#but they still find a way to make it all about catra

[spop-romanticizes-abuse]

so i found this on pinterest and..

correct me if i'm wrong but isn't this the part where shadow weaver tells adora that she has to take the failsafe and risk getting killed to save etheria? why in the world would catra be jealous of that??

[n7punk]

She-ra Cast Q&A (July 23rd 2024 via Streamily)

Yeah we knew I was going to do this, sorry I'm late but I was driving when it started. Quick summary of the questions and answers, not exact quotes so if you have more questions about something, watch the VOD. Shouldn't be hard to find since these are listed in chronological order.

Guide:

Q: Not-so-average-fangirl (host)

ND: ND Stevenson (showrunner/writer)

A: Aimee Carrero (Adora VA)

AJ: AJ Michalka (Catra VA)

K: Karen Fukuhara (Glimmer VA)

ND was sick for the stream so take his answers with even more grains of salt than usual (I love you Nate but I also know when you're joking and it's often).

Right off the bat, no major announcements except ND teasing he has a passion project book coming out next year with other things in the works.

Q: What influenced your changes to the original SPOP characters (for ND)?

ND: Fell down a lot of rabbitholes on fansites and such, conclusion was it was the gayest show he had ever seen. "This is so gay, I have to make this gay, it wouldn't be true to the original if it wasn't gay." Wanted to bring in a new take and a new world.

Q: How did it feel playing Adora in the first few episodes versus the last few (for Aimee)?

A: In the first few episodes she always feels like she's seconds from being hired (own anxiety, recording environment was very comfortable). Fell in love with the character and the story, ending was really bittersweet to not have last forever.

Q: Since Catra is your first "villain" role, is there anything you learned that you would use in future villain roles (for AJ)?

AJ: Voice placement (villains talk lower, more raspy trying to seem more intimidating). Pulling anger or hurt into her body when going into a session otherwise relaxed. Would workout beforehand or clench her muscles to help introduce to stress to her voice.

Q: Was there something from your previous serious roles you pulled in for Glimmer (for Karen)?

K: Liked that Glimmer was a lighter/fun role, her voice sat well for her. Previous roles might have helped for when she was going through her identity crises.

Q: If you could hangout with your character for one day, what would you do?

ND (Spinnerella): Girls day, coffee, sailing (wind for the boat), she's the most normal person on the show so easy to talk (A/N: THIS IS HOW I FIND OUT ND VOICED SPINNERELLA??).

A (Adora): Thinks Adora wouldn't like her (she's cool even if Aimee didn't play her cool). Interests don't align, maybe finding something more atheltic and crafty. (Q suggestion: A could bake and Adora could eat - Aimee loves.) Could have Adora build her something.

K (Glimmer): Would love to explore the kingdom with her, hang out with her and Bow now/a few years down the line.

AJ (Catra): Take her to Disneyland. Would be intimidated by Catra but it would be a nice icebreaker. Rides, junkfood, meeting princesses (Catra would pretend she didn't like it but actually enjoy it).

Also, the first of many mentions of the cast wanting to do a She-ra movie, ND said "already working" on a script but in a joking way, clearly not an announcement and just something he wants to do.

Q: Which scene got you the most emotional while writing/recording?

ND: Finale. Culmination of all the characters' arcs but also the crew's arc. Knew it was the last time they would be doing many things. Co-worker asked if the characters had said that they love each other, ND searched scripts and realized they hadn't, so incorporated the pitch into the finale. It was the crew's way of saying it to each other as well.

A: Emotional often while recording. (First of many pitches for Aimee wanting to be in everything Nate writes because his writing is so amazing). No stars in the sky, Angella staying behind convo in the portal, the finale.

AJ: "I love you, I always have" (will come up again later). Also when Shadow Weaver dies, she was so hard on Catra but she's still the closest thing to a mother figure she has.

K: Angella's death and when Glimmer admitted her mistake to Bow and Adora later on. (Also Karen cried watching AJ's confession scene).

Q: What do you think Catradora's space roadtrip experience would be if they took a trip to Earthe (for ND)?

ND: (This answer is all jokes) Wearing a dad hat, Catra gets in fights. Also Disneyland.

A: Bermuda shorts and sandals situation for Adora, no SPF and sunburned. Intense dad energy on a roadtrip. Interrogating about Dorito shells at Taco Bell without knowing what a shell or Dorito is.

AJ: Catra deciding to crash a movie premeire in Hollywood without even really knowing what a movie premiere is.

K: Go to all the food spots in LA.

A: Adora going through the drive-thru over and over ordering different numbers on Swift Wind.

Q: Did you apply any techniques you learned from voice acting into singing (for AJ)?

AJ: Singing since a little kid, feels like she's solid there, but voice acting requires a lot of front voice and stamina.

Q: If you could write a spin-off series for a side character who would it be?

ND: Double Trouble (shapeshifter bias). So many parties to crash, nobles to impersonate. Spy drama. Every persona they've ever had gets their own little spin-off.

Q: If you were in Etheria for 24 hours what would you do?

Okay AJ accidentally said she'd ride Shadow Weaver and then everybody functionally died when she was asked if she meant Swift Wind. I just have to mention that.

AJ: Ride Swift Wind first because Catra has never been on a horse and AJ is a horse girl.

(ND and AJ both said Catra would love it).

A: Wants to explore Glimmer's room and play dress-up.

K: Get ready for the prom together in Glimmer's room.

ND: Explore the First Ones' ruins and press all the buttons. Act like an urban explorer and then get killed by spiders.

Q: If Adam had been in the show, how would you have approached his character (for ND)?

ND: Would have changed everything in the show because there's somebody she would have a sibling bond with and be looking for her family. Sees this version of Adora as an alternate reality, but if they were both together, would be chaos twins. Push all the buttons, etc.

Q: During White Out, what would Floppy Adora and Catra's interaction have looked like?

A: The world's worst drunk voicemail you've left for an ex, so cringey you can't even write it (A/N: she's so real for this). Profess her love but then barely speak real words.

AJ: The night would end in laughter, and then tears, and then laughter, etc. Glad it didn't happen because it would happen too early.

ND: Show would have been over at that point because of what she said.

Q: If Glimmer was only limited to three places on our Earth, what spots would she choose and why (for Karen)?

K: Japan (to visit grandma), NYC (Karen might move there, she's going to try to see Aimee there next week), Turkey (to go in a hot air balloon. (A/N my interpretation was the 'she' was supposed to be Glimmer but Karen interpreted it to mean her and the host seemed to agree).

Q: Would AJ and Aimee ever consider doing a duet together?

(AJ made this :D face immediately)

A: I would be so nervous to sing in front of AJ I couldn't even speak.

AJ: Aimee has a beautiful voice and would love to duet with her. They're friends, no need to be nervous.

A: Would still need a little liquid courage, was thrilled to be in the "Blue Dress" music video for Aly & AJ.

AJ: Wants to do a three-way duet with Catra, Adora, and Glimmer.

Q: Of all the scenes that got cut, what are the ones you most wish you'd gotten to include? (A/N: Tippen you made it!)

ND: Nothing made it to animation, maybe boards at most. Couldn't think of anything, but prank they pulled by replacing the final line in the finale after the camera pans up from the Best Friends Squad group hug with "Did we ever find out what Grayskull is?". Showed it to their exec as a prank and got super attached to it but couldn't keep it. (A/N: ND posted a video of this on Twitter awhile back, see it here. Thanks tempusername24!)

Q: What are character interactions you'd like to see that you didn't get to do?

Karen (AJ same): Catra getting to be friends with Bow and Glimmer, Catra and Glimmer explore the world together.

AJ: Catra would love to teleport once she's used to it, loves Glimmer grabbing her and going somewhere spontaneously.

ND: Bow and He-man.

Glimmer is based on Nate's first DND character who misused Misty Step a lot!

Q: What was your reaction to the glimbow confession (for Karen)?

K: Super surprised, none of them knew glimbow/catradora/etc were going to be a thing, suspected and shipped it, but was super excited.

N (adding): Karen asked him when reading the script if she should read it romantically or not.

Q: What was your reaction to the new She-ra transformation in S5 (for Aimee)?

A: Thought she was hot already, loved the redesign/glow-up, the jawline, still love it now.

Q: Has anything from the show affected/inspired your music (for AJ?)

AJ: (Never thought of it before) There are times she feels she's in the shadow of her sister but playing Catra gave her a newfound confidence in herself as a performer.

