#its a surprisingly large group despite the similarities between the two characters

[astrababyy]

After I sent the ask I had a thought. There is no basis for Feysand when Feyre couldn’t even freely give Rhysand her own name, he had to forcibly take it. And if that’s not an allegory for abuse, then I don’t know what is.

YES THANK YOU ANON

there literally aren't words to describe just how abusive the relationship between feyre and rhysand is, and just how bad it is.

note: relationships in books are allowed to be complex and toxic. i'm not saying they can't be. i, and most other antis, believe that it's not a good message to send that your books expand on abuse and have a serious take on that topic when the endgame couple is literally worse than the former. even if you ignore all the terrible messages it could be giving to impressionable readers (because there is a halfway decent argument to be made that people aren't often taking their life advice from stories, except that many do when it preaches as a gospel towards feminism), it's just bad writing in general, and people who paid for this story and gave money to the author are allowed to criticize it. that's a perfectly valid thing to do.

the entire basis of feysand's relationship is built on the fact that rhysand had to force, gaslight, and control her into everything for a major portion of their beginning relationship. at first, feyre literally wouldn't do anything involving him unless he took it by force. the only time in the first book where she willingly accepts his help is in the second task. other than that, feyre spends that entire time being forced against her will into doing things for his bidding, his agenda.

in the second book, the first few times she spends in the night court are of her being gaslit into fear and doing what he wants her to do. i mean... "i know you"?? really?? this man does NOT know shit about her, and that's literally one of the most stereotypical things gaslighters say lmao.

and then there’s the whole controlling that constantly goes on throughout their relationship. rhysand is always controlling the way feyre goes through things. acosf is the key example of him doing this — taking away her bodily autonomy and not giving her a choice in what happens to a child that’s going to kill her is absolutely insane. the sad part is that this is completely in character for rhysand too. he would ABSOLUTELY do this, and this doesn’t break the character that’s been established. just because we’re not seeing it through feyre’s rose-colored glasses that are always defending and excusing him doesn’t mean that isn’t the absolute truth.

from the very beginning to the bitter end, feysand always has been and always will be a horrifically terrible relationship. nothing and no one can say anything that’s going to convince me of otherwise, and the fact that this series preaches itself to be a feminist series is genuinely insane. there’s nothing wrong with writing dark romance or having toxic relationships, but do not market your story as anything but that, especially when you’re audience isn’t for adults. there’s absolutely nothing wrong with having or liking dark romance, but it’s just piss poor writing to pretend that it’s anything but. 

[cc-sketchbook]

Y’all like Monsters? I hope you do because that’s what I did this week! 8D  So I have a comic I’ve been writing for a bit called “Monster” (which I will put a link to as a comment in the notes because Tumblr is weird about links to things...) and one of the things I like to do is take characters from things I like and turn them into well, monsters! Since I’ve been on an Invader Zim kick for a while I thought it was about time to do some for them! I even did a process video for it!

I ALSO wrote some neat little dossiers for each one past the “keep reading” :D hope you all enjoy them!

Vorare-Schism (Zim)

Size Rating: Titan (more than 5 stories tall)

Danger Rating: Apocalyptic (even a momentary manifestation of this monster causes natural disaster level damage)

Minions: yes

Nest: unknown

Vocalizations: Makes sounds like distorted or corrupted audio; resembles laughing, crying, or screaming. Accompanied by additional sounds similar to recordings of "space sounds".

Behavior: Roaming/Aggressive

When manifested this creature seeks to consume all matter in its path, appearing to prefer organic matter and man-made structures/objects. It seizes its targets with mechanical-like tentacles and "feeds" them to the mouth like opening in its central mass. It has been reported by magical girls who have survived an encounter with this creature that they find it difficult to look away from the "mouth" and that they experience a feeling of being "drawn in". These reports correspond with those that human and animal victims who make eye contact with the creature do not move or offer up any kind of resistance to it. Once enough matter has been consumed it "regurgitates" it in the form of a much smaller minion, bearing a strong resemblance to the "body" structure attached to it's "head". These minions are tethered to the main creature via cable like tendrils. Their main purpose seems to be to disable or kill anything not dominated by their master. This creature has been seen to move in a somewhat erratic direction as though searching for something. The only deviation from this behavior is when it is confronted by the creature labeled Tinnebriel, whereupon the two will fight until Vorare-Schism eventually kills it after which it will disappear, presumably back to its nest. It is noted that no matter how many times Vorare-Schism has killed Tinnebriel it does not consume it, whether it chooses not to or physically can't is unknown. Magical girls are advised to avoid confronting this creature directly and focus on rescuing civilians. They are also strongly advised not to try to follow it back to its nest as none who have attempted to do so have survived.

Solitaria (Gaz)

Size Rating: Large (between one and two stories in height)

Danger Rating: Lethal

Minions: none

Nest: yes

Vocalizations: none. However, is accompanied by varying volumes of static.

Behavior: Territorial/Provoking

This creature has set up a nest in the remnants of a mall. The reality-warping effects of its nest have recreated the location as fully functioning, with bright neon colors and twisted geometry. Solitaria does not leave its nest and seems to spend most of it's time within it toying with electronics or interacting with the attractions it has created. It has been observed that the substance constantly flowing from its smaller more animal-like skull bears a visual similarity to paint and can be seen evaporating after it has been deposited on the floor, becoming the gas that makes up the lower portion of the main body. The smell has been described as acrid and acidic and indeed victims who have come into physical contact with the substance are found to have moderate to severe burns. At times it appears to become frustrated and throw violent tantrums, smashing and breaking any nearby objects or structures and becoming more aggressive towards intruders. Despite its highly destructive power Solitaria is not inherently aggressive, choosing to ignore intruders unless provoked. What may provoke the creature, however, is unclear, the two most common triggers appear to be making a great deal of noise and attempting to approach it, but other "offenses" have included: knocking over an empty soda can, touching the wrong archaic arcade machine, and looking at it for too long. Magical girls are advised to engage only in groups of at least four.

Tinnebriel (Dib)

Size Rating: Large (between one and two stories in height)

Danger Rating: High

Minions: none

Nest: yes

Vocalizations: Unusual. Resembles young boy reading a series of numbers in a similar fashion to a "numbers station"

Behavior: Territorial/Migratory/Aggressive

This creature is unusual in that while it possesses a "nest" and stays within, it is also prone to moving to a new place and bringing its nest with it. It seems to favor places like museums, schools, and libraries, which has caused concern that this may be a monster capable of seeking information, though to what end is currently unknown. The interior of the nest is based upon wherever it is currently located, the lighting within will be severally lowered or put out entirely and replaced with fog and an ever distant blue light, geometry will fold in on itself and perspective will become distorted. The latter distortions are so extreme that no matter what size of a room or hallway, the creature has been observed moving through them with ease, even when it should not be able to. Of note is a giant cylindrical structure of some kind in the center of the nest made from sheets of metal and electronic parts. It possesses large glass apertures showing the interior to be filled with a swirling phosphoric blue substance similar in appearance to stellar plasma, possibly the source of the blue light. The creature can be seen scaling the structure and attempting to force objects into it, predominantly forms of writing: books, magazines, comics; and electronic items like laptops and phones, lending more to the theory that it is trying to collect information for some unknown purpose. It is very protective of its nest and will immediately seek out and attempt to kill any intruders or people already present in it's chosen location. In a disturbing turn of events, it has been reported that this monster vocalizes human speech, analogous of whatever the most common local language is. Despite this it doesn't seem capable of communication as all it does is recite numbers. Those who have heard it "speak" report feeling dizzy and lightheaded and as though something was "rooting around" in their head. The creature is surprisingly fast and agile despite having no legs and appearing to have lost the lower half of its body. It pulls itself around on it's larger arms and while not capable of prolonged or coordinated flight, it's many wings have been seen to propel it through the air when making large jumps. It has also been seen "flopping" along over rooftops while migrating. The most puzzling behavior however is Tinnebriel's heralding of Vorare-Schism's appearance, to the point that this change in behavior can be used to evacuate civilians in advance. Tinnebriel will abandon its nest and travel to the next location Vorare-Schism will appear in, at times up to a week before manifestation, the way Tinnebriel determines this is unknown. Once Vorare-Schism manifests Tinnebriel will attack it and will not stop until Vorare-Schism has killed it, often by vivisection. After a short time, Tinnebriel's body will dissolve in a manner similar to most slane monsters, but will almost immediately reappear at its last nest. Because of its value in predicting the appearance of a far worse creature it has been decided that magical girls are not to engage with the creature beyond keeping track of its movements and protecting civilians.

Scruffles (Gir)

Size Rating: Moderate (less than a story, taller than an adult human

Danger Rating: moderate

Minions: none

Nest: none

Vocalizations: animalistic squealing and shrieking

Behavior: Roaming/Provoking

[fandomsonrequests]

𝖆𝖓𝖔𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖗 𝖘𝖊𝖑𝖊𝖈𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓..? [𝖕𝖆𝖗𝖙 5]

fandom: ATEEZ

characters: prince! park seonghwa

reader: fem! knight

word count: 2.2k+

summary:  It was time for another Selection. No- not a Selection for a bride but rather a well-trained knight to keep Prince Seonghwa safe after a failed assassination attempt. You, a blacksmith’s daughter, manage to make it to the elite group of knights worthy and skilled enough to protect the crown prince after months and months of training. This alone catches Seonghwa’s eyes- in more ways than one

a/n: part 5 here we go! i’m sorry if its taking too long, school started so i dont have much time to write as often ;^; this is kind of unedited (im using grammarly sue me sujsk) so im sorry for any errors! 

taglist: @iwanttohitmyself​ @barcelona-sergei​ @minihongjoong​ @i-purrple-u​

  ↞previous  ♛  next↠

The Capitol was certainly different from the quaint town of Trelark. 

The Capitol was… colorful to put it simply. Several people milled about the streets, bustling around and going about their daily lives. What the city folk wore was flashier and livelier than the dull brown or grey tones of the clothes the townsfolk wore. It sparked some sort of insecurity within you, making you clutch at the fabric of your pants as you look out the carriage window, seeing young women your age float through the streets in bright yellow skirts or green pleated dresses. 

The streets were wider and tiled with smooth stones compared to the rocky ground that rocked the carriages up in the village of Trelark. The shops were bigger and the smell- the smell of the place was better for some reason. Delicious aromas of freshly baked bread or roasted pig wafted through the air instead of some goat or horse dung. It made your stomach rumble. You had eaten your packed lunch and shared it with your friends in the carriage that brought you over to the Capitol. 

Speaking of which-

“Oh my gods, look at that dress,” Siyeon says as she presses herself against the carriage window and points to a dress in the display window of a seamstress’s shop. It had a sweetheart neckline with bell sleeves in an elegant shade of red, a transparent lace on the hem. Despite how simple it looked, you only wondered how expensive it was. 

“I’d give anything to wear that.” She continues and releases a small whine as she slumps back into her seat. “I wish this Selection was for a princess instead of a knight.”

Raviv, who was beside you, laughed at the young woman across you. “Maybe next time. You never know.” He says as he picks at the loose threads of his shirt again. “You can just drop out y’know?”

“And miss out living in the palace and bring shame to my family at the same time? Uh, no thanks. I’ll do my best until I give out.” 

You roll your eyes and huff in amusement at the two as they continue to banter. You loved the two a lot- you really did. Siyeon was like the sister you never had and Raviv had a special place in your heart. But you on the other hand were firm in your resolve and promised to yourself that you’d try to outdo them without having to step on them. 

You saw more of the city as the carriages pulled through the cobbled streets of the Capitol. Sure it had its fair share of beauty but not every place was perfect. You caught a glimpse of some street kids, covered in dirt from head to toe, in the alleyways between houses and shops. Some of them would be begging for some alms while others just went about and played. 

Suppose it couldn’t be helped- the world was cruel like that. But it still breaks your heart every time. You didn’t have much yourself but you were happy and had a roof over your head. Maybe life for the unfortunate was a lot tougher here in the Capitol. 

Eventually, the carriages that came from the village of Trelark finally reached the lavish gates of the castle. There was a drawbridge, just like you imagined, but what you didn’t anticipate was the lavish gate that lay behind it. 

As soon as the drawbridge lowered, a rather beautiful gate greeted your eyes. There were pillars made of stone and marble running down the sides while gold figurines of horses decorated the top. Black iron bars with gold-tipped ends that pointed up into the sky lined the space between each pillar. 

But the gate was nothing compared to the palace itself. 

The three of you all looked out the window, eyes gleaming and mouth agape as you gawked at the sight that beheld you. The palace was surprisingly similar to the ones described in the books- pearly and white, tall with several towers striking out from each side, buttresses that supported the building, and a large flag bearing the current family’s crews right on top of the centermost tower. The palace was huge. You couldn’t even see where the walls ended on each side. 

“You know,” Raviv starts out softly. “If we were ever supposed to go through this place, I think we’d get lost.” 

“No kidding,” Siyeon says, just as quiet like him. “I think I’d be starving and thirsty the minute I find my way back to the entrance.” 

“Or one of the undead.” You added, and lightly kicked at Siyeon’s foot. 

She then proceeded to flop down against the seat and rise with her hands in front of her, making growling noises as she imitated a zombie, lunging at the both of you. The trio laughs at the antics and pushes her back onto her seat when she pretends to take a bite of your arm. 

“Oi, behave in there!” Called out the driver and patted the side of the carriage, effectively hushing you and your companions. 

You couldn’t help the giggle that escapes you though. “Whoops.” 

~

“Seonghwa there you are!” The Queen exclaims when he arrives, lapels of his clothes properly pinned and his crown sitting on top of his soft locks. 

Seonghwa greets his parents who were sitting upon their thrones, awaiting the delegates that were to arrive at any moment. He kisses each of their cheeks and sat on the right side of his father’s throne, back straight and head high- just as he was taught since the age of five. 

A few servants ran around the throne room, sweeping up the linoleum floors and dusting the marble columns. The velvet rug that led from the entrance up to the elevated floor that held the thrones were freshly pressed and practically spotless. The King wanted to leave a good first impression on his people. 

“How many do you think there will be, father?” Seonghwa asks, looking over to the man. 

The King only straightened up and looked ahead. “Many,” He replies without turning his head to his son. “They come from all parts of our kingdom. I think half of this room may be filled.” 

The prince manages to hold back a sigh. Instead, he exhales through his nose and curls his fingers around the armrests of his seat. He thought it was a bit of an overkill to have all these people train just to protect him. Despite the assassin coming from a different kingdom, he thought that bringing other people from within their kingdom imposed a risk as well- you never know if there could be traitors out there.

Nevertheless, he just learned to trust his father’s decision. He knew that his father was wise and well-aware of his decisions. He just hoped this method wouldn’t backfire… 

“They’re all here already your highness,” A servant announces as they enter the throne room. “There’s quite more than a handful.”

With a nod and a wave of his hand, the king tells the servant to allow the delegates to enter. The servant gives a low bow and exits the door only to return a few moments later with the young adults. Quietly, they filed into the throne room, wearing different garments that fit with the place they came from. 

People from the field lands wore hard, boots dried with mud and loose-fitting clothes to help them move around. Folks near the dock wore almost similar clothing but had more loose-fitting shoes and or sandals. The delegates from the mountain had already shed off their coats as the weather in the Capitol was much warmer. And finally, the folks from the city were more well-dressed, with button-ups, well-tailored pants, and sturdy boots. 

You glance around as you shuffle in with your companions near the edge of the group. You hadn’t anticipated this many people to attend. It made your stomach churn with nervousness- there was big competition here. But you weren’t taught to quit this early- you were going to push on until you give out. 

Others slinked away or flinched whenever a city-dweller looked over at them. It was a bit hard not to- they just radiated some sort of energy. An aura of power to be exact. 

Seonghwa scans the faces of the delegates. They were all so different- in height, background, wear, and everything else. Many looked like they were reluctant to be there but many also had this look of determination in their eyes. 

There was one gaze that caught his in particular. It belonged to a woman, maybe his age, standing near the back. He could tell from her garments, specifically the coat that hung over her arm, that she lived in one of the mountain villages. 

Her lips were pursed together as she observed the palace around her. There were wonder and awe in them- but as soon as her gaze landed on him and his family, they steeled into something harder, one that read that it would take more than would think to take her down. 

Seonghwa is pulled out of his thoughts by his father’s voice welcoming all the participants to the palace. 

“Welcome to the Capitol,” The King booms, a warm smile on his face and his arms outstretched. “I’ll keep this brief, but I’d like to thank you for coming all this way. It means a lot to me, my wife, and of course- my son.” 

All eyes shift over to the prince. It wasn’t the first time many sets of eyes were trained onto him but he felt nervous this particular time. Maybe it had to do with the fact that the circumstances were different, that they weren’t looking up at him while he stood beside his father during speeches or city celebrations or whenever he had to deliver the occasional speech. Yeah, that must be it.

The young man folded an arm over his torso and bowed a perfect ninety-degree angle. It was a silent gesture of his gratefulness for their efforts, eyes glistening as if all the stars were placed into them. 

The King looked to his side and gave a nod. Two men came out from behind a pillar and stood at the foot of the elevated platform that held the thrones. 

The first was a tall and burly man. A long white but faded scar ran from the top of his head and across his brow, just catching the edges of his eyelids. Because of the long healed injury- part of his injured eye had a milky-blue color to it, showing that he was partially blind. HIs muscled under his pressed dress suit flexed as he gave a bow and straightened up. He was the literal embodiment of tall, dark, and strong. Despite this though, he radiated a warm and inviting energy- especially with that soft smile of his. 

The second was the man most people hated. It was the nobleman that went to the town of Trelark. He wore less warm clothing but his stupid purple feather plume hat remained. His silver beard seemed extra curled today and a shit-eating smirk was plastered across his lips. 

The majority of the folk that came from the mountain villages had a sour look on their face when they saw the nobleman. They tried to mask it though to avoid any offense that it could bring to the king. 

“This is Byron,” The King introduces the first man. “He shall be training all of you till one of you manages to succeed as the prince’s protector. And this is Duke Hae-seong, one of my royal advisers and a Duke of the kingdom. He shall help manage you and educate you around the protocols of the palace and the kingdom.”

“Yes, that’s right.” The Queen says softly, voice warm and gentle. “It is important not to only train the body but the mind as well. The prince’s protector needs to be knowledgeable of the kingdom’s laws and what his or her rights are as a protector.” 

It was a very wise move on the royal family’s part and it made sense. They didn’t want the protector to overstep any boundaries, whether intentional or not or have any abuse in power on their part. 

Many delegates didn’t seem pleased to learn that Hae-seong would be tutoring them though. He was impatient and very brash- he clearly was displeased with the way the king and queen took commoners into the palace without a single thought of doubt; he was just good at hiding it.

“Ladies, please follow Mina to your quarters. Gentlemen, Sir Byron will be the one to take you to yours. I hope you don’t mind sharing with others.” The King says and gestures to the crowd gathered in front of them. “And to show our gratitude, we shall be throwing you a feast tonight to commemorate your arrival.”

This seemed to brighten up the spirits of the young delegates. Energy fills them as the adrenaline of excitement rushes through their bodies. A few of them now their heads gratefully to the royal couple while the rest showed their appreciation through bright smiles.

“I thank you all once again for going through all this trouble. Now, freshen up. You’ll have a long day tomorrow.”

The group bows down to the family before them and separate into two groups to head over to their bunkers to rest and recuperate. You look back at the royal family again, seeing them step down from the throne and head to wherever they needed to be in this gigantic castle. 

This was it. The game was on- and you were determined to win it.

[passionate-reply]

Stan Ridgway is best remembered as the guy from Wall of Voodoo, and Wall of Voodoo are best remembered as the guys from “Mexican Radio.” But there’s a whole lot more to Ridgway’s solo career, which began with 1986′s The Big Heat--Americana, epic narratives, and a whole lot of digital synth. (Transcript below the break!)

Welcome to Passionate Reply, and welcome to Great Albums! Today, we’ll be looking at an often overlooked solo debut: Stan Ridgway’s The Big Heat, first released in 1986.

Stan Ridgway is best remembered as the original frontman of Wall of Voodoo, and Wall of Voodoo, in turn, are best remembered for the single “Mexican Radio,” a landmark bit of New Wave eclecticism that became an unlikely hit thanks in large part to heavy rotation on MTV. That said, like a lot of ostensible “one-hit wonders,” the span of Ridgway’s artistic career is quite a bit more varied and more interesting than this solitary recording might suggest. While I don’t believe that “Mexican Radio” is simply a novelty song that can easily be dismissed, I will set it aside for the time being, because any attempt to cover the rest of Stan Ridgway’s work is probably better off without worrying about it. Instead, let’s take a look at his first bona fide solo release: the 1983 single, “Don’t Box Me In.”

Music: “Don’t Box Me In”

“Don’t Box Me In” was a collaboration between Ridgway and percussionist Stewart Copeland, then known chiefly for his work with the group The Police. While Copeland is now fairly well known for his work composing scores for cinema and video games, this was one of his first forays into that field: the soundtrack to Francis Ford Coppola’s film adaptation of Rumble Fish. Based on a novel by S. E. Hinton, most famous for The Outsiders, Rumble Fish was actually a tremendous flop for Coppola, perceived to be a bit too avant-garde for its own good, and Copeland’s percussion-led score for the film, experimental in its own right, certainly didn’t help that perception. Despite all of this, “Don’t Box Me In” managed to do fairly well for itself as a single, achieving substantial alternative radio play purely on its own merits. And merits it has, weaving together the experience of a fish trapped in a tiny bowl with a more universalized sense of human ennui, being overlooked and underestimated by everyone around you. Not to be underestimated himself, Ridgway has not only written these evocative lyrics, but delivers them in a manner that shows a complexity beyond his semi-affected Western twang, conveying fragility and uncertainty alongside indignation and determinedness. This is also the version of Stan Ridgway whom we meet when we listen to The Big Heat.

Music: “Camouflage”

Despite being the very last single released from The Big Heat, the eerie war yarn “Camouflage” would go on to be the most successful track from the album, and Ridgway’s best-known hit as a solo artist. Perhaps surprisingly, the single was largely snubbed in the charts of Ridgway’s native USA, becoming a much bigger hit throughout Europe. While playing the harmonica and sporting a bolo tie, Ridgway seems to almost play the character of the quintessential American, and perhaps it’s that quality that’s caused this apparent rift. Is it necessary to analyze his art through the lens of exoticism in order to find it appealing?

