#his story was more about belonging somewhere in general imo...

[unreliable-narratoe]

Accidentally went on MDZS twt and saw a "wwx was SO affected by classism" (valid by itself) take and the subsequent "yzy and jc called him the son of a servant all the time!" (Former did, latter literally says "what kind of servant has their master peeling Lotus roots for them?" He is still classist but I think it's pretty clear wwx is Family to him) takes. For good measure, JGY's name was also thrown around a bit "I don't know how anyone can sympathize with him, classism or poverty or not..." well.

There was also an LQR picked on wwx because he was a servant explanation that got quite a few likes... And I was just... Blocking people left and right for my peace of mind. I was so glad for a second that I've built my own bubble here.

[bthump]

Do you view Guts party as him "finding his own dream" in relation to Griffith?

Like you mean his RPG group found family thing or whatever? If so, then I would say no.

Guts' dream is to be the best swordsman. And I think relationships with others are, in the story, positioned in thematic opposition to dreams. I mean at the most basic level one of the core worldbuilding conceits of the story is people becoming monsters because they sacrifice their relationships for a dream. So imo Guts is kind of forsaking his "dream" while hanging out with the RPG group because he's no longer a dedicated monster hunter and revenge enthusiast.

Relationships with others signify personal growth while an obession with dreams signifies regression throughout the story. I think that essentially what's happening right now is the Beast of Darkness tempting Guts back towards his dream, and I think that's directly going to endanger the lives of the RPG group.

Like I can definitely see the angle where Guts' "real" dream deep down is to belong somewhere and have friends and people who love him etc, and making friends is fulfilling a more wholesome dream for him, but in terms of like, Berserk's themes and its own particular portrayal of dreams for the sake of those themes (again, this sort of dreams vs relationships dichotemy), I don't think it quite fits to categorize Guts' friendships as a new and better dream.

That said, I do like to think of Casca and the Elfhelm quest in general as a distraction from Griffith, in a parallel to how Griffith's dream is a distraction from Guts lol. I think the story wants me to see it as positive growth for Guts, but it's an ineffective sell, and I think there's a strong case to be made that Guts is using the Elfhelm quest as an excuse to avoid interrogating his difficult, complicated feelings about Griffith and stay repressed. The way he views Casca as a "feeble flame" representing his own humanity is easily paralleled to other unbalanced, objectifying relationships in the story, like the King's description of Charlotte as warmth protecting him from the rest of the world, or the way Gennon (and most people really) talks about Griffith, or most of the relationships in the Conviction arc (torches in the darkness).

That's a bit of a tangent lol, but yeah basically I don't think it's right to call Guts making new friends pursuing a dream, but I do think that Guts' Millenium Falcon/Fantasia story arc has some potentially interesting parallels to Griffith's story and the single minded pursuit of dreams.

Thanks for the ask!

[samobservessonic]

Stringer is taking the lead story this time and giving us another oneshot, this time with Casanova's incredibly detailed art back in the mix. I do love these backgrounds - they look like they’d be at home on one of those fantasy jigsaw puzzles you’d get back in the 90s. Or maybe those aren’t as common as I think they are. Regardless, that’s what it makes me think of

It also looks as if Amy’s been left at home for some reason (Booo!) and we’re getting a boys’ day out. I’ve been meaning to say this for a while, but I do like that Johnny is taller than the other characters, as it makes him stand out a bit more. I think that even if I was adapting the StC characters to modern Sonic designs, I’d still picture Johnny as being taller than the others. Probably more like Vanilla and Vector’s height?

Anyway, I’m getting distracted. We join our guys as they head to somewhere that’s simply called The Frozen Zone (I guess they couldn’t use Icecap, since that’s on the Floating Island), which they’ve heard needs some assistance from Robotnik. Poor Tails is so cold that he wants faux fur on top of his real fur, but Sonic is having none of that

Dr. Quack from the Archie Comics severely regretting booking his holiday to the Pleasant Zone right now

Turns out they were frozen by this robot and not to be a hater, but I’m not really digging this generic robot design. I think what StC is missing at this stage is more larger robot designs in the games (that aren't piloted by Robotnik) to pull from. Because they do keep using these sort of level boss robot characters a lot and if they’d had more game designs to use in this role I think it’d be a bit more interesting than some of the ones we’ve had so far

Anyway, robot’s gone now. So, I guess not actually the antagonist of this story, since we’re only four pages in

Sonic is indeed too smart to believe that’s it, so the three of them head off to find a way to rescue both the residents of this zone and also Johnny, who once again has the bad luck of not getting his time to shine in this issue. Y’know, for all I’ve heard people think of Porker as the coward (which imo is a misunderstanding of his trauma, but that’s getting off-topic), he really is the one on the front line with Sonic a lot. Probably because they need him as the genius character that Tails isn’t established as yet, but still

I think I’ve scrolled past this guy on the Sonic wiki before. Anyway, he’s the actual villain and he has a lot more of those robots. He makes no bones about how you can guess where he’s going with a name like The Chiller

That’s Porker and Tails out

Sonic’s right, might as well get this over with

Sonic has about as much patience for this guy as I do. Though I am amused at the very British temperature scale in the background

Then again, maybe this guy was ahead of his time and could help us with global warming?

Oh look, the “It’s a fair cop, Guv’nor, etc!” panel that people use to bring up how British StC is. I mean, they’re not wrong about that

Now Sonic is literally saying that this guy is a bad villain and could use his skills to help people instead, which the Chiller instantly agrees with. I know I spent the last few pages ragging on this guy, but I do think it’s funny that the story acknowledged he was a pretty terrible villain of the week and came up with a funny solution for that

Which leaves us with a happy ending, as our heroes leave this zone to celebrate. I guess you could say this is the first proper story with the Freedom Fighters being on the run, since the last issue seemed to belong earlier in the timeline than it appeared. This is a perfectly serviceable oneshot story without needing to be more than that, but I already feel like I’m ready for them to dive back into bigger stories

[twelvemonkeyswere]

Due to the new year, I hadn't had a chance to check my mentions, and let me say thank you so much for typing all this up, it made me smile so much. I'm really glad you found my post informative and fun and that you love Jurassic Park as much as I do and honestly thank you, you've flattered me immensely.

As I was reading your post I was getting ready to reply saying that since I wrote this post I managed to read the actual novel!!!! And even I had to google the word "Hupia" when I found it because sadly the Hupia is not part of our culture at all, but you figured that out yourself.

It's one of the (honestly few) things Michael Crichton included in the story that isn't Costa Rican at all. As you yourself said, it's a Taíno legend, which means Puerto Rico and maybe other Caribbean islands. Costa Rica is often confused with Puerto Rico but I seriously doubt this was a slip up, since the book actually has a shit-ton of research behind it, and it actually addresses some of issues and has some of the solutions I proposed for the movies. I think it was probably intentional since he couldn't find something that served the narrative he wanted and settled for the Hupia.

I made a twitter thread some months ago as I reacted to the audiobook in case you're curious! I typed as I listened and as I did house chores so it's not the neatest but just in case! I let the hupia thing slip honestly because I also cannot think of any similar creature or myth that can be used for this purpose either. There might be a bird-god somewhere in the local native myths, maybe the Bribrí or Cabécar cultures, but I don't know enough about these peoples and their religions and cosmologies to give you a satisfying answer.

For example, with a quick google search I confirmed the harpy eagle is an important figure here, even if it's not a god. For the Bribrí, it's an important creature because it helped Sibö in his search to help humankind, but the Cabécar believe it's evil since they have a myth these eagles eat people. And this is a Birbrí representation of such an eagle:

(taken from this post in Spanish, the pendant is stored in the Jade Museum, which is a beautiful museum and I love it)

I think using a representation of this kind could work for a dino, since they're described as bird-like, and the connection could be easily made. But even if these could be worked into the narrative, they are not widespread beliefs or myths around here, and are more recognizable to the closed indigenous communities they belong to than to the general population. The Bribrí also have a general category of demon called the bé, but I don't know how they are represented. I think if someone like Crichton wanted to use something like this he would have had to make up a myth or legend himself and include that as part of the world building of the story. I wouldn't have been opposed at all to such a solution, but he probably wanted to keep it as realistic as possible, so he likely borrowed the legend from Puerto Rico thinking it would feel latino enough, it's pretty widespread so it makes sense it would have migrated here, and that at least it was real. This is me just speculating, of course.

Descriptions of locations and the health care system as well as political and economic details about Costa Rica are all spot on in the novel given the time and place of its production, and it makes me incredibly happy to know so much care and effort came into the creation of this universe. The novel goes into great lengths to depict Costa Rica as a lively and complex country full of people, people from all walks of life and with all kinds of problems and types of expertise. Doing this enhances the novel so much imo because then when the danger of the dinos is more evident, it's not just the island and the USA folks in it that are in danger, but the people of Costa Rica and, by extension, the people of the world as well.

It's an awesome book and I've already talked so much about it. Thank you so much, @jurassicpark45, for asking and for engaging with the story and with my post as much or more as I did, really appreciate it.

A list of inaccuracies about Costa Rica in the Jurassic Park movie franchise, from a Costa Rican who adores Jurassic Park:

Famously, the capital of Costa Rica--San José--isn't nowhere near the coast

Rancheras aren't blasted very often at restaurants either. Rancheras are more a Mexican tradition.

Costa Rica has a strict policy about protecting national parks. Our most famous island, which is pretty far away from the mainland, is Coco's Island. It's uninhabited except for the park rangers, no civilian visitors are ever allowed to protect the integrity of the island. The only way five islands that big remained uninhabited in Costa Rican territory is if they had been part of a national park, too. INGen wouldn't have been able to purchase the islands at all in the first place.

In that same vein, a possible solution, narrative-wise, would be for INGen to involve the government of Costa Rica from the get-go, and get special permission to develop a biodiversity protection program in the island as well as their own thing. Quid pro quo. This sounds way more plausible than Costa Rica just selling WHOLE islands to some gringos (Costa Rica sells bits--sometimes BIG bits, against every moral--but not whole islands).

Also, INGen would have at least one Costa Rican nagging them about paperwork and bureaucracy at all times.

In addition, all of Costa Rica's coastline is by law public space, which means nobody can legally own it, even if they own the land immediately behind the beach. Locals would have been, if not living, at least regularly visiting the islands before and after INGen was established there, esp if they had caught wind that it was meant to be an amusement park. Ellie and Alan wouldn't have been with half a foot on the ground when a guy would have strolled with his copos stand to offer them some.

Costa Rica doesn't have sequoias nor could it have any. I have no idea where The Lost World thought it was set in but it def was not Costa Rica!!!

Same energy as Jurassic World having a fucking mosasaurus eating a very much endagendered white shark. As a nation we already have a lot of problems with corruption from officials and people fighting against shark finning. Allowing a MOSASAURUS to live within Costa Rican seas AND to eat a white shark is not even fantasy, it's straight up delusion*.

Most of the employees at both the early Jurassic Park and then in Jurassic World are from the USA. I have no idea where those guys live or how often they travel to the mainland or who handles their residencies and social securities. It's more common for gringo-owned companies in the country (think hotels) to have admin staff be gringos too but the rest being locals.

Costa Rica has a strict anti-military presence policy in its territory, which means it doesn't even allow military ships to dock in its international ports or military aircraft to fly over the country, with *very few* exceptions. Ellie, as much as I love her, wouldn't have been able to send the USA military to the island to rescue Alan & co. in JP 3. It's more likely a rescue party from the government of CR had been issued and provided.

Similarly, I don't imagine the Costa Rican government prepared to trap the dinosaurs left by INGen, but I can perfectly imagine them asking for help from bigger nations to help catch the animals before the island's ecology was ruined. They would probably try to seize the creatures and lots of discussion would've gone into what the hell to do with them. They would probably have demanded INGen itself to arrange and perform the logistics of the extraction. I just mean INGen would not have JUST sat there without consequences because they "owned" the island.

