#either way it's great storytelling
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Dead Boy Detectives was really smooth with how they decided to keep us hanging with Edwin/Charles. We have hints, but no real way of knowing how their relationship will move forward and that feels very deliberate.
'Cause I mean. We see how Edwin is acting after realizing his feelings. He's not all that subtle (for us) in episode 6. He changes clothes, checks Charles out, lingers on a touch on his shoulder, etc. It's clear he changed.
But then, after hell and the confession, we have just TWO scenes focused on them, and they are somehwat hard to decipher, especially when it comes to Charles' reactions. The scenes are pretty opposite.
First, the roof right after hell. They are standing very apart from each other (not usual at all), each looking away, and there's an awkwardness going on when they do make eye contact. It's cute, but unlike anything we've seen from them before, and it indicates a shift in the dynamic that neither of them seems quite ready to face.
Then Charles reassures Edwin that they're good, they smile, Crystal shows up and goes straight to lean against Charles, not even thinking about it, while Edwin is still at the other side. It feels very interesting to me that they chose to go with this unbalance of proximity. It looks... hurtful, to Edwin at least.
Then there's Crystal with her memories, saying goodbye, Esther, the whole shebang, and the next time we see the boys by themselves is at the very end. Which was also a very interesting choice in proximity, as we all know. But this time, the other way around — they are closer than ever.
Also I think it's worth noting that, before this, when they are about to leave Port Townsend, both Charles and Edwin have a little moment with their respective love interests. Charles and Crystal act kinda shy at each other in Niko's room, while Edwin talks to the Cat King. Again, it feels deliberate.
So are there going to be other awkward moments? Is Edwin going to be fine with the craving he now clearly has? Is Charles going to act confident or bashful? And obviously there's room for the Cat King and Crystal to still mean something romantic and/or sexual to them, in one way or the other. Basically, the evidence can point to any direction. And as much of a Payneland truther I am, I have to admit it can also point to a whole different development. The show made sure to leave all doors open, including the ones leading to heartbreak.
It makes me anxious, and it's also lowkey brilliant.
#I actually like that I'm not 100% sure because it makes me stay at the edge of my seat#but it does make me anxious at the same time lol#either way it's great storytelling#dead boy detectives#dbda#charles rowland#edwin payne#payneland#painland
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the idea this game posits that just as much as or even more so than lucanis is having a demon problem, spite is currently having a lucanis problem. is everything to me. spite voice bitch you live like this???
#'rook. talk to him >:('#<- both people in this ongoing one person family therapy session. thank god my rook is a watcher I think they might get it#dragon age#dragon age: the veilguard#dragon age: the veilguard spoilers#dragon age spoilers#lucanis dellamorte#spite#it's a good metaphor for trauma AND it's excellent da spirit lore building on a lot of things already established#and also. frequently hysterically funny. mary kirby has such a knack for Thematic Depth sneaking through#she did it with varric and storytelling and here she is again 'what like it's hard' style. god fuck EA so much#having to admit that the thing happened and was not in his control and that he's different now and can't go back is harder to deal with#than the actual ways he's different now when engaged with honestly. I mean. yeah. yeah. trauma breaks and rearranges a self#and no one goes 'great love this I'd like some more' right after that#add all the cultural fear and shame around demon possession in andrastian thedas and I would not be doing well either haha#but also. poor spite in the middle of all that being like physical reality is already so weird but I really don't want this to be happening
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5 Underrated Things or Tactics That May Aid Bell's Hells to Victory
Spoilers up to Campaign 3 Episode 116 below
Well Critters, it all comes down to this.
Vox Machina dismantled the Malleus Keep, killed Ozo (the Bozo) Kruft, and freed the Champion of Ravens which removed the tidal lock on Ruidus, and now the Mighty Nein have disintegrated the Weave Mind, completing essentially a full dismantling of the Kreviris Imperium, all of which quicker than I anticipated. All that's left is the Hallowed Cage, where Ludinus Da'leth and his inner circle are using his harness to try and fully destroy Liliana Temult. Bell's Hells begin a race against time to save her, but also a race to defeat Ludinus before he unleashes his intentions unto Exandria and its Pantheon with Predathos, and then decide for themselves what they do with the God Eater.
Suffice to say, and I dunno about everyone else but, I am terrified. I believe they can win but Ludinus is not to be underestimated, this second harness means he may be stronger - and he was already the strongest wizard alive - and have access to more powers compared to his simulacra, plus Predathos may come during or after this battle, which can put the Hells in a weakened state. Matt has likely prepared his best and worst for this final battle too, but the Hells aren't Lv. 20 combatants like the other groups; there's no 9th level spells, no Divine Intervention, and the group lost their cleric ~20 episodes back, so even though VM and the Nein were ultimately successful within 1-2 episodes having to use both of their auto-succeed Divine Interventions from their two clerics in the process, this is the battle. And with that is a ridiculous amount of tension for Ludinus and for what comes after. For all we know, the cast may've already recorded ahead enough to have finished the final fight, maybe even finished the campaign (though I hope not, partly because I don't want it to end yet but also I feel like the dawn of the new era should be explored regardless of what choice the Hells make, plus some characters could use a bit more resolution after the big fight and the pressure of stakes and time sensitivity have been alleviated) but for us it's a nervous wait, and a wonder of what can be done to win and what choice will be made to determine the future of Exandria, Ruidus, their faith and their people. So, this is my indulging into that first part, 5 lower-key things or tactics that might not have been initially thought of that could make things easier to defeat Ludinus.
