#it isn’t even a bad thing necessarily that’s just the pop industry tbh

[rockoblanco]

radio pop artists will spend months & months on the rollout of a new song being like “this new ERA for will SHOCK & SURPRISE …. it will be ICONIC…. u will GASP in DISBELIEF when u see what we’ve been WORKING on …..” & then their next single is like the most predictable, inoffensive, radio friendly song u’ve ever heard 😭

[firesfelt]

afternoon, all ! finally getting my last ( for now... i already have Temptations ) intro up, and hopefully without a rushed ending because i suddenly have to do something lmao. while i’m not Wild about my intro graphics in general ( why does this one lowkey look stretched, for a start... ) but the fact that that ‘o’ is perfectly circling amanda’s eye ? an absolutely accident but *chef’s kiss* nonetheless. i’m writing this up while saving rp icons, so let’s see if i can multitask !!

( amanda seyfried, 30, cis woman, she/her ) AISLING O’CONNOR was seen listening to HAPPY BY LEONA LEWIS on their way to DIETICIAN. AISLING is known to be OPEN-MINDED & UNFORIGVING.

➜ so first thing’s first, aisling is pronounced ‘ash-ling’ ( or ash-lin depending on your accent/whether you drop your ‘g’s or not ) and although it would make my life so much easier when it comes to typing if she did, she really doesn’t take well to anybody calling her ‘ash’ ( i’m up for the challenge though ! give me someone in her life who can finally get away with shortening her name !! she doesn’t tolerate nicknames at all but can we change her ? let’s see ! )

➜ and with a name like aisling o’connor, i’m sure y’all really don’t need three guesses as to where she’s from. she was born in belfast, and is the oldest of six sisters -- all of them blonde, and all of them beautiful ( would it be obnoxious to submit wc’s for all of them ? possibly... will i do it anyway ? perhaps... ) she comes from a very family orientated family, so when her parents wanted to move the family out of ireland due to the conflict at the time, it wasn’t surprising that aisling’s aunt, uncle, and cousins came too, as well as her darling nanna. 

➜ aisling landed in huntsville at the age of six, but you best believe her accent is still just as prominent now as it was while running around belfast. as the oldest sister, she took on a lot of responsibility within the household, helping to raise the little ones with a roll of her eyes a each request, but also while being easily ignored. her parents were in no way neglectful, but with five smaller children to look after, their focus simply wasn’t on aisling.

➜ this meant that aisling fell through the cracks a little, and issues that began to surface as a teenager went unnoticed. while she never actually had a problem with her weight, teenagers can be wildly cruel and the societal pressures of looking a certain way can lead to young minds being warped, so aisling was very aware that she looked different to her peers. she was more... thicc/curvy/buxom, as a way to put it. 

➜ attention might not have been drawn to her body as much if her interests were different. aisling spent her childhood and teenage years in dance classes, drama workshops, and singing lessons, all with the goal of training in musical theatre and going on to become an actress. there was a certain body type that surrounded her, and it wasn’t one she possessed, herself. 

➜ it never became a problem, though, until she did go to college for musical theatre. her parents wanted all six of their girls to go to university, and they promised they’d pay what they could towards it as long as they went. they’d support any course, any major, just please go to university. however, aisling dropped out after two years. teachers, professors, agents, casting teams, they all  had something to say, something to critique, something to jab at, and it lead to aisling’s self-image crumbling to the point of severe unhappiness, and developing an unhealthy relationship with food. constantly being told to drop ten pounds, as one can imagine, had a pretty gnarly effect on her. 

➜ while she knew it would be possible to make it anyway, to prove the industry wrong, to make change, to represent different body types so young girls in the future don’t have to doubt themselves like she did, aisling decided her own mental health was both too fragile to do that, and more valuable than doing that. 

➜ i feel like i’m going on about this a bit too much lmao, so i’m gonna wrap it up a bit: she was able to recover from the disorded eating that formed as a result, and discovered a newfound passion about nutrition, and was able to care about it without obsessing. she really wanted to form new habits around food and body image, and realised that her perspective and beliefs actually went way back to childhood, and it then extended into wanting to help other people. eventually, aisling went back to school and studied to become a dietician, which she now is. she has a special interest in helping young woman recover from disorded eating patterns and develop a healthy relationship with food and their body, and stomping all over diet culture, but she sees all kinds of clients in general. 

➜ so life has obviously taken a very different turn for her, but she’s really kind of,,, okay with that at this point ? it is what it is, and that pathway really didn’t suit her. she didn’t have the skin for the industry --- or maybe the industry shouldn’t require her to have such thick skin, but it’s in the past now.

➜ also, p.s, i really don’t want it to come off like i think that there’s no place for women in theatre that don’t have sutton foster’s body, y’know ? that ain’t it !!!! it’s more,,, the absolutely ridiculousness of the pressure actresses have to look a certain way, esp. in theatre where if you’re not really slim, but you’re not big enough for roles like madame thernadier/tracy turnblad/nadia mcconell/martha dunstock/etc, there’s no place for you ? or people act like there’s no place. also don’t want it to come off bad in that,,, obviously at the end of the day, aisling is a thin woman that’s a bit,,, curvy ? like oh poor thin white woman ? that ain’t it, that isn’t what i’m trying to do jshsbss. d’you get me ? tryin to comment on how the industry can be a bit Shit, without making it out like little white cis women are the ones discriminated against. hopefully y’all get me sjhnbssbs

➜ also, when i was Creating aisling, i was originally going to make her older, and was gonna use keri russell, which is a Fun Time. i absolutely love keri though so don’t be surprise if i pop up with a keri fc later on down the line, lmao. 

