#it has worked 1.5/7 times so far and that's hawkfrost (immediately dies) and tawnypelt (saw you die like a loser)

[bastart13]

what do you actually think of waca? have you binged every arc?

I have only read the first three arcs though I do know a lot of spoilers for the rest of the arcs because my sister has read most of it :D

Personally, I enjoy the books a lot for the culture they create. The shifting but unchanging cultish atmosphere is great for constant conflict and works great with xenofiction. I think Firestar was a great protagonist to introduce the series and you do feel him earning his way up the ranks.

One of the best things the series does is maintain a sense of consequence and no easy/quick answers. Before the first book ends, Firestar knows Tigerstar is a murderer but it really makes sense each time why he can get away with it. Bluestar's devolving mental health and lack of trust never really got better. Leafpool and Crowfeather running away together hangs over both their heads for the rest of their lives. Even Firestar taking in so many outsiders breaking down his reputation both in and out of his clan works great for this. They never run out of conflict and it makes sense

On the flip side, I was surprised at the lack of personality for a lot of the characters. It is a massive cast so I don't blame the writers, but even the main characters kind of fall into the background and lose characterisation once the attention switches. Only a couple of non-POV characters stuck out to me but overall I think they all should have been exaggerated a bit to become distinct. Also, wow, a lot of these characters fall in love at the drop of a hat.

Bluestar, Cinderpelt, Yellowfang, Leafpool, and Hollyleaf are my favourite characters and I was astonished at how well the female characters were written and treated in arc 1. That... hasn't quite followed through and it's such a fascinating but weird feeling because you don't feel it as in-universe sexism, but the sexism of the writers creeping in.

A lot of characters do end up defaulting to "mother" or "mate" and lord a lot of mothers are entirely ignored. When Tigerstar tried to claim Brambleclaw and Tawnypelt from Thunder Clan I was just waiting for someone to bring up Goldenflower still lived there but, uh, no one did.