Liliana, the Inner Circle, and the Arcane Battery Provided that the Hells make it in time to stop Liliana from being totally destroyed by the harness (which is very possible since Laudna does have that tracking spell on him since Aeor, it's all about speed and not running into enemies) she will still be without her magic to fight. Ludinus' inner circle holding her down is comprised of Reilorans but also other Ruidusborns, and that's something the Hells can expose. Liliana cannot fight, but Ruidusborns can take spell slots from each other, so Liliana and any KO'd Ruidusborns from the inner circle can be used as spell slot fuel for Imogen and Fearne. Ludinus also gave a 9-slot fully-charged Arcane Battery to the Hells in order to trigger Delilah within Laudna for his escape, the battery can help recharge Laudna's slots too which makes this tactic handy for the witches of the group.
Dunamancy One of Ludinus' most important tools for his plan has been Luxon Beacons, a device able to unravel even divine magic, but much like the Harness it can prove his undoing. Dunamancy hasn't been touched upon as much as early C3 hinted it could have, but for lack of a better phrase, the possibilities are still endless. The Hells have multiple Potions of Possibility at their disposal to aid with rolls, but they also were given a Sphere of Dunamantic Restoration by the Kryn, which will trigger the effects of a Short Rest and a health and spell slot recharge - which can be handy in a pinch and to reuse some once per short rest abilities. Ashton is the key factor though, I've mentioned it a few times already but we don't know if these items will behave differently with them, via their own internal dunamancy abilities. Given the unknown factor, that's why it's not deemed as much of a tactic as it is a Hail Mary, but it is one that could lead to Ludinus' own magic unraveling, and maybe even Predathos' too
The Whirling Dervish & Conditional Advantages In Vassalheim, Dorian received his family sword: Gambolcleft, the Vortex Blade. One of its yet to be used abilities involves a once a day repetitive use of striking an enemy, similar to how Ozo killed Vex, provided that they attack with Disadvantage. Dorian is already looking at a high attack roll given Gambolcleft's +3 to attack and hit rolls, and Master's Flourish means he doesn't have to use a Bardic Inspiration to stack a Blade Flourish (Defensive Flourish is probably best, the damage is also doubled by Gambolcleft), the only quibble is the disadvantage. Fortunately, most of the Hells have skills that can force Ludinus into conditions where attacks would do advantage on him: stunning and rendering him prone being most likely, but paralysis is possible if a Hold Person is successful. It would of course require his Legendary Resistances to be used up first, but if Ludinus gets stunned or knocked prone within Dorian's range, Gambolcleft could easily carve its way through him with continual hits, stacked potentially by Bless and Mark of the Messy End, for perpetual damage and make Dorian himself impossible to hit on his next turn. Stunning or Proning Ludinus also leaves Ludinus at the vicious mercy of the martial players, especially for conditions that auto-crit when hit.
The Hole (or the Bag of Holding) Occam's Razor. An old but gold tactic of the Hells could very easily be used against Ludinus too. The portable hole or the bag of holding are devoid of air, left in one long enough with it sealed would mean suffocation as have been the fate of many of the Hells' past opponents that they didn't have time to deal with. The Hole's downside is that a Strength check can lead to a creature forcing their way out, but the Hells do have plenty of skills that can impose disadvantage on Strength rolls and the aforementioned conditions could help that, Ashton's Hammer may also make it more difficult to unfold the Hole if its Immovable Rod is propped atop of it - but that'd be down to Matt's discretion. The Bag of Holding doesn't have the strength save, but it is smaller so it may not be able to fit him in it. I'm not sure if Ludinus can use Gate to escape either, dunno if that leads to the whole extradimensional rip thing that happens if you open one while in the other, but if he does it's a concentration spell so the Hells could just keep knocking him back from the other side, a bigger group of enemies in either also reduces the time needed before they suffocate.
The Harness and the One-Chance Polymorph Right now Ludinus is using a harness to destroy Liliana, comparing it to the one in Moleasmyr it'll potentially take about an hour to finish the process providing that this factor wasn't improved upon. However, removing magic within a being for a whole day only required a minute of contact in the Hells' one and maybe Ludinus', thus his creation and reason for long life and power can also be the key to his downfall. Holding Ludinus down for a minute is of course not as easy as it sounds but that's where Polymorph can come in. Polymorph lasts at most an hour, so as long as Ludinus is changed into a creature that can easily be restrained they can use the harness on it and remove Ludinus of his entire arsenal in order to finish him off without the risk of his high level spells. The tricky part is getting Polymorph to succeed; Wisdom is after all a Wizard's bread and butter, but there is a single gambit that could make it work. It requires all Legendary Resistances to be gone of course, and for Laudna and Braius to be conscious; Braius has a once per long rest ability to change a Wisdom saving throw to a Charisma one, which he used to allow Dorian to succeed in making the Dominox dance in the live show, Laudna's Void Puppet can force disadvantage on saves to those within 5ft of it, which will negate his magical resistance to just a clean roll. Orym can also use Hex to impose a disadvantage, which may be able to stack, but this would also hinge on Ludinus' charisma not being super high and if the Polymorph fails once it will likely not be able to be tried again.
