problem with this book in particular is that she's a white author trying to write a black main character, and she is very clumsy about it. Her books are very white in general. Another had an "exotic" half Italian protagonist who was looked at strangely for bringing lasagna to school. Lasagna! White Brits are a strange people. Also fatphobia, as part and parcel of the heteronormative gender roles. *sigh* My favorite of hers I've read is Mad About You.

(Also I side note: I realized I think Alexis Hall's Boyfriend Material might be riffing on this novel in particular? It's not at all the same story, but it contains many of the same elements, remixed—neglectful rockstar dad, free-spirited mom and her platonic? life partner, fake dating for respectability purposes, playboy x upright citizen, lawyers... Anyone else read both and see it? Hall is deliberately a magpie of the romance genre so it is possible.)

Between the Teeth

by Taylor Fitzpatrick (sort of a reread.) This is the last of a trilogy (also called Between the Teeth). Fitzpatrick writes hockey "R"PF except the hockey players are all made up. She writes on ao3, a chapter at a time, so it has the rhythms, intensity, and genre-crossing feel of fanfic even though it's technically not. I love her work, though I suspect it's not for everyone. She's created a whole interconnected universe of hockey players and teams, which adds to the RPF feel. Most of her stuff is on ao3, but she's taken three stories and slightly edited them for publication.

and the TV show...

Scandal (the first three episodes)

I suspect I would have loved this if I'd watched it back when it aired in 2013. I was obsessed with Grey's Anatomy for a while. Even now I'm obsessed with Kerry Washington as Olivia Pope. The genuine power emanating from her! But I'm just not currently able to maintain the suspension of disbelief necessary for the plot contrivances soap opera ridiculousness of it all.

I like her team of lawyers, and am intrigued by each of them individually. Also their office is really cool architecturally. (But how come anyone can wonder into it at anytime? Shouldn't they have keys or door codes or something?! My inability to ignore stuff like this is why I can't be watching soap operas right now.)

Probably back in 2013 I could have gotten into the forbidden romance! between Olivia and the Bill Clinton stand in, but in 2024 finding the sex appeal of the American president is too big an ask. Especially since Grant doesn't seem to have anything else going for him besides the "cachet" of his office, the whiny manchild. I get that the fantasy is that Olivia is so amazing that she has the "leader of the free world" (blech. and yes they literally call him that. multiple times) desperate for her. And obviously there is a lot of drama that can be mined from this secret romance. But she deserves so much better. Maybe he gets more interesting but so far I am bored and confused by him. He's not even interesting enough to hate.

I was surprised by all the emphasis on Olivia and her team being the "white hats" and that what they does helps people. I was assuming they would lean more into the inherent moral greyness/amorality of being fixers for the rich and powerful? Which would be more interesting to me than all this "trust your gut," "we represent people who are telling the truth" nonsense. Maybe the show will get more explicitly morally ambiguous as it goes on?

Also, Holy Slut-Shaming, Batman!!! Every single episode has managed to demean women who have sex, multiple times. It was genuinely shocking/impressive to me. I haven't watched network US American tv in a while, I guess. And nothing as "scandalous" as those dirty, dirty sluts, I guess. (Also, and this is both a minor spoiler for ep 3 and evidence of my inability to suspend disbelief, but isn't the whole reason a madam keeps a list of her rich and powerful clients is to be able to blackmail them into protecting her? How is that the unexpected brilliant solution lol.)

Anyways. Watch for Kerry Washington! And maybe for her team. Just make sure to turn off your brain first.

(Maybe I should have put these each in their own post but oh well.)

[nouklea]

I used to be a HUGE fan of Star Wars. I grew up with the movies on Beta Tapes, and then on VHS, recorded from the tv; I knew every sentence by heart, including the adds, and sometimes we would record the same movie again just to change the adds...

Then came the books. The amazing Timothy Zahn trilogy. And then other books, not as good, but still readable. The Jedi Academy trilogy from Kevin Jay Anderson. A few one-shots that had little to no impact if you read them it or not. Several were stupid, and I wrote my first fanfics trying to correct some of those flaws (on WordPerfect, DOS style, blue backscreen, saving the documents on floppy disks...).

Then we had a second bunch of movies. We frown at Jar Jar Binks, the CGI was overused, Yoda was drinking too much Redbull, but in general they were good.

More books came. Comic shows. PC games. You have no idea how many nights I spent in my late teens playing SW Rebellion in my basement. The walls of my bedroom were covered with pics cut from magazines, humorous comics, a sign to Vote Admiral Ackbar for President...

Then came more movies.

Rogue One was interesting.

In my opinion, the sequel trilogy could have been really good if a few elements had been properly adressed, but unfortunately, it's very bad. And not because of Rey. I'm a woman and I have absolutely no problem seeing a woman as a protagonist in a Star Wars movie. I was a Leia, a Mara Jade, a Jaina Solo fan, and Rey was actually ok. The plot was extremely bad and stupid, the dialogs were bad, but Rey was ok, and Kylo Ren too, to be honest. Don't get me started on that general dumbass, though.

I had some hopes for the Disney series. The Mandalorian was refreshing, and seemed to be in line with the original three movies in terms of aesthetic, of details, of tone, even if I'm really not a fan of the "mission of the week" format. Boba Fett? I watched the first episode and was bored by the main character doing nothing but remembering stuff. It killed the Mando for me since I had to watch both to follow the plot. Obiwan? It wasn't too bad, except for the big lack of original ideas : of all the missions they could have picked, they decided that he had to save Leia? Really? He already does that in A New Hope, for hell's sake...

So I ended up really sick of the entire franchise. It's not that I don't like it anymore, but it's just too much, and with the quality going down in terms of plots, characters, dialogs, I was worn out.