It’s a hard question for me to answer, personally--I might be from the US myself, but at the same time, the vast majority of the music I listen to is European, as a natural consequence of being chiefly a devotee of electronic music. There is still a sort of novelty factor I find in Ridgway’s work. I remain in awe of the fact that a musical genius exists who uses a hard R, and says “huh?” instead of “pardon me?” But, of course, I am amazed by this moreso because it makes me feel “represented,” for once, in a musical tradition which is important to me. If people from Britain’s crumbling industrial centers like Sheffield and Manchester have made great electronic music, then surely synthesisers can also tell the stories of the American Rust Belt, where I come from? For that, we’ll have to step away from the sort of typified narrative of “Camouflage,” and take a listen to the album’s title track.

Music: “The Big Heat”

“Camouflage” told us a tale as old as time, in which a benevolent ghost offers one last act of aid to a vulnerable human being. The album’s title track, on the other hand, alludes to a particularly 20th Century form of storytelling: the detective drama and film noir, as hinted at by its allusion to the classic Fritz Lang film of the same title. Ridgway assumes the perspective of the hardboiled detective, hot on the trail of some mysterious quarry, and it is the innocent passers-by he seeks information from who respond with the song’s banal refrain: “Everybody wants another piece of pie today.” For as much as people have mocked Ridgway’s singing style over the years, you’ve got to appreciate his lilting delivery of this line here in the first verse, where it comes from the mouth of a female character.

It’s easy, of course, to see such apparent non sequitur lyrics in Ridgway’s oeuvre as merely ridiculous, as many quickly do with the likes of “Mexican Radio,” but the more you listen to him, the more his style begins to make sense. The instinct to find humour in things is deeply connected to the feeling of being surprised, and encountering the unexpected. Ridgway happens to be all about delivering the unexpected, and it’s precisely the surface-level absurdities and surprises his lyricism offers that make us think more deeply about the stories he tells. The title track of The Big Heat isn’t about pie, but rather the fact that everybody its characters encounter appears to be grasping for more out of life, and hungry for something else. It’s what drives criminals to transgress against the law, and it’s also, perhaps, what drives the detective to devote himself to the pursuit of the abstract principle of “justice.” To both the villain and the hero of this story, the civilians they brush past are little more than means to an end, despite their display of greater wisdom and insight into these issues than anyone else. Ridgway excels at conveying this sort of saintly everymannishness, and does so with similar gusto on the track “Pick It Up (And Put It In Your Pocket)”.

Music: “Pick It Up (And Put It In Your Pocket)”

“Pick It Up (And Put It In Your Pocket)” was actually not released as a single, which is perhaps surprising given its hooky quality and sprightly synth backdrop. While “Camouflage” is assembled chiefly from traditional instruments, with only a subtle intrusion of Yamaha DX-7 to remind you that it came out in 1986, many of the other tracks, like this one and the title track, are willing to double down on electronic influences, and ride the wave of “peak synth-pop” that was easily cresting by the mid-1980s. That aside, the central theme of “Pick It Up (And Put It In Your Pocket)” is the quotidian avariciousness one encounters among ordinary folk, and the psychological effects of living in a “mean world.” While the text mostly revolves around the idea of living in fear, and the paranoia of knowing that “everything changes hands when it hits the ground,” it reaches a climax by showing us an actual situation where this occurs: the pathetic figure of a filthy old man who finds a small bill in the road, and, in a fit of folk superstitiousness, is said to “thank the street.” The song’s tension lives between the bustle of the jealous ones, and the reality of life for those desperate enough to pick up money from the street. Like many of Ridgway’s greatest works, this track simultaneously portrays the mentality of the common man in a direct and serious manner, but also opens up room for it to be criticized. This everyman bystander persona is assumed more directly in the track “Drive, She Said.”

Music: “Drive, She Said”

While the album’s more electronic elements are its main draw, in my eyes, there are still a number of tracks that remain dominated by traditional instruments, “Drive, She Said” being a prime example of them. While narratives are always at the center of Ridgway’s work, “Drive, She Said” moves us away from omniscient narration like that of “Pick It Up (And Put It In Your Pocket)” and back into the mind of a specific and individualized narrator--in this case, a cab driver who somewhat reluctantly transports a bank robber, with whom he might also be falling in love. While it doesn’t have the supernatural implications of “Camouflage,” the two stories do seem to have much in common: an ordinary person meets someone who quickly reveals their extraordinary nature, and despite the brevity of their encounter, the protagonist is deeply affected, and perhaps changed, by the events. Much as “Pick It Up (And Put It In Your Pocket)” sees fit to shatter its apparent main premise, with an interlude that shifts the tempo of the music as well as introduces the contrasting figure of the old beggar, “Drive, She Said” introduces an interlude of its own: the driver’s reverie, in which he runs away with his enigmatic passenger. As in many of Ridgway’s tales, we must consider both the beauty of a wonderful dream, and its sheer impossibility.

On the cover of The Big Heat, we see a portrait of Stan Ridgway looking glum, which is not itself terribly unusual for an album cover, though the fact that he’s behind a metal fence certainly is. The main focus of the image seems to be Ridgway’s environment, a bleak industrial setting full of towering machinery, and no other traces of human beings. The absence of other figures in this scene draws attention to the scale of the machines, as well as the fact that in many parts of the US, including my own, it’s very common to see equipment like this that’s fallen into disuse and disrepair. Much as ruined aqueducts and palaces mark the places in Europe where the Roman Empire had once held fast, these sorts of derelict manufacturing facilities are a common sight in America, and serve as reminders of the squandered “American Century.” While many album covers have shown me places I like to imagine myself visiting, I don’t have to imagine what being here might be like, having grown up in a place whose pride left soon after the steel industry did. It strikes me as exactly the kind of setting that Ridgway’s narratives ought to take place in: dirty, simple, well-intentioned, doomed, and all-American.

Ridgway’s follow-up to The Big Heat would be 1989’s *Mosquitos,* an album that largely abandons the many synthesiser-driven compositions found in his earlier work. It’s hard to fault him for this decision, given how much the mainstream appeared to be souring on synth-pop and electronic rock by the end of the decade, but it does mean that this album offers little I’d want to listen to recreationally. That is, with the exception of its third and final single, “Goin’ Southbound,” a practically epic drama of small-town drug smugglers trying to survive, and one that fires on all cylinders when it comes to fiddles dueling with digital synths. This track feels like it would fit right in on The Big Heat, so if you’ve enjoyed this album, don’t miss it.

Music: “Goin’ Southbound”

My favourite track on The Big Heat is “Salesman,” which, to my surprise, received a small advance promo release without ever becoming a true single. The titular character, an unctuous but insecure traveling salesman, is as rich a narrating persona as any of the many in Ridgway’s catalogue, and I love the way the refrain just feels like a song you might make up while idly doing something else, silly and yet primal at the same time. It captures the feeling of living “on the edge of the ball,” enjoying the freedom of spontaneity, but also, perhaps, suffering for its enforced sloppiness. That’s everything for today, thanks for listening!

Music: “Salesman”

[ddaenghoney]

chapter twenty; finale.

masterlist link in blog description.

As a successful songwriter, you want nothing more than the acknowledgment that the chart-topping musical pieces are your own creations. But contracts, relationships, and the difficulty of facing the stakes involved head on, keep your mouth shut until pressure builds too much.

Pairing(s): Park Jimin x Y/N, Min Yoongi x Y/N

disclaimer: any characters depicted do not represent the actual personality of the respected idol in real life.

Series warning(s)/genre(s): Chapter-based written fic, Slow-burn relationship(s), Fake-dating, Unrequited love, Songwriter/producer!oc, idol!Jimin, idol/songwriter/producer!Yoongi, friends with benefits, drama, romance, smut, angst, fluff (updated as needed)

Chapter warning(s): none.

Word count: 5558

if you enjoy please, please let me know!

“SoundWave Disclosed” trends within an hour the article releases. Briefly mentioning Jimin cracking the company’s glass by his brash statement in front of the most popular summer festival, the reporter you spoke with made sure to leave no detail forgotten. Like a proper interview, the article is not focused on literary conjecture, but instead the words you said verbatim. Unaltered, remorseless, and eloquently you state the bigger picture of the truth.

“When I think back on it all now, I’m angry at myself. I’m angry that I didn’t give my efforts the value they deserved by giving away my name. I shouldn’t have ever allowed myself to lie, but when I wanted to tell the truth, so many other careers were held over my head to keep me quiet. Either way I went wouldn’t be painless, but at least now people can decide for themselves what they think of me with the facts out in the open.”

You look at the public’s commentary with this reveal. Wanting to face the results head on, regardless of positivity, you scroll through various feeds, peruse videos, let the words find you in the height of spreading smoke. Wandering through the volume of opinions blindly, you believe it easier to find your way about when this article is unabashedly your perspective.

The frustration and petty verbiage thrown in your way clogs your ears, but the ground you step along is smooth like each step will undoubtedly be solid beneath your feet. It’s the apologies of YouTube idol news accounts that speculated on your intentions with Yoongi, the comments giving SoundWave’s manipulative dealings proper attention, and the familiar voices ahead of you calling for you to keep walking that let you feel confident in your strides.

You wear a cap and keep the large plaid shirt lent to you close to your skin while you sit with dangling legs. A bright pink type of flavored lemonade is half full in front of your loosely crossed arms. Namjoon’s voice speaks incoherently in the background behind you as the streaming site playlists blurs the ambiance of his cafe into a state of lulling energy.

“To be honest with you,” Seokjin’s finger scrolls the web page depicted on his phone that’s flat atop the bar. “I wish you took a picture for the article. I would’ve gotten you some kind of designer jacket or something so you could really tell everyone ‘fuck you’-- I’m the best of your friends in that regard, you know?”

“I already have people following my social media because of that article, I’m sure they can just see some pictures of me on my Instagram.”

“Admit I’m the best of your friends-”

“I think the one whose dorm room she crashed in for two years straight in college deserves that title, Jin.” Namjoon grasps his glass of water when he returns to you two. You huff as Seokjin nods his head admittedly in silent agreement. A sudden scowl escapes Namjoon’s lips when his neck arches to get an upside down perspective of the words Seokjin reads on his phone. “Don’t encourage her to look at comments. Lots of idiots out there.”

“A lot of people think I wasn’t the worst of the whole situation though.” You smile at Namjoon, and take a quick sip of your drink when he narrows his eyes at you with an unsatisfied gleam in them. You swallow the beverage and glance to Seokjin who swivels in his seat to look towards the front windows. A tiny nod brings you back to Namjoon and you meekly speak, “But I shouldn’t have been staring at them all for hours yesterday. You’re right.”

“You called me saying you made the worst decision of your life-”

“In her defense, she was four glasses deep in wine when she called you to say that.”

You point a finger to Seokjin’s sentence and nod. “In my defense.”

“All I’m saying,” Namjoon lightly chuckles as he leans against the counter behind him. “Worry less about them. It’s going to be crazy for at least a couple of weeks, so try not to look up all the commentary like you’ve been doing.”

“Yeah, go on dates with your boyfriend instead. Can’t he rent you a boat to cruise around the river on or something?”

“I could rent a boat.” You roll your eyes, shrugging. “Actually, that’s not a bad idea. He’s been pretty stressed between my problems and figuring out all the aspects of starting up the company with Hoseok.” You rest your jaw on your hand, staring absently at your drink with pursed lips as you consider the option of a relaxing evening spent on the river.

“Just take a fishing rod with you for him. He sucks at fishing, but he likes it a lot.” Seokjin says, glancing back at a small group of young adults that chatter amongst themselves as they go to a table. After a moment of assessment he faces back towards you and Namjoon who look at him with narrowed eyes. “I was just making sure they weren’t stalking-”

“How did you become friends with Yoongi in the first place?” You blurt out in bewilderment, while Namjoon nods in agreement with your question. “You were friends with him before I even knew him, but never mentioned how.”

“He happened to be on the same fishing boat with me like a year ago.” Seokjin shrugs, reaching for his fork to continue munching on the half finished slice of cheesecake. “I may have knocked his expensive sunglasses into the ocean.”

Namjoon bursts into laughter as you raise an eyebrow. Seokjin ignores you both to stuff a large bite into his mouth.

“And you somehow befriended him instead of making him hate you like I probably would’ve if that’s how we met?” You ask with a tilt of your head, and Seokjin takes no time to properly swallow his food before speaking to you again with one cheek stuffed,

“Clearly, I have a way with people, Y/N.” You smile and shake your head, accepting the answer as you go back to sipping your drink. While Namjoon presses for more details, you click onto the internet typing in a search for evening rental cruises. Staring at the various options available and filtering them to a short notice, you can’t help smiling softly as the idea of an exuberant date goes through your mind. Such a public endeavor as well, though there would be ample space between the two of you and spectators, you won’t have to worry about any of them seeing the two of you. The simplicity of it feels relaxing on its own.

A startling familiarity enters your ears. Like ballads sung before the ambiance is similar, but lyrics new as you recognize the voice playing from the cafe’s speakers as Jimin. You look up from your phone, looking nowhere in particular, but focus on the words-- the song he wrote on his own from you with a hopeful intent of somehow putting it onto radios somehow. You bite your lip as the bittersweet melody crosses your senses and the gentle request he sings, “I want you to be your light,” brings a tightened and tiny curl to your lips.

“I could change it.” Namjoon speaks up and takes you out of the moment. You shake your head, refraining from any laughter at their worried expressions as they gauge your reaction to the song.

“No, it’s a nice song.” You say softly, meaning your words.

Jimin’s career is entirely up in the air at this point. With the release of this very song as a rebellious act towards SoundWave and him admitting that he hadn’t written any of his other songs, he finished the festival to receive a surprisingly loud applause from the crowds, you heard. Nonetheless, the internet itself isn’t as optimistic as the evening was for Jimin. You’re hopeful despite it all, but you can’t over estimate the ability of SoundWave and Jimin’s simultaneous scandals to beat every odds against them.

Though you avoid dwelling on the worry, knowing ultimately that you’ll find out through the media, and can simply hope.

---

You sit criss crossed on your desk chair, perusing a boat rental agency leisurely and without much interest for what’s before your eyes. Your mind is further away, pondering words in your head in a medley of arrangements. Hoping some combination will strike you into an inspired mood, you simply scroll onwards on the page of various yacht sizes and at this point the action becomes more robotic than conscious.

Your head perks downs the direction of your front door beyond the wall where you sit in your studio. As you glance to the clock at the bottom of your screen, you refrain from gasping at the ten o’clock reading, having not realized how much time went away from you in the monotony of the day after leaving Namjoon’s cafe.

“Angel?” Yoongi’s voice calls out as you hop off from your chair to greet him.

“I’m in my studio!” You say out in return while shimmying your second foot into the pair of slippers and heading for the doorway. You open it fully from its ajar state and exit, but immediately scuff the floor as you halt to a stop so as not to bump into Yoongi. “Oh-”

“Careful-” Yoongi says, reaching for your arm so you don’t hit it against the framing, then chuckles softly. “Guess I interrupted something?”

“Not really,” You say sheepishly and sigh softly. “I just didn’t realize it was already this late.” You admit as you collect his hand within yours to lead him back into the studio space. “I was going to try and mess around with lyrics, but couldn’t think of anything, so I was trying to do something else while I mulled it over, but Joon keeps getting on me about looking at social media too much--” You shrug, turning to him to mumble admittedly, “Which he’s right about, I guess.”

“Guess,” Yoongi repeats with an amused smile as you ignore the teasing tone to sway your hands between you. He hums, glancing beyond your shoulder to the large monitor displayed on your desk. “Thinking about becoming a boat captain?”

“Oh!” You quickly turn from him to click an exit on the internet window, “What boat?”

Yoongi laughs, sliding into your desk chair as you click around to open up a clothing website instead. “I was looking for clothes, actually. An ad must’ve come up for yachts-” You sentence cuts off from a tiny squeal escaping your mouth as Yoongi pulls you back to sit atop his lap.

“That’s a pretty luxurious ad, babe.” When you whine in disagreement, Yoongi simply smiles a small kiss against your cheek. “Okay then. Ad then. I’ll pretend to believe you.”

“Pretend to be surprised if you ever end up on one for an evening too, please.”

“Okay.” Yoongi hugs you while you giggle from the ticklish ministrations he dances along your jaw. “Hey, guess what.”

“You’re going to let me keep this flannel?” You voice murmurs before placing a sweet, chaste kiss to Yoongi’s lips before he has time to react to the silly request. When you pull away, he glances down to the attire of yellow plaid worn on your figure and his head tilts contemplatively.

“Because it looks nice on you, I’ll let you keep it for now.” Your pouting lips used to plead do nothing to stop Yoongi’s warm smile as he kisses you again and says quietly. “Hoseok and I decided on a building.”

“Really?” The tone of your voice rises as your eyes widen with a happy surprise. Yoongi nods with an utterly bright smile adorning his face, accepting the quick peck you place against his expression and continuing on with bubbly interest, “Where at? No-- actually, what’s the name going to be anyways?”

“The building’s actually only a couple of subway stations from Namjoon’s cafe, so I guess you can visit him more often than now.”

“He’ll get sick of me.” You say, shrugging off the tiny shake of Yoongi’s head so you can press on with the subject at hand. “I can’t believe you both found a place so quickly.”

“Well, maybe that’s the easier part. Figuring out everything else will take awhile still, but a couple of investors are interested, and I think I’ve found a person that can do a better job at leading everything overall than Hoseok and I can.”

“So you’re both not going to fight for the CEO title?” You ask, fiddling with the hair on the back of his head as Yoongi just scoffs gently at the teasing inquisition. He shakes his head while his hands situate on your sides to help shift you on his lap as you turn slightly to better see him.

“That’s not something I’m interested in, no. I just want to make music.”

You smile at Yoongi fondly, unintentionally causing a little flush to peek on the tips of his cheeks. Considering the option to be in joint-leadership over the entirety of their company is so obviously available, you find it slightly jarring that Yoongi doesn’t feel any need to reach out for the position. Though you think his answer best suits him, especially when you remember that the manipulation of his image is what stopped him from being the musician that he had wanted to be for so long now.

Squeezing your waist with his hands, Yoongi kisses you softly. A hand of yours falls to his shoulder while the other remains interweaved in his hair to hold him close as the kiss lingers. Breaking away after a minute, Yoongi’s head tilts, appearing curious as he gently inquires, “What are you thinking, baby?”

“I’m just really happy for you.” Your voice trickles simply, though the sincerity causes Yoongi’s lips to tighten into a bashful smile while he just nods and lets his eyes glance downwards from the radiating endearment in your eyes. You take note of more pink decorating his skin, and just hug onto him tightly, mumbling sweetly against Yoongi’s cheek. “You’re so cute. I can’t wait to see whatever you produce next.”

“You should help me with a couple of the songs, angel.” Yoongi murmurs while smiling at your actions, rubbing his hands along your sides as you squeeze onto him. “I really liked working together.”

“We’re a good team, I think.” Yoongi hears the twinge of a bashful hesitancy in your words, making him have for force back an endeared sigh and replace it with a nod as you start to continuously press tiny kisses against his face to further yourself from the embarrassment you feel for the mushy words.

“I think so too-- what is your face so red for?” He laughs outright, not allowing you to hide away your rosy expression by catching your jaw gently with a hand. “You’re flustered for no reason.”

“It just felt like such a cliche thing to say-” You barely manage to mumble the sentence before Yoongi’s cutting your lips off with his own against them. Humming in thought as he pulls away and ignores the small pat of your hand against his chest for teasing you, Yoongi speaks with a smile,

“But it’s the truth, so it’s okay. You can be a Hallmark card all you want, and I’ll still love you-”

“Don’t tease me.” You attempt to sound firm, but nonetheless smile at the soft admission at the end of his sentence. Yoongi bites back any further jokes that you’re sure he’d enjoy to say, instead of giving you the quiet moment to wade off some of the meadow on your skin. “Can’t believe you came here at ten in the evening, by the way. When you’ll just have to leave soon to go home-”

“Who said I was going to leave soon?”

“Who said you’re allowed to stay over?”

Yoongi chuckles, reclining so that his back rests properly against the chair as you try to maintain your defiant expression. It’s utterly useless considering how there’s a playful smile etched into your face, so Yoongi just shrugs. “Tell me to leave then, baby,”

Refraining from laughter you instead bite your bottom lip, and cross your arms while Yoongi’s head tilts to wait for your reply with a coy gleam in his irises. Instead of a verbal reply for the moment, you scoot off of his lap, beginning to walk past him as he spins casually on the chair for his eyes to follow your movements. “If you’re staying, then you’ll have to sleep on the couch since I don’t have a guest bedroom.”

“You’re so,” Yoongi exhales like bits of laughter, shaking his head as he gets off the chair to catch up to you before you’re able to dip around the corner. A small squeal leaves your lips as Yoongi’s arms wrap around your waist to pull you back against his chest. Immediately he lays a buttery trail along your cheek as you laugh at his reaction and place your hands over top of his wear they fiddle with the buttons of his shirt that you wear, “If I’m staying on the couch, then I want this back, sweetie.”

---

In early February a small celebratory party causes Seokjin’s club to close its doors to the public. Though Yoongi told him over and over that the gesture was unnecessary, his worries were ignored by Seokjin who stated that he wanted to help give a nice evening to his friends and recognize the accomplishment of the official opening of Sope Ent. that would occur at the end of the month.

The employee pool was nowhere near the size of SoundWave at its peak the years earlier, but everyone working for Yoongi and Hoseok’s company were hand-picked and a feeling of camaraderie flourished throughout the months beforehand of work to become organized. The building was mostly finished, but a handful of office spaces and studios were still in the process of being completed, leading to you and some others opting to work from home while all the preparation continued on.

Because of your home studio being the location where you did practically all of your work originally, you had little care for the fact that you’d find your way to the building later than the majority of employees. The excitement of working with the artists that signed so far was a far more important focus to you, and in some instances surprising like when you noticed Jinsol’s name appearing on a list of accepted trainees (though Namjoon was more surprised as it meant he would need to find a replacement for her part-time position at his cafe).

Ultimately, you’re enshrouded in anticipation for future months and beyond of working as a recognized songwriter and producer. Yoongi’s unoften worried mentions that he’s apologetic to the fact that you’re in some regards starting from the bottom up are easily squashed by your vibrant energy assuring him that you’re nothing but happy to be able to continue working with the career you had always wanted.

