#i'm just so stoked about the potential for this arc

[beifong-brainrot]

One thing I love about tlok more as I age, is that it actively veers away from pitting women against each other.

While atla wasn't awful on this front, Toph and Katara's arguments often took on the flavour of Toph talking down to Katara for her percieved feminine qualities. Pairing this with Toph's insults towards male characters, specifically Aang, often having an emascualting "Don't be such a girl" type of vibe, it paints a good picture of Toph's strained relationship with femininity, and other girls, most likely due to her past, both in her family and in the ring. Katara and Toph's tale in Ba Sing Se was a nice step away from that rule, but the Runaway sorta circled back towards this argument. As much as Toph seems to secretly enjoy "feminine expression" she will still talk down to it in public.

But we can talk about Toph's internalised misogyny later. We see the phenomenon of women tearing each other down elsewhere in atla too, especially in the relations of the Fire Nation girls, like in how Mai and Azula lash out at Ty Lee in the Beach.

And I'm not saying it's bad that atla portrayed these interactions, they're a part of life and many of us are trained to talk down to other fem folks.

But it is so refreshing to see tlok subvert that trope in B1. For all the complaining about the love triangle, I really love the arc it gives Korra, who has probably barely interacted with girls her age.

When she first meets Asami, she's a little intimidated, but falls a little into that 'not like other girls' streak.

With Korra falling into more of a 'tomboy' category, similarly to Toph, it wouldn't be very unexpected for her to be portrayed with a more tumultuous relationship to femininity and people we percive as fitting into it better. This is something a lot of girl, women and fem folks go through irl.

Korra: [To Asami as she swims over to her; somewhat dismayed.] So, what do you have planned for us today? Let me guess, shopping, makeovers ...

We see that Korra has a set idea of what Asami is like based on her presentation and mannerisms, and doesn't think she can find a common language with her. But this expectation is quickly subverted when Korra and Asami race together and we see that they do get along very well.

And I like that Korra not only apologises for writing Asami off, but also attempts to partake in something feminine, makeup, showing that she's become more open to finding a 'common language' with girliness, something she previously saw as alien.

Korra: I gotta admit, I had you pegged wrong. I thought you were kind of ... prissy. [Raises hand; quickly.] Eh-No offense!

And throughout the show, although there is plenty of drama, Asami and Korra stay on relatively good terms, which is a relief. A lot of shows tend to stoke drama between its female leads, but Korra and Asami stay friendly, and more, throughout the show.

Korra: [Chuckles in relief.] Well, whatever happened with Mako, I'm glad it hasn't come between us. I've never had a girlfriend to hang out with and talk to before, except for Naga. This is nice.

And it's not just Korra and Asami's relationship that fosters an air of women supporting each other. Tlok shows us many women of different backgrounds helping each other become stronger, encouraging them to realise their potential, comforting each other in dark times and so forth. I also think it's nice to see so many older women who support and encourage younger women, as atla did not deliver on that front.

And I know it feels like such a low bar, but I think it's so important to highlight in shows, especially shows starring women and female characters.

[illuminatedferret]

About TGCF Canon: I just realized that the missions Jun Wu gives to Xie Lian are very disadvantageous for Xie Lian.

He immediately butted heads with Pei Ming on Mt. Yu Jun (PM's own territory) and on Ban Yue missions, both striking where it's most personal: PM's ex-lovers and family matters.

Next is Ghost City, and I'm certain it's to sour the relationship between him and Hua Cheng with LQQ's loud righteousness right in the middle of Ghost City, infamous for its inhumane atmosphere. Additionally, "Ming Yi" was already 'a spy for the heavens' in Ghost City, so the risk of offending HC and/or Ghost City is very, very high.