I didn't even tried Ashoka. I guess I was blased. It's not about the main character being a woman, it's because I was tired of the universe. And I had no interest in the Accolyte, it felt like another attempt at pulling the elastic.

Then I saw some people writing here about that show and finally gave it a try.

And fuck.

I really liked it.

It felt different. Yes, it destroys some myths. The Jedi aren't the pure white knights depicted previously. But you know what? It works. Because Luke has met only two damn Jedi in his life, and they are Obiwan and Yoda, nothing that could ruin a child's conception of long gone heroes. But the truth is, Jedis were involved with the politics. And they made mistakes. And they tried to fix or hide or use their mistakes to their advantages. There is a depth that we hadn't seen since the Amidala/Palpatine/Bail Organa/Obiwan/Mace Windu interactions about the Senate, or Moff Tarkin saying that the Emperor had given control to local governors.

Yes, that show had flaws too, of course. But, for once, I was quite happy with some content coming from the LucasFilm/Disney franchise. It was honestly better than a lot of stuff that came out since... Since Revenge of the Sith, to be honest!

And now they cancelled it.

So I guess I'll just go back to being blase.

What a waste...

What changes, though, is that now fanfics are available on AO3. I'm not alone with my floppies anymore.

I don't understand people who say that The Acolyte is the worst Star Wars show ever made (especially under the pretext of a pacing problem when no one cried foul for that in Ahsoka or even The Book of Boba Fett, which much more deserves the title of worst show made under Star Wars because the writing is shaky and they also mixed it with the Mandalorian for X reasons...), while it is still one of the rare creations made under Disney which finally deals perfectly with the themes of the story, no offense to those who idealize the Jedi.

On top of that, to say that this is the worst thing to ever happen to Star Wars ? Someone has never seen the special christmas or the films made with stupid kids it seems.

On the contrary, The Acolyte was a breath of fresh air for Star Wars. A positive renewal compared to everything we have been given since Star Wars 8, although certainly The Acolyte was very imperfect, that did not detract from the excellent quality of these themes and the way she treated them.

By canceling this Show, Star Wars is proving right to the fanboys who say that Star Wars is not a place for romance (even though it has existed since the first Star Wars) is not a place for important strong women (even though it's been there since the first Star Wars) and now it's not a place for people of color !

While we are still in a universe where we have aliens with green skin, blue skin, etc, some of whom have their own stories in the extended universe that many would love to see adapted !

But non-white humans in the galaxy far, far away who would be the main protagonists of a Star Wars spin-off, does that scare you ?!

But I'm actually hallucinating !

[knowlesian]

ofmd ask game number 9 please (love your analysises (ses?))

THIS IS WHY I LOVE ANSWERING THESE OVER AND OVER okay let's see, what haven't i done.

i'm gonna go with the costuming! for a couple reasons.

the basics: these are fun costumes. i'm all for lavish period pieces with a passion for detail and accuracy also existing, but much in the way audiences have gotten sort of jaded and cinema sins-poisoned into forgetting how to suspend disbelief, we have forgotten that sometimes people aren't aiming for real world accuracy and that's also very cool and fun.

ed's got a funky little croptop and fang's got a hot topic belt as a headband!!! nobody here thinks that's period-accurate, they just think it's fun.

ofmd reminds me of theatre, a lot, even beyond the ways in which canon is constantly yelling ALL THE WORLD IS A STAGE!!! WE ARE ALL MERELY PLAYERS!!!! IN OUR LIFETIMES, WE PLAY MANY PARTS!!!! THEATRE IS BOTH TEXT AND METAPHOR NOW WATCH ME DO A FUCKIN BACKFLIP WHEEEEEEE. a lot of it is Vibes and structure, but the costumes s c r e a m community theatre in specific, where somebody's bedsheet is caesar's toga and due to a last minute fuckup in who was bringing what, marc anthony will be wearing crocs tonight and not lace-up sandals as originally planned.

...i honestly need to write more about the Vibes and Structure part of this because i think there's a lot to be said about why ofmd reminds me more of a play than it does a traditional tv show, but LATER.

anyway: the costumes are fun, but they're also a visual reminder that this show is not trying to be a period piece in anything but the general framing device, so just the simple choice to mix things up in costumes provides all this thematic and narrative oomph that would otherwise be easier to overlook.

their use of moths/pinocchio/phrenology/etc can be missed entirely, especially if somebody doesn't know the real world timeline, but looking at the way they style everybody and the uniform refusal to have period accuracy as a goal, it reminds the audience that this is not taking place in the real world, but rather the world the writers want to exist.

also like. taika's belly is now tumblr legend because they don't give a fuuuuuuuck about trying to play by the rules of linear time, so like: all hats off, forever, glory to the croptop king.

[mobiused]

What happens if they disband though? Besides freeing them mistreatment, which is worth it to me but still also so painful.. What do you predict happening to all of them? We have to keep up with all 12 of them separately? Honestly, it could be a good thing, I know there would be stuff to look forward to from it, but I'm still so sad .. :(

i genuinely don't think they'll disband before their contract ends (earliest 2023). i can't predict what would happen with the members, but there's a lot of opportunities lying ahead for most of them. chuu, yves, heejin, and hyunjin all do well on the brand ranking, and the first three get gigs pretty regularly, so it's easy to imagine they'd appear on TV as personalities quite often. heechuu aside are obvoiously successful due to being flagship members, chuu doubly so because of her unwavering optimism and one of the pioneers of the new brand of kind influence idols. yves especially is sought after because of her amazing comedic sense, and hyunjin's eccentric personality is appreciated by the general public more than a lot of people give credit for (huge boost in rankings after trolling kim gura the entire episode where she appeared as just a panelist, also went trending 1st everywhere when she was actually performing as jade bead).

