#karna critical

[amatres]

gonna be honest, while she is a wonderfully played character, i do not like karna as a person at all lol. usually i love morally grey characters but i think im too attached to amangeaux to appreciate karna's character. like the scene where amangeaux had to beg karna on her knees just to be able to flee for her life with her child made my skin crawl and was probably the final nail in the coffin for me

and that on top of karna without remorse offering up amangeaux's child's life, which she didn't even have conformation was the heir to vegetania, and then her speech of getting 'drops of recognition' from amangeaux for 'her own protection and happiness' i had no sympathy for her after everything she did. it felt like she was getting mad at a woman she was trying to take advantage of who decided to prioritize herself and her year old child, who karna just agreed to kill

like yes, theres the political standing difference between them, but by that time amangeaux had no political safety and was discarded by her allies, and only a few hours ago in the game's universe was it proven by their own actions how even with supposed political advantage means nothing anything anyway and just

her careless 'im damned to rot so i have no care what suffering i put people through to get to my goal' just rubs me the wrong way along with everything else

this is no hate towards aabria, she's playing the character wonderfully and every move she makes makes sense for the character she has made, it's just karna makes me so inherently uncomfortable

[setsailforthestars]

I think it’s funny when Aabria is referred to as a forever DM but she’s currently a player in all three of the campaigns I’m tuned into at the moment (CR, D20, WBN) we love a versatile queen

[blackknight-100]

Hello there anon, and thank you for the prompt! I got so excited with this I accidentally posted your ask without answering it (I'm so sorry😭😭) so I'm afraid I have to use a screenshot. I hope you like reading this!

Character Swap - Arjuna and Karna

1.

Phalguna comes to Kuntidesha as it always does, but this year the air is colder, and the soil is wet with rain. The ponds are full and even rivers flow swifter, for Indra turns his eye upon them.

Princess Pritha bears the last few weeks of her womanly toil with ill grace; she is yet sixteen, face perpetually wrinkled in agony. The King of Gods has promised her maidenhood, Pritha thinks she would have given that up to be rid of this soreness.

When her time comes one cloudy eve, her trusted maid kneels by her screaming self, and snips the cord off a divine child.

The babe is soft and beautiful, with her looks and her smile and her curled hair; he yawns in restless sleep like a little dark moon. Pritha’s head is bent in prayer, her still-young heart is numb. She is a princess of two noble Kings, a star in the darkness of Āryavarta. Few women have her fortune, even lesser have her power, and yet she is just another girl, at the mercy of sages and gods, and the thought makes Pritha's head bow lower.

She stands by the raging Aswa as her maid gently sets the basket afloat, for foolish she may be, but cruelty comes only through her orders, and never by her hand, and the sky shatters with thunder and rain. Of all the recipients of Indra’s wrath, there has never been one more tragic.

His father from his heavenly throne names the child Arjuna, swears to guide and lead and bestow divine counsel, but as songs later let us know: he is ever known by his mothers’ names, for he is Rādha and Pritha's son.

2.

Karna is born the last of Kunti’s sons, and the third of Pāndu’s scions. He comes into the world like a shining light, with her face and her smile and her curls in his hair. For the first few weeks, Kunti cannot bear to look at the babe, and nurses him with her eyes to the sky. The sun shines upon them, bright and reprimanding, and Kunti wills Surya to chastise his own brother.

To Mādri she says, and to a concerned Pāndu, that the birth tired her, to the child she murmurs tales of a long-lost brother.

“He looked just like you,” Kunti tells him, as Karna swings in his cradle. It is a rickety thing, old as Yudhisthira, and worn with Bheema’s fervour, but it is a cradle still, and Kunti wonders if her other son ever knew one.

“I think you would have loved him,” Kunti says, wistfully, weaving dreams out of her yearning. “He would have been your big brother.”

The boy in the cradle coos at her, toothless smile lighting up the world, and for a moment his face is dark, and outside it rains, and the babe in her arms is Indra’s child.

3.

“You are terrible,” Arjuna scowls at Duryodhana, even though his father has taken great pains to counsel him otherwise. “He is just having fun.”