I think JW's refusal to banish XL (Fangxin Guoshi) was also partially to stoke more fire between XL and LQQ (or, potentially, with everyone else as this puts distinction between XL and other gods by this point; LQQ already thought it doesn't matter if XL was banished again or not anyway)

And then Brocade Immortal; JW told XL to go with Quan Yizhen, infamous for not playing well with other gods / not sociable / fights even his own followers. I also don't doubt that this is to have XL and Ling Wen's "good coworkers" relationship go downhill.

Which means, JW tried to pit XL against literally all the major martial gods (other than FX and MQ who, logically from outside PoV, already have a strained relationship with XL), The major civil goddess, and the most powerful ghost king/supreme.

...Insane.

(Bonus: if Shi Wudu's impending heavenly calamity timing was also by Jun Wu's design, JW also managed to pit XL against SQX (friends) and SWD, both major elemental gods and also Black Water (the other calamity) in one fell swoop...

I count this separately bc we don't know if the timing is actually by JW's design. Plus HX has nothing against XL, and SQX/SWD has no prior connection to XL. In short: if Black Water Arc had happened before XL's third ascension, it'd just happen the exact same way without XL... which makes the timing suspicious, especially the closeness to Mt Tonglu's reopening. I have a headcanon about this but that's kind of a different topic)

-🍁

Yes to all of this! Jun Wu was definitely angling to create conflict between Xie Lian and his peers in the heavens, and I think he had two goals in doing so. The first was to isolate him by sabotaging his relationships, and the second was, I believe, to show Xie Lian the worst of the heavens and to encourage resentment towards them.

I don't think the /timing/ of Shi Wudu's Heavenly Tribulation is suspect, just because we're never given any suggestions in-novel that it's possible to manipulate the timing of Tribulations like that (and I think it would have come up), but He Xuan finding out about the fate swap was definitely Jun Wu's machinations! Hualian talk with Mei Nianqing a little about this- holding onto that piece of information until he wanted to get rid of Shi Wudu, then letting He Xuan discover it. In the end it's getting rid of two birds with one stone- remove the Water Tyrant, who was getting a bit too big for his britches, and Shi Qingxuan, who was Xie Lian's only friend in the heavens.

Also, you may not want to go into the opening of Mount Tonglu, but I do! Jun Wu absolutely timed that. I don't care how bad of luck Xie Lian has, that the ghost rut started right when Xie Lian was alone with a Supreme ghost?? He was definitely hoping Xie Lian would get hurt in some way, and his relationship with Hua Cheng would be ruined. No way that wasn't him. There's this ongoing reflection I have with TGCF after reading it for the first time where I look back and realize how much of Xie Lian's 'bad luck' is actually Jun Wu. When you learn about the second shackle, you think it's just that, but no, it's the all-powerful man in the sky who's obsessed with you and wants you to suffer and be his Junior. It's fucked up.

[dominickeating-source]

Starburst Magazine (2003)

ENTERPRISING FUTURE Dominic Keating talks to David Waldon about the past, present and future of Enterprise.

If the Star Trek empire truly is on the precipice of collapse after more than 35 years, you couldn't tell it form Dominic Keating. On a warm July evening in Hollywood, the British actor is at ease with his present and future. His cheery disposition belies his Enterprise character, the taciturn armoury officer Lt Malcolm Reed. And it definitely doesn't fit into the firestorm that has raged around (t)his series as it enters its third season. In fact, asked bluntly whether Enterprise needed repairs, Keating gives an equally blunt answer.

'Personally, I didn't think that it needed great attention,' he says. 'I watch the show religiously, and I don't think that our show needed any particular revamping or attention. I think we make a good show.'

That being said, Keating has proven to be the good soldier when it comes to Enterprise's new mission, a trip into the mysterious Delphic Expanse in search of the Xindi, a multi-species race that seeks to destroy Earth and all its inhabitants. It's a story arc filled with danger and action, designed to pump some energy into what many see as a moribund series that needs a ratings injection. But one particular alteration has gotten Keating's attention and has given him insight on a great way to jump-start Enterprise's popularity.

