#it's a bit disingenuous to say that its just a bad game. like girl-

[okidenshi]

Listen, I do think that the legacy of the game and how it’s been marketed has room to be criticized for, but I’ve seen some folks trying to say that The last of Us (as it was originally released) is actually a poorly written video games and like.... that’s not really the take you think it is mate.

[pumpkinnning]

rewatched bridgerton s1 and now i'm trying to understand why it's bad (spoilers) from a writer's perspective

* criticisms about the inaccurate costumes or over the top music or lots of ballroom scenes or lack of serious worldbuilding are silly to me tbh the show makes no pretense to be sth its not, this is like criticizing YA for having emotional teenagers or horror for being bloody. just say its not yr thing and move on

* obviously the interesting themes of sexual education and agency and empowerment are completely fucking ruined by the sexual assault scene that's not framed as such just because the perpetrator is a woman. there's no coming back from that

* even beyond that though the romance is badly done. there are some seeds of sth that could be interesting but it all stays so shallow and underwhelming. the actors have little chemistry i don't like the way Daphne is played

* the scene with Daphne saying she likes Simon's mom's favorite painting bc it reminds her of the peace of early mornings in the countryside and feeling alone yet at one with the world is very charming but also i was like....yes and ? are they gonna bond over liking the peace and quiet together? nature ???? sth else ??? as if it comes across as very...Omg Surprise Woman Capable of 1 deeper thought = hot !!!!! or is it just about her being like his mom (ew). good example of how attempts at depth can fail if they're not connected to deeper themes and character dynamics

* they make each other laugh with sarcastic observations about the behavior of the people around them and the shallowness of social games. like the prince complimenting all the other women's dresses. this would work with characters who are outspokenly critical of society around them. But their connection is that same kind of shallow. And so much of their romance needs us to buy into the social rules and games. The appeal is omg Daphne is the Prettiest and the Diamond and the most specialest girl ever and Omg Simon is this important Duke and isn't it romantic that they're forced to get married for stupid reasons because of honor based rules. And Daphne visibly cares so much about making a good marriage within the rules of society. So these moments feel disingenuous or like they're just being assholes (but without even truly commiting to it and making it fun!)

* the Duke talks about how they're best friends. but i never got that sense of begrudging respect that develops when antagonists start to like each other. Or that they actually liked spending time together. The only thing that i can think about is her punching Berbrooke (he likes boxing so that's an interesting parallel) and making moves on the Prince that force him to consider she's not just a naive little doll. And the bits of witty dialogue. but that's just not enough.

* this is supposedly about Daphne's sexual awakening but yet there is so little real sensuality. she stares at his arms a bit. he tells her to touch herself. its so basic and bland. giving "everyone is hot and no one is horny" vibes. every romance at its core, even the more chaste ones, eroticize something, and the deeper it goes into their characters the more impactful it is. i don't know what this is eroticizing beyond the fact that they're both hot and it's a Good Match tm. the appeal of the innocent virgin vs. rake who is supposed to educate her and show her the wonders of sex is cut down by the fact that he's witholding information, lying and manipulating her the whole time. and not teaching her much either tbh. that's not hot. it's a story that could be interesting if done properly but tbh it doesn't belong in a fluffy wish fullfillment romance, it's too sordid and psychologically complex and unpleasant (like that is horror romance territory lmfao)

* the sex scenes are a key part of this. i'm not against explicit scenes on tv when well done it can really contribute to the dynamics and be really hot (there's nothing wrong w that) but here there is just this fundamental disconnect btw what they're trying to sell us - the focus on Daphne's pleasure, the sense of freedom and liberation after all that repression - and what is actually happening in the plot, him trying to distract her and lying to her. that's not hot and it's weird. secrets and fucked up dynamics can be hot in a sex scene but you have to acknowledge it somehow, not present it as perfect honeymoon bliss. Unless you're in the close pov of a character who's completely unaware - which is not the case here. We know what Simon is doing ! we can't just set it aside.

* the conclusion scene where they're both standing in the rain and she tells him he doesn't need to be perfect to be worthy of love is beautiful in itself. it's a beautiful message. what is so disappointing is how they get there. Simon isn't given the time to heal from his own trauma - he's strongarmed in a way that feels extremely manipulative. She tries to force him to impregnate her against his consent, then she goes through his private correspondence and tries to guilt trip him into changing his mind, judging his deep and private pains and trauma in a flippant way and telling him he should get over it if he actually loves her. of course he shouldn't have lied to her, but that doesn't make her actions ok. the whole thing is just incredibly unromantic to me. there is no genuine growth happening. Simon ends up being a nothingburger of a character bc he is so reactive and one note. when he's pissed he gets drunk and hits stuff. that's basically it until Woman Shows him the Way. the actor tries his best with the smoldering soulful looks. but that only works for a bit.

* there is absolutely an uncomfortable racial element to this. she's an incarnation of this image of white womanhood that is supposedly morally and emotionally superior and is going to teach silly men how to live properly ; i don't like this dynamic much already. it's bioessentialist it puts women on this pedestal that's actually a burden and makes it impossible for them to be truly human ; it's terfy and smug and self righteous and honestly insufferable. And it's much worse when it concerns a man of color

* really it's mindboggling to me that so many people gave the green light to this. but i think it's a testament to the idea that there are some "normal" elements of sex that couples owe to each other, and also that marriage and having babies is the one right way to happiness and health. ofc this wouldn't be strange for the time period - the weird thing is more that they assumed modern viewers would find this romantic, because, again, this is designed to be wish fullfillment, not historically accurate, and the kind of wish this is fulfilling is yucky honestly.

* Daphne is just not a very appealing character by modern standards, tbh. she's very passive, and she cares the most about following the mores of her society and getting the picture perfect ending that is mandated for her as a woman ; whatever agency she develops is strictly in pursuit of that, and she goes about it in this manipulative way with a sense of her own superiority that comes from privilege, sticking to social rules and gender norms. she will have her babies and insure the triumph of the aristocratic heteronormative family. it's, again, not a surprising narrative for the era, but it feels deeply incongruous for a show that handwaves accuracy for the sake of diversity and female empowerment and wish fulfillment everywhere else

* i still remember enjoying the show on first watch until ep 6 - because its light silly frothy tone is just so fun and entertaining, and the side characters are really compelling, and there are just not enough rom coms these days. it's really the saving grace of the show they're able to listen to criticism and were able to change the way they did romance for s2

[themollyjay]

The Myths of Forced Diversity and Virtue Signaling.

In my novel Mail Order Bride, the three main characters are a lesbian and two agendered aliens.  In my novel Scatter, the main character is a lesbian, the love interest is a pansexual alien, and the major side characters include a half Cuban, half black Dominican lesbian, a Chinese Dragon, a New York born Jewish Dragon, and a Transgender Welsh Dragon.  In my novel The Master of Puppets, the Main Characters are a lesbian shapeshifting reptilian alien cyborg and a half black, half Japanese lesbian.  The major side characters include three gender fluid shapeshifting reptilian alien cyborgs, and a pansexual human.  In my novel Transistor, the main character is a Trans Lesbian, the love interest is a Half human/Half Angel non-observant Ethiopian Jew, and the major side characters include a Transgender Welsh Dragon (the same one from Scatter), a Transgender woman, a Latino Lesbian, an autistic man, three Middle Eastern Arch Angels, and a hive mind AI with literally hundreds of genders.  In my novel The Inevitable singularity, one of the main characters is a lesbian, another has a less clearly defined sexuality but she is definitely in love with the lesbian, and the third is functionally asexual due to a vow of chastity she takes very seriously.  The major side characters include a straight guy from a social class similar to the Dalit (commonly known as untouchables) in India, a bisexual woman, a man who is from a race of genetically modified human/frog hybrids, and a woman from a race of genetically modified humans who are bred and sold as indentured sex workers.

Why am I bringing all of this up?  Well, first, because it’s kind of cool to look at the list of different characters I’ve created, but mostly because it connects to what I want to talk about today, which should be obvious from the title of the essay.  The concepts of ‘forced diversity’ and ‘virtue signaling’.

For those who aren’t familiar with these terms, they’re very closely related concepts.  ‘Forced Diversity’ is the idea that characters who aren’t neurotypical cisgendered heterosexual white males are only ever included in a story because of outside pressure from some group (usually called Social Justice Warriors, or The Woke Brigade or something similar) to meet some nebulous political agenda.  The caveat to this is, of course, that you can have a women/women present as long as they are hot, don’t make any major contributions to the resolution of the plot, and the hero/heroes get to fuck them before the end of the story. ‘Virtue Signaling’, according to Wikipedia, is a pejorative neologism for the expression of a disingenuous moral viewpoint with the intent of communicating good character.

The basic argument is that Forced Diversity is a form of virtue signaling.  That no one would ever write characters who aren’t neurotypical cisgendered heterosexual white males because they want to.  They only do it to please the evil SJW’s who are somehow both so powerful that they force everybody to conform to their desires, yet so irrelevant that catering to them dooms any creative project to financial failure via the infamous ‘go woke, go broke’ rule.

What the people who push this idea of Forced Diversity tend to forget is that we exist at a point in time when creators actually have more creative freedom than are any other people in history.  Comic writers can throw up a website and publish their work as a webcomic without having to go through Marvel, DC or one of the other big names, or get a place in the dying realm of the news paper comics page.  Novelists can self-publish with fairly little upfront costs, musicians can use places like YouTube and Soundcloud to get their work out without having to worry about music publishers.  Artists can hock their work on twitter and tumblr and a dozen other places. Podcasts are relatively cheap to make, which has opened up a resurgence in audio dramas.  Even the barrier to entry for live action drama is ridiculously low.

So, in a world where creators have more freedom than ever before, why would they choose to people their stories with characters they don’t want there?  The answer, of course, is that they wouldn’t.  Authors, comic creators, indie film creators and so on aren’t putting diverse characters into their stories because they are being forced to. They’re putting diverse characters into their stories because they want to.  Creators want to tell stories about someone other than the generically handsome hypermasculine cisgendered heterosexual white males that have been the protagonists of so many stories over the years that we’ve choking on it. A lot of times, creators want to tell stories about people like themselves.  Black creators want to tell stories about the black experience. Queer creators want to tell stories about the queer experience.

I’m an autistic, mentally ill trans feminine abuse survivor.  Every day, I get up and I struggle with PTSD, with an eating disorder, with severe body dysmorphia, with anxiety and depression and just the reality of being autistic and transgender.  I deal with the fact that the religious community I grew up in views me as an abomination, and genuinely believes I’m going to spend eternity burning in hell.  I deal with the fact that people I’ve known for decades, even members of my own family, regularly vote for politician who publicly state that they want to strip me of my civil rights because I’m queer.  I’m part of a community that experiences a disproportionately high murder and suicide rate.  I’ve spent multiple years of my life deep in suicidal depression, and to this day, I still don’t trust myself around guns.

As a creator, I want to talk about those issues.  I want to deal with my life experiences.  I want to create characters that embody and express aspects of my lived experience and my day-to-day reality.  No one is forcing me to put diversity into my books.  I try to include Jewish characters as often as I can because there have been a number of important Jewish people in my life.  I include queer people because I’m queer and the vast majority of friends I interact with on a regular basis are queer.  I include people with mental illnesses and trauma because I am mentally ill and have trauma, and I know a lot of people with mental illnesses and trauma.  My work may be full of fantastical elements, aliens and dragons and angels and superheroes and magic and ultra-high technology and AI’s and talking cats and robot dogs and shape shifters and telepaths and all sorts of other things, but at the core of the stories is my own lived experience, and neurotypical cisgendered heterosexual white males are vanishingly rare in that experience.

Now, I can hear the comments already.  The ‘okay, maybe that’s true for individual creators, but what about corporate artwork?’.   Maybe not in those exact words, but you get the idea.