hyeju's personality was also strongly praised on city fisherman as uniquely sardonic and cynical and a breath of fresh air compared to other female idols, but i don't think she's had enough solo schedules to be particularly in demand. also i'm pretty sure once her contract up she's gonna run away back to uijeongbu lol. choerry has explicitly expressed interest in being an actor too, oh, heejin recently also said she wanted to pursue acting more. jinsoul, chuu, yves & haseul definitely want to continue their music careers, i'm pretty sure lip and heejin do too... all of them are capable for CFs and photoshoots, and yeojin, vivi & gowon are shoeins for photoshoots...

try not to be sad! LOONA are a family and no disbandment or contract expiration will change that. think about how happy they will be to have their freedom, both creatively speaking (think about the members who are interested in song production) and in a literal sense. vivi will finally be able to go home, hyeju can run off to the countryside, and the more overlooked members members can get agents who will actually give them the promotion and attention they deserve. and like i said, the girls are a family, they will always be together and i'm sure we'll get plenty of content of them together too. also i genuinely believe it will be a really long time away - at LEAST 2 years minimum. to me, disbandment is analogous to the universe closing a door and opening a window :)

[scootersscooter]

No I definitely agree. Elena as a source of Latino representation is just a mixed bag overall. Because the Avaloran culture pulls from various Latino cultures to pick and chose from to create one whole.

Elena herself I would argue is excellent latina representation. She serves as a vessel for young children (latinos and non-latinos) to see themselves and all that they're capable of. Speaking as someone who was the target audience of the show when it aired I remember vividly going to (my predominantly Latino) school and seeing a majority of girls my age dressed as Elena on Halloween. The show did it's job presenting a well rounded princess for young latinos to look up to.

Growing up latino you kind of resign yourself to not seeing yourself represented on screen. This didn't particularly sadden me it was more just a fact of life. But Elena filled a gap that most of us (the target audience needed). She's pretty, capable, and not afraid of asking for help. She loves and leans on her family and friends whenever she needs them, and ACTIVELY EMBRACES her culture—which is something that many young latinos struggle to do, whether it be because of racism, familial pressure, or just pressure to assimilate in general.

I think the main issue with Elena of Avalor is that it was presented as something that it's not. There was so much pressure on her to be the first Latina Disney princess. She was never going to possibly be able to live up to what people expected.

Other princesses and fantasy lands can and do pick aspects from different cultures all the time. I'm not saying this is a good or bad thing, I'm just saying that it happenes. But because of racism (all around the world but especially in the U.S) latinos are not allowed this same privilege. We are taught to hate ourselves by a culture that diminishes our own, taught to try and assimilate ourselves into a culture of whiteness that actively tries to erradicate your culture every day. Whether there is or isn't a right way to create this Latino fantasy land honestly isn't even really my point.

The reason we can't (not necessarily that we should) is that current Latino representation in the form of leading characters is very minimal. We should be able to easily name multiple examples of TV shows movies that have accurate depictions of various Latino cultures, especially because non-latinos tend to see us all as one, as all the same even though every country has it's own various cultures that have no reason to be lumped together. Until then audiences will remain very jaded, suspicious, and critical of any and all Latino representation.

Personally I do enjoy Elena of Avalor despite all it's flaws (likely helped by the fact that I am Mexican) but I am also highly critical of how the show mishmashes cultures together because sometimes it does feel very jarring when you're watching the show.

Would I say it's the best representation out there? No, not by a long shot. But I definitely do think that it's a start and hopefully sooner rather than later we can get better constructed and we'll thought out Latino representation.

I think that Elena of Avalor really was just a bandaid on top of the already festering wound of racism and xenophobia in society.

The fact that most of you don't know that Disney Junior's Elena of Avalor is about Elena restoring her kingdom from the clutches of colonization and reconnecting her kingdom with others, nature, and it's own indigenous roots all while dealing with her own baggage after being trapped in an amulet for 41 years, trying to find herself, prove herself, and restore her kingdom to it's former greatness, and have instead chalked it up to "the Spanish princess show" and "bad Hispanic representation" actually keeps me awake at night

[fly-pow-bye]

ThunderCats Roar - “Prank Call”

Co-Executive Producer: Victor Courtright

Supervising Producer: Nate Cash

Producer: Marly Halpern-Graser

Story by: Victor Courtright

Teleplay by: Marly Halpern-Graser

Directed by: Jeremy Polgar

I was expecting a lot less from this episode just from that title, that’s for sure.

This episode starts with Lion-O talking about how, as Lord of the ThunderCats, he will not give up on fighting the forces of darkness, as the camera is zoomed right into his face. Gee, I wonder if he's not fighting those aforementioned forces of darkness, but actually doing something really mundane.

Big surprise, that turns out to be the case, as Lion-O is repeatedly punching a TV trying to get it to work. He's not lying about the darkness, he's just fighting against the darkness of a non-working TV. There's more of a joke here than one might realize. This is a problem, because there might not be any TV stores on Third Earth!

Tygra, the down-to-Earth straight man of this reboot's version of ThunderCats, decides to bring out his secret weapon...a TV manual that says "How to Television." If the grammar error was intentional, it really wouldn't fit Tygra as the down-to-Earth and by-the-book voice of reason. Lion-O decides to take all of this to heart and read along with him...

...or, he can just hit it with the Sword of Omens, and let the Eye of Thundara do all the work. Hooray for simplicity! Cheetara may also have a point about there probably being TV stores on Third Earth, because it does get at least one channel that airs the Silverhawks. Kids, that's another show by the same people who did ThunderCats. Maybe if this reboot does really well, we'll get "SilverHawks Squawk."

Unfortunately, this fictional reboot appears to be truer to the original than this one, as it's too slow and boring to appeal to today's kids. At least, that's what everyone seemed to imply about the original ThunderCats. WilyKit and WilyKat aren't swayed by the majesty of Commander Stargazer, and they want to go outside and explore. Tygra tells them that they can't go out to the wilderness by themselves unless they have a chaperone, and he specifically chooses the guy that just hit a TV with a sword. Well, it worked, so I can't argue with that logic.