Beyond that, you’re proud of Yoongi and Hoseok’s ability to get everything together in a considerably short stretch of time. Though it meant Hoseok’s plan of releasing music was pushed back so that it could be released under their company’s name, the wait ended up being worth it as it allowed media to cause an interest in what would come.

The weeks immediately following the article you released caused a dramatic shift in SoundWave’s perception in the public. With your name getting dragged early on for participation despite the manipulation, so many people decided to stop supporting the company and artists by association that they went through understandably hard times. Every group and soloist offered apologies, but the currents changed only when Yerin publicly apologized and stepped down from her position as CEO, with the board of directors promising for change.

You realize she was simply a scapegoat because the board did have a larger hand in what went on throughout SoundWave, but you manage to find satisfaction in this method, because the majority of artists came out with their careers still intact. Though trust has to be regained, at least they were able to have the chance.

The name you’re still curious to hear about in the future is Jimin. It was late in the year, only days before Yerin resigned, that news of him leaving SoundWave circulated loudly in every social media site available. More than anything, fans expressed utter sadness, demanding an answer from SoundWave to understand why he left when the majority of the public sided with him after his public apology acted as the first crack in the company’s secret crumbling. Which is why everyone, including you, were nothing but confused to hear that his leave was completely at his own discretion with the company evening expressing that they attempted negotiation to keep him.

“It just felt weird for him to be there.” Jeongguk told you during a small friendly lunch between him, Hoseok, Yoongi, and you. “With all of the history that went on.” You recall him biting back further information on that statement for the sake of the present. “Anyways, I’m sure he’ll be back to music eventually.”

As you look on from the bar stool you sit on, you smile as Yoongi finishes a speech egged on by the crowd of happy employees enjoying the evening. Hoseok cuts in with a cheery tone and his glass raised high in the air, while Yoongi remains beside him for the moment and simply sends you a glance that tells you he’s at minimum shy of all the attention currently on him. All you can offer is two thumbs up to which you watch him bite back a sarcastic smirk.

“Your speech was good.” You assure him with a grin as Yoongi returns to you after the loud cheers mark the end of the melodramatic speeches and the restart of music. He shakes his head at your words and takes the seat beside you,

“Thanks. I don’t know if I believe you, but thank you, angel.” Yoongi says with the usual gentleness of his voice making you so much more fond in that moment, especially as you take in his hand finding yours without hesitation to entwine the fingers. “You really look beautiful.”

“You said that already.” You comment though your heart beat skyrockets from the genuine tone he speaks with. Softly, he smiles and nods his head, finally finding your eyes again,

“And I’m probably going to say it again at least ten more times tonight, sweetie.” Yoongi’s teeth peek with his grin as he fondly watches you avert your gaze to the two of your glasses left on the bartop when he went to go speak. “Look at me, please.”

Inhaling quietly from all of the emotions amplified in your chest from the evening’s joyful ambiance, you eventually cast a glance back to him with enough time to see the sweet light in his eyes before he kisses you softly. Where your hands hold together, your free hand encapsulates the top of his hand to gently squeeze as Yoongi lets the kiss linger on a few seconds longer than you’d expect from him with the surroundings somewhat crowded.

“I know it’s only been a few hours, but can I take you somewhere?” Yoongi asks against your lips, so quietly that you almost miss it with the music that plays all around you. Though it takes you only a couple of seconds to respond, your mind captures a considerable amount of wonder for where exactly he intends to lead you to. Still though, you simply peck his lips once more to earn a smile from him as you nod,

“Yeah, wherever you want.”

Despite what you expected, Hoseok simply only grinned and waved the two of you off when Yoongi mentioned you would both head out. Seokjin similarly smiled as you told him a thank you and goodnight as well, and considering those two of your friends are quite close with Yoongi, you don’t stop yourself from a playful question as he settles his coat around your shoulders upon exit of the nightclub.

“I’m guessing they already know about where you want to take me to?”

“Well, it’s no fun to give any kind of hints, angel, so you’re not getting them from me.” He says, letting you hug onto his arm while using the other to hail a cab. “It’s kind of different leaving Jin’s club this time around, isn’t it?”

“A good different.”

“Yeah,” Yoongi nods as he opens the door to the taxi, smiling down at you before letting you enter inside. “Really good different.”

Outside of Sope Entertainment, you can’t help lifting up your head to take in the view of the small tower that you’d be working in from now on. Yoongi exits the vehicle after giving a tip to the taxi who drives off once the door slams. You turn your attention to Yoongi as he takes hold of your hand once again to lead you inside the sparsely populated building.

A security guard allows the two of you in after the flash of identification cards, and by the time you reach the elevator you’ve begin rubbing Yoongi’s arms to fuel circulation and warmth. Your actions result in a fit of chuckles from his lips as the elevator doors open wide to allow the two of you inside.

“I’m not that cold, angel.” He assures, but does nothing to stop you from hugging onto him as the elevator shuts. Shimmying the two of you a step forward he manages to finally click a floor number as your body clings onto his to give warmth.

“Please, you hate cold weather.” You retort and place a kiss on the underside of his jaw. “Is this where you take me up to the roof and we look dramatically off at the city?”

“No, it’s way too cold for that.” Yoongi quickly admonishes the idea, causing you both to laugh at both the severe way he spoke, but also the implication that he is more cold than he lets on. “But maybe in the summer or at least the spring that would be a fun idea.” He says, watching the floor number climb as he rubs little trails on your back and your cheek settles against his chest. “C’mon, angel; this is the floor.”

You pull away from him to look at the number and know it to be the name one his and Hoseok’s studios are on. You exit out of the elevator with him quickly pressing a switch opposite of the elevator to turn the hallway lights on.

“Oh, is this about the song you’ve been telling me about lately?” You ask with a growing smile that’s excited from the idea. Yoongi huffs and pouts as he turns his head to look down at you,

“I said it’s no fun getting hints, angel.” His high-pitched rumble makes you laugh gently as you squeeze his hand. Coming closer to his studio, you hum and reconfigure a guess of what he wants to show you despite his protests, “Is it that you decorated your studio finally-”

“Hey,” Yoongi calls out as he stops a pace behind you to bring a halt to your stroll. Turning towards him, your eyebrows knit in confusion because his studio is a few more steps down. The confusion builds more as Yoongi just smiles before flicking his head to gesture to the room you both stopped in front of.

Turning to look in the direction, you see a door just the same as all the others and you’re about to question the significance of it before your eyes catch the polished metal plaque with your name engraved on it. In your stupor, you release hold of Yoongi’s hand to turn with widening eyes towards the door. Taking a step, you feel words escape your mind as you can only think about the obvious insinuation of the plaque, and turn your head back to Yoongi as though silently asking him to verify.

With a proud, soft smile he nods his head, stepping beside you to press a series of numbers into the lock on the door. “It took a little while longer than I expected to get it set up, especially without you realizing considering you walk down this hall so many times.” He chuckles only a little before pushing the door open to hold it ajar with his hand. Yoongi returns his gaze back to you as he happily admits, “But this studio’s yours, Y/N.”

After a moment to let his words sink in, you take another step to press your palm against the richly stained wood of the door and push it wider to enter inside. Following behind you, Yoongi presses the switch to turn on the lights that illuminate the rectangular space that you walk further into. A desk is already positioned on the far wall with monitors and equipment all arranged similarly to the way they are at your home studio. Shelves around the room are empty, and the couch against one side is free of pillows or throw blankets. The space is completely fresh to personal touch, but the door alerts anyone who reads it that the room is your own creative area as an acknowledged employee.

Turning back towards Yoongi who’s quiet yet clearly eager from his position beside the closed door, you walk to him and trust him to catch you as you practically jump into a hug that his arms catch you from tightly.

“Thank you so much.” You mumble against the fabric of his shirt, clenching wrinkles into the clothing on his back as well. Yoongi smiles as he rests his chin on your head, rubbing soothingly against your back as a tiny whimper leaves your lips.

“You’re welcome, angel, but this is really something you deserved all along.”

“But,” You pull your face from his chest to look up at Yoongi despite the tears welling in your eyes from gratitude. “Without you, I wouldn’t have gotten here the same way, and I wouldn’t have been able to do everything with someone like you to be beside me through it all. Yoon, you’ve really helped me do so much and everything was so crazy to get here, but I’m glad that it happened how it did, because I really love you. I can’t believe I got to meet you and fall in love with you.”

Cupping Yoongi’s face, you pull him down into a kiss as he moves his hands to better hold you against his chest. Following the kiss, Yoongi can’t help but lean his head against your shoulder, for a moment overcome by emotion due to your admission. You smile, rubbing his back as he squeeze you a bit tighter and exhales.

“You know, angel, if I hadn’t ever met you I’d still be practically a puppet to my old management team.” He kisses your cheek briefly before straightening up to properly look down at you. “I love you so much too. Whether you realize it or not, you really inspired me to finally fight back against them too, sweetie. I really am so proud of you and everything you’ve done.”

Yoongi kisses you gently once more, finding himself completely content as your arms wrap loosely around his neck to hold the two of you in place. When he thinks about it, receiving the recognition you deserved really was the only suitable outcome for everything that you’ve been through. Everything feels correct, even if realistically there are still trials to overcome where the company itself is concerned. At least there’s undeniable optimism in the future.

You hold his hand as you break apart to walk back around the studio space and explore the room. Coming up to the computer you go ahead and turn the power on just to see it and be shown that everything is as real as it seems to you. Yoongi stands behind you, wrapping his arms around your waist to rest his chin against your shoulder. The computer brightly flashes with a screensaver already saved to a picture the two of you took on an evening boat date months earlier. You laugh at the sight of it and turn towards Yoongi whose eyebrows furrowed in confusion,

“This is what I get for letting Hoseok plug everything in for me.” He mumbles as you press a sweet kiss to his cheek. “You should change the passcode from what it is so he can’t come in here whenever to spam your studio with pictures or other pranks.”

“If I change the passcode, maybe I’ll keep it a secret from you too.” You ponder aloud, earning an expected poke in your side to tickle you from Yoongi. As your body jerks from the ticklish feeling, he simply hugs you tighter, pressing a kiss against your cheek in retribution. You eventually sigh as you smile and relax back against his chest, admitting softly, “But honestly, if Hoseok’s going to print out cute pictures like this one, maybe I’ll just keep the code the way it is.”

“Angel, the code is 1111. Please don’t do that.”

if you enjoyed please, please let me know via ask, comment, rb with tags– however ! i’d just really appreciate feedback 🥺 i hope you enjoy the series, i worked really hard on it! And if you’ve read thank you so much! below are some fun facts and final words about the series!

tag list: @jaiuneamesolitaiire @tsvkino-usagi @xionysus​ @baebyjoonie​ @honeyoongles​ @betysotelo18​ 

Fun facts:

Jinsol, Seulgi, and Jihyo the only non-bts named character that are supposed to be their real-life counterparts (from LOONA, Red Velvet, and Twice respectively)

To be honest??? I picked the name Yerin because it sounds so pretty to me

This series is as long as NOVEL! Deadass a fucking NOVELLLLL! like what??? I can’t believe I managed to write roughly 100k words wtf.

Seulgi was initially going to be considerably more important as an antagonist, but then it felt like it was going to be feeding too much into Hoseok’s character than help the actual story progress so I did away with her history with Yoongi (and Hoseok)

The spotify playlist for the series is actual set up into three different parts (four songs, an interlude, four songs, an interlude, four songs) and the purpose of this was to separate the songs into characters. The first four songs are about Jimin’s character growth, the second set of four songs are about Y/N’s, and the third four songs are about Yoongi’s. In some ways, if you looked at the lyrics for the song you may have been able to gauge a lot of the plot that way.

The name for the series, Veil, comes from the idea that something is covered by a cloth that is not completely opaque, but still blurs the perception of what is beneath it. 

I don’t remember exactly how I got the premise for this idea, but I knew that I wanted to make a Yoongi story. So that being said, this was always intended to be a Yoongi story, I wasn’t swayed in one way or another to pick the ending couple.

Although, my friend told me recently that after hearing about my plans for Jimin’s character in the last few chapters that she wanted him to end up with Y/N LOL; I think that’s mainly because, in this story’s universe, the song Jimin released at the festival was Promise, and in this story he wrote that song with the intention of supporting Y/N and also telling her that he wants her to be her own power source through all she’s gone through (I want you to be your light, baby, you should be your light)

Because I’m actually really fond of Jimin’s character, I was thinking about making a one-shot prequel about him and Y/N’s relationship long before Yoongi.

The Audi that Yoongi drives costs about $200,000. I needed to tell you that, just like I needed to give him that expensiveass car. Why? It’s h*t.

I couldn’t rationalize Yoongi or Hoseok becoming the CEO of the company they made together, because ultimately they still want to be performers lol. They’re more like founders, and have a lot of say in the board. 

Jeongguk, in this story, is a part of a band with Yugyeom, Mingyu, and Minghao. What a combination lol.

Taehyung is a lawyer for idols generally, but he starts to work more for Yoongi and Hoseok’s endeavors by the end.

In my mind, Jimin eventually went on to get signed at the same company Jeongguk and Seulgi work at. He would’ve been pretty successful there.

Also, I doubt that Y/N’s royalties with her songs at SoundWave would’ve been kept by the end of the series. Realistically, she would have to be credited, but she would no longer receive money for them, so she really did have to start over in a way.

Yoongi’s hair was always blonde until that scene where he went to dye it back to his natural hair color; this was a very freeing moment for his character.

In Y/N’s conversations with Yerin and Jimin, Yoongi was consistently just..,.,,,.,. chilling in the background..../., in the case of Jimin conversation he was making pancakes lmao. What a guy.

Again, if you’ve read this whole story thank you SOOOOOO MUCH! You’ve basically read an entire book in reading this fic, and that is unbelievable to me who never would’ve figured I’d have been able to make this entire thing! Thank you again so much for reading! See you in the next story! 🥰❤️

[bartramcat]

CSI, GUNSMOKE, and STAR TREK: Of Reboots, Remakes and Reinventions

So this whole CSI revival thing has me meditating on a whole bunch of unrelated TV shows, and the tendency of networks to try to replicate success.

Back in the dark ages, when I was a kid, networks were filled with Westerns and Sitcoms and Variety Shows. (Thank you Ed Sullivan for introducing me to so many different kinds of music and comedy I never would have sought out for myself.) I'll admit right now that, for the most part, I hate sitcoms. I'm not even a big fan of comedy films with the exception of Howard Hawks' breakneck version of screwball. The only two sitcoms I maintain a high regard for are The Dick Van Dyke Show and Get Smart. It's the writing. (Get Smart was never a true sitcom; it was a weird pastiche of parody and satire.)

So that brings us to westerns, a form I also tend to dislike, with the exception of Gunsmoke. In many ways, it is the quintessential western, by virtue of lasting so long, and, in others, it's not a western at all but a vehicle for morality plays and character studies in a western setting. At its core is a group of diverse misfits who come together to make a family; despite often unsavory or tragic backstories, they were united in their search for truth and justice and their love for one another.

I think one of the reasons Gunsmoke survived so long was twofold: the core characters and its ability to reinvent itself. Early on, the morality plays were more black and white, good versus evil in a very raw, harsh environment. The term that most comes to mind is stark, although the relationships among the principles were already complex. As Dodge grew, the "bad guys" became more complex, blurring the lines between good and evil. While some truly evil folks still turned up, there were more shades of gray, more bad choices, often born of desperation in an unforgiving landscape, than simply being "born bad." In the latter years of the series, while there were still episodes that explored the relationships among the principles, many episodes were character studies of either Dodge residents or transients.

Surprisingly, the black and white hour long episodes between 1961 and 1966 are some of the darkest TV has ever produced. Happy endings were not part of the formula. Some I would characterize as downright nihilistic. Not your stereotypical TV western. Several TV historians attribute this bleak depiction of frontier life as contributing to the declining ratings in the early to mid 1960s; the show would have been cancelled had it not been for Mrs. Paley, whose favorite show it was.

Gene Roddenberry once said that Star Trek was Gunsmoke in space. On a universe level, he was perhaps talking about frontiers: Gunsmoke was set on the American Frontier and Star Trek "the Final Frontier." Within the show itself, however, it too is about a group of diverse misfits who come together to make a family. It is perhaps worth noting that much of Roddenberry's early TV career was spent in westerns.

(As an aside, I was watching The Long Voyage Home a couple of months ago, and I started laughing out loud at an exchange between Spock and McCoy. My brother asked what was that funny. I said that the whole scene was so Doc and Festus. And it was.)

The original Star Trek was a failure as a TV series. It only lasted 3 years with no great ratings. Yeah I was one of those who wrote letters to NBC when they threatened to cancel it after the 2nd season. The characters and the concepts within it, however, had made an indelible mark on the consciousness of a generation.

For the most part, I hate movies based on TV shows, since I regard the TV and movie experiences to be basically incompatible. Both are on film, but that's where the similarity ends. I also loathe reboots. Star Trek is the only franchise that achieved success in both: the film and the reboot, primarily, I think, because the vision remained the same throughout all of its manifestations. The movies based on the OG show are not a redo but a continuation of the story of those characters first introduced in 1966. And I think as a TV series that TNG was actually better.

CSI has always reminded me of a weird combination of Gunsmoke and Star Trek, mainly because of the whole make a family thing. And the common bond among the family members. There are parallels that can be drawn among characters in all of the shows, but they are, for the most part, analogous at best.

As a TV show, I think CSI lost its way after Grissom left. Gunsmoke never lost Matt, and Star Trek never lost Kirk. The two earlier shows held onto their core characters for their entire runs, well almost. When Amanda Blake decided to take a year off from Gunsmoke in the 20th season, the show had a void. While the overall ratings were still good, I suspect the coveted women 18-49 demo took a huge hit.

For the most part, for me, TV shows are just TV shows. There are those I enjoy as in the moment entertainment. Rarely do I think about them after the credits roll. My go to show is Law and Order. It's comfortable. But I never connected to any of the characters in any substantial way. It is a true procedural. Criminal Intent is a whole other ball of wax, but that's due to Vincent D'Onofrio's Bobby Goren, who is easily in my Top Five of TV characters.

I'm not sure why CSI went so wrong after Grissom left. I suspect a large part of it was not only actor turnover but writing turnover. A loss of continuum both in front and in back of the camera. Initially, I think they were beset by panic: in an effort to fill the Grissom void, they decided to make it about Langston and not the team. The more fractured the team, the more fractured the show.

At the risk of offending some folks, I never cared about Langston, Russell, Finn or Morgan. Compared to the original team, they always seemed more caricatures than characters to me. In the later seasons, even Catherine, Nick, Greg and Sara seemed to lose a lot of their dimensions.

I have no idea what the CSI reboot will be trying to be. On the one hand, it could be trying to be TNG, but then what are Gil and Sara doing there? They certainly can't be part of a found family, since their family isn't included. There has to be some kind of viable backstory for them suddenly to give up whatever it is they have been doing to come back to the lab to save the day.

(In some of my potential scenarios, I suppose it possible they are globe-trotting NatGeo explorers engaged in scientific studies of whales and sharks, birds and bees, but they retain the Vegas residence to which they return to write up their treatises, thereby maintaining contact with the goings on at the lab. Yeah that's pretty far-fetched too.)

I suppose my fondest hope is that we will learn that several of the original CSI writers and production staff have signed back on, so that something of the original vision can filter through.

Shows can reinvent themselves. And they can be successful in different manifestations. In order to do so, however, there needs to be consistency in design and execution. There needs to be a coherent vision in terms of what the show is trying to do and to say.

And there really, really needs to be cast chemistry.

Here's hoping.

[lori-hime]

I haven't written much about what I've been up to lately, so here's some word salad updates~ 🥗

NijiGaku Anime

So I started watching the new LL. I hadn't been keeping up with SIFAS' story, but I did read some of it when it first came out. I gotta say, I'm really enjoying all of the changes they decided to make for the anime version of the story, to both the characters and story. It's starting to feel like something coherent. The story in the game was ok, but the main thing that interested me was the interactions with Muse and Aqours, overshadowing the actual "plot" and even Nijigasaki themselves. But the anime really made me interested and excited about the story and characters again. I would be a little annoyed about the personality and dynamic changes, but honestly, I'm used to it by now. LL always ends up doing this sort of thing, and the personalities only seem to become solidified after the anime airs.

A little disappointed in Kasumi's change in some vague ways I don't really feel like describing, but honestly it balances out because Ayumu is fantastic now (previously one of my least cared for of the group.) Yu's personality is surprisingly super gay fun and I'm really excited for her and Ayumu's dynamic in particular. They're so cute. Seriously feel like I'm gonna ship them hard.

I also really like Rina's initial personality in this. Not only is she bad at expressing emotions through her face, but she also seems bad at expressing them through words too. I feel like this is gonna be much more interesting than her already being cutesy and genki like in the promo stuff and SIFAS.

When Karin was first shown, I had mixed feelings. At first I was like oh god I'm gay and she's beautiful. But the whole sexuality flaunting thing kind of put me off for several reasons I don't really wanna get into explaining. I really didn't know how to feel. I started liking her a little more during SIFAS, when she competed against Muse in DDR and lost... started feeling like I was getting a glimpse of her real personality without the whole sexy idol persona. Although not much has happened in the anime with her yet, she's giving me Nozomi vibes and I love it. I actually think if I had gone into this without previous knowledge of the characters, I'd be betting she'd become my fave for sure.

My list has gone from Kasumi > Rina > Kanata / Emma > Karin > Ai > Setsuna > Ayumu > Shizuku to Yuu > Ayumu > Kasumi / Karin > Rina > Kanata / Emma > Ai > Setsuna > Shizuku

Still biased a bit towards characters that have shown up more in the first two eps, so it'll undoubtedly change. But It's really interesting how much the characters I already felt I had good placements for changed so much.

Edit for episode 3, because I didn't post this fast enough. Student council speedrun was fantastic. Yu continues to be incredibly gay. I wonder how this episode will affect the ships people will gravitate towards. LL has always been a fairly monoship fandom, heavily gravitating towards specific pairs. Of course that's largely the fault of canon itself, often pushing and developing single ships. Well, I suppose we saw a big change with Aqours, though, especially with season two. But even then, the ships tended to stay at least between girls of the same year (aside from my rarepair, shout-out to YohaRiko.) Now, I wonder. From the very beginning, before Yu even had a name, it felt like they were really pushing the shippy stuff @ the viewer. I wonder if that’s still gonna be the angle. I'm not entirely sure how I feel about it yet. I really want to see more YuAyu rather than YuSetsu, but I can't really be mad at more gay content unless they try to make it a DEEP story and then fail to resolve it but haha they'd NEVER do that, I'm sure!!