The thought here is that corporations are bowing to social pressure to include characters who aren’t neurotypical cisgendered heterosexual white males, and that is somehow bad. But here’s the thing. Corporations are going to chase the dollars.  They aren’t bowing to social pressure.  There’s no one holding a gun to some executive’s head saying, “You must have this many diversity tokens in every script.”  What is happening is that corporations are starting to clue into the fact that people who aren’t neurotypical cisgendered heterosexual white males have money.  They are putting black characters in their shows and movies because black people watch shows and spend money on movies.  They are putting queer people in shows and movies because queer people watch shows and spend money on movies.  They are putting women in shows and movies because women watch shows and spend money on movies.

No one is forcing these companies to do this.  They are choosing to do it, the same way individual creators are choosing to do it.  In the companies’ cases the choices are made for different reasons.  It’s not because they are necessarily passionate about telling stories about a particular experience, but because they want to create art to be consumed by the largest audience possible, which means that they have to expand their audience beyond the neurotypical cisgendered heterosexual white male by including characters from outside of that demographic.

And the reality is, the cries of ‘forced diversity’ and ‘virtue signaling’ almost always come from within that demographic.  Note the almost.  There are a scattering of individuals from outside that demographic which do subscribe to the ‘forced diversity’ and ‘virtue signaling’ myths, but that is a whole other essay.  However, within that demographic, lot of the people who cry about ‘forced diversity’ see media and content as a Zero-Sum game.  The more that’s created for other people, the less that is created for them.

In a way, they’re right. There are only so many slots for TV shows each week, there are only so many theaters, only so much space on comic bookshelves and so on.  But at the end of the day, its literally impossible for them to consume all the content that’s being produced anyway.  So, while there is, theoretically less content for them to consume, as a practical matter it’s a bit like someone who is a meat eater going to a buffet with two hundred items, and then throwing a tantrum because five of the items happen to be vegan.

The worst part is, if they could let go of how wound up they are about the ‘forced diversity’ and ‘virtue signaling’ they could probably enjoy the content that’s produced for people other than them.  I mean, I’m a pasty ass white girl, and I loved Black Panther.

So, to wrap out, creators, make what you want to make, and ignore anyone who cries about forced diversity or virtue signaling.  And to people who are complaining about forced diversity and virtue signaling, I want to go back to the buffet metaphor.  You need to relax.  Even if there are a few vegan options on the buffet, you can still get your medium rare steak, or your chicken teriyaki or whatever it is you want.  Or, maybe, just maybe, you could give the falafel a try. That shit is delicious.

[in-fair-verona-we-set-our-scene]

god yeah i love seeing your meta posts bc for a game about opression and the wrongs of our current society, toning that shit down to make it more marketable to the very people it's critiquing is so... eugh

Admittedly P5 is hardly the only piece of media I love that has done this. There’s a theory in Marxism that basically purposes that the art that gets disseminated to the masses is the art of the ruling class (and thus does not significantly challenge the class system) because the ruling class are the ones with the means to spread it. Now I don’t entirely agree because art can spread through other avenues and there is certainly a conflict between artist and corporation clearly visible in mainstream media where the artist will sneak more subversive themes in, but Persona 5 like many commercial pieces of art sought to sell itself to as wide an audience as possible and that means avoiding things that might make the average player uncomfortable. See, the waifuism of all the girls, prioritizing their appeal as romantic characters that appeal to guys over any character development that might be messy or challenging. Or the way we can’t actually engage in any truly delinquent or illegal outside the Metaverse behaviours. Or how Makoto is going to be a cop and we are not allowed to engage with this choice in any meaningful way.

A lot of popular art does this, critique the obviously bad while refusing to touch the underlying structures and beliefs that cause said problem that are so ingrained in society. Look at every girl boss movie that refuses to actually engage with feminist theory, or oscarbait movies that reframe racism as existing in interpersonal relationships rather than systemic ones. It’s not necessarily that these pieces of art are not good either, but it can feel disingenuous when they claim to be subversive yet ultimately end up just reproducing the exact same values with a different coat of paint.

(of course not every piece of art needs to challenge the system. But to claim it does when not doing so can leave a bit of a bitter taste in my mouth, even if I enjoy said art)

Though, in fairness to P5, a lot of what it does say about questioning authority is pretty subversive in Japan where the obey your seniors is a much more powerful cultural pressure. It is social commentary for a culture not my own so I’m not going to go around saying it is objectively bad at achieving its goal. Most of my complaints rely more on examining where the writing falters structurally and how that may relate to a reluctance to engage with more subversive themes or an over-focus on the power fantasy aspect rather than going after the base premise of P5 which is powerful and corrupt people can get away with shit because society lets them and they will use their power to abuse and exploit those weaker than them, and I do think it succeeded in communicating this basic thesis. I try to engage with it on its own terms and I do love it, but what is meta but tearing about the thing you love to see where it works and where it does not.

Anyway, thank you anon! I’m glad you enjoy my ramblings!

[recurring-polynya]

I have to say I knew that at one point renji, ikkaku, yumichika and iba were in the same squad with kenpachi but good god you managed to paint a beautiful picture for me. I simply assumed that for them it was simply party time all the time along with a few bald jokes but this is much better. Emotionally healthy squad 11 which still love fighting more than anything. I always cringed when someone would just describe them as hooligans that do nothing but fighting. I mean they do that too but I love the idea that they are all emotionally healthy and mature, a loving and supportive family to their own - in their own wakka doodoo kind of way thats endearing - and of course they are in my opinion they single capable force against sexisim. Because they don't care about anything else - gendere, sexuality, gender performances, race, mentality or anything - other than if you fight good you respectable and if you fight good in squad 11 you family. ( like when kenpachi just became captain he made yachiru his lieutenant and no one was against it no one thought it was beneath them, sure thru nag at her sometimes but that's mostly in a banter like way because she call them stupid nicknames but no one hates her for being unrightfully their superior. One day they got a new captain and a new lieutenant that's a child and they just went with it.) I admit their disdain and disrespect to squad 4 is still frowned upon but I do believe some squad 4s can handle their own, it's just that we saw the really peaceful ones. Anyways sorry for ranting. Just wanted to say that yeah, I really like how the past squad 11 with iba and renji in it was a great place in general. I think if they found out some one was being sexist - for whatever reason - they would be there right next to nanao - or iba's mom protesting. Kenpachi and yachiru as well. And that makes me want to be squad 11 ,despite not being much for fighting, so bad.

So, for starters, thanks! I try to have fun whenever I write Squad 11, and I’m glad you enjoy my take on them.

My Squad 11 is just... really not very canon, though. Canon Squad 11 is actually pretty gross and sexist. Yumichika is transphobic, Kenpachi makes homophobic remarks about Yumichika, they bully Squad 4, there’s a filler episode devoted to a guy that Ikkaku bullied for, like 100 years because the guy lost his reiatsu saving Ikkaku’s dumb ass.

When you write fanfic, you occasionally run into these more problematic aspects of the source media, and you can choose to dig in and analyze them, or just... remake them in your own way. Take for example, Gin. If you read fanfic about Gin, there are some people who will peel away the layers of him and his fears and insecurities and still make him be a horrible gremlin, and it’s really stellar writing. Other people prefer to write him in an AU where maybe less bad stuff happened to him, and he’s more mischievous than sociopathic, and this is a less meaty interpretation, but it’s also more fun. Sometimes fanfic is a meal and sometimes it’s candy. It fulfills different needs and different fantasies and all of it is welcome.

Yumichika, who for me is the fulcrum of Squad 11, presents this problem. I really don’t like the way his “appreciation for beauty” plays out in canon. He doesn’t actually appreciate beauty, he just likes telling other people they’re ugly. I don’t think he’s ever pointed out beauty in anyone else aside from himself or his zanpakutou. I remember the first time I watched his fight with Charlotte and it struck me as so off -- why wouldn’t he find her beautiful? I mean, I know it’s a transmysogynistic joke, that’s why, men dressed as women is funny, hurr hurr, but Yumichika is gender nonconforming himself. This was an opportunity to make a cool character point, and Kubo took the cheap laughs road instead. Going back to what I said last paragraph, a skilled writer could, in theory, write about his insecurities and his brittleness and meanness and write a pretty compelling story, but a) Kubo certainly doesn’t, and I have never actually found a Yumichika-centric fanfic of this nature, and b) this doesn’t fit the role I need him to play in my stories. I am rarely really interested in writing about Squad 11 for its own sake. I like to write them as a backdrop for the period of Renji’s afterlife where he hit absolute rock bottom and bounced back up again. We already know the role Ikkaku played in this, except that Ikkaku is a complete moron in terms of mental health, and I really, really felt like this is where Yumichika needed to come in.

I like to massage Yumichika’s character a bit, but I do want to keep the flavor of some of his character flaws-- he’s still shallow and mean and judgy, and I love that for him, but I like to add in a positive side to his appreciation for beauty. Having Yumichika make fun of Izuru’s pores is funny but it’s even funnier if he’s just given Renji a compliment on his hair first. The idea that a Yumichika compliment is attainable makes all his drags the more vicious. Yumichika also judged people by their beauty instead of their moral character, which is humorous to me. He dislikes Byakuya as a person, but is obsessed with his haircare regime. I like to have him treat Rangiku as an equal, beauty-wise, and a person whose opinion he respects based on her aesthetic. Rangiku is actually a pretty savvy and very emotionally intelligent person whom many people write off because she likes to present herself as a lazy airhead, so in an extremely convoluted way, this all works out. I like to think that Yumichika’s ideas of beauty are also caught up in boldness and risk-taking and having one’s outward presentation ring true to their inner self. To me, this is the core of why he loves Ikkaku. To him, Ikkaku’s devotion to doing the most Ikkaku thing at all times, no matter how stupid, is irresistibly sexy. 

Aside: At some point, I decided that the fact that a lot of people in Bleach have colorful marks on their faces and elaborate hairstyle and accessory games implied that make-up in Soul Society is gender neutral. I like to think there is actually more of a divide between the nobility, who like their make-up to follow rules and be classy, and, well, Squad 11, who like to get make-up ideas from Jem and the Holograms. I don’t even wear makeup (I don’t know how and it’s expensive and I am ashamed of myself, we can talk about my own gender presentation later) but I like to write about both my male and female characters wearing make-up. I don’t actually know how my readers feel about it, but it just falls under the “Is that what people want?”/“It’s what we do” philosophy of all my writing.

I think one of the theses of my writing is that middle management is more important to the character of a squad than the person at the top. Captains sort of act as ideals to strive for, but they are generally unapproachable for one reason or another. Yachiru is more like her captain in this respect (which makes sense, since she is, in fact part of her captain). Ikkaku and Yumichika present this dual idea that 1) strength is awesome, fighting and being the best is awesome, and 2) part of strength is presenting yourself to the world in a bold and confrontational way. (The fact that both of them are hiding huge parts of themselves is laughably ironic). Kenpachi and Yachiru are shining examples of Do Whatever You Want and Be So Strong That No One Can Stop You. 

What really makes this work is that you need someone one layer down-- does anyone actually subscribe to this nonsense, and that’s why Iba - Abarai Squad 11 is Best Squad 11. I really, really enjoy the genre of Reddit posts where a total bro will find out that his girlfriend is trans and react by becoming a vehement advocate for trans rights. I love the bodybuilders typing encouragement to each other meme. Our world is flooded with disingenuous messages from concern trolls trying to tell us why being kind and inclusive to one another is bad or that you should reject help because struggle makes you stronger and the idea of a Himbo looking at something like that and saying “that seems dumb" is delightful to me.