Duryodhana turns an interesting shade of purple. “His fun involves beating up my brothers and acting innocent when Pitāmaha asks him about it.”

Arjuna has no reason to defend this new prince, one whom he has never seen nor met, but his mouth betrays him once more. “That is not a good enough reason to kill him. You are merely jealous.”

“Kill whom?” says a voice, and Arjuna nigh jumps out of his skin as a boy swings down from the mango tree.

“Karna,” Duryodhana sighs. “Are you troubling the squirrels again?”

“No,” the boy says, shoving his fist behind his back. He is barely five and... light; his eyes are light and honey-brown, his hair is the light of sunshine on tree-barks, and his face glows like day. “You’re going to kill my brother,” he repeats stubbornly.

Arjuna blinks; his father would not forgive him for this.

Duryodhana sighs once more. “Your brother is beating mine up.”

“I will tell him not to,” Karna promises, and Arjuna is a little sorry for the boy – all wobbling lips and earnest eyes. “I will tell Mother if he does. Please don’t kill him.”

Arjuna expects Duryodhana to say something like ‘Run along, child’ or ‘Do not eavesdrop on your elders’, but the prince has an indulgent, almost fond look on his face.

“Give me that,” he says, pointing at the hand Karna has behind his back. Arjuna thinks it a cruel thing to ask, then the boy reluctantly brings out a bursting handful of areca nuts, and Arjuna has to laugh.

Duryodhana smiles as well, plucks one of the six in his hand. Karna drops two others, and as he bends to retrieve his fallen treasures, Duryodhana ruffles his hair.

“Run along now, little scamp,” the Kaurava prince says.

“Are you going to kill him?” Karna asks, eyes wide and worried.

“No,” Duryodhana assures him, “but remember what we agreed, yes?”

Karna beams at them, one after the other. “I will! See you.”

With that, he is gone.

Duryodhana cracks the nut and hands half of it to Arjuna – sinfully possessive one moment, impossibly generous the next.

Arjuna gapes at him. “Are you really not going to kill Bheem?”

Duryodhana glowers at him. “Go lay an egg,” he says, rudely, and stalks off. Arjuna stares at his retreating back, confused.

But no news comes that day, or the next, or any of the weeks after, and slowly, Arjuna learns to breathe easier.

4.

“Who is that?” Krishna asks.

Karna starts, he has not been paying attention. Krishna is the scion of faraway Dwārika, and not much of an acquaintance in any manner of the term, although the dark haired prince claims he has hardly ever been outside Vrindāvan, and never to the city by the sea.

“Pardon me,” Karna says, contrite, “whom do you speak of?”

“That boy,” says Krishna, and points towards a lone figure lurking by the stables.

“That is Arjuna. His father is Pitāmaha's charioteer.”

“May I speak to him?”

“Excuse me,” Karna hails the older boy, “can you spare a moment?”

Arjuna appears at his side, all muddy fringes and stiff bows. “Greetings, princes.”

“Greetings,” Karna nods. “This is Krishna, my cousin. Krishna, Arjuna.”

Krishna is tall and dark, his young face beams with pleasure. “How do you do, Pārtha?”

Arjuna blinks. “Uh... I am not called that. My mother’s name is Rādha.”

Krishna gives him a secret smile, and waves at someone above his head. Karna, distracted by a squirrel, nearly misses it.

“Duryodhana?” he says, delighted, when he notices the other boy on the balcony. “Come down, come down.”

Krishna shakes his arm. “Perhaps, the four of us can go to the garden?”

Sometime later, the four of them are seated around a bush, shears in hand. The rose shrub is not big enough to make a topiary out of, but Queen Gandhari has arranged tables around it with the hopes of giving the boys a more fruitful pastime to channel their excitement into.

“And what should I do?”

Arjuna is seated beside Krishna, facing the others. Duryodhana picks up his shears and snips a stray leaf. “We have to make this appear smooth and shapely.”

“Why?”

Karna stares at him. “Because Aunt Gandhari says so, of course.”

Krishna pulls his legs up on the bench, lifts a fist to the air. “Let’s dooo it!”