Karen had to leave at this point, but the girls want the next signing August 17th to be a pajama party if they can swing it. (Also if you had any doubts this stream was geared towards the adult fans, Karen promoted her show The Boys when prompted before leaving).

Q: What was the hardest part about writing Adora (for ND?)

ND: Keeping the balance of the friendship and tension for all the characters. People thinking Catra might be too far gone to be redeemed and executing her "apology tour".

Q: As creatives, how do you process the heavy feelings when a project comes to a close?

A: Every project has a depression period afterwards, the "post show blues" (A/N: girl I know what you mean). Keeping up with the other people on the show is all you can do.

AJ: Second, there's nothing you can do but maintain those friendships and hope for another installment/reboot down the road.

ND: Everything for 5 years for him was She-ra, even when sleeping. Jarring when it was over. Really hard, tried to make peace with moving forward to something new and passing on the baton.

Q: What is your favorite line from a character you've voiced (for Aimee)?

A: Hard for her to remember quotes, was reminded of the line "You're worth more than what you can give to other people" (A/N: not a line from Adora but a good line regardless).

AJ: "I love you, I always have" because it's Catra being honest and throwing it out hoping for Adora to catch it.

ND: Playing Netossa/Spinnerella fight with nephew at his request, ND was playing Netossa because he didn't know ND voiced her, ND did the possessed Horde Prime line from Spinnerella and he screamed and hid in a closet. Unlocked the concept of voice actors for him and not he loves quizzing ND on it.

Q: What do you envision for Catradora's post-canon space adventures (also did Adora change clothes).

(All the clothes answers were jokes but sleeveless tops and a perm for Adora and a fanny pack for Catra so she can carry sunscreen for Adora).

A: Like that they've aged, that they'll find joy in the more mundane aspects of life and they may not be worthy of a movie but she likes that little moments that make up a life for them.

AJ: Same. Enjoying life as friends and lovers.

ND: They deck out the ship (airbrush a wizard on the side, shag carpet and mood lighting, the joke answers aren't done lmao). Fun field trip, being touristy, extremely low stakes shenanigans and then going on missions. Would collect tons of souvenirs as they travel from planet-to-planet.

What are you working on / What did She-ra mean to you?

AJ: On sabbatical except for writing music. Grateful for Catra and the depth of writing on the show.

A: Filming Our Friends and Neighbors. Same as AJ, also going to pester ND to play more characters for him.

ND: (got teary) She-ra transformed entire life, so grateful for everything the viewers invested into it. Book coming out next year that is a long-time passion project but not announced yet, other various things he can't mention right now.

Aimee joked with Nate that he needs to get back to work to get them all into the Academy Awards when talking about Nimona's nomination.

Upcoming signings:

Karen, AJ, and Aimee are on August 17th via Instagram (A/N: originally they said a different date for Karen and reports have varied from fansites but these are the upcoming events listed on the She-ra Streamily collection as of 24/07). ND has a TBD date pending as well.

[mara-defense-squad]

I think the thing that really appeals me to catradora is the fact that they weren't supposed to make it.

Think about it for a second. Their whole lives they were pitted against each other, because Shadow Weaver wanted Adora and Catra only ever interfered with that. But they still built up their friendship. They made The Promise. They had each other, throughout their time in the Horde, despite Shadow Weaver desperately trying to drive a wedge in between them. They were never supposed to last, but they did.

And then when Adora finds the sword, becomes She-Ra and joins the rebellion - well they definitely weren't supposed to make it then. They were enemies, on opposite sides of the war. Yet, in early season 1 (pre-Promise) Catra still defends Adora in her absence. She lies to Shadow Weaver, lies to everyone about Adora being She-Ra and when SW finds out, she says "She's just confused". Still protecting Adora, despite her leaving. And Adora doesn't stop trying to convince Catra to join the rebellion, even though the rebellion would likely prefer it if she did. They weren't supposed to be fighting for each other - but they did.

And then Promise happens. Like Shadow Weaver, Light Hope sees Adora's friendship to Catra as a threat. So, she takes that wedge SW jammed inbetween them and drives it all the way home. She convinces Catra to cut Adora off, and convinces Adora to let go of her. And Light Hope succeeds where Shadow Weaver failed - they are now enemies. And they stay that way. This is how it was always supposed to be.

Then Catra opens the Portal. They get each other back for a second, but it only serves to prove they were never meant to last. Catra completely turns on Adora, and when it's over, Adora completely gives up on Catra. Any hope of reconciliation is shredded.

Catra continues on her downward spiral. Adora moves on. The war rages on, and they keep walking their separate paths. This was how it was supposed to end.

But then - then, in the rubble after the Heart of Etheria, at the moment Adora expects it the least, Catra saves Glimmer, and she apologises. She does this with no hope of seeing Adora again, and Adora doesn't know how to deal with it at first. If she was following the path laid out for her her entire life, she would have left Catra to die on Horde Prime's ship, grateful for her sacrifice, and grieving what could have been. That was how it was supposed to go, and it was exactly what Catra expected from her. But she defies it. She puts aside the greater good, and she storms Horde Prime's ship, for no other reason than that she wanted to. This is not what's supposed to happen.

In Save the Cat, Catra was supposed to serve Horde Prime. She's completely stripped of her autonomy, forced to fight Adora. She's supposed to break her. When she manages to break through - just a little bit - she is supposed to die. She falls off that platform, into the abyss, no hope left for her. Adora is supposed to let her. Instead, she summons She-Ra, and brings Catra back to life. They were never supposed to make it this far.

And it doesn't get easier. For a while, in Taking Control, they still don't really know how to act around each other. They have to learn it again. But they keep trying, against all odds. Catra starts to heal. Adora watches. They get to rekindle what they lost.

But then Shadow Weaver comes back, and the Failsafe happens. All their old wounds are raw again. SW is pressing all of Adora's old buttons, desperately reinforcing that wedge between them, so that Adora will take the Failsafe. At first, Catra resists this - she eavesdrops on Adora and SW conversation, and she seas her manipulation for what it is - and she tries to convince Adora to do the same. Ultimately she fails when Adora accepts the Failsafe. Catra knows that Adora is going to die being the hero, and she can't face that so she leaves. They are separated once again, and it doesn't look like there's any way back. It could have ended here too.

But in Heart, Catra sets down her hurt and her fear and she goes back to warn Adora of the new danger as Horde Prime hacks the planet. She finds Adora fighting for her life, and losing. Catra saves her, and allows SW to take Adora on to the Heart. She tries to sacrifice herself again. They both should have died there.

Only Adora comes back for her, once again. She rejects her destiny to save Catra. SW dies instead.

They've reached the final hurdle, the Heart itself. Adora can't transform into She-Ra, so she's doomed to die saving the world. Catra is supposed to let her.

But against all odds, they confess their love and it works. They both get to live.

This wasn't how it was supposed to go. At every turn the cards were stacked against them but they still won. They still made it. And I love that for them.

(sidenote but this is also why i love catra as a character and her whole arc. She was supposed to live a miserable life and die a miserable death but she got to live and change and grow as a person. Ugh I love this show)

[iddybyddybee]

I won't say I wasn't disappointed with how Creloise's story ended in Season 3 initially, but after finishing the season and thinking for a bit, I'm a little more neutral on the topic. Why? May I play devil's advocate for a moment and list two things that I got post-Season 3 for future queer representation.

Cressida's spiral in Part 2 reminded me of another Sapphic character's journey: Catra from She-ra. Catra was the main baddie for a long while, but in Season 4, there was a shift in her that made her push EVERYONE away, especially the people who were kind to her. She felt betrayed by the one person she felt the closest to, the one she loved. Catra sank so low and gave into her worst tendencies not only to make other people suffer, but also so that no one would see her suffer. That is what Cressida did, as well. In her final confrontation with Eloise, she wanted their friendship to continue and write as LW (a poor plan in hindsight since Eloise knew full well that she wasn't LW), and when Eloise refused, she immediately fell back on her bullying ways. That was enough for Eloise to end things, leaving Cressida's last good human connection gone and becoming entirely alone. She felt betrayed by someone she cared deeply about, and lashed out because of it. While it's over for now, I'm not quite giving up my hope on Creloise. Like Catra, she can be redeemed. Cressida really did show that Eloise influenced her in a positive way, despite the direction she took being not the greatest one, and Eloise even admitted that she genuinely liked being friends with Cressida during their start. Cressida may not appear next season, but maybe the one after that. Maybe she'll take the time in Wales to mature, come back and try to patch things up with Eloise.