I actually feel like there are a lot of awful people with bad ideas in Squad 11, it’s just that Renji and Iba don’t put up with their shit, and over time, that becomes the culture of Squad 11. I think that Squad 11 has incredibly turnover, but the ones who stay are the ones who subscribe to the ideas you mentioned-- fighting is what matters, if you wanna go argue about shit, go join Squad 5. In the IkkaYumi story I wrote, which happens shortly after Zaraki takes over, a ton of people leave. The Bount Arc (which I know a lot of people skipped) features a dude who was extremely pissed off because he had liked the old Kenpachi and thought Zaraki sucked and was so mad about it that he betrayed Soul Society. You might think that this arc would feature Zaraki caring about this in some way shape or form, but he really didn’t. So, I think there are a lot of Soul Reapers that took issue with serving under a little girl as a vice captain, they just aren’t in Squad 11 anymore.

Oh, one last note on Iba’s mom. I am of an age where a number of my friends have mothers who were Second Wave Feminists. The moms in question are a real mixed bag, because they Came From a Different Time, and on one hand, you have to respect what they went through, and on the other hand, they are very difficult to get along with. I liked the idea that Iba has always chafed against his mom and her big personality, and then Renji comes in, and is like, “hey, your mom is strong as hell and she has a lot of ideas that I never thought of but they make sense” and Iba realizes that, even though she’s still a huge pain in his ass, his mom is the person who made him who he is. Moms are complex.

Uhhhh, I have definitely lost the thread of wherever I was going with this post. Thank you for enjoying my Squad 11, which is nothing like canon Squad 11. Hopefully maybe this year, I will actually finish my Squad 11 Self Care story, where Renji stops being a drunk disaster person after Yumichika teaches him how to fill his brows; I got stuck on a part where Rangiku gives Renji a talk on ethical sluttery.

[nightcoremoon]

it's evident people haven't watched enough kids media to adequately understand just what constitutes a kids show as opposed to a show that kids can watch and be entertained by

when I was a kid I watched king of the hill and blues clues (among other things). king of the hill is NOT a kids show by any stretch of the imagination; it is an adult animation, replete with fairly heavy subject matter, sexual themes, political humor, cultural references that kids won't understand, discussion of religion in the modern day, depression and suicidal thoughts, adultery, puberty and sexual awakenings, body image, propane, propane accessories, and ultimately above all else what it means to be family. and blues clues is a show about a man who plays with a shovel & pail, talks to his condiments and mailbox, and sometimes he teleports into the felt dimension, all while playing Sherlock Holmes hercule poirot with his dog, and teaching kids how to count and draw and recognize colors and learn their ABCs. do you see the fucking difference? no? then I'll make it more clear.

dora the explorer & go diego go, mickey mouse clubhouse, handy manny, octonauts, bob the builder, super why, wild kratts, zoboomafoo, jojo's circus, wow wow wubbzy, stanley, doc mcstuffins, max & ruby, wonder pets, bubble guppies, ni hao khai lan, backyardigans, little einsteins, caillou (ugh) and p*w p*trol (double ugh), these are all undeniably kids shows. their audience is children (and the occasional adult by age with severe intellectual disabilities) and maybe the parents whose brains are too fried to care what's on the tv. these shows main purpose is to educate while entertaining on subjects one would encounter in preschool and kindergarten. counting 1-10, ABCs, basic color, basic language, basic intrapersonal skills, basic emotional literacy, problem solving, using your imagination, what sounds do animals make, breaking the fourth wall to ask the audience to answer what's 2+2 or tell them a lesson they learned today like I LEARNED TO NEVER JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER or some simple message like that. it's always light, there's no edgelord grimdark "what if they were dead the whole time" bullshit. it's just good clean simple wholesome [except for paw patrol] programs for kids to be distracted for a little bit of time, while also letting them walk away having said they learned something. at least half of the time dedicated to every single one of these shows is devoted to the same shit over and over again. I'm the map I'm the map I'm the map I'm the map I'm the map I'm the map WE FUCKING GET IT YOURE THE MAP! backpack backpack I'm the backpack loaded up with things and knickknacks too, anything that you might need I've got inside for you. we did it we did it we did it HOORAY! come on vamanos everybody let's go, come on let's get to it, I know that we can do it,

WHERE ARE WE GOING

👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

THESE SONGS ARE BURNED INTO MY BRAIN AND THEYLL BE STUCK IN MY HEAD UNTIL I DIE

say click take a pic, the hot dog dance, CAN HE FIX IT???, pizza! spaghetti!, THE DOC IS IN AND SHELL FIX YOU UP, max & ruby ruby & max max & ruby ruby & max MAX & RUBY RUBY & MAX MAX & RUBY RUBY & MAX, wonder pets wonder pets we're on our way to help the friend and save the day, we're not too big and we're not too tough but when we work together we've got the right stuff, goooOOO WONDER PETS YAAAAY~, yoooour backyard friends the backyardigans (weve got the whole wide world in our yard to explore, thATS WHY EVERY DAY WEEEEERE BACK FOR MOOOORE), were going on a trip in our little rocket ship SOARING THROOOOOUGH THE SKY!!! little einsteins!

I swear to god I've been forced to watch so much children's television in my life it's no wonder there's no room left for serotonin executive function or the ability to speak to morons

point is I know my way around kids shows. my sisters were born in 98, 02, 05, 06, 10, and 18, I think, I don't even know because they're all a blur, I'm literally closer in age to my parents than to my youngest sibling, I never stopped being exposed to kids shows. I know what is and is not a kids show.

adventure time? not a kids show even though kids watch it. it's a "for everyone" show. it's got a target audience of 100% of the planet. steven universe? not a kids show even though kids watch it. miraculous ladybug? not a kids show even though kids watch it. scooby doo? not a kids show even though kids watch it. I'm not discussing the history of adult acceptance of animation, adult animation, or anime, so don't ask. dexter's laboratory. the grim adventures of billy & mandy. codename kids next door. teen titans. fairly oddparents. kim possible. invader zim. AVATAR THE LAST AIRBENDER. totally spies. courage the cowardly dog. the proud family. SPONGEBOB F*ING SQUAREPANTS. powerpuff girls. foster's home for imaginary friends. oh yeah you know what's coming next. my little goddamn pony friendship is mother fucking magic is not. a. kids. show. even though kids can watch it. it is a cartoon. it is an everyone show. that's why it's disingenuous and fucking stupid to decry any fan over the age of 7 as a pedophile and a weirdo creep; it participates in the infantilization of femininity. why is it ok for 20somethings to keep watching aang and squidward and finn & jake and zim and "return the slab" and everyone's totally fine wth that but when it's twilight sparkle suddenly everyone's like whoa you're a huge fucking loser for watching this girly wussy baby show for girly wussy babies. oh some bronies are sex crazed perverts? I'm sorry have you seen just how much porn there is for spongebob? oh some bronies are cringe? I'm sorry have you met half the steven universe fandom? oh some bronies are fascist rick sanchez kinnies with fedoras and katanas? BREAKING BAD FANS, HELLO!?!?!?

this is such a stupid tiring boring argument. maybe magic talking horses being friends and turning their friendship into magic rainbow nuclear fucking arms and blasting the evil out of a demon and turning her into the coolest fucking half-unicorn biker lesbian in the world is something that brings me, and adult, pure wholesome joy, in between bojack horseman and dark souls and breaking bad and deftones and fallout new vegas and jojo and cannibal corpse and other bleak depressing edgy shit that also brings me comfort. and MAYBE me at 16 starting to watch MLP:FIM becoming finally comfortable with the outward public expression of "traditionally feminine" interests is the main reason why I realized I was a girl when I did, and MAYBE I just like how pretty the colorful ponies look, AND MAYBE I KIN WITH ONE OR TWO OR EIGHT CHARACTERS, WHAT OF IT?

AND MAYBE ITS LITERALLY THE BEST LONG RUNNING FANTASY TV SERIES ON THE MARKET RIGHT NOW* SINCE GAME OF THRONES FUCKING SUCKS

but whatever, kids watch it sometimes so it's illegal for anyone who's not a kid to enjoy it, but only if it's something girly because liking girly things is bad because girliness is inherently bad, and the only things that are good have predominantly male casts*. right? right??? wrong, fucker. g4mlp has so much more in common with adventure time & atla than with blues clues or dora the fucking explora...r.

but keep in mind I'm saying this while hugging a blues clues plushie my grandma gave me for valentine's day because it reminds her of when I was a baby because I may not watch blues clues but it still means a lot to me for nostalgia and is 50% of the reason why I love ray charles. kids media isn't necessarily bad. I still do enjoy watching it with my little sisters. all this is is me being anal about categorization because I'm autistic and I LIVE for categorizing everything.

*besides atla obviously

[dahniwitchoflight]

Homesquared Chapter 16

Alrighty, that was a fun tangent, now back to John it seems?

Oh, no, Narration of John (So Actually Dirk, speak of the devil and he shall appear and all that etc etc)

“ leaving John with one final touch on the shoulder. John leans into it in response, though he’s a bit ashamed of chasing down a sliver of physical affection so soon after obliterating Karkat’s evening like he had. “

pfft lol so Im not the only one that thought it would be funny if that scene was interpreted in a Pale Romantic light, even though that really wasn’t what was happening

OIh! but we still get Roxy, just the other version of Roxy

Roxy subtly being like “hey!! shit has apparently gone down, were not exactly close atm but I feel bad about you dying to want to know if youre still alive so im gonna message you while trying to make it look like i dont care about it as much as I do”

JOHN: trying to align my memories of my youth with whatever is happening right now so

and the wonderful question is, what IS going be happening with you now John?

Roxy looking nice and casual, but also yeah narration, why are you making this ominous, its not like Roxy’s out here to double spy on behalf of Jane, I don’t think Roxys on her side THAT much

ROXY: may have to do a smidge more if my old bff decides im next on the list for bombing out

ROXY: but so far so good

ROXY: just a coupla exploded cars in the yard from some shenanigans our dear son and his friends were in but u kno it is what it is!!!

Roxy once again being a master of hiding how shes feeling, even when trying to open up, feeling pretty stressed about whats happening with Jane, understandable, the exclamation points give it away lol

The narration is really trying to make John nervous though

OH lol that was the implication haha no lol John it obviously wasn’t that

“John feels his shoulders unbunch. Of course. Yeah. He’s almost embarrassed by how relieved he feels. So what if his ex wife wanted to hook up? Shouldn’t that be a situation he could navigate? Don’t people like to find solace in human physical connection during dire times? Why did the idea of it make his mind white out in panic more than, say, any number of the traumas he just experienced? He doesn’t know, but he believes Roxy that he must look pretty haggard. He probably feels haggard? Maybe sitting down will feel better.“

lol once again, Dirk has no idea how to read Roxy at all and just trips over himself and his assumptions XD

Yeah, looks like Roxy not on the Jane train and is doing some takesies backsies, shes glossing over her feelings on the matter still though, I know thats par for the course of how Roxy tends to handle stuff too but I wish shed open up a bit more, but maybe shes playing the smart game, yknow, knowing that Dirk has a hard time reading her, so glossing over stuff is how you protect yourself against the narrative force, confusion and vaguery in the narrative and her actions only helps her to keep control over it, because at any point, you can decide to “clear up” any narrative “miscommunication” or “confusion” and lay down what is it thats actually happening with you any time you want

Void working in the behind the scenes to do what they want

JOHN: like it’s my HOUSE.

JOHN: but mostly it always felt like my dad’s house?

JOHN: and when i started living there after i moved out of here, it was like i crammed myself back into whatever was left of my kid self?

JOHN: and it didn’t feel good, but it at least was familiar, you know?

JOHN: like living there let me feel closer to my dad, trying to be like the way i remember him, or like how i remember him wanting me to be, or something?