➜ in terms of personality, i feel like the two traits i picked for her app are a little, like, contradictory in a way ? but i love characters with conflicting personality traits. she’s very open-minded, easy to talk to, very accepting, etc ( she’s kinda like a therapist in that when you talk to her, she’ll just kind of nod and not show any kind of,, Reaction either way, she’s just Observing until it’s her turn to speak. she’s just taking everything in and Receiving without judgement for the most part ) but when she’s personally hurt, in a way that directly impacts her ( usually related to her family, tbh ) there is,,, no forgiving. she’ll hear you out, and maybe be able to move on from it, but forgiveness for the big, big things is r a r e. 

➜ like how gwen is always sort of,, Faking happiness, i feel like aisling is always sort of chasing happiness ? she always wants to do what’s best for herself, and loves and respects herself deeply, so she’s always making the choices that are more likely to lead to long-term happiness, even if it bloody well hurts in the meantime ---- like giving up acting. 

➜ i feel like while emika is just a loner in general who can’t handle more than fwb situations and one night stands, and gwen doesn’t have the time to form proper relationships with people due to her shift work, aisling is just really, really unlucky in love. like, for whatever reason, things just don’t work out, or turn sour, or just... fall apart. there’s a long line of exes and flings, people she took home to her parents and people she thought it best not to, all of which ending in tears. 

➜ at least she has her bunny rabbits, though. they’ll never let her down. their names are sondheim & shwartz, and they are her pride and joy. 

➜ her family play a massive role in her life, and she doesn’t know any differently and wouldn’t want to. her nanna is, as you can imagine, really quite old at this point, and deteriorating health-wise, but the whole family band together to keep her well and try and keep her mind active.

➜ in terms of connections and plotting, again, i’m really open. i’m willing to give absolutely anything a go and try and work stuff out. i’m also always open to hearing ideas for plots people really want and seeing if any of my characters fit. but for loose ideas for now: failed relationships & exes ( there’s lots of room there ), clients ( definitely don’t have to have issues with food necessarily ! she also sees people for things like dietary restrictions due to allergy or recently diagnosed illness like diabetes or pcos or w/e, pregnancy, folks who just want to create a meal plan that makes their body feel its best, picky eating in kids, etc ! ) people she went to school with, other theatre-y folks to bond with, honestly absolutely anything. 

[laughing-with-god]

Unpopular opinions part two🤪

1. Old Kpop fans deserve their respect.

They were here before it was ‘cool’ or ‘normal’ for them to like Korean pop. Before it was accepted. Before the ‘Korean wave’ was a thing. They were here before Vlive, world tours and merch. They were here and have watched many idols go to the millitray, multiple scandals and disbandments. Pls be aware of how young you are as a fan to the entire industry as a whole. Esp since it was prob an elder Kpop fan that put you on and made the fan culture was it is today: more accessible to fans all over the world.

2. A lot of the hype in America for Kpop isn’t genuine....

The shows that include BTS and stuff only did it to get a boost in ratings. If you honestly think Ellen and John Cena are armys....I got some bad news for you. It’s literally just white men at board meetings looking at what teenagers think is hot at the moment. Also, if you honestly think BTS was gonna get that Grammy.....sis no. Maybe in the future but like Kpop isn’t recognized as ‘real’ music yet.

3. Big Bangs’ Top needs to come back.

His scandal wasn’t even that bad tbh. He smoked some weed with a one of his bitches🤷🏻‍♀️ his name literally stands for ‘The Orginal Pimp’. Like we know he had hoes, just like any other famous guy idol. And she was a total social climber who tried to defame him, this was proven by the outrageous things she did after the TOP scandal calmed down. So all the bad things she said about him should be taken with a grain of salt. Personally, weed isn’t a big deal esp since we apparently got rapists out here now👀 but in Korea it is a big deal. Still he reflected and has been quiet for like 2 years now. How long should he punish himself for? He was one of the best rappers out here🤧😩

4. The big three are the big three for a reason.

SM, JYP and YG are some of the oldest companies that have been around with the most distinct style and influence. The amount of revolutionary groups to come from those companies alone is i n s a n e. Being the big three isn’t about money, so ppl saying BigHit outsold so them so they are bigger than the three, is just wrong. The big three have been doing this consistently before some of you hoes were even born and produced amazing groups over and over again. BigHit’s success is new, and they only have one big and successful group at the moment. Give it some time🤷🏻‍♀️

5. Fan service is a thing.....just thought you should know

In Korea, idols are taught to please their fans by any means necessary......this includes acting very cutesy and clingy with certain members. Yes.....some of your opts are for show.....they know what they’re doing.....😬

