#mel's drive in

[motherfuckingcat]

[simonh]

Green Eyes by Thomas Hawk

[pearlbubbles]

Okay I have a lot of thoughts about this season, and maybe bc I never played lol that this season felt like a mess to me but I think a lot of it was due to poor writing choices,

Jayce calling Mel out for “manipulating” is insane to me. When he doesn’t hold the same sentiment for Cassandra or Victor (who was the one to allegedly give him that stone in the first place?). He acts like he had no control of his actions and I guess it’s easier for him to pin the blame on someone else than admit his faults.

Mel is a politician, he knew that when he met her. She did not make it a secret that she was basically sponsoring his research. But at the same time, she was one of the few people who advised him against making hextech weapons specifically, and went out of the way to make sure that that technology did not fall into the hands of bad actors.

however, it was Jayce and his poor decisions that kept making hextech weapons even though it went agonist his ethos, he even made weapons for Caitlyn’s special strike team, something Mel did not tell him to do lol,

like this entire time Jayce was able to use Mel’s statues and influence to get what he wants (social capital etc)

and when they get together romantically, Mel only treats him as an equal, supports his ideas (which basically let’s him do what he wants on the council bc of her influence), and is a source of emotional comfort.

so it’s really strange that he starts to view her as someone who used him, we never really see Mel confiding in Jayce besides that one time which served as a way to give the audience insight to her backstory. She’s always the comforting him, the one providing for him etc, she even serves as a buffer for Jayce against the manipulation from others, so to have him pin all the blame on her is so deranged to me lol

I also fill like the narrative of the story does nothing to counter his claims, they don’t address the other actors in the corruption of hextech for warfare (*cough cough* Caitlyn lol)

there were interesting places they could take this, there were interesting ways to explore this dynamic, but instead it got boiled down to Jayce pinning the blame on someone else because he refuses to live with the consequences of his own creations

[khazzman]

Vi, the Undercity rebel who thinks with her fists, who hates the Enforcers for what they have done to Zaun and its people. Vi who falls in love with an Enforcer, Vi who joins them, because above all she desires a "family" again, but then after everything is said and done, an Enforcer is all she has left. Until she doesn't. Then what does she have?

Jinx, the crazed killer, who talks to herself more than she speaks with others, who doesn't just kill strangers but those closest to her. Especially those closest to her. Jinx the revolutionary, who in a single act, shakes the pillars of power and oppression in Zaun. Jinx who will be a rallying cry for for the oppressed and a symbol of revolt against the powerful. All without her desire or intention to be one.

Caitlyn, the idealist, who shuns the comfort of her family's wealth to serve her city. Who runs toward danger instead of away from it. Who sees a "good heart" in Vi and the dangers of "a government who doesn't give a shit". Caitlyn the Enforcer, who sees her mother die at the hands of her love interest's sister. Caitlyn who suddenly has the weight of her House on her shoulders and all its responsibilities. Who sees the attacks on Piltover not as the defense of the oppressed but as the lashing out of "animals". Who twists her mother's philanthropy to become a boogeyman of Zaun, and then dictator of her own home. Who throws away love for vengeance.

Mel, the manipulator, the puppetmaster. She plays politicians like a fiddle and revels in the games of corruption and intrigue. Who takes a tool originally built to improve the lives of the many and ensures it stays in the hands of the rich. Who asks that weapons be made, against the wishes of its creators. Mel, the pacifist, who has seen all too closely the cost of war and the spilling of blood. Who is also quick to limit the use of the very weapons she requested. Who pushes back against her mother at every turn because she knows deep down, she refuses to ever be "the wolf".

And these are just some of the complicated characters in Arcane! I could go on about Silco the Crime Lord and Silco the Father. Jayce the Golden Boy and Jayce the Mad Scientist. Viktor the Dying and Viktor the Savior. Sevika the Stooge and Sevika the Kingmaker.

The characters of Arcane possess multitudes and THAT is what makes it a good show. Because they are walking contradictions but at the same time, make complete sense. They are so... so... human.

[williammarksommer]

Diner Sunrise

Route 66 series

Hasselblad 500c/m

Kodak Ektar 100iso

[medjaiwarrior]

Y'all?......Y'ALL?? WHAT??? That was the "dialed back version". There was more? WE WERE ROBBED OF MORE???

[blood-starved-beast]

Do you think Nemesis fantasizes about being the Knight to Melinoe's Princess and being quest-given to fight Chronos for her or something. Then she sees Melinoe out on the Run somewhere covered in blood and bruises and such and it fills her with unfathomable rage.