JOHN: and i didn’t realize how much i hated doing that until i saw it all go up in flames.

JOHN: so i guess i could have used my powers to stop the fire and save whatever was left of the place, but i couldn’t bring myself to do it.

JOHN: like some fucked up part of me was glad i got there too late?

JOHN: so i just sat there, watching, trying to figure out why watching my house burn down felt like i was being released from prison.

JOHN: and even now i keep trying to explain it away, as though it’s because of how fucked up everything else is that it made me feel good.

JOHN: but that’s just bullshit.

JOHN: it DID feel good.

JOHN: i DO feel free.

JOHN: sorry.

ROXY: no need 2 apologize

ROXY: we just delved in2 my whole gender thing last time so it seems fine for u to have a turn

JOHN: i didn’t say it was a gender thing.

Im pretty sure you’re talking about a gender thing John, like, very 100% sure now this is what’s happening

because if you were actually a girl, of course you’re dad leaving all these notes about how one day hes gonna be so proud of the man youll become, yeah, that can feel a little pressuring, even if your dad didnt mean it like that, since he was unfailingly the kind of dad just bumbling around trying to understand their kid as best they could and leave encouragements everywhere, thats what his intent was, but all his notes come off a bit wrong in particular issues

remember the note under the fridge that was all like “SON. IF YOURE READING THIS NOTE, YOUVE FINALLY BECOME STRONG ENOUGH OF A MAN TO PICK UP THE FRIDGE.” not exactly that but that was always the vibe Dad’s little notes always had

Yeah, i can see how John would view it as a bit off, but if he hadnt the self awareness to realize it was a gender thing at the time, hed be understandly confused as to why such a thing would bother him

now though, he’s realizing, maybe, he doesn’t exactly want to be the man his dad always encouraged him to be

John does seem a lot happier here in his convo with Roxy than he did on his own when the house was burning, that conversation with karkat left me wondering if John was about to start dissociating he was so down, but here he says he feels freeing and happy about it?

ROXY: but like now that u mention it

ROXY: *meaningful pause*

JOHN: …

JOHN: i

JOHN:

John’s beginning to question stuff, or acknowledge that he’s questioning stuff, cuz it’s true, and hes feeling happy about it, in a way that he wasnt before, but he hasnt quite connected the dots here between the happy feeling and what exactly he has to be happy about

ROXY: aight then no wind bending just use your mangrit

Roxy flexes, the corner of her mouth pulled up into a familiar grin. John feels his guts, so recently calmed, twist up into knots again. Her eyebrows shoot up and the smile loosens. He must have shown something on his face.

ROXY: ok or just like push when i push

ROXY: we both got sick muscles

ROXY: no other adjectives necessary

JOHN: yeah ok.

Yeah Roxy’s 100% picked up on it, and maybe Dirk has as well if the narration is commenting on it

Alrighty then, to the secret lair under the bed!

oh I just noticed how kind of cute and interesting Roxy’s nickname for Harry is, “Lil H A” Harry Anderson shortens to Ha like laughter haha

and if Harry had Roxy’s last name, it’d be Harry Anderson Lalonde

Lil HAL

lol what is Callie doing under Roxy’s secret bedchamber XD

This whole secret bedchamber thing is turning into one big metaphor isn’t it?

That thing behind the curtain kind of looks like the Attic Portal shape from Hiveswap though

that’d be neat if that was it, like obviously we knew one of the cherubs had to have something to do with that portal just going by the design of it alone

Honestly it makes sense that Callie is doing it under the curtain of Roxy’s Void, it’s honestly the safest place to do something like that

lol Calliope has grown past writing fanfic about shipping and being in love, now the drama of broken relationships and divorce is all the rage XD character growth? haha

CALLIOPE: besides, hUman divorces are even more fascinating than i had ever imagined, and being able to witness yoUrs in motion was an honoUr.

CALLIOPE: so i consider Us aboUt even at this point.

Calliope just burned him harder than his childhood home’s destruction

CALLIOPE: ah right, right. yoU're probably a little cUrioUs as to where the dickens we are.

have you been talking to Jake lol (I mean, probably Original Grandpa Jake tbh if that portal is actually the portal)

Alright so John is getting caught up on the major plot points, Earth C is indeed in the large black hole, his choice didn’t matter since both choices happened anyway yadda yadda

CALLIOPE: think of it like a coin flip.

CALLIOPE: the series of events that led to Us being trapped beyond the event horizon of an Ubermassive black hole could be considered "tails", while the events which would have occUrred otherwise could be considered "heads".

CALLIOPE: since both were possible, and paradox space is the way it is, they actUally both happened. and we jUst "happened" (hee hee) to get tails instead of heads.

yup yup yup pretty par for the course of timesplits in homestuck so far

CALLIOPE: not at all! since both possibilities depend on one another's existence, it really doesn't make sense to call them "right" or "wrong". they both just "are".

yup, this is true, the ending’s of both referenced the others, so it’s disingenuous to say one is “canon” while the other isn’t

one is simply in the realm of actual possibility, the other is in the realm of unlikely possibility

More than likely, John would have chosen to leave and go die and be the hero like in Meat, but there was still the possibility that he would stay, even if it was unlikelier than the other, but since both were possible choices for him to realistically make, both actually happened for real

CALLIOPE: anyway, the reason i went on this tangent in the first place was to explain that the space we are standing in right now has a special significance, in that it is the location which corresponds to the black hole's singUlarity

that’s interesting, so there’s the original meteor that crashed into the surface of Earth C, and it’s in here that the singularity of what I don’t wanna call the Green Hole to match the Green Sun when I wanna talk about this specific Black Hole lolol

but yeah, here in this meteor lies the crux of the paradox it seems, interesting, also interesting again, this is where that Hiveswap Portal is

Hiveswap does have a plot point of “Joey must do thing in 11 days otherwise Earth and Alternia will be destroyed” and the only known destruction event of Earth and Alternia so far in canon is the Green Sun’s Creation from the destruction of both universes (and then later Callie’s destruction of the green sun into the black hole) so is Hiveswap gonna be a factor in the green sun’s destruction/creation as well? (Joey has the symbol of the Green Sun for a reason, I’m super curious as to what factor Joey has in relation to the Green Sun’s Existence, We still don’t know what the fact those black monsters are too, they’re like nega-first guardians, the kind of things that look like would come out of a Black Hole that came from the Green Sun tbh)

It’s all inter-related I tells ya

ROXY: ur not gonna enter a weird time vortex and change the trajectory of a little girls life with the power of love

JOHN: aw.

You say that now but

CALLIOPE: it's not strictly speaking "bad" for Us to be inside of a black hole, mUch thoUgh that contradicts most of what anyone knows about them.

CALLIOPE: of coUrse, if we had fallen into it, that woUld be a whole other kettle of fish.

CALLIOPE: the tidal forces woUld have stretched Us all into spaghetti and then ripped us apart!

CALLIOPE: bUt the natUre of oUr arrival was more akin to simply "being" here, sUddenly. one moment we were not, and the next moment we were, and somehow always had been.

yeah that’s basically how this multiverse’s reality works, the future is a thing that already physically exists, just in a different location in the universe somewhere else

time travel and spacial teleportation could be said to be the same thing all along

that’s why violating the events of the future has actual consequences, because its like asking to go somewhere that doesn’t exist but how has to exist because it’s the future, too much of that and reality starts cracking at the seams to make room

same thing happens with sessions and playing sburb

the planets and dreaming moons and all that simultaneously have always existed here, and started existing only because the player played the game and the planets were generated upon entering a session, but to the player involved, it looks and feels like you are just being teleported to a different location in the universe, because you also kind of are

CALLIOPE: i mean, the natUre of space and time is a little finicky in here, bUt for the most part it doesn't seem to be anything too oUt of the ordinary.

CALLIOPE: bUt beyond that, it means that we are sealed away from the rest of existence.

CALLIOPE: oUr sphere of inflUence is limited to the sphere of the black hole's bounding horizon.

CALLIOPE: as far as everyone else is concerned, we might as well not even exist!

So you’re just in a little seperated bubble, that’s not connect temporally to any other place of existence, you aren’t anywhere in the past or the future of anywhere else

nowhere leads here, and here can not lead outwards either, theoretically, and yes it exists, so it must also

JOHN: is there no way we could let anyone know that we're in here...?

CALLIOPE: almost certainly not!

CALLIOPE: there are very few ways for anything to escape the kind of predicament that we are in right now. one of them is to be an all-powerfUl being with control over the very fabric of space, with the energy of two Universes at yoUr disposal.

CALLIOPE: in which case, escape woUld become rather trivial, if a little Unscientific.

JOHN: ok. i am going to assume that we can't just do that.

CALLIOPE: yoU've hit the nail on the head, UnfortUnately. U_U

CALLIOPE: the method i described was the one employed by my alternate self, who yoU may recall crashed through the event horizon in the body that once belonged to jade harley.

CALLIOPE: she departed through a pUnctUre she created in the black hole's surface shortly after consUming my brother, a deed which provided her with the necessary "oomph", and which was frankly rather breathtaking to watch. =u=

CALLIOPE: bUt Upon her departUre, the rift closed for good. as far as i can see, there's simply no way for Us to commUnicate with the world oUtside the black hole.

CALLIOPE: i woUld certainly be very sUrprised to find oUt that anyone had managed sUch a thing!

So someone else definitely has managed to do such a thing

JOHN: knowing that we're inside of a black hole... does that actually change anything?

JOHN: like, can't we just go on living like normal?

CALLIOPE: oh absolUtely not.

CALLIOPE: i don't know if yoU've noticed john bUt this world is on the brink of a total cataclysm.

JOHN: oh.

CALLIOPE: oUr exclUsion from the overarching coUrse of events which governs all reality means that oUr existence here is liable to dramatic and violent Upheaval.

CALLIOPE: to pUt it another way, becaUse nothing in here "matters", we are likely to be sUbjected to things which are a bit bats in the belfry, for no reason other than it's totally insignificant to the wider canon of reality.

CALLIOPE: and mUch thoUgh i am personally titillated by some of the conseqUences of this predicament, it is a degrading way for Us to live. u_u

JOHN: that's... certainly one way to put it, yeah...

yeah, so because here in the black hole neither affects the past or the future of anywhere else, being so disconnected, they are technically free of the reigns of the Alpha Timeline that exists elsewhere in the multiverse

the Alpha Timeline now being understood to simply mean, The Narrative

Things are the way they are because they are thus written to be so

CALLIOPE: at first, i believed that this was simply necessary. Us playing tails to oUr coUnterparts' heads, the black to their white, and so forth.

CALLIOPE: bUt over the years i have come to the conclUsion that this is simply not kosher.

ROXY: its total bs is what it is

CALLIOPE: right, yes.

CALLIOPE: a steaming pile of bUllshite.

CALLIOPE: and so we have decided that something needs to be done aboUt it.

Hmmm. It’s a dangerous idea to be playing with for sure, to decide all the black pieces in the game of chess suddenly become white, it is a very flip turning of reality upside down to be sure

To be honest, I’d think you’d need a powerful Doom player at your disposal to even try something like this

or actually, a powerful Doom user would be most likely to shut this entire thing down, knowing how bad of an idea it’d be, maybe it’s more you need a powerful Life player to do something like this instead

is that also why Dirk viewed Jane as an ally then? She would technically have the kind of power to upend the black and white doomy laws of reality if driven to her full potential, i mean obviously yes, we know this already because of the candy colored I-can-do-whatever-I-want-with-no-consequences lollipop

Is this what Calliope hopes to achieve with the Hiveswap Portal then? her goals for Joey and friends are to be the ones to prevent their universe’s twin destructions, and thus the Green Sun’s initial existence and then also the destruction into the Black Hole after the fact? that would be one way to prevent the Black Hole from existing, making it so the thing that creates the black hole never exists either

and that's certainly a canon event that would be difficult to tear asunder without major consequences

That would be a “Re-writing Homestuck from the very beginning” level of canon event

And if I’m correct, Joey is theorized by me to be a Mage of Life, if any classpect at their full potential was gonna do something like that, or have the impossible knowledge to something impossibly paradoxical like that, well..