'Put Jolene Blalock in a very tight cat suit and make her lips look plumper than before,' he says slyly. 'And that's just what we've done.' Yes, not surprisingly, Keating is a big fan of the sexy new look Blalock's character, the Vulcan science officer T'Pol, will display, even if it initially threw him for a loop. 'When I turned up on the first day this season, I actually didn't recognise her, she looked so different in her new costume and her new hairdo,' he says. Other adjustments are a bit more galling, at least to Lt Reed.

Enterprise's new mission means new crew members - commandos, referred to as MACOs (Military Assault Command Operations), assigned to take on the Xindi by any means necessary. One would think that Reed, who's the closest to pure warrior than anyone else on the regular crew, would be stoked by the new additions. One would think.

'Malcolm is feeling that he's been thrown over or undermined,' Keating says about how he's playing the situation, at least so far. 'Malcolm understands their purpose, but there might be some sense of reticence that his team is not enough. I'm going to give a couple of looks here and there, like "Are these guys really up to it? We have spent two-and-a half years in deep outer space, where these guys have spent only two weeks in Jupiter Moon doing simulation tests on gravity plating and whatever else. Are they really experienced enough to encounter what it is we're going to encounter?"'

The tension that will be obvious in the new episodes of Enterprise has not trickled down onto the real-life actors, according to Keating. What is there is a drive to do the brand proud, in part because of what is potentially on the line. 'There is a determination, certainly in the sense that we've really got to make this work this year. We all want to be locked into the package. But other than that, we are a cost that has been together for two-and-a-half years now, so we have a complicity with one another. There's an ease on set where we don't have to be talking to each other the whole time - a cursory nod of the head. But, still, I have to say that the buoyancy is there, the fun is there.'

The nexus of that buoyancy, says Keating, is none other than Scott Bakula. As Captain Archer, he's in charge of the fictional crew, but the leadership goes further than that. 'He's the head of our team. He is such a great herald and such a great captain, and I mean that way apart from being a Starship captain. And it's great fun going to a set where he walks on and brings everything he brings with him. He's an actor's actor.' Though they had worked together for a year previously, Keating got his first real taste of Bakula's talent and friendship while working on the second-season episode Minefield, in which Reed and Archer attempt to remove a Romulan mine from Enterprise's hull.

'We never really had actually bonded in that way as actors,' says Keating. 'Beyond a cursory exchange on the bridge or in the situation room, we really hadn't done much. I was quite nervous about starting that week with him because I didn't know him that well, and it really bonded us as actors, and consequently as friends. And we've become really good chums since then.'

Keating counts the entire cast as pals; in fact, he lives right around the corner from Connor Trinneer (Commander Tucker) and is often visiting him. Keating says that when it comes to where the actors hang out with each other, 'It's houses, really, now that we've got 'em. It's a beautiful thing. When I became an actor, I resigned myself to rented accommodation for the rest of my days. And, my God [Enterprise] been good to me.'

And that may be the bottom line for Keating. After years of struggling as an actor both in the US and the UK, he realizes what a good thing he and the others have with Enterprise. And he's in no hurry to give it up, willingly or otherwise. Pressed again about his feelings regarding Enterprise's future, whether Trek's popularity can be salvaged, and he remembers a few weeks earlier, when TV Guide placed a 'can this show be saved?' headline on its cover.

'The strange thing about the TV Guide thing is that whenever they put us on their cover and tell us it's our last year, that's their best-selling magazine,' Keating says cheekily. 'When Star Trek is on the front cover of TV Guide, they sell the most. So go figure.'

Convention Corner

After more than two years on the crew of Enterprise, has Dominic Keating become used to the extracurricular activity that's known as the convention circuit? "The first ones I did were nerve-racking", says Keating. "Now I'm in a stride with it". Still, hitting the convention stages can count as hazardous duty. "Sometimes I wonder if my stories aren't getting a little tired, and occasionally I wonder, "Boy, I've really got to work this act up a bit", he says with a laugh. "So I'm looking for new stories on the set right now just so that I go to every convention, cause the first thing I always ask is, Who's heard my schtick before?".