6. BlackPink’s Jennie was being lazy

Sis......you’re a whole barrel of laughs if you honestly think that we’re all just haters who decided to attack her out of the blue. When she was being dragged for her rude faces, I defended her bc some resting faces are just naturally aloof looking. But c’mon. Y’all really trying to play the mental health excuse or the tired excuse when all her solo activities actually had energy??? It’s rude bc all her members actually pulled through🤷🏻‍♀️ no hate to her but sis was lacking🤷🏻‍♀️

7. Some Ideal Types are kinda.....weird? Idk lemme explain

I know that having an ideal type is kind of a given in Korea but can we talk?? I think the whole descriptions of the the types given by some of these idols is kinda.....VERY FUCKING DETAILED? Like the weight and stuff. And no hate, it’s okay to have a preference but I wanna talk to some of these fans. I literally watched some fans change their entire persona for their bias. My sister even tried starving herself for a bit bc someone said Taehyung perfered girls who were like 90-100 pounds. Please guys, don’t take that stuff to heart......

8. Facemasks literally don’t do anything

Not necessarily Kpop but Kbeauty. Ummm....dermatologists even admit that it doesn’t do anything to your skin. It can make ur skin feel nice for a short period, but in the long run you are actually doing more harm than good to your skin......just think about that next time you wanna buy a facemask.

9. Be careful with Kbeauty.....there’s a fine line to walk

If your eyeliner is meant to make your eyes look Asian.....it’s cultural appropriation. If you’re using bb cream or foundation that’s way lighter than your actual skin.......that’s colorism. Also trying to give yourself aeygo bags is kinda fetishizing a feature that many Asians have. Just don’t. Work with what you have instead of tryna became a whole other race. 🤦🏻‍♀️

10. AOMG should become the new YG

YG is so fucking problematic these days, it’s sad really bc they were that one company that was all about hip hop and ‘dark’ concepts. I think they were even called the black label out of the big three 🤔 so they are def taking a hit with all these scandals they got rn. I got to thinking....what other company is all about hip hop and more rap driven whilst having a good management/ceo? AOMG! Jay Park is literally so nice and all the artists under them have so much creative freedom and make good music. If Jay Park made a boy group or a girl group?? It’d be fucking over for YG! Y’all should blow up Jay Parks dm’s and ask for a group debut 🤪

[returnerofthesky]

tbh i never knew you were a fan of starfox since you like never post about it lmao

Sorry for taking so long to answer this. Again, trip, staying off of Tumblr, etc. :V

I’d say I’m a fan of Star Fox the same way I’m a fan of Sonic - they were both big influences on me when I was younger (and not just the whole furry angle either), but nowadays I’m only really a fan of... “part” of the series, despite still enjoying the franchise and wanting to see it keep going. Star Fox 2 is my favorite of them all, and the only one I’ve gone back to play more than just once or twice, which probably speaks for itself.

For me, Star Fox feels a lot like how Zelda did in that it feels like the series simply has not been allowed to evolve. It’s gotten so mired in a lot of old traditions (gameplay-wise or story-wise) that it doesn’t seem like a lot of people know really what to do with it, and this becomes a lot more glaring with how few games there actually are in the series. In a lot of ways I’d say that the series has been “suffering from success” for years, and I think it’s going to take a BotW-style shift in order for the series to truly survive.

Most of that probably sounds vague, so let me put it another way - there’s two things that I think the developers really need to realize:

One, shmups are a really, extremely niche genre nowadays. Maybe back in the 80s and 90s shmups were all the rage, whether they were 2D or 3D, but nowadays shmups basically seem to be interchangeable with bullet hell. Linear corridor-esqe shooters really aren’t a thing anymore, even in indie circles; Star Fox Zero was the last space shooter game that I can remember coming out with a lot of fanfare in a long, long time.

The thing that made me realize this was Dan Ryckert’s review of Zero back when it came out, in which he stated that he liked the game alright aside from the motion controls issue and some minor stuff, and that it felt like the sequel to 64 that everyone always wanted... but nowadays, that still felt incredibly outdated. Like it would have been a really well-received sequel if it had been released back in the 2000s, but nowadays the industry had simply moved on after so many years.

Two, Star Fox 64 is... just kinda alright.

Like, it’s a good game. I’m not going to say something stupid (and untrue) by calling it bad, because it’s not bad by any stretch of the imagination. But there’s no denying that much of the game has aged, even with the 3DS rerelease. The bump in grahpics and sound quality was desperately needed (even if I think I prefer the older voice acting, as it sounds a bit more natural), but, as I said, shmups are a genre that’s fallen out of favor, and a large chunk of 64′s gameplay consists of rail shooter levels. And since the all-range mode, while good, mostly consists of fairly barebones maps with few obstacles or details...

I’m perfectly willing to admit that part of that is personal bias - I’ve talked before about how more arcade-y games and genres (like shmups) generally don’t grab me very well, as they’re usually much more stressful and frustrating for me to play. I find the all-range modes to be a lot more my style, even though they have their faults in 64. But the rail shooter sections in Star Fox have never bothered me as much as, say, Thunder Force (where I repeatedly lose track of everything happening at once and die on the first stage). That said, they’re still not that interesting, and as I mentioned last paragraph, all-range doesn’t fare much better in 64 either.