ROXY: but u dont need to worry abt busting us outta space jail tbh

ROXY: thats not ur problem to fix

JOHN: oh.

JOHN: i'm... not sure i follow, then.

ROXY: i mean yeah ur gonna obvs facilitate it in a sense

ROXY: but only by going and busting the person who can actually help us outta normal earth jail

CALLIOPE: we need yoU to free vriska from the clUtches of oUr misgUided friend jane, and bring her here, to the singUlarity.

ROXY: weve been calling it the plot point

CALLIOPE: yes, the plot point is a key part of oUr plan.

CALLIOPE: as far as we have been able to sUrmise, the only remaining method for escaping oUr grim confinement depends on leveraging the UniqUe properties of this location to create an event of sUch catalcysmic proportions that it simply cannot be contained within the black hole any more.

CALLIOPE: something SO dramatic, so hyper-relevant, that it becomes ontologically impossible for anyone to ignore it.

CALLIOPE: for that, we need an individUal of sUfficient narrative cloUt, so to speak.

CALLIOPE: and to liberate her, who better than the embodiment of the aspect of freedom itself?

I mean yeah! makes sense! Johns major factor here is Freedom, Vriska’s is Importance

and yeah, I can think of no other wholly dramatic event that to mess with stuff with the Green Sun, everyone will have eyes on that, they have to, their whole existence the way it is relies on it

But, they could also mean something else, its only condition is that it has to be something so imflappably impossible, something so not-canon and so outrageous that it basically horse-shoes around to the other end of the canon spectrum to being something that truly exists again

and that could be literally anything and it’s nerve wracking and exciting to see what thing theyre gonna come up with to just directly kneecap Homestuck itself

ROXY: thx babe

ROXY: oh is it 2 soon for that joke or

JOHN: no, weirdly enough, that one’s fine.

(yeah that’s because Babe can be construed as feminine June)

so, I’m basically convinced they’re doing June Egbert now

that to me was like, pretty severely on the nose

John: Hey Roxy, what it does mean when you find a sense of freedom when all of the symbolism of the masculinity surrounding your childhood burns down around you

Roxy: idk It’s probably a gender thing man

John: I didn’t say the word gender-

Roxy: It’s ok babe no pressure, we can hash it out later

John: Hmm, later then. :)

Roxy: (Turns and looks towards the camera with a knowing smile)

shit all that imagery makes me think of Roxy as that picture of the small kid smirking at the camera while a house burns in the distance XD

[swshadowcouncil]

“Predictable” Is Not A Four-Letter Word

Well, looks like it’s that time again. That’s right: it’s time to talk about our good friend, Subverted Expectations™.(WARNING: Game of Thrones spoilers below the jump)

Hey, who’s super excited for the upcoming Benioff and Weiss Star Wars trilogy now?

I’m alluding, of course, to the latest episode of HBO’s Game of Thrones, in which, after an 8-season-long journey learning to own her own power, master her fate, lead armies, free slaves, and reclaim her family’s place on the Iron Throne, Daenerys Targaryen evidently got just a wee bit too much girl power and decided to become…bad? I guess? Boy, who could have foretold such a stunning subversion of expectations?

(I mean, a woman gaining power, being gradually resented by the men around her for her ascent, and eventually being viewed as a megalomaniacal villainess who needs to be taken down a peg is kind of the opposite of a subversion, it’s actually pretty much what happens to most women in power, fictional, or non-fictional, but I digress)

Fan response, needless to say, has been…mixed. Generally, folks seem to be unhappy with this course of events, given that, aside from some allusions to “Targaryen Madness” throughout the series, the buildup to Dany’s heel turn has been widely seen as rushed and somewhat arbitrary. True, she’s suffered a lot in the past few episodes, but the series has also put quite a lot of effort into making Dany a sympathetic character. Complicated, yes, and flawed, as most GoT protagonists are, but still heroic and generally good. Even as a conqueror, she holds her armies to a code of conduct, shows sympathy to the downtrodden, and overall seems to want to be a good, ethical ruler even after she’s taken the Iron Throne. So, uh….what gives?

Those of us who were Star Wars fans during the release and aftermath of The Last Jedi will recognize this feeling all too well. And, much like with TLJ, the backlash itself spawned a backlash. “Actually,” declared the internet masses, “It’s good that Rian Johnson subverted our expectations. To follow through on what Abrams set up would have been obvious and boring. The whole point of storytelling is to be unexpected!” But if this is the case, why did so many people walk away from TLJ, or this past episode of GoT, feeling so unsatisfied? And why, for god’s sake, do we find ourselves constantly having this argument any time a new piece of media comes to an end?

The internet certainly provides many examples of the attitude that objection to an incongruous shock ending is somehow weak, entitled, emotional, and juvenile. There’s a sense that true fans of a franchise are tough enough to absorb an unsatisfying ending, that they actually find satisfaction from the dissatisfaction, and that to want an ending that ties up loose ends and closes character arcs (dare I say, even happily, at times) is to want one’s hand held, or to be incapable of handling nuance or bittersweetness. “Life isn’t always happy!” the internet masses cry. “Life doesn’t always make sense! Life is disappointing too! Deal with it!” But stories aren’t vegetables we’re supposed to choke down before we can leave the dinner table. The purpose of storytelling, for adults, at least, is not just to condescendingly remind the viewer that bad things happen sometimes, and force them to suck it up. Which, of course, isn’t to say that all endings have to be neat and happy, either–there are stories with dark endings that are deeply satisfying (Breaking Bad) and ones with happy endings that are deeply unsatisfying (How I Met Your Mother). There are even stories with subtle, unclear endings that still feel logical and satisfying to many viewers, albeit not all. The ending of The Sopranos, for instance was famously controversial for its ambiguity, but even this ending was tied to themes and concepts planted earlier in the series, and several perfectly cogent arguments have been written to explain this quite persuasively.

But what satisfying endings tend to have in common, that unsatisfying ones don’t, is a feeling of appropriateness and completeness. Most fans who hated the finale of How I Met Your Mother did so not because they resented that it was “happy,” but because they felt it was a 180-degree turn from the arcs of all the characters and storylines up until the last few minutes of the last episode. Conversely, people didn’t love Breaking Bad’s ending because it was “difficult” or “dark,” they loved it because it was a believable, complete, fitting ending to the story that had come before (funny enough, I would wager that more people guessed the ending of Breaking Bad than guessed the ending of How I Met Your Mother, though that’s neither here nor there). But in the current cultural environment, a person can gain quite a bit of attention for boasting that unlike those blubbering fake fans, they LIKED that this ending didn’t conclude the arcs that had built for years, didn’t pick up dropped plot threads, didn’t allow protagonists to learn anything or achieve their goals, and so on and so forth. That they, by virtue of some unspecified quality, didn’t NEED an ending like that in order to enjoy what they were watching. Do I believe people who say this? Well, maybe. Human opinions are varied, and I don’t allege some conspiracy where everyone secretly hates the same things I hate. Nonetheless, I often find a degree of disingenuousness in these statements. A good ending can be obvious, unexpected, happy, sad, or even ambiguous–but more often than not, what makes it good is that it is satisfying. And loving an ending because it is unsatisfying, because it gives the audience nothing it wants, runs counter to this instinct, like it or not.

To use one example of a satisfying ending (albeit not a true ending, since it comes in the middle installment of a trilogy), Darth Vader’s revelation that he is Luke Skywalker’s father has gone down as one of the greatest plot twists in cinema history. Indeed, if you didn’t know that a mystery like this was building, you’d never think to put the pieces together–the ominous references to Luke having “too much of his father in him” or having “much anger…like his father,” the Chekhov’s gun of Anakin’s murder that goes unaddressed throughout A New Hope, and so on. But this twist is somewhat unique in that much of the buildup to it was done retroactively. During the writing of A New Hope, there was no plan for Vader to be Luke’s father–instead, the decision was the result of looking back at what the story had built, and following it to a coherent, unexpected, yet somehow totally natural conclusion that set up compelling stakes for the subsequent chapter. That is why the Vader twist works–it wasn’t chosen purely so the audience couldn’t guess the ending of the film, it was chosen because that was a compelling direction for the story to go, because it complicated and heightened the stakes, and because it deepened the existing text through unexpected means. In other words, arguably the greatest movie twist in history wasn’t great just because it was hard to guess, it was great because of the emotional impact of looking backwards and realizing how well it fit into the framework that was already in place despite the twist being unexpected. The surprise on its own is only a surprise; the surprise filling in the blanks of the story so effectively is what makes it sublime.

So why, then, do we find ourselves sucked into a maelstrom of hot takes every time we say we dislike a shock-value ending? And why does this trend seem to have gotten so much worse in recent years?

Well, it should come as a surprise to nobody that fandom culture to begin with is notorious for the ways in which elitism, gatekeeping, and all-around dick-measuring feature in its social interactions. Anybody who’s spent time in a major fandom has undoubtedly encountered this bizarre form of competitiveness, whether it’s being quizzed by strangers on their knowledge of canon or listening to boasts of “I was into it before it was cool” that would make a Brooklyn vinyl store owner blush. What has changed in recent years is the increased integration of the larger internet into these fandoms, shifting fan discussions from the confines of in-person hangouts or small online chat rooms, into massive public forums such as Tumblr and Reddit. Suddenly, said dick-measuring is not only happening for a far larger audience (including the general public, not just hardcore fans), but likes, reblogs, gold, and upvotes actually give fans a metric by which they can “win” or “lose” these competitions, further incentivizing them as a go-to mode of interaction among fans.

Now, with longform franchises, such as Star Wars, Marvel, and Game of Thrones, this who-is-the-nerdiest-of-them-all dynamic runs headlong into another common form of fan interaction; that is, speculation. When fans of a certain TV show or film series gather together, it’s only logical that one of the main topics of discussion is what they think might happen to their favorite characters next. These two dynamics in conjunction with one another form a fertile breeding ground for the almost gladiatorial style of fan speculation we see in most major forums nowadays. One person theorizes about a certain future plot line and receives a shower of upvotes, likes, favorites, and so on. Another comes back with a biting critique, and is given even more praise. Eventually, what might otherwise be a simple discussion becomes an outright competition, complete with points and ranking systems to keep track of who is “winning.”

This paradigm, in turn, incentivizes a very specific style of speculation. If I begin telling you a story about a girl named Cinderella who lives with her wicked stepmother and two wicked stepsisters, who asks to go to the prince’s ball, and leaves a shoe behind on the steps of the palace, your inevitable prediction that the story will end with a shoe fitting and a royal wedding may be correct, but it’s hardly cause for bragging. Of course you could predict how the story would end, because the ending was obvious. However, if I gave subtle clues in my story that the ending would go a different way, and you were the only one to predict that in this version, Cinderella was actually a vampire the whole time, and the story would end with her turning all the other characters into vampires, you could get praise for your attention to detail and ability to pick up on clues others had missed in this (absolutely bonkers) adaptation of Cinderella. Those of us who have followed the Star Wars online fandom since the release of The Force Awakens will recognize this pattern of behavior, especially in the areas of Snoke’s identity and Rey’s parentage. Though most agreed immediately on the heels of TFA that Rey was heavily implied to be Luke Skywalker’s daughter (or possibly Han and Leia’s), it only took a few weeks for the tide to shift to increasingly fantastical theories. First, the relatively mundane theories that she was a Palpatine or a Kenobi, then the slightly more perplexing suggestions that she was a Lars or Naberrie, and eventually theories that she was an immaculately conceived Force baby, or a clone, or a reincarnation of Padme Amidala.