For the next couple of hours they work diligently, or at least pretend to, for Duryodhana starts kicking Karna under the bench, and Karna kicks him back, and it is an entertaining game; Krishna, meanwhile, shows Arjuna how and where to snip – he has clever eyes, and his hands are dexterous.

When they finally leave, one side of the bush poorer than the other, Krishna swings his hands around his new friend’s shoulders and lags behind the two princes. “You were saying Guru Drona does not want to teach you?”

Arjuna flushes. “That is true. It is er... his choice, of course, no disrespect intended.”

Krishna’s eyes twinkle. “Dau and I are going to study with Guru Sāndīpani. Do you wish to come with?”

Arjuna chances a glance at Karna, barely jealous, but there still. “I think I would like that.”

5.

“Can we not do this here?” Arjuna hisses. His father looks over from the garden where he and Rādha Mā are talking to Lord Bhishma, and Arjuna is afraid.

“Come now,” Duryodhana groans. “We are settling it man to man, just as Pitāmaha wanted. What is wrong now?”

Arjuna glances at the Pāndava brothers, aching with the weight of Anga’s crown and the knowledge of the Jatugrīha. “Why am I a part of this conversation?”

Yudhisthira coughs politely, as he is wont to. It gets on Arjuna's nerves like nothing else. “If you will excuse me,” he says, “we must greet our mother.”

The Pāndavas glance up as one, and Arjuna notices Dowager Empress Kunti hurrying down the steps.

“Mother,” Karna and Sahadeva exclaim excitably and there is a flurry of motion as they settle down to accept their blessings. To his surprise, Duryodhana follows, and he is compelled to join in the flock.

“There you are, darling,” Kunti says, pulling him up, then freezes.

Something old and forgotten stirs within Arjuna – a shadow of a memory, a wisp of a dream, a woman still as a flame with a child in her arms. Mother, he nearly says, ancient words soaring to his mouth, the shapes of them lingering on his tongue. Mother, look what we have brought home.

Then the Grandfather joins them and the moment is gone.

His father throws him a disapproving glance, and Arjuna shrinks from the princes. His mother, though, is staring at Karna.

“Vāsu...?” she whispers, as if to a ghost, and Karna turns.

“Yes, Mā?”

“His name is Karna,” Bheema declares loudly, and glares at them. The prince has not yet forgiven Arjuna’s stunt at the Graduation, even if Karna claims he would have done the same.

Radha Mā looks flustered, and Karna shifts in discomfort, as if put on a stage for a part he does not know how to play. Adhiratha grabs Arjuna and wraps an arm around his wife.

“Please forgive her, Prince,” he says, and starts pulling them away. “By your leave...”

Arjuna supposes they have embarrassed his father enough. His mother walks as if in a trance. “Vāsu?” she murmurs under her breath. “Vāsusena... child, where are you gone?”

Arjuna, alarmed, turns one last time. Karna is miserable and bewildered, staring after Rādha like a lost child, and Kunti's eyes, seeking him, are wet with tears.

+1

Arjuna sits silent and still, horror trembling beneath his skin like a fluttering bird.

“Duryodhana, please...” Arjuna whispers, unsure of what he begs, and fearful of the prince's wrath.

“I bet my brother, Karna,” Yudhisthira says, drunk on dharma and shivering with repentance. “If I win, I shall have him and all that is on the board; if you do, then he is yours.”

Karna looks up, stunned. There is betrayal on his face, and Arjuna’s heart stings. Even Duryodhana frowns, for Karna alone of all his cousins he names a friend.

“As you say,” Shakuni shrugs, and rolls his dice. “Lo! I win!”

Karna rises from his seat without being asked, walks over to kneel beside his brothers. His mien is smooth and calm now, all torment shielded behind a mask, but Bheema leaps up, enraged.

“Brother!” he tells Yudhisthira, “Hear me! Cease this madness before you lose all else.”

“I cannot leave them to this fate, Bheema,” Yudhisthira says, and picks the dice again. “I stake Bheema.”

“No, wait,” Duryodhana says, brows furrowed. “Māmāshree, do not bet now.”

The two players look up.