However, the fact Jurassic World is a small niche of rich gringos once it's open **is** the most factual part of Jurassic World because there's no way a local could have afforded the prices in that park. Tourism is mostly for foreigners and it is always like that!

Nobody ever says "pura vida", not even once.

[randomnameless]

Nobles bad?

I said I wanted to make a post about Lorenz and how refreshing he was from the general trend of putting all ills of society, FE wise, on “ugh nobles”, but I forgot.

Of course, in the course of the story (or stories) the people who are doing shit are nobles, because they are the one able to raise armies/mercenaries to give us red units to fight and exp to farm.

But, in previous FEs, it has never been reduced to “nobles bad”.

Even in FE Tellius (I know).

In FE Tellius, a certain hero disses on “nobles” because he’s a country bumpkin and generally thinks all nobles are poop. And, for some reason, some characters agree with him, even if, hm, he is actually hired by a noble who wants to return to her home to assume the throne by getting rid of the mad king who invaded.

This certain lord ditches the noble title he received during the course of the game - and returned to play mercenary with his little band while two countries are rebuilding with more or less success.

But what is a noble in FE Tellius? Is it only being a stuffy prick ? Are Tellius nobles only Begnion Senators? What are we supposed to think about Elincia then? She’s in charge of a land with people living in it, and those same people are killing each other. What is she supposed to do? Can she just “fig off” and disappear with a band of merry friends until the plot calls her back? Micaiah is bound (lol) by her duty to the people of Daein. Are they stuffy nobles? All of their stories involving drama (thus plot) happen because they are in position of power, and yet have to deal with what it means, how can they protect their people when their people want them dead and/or they have to fight a pointless war else they will all die?

Naesala is called a Good King - despite his dastardry - because he always thinks of his people. 

IMO, being a noble, in Tellius, means accepting the responsability to lead people. Some are lousy (Valtome, Lekain, Hetzel, Numida, etc etc) but for the ones we see and follow? It’s a hard job. Nobles aren’t only lousy moustache twirling vilains, they have, sometimes, to make hard choices.

Nobles bad? What was Naesala supposed to do? Kill Lekain? Let his people die? Ask Tibarn for help which would have led to “kill Lekain” + let his people die? Smash a watermelon? Ditto for Elincia, what was she supposed to do? Abdicate? Kill her people? Run away and let Crimea fall to anarchy with Ludveck as the new regent?

So when That Lord sprouts his nonsense about nobles, when Elincia had her arc in Part 2, and happens as a deus ex machina because the devs couldn’t stop their right hands to solve everything, it sucks. But at least the duology is consistent, Ike abandonned his title because he didn’t want responsability to lead people, so at the first given occasion, he also ditches his so called family to sail to unknown lands with his BF of choice.

which would lead to another piece being written about Ike’s wish to lead the GM or rather lack of but that’s for another day

Awakening gave us Virion, who ran away from his home to seek help, and is welcomed... not with flowers when he returns to Rosanne. Virion feels like he failed his people, and his people don’t like him. He doesn’t just fig off somewhere else with his wife of choice, nope. Virion has a duty to his people.

Still, FE Echoes came with the “Alm is nobilty” controversy. To be fair, I never understood it as, apparently, fandom did, the point wasn’t to reveal Alm is secretly a noble so all the game speeches about nobles being inherently better than peasants is suddenly tap water, but Alm, despite his magical blood, was raised as a peasant. 

Nobility in FE15 isn’t about blood, it’s a social class. Fernand, Clive and Berkut belong to that class, but they never do anything “noble” - which should be their alley, because they are “nobles”. Clive the Knight and leader of Zofia’s hopes doesn’t go to rescue a small girl kidnapped and brainwashed by blue people. Alm does. Alm isn’t a noble because he has shiny brand or because he is Rudy’s kid, Alm is a noble because he has a noble heart, even if he was raised as a peasant.

(then he becomes king and defeats Duma because while I’d like to read a story about Bob the Baker who is super kind and gives bread to everyone, I don’t think Bob’s plot would be pleasant enough to warrant a game)

Berkut “silence Woman” hunts peasants for sport - there’s nothing noble about him bar his title. 

It all comes down to the line @garlandgerard​ translated in their Hanneman post, in the Jp!Version, Hanneman defines what it means to be a “noble” to him, it isn’t about being born in a specific line or having magic blood, nope. It’s all about what you want to do. Or at least it used to be (willy’s era?), but no matter what, Hanneman still strives to be a “noble”.

But given what NoA came up with and shoehorned in their support “That is one of the reasons I decided to leave that nonsense behind, and dedicate myself to the study of Crests” I am not surprised how “nobility bad” became a trend.

And here comes our man, Lorenz.

For sure, he acts like a loser in his first supports, and everyone pushes the “nobility bad” act on him. And yet, through his supports, Lorenz finally makes his POV known, it is not that he is a stuffy noble, but acts like he thinks a “good noble” should act - he has to protect commoners, so he shouldn’t be their friend (Raph support). Lorenz also believes nobles are far more important than randoms, because nobles have a duty and responsability to their people, they must be held accountable if something bad happens (Catherine support iirc). In his Leonie support? Lorenz explains he has to help “commoners” because it is his duty as a noble, and oh, all those taxes he and his dad are levying?

They were used to pay Jeralt (who most likely spent everything in a pub).

“It is a noble's duty to give to the commonfolk. In return, the commoner need only pay respect.” / “Yes, the commonfolk give the fruits of their labor— willingly I might add—as a token of that respect”.

Lorenz believes in some sort idealised... contract... with a hierarchy and people having to do something in exchange of something else. Hm. Offering protection to someone in exchange for their “respect”? Where did I hear this? Hommage? Feudalism? No, it can’t be.

Leonie, one of the few commoners with no background and presumable no money in the playable cast, says “Turns out, he just has this grand idea of nobility he's trying to live up to...” + “You weren't wrong about nobles and commoners each having their own role”.

Nobility isn’t bad - Lorenz is trying to adopt the standard of what he thinks is a “noble”... Just like Hanneman.

On a negative note, Dorothea’s views about nobility are never challenged.

Ferdie makes her understand he is not a “stuffy noble” because he can bake sweets and wasn’t oogling her back then but admiring her - but Ferdie doesn’t explain what is nobility, why it apparently sucks in Enbarr and what ideal he is chasing after. Lorenz? There are some perks in her support, but when the guy explains he has to find a woman of noble status to raise the position of his house in the Alliance, Dorothea doesn’t understand - thinks he could find a suitable wife with the masses and grows angry when he refuses because his house’s status in on the line. Dorothea even muses that Lorenz believes in the “lie” that is nobility, never giving him, or anyone else, the chance to explain that no, nobility is not a “lie”.

Just like Berkut might be a Prince but is no noble, the nobles who treated her like dirt are “nobles” but do not have noble qualities. Leonie understands that all nobles are “noble” and if every rich guy she met was a true noble, like Lorenz, the world would be a better place. Dorothea? She doesn’t.

Just like knights and “true knights” in a certain series, FE always tried to make a difference between “rich aristocrats who inherited a position and are asshats”, and “rich aristocrats who inherited a position but try to do the Right (tm) things with their powers and have responsabilities to the people they are lording over”.

Lorenz, just like apparently Hanneman, are “true nobles” because they want do do noble and heroic things. Randolph? Not so much.

Tl ; Dr : Nobility isn’t Bad - People are bad. 

All nobles aren’t bad, just like all commoners aren’t good. In a game which gave us Lorenz, I thought that point would have been more discussed, but apparently not because the guy has a silly haircut and the BE are very loved by the (localised?) fandom.

[fred-erick-frankenstein]

For the jjba questions, 24 25 and 26?

Thanks for the ask 💛

24. Stand ability you wish you had?

If this has to be a "pre-existing" Stand, then Harvest. This would help greatly with finding things that I put somewhere and afterwards forgot where I left them... Also finding coins seems useful when you need some change. Tho I also wouldn't mind having a pet shark that can bite people's tongues off (especially if I also get a wonderful boyfriend with the shark...)

If I have to "make up" a Stand myself then one to change my appearance - kinda like Rena Minami's ability from "Puella Magi Madoka Magica Side Story: Magia Record" but for longer periods of time obv (transition-wise🏳️‍⚧ but also to change my hair color and things like that quickly and whenever I feel like it without damaging my hair by dying it 🤣)... Edit: omg I totally forgot Oingo and his Stand Khnum 🤣🤣shame on me

25. Stand ability you think wasn’t used well enough in the series?

Magician's Red and Purple Haze - both kinda for plot reasons because their user weren't around the whole time... But especially with Magician's Red I really wish there would've been more fights like the one between Avdol and Polnareff (or Avdol and Cameo) where he really showed the power and different abilities of his Stand (but tbh Avdol in general deserved better!!)

26. Stand ability you thought didn’t suit the character it belonged to?

This is difficult 🤔

Highway Star maybe.... Also Ecco and Koichi, especially Ecco Act 3 had such a different uh personality compared to Koichi (imo) but it's also funny so I don't really mind. And even with these two I'm not sure I would say they don't "suit" the character, I'm just not sure what about their inner self (?) said "pursuing objects and people" or "making things heavier and cursing lol" 🤷🏻‍♂️

Ja, again, this was difficult and tbh im not sure I'm satisfied with my answer here but🤷🏻‍♂️have it anyway because I can't think of a better one rn and I need to go to sleep 😅

From this JoJo ask game

[blue-eyed-giant]

my opinions on the in the hights movie (part 2)

patrick page has become "the capitalism guy" for me lmao he has a character type that's for sure but he is a linen salesman why does he want rosario's?

again i don't exactly remember where this belongs but what is the purpose of sonny's father? he shows up for one scene, says a few words and doesn't add much to the story. why did they add him?

so kevin didn't actually fire benny and since camilla isn't around and kevin is a drastically changed character neither him selling the business nor nina dropping out are huge deals. so there isn't any actual family drama. and benny and nina are good. what. the. fuck.

anthony kinda lost the awkardness usnavi has during the club scene but i'll allow it it's just one song.

benny didn't get fired but still talks about getting fired. what the hell at least cut it out.

no drama between benny and nina. the fight also doesn't happen. between this and blackout the whole thing is a badly cropped and sticked mess and nothing makes any sense.

the dancing tho. it is the only thing that makes the scene tolerable.

blackout is a mess. there are so many things wrong i can't even get my thoughts straight. kevin doesn't search for nina. benny and nina don't have a fight and make up, since there is no conflict in their relationship there won't be a resolve do the relationship stays very one-dimensional. the whole "you abandoned me" thing with vanessa and usnavi seems so shallow because usnavi didn't run to abuela as he should have and was with vanessa the whole time. the shop isn't at danger, which is a bad strike for graffiti pete's character and on top of that we don't see how dangerous this blackout is, the whole tension is scrapped away.