Keating may have a new story after him most recent convention swing, which took him to Australia for a few weeks this past summer. "I met a girl who had me tattooed on her back", he recounts. "I had had a couple of glasses of the red stuff, so I wasn't too thrown when I met her. But the following morning when I woke up, I was, like, Oh my God".

New Direction

Besides such traditions as the Prime Directive (and violating it) and playing fast and loose with the Space-Time continuum, Star Trek has become known as a pretty successful directors farm. From Leonard Nimoy to Johathan Frakes to LeVar Burton, Trek actors have used their time in the franchise to make the successful transition to behind the camera. Soon, you can add Dominic Keating to those ranks.

Even before letting Rick Berman and Brannon Braga know what was up, Keating had completed a course at the Los Angeles Film School. And recently he got his first taste of direction by helming a segment of a local public-access show, The Heartbreak Kid, on which Voyager alumni Tim Rus and Roxann Dawson also got their starts.

Next for Keating is a short film, The Big Hand, which will be based on a story told by Scott Bakula about one of his own kids. His boy Will had just learned to tell the time, and it's a wonderful story about a boy who just got his first watch. Keating will drop this hint: "It's a truly beautiful story with an amazing, only-the-kid-could-say-that ending, all about Time and the passage that we all enjoy therein". And not a warp field in sight.

Source: www.dominickeating.com

[scumbag-the-hedgehog]

‘Ship Bias’ // hee hoo :3c

Ship Bias

Scourge x Bunnie

I had absolutely no idea I would actually like this - and comic canon had actually left me kind of averse to it - until it sort of accidentally happened with Burning and now the dynamic is incredibly fun where it's this semi-toxic casual arrangement where Bunnie is the one who wears the pants.

Scourge x Knuckles

Lee's sold me on this one - it's Spicy Soknux, where the "Sonic" gets Knuckles to loosen up a little except it's Scourge's version of "loosening up" and that doesn't really entail a positive development and probably involves a lot of stoking the flames of resentment. Also a lot of "kiss with a fist" action and that good old fashioned "enemies to lovers" dynamic.

Scourge x Mephiles (Or Any Kind of Faustian Bargain)

Thought about this a bit and I think about those little moments in 06 where Mephiles will like, make an offer to Shadow to do the whole "we can rule together" thing or otherwise turn his back on the world in an act of revenge and naturally Shadow, being the principled person who's gone through the events of SA2, Heroes, and Shadow to come out of it someone sure of who he is, roundly rejects the offer.

Scourge would not be so principled. He would collaborate with a world-destroying entity or outright let it share his body if he thought that it might potentially mean he can stop feeling so inferior all of the time. Basically I'm pitching a corruption arc that might also involve overpowered fusion bullshit.

Scourge & Maria (Platonic)

Friendships are a form of ship! And Scourge will always and forever be caught off guard by a girl who's genuinely kind and nice to him. Love redemption arcs and Scourge getting to be a positive mentor figure - even if said mentorship involves some petty crimes but those are just charming. A fake "corruption arc" where Maria gets a leather jacket and a familiarity with graffiti while Scourge gets a friendship bracelet and someone he genuinely wants to protect.

[the-judicial-assistants-notebook]

Who is your favorite character from every Ace Attorney game?