The fight won't be easy, but there are avenues that can make it less dangerous, a strategy is very much required for such a foe. All the while my strategy remains keeping up the prayer circle. Deep breaths everyone.
#critical role#c3 spoilers#campaign 3#bells hells#c3#c3e116#cr spoilers#cr speculation#ruidus#ludinus da'leth#liliana temult#cr meta#also reminder Imogen/Ashton need to plant that brood pit for the All Minds Burn somewhere on Ruidus#can you tell I'm panicked because I'm panicked I just want them all to be safe#VM and the Nein were successful and that's great but also it feels like they succeeded too well...Matt and his machinations are waiting#I'd love for Ludie to get the Zathuda treatment but he is likely the final boss if Predathos isn't so it's gotta be big and tense and such#and the after part is terrifying to me too because I do not think that thing should be let out - it can't stay on Ruidus either though#gods can quit being gods without Predathos as an excuse#Many gods helped in the VM and M9 fights too that should be acknowledged - the dynamic has to change but maybe not via death or exile#risking our own for them is not gonna work - Matron won't leave and new gods not on the menu like Artie will take their place if they die#I'd say they must see that but since they're all winging it we can only know in the decisive moment - it'll likely fall to Imogen's choice#I guess it's good storytelling that it can all go either way but it's very difficult to function when I'm picturing 100 different scenarios#you all are welcome to join me in the prayer circle#added notes: titan powers aren't on the list but I'm hoping to see more stuff because Matt did give them a piece of paper full of abilities#really hope the cast just quickly looked through their characters' skills items and abilities before the big upcoming fight#never know what will come in clutch
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I don't get why people hate the timeline so much, its not like you can't pretty much completely ignore it when you play the games. The only time it even approaches mattering to the story is when there is an explicit sequel like botw and totk or zelda and zelda 2
Hey sorry your ask got lost in the sauce of my broken tumblr, but: yeah!
I mean, I get why in some sense. It's been a heated point of debate and I think some people understandably resent the space it has taken not only in fandom discourse, but in how people began to understand the game and its narrative aesthetic choices. There is such a thing as over-rationalizing everything to hard logic, and sometimes it's just not the fandom for that --especially when you begin to forget it's all just fan theory and start to forget what the games are supposed to be like and evoke beyond just strict facts displayed in a linear way.
What I think bugs me with TotK in particular is that it both evokes and relies on continuity and the idea of a timeline, of archeology, of history itself, while being so loose and vacant with it that it both is doing Timeline Shit while also completely failing to understand why some parts of the fandom were invested in Timeline Shit to begin with.
But that's just my two cents of course!
#asks#tloz#timeline#totk critical#thanks for the ask!#I do... feel two ways about that myself#I think pure evocation is genuinely one of zelda's greatest storytelling strengths#that mood is sufficient and enough in itself and doesn't always need justification#it is the way the games center story --and that's genuinely wonderful and a strong take on narrative in games#as something freeflowing and accompanying gameplay rather than the opposite#and to ignore that and focus on hard facts all of the time kind of misses the point of the games' stories to a degree#BUT#I also get quite annoyed at the weird condescencion towards fans that do decide to engage with the stories more factually#especially since this is either revelatory regarding some of nintendo's choices#(that the aesthetics of evil are so tied to The Desert TM while taking so many inspirations from european fairy tales for example)#(it's not neutral even if we ignore ingame “lore”)#or just a great fodder for creativity and narrative play#and it is a part of the IP too!! just as much as dungeons and items and musics and curiosity-driven exploration!!#I do have beef with people not resonating with that aspect thinking others that do so are just stupid or childish#and that you can only have an enlightened relationship with zelda if you like it “the right way”#(which is somehow always mechanics/logic-driven which is. interesting to me.)#(or in a completely passively aesthetic way as in “I like fairies they're pretty”)#but you know it's the weird Triforce Shirt Dude stigma thing#that notion that you can (and must!) Love Zelda Deeply and Defensively#but you cannot be *passionate* about Zelda#then it's weird and immature#I don't know I feel like there's a lot to analyze in that arbitrary dychotomy#anyway sorry for the mega novel in the tags!!