"hundreds of stories" is gone. it was a very nice and comedic song i think they should have kept it somewhere as a comedic scene. it also explains usnavi's name way funnier than a simple dialogue.

everyone coming together at abuela's home was very heartwarming 🥺 even though i didn't like how they made the situation more fun than scary in blackout i enjoyed this scene very much ngl

paciencia y fe was the only song i couldn't forgive the writers if anything happened to it since it is such an emotional song for me. i can gladly say that i was not dissappointed this version of paciencia y fe is the only song i like better in the movie. the visuals were amazing and olga merediz delivered the song as wonderfully as always. the theme of abuela travelling all her life and finally reaching a destination where the options are home and death was poetic cinema as i understand the term lmao. and her seeing everyone being happy without her help and understanding her goal and job on this world is accomplished was incredibly emotional. i have to confess, i cried for the first time in a long while when watching a movie.

as a note, i have a feeling if they didn't get olga merediz for abuela she wouldn't be such a powerful character in the movie. imo she is the best abuela there is and captures the essence of the character better than anyone else. not being on a stage alone for her solo but with a huge ensemble and lots of settings and props could have affected any other actress's performance but they only strengthened olga merediz's.

with "sunrise" out of picture people teasing benny about him and nina is pointless because they've been together for a long while??? it's nothing new??

so the actually important songs get cut but "when the sun goes down", a song that could be easily replaced with a sinple dialogue stays for the cool effects? smh

champagne is in past tense because of the time skip lmao dunno why i found this so funny

i like how in the movie we see vanessa and usnavi's stories get wrapped up but the uncertainty in the stageplay was also a different kind of vibe. makes me sad that usnavi couldn't realize his dreams so he imagines his barrio as his bar tho that kinda broke my heart but seeing him be happy with vanessa and their daughter immediately fixed it :) i wish we had seen what happened of sonny too

some end of movie thoughts:

i feel like they focused too much on the younger generation of the barrio and not enough on the older generation. of course the today is important but the elders (abuela, kevin, and camilla) told us the story of the past which is equally important. they carried the cultures of their homes and told us about where this barrio came from but the young ones couldn't because they spent all their lived in the us. they tried to load all that onto abuela but it just didn't feel right because her experience wasn't the same as the rosarios'.

the other thing is wardrobe choices. in the stageplay the clothes showed us the socioeconomic situation of the barriovery clearly but in the movie all the women are dressed like models which doesn't make sense when they start talking about the economic struggles they face. i especially noticed this with vanessa because she seems to wear the most pricey clothes while supposedly being the poorest.

and lastly: how the fuck did this movie end up just as long as the stageplay when all these stuff are cut out????

[midnightinwales]

@grapesnolives you've raised so many interesting points here! I love reading your answers, they always bring to mind something I've not thought of, but I find agreeing with all the same.

Good catch with the Robert STH interview. There’s definitely something going on with him not feeling like he’s done enough to deserve such praise for it, or, putting it differently, his output is not really that praise-worthy. It’s understandable that he’s kind of embarrassed since it is a naïve song lyrics-wise, although I tend to think he’s underselling himself here, and more specifically on the naivety issue – there is much more ambiguity to it, a feeling of sadness and wistfulness waiting just outside this imagined world of hope and dreams. But he is deeply personal about his lyrics and I think he thinks that his 23 yo self was a sweetly naïve boy who believed all good things would happen to him and those around him. He’s not wrong here. But he’s been through all these heartbreaks and terrible situations and to constantly remind him of that much simpler, naïve time must be painful. Somewhere there there’s also the worry that people will always remember him mostly for that – like that was peak Robert Plant – and forget or disregard the later stuff, which in his opinion is more valuable. He doesn’t care what people think, but he cares about his music and what it is communicating.  Robert has a troubled relationship with Stairway. IMO it was a very dear, very special song to him, he gave it to people and people initially appreciated it, but then took it and run with it. With time the meaning of the song or the context in which it had been born got muddled and skewed. There’s an interview with RP in the 80s in which they’re talking about STH’s popularity and for a second he drops his polite demeanour and goes “but who does this song belong too?? (or whose song is it, something like that)” and then quickly goes “it’s everyone’s, of course”. I’ll link it when I find it again. He sounds really annoyed and kind of hurt that everyone has taken a piece of this very personal pie and now are claiming to understand it better than him. He even seemed to believe that to be true, as time went on. Robert and Stairway is a complicated story.

I can’t even begin to imagine what sort of mind someone has to have to play parts with complete limb interdependence (eg Fool in the Rain)  - exactly! People who think they could drum any day cause it’s so simple don’t really understand what drumming is.

Great choice-speaking of SIBLY live, what do you think of the gut wrenching scream on the BBC version of that – amazing! I’m a great fan of the BBC Sessions in general. So grateful we have them.

Re Robert as an elder statements: he seems to be solidifying in old age. Physically. Like you’ve said, there’s the weight of all his experiences visible in his body and the way he carries himself. But there’s frailty in him too. And he genuinely seems to get wiser and wiser. More and more humble and understanding. Sometimes I have this impression that Robert will not pass away, but he will one day walk out into a forest or a field somewhere in Wales and solidify completely into an Ent. It would be fitting for him to become part of the land. And if you walk in that place quietly, you will be able to sense his spirit there. Hear his voice in the whisper of the wind perhaps. He is mother nature’s son, to use a phrase. But also a larger than life kind of character, so it almost feels inappropriate for him to pass away like any other human being. There’s so much to Robert that something of his spirit must remain, somehow. Go back to nature and change yet again, as Robert always does. Oh well.

Oh yes, In The Light, Led Zeppelin’s Within You Without You 😉 Robert has been paramount in the singing styles of many after him and he’s the one when it comes to frontmanship (or frontanyship really, it doesn’t matter what gender a singer is). We have to remember that Freddie Mercury, frontman extraordinaire, was very much influenced by RP. This is Robert Plant adoration station if you can’t tell yet lmao.

That’s one groovy jam for sure! JPJ is such a talented man. And seemingly so chill about it. It’s as easy as breathing to him. And whenever there’s orchestration on a LZ song, it really makes that song. Creates the atmosphere. Elevates it to a whole new level. Thanks for existing JPJ <3

Agree, absolutely, re Jimmy’s playing. I’ve once heard someone say that Jimmy Page plays acoustic guitar the way it’s really supposed to be played and it seems very true. It doesn’t limit him, even though the music "is supposed to be heavy”.  He can make it light, open and playful, but also dark and foreboding. Though, tbh, I’m not sure if anyone else has come up with as many legendary riffs as Jimmy Page (apart from the ones that are really Jonsey’s 😉 )Tea For One is a gem and I don’t care it’s actually SIBLY. If you can make one song in two magnificent songs, you’re a bloody genius.

I’m curious about P&P worshippers-do you think they (you?)  love the individual guys/the idea of them together or the idea of being together with them the most enticing? !  - I can’t say for anyone else, you’d have to ask around and you’d probably get different answers, but personally I love finding out how much the music I’ve fallen for so hard is built on their dynamics. How much their relationship was infused with the magic that made all the circumstances happen. What can I say, I’m a hoe for an epic love story. And it makes the epic music even more epic. It’s also interesting and significant re the history of music and our perception of it, gay and queer history and representation. I like the ‘investigative journalism’ side of it – finding things out, learning more about culture, understanding it. I think it’s important. It’s good to see that standard interpretations of things may be missing something huge there. And try to uncover it. I don't think of it as "shipping" and that's not why I do it - it comes from my observations (and as I found out when I discovered the tumblrs here, other people's as well) and I think it's a perfectly valid lens to interpret them. What we're exactly right about and exactly wrong about IDK, but maybe one day we'll hear more from official sources. Time will tell.

Watching that performance prompted another question. Sadly, TV/live footage is few and far between, but from the few concerts that are available-with the magic of a time machine-which one would you attend? Denmark TV/ RAH/ MSG/ Earl’s Court/Seattle/ Knebworth and why? – oh dear, that’s a tough one. NGL I had thought about it before and thought hard, because each concert is special in its own way. RAH is my favourite musically – it might be one of the best concerts ever recorded – they’re on top of their form, not too much and not too little, tight but loose. But I’d probably go for Earl’s Court. The vibe of that concert is unmistakable. Sure, there are musical mishaps (Robert, I’m looking at you, darling), but as an experience it must have been mind-blowing. They’re having so much fun and are genuinely happy and it shows. It was a special time, after all, for J&P.  What about you? Which one would you choose?

Thanks again for all the great point you've raised!

@grapesnolives thank you for the link, I'll check it out during the weekend. I agree that their experimentation is always beautiful and fascinating to hear. They had singular sensitivity to the emotion – sound axis. And you can never be bored with it.

I've moved us to a new post, since our conversation is veering off the topic of the original post and I think we've hijacked enough of that already ;)

Unfortunately, I don't have the source for that quote about Robert, as I have been consuming a lot (and I mean A LOT) about LZ in the past few months, but in quite a chaotic manner and I haven't been taking notes. But If I come across it again, I'll send it to you. I was also surprised by it, but I guess it makes sense, since it was originally Jimmy's band and I believe that as time went by and Jimmy was losing his grip on reality more and more, Robert might have felt constricted a bit or started to develop a need for more independence. Nothing unusual in that, it happens in pretty much any band. He might have also been genuinely annoyed at the endless solos, quite like Bonzo, and JPJ probably too. I mean, to make a six and a half minutes long song into 45 minutes is both amazing and unnecessary lol. And Robert did have a bit of an imposter syndrome, still has, actually. He often spoke about them as 'three musicians and me'. 'I'm just a wedding singer who sang with musicians', and how his elaborate singing style developed as a method to stay in the song, cause the long musical intervals made him feel irrelevant. He definitely wanted to impress Jimmy and there was a lot of reverence for him as the worldly, knowledgeable, experienced musician who created his own band. But that began to disappear when Jimmy got heavily into heroin imo and definitely lost after 1977. Robert's priorities changed. His view of life changed. The love was still there, but Jimmy was no longer someone that Robert had to live up to, so to speak. Now he was someone to protect (and, in a way, someone to mourn). But the initial experiences formed Robert as a singer, set his standards and informed his view of musical expression.

I've also noticed that he makes fun of Bonzo (the diarrhea jokes will live with me forever, thanks Bob :/ ) and JPJ (and himself, occasionally), but not of Jimmy. IMO that's because he and Bonzo were 'bros', mates, and that's typical friendly behaviour in this kind of relation. JPJ was also a guy in the band and concert is entertainment, so it's only fair to make people laugh. It created a sense of dynamics, each band member had his quirks and image to play with. But with Jimmy he is only ever sweet and attentive. Not least because Jimmy Page can't take a joke imo. He's quite fragile and Robert knew it very, very well. But this doesn't read to me as reverential, but rather as caring. He knew not to make Jimmy the centre of attention that he might not see as entirely friendly. And his mysterious image had to be uphold too. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but whenever Robert speaks to Jimmy his tone of voice slightly changes. It becomes softer and warmer. ‘is it alright, love?’ kind of thing. He definitely wanted to be in Jimmy’s good books and for more than one reason.

I’m not surprised you thought they were a duet, seeing the photos. I recall seeing photos of LZ throughout my life and they’ve always been focused on J and R. I didn’t know what the other band members looked like before I started listening to the band. I knew Bonzo’s name because of his tragic death, like I do many other musicians’ who met their ends way too early, and knew that he is recognised as one of the, if not the greatest rock drummer of all times. But that was about it. IMO, he is the greatest of them all and he’s the only one whose drumming makes me genuinely tear up. There is as much emotion in Bonzo’s drumming as there is in Robert’s singing. Astonishing.

If you’re asking how I got into the story of J and R, it was quite simple really. I remembered the photos I’ve mentioned (mostly the WLL mic in the hair singing) which have always looked very suggestive to me and had heard before that part of the magic of LZ was the interplay between the two, and so when I finally got into their music I started doing my research to see if my initial impression was correct. And found plenty of evidence to confirm it, some of it much more straightforward then expected. But if you’re asking how I got into LZ then I’d say it was time for them to come into my life. One night on YT they appeared on my list and the journey began. I knew some of their songs before (STH, WLL, Dazed, a couple of others) and I had quite an emotional experience listening to Stairway as a young teenager, but that was the extent of it. I firmly believe that music comes to us at the right time and there’s no point in forcing it. It will find you if it’s meant to. And it will be a journey you’ll never forget.

Have you always been interested in drumming or is it the first time when it has captured your attention so much? Have you been into LZ for a long time?