As for the others... I'm guessing they're gonna push RinAi, KarinEmma, YuuKasu, and maybe YuuShizu? My original guesses were that AiKarin would be a thing, evoking NozoEli v3. But I guess that'd be too predictable a third time. KarinEmma sounds like it could be cute and sweet, RinAi feels like it has adorable potential, and YuKasu vs. YuAyu sounds like it could have some good comedic rival-y potential, given they don't make Kasumi super serious about it and make it really angsty. Not that a cute idol show would ever do such a thing haha!!!!!

Higurashi Gou

Also started Higurashi. I doubt many people know this, but I used to be a major Higurashi fan before I got into Touhou. It was my main "fandom" I guess, even though there wasn't really that much of a fandom to interact with comparatively. Anyway, despite that, I didn't think I'd get into this remake super hard... but I'm really loving it so far. The art style is really pretty and eye candy, and it turns out it's a direct continuation of the story rather than a remake. Very excited to see where it's going, and also to see a lot of my baby Rena again.

An interesting difference to me as I'm rewatching are my feelings for Keiichi. While I don't hate him, over the years I've really grown tired of the generic male leads (especially in harem anime) like him. Of course, he's definitely not AS generic as they come, or maybe perhaps that's just my bias from when I used to really like him. The me back then found him unique enough to stand beside the girls. Nowadays, I definitely can't say the same. At least he doesn't grate on my nerves as much as most other harem anime protags do, however. I feel like despite lacking the quirks that make the girls so likeable and unique, he still has something going for him... perhaps the fact he's framed as inherently different from everyone else, because he comes from the city, and the way he acts a bit more realistically to the scary things that are happening. Although those things are obviously explained away later, at least for now I still accept him for what he is, old bias or not.

Genshin Impact

Been playing Genshin Impact religiously and loved every second of it. Though I've caught up with the main story content, so sadly it's slowed down. I'd never heard of this game before it came out, so I was absolutely wowed that such a game was f2p. I've heard a lot of people criticizing it because they added gacha in at the last minute, and I definitely understand being annoyed through the pov of someone who was anticipating it. But part of me is still really thankful that the game is free at all. I suppose that full but paid 60 dollar game would still be a better experience, but because of my non-existent budget situation, I may not have ended up playing it at all.

Aside from the arguably shitty monetization practices, however, the game is fantastic. It really is as similar to BoTW as people have mentioned, and I really appreciate that. BoTW, from a gameplay standpoint, is absolutely my favorite game. It's exactly what I want from any given game. So I really appreciated this. The story and characters of Genshin are also really interesting. I really like Qiqi, Venti, Fischl, and Xingqiu, among others. I spent a while rerolling for Qiqi or Venti 5*s, and eventually got an account with Qiqi. Venti on the other hand I've been trying to roll for but sadly haven't gotten. I have 1 roll left before the banner ends, so hopefully.. My friends whaled him for me. I swear I tried to stop them! I owe them my soul...

HoloLive, Pikamee & Vtubing

I briefly started getting into HoloLive a little while ago. After the Aloe stuff, I started worrying a bit about how the company handles these situations as well as the girls' freedoms and how much of their donation money they actually get.. (I made a post about it a while back.) After a while my worries died down a bit, but then came back full force with the Coco and Haachama situation. After that and one too many uncomfortable sexual jokes, I decided to just distance myself from HL. It's a shame, because I really enjoyed their personalities, but it was making me feel uncomfortable more often than not.

I told myself it’s fine, I’ve got Pikamee if I ever feel like watching vtubers again. And then like a week later... Well, it’s not really something I wanna talk about here, but she made some posts on twitter that made me too uncomfortable to continue watching her either.

On a much lighter note... A friend of mine showed us how to use prprlive and facerig to use the Touhou CB Live2D models, and Asa and I played around with Mokou, Kaguya, and Lyrica’s. It was quite fun, and I do look forward to using the Kaguya one for private streams on one of my servers. I’ve actually always wanted to try out vtubing stuff myself, but not really publicly. Of course, the costs for getting a model drawn and made specifically for me are too much for something I’m not really committing to, so this is perfect. I’m excited~

Touhou Cannonball & Kagura Thoughts

It’s been a long time since I talked about Touhou CB on my blog, and I’m pretty sure I left things on a pretty bad note. Mainly dissatisfied with Mokou’s portrayal for pretty shallow reasons on my part, despite they game having just started and having a lot of room to grow. And grow it did. While I quit pretty early in because of that, Asa decided to take over my account. She realized that it was pretty easy to upgrade any given character you had to a 5* without having to rely much on the gacha. She ended up playing a lot with the goal of upgrading everyone we had. I came back to it around July and actually had a lot of fun with it. The cast had gotten much bigger and we really enjoyed playing on multiplayer. It wasn't the best game ever from a gameplay standpoint, but it definitely had it's charm. The announcement of its death, although unsurprising, came at the worst time. Asa and I actually cried a little when we saw the announcement, ngl. The game had such good, wholesome, Touhouy vibes to it. Nonetheless, we made the most out of the last month or so after the announcement. We played a LOT of multiplayer and had a lot of really cute and good interactions with other players. Near the end, we realized that Lyrica was the only character from the normal banner we were missing, so we grinded like crazy (mostly Asa) to try to get her... we ended up getting a number of 5*s but none Lyrica... she eluded us to the very end. It was quite sad, but how hard we worked for it still felt satisfying somehow. We were able to max out our multiplayer level and complete a ton of goals we wouldn’t have otherwise.

So after this bittersweet experience with Touhou gacha, and all the scummy things I've been hearing about Lost Word, I've been thinking like... I'm done with Touhou gacha, at least for now. Don't wanna hear anything else about it for a good while. And then the 25th anniversary hits and they announce Kagura. Ugh. Please, give me a break. Needless to say, I'm gonna have to give it a try. Touhou is my life, I love rhythm games, I love Touhou music, and I love character collecting games. And I've been waiting for something to replace SIF gameplay in my heart for a long time. I'd banked my hopes on SIFAS but it's really barely a rhythm game so.... at least now that I've gone through CB's death and seen how cruddy LW is, I'll have lower standards and not get my hopes up too high.

If you got this far, thanks for reading my rambles and have a good day~

[kihaku-gato]

OCs their symbolic flowers and the Hoepian floral equivalent

Dusting off old brain notes, cause of a time I’d include/place a “symbolic flower“ for every OC just cause.

Terra- Tiger Lily

“ these flowers are representative of pride. ”

“this particular lily is more often associated with the more aggressive feminine characteristics.“ [x]

While the first line actually works for Terra well (she does hold fondness for her own hard work) I’m pretty sure I chose Tiger Lily for her cause of the latter line way back- though one could very strongly argue Terra might not fit the bill of Aggressive Femininity (idk what that’d even be visually) I’m pretty sure I took the line literally at the time as “a woman who’s strong/aggressive“.

Outside of that I probably chose Tiger Lily cause the orange/black pattern of the flowers match with Terra’s red/black clothes.

“The Tiger Lily is said to mean "I dare you to love me"“ [x] Terra is not really one after romance, yet this feels very weirdly Terra-esque.

Hoepian Tiger Lily (Lilium flareonsis)

“Evolved from the Earth Tiger Lily (Lilium tigrinum), the physical differences between the two are surprisingly few. Found in open woodlands, fields and meadows, it absorbs the sun's rays and converts them into flame magic which is stored in it's bulbs. The flame magic makes the bulbs rather spicy, hence they are a very delicious (but common) delicacy. They are also used to start campfires and bonfires. Although harmless alone, they can be potentially dangerous when growing near the magically impressionable Soul Daisy.” [x]

One of the few species of Hoepian flora to not diverge much from its Earth ancestors (two of the others being Ginkgo macrophylla and Ginkgo triloba from Earth’s Ginkgo biloba). They have a huge morphological similarities with Lilium tigirium and Lilium superbum, but the petal patterns are very different; black spots towards the center alike to L. tigirium but also have stripes widthways nearer to the ends of the petals (a characteristic not at all like any Earth lily species). Also like most Hoepian flora, Hoepian Tiger Lilies do not have green foliage, and instead have red foliage.

Kayla- Daisy

"Daisies symbolize innocence and purity.” [x]

Being that Kayla is considered one of the more innocent and purer characters (at least to a degree) this is not a huge surprise this flower ended up being her flower.

Soul Daisy (Magiflora australis, M. borealis)

[My old excepts on this flower is a bit hefty so let’s make it shorter-] Soul Daisy flowers/seeds are harvested for purified magic- so is often grown agriculturally for mana-based industries. Being the magic in question is in its purest form, it changes/meshes to whatever element/magic that’s in its presence (ex- a breeze could become a strong wind gust due to the magic making Wind Magic) making it potentially hazardous if one is late to harvest fields of this plant.

While an agricultural crop it is not entirely domesticated; the outer edges of Soul Daisy fields develop needles to make a protective barrier in the masses from herbivores.

The flowers look very similar to Earth daisies; a pinwheel of long white petals with a faint blue/cyan stripe that makes a ring when all the petals are together on the flower. If altered by magic Soul Daisy flowers change colour to closely resemble the magic they are changed to. All but 4 of the petals are rounded, the said 4 are spit on the ends, making a mild resemblance to a cross.The stems are black on older growth, while younger growth is a vibrant pink. The leaves are violet in colour and look like rounded fern fronds.

Despite the name “Soul Daisy“ there is not much spirituality involved for this flower when it comes to Hoepian culture. It may be named so cause of the cross pattern, or cause of it producing the purest form of organic magic (like the “soul of magic”).

Unlike Earth Daisies, Soul Daisies also have the symbolism of impressionablility due to the pure magic that so easily changes to the elements around it.

Harriet - Sunflower

“Many groups associate sunflowers with prolonged constancy and loyalty,“

“Various faiths have adopted sunflowers to express a symbol of worship and faithfulness, as in the flower’s faithful dedication to the sun.“ [x]

Harriet is very loyal and ride-or-die for her friends so the former goes without saying. Harriet can be very idolistic towards very beautiful women (like Riivar) so worship might be a lil on the nose. I actually chose Sunflowers for Harriet cause of her sunny attention-seeking disposition, akin to the bright attention grabbing sunflower.

Water Sunflower (Haquanthus volitariflora)

While descended from Earth Asteraceae, this plant has adapted to the ocean and looks like a blend of sunflower and kelp. Sparse in rich sunny aquatic groves, but are in larger thickets/forests (of its own species) in colder/sparser waters. They are grown in some coastal settlements as the oil rich seeds are a food source. They are also a favoured snack for amphibious animals.

While the roots are anchored to the rocks, the leaves and even the flowerheads are full of air to keep the rest of the plant afloat. The large flowers are very resembling of Earth’s Mammoth Sunflowers.

The flower/seedheads are large and full enough of air to hold a small person afloat, though it would be a very bad raft alternative.

Riivar- Forget Me Not

“Forget-me-nots represent long lasting connections that can exist between not only lovers, but also friends. This connection can’t be broken or shaken by anything or anyone.“ [x]

Back in her child/teenhood she was head-over-heels in love with Terra, who was Riivar’s first love too. It didn’t work out but she still holds a tenderness for Terra and will not forget that first love.

Memberance Tree (Neomyosotis flexilis)

“A tree descended from the annual Forget-Me-Not plant (Myosotis spp.). They are sexually dimorphic flora; the female plants/flowers stay short and small like their Myosotis ancestors, while the male plants grow into gigantic willow-like trees, which spread their pollen around through the wind. Also like their ancestors they are most commonly found closeby waterways and marshes. On Hoep they have similar symbolism to the Earth Forget-me-not.“ [x]

The stems/wood are a deep purple while the leaves are a dark pink. The flowers are identical to Earth Forget Me Nots.

Riivar has a large tattoo on her back that’s a broken heart surrounded by Memberence tree flowers. It’s multiple layers of symbolic; it represents her first love (Terra) but also represents her remembering her roots she left behind. The broken heart has an additional meaning; her stepping down from her royal heritage.

Demauria- Venus Fly Trap

Sadly could not find an applicable symbolism; I don’t even remember why I chose Venus Fly Trap for Demauria (a more ice/cold thematic flower would’ve perhaps been a better choice). Perhaps I wanted a ferocious plant for a ferocious personality. I may change this if I ever find a better flower to represent her.

Gator Jaws (Lagartofolia dentislux)

“A carnivorous wetlands species that is found in abundance in the country of Swamani, and in lesser frequency outside the country’s borders. They are quite common in unlit rural areas and rarer near urban areas especially if the cities are illuminated at night. It is a plant that has adapted to attract insects for nutrition at night by illuminating it’s “jaws” during dark hours. Light illuminates on the tips of the “teeth” of the modified leaves as well as inside in leaves itself. Like the Venus Fly Trap which it evolved from, it has hairs inside it’s jaws to help detect and trigger the mouth to close and digest its prey while inside. Also like it’s ancestor, it flowers infrequently and younger specimens tend to die after flowering. The foliage colour of Gator Jaws can range from red/purple to green/orange, and it is not uncommon to find an entire range of different coloured specimens in one area.

There isn’t much agricultural or herbal significance for this plant, however it is still commonly used in Swamani to edge along and illuminate major roads and routes so that the paths can be easily seen and used at night. The macrophylla form of the plant is most commonly used for such paths, and is rarely seen anywhere else compared to other Lagartofolia forms.

In some places Lagartofolia is also known as Growlroot, named so for the growling sound that emanates from the roots of the plant when stepped on. The growling is caused by air pockets among the roots which are released out of the ground when the roots are compressed. It is unknown if these air pockets among the roots are an adaption to give the roots oxygen in watery habitats or if they exist to makes the growling sound as an attempt to scare off potential grazers of the plant.”

They greatly resemble Venus Fly Traps, except that the “trap“ is longer and resemble a crocodillian’s mouth, and the “teeth/hairs“ have bioluminescent bulbous tips.

Anne- Protea

“Diversity – The Protea flower is certainly different and it stands out from the crowd. This unusual flower is attracting attention no matter how beautiful the other flowers next to it are. There is simply something beautiful and mysterious about its appearance and it is a perfect gift for someone equally unique.“

“Courage – Gifting someone the Protea flower is also a symbol of courage. This flower symbolizes overcoming obstacles and finding courage inside of you to make a difference in the world. This flower has a very strong message“

Admittedly not unlike Demauria’s flower, Anne’s was also on a mildly mysterious whim. Unlike Demauria’s though, Proteas do have some symbolism attached to them, which also could be applied to Anne. She does indeed stand out from the crowd (though she may not want to), and the courage works as she throughout the story has to get the courage to open up to others as well as to face the Fallen Slayer destiny/responsibility which she is very scared to face.

Molten Protea [new af so no botanical name]

I still haven’t made up much for information/ideas on this Hoepian equivalent. Just that simply it grows exlusively in hot volcanic habitats (lava flows, volcanos, and in rare cases hot geysers). Probably has a visual molten motif similar to lava/magma. Probably blooms or goes to seed after events like volcanic eruptions.

[flo-ggs]

Who We Don’t See On TV

In 2018 and 2019, there were a total of twenty-six recurring transgender characters who appeared on television, including streaming services. About one in six Americans report that they personally know at least one transgender person ("Where We Are On TV"). More than ninety percent of American households watch television on a regular basis (Leavitt 41). What this means is that for five out of six Americans, the only trans people they ever see—and this is assuming there are any—are a handful of characters on TV. If you live in America, and pay any attention, you know that vitriol directed the way of the trans community is pervasive—and it's not so hard to imagine feeling the same way if your only experience of trans people comes from Fox News and Ace fucking Ventura. That's just one example—but media in general presents a skewed perspective of just about every minority group, with one obvious exception.

Cultivation theory provides a psychological model for how media alters our perception of the world around us. The information we take in and the stories we're told change the way we contextualize what we see, reshaping or reinforcing the framework on which we hang our experiences ("Cultivation Theory"). If you see a Muslim committing an act of terror on television—and then see the same thing happen again and again—you'll begin to draw a connection between the two ideas. That's an obvious and simplified example, but there are innumerable subtler ways in which media builds connections between concepts that gradually become part of our own perception of the world. It's worth examining what connections exactly are being drawn, who's drawing them, and how exactly they're changing the world we live in.

Essentially every demographic—with, of course, the exception of one very special minority group—is drastically underrepresented in entertainment media. There are many subtle issues with the state of diversity in entertainment, but this isn't one of them—it's a simple fact that our math is just off. The selection of people who are represented in media differs significantly from the actual population—the world of entertainment is not like ours. A study of 900 films released from 2007-2016 found that 31% of speaking roles were female—a demographic which famously constitutes almost exactly half of the population (Smith 6). This is as clear-cut as it gets—I fail to imagine what a reasonable explanation for this inequity could sound like. Other statistics featured in the report are the total 1.1% of movie characters who were LGBT (far fewer than exist in reality) and the 2.7% who were depicted as disabled (the real-life statistic is closer to 1 in 4), among others (Smith 8, CDC). The simple fact of underrepresentation is far from the extent of the problem; there's also the issue of the quality of that representation, which is overwhelmingly inadequate. 

While a great diversity of characterization exists among ingroup characters—just about every white man that can be written, has—minority characters tend to be constructed from a limited bank of stereotypes. Characters from the least-represented demographics suffer the most from this oversimplification. Indigenous Americans, for instance, are very seldom seen on-screen, and when they are, they're depicted most often not as modern people but as 18th and 19th century stereotypes (Leavitt 40). The less we see of a group of people, the flatter and less realized those few glimpses are. It's clear that the majority-white population of writers who rely on other media for cues on how to represent marginalized groups, in the absence of diverse characterizations, are falling back on decades- or centuries-old stereotypes to tell their stories, and in that way, ill representation begets ill representation. That brings us to the problem of artists. A hefty majority of the people producing mainstream art are, not surprisingly, the same kind of people we see in front of the camera—white fellas. In the timespan covered by the Annenberg study, women made up 4% of film directors, while 6% were Black—and directors of other ethnicities were sequestered to an even more vanishingly small niche. The common factor is that every aspect of the entertainment industry is full to bursting with white guys, despite them being a comparatively small portion of the population.

The big question is: why is this an issue? And the answer is obvious and intuitive but nonetheless it's going to take a few pages to answer here.

In 2017, the most popular dream career among children in the US was to be a doctor. In 2019, two years later, more children aspired to be internet personalities than any other profession (Taylor). Children now feel that they are living in a world where "Youtuber" is a viable and fulfilling career. Which is to say that the landscape of media children were consuming palpably altered their worldview—they're identifying themselves with the people that entertain them, wishing to model their own lives after theirs. Media doesn't just entertain us—it is, in part, a substance with which we construct our self-image and our expectations of the world around us. This is especially true of young people, and when young people are presented with entertainment that belittles, stereotypes, or simply omits them, it can inflict real damage. It's been demonstrated that exposure to television is associated with lower self-esteem in all children with the exception of white boys—striking evidence of both the reality and real negative outcomes of  inadequate representation. The messaging may not always be clear to us, but it gets through to children: you are not the type of person that we value. 

One group that is constantly and severely devalued in this way is indigenous Americans. Contemporary depictions are so infrequent and negative as to subject them to what is known as "relative invisibility"—an almost total absence of any realistic or aspirational representations in culture (Leavitt 41). The effect of this pattern of representation is far from negligible. A study of indigenous American students found that greater exposure to media with indigenous American characters actually led to increased negative feelings about themselves, their place in the community, and their future aspirations (Leavitt 44). It's apparent from this result that a greater quantity of representation is not, on its own, an inherent positive. Exposure to a narrow and largely negative range of portrayals of oneself can narrow and negativize one's worldview and self-image. It's easy to imagine how one's dreams for the future could begin to feel futile if the only professions media seems to think you're suited for are mystical wise man and noble savage. Quantity of representation is not enough—in fact, if the quality of representation is lacking, greater saturation can actually do more harm than good, causing real harm to marginalized people whose self-identity and mental health may be damaged by poor portrayals.

When films and shows with stereotypical representations of indigenous Americans are released, indigenous Americans aren't the only ones watching. The same is true of Black people, Muslims, queer people, and every other heavily stereotyped community. While self-esteem is a real issue, we must also be concerned with the esteem in which others hold us. Prejudice presents a serious threat to many—prejudice informed in part by the media that we constantly consume. 

There are real-life political consequences of entertainment. Evidence indicates a relationship between audiences viewing negative portrayals of Black people and negative opinions about policies related to affirmative action, policing, and other race-related legal issues, as well as a general tendency to hold unfavorable beliefs regarding Black intelligence, work ethic, and criminality (Mastro). This is deeply relevant as policy regarding the legal treatment of Black people is one of the most significant issues in the public consciousness, especially in the last few years. The concept of Black people as innately criminal, reinforced by stereotypical media portrayals, has been and continues to inform the debate around issues such as police violence and reform. Voters watch movies and television—so do congresspeople—and the way certain communities look in movies and television contributes to policy decisions that will save or end lives.

The Latin American community deals with similar portrayals in media—they are most often shown as inarticulate, unintelligent, unskilled laborers or criminals (Mastro). These portrayals, too, are highly relevant to American politics. The 2016 presidential campaign of Donald Trump relied heavily on leveraging negative stereotypes about Latin American and specifically Mexican immigrants—they were characterized as violent, predatory, and a threat to the American way of life. Those stereotypes, however, were not invented for the purpose of promoting Donald Trump as a presidential candidate—their utility as a political tool came from the fact that this was already a popular way of viewing Mexican immigrants. The widespread stereotypes about Latin American people are reinforced and reiterated by our entertainment, and in this case, formed the foundation of a winning presidential campaign.

There are good examples, too—in the 1990s and 2000s, American support for gay marriage rocketed from around 20% to nearly 60%, an incredibly rapid change in public opinion caused largely by advocacy in the media (Baume). Gay marriage was then nationally legalized in 2015. The way people are portrayed in our entertainment has serious real-world consequences, good and bad; human lives depend on how the most vulnerable people in our society are shown to the rest of us.