As for not getting a canon WLW ship with a Bridgerton, we just got confirmation of not one, but TWO Bridgerton siblings being somewhere on the queer spectrum. All we wanted was at least one sibling to be queer, and now we have two. That's huge and also realistic! Like, in a family of 8, how can one of them NOT be queer? Even with me and my siblings, we have a collection of straight, ace, bi, and gay (we basically won the queer lottery). So there is still a chance for Eloise to be queer in some manner. Maybe she can be asexual, but find romantic feelings for someone? Maybe a woman? Perhaps... Cressida~? They already flipped the gender of Francesca's love interest, who's to say they can't completely change Eloise's love interest, too?

We're not going to get Season 4 for, like, two more years, so there's a lot of time to stew with what transpired. But I would like to remain optimistic. That's all we can do, for now.

[that-ari-blogger]

The Aftermath

The Beacon is a very... disjointed episode. It has the unfortunate placement of between two episodes that are, in my opinion, the two best that the show has to offer, and it doesn't matter how good this episode is, it suffers in the contrast.

The Beacon is trying to set up The Promise and still recovering from No Princess Left Behind, which means that it struggles to tie both together without feeling like a ton of disconnected events.

So, for the sake of analysis, let's look at those events on their own, and see what they do for the story as a whole. Because some of them are really well written.

Let me explain.

SPOILERS AHEAD

Catra's moments in this episode are genuinely some of the best little moments for her in the series. We see her kind nature start to show, ever so slightly. She is not kind, I want to stress this, a few actions do not make a redemption (yet), but we start to plant the seeds of that here.

In Entrapta's interrogation scene, we see Catra being manipulative, that much is obvious. But it's interesting how she does it. Catra doesn't belittle, or lie, or even seem disingenuous with her compliments, she is just aware that compliments lead to allegiances, and she is trying desperately to befriend the single smartest person on Etheria.

"You're not mad? People usually get mad." "Are you kidding?"

There is an empathy here with Catra. I mentioned in the previous post that everyone's greatest strength is their greatest weakness. And the same is true for Catra. She is exceedingly emotionally attuned. She sees herself in Entrapta, as the person left behind. The side effect of this is that she falls on her sword a bit when Adora leaves, but also in a weird, other way.

"Don't worry about that thing with Hordack. I've got plenty of experience getting yelled at... you get used to it."

Catra is talking to Shadow Weaver here, of all people. Why? Because she sees a person feeling low, and offers some condolences. Without concern for who she is, or what she has done. Catra offers a hand of peace. I want to stress that empathy isn't a weakness, that's not how this works, but it makes her easy prey for Shadow Weaver, because Catra is a child, a teenager, who is naive, and Shadow Weaver is evil.

But how does Shadow Weaver return the openness that Catra has displayed?

"I will not get used to mediocrity like you"

She returns kindness with an insult, and through her touch. Shadow Weaver desires power above all else, so when she is at her weakest, she tries to grab it from the one person she thinks she can mentally overpower.

This is why Catra is the way she is, any attempt at kindness is met with animosity for reasons she has no command in. But that little influence of Adora, and now Scorpia and even Entrapta, has kept the instinct alive. The empathy is there, just buried deep under the surface.

"I just wanted to prepare you for the world"

I love that Shadow Weaver has worked out her tactics are failing on Catra, so she tries giving the Adora treatment to her, and even that fails. I think that's rather satisfying. I pity her, but it is definitely gratifying to see her this low.

Shadow Weaver fits the same bill as everyone else in the series (strengths and weaknesses being the same), but she forms a weird parallel with Bow of all people. Shadow Weaver thinks big picture, she is the strategist, and she gets undermined time and again by the tiny things, such as personal determination, and unconditional love. This parallel isn't dwelled upon, but it's a neat thing to point out that Shadow Weaver's opposite isn't Catra or Adora, but Bow.

Speaking of Bow. The man is supportive of everyone, similarly to Sea Hawk. Bow still thinks big picture, but the difference between him and Shadow Weaver is that when Bow meets a wall, instead of thinking of a way to break it down, he finds another route. Bow is a strategist of the heart, making sure everyone is at their best and ready to step in to keep people's moral up, should they need it.

I also really like Glimmer's line:

"Your sorry is wrong and mine is right."

I think this is extremely revelatory about Glimmer, but that won't come up for a while.

Finally, there is Adora.

Under stress, she reverts. This is what Shadow Weaver did to her, she gave her a few set behaviours in response to certain stimuli. Notably, when scared, punch what I tell you. Shadow Weaver isn't here to give a target, so Adora decks the first thing she can get her hands on. Namely, this light.

There are other sections in the episode when she is in the background of other shots. And instead of just standing there, and looking apathetic, she shadow boxes. Adora cannot focus when she's directionless.

So naturally, she jumps at the opportunity to heal Glimmer, including possibly stabbing her, just to feel useful. Again, preprogrammed responses. She needs to feel useful, so she will run towards whomever is offering her that purpose.

"You want me to be weak? Well (Throws Sword), I am"

This leads into the above line. Adora believes she needs to be weak, and the first thing she does to achieve that is return to her original form and throw away her sword. Adora has associated strength with ability to achieve a given task. In this case, heal.

But the fascinating thing is how she goes about the accountability of failing. She has a weird internalisation of good things being She-Ra's fault, and bad things being Adora's fault. It's awful.

I'm going to finish this on a mildly happy note, because Glimmer and Angella have a really sweet interaction in this episode. Its the reassurance that a parent figure can offer. She offers support, and affirmation that this may not have worked, but it wasn't because of Glimmer's ideals, but her methods, which can be worked on.

Compare the following two lines.

"I will not get used to mediocrity like you" "We'll figure it out, together."

I have boldened a few words, because they reveal character quite nicely. One tries to separate the speaker from its subject, complete with an insult and a comparison, the other is supportive and constructive, and strives to make the listener understand this fact. Angella is a great mum.

Final Thoughts

This episode isn't particularly memorable. Which isn't its own fault. It is sandwiched by The Promise and No Princess Left Behind, which both render it rather uninspiring.

But this episode is actually quite decent. Its moments string together cohesively enough, and Marcus Scribner (Bow's Voice Actor) kills every line.

However, that opening sequence steals the show for me, as everyone leaves on their own way. That was why Entrapta's fake out death doesn't feel cheap. It actually hurts these people, and they don't get over it. This is a death that has its cake and eats it too, and that's a difficult thing to pull off. I think the thing that sells it is this is the only scene so far in the show (I think) in which Sea Hawk stays quiet, the events of the previous episode have managed to make the bard stop singing.

Previous - Next

[antispopausandstuff]

the c//a // catra // adora editing community is so funny because all of them ( literally all of them ) do at least one of these things:

edit c//a to a song that's either about abusive relationships, broken relationships, nonexistent relationships ( "One Way or Another" is about a stalker, for ex ), or about familial dynamics ( typically siblings, but i've seen c//a being edited to "Mama's Boy" recently ).

the healthy relationship songs they DO use are typically by Taylor Swift and // or are completely tone-deaf to the scenes used.

show adora having a bad time via catra's hands while using some cutesy or romance-angsty lyrics.

edit catra to badass audios, but use scenes where she's clearly NOT having a good time ( i've seen some edits be of her dying or getting beat up ) 🤣.

use 'Toxic' by Britney Spears ironically ( they think this is funny to make fun of antis with, i think??? ).

their edits are so disconnected from everything that it's not even funny, it will just give you an eyesore ( saw an edit with 'Dark Red' by Steve Lacy to an edit that was both badass and romance angst??? ).

if they do show the 'bad side of the relationship', they use songs that typically soften the blow, as if corrupted catra is gonna look any better with Taylor Swift's ricochet song in the background-

if they make a 'badass couple' edit, they use scenes that have one party ( typically catra ) hurting the other instead of standalone scenes or smth.

i noticed that a lot of the 'happy' edits are with a bunch of fanart or of s5. hm. wonder why that is.

use songs for catra edits that really work better with adora ( for ex, "911" by Elise or "Potential Breakup Song" by Aly & AJ ), because the songs would typically be from the victim's POV ( which i find funny in the worst way tbh ).

in the rare case that the stan has awareness of catra's actions, they still edit c//a because they think redeemed catra is fine ( one step forward, five steps back. we sigh. ). or, edit catra because they think she's well-written or smth, idk.

it's just a mess, and it would be even more funny if i didn't feel like a migraine was growing in my brain every time i noticed it.

feel free to mention some others i may have forgotten, 'cause i'm sure i've seen all the types at this point, just don't rmbr them all.