[rinisbowen]

1/2 I saw the last ask (I am talking about the anon, not you here) and I wanted to say that Gina and Ricky being the main leads isn't an argument for them becoming a couple. If PW will break up, Val won't be the reason. It will be a repeat of Ricky, Nini, Gina triangle. Ricky won't be the reason either (repeat of Ricky, Nini, EJ triangle). This will be just bad writing and won't work with either of Gina's or EJ's story (they deserve to be put first for once). The only way I see PW breaking up is

2/2 if EJ goes to college somewhere far away (Gina wants sm who sticks around). In s2 their relationship was shown as a healthy one. Regarding the miscommunication, it is sth that any couple can work through. Rini didn't broke up bc of that, but bc of wanting different things (main reason). The only bad seed planted is the college situation. I tried to make an objective analysis bc I saw so many theories (that won't work with the story) and unfounded arguments (ex: Gina and Ricky being leads).

--

hi anon! thanks for the ask. this is definitely an interesting subject, hence all of the conversation around it haha.

there are definitely some slippery slope type arguments being made right now, and always honestly. i won't deny that at all, because it's very true. but i'll note it's hard for people in fandom in general not to snowball small details into bigger things because of how little information we have at times. people like knowing things, and when we don't know things, we start to make things up that at least sort of fit what we do know. that's what i'm doing, that's what everyone's doing. extrapolation is not an exact science, especially with how small a pool of data we're gathering from.

i agree with a good bit of what you're saying here.

i'm personally a lot less inclined to use the nini / ricky / gina love triangle from season 1 as a parallel to expand from in a general sense, mostly bc it's a lot harder to grasp the nuances of it than it is the ej / nini / ricky love triangle from season 1. with ej, nini, and ricky, it's all made pretty clear textually what's going on. i think people miss some of the points still to some extent, because ricky didn't actually take nini off of ej, ej ruined that of his own accord, (plus nini didn't love him like she did ricky, so that makes it a lot simpler), several episodes went by, things shifted, then nini chose ricky because she still loved him and being with him started to make sense for her again. it's obviously more complicated than that, but it's still a more cut and dry triangle than the nini / ricky / gina one- so i'll probably use that one more as a point of comparison, though i think i do understand your analogy.

--

val is not going to break ej and gina up. neither is ricky. like you're saying. not a single character is benefitted here by either one of these characters getting in the middle of the situation. i like what you mention about being "put first". i see this framing a lot in portwell discussions i feel like, and it's a good point. people talk about the whole like- "second chance at love" thing with them, and it's a pretty good reading of the situation. neither was put first in their respective last relationship (in ej's case) / and i'll say- situationship (in gina's case).

nini was admittedly actively avoiding dealing with the ricky thing while with ej, and she tried her absolute hardest to focus on ej, and how "amazing" he was. but that was never going to last, because her heart inevitably still belonged to ricky. so even if ej was where she put her focus, her eye kept wandering to ricky.

ricky also wasn't actively looking at nini when he was sorta like- hanging out with gina. we get more of nini's perspective on all that than anyone else's bc imo the point of this was for nini to be jealous. but gina's also not ever had a relationship before, so i'll extend this whole thing beyond ricky. she has never allowed herself to be connected with someone deeply, so no one's ever done that for her in general. i don't think you call yourself the President of the heartbreak club over one singular missed connection. but then again, if you've only ever let one person in, it's likely that hurts all the more for its loss.

as a side note: jack was fantastic, big fan of the banter there. he was fun.

--

i agree that things between ej and gina were pretty healthy. most if not all of the relationships on this show are, despite all the conflicts we see.

i won't get into rini's breakup here because i have way too much to say about that, and it's not super relevant, but i'd agree that it was more complicated than mere miscommunication. i don't know if it entirely boils down to wanting different things either, because finding what he "wants" is something ricky is very much still working on. but i also definitely get what you're saying.

--

personally, i do think college becomes less of a problem if he's staying in salt lake, or at the very least, in utah. but i don't think that necessarily prohibits college from being an issue for them, especially with the passage of time. it's a hard thing to figure out, because this ship is in for some big problems, and i think the sooner people accept that the better. it's just going to be a matter of what they can work through, and what they can't, or what they choose not to.

because sometimes that's how it goes, right? it's not that you can't fix it, but that it's easier to just close the chapter, because it's not worth risking what's left. that's sort of just me waxing poetic, not me trying to make any assessments about the potential portwell arc next season, but it's true and i wanted to add it! so i did. i'm referencing "let you go" a bit here / ricky's conversation with his mom, but it applies generally as well.

[theunconcernedembalmer]

ok i got the aesvic out of my system now time to pick apart the letter n why i wont really be following aesops diary exactly here. literally no one asked but i wanted to get my thoughts down somewhere cos i have. a lot

just gonna put a quick rundown of aesops diary entry as a refresher (mostly for myself so i dont miss anything): he dreamt that he was helping jerry with what was probably a murder n was affirmed n he thinks its a sign congratulating him on carrying out his duty. over the years, he carries out his duties as an undertaker n comes to the manor looking for a “fresh start” aka what sounds like his first victim. according to aesop, said victim should be quiet, n potential victim number 1 is victor. something about badly needing him to become his “silent friend” n he mentions he’ll get to wick n the 2 other survivors in due time, but for now he’s very eager to start his “mission”.

im generally okay with the letter (i have seen so many fights over this aha) cos there is no surprise he wants to kill ppl (ppl who r fighting over this point. did u even read his deductions?? guy happily killed his mentor??). but i didnt quite like the fact that he still looks up to jerry (although. i guess thats valid i just. dont like it). i was also initially kind of confused about the real reason why he would want to kill ppl since as u progress through the letter it sounds less like he kills for duty (cos of the whole dream thing at the start) but more “because i want to :)”, which is an okayish edgy kinda take imo. like not that u cant characterize aesop as Kill Kill Murder Die, but i kinda find that. pretty boring in the long term.

im just gonna put what my original take on aesop was, like all of it. first off, he hates jerry. u cannot tell me a psychotic serial killer like that can raise a child without emotional trauma. like any child, this isnt even counting the extra damage done because hes autistic. (n i also hc that aesop has read his moms letter to him at some point, n he should have come to the conclusion that it was somewhat also jerrys fault, whether through logic or denial that his mom would want to leave him, so that just adds to it.) but as much as he hates him, his teachings are the only ones hes been exposed to, n its been so ingrained in him since young so even if he hates jerry he would still subscribe to whatever twisted ideology jerry was feeding him, which ill get to in a sec.

going through his accessories, he has that origami that he folds for each of his clients, n it shows that underneath it all, aesop is still kind. this isnt expected of him n its definitely not part of his job scope as an embalmer. he (still?) has the heart to wish the best for those that have departed n takes the time n effort to fold one for each n every client he sends off, which is probably a lot. so going off on that, my hc is that jerry, being the manipulative asshole that he is (who probably definitely manipulated his mom into indirect suicide) probably used his kindness against him to make him believe that by murdering ppl he is helping them, framing all of his serial kills as a sort of mercy kill (like his mom). so the thing that aesop takes away from all this is the very twisted logic that by killing ppl he is helping them, therefore being a good embalmer and a good person in general. n everyone wants to be a sort of good person, or at least for aesop that is part of his job description to be a good embalmer. n we all know aesop is very serious about his job.

i also hc that he has killed several ppl between killing jerry n coming to the manor, cos i follow the story that he took the invitation from that poor lady n thats how he ended up at the manor. surely the lady didnt come to him right after jerry died?? but anyway, the way i see it is that he thought he liked to kill. like he finally truly understood why jerry kills so much (which is interesting now that i think about it. guy really just went along with all those murders without truly believing huh), because it felt good to kill. at least thats what he thought, the revelation that killing felt good n is good, but i say its because he hated jerry, n offing someone u kinda hate should probably feel pretty gucci. n its also so much easier to pick clients off the streets than in the manor, so i would think that he has killed ppl like his mentor did, but each time he did the great feeling that came with ending ppls life just. wasnt as good as the first time round. it just became a sort of normal satisfaction of a successful embalming.

this can go two ways: 1. he keeps on killing to try to find that great feeling again, which is cool i guess (n probably what canon would want, except canon states that he hasnt killed since jerry), but id like to go with 2. he just stops because jerry isnt around to enforce it whenever he isnt feeling up to psychoing someone to their death (which is probably how jerry got his victims, n damn if that doesnt take a lot of mind games that i dont think aesop has the mental capacity for since half of it is fighting with his social anxiety n other issues. dealing with alive strangers?? no thanks?? i doubt he would have learnt properly how to lure in clients as efficiently as jerry because of this, mostly cos he was only needed for the murder afterparty aka embalming n funerals). n as much as he stays professional, there is no. professional way of gaslighting someone to their death.

(n also since ppl have pointed out that his twitter replies n other kinda informal stuff have shown that aesop does have reverent respect for life, which also adds to him not being so blindly bloodthirsty as implied in the letter. i dont really see the twitter replies as very canon, but it does make sense that he would come to revere life with his unique take and obsession over death, for one cannot exist without the other)

so this leads me to the motive that aesop brings to the manor, at least how i see it. he isnt exactly coming to the manor to kill per se (like from the very early story, he came to the manor to return the letter to a relative of the deceased lady, something about respecting her last wishes. something like that, its really been a while since i saw that exerpt), so like killing ppl isnt his main purpose of visit. its more of hes always on the lookout for weaker (or at least those that take less mind games to kill) people to mercy kill, n it just so happens that he knows the manor n his mentor almost died from there, so theres a pretty good chance he can find some ppl that fall into this category n so it just so happens that he also has a job to do there. its still counted as a Job for him since no ones gonna tell him that embalmers dont actually. murder. 

so in my version, aesop only tries to sway ppl that he knows he can convince, n these ppl would typically be those very sickly ones like his mom (andrew im looking at u) or those with an actual death wish/ very weak will to live. but here aesop is choosing his “first victim”, and the criteria for that is... quiet? never mind “not evading him” and “not cranky” being on the list too, but that isnt quite what i was expecting from someone so dedicated to their duty of murder. sure he wants an easy first kill, but like. i dont think its consistent if his motive was really to continue jerrys bastard legacy. especially when the next paragraph is essentially him gushing over victor, that... sort of implies something else. or at least in the way i see it, since i believe that canon wants us to think that aesop just really loves to kill.

aesop likes victor. very much so. so much till he wants to kill him. which i guess makes sense cos he likes death, n now he likes victor. so he just. puts the two things he likes together. whats better than victor? dead victor. anyway the rest of the letter is more like “whatever, i technically should kill the others too but my priority is victor” so like. he confuses his (dare i say) yandere tendencies with his duty since the end goal for both is a body in a coffin.

having said that. i know i have aesvic brainrot but i also know this is one sided as hell (at least from the letter alone, not counting the letter shaped cookies in his birthday art that apparently belonged to victors birthday cake aha) n lowkey alarming since. the goal is to kill victor. i kinda want to interpret it as him genuinely wanting to be friends with victor (really wanting him to be a “silent friend”, maybe cos he doesnt actually know how to be friends with living ppl n is better with dead ones? therefore victor should be dead to be friends?) but not knowing how to n throwing in his obsession with death ends up with. this minor disaster waiting to happen. but i uh. dont know if this is valid. its valid to me at least, with my original interpretation of aesop. n again cos of his ingrained professionalism, he also kinda sees this as part of his job to send ppl off, so its another plus. not for victor, tho.

idk if ill add this yandere side in my aesop. i mean my boi has technically tried to kill victor multiple times in the past HAHAHAHA. maybe like sometimes he can be a bit obsessive. as a treat. but generally nah cos thats definitely gonna end up in a murder somewhere somehow n i cant. just kill victors here on the ask blog scene lashjflkjhdlfkjhas

so yeah that kinda takes care of the last part of the letter, as for the first part. as much as aesop hates jerry, i would also think hes pretty starved for affirmation (like i said jerry isnt going to be a good parent figure ever) n i guess it makes sense if the only times jerry has ever complimented him was aiding him in his kills n hiding the evidence, which might (?) add to his desire to kill (but that probably dies with jerry aha). so the way i see it as aesop is getting affirmation n takes it as a good sign instead of. remotely liking jerry. idk if im stretching it a little but i really dont like the take where hes okay with jerry. anyway we are ignoring that he hasnt killed before entering the manor cos that doesnt quite make sense to me (i wasnt dreaming about the letter from a lady stabbed in the face 36 times or so right???? right???????)

im also not like. trying to defend him, im just trying to make sense of his diary. boi has issues n is a little too far gone (not as far as canon tho), in my take very deluded in his way of showing kindness. literally cool motive still murder (or in canon, just murder?), please get therapy. but i just dont really like the direction that the letter was originally trying to imply, with him really just hell bent on murder without like. a clear motive (at least to me it isnt very clear since the last part really doesnt sound consistent with his supposed intentions). i mean i love being edgy with aesop every now n then but i dont think it would make for meaningful characterizations in the long run so. ill still be sticking with my original take on aesop with maybe a bit of yandere for victor cos thats always fun

[galacticnova3]

Thoughts on Magolor?