For me its:

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Maya Fey

Ace Attorney: Justice For All - Pearl Fey

Ace Attorney: Trials And Tribulations - Ron DeLite

Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney - Trucy Wright

Ace Attorney Investigations - Kay Faraday

Ace Attorney Investigations 2 - Sebastian Debeste

Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies - Bobby Fulbright (not the Phantom tho)

Ace Attorney: Spirit Of Justice - Nahyuta Sahdmadhi (I like characters with missed potential

The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles - Susato Mikotoba

SUSATO SWEEP!!!!! It's really hard for me to pick, like, favourite favourite characters from each game; I like them all so much <3 But just as an instinctive list, I'd go (under the cut because it got long):

AA:PW - I almost never talk about him, but I really love AA1 Edgeworth. I would say Larry, because I love Larry so much, or even Phoenix because. Guy of all time, but I think it really is Edgeworth. Got through 3/4 of the game going, "I need this man dead", and then spent the last 1/4 fighting so hard to save him, I was screaming for most of the case. Truly one of THE character arcs in video games. I also really like Cody Hackins and April May <3 I hope we see them again.

AA:JfA - Pearlsy is my little darling girl, and she ties with Franziska for obvious reasons, but you know who I think is extremely underrated in this game? Gumshoe. He's one of the few who can really sympathise with Phoenix's grief and Franziska's, he's compassionate, extremely helpful, SUPER cool with some fantastic lines and he saves Maya at the end!! JfA is the Gumshoe game to me; I love him so much. In terms of those exclusive to this game's cases, Mimi Miney takes it for me. I adore her.

AA:T&T - IRIS MY BELOVED!!!! IRIS IRIS IRIS. I LOVE YOU SO MUCH, IRIS!!!!! And Dahlia, too <3 Also Viola Cadaverini because she's my world.

AA:AJ - Um... Probably Vera Misham or Alita Tiala? I'm not huge into the main cast, but I find how these two relate and are important to them and their themes extremely interesting, especially with Vera. She's so integral to Phoenix's story, and by extension Apollo and Trucy's, that it's wild to me that she doesn't reappear. Both their character motivations and background are really quite compelling, I feel (I know Alita is just technically a mix of Dahlia and Mimi, but I like both of them so I'm not complaining), and I really wish we got to seen more between Vera and Phoenix. I also like Machi Tobaye a lot.

AA:DD - Ah, we're on to the games I really Do Not Care For. Ummm... I want to give this to Athena, but, honestly, I despised her mechanic (not her fault), and Bobby was the only character really keeping me playing or entertained. So I'll have to give it to Bobby. Robin Newman was really fun, too.

AA:SoJ: Maya. I know this isn't the best depiction of her in the games, but it's her reintroduction into the series, and, despite the less than stellar writing and treatment of her character, she was consistently the one I was happiest to see onscreen. I really wanted to like the Khura'in cast (the first characters in the series to take direct and obvious inspiration from my culture and heritage? I was stoked), but, alas, the colourism and, more importantly, how utterly boring I found them, ruined them for me. I also liked Uendo Toneido as a witness.

AAI - Kay win. I love Kay so much here. She's so fun, and wonderful, and competent, and cool, and honourable, and funny. Kay, you're a dream <3 Also Rhoda Teneiro?? She was so funny??? I loved her as Edgeworth's assistant; I wish we got a bit more time with her. And Detective Badd? And Agent Lang? Calisto Yew? This game had a brilliant cast; I loved them all dearly. Calisto Yew, no one is going to do it like you again. They need to bring her back. For me.

AAI2 - JUSTINE, MY BELOVED!!!! JUSTINE WHO'S SO STRONG AND WHO'S BEEN THROUGH SO MUCH!!!! JUSTINE WHO HAS A SON SHE TOOK IN WHEN SHE WAS STILL IN SCHOOL!!!! JUSTINE WHO WORKED SO HARD TO ACHIEVE JUSTICE IN HER OWN WAY!!!! JUSTINE!!!!!!! Also John Marsh and Sebastian <3 They're a family to me. And I don't sleep on Raymond either. He brought a lot to the game (his theme is so good), and it was wonderful to meet Gregory's assistant. Honestly, the Investigation games generally have a really solid cast all around. So many fun characters.