[anti-spop]

spop stans rewriting canon to make everything about c//a. what's new?

i know it's a joke post but when has bow and glimmer ever left adora out or made her the third wheel? all of three of them were always close, even though glimmer and bow were childhood friends, they still always included adora in everything.

not to mention, if catra ever felt left out in the horde, it's because she treated everyone like shit and refused to let anyone get close to her. scorpia and entrapta wasn't even that close. they were friends, sure, but 90% of the time, scorpia was trying to get close to catra while entrapta was preoccupied with tech.

idk it just really annoys me when stans act like either adora doesn't care about glimmer and bow, or they don't care about her, when that was the only realistic friendship in the entire series.

👏🏼 STOP ERASING PLATONIC RELATIONSHIPS FOR THE SAKE OF a shitty ROMANCE 👏🏼

(Sorry for not replying before!)

Do not harass the OP of the post if you happen to find it.

Goodness, this post annoyed me so much. Bow and Glimmer always did their best to include Adora and I'm sure they would still do that as a romantic couple. Like, the way they're such good friends to her sometimes makes me want to cry. Take when they went to Mystacor for instance, Bow and Glimmer were lying down at the beach with Adora and they reassured she would be okay. When Catra left Adora in s5, Glimmer and Bow were there to comfort Adora as well.

I personally never really bought into the Super Pal Trio. Scorpia and Entrapta enjoyed each other's company, but you're right, Entrapta was more focused on tech and she spent a lot more time with Hordak. Catra might have grown a little close to Scorpia later on, but then she was awful to her after the Portal.

I don't know why SPOP stans love distorting the characters. And although this was a joke post, I'm pretty sure plenty of fans actually genuinely believe that Bow and Glimmer are awful friends that don't truly care about Adora, and that Catra is left out because no one likes her, when it's not entirely true considering how much Scorpia did to get close to her. And Scorpia also gradually learned to respect Catra's space, too, but you'll see stans shitting on Scorpia and implying that she deserved to be treated like crap.

[xjulixred45x]

ThanZag is the Catradora done right

okay, first of all, I haven't been part of the Shera fandom in a while, but I've watched the series several times, other than that I feel like this is something worth pointing out because it could have been the perfect way to have developed the WORST couple of the entire series.

I'm in my phase with Hades from Supergiant, and while I was watching my tenth gameplay, I realized something watching the Interactions of Thanatos and Zagreus, and that is that these two have some similar characteristics to Catradora.

think about it.

1- both were raised by the same maternal figure.

2- They had a relationship of rivalry/friendship since they were children (in Catradora's case "rivalry/friendship")

3-the main drama in the relationship begins when one of the two wants to leave home (although in Catradora's case, there were already GOOD REASONS for wanting to leave before the series).

4-the other member of the relationship has to prevent or try to prevent the other from achieving their goal (although the only thing Thanatos does is try to prevent people from giving supplies to Zagreus, nothing more. He doesn't even fight with him as such. Catra tried to kill Adora several times)

5- this member in specific has mommy issues and a "tsundere" attitude (in Catra's case, she is rather abusive. Than is such a Tsundere that it is difficult for him to express what he feels😅).

6- the protagonist is smarter than they give them credit for, they are considered royalty, they use swords, etc (seriously, what is the need to say that Adora is stupid? Didn't you see the show?)

These are the """"similarities"" that I could find with my sister. but as you can see, there is a BIG difference in execution, and I am going to go into more detail with each one.

1- Zagreus has his own parents, and although he spent his entire life thinking that Nyx was his mother, his dynamic with Thanatos was never of siblings and he always referred to him as a childhood friend. It wasn't until the Events of the game (when he wants to find his biological mother, Persephone) that you can have the option to fall in love with and romance Thanatos(and You can just select to do a friendly route).

Aside from it being implied in the game that while Zagreus gets along with Nyx's children, he did not grow up with them. and that Nyx raised him more like a Nanny, or that she left her children aside to take care of him. I mean, they didn't grow up as part of the same family. Nyx was not a mother figure to all of her children.

Not only did Catra and Adora never refer to themselves as childhood friends, but they had a TOO close relationship with the SAME mother figure, even if they were adopted, they are still sisters having GROWN UP TOGETHER.

and it's worse when you see in the OFFICIAL ART that they refer to Catra as ADORA'S SISTER. EVEN THEIR VOICE ACTORS.

2- The friendship and rivalry of Thanatos and Zagreus was nothing more than a friendly and healthy competition for mutual fun, apart from the fact that whether they win or lose, they congratulate and RECOGNIZE each other's qualities. They are not merely hostile simply because they are competing. Even when Zagreus fails an escape attempt or beats him, Thanatos isn't really mean or insults him. The most closet thing to hostile of Thanatos that we got is when he tries to kill all the creatures to show off to Zagreus(and don't get him Killed) and, most likely, when he scold him for saying that Persephone is the only mother he has, disrespscting Nyx(who raised him).

Catra and Adora on the other hand are the complete opposite, Catra always ALWAYS finds a moment to tell Adora that "she's an idiot", the first thing she tells her is that "she looks ridiculous", that "she's crazy", she puts her down and she constantly makes fun of her to make herself feel better.

3-Zagrues wants to leave the Underworld because he discovers that his mother could be on the surface, apart from the fact that his relationship with his father is quite bad because of this since Hades does not want him to leave, treating him badly and taking out his frustrations on him. and although Zagreus throughout the game understands the consequences and all the good things he leaves behind for wanting to go after his mother, no one (besides Hades) expects him to change his mind. Even if Thatanos wants Zagreus to stay WILINGLY(bc that makes HIM happy)he dosen't force His ideas on him.

Adora decides to leave the Horde because she realizes the horrible damage they do to Etheria, also leaving her toxic adoptive mother and Catra (her even more toxic sister/"friend"), but is constantly called selfish by Catra for leaving and "leaving her" BUT in turn, she herself does not want to go with Adora.

They both essentially want to leave their toxic environment, it's just that one has a circle of support and Adora has, unfortunately, Catra, who hopes that Adora will remain miserable in the cycle of abuse that SHE created.

4- Thanatos has direct orders to try to prevent Zagreus from leaving the Underworld, however the "fights" with him are usually short-lived, apart from giving Zagreus things like life and coins if he kills more monsters than him or they tie. Thanatos makes no REAL effort to stop Zagreus. He's just bitter that he left without saying goodbye. that's all. children's fights. that after a while they pass and return to their normal dynamics. healthy.

Catra is on the opposite side of Adora in a war, however she shows no problem being especially sadistic and enjoys hurting Adora when they fight. She WANTS to hurt her. She WANTS to beat her and prevent her from archiving her goal no matter how much it makes her miserable. she does not care.

5- We don't have much idea of what the relationship between Nyx and Thanatos was like, but Nyx seems to have played the role of mother mostly to Zagreus over her own children (either by will or by orders from Hades) and it could also be that Thanks to this little guidance, Thanatos does not know how to adequately express how he feels about Zagreus or his departure. but still respects his decision.

Catra grew up with an abusive mother who pushed her aside to favor Adora, generating this "love"-hate dynamic towards her and causing her to only show "interest" or attention towards her by lowering her to her level, either by insults, violence, manipulation, etc. More than a Tsundere, she is a sociopath.

6- Zagreus is a very good fighter, who knows how to take advantage of the blessings that his relatives have and that in the story of the game he manages to leave the Underworld several times to reunite with his mother (having to fight with his father MANY times) and even helps to fix the family dynamics between his family and Olympus (because more than a toxic family, they count more as a dysfunctional family. but not without repair).

Nobody denies these merits to Zagreus. much less Thanatos or Megaera (another romantic interest to which I may dedicate another post because I love her).

Adora is literally SHERA, the legendary warrior, she has commanded several attacks against the Horde, she commanded the rebellion at some point, she is a great warrior even without Shera, she guided rescue missions, she saved the Horde Prime universe, etc.

and yet Catra continues to consider her an idiot just like the fandom....