Unpopular opinion but I like the fact that he got a redemption arc. It certainly wasn’t handled well and still hasn’t been imo(I don’t like the way the light novels characterize him at all because it feels like they ignore everything), but I think it was a step in the right direction of not having characters either stay evil and die(Nightmare, Dark Mind, Dark Matter, Zero, Drawcia... etc, also Marx belongs here and I will not change my mind he did not deserve what he got in Star Allies at all) or suddenly become good guys/rivals after recurring long enough (Meta Knight, Dedede, Bandana Dee if you squint really hard). In essence, now there’s a lot more characters who aren’t just flat, 100% good or 100% evil, and Magolor laid the groundwork for that complexity. Now we have characters like Taranza being 100% an antagonist until you find out why he kidnapped(and eventually controlled) Dedede in the first place. Or Susie, who was by all accounts still a “bad guy” even after Robobot ended, but now we’ve been left with a small sense of hope in terms of becoming a better person because of Magolor’s redemption.

I think a big part of why Magolor’s redemption worked for me is that it didn’t happen years after he was introduced, and therefore could fit logically with the ending of his game. When he “dies” you only see the Master Crown actually get destroyed, whereas Magolor just kinda... disappears. Which I also have a lot to say about alone but I won’t here because that’s a tangent. Anyways, that manner of disappearance means it makes sense that he was just warped somewhere to think about his actions and make the decision to be better, as was explained later, versus Marx who died TWICE (3 times if you count KSS and KSSU separately) and has no explanation for how he’s back at all.

I think a lot of the kickback his redemption gets is based entirely on misunderstanding. Redemption doesn’t mean everything a character(or person) did no longer matters, or that they have to be forgiven by others. It just means that they want to be better than they were, and are being given that opportunity. Also, in general, to base the idea of redemption on who is deserving or not is... not good, imo. If you apply that in real life you get situations where people aren’t going to try to be better at all, because no matter what they do they’re always going to be treated as evil. Kinda like a self-fulfilling prophecy.

A lot of how I look at it comes from the opposite side of that; I really try to give second chances (when it’s appropriate). Obviously you can’t give someone a second chance if they’re still being shitty, because at that point they’re still busy fucking up their first chance. But if they stop and make an effort to be better, why deny them that? Giving a second chance doesn’t equal giving forgiveness; if someone hurt you you don’t have to ignore that in your perceptions. Giving a second chance just means “you can try to change and I’m not going to stop you by constantly reminding you of what you did wrong.” Forgiveness is “you wronged me but I am not going to resent you anymore”. You can give someone a second chance without forgiving them.

In other words, Magolor hasn’t been forgiven, he’s been given a second chance, which is something that I think is good and makes for an interesting story, and the fandom is just boring and missing out on a great opportunity because they’re still mad that they were bamboozled by a catboy.

No I am not biased for any Lor related reasons at all.

[sanktagenyas]

alrighty so i guess coherent thoughts about this book might be a very generous estimate of what i’m about to write here but i’ll write down my thoughts anyway ‘cause i wanna share and possibly hear yours like for real interactions with my posts are not just welcomed they’re encouraged.

ok so to start our protagonists are alina and mal and our antagonist is the darkling and i pretty much related to alina right away because i love a hero with insecurities and doubts, i love an underdog so of course i was always meant to fall in love with alina starkov on sight. now the darkling... should be that i and everyone else would be beyond tired of the dark, tall, handsome and mysterious/scary men in fiction especially when they whisk our hero away for even more mysterious and/or nefarious purposes that they leave them completely in the dark about BUT the charisma fucking jump off of the pages i don’t know what else to tell you. and i am deeply intrigued about him and his backstory and also him and how he feels about our protagonist because when you catch the attention of a centuries old immortal being that says something about you but it says more about said immortal imo.

we come to learn that the darkling is beyond ruthless and yet he still a capacity for love after all this time even if it’s quite out of use to say the least. and just the fact that out of the thousands of people who have crossed his path there’s this one girl he saw and he was like well look at that someone who’s not unremarkable for once. and i know that’s not exactly a romantic sentiment but that’s how it starts, folks.

but anyway to cap my little ramble here despite the fact that i’ve seen that kind of villain before i do still really love the darkling. i like that we don’t have all the facts yet about what led him to become who he is so there’s just the right amount of mystery around him to keep you wanting to discover more and he is just human enough that he is not this caricature monstrous villainous figure (alina would beg to differ but i don’t listen to what alina yells at people when she’s angry)

now onto mal. i’m trying to word this in a way that doesn’t make me come off as a raging anti because the truth is that would require me to be invested in mal enough to hate him and as of now i’m just not. with book one being told entirely in alina’s perspective it’s pretty in your face that we should care about mal. our hero loves him and we want her to be happy, right? plus we really shouldn’t ship her with the villain there are so many wrong aspects about that dynamic just to name one aspect the deceit and the lies. the foundation of darklina is so fucked we should not ship it, right? well see that’s where i would argue that my biggest issue with darklina as a ship is the darkling in the final act all but saying fuck alina’s agency i’m going to make her my puppet for eternity not because that is necessary to accomplish my plan but because i’m jealous and resentful that she left me behind and didn’t embrace my plans for ravka and therefore embrace me.

and you might think wait i’ve lost the plot we were talking about mal and now we’re talking about darklina and the darkling but rewind back a little i said my issue with darklina in the final act of the book is the darkling pissing all over alina’s agency. and he might do that in more extreme ways than mal but mal certainly does seem to view alina as property at times and that implies him not respecting her agency. i could point to the fact that saying “don’t tell me we don’t belong together” is only framed as romantic statement because it comes out of the mouth of one of our protagonists and not our antagonist but that’s a cheap shot, it’s easy. instead i’ll echo my thoughts i shared about that malina reunion in chapter fourteen. mal was not one bit concerned about alina there and even though he says later on that not one hour was spent not thinking about her and wondering about her wellbeing all that flies out of the window the second he sees her with the darkling during the fete and here’s the thing if he had caught them mid makeout session i could understand him letting jealousy completely overtake him to the point that he doesn’t ask if she’s ok or how she’s been treated here and just assumes based on appearances (let’s not forget before she unlocked her powers alina was well and truly miserable regardless of the luxury afforded to her by her new grisha status so appearances don’t mean shit malyen) that she must be hunky dory and then tiptoes the line around slutshaming her but definitely crosses the line over into making her feel like shit for circumstances beyond her control territory and all that over seeing her do magic trickery at a party with another guy. 

alina is allowed to be attracted to another man, she’s allowed to have feelings for another man. they’re both guilty of miscommunication as they obviously both feel the same way about each other but alina has the decency to keep her jealousy to herself and not have outbursts about mal getting close to other girls like she owns his ass or something. that put me off and then i was hoping there would be a talk that would clarify things and he would apologize and that happened but it also came with the revelation that mal was upset to see her happy with the darkling. so he’d rather see the woman he loves miserable and alone rather than happy and belonging? and that’s the romantic lead i’m meant to be fawning over? i’m just not seeing it right now and that’s why even as he so generously offers her absolution (idk if you can read my sarcasm but just to be clear it’s sarcasm) for having loved the darkling and tells her he loves all of her even the part that loved the darkling i’m like..... i don’t believe you boy.

i guess in summary my thoughts about mal as a love interest is i need some consistency you cannot have him throw a jealous fit over seeing alina standing with another man (that’s literally all they were doing for real) and looking happy about it and then have him be like i don’t care i love you anyway. you cannot have him act as though he owns alina and in the same breath throw in her face that the darkling owns her (i hate this foreshadowing thank you very much) and you cannot have him get cold or angry at so much of a mention of a life she might have that doesn’t include him and then expect me to believe he’s made peace with her having feelings for more than just him. he’s not even able to accept a scenario where she goes off and does shit that doesn’t involve him as he shows no interest in her life in the little palace for the longest time. meanwhile you can literally read all about alina wondering what happened to him and what he went through trying to get to her. and for the love of saints i would love it if alina would stop acting like she needs to be forgiven for these feelings i absolutely get that she feels conned and ashamed about it but you do not need to ask anyone for absolution for falling someone who made you feel seen for the first time in your life. fuck that noise.

i just know trust issues are gonna arise and i know he doesn’t feel that way truly. if alina turned around and at some point decided to show mercy to the darkling mal wouldn’t understand or accept it and i’d fully expect a guilt trip to ensue.

now that’s my thoughts on mal as a romantic lead and that’s about the biggest aspect of him we’re focusing on but i do think he is a brave man who genuinely cared for his friends and genuinely cares for alina as that whole journey to hunt morozova’s herd definitely proved. he loves her i don’t doubt that but one grand gesture doesn’t excuse the way he treats her earlier in the books is my point and as been pointed out by others i don’t like how much alina relies on him even when he isn’t here. her refusal to let go of him was directly affecting her happiness and overall health as she couldn’t come into her powers before she thought he was lost to her. if i’m not liking who the hero becomes when she’s with the love interest it’s a big indicator i’m not gonna love said love interest as much as i’m clearly expected to by the author. i like mal just fine, he’s not without redeeming qualities, i just don’t love him yet and i may never do and that’s ok.

now i wanna take a moment and a couple sentences (it won’t be a novel i swear, pinky promise!) to talk about the twist that i should have seen coming miles away and i already know once my sister watches the show or reads the book whatever comes first i will be mercilessly teased about not seeing it coming. but when i found out the black heretic and the darkling are one of the same my jaw dropped. as memers might say i took that personally. and even though we have a lot of grounds to covers still and unanswered questions such as is the darkling still alive? if he is what is he up to now? is baghra dead in a ditch somewhere or worse? will alina and genya ever see each other again? why was zoya so standoffish and violent with alina, what’s her story? the question in my mind most prominent is what happened to the darkling? what happened for him to become who he is. i love the quote monsters are not born they’re made and i much prefer to see a villain who wasn’t always one than one who is just evil for the evulz. so i want a backstory and i also wanna learn about baghra while we’re at it.

it’s all fun and well for her to denounce her son’s actions but and i hate to break it to her but YOU RAISED HIM LADY. so yeah baghra’s whole speech to alina is missing parts for sure because she’s not just gonna admit her hands are covered in blood as much as the darkling’s are. not without some pressing at least. 

sooo to cap off all this i guess i would have just two throwaway remarks and that is that i am getting a lot of gay vibes from alina and if i took a shot every time she remarks on genya’s beauty or just gushes about genya in general i’d be drunk by now and i hope we get an actual queer romance somewhere in these books even just between side characters. second remark would be ivan i’m waiting for you to find some redeeming qualities my dude, i was rooting for you! at first he is a raging dickhead about it but seemed to mellow some and then near the end it’s right back to square one and i am really sorry about his brothers dying but having lost family members is not actually a get out of jail free card that gives you free range to mistreat people just because you can.