“No more?” Yudhisthira repeats slowly, as if he thought this game would go on forever, till the last brother was staked, and perhaps his wife and mother as well.

“Are you sure, my dear?” Shakuni asks.

Duryodhana ignores both of them, strides over to Karna. “Come with me.”

“I shall split your head open,” Bheema roars from beside Yudhisthira. “Leave him alone.”

“I won him,” Duryodhana reminds him coldly, “and I would that he comes with me.”

Karna rises with a grace that startles Arjuna, no longer the clumsy middle prince who dropped things, just like he is no longer a charioteer's dutiful son.

“I will go,” he says, and Yudhisthira turns to the court at large. “Please forgive my brother’s outburst.”

Arjuna wants to slap him.

Duryodhana wraps an arm around Karna's shoulders, and steers him to the doors. For a moment it appears that Bheema would follow, but then the Kaurava prince dismisses the guards, and they step just outside, far enough so no one can overhear whispers, but near enough that they are seen, and a fuming Bheema sits back down.

Arjuna sits and waits for a long time, like all others at court, even the blind Emperor, who can never walk without his son, and thinks miserably of how much Krishna would disapprove.

He is about to join them, either to pacify or to add fuel to the fire, when Karna speaks, loud and sarcastic enough to be heard all over the court. “I loved it. I loved it so much I am going to write a play about it, and have actors sent to perform it all over Āryavarta. Why, I should- ”

Duryodhana catches his flailing hands, shushes him. They whisper once more. The blind Emperor swivels his head in apparent confusion. Arjuna gets up to intervene.

Then Duryodhana walks in, a furious Karna in tow.

Arjuna seizes him by the arm. “Let them go, Duryodhana,” he pleads. “Do not do this.”

His patron and friend...? looks at him quietly for a long time, so long that Arjuna very nearly reaches for his bow.

Dhritarashtra, for once in his life, takes the cue. “Court is dismissed,” he calls, and the ordeal is over.

“You have counselled me wisely,” Duryodhana says at last. “Now, and before. It is a shame that I heeded you not.” Then he raises his head and says aloud, without preamble or explanation, “Let all be returned and restored to the Pāndava princes. Thank you, noble ones, for joining us in this game. We shall retire soon for lunch.”

Two years later, when the knowledge of the game is a rumour, and the incident at Indraprastha's lake is forgotten, Karna comes alone to Hastinapura. Krishna, who is visiting, gives Arjuna one of his secret smiles.

At the gates, Duryodhana meets him stiffly, for things have never been the same between the two sets of cousins. They bow ceremoniously, Dhritarashtra speaks a few half-hearted greetings, and Gandhari fusses over him.

Karna and Duryodhana stare at each other, and then Karna wraps him in a fierce hug.

“You’re not forgiven,” the Pandava prince says, voice muffled, but Arjuna notes Karna's trembling hands and thinks he knows otherwise.

Then, to his surprise, Karna turns to him. Krishna smiles at him again and whispers, “Prepare yourself, Angarāja.”

Before Arjuna can ask him what he means, Karna bows to him and says, “Greetings, brother.”

[artcinemas]

asoiaf fandom post 2018 is so wild like if i say something like "i love arya/sansa" this three word sentence will get misinterpreted as "oh so you hate sansa/arya then why do you hate feminine/non confirming women?" like hold up?!? when did i say that?

[typemoonconfessions]

[potplant-at-dreamkeepers-cottage]

I am very very very very very late to the party but I finally watched Kalki 2898 AD. It's amazing.

Everyone made real good of what they were given, even the characters that are their for for 10 minutes or less leave an big impact.

Like Kyra and Divya and Luke.

Amitabh Bachchan ate that role. He deserves all the praise he go and more

I have to confess, Bhairava turned out to be a more layered and intresting character than I had expected. I got only the spoilers I couldn't help like the posts from the official Twitter account. I knew I would love him but he did prove to be more.

The scenes where prabhas is Karnafied are spectacular, his eyes, his expressions, his body language are soooooo good

[bigfuckingfrog]

i think karna and deli’s ship name should be spicy meatballs. i know deli isn’t a meatball but it just ✨makes sense✨ yknow?