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i really think Acca might be a twist unvillain
#jojolands#acca howler#i doubt he’d forgive the protagonists for what they’ve DONE to him or anything but i could really see him fulfilling a more jobinesque or#even chilli pepper-y role at this point#on the flipside that sorta failure antagonist who gets strung around energy would honestly make him growing up into a proper Main Villain#fucking great so honestly either way my brain is huge#like either way i’ve caught on to A Vibe and whether that leads him to relative redemption (in either complete fucking poverty or whatever#scraps hes deigned by Mei Qi’s squad) or if he actually bulks up and develops a ‘winning mindset’ it’ll be SIIIIIIIICK#or he could die badly ofc. which’d also be SIIIIIIIIIIIIICK in that it’d feel internally justified by his LOC&D (level of competence & drama#) while still being fairly outlandish storytelling-wise enough to be a shock
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Like I’m not gonna sit here and pretend there isn’t misogyny in horror movies but like there’s misogyny in every genre and the way y’all talk sometimes it’s like you’ve never seen a horror movie or saw one (1) woman die and decided they’re the only ones getting killed throughout the entirety of horror history
May shock you to learn this but men be dying too
#like either you wanna see people get brutally murdered or you gotta take the L and realize horror is not the genre for you idk what to tell#you. that means women will be dying sometimes. in horrific ways#and that’s the point#but here’s the good news! often times they are also the survivors#and that’s what’s great about the wide range of the storytelling spectrum 🙏🏻
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"cleopatra movie starring zendaya as cleopatra and timothee chalamet as octavian" i was having a good day and now i have an anger headache
#personal#i like zendaya and chalamet as actors and they have good chemistry#and i'm honestly fine with anything that focuses on the relationship cleopatra and octavian had with each other specifically#i think it's underdiscussed and a great source of drama and narrative storytelling#but not like this#for one i will say it until i'm blue in the face: cleopatra was white as bread. palest woman to have ever lived in egypt.#you know what with the THREE CENTURIES OF ONE GREEK FAMILY INBREEDING OVER AND OVER THAT LED TO HER CONCEPTION#for two: why are octavian and cleopatra gonna be the same age she was a decade older than him#that's important!#she was an adult in a relationship with his great-uncle when they first met in rome and HE was a teenager barely a year into adulthood#(by roman standards)#like she can't be his age and have a relationship with caesar#and even more importantly him being younger is probably a key part in why she might have underestimated him#along with listening to antony but that man was just stupid#it's a recurring theme in octavian's early career: the people around him were older and because he was young he wasn't taken seriously#until he was at their doorstep burning down their house and killing everyone they knew and by then it was too late#i cannot believe hollywood is apparently finding it hard to cast a white woman who can play midtwenties to early forties!!!#denis i know you like these two but pls just executive produce and give the project over to me and let me overhaul it#(where i then scrap the cleopatra focus and make it either a three way show focusing on cleopatra octavian and herod)#(or i just get to make the octavian biopic show i've had in my head for like two years)
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i don't think we do luv i don't think we do
#i do agree (obviously!) that for a series you need to get people to care about your characters so they want to keep watching it#comedy barely holds up without a story.. if you don't take time to work on storytelling or you want inexhaustible archetypes for characters#that you can use to churn out jokes‚ whether that's pointless random skits like family guy does it or something based on the relationships#like relationships within a certain status quo (s1 rick garbage man abuses his family. except it wasn't that simple back then either)#the problem with the sitcom where nothing changes so someone can just write gag after gag without changing the foundations is that it#becomes tiring. people stop caring because you've made it impossible to care for the characters by not allowing any meaningful changes#so in that sense i do agree it is 'becoming an actual series'. but it was on its way from the beginning‚ just needed some refinement#a whole lot maybe#but with setting limits for your writing and keeping your characters consistent and engaging emotionally you limit the#wacky hijinks as well. like don't tell me we got a banger like the vat of acid episode from season 6 or even 5 lol it's no longer explosive#i think rick and morty has always been inconsistent and that bred both great episodes and khm bad ones#there's definitely gonna be less bad ones from now on but the potential of the r&m dynamic has also been.... i would say curbed#that's okay this needed to happen like this. and i think they're going in the right direction and i think the stars will align and they'll#write bangers again#a lot of great things could happen following this. like in these actual arcs that they're developing there's still potential for comedy and#drama and they'll find their way back imo. to the sweet spot between chaos (wacky random funny) and order (meaningful and consistent)#ok that's all. if one hates rick being a miserable pathetic piece of shit one should mayhaps fuck off#✌️💗#kata.txt#rnm
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fictional or not, dragon lore is always so interesting.