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #353

“well i’m a creep  /  i’m a weirdo  /  what the hell am i doing here?  /  i don’t belong here”

If you won an all-expenses paid trip to anywhere in the world for a one week vacation, where would you choose to go? For just one week, um... maybe South Africa, actually. Two weeks would probably be more ideal, but I've learned via my friend who worked with the KMP for a year that it's very isolating and you're very disconnected from society (also from the Internet, haha), but regardless, I REALLY wanna see the meerkats. Especially with the heat and all, one week might actually be all right. How often do you get notifications on your favorite social media site? That would be Facebook, and it really depends on how much I share that day. Sometimes I barely touch it, and sometimes I share a billion things and get a few notifications of people reacting. What’s something you’re actively trying to forget/care less about, if anything? Hi, have I told you about my breakup? What was the last encounter you had with a bug? Ugh, the fucking house is having an ant problem. Apparently, it's happened before here this time of year, so a couple times a days I find one on my arm or something and crush it. What is something considered “childish” that you still like or enjoy doing? I'm certain some people would consider RP childish, given it's essentially "make believe," and that's one reason I don't tell people about it. Name a song that you have a strong emotional connection to. Why is that song so important to you? The #1 song would be "Stairway to Heaven" by Led Zeppelin. I've told why before and don't feel like doing it again. Is cannabis legal where you live? Nope, but it should be. How often do you walk your dog, if you have one? I don't have a dog. What is something you'd feel confident enough to give a presentation on? Me? Comfortable giving a presentation? Bitch please. Which CoVid vaccine did you receive, if any? I got Moderna. I wanted Pfizer, but supposedly they're the same thing, just different manufacterors. How do you feel you've made a difference in the world? I don't feel I have. But it's my goal in life to die feeling like I did. Do you eat any candies in a specific order? (ie: M&M's) I fucking read this as "candles" and was really confused. But anyway, yes, but not M&Ms; I only do that with candies that actually have unique tastes depending on color, like Skittles. What is one common childhood illness that you managed not to catch? I never got chickenpox. Is there an heirloom that has been passed down generations of your family? Probably, but I don't know about it. What is the most unique pet that you ever owned, or would like to? Hm. I'd say maybe a Chinese water dragon? People tend to not know what they are; they mistake them for iguanas all the time. Have you ever been in a bad car accident before? A bad one, no, but I've been in one, nevertheless. At the description of what happened though, the cop said we were extremely lucky we weren't flipped over. My mom's driving skill saved us. What is your favorite type of weather to experience? Snow! I like a steady pace of large flakes. Do you know your social security by heart? I don't, actually, but I did at one point. Now, I only know the last four digits. Would you move out your house if you could right now? Yes, even if we just moved here. Mom and I really, really don't like living in the suburbs. We miss being in the middle of nowhere. When is the last time you slept in someone else’s bed? Not since I last visited Sara's. Do you like being called baby? Not really. Like if it's from an s/o, it's all right, it's just really not my favorite. Have you ever slept in the same bed of the opposite sex? Yeah. When shopping at a grocery store, do you return the cart? I openly judge the fuck out of you if you don't. Do you think you would survive in the wilderness if you were abandoned there? I know I couldn't. Not in my shape. If you had a child at the age you’re at now, do you think you’d be a good parent? God, no. Do you eat your Oreos with milk? Yes. I strongly prefer them that way. Do you think French kissing is gross? I mean in concept I think it indisputably is, like even if you brush your tongue, it's still just... gross. But that doesn't mean I'm against it at all or won't do it when I love somebody. It's an "I accept you and your germs" thing, haha. Are you wearing make-up? What brand(s)? No. I pretty much never wear makeup anymore, even to take pictures. The last male you spoke to…is he attractive? That would be my psychiatrist, and I'm not attracted to him, no. He's like another dad to me. Have you ever had mice in your house? Back when we lived in the woods, we would have a minor mouse problem in the winter sometimes. I fucking hated it because my parents used the inhumane traps, save for one. I guess it was an affordability thing, idk. One or two got caught in that one, and I would let them go outside. Do you enjoy working with animals? It depends on what I'm doing. If I'm cleaning up after an animal, NO, because I seriously struggle with stomaching it. I canNOT touch vomit or feces, so that kinda eliminates a lot of options. Because of how physically weak I am along with hyperhidrosis, I also can't really exert myself much, so there ya go, more reasons I can't. I wish I could. Have you ever been in a tornado or hurricane? Plenty of hurricanes. If you're in a competition, are you in it to win it or just for the fun? The fun, experience, and growth. What's your favorite show on Comedy Central? I don't watch it. Which love story would you want your life to turn out like? I don't know, really. Do you usually go to sleep before or after the people you're living with? Before, at least usually. Are you into ripped jeans? Yes, though I don't wear jeans anymore. Have you ever been to any Disney parks? Yeah, Disney World in Florida. Which band has the best name, in your opinion? "Cradle of Filth" sounds pretty damn badass and unholy, I dig it. Do kids often knock on your door on Halloween? This will be our first year in this house during Halloween, so I really don't know if any will? I mean we live in a suitable neighborhood, so idk. Which one of your exes do you feel like you have the most chemistry with? Sara. Do you share the same political views as your parents? Dad, no. Mom, some. Have you ever done any internship? No. What's the last thing you got paid to do? Take pictures for someone. What's something your mother always says? "Drive like everyone else is stupid." It works though, haha. Always expect that someone you see might do something moronic and be prepared. For example, she is very adamant about us looking both ways when a light changes to green versus going immediately, and it's literally saved Mom's and my sister's lives. What's something your dad always says? To reach out to him if we ever need help with anything, and he'll do everything in his power to be there. What's your favorite thing to wear? Loose tank tops with loose-ish pj pants. What's your favorite day of the week? Nowadays, it's Fridays. Snake Discovery and The Dark Den both upload that day, haha. Do you have a favorite coloring book artist? Lisa Frank is the Wholesome Lead Bitch. Have you ever wanted to model? No. Have you ever seen someone have a seizure? Yeah, my sister. What's your favorite car? I am not NEARLY educated enough on cars to answer this. Why did you cry the last time you did? I'm seriously grieving Virginia. Her death has stricken me harder than any other I've experienced, even my own grandmother's. Who was the last person to piss you off? Probably someone on Facebook, but idr. Do you like winter? I love winter. Do you have a favorite flower? Yeah; I really like orchids. Dahlias are also gorgeous, and roses... Would you get a shamrock tattooed to your forehead for $5000? No. As great as that money sounds, tattoos are (relatively) permanent, and that would look pretty stupid imo. Are you very flexible? Not anymore. Who was the last person to tell you you looked nice? Probably Mom. Do you have the right time set on your microwave? Yeah. Do you have any old newspaper articles? Why? No. Do you have a flat screen tv or just a regular box? Flat screen. Do you like Tootsie Rolls? Ugh, no. Do you like Slim Jim’s? Oh fuuuuuuck yeah man. What color is your mousepad? Black. Do you get your eyebrows waxed? I used to, but now I just leave 'em be. Would you date someone that had a different religion from you? It would depend on the religion and the intensity. I could NOT date someone exceptionally religious. A common question: What are you listening to? Caleb Hyles and Halocene's cover of Radiohead's "Creep." Would you ever get a nature tattoo? Well, I want at least a meerkat tattoo, so. I'll probably get a snake somewhere, too. Where do your siblings work, if anywhere? My older sister is a mammographer, and my little sister is a children's social worker. Saving lives, then there's me lmao. Who do you generally talk to the most? Mom and Sara. Have you ever had a crush on someone of the same gender? Yeah, multiple times. Do you enjoy painting? Not really, no. I stress out about messing up. When, where, and why did a needle last pierce your skin? Around a week ago, left shoulder, to get my first Covid vaccine. Is there a person you talk to everyday with? Well, considering I live with my mother... I usually talk to Sara too, but a day sometimes passes where we don't. Does one of your parents ever complain to you about the other parent? Mom does that all the time about Dad. It's no shocker they're divorced. Dad's long since moved on and doesn't talk shit about her. Who was the last person you wished a “Happy Birthday” to? I actually don't remember... Someone on Facebook, I'm sure. Does your best friend have a job? Not right now, she's dealing with some wild health issues where it's much safer that she doesn't. When you move out your house (or if you already have moved out) do you plan on still visiting your parents' house? Well of course. I especially plan on visiting my mother at least once a week, either going to her place for dinner or her coming over to mine for the same. We're way too close for me to not see her. I'll still visit Dad, too. Do you usually take home leftovers if you eat out in a restaurant? It depends on what I had and if I know I'll eat it warmed up. What’s your favorite thing to have for breakfast? Cinnamon rolls. Why did you break your last promise? I barely EVER break promises, but this one I actually forgot I even made. ;_;

[darklingdragon]

filling in the blanks of what was left behind

Sacred Stones takes place in the Magvel calendar year of 802. Myrrh is older than that, and Morva more than her. What are they exactly and where did they come from? What happened?

Thoughts on dragons, Fomortiis, and the ancient history of Magvel. 

for starters, I’d like to talk about the what and the why. Exactly what are the dragons in Magvel? We see that the term manakete certainly exists (Eirika uses it) and seems to be known but it’s never really used, and given Dara’s reaction to it being used, it could be assumed that Myrrh and Morva at least don’t really use it or care enough. If you’ve noticed while writing her, I don’t use the term manakete at all when describing Myrrh, only dragon. This is mostly semantics though, since that’s how she sees herself.

It also makes you wonder when Myrrh sealed herself in the dragonstone. She is really young - are they something inheritable? During the story it is also mentioned that there are only two dragonstones known to exist. Did Morva take it from one of the (multiple) dead manakete for her? Do they crumble when their owner dies? What happened to his? We know that he turned back into a dragon once zombified so perhaps he didn’t even have one since he was literally with the villains at the time. There’s also the issue of her dragonstone being a bit different from others but I’ll chalk that up to Magvel’s aesthetics just being like that since there isn’t any sort of canon connections for me to draw there.

One of the biggest why questions is: why are Morva and Myrrh so in tune with Fomortiis and the monsters, as well as each other? He not a dragon and is indeed a demon. As to this extent I want to talk about that Myrrh says:

We have the power of dragons; therefore, we cannot live together with humans... We have the hearts of humans; therefore, we do not belong with monsters. We are outcasts in this world, never a part of either community. And so we live our lives alone, never to be understood by anyone.

There are a lot of ways to talk about what this could mean. It very much could apply to manakete as a whole but given that she doesn’t really know about any others to draw this conclusion from, as well as the general discomforting nature of what magic connected to the Demon King can do (see: Monica) I think it’s more than that. 

In her mind there are only two places to belong: with humans and with monsters. If they are somewhere between both human and monster, then that would mean there is a connection between the dragonfolk in Magvel and Fomortiis himself, which is encouraged by them being able to check his vibes from the other side of the continent. This is especially poignant when Myrrh starts crying when Morva is murdered. Most likely it is the magic rather than anything else, since they live where the body is.

While I’m not saying necessarily that they were created by him or were once part of him, but there is a connection there that seems unable to be severed - the source of their powers coming from the same place is the most likely explanation I can offer.. For all intents and purposes here, the dragons on Magvel are part monster and I don’t want use the term Dark Dragon, though the name fits fits, since that already exists and Medeus is a whole different league completely. Demon Dragon also exists and that is also something very specific that doesn’t match. 