[ihaveatypeanditstrickstergods]

[hakunonon]

just saw someone accuse fate of not having any buff men which like. i accept that there’s a lot of valid criticisms or even just elements that make the franchise personally unappealing for a lot of people, but that is just a straight-up “tell me you know nothing about the series without saying you know nothing about the series” take. this person has seen one genshin fan too many calling their anaemic pretty boys ‘bara’, then maybe they saw one picture of karna or twinkgamesh and assumed that fate was exactly the same.

this person has never seen a berserker in their life.

super orion has more muscle mass than every playable genshin character combined.

[zeherili-ankhein]

Saw one more lol

“If Lord Krishna was not with the Pandavas, Karna would have ended the battle in one day”

Do you even read the actual version? 🥰

That guy? Seriously that guy? He ran away from Virat war because of Arjun.

And not to mention all the other times he fled because of Arjun.

His little ego was so hurt because of criticism he even refused to fight in kurukshetra while Bhishma was in command

Leave Arjun, he's even less capable than Satyaki, Abhimanyu or even goddamn Ashwathama for the records...

Even Bhima had defeated him once

I'm not even angry today just laughing at the pure dumbness of all the “wahh Karna so great” supporters 🫠

Also stop bringing in Krishna in each and everything Pandavas were more than capable to fight even without him

[skyred-blog]

I just go around Tumblr and see a conversation about Kunti and Karna's birth, so I just decided to give some information for people who are interested in this:

First, some people mistake this mantra for a boon. They are 2 different things. Second, Kunti didn't want this, but she was scared and decided to receive it.

She was curious about the mantra. The problem is coming, but the critical part is...

She is a YOUNG GIRL, this is very important, please remember this.

The problem begins.

(sorry because I'm not very skillful) Surya said he would do whatever she asked and yet when she asked him to return, clearly, he refused, not without giving her a son and even threatening her if she refused him. Now, where is her fault? Surya was just unreasonable.

She said that she didn't have any power over her body, well because women at the time didn't have freedom (even in modern times, they are still fighting for it.) and also because she was just A CHILD. When she talked with Krishna before Kurukshetra, she said she was given away to other people by her father when she was a child. Even Surya said she is a child.

She accepts this because she thinks about her family. She is not a selfish person.

She is just A CHILD.

Thanks to her, Karna has his famous Kavacha and Kundala.

She cares for him.

Her wish for his safety is very long, I just cut out the first part, again, she cares for him.

Now where is her problem here? She is only curious because she is just a child. Sun god Surya, at much as I respected him, is the one at fault here. From how the mantra work, he should listen to her or maybe be more generous to her, he knows she is a child after all.

(All this info from Mahabharata BORI CE vers.)

[captaintiny]

i adored this most recent episode of d20 and I'm absolutely fascinated by what karna said to amangeaux at the top of the episode, because whilst I'm totally on board for criticisms of the monarchy, it feels so bizarre coming from karna. she'll say "well done for finally catching up" regarding the notion that nobles and royals aren't special, but she then immediately goes and finds other people in positions of power to align herself with to give herself more standing. the criticism of those systems feels so shallow coming from someone whose status and influence is entirely dependent on the continued survival of those systems. she's not actually sticking up for the common man, even though it sounds like it. And i LOVE that.

[thegoodthegrandandtheugly]

(Prev, not a confession) I’ll be waiting for this to be published btw. Do your job. Stop this karna favoritism (i would know when my submissions are ignored). you know he’s nowhere near a saint like yall worship. Read the Mahabharata with your brain!

Here is the submission this anon wanted posted so badly, for the record.

I am a very patient person but I am reaching the end of my rope when it comes to the back-and-forth with Arjuna and Karna fans. Your original submission would have been posted without any issue, but being needlessly aggressive to the mods is a good way to get chewed out and not have either of us make your submission into a post. My time actually is valuable, and I am not going to dedicate any more of it to you after this.

There is no "favoritism". We just haven't gotten much, if any, Karna hate, and if you've sent any in off-anon, then we've probably blocked you, most likely for breaking our rules elsewhere. If you're so desperate to know my own personal feelings about Karna, then here: I think he's okay. There are other characters that I think are more interesting. I also think Arjuna is okay.