As you can see, the similarities these ships share are no bigger than their writing gaps, and it's SAD to think we could have had something like ThanZag in Shera, because they are proof that it COULD work, but the creator's fetishes They got in the way.

all this without talking about the ROMANTIZATION that the Catradora has! It's repulsive how people (and especially the creators) can really see this pair as something romantic!

THEY ARE SISTERS.. THEY ARE ENEMIES..GROSS

ahggg I already went too far writing. This was supposed to be shorter but I expanded, I hope you like the product of my suffering. and ThanZag forever.

Shares, reblogs and comments are very welcome!

[spopsalt]

Holy shit! I JUST realized something about Spop and Kyle! Idk HOW I missed it before. But I only just realized it, and now I’m gonna make it everyone else’s problem.

So we all know Kyle is the designated butt-monkey of the show. He’s a relatively good guy despite being with the Horde. And he’s mistreated and abused by characters in the Horde. The characters who mistreated him aren’t characters like Shadow Weaver or Hordak, who have SIGNIFICANT power over him. No, it’s his peers. And Scorpia (acts more like a peer despite having a higher rank) and Catra (always mistreated him, no matter if she’s a higher rank or equal). Despite being told they’re good people deep down or later in the series, Lonnie, Rogelio, Scorpia, Catra, and Adora all do this. Even the NICE characters do this, like Scorpia and Adora. And his BOYFRIEND never stands up for him. It’s appalling. Seeing a GOOD person get mistreated by SUPPOSEDLY OTHER GOOD people isn’t funny.

But here’s what IS funny. In a cosmic sort of way…

This is Mantenna

He was the original butt monkey if She-Ra. And by that, I mean he gets shit on. A lot. By Hordak. And it’s actually funny.

You see, nothing brings OG Hordak joy like trapdoors and using them on Mantenna. The way it works is that whenever Hordak is pissed or unamused (he once made Mantenna try to make him laugh for example), he presses a button of his throne and Mantenna drops through the floor. And occasionally there are twists added to keep things fresh.

Spring trap door

Backup trap door

Multi trap door

You get the idea. It was mostly for slapstick. It was never meant to be taken seriously. Unlike with Kyle.

For me, the major things that set Mantenna apart from Kyle are these.

1. Mantenna is evil. He’s a pipsqueak and dogged on. But he’s still evil. Kyle is a nice and kind person and by all means shouldn’t be with the Horde.

2. Mantenna is tormented and talked down to by Hordak and Catra, his superiors. Kyle is torments by superiors AND peers

3. Kyle is mistreated by ‘good’ people. Lonnie and Catra are two of the worst offenders, but they’re good people, I swear, they’re just in a bad situation. 😒 Seriously. Those two are painted as good people deep down and still hurt Kyle. Scorpia and Adora did it too, despite being nice and good as visibly as possible, even in the Horde. And again, Rogelio is supposedly Kyle’s boyfriend, and never helps.

Mantenna on the other hand is mistreated by people like Catra and Hordak, who are unabashedly BAD people. They’re never painted as gods deep down. They do bad things like abuse and berate Mantenna, because they’re bad people. And because most of the people in the Horde ARE BAD AND EVIL(there are some good people that leave, but they pretty much lave the Horde as soon as possible without sticking around, and everyone stuck around in the reboot for no reason), they genuinely do not care.

This guy? Just saw this whole thing play out. He don’t give a shit.

4. It’s slapstick. Slapstick humor isn’t meant to be taken seriously. Mantenna is a bit of an awkward, nervous guy. But he never read as the same level of traumatized as Kyle to me. Maybe I’m misreading it though. But the point is that a trapdoor is a completely different joke than being deprived of rations for a cake that goes to waste.

And 5. Mantenna actually gets wins. I can’t post many pics now. But there have been times where Hordak actually doesn’t get the drop on Mantenna. Once he tries the trap door to find it filled with flowers because of Perfuma. Once Hordak used a trap door on a boat, sinking himself in the process. And once Mantenna turned the tables completely.

Kyle though? He got a sort-of win in one episode? Even then it was only after he almost killed himself moving the tank.

My point here is, rather than have an established character, used for a much funnier and lighthearted gag, with a genuinely fun design, Nate and his crew decided to use Kyle. A regular, not very strong, not very skilled, not very masculine boy. He’s gay. He’s possibly neurodivergent. And he’s got the biggest heart. And Crew-Ra decided because he commuted the ultimate crime of being a cisgender white male, he must suffer constant abuse. If that isn’t proof of what the reboot REALLY is about, I don’t know what is. It’s not about friendship. It’s not about being gay. It’s not about breaking the cycle of abuse. It’s about using this show to send very negative messages to children. To hurt people for no good reason. And with the casual and brazen contempt for the original that Nate and some of Crew-Ra displays, I’m honestly surprised they named him Kyle, and not Lou, or Micheal, or Larry.

Sorry for the long message. I just felt like this was a major discovery on my part.

Exactly! The original did it in a way that's actually funny and doesn't leave you feeling bad. I seriously do not see the humor in seeing a relatively nice guy (despite being in the horde but even then he free Bow that one time) so it's just not funny when you see him getting made fun of for the millionith time. Another series that does butt monkeys well is Ouran High School Host Club, since it's actually funny. Tamaki gets actual development, even the people who make fun of him are shown multiple times to really care, and he actually gets wins

[spop-romanticizes-abuse]

i think i've said this before but i want to elaborate on it. i genuinely feel like the spop crew wrote c//a as some sort of torture p*rn. they know that people usually find an enemies to lovers arc sexy and intriguing. but the problem with c//a was that their fights were never equal. i don't know about y'all but when i think of enemies to lovers, i think of a dynamic where both individuals are at least somewhat on equal footing. i don't think about a relationship with a huge power dynamic where one of the characters is helpless and weak while the other takes every opportunity to torture them.

adora never tried to harm catra apart from self-defense, she always held back when she was fighting catra. she tried to reason with catra or just hold her off. meanwhile catra never held back on hurting adora. not once.

and all of this is framed as “hot”. it's framed as “sexual tension”. it's framed as “gay pining”, even though it's not. not to mention, most of the “homoerotic” fight scenes are where adora is either weak or helpless in some way. she's either restrained or too scared to fight back or actively stopping herself from injuring catra. and catra takes advantage of her kindness.

so what's the torture p*rn part of this? well. torture p*rn is basically a trope where a person (or multiple people being tortured) is the main attraction of the plot. c//a is supposed to be enemies to lovers, meaning they should be fighting equally, right? especially since adora is stronger and the “chosen one”, you'd think she'd definitely be defeating catra a lot more.

but no, most of their conflict is catra taking joy in harming adora. these scenes are framed in a more “intimate” way, with catra often touching adora without consent, saying vaguely flirtatious yet threatening one-liners and overall fueling the whole “sexual tension” part.

just take a look at these scenes. i can't completely blame the fandom for thinking these are sexy or erotic because they are framed that way. the crew themselves have admitted that c//a were supposed to have some sexual tension (despite being teenagers for at least two seasons, mind you) and it shows. adora may look scared or uncomfortable but it doesn't matter because the writers wants us to think that this is hot.

villains being creepy and borderline perverted is not a new thing, it's something that mainly came with queer-coding villains. but people often only do this to villains who are supposed to stay villains. and especially with the context that catra supposedly “loved” adora during all this, it just adds another layer of discomfort. it just feels like catra is taking the opportunity to not only hurt adora but also make her deeply uncomfortable by touching and interacting with her in a way that she did not consent to.

keep in mind that whenever adora has the upper hand, the show never frames their fights as homoerotic or weirdly intimate.

most of the time, she uses long range attack or she just goes on defense. the one time she attacked catra head on, she just decks catra in the face and is done with it. she doesn't cross catra's boundaries, she doesn't act flirtatious or touch catra inappropriately. the only scene where she can be described as “flirtatious” (though i would say she was just being smug) was when she wasn't attacking catra, but instead destroying one of entrapta's robots.

(and of course with no remorse, catra orders entrapta to activate the self-destruct on the robot so that adora could be blown to bits.)

so yeah. just because catra is a villain doesn't mean she has to be a creep. if the goal was to make her sexy (which is still weird since she was a teenager but regardless), there are other ways. there have been plenty of villains who are attractive and have a charming personality without being a total creep to the protagonists. for example, azula from ATLA is widely known as a queer awakening for many young girls because of how attractive she was (i know she was also a teenager. these are not my words, i'm just quoting the general public). and yet, you never see azula being creepily intimate with any of the protagonists. she often used long-range attack and she only goes as far as using some condescending language. it's just weird to write a villain who we should sympathize with, but then also make them a total creep.