The solution isn't just more. That's part of it, but as we know, increasing the quantity of representation can be harmful rather than helpful if that representation isn't also high-quality. There is some correlation between the two—a greater number of portrayals of a group generally means more divergence from stereotypes—but there's a more fundamental issue at play. There are an abundance of stories that involve characters from marginalized groups, and yet the overwhelming majority of people producing stories in the mainstream are the same white men. As a culture, we enjoy stories about different types of people, but seem to be very comfortable allowing those stories to be told to us by an extremely homogenous group of writers and directors. The entertainment industry often even seems uncomfortable allowing minority actors to play minority roles; although casting white actors to play people of color has mostly fallen out of fashion, it's still commonplace to cast non-disabled and non-queer actors to play disabled and queer characters. This isn't necessarily an unacceptable practice in itself, but it's common enough to create a sense that queer and disabled actors are being actively excluded from entertainment. Of the limited number of disabled characters who appear on-screen, only 5% are played by disabled actors (Pearson). Actors such as Adam Pearson, who was never considered for the leading role in a film about Joseph Merrick (whose condition Pearson shares), are routinely passed up in favor of non-disabled actors (Pearson). Queer actors are similarly underrepresented. As one would expect, minority representation is vastly increased by the presence of minority directors and writers—movies by Black directors have six times as many Black speaking roles on average (Smith 3). The possibility of high-quality, equal representation is clearly tied to increasing diversity behind the camera.

But—what if straight white men just make better entertainment? Maybe they make up such a huge majority of the media industry because their work is simply more valuable. From a certain angle, this is sort of true. The value assigned to entertainment is, in part, determined by the critical response it receives, and media critics are mostly white men. In 2017, 78% of the top film critics were men, and 82% were white (Choueiti 2). It's not strange to enjoy media you see yourself represented in, and it's not surprising that the media we consume the most is mostly comprised of people who look like the people who we allow to determine its quality.

The entertainment industry as it stands today is a self-congratulatory stew of white men. Most representation of anyone outside that group is done on their terms, and as such, lacks both quantity and quality. The only way to break out of the narrow range of representations of marginalized people is to inundate the entertainment business with those people. We need women, queer people, people of color, and disabled people in the media, behind cameras and in front of them. The way these people are portrayed has real and severe consequences—for their mental health, physical safety, and place within our culture. Diversity in entertainment is not a frivolous issue. It matters, a lot, and it won't solve itself. 

Works Cited

Baume, Matt. "Why Opinion Changed So Fast On Gay Marriage." Youtube, uploaded by Matt Baume, 25 June 2015.

"CDC: 1 in 4 US adults live with a disability." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 16 August 2018.

Choueiti, Marc et al. "Critic's Choice?: Gender and Race/Ethnicity of Film Reviewers Across 100 Top Films of 2017." Annenberg Foundation, USC Annenberg, June 2018.

"Cultivation Theory." Communication Theory, 2012.

Indiana University. "TV viewing can decrease self-esteem in children, except white boys." ScienceDaily, 30 May 2012.

Leavitt, Peter et al. "'Frozen in Time': The Impact of Native American Media Representations on Identity and Self-Understanding." Journal of Social Issues, 2015.

Mastro, Dana. "Race and Ethnicity in US Media Content and Effects." Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Communication, Oxford University Press. 26 September 2017.

Pearson, Adam et al. "'Actors don't black up, so why do they still crip up?' – video." The Guardian, 10 September 2018.

Smith, Stacy L., Choueiti, Marc. "Black Characters in Popular Film: Is the Key to Diversifying Cinematic Content held in the Hand of the Black Director?" USC Annenberg, 2011.

Smith, Stacy L. et al. "Inequality in 900 Popular Films: Examining Portrayals of Gender, Race/Ethnicity, LGBT, and Disability from 2007-2016." Annenberg Foundation, USC Annenberg, July 2017.

Taylor, Chloe. "Kids now dream of being professional YouTubers rather than astronauts, study finds." Make It, CNBC, 19 July 2019.

[rainy4thmonth]

Cherry magic - It's more than BL drama

Recently, i put my eyes into a fresh BL drama for Japan titled 30-san made doutei dato mahoutsukai ni narerurashi or if you virgin until 30 years old, it seems you'll become a wizard or known as Cherry maho (cherry magic). The title seems so long enough to forget it by its original name. You could get the information around almost all social media such as twitter or instagram. It's kinda trending somehow. Even in MyDramaList, they got more than 9.0 rating. The actor is not really new at japan entertainment. The protagonist is 30 years old a dull virgin, Kiyoshi Adachi who work as salary man, starred by Akaso eiji who well known in series Kamen rider build as Banjo Ryuuga. He start his career as a fashion model. The second lead is Kurosawa Yuichi, a perfect talent handsome man, colleague of Adachi who have crush on him, starred by Machida Keita, member of popular talent group, exile tribe. It seems that Machida already more popular before play this role. At first sight, they seems like another type of couple in romance drama, when the popular one meet an unpopular person then falling in love with each other, but before you judge it immediately, please watch for 3 episode rule, although maybe you could attracted to it only for first episode. I want to point out some of its good side. It maybe contain my self opinion, so maybe you have different opinion with me.

Warning: maybe contain spoiler

So what's make this drama so special? 1. The characters portray so well. Thanks to Director and Script Writer who make each Character more precious in drama. It's not like I say the manga version is bad, but i can tell that the Characters in drama are better. Adachi is an introvert character. The introvert trait here is not showed as hikikomori, or have anxiety disorder, but as a normal Introvert who still can work and speak to other people properly, although he's not good with large group of people (ep3). He have low self esteem but still he live based on his ideal. Being Salaryman is an usual job in Japan society, to manage to get this job, i think Adachi is not really fool. However, he often compare himself to someone else that make him have low self esteem. On other side, Kurosawa is an extrovert who looks perfect in other's eyes, not just because He's handsome, He also clever and easy going. To be top sales in the company, often surrounded by female co-worker, is normal things if others envy him. He also being gentleman around Adachi. However, nobody's perfect, bring those image everywhere is tiring to person like Kurosawa, because once he makes mistake, other people would bad-mouthing him. We also know somebody like him in real-life, right?. It makes Kurosawa hide problem for himself. However, He one day told Adachi about his heart problem (ep7) and surprisingly got unexpected respond. Adachi told that seeing his weakness is kinda refreshing. For the first time, He heard that 'it's okay being not okay' despite forcely being perfect all the times. Beside, Kurosawa is the character of seme who have really good self-control eventhough sometimes he have pervert mind (in manga He even more pervert, a closet pervert). We also got Fujisaki-san which also very different with manga version. In manga, Fujisaki is just merely hardcore fujoshi with wild imagination who ship Kurosawa x Adachi so hard and often have dirty mind of them. But in drama, Fujisaki is a friendly, cute and seems to be family-oriented woman whose the truth, She doesn't have any interest into romance. However, She wants Adachi happy with Kurosawa since She notice Kurosawa's feeling to Adachi. Tsuge is closest friend to Adachi. Tsuge is a bookworm novelist who likes cute creature such as cat (and minato LMAO). Tsuge gradually love Minato, the delivery man who recently often sent a package to him, after he got same power with Adachi. TBH, for the first time i feel second couple not as strong as main couple, but they're also got interesting story later. 2. The Actors and their acting. I like how they play their role and portray each character and bring this character live. We can see Akaso eiji and Machida keita have a good chemistry. Eventhough they didn't do intimate skinship, i can feel their feeling through their eyes. Even forehead kiss scene at episode 3 seems more romantic than kiss on lips. Akaso's awkward acting also seems natural and all his gesture create the super cute Adachi. Machida as Kurosawa is also gentle and handsome. His sight when see Adachi, I can see the pure love of Kurosawa to Adachi through his eyes. Surprisingly, Kurosawa who seems cool outside is cute and sometimes hilarious inside his mind (whether his imaginations or sudden poetry lol). Also their gesture and their inner voice match perfectly. 3. The story is not just about love between two guys. Maybe this drama cannot fullfills somebody's fetish who want bunch of skinship and intimate scene in every single episode on BL drama. If you are those kind of people, better not watch it or you'll miss every good point of its story. Ofcourse its main story is about homosexual difficulties, how Kurosawa have to hide his feeling toward Adachi and how Adachi should respond to Kurosawa's feeling because they both man, when it seems better as collage than as a lover. More that that, this drama also show a pure love with consent. Kurosawa always considers Adachi's feeling. He doesn't want Adachi to feel forced into relationship or being uncomfortable around him. It also tells about dream and goal, when Adachi feels nothing he want to reach in life but gradually change to find his goal (spoiler for next episode). It also tells about how someone's feeling can have impact to other's perspective. Because of Kurosawa's love, Adachi can grow up and move forward. Because of knowing that everyone have their own problem, Adachi can be more confident to help others. Also Tsuge who try to come out of his comfort-zone and reach Minato's heart. The never give-up Minato, the hardworking Rokkaku, and aromantic Fujisaki-san who likes her career. Every Character have their own story which are amazing. I rarely see BL drama that have those kind of value, very decent. 4. The comedy. Priceless expression and anime-like joke. If you don't similar with these kind of comedy, i don't know whether you can enjoy it or not, but i laugh very hard at some scene. Also the backsound of Kurosawa imagination always tickled me 😂. The mole scene, Tsuge and Adachi's hilarious headbanging, memeable face of Tsuge, Kurosawa's jealousy, etc. 5. Easter egg in each episode However i learn it after several rewatched. It tells that Kurosawa often pay attention to Adachi since episode 1, when Adachi enter the office then slipped his feet, Kurosawa suddenly stand up. It also means that Kurosawa research about Adachi ever since He had crush (7 years? 😳) That's why he's very confident when said "I know everythings about Adachi". Kurosawa already knows that adachi like sweet tamagoyaki, He already put his finger to take sugar (ep2) but he still asks Adachi to not look suspicious. In Kurosawa's imagination, Adachi wear white tshirt, that tshirt Adachi wear inside his shirt. He also imagine Adachi sleep at his personal bed 😳. Since Adachi caught by elevator door, Kurosawa hold the elevator door for Adachi (Ep 3-4). Adachi very love onigiri, there's onigiri's display on his desktop (ep6). I hope i'll find more next time 😂.

[ranger-report]

Review: THE WITCHER 2: ASSASSINS OF KINGS (2011)

With the first Witcher game under my belt, I decided to plunge straightaway into the second game in the series: The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings. Expecting little beyond improvements in graphics and controls, I was very curious to see how the game delivered on the cliffhanger ending of the first game, in which Geralt of Rivia defended King Foltest of Temeria from a would-be assassin, only to reveal that the killer was also a witcher. I’d had a decent time with The Witcher: Enhanced Edition, particularly in the storytelling aspects and the choose- your-own-adventure narrative, but had found myself frustrated by dated game design and graphics and lackluster combat. Still, it was, by the end, an arresting experience that had captured my intrigue enough to make me want to go back and replay it to see what paths I could have chosen. Choice is truly the number one aspect of The Witcher, in that Geralt generally chooses not to choose sides, but is often found forced into doing so. Choice is also the highlight of The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings, so much so that by the end of the game I was nearly horrified with how all of my decisions, ambient though some of them were, had stacked into a neat pile of awful fuckery. If you want to feel good about what you’ve done by the end of a game, The Witcher series might not be for you. But if moral ambiguity and robust, branching paths are what you seek, then read on dear reader, because things are about to get immediately messy in what is some ways a vastly superior sequel to the first game, but in other ways falls short of the narrative potential established by its predecessor.

From the start, Witcher 2 is once again a big game of Choose Your Own Adventure. Opening with a prologue establishing Geralt’s involvement in a political assassination, the player is continually given agency over where Geralt is going, what he wants to do, and how he is going to do it. This is at once the game’s biggest strength. Just as in the first game, Geralt’s choices have domino effects that tumble down the slippery slope of lesser evil decision making, affecting what characters do and whether or not they might appear elsewhere in the game. And, furthering the CYOA aspects, certain portions of the grander story are hidden from sight should Geralt choose to go down a different path. Maybe some characters will have happier endings than we see them get if Geralt decides to help them instead of quest elsewhere -- maybe not. Perhaps the biggest departure from the previous game’s style is that the entire second chapter of Witcher 2 is different depending on which side of a conflict you choose to enable. This, of course, is also all based on whom you’ve sided with previously, with deft moments of quick situational judgements, some of them timed. Give the elven rebel his sword so he can defend himself, or push him to the side so you can leap into the fray yourself? Not every decision is placed in front of the player as a monumental choice; some of them are as simple and clean as whether or not you pick up an object in front of you, knowingly saving someone’s life. This makes the world -- and the story -- feel surprisingly alive, vibrant, always on edge as though the lightest touch in any direction will spell consequences for some and reward for others. This does, however, create a shorter gameplay experience overall. Where my full playthrough of the first game was close to fifty hours, I clocked in just over thirty hours here, but this is partially because the full content of the game cannot be seen in only one playthrough. There’s a massive amount of game to be held, but the unfortunate reality is that it can only be seen piecemeal. It’s like getting to the end of an actual Choose Your Own Adventure novel, only to realize there’s a vast amount of pages left unread because you didn’t take the roads less traveled...or simply traveled differently. For better or for worse, the first time through this game will leave the player with the sensation that there is a lot that they didn’t get to see, despite the freedom of branching paths being thrilling and adventurous. And the story itself isn’t nearly as investing as the previous game. Geralt’s adventure in clearing his name of wrongdoing and tracking down his memories are at the forefront of his story, but in the background is a complex, political plot that simultaneously is and isn’t important to follow. Decisions made by Geralt heavily affect what’s going on, even as Geralt himself is constantly growling about how he wants to track the kingslayer and a missing friend. But the game and the characters populating it continually drag him back to the fray because they need him, dammit, and if he wants the means to his ends then he’ll have to endure everyone else’s shit. Perhaps that’s the point: Geralt’s actions continually change the entire world around him, whether he wants to be a part of it or not. That said, the straightforward narrative is defiantly strong here, partly because the branching system demands it need be. This is a Story with a Purpose, the Purpose being to establish a series of unfortunate events happening around Geralt, if not to Geralt. But when it’s as bland as it is -- save for the bits where Geralt is trying to clear his name -- it can be difficult at times to maintain a steady pace. And the entire third act takes place in a ruined elven city which is a chore to navigate, nearly ruining the momentum and the whole of the game’s experience; there’s two disasterously difficult combat engagements to wade through as well as a grating boss battle with a large beast, not to mention a magical puzzle which demands navigating the labyrinthine ruins if you want to discover what it is. And yet, by the end, the house of cards comes tumbling down into the awful realization that everything behind the scenes has been doing its utmost to raise the stakes high enough to win the whole pot, and depending on Geralt’s actions, it does so to varying degrees. I sincerely doubt there is anything close to a happy ending in one of the alleged 16 conclusions the game contains; if anything, it can only go from shitfucked to fucked-with-hope-on-the-horizon. And, despite the sometimes slog, that’s effective.

Gameplay has seen a heavy upgrade. Gone are the original title’s point and click controls, replaced with a more intuitive interface that relies heavily on action and exploration. Similar to Arkham Asylum’s Detective Vision, Geralt can use his medallion to scan the world around him for interactive elements or objects to search through. Neat in concept, but oftentimes the execution is lacking; it can be incredibly difficult to find objects on the ground left by corpses without always using the medallion, as they can get lost in the surrounding scenery. Upgraded, too, is the combat, which is thankfully no long a boring fucking exercise in clicking at the right time to string together combos. Geralt rolls, swings, magics at the click of a button, using the WASD and mouse camera to keep an eye on the action. The triple division of combat styles -- fast, strong, and group -- are replaced with a fast and strong attack bound to the two mouse keys, and upgrades can make it so Geralt’s attacks can hit multiple people. Blocking is integral, but Geralt needs vitality for a block to be effective, or it will chip away his health. I both enjoyed and did not enjoy the new combat system. It’s functional, but I couldn’t help but feel out of control in tense moments, attempting to roll or dodge or block or use signs between sword strikes. Geralt only swings at whoever he is targeting, not simply in front of him, so if you accidentally turn the camera to the wrong angle while trying to attack he will swiftly turn and swing at someone else entirely, leaving him open to devastating counterattacks from behind. Frustration can mount quickly, as it seems that Geralt is a whole hell of a lot squishier this time around than in the first game. Sure, the first Witcher had plenty of moments where getting overwhelmed could happen in the blink of an eye and Geralt would turn into fresh meat, but Witcher 2 makes every sword fight feel like an exercise in dodging just to stay alive. Maybe I wasn’t playing with enough patience, but it felt like I spent more time rolling and running to regain health than I did connecting with satisfying blows. Sometimes, quicktime events pop up during major boss encounters, which are devastatingly difficult in needless ways. Just like in the first game, Witcher 2 will absolutely dial up the volume on the difficulty knob without warning and around an unseen corner, to an extent where I found myself pained by exhaustion and anger at yet another GAME OVER scene. This is compounded by the strenuous camera, which is awkward at best in outdoors environments, frustratingly awful in close quarters hallways. Making things even worse is the game’s departure from the previous healing methods in The Witcher: where potions could be downed on the fly, and food eaten to regain mild portions of health, now the only way to heal is potions while meditating, or simply by meditating. Without the ability to heal in the middle of combat the thoroughly aggressive enemies will stymie even seasoned players as they watch their health bar helpless disappear with no respite.

Graphically speaking, this is leaps and bounds better than the original. High-detail, crisp textures, far draw distances, I very rarely had any stuttering or framerate issues. At worst, there was minor pop-in and fade in, some seams showing where textures were laid out, and jittery models here and there. Also, motion blur and bloom were turned on by default. Never fun. It was an absolute job to take in the world on hand, with the variety of monsters and humanoid characters to encounter, lovingly rendered with tons of color and flair. Outside of the story, this is where the game truly shines. Before there had been low-res models being reused left and right, but here nearly every character model (outside of factory-line soldiers) feels unique enough to recognize in and out of combat. It’s really a fucking wonder to behold. It felt the same as the graphical leap between Uncharted and Uncharted 2, with nearly an overwhelming amount of detail in the world to take in, dizzingly put together in a way that is breathing and living.

That said, is the game actually an improvement over the first title? Well, yes and no. Graphically, interactively, yes, to an extent. The branching narrative is bold, but feels like there is so much you’re missing out on once you’ve chosen a particular path. For example, there’s a dragon that exists in the game, and its origins are shrouded in mystery. I only discovered them based on a trophy I got at the end of the game, which felt like a huge cheat to learn that way. If the game had told me something about the dragon’s nature, even down the path I took which actively led me away from the dragon, then I wouldn’t have felt disappointed, but it didn’t. I learned the answer through a trophy. And in many ways, while this game does things better than the first game, it’s only to slight degrees, and while I do want to go back and play this again, it’s difficult to do so after a somewhat disappointing first run. Geralt’s story was excellent, and kept me on the edge of my seat whenever it came around, but everything else that happened felt largely disconnected from what was driving Geralt this time around, and ultimately only served as setup for the third game in the series. Again, perhaps that’s the point: perhaps Geralt will have to face the weight of his decisions, that which defines the world at large whilst he maintains a selfish lean towards his personal goals. Geralt of Rivia both is and is not the most important person in this story -- he is but one man who is forging a path towards his wants and needs, but maybe he’s crumbling kingdoms along the way, intentionally or no. While I’ve heard nothing but Game Of The Year praise for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, I’m keeping my expectations tempered based on this sequel, which is fun and daunting and clever, but the drawbacks are hefty, saved only by the draw of the lead character and the living story itself.

Final Score: 7.5/10

[aion-rsa]

The Umbrella Academy Season 2 Complete Easter Egg and Reference Guide

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

The following contains spoilers for The Umbrella Academy season 2. 

The Umbrella Academy wears its influences on its sleeve. Gerard Way and Gabriel Bá’s original comic and the Netflix series it was adapted into pay a great debt to properties like X-Men, Doom Patrol, and even The Royal Tenenbaums.

Now for its second season, The Umbrella Academy is even more devoted to Easter eggs, references, and many other real life and pop culture homages. This batch of episodes takes the Hargreeves family back to the early ‘60s where they encounter a whole new host of inspirations.

“There are tons,” showrunner Steve Blackman says of season 2 Easter eggs. “We specifically wanted to sit down and say, ‘Here are the Easter eggs we want to put in, let’s make a list of them.’ They’re everywhere. I think the fans will get a real kick once you start realizing what we’ve put in.”

Follow along with us as we catalogue every possible Easter egg and reference in The Umbrella Academy season 2. Hopefully we can clarify a thing or two about this season along the way. And hopefully you, dear reader, can help point out what we surely missed.

The Umbrella Academy Season 2 Episode 1: Right Back Where We Started

This episode takes its name from Maxine Nightingale’s “Right Back Where We Started From.” And indeed that song plays as the Hargreeves family arrives in the ‘60s and tries to acclimate to their surroundings. 

The season opens with the lunar-induced apocalypse that kills billions of people on Earth. The world’s destruction was essentially confirmed at the end of The Umbrella Academy season 1 but is re-confirmed here. In the original comic book, the planet is destroyed midway through volume 2 “Dallas” when Hazel and Cha-Cha detonate a nuke they stole from Reginald Hargreeves’s stash. Thankfully in this season, just as in “Dallas,” The Umbrella Academy makes it safely back in time and gets a chance to undo things.

For organizational purposes here is where each member of The Umbrella Academy lands in the early 1960s, along with what movie is playing on the local cinema’s marquee:

February 11, 1960 – Klaus and Ben –  The movie is Curse of the Undead.

1961 – Allison – The movie is The Curse of the Werewolf.

1962 – Luther – Movie not visible.

September 1, 1963 – Diego – Movie not visible.

October 12, 1963 – Vanya – The movie is Kiss of the Vampire.

November 25, 1963 – Five – Movie is still Kiss of the Vampire.

The song playing during this latest apocalypse is Frank Sinatra’s “My Way.”

This thrilling series finale-esque apocalypse sequence also provides viewers with a decent reminder of what each Umbrella siblings’ power is:

Vanya uses sound to generate enormous, explosive power. 

Klaus can communicate with the dead and in this instance is even able to summon the ghosts of U.S. soldiers to do battle against the Soviets.

Luther is super strong. And surprisingly flame retardant. 

Ben (still dead) is able to produce monstrous tentacles from his stomach. In the comic series it is explained that he summons monsters from another dimension. 