While many posts ago I did say that I would make up every submission into a post, that has since changed given the step back Mod M and I had to take to reflect on how we want to run this blog long-term. There was a line we needed to draw, and we have drawn it. You just can't see it.

I don't owe you anything and being this overly hostile is a good way to get blocked and have your ask tossed in the trash. Considering we're being accused of Karna "favoritism", I can only imagine you're an Arjuna fan upset about the amount of negativity we've gotten about him, and to this I say: block our blog, and log off.

Your blorbo is not real. He is part of a giant collaborative artistic process featuring multiple artists and multiple writers and within the thousands of fans that FGO has, there are going to be people who interpret him differently than you and dislike him as a character and dislike how other people interpret him. If that offends you so much, that is your problem, and I refuse to let you make it mine. Go outside, and grow up.

This applies to everyone. Your favorite character is not real and being obsessed with them to the point that any negativity directed toward them or their fans causes you a visceral negative reaction in return is not healthy. Fictional characters are part of art, and art is intrinsically up for interpretation, and your interpretation is going to be challenged. Learn to regulate your negative emotions surrounding criticism of your blorbo, and discover actual coping mechanisms. Google is free.

Here, I'll even do some of the work for you. These are the first few links I found. Here's another one.

And if you have trouble regulating your negative emotions due to mental illness, I understand. But that does not give you any right to force it to be my problem. We are strangers to you.

You don't know me. You don't know Mod M. We would like to keep it that way. Neither of us have even expressed our opinions on who our favorite characters are because of how dedicated we are to staying as neutral as possible, or at least attempting something close to it. We don't want our opinions to potentially dissuade people from sending in criticism.

The point of this blog was to create an anonymous confession zone for the FGO and wider Fate fandom that allowed criticism to allow people a space to vent their frustrations about the fandom anonymously, because just as "people should be allowed to like things", people should be allowed to dislike things, and dislike things without fear of retaliation. They should also be able to like things you dislike without fear of being retaliated against, too.

We're not under any illusions we're doing something radical or supremely important. We just thought a space like this should exist within the fandom. That's it.

And if you don't like us, fgocriticisms exists too, and they're a lovely person. I'm sure they wouldn't mind getting your submissions.

This anon is going to be blocked, and I suggest people keep an eye out in the coming days for unnecessary retaliation against some random person within the fandom who likes Karna who might be scapegoated for the crime of not liking something this anon likes, or interpreting something a different way than this anon does. God forbid they harass them for thinking they run this blog.

This is the most pathetic ask we've gotten. For your sake, and ours, I hope you go outside and take a nice walk if you can. Vitamin D deficiency can cause irritability, after all.

-Mod D

Also, we have had a negative submission regarding Karna sent in and posted before, they just don't get traction because they don't mention Arjuna. If you're going to be a hater, at least be dedicated instead of bitching when it's convenient.

-Mod M

[episodicnostalgia]

Star Trek: The Next Generation, 115 (Feb. 6, 1988) - “Too Short a Season”

Teleplay by: Michael Michaelian & D.C. Fontanta Story by: Michael Michaelian Directed by: Rob Bowman

The Breakdown

A Federation ambassador and their team have been taken hostage on Persephone V by alleged terrorists who refuse to talk to their planetary leader, Karnas.  So who WILL they talk to?  None other than the legendary Admiral Mark Jameson, who successfully negotiated a hostage situation on Persephone V, some 45 years ago.  Though his aging body has been ravaged by an incurable degenerative illness (confining him to a wheel chair), his mind is still sharp, and therefore has been given command of the mission with the aid of Picard and the Enterprise.  However, as the Enterprise makes its way to Persephone, our boy Mark begins to regain his strength and virility! This on its own should be impossible, but when the Admiral starts to rapidly grow younger it raises more than a few eyebrows. We discover that Jameson has been taking an alien de-aging treatment, which is extremely risky for most species.  With his new mission, Jameson apparently felt that he would take two full doses of the treatment all at once (instead of one dose slowly over years), so that he could be in his physical prime and ready for action. 