[aprillikesthings]

I'm 44 and I want headcanons about middle-aged She-Ra characters so I guess I gotta do this myself

Catra gets her first noticeable gray hairs in her 30's, and at first she pulls them out whenever she sees one (she doesn't tell Adora this because she's embarrassed that they bother her) but gives up after a few years. By her mid-40's she has a gray streak, and even she can admit that looks good, but Adora squeals over how cute it is.

At some point she realizes she's getting less flexible and starts working at it.

Catra finds it a lot easier to be chill about shit, just in general. (Behold the field in which she grows her fucks...) It's not as much of a struggle to manage her anger the way it once was, both from a lot of practice (and therapy) and just less makes her angry than it used to. She's also had lots of practice at talking about her feelings, though her words of affection are still laced with a gentle sarcasm at times.

Adora's hair is pale enough that she doesn't notice white hairs popping up until they're nearly half her hair.

She also starts to need reading glasses. Oddly enough, She-Ra doesn't. She repeatedly gets "caught" turning into She-Ra just long enough to read something when she left her readers in another room or is too impatient to go looking for them.

(Speaking of She-Ra: Nobody has any idea how She-Ras age because she's the first one to live this long. Doing ridiculous feats of strength and/or healing are still easy...until she switches back. It takes longer and longer to recover, so she does them less often.)

Adora is still stronk but not to the degree she was--it's just more effort to keep up the same level of fitness. She does get better at getting enough sleep, but she also has a pillow between her knees, an eye mask, and a weighted blanket. Her anxiety isn't as bad, in part because she's learned better coping skills.

(They're both just more chill as they get older: no more wars, lots of therapy...but also they both find it easier to emotionally regulate when they're around each other.)

The two of them are still the kind of couple that holds hands all the time in public. They see friends a lot (for things like dinner and board games) and go on date nights.

[delenaisepiclove]

When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass it on to at least five other writers. Let’s spread the self-love!

Hey Cosmic! Well let’s see…five fav fics that I’ve written. I’ve written a bunch on FanFiction.Net but for this post I’m going to stick with the ones I have up on ao3. First one that comes to mind is The Reunion. It’s about Faith and Buffy reuniting after her time in prison and it’s currently my most popular piece on ao3, so that makes me very happy. Not only that, it was my first time ever writing a w/w fic so to know that a lot of people liked it really meant a lot. :)

Second would have to be Partners in Crime. It’s based off of the animated show She-Ra and is centered around Catra and Adora, two of the main characters in the show. It’s another one that got a lot of attention that I really enjoyed writing. It’s very wholesome and sweet with a dash oof mischievousness thrown into it. Very very cute.

Third would be an on-going fic I’m writing called Star Crossed Enemies to Lovers. It’s a vampire fic centered on two characters from the show Killing Eve. Eve is a vampire hunter focused on hunting down a vampire named Villanelle, and the two have this back and forth cat and mouse game for awhile until feelings eventually between the characters. I only have a few chapters up and am in the process of writing the third chapter, but it’s coming along nicely and I can’t wait to post it! It’s my first vampire fic I’ve written in years so I’m pretty stoked about it. :) It’s not quite as popular as my last two but I’m hoping it’ll gain more traction as I add more chapters to it.

Fourth is A Blast from the Past, my latest Delena fanfic. This one is pretty dark, and is based off of a storyline I did on my RP account with a close friend many years ago. Damon and Elena are still vampires and have settled down, and even conceived a child together. But sometime later on down the road, something happens that causes Damon to revert back to his old ways where he only cared about Katherine and nobody else. It’s another WIP of mine and I’m not sure when I’ll have the second chapter posted. I just have fond memories of writing that with my friend and wanted to share it with more people.

And for my final story it would have to be Dark Savior. It’s another w/w fic set in the Buffy series only this time it’s centered around Faith and Willow. This is takes place during the Dark Willow arc and instead of Xander calming Willow down from her plan to end the world, it’s Faith. Unusual pairing but I think it works really well here, though I’m more of a Fuffy (Buffy/Faith) person personally.

If you’re interested in reading these stories you can find them all on my ao3 page. I only have a handful up so far so it’s not hard to find the five fics I’ve talked about in this post.

https://archiveofourown.org/users/CelestialStorm/works

[chaifootsteps]

Ok, I know She-ra reboot wasn't your fandom, but you allowed allows to rant about it in your ask box, which I thank you for.

So, we all come from different cultures and have different beliefs. We can't all collectively agree on what Adora and Catra are to each other. But we will take some facts. So, they were two orphans that grew up in a foster home environment and had the same foster mother, but we all know they saw Shadow Weaver was a literal mother, they just never explicitly called her mom. Now, one thing was is that Catra and Adora were very close as children and growing up, that Adora being the sweetheart she was always tried to include Catra even when Catra pushed her away. Catra is a cat girl so she slept by Adora's feet, they apparently even showered together? (Idk how true that is, I think someone who worked on the show said that, I don't remember it being in or mentioned in the show, if anyone wants to come enlighten me) ok, so we get it. They were very close growing up.

Ok, now here's my gripe with the trope. So ND Stevenson revealed early on that Catradora would be end game. A lot of people had their beef with that, especially since some felt the show didn't show any character growth for their romance. So they end up together at the end, they kiss and credits roll.

So, I looked it up. The trope doesn't exactly have a name? But it's "we were very close as children, got separated for a bit, but we reunited to date now", yeah a mouth full. I wouldn't call it childhood romance tbh. I've seen this trope used in other shows and media. I don't like that trope. More examples are star vs the forces of evil, but you know, we'd had to watch Star and Marco be with other people first. But it's different since they met at 14 and 15 and were roommates for a bit before Star returned to Mewni for a bit and they kissed before the finale.

There's a lot of animes with this trope too. Kizaiver, Your Lie in April, Blue Spring Ride, A Silent Voice. Sorry, just tried naming some popular animes from the top of my head.

Ok, I don't understand this trope. I'm sorry, I just don't find it realistic. When I've seen "real life" examples, turns out they just had history together in 8th grade and sat at different tables never speaking to each other, but met at 26 and got married later. Ok sorry, this is weirdly specific. Just I feel like this trope isn't real or applicable to real life. I feel like some people just want to emphasize and put importance to their relationship in a way that's not true or wasn't there.

So here's how it applies to HB. So Viv really saw some cute fanart and incorporated and changed the story up for it????

Ok???? But like....the ship is still so bad....

It just feels so forced and feels like she went this way cause she saw it a few times in other works.

Ok, sorry for the rant. I just truly feel like some creators pull stuff out of their ass to try making us ship bad ships.

Thanks for the insight into Catradora. I think regardless of how two characters meet, whether they knew each other as kids or not, it's not going to be a good ship if the writing isn't there.

Honestly I think Stolitz was never going to feel natural or sincere -- why none of her canon ships ever really do -- because Vivzie doesn't seem to get why one human being loves another. Her understanding of it stalled early on in her yaoi fic days and never went anywhere beyond that. They're gay, that's enough for Viv.

[that-ari-blogger]

How One Scene Tells A Story (Pulse)

For an action adventure series, the fight sequences in She-Ra and the Princesses of Power have been rather underwhelming. The series has been carried by its cinematography, and for the most part, everything else has been above par, but I still find myself unimpressed by the majority of the choreography.

Animation is a medium that quite literally allows you to show anything you can picture. If you can draw it, you can animate it. This allows for more fine tuning of expression within complex movements. Shonen Anime is known for taking advantage of this, but the fights in She-Ra have mostly been relegated to static characters flailing at each other while the camera movement covers the cracks.

This doesn’t destroy the show at all, but it’s something I noticed, and something I want to point out. Because the biggest reason for this is that in media aimed at kids, there are things you aren’t allowed to show. Most notably. Adora has a sword, but the show isn’t allowed to show her actually stab someone with it.

The reason I bring this up, is that I want to show off how the series gets around this wall, and how it cheats in order to create a few scenes that are genuinely incredible.

Let me explain.

SPOILERS AHEAD

I want to clarify what I’m doing here.

Choreography is not a measure of quality. The correlation between good choreography and good television is just the relationship of good craft with itself. A good scene can involve anything, and one aspect does not make or break it.