Allison quite literally possesses the power of suggestion. Her phrase “I heard a rumor” bewitches whoever hears it to do what she says. 

Diego is super accurate with knives and seemingly takes his combat training more seriously than anyone in the Academy. In the comics, Diego  is able to survive without breathing but for the second season in the row that appears to have not made it to the TV show. “You got Jason Momoa doing that a hundred times better anyway,” David Castañeda told Den of Geek during a set visit. 

Number Five can travel through time but obviously rather imprecisely. He uses that power on a smaller scale to pop through space-time during fist fights.

Hazel makes his triumphant and brief return to the series…looking somewhere between Nick Offerman and Gandalf. He likes to call Five “old-timer” because despite having his childhood body, Five is actually in his late ‘50s. 

This time around, the world will end on November 25, 1963 – notably three days after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in Dallas. 

Diego trots out a Star Wars joke about Luke Skywalker’s daddy issues that obviously no one in the asylum is able to understand, with Star Wars 14 years away from release. 

Diego’s friend at the hospital is new character Lila, played by Ritu Arya. Lila has no comparable character in the comic series and is purely a show invention. Arya is best known for her work in Humans and Last Christmas.

Klaus and Ben were in San Francisco for three years before heading back to Dallas. In that time, Klaus started a cult. California was a hotspot for cults in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s. Klaus was a little ahead of the game. 

Allison is preparing to participate in a sit-in with her Black peers. As early as the ‘40s but chiefly during the ‘50s and early ‘60s, sit-ins were tactics used by Civil Rights organizers in which protesters would occupy an area and refuse to move. Some of the most famous sit-ins involved Black Americans sitting at lunch counters or tables in all-white restaurants and requesting service. As Dan Fienberg points out in his season 2 review, Civil Rights organizers had largely ceased this practice by 1963.

The song playing during Diego’s time in isolation is a cover of Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy” by Daniela Andrade.

The song playing as Diego and Lila escape is “Comin’ Home Baby” by Mel Tormé. 

Luther is working for Jack Ruby – an unlikely important figure in American history. Ruby was a well-known nightclub owner in Dallas who was tied to mob activities such as illegal gambling, drugs, and prostitution. On November 24, 1963 (one day before the world “ends”), Ruby approached JFK’s killer Lee Harvey Oswald as police were escorting him from prison to court and fatally shot him at close range. 

The Umbrella Academy Season 2 Episode 2: The Frankel Footage

The title of this episode is clearly a take on “The Zapruder Film.” The Zapruder Film is footage of the JFK assassination recorded by Texas clothing manufacturer Abraham Zapruder. It is believed to be the most complete visual documentation of the JFK assassination and was used by the Warren Commission that investigated the asssassination. It’s also become fodder for conspiracy theories.

In the reality of The Umbrella Academy, The Frankel Footage is what Hazel slipped into Five’s pocket before he died. It documents JFK’s motorcade from the perspective of Dan and Ethel Frankel on Dealey Plaza. The Frankel Footage uncovers none other than Reginald Hargreeves holding an umbrella on the grassy knoll. 

Interestingly, “The Umbrella Man” is a real figure in the complicated lore of the JFK assassination. A figure holding a black umbrella appears in the Zapruder film and at one point spins his umbrella as the President’s motorcade passes by. This led to theories that, among other things, the umbrella man was a CIA plant who signaled to Lee Harvey Oswald via his umbrella to fire the fatal shots. In reality, the Umbrella Man was discovered to be Louie Steven Witt in 1978. Witt said he brought the umbrella to the motorcade to heckle Kennedy. Kennedy’s father Joe had been a fan of Nazi-appeasing British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain. A black umbrella was Chamberlain’s trademark accessory. 

The Handler lives! A bullet to the head doesn’t do as much damage as one would think on The Umbrella Academy. “Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo” from Cinderella plays as The Handler is spared from the incinerator. 

The Handler’s boss at the Commission is a goldfish in a tank atop an otherwise human body. His name is “A.J.” and later on it’s revealed his last name is “Carmichael.” This comes directly from The Umbrella Academy comic where the head of the “Temps Aeternalis” is revealed to be a shubunkin goldfish named Carmichael. 

“Well it finally happened – that gorilla DNA took over your mind,” Five tells Luther. This quick aside confirms that Reginald utilized gorilla DNA to save Luther’s life after a mission gone wrong. 

“Who’s Diego?” Elliot (Kevin Rankin) asks Five. “Imagine Batman and then aim lower,” Five responds. 

When Klaus meets one of his old followers in a holding cell and the follower asks for words of wisdom, Klaus replies with “Don’t go chasing waterfalls. Stick to the rivers and the lakes that you’re used to.” This is a lyric from TLC’s 1995 song “Waterfalls.” 

All the “Children of the Prophet” have “Hello” and “Goodbye” tattooed or scribbled on either palm. This is in reference to Klaus’s tattoos of the same nature. In the comics, Klaus’s callsign is “The Seance” and those tattoos mimic the setup of most Ouija boards. 

Reginald Hargreeves owns D.S. Umbrella in Dallas. We see him open this business in the enigmatic opener of The Umbrella Academy season 1’s final episode. That episode also seemed to suggest that he’s an alien. 

Baby Pogo makes his first appearance! Pogo is a chimpanzee with the intelligence of a human. He was Hargreeves’s steadfast friend and probably the only positive influence in the young Hargreeves children’s lives. He was killed by Vanya in season 1. 

Five finds an invitation to Hargreeves from the Consulate of Mexico and one Mr. Hoyt Hillenkoetter. Roscoe Henry Hillenkoetter was the first director of the CIA in real life. 

The song playing as Diego fights his father is “I’m a Man” by Spencer Davis Group.

The Umbrella Academy Season 2 Episode 3: The Swedish Job

“The Swedish Job” is likely a reference to the classic ‘60s action film (and its 2003 remake) The Italian Job.

Let’s talk about The Swedes a little more. The Swedes are not present in the Umbrella Academy comic book. They fill a similar role to what Hazel and Cha-Cha do in the second volume of the comic as agents of The Commission (or Temps Aeternalis in the book). But with the show having burned Hazel and Cha-Cha on season 1, it likely needed a replacement here. Most assassins in the Commission are colorful characters so The Swede’s pale weirdness makes enough sense. 

“Sunny” by Boney M. plays over the opening montage of Klaus’s time as a cult leader.

Five is tracking soundwaves at Morty’s as that’s a surefire way to find Vanya. 

The man holding a “The End is Nigh” sign is certainly an homage to Watchmen. Watchmen was influential for Umbrella Academy writer Gerard Way…and just about everyone else. 

The Handler’s outfit as she intimidates a child at a pet shop closely resembles ‘60s fashion popularized by Jackie Onassis Kennedy – fitting given this season’s focus. 

Five’s coffee obsession continues apace in this episode. 

Klaus meets Dave, the love of his life, at Glenoak’s Hardware. Klaus had previously traveled to the 1960s in season 1 where he joined the Vietnam war effort and fell in love with fellow soldier Dave. Dave obviously has no recollection of it as it hasn’t happened for him yet. Or maybe it never will…time travel is weird. 

The song playing at episode’s end is “Golden Brown” by The Stranglers. 

The Umbrella Academy Season 2 Episode 4: The Majestic 12

“The Majestic 12” is a real organization…or purported to be real by conspiracy theorists. It’s said that The Majestic 12 was created by Harry S. Truman in 1947 and made up of scientists, military leaders, and government officials to investigate alien spacecraft. Elliot describes the Majestic 12 as a “shadow government.” Of course Reginald Hargreeves would be a part of it.

The Handler recovered young Lila in London, England in 1993. She appears to be about four years old at that time. If so, that would put her birth year at a very significant…1989.

The music budget this season continues to be insane. The song playing as Klaus falls back into alcoholism and addiction is Styx’s “Renegade.” Obviously.

Luther is enjoying some Texas barbecue when he encounters Allison again. This leads to two relevant points.

Texas barbecue is the best in the country.

With Luther’s increased appreciation for food, The Umbrella Academy season 2 is paying slight homage to the comic’s “Fat Luther” storyline. Following the events of the first comic volume, Luther becomes complacent, depressed, and ultimately, obese. “There’s certainly a nod to that in this season,” Tom Hopper told Den of Geek. “There was a question mark over the fact that Thor did the whole thing already (in Avengers: Endgame.”

Diego meets his mother at the swanky Dallas party. When Diego and his siblings knew “Grace,” she was merely a robot created by Reginald. Here she is a living, breathing woman who knows her date by “Reggie.” 

Harlan has a sparrow toy. Make note of this as sparrow imagery pops up a few times this season. Birds are all over The Handler’s clothing choices for instance. That ends up being tremendously relevant to the conclusion of season 2. 

Sissy and Vanya share a kiss and then more. Vanya is the second confirmed LGBTQ Umbrella Academy member. “Having that be such a big part of the show and Vanya’s life is exciting for me,” Ellen Page told Den of Geek. 

Luther just flat out loves drugs now. After his LSD trip in season 1, he follows that up with nitrous this season. That leads to this hilarious exchange with Elliot:

“My dad died too. He left me on the moon.” *howling, uncontrollable laughter*

The song at episode’s end is “I Was Made For Lovin’ You” by KISS. 

The Umbrella Academy Season 2 Episode 5: Valhalla

The episode’s title is named after “Valhalla,” a majestic hall ruled over by Odin in Asgard in Norse mythology. 

Poor Pogo was a space monkey. The United States, U.S.S.R., and France launched dozens of primates into space from 1948 through 1996 (!!!) to test space flight’s effects on humanity’s close cousins. When Pogo’s space flight went poorly, Reginald appears to have resurrected him with a similar serum to which he gave Luther. Is it possible that Luther got gorilla DNA and Pogo got human DNA?

Luther took a bus trip to see his father in the ‘60s. And the map that displays Luther’s trip offers up an interesting clue as to the whereabouts of The Umbrella Academy. The Umbrella Academy is filmed in Toronto though it’s never mentioned what city Toronto is standing in for in the show. In the comics it’s known as only “The City.” Here, Luther’s bus ride seems to end around Indianapolis of all places. It seems as though The Umbrella Academy is in the Midwest. 

Ambrosia was a gelatinous fruit salad popular in the ‘60s. It was and is an affront to humanity. 

The team’s breakdown of the many ways they could have destroyed the timeline is amusing to say the least:

“Diego has been stalking Lee Harvey Oswald.” – Luther

“You’ve been working for Jack Ruby!” – Diego

“Allison has been very involved in local politics.” – Klaus 

“Ok, you started a cult.” – Allison 

“I’m just a nanny on a farm. I don’t have anything to do with all of that.” – Vanya

“Face it. The only healthy relationship in this family is when Five was banging that mannequin,” Klaus says. This is a reference to Five’s mannequin lover, Dolores, from his time alone in the post-apocalypse future. 

Klaus, Allison, and Vanya dance to Sam Cooke’s “Twistin’ the Night Away.” 

The song playing as Five and Lila fight is a ska cover of Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy” by The Interrupters. 

The song playing as the two surviving Swedes consign their fallen brother to Valhalla is a cover of Adele’s “Hello” by Swedish artist My Kullsvik.

The Umbrella Academy Season 2 Episode 6: A Light Supper

Reginald invites his “pursuers” to 1624 Magnolia Street, Dallas. This address appears to be a parking lot currently. 

“So there was a Black president?” Raymond asks Allison of the future. There was indeed, Ray.

“Hold on I’m Coming” by Sam and Dave plays as Allison and Ray have their day out on the town. 

“Sixteen years in the grave and you finally turned into your father,” Klaus tells Ben. Given the Hargreeves’s 1989 birth year and 2019 current year of the show, Ben must have been around 14 when he died. 

Dave has already signed up for the Army ahead of schedule, suggesting that the Hargreeves’ presence in 1963 really is altering the timeline. 

The song playing as the Hargreeves approach their Tiki Lounge meeting is “The Order of Death” by Public Image Ltd.

Ben can now officially inhabit Klaus. This is an evolution of Klaus’s power of being able to communicate with the dead. Robert Sheehan said of this development: “(Klaus) can’t be as selfish anymore because (Ben) has this thing over me that he can do. We have a lot of fun with it and stuff, but it’s kind of about sobriety. I think Klaus and Ben’s relationship is entirely about sobriety versus addiction, for somebody who’s lived with addiction for so long.”

As Five will tell Luther and Diego in episode 7, Öga for  Öga is Swedish for “An eye for an eye.”

The Umbrella Academy Season 2 Episode 7: Öga for Öga

A candy bar in the vending machine in 1982 Oshkosh, Wisconsin is a “Pogos-Gogos.” Pogo was likely a famous pop culture figure due to his space flight…and ability to speak English.

When Five takes an axe to the Commission executive board in 1982 Wisconsin, it’s hard not to think of American Psycho. Aiden Gallagher is a dead ringer for a young Patrick Bateman.

The song playing as Ben experiences life in Klaus’s body is “Sister of Pearl” by Baio.

We find out the name of Klaus’s cult is “Destiny’s Children.” Klaus is really working his knowledge of ‘90s R&B groups here.

The song playing as Allison battles The Swedes is “Everybody” by Backstreet Boys.

“I heard a rumor you killed your brother,” Allison tells one of the two remaining Swedes. It’s not clear why she assumes that they are brothers. But the fact that the lead Swede follows through means that Allison was correct. Otherwise The Swede would have hopped on a plane to seek out his real brother to kill.

“It was a simple task – just be here! We didn’t have to kill a giant sea serpent, fight off an army of mutants,” Five says of his team’s failure to rendezvous at the right time to escape the ’60s. The “kill a giant sea serpent” could be a reference to a brief moment in the comic’s one-off issue “But the Past Ain’t Through With You.” Sometime in the past, The Umbrella Academy defeated a sea serpent that attacked Japan because it was insulted that a toy-maker make unlicensed plush toys of it.

The Umbrella Academy Season 2 Episode 8: The Seven Stages

The FBI does have an office in Dallas but it’s about 10 miles away from Dealey Plaza and not directly behind the grassy knoll as depicted here. Or at least that’s what they want you to think…

Vanya is able to reflexively answer the FBI questioner back in Russian because Reginald Hargreeves was a strict teacher of foreign languages to The Umbrella Academy. 

Grace finds photos of Fidel Castro, Lyndon B. Johnson, JFK, and a map of his motorcade route in Reggie’s files. This is a clear indication to her that Reggie is involved in an upcoming attempt against the President’s life. Grace also sees plans for a “televator.” This is the elevator teleportation device Reginald will one day build.

There are five stages of grief but apparently seven stages of side effects from confronting one’s self in the same timeline. Five lists them out thusly:

1. Denial

2. Itching

3. Extreme Thirst and Urination

4. Excessive Gas

5. Acute Paranoia

6. Uncontrolled Perspiration

7. Homicidal Rage

As Vanya begins her LSD trip, the song that plays is “Pepper” by Butthole Surfers. Some of the lyrics are particularly apt for this season – “they were all in love with dying, they were doing it in Texas.”

Diego discovers that Vanya will be the cause of the apocalypse yet again in 1963, which makes an argument that The Umbrella Academy operates under Devs-style determinism.

Around the 23-minute mark someone holding a Cha-Cha mask can be seen off in the distance at Commission HQ. The individual’s face can’t be seen but it’s not out of the question that this could be Cha-Cha. Commission assassins appear to age in an unusual manner. Alternatively this could be an assassin who donned the cartoonish helmet before Cha-Cha. Showrunner Steve Blackman says that either interpretation is valid: “In the Commission, it’s always 1963, but it never changes time. So that very well could have been Cha-Cha holding the mask.”

In her LSD nightmare, Vanya is chastised by Reginald for wanting to live “a silly life on a silly farm.” One of the issues of “Dallas” is titled “A Perfect Life” and deals partly with Luther imagining a tranquil domestic life with Allison. 

The Umbrella Academy Season 2 Episode 9: 743

The episode gets its name from the case number in which Five executed Lila’s parents on The Handler’s orders.

Klaus references Antonio Banderas in complimenting Diego’s hair. Diego is legitimately touched. 

Much of this episode takes place in or around Dealey Plaza – the location where John F. Kennedy was assassinated. The sections of note in Dealey Plaza are the book depository where Lee Harvey Oswald fired his rifle from and the grassy knoll where some people believe a second shooter shot JFK. The Umbrella Academy doesn’t make a trip to the book depository but does briefly show the grassy knoll with Reggie Hargreeves and his umbrella. Luther and the two Fives spend most of their time in a parking lot behind the grassy knoll.

Fittingly, the song that plays as young Five fights old Five is “Dancing With Myself” by Billy Idol’s band Generation X.

Much of Vanya’s acid trip is set to Bach’s “Partita No. 2 in D Minor” on violin. There is a lot of violin imagery as well. This is fitting given Vanya’s aptitude for the instrument. She receives the villainess name “White Violin” in the comic series.

“Dad treated you like a bomb before you were one,” Ben tells Vanya.  The final issue of The Umbrella Academy Volume 1 is titled “Finale, Or, Brothers and Sisters, I Am an Atomic Bomb.”

Ben also tells Vanya he died “17 years ago” which seems at odds with Klaus’s declaration that Ben died “16 years ago.” Klaus and Ben have been in Dallas for three years though, so Ben died 19-20 years ago, depending on who is right. The year is also 1963 so Ben technically won’t die for another 42 or 43 years. Time travel is weird. 

Luther and Young Five send Old Five back to the very start of The Umbrella Academy series, which avoids a truly mind-bending number of paradoxes. 

Though it was teased in the show’s first season, Reginald Hargreeves reveals himself to be well and truly an alien in the final moments of this episode. Reggie unzips his skin mask, discards it, and then violently murders his Majestic 12 colleagues at the Tiki Lounge for them killing Kennedy against his wishes. This is a bit of information that the comic book is shockingly upfront about, casually revealing on the series’ second-ever page that Hargreeves is an alien and never addressing it further. 

Before they’re slaughtered, the Majestic 12 claim that Reggie has interests on the dark side of the Moon. Perhaps Luther’s trip to the moon wasn’t pointless after all. 

The episode concludes with a new song from Umbrella Academy creator and My Chemical Romance frontman Gerard Way called “Here Comes the End.”

The Umbrella Academy Season 2 Episode 10: The End of Something

This is the first time we’ve seen Ben’s funeral. His little casket is covered with squid iconography – a tribute to his power. 

The Umbrella Academy are now all suspects in JFK’s death. That’s bound to change the timeline, right? Indeed it probably does based on this episode and the season’s conclusion. It’s also interesting just how inherently suspicious each member of the Umbrella Academy would be to 1963 society. Vanya has an Eastern European-sounding name and can speak Russian. Diego is Cuban. Allison is a Black revolutionary. Luther is an enormous bare-knuckle brawler. Klaus is a cult leader. All intimidating stuff. 

The army of Commission goons that The Handler summons to take care of the Umbrella team is full of colorful masks and helmets a la Hazel and Cha-Cha. 

On our set visit for The Umbrella Academy season 2, Five actor Aiden Gallagher revealed that several characters would discover “sub-powers” Gallagher said: “I was talking to Steve (Blackman) about this, and how it works is in season one, we sort of get hints about all the characters powers and in season two, we really see more so the extent how far that can go. How different elements of each character’s powers actually means that they have this sub-power.” Diego seems to come across a subpower in this final battle when he appears to be able to stop bullets. Blackman explains the power thusly:

“If you think about Diego’s power, he can, with his mind, control trajectory of objects. Basically he likes throwing, so he can throw his knife and he can make it go in weird, odd curvatures and directions. All of them stopped their training in their adolescence when the family broke up, and they are still learning about their powers and their powers are still evolving. As I go through seasons we’ll see more of that. But moving a knife through the air – an extension of that is then being able to manipulate bullets through the air.”

Speaking of powers, Lila appears to have…well, all of them. Lila displays Vanya’s power, Allison’s power, and Five’s power in fights with each of them. But as Klaus, likely correctly, theorizes later, Lila can only mirror one of their powers at a time. Her ability is mimicry. Diego surmises that this means Lila is one of them – one of the 43 children born on October 1, 1989. That’s why The Handler went out of her way to kill her parents and adopt her. 

Allison leaves a letter for Ray in a copy of Jules Verne’s From the Earth to the Moon. A fitting book for the story of The Umbrella Academy and this season. 

The song playing during the closing montage is a cover of Chris Isaak’s “Wicked Games” by Parra for Cuva featuring Anna Naklab.

Luther calls Jack Ruby, presumably to convince him not to kill Lee Harvey Oswald. But Jack has already picked up his gun. 

Ah, The Sparrow Academy. We delved deep into what the ending of The Umbrella Academy season 2 means over here. For now, know that The Sparrow Academy is likely lifted from Volume 3 of The Umbrella Academy comics, “Hotel Oblivion.” We say “likely” because the team doesn’t have an official name but it does invoke a lot of Sparrow imagery. The Sparrow Academy turns up at the very end of volume “Hotel Oblivion.” In the show, The Sparrow Academy seems to exist in an alternate universe created by The Umbrella Academy’s actions in Dallas. In the comic, it is implied that they are simply seven other extraordinary children born on October 1, 1989. This could prove to be the case in the show as well…save for Ben Hargreeves, who we are obviously already familiar with. 

The post The Umbrella Academy Season 2 Complete Easter Egg and Reference Guide appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/33f83kO

[rebelsofshield]

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker-Review

After two great but flawed films, the third trilogy of The Skywalker Saga comes to a sputtering dud of a close in a disappointing, if occasionally fun, film.

(Review contains minor spoilers)

A message has been sent out to the galaxy from the seemingly dead Emperor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid). Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) anxiously searches for the potential rival to his rule while also planning to turn this new player to his benefit. However, in order to defeat Palpatine, he will need to officially complete his goal of turning Rey (Daisy Ridley) to the Dark Side of the Force. Meanwhile, Finn (John Boyega) and Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) work desperately to lead the scattered remains of the Resistance to victory. As the threat of Palpatine and his new fleet of super powerful ships becomes clear, a team forms to desperately search out a way to locate and destroy this new Final Order before it is too late.

The Rise of Skywalker arguably had one of the most difficult tasks of any Star Wars film. Not only functioning as the end of this particular string of films, this final installment of The Skywalker Saga is also burdened with bringing some sense of closure to the succession of plot threads, character arcs, and themes that have been seeded, toyed with, and explored since the first film debuted in 1977. It’s an incredibly hard challenge and it is easy to understand the amount of pressure that must have been on writer and director JJ Abrams, co-writer Chris Terrio, and the whole cast and crew to stick the landing.