Lion-O immediately jumps at the opportunity with a audible and visible "heck yeah", but the ThunderKittens respond with an audible and visible "that stinks." Lion-O tries to make his case.

Lion-O: Just us cool kids hanging out, getting into trouble, fun stuff!

Wait, us "cool kids"? Are they or are they not going to go with the "Lion-O is still a kid in a grown man's body" plot point from the original? They never really confirm this either way, though Roar's version of Exodus implies he was an adult even when he was escaping from his exploding home planet. WilyKit and Kat say that if he's a chaperone, he's one of those grownups, with Kat calling him "basically the same as Tygra."

We get a zoom in of his brain at that comment, which is extremely small. This is funny because he's not particularly intelligent. Honestly, I'm surprised he even had a brain. Cheetara comes up, saying that it's also not that bright of an idea to let the "baby king" babysit them, and Lion-O responds that he's basically an adult, which still leaves the answer to the “was he calling himself a kid because he’s still a kid in a grown man’s body” question vague, and there's no manual for that.

Tygra then takes out a book called "How to Responsible". I get it, like how the last manual was called "How to TV". Again, if the grammar error was intentional, it really wouldn't fit Tygra as the down-to-Earth and by-the-book voice of reason.

But no, he's not going to read some stinky manuals; he wants to be cool and hip, not by someone who is literally by-the-book. Lion-O doesn't want to be just a chaperone, he wants to be the best chaperone ever and a general "cool guy". First, he's a cool kid, and now he's a cool guy. I guess that "baby king" comment got to him, if a little bit less than "you're basically Tygra."

Using his and Snarf's knowledge of the coolest things on Third Earth, he takes them out surfing on the waves of the Jade Lagoon, swinging across the Bottomless Gorge, and telling stories about how he convinced a caveman to give him a time capsule. Less than a minute into this outing, the ThunderKittens are already calling him cool...well, almost cool. He rubs his cheeks with enthusiasm at that.

WilyKat points to a big rock with a bunch of pointer fingers pointing to a sign that says "Danger! Evil!! (Bad Stuff Inside!!!)" When the exclamation points get more numerous with each warning, one knows its serious. Even Lion-O knows this, as we don't get the way-too-easy joke about him just ignoring the sign and saying, "well, it must be safe!"

Instead, he tells WilyKit and Kat that they should leave it alone. Snarf nods to this oath of safety, which is fitting for the original Snarf without the annoyance of Snarf's way of speaking. WilyKit is not impressed by this, and says "whatever you say, Tygra."

So Lion-O kicks through the walls into the evil "danger evil" location, and they find a giant crystal in the middle of it. Lion-O gives some pause to interacting with it, thinking that it must be the evil stuff that sign was warning about, but the ThunderKittens immediately go out and touch it. Lion-O tries to raise some concerns, but WilyKit suggests that he's becoming Tygra. They get a lot less subtle about this here; Lion-O outright says that there should be a manual for that crystal. He's just setting himself up for the inevitable "you're just being like Tygra" talk, and he shuts his trap.

In the opposite end of the "how much one shuts their trap" line, the crystal then lights on fire and reveals that it was calling Mumm-Ra. Those telephone sounds aren't just to sound cool; it turns out that this crystal is like a giant telephone, and it only has one number on its speed dial. Mumm-Ra answers what a "who dares to call the tomb of Mumm-Ra", and WilyKit and Kat know exactly what to do.

We get the titular prank call, with WilyKat declaring himself as the evil plumber. Lion-O, again, tries to get the kids to stop doing that, but they respond by reminding him that they did kick his bony butt. Wow, a hint at continuity? Say it ain't so! Well, okay, they're going to kick his bony butt in any other episode featuring him, so it could be a coincidence.

Snarf is even more the voice of reason even if he doesn't use it in this reboot, and Lion-O eventually tells him that he shouldn't be like Tygra. It's a good downwards progression for Lion-O in this episode. He starts out as kind of the voice of reason, and then he just decides to be the irresponsible caretaker that joins in on the mischief.

He does have a reason for that. After convincing Mumm-Ra to screw his cauldron to fix his plumbing problem, causing his lair to flood, they laugh it up. Sure, they angered an evil ever-living guy, but one of the kids called Lion-O the best chaperone ever, so it must be fine for him to do that!

While Lion-O has a brain that is easily breakable, Mumm-Ra's is a bit bigger, as he eventually realizes what's going on. This crystal has a few other abilities, including teleportation, as he's able to reach through the crystal and grab the ThunderKittens right into it. Turns out, this was a crystal he had that he forgot about, even with all the pointer fingers surrounding it, and he knows how to use it. Well, sort of; Mumm-Ra does seem to share Lion-O's hatred of using manuals, as even he doesn't know all the features of the crystal. He doesn't even know where he teleported the ThunderKittens to, only hoping that it took them somewhere nasty.

He does know one other feature of this crystal; it can store and give him evil energies, turning Mumm-Ra into his buff form again. He's not as big now, but at sunset, he'll be at full power. Lion-O would try to stop him, but he realizes that he can't fly, and he's way up there floating on that phone-teleporter-evil-storer crystal.

Mumm-Ra, using the crystal to fly away, goes right back to his pyramid, and Lion-O vows to go to the pyramid and fight him. But not before we get another close zoom-in on his face, getting a slightly off-model shot of him covering his mouth and saying "before Tygra finds out."

For the record, Cheetara guesses it, but Tygra and Panthro are kind of clueless. Hearing some commotion surrounding that evil pyramid outside, they go into the Thunder Tank and drive it, two of them assuming the baby king and the kids must not be there. Tygra may be the straight man in this episode and almost every other time, but even he is fallible.