The simplest explanation for this progression is just that people get bored of talking about obvious theories and want to mix things up with more unusual “what if” scenarios. But it’s hard to ignore the way that the competitive nature of social media fandom fosters this paradigm as well. Like someone betting on horse races, the lower the odds, the higher the reward and the sweeter the victory. Guessing that Rey is Luke Skywalker’s daughter, immediately after The Force Awakens, would be like guessing that the story of Cinderella ends with a wedding–yes, you’re likely right, but so is any schlub off the street who watched the movie once and made an idle guess. However, if you guess that Rey is the reincarnation of Padme Amidala, conceived through the Force, and you’re right, you may well be treated as some sort of prophet. Cue the showers of fake internet points.

I should be clear here–I don’t think there is anything wrong with wanting to guess the right answer to a mystery, or come up with a particularly clever solution to a problem that nobody else has thought of before. To the contrary, these are very normal human desires, ones that anyone who follows my writing knows that I myself engage in. The problem is, again, that this incentive to up the stakes of speculation with increasingly nonsensical, out-of-left-field proposals, purely to outdo others, makes it so that cohesive storytelling without shock value is stigmatized in fandom discussions. Which, of course, makes it harder to call content out for being unsatisfying without being accused of being childish, unsophisticated, or foolish. And so, we wind up in a self-perpetuating cycle. When we set up a paradigm where guessing the plot of a story is a competition, any predictable, reasonable, ho-hum answer becomes “too easy.” We expect content creators to structure their stories to make our guessing games harder, because after all, what’s the point of consuming media if the sweetness of “victory” is undercut by a simple, obvious answer? And if setting up these unexpected endings comes at the expense of a satisfying story, the response from many fans is “so be it.”

Which brings us to an even more pressing issue: the actual impact this discourse has on media itself. Content creators are praised by this subset of fans for creating endings that viewers didn’t expect, because, as established, this style of writing enriches the “game” that they play with one another in various forums. Consequently, fans begin to assume it is in longform media writers’ best interest to structure stories this way–to build a story that seems as though it will go one way, only to pull a U-turn at the last minute just to ensure nobody guessed the ending. Fan discourse, in other words, is normalizing bait-and-switching as a core pillar of storytelling, rather than one of many techniques writers can use to build a compelling story. And, as more people who came of age in the internet era grow up to become content creators themselves, I fear that this recent spate of shock-value media is going to become more of a trend than an aberration. Much has been said about the internet creating political echo chambers, but so too can it create artistic ones–and without dissenting opinions at the table, those reverberations will only get stronger.

So, am I advocating that people fearlessly defend “predictable” storytelling in its common connotation of “boring” and “unoriginal?” Of course not. But even if a story isn’t predictable, an audience member with a keen eye, a good instinct, and some time and attention, should in theory be able to predict it. It shows that the writer has put thought into foreshadowing, thematic congruence, consistency of character and motivation, and overall cohesion. Great, surprising endings are not created by building false decoys of these things. Instead, they’re created by rendering them subtly, slipping them in under the audience’s nose so they’re not aware of a surprise building; or sprinkling in deceptively contradicting information so the audience has to struggle to reconcile these conflicts in their minds. To expand upon a metaphor from our own HypersonicHarpist, a good storyteller–like a good magician–may disguise what they are doing with sleight of hand and misdirection, but ultimately they don’t stop mid-act, set down the hat and wand, and then pull a rabbit out of a nearby air duct vent instead. Put quite simply, we are hard-wired to want stories that leave us feeling satisfied. And the beauty is, we all have different ideas of what that looks like–that’s where good, productive discussion comes in.

But when we let disingenuous, performative internet groupthink make us doubt our instincts that something is amiss, for fear of appearing uncultured or childish, we do ourselves and our media a disservice. Bad-faith criticisms of “predictable” story arcs have poisoned fan discourse to the point where even genuine appreciation for certain shocking endings are drowned out in the cacophony of hot takes. And until more people begin to honestly admit it when they don’t see the Emperor’s new clothes, discussions on media will remain that way. As fans in the age of the internet, we have unprecedented voice and access to content creators, and more tools at our disposal to create content ourselves than any generation before us. Now more than ever, the way we talk about media guides media. It’s up to each of us to make sure we have a voice in that conversation.

[lo-fipopculture-blog]

Cody’s Top 10 of 2017

By Cody Lunsford

In 2016, I did a very bad job of watching movies. I only saw FOUR of the movies nominated for best picture. 2017 was VERY different. I’ve seen every movie nominated for best picture. I saw a grand total of 107 movies released in 2017, plus all of the older movies that I watched this year.

There were a lot of factors that came together to create this surge in movie watching. (1). I got MoviePass. Chad’s written about how valuable of a service it is and it’s absolutely true. I’m able to see so much more in theatres now because I’m not breaking the bank to do so. It also makes me feel less bad about seeing movies that seem like they’re obviously bad. (2). I got Netflix DVD. “What is this: 2006?!” I hear you saying. But it’s actually been a great service. Obviously there’s lots of stuff that’s on streaming services, but there’s also quite a bit that isn’t which is why it’s great to get the DVDs (as a supplement to streaming of course. Still got have that Netflix/Hulu/Amazon/HBO Go cocktail). Netflix DVD tends to get newer movies before streaming services, in addition to having some older, harder-to-find stuff. (3). I got more active on Letterboxd. It is, without a doubt, my favorite social media platform. For those of you who don’t know, it’s a way to log movies as you watch them and share your thoughts on the movies, see what your friends are watching and their thoughts on movies, and make lists, which made making this top 10 list an easy task since I’ve been working on it all year. (4). I started a movie podcast with my friends. It’s called Best Pictures and our goal is to find the best movie for every year we’ve been alive. Yes, this is a plug, but it’s also definitely a reason why I watched a ton of movies this year. I had to keep up with my co-hosts and sound like I knew what I was talking about.

That’s why I watched so many, but now let’s get into what movies topped the list. It may seem weird that a “best of the previous year” list isn’t coming out until mid-February, but I wanted to make sure that I had seen everything that might would make my list. Let’s begin with some honorable mentions.

HONORABLE MENTIONS (#35 - #11)

#35. Darkest Hour, #34. Molly’s Game, #33. It Comes at Night, #32. Logan Lucky, #31. Okja, #30. War for the Planet of the Apes, #29. Baby Driver, #28. American Made, #27. Thor: Ragnorak, #26. Good Time, #25. Spider-Man: Homecoming, #24. Ingrid Goes West, #23. Annabelle: Creation, #22. Coco, #21. Detroit, #20. Alien: Covenant, #19. Blade Runner 2049. #18. Mudbound, #17. Brigsby Bear, #16. I, Tonya, #15. Star Wars: The Last Jedi, #14. The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected), #13. Phantom Thread, #12. Your Name, #11. The Florida Project.

Look. 2017 ruled, film wise. It’s hard to narrow down stuff that I really liked. Now to top #10.

#10. Super Dark Times

Super Dark Times was a bit of a surprise for me. I watched it when it came on Netflix and was instantly blown away, realizing that I may be watching a new cult classic in the making a la Donnie Darko. It’s tense and horrifying and completely grabs your attention from the very opening of the film. It’s the type of movie that make your eyes grow wider and wider with each passing scene. The only thing that I’m unsure about when it comes to Super Dark Times is it’s ending, though that also adds to its likelihood to attain cult status, as it’s the type of ending that can debated and discussed for hours.

#9. Raw

Raw isn’t easy to watch. It’s about a vet student who develops a taste for human flesh. With a premise like that, it’s obviously going to lead to some gnarly scenes. But the beauty of Raw lies in how much the film elevates what could be a schlocky b-horror movie premise. Raw isn’t just about cannibalism, it’s also about finding yourself at college. It’s also about how your family still has a giant influence on you even when you leave them. It’s also at times about the special bond that siblings have. And yes, it’s also about eating people.  

#8. Logan

The best superhero film of the year and arguably one of the best ever made. It’s brutal and rough, yet contains one of the strongest emotional threads I’ve seen in superhero movie. Hugh Jackman gives a performance as Logan that is completely unique to this film, yet doesn’t feel disingenuous to the iterations of Wolverine that we’ve seen before. Dafne Keen is a revelation as X-23, portraying just how tough a kid has to be in this grimy future. It’s incredible that despite me not being the biggest fan of the X-Men franchise as a whole, especially the last few, that this movie can still swoop in and hit me like a ton of bricks. There’s not many superhero movies I’ve cried during. This is one of them.

#7. The Post

It’s hard to imagine a world in which this movie would be bad. With the all-star team up of Steven Spielberg, Meryl Streep, and Tom Hanks (and that’s not even counting the insane roster of supporting actors), there was no doubt in my mind that this would be excellent. It’s the type of movie that makes you want to stand up and cheer at people who persist until they win. It has incredible scenes that make your heart race, such as when Bob Odenkirk goes to get the Pentagon Papers and the later scene when Tom Hanks’s team sorts through the documents. It also has little Spielberg touches, such as a little girl making a killing selling lemonade to the team, that tie the whole thing together and make it feel human.

#6. The Big Sick

I’ve known who Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon are for many years from following the LA comedy scene so it has filled me with absolute joy to see a film that they wrote, based on their real life experiences, be such a hit this year and get Oscar attention in addition to being well-liked. It’s a rom-com that defies some standard rom-com tropes and offers a unique love story that we’ve never before seen on film. The movie also does right by Emily’s parents, played by Holly Hunter and Ray Romano doing some of their best work. Instead of making them obstacles in the way of the romance, it fleshes out these characters and Kumail’s relationship with them. It’s such a brilliant twist on the rom-com formula to have Emily’s parents be on board with Kumail before Emily herself is.

#5. Dunkirk

Finally, some recognition for Christopher Nolan (though before this, the last movie of his that I loved completely was The Dark Knight.) This is a war movie that is done in a way I’ve never seen a war movie been done before. It features Nolan’s trademark fascination with messing around with timelines, intercutting between storylines that take place over a week, a day, and a hour respectively, before finally culminating together. It’s tense and fast-paced. You barely get to know any of the characters’ names, which actually works to drive the idea that Nolan is presenting home. This could be anyone’s story of war, it doesn’t matter the specifics.

#4. It

Stephen King is probably my favorite author. I’m a huge fan of things that are spooky and I’ve always loved that in his stories, he’s able to make you care deeply about the characters as well as scare the hell out of you. It’s been awhile since we’ve had a mind blowingly good film adaptation of a Stephen King movie and It definitely reached that status. Bill Skarsgard as Pennywise the Clown is unsettling, yet still somewhat funny. The scares are unique and terrifying. The kids are so damn good. It’s a mammoth book and the way that this adaptation streamlined or cut things out was masterful. I feel like this may be one of the movies on this list that I revisit the most.

#3. Get Out

I’m sure you’ve gotten the idea already that I’m a big fan of horror films. And while It showed what the big blockbuster version of a horror movie could be (and let’s still be clear, the blockbuster version of a horror movie still has a much smaller budget than other blockbusters), Get Out offers how effective a small budget horror movie could be. It also came in and demanded that horror being taken seriously, becoming the first horror film to be nominated for Best Picture since The Silence of the Lambs, though there’s definitely an argument to be made that particular film is more of a thriller. That would make Get Out even more impressive, making it the only horror movie nominated since The Exorcist. Regardless of how you define other movies or how long it’s been, there’s no arguing that Get Out is impressive, especially considering it’s Jordan Peele’s directorial debut. I’m fascinated to see where he goes next.