Of course, despite all that, SF64 is still a really iconic game that commands a lot of weight and respect - but despite being awed by the game when I was a tiny five year old tot, I think that most of what people remember about SF64 doesn’t stem from the gameplay itself. Instead, most of what’s kept the game so well-remembered comes from its presentation; the voice acting, the script full of memorable lines, the scenarios presented for each level, so on and so forth.

That’s not to say that the gameplay itself isn’t good, just that none of it feels like it really... “sticks”. Despite Sector X being about the robot boss destroying the base, I don’t really remember much of the level itself, just the boss fight. Despite Titania being about going to save Slippy, it’s mostly just a slog of fighting birds and other junk before actually reaching the interesting bit (it’s worth noting that Titania in Zero is much improved in this regard, with more variation in terrain and obstacles). All-range mode usually is a lot more memorable to me.

So of course, if 64 is more memorable for it’s presentation than most of the actual gameplay, and if half of its gameplay (shmup) has slowly turned into a niche genre, what happens? Well, as you might expect, I think the series needs to start putting more focus and care into the other half of its gameplay: all-range mode. And funnily enough, I think the developers(es), at least on some level, realize this as well.

If that sounds weird, let me point this out: after Star Fox on the SNES, the sequel immediately shifted gears from a rail shooter to an outright dogfight game, with some small strategy elements thrown in to add nuance to the space shooting. Star Fox 64, despite having shmup gameplay, also included a number of all-range levels and sequences. Star Fox Assault expanded on this with half-shmup, half-all-range, with on-foot sections and more detailed levels since you could go on foot. Star Fox Zero did the same, reintroducing the Walker instead of on-foot sections and making a lot of all-range sequences with impressive details and obstacles.

Do you see what I’m getting at here? The series has always, always, been drifting more and more towards emphasizing the all-range mode, expanding on it in many different ways and in a lot of ways improving and polishing it to the point where it easily could be a highlight. In fact, the reason it isn’t a highlight usually isn’t because of all-range mode itself, but because of other factors. Gyro controls, wonky cameras, iffy third-person-shooter gameplay, etc etc.

Take, for example, Zoness, in Zero. In it, you’re teleported to an enemy base on Zoness and have to infiltrate it without being detected, by sneaking through a main corridor, flying into power generator rooms and disabling the power shield so the place self-destructs (and then you have to escape while it crumbles, obviously). Unfortunately, you’re flying the Gyrowing, making the whole level this slow, annoying slog, and that doesn’t even take into account the aiming controls themselves.

However, there’s an alternate version of the level where you visit in the Arwing instead, and you have to do the same mission but on a seven minute time limit. Utilizing the Arwing/Walker in order to explore and escape the base is an incredible improvement on the level; it’s faster, smoother, and more fun to play - if they stripped out the time limit (keep it, just as a challenge level) and made it the default level instead of the Gyrowing, I bet the level would have been much more well received.

Another example of a really good all-range level from Zero is, of course, Sector Beta, and not just because it basically crams every named character from 64 into one giant love letter. It essentially consists of dogfighting between Andross and Cornerian forces (like Katina from 64), eventually getting through a giant battleship’s shield and infiltrating it in Walker form, and then battling Star Wolf while the rest of the battle keeps going on. There’s no frills or exploration like in Zoness, it’s just pure space shooting, and it’s an excellent level because of it.

For one that isn’t from Zero, anyone remember Sargasso Space Zone from Assault? It’s kind of a combination of both styles of all-range mission, where you have to get inside of the base and destroy some teleporter things while fighting enemies inside, but then after destroying them, Star Wolf pops up and you finish off by having a dogfight with them and other normal enemy fighters.

All of these are solid examples of how all-range mode works, and I feel like focusing more on these levels is where the series needs to head. I wouldn’t necessarily say that shmup gameplay should disappear forever, and I wouldn’t do away with absolutely all arcade-y aspects of the series, either (the high score counter is perfectly fine, for instance, and linear segments can work as small one-offs).

The games need a major shake up in order to survive, and I think making a game focused more around the dogfighting aspect rather than the corridor shooting would work quite well. That’s the reason I compare it to Zelda; it might not have nearly as many games under its belt and be quite as much of a staple, but Star Fox really needs its own Breath of the Wild to catch up with the times. Whether it goes the route of essentially becoming like a Rogue Squadron game, or if it takes Star Fox 2′s concept of light RTS elements and designs a game like it, something needs to give, and considering Nintendo’s recent habit of reviving their games with the right modern touches and the old, less-necessary traditions tweaked or changed, I think they could do it.

(Stick with the Zero aesthetic, though - the mixture of elements from SNES and 64 work juuuuuuuust right to me)

[burningartwork]

Top 7 things to think about in a Nightwing movie

(VERY long but educational to new Nightwing fans. lol)

So…

It has been announced that they recruited director Chris McKay to direct the Nightwing movie! You may have known Chris from his latest works with Lego Batman.This both excited me and worried me. On the one hand, you have a guy that understands comedic timing and for the most light-hearted of the Robins, who loves to quip and make jokes while crime fighting, that understanding will FINALLY give mainstream audiences a potential glimpse into the comic book version of Nightwing.