[autumnoakes]

okay but going back to zagreus and melinoë for a second... i think when they meet they're going to have a LOT to work on with each other if they're going to get along. zagreus likes to push boundaries and he doesn't like leaving things unresolved if there's something he can do about it and melinoë is a LOT like hades in so many ways (temperment and sometimes her tone in particular). they're going to get on each others' nerves. they're going to drive each other up the wall. they're going to need time to get to know each other and understand each other and they might not get the chance to during hades 2 (what with mel's task seeming pretty nonstop. i know she's a goddess but girl don't you get tired???).

[naarlar]

Okie so hot take: I don’t think Melinoë is as good of a protagonist as Zagreus. And here’s why.

It all comes down to motivation. Why did Zag go through the events of Hades 1? Because he was living in an abusive and volatile household and had to find some way to make things better for not just himself but his house. Otherwise he surely would have lost his mind having to deal with the abuse he got (remember at the beginning of the game basically only Nyx and Achilles were helping him. Everyone else is either neutral towards him or outright hostile). He needed answers, he needed to find out who and what he was by trying to find Persephone. And in the end he succeeded and was able to create a better life for himself and his house. Hell, even his relationship with his dad improved.

Now let’s look at Mel (yes this criticism is only addressing Early Access Hades 2). Why is she going through the events of Hades 2? Because… she’s been groomed since basically birth to kill Chronos. She doesn’t really have any other motivation than because it is what is expected of her essentially. She even says during her confrontation with Chronos, AFTER HE THREATENS TO HURT HER FAMILY, what do I care I barely know them (yeah sure she could just be bluffing to Chronos but that is still a very chilling thing to say when supposedly all of this is to save them and it makes her reunion with Hades lowkey ring hollow or weak). In another scene she even says the same thing to Hecate and says Hecate is more her mother than anyone else. Heck even in the flashback scene with young Mel and Hecate (which was very cute I’ll admit) she says she would want her mother to come back so Hecate isn’t sad. This makes all her motivations to kill Chronos and save the Underworld seem very… disconnected from the main component of the game? Being saving the house of hades and her family??

Like it’s expected of her and she was raised at birth to basically be prepared for this but she doesn’t have any personal reasons for doing any of this than just not letting Hecate and the others in the Crossroads down. Hell when she comes back from killing Chronos for the first time it honestly feels like Hecate is more interested and invested in what happened than Mel herself.

It makes her a really weird protagonist especially when comparing to her brother and how effective he was as a protagonist. Think about it, with Zag we got really in depth and character revealing moments where as the player we understand why he is doing all of this and so it is easy to go along for the ride because we like Zag and want to help him. Mel says she cares a lot about what is going on and wants revenge, but it all feels surface level (and which is understandable she doesn’t know these people, all she can say is “the titan took my family” when let’s be real she sees the people in the crossroads as more of her family). It honestly just seems like because she is expected to kill Chronos since she could think, she feels she has to do all this. It feels weird how she is disconnected from the core point of the game being to save the house of hades when Zag was so integral to that same core point in the first game.

I dunno, just my thoughts, I’m curious to see what everyone else thinks.

Edit: just fyi cause I feel with the comments I’ve been getting from my posts, I like hades 2 I am excited especially for the official release. I recognize my criticism/analysis could be wrong or out of date since the game isn’t finished yet. These are just my initial thoughts.

[sophsun1]

I find it really interesting that the writers had lindsey admit that she had been harbouring a dream fantasy about being a family with brian and gus in some form of a relationship back in S2. Then when the time came to address her obvious bisexuality and attraction to men in S4 with the cheating arc they instead decided to go 'bisexuality? who? what? we don't know her!' What was the point of all these glaring signs across the show to then backtrack so hard and go, no she cannot possibly be attracted to both. She is a lesbian, full stop.

[wheelsgoroundincircles]

John Milner at Mel's Drive-In

[simonh]

She Wore a Platinum Blonde Wig by Thomas Hawk

[melissa-titanium]

he's 13 and has just discovered the internet via ginger boy leave him be

[3dprintcess]

S18E02 outtake from Instagram featuring the honking coffin.

[williammarksommer]

Mel's Drive-In

Route 66 series

Hasselblad 500c/m

Kodak Ektar 100iso

[orangechickenpillow]

So there's definitely some protective aspect to Mel's jewelry, right? Because every time she's in danger it starts to glow and I refuse to believe that's an artistic choice