#I'm watching a DS3 lore video on the nameless king bc i wanted to figure out wtf is the dragonslayer armor's deal#but the greater lore around the dragons is SO fucking good and now I'm thinking about dragons lol#i could watch these dark souls/elden ring lore videos by VaatiVidya all day tbh#i LOVE how deep he goes with it. these worlds and their lore already feel huge but#as someone who's only played the third dark souls it rly makes me appreciate how complex and interconnected it is as a series.#sometimes i wonder if the creators ever watch these vids and think “we didn't mean all that but that's a great idea”#or if they watch it and get super happy like YES that is exactly what our subtle storytelling meant.#either way i have So so much respect for ppl who go and put together these lore videos#going as far as to look at game dumps and early releases/cut content and ALL the dialogue and item descriptions#for any one topic the lore is so scattered about and piecing together any single thing seems like such a massive undertaking.#like lmaooo i can't even follow a single questline without pulling up the wiki#a recent rabbit hole i went down too is how there are different times/realities even just DS3 takes place in?#like how in Untended Graves you see a world without light where darkness rules - and in ringed city when ur fighting those#dragons in the base of that big tree that's supposed to be the original firelink shrine and then the shrine u use is maybe The Past?#the past relative to the other shrine from the world where the flame went out w darkness ruling.#idk how the transition works from being in that one dude's garden in ur world to just walking right into the other one but idc.#just say i got twilight zoned or somethn lol. always. very interesting stuff :^} I'm not smart enough to pick up on anything in the moment#but it's SO fun watching what other people pieced together whose whole thing is that they go thru these games thoroughly.#and in a way it makes me not want to stop playing DS/ER bc there's just so much going on here that's so rewarding??#like. on TOP of the suuper deep lore the gameplay is also just super fun and u get HELLA weapons and special moves#and the modding scene has made some hella streamline tools that are so good these have been the first games I've ever MADE mods for!#like i can't think of any other games that are like this where I'm really encouraged it make it my own with such a helpful and#engaging community. I'm sure there r other games out there that are similarly engaging with deep lore and streamlined modtools#and mod communities but (〒﹏〒) 1. where?? 2. DS/ER are very beloved to me.#it's funny how little u have to know or do to beat their respective storylines. I've played them both a ton and still know so little.#and when i walk away from these lore vids I'm always like Woah 😵💫 yk? anyways.. that's my lil rant :3 back to work now
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The musical I'm in rn at school is really fun and has really interesting themes about marriage and gender and relationships in general in the 70s, but my god do I die inside whenever we rehearse one of the songs that basically boils down to the male characters not liking their wives and objectifying other women. Hahahaha.
At least my character's husband loves her. 😒
#we sing through the whole show and every other song has me joking 'damn this sure does make me wanna get married' bc what else do i do?????#like jesus i knew the guy who wrote it had some Issues. i know the way he usually writes women is a bit. eh#but Still#great writer. fascinating storyteller. interesting characters all around.#but he did not like women. not sure if it was a misogyny thing or a trauma combined with period typical misogyny thing. but he didnt#then again it seems he didn't really like men either everyone's kind of an asshole in this show while also not being fully terrible#they're all very human. but it feels very Ugly. idk.#then again it's a niche demographic of rich new yorkers in their 30s-50s in the 1970s#i doubt they'd all be Pleasant#rich is a strong word tbh but y'know what i mean. upper middle class to just full on rich#my character's nice at least. i mean tbh if she wasn't i'd still have fun this is a fun show. but still. :)
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its funny how different opinions can be lol. I love between us. yes, the pacing could be better (they should already be together at this point) and the sidecouples take to much screentime. thought i still love it. The deep characters, the story, winteam, the chemie, bounprem...im already sad, that its gonna end soon.
Sure!
I still do enjoy aspects of it, enough that I'm definitely going to finish the show, and I agree that WinTeam have compelling chemistry and an interesting underlying storyline (albeit paced incorrectly). I never claimed to be offering an objective opinion on whether or not people should watch or enjoy the show.
I usually come out of even my most dearly beloved shows with some thoughts on script or pacing or tonal shifts or screentime balance between characters. I have opinions literally nobody asked for on details like framing and visual motifs even down to really minute details like camera movements or lens choices! It's my day-job to think about that kind of thing!
Maybe it's a fundamental difference in the way I consume media as someone working behind the scenes - it's no more or less correct than watching a show just to watch and enjoy it, rather than pick apart and analyse it - just different! And we've clearly come to slightly different conclusions on the show based on that.
Ultimately I'm just one person with one perspective. I'm glad that it's still enjoyable for you!
#ask#anon#I didn't tag either post with “Between Us” either#so theoretically it shouldn't show up in either my own BU tag or tumblr's#Partly because most people in the tags are fans not looking for any negativity#and partly because the OP was a non-objective throwaway comment about how I personally cant stand the editing#My opinions are actually massively swayed by working in TV and being in edit suites with producers and directors#to the point where the poor editing choices make my brain go into ''work mode'' and try to fix them and its distracting lol#obviously that is an experience and metacriticism of BU that 99% of people watching BU will absolutely not have#storytelling wise - some aspects have been great#I think the conversations around consent in the first couple of episodes were great#and I (as a fellow PeeTeeEssDee GORLIE) think the way Win handles Teams symptoms is just gorgeous and lovely and wonderful#there are lots of super interesting facets that are well done and sensitively handled#but - TO ME *PERSONALLY* - That adds to the mounting frustration about how the show as a whole is put together#you get these little *gems* (especially early on) and then they're not given the breathing room they deserve#My personal opinon is that it's frustrating that Boun and Prem essentialy put their careers on hold to complete this passion project#and despite knowing that it had garnered this huge loyal fanbase over the past 3 years#between us clearly wasn't given the production budget or ground-up editorial prowess that it deserved#I don't think I'm incorrect in saying that and I dont think you're incorrect for enjoying it despite that!#strokes and folks etc etc#ultimately I am posting untagged to a blog with under 100 active followers#I have no bearing on the show at all and no sway over the fandom lmao#glad you're enjoying it! I am too! sometimes! other times not so much!#but we move we vibe!