Up to date, the best Nightwing (to me) that has ever been in non-comic book format has been Nightwing in Arkham Knight and probably Dick in the recent series of Batman themed movies involving Damian Wayne. (Ironically, these are the costumes I despise the most but the characterization is on point, especially in AK.)

Some people might like Dick in Young Justice but honestly, this one felt more like a fusion of Tim Drake & Dick Grayson to me, (the brainy, geek-hacker is more of a Tim thing, tbh) that left the ACTUAL Tim, feeling very flat. Yes, that Dick was kinda funny but not in the same teasing style as Dick should be. (My opinion) That being said, comic book Dick is the most charming mo-fo you’ll ever meet and surpass in leaps and bounds (hehe) Batman in likableness. On the other hand, the fear that I get is that Dick is such a strange balance of serious and funny, cocky and humble, confident while being insecure that such a nuanced character can be a difficult thing to full off.

You can’t go for straight out funny like Robin in the Lego movie or a joker like Spiderman or Deadpool. This strange chemical concoction that is Nightwing’s personality has to be handled right if you want a version that can please hardcore Nightwing fans & newcommers.

So… here are my top 7 things to consider when making a Nightwing movie.

#7 - Villains, what are they good for?

Absolutely everything… well, not everything but they are key ingredients to tell a good superhero story. It’s hard to get invested with weak villains. The only issue with Nightwing is, that unlike Wonder Woman, the Flash or the rest of JLA, he doesn’t really have his own Rogues Gallery.

He heavily borrows from other titles, (especially Batman, obviously) to flesh out his stories. Being a founding Batfamily member, & founder of the Teen Titans/Titans who, they themselves,  are extended characters from other titles, Dick has faced off with street level thugs & gangsters to inhuman/meta-humans & aliens. His most prolific battle has been with Deathstroke who actually started out a Teen Titans villain. This hit Nightwing especially hard since Deathstroke’s aim was infiltration of his team via a member of the group. For a solo Nightwing title, determining the villain will matter HEAVILY of what kind of story you want to write for him: Street level Batman'esque or inhuman (which he does kinda often actually).

So casting a villain should only be done after figuring out what kind of story to use.

I know that seems like a “duh” kinda of concept, but it’s not necessarily forced to happen that way. You can have a villain in mind and weave out a story around it but Nightwing’s villains have too much range. You know Superman is going to fight aliens or metas, you know Batman is going to fight criminally insane people. With Nightwing… it’s up in the air.

#6 - This is the story of my life!

Dick Grayson is probably the most (or at least one of the most) constantly evolving characters in the DCU. It’s much easier to evolve a character in a permanent sense when they start off as kids and Dick Grayson was Batman’s first Robin after all. Actually, he wasn’t just the first Robin but he was the first side kick EVER. Batman was created in 1939 and Dick Grayson popped up as Robin in 1940. I’ll give you guys a minute to do the math on that…

Done? Yeah, Dick Grayson is

77 YEARS OLD

He spent a huge portion of his existence in limbo like many comic book characters do (which is why his Robin persona is still so popular) but the shift into Nightwing came only in the early 1980s. Where evolving him past Robin became a means to refresh the Batman series. Dick separation from Bruce and his evolution into Nightwing is a permanent point in DC publication which also does the job of permanently aging him as well. (and also reestablished any Robins that come after him.) Dick was a kid or tween when he started with Batman and now due to his evolution is always in his early 20s when any DC reboot happens and has more often than not, has already left Batman which makes his comics to focus quite a lot on “coming of age” super-hero styled stories when he breaks away from his childhood and becomes his own hero.

What should and probably will happen is that we’d get a brief look into into his Robin history (which, frankly wasn’t all that interesting) and start us off in his mantle but Dick as Nightwing is faaaaaar more interesting.

… I mean, yeah, honestly guys, who cares bout his Robin days? But which of these stories would make for a good introduction to character with this much history? If I had to do this, I would forcibly make it: “Nightwing year 1”

Just for the sake of context and introducing new people in the idea that Batman has had more than 1 Robin in his life. Him getting his vigilante name, him dealing with leaving Batman & stopping a threat to a new city that he adopts which leads us to….

#5 - Location, location, location

So, we all know 2 things: Gotham Belongs to Batman and Robin lived with him. Granted, he has lived alone in other places like New York & Chicago and was even a globe trotter for a while during his “Grayson” run. So what should be the most ideal setting if you want to distinguish Nightwing & Batman from eachother?

Bludhaven

Bludhaven is NIGHTWING’S city. It was made FOR him. Bludhaven is sister city close to Gotham but not quite in its range.

Here’s a Wiki description of the city because it’s so precise I couldn’t write it better myself:

Once nicknamed, “Asbestos Town, USA,” Blüdhaven started out as a whaling town, rapidly giving way to highly industrial sectors which then fell into urban decay as businesses collapsed or moved out of the area during the Depression. It’s infamous for its somewhat rank odor and high crime rate. Approximately 33 minutes’ drive from Gotham City, Nightwing moved here initially to help Batman solve a string of murders related to a thoroughly corrupt police force, only to remain there to carve out his own reputation away from either Batman or the Titans.

Asbestos town… geeze. It makes Gotham look like Metropolis.