DGS/TGAA - SUSATO-SAN SWEEP!!!!! SHE OBLITERATES THE COMPETITION. ONE OF THE FEW AA CHARACTERS I CAN POINT TO AND SAY, "THAT ONE'S MY FAVOURITE". But Ryuunosuke is my favourite defence attorney, and DGS Sherlock is my favourite adaptation of Holmes ever <3 This game is another whose cast I think just kills it the whole way through. Everyone was such a joy to meet and interact with. Hosonaga, the Skulkin Brothers, Nikola... Natsume Soseki was a shocking and utter delight <3 Shamspeare was hysterical. Olive Green was heartbreaking (I really love the gas case). But yes. Susato-san <3 Her <33

PLvsPW - Bonus one because I needed to put the main guy, the original man somewhere on the list <3 Phoenix, I love you so much. Genuinely, this game has so many great Phoenix moments, and him being a highly enthusiastic baker was phenomenal. I loved him so much here (the entire main cast was fantastic), and he had so many great moments with Maya and Luke that really showcased who he is and let him shine next to the Professor. PLvsPW, I will always love you. Game of all time, which helped set up so much of what would come in DGS, and it deserves all the respect for that alone. Stellar experience.

[spelviin]

ok i know i was getting all pumped up for a prison break storyline, but the POTENTIAL of a courtroom drama. 

like, first of all, just the concept of glenn being held to account for his actions for once. one hundo percent here for it on that basis alone lmao. 

second of all, the other dads finding out, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that when glenn stole the van back in waterdeep, it genuinely was for his own selfish reasons rather than just wanting to protect his son. like we know they had their suspicions from the word go, and i feel like all the dads have grown so close at this point that it won’t be like. a friendship-ender or anything, but it will defs be interesting to see their reaction to having that shit confirmed, ESPECIALLY right after they all put their own lives on the line and opened themselves up to the very real possibility of PERMADEATH to save his ass. 

but honestly the most appealing thing abt the prospect of a courtroom drama, is the fact that nick will, in all likelihood, be called upon as a key character witness and asked to testify on glenn’s behalf. likely asked to testify under some zone-of-truth-esque deal, this bein a court of law and all that. and fuckin. 

y’all. 

the idea of nicolas close walking up to the stand, intending to keep up with his usual hero-worship, “my-dad-can-do-no-wrong” schtick, but under an honestly enchantment, and ending up just fucking UNLOADING to the court and his grandfather and most importantly, glenn himself, EXACTLY how he really feels about him and his parenting style? i can’t think of a better way to get into the meat of this arc.

like, nick tries so hard to act cool and chill and un-needy for his dad, but it’s just fucking IMPOSSIBLE that there isn’t some level of resentment brewing underneath. it’s impossible that he isn’t angry that his dad is gone all the time, that he’s so uninvolved, that he refuses to even come close to making any real emotional connection with him, even after all these years that it’s been just the two of them. it’s impossible that he doesn’t know, deep down, that he doesn’t need a manchild best friend. he needs a dad, he needs his fucking dad, and his dad has utterly failed him in so many ways, and fucking hell i want that shit to come out. and i want it to be fucking brutal. 

because i feel like that’s the only thing that could actually prompt glenn to make a change. unlike all the other dads, i feel like glenn is the only one who hasn’t even admitted to himself that he has a problem. darryl and ron were clear pretty much from the word go that they were not on top of things in the dad game, henry was also pretty stubborn, but given his constant underlying fear of himself, it’s pretty obvious that on some level, he has always been aware of his shortcomings. (and even then, it still took being utterly emotionally broken down and having his entire sense of self shattered to get him to provoke real change in him). but glenn? dude is still fully, 100% in denial. fuckin neck deep in that shit. which is why i think it’s such a good idea to force him to look dead on at the consequences of his actions and behaviours.  

and like even then, having a room full of people and his own fucking deadbeat dad sit him down and explain to him exactly what a dickhead he’s been would still probably slide off his back like water off a damn duck. but from nick? from nick, it might actually stick. it might actually get through to him, in a way that no other *living* (on earth, at least) person could, that he actually needs to get his shit together and step up his game and be a fucking father for once. honestly, i just want this entire courtroom, but ESPECIALLY. nick, to tear that bitch apart, just break him the fuck down and force him to confront himself so that he can actually rebuild as a decent father and human being. 