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Streaming in Kaos
Well, it happened. I can't say that I'm surprised that KAOS has been cancelled by Netflix. I am a little surprised at the speed at which it was axed. Only a month after it aired, and it's already gone.
That has me wondering if the decision to cancel was made before the show even aired. We have to remember that marketing is the biggest cost after production. If the Netflix brass looked at the show and either decided (through audience testing, AI stuff or just their own biases) that it wasn't going to be a Stranger Things-level hit, they probably chose at that moment to slash its marketing budget.
That meant there was pretty much no way that KAOS was ever going to hit the metrics Netflix required of it to get a season 2.
What makes me so angry about this (other than the survival of a show relying on peoples' biases or AI) is that it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you decide before a show is ever going to air that it won't be a success, then it probably won't be. If you rely on metrics and algorithms and AI to analyze art, you will never let something surprise you. You'll never let it grow. You'll never nurture the cult hits of the future or the next franchise.
Netflix desperately needs people behind the scenes that believe in stories and potential over metrics. Nothing except the same old predictable dreck is ever going to be allowed to survive if you don't believe in the stories you're telling.
The networks and streamers have a huge problem on their hands. They need big hits and to build the franchises of the future to sustain their current model (which is horribly broken.) But people have franchise fatigue and aren't showing up for known IPs like they used to. The fact that Marvel content is definitely not a sure thing anymore is a huge canary in the coal mine for franchise fatigue. People aren't just tired of Marvel, they're tired of the existing worlds both on the big screen and the small one. Audiences are hungry for something new.
It is telling that the most successful Marvel properties of the last few years have been the ones that do something different. Marvel is smart to finally pull out The X-Men because that is a breath of fresh air and something people are hungry to see more of.
There's pretty much no one behind the scenes (except for maybe AMC building The Immortal Universe) that is committing to really taking the time to build these new worlds. Marvel built the MCU by playing the long game. That paid dividends for a solid decade even if it's dropping off now. That empire was built not with nostalgia for existing IP (don't forget the MCU was built with B and C tier heroes) but with patience. Marvel itself seems to have forgotten this in recent years.
Aside from that, I think people really want stories that aren't connected to a billion other things. That takes commitment on the part of the audience to follow and to get attached to. People WANT three to five excellent seasons of a show that tells its own story and isn't leaving threads out there for a dozen spinoffs. We're craving tight storytelling.
KAOS could have been that. Dead Boy Detectives could have been that. So could Our Flag Means Death, Lockwood and Co, Shadow and Bone, The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, Willow, and a dozen other shows with great potential or were excellent out of the gate.
If you look at past metrics, you only learn what people used to like, not what they want now. People are notoriously bad about articulating what they want, but boy do they know it when they see it. Networks have to go back to having a dozen moderate successes instead of constantly churning through one-season shows that get axed and pissing off the people who did like it in a hamfisted attempt to stumble on the next big thing.
The networks desperately need to go back to believing in their shows. Instead, they keep cutting them off at the knees before they ever get a chance because some algorithm told them the numbers weren't there.
#fandom commentary#fandom meta#streaming#streaming collapse#netflix#kaos#kaos on netflix#dead boy detectives#interview with the vampire#marvel#mcu#the dark crystal#our flag means death#cancellation#netflix cancellation
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People don't realize how liminal it is to be a time traveler. How you don't ever really feel like you're in the time you are. Even when you're in your own time, everything is off, your coat was something you bought in interwar France, the book you're reading on the train is from a bookstore you had to visit in Victorian London, even your necklace was given to you by a Neolithic shaman, from a culture the rest of the world can never know. You find yourself acting strange even when in the present, much less in the past you have to work in.
You remember meeting a eunuch in 10th century China, and having him be one of the only people smart and observant enough to realize you were from a diffrent time. You could talk honestly with him, though still you couldn't reveal too much about your time. And it was still so strange hearing him talk casually about work and mention plotting assassinations. You're not allowed to but you still visit him sometimes.
You remember that the few times you were allowed to tell someone everything it was tragic. You knew a young woman who lived in Pompeii, who you had gotten close to, a few days before she would inevitably die. On your last day there you looked into her eyes, knowing soon they'd be stone and ash, that the beauty of her hair would be washed away by burning magma. And you hugged her, and told her that you wanted her to be safe, and told her she was wonderful and that you wanted her to be comfortable and happy. And you let her tongue know the joy of 21st century chocolate, and her eyes see the beauty of animation, knowing she deserved to have those joys, knowing it wouldn't matter soon. And you hugged her the last time, and told her she deserved happiness. And when you left without taking her it was like you were killing her yourself.