From the outside, Abrams seemed like a logical, if safe, pick for the job. The Force Awakens, while it relies heavily on familiar imagery, is a well-paced, very fun film that is buoyant with heart, humor and an incredible ensemble of characters. After Rian Johnson’s delightfully strange, esoteric, and daring The Last Jedi, offering another fun romp to round out the trilogy seemed like a comfortable, if not especially brave, way to end a series of movies that was mostly chugging with momentum and heart. A plan may not have been evident, but having had delivered two films that were still among the strongest in the saga, a road map may have not been needed.

The Rise of Skywalker, however, proves to be a long, loud, and fumbling film that somehow goes out of its way to highlight the weakest aspects of this trilogy in a sloppy and uneven package. There is fun throughout, and on a surface level, much of it is a perfectly serviceable experience, but it sits as one of the most crowded and confused Star Wars experiences in recent memory.

Much of this comes down to Abrams and Terrio’s cluster crash of a script. The decision to return Palpatine as a form of connective tissue, bringing the Dark Side threats of nine films under a single roof, is not an inherently bad one. Ian McDiarmid’s wonderfully campy master planner was easily one of the strongest parts of both previous trilogy cappers, Revenge of the Sith and Return of the Jedi, and returning once more to his grand schemes, cackles, and monologues felt like it could have been a smart move to creating closure and consequence. Palpatine ultimately becomes symbolic for many of the larger sins evident in The Rise of Skywalker. His much hyped return is revealed in as purely flippant a manner as possible and his galaxy destroying resources are hand waived in with just as much nonsense and confusion. He exists purely as a scary, familiar plot device and nothing much more.

It becomes representative of a larger film narrative that feels more and more hacked together and confused the more one thinks about it. The Rise of Skywalker’s first thirty minutes are a chaotic nightmare that feel edited together with little thought to cohesion or comprehension. The audience is given no time to linger on a single scene and we hop from location to location with little thought or understanding as to why or clarity of transition. It’s a film that begins at a sprint and wants you to hear everything it has to say while it hurtles forward at top speed. The beautifully orchestrated first third of The Force Awakens that lovingly introduced us to an incredible new cast of characters feels like a far gone thought and the emotional start to The Last Jedi’s own ensemble saga feels all the more impactful. The Rise of Skywalker barely gives the viewer time to breath until close to the end of its first act and by then it will have lightly already bludgeoned many into indifference.

Much of the first half of The Rise of Skywalker plays out in a series of fetch quest related set pieces that range from fun to nonsensical, but it’s ultimately this portion as we head into the film’s playful middle where it is at its strongest. After spending two films mostly apart, Rey, Poe, and Finn finally get to spend time adventuring together and despite the lack of context, this trio of adventurers really sing as a group. The banter, chemistry and cooperation between this makeshift team is the film’s clear highlight and is a testament to the groundwork done by both prior films and the strength of these performers. Anthony Daniels’s C-3PO also gets some of his meatiest and most emotional material to date and Abrams smartly plays the shiny protocol droid as a mix of heart and humor.

All things considered, the individual character arcs for each of our central three heroes are threadbare but populated with great individual moments and asides. Isaac gets to lean into Poe Dameron’s swaggering heroism to an even greater degree here while also building on, ever so slightly, the developments to his person experienced in The Last Jedi. His occasional butting heads with the far cooler minded Rey is a nice touch, but his chemistry with Finn is a forever highlight, even if a much teased romance between the two never manifests. A connection to Poe’s past, Zorii Bliss, is a great new inclusion and is played with gruff seriousness by Kerri Russell of Felicity and The Americans fame. Yes, there are hints of a romantic connection between the two, but nothing serious occurs and hopefully leaves room to keep our famous Resistance pilot among our potential queer characters.

Finn was maybe the one character who did not get to live up to his potential in The Last Jedi. After The Force Awakens turned him into a charismatic but engagingly flawed co-hero, his story of finding purpose couldn’t help but feel like a weak link in a strong chains of subplots and it certainly didn’t help that it included the much maligned Canto Bight sequence. While Finn doesn’t experience as much of a clear character arc here, John Boyega certainly gets much more to do. As the emotional heart of the team that keeps Poe and Rey connected, Finn becomes an important balancing act to the crew and is privy to many of the film’s emotional moments. A smart move sees Finn bonding with another newcomer, Jannah, played by Naomie Ackie, who shares a similar past. The conversations between these two make for some of the film’s best moments and Jannah, along with Zorii, escape the film as its two best additions. There is even a subtle but very interesting development for Finn in this film that doesn’t get highlighted as much as it should, but will delight fans of the character. I won’t say more than that.

It’s ultimately Rey where The Rise of Skywalker heads into murky water. Dasiy Ridley has always been a talented performer and this film easily marks her strongest performance in the saga. Ridley brings nuanced and complex emotion to her close ups and manages to oscillate between playful heroism and conflicted personal drama with great skill. After years of (incorrect) criticism that Rey was a character that was played too safe, The Rise of Skywalker takes great pains to push her into uncharted waters and uneasy futures. It is here that The Rise of Skywalker consistently makes its largest storytelling missteps. One significant reveal is likely to produce audience eye rolls and feels like a betrayal of some of its predecessors’ most thoughtful themes. Ridley does her best with these moments and they do lead to some beats of weighty character conflict, but they feel like an ultimately safe and simultaneously sloppy route to take her character and it ends up bringing much of the film down with it.  

The Rise of Skywalker leans even further into Rey and Kylo Ren being dyads of both ends of the Force, but it’s ultimately Kylo that ends up being the most disappointing of the central characters of this trilogy. After spending two films being an unpredictable and intriguingly unhinged antagonist bursting with moral confusion, Abrams saddles Adam Driver’s Dark Sider with a mostly clear plot trajectory that lacks a fair amount of the nuance that made the same character such a magnetic part of the past films. He is privy to much of the film’s best action beats and one sequence in particular that functions as a creative escalation of the Force bonds from the previous film is some of the most inventive stuff in the movie, but it isn’t enough to really sell the final steps of his character journey. That being said, there is one, potentially very pandering and indulgent moment that mirrors The Force Awakens that comes across with great emotional vulnerability due in large part to Driver and his co-star’s performances.

The old guard are given surprisingly little to do here. After spending much of the press tour discussing Carrie Fisher’s posthumous role in the film, the end results end up being something of a mixed bag. Having Leia be a central part of the narrative is welcome and it’s nice to get a proper goodbye to the character, but the artificiality of her inclusion is far from seamless and often times is more distracting than it is moving. Billy Dee Williams’s long awaited turn as Lando Calrissian proves fine, but doesn’t amount to much of consequence. He feels like a stand in for all of the original trilogy characters that are inaccessible to this film’s plot. Luke’s return is serviceable as well and is competently acted but is directly tied to some of the wonky storytelling choices made with Rey and is often peppered with disappointing bouts of misguided nostalgia and fan service.

The Rise of Skywalker is a very big movie. There’s quite a lot going on and many players, new and old, don’t get their fair share. It’s hard not to be a little angry that after the abuse hurdled at her for over two years, Kelly Marie Tran’s Rose is given such little to do that she might as well be a bit player. The same can be said for Maz Kanata or any of the other supporting characters of the trilogy. The elusive Knights of Ren finally appear to do little more than stand around and look cool and their one action sequence is a titanic disappointment. The always petulant General Hux is sidebarred as well, but has a rather fun bit of character development that lets him leave the trilogy as a strangely despicable but enjoyable secondary villain.

As an action spectacle, The Rise of Skywalker is occasionally fun but frequently hollow. The early and middle portions concerning our heroes out running and sneaking past First Order forces prove to be the most successful and fun. Abrams injects some of these bits with clever uses of mobile cinematography and an Indiana Jones-esque chase sequence on the sands of Pasana is pure fun. The large Return of the Jedi meets Avengers: Endgame finale feels empty and weightless though. Despite the massive scale demonstrated, it all feels mostly hollow and heavy on effects and explosions. Because it is so predicated on the earlier mentioned loose and bizarre plot choices, it’s unclear what we are supposed to be feeling as we head into this chaotic showdown. Strangely enough, Abrams skimps on the cameos for our big rallying cry. For a film that rarely shies away from fan service, the one moment that seems primed for it is barely utilized.

Even John Williams feels tired. While his score blends together themes from all eight films with mastery, there isn’t much new to really give the movie its own identity outside a briefly heard finale piece.

The Rise of Skywalker isn’t awful. It has moments that are quite strong and more often than not it opts for surface level fun rather than daring choices. However, it’s moments of sloppiness and baffling script choices make its safer moments all the more frustrating. It is not the worst of Star Wars franchise, but it is far, far from the best and it’s hard not to leave the film disheartened, not necessarily by the events of its story, but rather that after all the love and adventure, it ends on such a half-hearted stumble.

Score: C+

[xtruss]

Why White Supremacists and Hindu Nationalists are So Alike

White supremacy and Hindu nationalism have common roots going back to the 19th-century idea of the 'Aryan race'.

by Aadita Chaudhury, December 13, 2018

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi hugs US President Donald Trump as they give joint statements in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, US, June 26, 2017

Over the last few years, especially after Donald Trump's victory in the 2016 US presidential election, we have been witnessing the normalisation, and rise, of a white-supremacist, ultranationalist brand of right-wing politics across Europe and the United States. While the shift towards extreme right alarmed many across the world, far-right ideologues of the Trumpian era swiftly found support in a seemingly unlikely place: India.

Many members of the so-called "alt-right" - a loosely knit coalition of populists, white supremacists, white nationalists and neo-Nazis - turned to India to find historic and current justifications for their racist, xenophobic and divisive views. Using a specific, "white nationalist" brand of Orientalism, they projected their fantasies about a racially pure society onto the Indian culture and in response received a warm welcome from Hindu fundamentalists in India.

While an alliance between the Hindu far right and the Western alt-right may appear confounding on the surface, it actually has a long history, going all the way back to the construction of the Aryan race identity, one of the ideological roots of Nazism, in the early 20th century.

In the 1930s, German nationalists embraced the 19th-century theory that Europeans and the original Sanskrit speakers of India who had built the highly developed Sanskrit civilisation - which white supremacists wanted to claim as their own - come from a common Indo-European, or Aryan, ancestor. They subsequently built their racist ideology on the assumed superiority of this "pure" race.

Savitri Devi (born Maximiani Portas), a French-Greek thinker and mysticist who later became a spiritual icon of Nazism, helped popularise the idea that all civilisation had its roots in this Aryan "master race" in India. She travelled to India in the early 1930s to "discover the source of the Aryan culture" and converted to Hinduism while there.

She quickly integrated herself into India's burgeoning Hindu nationalist movement by promoting theories that support privileged caste Hindus' superiority over Christians, Muslims and unprivileged caste Hindus in the country. In 1940, she married Asit Krishna Mukherji, a Hindu nationalist and Indian supporter of Nazism who had praised the Third Reich's commitment to ethnonationalism, seeing commonalities between the goals of the Hitler Youth and the youth movement of Hindu nationalism, Rashtriya Sevak Sangh (RSS).

Devi worked as a spy for the Axis forces in India throughout World War II and left the country after the defeat of Nazi Germany using a British-Indian passport. In the post-war period, she became an ardent Holocaust denier and was one of the founding members of the World Union of National Socialists, a conglomeration of neo-Nazi and far-right organisations from around the world.

Devi still has a strong influence over the Hindu nationalist movement in India. Her 1939 booklet titled A Warning to the Hindus, in which she cautions Indian nationalists to embrace their Hindu identity and guard the country against "non-Aryan" influences, such as Islam and Christianity, is still widely read and highly regarded among Hindu nationalists. Perhaps not surprisingly, recently Devi and her theories have also been rediscovered by right-wing ideologues in the West and she is now considered an alt-right icon.

However, the current connection between far-right groups in the West and Hindu nationalists is limited neither to Devi's teachings nor the old myth of the Aryan race.

Today, the two groups share a common goal in eroding the secular character of their respective states and a common "enemy" in Muslim minorities. This is why they often act in coordination and openly support each other.

In the US, the Republican Hindu Coalition, a group with strong links to the Hindu nationalist movement in India, has been rallying behind President Donald Trump's controversial immigration policies, like the Muslim ban and the border wall. Trump's campaign strategist and prominent alt-right figurehead Steve Bannon once called India's Hindu-nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi "the Reagan of India".

Meanwhile, in India, a far-right Hindu nationalist group named Hindu Sena (Army of Hindus), which has been linked to a series of inter-communal incidents in India, has been throwing parties to mark Trump's birthday. The group's founder even claimed that "Trump is the only person who can save mankind."

In Canada, far-right Islamophobic organisations such as Rise Canada, which claims to "defend Canadian values" and combat "radical Islam", are popular among Hindu-nationalists. The group's logo even features a red maple leaf rising out of a lotus flower, which is often associated with Hinduism.

In Britain, the National Hindu Council of Temples (NHCTUK), a Hindu charity, recently caused controversy by inviting far-right Hindu nationalist Tapan Ghosh to speak at the parliament. Ghosh has previously suggested the UN should "control the birth rate of Muslims" and said all Muslims are "Jihadis". During his visit to the UK, Ghosh also attended celebrations of Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, with cabinet ministers Amber Rudd and Priti Patel, and met the former neo-Nazi leader Tommy Robinson.

On top of their shared Islamophobia and disdain for secular state structures, the destructive actions, protests and aggravations of Hindu nationalists and the Western far right are also very much alike.

In November, the government of the state of Uttar Pradesh, which is led by the nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), proposed to build a statue of the Hindu god Ram in Ayodhya, where the historic Babri Masjid was illegally demolished by Hindu nationalists in 1992. Only a month earlier, the same government pulled off a massive spectacle, having a helicopter drop off individuals dressed as Ram and Sita at the Babri Masjid site to mark the start of Diwali celebrations.

The sentiment behind these apparent attempts to intimidate Muslims and increase tensions between communities was in many ways similar to the far-right, white supremacist rally that shook Charlottesville in 2017. The neo-Nazis chanted "You will not replace us" as they marched through the streets of Charlottesville.

The far right in the US, Europe and Canada - emboldened by the electoral success of ultra-nationalist parties and individuals across the globe - aspire for a future in which secular protections are abandoned in favour of a system that favours the majority and protects the "white Christian identity" that they believe their nations were founded upon.

Likewise, Hindu nationalists in India, empowered by the BJP's landslide election victory in 2014, and inspired by European ethnonationalism and fascism, reject the constitutional secularism of the Indian state, propose that India is fundamentally a Hindu nation, and insist that minorities, especially Muslims and Christians, do not belong in a "Hindu country".

Ever since the start of the normalisation of far-right ideas in the West, a surge in racist, anti-Semitic and Islamophobic attacks was witnessed across the US and Europe.

The same happened in India after Hindutva officially became the governing ideology in the country. Over the past few years, countless Muslims, Christians and low-caste Hindus have been persecuted, assaulted and even killed for allegedly killing cows and many Muslims were targeted for allegedly participating in so-called "love jihad".

But despite all these similarities, there is major a difference between Hindu fundamentalism in India and far-right movements in the West: the liberal reaction to it.

While liberals and leftists quickly united against the rise of the far-right, they chose to largely ignore the rise of Hindu nationalism in the world's largest secular democracy. Especially after the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, the necessity of expanding the anti-fascist praxis to include all forms of racism, from anti-Semitism to Islamophobia, was emphasised by many. However, the opposition to Hindu nationalism has not yet been made part of the broader movement, despite the well-documented suffering of India's minorities under BJP's rule.

Instead, the idea that India is a "Hindu nation" is being accepted as a given by the majority of liberals. The fact that India's constitution defines the state as "secular" is being ignored, and Hindu nationalism is being presented as a benevolent movement despite ample evidence to the contrary.

White vegans in the West, for example, rejoiced over the decision by several Indian states to ban the consumption of beef, without bothering to understand what these laws would mean for Muslims and Dalits who had already been suffering at the hands of so-called "cow vigilantes". Animal rights and veganism advocate PETA has in fact gone further and berated vegetarians who consume milk in India for "supporting the beef industry", thus playing into the communal politics of food in India.

Hindu nationalism and white supremacy are the two sides of the same coin. For the global movement against racism, white-supremacy and fascism to succeed, anti-fascists across the world need to acknowledge and stand up to the Hind nationalism threat.

Hindus themselves, both in India and abroad, also need to take action and raise their voices against the abuses that are being committed in their names. One such organisation already exists for diaspora Hindus in North America: Sadhana. It is a coalition of progressive Hindus based in New York City, seeks to stop the use of Hindu thought for the purposes of misogyny, queerphobia, Islamophobia and white supremacy.

However, Hindu nationalism cannot be defeated by Hindus alone. People around the world who engage with and comment on the Indian culture on a regular basis, including sub-urban Yoga mums in the US and vegan activists in Europe, should educate themselves on the secular nature and diverse identities of India. They need to join the resistance against the oppression and abuse of the country's minorities and stop perpetuating the Hindu-nationalist myth that India is a "Hindu nation".

The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera's editorial stance. Aadita Chaudhury is a PhD Candidate in Science & Technology Studies at York University, in Toronto, Canada.

[doomonfilm]

Thoughts : It (2017)

One of the most fascinating things about fandoms is the completely random nature they have in regards to the properties they choose to champion.  I’m almost positive that when Stephen King initially wrote It, he never dreamed there would be not only multiple movies, but an extremely devoted fanbase and a general recognition of the collective fear of clowns held by the general public.  Personally, I didn’t catch It-mania the first time around (even as a fan of Tim Curry), so when the recent remake hit the theaters, I felt no sense of urgency to see it.  It was seeing the trailers for It Chapter Two, however, that finally piqued my interest and brought me to a viewing of the 2017 remake.

Bill Denbrough (Jaeden Lieberher) is home sick, but in a gesture of kindness, he makes a paper boat for his younger brother Georgie (Jackson Robert Scott) to play with in the rain.  Georgie loses the boat in the gutter, and while peering in, he is scared, taunted and eventually assaulted by Pennywise (Bill Skargard), an ominous and terrifying clown.  Bill is scarred by the event, but with the support of The Losers Club, his close knit group of friends, he plans to comb the sewers of Derry, Maine in hopes of uncovering the truth about his brother.  The Losers Club, consisting of the brash Richie Tozier (Finn Wolfhard), mother’s boy Eddie Kaspbrak (Jack Dylan Glazer), and the pragmatic Stanley Uris (Wyatt Oleff), try to console Bill and keep his mind off of things, but Bill is unshaken in his quest for the truth.  Meanwhile, tomboy Beverly Marsh (Sophia Lillis), in an attempt to find friendship amidst a nasty rumor campaign the town has adopted about her, befriends newcomer Ben Hanscom (Jeremy Ray Taylor), a shy bookworm that has taken it upon himself to study the turbulent history of Derry.  All the while, Mike Hanlon ( Chosen Jacobs), a young black kid from the outskirts of town, is attempting to adapt to a life under the care of his hardworking grandfather in the wake of a housefire that killed his parents.  All six children are tormented by the Bowers Gang, led by Henry Bowers (Nicholas Hamilton), the irrationally violent son of a Derry police officer.  As the bond grows between the kids amidst the nightmarish attacks by Pennywise and the Bowers Gang, the newly expanded Losers Club must use all the tools at their disposal to defeat an enemy they do not understand, while nurturing a connection deeper than any they’ve ever known.

I really and truly do not know where to begin with this movie, and it is almost impossible to discuss this film without bringing up (if not making direct comparison to) the 1990 TV miniseries.  I can flat out state that the 2017 film is an overall better film, and one that will more than likely escape the curse of looking dated decades down the road, save for astronomical leaps in technology.  The most interesting thing about this movie, however, is the fact that it is not really a horror or suspense film, despite it having the shapings of one.  No matter the nature of your enemy or villain in a horror film, there has to be a hint of reality in the mix to truly instill fear.  Freddy may be over the top, but the damage he inflicts is tangible and visible to observers (we will circle back around to the Freddy thing momentarily).  Jason instills fear because he never stops coming, and his attack is brutal when he catches you.  Vampires, zombies, werewolves and even Frankenstein’s monster are rooted in historical lore.  Pennywise, while being a fascinating villain, fails to land as a true terror due to a two-parted shortcoming : his outlandish nature makes him more of a cartoon character than a true threat, and as the kids state multiple times within the film, none of what he does is ‘real’ unless you fear him.  It is intriguing how his power is, on the one hand, limited to perspective, but on the other hand, seemingly limitless due to the number of tricks he displays during the film.

For all the things that It does correctly, there is a series (and a villain) that does it better : Nightmare on Elm Street and the aforementioned Freddy.  Rag tag group of high school misfits?  Check.  Ominous threat, based in the history of the city that it dwells in, that manifest mostly in the minds of its victims, though the repercussions of its actions are very much felt in the real world?  Check.  Heavy dose of the 1980s?  Check.  Equal doses of fear, controversy and humor?  Check.  That is not to say that It is not an entertaining and truly fascinating film, but with the burden of comparison to past versions of itself already on the table, it’s got enough of a mountain to climb to win over both those faithful to the creator of the property and those faithful to the original and iconic depiction of the titular character.

It may sound like I’m coming down rough on this film, but there are many things that it does quite well.  For a film that displays the levels of violence that this one does, it does not necessarily glorify it or force you to dwell in it... even a broken arm is taken in as more of a realization than a focus, therefore making it easier to digest.  The special effects are monumental, yet their visual integration is subtle and natural.  For a film that is mostly carried by child and teenage actors, the acting is surprisingly strong across the board, even when the material is failed by forced exposition or finds itself in the realms of tropes.  The sound design enhances the experience of the film, towing the line between building real suspense and reliance on jump scares with a finesse and restraint often not found in films of this nature.  For a film where the villain/monster is so heavily present, Pennywise surprisingly does not wear out his welcome, remaining stunning and hard not to enjoy from the moment he pops up in the sewer until the moment he falls into the recesses of the well.