(also depending on how quick the trial goes maybe glenn gets sent to shitty dad jail and THEN we get our prison break bc i mean. idk man i’m a simple bitch i just really love a good prison break.) 

[missroserose]

happy wincest wednesday, rose!! I have a very broad question for you to take where you'd like, in any era or framing that gets you stoked: what does Sam love about Dean? what's he so attracted to that makes him willing to take the incest plunge?

Oh wow, that is broad. Let me consider...

I feel like there are two separate questions here, that are related but aren't quite the same. Sam clearly loves a lot of things about Dean—his passion, his skill, his charm (for all that he rolls his eyes), his persistence. I think for all that he chafes against it (especially in the early seasons), Sam also really loves the way Dean's always so focused on him—it seems to be a big part of his mental and emotional stability (enmeshment issues, ahoy!)

I think he also loves how much Dean cares about being a positive force in the world, in earlier seasons. Sam always feels a little separate from the world, so Dean's unabashed desire to Save People really hits him. (The way that this particular angle develops over the seasons, as the effects of repeated trauma take hold and Dean's personality hardens into something much darker, to Sam's frustration and anger and eventual resigned acceptance, is imo one of the more tragic arcs of the show. But I digress.)

As to what prompts the incest plunge, however...I'm not sure there can be a single answer to that? Like I was saying in this ask, there's any number of potential scenarios. It's more of a custard—there are the above ingredients, plus their claustrophobic upbringing, plus repeated shared trauma, plus ??? the phase of the moon or Jupiter being in retrograde or whatever, and maybe it sets, and maybe it doesn't, and maybe it just takes a long time but suddenly WHOOMPH (sorry, this metaphor's getting away from me). Part of what's fascinating about sex is that sometimes all the ingredients are there and the relationship never tips over. And sometimes there's a major roadblock in place and the people involved run right over it. It's a fundamentally chaotic and unpredictable and life-changing force, which I suspect is part of why I enjoy reading and writing about it.

[sheikah]

that interview saying that Mal is Alina's moral compass has me worried that they'll make Alina go dark in s2 and have her push everyone away and actually become greedy, all to justify punishing Alina to fit L*igh's vision 🙄 idk man I'm feeling hopeless today lol.

Okay hold on lol I honestly really really don’t think this will happen??? I agree the interview comments were a bit off because I never saw the Mal/Alina dynamic as “moral compass” from either party and also I’m not sure Alina ever needed an external moral compass. Her morals were always pretty clear and pretty in line with “the good guys.” So maybe the show might be different and feature a darker Alina. I don’t know! But even if it did, I sort of doubt Jessie could really hint that in an interview, so I didn’t put too much stock in those comments. 

But! Even if Alina were to show dark tendencies in the show, I’m not sure this would be entirely OOC? I wrote a post awhile back basically arguing that there is a part of Alina that always loved her power and wanted more. She does have a darkly ambitious streak and fears that part of herself that reminds her of the Darkling. (Though, again, I never doubted her ultimate morality or thought she’d “go dark.”) So if they include that in s2, depending on how far they go with it, it won’t feel inaccurate to me. 

And even if they did go far with it, I’d personally be stoked because I kind of like the idea of Alina pushing those boundaries! It’s just something fun and different from the typical YA heroine, you know?

Also, though, if they were to do that, I don’t think it’d be Leigh’s vision--because based on the way she ended Alina’s arc, Leigh seems to imagine her as someone who is not at all power hungry or immoral and who makes her peace with a simple life. So if anything, us getting dark!Alina would be something I’d attribute to Eric Heisserer before Leigh haha. 