Granted, I think that wherever the connection comes from, it can make the dragons incredibly quick to anger and Myrrh herself struggles with what is okay and what isn’t okay.

But where did he and the dragons come from exactly? There are three things that we know 1) humans existed and were almost wiped out, 2) there was a tribe of dragonfolk that Morva, and presumably Myrrh and her parents were part of, and 3) according to legend, the Sacred Stones did not exist prior to humanity’s plea for help.

We know that manakete seems to be at least a somewhat known term, and also that their involvement in the defeat of Fomortiis was scrubbed. We also know that Magvel seems to have multiple gods and Morva and Myrrh, as the Great Dragons, are worshipped as some sort of deified beings (to her chagrin). There is probably some sort of connection there, but I think it’s not really my place to make that one. However, being scrubbed from history might have been an active choice not out of malice, but Morva might even have asked the the five heroes not to mention it, or something similar to that. The folks in Caer Pelyn seemed pressed about it, but the two dragons do not. 

Now, where did they all go? We know that Myrrh’s parents were killed, so it is probably safe to guess that a lot of other dragons were as well. This is probably one of the reasons why Morva adopted her - a sense of guilt. She knows what happened and is acutely aware of that. Do I think that every single one of them was wiped out? No, the existence of draco zombies that aren’t Morva imply this. Does Myrrh think this? Yes, she believes she is the last remaining of them in Magvel and feels pressure due to this. 

There was probably only one kind of dragon on Magvel, and they all lived together. Probably not necessarily in a big society or kingdom, but close enough where they were easy enough to rally together against the monsters. Myrrh was young so her memory of the time is spotty, however, Morva taught her about some things and how he lived in general, and she keeps this information close to heart.

The Black Temple itself, while once being home to the corpse of Fomortiis’, also functions as a sort of historical reminder and note. It is inscribed with the tale of his sealing and the five heroes, as well as other information about magic, all written in the ancient language; she understands both ancient tongue and common speech.  

This all leads to several things about Myrrh that culminate in one very upset little dragon:

-She feels immense pressure to do good. Not only does she feel the weight of being alone as she perceives all her tribesmen as dead, she believes that, as the now only Great Dragon, she must protect humanity as her father did.

-She knows that there is a sort of connection between the Demon King and herself and feels guilty about that. She also feels guilty for killing her dad(’s corpse) and not being able to do anything about him and the other draco zombies.

-Dark magic terrifies her. She believes that by learning it anyone will end up down the same path of destruction and/or lose themselves. It is also the only kind of magic she can learn. 

-She makes careful notes of who she knows and what they did, so that tales of the war won’t ever forget anyone again. 

-Her wings are almost never out. There is no evidence that the dragonfolk in Magvel have pointed ears that reveal their heritage, so she always hides her wings so she can “blend in” due to being rightfully afraid. How she can do this I just chalk up to dragon magic bullshit and move on.

-Degeneration is not something she knows about nor what it is. It’s also probably for the best that anyone who does doesn’t tell her. Though personally, I like to believe that all the dragons in Magvel die by turning into draco zombies, Myrrh included. Dunno how it would happen, but it certainly seems fitting imo.

Now for some things that are not specific to Magvel and just sort of general “what does being a dragon mean for my physical wellbeing” stuff. She’s actually really strong, being a dragon and all, but doesn’t realize that due to her sort of small stature so sometimes things will break or get smashed accidentally without realization. 

[nadziejastar]

Imo Kingdom Hearts could have been a lot different if Disney was never involved or if it was it's entire own francise with no crossover with FF or Disney, imo that would have been great. Since KH1, the Disney-worlds had barely to no connection or revelance to the main-plot anymore, Sora just travels to the worlds because he can, in KH1 there was more at stake in those worlds too, now they just feel like filler, as much as SE has tried up untill KH3.

Well, “Quadratum” means “Square”. It’s possible that Nomura wants to move away from Disney worlds and focus more on Square worlds. Although I like the Disney worlds, and think they help give the series a unique identity, I can understand that Disney is a is large, powerful, greedy corporation. And Nomura’s relationship with them has changed over time.

It’s telling that instead of coming up with a new plot that gives us a good reason to travel to the Disney worlds again (the real ones, not data worlds, memory worlds, dream worlds, etc.) he’s sending Sora and Riku off to a new alternate dimension based on Versus XIII—a Square property. It may indicate that he’s tired of Disney worlds and they will be getting less focus from now on.

KH1

As the series has gone on, the implementation of the Disney worlds has become worse and worse as Nomura has struggled to come up with reasons to travel to them. I think you’re right that KH1 did the best with incorporating the worlds into the plot. Sora was trying to seal all the Keyholes, giving him a good reason to be in each one. He was looking for Riku and Kairi, which was a more personal goal. And then you had the seven princesses and the villain alliance. And each world contributed to the overall theme of the story.

KH CoM

Pinocchio: Gee, Riku, don’t you have a Jiminy like I do? He’s my conscience. He’s taught me all kinds of important stuff. Maybe you just need somebody to show you what’s right and wrong.

Jiminy: Sure. You can’t shoulder all your problems alone, ya know. You must have somebody–a friend you can talk to?

In CoM, the Disney worlds were pure filler. Only existed for gameplay. On Sora’s side, the story within them was almost the exact same as it was in KH1. Even on Riku’s side, the Disney worlds were pointless. For instance, the whole Monstro level in KH3D could have happened in Re:CoM, since it’s basically reliving Riku’s memories from KH1, but having him make a different choice that time.

KH2

Iago: I wanna be a good friend, like Genie, but I can't do anything to help you. What kind of a friend is that?

Sora: Oh, no---it's not like that, Iago. Friends don't have to "do" stuff. As long as you have fun hanging out together, that's all that matters.

In KH2, the worlds are a mix of new and old. But they’re not really important to the plot. Sora’s just looking for Riku and the King, they’re not there, you participate in the movie’s plot, then move onto the next one. All the actual story happens in Twilight Town, Hollow Bastion, or TWTNW. Each world usually has a theme and a moral lesson, but it doesn’t always relate to Sora that much, so they feel filler-ish. In the second half, the organization appears in the worlds, which makes them a little more relevant to the story. But not much. They were still fun levels, though.

358/2 Days

Roxas had a good reason to go to the worlds, to collect hearts for the organization. I don’t mind if the Disney worlds aren’t directly plot-related, as long as there’s character development in them. I like that they took certain worlds from KH2 that felt like filler and expanded on the main theme of them, contributing to character development, particularly for Axel. For instance, in KH2′s Agrabah, the moral lesson was: best friends don’t have to be “useful”. This idea doesn’t have much to do with Sora, though, so it felt kinda pointless to his quest.

If you didn’t need me, then I no longer held meaning. However, reality is different. It wasn’t about whether I was needed or not. If I could just connect to others’ hearts, that would be enough.

But it was implied that this idea was very relevant to Axel’s memories of his past and his best friend. 

“Because they copied my powers, the Keyblade’s power, and then they didn’t need me anymore— is that it?” Roxas spat. 

He couldn’t bring himself to confirm it. 

“I guess you felt the same way, huh, Axel?” 

At those words, something wrenched in his chest, and he could hardly breathe. No, not me. I wasn’t thinking like that. I would never. “That’s not true. You—you’re my best friend.” The words spilled out of him.

The story of Days was all about how Roxas and Xion help Axel remember his past and what it felt like to have a best friend (an idea that connects to CoM). And the Disney worlds at least contributed to that idea in a meaningful way.

“Set in a circus and playing off the story of Pinocchio, a puppet with a heart, and the Nobodies who possess no heart, we planned for a sad episode with Roxas and Xion looking for hope for themselves”.

I would have preferred Prankster’s Paradise as a world, though, instead of, say, Halloween Town. It sounds like Roxas and Xion would have developed more in that world and it would have been more relevant to the story. Plus, it would have been new. But I think Days did a decent enough job with the Disney worlds. At least Roxas learned something new when he went to them, spurring on interesting discussions with Axel about friendship, love, the heart, etc.

KHBBS

Bagheera: It was bound to happen. Mowgli is where he belongs now.

Three new characters. In each world, the character learned something new and developed slightly. The worlds were mostly new, too. I don’t have a problem with BBS’s Disney worlds. I do wish they would have kept the Jungle Book worlds in, though.

“Riku… Do you think Nobodies have a home? Somewhere we belong?” Naminé wondered.

Having a home, somewhere to belong, was one of the main themes of the Xehanort Saga.

Master Xehanort: Darkness that you channeled.

Terra: No, I succumbed to it. Just like when I stole Princess Aurora’s heart of light. I can never return home now. I’m a failure.

Terra felt like a failure, and that he could never return home. And Aqua was tasked with bringing Ven home. This world could have been really good in BBS.

Coded

Mickey: Yen Sid… I think we’re finally close to figuring out where Ven’s heart is.

Here’s where things start going off the rails. In Coded, Disney worlds are yet again retreads of KH1, only this time they’re data instead of memories. The whole purpose of the plot was to explain why Mickey sent Sora, Riku, and Kairi that letter at the end of KH2. But you didn’t really need a whole game of travelling through virtual Disney worlds for that, especially involving convoluted ideas like data Namine implanting bug blocks in the journal or Jiminy’s Journal embodying itself as Riku (WTF?). You could have just added a scene into KH2FM+ like the above one from the manga. When Mickey saw the photo of Roxas, he recognized him as Ventus. Then he tells Master Yen Sid about it later, leading to Coded’s ending and him writing the letter. 

KHUX

Ephemer: The worlds we visit—the worlds of fairy tales—are nothing more than holograms. You know, projections. The light we collect there is actually this world’s light. To put it simply: There are lots of worlds, right? And they’re all connected by land. But it’s impossible to go around all of them. That’s why there’s a mechanism that projects those worlds here and allows us to collect Lux from faraway lands. I’m gathering information, trying to figure out how the whole thing works. My hunch is that the Book of Prophecies held by the Foretellers is what’s creating these holograms.

The Disney worlds were extremely boring to play through. More than any other KH game, they have scenes that are just copy/pasted straight from the movies. Your main character, since they are mute, has little involvement. They do not grow, change, or develop, after any of these worlds. They have nothing interesting to say and they can barely interact with anyone (Chirithy does it for you). 

And all, except for Wreck-It-Ralph, are just retreads of plots that we already experienced in other games. The worlds are digital holograms of the future generated from the Book of Prophecies. It’s all a VERY convoluted excuse to have you play through the same old plots from the Disney worlds. AGAIN. Only with a FAR less interesting main character. Since this was supposed to be just a F2P gacha with little story, it could have been excused. But since KHUX has become so important to the main story, it is inexcusable how poor of a game it is.

KH3D

Sora: I get it now. After this, Pinocchio and Jiminy’s world gets dragged into darkness, and they end up cast into the sea between worlds, along with Monstro. And then…they end up in Traverse Town, and the belly of the whale. That’s when we meet for real. It’s like Master Yen Sid said–I’m in the dream Pinocchio’s world is dreaming. And that world will never be right again until it wakes from sleep.

I don’t have any real issue with a game focusing on the mark of mastery exam, where Sora and Riku travel through Disney worlds. Riku develops along the way in a satisfying way. It’s the first time you actually go to new worlds as him. The test was for Sora and Riku to acquire the power of waking, so they had to go to dream worlds. Fantasia was perfect for this idea.

But the concept of Sleeping Worlds is convoluted and confusing. They’re dream versions of the worlds? Who is dreaming them? The Dandelions? They’re stuck in a time loop of the past? But visiting the Sleeping Worlds doesn’t rewrite the present. So, are they connected to the datascape? Again, it’s so convoluted, because there really is no reason that Sora and Riku would have to go on another adventure in the REAL world. Again, I would have preferred Prankster’s Paradise in Days. Pinocchio would be a human, it’d be set in the present timeline so no awkward dialogue, and Honest John and Gideon would be involved, giving it more of a plot.