Lion-O shows up at Mumm-Ra's lair first, and reveals that he found a way against the "but he's up so high" problem: use the robotic Snarf's ability to turn into a jetpack. Maybe he just assumed he had that feature, because he seems to do everything. One can even play video games on him, though they're too old-school for the ThunderKittens. Huh, I realize that's a continuing theme from the last episode, and thankfully for this episode, that's not something I'll say very often.

Unfortunately for Lion-O and fortunately for the TV-Y7-FV rating, he figured out that strategy too late, as the crystal has given Mumm-Ra enough power to be impervious to stabbing. The other ThunderCats show up, and they see that Lion-O just lost the kids.

Everyone knows where this is leading to, but Mumm-Ra has no time for "sorry I'm such a jerk" scenes. He immediately commands silence. Turns out, that crystal takes that as a command to petrify the others into not so flattering poses. One can see Tygra's now-sculpted behind, one cannot unsee it.

He then throws Lion-O and Snarf into the crystal. I would say that if he petrified Lion-O too, the episode couldn't continue, but it's more likely he wouldn't know how to activate that feature again since he didn't read that all important manual. Lion-O’s not the only person who needs to learn a lesson.

It turns out, the crystal teleported to this void, the same void that the ThunderKittens were sent to. They tell him that there's absolutely no way out of this void, which only contains carpet, and they begin to cry about it. It's really over-the-top, with them crying buckets of tears over this situation and blowing their nose with tissue paper. It's not played like a tear jerker scene, it seems more like a "huh, look at how much they're overreacting" joke.

They do throw in one plot-important aspect to that joke, giving it a point: Lion-O asks where did they get that tissue paper from. This scene isn't funny, so we can't use the Roger Rabbit excuse, but it turns out that paper came from somewhere. Let's see Mumm-Ra figure out exactly what it was, as he's gloating about how the ThunderCats are defeated without him even worrying about reading a manual.

Lion-O: You mean this manual?!

It turns out, manuals are good! That's the lesson of the day, kids: make sure to be educated, and Lion-O had to learn this by having every other option be unavailable to him. That's how lessons should be learned!

While he may have found out how to get out of the void thanks to that manual, the sun still sets, and Mumm-Ra's power is now at its maximum. He's big enough to use the ThunderCats base as a chair again. However, he does not c, because reading the manual gave Lion-O knowledge beyond knowledge, giving him the ability to just talk to the crystal to undo all of that evil stuff.

The joke, of course, is that this mystical crystal is more like one of those smart home devices. It's even activated by saying, "hey Crystal", and it talks to him like a Google Assistant or Alexa. See, even ThunderCats has to go with modern times!

We get our fight scene, and yes, one of the actions is a "mummy butt spanking" from Panthro. One can see Mumm-Ra's not-nearly-as-sculpted cheeks, and they cannot unsee it. Outside of that, it's a decent fight scene, with one particularly neat effect throughout it: as one of the evil actions the crystal did was give Mumm-Ra the power, he's constantly fluctuating between his skeletal form and his muscular form. The animation isn't as good as the last episode's, but I'd say the rest of this episode stacks up pretty well against that one. At the end, Lion-O shouts a one-liner to finish this whole scene, echoing the moral of the story:

Lion-O: You should have read the manual! (winks at camera)

Including that eye wink makes that line so cheesy, but I'll accept it. At least it's self-aware about it. He decides to destroy the crystal, which causes Mumm-Ra to revert back to his skeleton form as he falls into the cauldron. Wait, I thought the cauldron was broken! Never mind. In the end, the day is saved, and Lion-O has learned not to trust glowing crystals. That wasn't exactly the lesson, but Tygra accepts it anyway.

Also, there's a "The End" title card drawn in crayon? Cartoons seem quite satisfied with just ending abruptly now, including every other ThunderCats Roar episode I've seen. It's not like this was the end of a running joke, it's just there. Seems like a minor thing to talk about, but I just found it kind of odd.

How does it stack up?

This one feels very similar to Boggy Ben, but it feels a lot more connected. I had no real issues with this episode other than the over-reliance on wacky face gags, something the last episode lacked. It has good pacing, and there's even a moral somewhere in here that the kids could learn.

Again, I was wondering if I should give this one rating or another, but in this case, it's whether it's a 4 or a 5. So far, this is the best episode I've seen, including some episodes after this one, so I might as well give it 5 cats. Maybe there will be better episodes that will make me re-rate this one, and I hope that's the case, but as it stands...

Next, we meet Mr. Driller.

← The Legend of Boggy Ben 🐈 Driller →

[fortunatenax]

tagged by:  @origcmibird​ technically tagging:  @fastestboyalive @pyroteched @serialhost @preservive @timesmark @assassincraft and whoever else wants to!!!

RULES:   share 1 - 5 pieces of music - popular songs, soundtracks, or other musical arrangements - that represent your muse.   they can be an aesthetic, mood, or an event in your muse’s life.   explain, briefly.

        ECHO — gumi // crusher-p .

WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON CAN SOMEONE TELL ME PLEASE WHY I'M SWITCHING FASTER THAN THE CHANNELS ON TV I'M BLACK THEN I'M WHITE NO SOMETHING ISN'T RIGHT MY ENEMY'S INVISIBLE I DON'T KNOW HOW TO FIGHT THE TREMBLING FEAR IS MORE THAN I CAN TAKE WHEN I'M UP AGAINST THE ECHO IN THE MIRRORECHO I'm gonna burn my house down into an ugly black I'm gonna run away now and never look back

       this is very much a song that i’ve used to contextualize some of fel’s responses to trauma- especially given that she bottles a lot of things up inside. it’s also pretty fitting to say that at the very beginning of everything, when i first took fel up as a muse, this song was her general being beneath the tired calm- she’d been planning a lot of things that she never got to act on, and thankfully never will now that she’s in a better place. but healing’s not linear and sometimes the panic and anxiety and the need to destroy the things that hurt her come back swinging.