Bludhaven already feels like a different place based on the name. It’s an industrial port town so the possibility of illegal activities feels even more likely. Consider things like weapons/drug trade being easy to circulate in a place where lots of boats dock from far off places. Nightwing’s city should be HEAVILY worked on for this project. When you consider the names DC uses for it’s cities, Bludhaven already makes you think: “Man, this town is pretty bad” without context and I think it’s important that like Gotham or Metropolis, it has to take on a character. Especially since it’s never been portrayed in live action before. Bludhaven would be making it’s cinematic debut along with the Nightwing mantle. Make it a place Nightwing FEELS he need to be in to protect but also a place worthy of him calling it home.

#4 - Two’s company, the Batfam’s a crowd.

Now, I saw lots of people getting excited over the prospect of getting other characters in the bat family involved in the Nightwing movie and it’s a fair assumption to make: Nightwing isn’t Batman. He’s a team player and never has beef with getting help. He might not want to at first if it’s dangerous but I find he tends to cave super easily when pressed and knows he can rely on his allies (He’s no fool!) but we have to watch out about this because of this problem:

Nightwing’s personality is a very accommodating one.

Like I mentioned, he plays VERY well with others. This unfortunately also makes him fall into the background very often when characters with more abrasive or loud personalities come into the picture. He can do fairly well with funny characters but also sort of syncs into their groove. (Actually, him and Barbara Gordon aka Batgirl/Oracle are probably best suited to work against eachother since their banter is an even match of quips and sarcasm which is more like a mirror and reflects how silver tongued the bird boy can be.)

If they want to make it a Nightwing movie, theycan’t use it too heavily to introduce new characters into the cinematic universe like they did with “Bad Blood …I honestly, find it strange when people tell me that the movie Bad Blood is a Nightwing movie. I… I can’t consider it a Nightwing movie when, #1, he’s playing Batman, #2 when his turmoil over the Batman mantle happens off screen, #3 when Batwoman & Batwing take over 50% of the story (I’d argue that Batwoman is the star of this movie).

Introducing too many first time screen characters drowns out Dick because he wants them on his team so badly and it’s important that he is front and center for hi titular movie. This is especially true for Batman himself and Bats should be restricted to flashbacks or origin storytelling… At best 1 or 2 characters should be more than enough… not that there’s a Robin that’s active or anything…

(if you want to see my "Robins” movie idea called “Flight of the Robin” which would add Jason & Tim back into the setting, then feel free to look here: Flight of the Robin )

If they want to have Nightwing in a place of importance or leadership then make a Teen Titans/Titans movie or something but make his solo title about him.

#3 - ♪♪ IIIIIIII want to swiiiiiing from the chandelieeeeeeeerrrrrr ♪♪

He flies through the air with the greatest of eaaaaase, the daring young man on the flying trapeze! His moves are so graceful, the girls he did sway, my heart he has stolen awayyyyyyyy!

Yeah so…

Dick’s a circus acrobat.

Most people know this story but I’ll refresh (skip if you know):

Once upon a time, there was a cool circus by the name of “Haley’s Circus”. It traveled the country showing off it’s amazingly talented acts which included the world famous trapeze act: “The Flying Graysons”. The members of the act were a family: husband John, wife Mary & son Richard “Dick” Grayson. They were especially famous for doing their act without the use of a safety net. One day, Haley was extorted by a gangster named Tony Zucco then subsequently threatened when Haley refused to bend to him. So, to show that Zucco meant business, he sabotaged the ropes that held the trapezes and when Dick’s family went to perform, both his parents fell to their deaths. This was not any night however, for that night, Bruce Wayne just happened to be in the audience, feeling sorry for the poor lad, he decided to take him in as his ward. Having been witness to the extortion, Dick decided to take revenge on Zucco and ran off in the middle of the night to get leads on his parents’ murderer. Eventually, Dick discovered (or was told) that Bruce was Batman and Bats seeing Dick recklessly plunge head first into danger, decided to let him in on his vigilante life style so he could properly deal with the death of his parents in the way he never could. Thus the dynamic duo were born!

There are different versions of the story but that is the general gist.

What I’m trying to say is, Batman and Robin are night and day, that much I think everyone can agree on, but that Robin, the one who set that standard, was Dick Grayson and thankfully, that personality he gave to Robin stuck with him into Nightwing. So the way he moves, the way he fights & the way he “heroes” isn’t Batman-like. More often than not, Dick will JUMP into the fray. This is what he did with Batman after all, and it seems like that habit never left him. It causes him to get into sticky situations, buuuut that’s sort of what we like to see. How his very creative mind gets him out of a bind. So the sneak in the shadows and wait for the right moment only really happens when he already knows he’s over his head. But Nightwing is extremely creative with his environment and uses that to defeat foes very often. Not being as bulky as Batman this makes his punches softer BUT his body type also promotes the acrobat in him. His panels in the comics, more than any other, involve constant motion and tactful, on the fly reading of the situation and the fact that his agility gives him time to avoid damage and think his way out of his problems makes him more unique.

Here are a few examples of Nightwing/Dick Grayson movements:

Old school I don’t need luck You fight like Jazz

Midnighter says it best:

“Disciplined but not adverse to improvisation… you fight like Jazz.”