Just my take though! Try not to worry too much. I’ve been having a lot of moments of fear about the show but I’m more excited than anything. Focus on the good we’re getting! I think there is so much potential. 

[loregoddess]

In your response about the new fallen banner too, just wanted to say something too and I'm sorry if this brings offense- my main complaint is another fucking Edelgard? Even if Dimitri sucks I'll give him a pass since this means he only has 4 alts now. If it was 5 by this point I'd start to have problems. (Also I only mean that he sucks as in this is a fallen banner- and they went with a slightly redesigned post-timeskip Dimitri. This is very boring because he's not possessed or has anything super dark going for him other than he's mentally broken and unstable and that's it, it was an awful choice. Dimitri is a good character, they're just dragging him through the mud here decision wise.)

As for Edelgard, I'm so sick of seeing her in almost every new legendary banner or otherwise since Three Houses came out. I don't even have anything against her, I love her and her route, I'm just tired of seeing her pop up so much. It's reminding me of what they did with Camilla and I wish they'd give more variety, it makes me sad to have to say this about her. She already has 6 alts now, maybe even 7 unless I'm miscounting.

My only exception to this banner is the twin Morgans, because while they are also a meh choice, at least it's only the second time that they've been added to the game as a new character (and I personally like to hope that it means we will get someone better later on.) Plus the Future Past wasn't that bad and I'm glad to get a tiny bit more insight into these versions of them, even if we could've had someone better. At least they're more relatively new than the other two and might actually have some new information about their characters that the other two won't really provide.

Thank you for reading this, and again sorry if this causes offense to anyone, I was only speaking my opinion.

(some stuff under the cut, bc local person cannot condense words into smaller paragraphs)

Listen, I can’t math either so don’t feel bad.

I don’t actually play the game bc gacha things aren’t my style--I really do just follow Heroes for the art and story and nifty ost--so I can’t judge IntSys on the mechanics of Heroes and the issues with having tons of alts of the exact same character, but like, as far as I can tell it’s a marketing scheme to make more money? Because all the characters who have ungodly numbers of alts tend to be popular with the fandom overall, even when said characters are sometimes simultaneously polarizing.

So like, I really can’t say anything about the number of alts a character has, bc for me it’s more “oh, this character has a new art” which is a 50/50 shot of “nice!” or “wow this is bad art” and that ends up being the extent of my criticisms. But I can also see how getting the same character re-released again and again gets tiring and frustrating.

Would I like it if more characters who aren’t in Heroes got included instead? Of course, especially from older games because I love seeing how some of the older character designs get re-imagined, and also all my favorite characters tend to be wildly obscure and not popular, and it’s always nice to see one of my faves get some really pretty art.

Like, I personally loved Hegemon Edelgard’s design in-game bc that specific final boss trope is one of my all-time favorites, and I genuinely like really creepy character designs. I figured she’d get added in to one of the Fallen Banners if not some other random event bc Edelgard was 3H’s flagship marketing character from the get-go. So I feel the frustration of “yet another alt” but I’m not that surprised either. And bc I just follow for the art and stuff, I’m sitting here like “make the art creepier” bc I read too munch Junji Ito and expect better, like some sort of fool.

I was actually kinda stoked to see the Morgans bc, as you pointed out, they don’t actually have a lot of alts, and Morgan’s entire weird arc (which is never clarified in-game, and therefore is perfect for expansion) makes for some really interesting potential designs. I just thought the art could be more sinister a la Grima’s entire aesthetic (I mean, c’mon, you have a dragon-almost-god of ZOMBIES and doom and utter apocalypse, and said dragon’s child wears clothing like that?).

Anyhow, the long and short of this is that I totally get your frustrations, bc I’ve seen a lot of fans who do play Heroes complain about the number of alts, so like, this isn’t some weird one-off thing, IntSys is just Like That and they could do better.