So why the urgent need for his restored youth?  Well, it turns out that Jameson may not have used the most ethical of tactics in that hostage situation all those years ago. You see, back in the day Karnas’ house was just one of several families fighting for planetary dominance, and he was also the dude holding the hostages that Jameson originally “negotiated to freedom.” Karnas had demanded an exchange of weapons for the lives of his hostages, so that he could gain the upper hand in his fight for political dominance.  Giving weapons to aid a non-federation civil war is strictly prohibited by the prime-directive, but seeing no other way out, Jameson opted for super neat loophole; He gave Karnas his weapons, and then once the hostages were safe, also provided all of Karnas’ enemies the same weapons, resulting in a 40 year war that killed millions (which TECHNICALLY doesn’t violate the prime directive, I guess).  Jameson then lied about all this in his report, and the federation evidently never bothered to corroborate any of it (which doesn’t speak to larger cover-up at all).

Not being the forgiving sort, Karnas has now taken the present-day federation delegates hostage in exchange for Jameson’s life (the alleged terrorists never existed).  In the mean time, that treatment that's restored Jameson’s youth has gone too far, as his health rapidly declines from his organs imploding.  Realizing this is the end of the line, Jameson gives himself over to Karnas who ultimately satisfies himself with watching Jameson die painfully in front of him.  Since he did technically get what he wanted, Karnas agrees to honour his terms, and allows the hostages to go free. 

The moral of the story: If an a guest Admiral boards your ship to command an away mission, prepare yourself for some morally dubious goings-on.

The Verdict

My biggest criticism is how little starfleet seems to hold their commanding officers accountable.  Even accepting that Karnas kept Jameson’s secret, I find it hard to believe that between all the other warring factions, that word wouldn’t have gotten back to Starfleet command/the Federation about their inadvertent sponsorship of a planetary war.  I also think that realistically Picard should have just contacted Starfleet as soon as their assigned Admiral started de-aging 50 years immediately before heading up a vital mission.  The same could be said for Jameson’s sudden decision to switch from negotiations to a surprise offensive (which fails miserably), but then I guess that would make for a short episode.  Needless to say, Picard is going to have one hell of a report to submit.

All that aside, I otherwise quite enjoyed this episode.  The story nicely sets up the reveal of Jameson’s past misdeeds, showing us that our heroes are often not what we imagine them to be.  Jameson’s actions initially feel irrational and contrived, until we understand he’s just a desperate man running from his past out of guilt and shame.  It makes for a mostly-relevant observation of the way our own political and military leadership alter history to the benefit their legacy, while avoiding accountability for their actions. Very Shakespearean stuff.

3 stars (out of 5)

Additional Observations

Power Corrupts Starfleet Admirals:  This is the first corrupt 24th century Admiral that we’ll run into, but it’s a trope that I believe goes all the way back to the TOS era. It makes sense given that Starfleet apparently has no follow-up process with commanding officers after major missions.

Jameson armed multiple hostile factions in a global dispute, ostensibly without Starfleet’s knowledge or approval; which leads me to wonder where he procured the weapons that he gave away?  Am I to believe that he used his ship’s replicators to provide enough artillery to fuel a world war?  Wouldn’t that raise a few eyebrows amongst his crew, some of whom must have had their reservations over such a questionable bargain?  As much as I enjoy Star Trek, there are some mental gymnastics one must perform in order to ignore the otherwise-fairly-obvious signs of widespread corruption within Starfleet’s upper echelons.

Although Picard and Crusher are probably the most featured main-cast members of the episode, the story is predominantly driven by Mark Jameson.  Unlike future evil-admirals who will function as proper villains, this episode comes closer to framing Jameson as the protagonist, making him more of an anti-hero.

[typemoonconfessions]

[claire-starsword]

Bloodline of the Sacred Dragons - Chapter 3-3

The rear of the Pao Train had a small deck, for embarking and disembarking and connecting to the other cars.

Deep in the night while everyone slept soundly, Camallia stood there alone.