So you have to understand… that no matter how BADLY they botch this up as long as they retain the distinct acrobatically visual, creative, Jacky Chan'esque style of Nightwing’s fighting style, I’ll have been happy to have seen this movie. I NEED them to focus on the Acrobat. Dick has been quoted as the most agile character in the ENTIRE DC Universe. If they don’t have actual acrobats working on stunts and a lead that can at the very LEAST keep up with some basic fighting style that marries with the acrobatics… then I’ll consider this whole project a complete botch up.

#2 - So ya wanna be Dick Grayson huh?

We are now at a point where casting here MUST depend sorely on 3 factors:

Can you be funny & charming without being obnoxious?

Can you do drama & allow yourself to portray a character filled with, insecurity & empathy?

Are you handsome & is your ass on point?

I know the last one seems EXTREMELY SHALLOW but there are not a lot of DC Superheroes that have been called out on their hotness. You’d think:“Bruce Wayne is!” Actually…not as much as you think. Charming, totally but handsome, that has been left to interpretation… lots of heroes give off the vibe but are never really stated as such.

Not Nightwing.

Dick’s handsomeness once made a girl fall off her motorcycle… I’m not joking: Here there Dick’s ass is canonically seen as amazing in continuity now. Here’s Midnighter again, recognizing it: Dat ass Here’s just some gratuitous exposition: Are you paying attention? And here’s Grayson wondering the why of it all: What’s the fuss?

And unfortunately, to please the people who have been wondering WHO would be so damn worthy to play a handsome guy who looks like a model but doesn’t seem like a complete douchebag feels jarring and nearly impossible. (I lost my pick to DC already.

Tyler Hoechin has the charm & the butt but is the Superman of the Supergirl TV show.)

So this actor NEEDS to have a decent appeal all around the board for guys and girls. (I would NOT want to be the casting director for this.) A script that is a bit funny and coy but still serious? They have their work cut out for them…

#1 - Who art thou Nightwing?

I’ve discussed here and there Nightwing’s personality. Classically, he is an upbeat character but the nuances that stem from him can be somewhat conflicting. Yes, there is the ever present humor and charm but Dick rcan be a “big brother” to the other Robins & had as surprising amount of empathy & humbleness despite his arrogance. Without the other birdies to care for, he is still a social butterfly and will not hesitate to make connections. He gives EVERYONE a second or even third chance even when they wrong him and this can be troublesome for him too since doing so, often allows him to lower his guard and he can get potentially hurt by the people he puts his faith in.

If Superman is “hope” & Batman is “Justice” then Nightwing is definitely “Trust”

That being said, betrayal is most probably in the cards if they know this about Nightwing. Writing this character without making him too arrogant or too naive can be extremely hard. (Though I say, write him as the uber dork he is) DC NEEDS to get comic writers on this and the script and more importantly, the dialogue will set the tone of the character but it needs to come off kind but confident, cocky but insecure about his role as a Superhero, humble and willing to openness … But the big question is will they use comic book Nightwing?

Will we, the readers, finally get a version that runs close? It really depends on what they have planned and if DC plans to shoehorn in other tie-in projects to Nightwing. It all starts with the script. It all starts with how much heart they will be able put into this project and how tightly knit a story they want to do with him. They can’t mess this up, the way they have with other characters because Dick is a REACTIVE character and who he is will adapt to the situation he is placed in.

I just hope, it’s a good one.

[bakagamieru]

Thanks for the analysis like I always had seen zayn haters said how "zayn only sings about sex" and that his album was "trash" smh someone even argue with me about how pillow talk was just about sex , tbh zayn deserve more I can't believe the media think his album is all about sex and doesn't care of see all the lyrics😕same happens with 1d when ppl say that their songs are meaningless when they are is annoying how they are looked down for being a boyband but other artistswith worse lyrics arent

Like most of ppl say that 1d "just sings about love!" But like EVERY artist do that ! Like I like the songs but why is Adele,Taylor ,Justin,Rihanna , Adam etc.. considered better than them? They all do mostly love songs , but they are more respected like Justin album is quite basic compared with zayn in lyrics but it's nominate for a Grammy! Meghan trainor has won a Grammy like?!why 1d can't ? Why boybands never won a Grammy?the wrost is that at least some were nominated but 1d isn't even that😕

Like if they can then WHY 1d can't 😒😕?even zayn solo was successful and wasn't nominate either( I know that the Grammys are for popularity but that is more because of all the A list singers 1d is the only one to don't even go to present someone or perform, maybe is because they aren't very popular with the GP?)but again I don't get what is wrong with boybands that Demi said she didn't wanted to work with 1d for that,5sos saying they don't want to be called a boyband, ppl saying 1d can't sing +

An are just faced what is untrue because they always sing live and without backtrack unlike most of the respected artists that use backtrack or lip sync(Mariah and Justin are examples but are WAY more that have been caught lip syncing )ppl thinking that all their fanbase is just kids females and make fun of that like they forget that the Beatles started like that but ok, why I don't get is all the disrespect for boybands and mostly for them,they are nice/talented they deserve better :/

Grammy’s

The Grammy’s like to pretend they’re about quality when they’re really a popularity contest and a political game just like any other awards show.