You want to take home everyone you're attached to. There's a college student you befriended in eighteen fifties Boston. And you can't help but see him try to solve problems you know humanity is centuries away from solving. And you just want to tell him. And it's not just that, the way he talked about the books and plays he likes, his sense of humor. There's so many people you want him to meet.
You feel the same way about a young woman you met on a viking age longship. She tells stories to her fellow warriors and traders, stories that will never fully get written down, stories that she tells so uniquely and so well. She has so many great ideas. You want so dearly to take her to somewhere she can share her stories, or where she can take classes with other writers, where she can be somewhere safe instead of being out at sea. She'll talk about wanting to be able to do something, or meet people, and you know you're so close to being able to take her, but you never can, unless she accidently finds out way too much then you can't.
You remember the longship that you met that young storyteller on. You were there before, two years ago for you, ten years later for the people on it. The young woman who told you stories wasn't there ten years later, you had been told why then but you only realize now, her uncle, who ran the ship, had been one of the first people to convert to Christianity in his nation. He killed her, either for not converting or for sleeping with women, you're not sure, but he killed her, and bragged about it when you met him ten years later.
You talk to the storyteller on the longship, ask her about the myths you're there to ask her about, the myths that she loves to tell. You look into her eyes knowing it's probably less then a year until her uncle takes her life. You ask her if you think that those who die of murder go to Valhalla. She tells you she hopes not, she doesn't see Valhalla as a gift but as a duty, she hopes for herself to go to Hel, where she wouldn't have to fight anymore. You slip and admit you're talking about her, telling her that you hope that's where she goes when she's killed. You hope to yourself you'll be forced to take her to the twenty first century, you're tempted even to make it worse, you want to have ruined her enough to be able to save her.
#196#my thougts#worldbuilding#writing#my worldbuilding#my writing#urban fantasy#ancient history#history#short fiction#short story#original fiction#flash fiction#viking#viking age#norse mythology#ancient rome#pompeii#science fantasy#science fiction#sci fi#scifi#queer#queer history
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im so curious-- how well does DUDrow get on with the other companions? I've only seen your art and going off that I feel like: he gets along with Shadowheart, Gale I think he borderline cant stand, and Wyll/Lae'zel/Karlach I have no idea how he'd feel about them but id love to know!
So, funfact, because I was not familiar with these kinds of games at the time I played BG3, I practically stuck with the same exact party the entire playthrough. I distinctly remember swapping Wyll in for Astarion once at the end of act 2 because I thought he NEEDED to be there to find Mizora, and I replaced Gale with Karlach when I went to kill Gortash. Otherwise... It was pretty much always just DU drow, Shadowheart, Astarion and Gale. I did this because they were the characters I liked most, so I wanted to see all they had to offer.
Anyways, I mention this because it reflects how DU drow related to everyone - which is to say that he didn't. He picked his favorites (two because he liked them, one because he has fireball) and didn't get particularly close to anyone else.
BUT, there were definitely notable dynamics!
Lae'zel: She's dead. He killed her night 3 or something. Before that he thought her annoyingly demanding and over the top. I don't think DU drow even remembers her by the end of the game.
Gale: Just to add to your original observation, Gale and DU drow have a little bit of history. Gale tries, for about half of the campaign, to pursue him romantically. DU drow keeps turning him down and is either misinterpreted or ignored, and by the time Gale does give up on him their relationship has completely soured to the point where they are constantly shooting daggers at each other. (this reflects a romance bug I got in my first run, except I didn't realize it was a bug. Either way I think its more interesting storytelling than the intended experience.)
Wyll: DU drow was profoundly frustrated by Wyll every step of the way. He found him to be incredibly naive and a bit delusional in his pursuit for heroism, and could never relate to Wyll's perspective or choices - the few he made for himself, at least. They definitely had the least in common and DU drow avoided interacting with him most of the time.
Halsin: He didn't care for Halsin much. He was vaguely helpful but by the time they got to the shadow-cursed lands DU drow had the impression he'd only been dragged here to help him clear his conscience, which he didn't appreciate. Also, he couldn't bear to have someone in camp be taller than himself. Halsin was left behind in Act 2.
Jaheira: DU drow fucking loves Jaheira. They bickered and borderline insulted each other and had a great time doing it. He can respect anyone who will call him a monster, threaten to murder him in his sleep, and make light fun at him the next day. It helps that she's hot, also.
Minsc: Weird hamster man. Ocasionally rendered him speechless. Puzzling human being.
Karlach: He didn't get Karlach, but he was often amused by her and curious enough to want to hear what she had to say. There was a similar issue here as Wyll's where he just couldn't relate to her enough to have much to discuss, but Karlach at least had an edge to her that made her far better company. They got along pretty well when the topic wasn't serious, but when it came to the problems she actually faced their perspectives shifted significantly. DU drow thought everything could be fixed, that accepting her own demise was a cowardly thing to do - and as they approached the end, and she asked him if he would stay with her when she died, he thought she was weak. I don't know if he ever discusses it with anyone, but he feels guilty about her death to this day and sees it as personal failure.