         ARE YOU SATISFIED  — MARINA.

High achiever, don't you see? Baby, nothing comes for free They say I'm a control freak Driven by a greed to succeed Nobody can stop me 'Cause it's my problem if I wanna pack up and run away It's my business if I feel the need to smoke and drink and sway It's my problem, it's my problem if I feel the need to hide And it's my problem if I have no friends and feel I want to die

              this could be described as the constant playback in the back of felicity’s mind- she’s learning to take it easy, but she’s always been incredibly driven and craves success and frankly it can be a little self destructive sometimes. she also has her own unhealthy coping mechanisms that she keeps secret because, well, it’s her business not yours. honestly MARINA has a lot of songs that apply to fel scarily well, but this is one of the top ones for her. it applies to both her perfectionist attitude and drive for something more and the excuses she makes to destroy herself to get it, but it’s also reminiscent of her telling herself that it’s not necessary.

        HYMN — kesha.

This is a hymn for the hymnless, kids with no religion Yeah, we keep on sinning, yeah, we keep on singing Flying down the highway, backseat of the Hyundai Pull it to the front, let it run, we don't valet Sorry if you're starstruck, blame it on the stardust I know that I'm perfect, even though I'm fucked up Hymn for the hymnless, don't need no forgiveness 'Cause if there's a heaven, don't care if we get in This is a hymn, hymn, hymn for how we live, live, live This is a hymn, hymn, hymn for how we live, for how we live

              if echo is part of fel’s trauma, hymn is part of her healing. this is very much a celebration of the imperfect, of living life and loving it and accepting the good and bad- and growing from it. this is fel finding love and acceptance in her friends and in herself, her traveling and learning and loving. this song is both fel at her friends, and her acceptance of herself as everything that she is, in it’s gentlest form (which is what she needs, really- she’s always been too hard on herself).    

         KILL THE LIGHTS —the birthday massacre.

And after midnight we're all the same No glass shoe to bring us fame Nobody to take the blame We're falling apart Every story's a waiting game A flower for every name Their colors are paling In the falling rain

              honestly this song as a whole is very much fel’s aesthetic on multiple levels. it feels incredibly cynical, a mockery of fairy tales, but a few lines hint at hope- and a few hint at lost hope on the other side of things. and i’ll be honest, that suits her a lot- she’s in a better place but she’s still a mentally ill, jaded, depressed trauma victim after all. the song also itself is about being disillusioned with life the singer’s own choices- but where the singer keeps going with it because she feels she has no other choice in life, fel broke out and is making things better.

        CAN’T SLEEP —k.flay.

My mother told me that the world has got its plans I wanna hold em til they burn right through my hands Don't ask me questions cause I'm tired of confessing And I know that it's not much to say but I swear that I'd like to change I can't sleep, I hope I stay awake Cause I've been running, running, running all day Long nights, no peace, I feel like everybody's eyes on me I can't sleep, I can't sleep I can't sleep, I can't sleep I can't sleep, I hope I stay awake Cause I've been running, running, running all day Long nights, no peace, I feel like everybody's eyes on me I can't sleep, I can't sleep I can't sleep, I can't sleep

              i feel like this song is a combination of fel’s drive to succeed, her need for movement or action or just doing something somehow, her inability to really care for herself, her coping mechanisms, her slight paranoia and her zest for really living life now that she’s free and healing. it’s a bit messy, honestly, but its born out of both good and bad- her desire to live, and her unhealthy mentality alike. she wants to get out there and do things, wants to see what she’s missed and make sure she doesn’t lose out on anything else because of cruel adults!! she wants to be a better, different person! but also she feels a little bit like others judge her for what she’s lost out on, and it makes her uncomfortable and she hates it. (and this is not without basis, many people respond poorly when she mentions not having seen or done something before.) but there’s also a lot of uncertainty in the lyrics because while the singer is trying to keep up with a normal life, there’s always questions about everything- their future, their life, everything- and it makes them uncomfortable. this song really is about a lot of things- and almost all of them do apply here to felicity.

[vani11a-ice]

Of course! Honestly, yeah, I've found very few people online who have mostly realistic/fair interpretations of Star Wars media in general so that's perfectly understandable. Your Mara Jade analysis is literally the first criticism I've seen for her as there either aren't enough who know about her, or the ones who do would not spot/do not care to find flaws in her character .0.

(Long ramble incoming)

Mara Jade fans are incredibly obsessive for sure - it's one thing to just like her, but she is definitely not immune to character analysis/criticism just because she is a fan favourite. I think, as you said previously, she's just kind of a female (possibly self) insert for Luke and they just came up with the backstory on the fly, that has tons of potential by the way, only to do nothing with it because that's all she was meant to be :(

I'm really happy you agree, I don't think enough people talk about the difference in the EU pre and post prequels. And yes TCW era (TV shows and other media) is one of my favourite eras along with TOR (All the games and novels, characters like Malgus and Revan are so good).

Thrawn was actually handled quite well in Disney (At least at the beginning, maybe not so much in Ahsoka :/), the Rebels show and especially his new novels do a really good job with him (Timothy Zaun himself wrote those novels as well :D).

And yes, whilst I do love Legends for establishing more about the Mandalorians and their culture in the first place, I agree TCW added onto Mandalorian lore quite significantly by splitting the planet into different/diverse factions. The power struggle makes Mandalore/the Mandalorians much more interesting, and I still incorporate a lot of the old Mandalorian lore in my head because it can still work.