I know it’s frustrating to see the boys get snubbed.  I think part of the reason 1D and Zayn have never even been in the running for the Grammy’s is because your team has to submit you for consideration.  I doubt 1DHQ bothered, especially these last few years when they’ve been at full on war with the boys.  

When it comes to popularity, 1D has always been popular with their albums, but their singles haven’t broken the top 40 in the same way singles from other boybands in the past have. Occasionally 1D will get a single in the top 40, but it doesn’t necessarily stay up there for weeks in a row.  Part of the difference is just that the music industry is in a different place than it was when N*SYNC and Backstreet Boys were popular.

The other element is the idea of prestige that the Grammy’s holds dear.  There are several reasons why One Direction isn’t considered prestigious, all of which are pretty much BS.

Sexism

When it comes to the prestige part of it, you’re right that the Grammy’s and the general public look down on boybands for no solid reason.  The prevailing theory that has merit is that it’s a form of sexism.  People assume that only girls can like boybands because the reason to like them must be that the girls want to date the members of the band.  This is a load of BS since there can be any number of reasons to like a boyband, but people still believe that boybands are solely liked by young girls who want to date them.

Pretty much nothing young girls like is taken seriously.  Girls get called hysterical all the time while young boys can go crazy over video games or men can go crazy over sports and no one calls them hysterical.  Since boybands are seen as something young girls like, they’re automatically discredited by association.

It’s true that some boybands don’t have a very good quality of music, but that’s not true of all boybands by any means.  All genres of music have some popular bands that aren’t very good, so singling out the boyband genre and defining it by the bad bands isn’t fair if you’re not going to do that with other genres.

Elitism

People have a need to feel special, unique, and because of that, exclusive. Anytime something is massively popular, there’s a backlash because it’s no longer considered exclusive.  One Direction is victim to that backlash to some extent.

The other problem is that things that are light and fun are always considered superficial.  Things that are light and fun are not mutually exclusive to things that have depth and meaning, but people can’t seem to wrap their heads around that.  Bringing joy to people is a very important thing.  Hope, joy, and love can help people keep moving forward when they want to give up on their life, can inspire people to persevere against oppression, and can help people understand each other and stop the cycle of hate and violence.

Because One Direction’s genre started out as light pop and that’s when they had their massive hits that everyone has heard, people are more willing to dismiss their music.

Ageism

Ageism can go both ways.  There’s discrimination against older people and also against younger people.  Younger people are always seen as being naive and ignorant because they’ve lived fewer years.  It’s true that in many cases, older people have more experience and more wisdom, but that’s not true across the board.

One Direction are no longer teenagers, but 1DHQ never allowed their image to grow up.  Fans know that they curse, make sexual innuendos, and have political views, but non-fans don’t pay close enough attention to see those things.  All they see are the promo pictures and the merchandise that’s sold in stores and that stuff still makes it look like the boys are 16.

Manufactured Myth

Part of it is that boybands are considered manufactured.  People assume that it’s a money grab, which it is in many cases to be fair.  There’s an entire industry in South Korea and another one in Japan that’s targeted at creating new boybands to try to earn as much money as possible.  Even One Direction was created with that intention in mind, not that the boys themselves had any say over the goals of their careers.

People just don’t understand that the way you were created doesn’t define what you become.  It’s just like the difference between parents and children. Parents influence children, but children are not their parents.  You can have bigots with extremely open-minded children and you can have extremely decent parents with a child in prison for murder.

One Direction having the success that they’ve had isn’t a fluke.  It started on X-Factor when they had tons of fans lining up outside just to see them.  They already had an international following before they’d even released their first single.  The reason they’ve succeeded is because they’re talented, hardworking, have a rare chemistry between the members, and are genuinely good people.  

Believe me when I say I’ve seen quite a few boybands and One Direction is special.  Not every boyband has that chemistry and spark.  A band being formed without any input from the members themselves and yet working together so well is extremely lucky.  For the members to recognize what they have together and dedicate themselves to it is even rarer.  I only know of 2 bands like that- Arashi and One Direction.

Instruments and Writing

People also assume that if you’re manufactured, you must not write your own music or play your own instruments, and if you don’t do those things, you’re not authentic.  Both of those assumptions are wrong.  As the 1D fans know, pretty much all the boys are talented lyricists and all of them can play guitar. Niall even records for their albums and plays live on stage.  

However, even if they didn’t do this, there would be no shame in it.  Singing and performing are professions that require a lot of talent in themselves, so there’s no reason to demand that someone who sings and performs also has to be a talented instrumentalist, composer, and lyricist.  That would be like requiring someone who acts to also write scripts, produce, and direct.  Some actors eventually go down that route, but by no means are all actors expected to.

So Yeah

People who have that knee-jerk reaction of making fun of boybands have probably never thought about why they do it.  They’ve just absorbed the pervading sexism and elitism they’ve grown up with and they churn it back out thoughtlessly.

The best you can do is challenge anyone who says things like that to think about it more.  More than likely, they’ve never listened to any One Direction song that’s not a single.  In fact, they probably haven’t listened to anything from the last 2 albums at all.  They know nothing about the band and maybe if you point that out, it will plant a seed in their heads to start wondering what basis they actually have for their opinion.