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written for @steddiemas weekend challenge "if we both stick to the story, they can't prove anything" | 305 words | rated t | (i wrote this while drunk at a family gathering so if you see any mistakes no you didn't <3)
“If we both stick to the story, they can’t prove anything,” Eddie says.
“Yes, they can!” Steve throws his hands up in exasperation. “They literally saw us! And anyways, your story sucks.”
“Hey!” Eddie protests indignantly. “I am a great storyteller, fuck you.”
“You already did that,” Steve deadpans. “That’s the whole problem.”
“Nuh-uh.” Eddie points at Steve, eyebrows raised in mock innocence. “They didn’t see that part.”
Steve rolls his eyes. “Okay, well, they still saw enough. And your story explains nothing.”
“There was mistletoe, it’s the rules-” Eddie starts to repeat his story.
“The rules only say a kiss, they don’t say you had to shove your tongue down my throat,” Steve interrupts to remind him, unhelpfully.
“-And I bet you real money you wouldn’t do it,” Eddie finishes, like that addition will solve everything.
“That still doesn’t explain your tongue down my throat,” Steve states.
Eddie huffs, crossing his arms. “Fine, well, I still don’t get why we can’t just tell them! I mean, we’ve been together for weeks now, Stevie, what are you so afraid of?”
Steve tenses, shoulders up to his ears and his face falling flat. “I’m just not ready yet, Eddie, you know that.”
“Yeah, I know.” Eddie deflates, softens. He steps closer and reaches out to hold on to Steve, rubbing his hands over his arms to ease his tension. “I get that, I’m sorry, we don’t have to tell them. But the kids have already seen us making out, I’m not sure what else we can do here, sweetheart.”
Steve relaxes under Eddie’s touch. “I know...” He sighs resignedly. “We can try your story first, I guess, and if they don’t believe us, then…then I guess they already know…”
“Either way,” Eddie says, pressing a gentle and reassuring kiss to Steve’s lips, “it’s gonna be okay.”
#the kids already know btw they knew even before steddie did#steve and eddie finally tell them and they're like ''oh yeah we've known since like april''#and steve and eddie are like ''???? we've only been together since mid-november????''#steddiemas2024#steddiemaschallenge2024#steddie#steddie ficlet#steddie drabble#steddie fic#steve harrington#eddie munson#stranger things#ficlet#mine
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That said, the D&D 3.5 Paladin was bad. It was badly designed, it had bad rules, and in conjunction with the other notoriously bad rule, alignment, it could cause havoc.
Now personally, I never had ANY problems with it in my tabletop games. I played paladins and loved it, and I loved it when other people played paladins, and it was great. But that's because, collectively as a group, we took ONE look at that terrible rule where the paladin's code of conduct prevents them from associating with Evil characters or "someone who consistently offends her moral code", and immediately went, "that's stupid, we ain't doing that, it would ruin the game".
We also didn't love the concept of alignment as a cosmic force, and didn't care for Usually Evil Goblins and Always Evil anything. And when a class's signature ability fully depends on whether creatures are capital E Evil, well that affects storytelling, doesn't it? But we all saw it the same way, and we were happily able to change it without any disagreements. In the end we had a Paladin… similar to 5e now that I think of it: completely ignore the Code's association clause, tailor the Code to personal stance or a specific Order, Detect only fiends and undead and the like, Smite anything you want, Fall only if you really fuck up, and never presume that just because you haven't Fallen yet everything you've ever done is justified and correct and anyone who disagrees with you is objectively wrong.
Basically, there were 2 options in 3.5. You either houseruled and/or handwaved things, and in matters of alignment interpretations erred on the side of "what makes the game go",
OR, you played with Rules As Written, and filled the forums with questions like "should the paladin fall?" (one such thread per week, conservatively), "we got into a fight over the Paladin, what to do?", "is it Evil to pick pockets? because we have a Paladin in the party", "the Assassin uses poison, shouldn't that offend my moral code?", and shit like that. Just... pointless strife, all the time. Again, never happened to me, but I was appalled to read about it, over and over and over.
People got intense with 3.5 Paladins (both pro and against) because it was BADLY DESIGNED and had BAD RULES. Its mechanics forced narrative choices on the entire table, and the only way to make it frictionless was having a party where no one wishes to explore a character's bad side ever, no one does things that aren't bad but WotC branded Evil™ in this or that splatbook, and everyone magically agrees all the time on "what is right and what is wrong" and "what is Lawful and what is Chaotic", which is simply impossible. The most subjective thing in the world (ethics!) was presented as an objective cosmic force, and how you interpreted it would determine how much damage the Paladin deals in combat, and whether the Paladin could keep associating with the party, and if the Paladin is still a Paladin. And all that in a game, let's not forget, whose basic, fundamental premise is "kill things and take their stuff". I'm sorry, this is tremendously stupid. It's the WORST design.
I know that for some people it worked as written, and good for them, but for the many many people it didn't work, well it's obvious why.
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