I loved the Force Unleashed, it is just so iconic (Even if I included it in my nonsensical legends list lol). I actually really like Galen just on a personal level as well. To expand on my previous point, I definitely agree that his sacrifice starting the rebellion in the way it did was silly. The Empire knowing who the leaders of the Rebel Alliance are with certain proof a few years before the Civil War is quite foolish, because that contradicts with the OT and Leia Organa having plausible deniability until she is caught red-handed with the death star plans (It's also a huge criticism of the Kenobi show also which made no effort to hide Bail collaborating with a wanted Jedi). For me, there's also a few other things that didn't make sense or didn't have the best writing. e.g. I thought Juno Eclipse was lacking as a character (they did expand on her in the novels a bit though, so there's that), but she's the love interest I guess that’s expected so whatever. Rahm Kota being taken into the Jedi Academy (By Mace WINDU, might I add) at a much older age from a war-torn planet (I think 17-18) never made sense to me, contradicts with Anakin a few decades later, who was considered too old/dangerous to train at 9 years old by the council.

I could go on, but honestly, I never strictly saw the game as canon/completely true anyways. The game is explained to exaggerate/overpower Galen's force powers to the extreme by the writers and actors (Beating Vader's ass the way he does is easily the most common example lol, then again Darth Vader was weakened in Legends continuity more than he is in the Disney Canon due to losing limbs, which is why I actually prefer Disney's interpretation of Vader slightly).

Regarding Galen however, he's cloned in the sequel after his sacrifice and basically just becomes himself again. I'm like you where I just headcanon he never died in the first game lol

Yes, absolutely, it is insulting that they prioritised Mara Jade over Leia in terms of force ability despite that being really unfair. I think in one continuity, Yoda actually would have preferred to train Leia. And ROTJ's reveal of confirming Leia's force sensitivity was supposed to be an indication that she would be the next Jedi and Luke's successor (The title Return of the Jedi and Yoda's dying wish of 'training others') and yet, Legends and Disney seem to ignore that or not care for some reason. I definitely don't think this should override her life as a parent/politician however. But I think that's the problem with Disney and Legends - Leia, can be a politician, a parent and a powerful Jedi, she does not need to pick, at least not in the NJO period. Palpatine and Plagueis maintained their careers whilst still being successful Sith and Luke and Mara also have a child whilst being successful Jedi, so I don't see why the same can't be done here. Although, I do believe that her Jedi training/character development should have taken precedence way before any marriage/kids, which should've happened at least many years later. And finally, her importance as a character and powers as a Jedi should not be overshadowed by Luke once she finally earns her skills.

Personally, I always saw Luke as the Consular Jedi, not just because of his lightsaber colour, but also because he is shown to be powerful in the force but also a meditative/peaceful Jedi first. Obviously, there were many powerful Consulars who had the fighting prowess of a Guardian, which describes Luke perfectly. Leia I see as a Sentinel/Guardian, because she would merge her career with her skill in the force (Sentinel) but also has a strong propensity towards justice/defence and protecting the weak (Guardian). Likewise with Luke, there are guardians that match a Consular's force abilities and skills in diplomacy, which would fit well with her political background. Overall, it doesn't matter too much because it's hard to put these two in a box, but just some thoughts about it I had.

I think, unfortunately, it's a given, that Star Wars fans, even within Legends, will disagree on many things. It would be a lot easier if people were more willing to have open discussions about things without being so toxic.

Funny enough, I've also been doing some thinking about reimagining my own Star Wars canon, just for fun, and it's a fruitful exercise/response to any Star Wars media you don't happen to like as well :) Regarding Mara Jade on this front, I'm no professional writer, but your criticism is a good place to start when it comes to improving her character. Here are some of my rambly/messy thoughts as to how she could potentially be improved...

She lacks trauma/scars from her childhood with Palpatine, so maybe they should give her these aspects. She should not exist to be perfect eye candy and this should be thoroughly shown not just from the scarring of her body, but her mind too.

Palpatine should not be a doting father figure who goes easy on her for her mostly her entire life. That, to me, is mischaracterisation and goes against the only other two pieces of evidence we have of him raising/grooming children as to what he would be like as a father - Anakin and Maul. Tbf I know their backstories were introduced after hers and Palpatine wasn't expanded upon until the prequels, but that doesn't change the fact that theirs is a more accurate/well-rounded depiction of his character that is just more realistic. Mara Jade should be a victim of Palpatine, it is the only relationship that would make sense and establishes sympathy for her.

Personally, I find the shoehorned appearances of her in the background of the OT unnecessary. They should just have her be busy elsewhere/explain her absence another way without her actually encountering the main cast until post-ROTJ. That just feels like fan service.

They should go into more detail about her life pre-Palpatine. Maybe have her be kidnapped as an older child instead so she will actually have memories of an old life to reflect back on. If she is kidnapped as a very young child, however, this should be thoroughly explored on how this affected her and her emotional development and not just ignored.

She can be a bad person/a villain, but there needs to be, as you said before, an actual redemption/acknowledgement of her wrong doings. She should be different by the end of it, not just the same or hold the same opinions she did about Palpatine before. It should be a lengthy character arc that spans a long(-ish) period of time that completely changes her and her world view (This would also be the perfect opportunity to go further into detail about her trauma in childhood and how she ended up the way she did).

This is just a starting point, but there are more ideas one could put to make her more interesting:

Maybe instead of just being a force-sensitive servant/hand she should be a full on Sith Assassin - maybe have her be powerful enough in force potential to be distinguished from the Inquisitors, giving the Emperor a reason to see her potential/personally train her, but weak enough to be below the likes of Darth Vader and Darth Sidious. This would make her more of a formidable threat to Luke as well when she is finally introduced.