As her hair blew away freely with the wind coming from both sides of the train, she enjoyed the scenery of the mountains surrounding the Pao Plains. They were like a pitch-black painting, moving as quietly as the stars in the sky. No matter how unchanging they looked, they were slowly but surely being passed by.

She hadn't started this journey for sightseeing.

Camallia berated herself.

Karin and Karna, and Bleu. She had no intention to meet people like them at the start. That wasn't the reason she had come to this land, was it? Those thoughts had her shaken. Because she also had the feeling deep in her heart that she had met just who she had to meet there. One day, liking it or not, she would find out which one of those thoughts was right. Though she didn't yet know when that day would come…

It's easy to drown in your own thoughts. And also, to tear them apart.

With a small noise, the door opened. Someone came by.

"…There you are."

Karin closed the door behind her.

"Do you need anything from me…?"

Camallia asked her amicably, showing a calm smile under the moonlight.

Karin didn't answer right away.

"It is very late already," Camallia warned her, ignoring how the same could be said for herself.

"I do want something…" Karin finally said after a good time, "I have a request. Don't take Bleu with you."

Her words came out like a dam had burst.

"Why is that?" Camallia asked back politely, watching Karin's face as she spoke so directly.

"He wants to go to Parmecia with you, but as long as you have the Manual you don't need him. We can just give it to you."

"Is that so?" Camallia played dumb. "Would it really be wise to give away his precious Manual to someone else? And then, what would I do about the Dragon Blood Crystal seal? Also, his people are waiting for him in Parmecia. Those are reasons enough for him to come, no? The only reason for him to stay back is some meager, selfish fear surrounding the Manual, and that's it. More importantly, Bleu himself decided to go, so no one should be able to stop him."

"No!"

"Why." She answered sharply to Karin's shout.

"Don't take Bleu away!!"

"What a weird thing to say. When have I taken Bleu away, and from who? Sure, he — Sacred Dragons are interesting. Yes, they are perfect, beautiful, and noble creatures. A simple human can't compare to them. So I want to be with him just a little longer. I want to watch up close how he feels, how he thinks. Those are my upfront intentions right now."

"I want to be by his side, too. I want him with me forever."

"Like a pet? Sacred Dragons aren't the kind of creature for that."

"No! Of course that's not what I mean!"

"No, I'm right. Sacred Dragons don't exist for your entertainment."

Karin couldn't find the words against Camallia's scathing criticism.

"He's not yours."

"And not yours either. What are you to Bleu, anyway? A mother? Sister? Or maybe, a lover…?"

Camallia knew she was tormenting her, but even so, she couldn't stop herself from asking.

"…A friend. Yes, a precious friend."

Maybe Karin didn't know yet what name to put to her feelings. Maybe humans were coward and weak creatures.

"Yes. Of course. There shouldn't be any romantic feelings between different species after all. I shouldn't fuss over what you two look like together. As a human, it doesn't concern me."

To Camallia, that was a terrible thing to say. Was there any bond more powerful and mysterious than love in this world? Someone had been asking that kind of question to the stars and wind countless times until just now.

It suddenly occurred to Camallia that she might have had some Sacred Dragon blood mixed in herself. The memories of healing Bleu's wounds came back vividly in her mind.

"Protecting someone and setting someone free are not the same thing. All you're doing is tempting him to run away."

"Wrong. Bleu is bewitched by that Manual. And you drove him to that."

"Oh my, really? I shouldn't have that kind of power. But, if he's really obsessed with the Manual, then I want to see with my own eyes what he'll do when everything is over…"

Camallia began to walk away, stopping by Karin's side as she had her head down.

"They grow up fast, don't they?" She whispered in Karin's ear, and passed her by.

Pushing the door open, Camallia entered back in the train. Closing the door, the darkness of the night and Karin within it both disappeared from her sight.

>To next part

Translation notes:

I hope the feeling came across through the translation so far, but to spell it out: Camallia usual has the most formal speech out of all characters. The moment Karin start shouting at her here, she basically drops it altogether. She's in no way rude, but far more casual and assertive.

Camallia's little monologue about love is about romantic feelings specifically, she uses the same wording as Karin does right before, I just felt it would sound very clunky in that line.