I run an analysis blog, and I am specifically commenting on how the fights have not given me much to work with in that regard, with a few exceptions. For the most part, there have been generalised combat that is exactly what I mentioned earlier, with what I will call “set piece sequences”, which is where all of the character acting has gone.

However, I have found the majority of these set piece sequences to be lacking. Yes, there is action there, but its never really that revealing.

Case and point, Adora vs Catra Double Trouble in The Valley Of The Lost. This sequence boils down to characters standing still while trading identical blows and missing or parrying, then finishing it off with something clever. And this is actually a really good example of why what I’m saying doesn’t matter, because what you remember from that sequence isn’t the combat, it’s the tree that rises up behind them, it’s the shot of the bridge, it’s the dialogue. I am talking about a really small element of an overall picture.

I also want to clarify that complexity is not as important as people online say it is. Good art is defined by how much of an emotional response it evokes from its audience, not by how intricate it is. For my example of this, Glimmer and Shadow Weaver vs Catra in Moment of Truth is my single favourite fight sequence of the entire series, and its really simple.

Catra stands still with a whip while Glimmer and Shadow Weaver teleport around and the camera whirls around them all in a way that gets more impressive the more you know about what’s going on behind the scenes. Rotating 2D objects is really difficult to do.

The emotion of Catra’s spiral is what sells this moment, as well as the unease of Shadow Weaver sapping Glimmer’s strength, symbolised by that vice like grip she has on her wrist. This scene hits you like a truck and is genuinely scary. It even ends with a demonstration of the cost of victory through Shadow Weaver’s needless abuse of the defeated Catra.

Notably in that one, the characters never make contact with each other. There are no blows that they are sent reeling from, its barely a fight, and this is a recurring thing.

This is a part of the series’ rating regulations. No graphic violence, keep realism out of the picture, etc. etc. I would argue that the series plays extremely fast and loose with these specific two rules, but that’s just me.

The way the series circumvents the guidelines is multifaceted. First, most of the enemies are robots, which can be slashed apart in as many creative ways as you want without anyone stepping in. Second, for the organic mooks, Adora’s sword is now mysteriously blunt, and Bow’s arrows are all suddenly nonlethal. So, if you get hit with either, you just fall over and you’re fine. It’s ok, but I’m lukewarm on this at best. Then there is the school of implication.

If you want an example of this, watch the season one finale, and take note of how many blows actually connect on camera. Because for all the ones that are dealt, the camera only shows one or two of them. The rest are from the victim’s perspective as the projectile hits the camera itself, then cut to a reverse shot as they fall away.

Alternatively, the screen cuts to black as claw marks appear in red on that background. Technically, there was no violence on the screen, but we all know what happened.

Enter Pulse, actual the subject of this post.

“Oh, it’s you.” “Who else would it be?”

We open with quite possibly the best example of Glimmer’s impulsiveness and dramatic irony in the series. Catra effectively tells Glimmer there is a spy, and she misses it because she is so focused on her objective.

And the fight begins, a few tracking shots follow Catra here, positioning her as the underdog as she evades Glimmer’s magic. We now have a dynamic set up, slow and strong vs fast and evasive. Also, Glimmer is straight up out for blood here. Usually, it’s the villain who rocks up out of nowhere to try and kill the protagonist. I wonder if there’s some symbolism there.

The explosion masks a shot transition to the destroyed boxes, revealing what’s inside, as we get a lull in the fight for a moment.

We get shouting and needling. Psychological warfare is a part of the fight, and giving the moment space to breathe allows the audience to get ready. The first skirmish set a vibe, then pulled back to let anyone who isn’t ready for the next step to back out now.

“Guess you don’t know everything.”

I want to point what Glimmer does when she gets truly angry. Throughout the series up until now, Karen Fukuhara has played Glimmer as a fairly loud, extremely expressive character. But for one line, she goes quiet.

I love it when string emotions change a character’s entire demeanour, and sometimes that means a quiet character starting to shout, sometimes it’s the other way around.

It’s worth noting what it was that got this reaction from her.

“Using your own friend as a decoy? Wow. Didn’t know you had it in you.”

Glimmer has a black and pink morality. She views ethics in terms of alignment, those who agree with her are the good guys, those who don’t are the bad guys. Catra’s mild suggestion that the world is more complicated than that infuriates her.

So, Glimmer appears in front of Catra, outmatching her in manoeuvrability, and once again goes for the kill. Cut to a close up of her face, hidden behind holy light, then a reverse shot of Catra looking up in terror.

The use of colour and light in this sequence is actually really interesting. Here, it screams “be not afraid!” in order to cast Glimmer as angelic, giving off light to shine down upon Catra. But the light isn’t coming from Glimmer’s own radiance, is the readying of a spell. Suddenly, that angel has shifted into “say your prayers, chump”.

Impact frames separate Glimmer storing the magic and turning it into a beam, but also serve to sell the force of the blow as Catra evades it and it turns on you. You feel like you are part of the set and you are collateral damage that Glimmer does not care about.

This scene really doesn’t show Glimmer in the best of lights. Pun very much intended.

The falling shot has a stock background that implies motion without having to actually show it, and the perspective on the whip is a really nice animation detail. But notice how many different shots we are running through in quick succession. They create a sense of instability and dynamics that the first little skirmish didn’t quite have.

Even the simple act of falling has four different angles before Catra hits the ground. The two above, then one of Glimmer’s face, then the whip wraps around her foot. We’re changing quickly and constantly moving, even when the camera is staying remarkably still within shots.

This explosion slows all of that pacing down. It’s a long drawn out shot of Glimmer fallen from grace, insignificant in scale in comparison to the damage she has just done.

It’s notable that Glimmer outclasses Catra in all physical aspects, but Catra is smart, and uses her opponent’s strength against her. The damage that is done to this place was done directly by Glimmer’s recklessness.

Glimmer now has to contend with not being the biggest threat in the room, and now she has to think quickly as well, we have more dynamism as the fight resumes and the characters are both suddenly dodging an unbiased third party while also trying to kill each other.

Side note, this is my answer as a GM to how fights in certain TTRPG systems feel samey. I have a table, I get a player to roll on it once a combat round, and there’s a chance for something to change. Half the time, nothing happens, but sometimes something catches fire, or a ceiling cave in, or luck itself shifts. These changes always affect both parties, but they mean that certain areas are off limits or similar effects, meaning tactics have to shift.

Notice the colour here as well. Almost everything is a shade of red, the colour of danger and anger, as the dominant power is now that fire. Everything is trying to get away from it.

Also, the camera now won’t sit still. I will remind you that it is animated, you can’t get a handheld style when there isn’t an actual camera in animation unless you create it yourself, intentionally. But that’s what’s happened, everything is shaky, everything is unsafe.

I like the little touch that Catra’s ears prick before she turns. She hears Glimmer approach, then turns to face her. It sells the feline senses.

The red is matched by a blue for a moment as Glimmer appears from behind Catra, and pay close attention to who’s perspective this fight is taken from. At the start it was Glimmer, then they share the spotlight, now Catra is just trying to survive while Glimmer appears out of nowhere like a horror movie monster.

We have contact. Except remember what I said about cheating? Glimmer’s beam was established as being able to cut metal, but this is just a minour explosion caused by energy sent through another object. It’s second hand. But its enough. We see the reaction, and crucialy, we see the follow up.

The camera really shakes as Catra collides with this wall, selling the brute force of the strike. But other than that, she’s fine. She doesn’t appear injured by it. The cinematography here is working in tandem with the choreography to back up where the animation isn't allowed to go.

“Where are you going, Catra? Not scared of some sparkles, are you?”

Glimmer’s just talking here. Talking and walking. She’s not shouting or running or being overly expressive at all. She’s just speaking, menacingly.

Anyone else notice that Catra is standing in a different place between shots? Like, she’s about a metre and a half to the right of where she’d need to be to press that button. Did the two just stare awkwardly at each other as she shuffled to the left? I know it doesn’t matter, but it's funny to me.

I’ve been waiting for one of these the entire fight. This is a Dutch Angle, the horizon is diagonal, it makes the audience feel unbalanced, and adds to the unsafeness. Up until now, the scene hasn’t needed one of these, but now it has use for one.

The tilt exaggerates the perspective and makes Catra look even smaller by comparison.

Still with the Dutch angle, but now we’re looking upwards approximating Glimmer’s perspective. Key, however, is that this thing doesn’t fit on the screen. It’s too big for even the camera, and you are too close to it.