Jaeden Lieberher does a solid job as the sympathetic protagonist, finding a good range in regards to the use of his stutter, how believable he executes it, and the moments it goes away.  Sophia Lillis steals the show with a confidence that bursts off the screen, and a killer smile to match.  Jeremy Ray Taylor manages to dodge typecasting as the ‘fat kid’ as he proves himself to be one of the more valuable members of the Losers Club, while turning in a strong and endearing performance.  Wyatt Oleff is forced to show a restraint not placed upon his costars as the groups’ voice of reason, but he does manage to bring dignity and logic to the crew, as well as a sense of rationale and reason in the midst of the mind-blowing.  The joy that Finn Wolfhard is feeling in light of being given the green light to fully cut loose is impossible to ignore.  Chosen Jacobs is not given much to work with, but similar to Oleff, he provides a grounding nature to the group.  Jackson Robert Scott manages to somehow be one of the tougher members of the group while also leaning into his role as momma’s boy.  Bill Skargard fully commits to making Pennywise as creepy, off-putting and uncanny valley reminding as he can.  Nicholas Hamilton proves to be a serious threat, even as the secondary antagonist.  Performances by Stephen Bogaert, Jake Sim, Owen Teague, Logan Thompson, Pip Dwyer and Stuart Hughes also stand out.

As popular as this film was, and as large a fanbase as it was able to garner, I imagine this will find life as a cult classic down the road.  I’ve heard mixed reviews for It Chapter Two, and while I did enjoy my viewing of It, I don’t think I’ll rush to the theater for the follow-up.  I will, however, be purchasing the two pack on Vudu when it drops, because I am certain I will revisit this film over the years.

[scoutception]

Fire Emblem Echoes:  Shadows of Valentia review: 3 steps forward, 3 steps back

The game that would really propel the Fire Emblem series to its long journey to the mainstream was actually the third: Mystery of the Emblem, on the SNES. Its success, however, overshadowed not just the original Shadow Dragon on the NES, but the second game, Fire Emblem Gaiden. While certainly not great, it was easily one of the most ambitious games on the NES, and the series as a whole, for that matter, yet despite that, it was left to rot in obscurity for decades, with only occasional acknowledgements that it even existed. And then, in 2017, a rather unexpected remake released, finally giving it a chance in the limelight, and, well, it certainly left an impression. What kind of impression, we’ll be seeing right now.

Story:

Shadows of Valentia takes place on the continent of, well, Valentia, a smaller continent neighboring Archanea, the setting of Shadow Dragon. Valentia is divided into two kingdoms: Zofia, in the south, founded by the Divine Dragon Mila, who has given her people constant prosperity with rich lands, while the north is ruled by Rigel, founded by Mila’s brother, Duma, who has taken a much rougher approach to his people, making them strong and proud. Both dragons originally lived on Archanea before being exiled by Naga, and were unable to reconcile their ideological differences when they first settled on Valentia. Unfortunately with time, their ideologies have only grown more and more extreme, affecting their people as well: Zofia’s people have grown slovenly and hedonistic, its royalty especially, while Rigel’s people have become much colder. Eventually, Rigel’s emperor, Rudolf, gains designs to take Zofia for himself.

The story, rather uniquely for the series, follows two main protagonists: Alm, a commoner from Ram Village in Zofia raised and trained by his grandfather, the great knight Mycen, and Celica, the last heir to Zofia, on the run from the ambitious chancellor Desaix, who has assassinated all the other children of the current king, Lima IV. Initially hidden in Ram by Mycen, Celica befriends Alm, only for Mycen to be forced to take her away to a priory on the island of Novis after she is discovered by Desaix’s men. 4 years later, Zofia is not doing well, suffering from a horrible drought, caused by Mila seemingly disappearing, and to make matters worse, Desaix makes his move and kills the king, taking over the kingdom and selling out to Rigel. However, a small group called the Deliverance, led by the knight Clive, fight Desaix’s rule, sending one of their members, Lukas, to Ram to recruit Mycen. After Mycen refuses, however, Alm volunteers in his stead, and accompanied by several of his childhood friends, sets out to join up with Clive and defeat Desaix and Rigel. Meanwhile, Celica leaves the priory with a few companions to investigate Mila’s disappearance, unknowingly becoming the target of Jedah, head priest of the Duma Faithful, who has plans of his own, separate from Rudolf.

While it does come with its own fair share of creative twists and turns, the story itself isn’t the highlight of the writing, not helped by some overly heavy foreshadowing of said twists. The real strength comes from the cast of characters. Shadows of Valentia has some of the best written characters in the franchise. Both Alm and Celica are fantastic protagonists, with Alm being fairly straightfoward, yet refreshingly and likeably so in comparison to so many others in the game, while Celica is much more complicated and troubled, falling victim to Jedah’s manipulations and her own hidden selfishness, yet still firmly committed to doing what she thinks is right, making for one of the most unique protagonists in the franchise. The side characters don’t disappoint either, helped immensely by certain mandatory characters appearing in scenes past their recruitment, as long as you keep them alive, giving them a lot of presence. From the proud and loyal Gray, to the grounded but kind and playful Tobin, to the spoiled yet willing to grow noble Clair on Alm’s side, to the overly serious and near cowardly Boey, to the extremely energetic, boisterous, but altogether sweet, if prone to bickering Mae, to the cynical, yet influenceable Saber, they alone add so much to the story, helped by having support conversations. The villains aren’t lacking either, with Jedah being sinister and cruel, yet genuinely wishing to do Valentia well, if through the warped mindset of Duma’s extremist teachings, to Slayde, the hilariously scummy and hammy henchman to Desaix, to, most notably, Berkut, the nephew of Rudolf, who, despite not being a nice person at all, is all the same sympathetic and troubled, shaped and damaged by awful circumstances, and is altogether one of the highlights of the game, period. Unfotunately, I can’t say the cast as a whole holds up so well. Despite some of its massive successes, many other characters are near completely neglected, with very limited interactions and points beyond just being more units, and while none of them can really be called flat, all of them having supports and conversations within towns to give better personal insights to them, it only helps so much, and unfortunately, this is the fate of the majority of the cast, not helped by the supports themselves being short and aimless most of the time, though some benefit from being featured in memory prisms, items that can be found that can be viewed for scenes taking place in their backstories. Still, what is there helps make SOV’s story one of the most emotional in Fire Emblem, capping off with a fantastic climax and epilogue.

The connections to Shadow Dragon is also something that should be mentioned. Valentia being near Archanea isn’t just a fun little fact that never gets expanded on; 3 of Celica’s units are actually Palla, Catria, and Est, the pegasus sisters from Shadow Dragon, and Alm recruits a man named Zeke, who is actually Camus, a major boss character from Shadow Dragon who was presumed dead, yet actually washed up on Valentia’s shores. This kind of continuity is fascinating, especially considering it was all present in the original, too, and set up Mystery for even more surprisingly detailed world building, Camus’ circumstances in particular having a large impact on the story.

Gameplay:

Fire Emblem Gaiden was considered the oddball of the series for a long time, and, to be frank, SOV doesn’t do much to change that perception. While the core gameplay is there, ie it’s still a turn based strategy game about controlling unique units and such, many mechanics are added or changed, some for the better, some for the very worse. For the better, firstly, there’s a world map system that has you physically moving between locations instead of automatically progressing to the next battle. Aside from locations containing battles, there’s also dungeons, which I’ll cover in a bit, and towns, or similar locations, where you’re allowed to talk to your units or other NPCs, or even recruit people, pick up items and examine other random stuff, and in general just take a little break before resuming your journey. It’s a small thing, but it genuinely does help the pace. Some NPCs also give side quests, of all things. Most of them consist of giving them items or killing a certain number of enemies, and the rewards aren’t always great, but it’s a good addition all the same. Another major addition is Mila’s Turnwheel, which can be used in battle to turn back time to an earlier point if, for instance, you screwed up and got a unit killed. It has a limited number of uses that can be raised by finding cogs throughout the game, and while it may seem a bit questionable in a strategy series, it is a very appreciated addition, especially due to the extra rampant amount of RNG present in certain aspects, and in general, allows you to learn from mistakes without having to redo absolutely everything.

Yet another major addition is combat arts, special techniques unlocked from having a unit use a certain weapon enough in battle. They range from simply being more accurate or raising their evasion to extremely powerful moves for Alm and Celica. While most are rather situational, it’s a very good concept in theory. And, if having to use a weapon a lot of times seems questionable due to durability, the good news is that durability is completely gone from SOV. No matter how many times you use a weapon, it’ll never break, and you don’t even need a specific weapon in your inventory, since otherwise everyone will just use generic, featureless ones. The downside is that A. equipment is much, much harder to come buy, with no armories existing, and B. the inventory system in general got overhauled, only allowing everyone to carry one item at a time, whether it be a weapon, a shield, food, or whatever else. The magic system is also vastly overhauled: instead of using tomes to attack, mages have specific spells that they cast using their HP. Every mage has a unique list of spells they can access, with properties such as a high crit rate, being able to hit from 3 spaces away instead of 2, or just being really, really powerful. This is, in my opinion, the most enjoyable change, making them much more unique than before. Clerics are also affected by this, having different healing spells and even gaining a few attack spells. On another note, instead of using items, units promote at Mila statues, usually in dungeons or a few special other locations, allowing everyone a chance to keep up rather than having to sacrifice some just because of limited resources. Classes also have three tiers instead of two, allowing a steady, more consistent progression, and you can deploy all your available units at any time during normal story battles. Another change to the classes comes with the archers, who are able to attack from much farther away, allowing them to work much better as the support attackers they’re meant to be, and even if worst comes to worst, they can attack at melee range too. There’s also a skill system, conferring a few class bonuses, such as healing adjacent units or halving magic damage. Finally, the story is rather uniquely divided into 5 acts, they’re called. The first two follow Alm and Celica, respectively, at the beginning of their journeys, and are more or less extended tutorials on various things, but acts 3 and 4 put both of them in your control, allowing you to progress with them individually. While Celica’s path is certainly less enjoyable than Alm’s just in what she has to face, it’s another addition that helps the pace, letting you choose just when to face stuff.

As for the bad stuff, there’s quite a bit to cover, unfortunately. Mostly prominently to me, dungeons. In dungeons, you wander around with free movement as your lord, collecting items, whether in treasure chests or via destroying stuff like crates and pots, and getting into encounters represented by enemies roaming around the area. If they see or hear you, they will give chase. While they’re annoying to avoid, the real bad part is that every encounter just puts you on one featureless map per dungeon. The enemies are rarely actual threats, and dungeons can actually be used to level grind, though a bit more on that in a bit, but it’s so utterly dull that dungeons quickly become a slog, regardless of their rewards. There aren’t too many of them, and all are technically optional, but act 5 takes place entirely in a long and tedious dungeon, making for a very disappointing final chapter. Plus, you can only ever bring 10 units at max into dungeons, which makes traversing and leveling even more repetitive. Unfortunately, the rest of the map design isn’t much better, even in story battles. While Shadow Dragon’s maps weren’t great, they were at least more distinct. SOV’s maps are, for the most part, very large and very barren, with enemies just being bunched up ready to charge at you, most of your units don’t have great movement to begin with, making it pretty repetitive. The maps that are more distinct are almost even worse, being set up to hinder you in any way they can, whether it be archers behind walls constantly pestering you or poison swamps that restrict your movement and damage you. Celica in particular has to deal with several maps of desert, which vastly decreases the movement of any unit that isn’t a pegasus knight, including mages, who are normally free of that restriction, and poison swamps. Additionally, since the game doesn’t go by the usual Fire Emblem chapter system, battles mostly come in smaller scale things, with less enemies. Notable setpieces are pretty rare, and occur more towards the end of the game. This does not help much, and makes a lot of battles rather disposable.

Another big damaging factor is the unit and class balancing. SOV has by far one of, if not the smallest cast in the series, featuring only 34 units total, with Alm and Celica getting 17 each. Unfortunately, the game is not properly tuned for such a small cast. Growth rates are very low all around, making 1 point level ups common, and through these bad growths or other factors, many units end up bad very easily. Some of the most infamous are Clive, a cavalier with awful growths in skill and speed, making him good as a very temporary crutch at best, Luthier, a mage who only tends to get a lot of skill, and little else, and Boey, a mage who leans towards a bizarre defensive focused approach over offense, which, in my experience, he fails at doing well regardless. While there are certainly some very powerful characters, such as the cavalier Mathilda, the mage Mae, and the three pegasus sisters, they’re pretty few and far between, barring absurd luck, making your most reliable units your lords, who are downright broken compared to the cast’s usual standards, Alm especially easily being able to solo much of the endgame. Classes aren’t well balanced either, especially with the map design in place. While mages and archers work quite well, with mages being balanced by their varying spell lists and the HP costs, and archers not having great actual attack power and needing a lot of skill to hit accurately balancing their insane range, everyone else tends to have some sort of problem. Knights tend to have a bad rap for the whole series, but they especially suffer in this from their low movement making it very hard for them to keep up in these large maps, and being extremely vulnerable to magic, along with the available units not being very good regardless. By contrast, mercenaries are downright overpowered, easily gaining a lot of attack and speed, and ultimately promoting into dread fighters, who can easily power through magic like nobody else can. The class distribution is also pretty bad. Alm gets several cavaliers and knights, but only two mages, one of which is the aforementioned Luthier, and no mercenaries by default. By contrast, Celica gets 3 mages and mercenaries, and up to 4 of one of them due to a choice of units, and 3 pegasus knights, but no cavaliers until act 4 and only one cleric. The pacing on getting them is rather questionable too, with Alm’s mages not being available until act 3, along with the cavalier example. Units also slow down on gaining EXP quite fast and quite hard, making leveling them extremely annoying, especially knowing great results aren’t going to be common.

To move onto smaller, but still notable annoyances, one unique mechanic is the villager class, the premier example, to me, of Gaiden’s ambition, and the limitations it was held back by. You see, Alm’s friends from Ram village, the 4 of them, that join him aren’t trained for combat like Alm or Lukas, and thus start in what is more or less a tier 0 class. They’re weak, but can promote starting at level 3, and actually have a choice of what to promote into. In theory, this gives them a lot of flexibility in what roles to fill. In practice, they aren’t balanced at this for all. Gray and Tobin in particular do awful in pretty much anything, and while Kliff is more flexible, he only has so much. The one exception is Faye, who was actually added in the remake specifically, having generalized growths that allow her to do well in pretty much any class, helped by having a different set available to her than everyone else. Still, as a whole, this is a badly balanced mechanic that can easily make Alm’s side way more difficult than intended, if you don’t follow the general recommendations on what to do with them. The kicker is, Celica gets a villager too, Atlas, with his main difference being coming in at act 3, compared to act 1, with growths even worse than the others, and most of his options either being heavily contested or just plain terrible for him. Another annoyance is enemies being spawned on the world map by set encounters that move and force you into a battle if you come into contact with them. This continues to happen every few turns, even for the army you aren’t controlling, and is really unnecessary. Speaking of enemies, there are some extremely irritating ones to be found, most notably the cantors and the witches. Cantors constantly summon monsters in great numbers that, while weak and really no real threat, come in such a steady stream, and often with huge ranges, make progression a slog. Witches, on the other hand, are a completely different matter. One similarity SOV has with Shadow Dragon is the abysmal resistance bases and growths, being single digit at best for both. Problem is, witches are magic attackers that not only have decent speed and more than enough power to ruin your day, but have a skill that can only be described as spiteful:, they can teleport anywhere on that map at any time, with no restrictions. Yes, the extremely dangerous units are able to just fly right next to you if you if they feel like it, and there’s nothing you can do about it. Oh, and there’s even bosses late in the game that summon witches like cantors. Have fun. There’s also no weapons triangle, and in fact, none of your units are capable of using axes, which makes things a bit duller.

Finally, there’s also a forging system added, allowing you to improve the stats of your weapons, or even forge them into superior weapons. While a nice idea in concept, it’s quite difficult to take advantage of it due to the currency system. There are two types of currency: silver marks, mainly used for more normal weapons, and gold marks, used for stronger stuff. Problem is, it’s very difficult to accumulate. You need quite a lot of silver marks to accomplish anything notable, and your main source is slowly grinding them in dungeons, usually coming in drops of one, with a few bags containing more rarely coming up. Additionally, gold marks cannot be acquired outside of a few set rewards and a very specific spot in a certain dungeon, which only gives them very rarely anyway, with the only method of getting them otherwise being converting 500 silver marks into one gold. It’s just a miserably grindy mechanic you’re more than free to ignore just to save yourself an additional headache.

Overall, a lot of SOV’s mechanics feel completely experimental. Most of what was introduced with Gaiden was completely forgotten about by the rest of the series, other than the world map though thankfully Three Houses has taken notes from some of the better received mechanics. While I can’t say it doesn’t make for an interesting game, though, SOV’s gimmicks just make it a slog overall.

Graphics:

SOV is a very pleasing game to look at. Every character has a distinct design, with the artstyle especially being downright beautiful for portraits. Class designs are also quite interesting, with a nice progression with each tier. The main attraction, though, is the battle animations. Every class comes with smooth and entertaining animations that, to me, never get tiring to watch. Whether it be counterattacking after a weak enemy blow or overly fancy crit animation, it makes for some of the best looking battles in the series. The models are also quite good, though the faces can look a bit creepy. It’s overall a very good improvement on the other 3DS titles.

Sound:

The soundtrack for SOV is easily one of the best in the series. Gaiden had some very advanced music for the NES to begin with, but SOV gives them downright amazing remixes, with some of the big highlights being with Mila’s Divine Protection, Celica’s initial map theme, the Sacrifice and the Saint, Celica’s act 4 map theme, and A Song for Bygone Days, the act 4 world map theme. It also adds several original pieces that are just as, if not superior, with my favorites being Lord of a Dead Empire, for the map containing the fight against emperor Rudolf, and the Scion’s Dance in Purgatory, Berkut’s final boss theme. SOV also comes with an amazing English voice acting dub, helped by all the dialogue being fully voiced, instead of only having short voice clips or a few voiced animated cutscenes. While a lot of the minor NPCs sound fairly ridiculous, the units all sound fantastic, special note going to the major ones, Kyle McCarley as Alm, Erica Lindbeck as Celica, Max Mittelman as Gray, Robbie Daymond as Tobin, Alexis Tipton as Clair, Chris Hackney as Boey, Cherami Leigh as Mae, and Keith Silverstein as Saber. Some of the better more minor units are Christine Marie Cabanos as Delthea, Doug Erholtz as Python, Alexis Tipton as Palla, Connor Kelly-Eiding as Catria, Brianna Knickerbocker as Est, and Mick Wingert as Jesse. The major antagonists are also great, with Richard Epcar giving a great performance as Jedah, Christopher Corey Smith hamming it up with Slayde the whole time, making him very entertaining whenever he shows up while not overshadowing how vile he is, and especially Ian Sinclair as Berkut portraying his gradual downfall perfectly every step of the way. All in all, the voice acting shows just how far Nintendo’s dubs has improved, and the soundtrack provides something I could listen to for hours.

DLC:

Here comes a new category on these reviews. I’ll also be taking a look at downloadable content offered by games with them, assuming there’s any notable, and assuming I even care to try them. SOV, unfortunately, does not have a lot going for it. It’s mainly stuff for easy EXP and money grinding, extra scummy considering how difficult those are to do normally, compared to Awakening and Fates, and additionally, there’s item grinding DLC, giving you easy access to grind for normally limited equipment to your heart’s content, including items exclusive to the DLC, astral shards, that boost growth rates of units that hold them. Other than a few free things that are just free items, though, there’s two notable packs that are worth a more detailed look.

The first is the Cipher Legends DLC, about, of all things, Fire Emblem Cipher, the Fire Emblem card game exclusive to Japan. Despite having almost no context for this, it was localized all the same. It adds 4 units originating from Cipher as units: Emma, an extremely energetic pegasus knight in training, Randal, a sleazy paladin with a bad gambling habit, Yuzu, a priestess dedicated to training, and pretty much never learned how to be social, and Shade, a saint who tries to seem cool and collected, but is prone to panicking easy. Despite seeming like a joke, they’re actually surprisingly detailed, showing a lot of personality and even coming with town conversations and supports with each other. The supports, I must mention, are the highlight of it all. They are massively improved over what’s included in the base game, being much longer and containing obvious subjects and conclusions. As far as their practicality as units, though, while they can certainly help a lot early on, and have a lot of room to grow, they aren’t quite overpowered. The DLC is split into two parts, the first involving protecting Randal from mercenaries with Emma’s help, while the second involves helping Yuzu free Shade after she’s brainwashed. They aren’t very difficult, and be cleared pretty quick, but they’re pretty fun. All in all, nowhere near essential, but a decent little pack all the same.

The second, and most notable to me, is the Rise of the Deliverance pack, a series of 4 maps taking place before the events of act 1, focusing on the various members of the Deliverance, including Fernand, who is otherwise an unplayable villain in the main story. What makes these unique are that they are very set scenarios; everything you have to work with is set, including the units, their stats, and their items, and rather than simply wiping out the enemy or defeating the boss, the only objectives of the main maps, each has a unique objective.  The first map has you take control of Clive and Fernand saving Slayde, who is still nominally allied with them, from a merchant uprising, having to protect him and rout the mercenaries hired by the merchants. While probably the least notable of all, it’s notable for allowing you control of a few generic units. The second map has Lukas, Python, and Forsyth having to attack a fort and free some of their allies and then escape. The third has Clair and Mathilda trying to escape from a ruin filled with monsters, with Clair possessing a ring that nullifies magic attacks, while Mathilda has a blessed lance effective against the monsters, forcing you to weigh their defensive and offensive capabilities while making as much progress as you can. The fourth and final has you defending Zofia castle with every member of the Deliverance, including Fernand, against Slayde, after Desaix has killed the king. Beating these maps grant items and even additional support conversations with Python, Forsyth, Lukas, Clive, Clair, and Mathilda, all of which are much better than the base game supports, like with the Cipher DLC, and additional memory prisms. While even the individual pack is a bit too expensive for my liking, this is best the DLC has to offer. If you had to get something from it, this would be my recommendation, by far. The alternate chapter goals and fast pace give them a quality surpassing the normal game, in my opinion, and my only real complaint is that I wish there were more of them.

Conclusion:

Ultimately, whether or not I’d recommend this game comes from how much you can tolerate gameplay that isn’t very well designed in exchange for great writing, music, and other aspects. If you can get over the bumps in the road, I would give this a somewhat cautious recommended. I’ve still had a decent amount of fun with the gameplay, and it’s a fantastic showing on aspects otherwise. If you can’t quite ignore that, however, it’s not recommended. With that, I’m (finally) done here. Till next time.

-Scout