#2. Lady Bird

It would’ve been hard for me to hate this movie. It’s funny, it’s coming of age, it’s got scenes of musical theatre. Every character in this film is completely realized and painfully authentic. Every funny moment in the film feels real. The relationships that Lady Bird has, with her mother, with her first loves, with her best friend, with her dad, with her brother, are completely relatable and speak to that unsureness, yet complete brazen confidence that comes with being a senior in high school. The throughline of being ashamed of where you came from, yet proud once you’ve left is especially poignant as someone who left a small town to go to college. The realization that your parents are just people and that despite you feeling frustrated and suffocated, they want the best for you, is a hard thing to grapple with and this movie handles it beautifully.

#1. The Shape of Water

“HAHA, that’s that movie where a girl bangs a fish, right?” I mean...yes. But the beauty of The Shape of Water to me is that particular moment doesn’t really even feel that weird. The film instantly immerses you in a storybook world set within a version of the 1960s that isn’t quite true to life. It’s a fairy tale, through and through, complete with a musical daydream, a frog prince, a princess who’s been struck by some “curse”, and a villain who is literally rotten. There’s a lot of arguments that this movie is a bit simplistic or things move at an accelerated rate and to that I say: it’s a storybook. It’s not real. It is meant to feel fantastical and not grounded. It looks gorgeous, performances are phenomenal, and you feel the love put into this production in every scene. I love it.

For more on my thoughts about these, and other movies, listen to the latest episode of Best Pictures where we have the FIRST ANNUAL PICKIES to nominate OUR best of the year.

[seekeroftruthpromestein]

Alright. Lets check out Ladies Village. Going around first to see some things before hand. 

That’s actually incredibly comforting. Its nice to know that, and my Morales are consistent. 

Let’s check out Luddite real quick.

Interesting. So she’s the one who has been writing help messages. I really feel for this girl. I wanna pat her. 

Here at Lady’s village. It seems like we already know two things. A) That this place is filled with Monsters because Alice is more helpful.  And B) A group of adventures left after some incident with a bunch of dead humans. 

That’s good to know. 

Oooh? New continent! New Continent! 

....Southeast you say? 

Me and Me are on the same page about Me. 

Dammit VN Luka and Alice. Teaching your daughter how to be badass. Though,  I suppose this is good for us so. Good job?

So yeah. This place needs to die too. I get that they’ve stopped so, F+ I guess, but still. 

Setouchi Body! 

Horray! I can fulfill my dreams and destroy this place! 

Here’s something that i’m realizing. The game very rarely addresses Alice. Because her existence is shared with Ilias. She becomes unimportant to the plot because they both have to fill the same role. Its typically your “mass effect dialog” problem. Where any party member who gets addressed will always be addressed vaugly (with a few notable exceptions). It does well in making the illusion that they are there, which is good. But once you see past it, it feels disingenuous. 

Neris for example has said nothing to Alice the entire time and is instead interested in getting to know Luka. Now, this *COULD* be explained that Luka has died in her universe and she already clearly knows her, but its still rather awkward that she doens’t address it. 

So. Any time she is addressed is a treat.

This line however continues, and its clear it can go two ways. “Fufu the former Goddess looks like a total disgrace”. 

You know what? As I say that, it is unfair to look at the strings, especially when i’m only seeing one. Like I said, its so rare that Alice is part of the plot at all, I should just be happy she’s an entity at all. 

I’m reminded of a story with a stage play about a man going to assemble an old band of his with his girlfriend. His girlfriend in the play the entire time and it turns out at the end that she was dead the whole time. Hints being that none of the other band members ever looked at her or addressed her. 

I think, if you ever find yourself writing for something, you should avoid that at all times. Having the entire world revovle around your protagonist can be very empty. 

Which, this game avoids narrowly by having the characters talk to each other plenty often. While I am coming off this with the rant that Alice rarely gets addressed in the story proper despite being an important focal point, the rest of the game does a nice job trying to have your party talk to each other, and having enough conversations that it can really be interesting. Having them have their own lives and hobbies and such. 

Anyway! Let’s get back to the game. We’re playing Spider’s Parlor and the fly. 

I guess the fly eats the Spider in this story though.

You two are lucky to be alive. I’m sure if Ilias was here she’d flat out tell you you should be dead.

Considering how much else this game blatantly stole. I’m gonna go on a limb and say that this was inspired by Majin Buu. 

Sonya. Have you not been paying attention? That’s all we DO. Get involved with the power struggle of others. 

So join her then? 

Yeah. That’s a bit hard to forgive. 

Good. I’ll go inform the grieving mother of the son that you ate last year who still is pacing eagerly for her son to come home...

God I made that dark. But I just got off the coat tails of the game pushing a really serious topic, its a bit hard to get into the “lol eating people” mindset. Like. Those are two entirely diffrent tones that you can’t merge. 

Anyway. Yada yada. Beat up Majin Buu or whatever on the mountain. Got it. 

I love that it definitely feels like the writers just realized that they pretty well depicted the horrors of rape so they are now doing everything they can to remove the casual instances. Because yeah, between Luddite, Witch village, and Succubus Village plots. The game really pushed that the, what should be obvious lesson, that rape is bad.  A lesson I feel shouldn’t be needed, but considering who this game is for, definitely glad they are including it. 

In many ways, it feels like a disclaimer. “Listen. We know that you’re probably someone who actually wants this to happen to you, considering your playing the game. So here’s the deal. It’ll pretty much only happen to you. Which in some ways makes it consensual because you’re playing it.. And the POV is clearly male oriented.” (The Male Oriented POV does actually annoy me though, as a girl playing this game, I wanna see some ladies moan and have a good time dammit! Not just be there to satisfy the guy!). 

Anyway! I’m getting REALLY offtrack a lot. Let’s continue. 

You know what. Despite my rant earlier. This is actually a little better. I mean, its horrifying if you think about it. But it actually brushes against comedic sociopathy. 

There’s nothing funny about leading men and getting eaten. And i’m sure if you thought about this it is horrifying. But the casual way she says it, it makes it funny. Its still horrifying and because i’m still in a serious mood from earlier makes me cock an eyebrow. But its handled at least a little better.

So yeah. If this place was more of this it would be at least nicer. Though I still think these people should die. 

I hate these designs so much. Slapping a girls head on a monster isn’t sexy! It’s weird! look! just take off the head and it would be a lot better! As of now, do you know what it actually reminds me of? Do you! It reminds me of this game right here! 

Let me guess. “But wait! you have the wrong idea! I was doing good! They were bad! Here’s a complicated social trolly problem with no right answers! for you to pick!” 

Okay good. We’re going simple. 

Looking at her form. I can already guess what her “deal” is. God. Vore machine going on over here. 

You know... I don’t... NORMALLY much thought in capturing these fights. Because normally nothing happens. So. Okay. She devours Alice? Mkay. I’ll just have Promestein Reviv- wait. Where is she? Chrome came up and took her place! I didn’t even REALIZE that was a mechanic! She was just eaten! She’s gone! Like! What the hell! That’s weird! That’s horrifying! 

I guess now that we won she got spat out. 

SOMEONE has a De-aging fetish. 

You’ve successfully hooked me. 

Considering how late it is I better go to sleep. However. Next time...

[rallyanime-blog]

Dragon Maids

In which Miss Kobayashi finds her answer.

Dragon Maid has, for better or for worse, been the starling of the season in no doubt because of its surface level appeal.

However, the really great thing about this show has been in the little details.

Firstly, Kyoto Animation, like always, brings their A game to deliver an anime that is spectacular on a production level. With episodes done weeks in advance in no part because of KyoAni’s exceptional production organization- the show suffers from no supposed ‘QUALITY’ with a palpable level of polish visible in the visuals.

The backgrounds in particular are a sight to behold as well as the abundant usage of flashy effects animation and visual flair utilized as for KyoAni to simply flex their muscles. The character animation is in particular excellent.

More specifically, detailed and intricate character animation bring COOL’s designs to stunning life, personifying both the bubbliness of his humor and narrative whilst also retaining a very delicate human touch to the characters. This show is absolutely brimming with character and emotion as a result. However, it is the directing that I applaud the most.

The directing this series takes can swing dramatically depending on the mood and episode director in charge of crafting this mood. Once again, KyoAni provides directors that are able to reliably depict the emotions and tone that the characters are feeling at any given moment with deft precision. Like the animation, the direction puts careful emphasis to keep the characters in the scene at the centerpiece and build upon it to craft the overall desired atmosphere. This is in no way unique to the studio as KyoAni has proven time and time again to be the masters at utilizing and mastering this style as evidenced by their past work.

I also need to mention that this show is very much a comedy show. KyoAni pulls a Nichijou/ Lucky Star and is not hesitant in the slightest to quickly cut near randomly between different gags and scenes for undetermined amounts of time in the name of comedy. Of course, like Nichijou, it works wonders to maintain a very high level of energy. I am surprised more comedies (especially ones based on 4koma) do not utilize this.

The music itself was also amazing. Moreover, I was shocked by how front and center the OST was presented at times. In some moments, it almost overtook the voice acting. It really helped to amplify the emotions being felt by the characters as well as greatly enhance the overall atmosphere of the particular scene. It helps to spur the audience’s emotions.

The voice work in this show can also not be underestimated. Each character has a distinct voice actor who really makes their personality shine. Special shout out to Mutsumi Tamara for her phenomenal work as Kobayashi herslef. 

A common theme in this post seems to be the characters. This is because Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid is exclusively a character driven narrative comedy. Although I have my reservations about some characters (as will be discussed further down) the show makes it explicitly clear that these characters are the main selling point of the story. Although I am hesitant to say that every single character is entirely unique nor complex save for a couple, it would be disingenuous to imply that they are in any way boring.

The important aspect of these characters are that in my opinion they are very distinct. Each has a simple yet recognizable design and each is equally zany and quirky. More importantly, it is their interactions with one another that truly sell their character. Each dragon is paired with a corresponding human (Poor Elma...). In addition, each dragon and each human has a different relation with atleast one other chracter in the show (Such as Kobayashi and Takiya or Tohru and Lucoua) Therefore, everyone is effectively a duo or trio in some capacity. Thus, it is somewhat unfair to take evaluate these characters on an individual scale (Except maybe for Kobayashi and Tohru)  when they are better suited to being taken as a whole.

That being said, let us take a closer look at some of the good and the bad of these dynamics.

Kobayashi, Tohru, and Kanna

The absolute heart and soul of the work. Two lesbian moms and their adoptive daughter could never before have been so endearing! Even though both Kobayashi and maybe Tohru could stand alone on their individual complexity itself, it is when they are together and with Kanna do the slight nuances of their relationship really begin to make themselves known. 

As comfy as these interactions are, they reveal to the audience a lot of their respective characters. Tohru and Kobayashi are to some degree dependent on one another and rely on each other for assistance. Kanna, as their surrogate daughter, serves a a vehicle to explore the implications of human and dragon coexistence and how Tohru and Kobayashi learn about such coexistance through the daughter they raise together. Not to mention, it is cute as hell.

Takiya and Fafnir

What I consider to be the second best relationship in the show. Much like the aforementioned trio, Takiya and Fafnir serve better as a duo whose relationship is a bit more subtle and shows a very different side to human and dragon coexistence. Their interactions are often more subtle and shorter as to to imply that although they are most likely too embarrassed/prideful to admit openly about their relationship, they most definitely make a good pair. Their less like a family and more like roommates; which is indeed a different side to the human and dragon relationship. 

Nontheless, the two indeed have each others back even if they are not quite as reliant on one another as the main trio. Although I don’t believe Takiya and Fafnir are quite fleshed out enough to stand on their own, their relationship is incredibly genuine and always an absolute pleasure to watch two bros be bros.