Maybe her original family/home life was a place of poverty/neglect, and she thought the emperor had saved her from it. This could also render her more vulnerable to grooming. The Emperor could be sweet and lulling, posing as a father figure at first so she can let her guard down, but then gradually wear her down emotionally and physically with rigorous training, abuse and manipulation until she grows too comfortable in her mistreatment to properly recognise what he has done to her.

Perhaps Palpatine makes her believe she is more important, that she is an Acolyte and not just a servant/assassin and that she will one day replace Vader as his new apprentice, that she is stronger than everyone else. This would be her ultimate and only goal/wish as she has built up her self-worth and happiness around him and his twisted sense of approval. But unfortunately, she was never going to be anything but a disposable tool to him, and she will be overtly cast aside in favour of Luke in the lead up to ROTJ. Perhaps this would explain her hatred of Luke later (?)

And post-Palpatine's death, she is lost, confused and traumatised, but continues to serve the Empire with Thrawn at the helm because all she has ever known or been is a tool. Palpatine did whatever it took to secure the Empire, so she will uphold this in his absence to justify her continued existence. Her blame towards Luke, will therefore, be a defence mechanism and a mode of denial: because it is easier to blame one of the biggest enemies of the Empire, the one who (assumedly) killed the only family she had left, than to confront the truth that her entire life was a lie and that Palpatine used her.

These are all things that can be confronted, unpacked and explored in a detailed redemption/character growth arc.

These are just some of the silly thoughts I had whilst coming up with what a new story for her could look like in my head. It's a scrambled mess of random ideas, but I thought they might be some interesting starter ideas for her. If you have any additional thoughts yourself about Mara and what could be done, I’d love to hear them!

So, any unpopular opinions about Star Wars Legends that you have? I'm perfectly willing to listen.

Lmao hi, I didn’t expect to see you here! I really liked your Mara Jade criticism/analysis, and I saw your thoughts about my silly little hashtags—off topic to the ask but yes I definitely agree it’s too late to do anything with Mara Jade now given her story already concluded in Legends/EU verse, not to mention Disney now own the rights so that couldn’t even happen. If she were rewritten however she definitely could be far greater of a character.

As for your kind ask, when it comes to Star Wars EU there’s a lot to unpack because there’s so much content, but I guess I can give an overall opinion to make it more concise (But brace yourself, I will be yapping quite a bit anyways on here lol).

I generally love Legends. I grew up mainly with the central Lucas canon many years before Disney acquired the franchise: obviously the movies and 2008 clone wars series, and then some small EU content such as video games and some children’s comics/books before I even knew what the EU was. Because of this, I think it’s easy for me and many others to look back on the old stuff and be nostalgic for it.

But now that I’m older and gotten back into Star Wars (after losing interest in it for a while due to the sequels), I now have a better grasp of Legends content as well as a lot of lore I didn’t know as a kid—mainly books about what happens post ROTJ—and one thing I’ve noticed is that the quality highly fluctuates. On the one hand you get some amazing stuff like the Old Republic era, some of the Clone wars comics, old Battlefield games, the Darth Plagueis novel, the Prequel novelisations, Thrawn, Clone Wars 2003 and ofc many more. On the other hand, you get some pretty ridiculous stuff too, like Dark Empire, Shadows of the Empire, the Force Unleashed (Ironically, I actually really like this game for the nostalgia, its gameplay, Galen himself, story potential and the memes but many events of the game itself do not realistically make sense lol) and many books post ROTJ (mind you haven’t read all of them, way too many lol) that kind of have plot points I’m not too happy with and I could go on forever about (and some others I probably haven’t thought of).

My main point is, many legends fans will always advocate that the solution to Disney’s less than stellar Star Wars works recently is doing adaptations of existing legends material. And whilst I do think that there is a lot of lore you can pluck from legends and reuse/rewrite for their potential (I mean Disney already does that with characters like Thrawn), I never would want a 1-1 recreation. First of all, Legends started before the prequels so a lot of it doesn’t make complete sense now anyways (Hot take, but post-prequel-movies legends has always been better overall in terms of quality. For this reason, Old Republic/Prequel era was handled better overall than New Republic era). Additionally, Legends just isn’t as consistent or good overall as people would like to believe. It’s a large universe with several different writers, there’s bound to be mistakes/bad works riddled throughout here and there.

I also don’t think there’s enough people that talk about (especially) the older legends materials’ problematic elements as well. I’m not always a huge fan of how certain writers treat female and even other minority/non-human characters in Legends. I’m sure you’re familiar with this with people like Mara Jade. One of my other personal main gripes just to list another example is Leia. I’ve always hated how sidelined she is because she was always my personal favourite as a child, and the writers throughout the continuity could not make up their mind on whether she should be a Jedi or not to the point where her skills largely varied between writers until they finally decided to make it official when she’s much much older. Even by then she’s already overshadowed by her children/brother. George Lucas himself didn’t always write her or other female characters in the best way either, but I always thought an EU continuity would be the perfect place to give her the attention she deserves, instead all we got was an inconsistent arc, especially after the Thrawn trilogy. Disney could have turned this around but unfortunately the exact same thing happened where they couldn’t make up their mind on whether she was a Jedi or not (and gave her the shittiest excuse for quitting—how ironic that both Legends and Disney write in immediate motherhood and marriage as a sexist obstacle rather than actually letting her character grow before/during these events).

Fanatic Legends fans will, however, unfortunately rarely agree or at least try to understand criticism of their favourite universe, and, in my view, this is no better than Disney Adults who vehemently reject criticism of some of the worst recent Star Wars media that’s been released.

To conclude this long ass rant, I just think Star Wars EU whether that be Legends or Disney could do with rewriting/organisation here and there. But that’s highly unlikely, so a more realistic solution is just to pick and choose the media you enjoy from both universes (or make up your own!) and just accept it as your own personal canon. That’s what gives me peace and mind anyways :)