The music surges with emotion in a way I can’t quite explain, and we cut back to the surroundings twice to remind you that this place is still on fire. Then to this:

Catra has won, she has activated her trap card and can easily just run. So, she offers Glimmer a choice, save the forest or kill her, and I want to stress the decision Glimmer makes.

Glimmer’s first instinct isn’t to save anyone, it’s to kill her enemy. If Catra hadn’t got herself trapped, Glimmer would have either killed them both, or kept trying until she was caught in the explosion.

Catra gets lucky in this fight, several times. She should have been killed had it not been for things falling on her in just the right way. But she’s also smart, and she needs credit for this.

The key theme of Glimmer’s arc is stubbornness and impulsiveness. Here, it almost caused her death. But there’s something in that.

I keep going on about how tragedies subvert themselves in this series, and here’s one of those. Glimmer finally gets over herself and starts thinking things through, she has a problem she can't punch, and she comes to a conclusion that lets her fix that problem without anyone getting killed. She avoids the tragedy at the last possible moment.

We’re starting to see a lot of that in this series.

Final Thoughts

The word of the day with Glimmer is hubris, the idea that she thinks herself to be infallible. The black and pink morality is what it says on the tin. There is evil and there is Glimmer. In her mind, that is how the world works.

Next week, I’ll be covering Protocol, and the return of Light Hope. It's an episode I have mixed feelings about, so stick around if that interests you.

Previous - Next

[kraviolis]

In your little lamb AU is Hunter's relationship with Belos different? I can see that Hunter is severely punished when he disregards the role of protector (Due to Belos's grudge to Caleb) but aside from that is he treated any differently?

i love belos & hunter's dynamic in my au honestly. i've compared it before to catra & shadow weaver's, but its actually more complicated than that because shadow weaver actually did care about catra herself in a weird, fucked up way.

but belos only cares about hunter in relation to his bond with luz. the only reason hunter is actually treated with more care and concern in this au is because belos knows luz would be upset if anything happened to him. the best part is that hunter? 100% aware of this.

it's my headcanon that belos has been raising hunter since infancy despite all the previous grimwalkers being at least 12+ years old before being exhumed and hunter being dug up early was an accident turned into an experiment of belos seeing if hunter would be more loyal and capable than the others.

so hunter grew up actually feeling wanted & loved by his uncle, but also starving for real bond and affection from him. he puts himself on a pedestal in hunter's mind with careful wording and specific choices. in canon, this leads to hunter clinging to any scrap of affection thrown his way and feeling disconnected from his uncle but also exceptionally desperate to prove himself due to his hero-worship of the man.

in my little lamb au, however, this process is completely scrapped the second he decides to bring luz into the picture. you're right that belos would be exceedingly harsh on hunter for anything he perceives as hunter disregarding his role as luz's protector. but also, hunter doesn't often give belos the chance to find discrepencies there.

hunter adores luz. luz shows hunter very early on that affection and love and care from family can be given easily and unconditionally. he learns from her that he doesn't NEED to prove himself to belos just to feel wanted. luz makes him feel wanted all on her own. so it's not belos's pressuring that makes hunter really step into the role of protecting and taking care of luz full time, it's his love for luz herself.

belos & hunter are both aware that the other knows what they're doing. there's a shaky mutual understanding between them. hunter understands to be quiet and do what he's told and belos understands not to do anything that would upset luz.

and of course hunter still somewhat hero-worships belos-- he's still suuuuper brainwashed and wants that approval that he's doing a good job, but he also understands that belos cares about luz far, far more that he'll ever care about him. and hunter is honestly... pretty okay with that.

he's also a little more secure in his role as golden guard because luz would blow tf up at belos if he tried replacing hunter with anyone else. (luz is the only person who can yell at belos and actually get away with it. he doesn't bend to her in those moments but... think more of his reaction in canon when she broke his mask.)

but once luz runs away for good... hunter begins to crack under the pressure of having all of belos's attention on him for once. and especially because of how fucking angry belos is when luz is gone.

[cirusthecitrus]

If it's not too late for the ask meme, how about wrong hordak?

Thanks for the ask^^

First impression: One of the things I anticipated the most before s5 dropped was the clones. So I was veeery excited to meet Wrong Hordak, I was literally obsessed with him. The funniest cutest fucked up little guy who, it seemed, was made just for me. (Partially because one of my early clone OCs was just like Wrongie personality-vise lol) I was still sad that the other clones didnt get much focus, but at least i had WH and Hordak

Impression now: Wrong Hordak is still my baby and I'll keep justifying his existence till my last breath, but now I see many problems with his arc and his place in the story. The way his trauma was treated is simply disgusting, and the fact that WH is never taken seriously by no one, even the writers, even when he's distressed and scared, even when he is forced to watch his entire world burn makes my blood boil. He didnt even get a proper name by the end... Yes, it could've worked better if it was Hordak instead of WH, I too wanted brainwashed Hordak to join the rebellion. And yes, Wrongie wasnt even that useful, mainly being nothing but a joke character. He also failed as an attemt to help humanize the clones, so the rest of his brothers stayed mindless drones, not getting a hint of sympathy from the narrative nor most of the viewers

Anyway, I'm stealing Wrong Hordak from DreamWorks, my character now

Favorite moment: "Brothers! There's nothing to see heeere! :D" and "We put amniotic fluid in there :| No, that was a joke :>"

Also every scene where he copies someone's expressions and movements

Idea for a story: ooh I've been sitting on this one for so long. Call it an au or a rewrite, but the idea is:

Wrongie gets disconnected way, way earlier, after trying to stop Catra and Glimmer from escaping. The first to find him was Hordak, and after he notices something familiar about his brother's pain, he chooses to stay with him and even comfort him. While Prime and the clones are busy with other mess, he decides not to tell anyone about WH's problem. He can't explain why he wants to keep his brother out of the hivemind and possibly get himself into trouble, but he is quick to justify his decision (oh Prime is too busy right now, oh he just doesnt want to distract him, its not that important etc)

And thus begin the brothers' shenanigans, where Hordak tries to watch over confused Wrongie, while he's struggling to adapt and act normal. During the time they spent together Wrongie sees more of "the real Horde" and slowly starts to question Prime, and Hordak shows his protective side and remembers more and more of his old life and his old self

In this story it is Hordak who gets taken with the rebellion, but only after a moment of resistance, because 1) he didnt fully remember Entrapta yet and saw the others as the enemy 2) he was worried about Wrong Hordak and tried to take his brother with him. Now WH is all by himself on the Velvet Glove and still has to keep a low profile. Eventually he gets closer with other clones and helps them see the truth as well, starting a small rebellion of his own. So during the final battle the etherian rebellion is going to have a trusted ally on "the other side", who can help with distractions and hacking Prime's systems. And ofc, seeing his brother safe and sound and freed will boost Hordak's morale even more before his inevitable last meetup with Horde Prime

Unpopular opinion: I think it won't be hard for WH and Hordak to become close friends. Hordak fell in love with this ball of energy called Entrapta and got attached to Imp who likes to mess with him, I'm sure he won't find Wrong Hordak too cheerful or too annoying (oh he will be annoyed, no doubt, but is he going to see his brother as a nuisance because of it? Nah-uh) Sure, WH might make Hordak feel insecure at first, cause Wrongie is more "likeable" and has no defects, but not to the point of barely tolerating or avoding him

And they have a lot in common? Same background, similar traumas, and they both still have a lot to learn about the real world, they can learn and grow together. Plus, I'm sure Wrongie is going to freaking adore Hordak and see him as his hero and role model, and there's no way Hordak is going to stay cold and distant for long after being showered with so much love So yeah, they're besties your honor (even if only in my heart u-u)

Favorite relationship: friendship with Entrapta and also possible future friendship with Hordak and Imp. My guy was born to be the funny uncle

Favorite headcanon: I really enjoy the idea of him being rebellious even before the events of the show. The comment under that one storyboard says that Wrongie's pod was used for reconditioning, so something must have happened for him to get in there. He must have known too much, or was too vocal and disobedient, or just different and Prime didnt like that. Perhaps when WH was yelling "Brothers, HP lied to us, he's a false ruler!" it was him remembering all those things he was trying to say to his brothers before he got silenced by Prime. Also maybe he was the only clone who knew about Krytis, so when the rebellion took Wrongie it might have got Prime stressing a lil bit, because, sure, he did send him for reconditioning, but what if that clone still remembers something he shouldnt know?