Lucoa and Tohru / Kobayashi and Takiya

Somewhat underrated interactions. Both of these relationships are ones of friendship and being supports to one another. Both are relationships between the same species and these types are important to have to implement a greater level of complexity to the narrative as sometimes dragons are want to seek advice from other dragons and humans to humans. Sometimes it is nice to have someone whom you can rely on outside of your immediate housing situation.

Kanna and Saikawa

The first of my small problems with the show. Kanna and Saikawa tended to unfortunately always present and end themselves the same way. Not to mention that these characters don’t really compliment each other that well. I understand that this is symbolic of the fact that dragons and humans are not pre-built to dislike one another but that doesn’t change the fact that these little comedy moments didn’t really add much for me in the long run.

Lucoa and Shouta

The second of my complaints. Like Kanna and Saikawa, Shouta and Lucoa did not do much for me. They also suffered the same fate of always falling into the same comedy shtick devoid of any furtherment of the characters. Its just the same joke (Aside from that one bean throwing bit and of course WORLD CLASS). Its just boobs my man.

Elma and ?????

Elma suffers the most from the show. Her introductory episode was legitimately hilarious and really energetic (Although it could be argued that it was just Kobayashi and Tohru that carried the show like usual). After that, however, she was just kind of there. This is in no doubt attributed to the fact that she was introduced over midway into he show and she just wasn’t allowed enough screen time to truly be given development or a good dynamic. Its just food my gal.

Aside from these, the only other improvement I could manage would be to employ a greater versatility in the character interactions. What I mean by this is to have every single character have a unique relationship with every other character in the show (ie. Lucoua had a unique with Kanna, Elma, Fafnir, Koabayshi, Takiya.. etc.).

Although this is an extraordinarly difficult feat to do in a mere 13 episodes and even then most (99.9%) shows just stick to 1-2 unique interactions for each character save for maybe the main.

However, it can be done to a damn near perfect extent (see Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun). But, I do concede that this is an unreasonable request.

The Last Episode

Damn that took a long time.

Surprisingly enough, there really isn’t much for me to say about the last episode of Maid Dragon.

What I will say is that it is a fitting conclusion that brings the character development of Kobayashi and Tohru full circle. It can not be understated how great of a character Kobayashi is. In fact, I would wager she is the best character in the whole damn show. Her subtle but meaningful growth as a person who can actually open up and rely on others is such a touching and endearing story. We, like Koboyashi, grow accustomed to the wacky everyday shenanigans of the maid dragons and begin to rely on them.

Thus, when the good times and comedy are abruptly taken away from us ala Tohru, it hits hard. Really hard. 

Although Kobayashi remains straight faced, how hurt she is can not be communicated enough. The obvious mental baggage that also makes the apartment a mess communicate more than enough to the audience that Kobayashi is deeply troubled and damaged by Tohru’s somber departure (She didn’t even say goodbye!). This is why her standing up for Tohru is so cathartic. The introverted office lady who has trouble opening up her emotions declares her absolute faith and love in Tohru. Truly breathtaking.

This is not to mention Tohru’s own arc throughout the story. Her insecurity as a dragon who can stay by Kobayashi’s side are made readily apparent in the opening minutes. This is compounded by her blind obedience to her father’s wishes and warnings.

Ultimately, it is she who must decide what she wants and carves a path out for herself. This was no doubt instigated with Kobayashi’s assistance and her finally standing up to her father to protect what she loves.

This is when the sun returns and happy times can continue (Not for the viewer sadly.

My closing thoughts on this show are that Miss Kobayashi’s Maid Dragon is a delightfully rich comedy that hides a genuinely human (ironic I know) desire to fit in yet retaining one’s self identify and carving out a future for oneself.

I look forward to both KyoAni’s future work as well as COOL’s fantastic manga.

[meowsaidmayaanime]

Spring Simulcasts of 2016

Very simple, a list of currently simulcasting anime that I am watching, and how much I recommend them~

Assassination Classroom

I recommend the HELL out of this anime!! It's a must see for anyone and everyone. The show officially ended this spring with two full seasons (season one at 22 episodes and season two at 25). Wow, was it amazing.

A mysterious government made creature blows up the moon and threatens to destroy the earth one year from now. His only request to stop his from reaping havoc is to teach a third year middle school class. His wish is granted, and the students of the class are charged by the government to try to assassinate him before they graduate the next spring.

It already sounds ridiculous, and I was really surprised about what was going when one of my friends showed me the first episode. But this is really well done. The creature, named Koro-sensei turns out to be incredibly good at teaching, and while the students are being taught ways to assassinate him, they also learn from Koro-Sensei and their fellow classmates important life lessons and personal growth.

The show is hilarious, and despite having over 20 characters, the show is able to give each character a unique personality and personal development. Its the best large-cast anime I have ever seen.

I don't really have too much in way of faults either. The show is able to balance the serious alongside the humor of the situation. Occasionally crazy events would happen that would seen way out of place in any other anime. But because the situation with Koro-Sensei is so strange already, in the end, nothing feels out of place.  Even character that I hated, I grew to love as I watched them grow and learn.

The only problem I have, is that the dub is terrible. Koro-Sensei and the main character Nagisa, who occasionally does narrations because we watch everything unfold through his eyes, have terrible dubs. Koro-Sensei, while already sounding goofy in Japanese, sounds even more ridiculous in English. At least in the Japanese version Koro-Sensei actually sounds menacing when he's supposed to be, not to much in the English dub. And the voice actor for Nagisa sounds like he's try to hard to voice him, and just sounds too disingenuous.

Great anime, I would recomend this to anyone,  just don't watch it dubbed.

Haven't You Heard? I'm Sakamoto

A perfect parody of the typical 'cool guy' archetype, a must watch~ Its about this high school boy named Sakamoto (if you haven't guessed) who is the epitome of 'cool' and everything he does is stylish, that's how they describe it in the show. Its a great slightly exaggerated natural slice of life. There really is nothign more to say about this show than the fact that I highly recommend this. It is fabulous, if you do nothing else, watch the first episode!

Sailor Moon Crystal Season 3

Season three was great! they finally introduced Uranus and Mercury who I always wanted to more of in the original run.

If you weren't already aware, Sailor Moon Crystal is a re-boot of the original 90's series made to exclusively follow the manga. Where the 90's series was full of filler content with very few plot pertinent episodes. It made itself more available to children than to the young adult demographic that the manga originally was.

That being said Sailor Moon Crystal is much more serious and surprisingly dark. Here we get to see exactly what everyone's past is and learn more about the the villains themselves. It is incredibly well done, each season tackling a different story arch.

The third season introduced a new villain Master Pharaoh 90 as well as the Professor who, unlike in the 90's series, is his underling. The professor has a significantly different story, including the significance of who his daughter is to the sailor scouts.

I would recommend you give Crystal a  shot, especially if you grew up watching the 90's version like I did. I love Sailor Moon, it holds a very special place in my heart, and being able to see the canonical story is amazing.

Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World

A very good anime, main character Subaru suddenly finds himself mysteriously transported to another world, finds himself in a few sticky situations, and manages to make new friends in the process. While trying to help the girl who saved him find her stolen insignia we learn a little more about the world we and Subaru were so rudely dropped into, and about a mysterious power that surrounds Subaru's sudden summoning to the new world.

So far it is incredibly good, the main character is really likable and you get to watch him start to change as a person as well and many different sides to the other characters around him. I won't say too much as I believe it would be spoiling a little bit of the anime, but it is definitely one you should give a shot.

This anime will be extending into the summer simulcasts as a full 25 episode season rather than the typical 12 episodes. So I will reserve the rest of my judgment in my Summer Simulcast list when it has finished!

Bungo Stray Dogs

This show is great. It has magical abilities, detective work, mafia, and LOTS of dark comedy. I love it! Its like a vague mix of Sherlock and Charlotte, but at times darker. The season is extending into the summer being released as a full season of episodes rather than those dumb 12 episode half seasons. So with that said, I will finish my opinion when it has ended. But for now, I highly recommend watching it!!!

Flying Witch

This one is super cute. It is a slice of life about a young witch who moves in with her cousins family in the country to further her witch training. Here we follow her daily life as a low-key witch.

There is no over arching plot to this anime, and while it is a slice of life its very laid back and fun. Being able to see a new aspect of the witch community is a very realistic way. The best part is that the familiars don't talk! I can't begin to say how annoying it is when an anime character is given an animal side-kick with an annoying personality AND an annoying voice.  The familiars is this show are wonderful and given realistic and charming personalities. They are able to communicate with the witches, but not through a human language. The familiars understand English but speak their natural language as an animal and only the witches are able to understand through it.

If you want a cute anime to relax with, this is the one for you.

Bakuon!! 

Bakuon!! is a comedy slice of life school anime about an all female high school's motorcycle club. Here we follow the lives of the students as they gain more members, watch the newbies learn to drive and purchase their own bike, and follow their adventures. It is absolutely hilarious and simply pure fun.

Unfortunately there isn't much more for me to say about, being a slice of life without a story arch. If you love the genre, definitely give this one a go, you will love it.

Twin Star Exorcists

This anime is just weird. I have a soft spot for exorcist shows but this one is sort of all over the place. It is extending into the summer simulcasts with a full season. It starts out as being about two young exorcists in training who are revealed as the 'twin star exorcists'. A legendary pair of exorcists who are destined to bring a miko into the world who will defeat the 'demons' they fight. It very quickly became a fighting, exorcist, drama, romance, action anime, which is a weird combination of genres. I'm not sure how I feel about this anime either. I supposed I'm rather 'in the middle' with this one, it's not good, it's not bad, but I want to keep watching it. It's still amusing, just so far not something I would openly recommend to anyone... I'll give my final opinion after its finished airing.

Joker Game

This show is about a secret spy organization that was created in Japan between the first and second world wars, and follows the tasks of various spies. Its a well done series, but because I was watching it as a simulcast and because by episode 8, almost every episode worked as a stand alone. So because of that, I wasn't highly anticipating the next episode at the end of every week. I do intend to continue watching this. especially now that all the spring simulcasts I've been watching are over. Though it may be a while until I continue it again.

Tonkatsu DJ Agetaro

This is an... interesting one. At about 10 minutes to each episode, its more of a carton in the american sense than it is an anime in the more common sense... if you get what I mean. It's a very stylized story about a boy who works at his families Tonkatsu house and becomes a DJ. It's relatively well done, but just isn't my kind of show. Personally I lost interest fairly early and stopped watching it, but I know of a few people who really enjoy it. It's not bad, just not my thing.

The Lost Village

The lost village starts off following a bus load of people who want to leave their current lives and start anew in a mysterious isolated village where no one from the modern society can find them. It's an interesting anime apart of the horror genre the first episode seemed really good, but it gets tiring quickly. Especially since every single episode after the first seems to end on incredibly enormous cliff hangers. Its hard to pin point why it was disappointing as  the episodes went on, perhaps its because so much happens in every episode, or the majority of the characters are not very likable, or the fact that every single character has a hard/traumatizing back story, and there are 37 characters! Not to mention that they tend to gang up on each other, do crazy things and occasionally follow the mob mentality.

In the end I lost interest and stopped watching it, maybe I'll finish the episodes in the future? Probably not though. It just got very tiresome and I'm sick of the forced tension caused by the endless cliffhangers...

Anne-Happy

This show is just moe upon moe. Its a slice of life following five incredibly unlucky girls as they attend high school. If fact they are so unlucky that the highschool has a designated "happiness class" for about 30 or so unlucky students, where in addition to taking regular classes, they take special classes in order to make the students less unlucky and be able to find happiness despite their luck. Its very cute, and I watched most of it, however I was mostly watching it with my friend, and since we are so behind on our anime we decided to finish all the spring simulcasts on our own so we can get started with a couple summer ones. It's not a bad anime, just too much moe, and no real plot.