KH3

The game’s worlds could have been okay if Sora wasn’t just wandering about aimlessly. And if they had developed the power of waking better. The power of waking is essentially the power to wake a sleeping heart by connecting with it. It’s the power of love, basically. Most of the Disney worlds are about love. And also, a member of the organization appears in each one.

Dark Road

In BBS, it’s revealed that Xehanort wants to open KH to create a new world. But in KH3, he wants to reset the world. How is this different?

Nomura: The most essential part is that he thinks the current world is a failure, and wants to remake it.

I’m interested to know why Xehanort came to think that way (that the world should be remade).

Nomura: Initially, I wanted to dive deeper into the naive, untainted Xehanort who we see playing chess in the next installment (before KH3 was made), but if I did that, the dark seeker arc wouldn’t have ended (lol), so I decided to shelve it for now.

Wonderland is the only Disney world that has had a plot so far. But this was still the most interesting usage of Wonderland in the series, IMO.

Envy (Latin, invidia): Invi Gluttony (Latin, gula): Gula Lust (Latin, luxuria): Luxu. Anger, or Wrath (Latin, ira): Ira Greed, or Avarice (Latin, avaritia): Ava Sloth, or Laziness (Latin, acedia): Aced

The Foretellers are named after the seven deadly sins.

Nomura: As I was writing the scenario for Kingdom Hearts Back Cover, I was careful so as to make each character look neither like a hero nor a villain, however in the end it seems that only Ava was received as a good girl (laughs). At any rate, if you think of the story progression as a gun, where Ava is the only one with the capacity to pull that gun’s trigger, I’m not so sure about how devoid of sin she really is…

I think there were a lot of parallels between the age of fairytales and the Book of Genesis.

Pride (Latin: superbia) is considered, on almost every list, the original and most serious of the seven deadly sins. Out of the seven, it is the most angelical, or demonic. It is also thought to be the source of the other capital sins.

The MoM is probably really Darkness, the original sin, Superbia. And Xehanort has his Keyblade, becoming his successor. Pride was his deadly sin. He could never admit that he lost to Eraqus at chess because of his pride. In the Bible, the source of sin was the tree of knowledge of good and evil in the Garden of Eden. After acquiring knowledge of good and evil, he developed a god complex. Pride is the ultimate sin, where all the other sins originate from.

I need only play the role of a fool desirous of the Keyblade’s power.

Luxu is lust and Braig lusted for Xehanort’s power (as Luxu probably did with the MoM). The story in Dark Road is actually interesting. Xehanort is a FAR more interesting protagonist that the Avatar in Union X. As a wielder in training, he actually has a good reason to travel the worlds, and develops as a character along the way. I think Dark Road deserved to be its own real KH game, released on the Vita or 3DS a long time ago. It’s a shame it’s only a mobile game.

Anger is manifested in the individual who spurns love and opts instead for fury. It is also known as Wrath.

Pride is excessive belief in one’s own abilities, that interferes with the individual’s recognition of the grace of God. It has been called the sin from which all others arise. Pride is also known as Vanity.

Envy is the desire for others’ traits, status, abilities, or situation.

Gluttony is an inordinate desire to consume more than that which one requires.

Lust is an inordinate craving for the pleasures of the body.

Greed is the desire for material wealth or gain, ignoring the realm of the spiritual. It is also called Avarice or Covetousness.

Sloth is the avoidance of physical or spiritual work.

The story of Dark Road will likely be Xehanort encountering the seven deadly sins as manifested in Disney villains and coming to the conclusion that the world is too corrupt and needs to be reset. That is actually a decent enough plot and good justification for travelling through the Disney worlds. It’d be cool if they added new worlds. Maybe like Pocahontas, and Governor Radcliffe could be Greed, etc.

[gideonthefirst]

Thank you @oddsynchronicity for enabling me to make this post lmao. Here it is: my thoughts on NADDPOD Episode 80: Your Own Personal Hell

First of all, broadly speaking, all of the flashback sequences were perfectly chosen. There are a lot of things they could each have been, but @frogndtoad and I were just talking about it and, to quote her, they got “right to the emotional heart of the show.” By which I mean, each flashback sequence forced us to reexamine how we looked at the characters, while also staying fundamentally true to how they’ve been fleshed out and developed over the past eighty episodes. And they were perfectly designed to hit the emotional beats that each player is best at playing to. tl;dr Murph is a very very good DM and storyteller and also I want him to write a book

Second of all, still just in general, the choice to split them up was very bold and also an incredible flex on Murph’s part. One of the greatest strengths of the show is the party dynamic and how much they all care for each other - to split them up for half of an episode, and likely most of next episode as well, is…well, it’s a choice, and imo it worked because it hit HARD. The only other times they’ve been split up for any extended period of time, Hardwon almost died on an airship + Bev and Moonshine ran out of spells and were down to 1 hp, Gemma died, and Beverly got offered a deal by Akarot. Like, unless I’m missing some because it’s late and I’m sick, those are the three. So by separating them it triggers an immediate fear that is much different from the usual fear at seeing an enemy, and you can hear it in the immediate tone shift. They went from harassing Ilsed in the group chat to being completely focused on their scenes and each other’s scenes and it was a different feeling than we’ve gotten since…I don’t know, Queen Ezra? Marabelle? I don’t know if it even happened then.

Okay, individual stuff! Hardwon! Murph talked about it in the Short Rest a bit, but the choice to give Hardwon something to justify his caring so deeply about the dwarves and Irondeep? Inspired. Perfect. Devastating. He’s been in the bodies of two different races, but deep down, he still sees himself as a dwarf and always has, and King MacGannis was the first one to ever acknowledge him as such. It’s such a trans narrative, first of all, but it also is uhhh sure something when taken in conjunction with Moonshine’s flashback. But anyway, Hardwon went from being someone who was always excluded but still cared about the dwarves and Irondeep for some reason to being someone who was still always excluded but had something deep inside to hold onto and someone to look up to. And then he GOT the Kingshammer and now that whole scene is so much more specific and important and. Hardwon never had a home but now we know he always had the aspiration/idea of a home and that fundamentally changes his character. “Looks like a dwarf to me” are you KIDDING me?

Miscellaneous Hardwon thoughts: Playing Kingshammer under that scene was a direct attack. And Hardwon saying “yes, sir” to MacGannis in exactly the same way that Bev said “yes, sir” to his dad in the first Galaderon episodes is something that definitely wasn’t intentional but I am going to cry about.

Moonshine! Man, how do I even…how do I even start. Moonshine is the genuine love of my life she’s so deeply, genuinely good. Bringing Marabelle in was an incredibly low blow, and also possibly a hate crime? Investigations are ongoing. However. Moonshine immediately deciding to welcome the spores into her own network and then her fungal form morphing into something closer to Marabelle’s…Marabelle was known as She Who Has No Hospitality. Moonshine welcomed in her spores without once doubting their intentions in possibly the greatest gesture of hospitality ever known. Even in death, even as barely an imitation of Marabelle, those spores are going to get to be part of a family and a network and have what Marabelle ended up losing because of Ilsed because Ilsed put them in Moonshine’s way.

The scene with Jolene and Paw Paw is adorable, but also I’m having approximately nineteen different emotions about it. First of all, the line “things that don’t belong find a way of belonging when you’re around��� was such a perfect summary of Moonshine, and also hit especially hard directly after Hardwon’s scene; Hardwon has never belonged anywhere (even where he so desperately wanted to) until he found Moonshine and the same, honestly, is kind of true with Bev (more on that later). Second of all, this scene fully switched the framing of the Moonshine/Marabelle/Jolene dichotomy (trichotomy?). Up until this point, it’s essentially been framed as Marabelle is who Moonshine could become, but Jolene is who she is. But the ways Moonshine and Jolene deal with Paw Paw are reflective of a much deeper difference - Jolene, even though she is the Crick, is lawful, and does kind of want to control people and the things around her, whereas Moonshine just…is not. And then, with Moonshine literally now having part of Marabelle as part of her, Moonshine isn’t either Jolene or Marabelle; she’s both, and more Marabelle than Jolene. She’s Marabelle if she hadn’t been corrupted, and if her loved ones had stood by her, like Bev and Hardwon always have.

Miscellaneous Moonshine thoughts: Playing Sumpin’s A Mess Out West at the beginning of this was a Choice but at least it wasn’t Mee Maw’s Burden. Also I always pictured Moonshine as having gotten Paw Paw when she was very young, and it’s adorable that she was already a full adult when she adopted him. Love that, it’s so much more perfectly Moonshine than what I had thought

Beverly. Do y’all ever…cry. This was the culmination of his arc. I mean, I’m sure it’ll go other places, and I trust Caldwell and Murph to keep him interesting and growing, and he has growth to do, but…his entire story has been building to this. “A child has a duty to his father, but a hero has a duty to the world” is the final sign that Bev isn’t a kid anymore, and hasn’t been able to be for a long time. But also, for the first time, he gets to make a choice about it: does he want to be a kid, or does he want to be a hero? And he chooses hero. He chooses hero even though he’s sixteen and may have to kill his own father, because that same father has been teaching him that he has a duty since before he was even old enough to start high school.

The flashback scene also very much emphasized how deeply alone he’s kind of always been - which is something we’ve literally never seen before. We’ve gotten very brief jokes about him being bullied in school, but that’s never been explored, and we also know for a fact that he was an excellent Green Teen and also the son of the captain of the Green Knights. But this was…he’s the only Green Teen there. Erlin, Derlin, Cran, they don’t see the execution - the execution brunch is likely their first, and Erlin isn’t even there (we do know Erlin’s parents are dead at this point, but that is a very different thing than watching your father execute someone in front of you without showing any emotion, and not being allowed to look away). All he has is Egwene, who is also completely alone, and it’s not like they’re really friends after this. They share one moment, and that’s all there is, and then it’s back to Bev being alone and doing everything he can to make his father proud of him. And then, when he finally succeeds in making his dad proud, his dad gets ripped away to another dimension, ages 20 years, and signs a deal with the devil. So once again we come back to “things that don’t belong find a way of belonging when you’re around”, and Bev only really belonging somewhere once he finds the Boobs.

Finally, like…Bev’s introduction was “according to his mother, a very good boy”. He’s a Green Teen because that’s what his father was, and his father before him, and his father before that, and he’s the fifth of his name and the best of the Green Teens and all he wants to do is impress his mom and dad and be good enough, and here he’s given a chance to be with his dad again and do what he says - which is all he’s ever known how to do - and he has to make the choice not to. And the only reason he’s able to make that choice is, once again, Moonshine. Reaching out to his friends, to the family he chose, to the family who lets him be a kid and loves him unconditionally, to the family who says “I’ll love you whatever you choose” but trusts in him to make the right choice.

Miscellaneous Bev thoughts: Pulling in the main theme at the end there was the best editing choice Murph has ever made. I started crying fully in public and also got chills and also my jaw dropped. “I look at him like I did that day: with a mixture of hate and love.” The level to which Caldwell has perfectly captured the gay teen experience and translated it over to a high fantasy d&d podcast and the metaphor of his dad selling his soul to the devil sure is a lot to handle. Also, uhh, I don’t want Bev to die, like, ever, but if he does next episode, what an incredibly beautiful story.

Miscellaneous final thoughts: This show is about found family. Even when forcibly separated to different levels of Hell, they save each other and come back to each other. I can’t fucking handle it. Music choice in general this episode? Fantastic, good job Emily and Murph. And then, I can’t wait to see how they handle them being separated for what’s probably an entire episode - a week is WAY to long to wait